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Indian HistoryMediumAsked in: UPSC CAPF · CAPF 2021, Paper I

Who among the following founded the Dharma Sabha?

  1. A.Krishna Mohan Banerjee
  2. B.Keshab Chandra Sen
  3. C.Radhakanta Deb
  4. D.Akshay Kumar Datta

Correct answer

C. Radhakanta Deb

Explanation

The correct answer is C, Radhakanta Deb. Raja Radhakanta Deb founded the Dharma Sabha in Calcutta in 1830 to defend orthodox Hindu customs against reformers.

The Dharma Sabha was set up mainly to oppose Lord William Bentinck's regulation of 1829 that banned sati, which Raja Rammohan Roy had campaigned for. Its members petitioned the Privy Council in London to restore the practice, but the appeal failed in 1832. Radhakanta Deb was a learned scholar who compiled the Sanskrit encyclopaedic dictionary Shabdakalpadruma and also supported the spread of Western education, though he opposed social reform. The Sabha later also opposed widow remarriage.

Why the others are wrong: A, Krishna Mohan Banerjee was a member of Derozio's Young Bengal group who converted to Christianity and became a scholar and priest. B, Keshab Chandra Sen was a leading Brahmo reformer who founded the Brahmo Samaj of India in 1866. D, Akshay Kumar Datta was a rationalist writer and editor of the Tattvabodhini Patrika, linked with the Brahmo movement.

Exam tip: Brahmo Sabha 1828 (Rammohan Roy) versus Dharma Sabha 1830 (Radhakanta Deb), the orthodox response to the ban on sati.

Practice Questions

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Q1.Indian HistoryAsked in: UPSC CAPF · CAPF 2021, Paper IMedium

Initially, what was the purpose of setting up of the hill stations during the colonial period in India?

  1. A.To serve as winter capitals for the British
  2. B.To serve the needs of the British army
  3. C.To source timber from forests
  4. D.To set up sanatoria
Show answer
Correct answer: B. To serve the needs of the British army

The first hill stations grew out of military needs: cantonments for troops and places where soldiers could be kept healthy.

Q2.Indian HistoryAsked in: UPSC CAPF · CAPF 2021, Paper IMedium

Consider the following statements : 1. The growth of socialist tendency in the national movement led to the foundation of the Congress Socialist Party in 1934 under the leadership of Acharya Narendra Deva and Jayaprakash Narayan. 2. In 1936, Jawaharlal Nehru urged the Congress to accept socialism as its goal and to bring itself closer to the peasantry and the working class. Which of the statements given above is/are correct?

  1. A.1 only
  2. B.2 only
  3. C.Both 1 and 2
  4. D.Neither 1 nor 2
Show answer
Correct answer: C. Both 1 and 2

The Congress Socialist Party was formed in 1934 by Acharya Narendra Deva and Jayaprakash Narayan, and in 1936 Nehru asked the Congress to adopt socialism.

Q4.Indian HistoryAsked in: NDA · NDA-II 2022, GATEasy

Who among the following invented the flying shuttle?

  1. A.James Hargreaves
  2. B.John Kay
  3. C.Richard Arkwright
  4. D.Humphry Davy
Show answer
Correct answer: B. John Kay

He patented the flying shuttle in England in 1733. The flying shuttle let a single weaver send the thread across the loom by pulling a cord, so wider cloth could be woven much faster.