4K) Literature in Modern Indian History (Prelims PYQs)

Last Updated on March 4, 2025 by Admin

2021 Prelims PYQs

1] Who among the following is associated with ‘Songs from Prison’, a translation of ancient Indian Religious lyrics in English? [2021]

a) Bal Gangadhar Tilak
b) Jawaharlal Nehru
c) Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi
d) Sarojini Naidu

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Ans: c) Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi

2] With reference to Madanapalle of Andhra Pradesh, which one of the following statements is correct? [2021]

a) Pingali Venkayya designed the tricolour Indian National Flag here
b) Pattabhi Sitaramaiah led the Quit India Movement of Andhra region from here
c) Rabindranath Tagore translated the National Anthem from Bengali to English here
d) Madame Blavatsky and Colonel Olcott set up headquarters of Theosophical Society first here

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Ans: c) Rabindranath Tagore translated the National Anthem from Bengali to English here

2020 Prelims PYQs

1] With reference to the book ‘Desher Katha’ written by Sakharam Ganesh Deuskar during the freedom struggle, consider the following statements: [2020]
1. It warned against the Colonial State’s hypnotic conquest of the mind
2. It inspired the performance of swadeshi street plays and folk songs
3. The use of ‘desh’ by Deuskar was in the specific context of the region of Bengal
Which of the statements given above are correct?

a) 1 and 2 only
b) 2 and 3 only
c) 1 and 3 only
d) 1, 2 and 3

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Ans: a) 1 and 2 only

2018 Prelims PYQs

1] He wrote biographies of Mazzini, Garibaldi, Shivaji and Shrikrishna; stayed in America for sometime; and was elected to the Central Assembly. He was: [2018]

a) Aurobindo Ghosh
b) Bipin Chandra Pal
c) Lala Lajpat Rai
d) Motilal Nehru

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Ans: c) Lala Lajpat Rai

2] Which among the following events happened earliest? [2018]

a) Swami Dayanand established Arya Samaj
b) Dinabandhu Mitra wrote Neeldarpan
c) Bankim Chandra Chattopadhyay wrote Anandmath
d) Satyendranath Tagore became the first Indian to succeed in the Indian Civil Services

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Ans: b) Dinabandhu Mitra wrote Neeldarpan

2011 Prelims PYQs

1] Mahatma Gandhi said that some of his deepest convictions were reflected in a book titled, “Unto this Last’’ and the book transformed his life. What was the message from the book that transformed Mahatma Gandhi? [2011]

a) Uplifting the oppressed and poor is the moral responsibility of an educated man
b) The good of individual is contained in the good of all.
c) The life of celibacy and spiritual pursuit are essential for a noble life.
d) All the statements (a), (b) and (c) are correct in this context.

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Ans: b) The good of individual is contained in the good of all.

2010-1995 Prelims PYQs

1] Who of the following is the author of a collection of poems called “Golden Threshold”? [2009]

a) Aruna Asaf Ali         b) Annie Besant
c) Sarojini Naidu         d)Vijayalaksmi Pandit

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Ans: c) Sarojini Naidu 

2] Which one of the following was a journal brought out by Abul Kalam Azad? [2008]

a) Al-Hilal                                         
b) Comrade
c) The Indian Sociologist       
d) Zamindar

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Ans: a) Al-Hilal    

3] Who among the following translated the Autobiography of Madam Curie in Hindi? [2008]

a) Atal Bihari Vajpayee
b) Lal Bahadur Shastri
c) Choudhary Charan Singh
d) Govind Vallabh Pant

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Ans: b) Lal Bahadur Shastri

4] Match List-I with List-II and select the correct answer using the codes given below the lists: [2008]

List-I (Author)                
A. Bankimchandra           
B. Dinabandhu Mitra       
C. Premchandra    
List-II (Work)
1.Shatranj ke Khilari    
2. Debi Chaudhurani         
3. Nil-Darpan
4. Chandrakanta

—A B C       
a) 2 4 1    
b) 3 4 2
c) 2 3 1    
d) 3 1 4

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Ans: c) 2 3 1 

5] The song ‘Amar Sonar Bangla’ written during the Swadeshi Movement of India inspired the liberation struggle of Bangladesh. Who wrote this song? [2007]

a) Rajni  Kanta Sen
b) Dwijendralal Ray
c)  Mukunda Das
d) Rabindranath Tagore

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Ans: d) Rabindranath Tagore

6] Who among the following wrote the book Babuvivah? [2007]

a) Raja Rammohan Roy
b) Ishwar Chandra Vidyasagar
c) Pandita Rambai
d) Rabindranath Tagore

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Ans: b) Ishwar Chandra Vidyasagar

7] Who among the following started the newspaper – Shome Prakash? [2007]

a) Dayanand Saraswati
b) Ishwar Chandra Vidyasagar
c) Raja Rammohan Roy
d)  Surendranath Banerjee

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Ans: b) Ishwar Chandra Vidyasagar

8] Which one of the following revolts was made famous by Bankim Chandra Chatterjee in his novel Anand Math? [2006]

a) Bhil uprising
b) Rangpur and Dinapur uprising
c) Bishnupur and Birbhum rebellion
d) Sanyasi rebellion

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Ans: d) Sanyasi rebellion

9] Who amongst the following Englishmen, first translated Bhagavad Gita into English? [2001]

a) William Jones                       b) Charles Wilkins
c) Alexander Cunningham      d) John Marshall

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Ans: b) Charles Wilkins

10] Match List I with List II and select the correct answer using the codes given below the Lists: [1999]

List I (Persons)	List II (Journals)
I. Shyamji Krishna Varma	A) Bande Mataram
II. Madame Bhikaji Cama	B) Indian Sociologist
III. Annie Besant	C) The Talwar
IV. Aurobindo Ghosh	D) Commonwealth

Codes:
a) I­B, II­C, III­D, IV­A        
b) I­C, II­B, III­A, IV­D
c) I­B, II­C, III­A, IV­D        
d) I­C, II­B, III­D, IV­A

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Ans: a) I­B, II­C, III­D, IV­A 

11] Which one of the following statements is not correct? [1999]

a) ‘Neel Darpan’ was a play based on the exploitation of the indigo farmers
b) The author of the play ‘Ghashiram Kotwal’ is Vijay Tendulkar
c) The play ‘Navanna’ by Nabin Chandra Das was based on the famine of Bengal
d) Urdu theatre used to depend heavily on Parsi theatre

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Ans: c) The play ‘Navanna’ by Nabin Chandra Das was based on the famine of Bengal

12] Match List I with List II and select the correct answer using the codes given below the Lists: [1999]

List I  (Books)	List II  (Authors)
I. The First Indian War of Independence	A) Rabindranath Tagore
II. Anand Math	B) Sri Aurobindo
III. Life Divine	C) Bankim Chandra Chatterji
IV. Sadhana	D) Vinayak Damodar Savarkar

Codes:
a) I­D, II­C, III­B, IV­A         b) I­C, II­D, III­A, IV­B
c) I­D, II­C, III­A, IV­B         d) I­C, II­D, III­B, IV­A

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Ans: a) I­D, II­C, III­B, IV­A 

13] Match List I with List II and select the correct answer by using the codes given below the lists: [1996]

List I	List II
I. Surendranath Bannerjee	A) Hind Swaraj
II. M. K. Gandhi	B) The Indian Struggle
III. Subhash Chandra Bose	C) Autobiographical Writings
IV. Lajpat Rai	D) A Nation in Making

Codes:
a) I ­ D, II ­ A, III ­ C, IV ­ B
b) I ­ A, II ­ D, III ­ C, IV ­ B
c) I ­ A, II ­ D, III ­ B, IV ­ C
d) I ­ D, II ­ A, III ­ B, IV – C

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Ans: d) I ­ D, II ­ A, III ­ B, IV – C

14] Which one of the following is an important historical novel written during the latter half of the nineteenth century? [1996]

a) Rast Goftar                       b) Durgesh Nandini
c) Maharatha                        d) Nibandhamala

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Ans: b) Durgesh Nandini

15] Which one of the following was an emigree Communist Journal of M.N. Roy? [1995]

a) Kisan Sabha                     b) The Worker
c) Vanguard                           d) Anushilan

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Ans: c) Vanguard