Skip to content
GK24
Prime
Indian HistoryEasyAsked in: UPSC Civil Services · CSE Prelims 2017, GS Paper I

In the context of Indian history, the principle of Dyarchy (diarchy) refers to

  1. A.Division of the central legislature into two houses.
  2. B.Introduction of double government i.e., Central and State governments.
  3. C.Having two sets of rulers; one in London and another in Delhi.
  4. D.Division of the subjects delegated to the provinces into two categories.

Correct answer

D. Division of the subjects delegated to the provinces into two categories.

Explanation

The correct answer is D, division of the subjects delegated to the provinces into two categories. Under dyarchy the provincial subjects were split into transferred and reserved subjects.

Dyarchy was introduced in the provinces by the Government of India Act, 1919, based on the Montagu-Chelmsford Reforms. Transferred subjects, such as education, health, local government and agriculture, were run by the Governor with ministers responsible to the provincial legislative council. Reserved subjects, such as finance, law and order, police and land revenue, stayed with the Governor and his executive council, who were not answerable to the legislature. The system worked poorly and was abolished in the provinces by the Government of India Act, 1935, which brought in provincial autonomy and proposed dyarchy at the Centre instead.

A is wrong because a bicameral central legislature is a separate feature of the 1919 Act. B is wrong because a federal division of powers came with the 1935 Act. C is wrong because dyarchy did not mean rulers in two capitals.

Exam tip: Dyarchy in provinces, 1919 Act (transferred and reserved); ended there by the 1935 Act.

Practice Questions

View all
Q1.Indian HistoryAsked in: NDA · NDA-I 2019, GATMedium

Statement I: The British ruled India through a modern bureaucracy headed by the Indian Civil Service, whose members were recruited through merit based on open competition Statement II: The Indian Civil Service was based on the whole hearted participation of Indians

  1. A.Both the statements are individually true and Statement II is the correct explanation of Statement I
  2. B.Both the statements are individually true but Statement II is not the correct explanation of Statement I
  3. C.Statement I is true but Statement II is false
  4. D.Statement I is false but Statement II is true
Show answer
Correct answer: C. Statement I is true but Statement II is false

The Indian Civil Service was a modern, merit-based bureaucracy filled through open competitive examinations from 1853, but Indians were kept out of it in practice for decades.

Q2.Indian HistoryAsked in: NDA · NDA-II 2023, GATHard

Chandimangala, a sixteenth century text, was composed by

  1. A.Hema Saraswati
  2. B.Madhav Kandali
  3. C.Tukaram
  4. D.Mukundaram Chakrabarti
Show answer
Correct answer: D. Mukundaram Chakrabarti

The Bengali poet Mukundaram Chakrabarti, honoured with the title Kavikankan, composed the Chandimangala in the sixteenth century. Mangalkavyas are long Bengali narrative poems in praise of a deity, and the Chandimangala celebrates the goddess Chandi.

Q3.Indian HistoryAsked in: NDA · NDA-II 2024, GATMedium

Inspired by the Dandi March by Mahatma Gandhi, in Tamilnadu, C. Rajagopalachari led a salt march from

  1. A.Tirunelveli to Nagercoil
  2. B.Kanchipuram to Mahabalipuram
  3. C.Trichinopoly to Vedaranniyam on Tanjore coast
  4. D.Chennai to Vellore
Show answer
Correct answer: C. Trichinopoly to Vedaranniyam on Tanjore coast

In April 1930, C. Rajagopalachari led a band of volunteers from Tiruchirappalli, then called Trichinopoly, to Vedaranyam on the Tanjore coast, where they broke the salt law.

Q4.Indian HistoryAsked in: UPSC Civil Services · CSE Prelims 2018, GS Paper IMedium

Which one of the following foreign travellers elaborately discussed about diamonds and diamond mines of India ?

  1. A.Francois Bernier
  2. B.Jean-Baptiste Tavernier
  3. C.Jean de Thevenot
  4. D.Abbe Barthelemy Carre
Show answer
Correct answer: B. Jean-Baptiste Tavernier

He was a French gem merchant, and his travel account describes India's diamonds and mines in detail. Tavernier made six voyages to the East between about 1630 and 1668 and visited India several times during the reigns of Shah Jahan and Aurangzeb.

Q5.Indian HistoryAsked in: UPSC Civil Services · CSE Prelims 2016, GS Paper IHard

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 maintenance 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?

  1. A.1 and 2
  2. B.3 only
  3. C.2 and 3
  4. D.1 and 3
Show answer
Correct answer: D. 1 and 3

Eripatti and Ghatikas are described correctly, but Taniyurs were not villages gifted to Brahmins. These terms come from inscriptions of early medieval South India, especially of the Pallava and Chola periods.