Q180. Under whose administration was the Doctrine of Lapse extensively applied to annex Indian states between 1848 and 1856?
[DSSSB MTS (25 March 2026, Shift 3)]
(A) Lord Dalhousie
(B) Lord Canning
(C) Lord Wellesley
(D) Lord Cornwallis
Answer: (A) Lord Dalhousie
Explanation: Lord Dalhousie used the Doctrine of Lapse as a major instrument of territorial annexation. The policy permitted Company takeover of certain dependent states where a ruler died without an accepted natural successor, deepening resentment among princely families.
Q179. Which Act first regulated Company government in Bengal through Parliament?
[RRB NTPC Graduate CBT-I (24 March 2026, Shift 3)]
(A) Pitt’s India Act, 1784
(B) Government of India Act, 1858
(C) Regulating Act, 1773
(D) Charter Act, 1813
Answer: (C) Regulating Act, 1773
Explanation: The Regulating Act of 1773 was Parliament’s first comprehensive intervention in the Company’s territorial administration. It created the office of Governor-General of Bengal and placed the Company’s Indian affairs within an emerging British supervisory framework.
Q178. Which law provided for a Supreme Court at Calcutta in 1774?
[RRB NTPC Graduate CBT-I (22 March 2026, Shift 2)]
(A) Government of India Act, 1858
(B) Pitt’s India Act, 1784
(C) Regulating Act, 1773
(D) Charter Act, 1813
Answer: (C) Regulating Act, 1773
Explanation: The Regulating Act of 1773 authorized the Supreme Court of Judicature at Fort William, Calcutta. It began functioning in 1774 with a chief justice and three puisne judges. Jurisdictional conflicts subsequently led to the amending Act of 1781.
Q177. Which statements on colonial local government are correct: Mayo’s 1870 resolution encouraged local bodies; Hobhouse chaired the Decentralization Commission; local government became a reserved subject in 1919?
[RRB NTPC Graduate CBT-I (22 March 2026, Shift 2)]
(A) Statements 2 and 3
(B) All three statements
(C) Statements 1 and 2
(D) Statements 1 and 3
Answer: (C) Statements 1 and 2
Explanation: Mayo’s 1870 financial decentralization helped encourage local institutions, and Charles Hobhouse chaired the Royal Commission on Decentralization. Under the 1919 constitutional arrangement, local self-government was a transferred provincial subject, so the third statement is incorrect.
Q176. Which Act first provided for Indian participation in the legislative process through nominated non-official members?
[RRB NTPC Graduate CBT-I (22 March 2026, Shift 2)]
(A) Indian Councils Act, 1861
(B) Pitt’s India Act, 1784
(C) Charter Act, 1853
(D) Government of India Act, 1858
Answer: (A) Indian Councils Act, 1861
Explanation: The Indian Councils Act of 1861 permitted the Governor-General to nominate non-official members, including Indians, for legislative business. This initiated limited Indian participation in lawmaking but did not establish popular elections, full parliamentary representation, or executive responsibility.
Q175. Which Act divided provincial subjects into reserved and transferred categories?
[RRB NTPC Graduate CBT-I (16 March 2026, Shift 2)]
(A) Indian Councils Act, 1892
(B) Government of India Act, 1919
(C) Indian Councils Act, 1909
(D) Government of India Act, 1935
Answer: (B) Government of India Act, 1919
Explanation: Dyarchy in provinces was introduced by the Government of India Act of 1919. Ministers administered transferred subjects such as education and local government, while governors retained control of reserved subjects such as police and finance.
Q174. Which Act first separated provincial budgets from the central budget?
[RRB Technician Grade III (6 March 2026, Shift 2)]
(A) Indian Councils Act, 1909
(B) Government of India Act, 1935
(C) Government of India Act, 1919
(D) Indian Councils Act, 1892
Answer: (C) Government of India Act, 1919
Explanation: The Government of India Act of 1919 established a clearer separation of provincial and central financial administration. The change supported provincial functions under dyarchy but did not confer full fiscal independence, since British officials retained decisive supervisory powers.
Q173. Which Act provided for a Calcutta Supreme Court with one chief justice and three judges?
[RRB Technician Grade III (6 March 2026, Shift 1)]
(A) Regulating Act, 1773
(B) Charter Act, 1793
(C) Amending Act, 1781
(D) Pitt’s India Act, 1784
Answer: (A) Regulating Act, 1773
Explanation: The Regulating Act of 1773 authorized creation of the Supreme Court of Judicature at Fort William. Established in 1774, it comprised the chief justice and three additional judges. Early disputes over its jurisdiction prompted later legislative clarification.
Q172. Which statement correctly describes the Government of India Act, 1858?
[DSSSB MTS (24 February 2026, Shift 3)]
(A) It ended British rule in India
(B) It gave Indian princes sovereign control over British territories
(C) It placed Indian administration under the British Crown
(D) It initiated the East India Company’s territorial government
Answer: (C) It placed Indian administration under the British Crown
Explanation: The 1858 Act transferred governing authority from the East India Company to the British Crown. It established a Secretary of State for India supported by a council, while the Governor-General continued as the Crown’s representative in India.
Q171. Who died after being injured in protests against the Simon Commission?
[DSSSB PRT (17 February 2026, Shift 2)]
(A) Motilal Nehru
(B) Lala Lajpat Rai
(C) C. Rajagopalachari
(D) Bal Gangadhar Tilak
Answer: (B) Lala Lajpat Rai
Explanation: Lala Lajpat Rai led a demonstration against the Simon Commission in Lahore on 30 October 1928. Police assaulted protesters, and Rai died on 17 November. His death became an important rallying point for the anti-colonial movement.
