40. Which British official argued that Indian society needed to be “civilised” through English education and influenced the English Education Act of 1835?
[RRB NTPC Undergraduate CBT-I (13 August 2025, Shift 1)]
(A) Henry Thomas Colebrooke
(B) William Jones
(C) Thomas Macaulay
(D) Nathaniel Halhed
Answer: (C) Thomas Macaulay
Explanation: Thomas Babington Macaulay’s 1835 Minute criticised traditional Indian learning and advocated Western education through English. His recommendations were influential in Bentinck’s educational resolution. Such views later faced criticism for cultural prejudice and limited support for vernacular mass education.
39. Under which system did colonial landlords have to pay a fixed revenue despite fluctuations in crop yields?
[RRB NTPC Graduate CBT-I (23 June 2025, Shift 1)]
(A) Mahalwari
(B) Zamindari
(C) Ryotwari
(D) Indian Revenue System
Answer: (B) Zamindari
Explanation: Under the Zamindari, or Permanent Settlement, introduced in 1793, the Company’s demand upon zamindars was fixed. It did not automatically decrease after harvest failures. This could cause estates to be auctioned when revenue obligations were not fulfilled.
38. In which year was English education formally promoted through the British educational resolution associated with Macaulay?
[RRB NTPC Graduate CBT-I (20 June 2025, Shift 3)]
(A) 1813
(B) 1854
(C) 1829
(D) 1835
Answer: (D) 1835
Explanation: Bentinck’s 1835 resolution endorsed the use of English education following Macaulay’s Minute. The policy favoured English-language instruction in higher learning, whereas Wood’s 1854 Despatch later proposed a wider educational structure including vernacular primary instruction.
37. Who introduced the 1882 resolution often described as the Magna Carta of Local Self-Government in India?
[UPSC NDA-I General Ability Test (13 April 2025)]
(A) Lord Macaulay
(B) Lord Canning
(C) Lord Ripon
(D) Lord William Bentinck
Answer: (C) Lord Ripon
Explanation: Lord Ripon’s 1882 resolution favoured local boards and municipal participation in administrative functions. Though not specifically a land-revenue law, it was an important British governance policy. It helped lay a foundation for later institutions of local self-government.
36. How did Dadabhai Naoroji’s Drain of Wealth Theory explain India’s poverty during British rule?
[RPF Constable (7 March 2025, Shift 1; 2024 recruitment)]
(A) Decline of handicrafts alone
(B) Export of resources and wealth without fair compensation
(C) Population growth alone
(D) Lack of agricultural development alone
Answer: (B) Export of resources and wealth without fair compensation
Explanation: Naoroji argued that Indian wealth was continuously transferred overseas without equivalent national benefit. Colonial trade and fiscal structures enabled these payments, leaving little capital for Indian investment. His analysis challenged claims that British rule was economically beneficial.
35. Which Governor-General introduced the Permanent Settlement of land revenue in 1793?
[RPF Constable (10 March 2025, Shift 1; 2024 recruitment)]
(A) Warren Hastings
(B) Lord Wellesley
(C) Lord Cornwallis
(D) Sir John Shore
Answer: (C) Lord Cornwallis
Explanation: Cornwallis established the Permanent Settlement in Bengal and related territories. It fixed the government’s assessment on landlords and aimed to provide predictable Company revenue. Failure to meet payments could cost zamindars their estates, while cultivators still faced considerable rents.
34. Which Viceroy appointed the Hunter Commission for educational reforms in 1882?
[SSC MTS (13 November 2024, Shift 2)]
(A) Lord Lytton
(B) Lord Ripon
(C) Lord Ellenborough
(D) John Lawrence
Answer: (B) Lord Ripon
Explanation: Lord Ripon appointed the Education Commission of 1882 under W. W. Hunter. It reviewed implementation of earlier policy and emphasised primary schooling, local administration and expansion of education. It is distinct from the Hunter Committee investigating the 1919 Punjab disturbances.
33. In which region was the Permanent Settlement introduced by Cornwallis NOT prevalent?
[SSC MTS (14 October 2024, Shift 2)]
(A) Bengal
(B) Bihar
(C) Odisha
(D) Punjab
Answer: (D) Punjab
Explanation: The Permanent Settlement operated prominently in Bengal, Bihar and later Odisha. Punjab followed different arrangements, especially village-based revenue settlements. British policy was not uniform: different provinces adopted Zamindari, Ryotwari and Mahalwari systems reflecting administrative priorities and local conditions.
32. Which statement about Thomas Babington Macaulay is incorrect?
[SSC MTS (9 October 2024, Shift 2)]
(A) He regarded Indian and Arab literature as inferior to European writing
(B) He was an Orientalist scholar
(C) He considered English education a means of promoting Western learning
(D) He strongly advocated teaching Indians through English
Answer: (B) He was an Orientalist scholar
Explanation: Macaulay belonged to the Anglicist side of the education debate, not the Orientalist side. His Minute of 1835 supported Western knowledge through English. Orientalists such as William Jones valued the study and teaching of classical Indian languages and texts.
31. Under which land-revenue system did the village headman, rather than a zamindar, collect and remit revenue to the Company?
[SSC MTS (7 October 2024, Shift 1)]
(A) Mahalwari
(B) Iqtadari
(C) Zamindari
(D) Ryotwari
Answer: (A) Mahalwari
Explanation: Under Mahalwari, the revenue unit was a village estate or mahal, and the headman commonly collected payment on behalf of the community. Holt Mackenzie’s framework, introduced in 1822, allowed periodic reassessment unlike permanently fixed zamindari dues.
