Mid-18th century – Present (significant events, personalities, issues) Freedom Struggle (various stages, important contributors from different parts of the country)

1. In many ways, Lord Dalhousie was the founder of modern India. Elaborate. [Personality] [10 marks] [2013]
2. Several foreigners made India their homeland and participated in various movements. Analyze their role in the Indian struggle for freedom. [Movements] [10 marks] [2013]
3. Defying the barriers of age, gender and religion, the Indian women became the torch bearer during the struggle for freedom in India. Discuss. [Women] [10 marks] [2013]
4. In what ways did the naval mutiny prove to be the last nail in the coffin of British colonial aspirations in India? [Event] [10 marks] [2014]
5. Examine critically the various facets of economic policies of the British in India from mid-eighteenth century till independence. [Policies] [10 marks] [2014]
6. The third battle of Panipat was fought in 1761. Why were so many empire-shaking battles fought at Panipat? [Event] [10 marks] [2014]
7. It would have been difficult for the Constituent Assembly to complete its historic task of drafting the Constitution for Independent India in just three years but for the experience gained with the Government of India Act, 1935. Discuss. [Policies] [12.5 marks] [2015]
8. How different would have been the achievement of Indian independence without Mahatma Gandhi? Discuss. [Personality] [12.5 marks] [2015]
9. Highlight the differences in the approach of Subhash Chandra Bose and Mahatma Gandhi in the struggle for freedom. [Comparison Personality] [12.5 marks] [2016]
10. Discuss the role of women in the freedom struggle especially during the Gandhian phase. [Women] [12.5 marks] [2016]
11. Explain how the Uprising of 1857 constitutes an important watershed in the evolution of British policies towards colonial India. [Event] [12.5 marks] [2016]
12. Highlight the importance of the new objectives that got added to the vision of Indian independence since twenties of the last century. [Event] [15 marks] [2017]
13. The women’s questions arose in modern India as a part of the 19th century social reform movement. What were the major issues and debates concerning women in that period? [Women] [15 marks] [2017]
14. Examine how the decline of traditional artisanal industry in colonial India crippled the rural economy. [Issues] [15 marks] [2017]
15. Why did the ‘Moderates’ fail to carry conviction with the nation about their proclaimed ideology and political goals by the end of the nineteenth century? [Contribution] [10 marks] [2017]
16. Clarify how mid-eighteenth century India was beset with the spectre of a fragmented polity. [Policies] [10 marks] [2017]
17. Throw light on the significance of the thoughts of Mahatma Gandhi in the present times. [Personality] [10 marks] [2018]
18. Assess the role of British imperial power in complicating the process of transfer of power during the 1940s. [Policies] [10 marks] [2019]
19. Many voices had strengthened and enriched the nationalist movement during the Gandhian phase. Elaborate. [Contribution] [15 marks] [2019]
20. Examine the linkages between 19th centuries ‘Indian Renaissance’ and the emergence of national identity. [Event] [10 marks] [2019]
21. The 1857 Uprising was the culmination the recurrent big and small local rebellions that had occurred in the preceding hundred years of British rule. Elucidate. [Contribution] [10 marks] [2019]
22. Since the decade of the 1920s, the national movement acquired various ideological strands and thereby expanded its social base. Discuss. [Event] [15 marks] [2020]
23. Evaluate the policies of Lord Curzon and their long term implications on the national movement. [Policies] [10 marks] [2020]
24. Trace the rise and growth of socio–religious reform movements with special reference to young Bengal and Brahmo Samaj. [Event] [10 marks] [2021]
25. To what extend did the role of the Moderates prepare a base for the wider freedom movement? Comment [Contribution] [15 marks] [2021]
26. Bring out the constructive programmes of Mahatma Gandhi during Non-Cooperation Movement and Civil Disobedience Movement. [Personality] [15 marks] [2021]
27. Why did the armies of the British East India Company – mostly comprising of Indian soldiers – win consistently against the more numerous and better equipped armies of the then Indian rulers ? Give reasons. [Issues] [10 marks] [2022]
28. Why was there a sudden spurt in famines in colonial India since the mid-eighteenth century? Give reasons. [Event] [10 marks] [2022]

Post-Independence (consolidation and reorganisation within country)

1. Critically discuss the objectives of Bhoodan and Gramdan movements initiated by Acharya Vinoba Bhave and their success. [Movements] [10 marks] [2013]
2. Write a critical note on the evolution and significance of the slogan “Jai Jawana Jai Kisan”. [Movements] [10 marks] [2013]
3. Discuss the contribution of Maulana Abul Kalam Azad to pre-and post-independent India. [Contribution] [10 marks] [2013]
4. Analyze the circumstances that led to Tashkent Agreement in 1966. Discuss the highlights of the agreement. [Agreements] [10 marks] [2013]
5. Critically examine the compulsions which prompted India to play a decisive roles in the emergence of Bangladesh. [Event] [10 marks] [2013]
6. Access the main administrative issues and socio –cultural problems in the integration process of Indian princely states. [Consolidation] [10 marks] [2021]
7. The political and administrative reorganization of states and territories has been a continuous ongoing process since the mid-nineteenth century. Discuss with examples. [Reorganisation] [15 Marks] [2022]

18th century events (e.g. Industrial revolution, WWs, redrawn boundaries, colonisation, decolonisation); Political philosophies (e.g. communism, capitalism, socialism) and their effect on society

1. What policy instruments were deployed to contain the great economic depression? [Event] [10 marks] [2013]
2. American Revolution was an economic revolt against mercantilism. Substantiate. [American Revolution] [10 marks] [2013]
3. Africa was chopped into states artificially created by accident of European competition. Analyse. [Colonisation] [10 marks] [2013]
4. “Latecomer” Industrial revolution in Japan involved certain factors that were markedly different from what west had experience. [Industrial Revolution] [10 marks] [2013]
5. The New Economic Policy – 1921 of Lenin had influenced the policies adopted by India soon after independence. Evaluate. [Effect Policy] [10 marks] [2014]
6. What were the events that led to the Suez Crisis in 1956? How did it deal a final blow to Britain’s self-image as a world power? [Event] [10 marks] [2014]
7. What were the major political, economic and social developments in the world which motivated the anti-colonial struggle in India? [Decolonisation] [10 marks] [2014]
8. To what extent can Germany be held responsible for causing the two World Wars? Discuss critically [WW] [12.5 marks] [2015]
9. Why did the industrial revolution first occur in England? Discuss the quality of life of the people there during the industrialization. How does it compare with that in India at present? [Industrial Revolution] [12.5 marks] [2015]
10. The anti-colonial struggles in West Africa were led by the new elite of Western-educated Africans. Examine. [Decolonisation] [12.5 marks] [2016]
11. What problems were germane to the decolonization process of Malay Peninsula. [Decolonisation] [10 marks] [2017]
12. Why indentured labour was taken by the British from India to other colonies? Have they been able to preserve their cultural identity over there? [Colonisation] [15 marks] [2018]
13. Explain how the foundations of the modern world were laid by the American and French revolution. [AR and FR] [15 marks] [2019]
14. “There arose a serious challenge to the democratic state system between the two world wars”. Evaluate the statement. [WW] [15 marks] [2021]