RAS question
Which of the following are the three major Chalcolithic sites of southeastern Rajasthan?
Correct answer: (B) Ahar, Balathal, Gilund.
Ahar, Balathal and Gilund are the three major Chalcolithic sites of southeastern Rajasthan associated with the Ahar-Banas culture.
Explanation
The correct grouping is Ahar, Balathal and Gilund because these sites belong to the Chalcolithic Ahar-Banas cultural zone of southeastern Rajasthan. Ancient Asia treats Balathal and Gilund as Chalcolithic sites of the Ahar Culture of southeast Rajasthan and notes that the type site, Ahar, anchors the wider Ahar/Banas/Mewar/southeast Rajasthan culture region. Ahar and Balathal are in Udaipur, Gilund is in Rajsamand, the Ahar-Banas culture is dated to 3000-1500 BCE, and Ahar is also called Tambavati because of evidence for copper smelting. That combination is why option B is the only set that matches the required region and period.
Why the other options are wrong
- (A) Rangmahal, Sothi and Nohar are linked to northern Rajasthan and different cultural traditions, not to the southeastern Rajasthan Ahar-Banas Chalcolithic cluster.
- (C) Bairath, Nagari and Sambhar are historical-period sites, so they do not answer a question about Chalcolithic sites of southeastern Rajasthan.
- (D) Kalibangan is a northern Rajasthan IVC site, so this set does not represent the southeastern Rajasthan Chalcolithic group centred on Ahar, Balathal and Gilund.
Concept
This tests Rajasthan's prehistoric cultural geography, especially the Ahar-Banas Chalcolithic culture and its key sites. It recurs in RAS because site-culture-region matching is a compact way to test archaeology, chronology and map awareness together.