UPSC 2021 (IAS) Prelims: Important Questions from Modern History

The premes 2021 of UPSC IAS will be held on June 27, 2021. The role of preliminaries covers all three, medieval and modern three, apart from some other subjects. With the analysis of the last 5 years of previous documents, it has been observed that more weighting has been given to modern history in the context of the questions. Check 37 questions for the preparation of IAS prelimics of the UPSC 2021 and observe the pattern of the questions along with the topics that are covered mostly in UPSC prelimation exams.

Q1- With reference to Indian history, which of the following is/are the essential elements of the feudal system?

1.A very strong centralized political authority and a very weak provincial or local political authority
2. The emergence of administrative structure based on control and possession of the land
3. Creation of the 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

Answer. a

Q2- Which one of the following movements has contributed to a split in the Indian National Congress resulting in the emergence of ‘moderates’ and ‘extremists’?

 

(a) Swadeshi Movement
(b) Quit India Movement
(c) Non-Cooperation Movement
(d) Civil Disobedience Movement

Answer. A

 Q3- 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 utilize the Home Rule League.
    3. Demonstrations against the arrival of Simon Commission coincided with Rowlatt Satyagraha.

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

Answer. B

 Q4- 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

Answer. D

 Q5- 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) 3 only     
(c) 1, 2 and 3
(d) None

Answer. D

 Q6- 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

Answer. B

 Q7- 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) K. Kamaraj
(d) Annie Besant

Answer. B

 Q8- 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

Answer. b

Q1- 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

Answer . a

 Q2-  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

Answer .c

 Q3- The Montague-Chelmsford Proposals were related to

(a) social reforms
(b) educational reforms
(c) reforms in police administration
(d) constitutional reforms

Answer . d

 Q4- 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

Answer . b

 Q5- In the context of the history of India, consider the following pairs:

 Term                     Description

(1) Eripatti      :    Land, revenue from which was set apart for the main¬tenance of the village tank
(2) Taniyurs    :    Villages donated to a single Brahmin or a group of Brahmins
(3) Ghatikas    :    Colleges generally attached to the temples

Which of the pairs given above is/are correctly matched?

(a) 1 and 2
(b) 3 only
(c) 2 and 3
(d) 1 and 3

Answer . d

 Q6- 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

Answer: b

 Q7- 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

Answer .d

Q1- With reference to Indian freedom struggle, consider the following events:

  1. Mutiny in Royal Indian Navy
  2. Quit India 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

Answer. C

Q2- 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.

Answer. D

 Q3- 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

Answer. b

Q4- 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

Answer. C

Q1- 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, saltpeter, and opium

Answer.d

 Q2- 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

Answer.c

 Q3- Who among the following were the founders of the “Hind Mazdoor Sabha” established in 1948 ?

(a) B. Krishna Pillai, E.M.S. Namboodiripad and K.C. George
(b) Jayaprakash Narayan, Deen Day al 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

Answer. d

Q4- 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

Answer.b

 Q5- 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

Answer.c

Q6- 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

Answer.c

Q7- 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

Answer.c

Q8- 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 and 3

Answer.a

Q9- 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

Answer.a

Q10- Which among the following events happened earliest ?

(a) Swami Dayanand established AryaSamaj.
(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.

Answer.b

 Q11- With reference to educational institutes 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 College     –             Arthur Wellesley

Which of the pairs given above is/are correct ?

(a) 1 and 2
(b) 2 only
(c) 1 and 3
(d) 3 only

Answer.b

Q12- 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) 2 and 3 only
    (c) 1 and 3 only
    (d) 1, 2 and 3

Answer. A

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