Table of contents | |
Previous Year Questions 2016 | |
Previous Year Questions 2015 | |
Previous Year Questions 2014 | |
Previous Year Questions 2013 | |
Previous Year Questions 2012 | |
2011 and Rest of Years Questions |
Ans: The people in the chawls of Bombay entertained themselves in the following ways.
Q2: Explain the concept of the ‘Garden City’? Who developed this system in London? [2016]
Ans: The concept of the ‘Garden City’ was introduced to decongest localities in London.It was thought to have more green spaces that would serve as new lungs for the city that had been choking under pollution and crowd. For this less polluted large block of apartments were to be made to house the growing population in London. A pleasant space, full of plants and trees and beautiful views, would be developed where people would both live and work.This system was developed by an England based architect and planner Ebenezer Howard.
Q3: ‘The chawls of Bombay were a small cosmopolitan community in themselves’. Explain the statement. [2016]
Ans: The chawls of Bombay were a small cosmopolitan community in themselves because of the following reasons.
Q4: Explain any five social changes that took place in the family life in the 18th century in London. [2016]
Ans: Family became a unit of production and consumption along with political decision making.
Ans: The people living in chawls were living in pitiful condition.
Q6: Who are philanthropists? Explain any two steps taken to control crime in London in the 1870s. [2015]
Ans: Philanthropists were social workers, who worked for social upliftment and public morality. They took to donating time and money to fulfil their purpose. The following were the steps taken to control crime in London in the 1870s.
Q7: When and why was the Rent Act passed in Bombay during the British days? What was its outcome? [2015]
Ans: Rent Act was passed in Bombay in 1918 to keep the rents reasonable. It had a negative effect as landlords withdrew houses from the market, thus causing severe housing crises.
Q8: Explain how the underground railway was able to solve transport problems as well as housing crisis in London in the nineteenth century? [2015]
Ans: The problem of transport and housing crises was solved by underground railway in the following ways.
Q9: Describe the features of the big modern city of Calcutta (Kolkata) as viewed by the gods in the novel written by Durgacharan Roy. [2015]
Ans: The following were the features witnessed by the gods in the novel written by Durgacharan Roy.
Q10: State the history of air pollution in Calcutta during the nineteenth century. [2015]
Ans: The following points sum up the history of air pollution in Calcutta during the nineteenth century.
Ans: The following were the three characteristics of the ancient cities.
Q12: Explain any three features of chawls of Bombay (Mumbai). [2014]
Ans: The following were the three features of chawls of Bombay.
Q13: Explain how the underground railways was able to solve transport problems as well as housing crisis in London in the late nineteenth century? [2014]
Ans: Refer to answer 8.
Q14: Describe various steps which were taken to clean up London. [2014]
Ans: The following steps were taken to clean up London.
Q15: Ties between members of household loosened in Britain in the era of industrialization. Explain the statement. [2014]
Ans: The function and shape of the family was completely transformed by life in the industrial city.
Q16: How was the family life transformed in the industrial city during the 18th century? [2014]
Ans: Refer to answer 15.
Q17: Why was the underground rail criticized in London? Explain the reasons. [2014]
Ans: The underground railway in London was constructed to solve the housing problem. It was criticized initially because of the following reasons.
Q18: Explain the changes in the work available to women in London during the 19th and 20th century. [2014]
View AnswerAns: The following were the changes in the work available to women in London during the 19th and 20th century.
Ans: The following points sum up how the Londoners got their wish for a clean air fulfilled.
Q20: How was the condition of urban family transformed by the 20th century? [2013]
Ans: The condition of urban family transformed in the following ways.
Ans: The development or expansion of Bombay and London was different in the following ways.
Q22: Who are philanthropists? Explain any two steps taken to control crime in London in the 1870s. [2012]
Ans: Refer to answer 6.
Q23: Explain any three problems faced by people who migrated to Bombay in the mid-nineteenth century. [2012]
Ans: The problems faced by migrated people in Bombay in the mid nineteenth century were as follows.
Ans:
(i) For wealthy Britishers, an annual ‘London season’ was organised which included several cultural events, such as the opera, the theatre and the classical dance performances.
(ii) Working classes met in pubs and taverns to have a drink, exchange news and sometimes to also organise political action.
(iii) Libraries, art galleries and museums were established in the 19th century to provide entertainment for the common people. Music halls were common among the lower classes, and by the early 20th century, cinema became the source of great master entertainment for mixed audiences.
London Season
Q25: Explain the social changes which led to the need for the underground railways in London. (2009)
Ans: The congestion in the 19th century industrial London had led many wealthy residents of London to build homes in the countryside. Architect Ebenezer Howard developed the principle of ‘Garden City’, a pleasant place, full of plants and trees, where people could both live and work. Between the two world wars, the British State built a million houses, single family cottages for working classes. The city extended now beyond the range, where people could walk to work. The development of suburbs made new forms of mass transport absolutely necessary. To persuade people to leave the city and live in garden suburbs, some new means of travelling to the city for work was essential. The London underground railway solved the housing crisis by carrying large masses of people to and from the city.
Q26: What was the tradition of ‘London Season’? Explain different forms of entertainment that came up in nineteenth century England to provide leisure activities for the people. [2009, 2011 (T-1)]
Ans: For wealthy Britishers, there had been an annual ‘London Season’. Several cultural events, as the opera, the theatre, the classical musical performances were organised for an elite group of 300-400 families.
Many new types of large-scale entertainment for the common people came up. Libraries, art galleries and museums were established to provide entertainment to people who swarmed them. Music halls were popular among lower classes, and by the 20th century, cinema became the great mass entertainer for mixed audiences.
British industrial workers were encouraged to spend their holidays by the sea. Over a million British went to the seaside in 1883; their number increased to 7 million in 1939.
Q27: How did the development of cities influence the ecology and environment in the late Nineteenth century? Explain by giving an example of Calcutta (Kolkata). (2008, 2010)
OR
Write about the pollution problems of Calcutta (Kolkata) in the 19th century. [2011 (T-1)]
Ans: City development everywhere has been at the expense of ecology and environment. To accommodate factories, housing and other institutions, natural features are either transformed or flattened out. Large quantities of refuse and waste products pollute air and water and excessive noise becomes a feature of urban life.
In the late 19th century, use of coal in homes and industries raised serious problems. For example, in Calcutta, inhabitants inhaled grey smoke, particularly in winter. Since Calcutta was built on marshy land, the fog and smoke combined to generate a thick black smog. High level of pollution was a result of the huge population using dung and wood as fuel in their daily life. Main polluters were the industries that used steam engines run on coal. The introduction of the railway in 1855 brought a new dangerous pollutant — coal from Raniganj. It had a high content of ash. Calcutta became the first Indian city in 1863 to get smoke nuisance legislation. In 1920, the rice mills of Tollygunge began to burn rice husk instead of coal, and people complained of “black soot falling like drizzling rain” causing bad tempers, dirty clothes and smoke related illnesses. The inspectors of Bengal Smoke Nuisance Committee finally managed to control industrial smoke, but found controlling domestic smoke more difficult.
Q28: Mention Various measures taken to decongest London in the 19th and 20th centuries. (2010)
OR
Explain any four steps taken to clean up London in the 19th Century. [2011 (T-1)]
Ans:
(i) Rent control to prevent severe housing shortage.
(ii) Building a Green Belt around London as “New Lungs” for the city.
(iii) Building holiday homes in the country side by wealthy residents of London.
(iv) Ebenezer Howard, an architect and planner, planned “Garden City” full of plants and trees
where people could work as well as live.
Q29: Explain in brief the history of land reclamation in Mumbai. (2008)
Ans: Originally Bombay was the city of several islands which were joined into one land mass over a period of time. The first project began in 1784, when the Governor of Bombay, William Hornby, approved the building of the great sea wall. It was done to prevent flooding of the low lying areas of Bombay.
In the mid-nineteenth century, several plans were formulated for reclamation of more land from the sea. Both private and Government companies took part in it. In 1864, the Black Bay Reclamation Company won the right to reclaim the western shore from the tip of Malabar Hill to the end of Colaba. This meant levelling of hills around Bombay. By the 1870s, though most private companies had closed down because of the high cost of reclamation, Bombay had expanded to about 22 square miles. As the population continued to increase rapidly, more and more area was reclaimed from the sea.
Q30: How far was underground railway able to solve transport problems as well as housing crisis in London in the nineteenth century? (2008)
Ans: The London underground railway partially solved the housing crisis by carrying large masses of people to and from the city. On the first day of its opening on 10 January 1863, the underground railway carried 10,000 passengers between Paddingtion and Farrington Street in London. By 1880 the expanded train service was carrying 40 million passengers a year. As a result the population in the city became more dispersed. Better planned suburbs came up and a good railway network enabled large numbers to live outside central London and travel to work.
Q31: Why did the well-off Londoners support the need to build housing for the poor in the 19th century? [2010, 2011 (T-1)]
Ans: The well-off people of London demanded that slums should be cleared in London. Slowly these people came to realise that there was a need for housing for the poor. The reasons were that
First: The vast mass of one-room house occupied by the poor were seen as a serious threatto public health. They were overcrowded, badly ventilated and locked sanitation.
Second : They were seen as fire hazards due to poor housing.
Third : There was a fear of social disorder, specially after the Russian Revolution in 1917. Workers’ mass housing schemes were planned to prevent the London poor from turning rebellious.
Q32: How did the people of all classes entertain themselves in their leisure time in Urban Britain after industrialisation? [2010, 2011 (T-1)]
Ans: The weallthy British had a long ‘‘London Season.’’ They organised cultural events like the opera, theatre and classical music performances for the elite group of 300-400 families. The working classes met in pubs to have a drink, exchange news and sometimes to organise political action.
With industrialisation, large-scale entertainment for the common people came into being with the state help. Libraries, art galleries and museums were built for the improvement of people and create a pride in British achievements. When entry was made free in 1810, the number of visitors shot up to 825,901 in 1846. Music halls were popular among lower classes and by the early 20th century cinema became the great mass entertainment for mixed audiences. British industrial workers were encouraged to spend their holidays near the seaside. Nearly 7 million people visited Blackpool in 1939.
Q33: What was the impact of industrialisation and urbanization on the family in Britain in the nineteenth century? [2010, 2011 (T-1)]
Ans: The function and shape of the family was completely transformed by life in the industrial city.
(i) Ties between members of households loosened
(ii) Among working class the institution of marriage tended to break down
(iii) Women of upper and middles classes in Britain, faced increasingly high level of isolation. Their lives though were made easier by maids who cooked, cleared and cared for young children on low wages.
(iv) Women who worked had some control over their lives, specially among the lower social classes. Many reformers felt that marriage as an institution had broken down.
(v) When women lost their industrial jobs, conservative people forced them to withdraw into their homes. 20th century saw another change, the family became the heart of new market – of goods, services and of ideas. Families after the war became smaller units.
Q34: The Many Sides of Bombay [2010 (T-1)]
My father came down the Sahyadris
A quilt over his shoulder
He stood at the doorstep
With nothing but his labour
.....
I carried a tiffin box
To the mill since childhood
I was cast the way
A smith forges a hammer
I learned my ropes
Working on a loom
Learnt on occasion
To go on strike
My father withered away toiling
So will I and will my little ones
Perhaps they too face such sad nights
Wrapped in coils of darkness
(i) Where did the father come from?
(ii) Why did he come to Bombay?
(iii) Write one similarity between the father and son’s life in Bombay.
Ans:
(i) The father came down from the Sahyadris.
(ii) To earn a living in a mill.
(iii) The father withered away toiling all his life and the son is going to meet the same fate — toil, depression and hardly any relief from both.
Q35: Throw light on some of the land reclamation projects of Bombay. [2010 (T-1)]
Ans: The earliest project of land reclamation began in 1784. The Bombay Governor had great sea wall built to prevent flooding of low-lying areas. Government and private companies joined hands and formulated plans to reclaim more and more land. In 1864, Back Bay Reclamation Company won the right to reclaim the western foreshore from the tip of Malabar hill to the end of Colaba.
By the 1870s the city had expanded to 22 sq km. Bombay Port Trust built a dry dock between 1914-1918 and used the excavated earth to create the 22 acre Ballard Estate. Much later, the famous Marine Drive of Bombay was developed.
Q36: Explain any three efforts made by women in London to increase their income during eighteenth century. [2010, 2011 (T-1)]
Ans:
(i) Women tried to solve their financial problems by working in the factories.
(ii) When technological development deprived them of their jobs, they started working as domestic help. Out of a quarter million domestic helps the vast majority were women.
A large number of women used their homes to increase family income by taking in lodgers. They took up tailoring, washing or match-box making. During the war, they were once again employed in war-time industries and offices.
Q37: Highlight any three problems faced by people who migrated to Bombay. [2010 (T-1)]
Ans:
(i) The biggest problem was housing. 70% of the working people lived in thickly populated ‘chawls’ of Bombay. Chawls were multi-storeyed structures, with one room tenements which had no private toilets. Rents were high. People had to keep their windows closed even in humid weather due to close proximity of filthy gutters, privies, buffalo stables etc.
(ii) There was an acute shortage of water due to unplanned expansion of the city. People often quarreled for a turn at the tap.
(iii) People had to use streets and neighborhoods for various activities like cooking, washing and sleeping. There was constant fear of epidemics, specially like plague, due to unclean surroundings and too many people.
Q38: According to Durgacharan Ray, in what three ways did the city life of Calcutta present contrasting images of opportunities? [2010 (T-1)]
OR
‘Calcutta in the 19th century was a city of contrasts.’ How is this reflected in Durgacharan Ray’s novel “Deb nagar Martaye Aagman”
Ans: The city life of Calcutta was full of contrasts, according to Durgacharan Ray.
1. In the 19th century, Calcutta was brimming with opportunities — for trade, commerce and jobs.
2. But on the hand, another aspect of its life was — its cheats, thieves, its appalling poverty and the poor quality of housing. The Gods themselves were cheated by the shopkeepers.
3. There was confusion of caste, religious and gender identities in the city. All social\ distinctions that appeared to be natural and normal seemed to be breaking down. The contrasting images were of wealth and poverty, splendour and dirt, opportunities and disappointments.
Q39: Which cities were called ‘Presidency Cities’ in the 19th century India? Mention any two main features of these cities. [2010 (T-1)]
Ans: The capitals of the Bombay, Bengal and Madras Presidencies in British India were called ‘‘Presidency Cities”. Their special features were :
(i) They were multi-functional cities, they had major ports, warehouses, homes and offices, army camps as well as educational institutions, museums and libraries.
(ii) A large number of people lived in these cities. Bombay had a population of nearly 1,500,000 people in 1941 as compared to 644,405 in 1872. The cities combined political and economic functions for the entire region.
Q40: Crime became an object of widespread concern in London. Comment and state what steps were taken to control it. [2010, 2011 (T-1)]
Ans: London was a colossal city by 1750 with a bursting population. By 1880 the population was about 4 million. Crime flourished as London grew. It is reported there were 20,000 criminals living in London by the 1870s. The police worried about the law and order and philanthropists worried about public morality. Industrialists wanted a hard-working, orderly labour force. Actually the ‘‘criminals’’ were in fact poor people who lived by stealing food from shops, lumps of coal and clothes drying on hedges.
Steps taken to control crime were :
(i) Population of the criminals was counted, their activities were watched and their way of life were investigated.
(ii) Authorities imposed high penalties for crime and offered work to the ‘deserving poor.’’
(iii) Compulsory Elementary Education Act was passed so that children went to school rather than take to crime or work in underpaid factories.
(iv) The need for housing for the poor was recognised to stop the poor from turning rebellious.
Q41: Why were people in the beginning afraid to travel in the London underground railway? [2010 (T-1)]
Ans: People were afraid to travel in London underground railway because they thought they were a menace to health. A newspaper reader warned the public ‘‘of compartments full of smoking pipes, the foul atmosphere, which was a mixture of sulphur, coal dust and fumes from the gas lamps.’’ He thought he would die of asphyxiation and heat.
Many people called the railway ‘‘iron monsters,’’ which added to the mess and unhealthiness of the city. The famous writer, Charles Dickens, in one of his words criticised the railway for destroyed houses, knocking down sheets, deep pits and trenches thrown about.’’ To make two miles of railway, 900 houses were dug up and had led to the massive displacement of the London poor.
Q42: Who was Ebenezer Howard? Explain the principle of the Garden City developed by him. [2010 (T-1)]
Ans: Ebenezer Howard was an architect and town planners. He developed the principle of the Garden City, a pleasant space full of plants and trees, where people would live and work. He believed this would also produce better quality citizens.
Q43: How did the technological developments in the late 18th century affect the women workforce in Europe? [2011 (T-1)]
Ans: See answer to 17, Technological development made women lose their jobs in the factories machines replaced them. They had to work from homes or work as domestic helpers. The 1861 Census reported that out of quarter of a million domestic workers vast majority were women, many of them recent migrants to London. A large number of women augmented the family income by taking in lodgers and through activities like tailoring, washing or match-box making.
Q44: Why was the underground railways referred to as the ‘Iron Monsters’? [2011 (T-1)]
Ans: The underground railways resulted in massive destruction in the process of construction. The railway coaches and railroads were made of iron. Green spaces were hardly available. Iron pillars, bridges and other works of iron could be seen everywhere. The underground railways were a menace to health and environment. The whole system appeared to be like a huge monster.
Q45: What was the Temperance Movement? What was its main aim? [2011 (T-1)]
Ans: It was largely a middle-class-led social reform movement which emerged in Britain and America from the nineteenth century onwards. This movement identified alcoholism as the cause of the ruin of families and society, and aimed at reducing the consumption of alcoholic drinks, particularly amongst the working classes.
Q46: Why did the population of London expand from the middle of the eighteenth century? Give three reasons. [2011 (T-1)]
Ans:
(i) The city of London was a powerful magnet for migrant populations. It was a city of clerks, shopkeepers, skilled and semi-skilled artisans, soldiers, servants and beggars. It was the city of classes as well as masses.
(ii) Apart from London dockyards, five major types of industries employed large number of workers. These industries included clothing, printing, footwear, metal and engineering.
(iii) During the First World War London began manufacturing motor cars and electrical goods and number of large factories multiplied.
Q47: Highlight the principal features of the social life of people living in Bombay. [2011 (T-1)]
Ans: The European elite, the richer Parsis, Muslims and uppercaste traders and industrialists lived in sprawling, spacious bungalows. But more than 70 per cent of the working people lived in the thickly populated chawls of Bombay. The homes being small, streets and neighbourhoods were used for a variety of activities such as cooking, washing and sleeping. Liquor shops and akharas came up in empty spot. Streets were also used for different types of leisure activities. Chawls were also the place for exchange of news about jobs, strikes, riots or demonstrations.
Q48: Describe the lifestyle of British workers in the 19th century. (2010)
Ans: Most of the workers were employed in industries and factories. Because of bursting population led to unemployment and crime and an increase in the number of poor. Factories employed large number of women in the early 19th century but they lost their industrial jobs due to technological developments. Most women worked as domestic servants; of them many were migrants to London. Large numbers of children were pushed into low-paid work, often by their parents. Children took to crime as it earned them more money than honest work. A young thief could earn 10 shillings 6 pence a week from thieving – honest work fetched him this money after making 1,296 match boxes in a day.
Most workers lived in unsafe tenements which were health hazards, overcrowded, badly ventilated and lacking sanitation. Poor housing was a constant fire hazard. The workers could only expect a lifespan of 29 years. The workers were expected to die, according to Charles Booth, in a ‘work house, hospital or a lunatic asylum.’ There was a widespread fear of social disorder, because of the unhealthy, poverty stricken life the workers led.
Q49: When and where was the very first section of the underground railway in the world opened? Describe in brief the difficulties of travelling in the underground railway. (2010)
Ans: The first section of the underground railway in the world opened on 10 January 1863 between Paddington and Farringtion Street in London. On that day 10,000 passengers were carried with trams running every ten minutes.
Q50: What forms of entertainment came up in the 19th century in England to provide leisure activities for the people? [2010 (T-1)]
OR
Mention any four new types of entertainment that come up in 19th century England for the common people. [2011 (T-1)]
Ans: For wealthy Britishers, there had been an annual ‘London Season.’ Several cultural events, as the opera, the theatre, the classical musical performances were organised for an elite group of 300-400 families.
Many new types of large-scale entertainment for the common people came up. Libraries, art galleries and museums were established to provide entertainment to people who swarmed them. Music halls were popular among lower classes, and by the 20th century, cinema became the great mass entertainer for mixed audiences. British industrial workers were encouraged to spend their holidays by the sea. Over a million Britishers went to the seaside in 1883; their number increased to 7 million in 1939.
Q51: Explain any three causes of air pollution in Calcutta in the nineteenth and early twentieth century. Which body controlled industrial pollution? [2010, 2011 (T-1)]
Ans: See answer to Q 4 (in Short Answer Questions)
(i) High levels of pollution were a consequence of the huge population that depended on dung and wood as fuel in their daily life.
(ii) Main polluters were the industries and establishments that used steam engines run on coal.
(iii) The city was built on marshy land, the resulting fog combined with smoke generated thick black smog and Calcutta’s inhabitants inhaled grey smoke, specially in winter. A new pollutant coal — was added by the railways. The body that controlled industrial pollution was Bengal Smoke Nuisance Commission.
Q52: Give four reasons for the expansion of Bombay’s population in the nineteenth century. [2010 (T-1)]
OR
What led to major expansion of Bombay’s population in the mid-nineteenth century? [2011 (T-1)]
Ans: Four reasons for Bombay’s expansion :
(i) When Bombay became the capital of Bombay Presidency in 1819, the city expanded. With the growth of trade in cotton and opium, large communities of traders, bankers, as well as artisans and shopkeepers came to settle in Bombay.
(ii) When textile mills were established in Bombay there was fresh surge of migration. The first cotton textile mill in Bombay was established in 1854. In 1921, there were 85 cotton mills with about 146,000 workers. About one-fourth of Bombay’s inhabitants between 1881 and 1931 were born in Bombay, the rest were migrants from nearby district of Ratnagiri to work in Bombay mills.
(iii) Bombay was a junction of two major railways. This encouraged an even higher scale of migration into the city. For example, famine in dry regions of Kutch drove large number to Bombay in 1888-89.
(iv) Bombay became a premier city of India in the late 19th century. It dominated maritime trade of India and its population expanded from 644, 405 on 1572 to nearly, 1,500,000 in 1941
Q53: “The function and the shape of the family were completely transformed by life in the industrial city of Britain in the 18th century.” Explain any four points. [2010, 2011 (T-1)]
OR
Explain four changes that took place in the family life in the 18th century and promoted individualism in city life.
Ans:
(i) Ties between members of family loosened.
(ii) Among working classes the institution of marriage tended to break down.
(iii) Women of upper and middle class faced high level of isolation, though their life became easier by maids who cooked, cleaned or cared for young children.
(iv) Women who worked had some control over their lives. Women without jobs were forced to withdraw into their camp.
(v) 20th century saw homes another change, the family became smaller unit after the war. A new spirit of individualism was encouraged among men and women, and a freedom from collective values that were a feature of the smaller rural communities.
Q54: Why the population of London multiplied in the late 19th and early 20th century? [2010 (T-1)]
Ans: By 1750, one out of every nine people of England and Wales lived in London. It was a colossal city with a population of about 6,75,000. Its population multiplied four-fold in the 70 years between 1810 and 1880, increasing from one million to 4 million. London was a powerful magnet for migrant populations. The 19th century London was “a city of clerks, shopkeepers, small masters and skilled artisans, growing number of semi-skilled out workers, soldiers, servants, casual labourers, sheet sellers and beggars.’’ London’s dockyards and five major types of industries employed large number of workers. The five were : Clothing and footwear, wood and furniture, metals and engineering, printing and stationery, and precision products like surgical instruments, watches, and objects of precious metals.
During the First World War (1914-18) London began manufacturing motor cars and electrical goods, which led to increase in population as more workers were needed.
Q55: Explain any four characteristics of Marginal Groups in London. [2010, 2011 (T-1)]
Ans: Marginal Groups in London were about 20,000 criminals who worried the police about law and order. The people who made a living by crime were in fact poor people who lived by stealing lead from roofs, food from shops, lumps of coal and clothes drying on hedges. There were others who were more skilled at their trade, experts at their jobs. They were cheats, tricksterts, pickpockets and petty thieves crowding the streets of London.
Women were forced out of work from factories due to technological development they formed a large group that worked as domestic servants. They also worked at home to increase their income by taking in ladgers, working as tailors, wasting etc only during the war, they found jobs in factories and offices.
Large number of children were forced into low-paid work. ‘‘A child of 7 could easily make 10 shillings led a week from thieving — a low-paid worker had to make 56 gross of match boxes a week to earn that much” (According to an article by Andrew Mearns). Only by the passage of Compulsory Elementary Education Act in 1870 and passing of Factory Acts (since 1872) children were kept out of industrial work. So, the marginal groups were the criminals, women are workforce and children forced to work in low-paid jobs.
Q56: Explain the merits and drawbacks of underground rail of London. [2010 (T-1)]
Ans: See answer to Q. 6, Q 25 short answer.
Merits :
Drawbacks :
Q57: Explain the lifestyle of workers of the mid-19th century in Britain. [2010 (T-1)]
Ans: The mid-century workers in London did not have proper houses to live in. They had to find residence in cheap, usually unsafe tenements.
According to a survey by a Liverpool shipowner in 1887, as many as one million Londoners (about 1/5 of the population of London at that time were very poor, expected to live upto an average age of 29 as compared to 55 among the gentry and the middle class. They were expected to die in a ‘‘workhouse, hospital or lunatic asylum.
There were constant worries about fire hazard created by poor housing. The one-room houses occupied by the poor were a serious threat to public health. There was a constant fear of uprising by the poor.
The only leisure for working classes was to meet in pubs and drink, exchange news and sometimes also organise for political action. Crime flourished among workers who did not have jobs. Children were forced to work for low wages. Women tried to earn by working at home or domestic maids. Later on there was a drive to build more houses, clear up the city, provide libraries and museums for the workers. Workers were encouraged to take annual leave and go to the seaside like Blackpool. Cinema also became a means of mass entertainment.
Q58: Explain why a number of films were about the life of migrants in the Bombay film industry. Name two movies whose songs became very popular. [2010 (T-1)]
Ans: There were a number of films about migrants because many people in the film industry were themselves migrants. They came from cities like Lahore, Calcutta, Madras and contributed to the national character of the industry. Many famous writers like Ismat Chugtai, Saadat Hasan Manto were associated with Hindi cinema. People who came from Lahore now in Pakistan, contributed the most to the development of the Hindi cinema. The films dealt with the arrival in the city of new migrants and the real pressures of life they had to deal with : the two movies are CID (1956) and Guest House (1959).
Q59: How did city development occur at the cost of ecology and environment? [2011 (T-1)]
Ans: Natural features were transformed in response to the growing demand for space for factories, touring and other institutions. Large quantities of refuse and waste production polluted air and water, while excessive noise became a feature of urban life. Hundreds of factory chimneys spewed black smoke into the skies. Domestic sewage and factory wastes polluted water and soil. There was serious housing problems in the cities resulting in congestion, overcrowding and sanitation problems. Streets were full of squalour and crowded with houseless migrants. Cities like London, Bombay and Calcutta were over-populated and over-polluted.
Q60: How did the condition of women workers change from 19th to 20th century in London? [2011 (T-1)
Ans: As cities developed in the 19th century, women lost their industrial jobs. Conservative people opposed their presence in public spaces and women were forced to withdraw into their houses. The public space became exclusively a male preserve and the domestic sphere was seen as the proper place for women. But from 1870s onwards women’s participation in political movements increased. In the 20th century large number of women were employed in factories and offices and they raised voices in public fora.
Q61: Explain the social changes in London which led to the need for the underground railways. Why was the development of underground railways criticised? [2011 (T-1)]
Ans: Between the two World Wars (1919 – 39), the responsibility for housing the working classes was accepted by the British state, and a million houses were built for them in sub-urban areas by local authorities. The city had gradually extended beyond the range where people could walk to work. Development of suburbs made new forms of mass transport very necessary. The London underground railway partially solved the housing crisis by carrying large masses of people to and from the city. Underground railway created huge ecological and environmental problem. The process of construction led to large scale destruction of forests and other natural features.
Q62: “The city of London had a powerful migrant population.” Explain the reason. [2011 (T-1)]
Ans:
(i) London had hundreds of small factories and workshops. It was a city of clerks, shopkeepers, skilled and semi-skilled artisans, soldiers and servants, casual labourers, street vendors, etc.
(ii) Apart from London dockyards, five major types of small industries employed large number of people.
(iii) During the First World War (1914-18) London began manufacturing motor cars and electrical goods. Hundreds of large factories sprang up employing thousands of workers.
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1. What were the working conditions like during the Industrial Revolution? |
2. How did the concept of work-life balance change during the Industrial Revolution? |
3. How did the Industrial Revolution impact leisure activities for the working class? |
4. How did the Industrial Revolution affect the social structure of society in terms of work and leisure? |
5. What role did leisure play in the lives of individuals during the Industrial Revolution? |
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