10. Who founded the Phoenix Settlement in South Africa?
[UPSC CDS 2018 General Knowledge]
A. Mahatma Gandhi
B. C. F. Andrews
C. Gopal Krishna Gokhale
D. Dadabhai Naoroji
Answer: A. Mahatma Gandhi
Explanation: Gandhi established Phoenix Settlement near Durban in 1904. It was inspired partly by the ideal of dignified labour and communal self-sufficiency. The settlement became closely connected with the production of Indian Opinion and early experiments in simple living.
9. Which one of the following is a very significant aspect of the Champaran Satyagraha?
[UPSC CSE Prelims 2018]
A. Active all-India participation of lawyers, students and women in the National Movement
B. Active involvement of Dalit and Tribal communities of India in the National Movement
C. Joining of peasant unrest to India’s National Movement
D. Drastic decrease in the cultivation of plantation crops and commercial crops
Answer: C. Joining of peasant unrest to India’s National Movement
Explanation: Champaran linked the grievances of ordinary cultivators with organized nationalist politics. Gandhi’s investigation and satyagraha helped transform a local agrarian issue into a widely recognized challenge to colonial authority, setting a pattern for later mobilization.
8. In which present-day Indian state did the Vaikom Satyagraha take place?
[SSC JE 2018]
A. Kerala
B. Tamil Nadu
C. Karnataka
D. Andhra Pradesh
Answer: A. Kerala
Explanation: Vaikom lies in present-day Kerala, then part of Travancore. The 1924–25 agitation challenged restrictions that excluded oppressed caste groups from roads around a temple. The campaign became a landmark in anti-untouchability struggles.
7. Arrange these in order: Champaran, Ahmedabad strike, Kheda and Rowlatt Satyagraha.
[UPPCS Prelims 2017]
A. Champaran – Ahmedabad – Kheda – Rowlatt
B. Kheda – Champaran – Rowlatt – Ahmedabad
C. Rowlatt – Kheda – Ahmedabad – Champaran
D. Ahmedabad – Rowlatt – Kheda – Champaran
Answer: A. Champaran – Ahmedabad – Kheda – Rowlatt
Explanation: The Champaran campaign occurred in 1917. Gandhi worked with Ahmedabad workers and Kheda farmers in 1918, followed by the Rowlatt agitation in 1919. Ahmedabad generally preceded Kheda in the standard sequence of his Indian campaigns.
6. In which year did Vaikom Satyagraha begin?
[TNPSC Group-II 2017]
A. 1917
B. 1920
C. 1924
D. 1932
Answer: C. 1924
Explanation: The Vaikom protest began in March 1924 in Travancore. Protesters challenged caste-based exclusion from public roads near a Shiva temple. The campaign continued into 1925 and helped widen discussion of civil rights and access to public spaces.
5. During which journey did Gandhi write Hind Swaraj?
[WBCS Prelims 2016]
A. London to South Africa
B. India to England
C. South Africa to India in 1915
D. Bombay to Ahmedabad
Answer: A. London to South Africa
Explanation: Gandhi wrote Hind Swaraj aboard a ship while travelling from London to South Africa in 1909. It was first composed in Gujarati and subsequently translated into English. The dialogue questions modern civilization and explains the moral basis of self-rule.
4. Which event was associated with Gandhi’s use of fasting during an industrial dispute?
[UPSC CAPF (AC) 2015]
A. Ahmedabad Mill Strike
B. Champaran Satyagraha
C. Dandi March
D. Quit India Movement
Answer: A. Ahmedabad Mill Strike
Explanation: Gandhi fasted during the Ahmedabad mill workers’ strike in 1918 to strengthen commitment to a nonviolent settlement. The workers were demanding improved wages after the plague bonus controversy. The strike differed from agrarian satyagraha campaigns.
3. In which country did Gandhi practise law before returning to India?
[JVVNL Technical Helper 2013]
A. Zimbabwe
B. South Africa
C. Nigeria
D. Argentina
Answer: B. South Africa
Explanation: Gandhi travelled to South Africa in 1893 for legal work. Racial discrimination there transformed his career into public advocacy, community organization and sustained satyagraha. He returned to India in January 1915 after roughly two decades of activism abroad.
2. What share of cultivable land was covered by the Tinkathia system in Champaran?
[UPPCS Prelims 2013]
A. One-fifth
B. Three-twentieths
C. One-quarter
D. One-tenth
Answer: B. Three-twentieths
Explanation: Tinkathia compelled indigo cultivators to use three kathas per twenty-katha holding for indigo. It formed a principal grievance behind Gandhi’s Champaran investigation. The campaign eventually helped terminate this coercive system.
1. Gandhi said the book “Unto This Last” transformed his life. What was the book’s message that transformed him?
[UPSC CSE Prelims 2011]
A. Uplifting the oppressed and poor is the moral responsibility of an educated man
B. The good of the individual is contained in the good of all
C. Celibacy and spiritual pursuit are essential for a noble life
D. All three statements are correct in this context
Answer: B. The good of the individual is contained in the good of all
Explanation: John Ruskin argued for an ethical understanding of economic relationships. Gandhi drew from the book the idea that individual welfare is inseparable from collective welfare, later r
