The archaeologist ________________ excavated at a village named Hastinapura in Meerut (Uttar Pradesh).
Answer & explanation
Correct answer: option 2
The correct answer is Option (2) → B.B. Lal
In 1951-52 the archaeologist B.B. Lal excavated at a village named Hastinapura in Meerut (Uttar Pradesh). He was trying to find out whether this was the Hastinapura of the Mahabharata. The name could be a coincidence, but the site lies in the Upper Ganga doab, where the Kuru kingdom was, so it may have been the capital of the Kurus mentioned in the epic.
Note: A same/similar question was asked in CUET (UG) in the papers below.
| 2026 | 2025 | 2024 | 2023 | 2022 |
| 21-05 S2 23-05 S2* | – | – | – | – |
* A similar question.
NCERT (2025-26): “6.3 The search for convergence … The Mahabharata, like any major epic, contains vivid descriptions of battles, forests, palaces and settlements. In 1951-52, the archaeologist B.B. Lal excavated at a village named Hastinapura in Meerut (Uttar Pradesh). Was this the Hastinapura of the epic? While the similarity in names could be coincidental, the location of the site in the Upper Ganga doab, where the Kuru kingdom was situated, suggests that it may have been the capital of the Kurus mentioned in the text.…” |