UPSC Indian Society – Chapter 6: Village and Agrarian Society (20 MCQs)

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UPSC Indian Society – Chapter 6: Village and Agrarian Society (20 MCQs) – 20 questions, subject: Indian Society. Every question has the correct answer with a one-line explanation; tap "Show Answer". Free practice for TNPSC, UPSC, SSC, Bank and RRB exams – Shanmugam IAS Academy, Coimbatore.

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1.  

Who described Indian villages as "little republics"?

Correct Answer: B [Charles Metcalfe]

Explanation:

1830.

2.  

The Remembered Village is M.N. Srinivas's study of:

Correct Answer: C [Rampura]

Explanation:

Srinivas's The Remembered Village (1976) recreated, from memory after his field notes were burnt, his 1948 fieldwork in Rampura, Mysore.

3.  

The ryotwari system was introduced mainly in the:

Correct Answer: C [Madras and Bombay Presidencies]

Explanation:

Thomas Munro and Alexander Read settled revenue directly with the cultivator (ryot) in the Madras and Bombay Presidencies.

4.  

The Tebhaga movement (1946–47) demanded:

Correct Answer: B [two-thirds of the crop for sharecroppers]

Explanation:

Bengal sharecroppers in 1946–47 demanded tebhaga – two-thirds of the harvest for themselves instead of the customary half.

5.  

According to Census 2011, which group was larger?

Correct Answer: A [Agricultural labourers]

Explanation:

14.4 crore against 11.9 crore.

6.  

Operation Barga (1978) was carried out in:

Correct Answer: D [West Bengal]

Explanation:

The Left Front government of West Bengal launched Operation Barga in 1978 to record sharecroppers (bargadars) and secure their tenure.

7.  

The Shetkari Sanghatana was led by:

Correct Answer: D [Sharad Joshi]

Explanation:

Sharad Joshi founded the Shetkari Sanghatana in Maharashtra in 1979 to demand remunerative prices for farm produce.

8.  

The 'new farmers' movements' that arose in India in the 1970s and 1980s, such as the Shetkari Sanghatana and the Bharatiya Kisan Union, mainly demanded:

Correct Answer: B [remunerative crop prices, cheaper inputs and loan waivers]

Explanation:

these organisations of mostly middle and rich farmers sought remunerative prices, cheaper inputs and loan waivers.

9.  

Which of the following was the most successful component of land reforms in India?

Correct Answer: D [Abolition of intermediaries]

Explanation:

Zamindari and other intermediaries were abolished in most States by the early 1950s, bringing tenants into direct contact with the State.

10.  

Consider the following statements:

1. The Bhoodan movement began at Pochampalli in 1951.
2. The Telangana armed struggle was directed against the Nizam's landlords.
3. The farm laws of 2020 are still in force.

Which of the statements given above is/are correct?

Correct Answer: B [1 and 2 only]

Explanation:

Statements 1 and 2 are correct: Bhoodan began at Pochampalli in 1951 and Telangana's struggle targeted the Nizam's landlords.

11.  

Assertion (A): The Green Revolution widened inequality between regions.

Reason (R): Its gains were concentrated in irrigated areas such as Punjab and Haryana.

Correct Answer: A [Both A and R are true, and R is the correct explanation of A]

Explanation:

Both are true, and the concentration of gains in irrigated Punjab and Haryana is exactly what widened regional inequality.

12.  

Indian Village (1955), a study of Shamirpet, was written by:

Correct Answer: D [S.C. Dube]

Explanation:

S.C. Dube's Indian Village (1955) was a study of Shamirpet, a village near Hyderabad.

13.  

In the mahalwari system, land revenue was settled with:

Correct Answer: D [the village community]

Explanation:

Under mahalwari the revenue demand was fixed on the mahal, the village or estate community, which was jointly responsible.

14.  

"Feminisation of agriculture" refers mainly to:

Correct Answer: A [women doing a growing share of farm work as men migrate]

Explanation:

As men migrate to non-farm jobs, women perform a growing share of farm work, though few own the land.

15.  

The average size of operational holdings in India in 2015-16 was about:

Correct Answer: D [1.08 hectares]

Explanation:

Agriculture Census 2015-16 recorded an average operational holding of 1.08 hectares, down from 2.28 hectares in 1970-71.

16.  

Arrange the following in chronological order:

1. Permanent Settlement
2. Bhoodan movement
3. Operation Barga
4. Ryotwari extended across the Madras Presidency by Thomas Munro Select the correct answer using the code given below:

Correct Answer: C [1-4-2-3]

Explanation:

1793, 1820, 1951, 1978.

17.  

The Bharatiya Kisan Union in western Uttar Pradesh was led in the 1980s by:

Correct Answer: B [Mahendra Singh Tikait]

Explanation:

Mahendra Singh Tikait led the Bharatiya Kisan Union in western Uttar Pradesh, notably in the 1988 Delhi Boat Club rally.

18.  

The Kumarappa Committee (1949) is associated with:

Correct Answer: A [agrarian reforms]

Explanation:

The Congress Agrarian Reforms Committee (1949), chaired by J.C. Kumarappa, recommended abolition of intermediaries and 'land to the tiller'.

19.  

Under the jajmani system, the jajman was the:

Correct Answer: C [landowning patron]

Explanation:

The jajman was the landowning patron whom service castes (kamins) served in return for a customary share of the harvest.

20.  

Under the land ceiling laws, land held above the ceiling limit was to be:

Correct Answer: B [declared surplus and redistributed, mainly to the landless]

Explanation:

Ceiling laws declared land above the limit surplus, to be taken over and given mainly to landless and marginal households.

➤ Full notes, maps, tables, a reason for every option and Mains PYQs – U07 · Indian Society (UPSC book, ₹249): www.shanmugamiasacademy.in/study-materials/upsc-indian-society

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