MH SET Paper 2 Mock Test - 10 (History) - MAHA TET MCQ

The following statement is not true about the nationalist historical writings in the pre-independence India:

'Nationalist historiography before independence dealt with the ancient, medieval and modern, all the three periods of Indian history'.

Important Points

• Nationalist historiography flourished mainly in dealing with the ancient and medieval periods.
• It hardly existed for the modern period and came into being mainly after 1947, no school of nationalist historians of modern India having existed before 1947.
• This was in part because, in the era of nationalism, to be a nationalist was also to be anti-imperialist, which meant confrontation with the ruling, colonial authorities.
• And that was not possible for academics because of colonial control over the educational system.
• It became safe to be anti-imperialist only after 1947.
• Consequently, a history of the national movement or of colonial economy did not exist.
• This is, of course, not a complete explanation of the absence of nationalist historiography before 1947.
• After all, Indian economists did develop a sharp and brilliant critique of the colonial economy of India and its impact on the people.
• Above all, nationalist historical writing contributed to the self-confidence, self-assertion and a certain national pride which enabled Indian people to struggle against colonialism especially in the face of denigration of India’s past and the consequent inferiority complex promoted by colonial writers.
• Nilkanth Shastri and other historians also helped overcome the regional bias – the bias of treating India as coterminous with the Indo-Gangetic plane.

• In this respect, as in many others, nationalist historical writing in India became a major unifying factor so far as the literate Indians were concerned.

Based on the above discussion, we can conclude that the following statement is not true about the nationalist historical writings in the pre-independence India:

'Nationalist historiography before independence dealt with the ancient, medieval and modern, all the three periods of Indian history'.

A Sahukar was someone who acted as both a moneylender and a trader. They were invariably attacked during the rebellion. Rentier is a term used to designate people who live on rental income from property. Jotedars were the rich peasants and ryots and not zamindars. They sometimes delayed payments to the Zamindars in order to troble them. The jotedars were most powerful in North Bengal. In some places they were called haotadars, elsewhere they were also known as gantidars or mandals. Their rise inevitably weakened zamindari authority.

Akbar initially followed Sher Shah’s revenue systems, particularly the Zabt System. Raja Todar Mal was made the Revenue Minister of Akbar and was known as ‘Diwan-i-Ashraf’. Todar Mal introduced ‘Bandobast’, a revenue assessment system that classified land into four categories, i.e., Polaj (best tract), Parauti (second best), Checher (third grade) and Banjar (least fertile). On the basis of the average produce for the last 10 years, the category of land was decided and accordingly tax was levied.

Lord Curzon sent Younghusband mission (A military expedition) to Tibet to resist the Russsian infiltration to Tibet and solve the boundary dispute over the border between Tibet and Sikkim. Younghusband’s expedition to Tibet was started in December 1903 and lasted till September 1904.

The statement "knowledge is not found or discovered but rather is made by humans" is closely aligned with the constructivist school of thought in educational philosophy.

Key Points

• Constructivism suggests that knowledge is actively constructed by individuals based on their experiences, interactions, and reflections.
• Constructivism emphasizes the role of the learner as an active participant in the learning process, shaping and constructing their own knowledge rather than passively receiving it.
• Some principles of constructivism include:-

1. Active Learning
2. Prior Knowledge
3. Social Interaction
4. Real-World Contexts
5. Scaffolding

​ Additional Information

• Post-modernism: Post-modernism is a diverse and sometimes controversial movement, and its ideas are interpreted and applied in various ways across different disciplines and contexts.
• Humanism: Humanism is characterized by a focus on human experience, reason, and ethics.
• There are different strands of humanism, including religious, secular, and educational humanism.
• Idealism: Idealism is a philosophical school of thought that emphasizes the primacy of ideas, consciousness, and mind in the constitution of reality.

Thus the option B is correct.

Pallavas were great patrons of learning. Their capital, Kanchi, was an ancient centre of learning. The Ghatika at Kanchi was popular and attracted students from all parts of India and abroad.

The Nayanars and Alwars composed religious hymns in Tamil. The Devaram composed by Nayanars and the Nalayradivyaprabandam composed by Alwars represent the religious literature of the Pallava period.

The correct answer is It cannot be said that the Vedic society shifted to East.

Key Points

• The Vedic age is divided into two parts: The early Vedic age and the later Vedic age.
• The period from 1500 BC to 1000 BC is considered the Early Vedic age.
• The period from 1000 BC to 600 BC is considered the Later Vedic period.
• During the later Vedic period, the Aryans' settlement covered the whole of north India.
• The archaeological evidence suggests that Iron was discovered by the later Vedic society and they used it for various purposes.
• These all pieces of evidence of agriculture equipment show the transition of later Vedic society from a pastoral society to an agrarian society.
• The Vedic society used iron technology most for the wars, they made the arrow to fight the wars.
• The institution of gotra appeared during this period.
• As against tribal endogamy, people practiced gotra exogamy marrying outside the gotra.
• Gotra signified descent from a common ancestor and marriages could not take place between couples belonging to the same gotra.

Important Points

• Satapatha Brahmana mentioned the expansion of Vedic people towards the east.
• So, it can be said that Vedic society shifted to the east.

Additional Information

• It is also believed that the discovery of iron depicts a great impact of technological change in the life of people in later Vedic society.
• The iron axe helps in clearing the forests and it increases the practice of permanent cultivation at that time.

We know about the Delhi Sultanate because of its architecture, inscriptions, coins, and Tarikh/Tawarikh (histories written in Persian, the official language of the Delhi Sultanate).

Key Points

Tawarikhs:

• The authors of Tawarikh lived in cities (mainly Delhi) and hardly ever in villages.
• They often wrote their histories for Sultans in the hope of rich rewards.
• These authors advised rulers on the need to preserve an “ideal” social order based on birthright.
• Their ideas were not shared by everybody. Common mass had nothing to do with their ideas.

Hence, we can conclude that the statement A) is true but B) is false

Alauddin Khalji gave enormous gifts to the hostile nobles and Amirs of Delhi to win them over to his side. Those who still opposed his accession were punished severely. He framed regulations to control the nobles. He was convinced that the general prosperity of the nobles, intermarriages between noble families, inefficient spy-system and drinking liquor were the basic reasons for the rebellions. Therefore, he passed four ordinances. He confiscated the properties of the nobles. The intelligence system was reorganized and all the secret activities of the nobles were immediately reported to the Sultan. The public sale of liquor and drugs was totally stopped. Social gatherings and festivities without the permission of Sultan were forbidden. By such harsh measures, his reign was free from rebellions.

The Prarthana Samaj:

• Founded in 1867.
• Founded by Dr. Atmaram Pandurang, Mahadev Govind Ranade & Ramakrishna Bhandarkar.
• It is one of the prominent social reform & social work movements in India.
• The leaders of the Prathana Samaj were influenced by the Brahmo Samaj.
• It is believed that true love for God lies in the service of people with any differentiation.
• The Prarthana Samaj adhered to the tradition of Bhakti that believed in spiritual equality of all castes.
• In Bombay, the Paramhans Mandali was founded in 1840 to work for the abolition of caste
• It had faith in a single, almighty God i.e: Monotheism.
• It didn't reject the Vedas but emphasized Bhakti towards God.
• Subodh Patrika was regulated to propagate the ideas & views of the Prarthana Samaj in society.

Additional Information

Features:

• They emphasized Widow remarriage & Women education. (Hence, statement 3rd is incorrect)
• They were against the caste system and the practice of untouchability.
• They showed discontent towards the caste system.
• They fought for the increase in the marriage age of both males & females.
• They opened night schools & reading rooms.​

Many steps that were in the interest of the people were taken by the Mughal ruler, Akbar; one of them was the end of pilgrimage tax.

• In 1441, Shah Rukh of Persia sent Kamal-ud-din AbdurRazzaq as an emissary to Vijayanagar.
• AbdurRazzaq wrote his travels in the
  • Malta-us-Sadain(The Rise of Two Auspicious Constellations) and
  • Majma-ul-Bahrain(The Confluence of Two Oceans)
• He visited India during the reign of Devi Rai II, the emperor of Vijayanagara Empire.

The correct answer is Option D.

Key PointsIndian Factories Act,1891:

• The provisions of the Indian Factories Act,1891 is as follows:
  • The age of children who can work in the factories is increased from 9 years to 14 years. Hence, statement 1 is incorrect.
  • Reduced the working hour per day to 7 hours. Hence, statement 2 is incorrect.
  • Maximum working hours for a day were 11 hours. Hence, statement 3 is incorrect.
  • Provide weekly holidays for all.
• Moderate leaders didn't support Factories Act because they believed that the labor legislation would affect the competitive edge enjoyed by Indian own industries. Also, they didn't want to divide the movement into class-based movements.
• Accordingly, Option D is correct.

The correct answer is Sheikh Ahmed Sirhindi.

Key Points

• The Chishtis of this period are generally believed to have been influenced by the work of the Spanish-born mystic, Ibn Arabi (d. 1240) who propounded the doctrine of wahdat al-wujud (unity of the phenomenal and noumenal world).
• It was opposed by the ulama and orthodox sufis.
• However, it should be noted that most of the Sufis, including the Chishtis, did not consider doctrines such as wahdat al-wujud of primary importance in the Sufi way of life, among them one of the prominent Sufi was Sheikh Ahmed Sirhindi. Hence, option 2 is the correct answer.
• For them, Sufism was not so much a doctrine but a practical activity of traversing the Sufi path.
• The ideas of Alauddaula Simnani (1261-1336), an Iranian who opposed Ibn Arabi’s doctrine, also influenced some Indian sufis.

• Gesudaraz came under the influence of Simnani’s orthodox ideas and denounced the views of Ibn Arabi.

Thus we conclude that the correct answer is Sheikh Ahmed Sirhindi.

The ‘battle of ten kings’ also referred to as the dasharajna was fought between the Bharata chief Sudas (winner) on one side, and ten other tribes which included the Panch-jana, namely, the Yadu, Turvasha, Puru, Anu, and Druhyu.

The government of India Act was passed on 2nd August 1858. Indigo revolt took place in the year 1859. In 1860, the Indigo commission was appointed. Indian Council Act was passed in 1861 and received Royal Assent on 1st August. The famine of North-Western provinces Agra, Oudh, Punjab took place in 1861.

1. Jama Masjid (Sambhal) was built during Babar reign.

2. The second Mughal emperor, Humayun, built Dinpanah.

3. The Jahangiri Mahal is a residential palace built by Akbar within the Agra Fort complex.

4. Akbar's Tomb, Sikandra was completed between 1612 to 1614 AD by his son Jahangir.

The Indian Universities Act was passed in the year 1904 during the time of Lord Curzon. It was established by the recommendation of Releigh Commission.

All of the above statements are correct.Key Points

• Historical research in organization and management studies continues to be described as a type of inductive theory building from cases.
• But historical epistemology and methodological practices are better understood as a form of situated scholarly inquiry in which the researcher interprets or analyzes the past from a position in the present.
• Historical research mainly relies on first-hand information sources such as historical records, books, photographs, letters, and evidence that belongs to the time the research focuses on.
• Historical research represents a systematic enquiry into a new area in the past and an attempt to separate true from fictionalized accounts of historical events, based upon the examination of a wide range of relevant source material.
• This is an important task because history is the source of many of our ideas, beliefs and customs, it depends upon new interpretations of data.

• A better understanding of the past places us in a more advantageous position to appreciate change in the present and to try and learn from past mistakes and rewrite the principle.

Hence, we can conclude that all of the above statements are correct.

Key Points

• Agra Fort's construction was started by Akbar between 1565 and 1573.
• It is situated on the west bank of the Yamuna River, about 2km upstream from the Taj Mahal.
• Akbar built the fort of sandstone; his grandson Shah Jahan, constructed palaces of white marble within the fort itself.

The correct answer is 1 and 2 only.

Key Points

Sufi movement -

• Sufism was a liberal reform movement within Islam. Hence statement 1 is correct.
• It had its origin in Persia and spread into India in the eleventh century.
• Sufism stressed the elements of love and devotion as an effective means of the realization of God. Hence statement 2 is correct.
• Love of God meant love of humanity and so the Sufis believed service to humanity was tantamount to service to God.
• In Sufism, self-discipline was considered an essential condition to gain knowledge of God by a sense of perception.
• While orthodox Muslims emphasize external conduct, the Sufis lay stress on inner purity.
• While the orthodox belief in the blind observance of rituals, the Sufis consider love and devotion as the only means of attaining salvation.
• These liberal and unorthodox features of Sufism had a profound influence on medieval Bhakti saints.
• In the later period, Akbar, the Mughal emperor, appreciated Sufi doctrines which shaped his religious outlook and religious policies.

Important Points

Famous Sufi saints -

• The first Sufi saint Shaikh Ismail of Lahore started preaching his ideas.
• The most famous of the Sufi saints of India was Khwaja Muinuddin Chishti, who settled in Ajmer which became the centre of his activities. He had a number of disciples who are called Sufis of the Chishti order.
• Another well-known Sufi saint was Bahauddin Zakariya who came under the influence of another famous mystic Shihabuddin Suhrawardi. His branch of Sufi saints was known as the Sufis of the Suhrawardi Order.
• Yet another famous Sufi saint was Nizamuddin Auliya who belonged to the Chishti order. Hence statement 3 is incorrect.
• These Sufi saints are revered even today by not only Muslims but by a large number of Hindus.

The First Factory Act was passed in 1881 during the viceroyship of Lord Ripon. It was enacted to improve the condition of the labour of factories. As per the act, children of the age group 9 to 12 were not allowed to work more than 9 hours a day. Inspectors were appointed to check safety measures.

The pair of 'Lectures on Modern History - Marc Bloch' is not correctly matched.

Key Points

• Ancient Indian Historical Tradition:
  • ​Ancient Indian historical tradition by F E Pargiter is a result obtained from an examination of Puranic and epic tradition as well as the Rigveda and Vedic literature.
  • It includes the study of Puranas and epics for geographical information about ancient India.
• Hinduism and its Sense of History:
  • It has been long taken for granted in the study of Hinduism over the past two centuries that the Hindus lacked a sense of history.
  • This book by Arvind Sharma marshalled evidence to render this assumption, which has had far-reaching consequences, implausible.
• Debates with Historians:
  • This book was written by Peter Geyl.
  • He was a Dutch historian and well known for his studies in early modern Dutch history and in historiography.
• Lectures on Modern History:
  • This book was written by John Dalberg-Acton.

  • It is a survey of modern history from the rise of the modern nation state to the American Revolution.

Based on the above discussion, we can conclude that the pair of 'Lectures on Modern History - Marc Bloch' is not correctly matched.

A Mughal province's administrative division was called Pargana.

Important Points

1. The Ain i Akbari is the third book of the Akbar Nama. The Ain, completed in 1598 was a component of a bigger historical writing effort that Akbar had commissioned.
2. The Ain provides in-depth details of the structure of the court, government, and army, as well as the financial and physical organization of the provinces of Akbar's empire.
3. The third volume, mulk-abadi, discusses the financial aspects of the empire and offers extensive quantitative data on revenue rates.
4. The "Account of the Twelve Provinces" came next. This section contains comprehensive statistical data, including the total measured area, assessed revenue, and the geographic, topographic, and economic profiles of all subas and their administrative and fiscal divisions- sarkars, parganas, and mahals.
5. The Ain first describes the suba level in depth before describing the sarkars below the suba in great detail. This is done using tables with eight columns that include the following details:
   1. parganat/mahal;
   2. qila (forts);
   3. arazi and zamin-i paimuda (measured area);
   4. naqdi, revenue assessed in cash;
   5. suyurghal, grants of revenue in charity; and
   6. zamindars; columns
   7. contain information on the castes of these zamindars, as well as their armies, which included their horsemen (sawar), foot soldiers (fil )

Additional Information

• Peshkash- The Mughal government gathered tribute in the form of peshkash. The peshkash collected from forest dwellers frequently included an elephant herd.
• Jagir- Mansabdars were paid by income assignments known as jagirs, which are similar to iqtas. Contrary to muqtis, however, the majority of mansabdars did not actually live in or manage their jagirs. They were only entitled to the money earned from their assignments, which their employees collected on their behalf.
• Milkiyat- Large private lands known as milkiyat were owned by zamindars. It was cultivated for the zamindars' personal use.

Among the given statements about Annales historians, the statements A, C & D are true.

Important Points

• The Annales School of historiography, widely considered as one of the most important developments in the twentieth-century history-writing, formally emerged with the foundation of the journal Annales d’histoire economique et sociale (Annales of Economic and Social History) in 1929 by Marc Bloch and Lucien Febvre.
• In terms of thematic range and methodological innovations, this School remained foremost in France and influenced history-writing in many other countries for decades and had followers all over the world including India.
• Annales historians insist that they do not represent a school.

• History of economic structures, of long-term developments, of mentalities, micro-history and cultural history have all benefited by significant contribution from the historians of this School.

Thus, we can conclude that among the given statements about Annales historians, the statements A, C & D are true.

The correct answer is Tamilakam.Key Points

• The passage mentions that Aśoka, after succeeding to the throne of Pātaliputra, rounded off the empire he inherited from his grandfather by annexing Kalinga.
• This implies that Kalinga was part of the Asokan empire.
• However, the passage does not mention Tamilakam as being part of the empire.
• Tamilakam refers to the region of ancient Tamil Nadu in South India, which had its own distinct cultural and political identity during Aśoka's time.

• While Aśoka expanded his empire by annexing various territories, including Kalinga, there is no mention in the passage or any indication that Tamilakam was part of his empire.

​Therefore, based on the information provided in the passage, the correct answer is Tamilakam, as it did not form part of the Asokan empire.

The correct answer is Rock Edict XIII.Key Points

• Rock Edict XIII is one of the major rock edicts issued by Asoka, and it is known for its emphasis on non-violence and compassion.
• In this edict, Asoka reflects upon the devastating consequences of the Kalinga war and expresses deep remorse for the suffering it caused.
• He acknowledges the loss of life, the pain endured by individuals, and the tragic consequences of the conflict.
• Asoka's remorse is evident in his words as he laments the personal violence, death, and separation experienced by people as a result of the war.
• He expresses his regret for the extensive human suffering that took place during the Kalinga war and emphasizes the importance of promoting peace and non-violence.
• While the passage did not explicitly mention the edict number, it is well-known that Asoka's expressions of remorse for the suffering caused by the Kalinga war are found in Rock Edict XIII.

• This edict plays a significant role in illustrating Asoka's transformation and his commitment to adopting a more compassionate and non-violent approach to governance.

Hence we conclude that the correct answer is Rock Edict XIII.

The correct answer is 1, 2 and 3.

Key Points

Dehliwal:

• Delhi first became the capital of a kingdom under the Tomara Rajputs, who were defeated in the middle of the twelfth century by the Chauhans (also referred to as Chahamanas) of Ajmer.
• It was under the Tomaras and Chauhans that Delhi became an important commercial center.
• Many rich Jaina merchants lived in the city and constructed several temples.
• Coins minted here, called dehliwal, had a wide circulation. Hence pair 2 is correctly matched.

Tawarikh:

• Tawarikh is history written by poets and courtiers.
• Although inscriptions, coins and architecture provide a lot of information, especially valuable are “histories”, tarikh (singular) / tawarikh (plural), written in Persian, the language of administration under the Delhi Sultans. Hence pair 1 is correctly matched.
• The authors of tawarikh were learned men: secretaries, administrators, poets and courtiers, who both recounted events and advised rulers on governance, emphasizing the importance of the just rule.

Bandagan:

• The consolidation of a kingdom as vast as the Delhi Sultanate needed reliable governors and administrators.
• Rather than appointing aristocrats and landed chieftains as governors, the early Delhi Sultans, especially Iltutmish, favoured their special slaves purchased for military service, called Bandagan in Persian. Hence pair 3 is correctly matched.
• They were carefully trained to man some of the most important political offices in the kingdom.
• Since they were totally dependent upon their master, the Sultan could trust and rely upon them.

The correct answer is (a), (b) and (c).

Key Points

• As the rulers of the mahajanapadas were building huge forts and maintaining big armies, they needed more resources.
• And they needed officials to collect these.
• So, instead of depending on occasional gifts brought by people, as in the case of the raja of the janapadas, they started collecting regular taxes.
• Given below were the sources of taxes:
  • Taxes on crops were the most important. This was because most people were farmers. Usually, the tax was fixed at 1/6th of what was produced. This was known as bhaga or a share.
  • There were taxes on crafts persons as well. These could have been in the form of labour. For example, a weaver or a smith may have had to work for a day every month for the king.
  • Herders were also expected to pay taxes in the form of animals and animal produce.
  • There were also taxes on goods that were bought and sold, through trade.

  • Hunters and gatherers also had to provide forest produce to the raja.

Based on the above discussion, we can conclude that among the given options the main sources of taxes were:

Calcutta was the capital of India from the year 1773 to 1911. In the year 1911 Delhi became the capital of India. Calcutta was the center point of revolutionary activities at that time and it was located far away from central India. That is why the British transferred the capital from Calcutta to Delhi.