The two major Deccan Sultanates conquered and annexed by Emperor Aurangzeb were Bijapur (1686) and Golconda (1687). These military campaigns in the South were the final acts of Mughal expansion, bringing the empire to its greatest geographical extent. However, the lengthy wars ultimately drained the Mughal treasury and military strength. The correct answer is (A) Bijapur and Golconda.
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The two most powerful independent South Indian states annexed by Aurangzeb were the Deccan Sultanates of Bijapur (conquered in 1686) and Golconda (conquered in 1687). Aurangzeb spent the last two decades of his life campaigning in the Deccan with the express purpose of destroying these Shia Muslim kingdoms. While the conquest brought the empire to its largest size, the prolonged and costly sieges against these states diverted crucial resources from the North, contributing significantly to the later decline of the Mughal Empire.