A closer look of Inamgaon

Inamgaon is a site on the river Ghod, a tributary of the Bhima. It is a megalithic site. It was occupied between 3600 and 2700 years ago. Here,adults were generally buried in the ground, laid out straight, with the head towards the north. Sometimes burials were within the houses. Vessels that probably contained food and water were placed with the dead.

Archaeologists have found seeds of wheat, barley, rice, pulses, millets, peas and sesame. Bones of a number of animals, many bearing cut marks that show they may have been used as food, have also been found. These include cattle, buffalo, goat, sheep, dog, horse, ass, pig, sambhar, spotted deer, blackbuck, antelope, hare, and mongoose, besides birds, crocodile, turtle, crab and fish. There is evidence that fruits such as ber, amla, jamun, dates and a variety of berries were collected.

Some Important Dates in Ancient Indian History

Some Important Dates in Ancient Indian History
  • Cotton cultivation at Mehrgarh (about 7000 years ago)
  • Beginning of cities (about 4700 years ago)
  • Beginning of the end of these cities (about 3900 years ago)
  • The emergence of other cities (about 2500 years ago)
  • Beginning of the composition of the Vedas (about 3500 years ago)
  • Beginning of the building of megaliths (about 3000 years ago)
  • Settlement at Inamgaon (between 3600 and 2700 years ago)
  • Charaka (about 2000 years ago)
  • New kinds of rajas (about 3000 years ago) 
  • Mahajanapadas (about 2500 years ago)
  • Alexander’s invasion, composition of the Digha Nikaya (about 2300 years ago)
  • End of the ganas or sanghas (about 1500 years ago)

  • Upanishadic thinkers, the Jaina teacher Mahavira and the
    Buddha (about 2500 years ago).
  • Writing down of the Jaina texts (about 1500 years ago)
  • Beginning of the Mauryan empire (more than 2300 years ago)
  • Beginning of the use of iron in the subcontinent (about 3000 years ago)
  • Increase in the use of iron, cities, punch marked coins (about 2500 years ago)
  • Beginning of the composition of Sangam literature (about 2300 years ago)
  • Settlement in Arikamedu (between 2200 and 1900 years ago)



     



Harappan towns in Gujarat

Harappan cities of Gujarat, India
City of Dholavira : located on Khadir Beyt in the Rann of Kutch. Dholavira was divided into three parts, and each part was surrounded with massive stone walls. There was also a large open area in the settlement. Large letters of the Harappan script that were carved out of white stone and perhaps inlaid in wood were found.

City of Lothal :
stood beside a tributary of the Sabarmati, in Gujarat, close to the Gulf of Khambat. It was situated near areas where raw materials such as semi-precious stones were easily available. This was an important centre for
making objects out of stone, shell and metal. There was also a store house in the city. Many seals and sealings (the impression of seals on clay) were found in this storehouse. A dockyard was excavated at Lothal. This huge tank may have been used as a dockyard, where boats and ships came in from the sea and through the river channel. Goods were probably loaded and unloaded here.

The Earliest cities in subcontinent

The Earliest cities in subcontinent
These cities were found in the Punjab and Sind in Pakistan, and in Gujarat, Rajasthan, Haryana and the Punjab in India. Archaeologists have found a set of unique objects in almost all these cities: red pottery painted with designs in black, stone weights, seals, special beads, copper tools, and long stone blades.

A closer look of Mehrgarh

Beginning of settlement at Mehrgarh (about 8000 years ago). This site is located in a fertile plain, near the Bolan Pass, which is one of the most important routes into Iran. Mehrgarh was probably one of the places where women and men learnt to grow barley and wheat, and rear sheep and goats for the first time in this area. It is one of the earliest villages that we know about.

Archaeologists who excavated the site found evidence of many kinds of animal bones from the earliest levels. These included bones of wild animals such as the deer and pig. In later levels, they found more bones of sheep and goat, and in still later levels, cattle bones are most common, suggesting that this was the animal that was generally kept by the people.

Other finds at Mehrgarh include remains of square or rectangular houses. Each house had four or more compartments, some of which may have been used for storage. Several burial sites have been found at Mehrgarh. In one instance, the dead person was buried with goats, which were probably meant to serve as food in the next world.


Some important archaeological sites in India

Some important archaeological sites in India
Many sites were located near sources of water, such as rivers and lakes.

Bhimbetka (in present-day Madhya Pradesh).Some sites, known as habitation sites, are places where people lived. These include caves and rock shelters such as the one shown here. People chose these natural caves because they provided shelter from the rain, heat and wind. Natural caves and rock shelters are found in the Vindhyas and the Deccan plateau. These rock shelters are close to the Narmada valley.

Traces of ash have been found in Kurnool caves. This suggests that people were familiar with the use of fire.

A number of early Palaeolithic sites were found at Hungsi. At some sites, a large number of tools, used for all sorts of activities, were found. These were probably
habitation-cum factory sites.

Sites of grain and bones of domesticated animals


Grain and Bones Sites
Wheat, barley, sheep, goat, cattle Mehrgarh (in present day-Pakistan)
Rice, fragmentary animal bones Koldihwa (in present-day Uttar Pradesh)
Rice, cattle (hoof marks on clay surface) Mahagara (in present-day Uttar Pradesh)
Wheat and lentil Gufkral (in present-day Kashmir)
Wheat and lentil, dog, cattle, sheep, goat, buffalo Burzahom (in present-day Kashmir)
Wheat, green gram, barley, buffalo, ox Chirand (in present-day Bihar)
Millet, cattle, sheep, goat, pig Hallur (in present-day Andhra Pradesh)
Black gram, millet, cattle, sheep, pig Paiyampalli (in present-day Andhra Pradesh)

Domestication of plants and animals

Domestication was a gradual process that took place in many parts of the world. It began about 12,000 years ago. Virtually all the plant and animal produce that we use as food today is a result of domestication. Some of the earliest plants to be domesticated were wheat and barley. The earliest domesticated animals include sheep and goat.

Amongst animals, those that are relatively gentle are selected for breeding. As a result, gradually, domesticated animals and plants become different from wild animals and plants.

Paleolitic, Mesolithic and Neolithic periods

Palaeolithic period (old stone age): The Palaeolithic period extends from 2 million years ago to about 12,000 years ago. This long stretch of time is divided into the Lower, Middle and Upper Palaeolithic. This long span of time covers 99% of human history.

Mesolithic period (middle stone age): From 12,000 years to 10,000 ago. Stone tools found during this period are generally tiny, and are called microliths.

Neolithic period : from 10,000 years ago.



What are BC, AD, CE, BCE and BP ?

BC  stands for Before Christ

AD stands for Anno Domini meaning ‘in the year of the Lord’ (i.e. Christ).

Sometimes CE is used instead of AD and BCE instead of BC. The letters CE stand for ‘Common Era’ and BCE for ‘Before Common Era’.

BP stands for Before Present


The Kandhahar bi lingual inscription of Ashoka

The Kandhahar bi lingual inscription of Ashoka
This inscription was written in two different scripts and languages, Greek (top) and Aramaic (below), which were used in this area.

Rivers of Indian subcontinent map

The Rivers of India
The Rivers of India

Transparent, Opaque and Translucent objects

If we cannot see through an object at all, it is an opaque object. 
If we are able to see clearly through an object, it is allowing light to pass through it and is transparent
If we can see through an object, but not very clearly. It is a translucent object.

Some diseases or disorders caused by deficiency of vitamins and minerals


Vitamin/Mineral Deficiency disease/disorder Symptoms



Vitamin A Loss of vision Poor vision, loss of vision in darkness (night), sometimes complete loss of vision



Vitamin B1 Beriberi Weak muscle and very little energy to wok



Vitamin C Scurvy Bleeding gums, Wounds take long time to heal



Vitamin D Rickets Bones become soft and bent



Calcium Bone and tooth decay Weak bones, tooth decay



Iodine Goiter Glands in the neck appear swollen, mental disability in children



Iron Anaemia Weakness

WTO Ministerial Conferences

VenueYear
SingaporeDecember 1996
GenevaMay 1998
Seattle Nov-Dec1999
DohaNovember 2001
CancĂșnSeptember 2003
Hong KongDecember 2005
GenevaNov-Dec 2009
GenevaDecember 2011

IMF Conditions on India

During the early 1990 BoP crisis, India borrowed from IMF. The loan given by the IMF has the following conditions.
  1. Rupee devaluation by 22%. 
  2. Custom duty cut from 130% to 30% for all goods. 
  3. 20% increase in Excise duty to neutralise the loss of custom duty revenue.
  4. 10% per annum cut in government expenditure.

Terminator Technology

The phrase terminator technology has been coined by the Rural Advancement Foundation Institute (RAFI). It is a Canadian NGO. The terminator technology is basically a biotechnological technique which creates sterile seeds by programming a plant's DNA to kill it's own embryo.

The technique alters four genes in the seeds of plants in such a manner that the second generation seeds (seeds generated from plants which themselves have been raised from genetically altered seeds) become incapable of germination. Technically called as control of Plant gene expression, a patent has been obtained jointly by the Delta Pine Land Company and US Department of Agriculture.

The technique is still in the experimental stage and is being experimented on cotton and tobacco.

Hib vaccine to be introduced in India

Haemophilus influenzae type B vaccine is a vaccine used for curing disease caused by Haemophilus influenzae type b bacteria. It is a pentavalent (five-in-one) vaccine. It will be introduces in 2012 and will replace the DPT and Hepatitis ‘B’ vaccines. The vaccine will be given at the sixth, 10th and 14th weeks.

It will be introduced in India to prevent pneumonia among children,and is an essential component of a strategy to cut child mortality, and immunisation against Hib, measles and whooping cough is the most effective way.

Vaccinations against Haemophilus influenzae (Hib) have decreased early childhood meningitis significantly in developed countries and recently in other developing countries.

Gene Therapy

Gene Therapy is a technique for repairing defective genes which cause a particular disease by using insertion, alteration, or removal of genes. The technology is still in its infancy.

Isthmus

Isthmus is a narrow strip of land connecting two larger land areas. It's sides are covered by water. Usually they obstruct the ocean navigation and canals are constructed to overcome them.

Some famous Isthmuses:
  • The Isthmus of Kra connecting Malay Peninsula with the mainland of Asia.
  • The Isthmus of Suez between North Africa and Sinai Peninsula. 
  • Isthmus of Panama between North and South America. 
  • Isthmus of Gibraltar

F-22 Raptor

The F-22 Raptor is a stealth, single-seat, twin-engine fifth-generation fighter plane, developed by Lockheed Martin. For stealth, the F-22 carries it's weapons in internal bays.Fifth-generation aircrafts are very much expensive.The company stopped the production due to the lack of funding.

Inclusive Growth Pdf document from 11th five year plan document - India

View and download the Inclusive Growth Pdf document from 11th five year plan document from the below link.


https://docs.google.com/open?id=0BwLgk2e_rOI9ZDkyZTY5NzYtMzcwMS00NmFiLTg0MmEtNzkwZDczOTM5ZDIy