UPHESC Assistant Professor Ancient History 17 Apr 2025 Shift 1 – Question Paper

Concept: Sunita Williams and Butch Wilmore flew to the ISS on Boeing Starliner's first crewed test flight (June 2024).

1. Starliner developed thruster problems and returned to Earth empty; their 8-day mission stretched to about 9 months.
2. Both came back on SpaceX Crew-9 Dragon (with Nick Hague and Aleksandr Gorbunov), splashing down off Florida on 18–19 March 2025.
3. Victor Glover and Jeremy Hansen are Artemis II crew; John Glenn was the first American to orbit Earth (1962).

Short trick: Starliner duo = "Suni & Butch".

Concept: The Indian itihasa-purana (historical) tradition is traced to the Atharvaveda, which is called the Bhrigvangirasa (Veda of the Bhrigu and Angiras families); its priestly bards preserved and later recast the epic-puranic material.

1. The Atharvaveda (XV.6) is the first Vedic text to speak of itihasa, purana, gatha and narashamsi as a class of literature.
2. The Bhargavas (Bhrigus) are credited with recasting the Mahabharata and the Puranas, so the Bhrigu–Angiras line is central to Indian historical tradition.
3. Gautama is a sage of law (dharmasutra); the Panis are cattle-thieves of the Rigveda; "Trijugath" has no role in this tradition.

Short trick: Atharvaveda = Bhrigvangiras = home of the itihasa-purana tradition.