NCERT AND TNSCERT SHORTS | UPSC | SSC | TNPSC | NET | SET | TRB | CTET | TET |

1. EQUALITY Natural inequalities can never be rectified;  Man - inequal in colour, height, talent, physical strength etc.. man made inequalities on the basis of caste, money, religion can be rectified Equality is ensuring individuals or groups that are not treated differently or less favourably on the basic of specific protected characteristic According to Professor Laski, Equality does not mean identity of treatment, the sameness of reward Equality is a powerful moral and political ideal, democratic ideals such as liberty, equality etc.. are meaningful and effective only when they implemented with justice      KINDS OF EQUALITY           SOCIAL EQUALITY means that all citizen are entitled to enjoy equal status in society      CIVIL EQUALITY enjoyment of civil rights by all citizen, rule of law is in force in England and in the eyes of law all are equal and equal treatment is given to all In India, the same rule of law is fol...

8.DEVOTIONAL PATHS TO THE DIVINE people perform rituals of worship, or singing bhajans, kirtans or qawwalis  such intense devotion is the legacy of various kinds of bhakti and Sufi movements       THE IDEA OF A SUPREME GOD Different groups of people worshipped their own gods and goddesses The idea that all living things pass through countless cycles of birth and rebirth came to be widely accepted some attracted to the idea of a supreme god who could deliver humans from such bondage if approached with devotion Shiva, Vishnu and Durga - supreme deities   A NEW KIND OF BHAKTI IN SOUTH INDIA - NAYANARS AND ALVARS They drew upon the ideals of love and heroism as in Sangam literature and blended them with the values of bhakti The Cholas and Pandya kings built elaborate temples to strengthen the link between the bhakti tradition and temple worship There were 63 Nayanars and 12 Alvars   Best known Nayanars - Appar, Sambandar, Sundarar and Manikkavasagar (compi...

  7.TRIBES, NOMADS AND SETTLED COMMUNITIES Important social, political and economic developments had taken place over the centuries but social change was not same everywhere because different kind of societies evolved differently In most places, society was divided based on varnas prescribed by Brahmanas      BEYOND BIG CITIES: TRIBAL SOCIETIES Tribes - They did not follow the social rules and rituals prescribed by Brahmanas nor they divided into numerous unequal classes Many tribes do agriculture, others were hunter-gatherers or herders Some were nomadic and moved from one place to another     WHO WERE TRIBAL PEOPLE? Tribal people did not keep written records, but they preserved rich customs and oral traditions Tribals were found in almost every region, some powerful tribes controlled large territories In Punjab, the Khokhar tribe was very influential, later the Gakkhars became more important (their chief, Kamal Khan Gakkhar , was made a noble by Empe...

6.TOWNS, TRADERS AND CRAFTSPERSONS Types of towns  - a temple town, an administrative centre, a commercial town or a port     ADMINISTRATIVE CENTRES Thanjavur (the capital of the Cholas): Kaveri (the perennial river flows), water supply for town (from well and tanks) Rajarajeshvara temple (Architect - Kunjaramallan Rajaraja Perunthachchan ), palaces with mandapas or pavilions, army barracks are there bustling town with markets, the Saliya weavers producing cloth for temple flags, the sthapatis or sculptors are making idols     TEMPLE TOWNS AND PILGRIMAGE CENTRES Thanjavur - also an example of temple town Temples - often central to the economy and society, rulers built temples, endowed temples with grant of land and money, pilgrims also made donations Temple towns - Bhillasvamin (Bhilsa / Vidisha in Madhya Pradesh), Kanchipuram and Madurai in Tamil Nadu and Tirupati in Andhra Pradesh Pilgrimage centres to townships - Vrindavan (Uttar Pradesh), Tiruvanna...

4.THE MUGHAL EMPIRE From the latter half of the 16th century Mughals expanded their kingdom from Agra and Delhi , until in the 17th century they controlled nearly all of the subcontinent From their mother's side they were descendants of Ghengis Khan , the Mongol ruler From their father's side they were the successors of Timur , the ruler of Iran, Iraq and modern-day Turkey Mughals did not like to be called as Mughal or Mongol but they were proud of their Timurid ancestry     MUGHAL MILITARY CAMPAIGNS     1. BABUR  (1526-1530) The first Mughal emperor  1494 - succeeded to the throne in Ferghana, forced to leave the kingdom by the Uzbegs invasion 1504 - seized Kabul 1526 - defeated Ibrahim Lodi, at Panipat and captured Delhi and Agra (First Battle of Panipat) 1527 - defeated Rana Sanga, Rajput rulers and allies (Battle of Khanua) 1528 - defeated Rajputs at Chanderi      2. HUMAYUN  (1530-1540),(1555-1556) he divided his inheritance wi...

  3. THE DELHI SULTANS Delhi became an important city only in the 12th century Tomaras Rajputs and Chauhans of Ajmer made Delhi an important commercial centre Then in 13 th century, Delhi Sultans built many cities ( Siri, Jahanpanah, Delhi-i-Kuhna, Tughluqabad, Adilabad, Firuzabad )  They constructed several temples, minted coins ( Delhiwal ) and transformed Delhi into a capital five dynasties altogether made Delhi Sultanate     FINDING OUT ABOUT THE DELHI SULTANS sources - Inscriptions, coins, architecture  tarikh / tawarikh - valuable histories of Delhi Sultanate were written by learned men in Persian (   language of administration) authors of tawarikh lived mostly in cities, wrote histories to earn rewards  they preserved ideas on basis of birthright and gender distinctions In 1236, Sultan Iltutmish's daughter Raziyya , became Sultan Minhaj-i-Siraj , a chronicler recognised that Raziyya was qualified than all her brothers but he don't like a ...

  2. NEW KINGS AND KINGDOMS     THE EMERGENCE OF NEW DYNASTIES New dynasties emerged after 7th century Samantas - big landlords or warrior chiefs, subordinates to the kings, later declared themselves as maha-samanta, maha-mandaleshvara Rashtrakutas - sub ordinate to Chalukyas In mid eighth century, Dantidurga , a Rashtrakuta chief performed a ritual called hiranya-garbha (lead to the rebirth of the sacrificer as kshatriya) From Brahmanas to  Kings - the Kadamba Mayusrasharman and the Gurjara-Pratihara Harichandra     ADMINISTRATION IN THE KINGDOMS Titles - Maharaja- adhiraja (great king, overlord of kings), tribhuvana-chakravartin (lord of the three worlds) taxes collected to finance the king's establishment, construction of temples and forts, used to fight wars close relatives of the king held important positions, positions were often hereditary Inscription of the Cholas - Tamil Nadu, more than 400 terms for different kinds of taxes such as vetti ( in...

  1. TRACING CHANGES THROUGH A THOUSAND YEARS Cartography - the study and practice of making maps science of cartography differed in these two periods, produced with different historical backgrounds and contexts Map 1 -  made in 1154 CE by Arab geographer Al-Idrisi , showing Indian subcontinent from land to sea South India where we would find North India and Sri Lanka at top (upside down map)  marked in Arabic, important places like kanauj in U.P were also marked  Map 2 - 600 years after Map 1, made in 1720s by French cartographer  used by European sailors, had detailed account on coastal areas       NEW AND OLD TERMINOLOGIES  Historical records changed over time - not only grammar and vocabulary; the meanings of words also changed  Term 'Hindustan' used in 13th century by Minhaj-i-siraj , chronicler in Persian (meant the areas of punjab, Haryana and the lands between the Ganga and the Yamuna) Babar used same term 'Hindustan...

7. ROAD SAFETY Traffic rules - laws that govern how, when and why you are allowed to drive any vehicle  Traffic safety course education - shaping responsible drivers, passengers, pedestrians and cyclists     THREE TYPES OF TRAFFIC RULES Mandatory road signs - give order regarding do's and don'ts [generally circular in shape] Cautionary road signs - warns the road situation ahead [ triangular shape] Informatory road signs - give information regarding directions, destination etc..[rectangular in shape] Blue circles - give a positive instructions [ what is to be done] Red circles - give a negative instructions [ what should not be done]        KNOW YOUR SIGNALS Red - stop (wait behind the stop line) Amber - caution (signal is about to change red) Green - go (proceed ahead)     PEDESTRIAN CROSSING instituted in Britain in 1934, marked by dotted lines pavement has striped Belisha Becon light poles named after  Britain’s Minister of...

11. BUILDINGS, PAINTINGS AND BOOKS Metallurgy - Harappans had the knowledge of copper metallurgy, they manufactured bronze, their successors belonged to iron age Iron pillar - at Mehrauli, Delhi, made of iron, 7.2 m high, weight - 3 tonnes  made about 1500 years ago, known from the inscription on ruler Chandra, belonged to Gupta dynasty not rusted in all these years      BUILDINGS IN BRICK AND STONE Stupa - a mound of several kinds (round, tall, big and small), small box at centre / heart contains bodily remains or things used by Buddha and his followers a path pradakshina patha was laid around the stupa Amaravati - magnificient stupa, railings and gateways decorated with sculptures earliest Hindu temples built, important part of the temple was garbhagriha (image of chief deity placed)   Bhitargaon - early temple, Uttar Pradesh, 1500 years ago, a tower built on top of garbhagriha ( Shikhara ) Most temples had a space, a hall where people could assem...