Social Science (087) — CBSE Class 10 board question

Various social groups participated in the Civil Disobedience Movement with different motivations:

1. Rich Peasants (Patidars of Gujarat, Jats of UP) — Hit by trade depression and falling prices, they wanted revenue rates reduced. They organised boycott programmes but felt disappointed when the movement ended in 1931 without revenue revision.

1. Poor Peasants — Wanted unpaid rent to landlords remitted. They joined radical movements led by Socialists/Communists, but Congress was reluctant to support 'no-rent' campaigns.

1. Business Classes — Industrialists like G.D. Birla gave financial support and boycotted foreign goods. They saw swaraj as freedom from colonial trade restrictions.

1. Industrial Workers — Participated selectively; railway workers struck in 1930, dockworkers in 1932. Workers in Chotanagpur tin mines wore Gandhi caps and joined boycott campaigns.

1. Women — Thousands joined protest marches, manufactured salt, and picketed foreign cloth and liquor shops. Many were jailed.

Source: Chapter 2, Section 3.2 — How Participants saw the Movement

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• Examiners expect 5 distinct groups for a 5-mark answer — one point per mark is the safest structure.
• Name the group, give a specific example, and state why they joined (their grievance or motivation).
• Don't spend too many words on one group at the cost of others.
• Dalits and Muslims had limited participation — you can mention this as a contrast point if space allows, but covering the five active groups above is sufficient.