CBSE Class 11 Economics Indian Economy On The Eve of Independence Worksheet Set B

Multiple Choice Questions (MCQs)

Question. One of the following statements about the Indian economy is not true. Identify the statement:
(a) Indian economy was flourishing before the advent of British.
(b) British developed the railway system in India for their own benefit.
(c) India had a sound industrial base under the British.
(d) India’s foreign trade throughout the colonial period was marked by a large export surplus.
Answer: (c)

Question. The British introduced the Railways in India in the year _________.
(a) 1805
(b) 1855
(c) 1850
(d) 1860
Answer: (c)

Question. The second stage of demographic transition began;
(a) after 1921
(b) before 1921
(c) from 1921
(d) none of the above
Answer: (a)

Question. The public sector during the British rule, remained confined to the following areas of operation:
(a) railways
(b) power generation
(c) both (a) and (b)
(d) none of the above
Answer: (c)

Question. The stagnation in agriculture was caused mainly due to:
(a) systems of land settlement
(b) commercialisation of agriculture
(c) zamindari system
(d) all of the above
Answer: (d)

Question. Identify the economist who did not provide any estimate about the national and per capita income during the colonial period:
(a) Dadabhai Naoroji
(b) V.K.R.V. Rao
(c) Horace Secrist
(d) Findlay Shirras
Answer: (c)

Question. Indian economy on the eve of Independence displayed the following characteristics:
(a) colonial
(b) stagnant
(c) backward
(d) all of the above
Answer: (d)

Question. Which year was considered as the year of the great divide?
(a) 1921
(b) 1947
(c) 1951
(d) 1931
Answer: (a)

Question. The export surplus during the British rule was used to:
(a) import invisible items
(b) make payments for expenses incurred by an office setup by the colonial government in Britain.
(c) meet the expenses on War fought by the British government
(d) all of the above
Answer: (d)

Question. The first official census was conducted in the year
(a) 1921
(b) 1951
(c) 1881
(d) 1851
Answer: (c)

Question. Occupational structure refers to:
(a) the total workforce of a country
(b) the distribution of working persons across different industries and sectors
(c) population of a country
(d) None of the above
Answer: (b)

Question. What was the nature of the Indian economy on the eve of independence?
(a) Stagnant
(b) Backward
(c) Underdeveloped
(d) All of these
Answer: (d)

Question. In which of the following sectors is manufacturing activity included?
(a) Primary
(b) Tertiary
(c) Secondary
(d) All of these
Answer: (c)

Question. Which of the following was the major occupation on the eve of independence?
(a) Industry
(b) Services
(c) Agriculture
(d) None of these
Answer: (c)

Question. What was the life expectancy at birth in India on the eve of Independence?
(a) 44 years
(b) 50 years
(c) 60 years
(d) All of these
Answer: (a)

Question. Where was the first iron and steel company established?
(a) Kolkata
(b) Jamshedpur
(c) Patna
(d) Ranchi
Answer: (b)

Assertion-Reason Questions

DIRECTION: Read the following statements— Assertion (A) and Reason (R). Choose one of the correct alternatives given below:
(a) Assertion and Reason both are correct statements and Reason is correct explanation for Assertion.
(b) Assertion and Reason both are correct statements but Reason is not correct explanation for Assertion.
(c) Assertion is true but Reason is false.
(d) Assertion is false but Reason is true.

Question. Assertion: The policies of the colonial government brought a fundamental change in the structure of the Indian economy.
Reason: The economic policies pursued by the colonial government favoured the promotion of their economic interest.
Answer: (a) Assertion and reason both are correct statements and reason is correct explanation for assertion.

Question. Assertion: During the pre-British period, the land settlement system was one of the main reasons for stagnation in agriculture.
Reason: Though, a large proportion of the population was dependent on agriculture, the country was not self-sufficient in food.
Answer: (b) Assertion and reason both are correct statements but reason is not correct explanation for assertion.
Under this system, profits accruing out of the agricultural sector went to the zamindars in the form of lagaan. The zamindars and the colonial government did nothing to improve the condition of agriculture.

Question. Assertion: India’s foreign trade was restricted only to Great Britain.
Reason: India became an exporter of primary products like jute, Indigo etc.
Answer: (d) Assertion is false but Reason is true.
During the British rule, India became an exporter of primary products and importer of finished goods.

Question. Assertion: Lack of Capital Goods industry hindered the industrialisation in India.
Reason: This was done to ensure that India was not dependent on any country for the supply of Capital goods and heavy equipment.
Answer: (c) Assertion is true but Reason is false.
During the British rule, there were hardly any Capital goods industries to promote further Industrialisation in India. This was done to ensure that India remained dependent for their Capital goods requirements.

Question. Assertion: During the British rule, there was a huge export surplus due to excess exports.
Reason: The British government maintained monopoly control over India's foreign trade and used this export surplus for India's development.
Answer: (c) Assertion is true but Reason is false.
Huge amounts of goods were being exported to Britain each year resulting in an export surplus (excess of exports over imports) but it did not result in any flow of gold or silver into India.

Question. Assertion: The public sector remained confined to some departmental undertakings like railways, communications etc.
Reason: The restricted growth of the public sector was a drawback for the industrial sector.
Answer: (a) Assertion and reason both are correct statements and reason is correct explanation for assertion.

Question. Assertion: Development of railways enhanced commercialization of agriculture.
Reason: The British government developed infrastructure in India to serve their own colonial interests.
Answer: (a) Assertion and reason both are correct statements and reason is correct explanation for assertion.

Question. Assertion: On the eve of Independence, both birth rate and death rate were very high.
Reason: Life Expectancy was also high at 68 years compared to the present 44 years
Answer: (c) Assertion is true but Reason is false.
This was because India was then in a state of backwardness. On the eve of independence, both birth rate and death rate both were very high at \( 48 \) and \( 40 \) per thousand persons respectively.

Question. Assertion: The discriminatory tariff policy followed by the British led to the decline of Indian handicrafts.
Reason: The composition of exports and imports of the Indian economy made it backward and stagnant.
Answer: (b) Assertion and reason both are correct statements but reason is not correct explanation for assertion.
Under this discriminatory policy, export of raw materials from India and imports of finished goods to India were made tariff free while heavy duties were imposed on the export of Indian handicrafts.

Question. Assertion: Indian economy, under the British Colonial rule, remained fundamentally agrarian.
Reason: Commercialization of agriculture, land settlement system and partition of the country adversely affected Indian agriculture.
Answer: (a) Assertion and reason both are correct statements and reason is correct explanation for assertion.

Question. Assertion: The large import surplus generated during the colonial period came at a huge cost to the Indian economy.
Reason: This created scarcity of essential commodities in the domestic market and did not result in any flow of gold and silver into our country.
Answer: (d) Assertion is false but Reason is true.
There was export surplus (excess of exports over imports) throughout the colonial period for which there was no corresponding return of money.

Question. Assertion: During the British rule, in agriculture, low productivity resulted in low production.
Reason: Owners of the soil were different from the tillers of the soil who had no incentive to increase land productivity.
Answer: (a) Assertion and reason both are correct statements and reason is correct explanation for assertion.

Question. Assertion: GDP and per capita income of the country were very low during the British rule
Reason: Progress in social infrastructure and not economic infrastructure contributed greatly towards it.
Answer: (c) Assertion is true but Reason is false.
During the British rule, the Indian economy was stagnant which is evident from the fact that the growth rate of output was less than \( 2\% \) and of per capita income about \( 0.5\% \) per annum.

Case Based Questions

Read the para given below and answer the questions that follow:
Even as the country’s world famous handicraft Industries declined, no corresponding modern industrial base was allowed to come up to take the place of pride so long enjoyed by the former. The primary motive of the colonial government behind this policy of systematic deindustrialisation was to reduce India to the status of a mere exporter of important raw materials for the upcoming modern industries in Britain and to turn India into a sprawling market for the finished products of Britain’s modern industries so that their continued expansion could be ensured to the maximum advantage of their home country.
In the unfolding economic scenario, the decline of the indigenous handicraft Industries created not only massive unemployment in India but also a new demand in the Indian consumer market which was profitably met by the increasing imports of cheap manufactured goods from Britain.
India was forced to open its large markets to British goods which could be sold in India without any tariff or duties compared to local Indian producers who were heavily taxed. In Britain, protectionist policies such as bans and high tariffs or duties were implemented to restrict Indian goods, specially textiles, from being sold there, whereas raw cotton was imported from India without tariffs to Britain factories which manufactured textiles. British economic policies gave them a monopoly over India's vast markets and raw materials such as cotton.

Question. The decline of the handicraft industry was caused due to:
(a) Discriminatory policies
(b) Low demand
(c) Indian imports
(d) Export surplus
Answer: (a)

Question. TISCO was established in ________.
(a) 1809
(b) 1907
(c) 1908
(d) 1806
Answer: (b)

Question. An industry that produces machines for production of goods meant for consumption is called ________ goods industry.
(a) Capital
(b) Consumer
(c) Final
(d) None of these
Answer: (a)

Question. Which industry suffered a setback due to the partition of the country in 1947?
(a) handicraft
(b) jute
(c) cotton
(d) both (b) and (c)
Answer: (d)

Read the para given below and answer the questions that follow:
The details of the demographic condition regarding the population of British India were primarily obtained through a Census in 1881. Though suffering from several conditions, it unveiled the unevenness in the growth of Indian population. Consequently, in every ten years, such census procedures were conducted. Prior to 1921, India was in the initial step of demographic transition. The second step of transition started after 1921.
At the time of independence, neither the total population nor its growth rate was very high. Despite this, the social development indicators were not very promising.
The overall literacy level was less than 16% out of which the female literacy level was negligible at about 7%. Life expectancy was quite low at about 44 years as compared to the present 69 years. There was a lack of public health facilities which led to widespread water and air borne diseases.

Question. _________ refers to an average number of years that a person can expect to live.
(a) infant mortality rate
(b) life expectancy
(c) death rate
(d) birth rate
Answer: (b)

Question. The purpose of the British rule in India was to:
(a) develop the Indian economy
(b) develop the world economy
(c) promote British interest
(d) accelerate the process of industrialization in India
Answer: (c)

Question. Match the following:
Column I | Column II
1. Female literacy rate | A. Less than 2%
2. Year of the great divide | B. 1850
3. Introduction of Railways in India | C. About 7%
4. India's annual growth rate during British period | D. 1921
(a) 1-C, 2-D, 3-B, 4-A
(b) 1-B, 2-A, 3-D, 4-C
(c) 1-C, 2-D, 3-A, 4-B
(d) 1-A, 2-D, 3-B, 4-A
Answer: (a)

Question. The infant mortality rate at the time of Independence was ________ per thousand in contrast to the present infant mortality rate of ________ per thousand
(a) 218, 60
(b) 381, 63
(c) 218, 63
(d) 381, 60
Answer: (c)

Read the para given below and answer the questions that follow:
India’s economy under the British Colonial rule remained fundamentally agrarian. About 85% of the country’s population lived mostly in villages and derived their livelihood directly or indirectly from agriculture. However, despite being the occupation of such a large population, the agricultural sector continued to experience stagnation and deterioration. This stagnation was mainly due to the various systems of land settlement, particularly the zamindari system. Under this system, the profit accruing out of the agricultural sector went to the zamindars instead of the cultivators who did nothing to improve the condition of agriculture. To a large extent, the terms of the revenue settlement were also responsible for the zamindars adopting this attitude. Other factors responsible for the low levels of agricultural productivity were low levels of technology, lack of irrigation facilities and negligible use of fertilisers. Despite some progress made in irrigation, India's agriculture was starved of investment in terracing, flood control, drainage and desalinisation of soil.

Question. Commercialisation of agriculture resulted in shifting of agricultural production from _____ crops to ______ crops.
(a) food, cash
(b) Wheat, Rice
(c) Both (a) & (b)
(d) Neither (a) nor (b)
Answer: (a)

Question. The main reason for stagnation in agriculture was:
(a) Commercialisation of agriculture.
(b) decline of handicraft Industries.
(c) discriminatory trade policies.
(d) land settlement system.
Answer: (d)

Question. Match the following choosing the correct reason:
Column I | Column II
1. Low level of agricultural production on the eve of independence | A. Fertile and productive land went to Pakistan during partition.
2. Poor state of industrial sector during the British rule. | B. Low contribution of industrial sector to GDP.
| C. Exploitative British policies.
| D. Commercialisation of agriculture.
(a) 1-B, 2-C
(b) 1-C, 2-D
(c) 1-A, 2-C
(d) 1-D, 2-B
Answer: (c)

Question. Identify the statement which is not true in the context of the agricultural sector of India during the British rule:
(a) commercialisation of agriculture helped farmers economically.
(b) agricultural sector was stagnant.
(c) farmers use old and outdated techniques of production.
(d) because of the terms of revenue settlement, we are also responsible for the backward state of agriculture.
Answer: (a)

Read the para given below and answer the questions that follow:
India has been an important trading nation since ancient times. But the restrictive policies of commodity production, trade and tariff pursued by the colonial government adversely affected the structure, composition and volume of India's foreign trade. Consequently, India became an exporter of primary products such as raw silk, cotton, wool, sugar etc. and an importer of finished consumer goods like cotton, silk and capital goods like light machinery produced in the factories of Britain. More than half of India's foreign trade was restricted to Britain while the rest was allowed with a few other countries. The opening of the Suez Canal further intensified British control over India's foreign trade. The most important characteristic of India's foreign trade throughout the colonial period was the generation of a large export surplus which came at a huge cost to the country's economy.

Question. Which of the following is not a feature of India's foreign trade during the British rule:
(a) The export surplus generated was used for India’s benefit.
(b) India was an exporter of primary products.
(c) Imports of Britain’s manufactured goods were duty-free.
(d) India imported consumer goods like cotton, silk etc.
Answer: (a)

Question. The Suez Canal was opened for transport in:
(a) 1850
(b) 1853
(c) 1869
(d) 1901
Answer: (c)

Question. Choose the correct pair of statement:
Column I | Column II
1. India became an exporter of | A. Capital goods like machinery.
2. Opening of the Suez Canal | B. Primary products such as cotton, jute, wool etc.
3. India started importing | C. reduced transportation cost between India and Britain.
4. India's foreign trade was mainly with Britain | D. It also traded with China, Ceylon and Persia.
(a) 1-A
(b) 2-B
(c) 3-C
(d) 4-A
Answer: (d)

Question. The large export surplus generated throughout the colonial period was also used to pay for the ________ of ________ items.
(a) Import, visible
(b) Import, invisible
(c) Export, visible
(d) Export, invisible
Answer: (b)

Read the para given below and answer the questions that follow:
Under the colonial regime, basic infrastructure such as railways, ports, water transport, posts and telegraphs did develop. However, the real motive behind this development was not to provide basic amenities to the people but to sub serve various colonial interests. The roads that were built primarily served the purposes of mobilising the army within India and drawing out raw materials from the countryside to the nearest railway station or to the port, to send this to England or other lucrative foreign destinations. Introduction of the railways was considered as the most important contribution by the British. The railways affected the structure of the Indian economy in more than one way. It enabled people to undertake long-distance travel and thereby break geographical and cultural barriers. It also fostered commercialisation of Indian agriculture which adversely affected the self sufficiency of the village economies in India. The volume of India’s exports undoubtedly expanded but its benefits rarely accrued to the Indian people. The social benefits, which the Indian people gained owing to the introduction of the railways, were thus outweighed by the country's huge economic loss.

Question. Following is not a positive contribution made by the colonial government:
(a) Telegraph and postal services
(b) Introduction of railways
(c) development of industries
(d) construction of roads
Answer: (c)

Question. India benefited from the development of Railways in the following ways:
(a) expansion of foreign trade
(b) helped in the process of industrialisation
(c) helped the people to travel from one place to another
(d) both (b) and (c)
Answer: (d)

Question. Arrange the following events of India before independence in a chronological order:
I. opening of the Suez Canal
II. second stage of demographic transition
III. introduction of Railways
IV. first census of British India
(a) I. II. III, IV
(b) II, I, IV, III
(c) III, I, IV, II
(d) I, III, IV, II
Answer: (c)

Question. During the colonial period the ________ sector accounted for the largest share of the workforce.
(a) Industrial
(b) Service
(c) agricultural
(d) Agricultural
Answer: (c)

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