Nationalism in India · Class 10 History: 225 MCQs with answers

Q1. According to the 1921 census, how many people perished as a result of famines and the influenza epidemic?

Q2. Where had Gandhiji first used satyagraha successfully before returning to India in 1915?

Q3. Which satyagraha did Gandhiji lead in 1917 in Bihar?

Q4. What was the most objectionable feature of the Rowlatt Act for Indians?

Q5. How did Gandhiji plan to begin the civil disobedience against the Rowlatt Act?

Q6. Why did Gandhiji call off the Rowlatt satyagraha?

Q7. Which statement correctly describes the crowd at Jallianwala Bagh on 13 April 1919?

Q8. What is meant by the idea of satyagraha?

Q9. Why were Indians outraged by the Rowlatt Act?

Q10. Describe Gandhiji's early satyagraha movements in India.

Q11. Who was the Khalifa whose powers the Khilafat Committee sought to defend?

Q12. Which was to be the first stage of the Non-Cooperation Movement?

Q13. At which Congress session was the Non-Cooperation programme adopted after a compromise?

Q14. Against whom was the Awadh peasant movement led by Baba Ramchandra directed?

Q15. What is begar, which Awadh peasants and Gudem tribals opposed?

Q16. Which law prevented Assam plantation workers from leaving the tea gardens without permission?

Q17. What happened at Chauri Chaura in February 1922?

Q18. When did the Non-Cooperation-Khilafat Movement begin?

Q19. Who set up the Oudh Kisan Sabha in 1920?

Q20. Why did Gandhiji decide to withdraw the Non-Cooperation Movement?

Q21. What did swaraj mean to the plantation workers of Assam?

Q22. What was formalised at the Lahore session of the Congress in December 1929?

Q23. Who presided over the Lahore Congress of 1929?

Q24. Where did the Salt March start and end?

Q25. How many volunteers set out with Gandhiji on the Salt March?

Q26. What did Gandhiji do at Dandi on 6 April 1930?

Q27. Under the Gandhi-Irwin Pact, what did the government agree to do?

Q28. When was the Gandhi-Irwin Pact signed?

Q29. Who led the radicals who became more assertive after Irwin's 1929 offer?

Q30. Why was the Simon Commission opposed in India?

Q31. Describe the Salt March.

Q32. Which communities are described as rich peasant supporters of the movement?

Q33. Which organisation of Indian business was formed in 1927?

Q34. In which region did industrial workers participate in Civil Disobedience in large numbers?

Q35. Which statement about women in the Civil Disobedience Movement is correct?

Q36. What did Gandhiji mean by calling the 'untouchables' harijan?

Q37. Which organisation did Dr B. R. Ambedkar form in 1930?

Q38. When was the Poona Pact signed?

Q39. When and where was the Hindustan Socialist Republican Army founded?

Q40. Which action was carried out by Bhagat Singh and Batukeswar Dutta in April 1929?

Q41. What did Indian business classes expect from the national movement?

Q42. What was the Poona Pact of 1932?

Q43. Who first created the image of Bharat Mata?

Q44. In which novel was the hymn 'Vande Mataram' later included?

Q45. Who published 'The Folklore of Southern India'?

Q46. What did the eight lotuses on the Swadeshi flag represent?

Q47. Why is the growth of modern nationalism in India said to be intimately connected with the anti-colonial movement?

Q48. Which statement best explains why unity in the Indian national movement did not emerge without conflict?

Q49. How was the huge increase in India's defence expenditure during the First World War financed?

Q50. An Indian family in 1918 finds that the rice it bought for Rs 5 in 1913 now costs about Rs 10. Which effect of the war does this show?

Q51. Why did forced recruitment in rural areas during the First World War cause anger?

Q52. Read the Assertion and Reason and choose the correct option. Assertion (A): The First World War created a new economic and political situation in India. Reason (R): The war was financed partly by war loans raised in India.

Q53. A satyagrahi faces an unjust official. According to the idea of satyagraha, how should she try to win?

Q54. Why did Gandhiji believe non-violence suited India's struggle against Britain?

Q55. The peasants of a Gujarat district in 1918 cannot pay revenue after crop failure and plague. Which satyagraha does this describe?

Q56. Consider the following statements about Gandhiji's early satyagrahas. 1. Champaran was against the plantation system. 2. In Ahmedabad he organised cotton mill workers. 3. Kheda was a satyagraha of factory owners against taxes. Which of the statements given above are correct?

Q57. Read the Assertion and Reason and choose the correct option. Assertion (A): Indians were outraged by the Rowlatt Act. Reason (R): It was hurriedly passed despite the united opposition of the Indian members of the Imperial Legislative Council.

Q58. Why did the British administration decide to clamp down on nationalists in April 1919?

Q59. Which two steps did the British take against the Rowlatt satyagraha before 13 April 1919?

Q60. Why were many villagers at Jallianwala Bagh unaware of the danger they faced?

Q61. What made the firing at Jallianwala Bagh so deadly?

Q62. Which of these was NOT a form of repression that followed the Jallianwala Bagh massacre?

Q63. What did Gandhiji conclude from the Rowlatt satyagraha about the next stage of the struggle?

Q64. Consider the following statements about the Rowlatt satyagraha. 1. Workers in railway workshops went on strike. 2. Shops closed down in many cities. 3. It spread widely through the villages of India. Which of the statements given above are correct?

Q65. Why did the people's hopes after the First World War turn to disappointment?

Q66. A student writes that satyagraha means 'fighting injustice with weapons if necessary'. Which correction fits Gandhiji's idea?

Q67. Read the Assertion and Reason and choose the correct option. Assertion (A): The Jallianwala Bagh incident took place in Amritsar in April 1919. Reason (R): Gandhiji had himself called for an armed uprising in Punjab.

Q68. Which pair correctly matches a place with its satyagraha?

Q69. Which of these shows the political effect of the First World War on the Indian countryside?

Q70. How did the First World War help in the growth of the national movement in India?

Q71. Write a short report on the Jallianwala Bagh massacre.

Q72. Explain how the First World War created a new economic and political situation in India.

Q73. Describe the Rowlatt satyagraha and the events that led to the Jallianwala Bagh massacre.

Q74. Why did Gandhiji decide to take up the Khilafat issue in 1919-20?

Q75. According to Hind Swaraj, why would non-cooperation bring swaraj within a year?

Q76. Consider the following statements about the Non-Cooperation programme. 1. It included a boycott of foreign goods. 2. It included a boycott of schools and courts. 3. It began with breaking the salt law. Which of the statements given above are correct?

Q77. Why were many Congress leaders initially reluctant to accept Gandhiji's non-cooperation proposals in 1920?

Q78. Read the Assertion and Reason and choose the correct option. Assertion (A): The import of foreign cloth halved between 1921 and 1922. Reason (R): The value of those imports fell from Rs 102 crore to Rs 57 crore.

Q79. The value of imported foreign cloth fell from Rs 102 crore to Rs 57 crore. By roughly how much did it fall?

Q80. Why did council elections go ahead in Madras when they were boycotted in most other provinces?

Q81. Why did the Non-Cooperation Movement in the cities slow down?

Q82. A poor weaver in 1921 wants to boycott foreign cloth but cannot afford khadi. What problem of the movement does this illustrate?

Q83. Why did many students and teachers return to government schools during the Non-Cooperation Movement?

Q84. Why did Awadh panchayats organise nai-dhobi bandhs?

Q85. Why could tenants in Awadh acquire no rights over the land they leased?

Q86. Read the Assertion and Reason and choose the correct option. Assertion (A): The Congress leadership was unhappy with how the Awadh peasant movement developed in 1921. Reason (R): Talukdars' houses were attacked, bazaars looted and grain hoards taken over.

Q87. What provoked the hill people of the Gudem Hills to revolt in the early 1920s?

Q88. Why was Alluri Sitaram Raju's movement 'not a form of struggle that the Congress could approve'?

Q89. Consider the following statements about Alluri Sitaram Raju. 1. He persuaded people to wear khadi and give up drinking. 2. His followers saw him as an incarnation of God. 3. He led the Awadh peasants. Which of the statements given above are correct?

Q90. What did freedom mean to Assam plantation workers in 1921?

Q91. Why did the Assam plantation workers who left the gardens never reach their homes?

Q92. Why did the Assam plantation workers believe they would be given land in their villages?

Q93. Which pair correctly matches a group with its idea of swaraj in 1921?

Q94. Read the Assertion and Reason and choose the correct option. Assertion (A): Gandhiji withdrew the Non-Cooperation Movement in February 1922. Reason (R): He judged that the movement had already won swaraj and could therefore be closed.

Q95. Why is the Non-Cooperation Movement described as having 'differing strands'?

Q96. Which group's participation in Non-Cooperation most clearly departed from Gandhian non-violence?

Q97. Why did merchants and traders help the Non-Cooperation Movement in many places?

Q98. How did the boycott of foreign cloth benefit Indian industry in 1921-22?

Q99. Why did Gandhiji link the Khilafat issue with Non-Cooperation?

Q100. Describe the Non-Cooperation Movement in the towns and why it slowed down.

Q101. How did the peasants of Awadh participate in the Non-Cooperation Movement?

Q102. How did the tribals of the Gudem Hills interpret swaraj?

Q103. List the social groups that joined the Non-Cooperation Movement of 1921, and explain the hopes and struggles of any three.

Q104. Explain the reasons for and the programme of the Non-Cooperation Movement.

Q105. Why did C. R. Das and Motilal Nehru form the Swaraj Party after 1922?

Q106. How did the worldwide economic depression create unrest in rural India?

Q107. Why did Indians protest against the Simon Commission?

Q108. Read the Assertion and Reason and choose the correct option. Assertion (A): The Simon Commission was welcomed in India when it arrived in 1928. Reason (R): The Commission did not have a single Indian member.

Q109. Consider the following statements about the Simon Commission. 1. It was set up by the Tory government in Britain. 2. Both the Congress and the Muslim League protested against it. 3. It included three Indian members. Which of the statements given above are correct?

Q110. Why did Irwin's announcement of October 1929 fail to satisfy the Congress?

Q111. Why did Gandhiji's letter of 31 January 1930 include demands specific to different classes?

Q112. Why did Gandhiji choose salt as the focus of the new movement?

Q113. Read the Assertion and Reason and choose the correct option. Assertion (A): Gandhiji said the salt tax revealed the most oppressive face of British rule. Reason (R): Salt was one of the most essential food items, and the government held a monopoly over its production.

Q114. What was the deadline in Gandhiji's ultimatum to Irwin?

Q115. The Salt March covered over 240 miles in 24 days. About how far did the marchers walk each day?

Q116. Which statement best explains how the Civil Disobedience Movement differed from the Non-Cooperation Movement?

Q117. Consider the following actions during 1930-31. 1. Peasants refused to pay revenue and chaukidari taxes. 2. Forest people violated forest laws. 3. Students were asked to join the British army. Which of these were part of the Civil Disobedience Movement?

Q118. A village official resigns in 1930, and nearby villagers refuse to pay the chaukidari tax. Which movement are they part of?

Q119. Why did violent clashes break out in Peshawar in April 1930?

Q120. How did industrial workers in Sholapur react when Gandhiji was arrested in 1930?

Q121. Roughly how many people were arrested during the Civil Disobedience Movement of 1930-31?

Q122. Why did Gandhiji decide to call off Civil Disobedience in 1931?

Q123. Read the Assertion and Reason and choose the correct option. Assertion (A): Gandhiji returned disappointed from the Round Table Conference of December 1931. Reason (R): The talks in London ended in full agreement on the Indian demands.

Q124. What did Gandhiji find when he returned from London at the end of 1931?

Q125. Arrange the following events in chronological order. 1. Salt March to Dandi 2. Lahore Congress demands Purna Swaraj 3. Gandhi-Irwin Pact 4. Simon Commission arrives in India

Q126. Why did younger leaders like Jawaharlal Nehru and Subhas Chandra Bose oppose the Swaraj Party's approach?

Q127. Which of these was an effect of the Great Depression on India's economy in the early 1930s?

Q128. What was Gandhiji's letter to Irwin in January 1930 effectively?

Q129. What happened to the Civil Disobedience Movement after it was relaunched in 1932?

Q130. Which statement about Lala Lajpat Rai during the Simon Commission protests is correct?

Q131. How did the economic depression prepare the ground for Civil Disobedience?

Q132. Why was salt a powerful symbol that could unite the nation?

Q133. How was the Civil Disobedience Movement different from the Non-Cooperation Movement?

Q134. What was the Gandhi-Irwin Pact, and what followed it?

Q135. Describe the political and economic developments between 1926 and 1930 that led to the Civil Disobedience Movement.

Q136. Explain how the Salt March became an effective tool of resistance, and describe the course of the Civil Disobedience Movement until 1934.

Q137. Why did the Patidars of Gujarat and the Jats of UP become active supporters of Civil Disobedience?

Q138. Why did many rich peasants refuse to join when Civil Disobedience was restarted in 1932?

Q139. What did poor peasants, mostly small tenants, want from the movement?

Q140. Read the Assertion and Reason and choose the correct option. Assertion (A): The Congress was unwilling to support 'no rent' campaigns in most places. Reason (R): It was afraid of upsetting rich peasants and landlords.

Q141. What did Indian industrialists want in terms of the rupee-sterling exchange ratio?

Q142. Consider the following statements about Indian business classes. 1. They had made huge profits during the First World War. 2. They gave financial assistance to the movement. 3. They supported workers' strikes for higher wages. Which of the statements given above are correct?

Q143. Why did business groups become less enthusiastic about Civil Disobedience after 1931?

Q144. Why did most industrial workers stay aloof from Civil Disobedience?

Q145. Read the Assertion and Reason and choose the correct option. Assertion (A): The Congress readily took up the workers' demands as part of its own programme. Reason (R): It felt this would alienate industrialists and divide the anti-imperial forces.

Q146. Which of these was a workers' action linked to the national movement?

Q147. Why did women's large-scale participation not change their position within the Congress much?

Q148. From which backgrounds did most women participants come?

Q149. How did Gandhiji's approach to ending untouchability differ from that of many dalit leaders?

Q150. Where was dalit participation in Civil Disobedience particularly limited?

Q151. Why did Gandhiji begin a fast unto death after the British accepted Ambedkar's demand?

Q152. Read the Assertion and Reason and choose the correct option. Assertion (A): The Poona Pact gave the Depressed Classes reserved seats in legislative councils. Reason (R): Under the pact, these seats were to be filled by a separate electorate of dalits only.

Q153. Why did a large section of Muslims feel alienated from the Congress after the mid-1920s?

Q154. Consider the following statements about Jinnah's proposal in the late 1920s. 1. He was willing to give up separate electorates on certain conditions. 2. He wanted reserved seats for Muslims in the Central Assembly. 3. He wanted representation in proportion to population in Bengal and Punjab. Which of the statements given above are correct?

Q155. Why did hopes of a Hindu-Muslim compromise fade at the All Parties Conference of 1928?

Q156. What did Sir Muhammad Iqbal argue as President of the Muslim League in 1930?

Q157. Why did many Muslim leaders worry about their community's future in an independent India?

Q158. Which pair correctly matches a group with what swaraj meant to it?

Q159. How did the HSRA's methods differ from those of the Congress under Gandhiji?

Q160. What did Bhagat Singh say he wanted, rather than glorifying the bomb and pistol?

Q161. Which statement best sums up the 'limits' of Civil Disobedience?

Q162. Why did rich peasants join the Civil Disobedience Movement, and why were they disappointed?

Q163. Why was the relationship between poor peasants and the Congress uncertain?

Q164. Describe the participation of women in the Civil Disobedience Movement.

Q165. Why did many Muslims stay away from the Civil Disobedience Movement?

Q166. 'Different social groups joined the Civil Disobedience Movement with their own aspirations.' Explain with reference to peasants, business classes and industrial workers.

Q167. Explain the limits of the Civil Disobedience Movement with reference to dalits and Muslims.

Q168. Which statement best explains how a sense of collective belonging developed in India?

Q169. Why did 'Vande Mataram' become widely popular in Bengal?

Q170. How is Bharat Mata portrayed in Abanindranath Tagore's painting?

Q171. Read the Assertion and Reason and choose the correct option. Assertion (A): Devotion to Bharat Mata came to be seen as evidence of one's nationalism. Reason (R): India came to be pictured as Bharat Mata.

Q172. Why did nationalists in the late 19th century tour villages to gather folk songs and legends?

Q173. Consider the following statements about folk revival. 1. Rabindranath Tagore collected ballads, nursery rhymes and myths. 2. Natesa Sastri considered folklore to be national literature. 3. Folk revival was led by British officials. Which of the statements given above are correct?

Q174. What did the crescent moon on the Swadeshi flag stand for?

Q175. Why did Gandhiji place a spinning wheel at the centre of the Swaraj flag in 1921?

Q176. Which pair correctly matches a flag with its colours?

Q177. Why did carrying the national flag during marches become significant?

Q178. Why did nationalists feel that Indian history had to be thought about differently?

Q179. According to nationalist histories, what happened after India's glorious ancient period?

Q180. What was the aim of nationalist histories that celebrated ancient Indian achievements?

Q181. Which event immediately preceded the Quit India Movement and caused discontent?

Q182. Why did Gandhiji insist that satyagraha was 'active resistance' and not 'passive resistance'?

Q183. Dyer later declared that his object was to 'produce a moral effect'. What did he mean?

Q184. Arrange in order: 1. Martial law in Amritsar 2. Hartal against the Rowlatt Act 3. Jallianwala Bagh massacre 4. Police firing on a procession in Amritsar

Q185. Which of these best explains why satyagraha could draw in ordinary people who had no weapons?

Q186. Why were railways and telegraph lines a concern for the British during the Rowlatt satyagraha?

Q187. Why was the Jallianwala Bagh massacre a turning point in Indian nationalism?

Q188. What did Gandhiji mean when he said satyagraha is active resistance?

Q189. Explain the idea of satyagraha and show how Gandhiji used it in India before 1920.

Q190. Local leaders in Awadh told peasants that Gandhiji had declared no taxes were to be paid and land would go to the poor. What does this show?

Q191. Which statement best explains how local movements of 1921 were linked to the national struggle?

Q192. 'The term swaraj meant different things to different people.' Explain with examples from the Non-Cooperation Movement.

Q193. Why did the Independence Day celebrations of 26 January 1930 lead Gandhiji to look for a new issue?

Q194. Why is the Salt March regarded as an effective way to mobilise people?

Q195. 'Civil Disobedience marked a new stage in the national movement.' Compare it with the Non-Cooperation Movement to support this statement.

Q196. Which statement best explains why poor peasants often joined Socialist and Communist-led movements?

Q197. Why is the Congress described as struggling to hold together different groups in the movement?

Q198. How far did the Civil Disobedience Movement bring women into public life? Evaluate.

Q199. Read the Assertion and Reason and choose the correct option. Assertion (A): Some efforts to build national unity left people of other communities feeling excluded. Reason (R): The past being glorified and the images celebrated were often drawn from Hindu iconography.

Q200. What does the idea of 'a nation with many voices' suggest about the national movement?