Chapter 6 The Beginnings of Indian Civilisation Extra Questions Answers Class 6 Social Science
Extra Question Answer of The Beginnings of Indian Civilisation for Class 6 SST is available on this page of studyrankers website. This chapter is from NCERT Textbook for Class 6 Science named Exploring Society India and Beyond. This textbook is published by NCERT (National Council of Educational Research and Training). Class 6 Social Science Textbook published by NCERT is prescribed for CBSE students. Chapter 6 The Beginnings of Indian Civilisation Important Questions are very helpful in understanding the chapter clearly and in easy manner. Students can also find NCERT Solutions for The Beginnings of Indian Civilisation on this website for their reference. It is very helpful for class 6 students in preparing for the examination. We have included all the important questions and answers from all the topics of The Beginnings of Indian Civilisation chapter of class 6 SST ncert textbook. Students can also find all the Revision Notes of The Beginnings of Indian Civilisation chapter for understanding the chapter which is in the textbook updated to latest pattern of cbse and ncert.
Extra Questions for Chapter 6 The Beginnings of Indian Civilisation Class 6 Social Science
Very Short Answer Questions
Question 1. What defines a civilization?
Answer
A civilization is defined by government, urbanism, crafts, trade, writing, cultural ideas, and productive agriculture.
Question 2. Where did civilization begin approximately 6,000 years ago?
Answer
Civilization began in Mesopotamia, located in modern-day Iraq and Syria.
Question 3. What river provides water to the fields in Punjab and Sindh?
Answer
The Indus River provides water to the fields in Punjab and Sindh.
Question 4. Why are the ancient civilization's people called 'Harappans'?
Answer
They are called 'Harappans' because Harappa was the first city excavated by archaeologists.
Question 5. What major ancient river flowed through Haryana and Punjab?
Answer
The Sarasvati River flowed through Haryana and Punjab.
Question 6. When did the urbanization of the Indian subcontinent begin?
Answer
Urbanization began around 3500 BCE.
Question 7. What structure is famously known in Mohenjo-daro?
Answer
The Great Bath is a famous structure in Mohenjo-daro.
Question 8. Did the Harappans have advanced water management systems?
Answer
Yes, they had sophisticated water management systems, including drains and reservoirs.
Question 9. What types of cereals did the Harappans cultivate?
Answer
They cultivated barley, wheat, millets, and occasionally rice.
Question 10. What was the significance of Lothal in Harappan trade?
Answer
Lothal featured a large dockyard for loading and unloading goods, crucial for trade.
Question 11. What material did Harappan artisans use to make beads?
Answer
They used carnelian, a reddish stone, to make beads.
Question 12. What was a primary reason for the decline of the Harappan civilization?
Answer
Climatic change leading to reduced rainfall and drought contributed to the decline.
Question 13. What did Harappans use to manage their trade?
Answer
They used small seals made from steatite for managing trade.
Question 14. Which two key cities were discovered in 1924 that led to identifying the Indus Valley Civilization?
Answer
Harappa and Mohenjo-daro were the key cities discovered in 1924.
Question 15. What type of agriculture did the Harappans practice?
Answer
They practiced large-scale organized agriculture supported by river irrigation.
Question 16. What was one of the primary goods exported by the Harappans?
Answer
The Harappans exported ornaments as one of their primary goods.
Question 17. What did the Great Bath in Mohenjo-daro possibly serve as?
Answer
It possibly served as a public bath or a location for religious rituals.
Question 18. How did the Harappans ensure effective water supply in their cities?
Answer
They constructed reservoirs and connected them through underground drains.
Question 19. What was one unexpected ingredient found in Harappan cooking pots?
Answer
Turmeric was one unexpected ingredient found in their cooking pots.
Question 20. What civilization is recognized as one of the oldest in the world?
Answer
The Harappan civilization is recognized as one of the oldest in the world.
Short Answer Questions
Question 1. What is a civilisation ?
Answer
A civilisation is an advanced stage of human society with specific features. It includes a government to manage people, planned cities with water and drainage systems, and various crafts like making tools and ornaments.
- It also needs trade within and beyond its region, a writing system for records, cultural ideas shown in art or customs, and enough farming to feed cities.
- These traits show how groups grow beyond simple villages, organizing life in complex, thriving ways, like the Harappans did long ago.
Question 2. Why is the Harappan civilisation called by different names?
Answer
The Harappan civilisation is called Indus, Harappan, or Indus-Sarasvati because of its key areas. ‘Indus’ comes from the Indus River region where cities like Mohenjo-daro grew. ‘Harappan’ honors Harappa, the first city dug up over 100 years ago. ‘Indus-Sarasvati’ includes the Sarasvati River, once vital but now seasonal, where many sites thrived. These names reflect its wide reach across rivers and discoveries over time.
Question 3. How did villages turn into cities in the Harappan civilisation?
Answer
Around 3500 BCE, villages in the fertile plains of Punjab and Sindh, watered by the Indus and Sarasvati rivers, grew into towns. By 2600 BCE, trade and exchanges expanded these into cities. The rich soil helped farming, supporting more people and bigger settlements. This shift, called the First Urbanisation of India, built the Harappan civilisation, with planned cities like Harappa and Mohenjo-daro rising from simple village roots.
Question 4. What role did the Sarasvati River play in the Harappan civilisation?
Answer
The Sarasvati River, flowing from the Himalayas through Haryana and Gujarat, was key to the Harappan civilisation. It supported cities like Rakhigarhi and Kalibangan with water and fertile land for farming. Praised in the Rig Veda as a goddess and river, it later dried up, turning into the seasonal Ghaggar-Hakra. Its many sites show it was as vital as the Indus, shaping the civilisation’s growth until its decline.
Question 5. How were Harappan cities planned?
Answer
Harappan cities were carefully planned with wide streets aligned to cardinal directions, like north-south.
- They had fortifications for protection and split into an upper town for elites and a lower town for others. Houses, big and small, used uniform bricks, showing equal building quality.
- Large structures like warehouses served everyone, while unique features, like Dholavira’s three zones, highlight their smart, organized layouts.
Question 6. What was the Great Bath in Mohenjo-daro used for?
Answer
The Great Bath in Mohenjo-daro, a waterproof tank about 12×7 meters, might have been a royal bath or a religious ritual site. Surrounded by rooms with a well and drain, it wasn’t a public bath since most homes had bathrooms. Archaeologists debate its purpose—maybe for kings or ceremonies—because no texts explain it. Its careful design suggests it held special importance to the Harappans.
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Great Bath in Mohenjo-daro |
Question 7. How did the Harappans manage water in their cities?
Answer
The Harappans excelled at water management, building home bathrooms linked to street drains for waste. Mohenjo-daro had hundreds of brick wells, while Dholavira boasted massive stone reservoirs, the largest 73 meters long, connected by underground channels. These systems kept cities clean and supplied water from rivers, ponds, or rain, showing their focus on hygiene and smart planning.
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A large reservoir cut in the rock at Dholavira, measuring 33 metres in length |
Question 8. What crops did the Harappans grow?
Answer
The Harappans grew cereals like barley, wheat, millets, and sometimes rice near rivers. They also cultivated pulses, vegetables, and were the first in Eurasia to grow cotton for clothes. Living by the Indus and Sarasvati, they used fertile soil and tools like ploughs to farm enough to feed villages and cities, proving their agricultural skill supported a big population.
Question 9. What animals did the Harappans domesticate, and why?
Answer
The Harappans domesticated animals like cattle, goats, and others for meat, as found in excavated bones. They also fished in rivers and seas, adding to their food supply. These animals, raised near settlements, provided protein since crops alone weren’t enough. This mix of farming and animal-keeping helped sustain their cities, showing a balanced way to live off the land.
Question 10. How did the Harappans trade with other regions?
Answer
The Harappans traded actively, sending ornaments like carnelian beads, timber, gold, cotton, and possibly food to nearby and far-off places like Oman and Iran. They imported copper, scarce at home, using land routes, rivers, and sea paths. Coastal sites like Lothal had a huge dockyard for boats, proving they pioneered sea trade in India, connecting their crafts to the world.
Question 11. What were Harappan seals used for?
Answer
Harappan seals, small steatite squares with animal figures and writing, helped in trade. Traders likely used them to mark goods or identify themselves, like labels or signatures. Found across settlements, these hardened stones show animals like bulls or unicorns, but their script and symbols remain a mystery. They hint at an organized system to manage the bustling exchange of goods.
Question 12. What everyday objects did the Harappans make?
Answer
The Harappans crafted bronze mirrors, terracotta pots, stone weights, and bronze chisels for daily use. They also made fun items like gamesboards carved in stone and tiny terracotta whistles. These objects, dug up from sites like Dholavira, show they worked metals and clay skillfully, blending practicality with play, giving us a peek into their busy, creative lives.
Question 13. What do Harappan artworks tell us about their culture?
Answer
Harappan artworks, like the bronze ‘Dancing Girl’ with bangles, a ‘Priest King’ statuette, and a pot with a thirsty crow story, reflect their culture. Seals with swastikas or three-faced deities suggest beliefs, while the ‘namaste’ figurine hints at gestures we still see. These pieces show skill, imagination, and traditions that lived on, linking their world to ours.
Question 14. Why did the Harappan civilisation decline around 1900 BCE?
Answer
The Harappan civilisation declined around 1900 BCE due to climate change and the Sarasvati River drying up. A drier phase from 2200 BCE cut rainfall, hurting farming and food for cities. The Sarasvati’s loss left sites like Kalibangan empty. No signs of war appear—just nature’s shift. People returned to rural life, scattering into smaller settlements as cities faded.
Question 15. How did Harappan culture survive after the cities ended?
Answer
After Harappan cities emptied around 1900 BCE, their culture didn’t vanish. Rural settlers kept using their farming tools, like ploughs, and crafts like pottery. Traditions, seen in bangles or stories like the thirsty crow, passed down too. Though the government dissolved, these skills and ideas flowed into India’s next phase, proving their ways outlasted the urban decline.
Long Answer Questions
Question 1. What are the key features that define the Harappan civilisation?
Answer
- Governing Wisely: Had rulers and systems to organize complex city life.
- Building Smart Cities: Planned towns with streets and fortifications, like Harappa.
- Crafting with Skill: Made tools, ornaments, and goods from stone and metal.
- Trading Far and Wide: Exchanged beads and cotton with distant lands.
- Writing for Records: Used seals with the script to track trade and goods.
- Expressing Culture: Created art, like the ‘Dancing Girl,’ showing beliefs.
- Farming to Feed All: Grew crops like wheat to supply cities and villages.
- Managing Water Well: Built drains and reservoirs for clean living.
Question 2. How did the Harappans plan and build their cities?
Answer
- Laying Out Streets: Designed wide roads in straight lines, facing north or south.
- Dividing the Towns: Split cities into upper zones for elites, lower for others.
- Raising Strong Walls: Added fortifications to protect settlements from harm.
- Using Uniform Bricks: Built all houses, big or small, with the same quality bricks.
- Storing for Trade: Erected warehouses to hold goods for transport.
- Crafting Special Sites: Made places like the Great Bath, possibly for rituals.
- Cutting Rock Reservoirs: In Dholavira, carved stone tanks for water storage.
- Linking with Drains: Connected homes to underground drains for waste.
- Planning with Care: Showed advanced thought in every city’s layout and needs.
Question 3. What did the Harappans eat, and how did they get their food?
Answer
- Growing Grains: Farmed barley, wheat, millets, and rice for meals.
- Adding Pulses: Raised lentils and beans for extra nourishment.
- Cultivating Veggies: Planted vegetables to vary their diet.
- Pioneering Cotton: Grew cotton first in Eurasia for weaving clothes.
- Using Ploughs: Made clay ploughs to till fields efficiently.
- Raising Animals: Kept cattle and goats for meat supply.
- Fishing Waters: Caught fish from rivers and seas for food.
- Cooking Spices: Used turmeric and ginger, found in pots, for flavour.
- Feeding Cities: Villages sent crops daily to keep urban life thriving.
Question 4. How did trade shape the Harappan civilisation?
Answer
- Exporting Treasures: Sent carnelian beads, timber, and cotton abroad.
- Importing Metals: Brought in copper, rare in their lands, for tools.
- Sailing the Seas: Used Gujarat’s coast and Lothal’s dock for boats.
- Marking with Seals: Stamped goods with steatite seals for trade clarity.
- Crafting Fine Goods: Made shell bangles and bronze items to sell.
- Connecting Near Cities: Traded within their region for daily needs.
- Reaching Far Lands: Linked to Iran and Oman with ivory combs.
- Building Big Docks: Lothal’s 217-meter basin held trading vessels.
- Boosting Skills: Grew rich and skilled through this lively exchange.
Question 5. Why did the Harappan cities fall, and what happened next?
Answer
- Facing Dry Times: Climate turned arid from 2200 BCE, cutting rain.
- Losing Sarasvati: River dried up, abandoning cities like Kalibangan.
- Struggling with Food: Less water hurt crops, starving urban areas.
- Ruling No More: Government faded, leaving cities unmanaged.
- Shifting to Villages: People left for rural life by 1900 BCE.
- Keeping Old Ways: Took farming tools and crafts to new homes.
- Passing Down Tales: Kept stories, like the crow, in rural lore.
- Avoiding War’s Blame: No signs of fighting—just nature’s toll.