Modern history Questions with Answer
Q1. Consider the following statements about ‘the Charter Act of 1813’:
1. It ended the trade monopoly of the East India Company in India except for trade in tea and trade with China.
2. It asserted the sovereignty of the British Crown over the Indian territories held by the
Company.
3. The revenues of India were now controlled by the British Parliament.
Which of the statements given above are correct?
a) 1 and 2 only
b) 2 and 3 only
c) 1 and 3 only
d) 1, 2 and 3
ans.a
Q2. With reference to Swadeshi Movement consider the following statements:
1. It contributed to the revival of the indigenous artisan crafts and industries.
2. The National Council of Education was established as a part of Swadeshi Movement.
Which of the statements given above is/are correct?
a) 1 only
b) 2 only
c) Both 1 and 2
d) Neither 1 nor 2
ans.c
Q3. Consider the following pairs:
Movement/Organization Leader
1. All India Anti-Untouchability League: Mahatma Gandhi
2. All India Kisan Sabha: Swami Sahajanand Saraswati
3. Self-Respect Movement: E. V. Ramaswami Naicker
Which of the pairs given above is/are correctly matched?
a) 1 only
b) 1 and 2 only
c) 2 and 3 only
d) 1, 2 and 3
ans.d
Q4. Which one of the following groups of plants was domesticated in the ‘New World’ and introduced into the ‘Old World’?
a) Tobacco, cocoa and rubber
b) Tobacco, cotton and rubber
c) Cotton, coffee and sugarcane
d) Rubber, coffee and wheat
ans.a
Q5. With reference to the British colonial rule in India, consider the following statements:
1. Mahatma Gandhi was instrumental in the abolition of the system of ‘indentured
labour’.
2. In Lord Chelmsford’s War Conference’, Mahatma Gandhi did not support the
resolution on recruiting Indians for World War.
3. Consequent upon the breaking of Salt Law by Indian people, the Indian National Congress was declared illegal by the colonial rulers.
Which of the statements given above are correct?
a) 1 and 2 only
b) 1 and 3 only
c) 2 and 3 only
d) 1, 2 and 3
ans.b
Q6. With reference to Indian National Movement, consider the following pairs:
Person : Position held
1. Sir Tej Bahadur Sapru : President, All India Liberal Federation
2. K. C. Neogy : Member, The Constituent Assembly
3. P. C. Joshi : General Secretary, Communist Party of India
Which of the pairs given above is/are correctly matched?
a) 1 only
b) 1 and 2 only
c) 3 only
d) 1, 2 and 3
ans.d
Q7. He wrote biographies of Mazzini, Garibaldi, Shivaji and Shrikrishna; stayed in America for some time; and was also elected to the Central Assembly. He was
a) Aurobindo Ghosh
b) Bipin Chandra Pal
c) Lala Lajpat Rai
d) Motilal Nehru
ans.c
Q8. Regarding Wood’s Dispatch, which of the following statements are true?
1.Grants-in-Aid system was introduced.
2.Establishment of universities was recommended.
3.English as a medium of instruction at all levels of education was recommended.
Select the correct answer using the code given below:
a) 1 and 2 only
b) and 3 only
c) 1 and 3 only
d) 1, 2 and 3
ans.a
Q9. In the Federation established by The Government of India Act of 1935, residuary powers were given to the
a) Federal Legislature
b) Governor General
c) Provincial Legislature
d) Provincial Governors
ans.b
Q10. After the Santhal Uprising subsided, what was/were the measure/measures taken by the colonial government?
1. The territories called `Santhal Paraganas’ were created.
2. It became illegal for a Santhal to transfer land to a non-Santhal.
Select the correct answer using the code given below :
a) 1 only
b) 2 only
c) Both 1 and 2
d) Neither 1 nor 2
ans.c
Q11. Economically, one of the results of the British rule in India in the 19th century was the
a) increase in the export of Indian handicrafts
b) growth in the number of Indian owned factories
c) commercialization of Indian agriculture
d) rapid increase in the urban population
ans.c
Q12. The staple commodities of export by the English East India Company from Bengal in the middle of the 18th century were
a) Raw cotton, oil-seeds and opium
b) Sugar, salt, zinc and lead
c) Copper, silver, gold, spices and tea
d) Cotton, silk, saltpetre and opium
ans.d
Q13. Which one of the following is a very significant aspect of the Champaran Satyagraha ?
a) Active all-India participation of lawyers, students and women in the National Movement
b) Active involvement of Dalit and Tribal communities of India in the National Movement
c) Joining of peasant unrest to India’s National Movement
d) Drastic decrease in the cultivation of plantation crops and commercial crops
ans.c
Q14. Who among the following were the founders of the “Hind Mazdoor Sabha” established in 1948 ?
a) Who among the following were the founders of the “Hind Mazdoor Sabha” established in 1948 ?
b) Jayaprakash Narayan, De Dayal Upadhyay and M.N. Roy
c) C.P. Ramaswamy Iyer, K. Kamaraj and Veeresalingam Pantulu
d) Ashok Mehta, T.S. Ramanujam and G.G. Mehta
ans.d
Q15. Which one of the following statements does not apply to the system of Subsidiary Alliance introduced by Lord Wellesley?
a) To maintain a large standing army at other’s expense
b) To keep India safe from Napoleonic danger
c) To secure a fixed income for the Company
d) To establish British paramountcy over the Indian States
ans.c
Q16. Which of the following led to the introduction of English Education in India?
1.Charter Act of 1813
2.General Committee of Public Instruction, 1823
3.Orientalist and Anglicist Controversy
Select the correct answer using the code given below :
a) 1 and 2 only
b) 2 only
c) 1 and 3 only
d) 1, 2 and3
ans.d
Q17. In 1920, which of the following changed its name to “Swarajya Sabha” ?
a) All India Home Rule League
b) Hindu Mahasabha
c) South Indian Liberal Federation
d) The Servants of India Society
ans.a
Q18. Which among the following events happened earliest?
a) Swami Dayanand established Arya Samaj.
b) Dinabandhu Mitra wrote Neeldarpan
c) Bankim Chandra Chattopadhyay wrote Anandmath.
d) Satyendranath Tagore became the first Indian to succeed in the Indian Civil Services Examination.
ans.b
Q19. With reference to educational institutions during colonial rule in India, consider the following pairs:
Institution Founder
1.Sanskrit College at Benaras William Jones
2.Calcutta Madarsa Warren Hastings
3.Fort William Arthur College Wellesley
Which of the pairs given above is/are correct ?
a) 1 and 2
b) 2 only
c) 1 and 3
d) 3 only
ans.b
Q20. Consider the following events :
1.The first democratically elected communist party government formed in a State in India.
2.India’s then-largest bank, ‘Imperial Bank of India’, was renamed ‘State Bank of India’.
3.Air India was nationalized and became the national carrier.
4.Goa became a part of independent India.
Which of the following is the correct chronological sequence of the above events?
a) 4-1-2-3
b) 3-2-1-4
c) 4-2-1-3
d) 3-1-2-4
ans.b
Q21. In the context of Indian history, the principle of ‘Dyarchy (diarchy)’ refers to
a) Division of the central legislature into two houses.
b) Introductions of double government i.e., Central and Statement governments.
c) Having two sets of rulers; one in London and another in Delhi.
d) Division of the subjects delegated to the provinces into two categories.
ans.d
Q22. With reference to Indian freedom struggle, consider the following events:
1. Mutiny in Royal Indian Navy
2. Quit Indian Movement launched
3. Second Round Table Conference
What is the correct chronological sequence of the above events?
a) 1-2-3
b) 2-1-3
c) 3-2-1
d) 3-1-2
ans.c
Q23. The object of the Butler Committee of 1927 was to
a) Define the jurisdiction of the Central and Provincial Governments.
b) Define the powers of the Secretary of State for India.
c) Impose censorship on national press.
d) Improve the relationship between the Government of India and the Indian States.
ans.d
Q24. Consider the following pairs:
1. Radhakanta Deb – First President of the British Indian Association
2. Gazulu Lakshminarasu Chetty – Founder of the Madras Mahajana Sabha
3. Surendranath Banerjee – Founder of the Indian Association
Which of the above pairs is/are correctly matched?
a) 1 only
b) 1 and 3 only
c) 2 and 3 only
d) 1, 2 and 3
ans.b
Q25. Who among the following was/were associated with the introduction of Ryotwari Settlement in India during the British Rule?
1. Lord Cornwallis
2. Alexander Read
3. Thomas Munro
Select the correct answer using the code given below:
a) 1 only
b) 1 and 3 only
c) 2 and 3 only
d) 1, 2 and 3
ans.c
Q26. The Trade Disputes Act of 1929 provided for
a) the participation of workers in the management of industries.
b) arbitrary powers to the management to quell industrial disputes
c) an intervention by the British Court in the event of a trade dispute.
d) a system of tribunals and a ban on strikes.
ans.d
Q27. Consider the following statements:
1. The Factories Act, 1881 was passed with a view to fix the wages of industrial workers and to allow the workers to form trade unions.
2. N. M. Lokhande was a pioneer in organizing the labour movement in British India.
Which of the above statements is/are correct?
a) 1 only
b) 2 only
c) Both 1 and 2
d) Neither 1 nor 2
ans.b
Q28. The `Swadeshi’ and ‘Boycott’ were adopted as methods of struggle for the first time during the
a) agitation against the Partition of Bengal
b) Home Rule Movement
c) Non-Cooperation Movement
d) visit of the Simon Commission to India
ans.a
Q29. Satya Shodhak Samaj organized
a) a movement for upliftment of tribals in Bihar
b) a temple-entry movement in Gujarat
c) an anti-caste movement in Maharashtra
d) a peasant movement in Punjab
ans.c
Q30. The Montague-Chelmsford Proposals were related to
a) social reforms
b) educational reforms
c) reforms in police administration
d) constitutional reforms
ans.d
Q31. Consider the following :
1. Calcutta Unitarian Committee
2. Tabernacle of New Dispensation
3. Indian Reform Association
Keshab Chandra Sen is associated with the establishment of which of the above?
a) 1 and 3 only
b) 2 and 3 only
c) 3 only
d) 1, 2 and 3
ans.b
Q32. What was the main reason for the split in the Indian National Congress at Surat in 1907?
a) Introduction of communalism into Indian politics by Lord Minto
b) Extremists’ lack of faith in the capacity of the moderates to negotiate with the British Government
c) Foundation of Muslim League
d) Aurobindo Ghosh’s inability to be elected as the President of the Indian National Congress
ans.b
Q33. The plan of Sir Stafford Cripps envisaged that after the Second World War
a) India should be granted complete independence
b) India should be partitioned into two before granting independence
c) India should be made a republic with the condition that she will join the Commonwealth
d) India should be given Dominion status
ans.d
Q34. With reference to Rowlatt Satyagraha, which of the following statements is/are correct?
1. The Rowlatt Act was based on the recommendations of the ‘Sedition Committee’
2. In Rowlatt Satyagraha Gandhiji tried to use the Home Rule League
3. Demonstrations against the Simon Commission coincided with the Rowlatt Satyagraha
a) 1 only
b) 1 and 2 only
c) 2 and 3 only
d) 1, 2 and 3
ans.b
Q35. Who of the following was/were economic critic/critics of colonialism in India?
1.Dadabhai Naoroji
2.G. Subramania Iyer
3.R. C. Dutt
Select the correct answer using the code given below.
a) 1 only
b) 1 and 2 only
c) 2 and 3 only
d) 1,2 and 3
ans.d
Q36. With reference to Congress Socialist Party, consider the following statements:
1.It advocated the boycott of British goods and evasion of taxes.
2.It wanted to establish the dictatorship of proletariat.
3.It advocated separate electorate for minorities and oppressed classes.
Which of the statements given above is/are correct?
a) 1 and 2 only
b) Only
c) 1, 2 and 3
d) None
ans.d
Q37. The Government of India Act of 1919 clearly defined
a) the separation of power between the judiciary and the legislature
b) the jurisdiction of the central and provincial governments
c) the powers of the Secretary of State for India and the Viceroy
d) None of the above
ans.b
Q38. Who of the following organized a march on the Tanjore coast to break the Salt Law in April 1930?
a) V.O Chidambaram Pillai
b) C. Rajagopalachari
c) Kamaraj
d) Annie Besant
ans.b
Q39. Consider the following statements :
1. The first woman President of the Indian National Congress was Sarojini Naidu.
2. The first Muslim President of the Indian National Congress was Badruddin Tyabji
Which of the statements given above is/are correct?
a) 1 only
b) 2 only
c) Both 1 and 2
d) Neither 1 nor 2
ans.b
Q40. With reference to cabinet mission, which of the following statements is/are correct?
1. It recommended a federal government.
2. It enlarged the powers of the Indian courts.
3. It provided for more Indians in the ICS
Select the correct answer using the code given below.
a) 1 only
b) 2 and 3
c) 1 and 3
d) None
ans.a
Q41. With reference to Indian history, which of the following is/are the essential elementary elements of the feudal system?
1. A very strong centralized political authority and a very weak provincial or local political authority
2. Emergence of administrative structure based on control and possession of land
3. Creation of lord-vassal relationship between the feudal lord and. his overlord
Select the correct answer using the code given below.
a) 1 and 2 only
b) 2 and 3 only
c) 3 only
d) 1, 2 and 3
ans.b
Q42. Which one of the following movements has contributed to a split in the Indian National Congress resulting in emergence of ‘moderates’ and ‘extremists’?
a) Swadeshi Movement
b) Quit India Movement
c) Non-Cooperation Movement
d) Civil Disobedient Movement
ans.a
Q43. The Radcliffe Committee was appointed to
a) solve the problem of minorities in India
b) give effect to the Independence Bill
c) delimit the boundaries between India and Pakistan
d) enquire into the riots in East Bengal
ans.c
Q44. The Partition of Bengal made by Lord Curzon in 1905 lasted until
a) the First World War when Indian troops were needed by the British and the partition was ended.
b) King George V abrogated Curzon’s Act at the Royal Darbar in Delhi in 1911
c) Gandhiji launched his Civil Disobedience Movement
d) the Partition of India, in 1947 when East Bengal became East Pakistan
ans.b
Q45. The 1929 Session of Indian, National Congress is of significance in the history of the Freedom Movement because the
a) attainment of Self-Government was declared as the objective of the Congress
b) attainment of Poorna Swaraj Was adopted as the goal of the Congress
c) Non-Cooperation Movement was launched
d) decision to participate in the Round Table Conference in London was taken
ans.b
Q46. The Ghadr (Ghadar) was a
a) revolutionary association of Indians with headquarters at San Francisco.
b) nationalist organization operating from Singapore
c) militant organization with headquarters at Berlin
d) communist movement for India’s freedom with head-quarters at Tashkent
ans.a
Q47. What was/were the object/objects of Queen Victoria’s Proclamation (1858)?
1. To disclaim any intention to annex Indian States
2. To place the Indian administration under the British Crown
3. To regulate East India Company’s trade with India
Select the correct answer using the code given below.
a) 1 and 2 only
b) 2 only
c) 1 and 3 only
d) 1, 2 and 3
ans.a
Q48. The demand for the Tebhaga Peasant Movement in Bengal was for
a) the reduction of the share of the landlords from one-half of the crop to one-third
b) the grant of ownership of land to peasants as they were the actual cultivators of the land
c) the uprooting of Zamindari system and the end of serfdom
d) writing off all peasant debts
ans.a
Q49. The people of India agitated against the arrival of Simon Commission because
a) Indians never wanted the review of the working of the Act of 1919
b) Simon Commission recommended the abolition of Dyarchy (Diarchy) in the Provinces
c) there was no Indian member in the Simon Commission
d) the Simon Commission suggested the partition of the country
ans.c
Q50. Quit India Movement was launched in response to
a) Cabinet Mission Plan
b) Cripps Proposals
c) Simon Commission Report
d) Wavell Plan
ans.b
Q51. Annie Besant was
1. responsible for starting the Home Rule Movement
2. the founder of the Theo-sophical Society
3. once the President of the Indian National Congress Select the correct statement/statements using the codes given below.
a) 1 only
b) 2 and 3 only
c) 1 and 3 only
d) 1, 2 and 3
ans.c
Q52. The Ilbert Bill controversy was related to the
a) imposition restrictions the Indians of certain to carry arms by Indians
b) imposition of restrictions on newspapers and magazines published in Indian languages
c) removal of disqualifications imposed on the Indian magistrates with regard to the trial of the Europeans
d) removal of a duty on imported cotton cloth
ans.c
Q53. With reference to Ryotwari Settlement, consider the following statements:
1. The rent was paid directly by the peasants to the Government.
2. The Government gave Pattas to the Ryots.
3. The lands were surveyed and assessed before being taxed.
Which of the statements given above is/are correct?
a) 1 only
b) 1 and 2 only
c) 1, 2 and 3
d) None
ans.c
Q54. The congress ministries resigned in the seven provinces in 1939, because
a) The Congress could not form ministries in the other four provinces
b) emergence of a ‘left wing’ in the Congress made the working of the ministries impossible
c) there were widespread communal disturbances in their provinces.
d) None of the statements (a), (b) and (c) given below is correct.
ans.d
Q55. The most effective contribution made by Dadabhai Naoroji to the cause of Indian National Movement was that he
1. Exposed the economic exploitation of India by the British
2. Interpreted the ancient Indian texts stored
3. Stressed the need for eradication of all the social evils before anything else.
Which of the statements given above is/ are correct?
a) 1 only
b) 2 and 3 only
c) 1 and 3 only
d) 1, 2 and 3
ans.a
Q56. The Rowlatt act aimed at
a) compulsory economic support to war efforts
b) imprisonment without trial and summary procedures for trial
c) suppression of the khilafat movement
d) imposition of restrictions on freedom of the press
ans.b
Q57. The Lahore session of the Indian nat. congress 1929 is very important in history because
1. the congress passed a resolution demanding complete independence
2. rift between the extremists and moderates was resolved in that session
3. a resolution was passed rejecting two nation theory in that session
Which of the statements given above is/ are correct?
a) 1 only
b) 2 and 3 only
c) 1 and 3 only
d) None of the above
ans.a
Q58. Which of the following statements is/ are correct regarding Brahmo Samaj?
1. It opposed idolatry.
2. It denied the need for a priestly class for interpreting the religious texts.
3. It popularized the doctrine that the Vedas are infallible.
Select the correct answer using the codes given below:
a) 1 only
b) 1 and 2 only
c) 3 only
d) 1, 2 and 3
ans.b
Q59. Consider the following:
1. Assessment of the land revenue on the basis of nature of the soil and the quality of crops.
2. Use of mobile cannons in warfare
3. Cultivation of tobacco and red chillies
Which of the above was/were introduced into India by the English?
a) 1 only
b) 1 and 2 only
c) 2 and 3 only
d) None
ans.d
Q60. Mahatma Gandhi undertook fast unto death in 1932 mainly because
a) Roundtable Conference failed to satisfy Indian political aspirations
b) Congress and Muslim League had differences of opinion
c) Ramsay Macdonald announced the Communal Award
d) None of the statements (a), (b) and (c) given above is correct in this context.
ans.c
Q61. Which of the following parties were established by DR. B. R. Ambedkar?
1. Peasants and Workers party of India
2. All India Scheduled Castes Federation
3. The Independent Labour Party
Select the correct answer using the codes given below:
a) 1 and 2 only
b) 2 and 3 only
c) 1 and 3 only
d) 1, 2 and 3
ans.b
Q62. During Indian freedom struggle, the National Social Conference was formed. What was the reason for its formation?
a) Different social reforms groups or organisations of Bengal region united to form a single body to discuss the issues of larger interest and to prepare appropriate petitions/ representations to the government.
b) Indian National Congress did not want to include social reforms in its deliberations and decided to form a separate body for such a purpose
c) Behramji Malabari and M.G.Ranade decided to bring together all the social reform groups of the country order one organisation.
d) None of the statements (a), (b) and (c) given above is correct on this context.
ans.d