Bhimbetka was discovered by

Question

UnlockIAS · Accepted Answer

Correct — C, Dr. Vishnudhar Vakankar (Vishnu Shridhar Wakankar). The Ujjain-based archaeologist came upon the Bhimbetka rock shelters in 1957 — famously spotting the Vindhyan rock formations from a passing train near Bhopal — and went on to study their prehistoric paintings. Bhimbetka, in Raisen district of Madhya Pradesh, is a UNESCO World Heritage Site (inscribed 2003) with Stone Age (Palaeolithic to Mesolithic) rock art.

Why the other options are wrong — (a) H. D. Sankalia was an eminent Indian archaeologist (Deccan College, Pune) known for excavations at Langhnaj, Ahar and Navdatoli — but he did not discover Bhimbetka.  (b) Not credited with the discovery of the Bhimbetka rock shelters, which was Wakankar's find.  (d) Rajbali Pandey was a historian of ancient India (noted for work on Hindu Samskaras), not the archaeologist who located Bhimbetka.

Concept: Bhimbetka is a cluster of natural rock shelters in the Vindhyan sandstone hills of Raisen district, MP. Its walls carry a long sequence of prehistoric paintings — hunting scenes, animals and dancing figures — making it one of the earliest records of human life on the subcontinent. It was brought to scholarly notice by V. S. Wakankar in 1957.

State PCS 2020 Q24 — Madhya Pradesh GK PYQ with Answer

State PCS 2020 Q24 — Madhya Pradesh GK PYQ with Answer