BPSC CCE Prelims
Modern History Previous Year Questions (PYQs)
Solved Previous Year Questions (PYQs) for Modern History in BPSC CCE Prelims in English & Hindi Medium.
Chapter Breakdown: Scroll →
Who was the prominent leader of Kisan Sabha movement in Bihar?
Detailed Explanation:
Swami Sahajanand Saraswati founded the Bihar Provincial Kisan Sabha (BPKS) in 1929 and became the founding president of the All India Kisan Sabha (AIKS) in 1936.
Raj Kumar Shukla was associated with the Champaran Satyagraha (1917), Acharya Narendra Dev contributed to the national peasant movement but not specifically as Bihar's Kisan Sabha leader, and Baba Ram Chandra led the peasant movement in Awadh (Uttar Pradesh).
Who first described the Revolt of 1857 as the 'First Indian War of Independence'?
Detailed Explanation:
V. D. Savarkar first described the Revolt of 1857 as the 'First Indian War of Independence' in his 1909 book written in Marathi.
He challenged the British narrative of it being merely a sepoy mutiny, arguing it was a nationalist uprising against colonial rule.
Who became Chief Minister of Bihar in March 1939?
Detailed Explanation:
Shri Krishna Singh (also known as Sri Babu) became the Chief Minister of Bihar in March 1939 under the Government of India Act, 1935.
He later served as the first Chief Minister of independent Bihar (1947–1961), the longest-serving Chief Minister in Bihar's history. Anugraha Narain Singh was his Deputy Chief Minister, while Rajendra Prasad became India's first President, not a Chief Minister.
🧐 Not Sure What to Study Next?
Get a personalised study plan based on your goals, time and revision needs.
Fort William College at Calcutta was established in
Detailed Explanation:
Fort William College was established in 1800 CE by Lord Wellesley in Calcutta to train British civil servants in Indian languages like Persian, Sanskrit, Hindi, Bengali, Urdu, and Marathi for effective colonial administration.
The college was not founded in 1802 CE, and its primary purpose was practical language training for governance, not historical research or cultural understanding.
Which one of the following is not correctly matched?
Person Associated with
| (A) Dayananda Saraswati | Satyarth Prakash |
| (B) James Augustus Hicky | Calcutta Chronicle |
| (C) Ramaswamy Naicker | Justice Party |
| (D) Jyotirao Phule | Satyashodhak Samaj |
Detailed Explanation:
✅ Option A – Correct: Dayananda Saraswati wrote Satyarth Prakash (1875), the foundational text of the Arya Samaj.
❌ Option B – Incorrect: James Augustus Hicky founded the Bengal Gazette (1780), India's first newspaper, not the Calcutta Chronicle.
✅ Option C – Correct: Ramaswamy Naicker (Periyar) became the leader of the Justice Party (1944) and later renamed it the Dravidar Kazhagam.
✅ Option D – Correct: Jyotirao Phule established the Satyashodhak Samaj (1873) to combat caste-based discrimination and promote education for lower castes and women.
Which Viceroy decentralized the colonial economic structure in India?
Detailed Explanation:
Lord Mayo (1869–1872) introduced financial decentralization by transferring revenue management and expenditure control to provincial governments.
He established Provincial Finance Committees to manage local resources, reducing the central government's financial burden while maintaining British administrative control.
Which of the following statements about Subhas Chandra Bose are correct?
- He was elected President of the Indian National Congress at Tripuri session of 1938 A.D.
- He escaped from home internment in January 1941 A.D.
- On October 21 1943 A.D. he constituted the Provincial Government of India in Singapore.
Detailed Explanation:
❌ Statement 1 – Incorrect: Subhas Chandra Bose was elected Congress President at the Haripura session in 1938, not at Tripuri. At the Tripuri session in March 1939, he was re-elected but resigned soon after due to conflict with the Gandhi-led old guard.
✅ Statement 2 – Correct: Bose escaped from house arrest in Calcutta on January 17, 1941, travelling via Afghanistan to Germany and later to Singapore.
✅ Statement 3 – Correct: On October 21, 1943, Bose proclaimed the Provisional Government of Free India (Azad Hind) in Singapore, which was recognized by Axis powers and controlled the Andaman and Nicobar Islands briefly.
Who is the author of the famous book 'Gulamgiri'?
Detailed Explanation:
'Gulamgiri' (meaning 'Slavery') was written by Jyotiba Phule and published in 1873.
The book was a powerful critique of the caste system and the exploitation of lower castes and untouchables, and it laid the foundation for social justice movements in India.
Consider the following events of Modern Indian History -
- Death sentence to Raja Nand Kumar
- Treaty of Salbai
- Battle of Wandiwash
- Death of Tipu Sultan
Which of the following is the correct chronological order of the above events?
Detailed Explanation:
Battle of Wandiwash occurred in 1760 – decisive British victory over French in the Third Carnatic War.
Raja Nand Kumar was sentenced to death in 1775 – controversial trial under Warren Hastings administration.
Treaty of Salbai was signed in 1782 – ended the First Anglo-Maratha War.
Tipu Sultan died in 1799 – killed during the fall of Seringapatam in the Fourth Anglo-Mysore War.
Correct chronological order: 3–1–2–4
The Vernacular Press Act allowed
Detailed Explanation:
The Vernacular Press Act, 1878 was enacted by Viceroy Lord Lytton to suppress criticism in Indian-language newspapers.
✅ Statement 1 – Correct: The Act allowed confiscation of newspaper assets if objectionable content was published.
❌ Statement 2 – Incorrect: Confiscation occurred when content was objectionable, not when it was "not objectionable".
✅ Statement 3 – Correct: The Act allowed confiscation of printing presses for publishing objectionable material.
Both Statements 1 and 3 are correct, making Option 4 (More than one of the above) the right answer.
All India Trade Union Congress was formed in the year
Detailed Explanation:
All India Trade Union Congress (AITUC) was founded in 1920 in Bombay (Mumbai).
Lala Lajpat Rai served as its first president, and it was the first national trade union centre in India formed during the British colonial period to organize workers' rights and welfare.
When did Macaulay issue his famous minute on Indian Education?
Detailed Explanation:
Lord Macaulay's Minute on Indian Education was issued on 2 February 1835, advocating for English as the medium of instruction over Persian and Sanskrit.
This led to the English Education Act, 1835 by Governor-General Lord William Bentinck, marking the shift from the Orientalist approach to Western education.
Which newspaper wrote the following about the possible future role of the Indian National Congress is the nucleus of a future Parliament of our country and will lead to the good of inconceivable magnitude for our countrymen'?
Detailed Explanation:
The Indian Mirror, founded by Keshub Chandra Sen in 1861 from Calcutta, was a nationalist newspaper that strongly supported the Indian National Congress (INC).
The newspaper predicted that the INC would become the nucleus of India's future Parliament and bring immense good to the country, a vision that materialized when the INC led India's freedom struggle and became the dominant political force post-1947.
Who introduced the permanent settlement in Bengal?
Detailed Explanation:
Lord Cornwallis introduced the Permanent Settlement (also called Zamindari System) in 1793 in Bengal, Bihar, and Orissa.
Under this system, land revenue was fixed permanently, and Zamindars were made hereditary owners with responsibility to collect and pay fixed revenue to the British, leading to exploitation of peasants through high rents.
Who threw harmless bombs in the Central Legislative Assembly?
Detailed Explanation:
On 8 April 1929, Bhagat Singh and Batukeshwar Dutt threw harmless bombs in the Central Legislative Assembly, Delhi to protest the Public Safety Bill and Trade Disputes Bill.
The bombs were designed only to make loud noise, not to harm anyone, followed by the slogan "Inquilab Zindabad" and distribution of pamphlets.
Jatin Das was a revolutionary associate but was not involved in this specific incident; he is known for his 63-day hunger strike in Lahore Jail (1929) which led to his death.
Since both Bhagat Singh (Option 3) and Batukeshwar Dutt (Option 2) were involved, the correct answer is Option 4 (More than one of the above).