Social Science (087) — AI-generated practice question

(a) Grievances:
In Awadh, peasants suffered under exploitative talukdars — exorbitant rents, forced begar, multiple cesses, and insecurity of tenure with no right over leased land. In the Gudem Hills, tribals were enraged by colonial forest laws that denied them traditional rights to graze cattle and collect fuelwood, and by forced begar for road construction.

(b) Methods of Protest:
Awadh peasants used largely non-violent means — social boycotts (nai-dhobi bandhs), hartals, and panchayat-organised pressure on landlords. However, movement later turned to looting bazaars and attacking talukdars' houses. Gudem tribals under Alluri Sitaram Raju adopted outright guerrilla warfare — attacking police stations and attempting to kill British officials, explicitly rejecting non-violence.

(c) Congress Response:
Congress tried to integrate the Awadh movement but was deeply unhappy with its violent turn. The Oudh Kisan Sabha was set up under Nehru and Ramchandra to channel it. The Gudem uprising was a form of struggle Congress could not approve at all, as it directly contradicted the principle of non-violence central to the Non-Cooperation Movement.

Source: Chapter 2, Rebellion in the Countryside

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• The question has three labelled parts — always answer all three separately and label them (a), (b), (c).
• Examiners look for specific details: names (Baba Ramchandra, Alluri Sitaram Raju), specific grievances (begar, forest rights), and specific methods (nai-dhobi bandh, guerrilla warfare).
• The key contrast is non-violence vs. armed struggle in methods, and partial integration vs. outright rejection in Congress response.
• Don't write vaguely — "peasants were unhappy" scores nothing; "evicted tenants demanding abolition of begar" scores marks.