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Answer: C

Explanation:

• The Residency system was a key feature of British indirect rule in India. It allowed the British to control Indian states without directly administering them.
• The Mughal system of vakils involved representatives (vakils) employed by Indian states or nobility to represent them at the Mughal court. This system was replicated by successor states but was fundamentally different from the British Residency system. Hence, Statement 1 is correct.
• The Residents acted as intermediaries between the British and Indian princes, often exerting significant influence over the latter. Over time, their role evolved from diplomatic to controlling, effectively reducing many Indian rulers to “puppets” under British paramountcy.
• As the nature of the East India Company’s function in India changed from commercial to political, the role of the commercial agents, who were placed at the courts of various Indian states to look after the Company’s trading interests, also transposed into that of Residents handling political relations between the Company Raj and the Indian princes. Hence, Statement 2 is correct.

Theme: Government Administration and Policies
Source: From Plassey to Partition by Sekhar Bandyopadhyay, 2.4

Answer: B

Explanation:

• Statement 1 is incorrect as the primary purpose of railway construction was to serve imperial interests, such as facilitating army movements and integrating Indian markets with British trade.
• Statement 2 is correct as British capital investments in railways were guaranteed a 5% return, with the risk borne by Indian revenues.
• Statement 3 is incorrect as the railway network was designed to connect ports to raw material sources, not to integrate internal markets within India. The construction planning favoured this goal, as it connected the internal markets with the ports but provided no interconnection between the internal market cities.

Theme: Government Administration and Policies
Source: From Plassey to Partition by Sekhar Bandyopadhyay, 2.4

Answer: B

Explanation:

• Statement 1 is correct as jute cultivation developed as peasants sought to earn by cultivating the “golden crop.”
• Statement 2 is incorrect as the primary producers of jute did not reap significant benefits from the jute market boom; British manufacturers and exporters captured most of the profits.
• Statement 3 is correct as the jute economy crashed in the 1930s, followed by the Bengal famine of 1943.

Theme: Government Administration and Policies
Source: From Plassey to Partition by Sekhar Bandyopadhyay, 2.4

Answer: B

Explanation:

• Statement 1 is incorrect as the commercialization of agriculture did not lead to a significant rise of a rural capitalist class or widespread proletarianization.
• Statement 2 is correct as rich peasants benefited from cash crop cultivation but remained vulnerable to market fluctuations, as seen in the case of cotton cultivation during the American Civil War.
• Statement 3 is incorrect as while a direct connection between commercialization and famines is difficult to establish, cash crops in some areas may have displaced food crops, contributing to localized food shortages.

Theme: Government Administration and Policies
Source: From Plassey to Partition by Sekhar Bandyopadhyay, 2.4

Answer: C

Explanation:

• Statement 1 is correct as the bazaar economy operated in sectors where returns were too low or risks too high for European investors, who preferred “sure bets.”
• Statement 2 is correct as indigenous merchants and bankers expanded their operations overseas to regions like China, Burma, and East Africa.
• Statement 3 is incorrect as the bazaar economy was not entirely independent of British imperial policies; it took advantage of imperial infrastructure like railways and telegraphs.

Theme: Government Administration and Policies
Source: From Plassey to Partition by Sekhar Bandyopadhyay, 2.4