Modern India (Pre-Congress Phase) MCQ Quiz - Objective Question with Answer for Modern India (Pre-Congress Phase) - Download Free PDF

The correct answer is It referred to a strongman or enforcer in the service of a zamindar, often wielding a stick to maintain control..

Key Points

• The term "Lathiyal" historically referred to strongmen or enforcers employed by zamindars (landowners) in rural India.
• Lathiyals were typically armed with lathis (sticks) and were tasked with maintaining order and enforcing the authority of the zamindar.
• They played a role in collecting taxes, managing disputes, and ensuring compliance among tenants and villagers.
• Due to their aggressive tactics, Lathiyals were often associated with violence and coercion, earning a reputation as feared figures in rural society.
• This term reflects the socio-economic dynamics and power structures in pre-independence India, where zamindars wielded significant influence over rural communities.

Additional Information

• Zamindar System: The zamindar system was a form of land revenue collection during Mughal and British rule in India, where zamindars acted as intermediaries between the government and peasants.
• Lathi: A lathi is a traditional Indian stick or baton, often used as a tool for self-defense, crowd control, or enforcement by police and private guards.
• Rural Power Structures: Zamindars controlled vast tracts of land and held significant socio-political influence over rural communities, often relying on enforcers like Lathiyals to assert their dominance.
• Decline of Lathiyals: With the abolition of zamindari post-independence and the establishment of democratic governance, the role of Lathiyals diminished significantly.
• Historical Context: The role of Lathiyals offers insights into the feudal nature of Indian society and the challenges faced by tenants under oppressive systems.

The correct answer is Francis Buchanan.

Key Points

• Francis Buchanan was a Scottish physician and botanist who served in the Bengal Medical Service from 1794 to 1815.
• He worked as a surgeon to the Governor-General of India, Lord Wellesley, during his tenure in India.
• Buchanan organized a zoo in Calcutta, which eventually evolved into the Calcutta Alipore Zoo, the oldest zoo in India.
• He briefly managed the Botanical Gardens in Calcutta (now the Acharya Jagadish Chandra Bose Indian Botanic Garden).
• Francis Buchanan made significant contributions to botany and zoology, conducting surveys and documenting the flora and fauna of the Indian subcontinent.

Additional Information

• Calcutta Alipore Zoo:
  • Established in 1876, it is the oldest zoological park in India.
  • The zoo is famous for housing rare species like the Aldabra giant tortoise and white tigers.
• Botanical Gardens in Calcutta:
  • Now known as the Acharya Jagadish Chandra Bose Indian Botanic Garden, it houses the iconic Great Banyan Tree.
  • The gardens were established in 1787 and have played a pivotal role in the study of botany in India.
• Contributions to Indian Natural History:
  • Buchanan conducted surveys of Bengal and Mysore, documenting their flora, fauna, and socio-economic conditions.
  • His detailed work, titled "A Journey from Madras through the Countries of Mysore, Canara, and Malabar," remains a valuable resource.
• Bengal Medical Service:
  • Established during British rule, this service was responsible for providing medical care to the colonial administration and conducting scientific research.
  • Several notable figures in medicine and natural history emerged from this institution.

The correct answer is Courts regulated by the zamindars in the early colonial period.

Key Points

• The term "cutcheries" referred to courts or administrative offices that were operated by zamindars during the early colonial period in India.
• These cutcheries served as local judicial and revenue collection centers under the zamindari system.
• They were primarily used for resolving disputes, collecting revenue, and enforcing local laws within the zamindar's jurisdiction.
• After the British East India Company began consolidating power in India, these cutcheries were often integrated into or replaced by the formal colonial judicial system.
• The system of cutcheries gradually declined with the establishment of British judicial institutions like the district courts.

Additional Information

• Zamindari System: Introduced by the British in Bengal under the Permanent Settlement of 1793, zamindars were landlords responsible for revenue collection and local administration.
• Judicial Reforms: The British colonial administration gradually introduced formal judicial systems, reducing the power of zamindars and their cutcheries.
• Early Colonial Administration: During early British rule, local administrative systems like cutcheries were retained in many areas to ease governance and maintain order.
• Decline of Cutcheries: Over time, the British consolidated administrative control, leading to the replacement of traditional local systems like cutcheries with centralized institutions.
• Role in Local Disputes: Cutcheries played a critical role in settling disputes, especially in rural areas, before the establishment of modern courts.

The correct answer is Madras.Key Points

• India was introduced to the rail transport industry in the early 18th century by the British Government.

1832-1852: The Period of Industrial Railways

• India's first railway was proposed in 1832 at Madras by the British Government.
• The country's first train, Red Hill Railways, began in Madras in 1837.
• Lord Dalhousie, the Governor General of India from 1848 to 1856, is known as the "father of railways" for initiating the introduction of railways in India.

• The Great India Peningar Railway was incorporated in 1849, and the Solani Aqueduct Railway was built in Roorkee in 1851.

Therefore the correct answer will be Madras.Additional Information 

• The history of the Railways in India can be classified into different periods, including:
  • 1832-1852: The Period of Industrial Railways
  • 1853-1924: The Expansion and Introduction of Passenger Railways
  • 1925-1924 Electrification and further Expansion of Railways
  • 1947-1950: The Aftermath of Partition
  • 1951-1983: Zonal re-organization and Development of Railways
  • 1984-Present: Rapid transit and Later Development of Railways

1853-1924: The Expansion and Introduction of Passenger Railways

• The first railway line in India, spanning 34 km between Boribandar (Bombay) to Thane, was opened to passenger trains in 1853.
• The first train in Eastern India started in 1854 between Howrah to Hooghly.
• The first railway in South India started in 1856 between Royapuram-Vyasarpadi (Madras) to Wallajah Road (Arcot).
• The first railway workshop was built in Jamalpur, Bihar, in 1862.
• Delhi Junction became the first station in the north in 1864.
• Bhor Track was constructed in 1854 to connect Bombay to Poona (now Pune).

The correct answer is a source of its raw material Key Points

• During the British era, India's economy was known as a market for agricultural products and a source of raw materials for British industries.
• British rule in India:
• Commercialization of agriculture
  • The British introduced cash crops like tea, coffee, indigo, opium, cotton, jute, sugarcane, and oilseeds.
  • This reduced India's self-sufficiency in food. 
• Negative impact on Indian industries
  • The British imported large quantities of products made by mechanical looms in England, which threatened Indian handicraft industries. 
• Slow industrial development
  • The British did not establish a capital goods industry to support India's industrial development.
  • They wanted Indians to depend on Britain for capital and heavy goods. 
• Stagnant per-capita income
  • India's per-capita income remained mostly stagnant during the British Raj.
  • Most of its GDP growth came from an expanding population. 

Additional Information

• The British Raj had a devastating impact on India's economy, leading to a decline in the country's share of the world economy: 
• Trade
  • India's exports changed from processed goods to raw materials, and imports changed from bullion to manufactured goods.
  • The British used tariffs to limit India's exports of finished goods, while allowing raw materials to be exported freely. 
• Agriculture
  • British economic policies led to a decline in agricultural yields and worsened the conditions of farmers. 
• Poverty
  • The British used land revenue for war, leaving little for development.
  • This led to widespread poverty and recurring famines. 
• Infrastructure
  • The British built railways to connect inland regions with exporting ports, which made trading easier and more profitable for the British.
  • However, the railways were built to facilitate exploitation of the local Indians. 
• Handicrafts
  • The British used discriminatory tariffs to undermine the Indian handicraft sector.
  • The finished goods produced in the United Kingdom were machine-made and of higher quality and lower cost than the Indian handicraft ones. 
• GDP
  • India's GDP (PPP) per capita began to decline prior to the onset of British rule.
  • From 1600 to 1871 the ratio of GDP per capita in India to that in Britain fell from more than 60% to less than 15%. 

The correct answer is Arya Samaj.

Key Points

• Swami Dayanand Saraswati founded the Arya Samaj.
• Arya Samaj was founded by Swami Dayananda Saraswati in 1875.
• He translated the Vedas and wrote three books named Satyartha Prakash, Veda Bhasya Bhumika, and Veda Bhasya.
• He gave the slogan “Go back to Vedas”.
• Dayananda Anglo Vedic (D.A.V) schools were established based on his philosophy and teachings.

Additional Information

The correct answer is Mir Jafar.

Key Points 

• Robert Clive a British officer bribed Mir Jafar who was the commander in chief of Nawab’s army.
  • The bribe was to make Mir Jafar the Nawab of Bengal.
  • Clive’s goal was to conquer Bengal in order to get the money and resources required for imperialism.
  • In this process, Clive betrayed Mir Jafar during the Battle of Plassey and did not make him the Nawab but in turn, conquered Bengal and made Mir Jafar a traitor who betrayed their country in the eyes of the Indians.
  • After the Battle of Plassey,  Mir Jafar was made Nawab of the Bengal.
  • In 1757, after the Battle of Plassey, Nawab Mir Jafar conferred the 24 Paraganas of Bengal to the British and also the Jangli mahals (small administrative units), as a result, he was propped up as the Puppet Nawab.

Additional Information

• Alamgir II was the Mughal Emperor at the time of the Battle of Plassey.
  • Alamgir II was the Mughal Emperor of India from 3 June 1754 to 29 November 1759.
  • He was the son of Jahandar Shah. 
  • The Battle of Plassey was fought between Siraj-Ud-Daulah who was then the Bengal Nawab and East India Company forces headed by Robert Clive.
  • The Battle of Plassey took place when Nawab of Bengal Siraj-Ud-Daulah did not like the uncontrolled use of privileges by the East India Company’s officials.
  • Also, the workers of the company stopped paying taxes which became one of the reasons for the Battle of Plassey.​

• Siraj-ud-Daulah:
  • Siraj-ud-Daulah was the last independent Nawab of Bengal who succeeded Alivadi Khan to the throne.
  •  The end of his reign marks the beginning of the company's rule that continued unabated over the next two hundred years.
  • The end of his reign marked the start of British East India Company rule over Bengal and later almost all of the Indian subcontinent. 
• Mir Qasim:
  • Mir Qasim was the Nawab of Bengal from 1760 to 1763.
  • He was installed as Nawab with the support of the British East India Company, replacing Mir Jafar, his father-in-law, who had himself been supported earlier by the East India Company after his role in winning the Battle of Plassey for the British.

The correct answer is C.

• The leader in Mathura during the 1857 Revolt is Devi Singh.
• Kadam Singh was the leader of Meerut during the 1857 Revolt. Hence option C is not correctly matched.

Additional Information

•  Other Places of Revolt of 1857 and Leaders

The correct answer is Fourth, 1799.

• The Governor-General, Lord Wellesley asked Tipu Sultan to break his ties with the French and enter into the Subsidiary Alliance but he refused to accept it. Thus, the Fourth Anglo-Mysore War started.
• The war ended with the death of Tipu Sultan, who was killed while fighting to save his capital Srirangapatnam.

Important Points 

• First Anglo Mysore war (1766-69):
  • The Treaty of Madras (1769) ended the First Anglo Mysore war.
  • It was signed between British and Hyder Ali of Mysore.
  • Haider Ali defeated the British.
• Second Anglo Mysore war (1780-84):
  • Warren Hastings attacked French port Mahe, which was in Haider Ali's territory.
  • Haider Ali died during the second Anglo Mysore war.
  • The war ended with a treaty of Mangalore.
  • In 1781, Haider Ali was defeated at Porto Novo by Eyrecoot.
  • Haider Ali made an alliance with Marathas and Nizams and attacked British
• Third Anglo Mysore war (1790-92):
  • Marathas and Nizams were with the British and Cornwallis started the war which ended with the defeat of Tippu Sultan.
  • By the treaty of Srirangapatnam, Tippu ceded half of his territory.
• Fourth Anglo Mysore war (1798-99):
  • Lord Wellesley arrived and trying to sign a subsidiary alliance with Indian Kingdoms and was forcing the same on Tippu but he rejected.
  • Tippu had sent ambassadors to Turkey and France which was made as an excuse by Wellesley to attack Tippu.
  • Later he fought bravely and got defeated and killed in 1799.

The correct answer is Lord Canning.

• Lord Canning (1856-62) was the Governor-General of India during the 1857 revolt. 
• Lord Canning served as the Governor-General of India from 1856 to 1862.

Key Points

Lord Canning:

• During his tenure, the Government of India Act, 1858 was passed which created the office of the Viceroy to be held by the same person who was the Governor-General of India.
• Lord Canning also served as the first Viceroy of India.
• The important events during his tenure include:
  • Mutiny of 1857, which he was able to suppress successfully,
  • The passing of the Indian Councils Act, 1861 introduced a portfolio system in India.

Additional Information

• Other important events during Lord Canning:
  • Withdrawal of the “Doctrine of Lapse” was one of the main reasons for the mutiny of 1857. 
  • The introduction of the Code of Criminal Procedure, enactment of the Indian High Courts Act, Indian Penal Code (1858), Bengal Rent Act (1859), the introduction of Income-tax on an experimental basis, etc.
  • Canning passed the Hindu Widows' Remarriage Act, 1856 which was drafted by his predecessor Lord Dalhousie before the rebellion.
  • He also passed the General Service Enlistment Act of 1856.
  • He established the first three modern Universities in India, the University of Calcutta, the University of Madras, and the University of Bombay.

The correct answer is salvation.

Key Points

• Ramakrishna Mission (RKM) is a Hindu religious and spiritual organization that forms the core of a worldwide spiritual movement known as the Ramakrishna Movement or the Vedant
  • The mission is named after and inspired by the Indian saint Ramakrishna Paramahamsa and founded by Ramakrishna's chief disciple Swami Vivekananda on 1st May 1897.
  • The mission bases its work on the principles of karma yoga, the principle of selfless work done with a dedication to God.
  • The Ramakrishna Mission has centered around the world and publishes many important Hindu texts.
  • It is affiliated with the monastic organization. Vivekananda was greatly influenced by his guru (teacher) Ramakrishna.
  • The motto of the mission is - Atmano mokshartham Jagat hitaya cha (For one’s own salvation and for the welfare of the world).

Additional Information

• Swami Vivekananda
  • His original name was Narendranath Dutt.
  • He attended the Parliament of Religions held at Chicago in 1893 AD and published two papers, Prabhudhha Bharat in English and Udbodhana in Bengali.
  • He urged people to inculcate the spirit of liberty, equality and free-thinking.
  • He worked for the emancipation of women.
  • He emerged as a preacher of Neo-Hinduism.
  • He advocated the Doctrine of Service–the service of all human beings.
  • He was considered the spiritual father of the modern nationalist movement.

The correct answer is Lord Dalhousie.

Key Points

• The chief instrument through which Lord Dalhousie implemented his policy of annexation was the ‘Doctrine of Lapse’.
  • Under the Doctrine of Lapse, when the ruler of a protected state died without a natural heir, his/her state was not to pass to an adopted heir as sanctioned by the age-old tradition of the country.
• Lord Dalhousie came to India as the Governor-General in 1848.
• Lord Dalhousie was keen on annexing the kingdom of Avadh.

Important Points

The correct answer is Maulvi Liaquat Ali.

Key Points

• Maulvi Liaquat Ali
• Maulvi Liaquat Ali was a Muslim religious leader from Allahabad (Prayagraj), in the state of Uttar Pradesh in present-day India.
  • He was one of the leaders in the revolt against the British in 1857.
  • This war was also known as the First War of Independence.
• Hence option 1 is correct. 

​Additional Information

• List of Important Leaders associated with the revolt of 1857 - 
  • Delhi
    • ​Bahadur Shah II
    • General Bakht Khan
  • Lucknow
    • ​Begum Hazrat Mahal
    • Birjis Qadir
    • Ahmadullah
  • Kanpur
    • ​Nana Sahib
    • Rao Sahib
    • Tantia Tope
    • Azimullah Khan
  • Jhansi
    • ​Rani Laxmibai
  • Bihar
    • Kunwar Singh
    • Amar Singh
  • Rajasthan
    • ​Jaidayal Singh
    • Hardayal Singh
  • Farrukhabad
    • ​Tufzal Hasan Khan
  • Assam
    • ​Kandapareshwar Singh
    • Maniram Dutta Baruah
  • Orissa
    • ​Surendra Shahi
    • Ujjwal Shahi

The correct answer is Raja Rammohan Roy.

• Raja Rammohan Roy was the founder of Atmiya Sabha.

Key Points

• Raja Ram Mohan Roy:
  • ​He is known as the ‘Father of Modern India’ or ‘Father of the Bengal Renaissance.
  • He was born on 22 May 1772 in a Brahman family at Radhanagar in Bengal.
  • He was a religious and social reformer.
  • He was widely known for his role in the abolition of the practice of Sati.
  • He was given the title of ‘Raja’ by the titular Mughal Emperor of Delhi, Akbar II.
  • He was a scholar and knew Sanskrit, Persian, Hindi, Bengali, English, and Arabic.
  • In 1814, he founded Atmiya Sabha in Calcutta to campaign against idolatry, caste rigidities, meaningless rituals, and other social ills.
    • It was an association for the dissemination of the religious truth and the promotion of free discussions of theological subjects.
  • He Formed the Brahmo Sabha in 1828 which later became the Brahmo Samaj.
  • Here, recital and expounding of Hindu scriptures were done. 

Additional Information

• Keshab Chandra Sen was the founder of Bharatvarshiya Brahmo Samaj.
• Debendranath Tagore founded the Tattvabodhini Sabha.
• Raja Radhakant Deb was the founder of British Indian Association.

The correct answer is 1856.

Key Points

• The Hindu widow remarriage act was passed in the year 1856.
  • The act made the remarriage of Hindu widows in all jurisdictions of India under East India Company rule legal.
  • The Hindu widow remarriage act was drafted during the tenure of Lord Dalhousie.
  • The act was passed by Lord Canning in 1856.
  • The remarriage of Hindu widows was first legalized by Lord Canning.
  • Hindu widow remarriage act was considered as the first major social reform legislation after the abolition of Sati in 1829.
  • Indian social reformer Ishwar Chandra Vidyasagar was the most prominent campaigner of the Hindu widow remarriage act