MPSC PYQHistoryMaharashtra Social Reformers

Pandita Ramabai with the permission of the Ramabai Association, appointed an advisory board to advise her, who among the following was included in this advisory board? i. Justice M. G. Ranade ii. Dr. R. G. Bhandarkar iii. Justice K. T. Telang iv. Bapu Hari Shinde

This MPSC previous-year question is drawn from MPSC Gazetted CS Combined Pre 2023 (English). It belongs to the History section under the topic Maharashtra Social Reformers and is reproduced here in English exactly as it appeared in the official Maharashtra Public Service Commission paper, along with the four options, the official Set A answer key and a compact explanation of why the correct option is correct.

A.i and ii only
B.ii and iii only
C.i and iv only
D.i, ii and iii only

Correct answer: D

Explanation

The examiner has marked i, ii and iii only as the correct response. Because the underlying fact is short and specific, this item is fully recallable — the only trap is misreading the stem in a hurry.

Why this question matters

The Maharashtra Public Service Commission recycles history question patterns across its main five recruitment examinations. Solving a PYQ from one paper substantially increases your accuracy on adjacent papers because the underlying facts and the option-craft are identical. That cross-transfer is the strongest argument for prioritising PYQ practice over generic textbook review.

How to attempt this in the exam

Do the arithmetic on scratch paper even for one-step maharashtra social reformers numericals. The most common wrong answer in MPSC's numerical items is a rounding error or a unit mismatch, not a conceptual mistake. Writing each step out costs ten seconds and prevents the majority of those errors.

Subject-specific tip

Tip for History: anchor the answer to a date, a king or leader and a primary source. MPSC History options usually contain one option with the wrong date and one with the wrong dynasty — eliminate those first.

Ancient and medieval frames for the exam

For ancient India, MPSC weighs Buddhism, Jainism, Ashoka's edicts, the Guptas (with their Sanskrit revival and the Ajanta murals) and the Cholas of the south. Within Maharashtra specifically, the Satavahana period is the anchor — capitals at Junnar, Paithan and Nashik, patronage of Amaravati and Sanchi stupas, and the Naneghat and Nashik cave inscriptions that MPSC often cites verbatim. The Vakatakas and their Ajanta patronage, the Rashtrakutas at Manyakheta with the Ellora Kailasa temple (Cave 16), and the Yadavas at Devagiri close out the ancient-to-medieval Maharashtra arc.

For medieval India, the Delhi Sultanate's five dynasties (Slave, Khilji, Tughlaq, Sayyid, Lodhi) are asked chronologically. Alauddin Khilji's Deccan campaigns brought Islamic rule to Maharashtra; Muhammad-bin-Tughlaq briefly shifted his capital to Daulatabad (Devagiri) in 1327; the Bahmani sultanate broke off in 1347 with its capital at Gulbarga and later Bidar; and the five successor sultanates (Bijapur, Ahmadnagar, Berar, Bidar, Golconda) shaped Deccan politics till Mughal conquest.

Marathi historiography — from the bakhars to modern academic work by Sir Jadunath Sarkar, G.S. Sardesai and R.C. Majumdar — is occasionally referenced in interpretation-style MPSC questions. Our History study guide summarises each historian's central thesis in one line so you can attempt these interpretation items without reading the full volumes.

Source and editorial process

Source: MPSC Gazetted CS Combined Pre 2023 (English). This question, its four options and the marked correct answer are transcribed verbatim from the official Maharashtra Public Service Commission Set A paper. Our editorial team cross-checks each question against the original PDF released on mpsc.gov.in and against the corresponding official answer key.

We never paraphrase the wording. Where MPSC has issued a revised key after an objection round, the answer highlighted above reflects the revised key and the revision is logged in our internal change-log. If you spot a discrepancy, please email us at dontknowacademy@gmail.com — we acknowledge every report within 24 hours and push a fix within 48 hours.

Related study material

Deepen your preparation on this topic with our long-form MPSC study guides. Every guide is written specifically for the Maharashtra Public Service Commission preliminary syllabus and takes twelve to sixteen minutes to read in full.

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MPSC Gazetted CS Combined Pre 2023 (English)

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