Administration MCQ Quiz - Objective Question with Answer for Administration - Download Free PDF

The correct answer is option 1.

Key Points

• Medini Shah, a ruler of the Garhwal kingdom, was indeed appointed as a Mansabdar in the Mughal court. Hence, option 1 is correct.
• This appointment was part of the Mughal policy of incorporating regional rulers into the imperial administrative structure to maintain political stability and ensure loyalty.
• Being a Mansabdar meant Medini Shah was assigned a rank and military responsibility, recognizing his authority and granting him a formal position within the Mughal hierarchy.

Additional Information

• The Mansabdari system, established by Akbar, was used to rank nobles based on their military capacity and administrative responsibilities.
• By including local kings like Medini Shah, the Mughal Empire extended its influence into the Himalayan and frontier regions such as Garhwal.

The correct answer is - A tax on cloth

Key Points

• Katraparcha
  • Katraparcha was a historical tax imposed during specific periods in Indian history.
  • It was specifically levied as a tax on cloth, indicating its connection to the textile industry.
  • The tax highlights the importance of the textile trade in the economy during the time.
• Economic relevance
  • The textile trade was a major contributor to the economy, and taxes like Katraparcha were used to generate revenue.
  • Such taxes were often levied on producers, traders, or merchants involved in the cloth industry.

Additional Information

• Textile industry in historical India
  • India has been renowned for its textile production since ancient times.
  • Famous textile centers such as Banaras, Surat, and Bengal were known for their high-quality fabrics.
  • Taxes like Katraparcha reflect the significant role of the textile trade in India's historical economy.
• Taxation system
  • Historical taxation systems often targeted industries that were economically significant.
  • Other similar taxes were levied on agricultural products, metals, and trade goods.

Key Points

• Babur was the founder of the Mughal Empire in India.
• The First Battle of Panipat was fought on April 21, 1526.
• This battle marked the beginning of Mughal rule in India.
• Babur defeated Ibrahim Lodi, the Sultan of Delhi, to establish his dominion over Northern India.

Additional Information

• First Battle of Panipat:
  • The First Battle of Panipat is one of the most significant battles in Indian history as it laid the foundation for the establishment of the Mughal Empire in India.
  • It was fought between the invading forces of Babur and the Lodi Empire, led by Sultan Ibrahim Lodi.
  • The battle was noted for the use of field artillery by Babur, which played a crucial role in his victory.
  • Babur's win at Panipat was a result of superior military tactics, including the use of the Tulughma and Araba (cart) formations which helped in dividing and encircling the enemy.
• Babur:
  • Babur, full name Zahir-ud-din Muhammad Babur, was a descendant of Timur and Genghis Khan through his father and mother respectively.
  • He was born on February 14, 1483, in Andijan (present-day Uzbekistan).
  • Before invading India, Babur had established his rule in Kabul, from where he planned his expeditions into the Indian subcontinent.
  • After his victory at Panipat, Babur continued to expand his empire and laid the foundation for the successive Mughal rulers in India.
• Mughal Empire:
  • The Mughal Empire was an empire in the Indian subcontinent, established and ruled by a Muslim dynasty of Chagatai Turco-Mongol origin from Central Asia.
  • It ruled most of the Indian subcontinent for over two centuries, from the early 16th to the mid-18th century.
  • The Mughal Empire is known for its significant contributions to the culture, architecture, and economy of India.
  • Notable Mughal rulers include Babur, Humayun, Akbar, Jahangir, Shah Jahan, and Aurangzeb.

Key Points

• Amalguzar: They were the revenue collectors in charge of a district during Akbar's reign.
• Karkuns: They prepared the seasonal crop statistics and were responsible for keeping track of agricultural data.
• Qanungo: They were responsible for keeping records of the revenue payable by the villages and were essentially village accountants.
• Bitikchi: They were accountants who managed the accounts and financial records.

Additional Information

• Revenue Administration during Akbar's Reign:
  • Akbar's reign saw a well-organized revenue administration system implemented to ensure efficient tax collection and land revenue management.
  • Different officials were assigned specific duties to maintain order and accuracy in revenue collection processes.
  • The revenue system was divided into different districts, each managed by its respective officials.
  • Akbar's revenue administration included several innovative practices such as the Mansabdari system to maintain military and civil duties.
• Amalguzar:
  • Amalguzar was the title given to the revenue collector responsible for overseeing the revenue collection within a district.
  • They ensured the tax collection was conducted fairly and efficiently.
  • Amalguzars played a crucial role in maintaining the financial stability of the empire.
• Karkuns:
  • Karkuns were responsible for preparing seasonal crop statistics and agricultural data.
  • They kept detailed records of crop production, which helped in assessing the revenue.
  • Their role was vital for planning and managing agricultural policies.
• Qanungo:
  • Qanungo were village accountants who kept detailed records of the revenue payable by the villages.
  • They ensured accuracy in the documentation of taxes and land revenue.
  • Qanungos were essential for maintaining transparency in the revenue system.
• Bitikchi:
  • Bitikchi were accountants who managed financial records and accounts.
  • They played a crucial role in maintaining the financial documentation of the empire.
  • Bitikchis ensured the proper management of funds and finances.

​The correct answer is Jahangir.

Key Points:

•  During the reign of Emperor Akbar, tobacco was introduced by the Portuguese in the late 16th century.
• The intake of tobacco became so popular that Jahangir had to pass a decree around 1617 to ban it.

Jahangir 

• His original name was Nur-ud din Muhammad Salim.
• He was the eldest son of Akbar and the fourth ruler of the Mughal Dynasty who ruled from 1605-1627.
• He was challenged for the throne by his sons Prince Khusrau Mirza and Prince Khurram, but he was successful in oppressing both his sons.

Additional Information: Babur:

• He was the founder and the first emperor of the Mughal Dynasty.
• He was a descendant of Timur from his father's side and a descendant of Genghis Khan from his mother's side.
• His reign lasted for 4 years from 1526-1530 and was succeeded by his son Humayun.
• He defeated Ibrahim Lodi in the first battle of Panipat in the year 1526 and thus ended the Lodi dynasty.
• He defeated Rana Sanga of Mewar in the battle of Khanwa in 1527.

Aurangzeb 

• He was the son of emperor Shah Jahan and the sixth ruler of the Mughal Dynasty.
• He was also known as Alamgir.
• He is considered the last effective ruler of the Mughal dynasty and ruled for a long span of 49 years (1658-1707). During his reign, he ruled over almost the whole Indian subcontinent.

Muhammad Shah

• His original name was Roshan Akhtar and was the Mughal emperor from 1719-1748.
• He was the son of Jahan Shah and the grandson of Bahadur Shah I.
• His other names were 'Sada Rangila', 'Muhammad Shah Rangila', and 'Bahadur Shah Rangila' as he had a great interest in arts, music, and culture.

The correct answer is Aurangzeb.

Key PointsAurangzeb:

• He crowned himself with the title of "Alamgir".
• He was called Zinda peer.
• The Mughal area was the largest during the time of Aurangzeb.
• He forbade:
  • Singing and dancing in his court
  • Sati system and Jharokha darshan.
  • Kalma written coin.
  • Astrology and Palm reading.
  • Tuladan practice.
• Selling and drinking Alcohol and Bhang were prohibited in a public place during his time.
• Aurangzeb used to play "Veena".
• He started the Jaziya tax in 1679.
• He gave permission to the French for setting up a factory at Surat in 1667.
• Monuments:
  • Bibi ka Makabara: Aurangabad, Maharastra.
  • Moti Masjid: Delhi
  • Badshahi Masjid: Lahore.

Additional InformationHumayun: 

• He was defeated by Sher Shah Suri in the battle of Chausa in 1539.
• He was again defeated by Sher Shah Suri in the battle of Kannauj in 1540. 
• Humayunama was written by his half sister "Gulbadan Begum".
• Humayun's tomb was built by his widow Haji Begum (Bega Begum) in Delhi. 
• He died in 1556 due to falling from his Library stairs in Purana Quila, Delhi.

Akbar:

• He was born in 1542 at Amrakot, Sindh.
• He was son of Humayun and Hameeda Bano Begum.
• He was crowned by Bairam Khan at  Kalanaur, Punjab.
• He established Matrimonial Alliance between Mughal and Rajputs.
• He introduced the Mansabdari system in 1574.
• Monuments:
  • Ibadat Khana: Fatehpur Sikri, Agra.
  • Buland darwaza: Fatehpur Sikri, Agra.

Jahangir:

• In 1605, Prince Salim succeeded with the title Jahangir (Conqueror of World) when he assumed the throne after the death of Akbar.
• He established Zanjir-i-Adil (chain of justice) at Agra for the seekers of royal justice.
• He is the eldest son of Akbar was born at Fatehpur Sikri near Agra in 1569.
• In 1611, he married Mehr-un-Nisa whom he gave the title of Nur Jahan (light of the world).
• Nurjahan exercised tremendous influence over state affairs. She was made the official Badshah Begum. 
• Jahangir issued coins jointly in Nurjahan's name and his own.
• Jahangir also married Manbai in 1585 AD and Jodhbai (Jagat Gosain, daughter of Mota Raja Udai Singh) in 1587 AD.
• He defeated and imprisoned his son, Khusrau Mirza.
•  He also beheaded Guru Arjun, the 5th Sikh Guru and one of the supporters of Khusrau Mirza.
• Captain Hawkins (1608-1611) and Sir Thomas Roe (1615-1616) visited Jahangir's court.
• Production of Tobacco started in his reign.
• He wrote his autobiography Tuzuk-i-Jahangir.
• He was buried in Lahore in 1627.

​The correct answer is Jahangir.

Key Points:

•  During the reign of Emperor Akbar, tobacco was introduced by the Portuguese in the late 16th century.
• The intake of tobacco became so popular that Jahangir had to pass a decree around 1617 to ban it.

Jahangir 

• His original name was Nur-ud din Muhammad Salim.
• He was the eldest son of Akbar and the fourth ruler of the Mughal Dynasty who ruled from 1605-1627.
• He was challenged for the throne by his sons Prince Khusrau Mirza and Prince Khurram, but he was successful in oppressing both his sons.

Additional Information: Babur:

• He was the founder and the first emperor of the Mughal Dynasty.
• He was a descendant of Timur from his father's side and a descendant of Genghis Khan from his mother's side.
• His reign lasted for 4 years from 1526-1530 and was succeeded by his son Humayun.
• He defeated Ibrahim Lodi in the first battle of Panipat in the year 1526 and thus ended the Lodi dynasty.
• He defeated Rana Sanga of Mewar in the battle of Khanwa in 1527.

Aurangzeb 

• He was the son of emperor Shah Jahan and the sixth ruler of the Mughal Dynasty.
• He was also known as Alamgir.
• He is considered the last effective ruler of the Mughal dynasty and ruled for a long span of 49 years (1658-1707). During his reign, he ruled over almost the whole Indian subcontinent.

Muhammad Shah

• His original name was Roshan Akhtar and was the Mughal emperor from 1719-1748.
• He was the son of Jahan Shah and the grandson of Bahadur Shah I.
• His other names were 'Sada Rangila', 'Muhammad Shah Rangila', and 'Bahadur Shah Rangila' as he had a great interest in arts, music, and culture.

The correct answer is Option 4Key PointsJagirdars:

•  Jagirdars were officials who were granted land assignments (jagirs) by the Mughal emperor,  in lieu of service, particularly military or administrative duties.
•  Jagirdars did not necessarily have hereditary rights over their jagirs. The land could be reassigned or revoked by the emperor based on performance or loyalty. Hence, statement 2 is incorrect.
• They had obligations to maintain law and order and collect revenue, which they would then remit to the Mughal treasury.

Zamindars:

•  Zamindars were landowners who held rights over land primarily for revenue collection. They acted as intermediaries between the peasants and the Mughal state.
•  Zamindari rights were generally hereditary, meaning that these rights could be passed down through generations within a family.
• Their primary duty was to collect revenue from the peasants, but they  did not have the same obligations related to military service or administration as Jagirdars.
• Statement 1 is partially correct regarding Jagirdars but misleading about Zamindars. While it correctly identifies Jagirdars' obligations, it oversimplifies Zamindars' roles, as they also had responsibilities beyond mere revenue collection. Hence, statement 1 is incorrect.

The correct answer is Akbar.

• Babur(1526-1530):
  • He declared himself as Badshah.
  • He was the founder of the Mughal Empire in India.
  • Baburnama, also known as Tuzk-e Babri is the biography of Babur written by him.
• Shah Alam II (1759-1806):
  • Third Battle of Panipat (1761) took place during his time.
  • He was defeated in Battle of Buxar 1764, after that he lives in Allahabad as British Pensioner.
  • He was a poet and Aftab is his pen name.
• Humayun (1530-40 and 1555-56):
  • He was the son of Babur.
  • The city of Din Panah was founded by Humayun in 1533.
  • He fought two battles against Sher Shah Suri at Chausa (1539) and at Kannauj (1540) and was completely defeated by him.
• Akbar (1556-1605):
  • Emperor Akbar founded the city in by the name of “ILLAHABAS” which later became ALLAHABAD.
  • He introduced the new religion as Din Ilahi.
  • He introduced the Mansabdari system.
  • Akbar defeated Hemu in the second battle of Panipat.
  • He built Ibadat Khana in Fatehpur Sikri.
  • He followed the policy of Sulh-i-kul.
  • It was during his period, the Persia became the leading language of the Mughal court.
    • Later it became the language of administration at all levels of administration.

The correct answer is 1529.

Key Points

• The Battle of Ghaghra was fought in the year 1529.
  • The Battle of Ghaghra, fought in 1529, was a major battle for the conquest of India by the Mughal Empire.
  • It followed the first Battle of Panipat in 1526 and the Battle of Khanwa in 1527.

Additional Information

• Battle of Khatauli
  • The Battle of Khatoli was fought in 1518 between the Lodi dynasty under Ibrahim Lodi and the Kingdom of Mewar under Rana Sanga, during which Mewar emerged victoriously.
• Battle of Gagron
  • The Battle of Gagron was fought in 1519 between Sultan Mahmud Khalji II of Malwa and Rana Sanga of Mewar.
  • The conflict took place in Gagron and resulted in Sanga's victory, with him taking Mahmud captive and annexing significant territory.
• Battle of Bayana
  • The Battle of Bayana (1527) was a rare setback for Babur after his victory at Panipat on 21 April 1526.
  • Although this victory gave Babur control of Delhi and Agra, many other fortified places refused to accede to his authority.

Important Points

• The Mansabdari system was introduced by Akbar.
• It was a combined status showing a noble’s civil and military capacity. The Mansabdari System was introduced by Mughal emperor Akbar as new administrative machinery and revenue system.
• The Mansabdari system was taken from the system followed in Mongolia.
• The Mughal officers whether Hindus or Muslims were given territorial commands in return for the military service.
• They had to bring in some fixed number of men-at-arms, horses and elephants to the field and were rated as per the numbers which were known as Zats. 
  • Mansabdars of 10, 20, 100, and 1000 and so on.
• 'zat' shows the number of the troops which a mansabdar was expected to maintain, while 'sawar' indicate the actual number of horses under the command of a mansabdar.
• Mansingh and Mirza Aziz Koka was the only Mansabdar of 7000 zats and Bhagwan Das with 5000 zats enjoyed the privileged position in the Mansabdari system of Akbar.

The correct answer is Number of ploughs.

Key Points

• Number of ploughs systems of levying land revenue in Deccan was prevalent during the reign of Akbar.
• A major extension of the Zabt system occurred in the later years of Shahjahan's reign when it was established in the Deccan by Murshid Quill Khan.
• Zabt system was applied in northern India and in Malwa and parts of Gujarat.
• It was framed during the Mughal period and was prevalent in Akbar's period.
• It was a new land measurement system.
• The ploughed/sown area is measured by bamboos which are attached to iron rings.
• It is also called Todar Mal's Bandobast.
• The land was divided into 4 categories in this system
  • Poolaj
  • Parauti
  • Chachar
  • Banjar
• Another land revenue system developed by Akbar was - Ghallabakshi and Kankut in which the produce was divided between the state and the peasants in a fixed proportion.
• When the crops were ruined due to natural calamity, peasants could choose between Ghallabakshi or Zabti system.​

The correct answer is Bahadur Shah II.

• Bahadur Shah II was the last Mughal ruler.

Key Points

• He was the second son of and became the successor to his father, Akbar II, upon his death on 28 September 1837.
• He used to write Shairis under the pet-name of Zafar.
• During the 1857 sepoy revolt, he has proclaimed the emperor of India by the rebellions.
• He was deported to Rangoon and died there.

Additional Information

• Babur was the first Mughal emperor invaded the kingdom of the Lodi Afghans in northern India in 1526.
• First Battle of Panipat happened between Ibrahim Lodi and Babur in 1526 AD.
• Second Battle of Panipat was fought between Hemu and Bairam Khan (the regent of Akbar). in 1556.

​

Mughals:

• The Mughals were descendants of two great lineages of rulers.
• From their mother’s side, they were descendants of Genghis Khan (died 1227), the Mongol ruler who ruled over parts of China and Central Asia.
• From their father’s side, they were the successors of Timur (died 1404), the ruler of Iran, Iraq and modern-day Turkey.
• However, the Mughals did not like to be called Mughal or Mongol. This was because Genghis Khan’s memory was associated with the massacre of innumerable people.
• It was also linked with the Uzbeks, their Mongol competitors.
• On the other hand, the Mughals were proud of their Timurid ancestry, not least of all because their great ancestor had captured Delhi in 1398. 

The correct answer is B, D, A, C.

Key Points

Mughal emperors and some details during their reigns: