British Economic Policies and Their Impact: RAS Prelims MCQs
28 RAS Prelims MCQs on British economic policies and their impact cover land revenue settlements, the drain of wealth, de-industrialisation, railway policy, famines and peasant uprisings. The questions ask about the Permanent Settlement, the Ryotwari system, the Tinkathia system, the Santhal rebellion and the nationalist critique of colonial economics.
Practice questions based on the RPSC RAS Prelims syllabus. They follow the exam pattern but are not past-paper questions.
Showing 21–28 of 28 questions
RAS PrelimsModern Indian History · British Economic Policies and Their Impact
Q21. Match List I with List II and select the correct answer:
Early Modern Industry
Location of First Major Mill/Factory
A. First Cotton Mill (1853/54)
i. Rishra (Bengal)
B. First Jute Mill (1855)
ii. Bombay
C. First Iron and Steel Works (modern attempt)
iii. Serampore
D. First Paper Mill
iv. Kulti / Barakar
Explanation
Modern industry in India began in specific coastal and mineral-rich areas. The first successful cotton mill was established in Bombay in the 1850s. The jute industry was centered in Rishra, Bengal. Early modern attempts at iron and steel production occurred at Kulti and Barakar. Meanwhile, the first major paper mill was founded at Serampore, marking the slow but steady arrival of factory production.
RAS PrelimsModern Indian History · British Economic Policies and Their Impact
Q22. Which of the following components did NOT constitute a part of the "Home Charges" remitted from India to Britain?
Explanation
Home Charges consisted of payments made by India to Britain for services and obligations, not investments. They included interest on public debt, procurement of military and civil stores, and pensions for British personnel. The concept of the government of India investing in British industries did not exist; rather, the entire system was designed to transfer wealth from the colony to the imperial center.
RAS PrelimsModern Indian History · British Economic Policies and Their Impact
Q23. Read the given statements regarding the British response to famines and select the correct option: Statement I: The early response of the colonial state to famines was heavily influenced by the economic doctrine of laissez-faire. Statement II: The Famine Code of 1883 completely eradicated famines in India for the remainder of British rule.
Explanation
Early colonial famine policy was heavily constrained by laissez-faire doctrines, which discouraged government intervention in the grain market. While the Famine Code of 1883 established formal relief procedures, it did not end famines. Severe and widespread famines continued to occur, such as the catastrophic 1899-1900 famine and the 1943 Bengal Famine, proving that the colonial response remained inadequate and structurally flawed.
RAS PrelimsModern Indian History · British Economic Policies and Their Impact
Q24. The Santhal Rebellion (1855-56) was a prominent tribal-peasant uprising. What was its primary economic cause?
Explanation
The Santhal Rebellion was triggered by the introduction of the British revenue system and the subsequent influx of outsiders, known as dikus. Zamindars and moneylenders used the new legal framework to exploit the Santhals, charging high interest and seizing their ancestral lands. This economic oppression and the loss of traditional rights drove the Santhals to a violent uprising against the colonial state and its agents.
RAS PrelimsModern Indian History · British Economic Policies and Their Impact
Q25. How did the growth of the plantation economy and commercial forestry directly impact the tribal and marginalized communities?
Explanation
The expansion of plantations and commercial forestry severely impacted marginalized communities. The British classified vast forest areas as state property and restricted traditional activities like grazing and collecting produce. This enclosure movement deprived tribals of their primary livelihoods and displaced them from their lands. Many were forced to work as low-paid, often indentured, labourers on the very plantations that had replaced their ancestral forests.
RAS PrelimsModern Indian History · British Economic Policies and Their Impact
Q26. Identify the correct statement regarding the play ‘Neel Darpan’.
Explanation
Neel Darpan, written by Dinabandhu Mitra, was a powerful piece of social and political literature. It provided a vivid and realistic account of the systemic cruelty and exploitation faced by indigo cultivators at the hands of European planters. The play played a crucial role in raising awareness and generating public sympathy, which helped build the momentum for the Indigo Revolt and the subsequent government inquiry.
RAS PrelimsModern Indian History · British Economic Policies and Their Impact
Q27. The strict adherence to laissez-faire economics by colonial administrators during famines meant that:
Explanation
Under the doctrine of laissez-faire, colonial administrators were reluctant to regulate food prices or stop grain exports, even during severe scarcities. They believed that market forces would eventually solve shortages and that state intervention would be harmful to trade. This approach often allowed merchants to hoard grain for higher profits while the poor could not afford food, leading to millions of preventable deaths.
RAS PrelimsModern Indian History · British Economic Policies and Their Impact
Q28. Which of the following early modern industries in India was almost exclusively owned and managed by Indians from its inception?
Explanation
While the jute and tea industries were dominated by British capital, the cotton textile industry was a notable exception. Indian entrepreneurs in Bombay and Ahmedabad founded and managed the early cotton mills, using capital accumulated through trade. This sector became a stronghold of the Indian capitalist class and played a vital role in the national movement, especially during the Swadeshi and non-cooperation agitations.
Answer key for these questions
Q
Correct answer
21
(a) A-ii, B-i, C-iv, D-iii
22
(c) Government of India investments in British domestic industries.
23
(c) Statement I is correct but Statement II is incorrect
24
(d) Oppression and dispossession by zamindars and moneylenders.
25
(a) Forest enclosure and restriction of customary rights, causing loss of livelihood.
26
(c) It realistically portrayed the oppression of indigo farmers.
27
(a) Refusal to interfere with private trade of grains, even during hoarding.
28
(d) The Cotton Textile Industry in Bombay and Ahmedabad
Key facts from British Economic Policies and Their Impact
Lord Cornwallis introduced the Permanent Settlement in Bengal in 1793.
The Ryotwari settlement aimed at peasant proprietors but high revenue and debt pushed land to moneylenders.
The Tinkathia system forced Champaran peasants to grow indigo on a part of their land.
The Santhal Rebellion (1855-56) arose from oppression and dispossession by zamindars and moneylenders.
De-industrialisation ruined centres such as Murshidabad and Dhaka.
Naoroji stated the Drain Theory in 1867; the Welby Commission sat in 1895, and Poverty and Un-British Rule in India appeared in 1901.
Frequently asked questions
How many RAS Prelims practice MCQs are there on British Economic Policies and Their Impact?
This page has 28 practice MCQs on British Economic Policies and Their Impact (Modern Indian History). Each has the correct answer, and most have an explanation.
Who introduced the Permanent Settlement?
Lord Cornwallis, in Bengal in 1793. It fixed the land revenue permanently and made zamindars the owners of land, which gave the British a steady income but put heavy pressure on the actual cultivators.
What was the Tinkathia system?
A system in Champaran, Bihar, under which peasants had to grow indigo on three-twentieths (3/20) of their land for European planters. Its exploitation led to Gandhi’s first Satyagraha in India in 1917.
What was the Drain of Wealth?
The one-way transfer of India’s surplus to Britain through home charges, salaries, profits and interest, without an equal return. Dadabhai Naoroji first stated the theory in 1867, and it became a main plank of the nationalist economic critique.
