Q19 (IAS/2018) History & Culture › Modern India (Pre-1857) › Colonial education policy Official Key

Regarding Wood's Dispatch, which of the following statements are true ? 1. Grants-in-Aid system was introduced. 2. Establishment of universities was recommended. 3. English as a medium of instruction at all levels of education was recommended. Select the correct answer using the code given below :

Result

Your answer: — · Correct: A

Explanation

The correct answer is option A (statements 1 and 2 only).

Wood's Dispatch of 1854 is considered the "Magna Carta of English Education in India"[2] and was a comprehensive educational reform document. The education dispatch of 1854 urged the spread of mass education through grant-in-aid system[3], and the grants-in-aid system was finally introduced in 1856-57[4], making statement 1 correct. The dispatch outlined a comprehensive scheme of education-primary, secondary, collegiate[5], which included the recommendation for establishing universities, making statement 2 correct.

However, statement 3 is incorrect. The Wood's Dispatch preserved English as the official language for university studies despite establishing native language teaching for primary school students[6]. The dispatch suggested the setting up of Vernacular primary schools in the villages at the lowest stage, Anglo-vernacular high schools and an affiliated college at the district level[7]. Therefore, English was not recommended at all levels—vernacular languages were prescribed for primary education.

Sources

[2] Rajiv Ahir. A Brief History of Modern India (2019 ed.). SPECTRUM. > Chapter 30: Development of Education > Wood's Despatch (1854) > p. 565
[5] History , class XI (Tamilnadu state board 2024 ed.) > Chapter 17: Effects of British Rule > Education > p. 270

How others answered

Each bar shows the % of students who chose that option. Green bar = correct answer, blue outline = your choice.

Community Performance

Out of everyone who attempted this question.

65%

got it right

Web / Current Affairs

Online pages / news items supporting the statement

Web source

Presence: 5/5

"Wood’s Dispatch and the Formalization of the Grants-in-aid The Wood’s dispatch of 1854 (Basu, pp. 7-8), also considered as the Magna Carta of English education in India"

Why this source?

Explicitly links Wood's Dispatch (1854) with the formalization of the grants-in-aid.
Describes the Dispatch as a key document ('Magna Carta of English education') that objectified spread of western education, implying policy formation including grants-in-aid.

Web source

Presence: 4/5

"The grants-in-aid system was finally introduced in 1856-57."

Why this source?

States the grants-in-aid system was 'finally introduced in 1856-57', giving the implementation timeline after the Dispatch.
Provides documentary detail about rules and their approval dates, showing the policy was enacted shortly after the Dispatch's recommendations.

Web source

Presence: 5/5

"Therefore the education dispatch of 1854 had rightly urged the spread of mass education through grant-in-aid system."

Why this source?

Says the 1854 education dispatch 'had rightly urged the spread of mass education through grant-in-aid system', indicating the Dispatch recommended the grants-in-aid approach.
Supports the view that Wood's Dispatch initiated the move toward a grants-in-aid framework, even if formal introduction came slightly later.

Indirect textbook clues (5)

How books hint at the answer

Rajiv Ahir. A Brief History of Modern India (2019 ed.). SPECTRUM. > Chapter 30: Development of Education > Wood's Despatch (1854) > p. 565

Strength: 4/5

“In 1854, Charles Wood prepared a despatch on an educational system for India. Considered the "Magna Carta of English Education in India", this document was the first comprehensive plan for the spread of education in India. 1. It asked the government of India to assume responsibility for education of the masses, thus repudiating the 'downward filtration theory', at least on paper.”

Why relevant

Describes Wood's Dispatch (1854) as a comprehensive plan making the Government of India responsible for mass education.

How to extend

A student could infer that if the government was to assume responsibility, some funding mechanism would be needed and then check whether that mechanism was called 'grants‑in‑aid' or introduced later.

Modern India ,Bipin Chandra, History class XII (NCERT 1982 ed.)[Old NCERT] > Chapter 6: Administrative Organisation and Social and Cultural Policy > Spread of Modern Education > p. 121

Strength: 4/5

“Large extent, though not in the form desired by the rulers. Through political parties, the press, pamphlets, and public platform, though not through schools and textbooks, the educated Indians, or the intellectuals, spread ideas of democracy, nationalism, anti-imperialism and social and economic equality and justice among the rural and urban masses. The Secretary of State's Educational Dispatch of 1854 was another important step in the development of education in India. The Dispatch asked the Government of India to assume responsibility for the education of the masses. It thus repudiated the "downward filtration" theory, at least on paper. In practice, the Government did little to spread education and spent very little on it.”

Why relevant

Also notes the Dispatch repudiated 'downward filtration' and asked government to assume responsibility for education, implying a policy shift toward state-funded education.

How to extend

One could compare this policy shift with later fiscal arrangements to see if formal 'grants‑in‑aid' were created then or only much later.

Laxmikanth, M. Indian Polity. 7th ed., McGraw Hill. > Chapter 15: Centre State Relations > D I Grants-in-Aid to the States > p. 155

Strength: 5/5

“Besides sharing of taxes between the Centre and the states, the Constitution provides for grants-in-aid to the states from the Central resources. There are two types of grants-in-aid, viz, statutory grants and discretionary grants: A. Statutory Crants Article 275 empowers the Parliament to make grants to the states which are in need of financial assistance and not to every state. Also, different sums may be fixed for different states. These sums are charged on the Consolidated Fund of India every year. Apart from this general provision, the Constitution also provides for specific grants for promoting the welfare of the scheduled tribes in a state or for raising the level of administration of the scheduled areas in a state including the State of Assam.”

Why relevant

Explains the constitutional concept of grants‑in‑aid (Article 275) as a formal central mechanism to assist states, showing a named, legalised grants system in the Constitution.

How to extend

A student could use the constitutional dating (post‑Independence) to judge whether the named grants‑in‑aid system existed in 1854 or was formalised later.

Introduction to the Constitution of India, D. D. Basu (26th ed.). > Chapter 25: DISTRIBUTION OF FINANCIAL POWERS > The States, similarly, have their receipts from- > p. 387

Strength: 4/5

“(G) The States, similarly, have their receipts from- Forests, Irrigation and Commercial Enterprises (like Electricity, Road Transport) and Industrial Undertakings (such as Soap, Sandalwood, Iron and Steel in Karnataka, Paper in Madhya Pradesh, Milk Supply in Mumbai, Deep-sea Fishing and Silk in West Bengal). Even after the assignment to the States of a share of the Grants-in-Aid. Central taxes, the resources of all the States may not be adequate enough. The Constitution, therefore, provides that grants-in-aid shall be made in each year by the Union to such States as Parliament may determine to be in need of assistance; particularly, for the promotion of welfare of tribal areas, including special grants to Assam in this respect [Article 275].”

Why relevant

Describes grants‑in‑aid as an established constitutional provision for central assistance to states and indicates their use as a modern fiscal tool.

How to extend

A student could contrast this modern definition with 19th‑century administrative practice to see if the term/system aligns with Wood's Dispatch era.

Geography of India ,Majid Husain, (McGrawHill 9th ed.) > Chapter 15: Regional Development and Planning > Programmes in the State Sector > p. 34

Strength: 3/5

“Grants-in-aid to non-official organisations working at State”

Why relevant

Mentions 'Grants‑in‑aid to non‑official organisations', showing the term is used for varied post‑colonial funding arrangements.

How to extend

A student might compile examples of where the term appears in later policy texts to assess whether the same institutional meaning existed in 1854.

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With reference to the Fourteenth Finance Commission, which of the following statements is/are correct? 1. It has increased the share of States in the central divisible pool from 32 percent to 42 percent. 2. It has made recommendations concerning sector-specific grants. Select the correct answer using the code given below.

Which of the following statements with regard to recommendations of the 15th Finance Commission of India are correct? I. It has recommended grants of ₹ 4,800 crores from the year 2022-23 to the year 2025-26 for incentivizing States to enhance educational outcomes. II. 45% of the net proceeds of Union taxes are to be shared with States. III. ₹ 45,000 crores are to be kept as performance-based incentive for all States for carrying out agricultural reforms. IV. It reintroduced tax effort criteria to reward fiscal performance. Select the correct answer using the code given below.

Question map

Regarding Wood's Dispatch, which of the following statements are true ? 1. Grants-in-Aid system was introduced. 2. Establishment of universities was recommended. 3. English as a medium of instruction at all levels of education was recommended. Select the correct answer using the code given below :

Explanation

PROVENANCE & STUDY PATTERN

SIMILAR QUESTIONS

Which of the following statements relating to the Government of India Act of 1935 are correct ? 1. It introduced provincial autonomy. 2. It proposed a federation of India. 3. It proposed for the establishment of a Federal Court. Select the correct answer using the code given below :