Practice Test: Modern History- 1 - UPSC MCQ

• In 1882, the Government appointed a commission under the chairmanship of W.W. Hunter to review the progress of education in the country since the Despatch of 1854. The Hunter Commission mostly confined its recommendations to primary and secondary education.
  • It emphasized that state’s special care is required for the extension and improvement of primary education and that primary education should be imparted through vernacular.
  • It recommended the transfer of control of primary education to newly set up district and municipal boards.
  • It recommended that secondary (High School) education should have two divisions— literary—leading up to university and vocational—for commercial careers.
  • It drew attention to inadequate facilities for female education, especially outside presidency towns and made recommendations for its spread.
• The Sadler commission was set up in 1917 to study and report on problems of Calcutta University but its recommendations were applicable more or less to other universities also. It reviewed the entire field from school education to university education. It held the view that, for the improvement of university education, the improvement of secondary education was a necessary pre-condition. Its observations were as follows:
  • School course should cover 12 years. Students should enter university after an intermediate stage (rather than matric) for a three-year degree course in university.
  • A separate board of secondary and intermediate education should be set up for the administration and control of secondary and intermediate education.
  • There should be less rigidity in framing university regulations.
  • A university should function as centralized, unitary residential-teaching autonomous body, rather than as scattered, affiliated colleges.
  • Female education, applied scientific and technological education, teachers’ training including those for professional and vocational colleges should be extended
• The Hartog Committee was set up in 1929 to report on the development of education. Its main recommendations were as follows.
  • Emphasis should be given to primary education but there need be no hasty expansion or compulsion in education.
  • Only deserving students should go in for high school and intermediate stage, while average students should be diverted to vocational courses after VIII standard.
  • For improvements in the standards of university education, admissions should be restricted.
• Hence option (a) is the correct answer.

The Congress met at Karachi in March, 1931, to endorse the Gandhi- Irwin or the Delhi Pact. The Karachi Session became memorable for its Resolution on Fundamental Rights and the National Economic Programme. Even though the Congress had, from its inception, fought for the economic interests, civil liberties and political rights of the people. This was the first time that the Congress defined what Swaraj would mean for the masses.

The British policy of ̳Divide and Rule‘ found another expression in the announcement of the Communal Award in August, 1932. The Award allotted to each minority a number of seats in the legislatures, to be elected on the basis of a separate electorate, that is the Muslims would be elected only by the Muslims and the Sikhs only by the Sikhs, and so on. Muslims, Sikhs and Christians had already been treated as minorities. The Award declared the Depressed Classes (The Scheduled Castes of today) also to be a minority community entitled to separate electorate and, thus, separated them from the rest of the Hindus. The Congress took the position that though it was opposed to separate electorates, it was not in favour of changing the Award without the consent of the minorities. Consequently, though strongly disagreeing with the Communal Award, it decided neither to accept it nor to reject it

The main form of political work by the early Communists was to organize the peasants‘ and workers‘ parties, and work through them. The basic objective of the Workers‘ and Peasants‘ Party (WPP) was to work within the Congress to give it a more radical orientation. The first such organization was the Labour-Swaraj Party of the Indian National Congress, organized by Muzaffar Ahmed, Qazi Nazrul Islam, Hemanta Kumar Sarkar and others in Bengal in November, 1925.

• In late 1926, a Congress Labour Party was formed in Bombay and a Kirti- Kisan Party in Punjab. A Labour Kisan Party of Hindustan had been functioning in Madras since 1923.
• By 1928, all of these provincial organizations had been renamed the Workers‘ and Peasants‘ Party (WPP) and knit into an All India party. All Communists were the members of this party. Moreover, Jawaharlal Nehru and other radical Congressmen welcomed the WPPs’ efforts to radicalize the Congress. In 1924, the Government had tried to cripple the nascent Communist Movement by trying S.A. Dange, Muzaffar Ahmed, Nalini Gupa and Shaukat Usmani in the Kanpur Bolshevik Conspiracy Case. All four were sentenced to four years of imprisonment.

• The Congress Socialist Party (CSP) was founded under the leadership of Jayaprakash Narayan, Acharya Narendra Dev and Minoo Masani at Bombay in October, 1934.
• Despite the ideological diversity among the leaders, the CSP, as a whole, accepted a basic identification of socialism with Marxism.
• Jayaprakash Narayan wrote the book “Why Socialism?”

• The Government of India Act, 1919, had a provision that a Commission would be appointed 10 years from the date to study the progress of the governance scheme and suggest new steps. An all-White, seven-member Indian Statutory Commission, popularly known as the Simon Commission (after the name of its Chairman, Sir John Simon), was set up by the British government under Stanley Baldwin‘s Prime Ministership in 1927.
• The Commission was to recommend to the British government whether India was ready for further constitutional reforms and along what lines. Although the constitutional reforms were due only in 1929, the Conservative Government, then in power in Britain, feared defeat by the Labour Party and, thus, did not want to leave the question of the future of Britain‘s most priced colony in ―irresponsible Labour hands‖.
• The Conservative Secretary of State for India, Lord Birkenhead, was responsible for the appointment of the Simon Commission. What angered the Indians the most was the exclusion of the Indians from the Commission and the basic notion behind the exclusion that the foreigners would discuss and decide upon India‘s fitness for self-government. This notion was seen as a violation of the principle of self- determination and as a deliberate insult to the self-respect of the Indians. The Congress Session in Madras (December, 1927), meeting under the Presidency of M.A. Ansari, decided to boycott the Commission ―at every stage and in every form‖. Meanwhile, Nehru succeeded in getting a snap resolution passed at the Session, declaring ―Complete Independence‖ as the goal of the Congress. Those who decided to support the Congress call of boycott of the Simon Commission included the liberals of the Hindu Mahasabha and the majority faction of the Muslim League under Jinnah.
• The Muslim League had two sessions in 1927 – one under Jinnah at Calcutta, where it was decided to oppose the Simon Commission and another at Lahore under Muhammad Shafi, who supported the government. Some others, such as the Unionists in Punjab and the Justice Party in the south, decided not to boycott the Commission.

Congress Manifesto for the Elections – The Congress manifesto reaffirmed total rejection of the Government of India Act 1935 and promised the release of the prisoners, the removal of the disabilities on the basis of gender and caste, radical transformation of the agrarian system, substantial reduction of rent and revenue, scaling down of rural debts, cheap credit and right to form trade unions and to strike. Gandhi did not attend a single election meeting. Note: In February, 1937, elections to the Provincial Assemblies were held. Elections were held in 11 Provinces – Madras, the Central Provinces, Bihar, Orissa, the United Provinces, the Bombay Presidency, Assam, the NWFP, Bengal, Punjab and Sindh.

The Agrarian Reforms – There were certain basic constraints due to which the Congress Ministries could not undertake a complete overhaul of the agrarian structure by completely abolishing the Zamindari. These constraints were –
(i) The Ministries did not have adequate powers.
(ii) There were inadequate financial resources, as a lion‘s share was appropriated by the Government of India.
(iii) Strategy of class adjustments was another hurdle, since the Zamindars, etc., had to be conciliated and neutralized.
(iv) There was constraint of time, since the logic of the Congress politics was confrontation and not co-operation with colonialism.
(v) War clouds had started hovering around 1938.
(vi) The reactionary Second Chamber (The Legislative Council), dominated by the landlords, moneylenders and capitalists in the United Provinces, Bihar, Bombay, Madras and Assam, had to be conciliated, as its support was necessary for the legislations.
(vii) The agrarian structure was too complex. In spite of these constraints, the Congress Ministries managed to legislate a number of laws relating to land reforms, debt relief, forest grazing fee, arrears of rent, land tenures, etc. But, most of these benefits went to the statutory and the occupancy tenants, while the sub-tenants did not gain much. Agricultural labourers did not benefit, as they had not been mobilized

The 1930s saw the rise of fascism in Europe and the struggle against it. The nationalists saw imperialism and fascism as the organs of capitalism. They lend support to the struggle against fascism in other parts of the world, in Ethiopia, Spain, China and Czechoslovakia. In 1939, at the Tripuri Session, the Congress dissociated itself from the British policy, which supported fascism in Europe. In 1939, the Japanese attack on China was condemned by the nationalists. The Congress also sent a medical mission under Dr. Atal to China. Note: Among the resolutions at Tripuri was an interesting one relating to China: ―The Congress sends its greetings to the people of China and its deepest sympathy in their trials and privations in their struggle against ruthless and inhuman imperialism. It congratulates them on their heroic resistance.‖ ―The Congress expresses its approval of the sending of a Medical Mission on its behalf to the people of China and trusts that this Mission will continue to receive full support, so that it may carry on its work of succour effectively and be a worthy symbol of Indian solidarity with China

The formation of the above Congress Ministries (in the Provinces) and the vast extension of civil liberties unleashed popular energies everywhere. The Kisan Sabhas sprang up in every part of the country and there was an immense growth in trade union activities and membership. Student and Youth Movements revived and burgeoned. A powerful fillip was given to the State Peoples‘ Movement. The Left parties were able to expand manifold. Even though it was under a Central Government ban, the Communist Party was able to bring out its weekly organ, The National Front, from Bombay. The Congress Socialist Party brought out The Congress Socialist and several other journals in Indian languages. Of particular interest is the example of Kirti Lehar, which the Kirti Communists of Punjab brought out from Meerut, U.P., because they could not do so in Unionist-ruled Punjab. Note: In early 1915, Annie Besant launched a campaign through her two papers, New India and Commonweal, and organized public meetings and conferences to demand that India be granted self-government on the lines of the White Colonies after the War.

The Arya Mahila Samaj was the first independent women's organization in India. It was founded by Pandita Ramabai. It received enthusiastic support from Kashibai Kanitkar and Ramabai Ranade, who went from door to door, persuading the Hindu women to join the meetings of the Samaj. Sarala Devi Chaudhurani founded the Bharat Stree Mahamandal in Allahabad in 1910. Gangabehn discovered the spinning wheel in Vijapur in Baroda. This was later popularised as the Charkha and promoted for spinning Khadi.

Let's evaluate the correctness of each pair:

1. Henry Salt - A Plea for Vegetarianism

   • This is correctly matched. Henry Salt is known for his work "A Plea for Vegetarianism."

2. Edward Carpenter - Civilisation: Its Cause and Cure

   • This is correctly matched. Edward Carpenter authored "Civilisation: Its Cause and Cure."

3. Emerson - The Kingdom of God is Within You

   • This is incorrectly matched. "The Kingdom of God is Within You" was written by Leo Tolstoy, not Ralph Waldo Emerson.

4. Tolstoy - Unto This Last

   • This is incorrectly matched. "Unto This Last" was written by John Ruskin, not Leo Tolstoy.

So, the pairs that are correctly matched are:

1 and 2 only

Therefore, the correct answer is:

2. 1 and 2 only

In a manner somewhat similar to Gandhi, Jinnah emerged as the Muslims‘ ̳national‘ leader, particularly because he did not have strong  ̳local‘ support. The Muslim-majority provinces of Punjab and Bengal had their own provincial leaders and parties – the Unionist Party under Sikander Hyat Khan in Punjab and the Krishak Praja Party of Fazlul Huq in Bengal, the parties that catered to the ̳local‘ interests of their supporters, and had an ambiguous and contentious relationship with the League.

The Tebhaga Movement of the share- croppers belonged primarily to the tribal and the Dalit groups of the Rajbansis and the Namasudras. The Movement got its name from the fact that the share-croppers demanded two-thirds (Tebhag) of the produce, instead of the customary half. Even though there was the organization of the Bengal Provincial Kisan Sabha (BPKS), the Tebhaga Movement demonstrated class consciousness and concern about individual rights to such an extent that the Rajbansi and the Muslim share-croppers did not have any qualms in attacking the Rajbansi and the Muslim jotedars

The 1942 Quit India Movement was a mixture of opposites. Unusual both on account of the magnitude of popular participation and the lack of clear directives from the Congress High Command, as well as for the articulation of anger and ̳hatred‘ against the British rule, the Movement brought the subjects of British India and the states‘ people in a joint action against the Raj. At the same time, it failed to ensure the participation of the Muslims and certain groups of the Dalits and the non- Brahmans. The Muslims remained aloof; they did not actively oppose it. The leaders of the Hindu Mahasabha condemned the Quit India Movement as ̳sterile, unmanly and injurious to the Hindu cause‘. V. D. Savarkar, B. S. Munje and Shyama Prasad Mukherjee stoutly stood behind the British government, which was harassed by the War and the Congress campaign. Punjab too, saw little anti- British activity between 1942 and 1945, since the ̳lines of tripartite communal conflict among the Muslims, the Sikhs and the Hindus had so hardened as to make resistance to the Raj secondary‘. The Muslim League supported the Movement.

 In April, 1950, the Delhi Pact (The Liaquat-Nehru Pact) was signed. It was the outcome of 6 days of talks between India and Pakistan. The Prime Ministers of India and Pakistan, Jawaharlal Nehru and Liaquat Ali Khan, wanted to ensure the rights of the minorities in both the countries. Most importantly, they wanted to avert another war, which seemed to be brewing since the partition in 1947. It was agreed that both the governments would ensure complete and equal right of citizenship, and security of life and properties to their minorities. Ensuring full fundamental human rights, which included the rights of freedom of movement, freedom of thoughts and expression, and the right of religion, was part of the deal. A Minorities Commission was to be set up to make sure that they would be represented. They vowed not to violate the rules of the Pact and to make all efforts to reinforce it. If the minorities faced any problem, it would be the duty of both the governments to redress their problems without delay. In short, this Pact agreed to guarantee full right to their minorities and to accord them the status of citizens.

The Bombay Group of Industrialists had concluded the Lees Mody Pact in 1933, in an effort to present a united front of the Lancashire and the Bombay cotton mill interests against Japanese competition.

The Congress captured 758 out of the 1585 seats in the Provincial Legislatures and formed governments in 7 out of the 11 Provinces. The Congress won absolute majority in 6 provinces – Madras, Bihar, Orissa, the Central Provinces, the North- West Frontier Province and the United Provinces – a near majority in Bombay (86 seats out of 175) and emerged as the single largest party in Assam and Bengal. The Muslim League, it is worth remembering, performed miserably in Sind, Punjab and the North-West Frontier Province, and not too well in Bengal, a fact that negated its claim of being the sole representative of the Muslims. The Congress Socialist Party was not in favour of the formation of the Congress Ministries. The amendment, proposed by Jayaprakash Narayan of the Congress Socialist Party, that rejected the acceptance of the office, was defeated.

Complete Civil Disobedience is a state of peaceful rebellion – a refusal to obey every single State-made law. In Gandhi‘s estimation, Civil Disobedience was ̳certainly more dangerous than an armed rebellion‘, because it ̳can never be put down if the civil resisters are prepared to face extreme hardships‘. Civil Disobedience ̳is based upon an implicit belief in the absolute efficiency of innocent suffering‘ (Gandhi). Civil Disobedience was to begin with immediate boycott of the legislatures and foreign cloth. This was to be followed by non-payment of taxes. The call for boycott met with lukewarm response.

Gandhiji repeatedly urged the British to leave India to God, stating that he was willing to risk ̳complete lawlessness‘ in place of the ̳orderly disciplined anarchy‘ of the British. Gandhi had initially used the phrase ̳orderly withdrawal‘, but soon changed over to Quit India. The Congress Working Committee, at its meeting in Wardha, passed the historic ̳Quit India‘ Resolution and formulated a ̳National Demand‘—that the British transfer power immediately to the Indians and quit India.

Leopold Amery was the Secretary of State for India during the Quit India Movement. Guerilla warfare along the India–Nepal border was carried on by a radical group under Jayaprakash Narayan. The Communists decided to support the British and stayed away from the Quit India Movement.

Congress Interim Government, under Jawahar Lal Nehru, was sworn-in in 1946. The Constituent Assembly started meeting from 9th December, but the Muslim League withdrew because the Congress refused to accede to its demand of sectional meetings to draft group constitutions. Lord Mountbatten arrived in India with clear directives for a fast withdrawal and powers to decide things on the spot. Mountbatten was ready with ̳Plan Balkan‘—it advocated the division of Punjab and Bengal, and the handover of power to the provinces and the sub-provinces, free to join one or more of the group Constituent Assemblies on the basis of self-determination. The Interim Government was to remain in force till June, 1948, to oversee the arrangements. Nehru and the Congress rejected Plan Balkan, because, in their view, a weak centre and autonomous provinces would indeed lead to a ̳Balkanization‘ of India, promoting ̳disruptive tendencies‘, and chaos and disorder everywhere. Jinnah, for his part, was not satisfied with just two Muslim- majority provinces that would constitute a ̳truncated or mutilated, a moth-eaten Pakistan‘.

Government plans law on protection of Indian manuscripts:

• The government is planning to introduce the National Manuscripts Bill, 2023, with the aim to document and catalogue Indian heritage texts wherever they may be, in India or abroad, maintain accurate and up-to-date information about them, and detail the conditions under which they may be consulted.
• It envisages setting up a 10-member National Manuscripts Authority (NMA).
• The Culture Minister as a Chairperson and the other members would include the Secretaries of Culture, Finance and Education, the Vice-Chancellor of Central Sanskrit University, special invitees representing the States, and private agencies.
• Statement 1 is correct About National Manuscripts Authority (NMA): It would be the apex policy making body with regard to digitisation, conservation, preservation, editing, and publication work of manuscripts.
• Statement 2 is correct: • NMA would have the powers of a civil court to regulate the allocation of access to manuscripts and would also have an investigation wing for the purpose of conducting an inquiry into thefts and desecration of texts 

United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) World Heritage sites are designated as having “Outstanding Universal Value” under the Convention Concerning the Protection of the World Cultural and Natural Heritage. This document was adopted by UNESCO in 1972 and formally took effect in 1975.

• It provides a framework for international cooperation in preserving and protecting cultural treasures and natural areas throughout the world. 

Alarmed at the increasing strength of the trade union movement under the extremist influence, the government resorted to legislative restrictions. It passed the Public Safety Ordinance (1929) and the Trade Disputes Act (TDA), 1929.

• The TDA, 1929 provided for o the compulsory appointment of Courts of Inquiry and Consultation Boards for settling industrial disputes o and made illegal the strikes in public utility services like posts, railways, water and electricity unless each individual worker planning to go on strike gave advance notice of one month to the administration; o forbade trade union activity of coercive or purely political nature and even sympathetic strikes. Hence, statement 1 is correct.
• Bhagat Singh and B.K. Dutt were asked to throw a bomb in the Central Legislative Assembly on 8 April 1929 against the passage of the Public Safety Bill and the Trade Disputes Bill which would reduce the civil liberties of citizens in general and workers in particular. Hence, statement 2 is correct.

The Indian Rebellion of 1857 was a major uprising in India in 1857–58against the rule of the British East India Company, which functioned as a sovereign power on behalf of the British Crown.

• Though the revolt was formidable and widespread though the revolt was, it was yet to a great extent localized, limited and ill-organized. The Mutiny was not universal.
• According to Dr. R.C Mazumdar, it was never an all-India character but was localized, restricted, and poorly organised. The area affected was Punjab, the United Provinces, Rohilkhand, Oudh, the territory between the Narmada and the Chambal, and the Western parts of Bengal and Bihar on the North-East. Sindh was quite, and Rajputana was loyal. Under Dost Mohammad, Afghanistan was friendly to the British. He refrained from assisting rebels. Hence statement 3 is not correct.
  • At Bareilly, Khan Bahadur, a descendant of the former ruler of Rohilkhand, was placed in command. Not enthusiastic about the pension being granted by the British, he organized an army of 40,000 soldiers and offered stiff resistance to the British. Hence statement 1 is not correct.
• India South of the river Narmada made no movement of importance, though the native regiments mutinied at Kolhapur in the Southern Marathan country and there were also many dangerous outbursts of feelings at Hyderabad, the Nizam's Capital. Central and Eastern Bengal were undisturbed and Nepal rendered the British valuable assistance in putting down the revolt. The Bombay and Madras armies remained loyal to the British. Thus, the revolt was only local and not nation-wise. Hence statement 2 is correct.

• The Ilbert Bill was proposed in 1883 by the British Government headed by Lord Ripon. C.P Ilbert, the law member in his council, introduced in February 1883 what is known as the infamous Ilbert Bill. The bill sought to abolish “judicial disqualification based on race distinctions”. It proposed to give Indian district magistrates and session judges the power to try European offenders in the mofussil (small towns), as they already did in the presidency towns. Hence option (c) is the correct answer.
• However, the bill was met with opposition from the European community. In January 1884 Ripon ultimately succumbed to the pressure and withdrew the bill, substituting it with a milder compromise formula, which somehow sought to preserve the principle by adding a provision of trial by a mixed jury in such cases involving European offenders. It became clear to the nationalists that justice and fair play could not be expected where the interests of the European community were involved. The Ilbert Bill controversy proved an eye-opener to the Indian intelligentsia. It became clear to them that justice and fair play could not be expected where the interests of the European community were involved.

• The Danish East India Company o The Danes entered as traders in 1616 but with no ambition to establish an Empire. They managed to secure the Tranquebar port from the Nayak of Tanjore in 1620 and built a fort there. They also established their factories at Masulipatam, Porto Novo and Shrirampur(1755). However, their success was limited, and ultimately they sold off their factories to the English and finally quit India in 1845. Hence pair 1 is correctly matched.
• The Dutch East India Company o The Dutch East India Company was formed in 1602 through a charter. The Dutch were primarily interested in spice trade. Therefore, they paid more attention to the Far East. India was just a trading depot for them. They established their factories at Pulicat (1610), Cambay (1620), Surat and Agra (1621), Hariharpur (1633), Patna (1638). Dacca (1650), Udaiganj (1651), Chinsura (1653), Qasimbazar, Baranagore, Balasore and Negapatam (1659-60). Hence pair 2 is correctly matched.
• The French East India Company
  • The French were late comers to the Eastern trade. The French East India Company was founded in 1664. The first French factory was establish at Surat in 1668. This was the place of prime importance to the English. In 1669, the French established their second factory at Masulipatam. In 1673, they got Pondicherry, and in 1674 the Nawab of Bengal granted them a site near Calcutta where in 1690-92 they built the town of Chandranagore. Hence pair 3 is correctly matched.
• The Portuguese East India Company o The Portuguese were the very first European naval adventurers on the scene, who had started out on daring sea voyages down the coast of Africa back from 1415 AD. In 1528, the Sultan of Bengal permitted the Portuguese to establish factories and customs houses in the Port of Chittagong. A fort and naval base was established in Firingi Bandar. The settlement grew into the most prominent Eurasian port on the Bay of Bengal during the Age of Discovery. Hence pair 4 is correctly matched.

• The Balutedari system was a reciprocal arrangement between village artisans and the wider village community, for the supply of goods and services under the Maratha rule in Deccan in the 18th century. The artisans provided services to the villages and in return were paid through the share in agricultural production by the village community.
• The village servants were primarily artisans and formed an important section of the rural society in Deccan. They were called balutedars and their income, which was a share in the agricultural produce, was known as balutas. Balutedars also played an important part in the village council which will be discussed in the next section.The Balutedars were the counterparts of the Kamins of North India. However, compared to the kamins, their status was better off in the Deccan rural society. Hence option (b) is the correct answer.
• The system of revenue farming introduced by the Nawabs in Bengal during the 18th century was known as Ijara farming. Ijarah system was introduced during the reign of the Mughal emperor Jahandar Shah. It was introduced by his powerful noble Zulfiqar Khan.

• Aravipuram Movement was launched by Sri Narayana Guru on Shivaratri day of 1888. On that day, Sri Narayana Guru defied the religious restrictions traditionally placed on the Ezhava community and consecrated an idol of Shiva at Aravipuram. In 1888, he installed an idol of Siva at Aravippuram in Kerala in an effort to show that the consecration of god’s image was not a monopoly of the brahmins.
• Lord Curzon succeeded Lord Elgin and served as India’s Viceroy between 1899 and 1905. He became the youngest Viceroy of India at the age of 39.
  • The British Viceroy, Lord Curzon, passed the Indian Universities Act in 1904 on the recommendations of the Raleigh Commission, which tightened control over Indian universities. The Indian Universities Act made the universities and colleges completely under the Government's control. The Governor General was now empowered to decide a University’s territorial limits and also affiliation between the universities and colleges.
  • The Indian Agricultural Research Institute (IARI), popularly known as Pusa Institute, began in 1905 at Pusa (Bihar) with a generous grant of 30,000 pounds from an American philanthropist, Henry Phipps. The Foundation stone of the Institute was laid by the then Viceroy Lord Curzon on 1st April 1905. It is India's national Institute for agricultural research, education, and extension. The IARI was responsible for the research leading to the "Green Revolution in India" of the 1970s.
• Hence option (d) is the correct answer.