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Indian HistoryHardAsked in: CDS · CDS-I 2023, GK

Which member of the Servants of India Society founded the Seva Samiti at Allahabad in 1914?

  1. A.Shri Ram Bajpai
  2. B.Hriday Nath Kunzru
  3. C.S. G. Vaze
  4. D.Srinivas Shastri

Correct answer

B. Hriday Nath Kunzru

Explanation

The correct answer is B, Hriday Nath Kunzru. Kunzru, a member of the Servants of India Society, founded the Seva Samiti at Allahabad in 1914 to organise social service: relief during famines, floods and epidemics, help to pilgrims at melas, and the spread of education and sanitation. The Samiti later started the Seva Samiti Boy Scouts Association, which helped build an Indian scout movement. The Servants of India Society itself was founded by Gopal Krishna Gokhale in Bombay in 1905 to train dedicated national missionaries who would serve the country in a secular spirit. Kunzru went on to become a respected liberal leader and a member of the Constituent Assembly. Option A is wrong because Shri Ram Bajpai is remembered as an organiser of the scout movement linked to the Samiti, not as its founder. Option C is wrong because S. G. Vaze was a Society member known for journalism and work in Pune. Option D is wrong because V. S. Srinivasa Sastri succeeded Gokhale as the Society's president. Exam tip: Servants of India Society, Gokhale, 1905; Seva Samiti, Allahabad, H. N. Kunzru, 1914.

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Q1.Indian HistoryAsked in: NDA · NDA-I 2018, GATHard

Who gifted the Badshah Nama to King George in 1799?

  1. A.Abul Fazl
  2. B.Abdul Hamid Lahori
  3. C.Nawab of Awadh
  4. D.William Jones
Show answer
Correct answer: C. Nawab of Awadh

In 1799 the Nawab of Awadh presented an illustrated manuscript of the Badshah Nama to King George III of Britain, and it is now kept in the Royal Library at Windsor Castle.

Q3.Indian HistoryAsked in: NDA · NDA-I 2024, GATHard

Consider the following Women’s Associations and their important associates in early twentieth century India :

1. Women’s Indian Association of 1917 : Margaret Cousins

2. National Council of Women in India of 1925 : Sarala Devi Chaudhurani

3. Bharat Stree Mahamandal of 1910 : Lady Meherbai Tata

Which of the above pairs is/are correctly matched ?

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

Margaret Cousins was a founder of the Women’s Indian Association, but pairs 2 and 3 have their associates swapped. The Women’s Indian Association was founded at Adyar, Madras, in 1917 by Annie Besant, Margaret Cousins, Dorothy Jinarajadasa and others; it campaigned for women’s franchise and education.

Q4.Indian HistoryAsked in: NDA · NDA-II 2026, GATHard

Which one of the following inscriptions records the history of a guild of silk weavers?

  1. A.The Hathigumpha inscription
  2. B.The Mandasor inscription
  3. C.The Kudumiyamalai inscription
  4. D.The Udayagiri Cave inscription
Show answer
Correct answer: B. The Mandasor inscription

This fifth-century Sanskrit inscription from Mandasor in western Madhya Pradesh tells how a guild of silk weavers migrated from Lata (south Gujarat) to Dashapura and built a temple of the Sun.

Q5.Indian HistoryAsked in: NDA · NDA-I 2018, GATHard

Which one of the following statements about Renaissance Humanist culture is NOT true ?

  1. A.It slackened the control of religion over human life
  2. B.It believed that human nature was many-sided
  3. C.It was concerned with good manners
  4. D.It criticized material wealth, power and glory
Show answer
Correct answer: D. It criticized material wealth, power and glory

Renaissance humanists did not condemn wealth, power and glory; they saw them as worthy human aims, so this statement is the one that is not true.