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Indian HistoryHardAsked in: UPSC Civil Services · CSE Prelims 2020, GS Paper I

The Vital-Vidhvansak, the first monthly journal to have the untouchable people as its target audience was published by

  1. A.Gopal Baba Walangkar
  2. B.Jyotiba Phule
  3. C.Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi
  4. D.Bhimrao Ramji Ambedkar

Correct answer

A. Gopal Baba Walangkar

Explanation

The correct answer is A, Gopal Baba Walangkar. Walangkar, a pioneer of the Dalit movement in Maharashtra, brought out the Vital-Vidhvansak from 1888.

Gopal Baba Walangkar belonged to the Mahar community and had served in the army before turning to social reform. He was influenced by Jyotiba Phule's Satyashodhak ideas and wrote against caste oppression and the idea of ritual pollution; the name Vital-Vidhvansak means roughly "destroyer of ceremonial pollution". He also founded the Anarya Dosh Pariharak Mandali and petitioned the government against the exclusion of Mahars from the army. He is often regarded as one of the forerunners of the movement that Ambedkar later led.

B is wrong: Jyotiba Phule founded the Satyashodhak Samaj (1873) and wrote Gulamgiri, but did not publish this journal.

C is wrong: Gandhi's paper for the cause of the untouchables was Harijan, started in 1933.

D is wrong: Ambedkar's journals were Mooknayak (1920) and Bahishkrit Bharat (1927), both later than 1888.

Exam tip: Vital-Vidhvansak = Gopal Baba Walangkar (1888); Mooknayak = Ambedkar; Harijan = Gandhi.

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Q2.Indian HistoryAsked in: CDS · CDS-II 2019, GKHard

The khuntkatti tenure was prevalent in which one of the following regions of India during the British Colonial Rule ?

  1. A.Bundelkhand
  2. B.Karnataka
  3. C.Chota Nagpur
  4. D.Madras Presidency
Show answer
Correct answer: C. Chota Nagpur

Khuntkatti was the traditional land system of the Munda tribe of the Chota Nagpur plateau, in present-day Jharkhand. Under khuntkatti, land belonged jointly to the lineage (khunt) of the families who first cleared the forest and settled the village.

Q4.Indian HistoryAsked in: UPSC Civil Services · CSE Prelims 2017, GS Paper IMedium

The object of the Butler Committee of 1927 was to

  1. A.Define the jurisdiction of the Central and Provincial Governments.
  2. B.Define the powers of the Secretary of State for India.
  3. C.Impose censorship on national press.
  4. D.Improve the relationship between the Government of India and the Indian States.
Show answer
Correct answer: D. Improve the relationship between the Government of India and the Indian States.

The Butler Committee was set up to examine the ties between the British paramount power and the princely states. The Indian States Committee was appointed in 1927 under Sir Harcourt Butler, with its report coming in 1929.

Q5.Indian HistoryAsked in: NDA · NDA-I 2025, GATEasy

Which among the following Acts provided for the establishment of a Supreme Court of Justice at Calcutta for Europeans, their employees and the citizens of India?

  1. A.The Regulating Act of 1773
  2. B.The Charter Act of 1793
  3. C.The Charter Act of 1813
  4. D.Government of India Act of 1858
Show answer
Correct answer: A. The Regulating Act of 1773

This first act of the British Parliament to control the East India Company provided for a Supreme Court of Judicature at Calcutta.