Free UPSC Mains Answer Writing Practice -Test 17

UPSC Mains Answer Writing Practice -Test 17

1. ” It was those radical reforms by the British government in the aftermath of revolt of 1857 that institutionalized a truly centralized administrative system”.Analyze. (150 Words) (10 Marks)

2. Analyze how far various social reform movements which aimed at women’s emancipation have succeeded during the pre independence time. (150 Words) (10 Marks)

3. “India’s decision to get involved in the Bangladesh war of 1971 was a starc deviation from its foundational foriegn policies”. Evaluate.(150 Words) (10 Marks)

4. “Moderates may have failed to satisfy the popular sentiments of those times but they have definitely contributed to the national freedom struggle “. Discuss. (250 Words) (15 Marks)

5. “The involvement of the working class is evident throughout the national freedom struggle but their intensity varied and were influenced by many national and international events as well”. Examine. (250 Words) (15 Marks)

Answer key

1. ” It was those radical reforms by the British government in the aftermath of revolt of 1857 that institutionalized a truly centralized administrative system”. Analyze. (150 Words) (10 Marks)

APPROACH:
●Brief introduction on the 1857 revolt.
●Bring out the changes made after 1857 revolt.
●Analyze how it centralised the administrative system.
●Analyse the decentralised administration which emerged post 1880’s.

ANSWER: The Revolt of 1857 was a product of character and policies of colonial rule till then. The revolt was characterised by sporadic, violent forms of struggle with extreme communal harmony and cooperation between people. It underlined the weakness of British East Indian Company policies to contain anti colonial protests in India.

As a result, the Government of India Act,1858 was passed by Britain that transferred the government and territories of the East India Company to the British Crown. The reforms introduced changes in the administration of the system.

Administrative Reforms post 1857 Revolt:

●Direct responsibility for administration of the country was assumed by British crown and the Company rule was abolished.
●Indian states recognised the paramountcy of the British crown and the territories of these states are considered as part of it as well creating a single territory under the British empire.
●Britishers promised to respect the dignity and rights of the native princes and their territory will not be annexed as some of them acted as breakwaters to the storm during the 1857 revolts.
●A Secretary of the State, who is a member of the British Parliament, was made responsible for managing the affairs of Government of India creating a centralised administrative mechanism.

Policy Reforms post 1857 Revolt:

●The Britishers tried to Divide and Rule India along religious lines causing a gulf between Hindus and Muslims. Eg: Bengal division in 1905.
●Britishers encouraged alternative political ideologies in India to counter the emergence of Indian National Congress. Eg: Formation of United India Patriotic Association by Syed Ahmed Khan was encourged by Britishers to promote political co-operation with the British and Muslim participation in the British government.
●The Army was reorganised so that the ratio of Indians with that of the Britishers remained small to avoid any future conflicts.

Changes in centralised administration post 1857:
●Financial decentralisation was brought by Lord Mayo’s resolution of 1870. The provincial governments were authorised to resort to local taxation to balance their budgets.
●The decentralisation was further extended from provinces to the local bodies during the reign of Lord Ripon. Local bodies development was advocated to improve the administration and to manage the local affairs effectively.
●Through the Government of India Act 1919, dyarchy was introduced in the provinces. Local self government was made a transferred subject and they were given flexibility according to provincial needs and requirements.
●The decentralised administration was further enhanced in the Government of India Act,1935 by giving provincial autonomy.

Although there was a transition to the centralised administration immediately post 1857 revolt, it was short lived. The impact and success of the decentralised administration post 1870’s encouraged the post Independent Indian rulers to organise local self governing institutions in rural and urban areas.

2. Analyze how far various social reform movements which aimed at women’s emancipation have succeeded during the pre independence time. (150 Words) (10 Marks)

APPROACH:
●Brief introduction about social reform movements in India.
●Analysis about role of these movements in women’s emancipation.
●Give examples of successful movements.
●Conclude with the impacts of these movements.

ANSWER: Social reform movements in India emerged as a reaction to the religious superstitions and social obscurantism. It strived to imbibe the ideologies of rationalism, religious universalism and humanism through their activities.

Problems faced by women during pre independence:
●Women were forced to commit sati once their husbands died denying them dignity of life.
●Patriarchal mindset of the society suppressed women through customs like early marriage, ban on widow remarriage etc.
●Women were economically and socially dependent upon me. They were denied inheritance rights as well.

Social reform movements and women’s emancipation:

●Ishwar Chandra Vidyasagar’s efforts legalised widow remarriage through Hindu Widows’ Remarriage Act, 1856.
●Child marriage was made illegal though efforts of B. M. Malabari. Eg: Passage of Age of consent Act, 1892 which prohibited marriage of girl children below 12 years.
●Education of women was promoted by middle class intelligentsia and Christian missionaries. Eg: Calcutta Female Juvenile Society, Indian Women’s Society.
●Raja Ram Mohan Roy, inspired by modern western ideas brought an end to the practise of sati under Lord William Bentick tenure.
●Welfare of women who were discarded and exploited by society were ensured by social institutions. Eg: Seva Sadan.
●Social reform organisations advocated inter-caste marriages, opposed polygamy etc and inspired people to promote equality.

Thus, the social reform movements contributed towards liberation of women from the hands of patriarchy. The pre-independence reform movements were mainly led by male social reformers who advocated for women rights and emancipation. These movements were successful in emancipating women from the corners of household and made them active participants in the Indian national movement since the Swadeshi movement.

The impacts of these social reform movements were visible in the post independent period as well. Women led social movements and social activism emerged post independence due to the strong foundation set by the social reformers in 19th and early 20th century.

3. “India’s decision to get involved in the Bangladesh war of 1971 was a starc deviation from its foundational foriegn policies”. Evaluate.(150 Words) (10 Marks)

APPROACH:
●Brief introduction regarding Bangladesh Liberation War of 1971.
●Mention the foundational foreign policies of India post independence.
●Mention how the 1971 war proved to be a deviation from them.

ANSWER: Bangladesh Liberation War is an armed conflict sparked by the rise of the Bengali nationalist movement in the then East Pakistan which resulted in the independence of the People’s Republic of Bangladesh.

The immediate reason for India in becoming a party to the Bangladesh liberation war was the preemptive aerial strikes on 11 Indian air stations by Pakistan. It forced Indian entry into the war of independence in East Pakistan on the side of Bengali nationalist forces. The Indian involvement in the war was a starc deviation from its foundational foreign policies.

Foreign Policy Doctrine prior to 1970

●It was Nehru who is considered to be a pioneer in Indian foreign policy post independence.
●His policy was a blend of idealism and realism.
●His vision of western foreign policy is said to be non pragmatic.He believed all western countries are always trying to finding new ways to colonise the newly born country
●He always believed internal problems of Asian countries and African countries could be easily addressed in comparison to western model
●He believed Independence of India is always in danger from western part than Neighbourhood
●His entire foreign policy related to neighbourhood was based on non interference and mutual respect
●He followed the policy of Non alignment with other nations.

Starc deviation from foundational foreign policies:

●The new foreign policy came to be known as Indira doctrine. It did not have elements of idealism but only of pragmatism where decisions were made on pragmatic approach.
●India has followed non alignment policy but with a treaty of friendship with Russia implicitly India joined hands with Russia and Russia helped India in countering the influence of USA and UK in the Bangladesh liberation war of 1971.
●Nehruvian foreign policy was driven by fear of west but the new foreign policy incorporated the threats arising from Neighbourhood as well especially after Indo-pak war of 1965
●Unlike Nehruvian Indira Gandhi doctrine brought in more aggressive policy.It asserted that Conflict in South Asia should be addressed by South Asian power ,If required India is ready to give genuine help.She announced India’s help to all legitimate neighbourhood thus bringing the elements of Big brother attitude.
●With the announcement of War, India deviated from idealistic policy of non interference and mutual respect to interference based on just reasons.

4. “Moderates may have failed to satisfy the popular sentiments of those times but they have definitely contributed to the national freedom struggle “. Discuss. (250 Words) (15 Marks)

APPROACH:
●Briefly given introduction about the Moderates under INC.
●List out contributions of the Moderates in freedom struggle.
●Examine the shortcomings in their approach.

ANSWER: Moderates were a section of political leaders belonging to the Indian National Congress who advocate constitutional agitation through resolutions, petitions etc. They believe in raising the public opinion in the country so that their demands will be conceded by the authorities.

Contributions of Moderates to freedom struggle:

●They explained the Economic Drain of Wealth from India is caused by the Britishers and linked it as the major cause of India’s poverty. Eg: Poverty and Unbritish rule of India book by Dadabhai Naoroji.
●They raised demands for constitutional reforms such as the expansion of council, devolution of more powers to councils etc. Eg: Passage of reforms under Council of India Act,1892.
●They advocated for administrative reforms such as Indianisation of government services, separation of judiciary from executive bodies, increase in expenditure on welfare etc.
●Raised demands for restoration of civil rights for the citizens such as right to speech, association, free press etc.
●Many of the leaders were also involved in undertaking social reform movements to emancipate the vulnerable sections of the society.
●They also demanded constitutional reforms such as demands for self government like the colonies of Canada, Australia etc.
●They were also a part of the INC leadership who led protests against the British forces in Swadeshi movements of the early 20th century.

Yet, the moderates were not successful in building a popular base among the people of India. This is because:
●The Moderates believed that masses did not have the capability to understand the political matters. They believed the movement should be limited to middle class intelligentsia.
●Their ideological inspirations include western liberal thought and European history such as the Renaissance and these failed to connect with the masses.
●They limited their social base to the middle and upper classes in towns only. This would account only to a low percentage of the population.

As a result of this, the Moderates were later replaced by the Extremists during the early 20th century as the dominant force in INC. Nevertheless, the moderates created a solid political foundation for a mass based political movement in the later years.

APPROACH:
●Brief introduction about working class movements.
●Divide them into phases and analyse their intensity and corresponding national and international events which influenced them.

ANSWER: Indian working class movements arose in consequence to the development and growth of factory industries in India from the second half of the nineteenth century. The working class movements in India are divided into three distinct phases.
●Phase 1 spans from 1890 to 1918.
●Phase 2 spans from 1918 to 1929.
●Phase 3 spans from 1930 to 1947.

Working class movements in national freedom struggle:

●Phase 1:
○Philanthropists like S. S. Bengalee in Bombay, Sasipada Banerjee in Bengal and Naraya Lokhande in Maharashtra during 1880s sought to improve working conditions by urging the British authorities in India to introduce legislations for improving its condition.
○The First Factories Act and Second Factories Act were passed during this time period giving relief to the children and women labourers.
○The movements held in this phase were sporadic and unorganised in nature and hence were mostly ineffective.
○The movements were not organised under a single political party like Indian National Congress but rather they occurred due to factors such as reduction of wages, imposition of fines, dismissal of the worker etc.

●Phase 2:
○Trade unions were formed on modern lines indicating a shift from erstwhile unorganised movements to a more organised one.
○The formation of Communist Party of India in 1920 in Tashkent after the Second Congress of Comintern was instrumental in organised working class movements.
○Attempts were made by the Congrc:ss and the Communists to mobilise the working class and from then onwards the national movement established a connection with the working class.
○The Russian Revolution in 1917 inspired Indian workers to fight against their working conditions. There were strikes in almost all the textile mills in Bombay By early 1920’s, over 1.5 million workers were involved in a series of strikes against the 1919 Rowlatt Act.
○The formation of the All India Trade Union Congress in 1920 under the leaders like NM Joshi, Lala Lajpat Rai were an instance for the organised movements.
○The number of strikes organised by these bodies increased in this phase. A landmark movement of All India level strike was organised in Indian Railways in 1929 bringing halt to Railways operations.
○The government was forced to bring up legislation like Public Safety Ordinance of 1929 and Trade Disputes Act, 1929 to put an end to these strikes.

●Phase 3:
○There was a marked decline in the working class movements between 1930-34 due to the impacts of the Great Depression and the arrests and trials of communist leaders under the Meerut Conspiracy Case.
○As a result, the working class involvements in the Civil Disobedience Movements were lesser compared to that in the Non Cooperation Movement.
○After a short period of Truce, there was a renewed struggle period in case of working class movements by 1934.
○Demand for restoration of wage cuts, wage increases and the stopping of new forms of offensives against labour followed. The strikes have spread to several smaller industrial towns in the country and were no longer confined to the big industrial towns like Bombay, Madras, Calcutta etc.
○By 1940’s, the movement entered a decisive phase when it coincided with the Quit India movement. The most important demand of the workers was the demand for a Dearness Allowance against rising prices and cost of living.
○The involvement of Left parties in India was less during this movement as during this time, Britishers formed an alliance with the Soviet Union and this impacted their decision to not join the Quit India movement.

The working class movements have grown through several phases like the Indian National movement. Their contributions have immensely helped to organise protests against the Britishers especially from the second phase.