UPSC Essentials | Daily subject-wise static quiz: Hind Swaraj, Ashtanga Hridaya, a 19th century Urdu verse, and more (Week 126)

QUESTION 1

Consider the following statements:

1. Gandhi wrote Hind Swaraj while on board the ship Kildonan Castle on his return voyage to South Africa from London.

2. Hind Swaraj represents Gandhi’s thinking before he led India’s national movement into the ‘mass movement phase’ and contains the perspective of an expatriate Indian viewing colonial India from a distance.

Which of the statements given above is/are correct?

(a) 1 only

(b) 2 only

(c) Both 1 and 2

(d) Neither 1 nor 2

Explanation

Mahatma Gandhi’s Hind Swaraj is perhaps his most well-known work, written in the form of a dialogue between an editor and his reader. Gandhi wrote this book in a very short duration of nine days between November 13 and 22, 1909, on board the ship Kildonan Castle on his return voyage to South Africa from London.

The dialogue unfolds through a series of questions and clarifications that the reader seeks from the editor about themes as diverse as civilisation, violence, passive resistance and swaraj, among many others. It is significant that Gandhi wrote this work first in Gujarati and later translated it into English himself.

Therefore, c is the correct answer.

(For more, refer: Why does Gandhi emphasise originality in swaraj? by Amir Ali, UPSC Essentials, The Indian Express.)

QUESTION 2

“When they had to leave India and come to this island
The prisoners’ evil fate made the water black”

The verses mentioned above by the nineteenth-century Urdu poet Munir Shikohabadi refer to:

a) The forced exile of Indian political prisoners to the Cellular Jail on an island

b) Pollution of the water bodies caused by the activities of the East India Company

c) The displacement of tribal communities from their ancestral lands during British colonial rule

d) The migration of indentured laborers from India to the Caribbean islands

Explanation

In the wake of the 1857 uprising, the British found themselves with more prisoners than prisons. To manage the overflow of captured rebels, they turned to the remote Andaman Islands, where they established a penal colony that would eventually become the infamous Cellular Jail, also known as Kala Pani,  in Port Blair in 1906.

The journey to these islands was punishment in itself. Prisoners were forced to violate caste and social norms: food was shared, water came from a common pump, and men of all backgrounds were shackled together. Disease ran rampant, and hygiene was nearly absent.

Therefore, a is the correct answer.

(For more, refer: From Kala Pani to overcrowded jails: Why Indian prisons still bear a colonial stamp by Nikita Mohta, Research, The Indian Express.)

QUESTION 3

Who wrote Ashtanga Hridaya?

(a) Sushruta

(b) Bhavamishra

(c) Sharangadhara

(d) Vagbhata

Explanation

The Government of India  designated 23rd September as the fixed date for celebrating Ayurveda Day every year through a Gazette Notification issued in March 2025. Earlier, Ayurveda Day was celebrated on Dhanvantari Jayanti (Dhanteras).

Charaka Samhita by Charaka (based on Agnivesha’s work), Sushruta Samhita by Sushruta, and Ashtanga Hridaya by Vagbhata, Laghu Trayi (three shorter treatises) include Madhava Nidana by Madhavakara, Bhavaprakasha by Bhavamishra, and Sharangadhara Samhita by Sharangadhara are some of the texts related to Ayurveda.

Therefore, d is the correct answer.

(For more, refer: Knowledge Nugget: National Ayurveda Day — Why the universal calendar identity of Ayurveda matters for UPSC Exam, Roshni Yadav, UPSC Essentials, The Indian Express.)

QUESTION 4

The Dadasaheb Phalke Award for 2023 was conferred upon: 

(a) Rajinikanth

(b) Waheeda Rehman 

(c) Mithun Chakraborty

(d) Mohanlal

Explanation

Malayalam superstar Mohanlal was honoured with the Dadasaheb Phalke Award 2023. The award was presented at the 71st National Film Awards ceremony on Sept 23, 2025.

Therefore, d is the correct answer.

(For more, refer: Malayalam superstar Mohanlal honoured with the Dadasaheb Phalke Award 2023, The Indian Express)

QUESTION 5

Consider the pair of following artists and their art forms, recently seen in news:

Which of the above pairs are correctly matched?

(a) 1 and 3 only

(b) 1, 2 and 4 only

(c) 2, 3 and 4 only

(d) 1, 2, 3 and 4

Explanation

Veteran actress Sandhya Shantaram, wife of late filmmaker V Shantaram, has died due to age-related ailments, her family said on Saturday. She was 94.

Sandhya Shantaram was the third wife of the legendary filmmaker and frequently starred as the leading lady in films such as Do Aankhen Barah Haath (1957), Navrang (1959), Jhanak Jhanak Payal Baje (1955), and Pinjra (1972).

All other artists also passed away recently.

Therefore, b is the correct answer.

(For more, refer: Veteran actor Sandhya Shantaram dies)

Topic: How are US tariffs likely to impact India? What can India do?
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