20 multiple-choice (MCQ / objective) questions from this chapter, in the common exam-style shapes. Every question comes with an explanation along with the answer, so you remember why the option is correct, not just which one it is.
1 Direct Questions
Direct Questions
- 1 markA person’s caste position, inherited automatically from their parents, is an example of a social position that is:
(A) achieved(B) acquired by merit(C) ascribed(D) chosen freely - 1 markThe idea that social resources can be divided into economic, cultural and social capital comes from:
(A) M.N. Srinivas(B) Karl Marx(C) Max Weber(D) Bourdieu, 1986 - 1 markApartheid, the policy of racial separation in South Africa, became law in:
(A) 1961(B) 1910(C) 1948(D) 1994 - 1 markThe Black majority in South Africa finally came to power and formed the government in:
(A) 1961(B) 1948(C) 1990(D) 1994 - 1 markMahatma Gandhi popularised the term ‘Harijan’ in which decade?
(A) the 1930s(B) the 1950s(C) the 1970s(D) the 1990s - 1 markThe term ‘Dalit’ received wide currency during caste riots in which city?
(A) Kolkata(B) Chennai(C) Mumbai(D) Delhi
2 Assertion-Reason
Assertion-Reason
- 1 markAssertion (A): Discrimination is very hard to prove.
Reason (R): Discrimination may not be open or explicitly stated.
(A) Both A and R are true, and R correctly explains A(B) Both A and R are true, but R does not explain A(C) A is true, R is false(D) A is false, R is true - 1 markAssertion (A): Social exclusion is best explained as the product of individual bad luck.
Reason (R): Social exclusion results from the structural features of society.
(A) Both A and R are true, and R correctly explains A(B) Both A and R are true, but R does not explain A(C) A is true, R is false(D) A is false, R is true
3 Match the Following
Match the Following
- 1 markMatch the law/step in Column A with its year in Column B.
(i) Caste Disabilities Removal Act (ii) The Schedules (iii) SC/ST (Prevention of Atrocities) Act (iv) Constitution (93rd Amendment) Act
(1) 1989 (2) 1935 (3) 2005/2006 (4) 1850
(A) (i)-2, (ii)-4, (iii)-3, (iv)-1(B) (i)-3, (ii)-1, (iii)-2, (iv)-4(C) (i)-1, (ii)-3, (iii)-4, (iv)-2(D) (i)-4, (ii)-2, (iii)-1, (iv)-3 - 1 markMatch the reformer in Column A with the movement/organisation in Column B.
(i) Raja Rammohun Roy (ii) M.G. Ranade (iii) Jyotiba Phule (iv) Sir Syed Ahmed Khan
(1) Satyashodak Samaj (2) Widow remarriage movement, Bombay Presidency (3) Muslim social reform, girls’ education at home (4) Anti-sati campaign, Bengal
(A) (i)-3, (ii)-1, (iii)-2, (iv)-4(B) (i)-4, (ii)-2, (iii)-1, (iv)-3(C) (i)-1, (ii)-3, (iii)-4, (iv)-2(D) (i)-2, (ii)-4, (iii)-3, (iv)-1
4 Statement-Based Questions
Statement-Based Questions
- 1 markConsider the following statements:
(i) Economic, cultural and social capital always stay separate and never convert into one another.
(ii) A person with influential relatives (social capital) may get a well-paid job through recommendations.
Which is/are correct?
(A) Only (ii)(B) Both (i) and (ii)(C) Neither (i) nor (ii)(D) Only (i) - 1 markConsider the following statements about stereotypes:
(i) Stereotypes recognise the variation among individuals within a group.
(ii) In colonial India, some communities were labelled ‘martial races’ while others were called ‘effeminate’ or ‘cowardly’.
Which is/are correct?
(A) Both (i) and (ii)(B) Neither (i) nor (ii)(C) Only (ii)(D) Only (i)
5 Chronological Ordering
Chronological Ordering
- 1 markArrange these in chronological order:
(i) Constitution (93rd Amendment) Act
(ii) The Schedules listing SC/ST
(iii) Caste Disabilities Removal Act
(iv) SC/ST (Prevention of Atrocities) Act
(A) (iii), (ii), (iv), (i)(B) (ii), (iii), (i), (iv)(C) (iv), (i), (iii), (ii)(D) (i), (iv), (ii), (iii) - 1 markArrange these events in the order they happened:
(i) Mandal Commission report implemented by the central government
(ii) First Backward Classes Commission (Kalelkar) submits its report
(iii) Second Backward Classes Commission (Mandal) is appointed
(iv) OBC issue becomes a state-level, not central, affair
(A) (iii), (ii), (i), (iv)(B) (iv), (i), (ii), (iii)(C) (ii), (iv), (iii), (i)(D) (i), (ii), (iii), (iv)
6 Fill in the Blanks
Fill in the Blanks
- 1 markThe chapter names three forms of capital: economic, cultural and ______ capital.
(A) social(B) political(C) physical(D) religious - 1 markThe practice of restricting marriage to members of the same caste, which reinforces the ascribed nature of caste, is called ______.
(A) hypergamy(B) polygamy(C) endogamy(D) exogamy
7 Odd One Out
Odd One Out
- 1 markWhich of these is NOT one of the four groups the chapter focuses on as facing serious social inequality and exclusion?
(A) Adivasis(B) Dalits(C) religious minorities(D) the differently abled
8 Passage-Based Questions
Passage-Based Questions
Passage
For most of us who are born and live in India, social inequality and exclusion are facts of life… A closer examination will show that few work harder than those who are located at the lower ranks of society. As a South American proverb says: “If hard labour were really such a good thing, the rich would keep it all for themselves!” All over the world, back-breaking work like stone breaking, digging, carrying heavy weights, pulling rickshaws or carts is invariably done by the poor. And yet they rarely improve their life chances.
- 1 markAccording to the passage, what does the South American proverb say the rich would do if hard labour were really a good thing?
(A) Share it equally(B) Abolish it by law(C) Give it to the poor(D) Keep it all for themselves - 1 markAccording to the passage, back-breaking work like stone breaking and pulling rickshaws is invariably done by:
(A) students(B) the poor(C) the rich(D) government employees
9 True / False
True / False
- 1 markState whether True or False:
(i) The term ‘Dalit’ was coined by Dr. B.R. Ambedkar.
(ii) The term ‘Dalit’ resonates with Ambedkar’s philosophy even though he did not coin it or use it often.
(A) Both false(B) (i) true, (ii) false(C) (i) false, (ii) true(D) Both true
Answer Key and Explanations
Direct Questions
- (C) The chapter’s second principle of social stratification says a person’s social position is ascribed: children assume the social position of their parents.
- (D) The chapter cites Bourdieu (1986), ‘The Forms of Capital’, for this three-way division.
- (C) Box 5.1b states apartheid, informal for years, became law in 1948.
- (D) Box 5.1b states Blacks, under the ANC and Nelson Mandela, finally succeeded in forming the government in 1994.
- (A) The chapter states Gandhi popularised ‘Harijan’ in the 1930s to counter the pejorative charge of caste names.
- (C) The chapter says the term received wide currency during the caste riots in Mumbai in the early 1970s.
Assertion-Reason
- (A) Both A and R are true, and R explains A: the chapter says discrimination can be very hard to prove because it may not be open or explicitly stated. It adds that discriminatory behaviour may also be presented as motivated by other, more justifiable reasons, such as merit.
- (D) A is false: the chapter says social exclusion is not accidental but systematic. R is true, and it is exactly why A is false: exclusion is the result of structural features of society.
Match the Following
- (D) Caste Disabilities Removal Act = 1850 (4); the Schedules = 1935 (2); SC/ST Atrocities Act = 1989 (1); 93rd Amendment = 2005/2006 (3).
- (B) Rammohun Roy = anti-sati, Bengal (4); Ranade = widow remarriage, Bombay Presidency (2); Phule = Satyashodak Samaj (1); Syed Ahmed Khan = Muslim reform (3).
Statement-Based Questions
- (A) Statement (i) is false: the chapter says the three forms of capital overlap and convert into each other. Statement (ii) is the chapter’s own example.
- (C) Statement (i) is false: stereotypes refuse to recognise variation across individuals. Statement (ii) is a fact the chapter gives about colonial stereotyping.
Chronological Ordering
- (A) Correct order by year: Caste Disabilities Removal Act (1850), the Schedules (1935), SC/ST Atrocities Act (1989), 93rd Amendment (2005/2006).
- (C) Correct order: Kalelkar Commission reports (1953), OBC issue moves to the states (mid-1950s), Mandal Commission appointed (late 1970s), Mandal report implemented (1990).
Fill in the Blanks
- (A) The three forms named are economic, cultural and social capital.
- (C) The chapter names endogamy as the practice that reinforces the ascribed aspect of social inequality.
Odd One Out
- (C) The chapter names Dalits, Adivasis, women and the differently abled as its four focus groups. Religious minorities are mentioned only in passing, and the chapter itself flags them as needing more attention in future, not as one of its four core groups.
Passage-Based Questions
- (D) The proverb quoted is: ‘If hard labour were really such a good thing, the rich would keep it all for themselves!’
- (B) The passage states such work is invariably done by the poor, all over the world.
True / False
- (C) Statement (i) is false: the chapter explicitly says Dalit was neither coined nor frequently used by Ambedkar. Statement (ii) is true, exactly as the chapter states.
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