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RAS question

Muhammad bin Tughlaq's scheme of Qarachil expedition targeted:

Correct answer: (B) Kumaon hills (Himalayas) to control hill routes to China/Tibet.

Muhammad bin Tughlaq's Qarachil expedition targeted the Qarachil region, probably the Kumaon-Garhwal Himalayan hills between India and China, to bring those hilly tracts under Delhi's control.

  1. (A)

    Central India

  2. (B)

    Kumaon hills (Himalayas) to control hill routes to China/Tibet

  3. (C)

    Deccan plateau

  4. (D)

    Sri Lanka

Explanation

The Qarachil expedition of 1333 was directed at the Qarachil region, which e-PG Pathshala places between India and China and identifies, in all probability, with the Kumaon-Garhwal region. Its objective was not the conquest of China; that was a later misinterpretation. These hilly tracts could shelter rebels, so Muhammad bin Tughlaq wanted to bring them under his control. The campaign first saw some success, but the imperial army then moved into Tibet, where winter conditions and an outbreak of plague destroyed it. Barani's account records that only 10 horsemen returned to Delhi from an army of 10,000.

Why the other options are wrong

  • (A) Central India does not fit Qarachil's location between India and China, probably in the Kumaon-Garhwal Himalayan region.
  • (C) The Deccan plateau was not the target here; the campaign concerned northern hilly tracts rather than a peninsular plateau.
  • (D) Sri Lanka is outside the campaign's Himalayan theatre between India and China.

Concept

This tests the Delhi Sultanate theme of Muhammad bin Tughlaq's ambitious but poorly judged schemes. It recurs in RAS because the exam often asks for precise matching of medieval campaigns, regions and administrative intent.

Source

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