“Terms of August Offer
• A representative Indian body would be framed after the war to frame a constitution for India. Dominion status was the objective for India.
• The Viceroy’s Executive Council would be expanded right away to include for the first time more Indians than whites. However, defence, finance and home portfolios were to remain with the British.
• An advisory war council was to be established.
• An assurance was given to the minorities that no transfer of power would take place “to any system of government whose authority is directly denied by large and powerful elements in Indian national life.””

“The Indian Factory act 1881:
• For the first time British tried to improve the working conditions of laborers.
• This act is applicable only to factories using mechanical powers,employing not less than 100 workers.
Hence, statement 1 is incorrect.
• The act prohibited employment of children under the age of 7.
Hence, statement 2 is correct.
• Children between the age 7-12 were to work for maximum 9 hours.
• Dangerous machines should be fenced properly to avoid accidents.
Hence, statement 3 is correct.
• The act had a provision of one hour rest during the working period.
• 4 days leave in a month for workers was made compulsory.
• To supervise the implementation of this act, inspectors were appointed.”

“The course of Moplah Rebellion
• The Khilafat Movement had started in 1919 in India in support of the restoration of the caliphate in Turkey. The Indian National Congress (INC) was aligned with it.
• The Khilafat meetings in Malabar incited communal feelings among the Moplahs and it became a movement directed against the British as well as the Hindu landlords of Malabar.
• There was large-scale violence which saw systematic persecution of Hindus and British officials. Many homes and temples were destroyed.
• The prominent leaders of the rebellion were Ali Musaliyar and Variyankunnath Kunjahammed Haji.
• From August 1921 till about the end of the year, the rebels had under their control large parts of Malabar.
• By the end of the year, the rebellion was crushed by the British who had raised a special battalion, the Malabar Special Force for the riot.
• In November 1921, 67 Moplah prisoners were killed when they were being transported in a closed freight wagon from Tirur to the Central Prison in Podanur. They died of suffocation. This event is called the Wagon Tragedy.”

“Sanyasi revolt (1770-1820’s)
• The Sanyasis who had revolted against the English in the 18th century were not necessarily men who had renounced the world. There were many sects of Sanyasis who travelled from northern India to various religious places and shrines in Bengal.
• Some of the Sanyasis were naga sadhus, i.e., ascetics who had renounced clothes. But some others were people who wore clothes and were also permitted to marry.
• The British were wary of these wandering men and called them by various epithets like ‘erratic beggars’, ‘gypsies of Hindusthan’, ‘lawless mendicants’, ‘religious vagrants’, etc.
• After the British had acquired revenue rights in Bengal, many zamindars there had fallen upon hard times owing to the steep tax rates.
• It was the practice of the Sanyasis to collect alms and contributions from these zamindars during their religious travels. This was stopped when the zamindars found it too difficult to provide alms since after paying the British their due, they were hardly left with anything substantial.
• The British considered the Sanyasis looters and imposed restrictions on the Sanyasis barring them from visiting holy places.
• The Sanyasis rose in rebellion against the British and raided English factories and government treasuries.
• This rebellion was centred in the forests of Murshidabad and Baikunthupur, Bengal.
• In 1771, 150 unarmed sanyasis were killed under the orders of Warren Hastings.
• The Sanyasi uprising went on for about 50 years and was suppressed completely only in the 1820s.
• Bankim Chandra Chatterjee’s novel Anandamath, written in 1882, was set in the backdrop of the Sanyasi Rebellion. This book was banned by the British. India’s National Song ‘Vande Mataram’ was taken from this novel.”

“Deccan Riots 1875
• The uprising began at Supa village in the district of Poona.
• In 1875, farmers attacked a market place where many moneylenders lived. They burnt account books and looted grain shops. They also torched the houses of sahukars (people who were both traders and moneylenders).
• The farmers were led by the village headmen.
• The farmers’ main motive was to destroy the account books of the moneylenders and they resorted to violence only when these books were not handed over to them.
• They also socially boycotted the moneylenders.
Hence, statement 2 is correct.
• The movement continued for 2 months and spread to over 30 villages.
• The movement also got support from the Poona Sarvajanik Sabha co-founded by M G Ranade.
Hence, statement 1 is correct.
• It took several months for the police to restore order in the countryside.
• The Bombay government initially dismissed the uprising as trivial. However, the Government of India pressurised Bombay to enquire into the matter.
• Accordingly, the Deccan Riots Commission was set up which presented a report to the British Parliament in 1878.
• In 1879, the Agriculturists Relief Act was passed which ensured that the farmers could not be arrested and imprisoned if they were unable to pay their debts.
Hence, statement 3 is incorrect.”

“Khudai Khidmatgar Movement
• The Khudai Khidmatgar was a non-violent movement against British occupation of the Indian subcontinent led by Abdul Ghaffar Khan, a Pashtun freedom fighter, in the North-West Frontier Province.
Hence, statement 1 is correct.
• Over time, the movement turned political, leading to the British taking notice of its growing prominence in the region.
• Following the arrest of Khan and other leaders in 1929, the movement formally joined the Indian National Congress after they failed to receive support from the All-India Muslim League.
Hence, statement 2 is incorrect.
• Members of the Khudai Khidmatgar were organised and the men stood out because of the bright red shirts they wore as uniforms, while the women wore black garments.
• The Khudai Khidtmatgar opposed Partition, a stance that many interpreted as the movement not being in favour of the creation of the independent nation of Pakistan.
Hence, statement 3 is correct.”

“Personalities Associated with Civil Disobedience Movement during British India
• Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi
He formally launched the Civil Disobedience Movement on April 6, 1930 by picking a handful of salt after the completion of historic ‘Dandi March’ from Sabarmati Ashram to Dandi, thus breaking the salt law imposed by the Government. He was the major force behind the movement and inspired grass-root participation in the freedom struggle.

• C. Rajagopalachari
He led a salt march from Trichinopoly to Vedaranniyam on the Tanjore coast in Tamil Nadu, in support of the Civil Disobedience Movement. He was arrested on April 30, 1930.

• K. Kelappan
He was a Nair Congress leader, launched the Vaikom Satyagraha and marched from Calicut to Payanneer in defiance of salt laws.

• Jawaharlal Nehru
He was actively involved in the movement and was arrested for defiance of the salt law. He formulated a radical agrarian programme and suggested the formation of the Constituent Assembly as the prime political slogan.

• P. Krishna Pillai
He defended the national flag and resisted lathi charge on the Calicut beach on November 11, 1930. He later founded the Kerala Communist Movement.

• Khan Abdul Gaffar Khan
He formed a clan of non-violent revolutionaries, the Khudai Khidmatgars (known as Red Shirts), who played an active role in the movement.

• Sarojini Naidu
She was the first Indian woman to become the president of the Congress, was involved, it a March towards the Dharsana Salt Works, a government salt depot. Other leaders who participated in this totally non-violent affair were Imam Saheb, Gandhi’s comrade of the South African struggle, and Manilal, Gandhi’s son.

• Surya Sen
He started Chittagong Revolt Group, which carried out a raid on two armouries and declared the establishment of a provisional government. He issued a manifesto in the name of the Indian Republican Army and called on the Indians to revolt against the British rule.”

“1937 provincial election results:
• Congress had clear majority in five provinces i.e. United Provinces (U.P.), Bihar, Madras, Central Provinces (C.P.), Orissa.
• In Bengal, NWFP, Assam and Bombay, Congress emerged as the single largest party.
Hence, statement 1 is correct.
• 482 seats were reserved as Muslim seats. The Congress contested 58 and could win only 26 seats.
• Muslim League could not win a single seat in NWFP. In Punjab it got only 2 of the 84 reserved seats.
Hence, statement 2 is incorrect.
• Congress formed its own government in 7 provinces i.e. Bombay, UP, Madras, Orrisa, Central Provinces, Bihar, NWFP.
Hence, statement 3 is correct.
• Sikandar Hayat Khan of Unionist party won in Punjab while Bengal was won by Fazlulhaq of Krishak Praja Party.

Tikdam:
Unionist Party won in Punjab. Just eliminating this statement would have helped you arrive at the right answer.”

“During the 28 months government, Congress ministries took a number of initiatives like:

Civil Liberty:
• Emergency powers related laws repealed.
Hence, statement 1 is correct.
• Restrictions and ban on press, certain books, newspapers, and illegal organizations was lifted.
• Confiscated arms and arms licences were restored.
Hence, statement 2 is correct.

Agrarian Reforms:
• Legislated a number of laws relating to land reforms, debt relief, forest grazing fee, arrears of rent, land tenure sect.

Social Welfare Reforms:
• Measures for welfare of Harijans taken-temple entry, education, etc.
Hence, statement 3 is correct.
• Encouragement was given to khadi and indigenous enterprises.
• In 1938 national planning committee set up under congress president Subhash Chandra Bose.
• Reforms in education, public health, sanitation as well as in prisons were undertaken.

Labour:
• Goodwill sought to be created between labour and capital with mediation of ministries.
• Efforts were made to improve workers ‘condition and secure wage increase for them.

Failures of ministries:
Despite these achievements there were certain failures of ministries like:
• A visible acrimony against communists. Yusuf Meherally and S.S. Batliwala were arrested for inflammatory and seditious speeches. K.M. Munshi used CID against communist and leftist. Ministries took recourse to section 144 and arrested the leaders.
• Most of the benefits from agrarian reforms went only to statutory and occupancy tenants while sub-tenants did not gain much.
• Agricultural laborers did not benefit as they had not been mobilized.”

“The response of the nationalist leaders towards World War I:

• During the war years, political unrest was growing within India and Leaders such as Bal Gangadhar Tilak and Annie Besant launched the Home Rule League in 1916 and used India’s war contributions to demand self-government within the empire.
• Political moderates such as Surendranath Banerjee and Bhupendranath Basu, pledged their whole-hearted support to the Allies.
Hence, statement 1 is correct.
• Different political parties and communities such as the All India Muslim League, Madras Provincial Congress, Hindus of Punjab and the Parsee community of Bombay supported the Allies and fund-raising was organized, meetings were held in cities such as Calcutta, Bombay, Lahore and Allahabad.
Hence, statement 2 is incorrect.
• Mahatma Gandhi thought that England’s need should not be turned into our opportunity, and he argued that we should send our men to France and Mesopotamia.
Hence, statement 3 is correct.
• Moderate and extremist groups within the Congress submerged their differences in order to stand as a unified front and argued their enormous services to the British Empire during the war, demanded a reward and demonstrated the Indian capacity for self-rule thus the pre-war nationalist movement had revived.
• Lucknow Pact of 1916, was an alliance between Muslim League and Congress, which led to some sort of consensus over the issue of devolution of political power.”

“• Subhash Chandra Bose was twice elected President of the Indian National Congress, (1938-Haripur and 1939-Tripuri) the country’s most important political force for freedom from the Raj or British rule.
Hence, statement 1 is incorrect.
• Owing to political differences, he resigned from the Congress Presidentship in 1939 and organised the All India Forward Bloc a faction within the Congress in Bengal.The purpose was to consolidate the political left and major support base in his home state Bengal.
Hence, statement 2 is incorrect.
• In Calcutta, Bose organised mass protests and was arrested. He was later put under house arrest from where he escaped. He went to Germany via Afghanistan.
• However, in 1943 Bose lost hope that Germany could be of any help in gaining India’s independence. He then turned to Asia where he finally came at the helm of the Indian National Army (INA).
• INA found support among expatriate Indians and under its aegis Bose formed the Azad Hind government which came to produce its own currency, postage stamps, court and civil code. It was recognised by Axis states.
Hence, statement 3 is correct.
• While his memory is still held in high esteem in India, in the West Bose is much less revered, largely because of his wartime collaboration with the Axis powers.
• During the final two years of the war, Bose with considerable Japanese backing- led the forces of the Indian National Army into battle against the British.”

“Response to Quit India Movement
• The British government responded to the call of Gandhi by arresting all major Congress leaders the very next day. Gandhi, Nehru, Patel, etc. were all arrested. This left the movement in the hands of the younger leaders like Jayaprakash Narayan and Ram Manohar Lohia. New leaders like Aruna Asaf Ali emerged out of the vacuum of leadership.
Hence, statement 1 is correct.
• Over 100000 people were arrested in connection with this movement. The government resorted to violence in order to quell the agitation. They were mass floggings and lathi charges. Even women and children were not spared. About 10000 people died in police firing in total.
• There was no communal violence.
Hence, statement 2 is incorrect.
• The INC was banned. Its leaders were jailed for almost the whole of the war. Gandhi was released on health grounds in 1944.
• The people responded to Gandhi’s call in a major way. However, in the absence of leadership, there were stray incidences of violence and damage to government property. Many buildings were set on fire, electricity lines were cut and communication and transport lines were broken.
• Some parties did not support the movement. There was opposition from the Muslim League, the Communist Party of India (the government revoked the ban on the party then) and the Hindu Mahasabha.
Hence, statement 3 is correct.
• The League was not in favour of the British leaving India without partitioning the country first. In fact, Jinnah asked more Muslims to enlist in the army to fight the war.
• The Communist party supported the war waged by the British since they were allied with the Soviet Union.
Subhas Chandra Bose, was by this time, organizing the Indian National Army and the Azad Hind government from outside the country.
• C Rajagopalachari, resigned from the INC since he was not in favour of complete independence.
• In general, the Indian bureaucracy did not support the Quit India Movement.
• There were strikes and demonstrations all over the country. Despite the communist group’s lack of support to the movement, workers provided support by not working in the factories.
• In some places, parallel governments were also set up. Example: Ballia, Tamluk, Satara.
• The chief areas of the movement were UP Bihar, Maharashtra, Midnapore, and Karnataka. The movement lasted till 1944.”

“• Warren Hastings (1732 – 1818) became the first Governor of the Presidency of Fort William (Bengal) in 1772 and the first Governor-General of Bengal in 1774 till he resigned in 1785.
• He started his career as a writer (clerk) in the East India Company at Calcutta in 1750.
• In 1758, he became the British resident at Murshidabad, the capital of Bengal, after Mir Jafar was installed as the Nawab after the Battle of Plassey.
• During his term, the First Anglo-Maratha war and the second Anglo-Mysore war were fought.
Hence, statement 1 is correct.
• The Regulating Act of 1773 was passed during his term.
• He supported Sir William Jones in the formation of the Asiatic Society of Bengal in 1785.
• Hastings abolished the Dual System that had been established by Robert Clive.
Hence, statement 2 is incorrect.
• For revenue collection, a Board of Revenue was set up at Calcutta.
• The judicial powers of the Zamindars were abolished.
Hence, statement 3 is correct.
• Civil and criminal courts were established. Two appellate courts were established at Calcutta, one for civil (Sadar Diwani Adalat) and one for criminal (Sadar Nizamat Adalat) cases.”

“Lord William Bentick (1828-1835)
• It was during his term as governor of Madras that the Vellore Mutiny took place prompted by his order that the Indian troops be denied permission to wear their traditional dress. As a result, he was recalled in 1807.
• His career in the army continued. He was also a member of the House of Commons. In 1828, he was appointed the Governor-General of Bengal. His chief task was to recover the loss-making East India Company.
• He was able to bring about a sound financial management system for the company, but the process was also accompanied by a policy of westernisation. He was influenced by Jeremy Bentham’s and James Mill’s utilitarian principles.
• Bentinck revised the court system as well as the educational system.
• In 1831 William Bentinck took control of Mysore on the grounds of misgovernance.
• He passed the English Education Act 1835 that replaced Persian with English in the higher courts. He also advocated Indians to be educated in the western style so that more Indians could be employed in the administration.
• He opened the Calcutta Medical College in 1835 and it became the first western medical school in all of Asia where people could be admitted irrespective of caste or creed.
• Along with Raja Ram Mohan Roy, Bentinck tried to suppress many superstitious practices prevalent then. • Sati, the practice of widow burning, was abolished by the Bengal Sati Regulation (Regulation XVII) on 4th December 1829.
• He also tried to control, with Ram Mohan Roy’s advocacy, practices like polygamy, child marriages and caste rigidity.
• The Charter Act of 1833 was passed in his tenure. This Act marks the centralisation in India’s administration and also made provisions for the inclusion of Indians in government service. This also made Bentinck the first Governor-General of India.
• He reformed the military by banning flogging as a punishment in the British Indian army.
• Bentinck also did a commendable job of controlling organised Thugee. Thugs were gangs of professional thieves and even murderers that had created a huge law and order problem. Thugee was finished off by 1837.
• He was the Governor-General of India till 20th March 1835.
• Lord Bentinck died on 17 June 1839 in Paris.”

“• Wood’s Despatch (1854)
• Hunter Education Commission (1882-1883)
• Saddler University Commission (1917-1919)
• Sergeant Plan of education (1944)”

“Cornwallis Code:
• There was a separation of revenue and justice administration.
Hence, statement 1 is correct.
• European subjects were also brought under jurisdiction.
Hence, statement 2 is incorrect.
• Government subjects were answerable to the civil courts for actions done in their official capacity.
Hence, statement 3 is correct.
• The principle of sovereignty of law was established.
Hence, statement 4 is correct.”

“Features of the Subsidiary Alliance Treaty
• The subsidiary alliance in India was planned by Lord Wellesley but this term was introduced by French Governor Dupleix.
• An Indian ruler entering into Subsidiary Alliance with the British had to dissolve his own armed forces and accept British forces in his territory.
Hence, statement 1 is correct.
• He also had to pay for the British army’s maintenance. If he failed to make the payment, a portion of his territory would be taken away and ceded to the British.
• In return, the British would protect the Indian state against any foreign attack or internal revolt.
• The British promised non-interference in internal affairs of the Indian state but this was rarely kept.
Hence, statement 2 is incorrect.
• The Indian state could not enter into any alliance with any other foreign power.
Hence, statement 4 is correct.
• He could also not employ any other foreign nationals other than Englishmen in his service. And, if he were employing any, on the signing of the alliance, he had to terminate them from his service. The idea was to curb the influence of the French.
• The Indian state could also not enter into any political connection with another Indian state without British approval.
• The Indian ruler, thus, lost all powers in respect of foreign affairs and the military.
• He virtually lost all his independence and became a British ‘protectorate’.
• A British Resident was also stationed in the Indian Court.
Hence, statement 3 is correct.”

“Features of the Permanent Settlement
• Landlords or Zamindars were recognised as the owners of the land. They were given hereditary rights of succession of the lands under them.
Hence, statement 1 is correct.
• The Zamindars could sell or transfer the land as they wished.
Hence, statement 4 is incorrect.
• The Zamindars’ proprietorship would stay as long as he paid the fixed revenue at the said date to the government. If they failed to pay, their rights would cease to exist and the land would be auctioned off.
• The amount to be paid by the landlords was fixed. It was agreed that this would not increase in future (permanent).
Hence, statement 2 is correct.
• The fixed amount was 10/11th portion of the revenue for the government and 1/10th was for the Zamindar. This tax rate was way higher than the prevailing rates in England.
Hence, statement 3 is incorrect.
• The Zamindar also had to give the tenant a patta which described the area of the land given to him and the rent he had to pay the landlord.”

“Consequences of the British land revenue systems
• Land became a commodity.
Hence, statement 1 is correct.
• Earlier there was no private ownership of land. Even kings and cultivators did not consider land as his ‘private property’.
• Due to the very high taxes, farmers resorted to growing cash crops instead of food crops. This led to food insecurity and even famines.
Hence, statement 2 is correct.
• Taxes on agricultural produce were moderate during pre-British times. The British made it very high.
Insistence on cash payment of revenue led to more indebtedness among farmers. Moneylenders became landowners in due course.
• Bonded labour arose because loans were given to farmers/labourers who could not pay it back.
Hence, statement 3 is correct.
• When India achieved freedom from colonial rule, 7% of the villagers (Zamindars/landowners) owned 75% of the agricultural land.”

“Ryotwari system
• This system of land revenue was instituted in the late 18th century by Sir Thomas Munro, Governor of Madras in 1820.
• This was practised in the Madras and Bombay areas, as well as Assam and Coorg provinces.
Hence, statement 1 is correct.
• In this system, the peasants or cultivators were regarded as the owners of the land. They had ownership rights, could sell, mortgage or gift the land.
Hence, statement 4 is correct.
• The taxes were directly collected by the government from the peasants.
Hence, statement 2 is correct.
• The rates were 50% in dryland and 60% in the wetland.
• The rates were high and unlike the Permanent System, they were open to being increased.
• If they failed to pay the taxes, they were evicted by the government.
Ryot means peasant cultivators.
• Here there were no middlemen as in the Zamindari system. But, since high taxes had to be paid only in cash (no option of paying in kind as before the British) the problem of moneylenders came into the show. They further burdened the peasants with heavy interests.
Hence, statement 3 is incorrect.”