UPSC Essentials | Daily subject-wise quiz: History and Culture MCQs on Lohia’s socialism, Muthulakshmi Reddy and more (Week 103)

QUESTION 1

Consider the following statements with reference to Muthulakshmi Reddy :

1. She was the first woman legislator in British India. 

2. She was the first woman medical graduate in the Madras Presidency.

3. She became one of the early members of the Women’s Indian Association (WIA), an organisation founded in 1917.

4. She spoke out against practices like purdah (the veiling of women) and the exploitation of devadasis and prostitutes. 

Which of the above given statements is/are true?

(a) 1, 2 and 3 only

(b) 1, 2 and 4 only

(c) 3 and 4 only

(d) All of the above

Explanation

For much of her early 20s, Muthulakshmi Reddy resisted the idea of marriage. As she recalled in her memoir, cited by historian Geraldine Forbes in The New Cambridge History of India: Women in Modern India (1996), “I had even then set my heart upon something high, and I wanted to be a different woman from the common lot.”

However, by the time she was 28, Muthulakshmi found herself compelled to marry, though on her own terms. She set forth certain conditions, including that her future husband would “always respect her as an equal” and “never cross her wishes.” Her progressive outlook was clear, and it is no surprise that she was ahead of her time. Muthulakshmi Reddy was the first woman legislator in British India and the first woman medical graduate in the Madras Presidency.

During her years in college, Muthulakshmi met Sarojini Naidu and began attending women’s meetings, which had a lasting impact on her. Under Naidu’s influence, she became one of the early members of the Women’s Indian Association (WIA), an organisation founded in 1917, alongside prominent Irish suffragists. Key members of the WIA included figures like Annie Besant and Margaret Cousins.

In addition to her work in healthcare, Muthulakshmi spoke out against practices like purdah (the veiling of women) and the exploitation of devadasis and prostitutes. She believed that the system of veiling was rooted in an unfounded fear that granting women freedom would lead them to become “unchaste and disloyal.”

Therefore, d is the correct answer.

(Refer: How Muthulakshmi Reddy became British India’s first woman legislator and Madras Presidency’s first woman doctor)

QUESTION 2

Why is Cornelia Sorabji historically important?

(a)  She was the first Indian woman to study law 

(b) She was the first female scientist in India

(c) She is credited for writing India’s first feminist text

(d) She was the first female entrepreneur in India

Explanation

“I am to read law: the desire of my heart is accomplished,” an excited student wrote home in the 1890s. The student was Cornelia Sorabji, and what made the accomplishment truly remarkable was that she was the first Indian woman to study law and the first woman to study law at Oxford.

Cornelia was born on November 15, 1866, in Poona (now Pune). Her father, Reverend Sorabji Karsedji, was a Parsi who had converted to Anglican Christianity, while her mother, Francina Ford (later Sorabji), was a Parsi who had been adopted by a British family.

At the age of 22, Cornelia embarked on a remarkable journey. On September 19, 1889, she left for England to study at Somerville College, Oxford, at a time when higher education for women was still a rare and celebrated achievement. She expressed her hopes and determination in a letter home, cited by British historian and Cornelia’s nephew Richard Sorabji in his work Opening Doors: The Untold Story Of Cornelia Sorabji: “‘How I do hope all will be successful.’”

Therefore, a is the correct answer.

(Refer: The trailblazing journey of Cornelia Sorabji, India’s first woman lawyer who fought against odds to graduate from Oxford)

QUESTION 3

Ghodemodini and Phugadi refer to:

(a) traditional folk dances performed in western India

(b) migrant communities found in south Indian states 

(c) harvest festivals in north-west India

(d) theatre forms popular in Himalayan states

Explanation

Shigmo, or Shigmotsav, is the celebration of a ‘rich, golden harvest of paddy’ by the tribal communities of Goa, said Prajal Sakhardande, Professor of History at Panaji’s Dhempe College of Arts and Science. Agricultural communities including the Kunbis, Gawdas and Velips celebrate the festival that also marks the onset of spring. Shigmo celebrations last over a fortnight in the months of Phalgun-Chaitra months of the Hindu calendar that correspond with March-April every year.

The festival begins with Naman, the invocation of local folk deities on the village maand, or the village stage, to the beats of percussion instruments like the ghumat, dhol, mhadle and tashe by men, Sakhardande said. This is called the romta mell that moves from one village to another. The celebration is replete with traditional, colourful costumes, mythological installations, painted faces and colourful costumes. Folk dances like Ghodemodini (a dance of equestrian warriors), Gopha and Phugadi are among the many performed by the participating communities.

Therefore, a is the correct answer.

QUESTION 4

Consider the following statements with reference to Ram Manohar Lohia:

1. He proposed building the economy around small-scale industries to ensure equitable wealth distribution, as he believed large-scale industrialisation would exacerbate inequalities. 

2. In comparison to Nehru, his socialism sought to establish a state-led model based on centralised planning.

3. He presented the concept of “Sapta Kranti” or seven revolutions to establish the new Socialism.

Which of the above given statements is/are correct?

(a) 1 and 2 only

(b) 1 and 3 only

(c) 2 and 3 only

(d) 1, 2 and 3

Explanation

Through his doctrine of new Socialism, Lohia envisioned eliminating inequalities across caste, class, and gender through economic democracy. He argued that traditional hierarchies, especially caste, had hindered India’s social progress and that socialism must actively dismantle these barriers through affirmative action.

Lohia presented the concept of “Sapta Kranti” or seven revolutions to establish the new Socialism –

(i) Revolting for equality between man and woman

(ii) Abolition of inequalities based on colour

(iii) Elimination of inequalities of birth and caste

(iv) National freedom or ending of foreign influence

(v) Economic equality through increase in production

(vi) Protecting the privacy of individual life from all collective encroachments, and

(vii) Limitation on armaments

Lohia and Nehru’s Socialisms

Despite both being socialists, Lohia and Jawaharlal Nehru had starkly different visions for Socialism. Lohia was a critic of the Nehru government. He was one among those parliamentarians who moved India’s first no-confidence motion against the Nehru government in 1963.

In comparison to Nehru, Lohia’s socialism was decentralised in nature, evident in his advocacy for the establishment of a four-tier administrative structure based on village autonomy. He proposed building the economy around small-scale industries to ensure equitable wealth distribution, as he believed large-scale industrialisation would exacerbate inequalities.

Nehruvian Socialism, on the other hand, sought to establish a state-led model based on centralised planning. Nehru backed a mixed economy with large-scale industrialisation guided by the national plans.

Therefore, b is the correct answer.

(Refer: How Lohia’s new Socialism shaped his social justice politics)

QUESTION 5

The Rajamandala theory, which is a circular way of looking at the kingdom, originates from which ancient text?

(a) Manusmriti

(b) Arthashastra

(c) Mahabharata

(d) Nitisara

Explanation

Kautilya, in the Arthashastra (300 AD) comes up with the idea of the Rajamandala, which is a circular way of looking at the kingdom. At the center is the king. Around him is the land for which he charges rent. Beyond that is land for which he charges taxes, in return of which he gives his protection. Beyond that circle are the lands that pay tribute, and if they do not pay tribute, he threatens to destroy them. Beyond that are the hostile people, the enemy state, who don’t give him tributes. Beyond that is the enemy of the enemy, with whom he exchanges gifts, in order to crush the enemy state in between. 

This idea became popular in the Gupta period, and traveled to South-East Asian kingdoms which are called Mandala kingdoms. When the king is strong, the mandala expands. When the king is weak, the mandala contracts. The sphere of influence keeps changing. That is how the Indian model of kingship is established, through the idea of the circle.

Therefore, b is the correct answer.

(Refer: How mandala system shaped governance in India and Southeast Asia)

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