NCERT SOLUTIONS FOR CLASS 8 SOCIAL SCIENCE HISTORY THE MAKING OF THE NATIONAL MOVEMENT: 1870-1947 CHAPTER 11

Question 1.
Why were people dissatisfied with British rule in the 1870s and 1880s?

The dissatisfaction against British rule was intensified in the 1870s and 1880s.
1. The Arms Act was passed in 1878, which disallowed Indians from having arms.
2. Same year the Vernacular Press Act was also enacted to silence the critics of the government.

  • The Act allowed the government to confiscate the assets of newspapers including their printing presses if the newspapers published anything “objectionable”.

3. In 1883, there was a furore over the attempt by the government to introduce the Ilbert Bill.

  • The bill provided for the trial of British or European persons by Indians, and sought equality between British and Indian judges in the country.
  • But the British (white) forced the government to withdraw the bill. Indians burst into anger. This event highlighted the whim of the British against Indians.

Question 2.
Who did the Indian National Congress wish to speak for?

The Indian National Congress wished to speak for the entire people belonging to different communities of India.

Question 3.
What economic impact did the First World War have on India?

  1. World War I altered the economic and political situation in India.
  2. Defence expenditure of the Government of India rose manifold. As a consequence taxes on individual incomes and business profits increased several times.
  3. Increased military expenditure and demands for war supplies, resulted in a sharp rise in prices, causing great difficulties for the common people.
  4. Demand for industrial goods (jute bags, cloth, rails) and a decline of imports from other countries led to the expansion of Indian industry. So, Indian business groups earned a huge profit.

Question 4.
What did the Muslim League resolution of 1940 ask for?

The Muslim League resolution of 1940 asked for “Independent States’ for Muslims in the north-western and eastern areas of the country. The resolution did not mention partition or the name Pakistan.

Question 5.
Who were the Moderates? How did they propose to struggle against British rule?

The Congress in the first twenty years of its formation was “moderate” in its objectives and methods.
1. During this period it demanded a greater voice for Indians in the government and in administration.

  • It wanted that the Indians should be given more representation in the Legislative Councils and given more power.
  • Legislative councils should be introduced in provinces where it did not exist.
  • It demanded that Indians be placed in high positions in the government.
  • For this, it called for civil service examinations to be held in India as well, not just in London.

2. Other demands of the Congress included:

  • The separation of the judiciary from the executive
  • The repeal of the Arms Act and
  • Freedom of speech and expression.

3. The early Congress raised numerous economic issues.

  • The Congress demanded:
  • reduction of revenue
  • cut in military expenditure
  • more funds for irrigation

4. It passed various resolutions on:

  • The salt tax
  • Good treatment of Indian laborers abroad
  • The sufferings of forest dwellers.

5. The Moderate leaders wanted to develop public awareness about the unjust nature of British rule. For this, they published newspapers, wrote articles, and showed the economic ruin of the country by the British.

  • They criticised British rule in their speeches and sent representatives to different parts of the country to mobilise public opinion.

6. Congress talked about many other issues concerned with the Indians, besides those of professional groups, zamindars, and industrialists.
7. The Moderates felt that the British had respect for the ideals of freedom and justice.

  • So they would accept these demands if they made the government aware of the feelings of Indians

Question 6.
How was the politics of the Radicals within the Congress different from that of the Moderates?

The Radicals within Congress cherished different opinions. They had a deep faith in action and wanted to drive away from the foreigners as soon as possible. They criticised the Moderates for their “politics of prayers’ and gave emphasis on self-reliance and constructive work. They argued that people must fight for swaraj. Unless they fought against the British rule unitedly, they would not bring independence to their country.

Question 7.
Discuss the various forms of the Non-Cooperation Movement took in different parts of India. How did people understand Gandhiji?

  • The leaders of the Khilafat agitation, Mohammad Ali and Shaukat Ali, wished to start a full-fledged Non-Cooperation Movement.
  • Gandhiji supported their call. He urged the Congress to campaign against “Punjab wrongs” (Jallianwala massacre), the Khilafat wrong and demand
  • Different classes and groups, interpreting Gandhiji’s call in their own manner, protested in their own ways. Thus, people linked their movements to local grievances.

Examples:

  • In Kheda, Gujarat, Patidar peasants organised non-violent campaigns against the high land revenue demand of the British.
  • In coastal Andhra and interior Tamil Nadu, liquor shops were
  • In the Guntur district of Andhra Pradesh, tribals and poor peasants staged a number of “forest satyagrahas” by sending their cattle into forests without paying grazing fee.
  • In many forest villages, peasants declared swaraj and believed that “Gandhi Raj” would be established.
  • In Sind (now in Pakistan), Muslim traders and peasants supported the Khilafat call wholeheartedly.
  • In Bengal, the Khilafat/Non-Cooperation alliance gave a strong communal unity and strength to the national movement.
  • In Punjab, the Akali agitation of the Sikhs removed corrupt mahants—supported by the British—from their gurdwaras.
  • In Assam, tea garden labourers shouted “Gandhi Maharaj ki Jaif. They demanded a big increase in their wages. They left the British-owned plantations declaring that they were following Gandhiji’s wish.
  • In the Assamese Vaishnava, songs of the period the reference to Krishna, was Substituted by “Gandhi Raja”.

Understanding of Gandhiji by the people

  • People thought of Gandhiji as a messiah, as someone who could help them overcome their misery and poverty.
  • Gandhiji wished to build class unity, not class conflict, yet peasants could imagine that he would help them in their fight against zamindars.
  • Agricultural labourers believed Mahatma Gandhi would provide them land and get taxes reduced.
  • Common people credited Gandhiji with their own.

Question 8.
Why did Gandhiji choose to break the salt law?

Gandhiji was very much worried about the salt law. According to this law, the state had a monopoly on the manufacture and sale of salt. Gandhiji thought that it was sinful to tax salt because it is an essential item of our food and is required equally by the rich and the poor. Hence he decided to break this law in anticipation that people from all walks of life would extend their support. Needless to say that Gandhiji’s Salt March became very successful.

Question 9.
Discuss those developments of the 1937 – 47 period that led to the creation of Pakistan.

Developments of 1937-1947 period Leading to the creation of Pakistan:

  • Muslim league was formed in 1906 but Congress’s failure to mobilise the Muslim masses in the 1920s allowed the League to widen its social support.
  • In Election results of 1937, they got very less seats, even in areas where a large number of Muslims lived, made them feel as a minority community.
  • In 1940 two nation theory was floated by them.
  • Elections to the provinces were again held in 1946. Congress did well in the “General” constituencies but the the league’s success in the seats reserved for Muslims was spectacular. So the league persisted with its demand for “Pakistan”.
  • In March 1946 the British cabinet sent a three-member mission to Delhi to examine this demand and to suggest a suitable political framework for a free India.
  • After the failure of the Cabinet Mission, the Muslim League decided on mass agitation for winning its Pakistan demand and announced 16 August 1946 as “Direct Action Day”.
  • On this day riots broke out in Calcutta, lasting several days and resulting in the death of thousands of people, mostly Hindus.
  • By March 1947 violence spread to different parts of northern India.
  • With mass agitation, India was partitioned in 1947 and Pakistan was born.

Question 10.
Find out how the national movement was organised in your city, district, area or state. Who participated in it and who led it? What did the movement in your area achieve?

(Students to do it as per their area)
Organisation of National Movement in our city:
Hints:

  • Visit of Gandhiji.
  • Formation of Action Committees.
  • Meetings and awareness of different events at the national level.
  • Prabhat Pheries and Rallies.
  • Protest march to district headquarters.
  • Mass arrests.
  • Hanging of the freedom fighters.
  • Award after getting independence.

Question 11.
Find out more about the life and work of any two participants or leaders of the national movement and write a short essay about them. You may choose a person not mentioned in this chapter.

Life and work of two leaders:
Chakravarti Rajagopalachari

  1. He played an important role with Gandhiji before the Gandhi-Jinnah talks, 1944.
  2. A veteran nationalist and leader of the Salt Satyagraha in the South. C. Rajagopalachari is popularly known as Rajaji.
  3. He served as a member of the Interim Government of 1946 and as free India’s first Indian Governor-General.

Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel

  1. He played an important role in the negotiations for independence from 1945-47.
  2. Patel hailed from an impoverished peasant-proprietor family of Nadiad, Gujarat.
  3. A foremost organiser of the freedom movement from 1918 onwards, Patel served as President of the Congress in 1931.
  4. The British government declared 565 states, small and big, independent. They were given freedom: whether to join in India or Pakistan or remain independent.
  5. Sardar Patel did herculean efforts for merging all the states, included in Indian territory, in India.

Question 12.
Choose the correct option.
(i) The book Poverty and Un-British Rule in India is authored by
(a) Mahatma Gandhi
(b) Dadabhai Naoroji
(c) Jawaharlal Nehru
(d) Sarojini Naidu

(ii) The Marathi newspaper was edited by
(a) Balgangadhar Tilak
(b) Bepin Chandra Pal
(c) Lala Lajpat Rai
(d) Dadabhai Naoroji

(iii) The slogan ‘Freedom is my birthright and I shall have it’ was raised by
(a) Bepin Chandra Pal
(b) Sarojini Naidu
(c) Lala Lajpat Rai
(d) Balgangadhar Tilak

(iv) The Indian who renounced his knighthood after the Jallianwala Bagh massacre
(a) Subhas Chandra Bose
(b) Rabindranath Tagore
(c) Abanindranath Tagore
(d) Bhagat Singh

(v) The first Indian woman to become President of the Indian National Congress was
(a) Sarojini Naidu
(b) Kamla Nehru
(c) Begum Rokeya Shakhawat Hossain
(d) Kasturba Gandhi

(vi) Free India’s first Indian Governor- General was
(a) Lala Lajpat Rai
(b) Motilal Nehru
(c) C. Rajagopalachari
(d) Sardar Ballabbhai Patel

(i) (b), (ii) (a), (iii) (d), (iv) (b), (v) (a), (vi) (c).

Question 13.
Fill in the blanks with appropriate words to complete each sentence.

  1. The Indian National Congress was established when ……………. delegates from all over the country met at ……………… in December 1885.
  2. The Moderate leaders did not believe in ………….. actions.
  3. The All India Muslim League was formed by a group of Muslim …………. and …………….
  4. The Rowlatt Act curbed ………… rights such as the freedom of expression and strengthened …………… powers.
  5. Mahatma Gandhi abruptly called off the ……………… Movement when it took violent turn.
  6. The Congress resolved to fight for Puma Swaraj in 1929 under the presidentship of ……………….
  7. The Quit India Movement started in August …………..
  1. 72, Bombay
  2. extreme
  3. landlords, nawabs
  4. fundamental, police
  5. Non-Cooperation
  6. Jawaharlal Nehru
  7. 1942.

Question 14.
State whether each of the following statements is True or False.

  1. Subhas Chandra Bose was a moderate nationalist.
  2. The Simon Commission had two Indian representatives.
  3. The Jallianwala Bagh massacre occurred in Amritsar on Baishakhi day.
  4. The Swadeshi Movement started after the partition of Bengal.
  5. MaulanaAzad became the major spokes-person for the demand for Pakistan.
  6. Khan Abdul Ghaffar Khan, also known as Badshah Khan, founded the Khudai Khidmatgars.
  1. False
  2. False
  3. True
  4. True
  5. False
  6. True

Question 15.
Match the items given in Column A correctly with those given in Column B.
NCERT Solutions For Class 8 History Social Science Chapter 11 The Making of the National Movement 1870s-1947 Exercise Questions Q4

(i) (b), (ii) (c), (iii) (d), (iv) (e), (v) (a).

Question 16.
What is the literal meaning of sarvajanik?

The literal meaning of sarvajanik is ‘of or for all the people’. It is made
of two words – sarva = all + janik = of the people.

Question 17.
Who was A.O. Hume? What role did he play in the history of India?

A.O. Hume was a retired British official. He played an important role in bringing Indians from the various regions together.

Question 18 .
Who was the Viceroy of India at the time of the partition of Bengal

At that time Lord Curzon was the Viceroy of India.

Question 19.
What was the Swadeshi Movement known as in deltaic Andhra?

In deltaic Andhra the Swadeshi Movement was known as the Vandemataram Movement.

Question 20.
Name the three leading members of the Radical group.

Bepin Chandra Pal, Balgangadhar Tilak and Lala Lajpat Rai.

Question 21.
Why did Mahatma Gandhi along with other Indians establish the Natal Congress in South Africa?

He did so in order to fight against racial discrimination in South Africa.

Question 22.
Name three places where Gandhiji started local movements

Champaran, Kheda and Ahmedabad.

Question 23.
Why did Rabindranath Tagore renounce his knighthood?

Rabindranath Tagore renounced his knighthood to express the pain and anger of the country following the Jallianwala Bagh atrocities.

Question 24.
Who were the leaders of the Khilafat agitation?

The leaders of the Khilafat agitation were Mohammad Ali and Shaukat Ali.

Question 25.
What does ‘Punjab wrongs’ refer to?

It refers to Jallianwalla Bagh massarcre that occurred on 13 April, 1919 in Amritsar on Baishakhi day.

Question 26.
Who was Chitta Ranjan Das?

He was a lawyer from East Bengal and was active in the Non-Cooperation Movement.

Question 27.
What does RSS stand for?

RSS stands for Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh.

Question 28.
Who was Bhagat Singh? What slogan did he raise?

Bhagat Singh was a revolutionary nationalist. His slogan was—Inquilab Zindabad.

Question 29.
What does HSRA stand for?

HSRA stands for Hindustan Socialist Republican Association.

Question 30.
Why did Mahatma Gandhi decide to break the Salt Law?

Mahatma Gandhi decided to break the Salt Law because it established the monopoly of the state on the manufacture and sale of salt.

Question 31.
On what condition-were the Congress leaders ready to support the British war effort at the time of the Second World War?

The Congress leaders were ready to support the British war effort on condition that they would declare India’s independence after the war.

Question 32.
Did the British accept their condition?

No, the British did not accept their condition.

Question 33.
Who raised the slogan ‘do or die’?

Mahatma Gandhi raised this slogan.

Question 34.
Why did the Muslim League announced 16 August 1946 as ‘Direct Action Day’?

It announced 16 August, 1946 as ‘Direct Action Day’ in support of its demand for Pakistan.

Question 35.
What were the demands of the Congress in its early years?

In its early years the Congress was moderate in its objectives and methods. It made several demands; which are given below:

  1. The Congress demanded a greater voice for Indians in the government and in administration.
  2. It demanded that Indians be placed in high positions in the government. For this purpose it called for Civil Service examinations to be held in India as well, not just in London.
  3. The Congress demanded for the separation of the judiciary from the executive.
  4. The repeal of the Arms Act and the freedom of speech and expression was also a major demand of the Congress.
  5. It also demanded reduction of revenue, cut in military expenditure and more funds for irrigation.
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