When did Dr. Vishnu Shridhar Wakankar discover the rock shelters of Bhimbetka ?

Question

UnlockIAS · Accepted Answer

Correct — D, 1957-58. Dr Vishnu Shridhar Wakankar, the Ujjain-based archaeologist, first noticed the rock formations of Bhimbetka from a passing train crossing the Vindhyan hills in 1957, went back to explore them, and reported a large group of prehistoric painted rock shelters — the exploration season is recorded as 1957-58. Systematic survey and excavation followed in the 1970s, and the site was inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage List in 2003. Wakankar is regarded as the father of Indian rock-art research and was awarded the Padma Shri in 1975.

Why the other options are wrong — (a) Too early by half a decade. Nothing at Bhimbetka is dated to the early 1950s — Wakankar's train-window sighting and the exploration that followed belong to 1957.  (b) Also too early. The mid-1950s pre-date the discovery; the standard record for Wakankar's find is 1957, with the exploration season written as 1957-58.  (c) Too late. By 1960 the shelters had already been reported; the 1960s and 1970s were the decades of survey and excavation at Bhimbetka, not of its discovery.

Concept: Bhimbetka is India's most important prehistoric rock-art complex — a cluster of natural sandstone shelters in the Vindhyan hills of Raisen district, Madhya Pradesh, about 45 km south-east of Bhopal on the edge of the Ratapani Wildlife Sanctuary. Some 750 shelters have been recorded across the complex and several hundred carry paintings. Occupation evidence runs from the Lower Palaeolithic (Acheulian tools) through the Mesolithic to the historic period, while most of the surviving paintings — hunting scenes, animals, dancers, later horses and riders — are Mesolithic and later. The name links the place to Bhima of the Mahabharata, 'Bhima's sitting place'.

State PCS 2025 Q94 — Madhya Pradesh GK PYQ with Answer

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