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Ancient India PYQs (previous year questions) for UPSC Prelims: Ancient India (History and Culture) had 45 questions across the 11 official UPSC Prelims papers we tagged (2016–2026), and appeared in 11 of them. Asked in 11 of 11 years. The concepts asked in the most papers: Buddhism, Harappan Civilisation, Sangam Age.
Year-wise question count
Asked in 11 of 11 years.
Most-asked concepts
Sorted by the number of papers a concept appeared in.
| Concept | Questions | Papers | Years |
|---|---|---|---|
| Buddhism | 6 | 5 | 2024, 2023, 2018, 2017, 2016 |
| Harappan Civilisation | 4 | 4 | 2026, 2025, 2021, 2019 |
| Sangam Age | 4 | 3 | 2026, 2023, 2022 |
| Mauryan Empire | 3 | 3 | 2020, 2019, 2016 |
| Archaeological Sites | 2 | 2 | 2024, 2021 |
| Trade and Commerce | 2 | 1 | 2020 |
| Vedic Period | 2 | 1 | 2026 |
| Ancient Coinage | 1 | 1 | 2026 |
| Ancient Law | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Ancient Literature | 1 | 1 | 2020 |
| Ancient Science | 1 | 1 | 2026 |
| Ancient Society | 1 | 1 | 2016 |
| Ancient Technology | 1 | 1 | 2025 |
| Ashokan Edicts | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| Early Medieval Dynasties | 1 | 1 | 2020 |
| Early Medieval South India | 1 | 1 | 2016 |
| Gupta Empire | 1 | 1 | 2025 |
| Gupta Period | 1 | 1 | 2019 |
| Historical Places | 1 | 1 | 2020 |
| Jainism | 1 | 1 | 2026 |
| Land Measurement | 1 | 1 | 2020 |
| Mahajanapadas | 1 | 1 | 2025 |
| Mauryan Administration | 1 | 1 | 2025 |
| Mauryan Society | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| Pallavas | 1 | 1 | 2025 |
| Post-Gupta Kingdoms | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Religious Scholars | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| Vedic and Harappan Cultures | 1 | 1 | 2017 |
| Vedic Literature | 1 | 1 | 2026 |
How to practise Ancient India PYQs
- Start with the concepts at the top of the table. They have come back the most.
- Solve one year’s Ancient India questions from the official PDF against the clock, then check the answer listed below.
- Log every miss as a concept gap, a calculation slip or a misread. Each needs a different fix.
- Once a concept is clean in two papers, move to the next. Then sit a full paper from the year pages.
Questions by year
Each line gives the question number, type, concept, our one-line summary and the official answer, with a link to the official PDF.
UPSC Prelims2026
- Q.3 · MCQ · Ancient Coinage: What Pali texts and punch-marked coins indicate about the economy PDF
- Q.5 · MCQ · Jainism: Form of existence of life not recognised in Jainism PDF
- Q.7 · MCQ · Ancient Science: Earliest use and spread of the place-value system PDF
- Q.8 · MCQ · Harappan Civilisation: Inferences from Harappan archaeological findings PDF
- Q.10 · MCQ · Vedic Period: Evidence on well irrigation and farm tools in the Rigvedic age PDF
- Q.13 · MCQ · Vedic Period: Match ancient and modern names of Punjab rivers PDF
- Q.15 · MCQ · Sangam Age: Match early Tamil kings with their dynasties PDF
- Q.20 · MCQ · Vedic Literature: Text where the term kshetra-patni first appears PDF
UPSC Prelims2025
- Q.13 · MCQ · Ancient Technology: Identify the irrigation device called Araghatta PDF
- Q.14 · MCQ · Pallavas: Ruler who took titles Mattavilasa, Vichitrachitta, Gunabhara PDF
- Q.15 · MCQ · Gupta Empire: Reign during which Fa-hien visited India PDF
- Q.17 · MCQ · Mahajanapadas: Match ancient territorial regions with their rivers PDF
- Q.19 · MCQ · Mauryan Administration: Level of Ashokan officers Pradeshika, Rajuka and Yukta PDF
- Q.72 · MCQ · Harappan Civilisation: Material of the Dancing Girl figurine from Mohenjo-daro PDF
UPSC Prelims2024
UPSC Prelims2023
UPSC Prelims2022
- Q.56 · MCQ · Religious Scholars: Matching Aryadeva, Dignaga and Nathamuni with traditions (official answer: C) PDF
- Q.60 · MCQ · Mauryan Society: Status of slaves according to Kautilya's Arthashastra (official answer: B) PDF
- Q.91 · MCQ · Ashokan Edicts: Matching Ashoka's major rock edict sites with states (official answer: B) PDF
- Q.93 · MCQ · Sangam Age: Correct statement about Sangam literature (official answer: B) PDF
UPSC Prelims2021
- Q.32 · MCQ · Harappan Civilisation: Ancient town known for its water management system (official answer: A) PDF
- Q.34 · MCQ · Post-Gupta Kingdoms: Kingdoms ruling North India between Guptas and Harsha (official answer: B) PDF
- Q.37 · MCQ · Archaeological Sites: Match ancient sites with what they are known for (official answer: D) PDF
- Q.40 · MCQ · Ancient Law: Statements on Mitakshara and Dayabhaga systems (official answer: B) PDF
UPSC Prelims2020
- Q.24 · MCQ · Early Medieval Dynasties: Chronological order of Pratihara, Pallava, Chola and Pala events (official answer: C) PDF
- Q.25 · MCQ · Trade and Commerce: Meaning of 'Hundi' in post-Harsha sources (official answer: C) PDF
- Q.29 · MCQ · Land Measurement: Meaning of the terms kulyavapa and dronavapa (official answer: A) PDF
- Q.30 · MCQ · Mauryan Empire: Ruler whose inscription advised against glorifying one's own sect (official answer: A) PDF
- Q.36 · MCQ · Ancient Literature: Associating ancient scholars with contemporary rulers (official answer: C) PDF
- Q.82 · MCQ · Trade and Commerce: What Gupta-era towns Ghantasala, Kadura and Chaul were known as (official answer: A) PDF
- Q.97 · MCQ · Historical Places: Match historical places with present-day States (official answer: A) PDF
UPSC Prelims2019
- Q.7 · MCQ · Harappan Civilisation: Which listed place is not a Harappan site (official answer: C) PDF
- Q.8 · MCQ · Mauryan Empire: Inscription naming 'Ranyo Ashoka' with Ashoka's stone portrait (official answer: A) PDF
- Q.10 · MCQ · Gupta Period: Forced labour (Vishti) during the Gupta period (official answer: A) PDF
UPSC Prelims2018
- Q.74 · MCQ · Buddhism: The future Buddha yet to come (official answer: C) PDF
UPSC Prelims2017
UPSC Prelims2016
- Q.39 · MCQ · Mauryan Empire: Who first deciphered Ashoka's edicts (official answer: B) PDF
- Q.50 · MCQ · Buddhism: Statements on the Bodhisattva concept (official answer: B) PDF
- Q.80 · MCQ · Early Medieval South India: Matching Eripatti, Taniyurs and Ghatikas with meanings (official answer: D) PDF
- Q.89 · MCQ · Ancient Society: Profession of memorising chronicles and epic tales (official answer: D) PDF
Other History and Culture topics
FAQ
How many Ancient India questions come in UPSC Prelims?
In the official papers we tagged: 8 in 2026, 6 in 2025, 3 in 2024, 3 in 2023, 4 in 2022, 4 in 2021, 7 in 2020, 3 in 2019, 1 in 2018, 2 in 2017 and 4 in 2016. That is 45 questions in all, about 25% of History and Culture.
Which Ancient India topics repeat in UPSC Prelims?
Asked in the most papers: Buddhism, Harappan Civilisation, Sangam Age. The concept table lists every one with its count.
Are these official UPSC Prelims questions?
Yes. Every question is from an official UPSC Prelims paper hosted on our year pages. The one-line summaries are ours; open the PDF linked beside each question for the full text.