Hi All,

On lines of PYQP analysis that I did for other topics, this is analysis of Mains GS-1 Modern History.

• I have segregated 24 questions asked wrt this topic.
• I have marked in BOLD the underlying event / personality / issue / theme.
• Straight forward questions, which you can answer easily from my 78 Pages Freedom Struggle Notes are in Black Colour.
• Analytical questions are in Blue Colour. For these questions, you need further reading. Sources: 
  • • • Spectrum.
      • Bipin Chandra.
      • Lucent GK.
      • NCERTs (Especially, 11th & 12th).

UPSC Mains GS-1 Modern History Syllabus:

• Modern Indian history include the significant events, personalities, issues during the middle of the eighteenth century until the present
• Various stages and important contributors and contributions from different parts of the country in ‘The Freedom Struggle’

 Mains 2013:

1. Defying the barriers of age, gender and religion, the Indian women became the torch bearer during the struggle for freedom in India. Discuss. (10 marks-200 words)
2. Several foreigners made India their homeland and participated in various movements. Analyze their role in the Indian struggle for freedom. (10 marks-200 words)
3. In many ways, Lord Dalhousie was the founder of modern India. Elaborate. (10 marks-200 words)
4. Discuss the contribution of Maulana Abul Kalam Azad to pre-and post independent India. (10 marks-200 words) (He was in news that year)

Questions were personality based (Women, Foreigners, Dalhousie, Abul Kalam). Not many personality based questions asked now apart from on Gandhi. 

Mains 2014:

5. The third battle of Panipat was fought in 1761. Why were so many empire-shaking battles fought at Panipat? (10 marks-150 words)
6. Examine critically the various facets of economic policies of the British in India from mid-eighteenth century till independence. (10 marks-150 words)
7. In what ways did the naval mutiny prove to be the last nail in the coffin of British colonial aspirations in India? (10 marks-150 words)
8. What were the major political, economic and social developments in the world which motivated the anti-colonial struggle in India? (10 marks-150 words)

Mainly, Event based questions asked like Panipat, Mutiny, World events.

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Mains 2015:

9. How difficult would have been the achievement of Indian independence without Mahatma Gandhi? Discuss. (12.5 marks-200 words)
10. Mahatma Gandhi and Dr. B R Ambedkar, despite having divergent approaches and strategies, had a common goal of amelioration of the downtrodden. Elucidate. (12.5 marks-200 words)
11. It would have been difficult for the Constituent Assembly to complete its historic task of drafting the Constitution for Independent India in just three years, but its experience gained with the Government of India Act, 1935 .Discuss. (12.5 marks-200 words)

Famous Indian personalities asked. Cakewalk Questions if you have prepared even for Prelims.

Mains 2016:

12. Explain how the upraising of 1857 constitutes an important watershed in the evolution of British policies towards colonial India. (12.5 marks-200 words)
13. Discuss the role of women in the freedom struggle especially during the Gandhian phase. (12.5 marks-200 words)
14. Highlight the differences in the approach of Subhash Chandra Bose and Mahatma Gandhi in the struggle for freedom. (12.5 marks-200 words)

1857 and Repeated Themes of women and Gandhi.

Mains 2017:

15. Clarify how mid-eighteenth century India was beset with the spectre of a fragmented polity.  (10 marks-150 words)
16. Why did the ‘Moderates’ fail to carry conviction with the nation about their proclaimed ideology and political goals by the end of the nineteenth century?  (10 marks-150 words)
17. Examine how the decline of traditional artisanal industry in colonial India crippled the rural economy.  (15 marks-250 words)
18. Highlight the importance of the new objectives that got added to the vision of Indian Independence since the twenties of the last century.  (15 marks-250 words)
19. The women’s questions arose in modern India as a part of the 19th-century social reform movement. What are the major issues and debates concerning women in that period? (15 marks-250 words) (Was in news, 100 years of WIA)

Focused on Early 20th century (Moderates, Artisans, New Objectives, Women).

Mains 2018:

20. Throw light on the significance of the thoughts of Mahatma Gandhi in the present times. (10 marks-150 words)

Cakewalk!

Mains 2019:

21. The 1857 Uprising was the culmination the recurrent big and small local rebellions that had occurred in the preceding hundred years of British rule. Elucidate (10 marks-150 words)
22. Examine the linkages between 19th centuries ‘Indian Renaissance’ and the emergence of national identity. (10 marks-150 words)
23. Many voices had strengthened and enriched the nationalist movement during the Gandhian phase. Elaborate (15 marks-250 words)
24. Assess the role of British imperial power in complicating the process of transfer of power during the 1940s. (15 marks-250 words)

Repeated themes of 1857 & Gandhi

As per above, you can see that most questions are direct and simple, even though bit analytical. Modern History portion of Mains is hence not tough at all. Focus more on Women’s Role in Freedom Struggle, 1857 and Mahatma Gandhi.

Sources: 

• Spectrum.
• Bipin Chandra.
• Lucent GK.
• NCERTs (Especially, 11th & 12th).
• 78 Pages Freedom Struggle Notes

Watch this clip and learn the art of GS History Answer Writing:

Other PYQP Analysis:

• Ethics PYQP Section-A Detailed Analysis
• Indian Society – GS1 Detailed Analysis
• GS-1 Geography Detailed Analysis
• International Relations Detailed Analysis
• Prelims: Map Based Questions 2013-2019

ATB!!!