Read the passage and answer the question:
Representations on seals and terracotta sculpture indicate that the bull was known and that oxen were used for ploughing. Moreover, terracotta models of the plough have been found at sites in Cholistan and at Banawali. Archaeologists have found evidence of a ploughed field at Kalibangan... Most Harappan sites are located in semi-arid lands, where irrigation was probably required for agriculture. Traces of canals have been found at the Harappan site of Shortughai... Besides, water reservoirs have been found in Dholavira.
Who was the first Director-General of the Archaeological Survey of India?
Answer & explanation
Correct answer: option 1
The correct answer is Option (1) → Alexander Cunningham
Alexander Cunningham, often called the father of Indian archaeology, was the first Director-General of the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI).
Note: A same/similar question was asked in CUET (UG) in the papers below.
| 2026 | 2025 | 2024 | 2023 | 2022 |
| 11-05 S2* 24-05 S1 | 28-05 S1* | 19-07 S1* | 30-05 S2 13-06 S1* 16-06 S2* 23-06 S3* | 21-08 S2 |
* A similar question.
NCERT (2026-27): “10.1 Cunningham’s confusion … When Cunningham, the first Director-General of the ASI, began archaeological excavations in the midnineteenth century, archaeologists preferred to use the written word (texts and inscriptions) as a guide to investigations. I n fact, Cunningham’s main interest was in the archaeology of the Early Historic (c. sixth century BCE -fourth century CE) and later periods. He used the accounts left by Chinese Buddhist pilgrims who had visited the subcontinent between the fourth and seventh centuries CE to locate early settlements. Cunningham also collected, documented and translated inscriptions found during his surveys. When he excavated sites he tended to recover artefacts that he thought had cultural value.…” |