GK Test - 16

The correct answer is Lord Irwin.

Key Points

Important Points

• Dandi March:
  • The Salt Satyagraha was initiated by Mahatma Gandhi against the salt tax that was imposed by the British Government in India.
  • Mahatma Gandhi launched the Civil Disobedience Movement with his famous Dandi March, which began on 12th March 1930 and ended on April 6th, 1930.
  • Gandhi traveled a total distance of 386 km from Sabarmati Ashram to Dandi on the coast of the Arabian sea.
  • Mahatma Gandhi broke the salt law on the coastal town of Dandi on the Arabian Sea on April 5.
  • Dandi March is also known as Namak Satyagrah or Salt Satyagrah.
  • Lord Irwin was the viceroy between 1926 to 1931 so above all activities take place in his duration as viceroy of India.

Key Points

Quit India Movement (1942):

• On 8th August 1942, Mahatma Gandhi called to end British rule and launched the Quit India Movement at the session of the All-India Congress Committee in Mumbai.
• This movement is also known as the India August Movement or August Kranti.
• Gandhiji gave the call “Do or Die” in his speech delivered at the Gowalia Tank Maidan, now popularly known as August Kranti Maidan.
• Aruna Asaf Ali popularly known as the 'Grand Old Lady' of the Independence Movement is known for hoisting the Indian flag at the Gowalia Tank Maidan in Mumbai during the Quit India Movement.
• The slogan ‘Quit India’ was coined by Yusuf Meherally, a socialist and trade unionist who also served as Mayor of Mumbai.
• The Quit India Resolution was passed by the Congress Working Committee on 8 August 1942 in Bombay. Gandhi was named the movement’s leader.
• The resolution stated the provisions of the movement as:
  • An immediate end to British rule over India.
  • Declaration of the commitment of free India to defend itself against all kinds of imperialism and fascism.
  • Formation of a provisional government of India after British withdrawal.
  • Sanctioning a civil disobedience movement against British rule.

The correct answer is Treaty of Lahore.

• The Treaty of Lahore of 9 March 1846, was a peace treaty marking the end of the First Anglo-Sikh War.

Key Points

• After the British reached the city of Lahore the treaty was signed.
• The Sikhs (who had been defeated) were forced to sign the treaty with the British.
• As part of the treaty, the Sikhs agreed to handover Kashmir and Hazara and Jalandhar Doab to the British.
• The Treaty was concluded, for the British, by the Governor-General Sir Henry Hardinge and two officers of the East India Company and, for the Sikhs, by the seven-year-old Maharaja Duleep Singh Bahadur and seven members of the Lahore Durbar acting on his behalf.
• The terms of the Treaty were punitive.

Key Points

• Mahatma Gandhi was the sole representative of the Indian National Congress at the Second Round Table Conference held in 1931.
• The conference was a series of three meetings in London and was part of the constitutional reform process in India.
• It aimed to discuss the Simon Commission report and the future constitution of India.
• Gandhi attended to negotiate the terms of Indian independence and pressed for the rights of the Indian people.
• Despite his efforts, the conference did not lead to any significant breakthrough due to the lack of agreement between the British and Indian representatives.

Additional Information

Key Points

• Samvad Kaumudi, a Bengali, pro-reformist, weekly newspaper, was edited and brought by Ram Mohan Roy.
• Raja Ram Mohan Roy (1772-1833) was one of the founders of modern India.
• He is widely regarded as the "Father of Modern India".
• Although Roy was modernist in approach, he always sought modern influences in culture.
• He always tried to combine creativity with spirituality and Western and Eastern philosophies.
• His attitude towards religion is eclectic. He wanted to spread the idea of ​​a universal religion by combining the best features of all the world's major religions.
• Roy's criticism of religion angered priests classes of all faiths.
• Samvad Kaumudi was ranked 10th in the Greatest Bengali of all time survey by BBC in 2004.
• Samvad Kaumudi is a well-known pro-Reformist publication that argues and challenges against the Sati Pratha.

Additional Information

• Keshab Chandra Sen:
  • Hindu philosopher and social reformer Keshab Chandra Sen made an effort to integrate Christian theology within the Hindu philosophical tradition.
  • He was a Hindu who was born in British India's Bengal Presidency and joined the Brahmo Samaj in 1857 before starting his own breakaway group, the "Bharatvarshiya Brahmo Samaj," in 1866.
• Ishwar Chandra Vidyasagar: Ishwar Chandra Vidyasagar established the Bethune school at Calcutta with the aim of encouraging education for women.
• Sri. Ramakrishna Paramhamsa: He was the founder of the Ramakrishna Order of monks. Swami Vivekananda (1863-1902) was his foremost disciple.

Key Points

• The Government of India Act of 1858 was the Act of the British Parliament which stated that a member of the British Cabinet was appointed Secretary of State for India.
• The Government of India Act 1858 was enacted by the British Parliament on 2 August 1858.
• With the passage of the Government of India Act 1858, the East India Company's territories and government were turned over to the British Crown.
• Following the end of the company's administration over British colonies in India, control was transferred directly to the British government.
• Lord Stanley was appointed as the first Secretary of State for India.

Additional Information

• The Indian Councils Act 1861 was an Act of the British Parliament that changed the executive council of India into a cabinet that utilised the portfolio system.
• The Regulating Act of 1773 was an Act of the British Parliament designed to restructure the East India Company's administration of its rule in India.
• The British Parliament enacted the Charter Act, 1853 to extend the charter of the East India Company.

Key Points

• Revolt of 1857
  • This was the first major revolt against the British East India Company.
  • The revolt started with the Sepoy Mutiny in Meerut and soon spread to other cities like Delhi, Kanpur, Jhansi, etc.
  • The main reasons for the revolt were
    • Introduction of the ‘Enfield’ rifle whose cartridge was believed to be greased with either pig fat or made from cow fat. This hurt the religious sentiments of the Hindus and the Muslims.
    • The whites did not allow Indians to mingle with them. Moreover, Indians were discriminated against in their salaries, promotions, etc.
    • The unjust policies regarding tax and revenue affected peasants heavily.
  • The prominent leaders of the revolt were - Bahadur Shah II, General Bakht Khan, Begum Hazrat Mahal, Birjis Qadir, Ahmadullah, Nana Sahib, Rao Sahib, Tantia Tope, Azimullah Khan, Rani Laxmibai, Jaidayal Singh and Hardayal Singh, etc.
• Lord Canning
  • ​He was the last Governor-General and first Viceroy of India, as the power was transferred from the East India Company to the British Crown after the 1857 revolt.
  • Major events during his tenure
    • ​Introduced Government of India Act 1858.
    • Introduced Budget System in India.
    • Abolished the Doctrine of Lapse.'

Additional Information

Key Points

• The Portuguese were the first European power to establish a trading post in India. Vasco da Gama, a Portuguese explorer, was the first European to reach India by sea, landing in Calicut (present-day Kozhikode, Kerala) in 1498.
• This marked the beginning of the Portuguese era in India. They established their first fort in Cochin in 1503 and later, in 1510, they captured Goa, which became the capital of the Portuguese possessions in the East.
• The Dutch (The Netherlands), the British, and the French came later.
• The Dutch East India Company was established in 1602, the British East India Company was formed in 1600 but they established their first factory in Surat, India in 1613, and the French East India Company was established much later in 1664.

• The All India Muslim League was established by the Nawab Salimullah of Dhaka in the year 1906 AD.
• The objective was to create a platform for Muslims in the country.
•  Demanded separate electorate for the Muslim community in India.

Key Points

• Lord Wellesley- Subsidiary Alliance
• Lord Dalhousie- Doctrine of Lapse
• Lord Cornwallis- Permanent Settlement
• Lord William Bentick- Abolition of Sati

Additional Information