UPSC CDS-1

11. The Summary Settlement of 1856 was based on which one of the following

The Summary Settlement of 1856 was based on which one of the following assumptions?

Join Our Telegram Channel
The Talukdars were the rightful owners of the land.
The Talukdars were interlopers with no permanent stakes in the land.
The Talukdars could evict the peasants from the lands.
The Talukdars would take a portion of the revenue which flowed to the State.
This question was previously asked in
UPSC CDS-1 – 2019
Download PDFAttempt Online
The correct answer is B) The Talukdars were interlopers with no permanent stakes in the land.
When the British annexed Awadh in 1856, they implemented a Summary Settlement with the aim of settling land revenue directly with the village proprietors, bypassing the Talukdars (large landholders). This policy was based on the assumption that the Talukdars were recent creations, often tax collectors or adventurers who had usurped their position and did not have historical rights or ‘permanent stakes’ in the land, unlike the village communities.
Before annexation, Talukdars controlled about 67% of the total number of villages in Awadh. The Summary Settlement drastically reduced their power and deprived many of them of their landholding rights, reducing their control to about 38% of villages. This policy severely alienated the Talukdars, who then joined the Revolt of 1857 against the British in large numbers, often bringing their peasant followers with them. After the Revolt, the British changed their policy towards the Talukdars, recognizing their importance in maintaining stability and granting them more rights.

Subscribe on YouTube

12. Who among the following was known during the days of the Revolt of 185

Who among the following was known during the days of the Revolt of 1857 as ‘Danka Shah’?

Subscribe on YouTube
Shah Mal
Maulavi Ahmadullah Shah
Nana Sahib
Tantia Tope
This question was previously asked in
UPSC CDS-1 – 2019
Download PDFAttempt Online
The correct answer is B) Maulavi Ahmadullah Shah.
Maulavi Ahmadullah Shah, originally from Madras, was a prominent leader and preacher who travelled northwards and played a significant role in the Revolt of 1857, particularly in the area around Faizabad and Awadh. He was known for his fiery sermons urging people to rebel against the British and was famously referred to as ‘Danka Shah’ because he marched with a large number of followers announcing his arrival with the beat of a drum (danka).
Shah Mal was a local leader from the Baggat region near Meerut. Nana Sahib was a leader of the Revolt in Kanpur. Tantia Tope was the general of Nana Sahib and a key figure in central India, fighting against the British forces. Maulavi Ahmadullah Shah was considered a formidable opponent by the British, who even announced a reward for his capture.

Join Our Telegram Channel

13. The Limitation Law, which was passed by the British in 1859, addressed

The Limitation Law, which was passed by the British in 1859, addressed which one of the following issues?

Subscribe on YouTube
Loan bonds would not have any legal validity.
Loan bonds signed between money-lender and Ryots would have validity only for three years.
Land bonds could not be executed by moneylenders.
Loan bonds would have validity for ten years.
This question was previously asked in
UPSC CDS-1 – 2019
Download PDFAttempt Online
The correct answer is B) Loan bonds signed between money-lender and Ryots would have validity only for three years.
The Limitation Law, passed in 1859 by the British, stipulated that a bond of loan would have legal validity for only three years. This meant that a moneylender could not sue a Ryot (peasant) for the recovery of a debt based on a bond after three years had passed since the bond was signed.
This law was intended to limit the period for which old debts could be claimed. However, it sometimes worked against the Ryots during periods of distress. Moneylenders would often get new bonds signed every few years or use other means of debt recovery outside the legal framework, leading to exploitation. This law, among other factors, contributed to agrarian discontent, such as the Deccan Riots of 1875, where Ryots attacked moneylenders’ houses and shops to burn debt bonds and deeds.

Join Our Telegram Channel

14. The Damin-i-Koh was created by the British Government to settle which

The Damin-i-Koh was created by the British Government to settle which one of the following communities?

Subscribe on YouTube
Santals
Mundas
Oraons
Saoras
This question was previously asked in
UPSC CDS-1 – 2019
Download PDFAttempt Online
The correct answer is A) Santals.
Damin-i-Koh was a demarcated area in the Santhal Parganas (part of present-day Jharkhand) created by the British in 1832. The aim was to settle the Santals, encourage them to practice settled agriculture, and collect land revenue.
Before the creation of Damin-i-Koh, the Santals were shifting cultivators and forest dwellers. The British policy aimed to bring them under revenue administration and control. The influx of outsiders (moneylenders, zamindars) into this area, encouraged by British policies, led to exploitation of the Santals and eventually resulted in the Santhal Rebellion of 1855-56. Mundas and Oraons are other major tribal communities in the Chota Nagpur region but Damin-i-Koh was specifically related to the Santals.

Join Our Telegram Channel

15. The Deccan Agriculturalists’ Relief Act of 1879 was enacted with which

The Deccan Agriculturalists’ Relief Act of 1879 was enacted with which one of the following objectives?

Subscribe on YouTube
Restore lands to the dispossessed peasants
Ensure financial assistance to peasants during social and religious occasions
Restrict the sale of land for indebtedness to outsiders
Give legal aid to insolvent peasants
This question was previously asked in
UPSC CDS-1 – 2019
Download PDFAttempt Online
The Deccan Agriculturalists’ Relief Act of 1879 was passed by the British colonial government in response to the Deccan Riots of 1875, which were primarily caused by the exploitation of indebted peasants by moneylenders. The Act aimed to protect the peasants by restricting the alienation (sale or transfer) of their land to non-agriculturist moneylenders and placing limitations on the recovery of debts.
The Deccan Agriculturalists’ Relief Act of 1879 aimed to protect peasants from moneylenders by restricting land sales for debt.
While the Act aimed to provide relief from debt, its primary mechanism was to control the relationship between farmers and moneylenders and prevent the transfer of land. It did not focus on restoring previously dispossessed lands, providing financial assistance for social/religious occasions, or giving general legal aid to all insolvent peasants, though it provided specific legal procedures regarding debt and land alienation.

Join Our Telegram Channel

16. Henry T. Colebrooke was a Professor of Sanskrit in which one of the fo

Henry T. Colebrooke was a Professor of Sanskrit in which one of the following institutions?

Subscribe on YouTube
Fort William College
Serampore Mission
Kashi Vidyapith
Asiatic Society
This question was previously asked in
UPSC CDS-1 – 2019
Download PDFAttempt Online
Henry Thomas Colebrooke (1765-1837) was a renowned English orientalist and Sanskrit scholar. He was appointed as a professor of Sanskrit and Hindu Law at the College of Fort William in Calcutta, which was founded in 1800 by Lord Wellesley. He made significant contributions to the study of Indian languages, law, philosophy, and science.
Henry T. Colebrooke was a Professor of Sanskrit at Fort William College.
The Serampore Mission was a Danish settlement near Calcutta, known for missionary activities and printing. Kashi Vidyapith is a university in Varanasi founded in 1921. The Asiatic Society was founded by Sir William Jones in 1784 for oriental studies; Colebrooke was also associated with it and served as its president, but his professorship was at Fort William College.

Join Our Telegram Channel

17. According to the law of diminishing marginal utility, as the amount of

According to the law of diminishing marginal utility, as the amount of a good consumed increases, the marginal utility of that good tends to

Subscribe on YouTube
improve
diminish
remain constant
first diminish and then improve
This question was previously asked in
UPSC CDS-1 – 2018
Download PDFAttempt Online
The law of diminishing marginal utility states that as a consumer consumes more and more units of a specific good, the additional satisfaction (utility) derived from consuming each successive unit tends to decrease. While the total utility might increase initially, the rate at which it increases slows down.
Marginal utility diminishes as consumption of a good increases.
This is a fundamental concept in microeconomics and consumer theory. It explains why demand curves are typically downward-sloping – as the price of a good falls, a consumer is willing to buy more units because the marginal utility of additional units is decreasing, and the lower price compensates for this reduced marginal satisfaction. Eventually, marginal utility can become zero or even negative if consumption continues beyond a certain point.

Join Our Telegram Channel

18. Consider the following statements about impact of tax : A tax is shi

Consider the following statements about impact of tax :

  • A tax is shifted forward to consumers if the demand is inelastic relative to supply.
  • A tax is shifted backward to producers if the supply is relatively more inelastic than demand.

Which of the statements given above is/are correct?

Join Our Telegram Channel
1 only
2 only
Both 1 and 2
Neither 1 nor 2
This question was previously asked in
UPSC CDS-1 – 2018
Download PDFAttempt Online
Statement 1: If demand is inelastic relative to supply, consumers are less responsive to price changes. When a tax is imposed, producers can pass on a larger portion of the tax burden to consumers in the form of higher prices without losing many buyers. Thus, the tax is shifted forward to consumers. This statement is correct.
Statement 2: If supply is relatively more inelastic than demand, producers are less able to reduce the quantity supplied in response to a lower price received after tax. When a tax is imposed, producers bear a larger portion of the tax burden because they cannot easily adjust output. The price received by producers falls significantly. Thus, the tax is shifted backward to producers. This statement is correct.
Both statements accurately describe how the relative elasticity of demand and supply determines the incidence (burden) of a tax.
Tax incidence is determined by the relative elasticity of demand and supply; the burden falls more on the less elastic side of the market.
Elasticity measures the responsiveness of quantity demanded or supplied to changes in price. Inelastic means less responsive, while elastic means more responsive. When a tax is imposed, the market price changes, and the tax wedge is split between consumers and producers. The side with lower elasticity faces a greater change in their price (price paid by consumers or price received by producers).

Subscribe on YouTube

19. Which of the following statements about Sir Syed Ahmad Khan is/are cor

Which of the following statements about Sir Syed Ahmad Khan is/are correct?

  • He argued that India was a federation of ethnic communities based on common descent.
  • His philosophy was very similar to that of the Indian National Congress.
  • He imagined India as a Nation State based on individual citizen’s rights.
  • The curriculum at the Mohammedan Anglo-Oriental College blended Muslim theology and European empiricism.

Select the correct answer using the code given below.

Join Our Telegram Channel
1 only
2 and 3
3 only
1 and 4
This question was previously asked in
UPSC CDS-1 – 2018
Download PDFAttempt Online
Statement 1: Sir Syed Ahmad Khan increasingly viewed India as consisting of two distinct communities, Hindus and Muslims, whose interests might diverge. While “federation of ethnic communities based on common descent” is an unusual phrasing, it reflects his idea of India as a collection of distinct communities rather than a unified nation-state based on individual rights, especially as he moved towards the “Two-Nation Theory” concept.
Statement 2: Sir Syed Ahmad Khan was critical of the Indian National Congress, particularly its call for representative government based on election, which he feared would lead to Hindu majority rule. His philosophy was distinctly different and often opposed to that of Congress.
Statement 3: This statement contradicts his view of distinct communities. He emphasized the separate political identity and rights for Muslims based on their communal identity, not primarily individual rights within a secular nation-state framework.
Statement 4: The Mohammedan Anglo-Oriental College (MAO College), founded by Sir Syed Ahmad Khan, aimed to provide modern Western education (European empiricism) alongside traditional Islamic religious instruction (Muslim theology). This statement is correct.
Given the options, statements 1 and 4 are considered correct in this context.
Sir Syed Ahmad Khan held views on India as a composite of distinct communities and promoted a blend of modern and religious education at MAO College.
Sir Syed Ahmad Khan was a key figure in 19th-century Indian Muslim society. He advocated for modern education among Muslims and played a significant role in the Aligarh Movement. His political views evolved, becoming more separatist, particularly after the formation of the Indian National Congress.

Subscribe on YouTube

20. Which one of the following statements about the Elephanta Island is

Which one of the following statements about the Elephanta Island is correct?

Join Our Telegram Channel
It was given its name by the British after a large elephant structure located there.
It contains one large cave.
It is well-known for a spectacular carving of Vishnu described in the Vishnudharmottara Purana.
It is associated with the Pashupata sect.
This question was previously asked in
UPSC CDS-1 – 2018
Download PDFAttempt Online
The caves on Elephanta Island are primarily dedicated to the Hindu god Shiva and contain magnificent sculptures depicting various forms and legends of Shiva. The iconography and style of the sculptures strongly suggest an association with the Pashupata sect of Shaivism, which was prominent during the period of their creation (roughly 5th-8th centuries AD).
Elephanta Caves are dedicated to Shiva and associated with the Pashupata sect.
Option A is partially correct in that the island got its name from an elephant structure, but it was given by the Portuguese, not the British. Option B is incorrect as there are multiple caves, although Cave 1 is the largest and most significant. Option C is incorrect as the main deity depicted is Shiva, not Vishnu.

Subscribe on YouTube
Page 1Page 2Page 3Page 4Page 5
Test 1Test 2Test 3Test 4Test 5Test 6Test 7Test 8Test 9Test 10Test 11Test 12Test 13Test 14Test 15Test 16Test 17Test 18Test 19Test 20Test 21Test 22