[GS1] Freedom Struggle Indian History: Answerkey & Analysis of Mains-

2013 Questions Dalhousie, Women, Foreigners & Studyplan, Booklist for

UPSC Mains-2014
1. Prologue
1. Q. Dalhousie the founder of Modern India
2. Q. Maulana Azad
3. Q. Foreigners in Freedom struggle
4. Q. Women in Freedom Struggle
2. Difficulty level and Backbreaking
TM
3. Evenly Spread Questions
4. The Nature of History questions
5. Studyplan/Approach/Strategy for Mains-2014 (GS History)
Prologue
In the last article we saw the Indian Culture related questions in GS Mains paper 1-
their answers, analysis and future strategy for Mains 2014. click me
Now lets move to next section: The freedom struggle / Indian history. Following
questions came for 10 marks and 200 words each (In Mains-2013):
1. Defying the barriers of age, gender and religion, the Indian women became
the torch bearer during the struggle for freedom in India. Discuss.
2. Several foreigners made India their homeland and participated in various
movements. Analyze their role in the Indian struggle for freedom.
3. In many ways, Lord Dalhousie was the founder of modern India. Elaborate.
4. Discuss the contribution of Maulana Abul Kalam Azad to pre-and post-
independent India.
Any analysis/observation/commentary is shallow without solving the questions so lets
do that first:
Sources/Books used
Typr Book DALHOUSIE FOREIGNER WOMEN M.AZAD
School
Textbooks
New NCERT No No No No
old NCERT
(10,12)
Yes No No No
Yes,
TN State Board
Class12
Verbatim No No No
Competitive
TMH General
Studies Manual
No No No No
Spectrum
Freedom
Fighters
No Yes Yes Yes
Spectrum Brief
history
Modern India
Yes No Yes No
Krishna Reddy:
Indian History
Yes No Yes Yes
Academic
Bipin Chandra,
India s
struggle for
independence
No No Yes No
Sumit Sarkar:
Modern India
No No Yes No
Yes means at least 60% content available to write the answer. Yes doesnt
automatically mean 100% content available.
No means any of the three things:
A. Book has insufficient Content to write decent 200 words. Youve to re-
phrase and rewrite the same sentence over and over dragging the points
with flowery English like a chewing gum to reach 200 words limit.
B. Answer did not exist at all.
C. I did not check the book carefully.
Q. Dalhousie the founder of Modern India
Q. In many ways, Lord Dalhousie was the founder of modern India. Elaborate.
(10m | 200 words)
Can be solved using any one of these:
1. (TNT) Tamilnadu Textbook History Class 12, Chapter 6.
2. Spectrum: A brief history of Modern India, Rajiv Ahir. In the last part of the
book under Ready reference data section.
3. Krishna Reddy: Indian History. Chapter 15 British Expansion.
4. Old NCERT Class 12 (Bipin Chandra, History of Modern India) chapter on The
structure of government and economic policies.
First lets collect the points, then we compress:
Transformed the map of India
Annexed Punjab, Lower Burma, Central Provinces and Oudh.
Applied Doctrine of Lapse Satara, Jhansi and Nagpur
Dalhousie did it for following reasons:
Strategic: Imperial defense, ending the misrule of Princes to win goodwill of
people.
Commercial: source of raw material, new market manufactured goods
Anyhow, Dalhousie increased the extent of British India. His territorial acquisition
transformed the map of India. Had he not acquired these territories then many more
Hyderabad, Jamnagar and Kashmir like crisis would have happened in those areas,
immediately after freedom.
Administrative reforms @District and State level
Dalhousie was laying down the seeds of district administration / IAS under his Non-
regulation system. Observe: After annexing Punjab, Dalhousie did following
1. Organized Punjab province into small districts.
2. Each district under control of an Administrative officer called Deputy
Commissioner.
3. Combined Revenue and Judicial departments.
4. The laws and procedure were simplified in accordance with the custom of the
people.
5. The overall administration of Punjab in the hands of a Chief Commissioner.
Thus, Dalhousie had started molding the provinces into a modern centralized states.
Railways
Dalhousie introduced railways in India, with three fold objectives:
1. Commercial- exploitation of raw material from interior parts of India
2. Administrative- maintaining connectivity with all regions.
3. Defense- for quickly transporting troops from one location to another, during
rebellions.
1853 Bombay to thane
1854 Calcutta to the Raniganj coal-fields
1856 Madras to Arakkonam
Communication
Dalhousie = father of Post + telegraph because:
Telegraph
1853: First telegraph line from Calcutta to Agra.
Overall, Dalhousie laid more than 4000 miles long telegraph line
connecting Peshawar, Bombay, Madras, Calcutta and many other
parts of India.
Postal
Founded modern postal system in India.
Introduced postal stamps for the first time. Reduced the postal
rates.
Uniform postal charge throughout India (half anna), irrespective
of the distance between two places.
Education
1854: Charles Woods prepared a dispatch on educational system in India.
He recommended following
1. government should assume responsibility of spreading education to masses
2. hierarchy of educational institutes
a. Primary schools @Villages (Vernacular medium)
b. High schools and an affiliated college @district (English medium)
c. Universities @presidency towns of Calcutta, Bombay and Madras. (English
medium)
3. Stress on female education, vocational education and teachers training.
4. Education should be secular in nature.
5. Grant-in-aids to private educational institutions.
Dalhousie fully accepted the views of Charles Wood and took steps to carry out the
new scheme.
Public Works Department
Before Dalhousie, the job of the Public Works Department was done by the
Military Board.
But Dalhousie created a separate Public Works Department and allotted more
funds for cutting canals and roads- and thus, laid foundation of the Engineering
service in India.
Completed Upper Ganges Canal.
Constructed many bridges.
Others
1. Passed the Widow remarriage act (1856)
2. Dalhousie shifted the headquarters of Bengal Artillery from Calcutta to Meerut.
3. Simla was made the permanent headquarters of the army.
but this is ~500 words. Have to compress
Answer Keypoints
Q. In many ways, Lord Dalhousie was the founder of modern India. Elaborate.
(10m | 200 words)
During his term, Dalhousie increased the extent of British India to Punjab, Oudh,
Satara, Jhansi and other parts of India. His territorial acquisition transformed the map
of India. He was not only a conqueror but also a great administrator.
1. He started molding the medieval provinces into modern centralized states- with
his non-regulation system. Punjab was divided into smaller district supervised
by Deputy Commissioners, who were in turn supervised by a Chief
Commissioner.
2. Introduced railways in India for commercial, strategic and Administrative
purpose.
3. Introduced postal stamps, uniform charges and modern Postal System.
4. Laid more than 4000 miles of telegraph line.
5. Created separate Public Works department, allotted more funds for roads-canal
construction.
6. Implemented Woods Dispatch, assumed the responsibility of educating the
masses, created hierarchy of educational institutes from primary schools at
villages, high schools and collages at district level and universities in presidency
towns.
The Modern India stands on the pillars of state-district administration, Rail-Post-
Telecom infrastructure and three tier education system. Dalhousie directly involved in
all of them, hence aptly called the founder of Modern India.
~180 words.
Q. Maulana Azad
Q. Discuss the contribution of Maulana Abul Kalam Azad to pre-and post-
independent India. (10m | 200 words)
Can be easily assembled from any of the following sources:
Spectrums freedom fighter book: Page 251-252
PIB news release in November 2013 for his 125
th
Anniversary.
Lets directly frame the answer:
During freedom struggle:
Ran Al Hilal and Al Balagh weeklies.
Head of Khilafat Committee
Supported Gandhi during Non-cooperation movement
presided over congress sessions
Arrested during Quit India movement.
Negotiated with British Cabinet mission for Indias independence.
Opposed two-nation theory of Jinnah. Advocated Hindu-Muslim unity.
Wrote a book India Wins freedom, to give firsthand account of the events.
Post-independence:
Member of Constitution assembly
First Union minister of education, later held portfolios of Natural resources and
scientific research.
Pivotal role in foundation of IIT, UGC, AICTE, CSIR, Sahitya Academy, Lalit
Kala Academy, Sangeet Natak Academy and many other educational and
scientific research laboratories in India.
For his service to the nation, he was posthumously awarded countrys highest
civilian award, the Bharat Ratna.
~130 words, but when you elaborate the statements and expand the abbreviations, it
automatically covers the remaining gap of 70 words.
Q. Foreigners in Freedom struggle
Q. Several foreigners made India their homeland and participated in various
movements. Analyze their role in the Indian struggle for freedom. (10m |
200words)
In most of the books, this answer is not available directly. (Except Annie Besant part)
The Quickest reference source I can think of, is Spectrums freedom fighter book.
(Gandhi Nehru Tagore and other eminent personalities of Modern India.)
first lets gather the points:
AO
Hume
Debatable because he did not make India his homeland. He had left
India in 1894 and died in London (1912).
David
Hare
Doesnt count because he is related to introduction of western education,
rationalism and liberal thinking. Besides he died in 1842, before the
mutiny of 1857.
Henry
Vivian
Derozio
Doesnt count, because hes not foreigner. He was an Anglo-Indian born
in Calcutta.
William
Doesnt count because he died in 1746, way before even the first
struggle of independence (1857). Besides his main interest was
Jones translation of Sanskrit scripts.
Anyways, lets check the foreigners who contributed in Freedom struggle:
Annie Besant
Irish woman, came to India as a part of Theosophical society.
Central Hindu School @Benaras, later became Benaras Hindu university
Surat Split had weakened the Congress, Gandhi was yet to come. During this
time Besants political entry provided the much needed momentum to freedom
struggle.
Demanded self-rule for India, without waiting for the end of WW1.
Setup a Home rule league in 1915.
Spread her ideas through New India and Commonweal
Moved the congress resolution against Jaliawalla massacre.
Also served as President of Congress session
She and Gandhi had difference of opinion on Montague- chelmsford reforms,
Non-cooperation movement and boycott of foreign goods. In the last 10 years of
her life, Ms. Beasant quit active politics and freedom struggle altogether.
Charles Freer Dinbandhu Andrews
English missionary philanthropist.
Extended his wholehearted support to the freedom struggle and criticized the
British for their unjust and racial policies.
Took part in political and social movements launched by Indian leaders.
championed the rights of labourers, railway workers and cotton weavers
actively worked with BR Ambedkar for Harijan demands, campaigned against
untouchability
Gandhi gave the title of Dinbandhu for his compassion for poor.
Advocated the rights of Indian settler in South Africa, East Africa, West Indies,
Fiji and the English colonies in other parts of the world.
used his influence in England to arouse public opinion against colonial
exploitation.
Even negotiated with the government in England for Gandhis release from
prison.
Miraben (Madelein Slade)
From aristocratic English family.
Influenced by Gandhian philosophy, joined Sabarmati Ashram, took part in
Gandhis socio-political campaigns.
toured throughout India to promote Khadi and Satyagraha
Wrote many articles in Young India, Harijan, The Stateman, Times of India and
Hindustan Times.
Major role in setting up Seva gram near Wardha.
Accompanied Gandhi to Round table conference in London.
During WW2, asked Orissa people to oppose Japanese invasion non-violently.
Placed under detention during Quit India movement.
Satyanand Stokes
Not given in any books but TheHindu ran a story on him (August 2013).
Samuel Evans Stokes Jr. was scion of a Wealthy American family. Came to India
to work in a leaper home in Himachal.
fought relentlessly against labour exploitation in the Shimla hills
Only American to attend Congress session in Nagpur (1920)
Only foreigner to sign Congress manifesto in 1921 that called upon Indians to
give up government service and join the freedom movement.
Arrested on charges of Sedition, jailed for six months.
Died in 46 in Shimla.
Sarala Ben
-Originally Katherine Mary Heilaman, disciple of Gandhi.
Social worker, setup ashram in Uttarakhand, helped the families of political
prisoners.
Margaret Elizabeth Noble (Sister Nivedita)
From Ireland. Joined Swami Vivekanandas Ramakrishna Mission.
Criticized the racial policies of the British, helped during Bengal famine and
plague epidemics, worked for upliftment of Women.
Mira Alphonse (Mother)
French woman, associated of Shri Aurobindo,
role in setting up Auroville town near Pondicherry.
Motivated Annie Beasant, Nalini Sengupta and many other women to fight for
India.
Nalini Sengupta
Born in Cambridge to Fredrick and Edith Grey. Came to India after marrying
Jatindra Mohan Sengupta.
Actively participated in boycott and non-cooperation movements, arrested
several times.
President of Indian National Congress- notable achievement for a woman from
Britain.
Elected unopposed to Bengal legislative assembly.
Verrier Elwin
British by birth, came to India in 27. associated with Seva Sangh of Puna.
On Gandhis advice, worked for tribal upliftment, setup Gond Seva Mandal.
More names can be dug through google, but in a real life scenario, an aspirant cannot
afford to do Ph.D on every topic. So lets just assemble the answer from the
information available so far.
~650 words. Have to compress
Answer keypoints
Q. Several foreigners made India their homeland and participated in various
movements. Analyze their role in the Indian struggle for freedom. (10m |
200words)
[Side note: since this is an analyse question, multiple answers and interpretations
possible.]
While many Americans and Europeans empathized with Indias struggle for
Independence, few of them came to India and actively participated. Notable are: Annie
Beasant, Katherine Heilaman (Sarala ben), Mira Alphonse (Mother), Madelin Slade
(Miraben), Nalini Sengupta CF, Dinbandhu Andrews, Satyanand Stokes and Verrier
Alvin.
Overall their role can be summarized as following:
Most of them came to India with primary aim of social service. But their hearts
were moved by the brutal exploitation of the British-raj, hence joined Indias
struggle for Independence.
None advocated revolutionary terrorism or violent methods.
Almost all associated with Congress. Annie Beasant and Nalini Sengupta even
presided over the Congress sessions despite their foreign nationality.
Most of them not imprisoned for long time, because they were white.
focused on different areas:
Religion: Sister Nivedita, Mother Mira Alphonse
Education and culture: Beasant
Social work: Nalini Sengupta, Miraben, Sarla ben
Labor rights: Dinbandhu, Satyananda Stoke
Tribal rights: V.Alvin
Some closely associated with Gandhi-Miraben, Sarlaben and Dinbandhu.
Some influenced by Gandhi V.Alvin, N.Sengupta, Satyanand Stokes.
Some even had differences with Gandhi- Annie Besant.
But all of them fought against the tyranny of British Imperialism and helped India
attain her independence.
~200 words.
Q. Women in Freedom Struggle
Q. Defying the barriers of age, gender and religion, the Indian women became
the torch bearer during the struggle for freedom in India. Discuss. (10 marks |
200 words)
Answer can be assembled from any of the following sources:
1. Spectrum Freedom fighters (Gandhi Nehru Tagore and Other personalities)
2. Spectrum Brief History of Modern India by Rajiv Ahir
3. Bipin Chandra: Indias struggle for Independence. Points scattered throughout the
book.
4. Krishna Reddy. Chapter Gandhi and his thoughts: subtopic Role of women in
nationalist movement.
NCERT, TN Textbook, GS Manual= hardly useful because their content is too small/
too generic/ too scattered to serve the purpose. Anyways, first lets make a table of
notable women freedom fighters, to see a pattern / trend.
Abbreviations used in following table:
R=rich, M=middle class, P=poor, ?=not mentioned in book, and I did not
bother googling (Because in real life preparation, a candidate wouldnt have that
much time to do Ph.D on everything.)
NV=non-violent. R=Revolutionary / violent methods.
Aruna Asaf
Ali
M NV
Breaking the social conventions, married to a Muslim
Congressman Asaf Ali. Went to prison during CDM
and Individual Satyagraha. Hoisted tricolor @Gowalia
tank after Maulana Azads arrest.
Editor of Inquilab a monthly journal of Congress
Begum Safia
Abdul Wajid
R NV
Rich Muslim Family, Post graduate from Allahabad
Univ. Lost government lecturer job because of her
participation in Quit India movement.
Durgabai
Deshmukh
M NV
Middle class family, initially couldnt afford education
but graduated from Andhra.
Studied law, practiced in Madras High court.
Jailed for salt satyagraha
Andhra Mahila sabha for welfare of women.
Jyotirmoyee
Ganguli
? NV
left Government job during civil disobedience
movement.
took part in the British demonstrations
Demanded the release of jailed INA soldiers. Killed
by the British during a procession.
Kasturba ? NV
Took part in all the programs of Gandhi, jailed during
Quit India movement and died in Poona jail two years
later.
Madam
Bhikaiji
Cama
NV
herself influenced by Dadabhai Naoroji, she Inspired
Indian youth in UK, ran newsletter Bande Mataram
and organization free India society.
Unfurled first national flag of India in Germany.
Matangini
Hajra
P NV
born in a poor peasant family of Bengal- exploited by
both Zamindars and the British.
Dandi March,
campaigned for non-payment of Chowkidari tax-
arrested.
During Quit India movement, planned an Attack on
police station but killed while hoisting the national
flag.
Nehru R NV
Jawaharlals mom: Swarup Rani Nehru, provided moral
support and fought for freedom struggle.
His sister Vijay Laxmi Pandit: jailed thrice during
CDM
Wife Kamala Nehru: participated in CDM and No-tax
campaign.
Rajkumari
Amrita
Kaur
R NV
Royal family from Punjab
Grad. from England, influenced by Gandhi
Jailed for quit India movement
Rehana
Tyabjee
R NV
Affluent family, her father was a Judge.
influenced by Gandhi, joined Sabarmati Ashram, NCM,
opposed Untouchability + child marriage
President of Youth congress
Jailed for QIM
First muslim lady to sing Vandemataram in Congress
session
Graduated from London
Sarojini
Naidu
? NV
one of the first women to participate in Freedom
struggle
under mentorship of G.K.Gokhale
later participated in all programs of Gandhi, including
Dandi March
served as President of Indian national congress.
Even her daughter Padmaja Naidu, 21, was arrested for
Quit India movement.
Cpt. Laxmi
Sahgal
? R
young medical student
Became Captain of all-woman Rani of Jhansi regiment
of the Indian National Army (INA) under Subhash
Chandra Bose.
Led the troops in Burma during WW2, but caught by
the British army.
Kalpana
Dutt Joshi
? R
Revolutionary from Bengal.
part of Surya Sens Chittagong republication army.
Caught and transported for life, later released.
Nanibala
devi
? R
Brahmin family. Widowed @the tender age of 16
Joined Jugandhar party, associated with revolutionary
movements.
Arrested for transporting weapons and ammunition
was the first and only woman to be tortured by the
police under Regulation III of 1818
Calcutta jails first woman prisoner.
Preetilata
Waddedar
? R
Part of Chittagaong revolutionaries of Surya Sen.
Organized attacks on British establishments in Bengal.
Consumed Postassium cyanide to evade detention and
interrogation.
Rani
Gaidinliu
? R
Naga Tribal, who organized rebellion to overthrow
British from Manipur.
Jailed for 14 years, freed after independence. Given
title Rani of Nagas
~1000 words. Even more can be gathered if we refer each book word by word and dig
google. But in real life preparation, that is impractical. So lets just try to assemble an
answer from the data gathered so far.
Key points- Women in Freedom struggle
Q. Defying the barriers of age, gender and religion, the Indian women became
the torch bearer during the struggle for freedom in India. Discuss. (10 marks |
200 words)
[Side note: Since this is a Discuss question, multiple answers possible.]
For the first struggle in 1857 to the last struggle in 1942, Women have played an
instrumental role in Indias struggle for independence.
Women were not mere foot-soldiers, they provided leadership and direction as
well. Be it Sarojini Naidu in Salt March, Vijaya Laxmi in CDM, Kasturba in QIM,
Madam Bhikaiji Cama among Indians in UK, Rehana Tyabjee as President of
Youth Congress, Captain Laxmi Sahgal in INA or Rani Gidinliu during Manipur
rebellion.
Kalpana Dutt, Nanibala Devi and Preetilata Waddedar even joined revolutionary
movements, disregarding the threat of police brutality, deportation and death.
Many like Jyotirmoyee Ganguli even left government jobs to boycott the British
oppression.
Matangini Hajra, Durgabai Deshmukh and many others from poor and middle
class families participated. Begum Safia Wajid, Rehana Tyabjee and Rajkumari
Amrita Kaur and many other from affluent Muslim families and royal lineage
came out.
From liberal homes to conservative families, urban centers to rural hamlets, Hindu and
Muslim, single and married, young and old, mothers and daughters, wives and sisters-
all women came forward to help India attain its independence.
~210 words.
Question-Answer finished. Now time for analysis/observation/commentary/ramblings.
Difficulty level and Backbreaking
TM
From mid 90s to mid-2000, the GS Mains (History) trend was as following:
7,10 or 15 freedom fighters for two marks each = 20-30 marks.
Two to three long questions on freedom struggle for around 15-20-25 marks
each. and within this:
they Provided alternatives e.g. write any one of two or any two among
given three.
sometimes the focus would be on the initial phase (from 1857 to Gandhi
Irwin)
Sometimes the focus would be on the end phase (from Gandhi Irwin to
various offers and missions for Indias partition.)
In that era, you could easily sail through the questions by relying on just two books
(Spectrums freedom Fighter + Rajiv Ahir), and at most Bipin Chandra.
But in the recent years, UPSC chairman has been running a campaign to break the
backs of coaching classes, rot learners (and senior players). Hence the complexity of
GS history has kept increasing with each year. Observe:
2009
quotes based questions. You were given some random statements and you
had to comment on them.
2010 Only two freedom fighters (4 marks) and a tough question on Dalhousie.
2011
RIN munity (a topic that almost nobody prepares) + womens org. + a few
random terms that were hard to recall.
2012
Drastically reduced the history portion. More focus on Culture. No freedom
fighters. Even the 25 marker required you to make significant brainstorming
for ideas before attempting the answer.
Same type of complexity-unpredictability has prevailed in 2013 as well.
Players had hoped that just like in 2012, UPSC will ask more from culture and less
from freedom struggle in 2013. But UPSC did the reverse: more questions from
Freedom struggle (12%) and less questions from Culture (8%).
Evenly Spread Questions
In the past exams, the question focus would be on a particular block of freedom
struggle only:
2010: Dalhousie Before freedom struggle.
2011: RIN Mutiny last part of Freedom struggle
Compared to that, 2012s had a more even / balance coverage of entire freedom
struggle. Observe the question:
Q. The Indian independence movement was a massbased movement that
encompassed various sections of society. It also underwent the process of constant
ideological evolution? Critically examine.
2013 continued on that pattern of testing you understanding entire freedom struggle
period. Observe:
Dalhousie
Before
freedom
struggle
Tested your memory/recalling power. (you just had to
reproduce the points from your brain to the piece of
paper)
role of
women
During
freedom
struggle
Tested your understanding. You had to brainstorm for
ideas, arrange them in an order to frame the
analysis/discussion.
role of
foreigners
During
freedom
struggle
Same as above.
Maulana
Azad
During and
after freedom
struggle.
Same as Dalhousie question.
Thus for 40 marks, you had to cover almost entire struggle for Indias independence-
with both your memory power and your understanding/analysis power.
The Nature of History questions
Dalhousie:
Dalhousie is not a totally new guy for Mains. In past, UPSC has asked about him but in
a different context:
1. Dalhousies predecessors had acted on the general principles of avoiding
annexations, if these could be avoided. Dalhousie acted on the principles of
annexation, if he could do so legitimately. His annexations were both of war
and peace. Analyze. (12 marks | GS1 Mains-2010)
2. Dalhousie changed the map of India with speed and thoroughness no
campaign could equal. (20 marks | History optional 2001)
But difficult to solve in actual exam hall of 2013 because:
In the recent times, for most aspirants, freedom struggle syllabus meant = 1857
and afterwards. So, no one has ever paid much attention to Dalhousie for mains
because he left in 1856.
Bipin Chandra and NCERT dont talk about him much.
Besides, there are 50 dozen other names, places and events to be memorized so
who has time for things before 1856?
Even in CSAT Prelims, UPSC has ceased asking Governor-General/Viceroy
related GK MCQs. So most people couldnt recall anything except a few basic
points about Dalhousie=railways, telegraph, Satara and Jhansi= high quality
answer difficult.
Maulana Azad
Ive counted Maulana Azad question for Post-Independence India topic. Because in the
original 2013 question paper, this question was asked after Bhoodan and Jai-Jawan,Jai
Kisan questions. (Meaning whoever arranged the questions, he was in the mood for
post-independence.)
Anyways, Azad cannot be counted as a Backbreaking
TM
question because:
1. 2013= 125
th
anniversary of Azad. and if someone / somebodys birth or death
anniversary is in the multiple of 25 then it is automatically important for UPSC
for both GS as well as literature.
2. in November 2013, he was in news because :
a. Government launched a new webportal maulanaazadheritage.org
b. Modi blogging that Rahulbabas family has erased all heroes from public
memory including Maulana Azad and Kriplani.
All this was in news during second week of November 2013. Some candidates may not
be aware of this development because in November they would have stopped reading
newspaper because Mains-2013 was just a few days away in the first week of
December.
Lesson: A player must not stop following newspapers when exam is near.
Role of women in Freedom struggle:
UPSC has asked Women and Freedom struggle questions in past, but in a little
different context:
1. How did the movement for liberation of women receive a great stimulus from
the rise and growth of nationalist movement in India? 15 marks 2001 GS
Mains
2. Evaluate the influence of three important womens organizations of early
20
th
Century in India on the countrys society and politics. 10 marks 2011 GS
Mains
As such this 2013 question has not fell from sky. In various books, essays, and
columns, youve read about the role of women during freedom struggle. But in the real
life exam it becomes difficult because:
Question Paper started with culture questions and theyre tough because you had
to 100-200 words. No alternatives were given= Mind already filled with fear and
stress.
So, even for this women role answer, Candidate cannot immediately recall all the
points. Have to brainstorm for ideas, what to write, what to skip= takes more
time and energy (compared to something direct non-analytical like role of
Maulana Azad.)
Role of Foreigners in Freedom struggle:
I did not find this question in any of the previous GS mains paper, except Annie
Besant/Home rule specific questions. (or maybe I did not look carefully)
As such, the standard books for history preparation (Bipin, Rajiv Ahir or GS
Manual) dont have much on foreigners, except Annie Besant. Even Miraben and
Dinbandhu get only passing mention= difficult to recollect points for analysis
type question.
Although in August 2013, TheHindu did run a story on Satyanand Stokes.
But then one couldnt have anticipated that a full blown question on all foreign
freedom fighters could be asked. Besides even if you could anticipate it- there
were dozens of other things to be prepared for four papers of new GS syllabus=
hardly much time left to cover all freedom fighters.
Observe this MCQ from CSAT-2013:
The Chinese traveller Yuan Chwang (Hiuen Tsang) who visited India recorded
the general conditions and culture of India at that time. In this context, which of
the following statements is/are correct?
1. The roads and river-routes were completely immune from robbery.
2. As regards punishment for offences, ordeals by fire, water and poison were the
instruments for determining the innocence or guilt of a person.
3. The tradesmen had to pay duties at ferries and barrier stations.
Select the correct answer using the codes given below.
a. 1 only
b. 2 and 3 only
c. 1 and 3 only
d. 1, 2 and 3
Now the user comments posted on its answerkey article:
User
1
The Question on Huan Tsang was current affairs related. A Report came on
Hindu that a temple related to Huan Tsang was being demolished in
China.UPSC rocks!!
User
2
(responds) And a candidate is expected to dig out the archives and frame
points about what Huan Tsang said and what he left unsaid. UPSC rocks with
you sir.
Lesson: sometimes it is not humanly possible to cover everything even if the topic is
hinted in TheHindu.
Anyways, what should be the
Studyplan/Approach/Strategy for Mains-2014 (GS
History)
GS preparation is like Kung-fu, every master develops his own style. you dont have
to read all of these following books, just mix-match-tweak as per your
requirements.
Source details
for GS
(Mains)
History?
(new)
NCERT
Quite good for geography and science theory based
MCQs.
But freedom struggle related coverage is not given
in a detailed way that would help in
MCQs/Descriptive.
Useless
for
freedom
struggle.
(old)
NCERT
(class 10 and 12).
Help in only three (women, Dalhousie, Azad). But
content scattered.
Useful but TNT better alternative (in terms of eye
candy fonts, bullets, bold effects on important
terms).
besides, Bipin Chandra wrote Class 12s old
NCERT, so many ideas repeat when you read his
other book on Indias struggle for independence
useful
The History coverage is both useful in MCQ and
Tamil
Nadu
Textbooks
(TNT)
descriptive coverage for competitive exams.
Detailing is Similar to Old NCERT but with eye
candy fonts and pictures.
available for free: Click ME
for freedom struggle: use Class 12 textbook.
useful
GS Manual
Has its utilities in static MCQs in prelims (CSAT) but
insufficient content to tackle these 100-200 word
descriptive questions on History.
not much
NIOS History course not uploaded
IGNOU Site stopped working.
Bipin Chandra: Indias struggle for independence (Penguin Publication)
It still has utilities in prelims (CSAT) MCQs, particularly the 2 statement
true/false type questions.
In Mains-2013 as such did not help much directly, but Bipins fodder material
has indirect uses in Essay and interviews, including the Mains-2013 essay on
Gandhi.
For Mains 2014? Useful, should be read. Itll be a mistake to throw it off too
quicky just because UPSC did not ask direct questions in one mains exams.
Spectrums Freedom fighter book
After observing the last two mains, I had given up hope on this book.
But Luck by chance three questions in Mains-2013 could be solved from this
book (Azad, women, foreigners)
So, will it be helpful in Mains-2014? Well that depends on the question: will
UPSC continue ask similar group/category based questions in 2014? e.g.
analyse the role of Parsi/South Indian poets/xyz group in freedom struggle.
As such a good tool because if you know the contribution of a few dozen
freedom fighters from various area/religion/ideology, you can pretty much cover
up the remaining gap in a 100-200 words question on most freedom fighting
question by citing them as examples.
Rajiv Ahir: A brief history of Modern India (Spectrum Publication)
He has written the book like a note similar to Laxmikanths Polity. Only
difference is Laxmikanth helps very much in MCQs, Rajiv not that much.
After last two mains, I had given up hope on this book as well. But Helped in two
questions (Dalhousie, women).
Will it help in Mains-2014? well that Depends
1. If youre appearing in some State service exam then yes because Rajivs good for
those generic static direct question because of its ready revision note type of
coverage.
2. Otherwise, youre better off with other combos involving (TNT/Old NCERT) +
(Bipin/Sumit). etc.
Sumit Sarkar: Modern India (1885-1947)
As such this book is meant for History optional, but some senior players even
use it for General studies.
Directly it did not help much in Mains-2013 but has its utilities in essay,
interview (even MCQs).
If youre already a senior player with already good grip over Bipin, then you may
use it to gain additional fodder points, wisdom and enlightenment about freedom
struggle. otherwise, not recommended for new players.
Krishna Reddy, Indian History (TMH Publication)
Directly helped in three questions (Except foreigners) but its a very bulky book
solely written for history optional subject (for prelims in pre-CSAT era).
Not recommended for players without history optional.
Coaching/Postal/Correspondence material
Usually assembled by copy pasting passages from standard reference books and
making fancy bullets, numbering, tables, bold/italic effects and a very dark
watermark to prevent xeroxing.
It doesnt help beyond GK and very easy static type questions.
For the analyse/discuss/evaluate/examine/comment/essay-ish type questions,
they dont help much.
In short, too expensive for what it is worth. So dont bother even Xeroxing such
readymade material. Better stick to standard reference books.
Jholacchap NGOs Publication houses
2014: Election year = many state service vacancies will come, before the model
code of conduct comes into effect.
So this also means Diwali year for Jholacchap publication houses, theyll flood
market with lot of new books on history, polity, geography everything.
Atmost just use them for getting terminologies of polity/geography/economics
in your mother tongue. or at most some specific topics like GK/geography of
your state.
Otherwise, always rely on standard reference books. Avoid jholachhap publishers
like hell.
Overall
Table only for illustration, multiple combos possible otherwise:
LEVEL combo #1 combo #2
NEW
GUY
Only TNT until he clears prelims. (Use all
the remaining time and energy to master
other static areas of prelims- i.e. polity,
science, economy, geography and
aptitude.) if he has mastered all of them,
then he should bother with Bipin etc.
TNT + Rajiv Ahir (if
hes planning for
state service in 2014)
INTERN*
TNT + Bipin Chandra. Bipin should be read
with highlighters and make keyword
notes on its margins. (that way after
prelims, it doesnt take much time in
second-third revision.)
Until prelim is over, he should not bother
with Mains answer writing- instead pour all
that energy in the aptitude (Paper II)
preparation- comprehension, Maths and
reasoning + all the static areas of GS
prelims where he faulted last time +
maintaining current notes from
newspapers.
If you are taking a
break in 2014, to
focus on state
services preparation:
1. Religiously
Mug up Rajiv
Ahir + whatever
book goes for
your state
related history.
2. Spectrums
freedom fighters
+ dig net to get
list of all
freedom
fighters from
your state.
3. Write answer to
all static-
descriptive
mains Qs. of
StatePSC by
yourself. If you
cant find them
online/in
market, then
file RTI.
SENIOR
PLAYER
Anyone Class 12 textbook: Old NCERT
or TNT
Anyone academic book: Bipin Chandra /
Sumit Sarkar. (or both) Use highlighters
and make keyword notes on its margins.
Ignore Rajiv Ahir, because it has nothing
new that you dont know already for UPSC
level questions. (especially after going
through one textbook and one academic
book)
Answer writing of maximum number of
static history questions from previous papers-
particularly those similar to 2012 and
2013 (i.e. questions demanding your
knowledge of entire struggle).
In a movie called Snake in the Eagles shadow, Jackie Chan first learns Eagle style
kungfu. But the main villain easily defeats him with Snake style. Then Jackie observes
how a cat kills the snake. So, He develops a new style: EagleCAT kungfu and wins the
last fight. Point being, if you want to defeat the main villain (UPSC) youve to develop
your own combos.
New guy= complete rookie player. Never appeared in any prelims.
*Intern: someone who has appeared in one or more prelims but failed by a
small margin.
Senior player: Has cleared one or more prelims.
Other points/analysis/observations are same as from Culture analysis:
1. Causal revision = #Epicfail
2. Focus on Dramatic part = also #EPICFAIL
3. Working professionals dont waste salary
4. Mains-2013 players dont cry over the spilled milk
In the next article, well World History questions from GS1 paper, their answers,
analysis and plan for 2014.
URL to article: http://mrunal.org/2014/01/gs1-freedom-struggle-indian-history-
answerkey-analysis-of-mains-2013-questions-dalhousie-women-foreigners-
studyplan-booklist-for-upsc-mains-2014.html
Posted By Mrunal On 06/01/2014 @ 22:30 In the category History