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Q18 (IAS/2025) History & Culture › Culture, Literature, Religion & Philosophy › Indian classical music Answer Verified

The first Gandharva Mahavidyalaya, a music training school, was set up in 1901 by Vishnu Digambar Paluskar in

Result
Your answer: —  ·  Correct: D
Explanation

The first Gandharva Mahavidyalaya was established by Vishnu Digambar Paluskar on[1]5 May 1901 in Lahore.[3] This institution was a pioneering music school that played a crucial role in systematizing Indian classical music education and making it accessible to the masses. Paluskar was a visionary musician who worked towards democratizing music education, which was traditionally restricted to the guru-shishya parampara system. The Gandharva Mahavidyalaya became a model for music education in India, and subsequently, similar institutions were established in other cities across the country. This institution's establishment in Lahore (now in Pakistan) marked a significant milestone in the formal institutionalization of Indian classical music training.

Sources
  1. [1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gandharva_Mahavidyalaya,_New_Delhi
  2. [2] https://www.thehindu.com/incoming/vishnu-digambar-paluskar-gandharva-mahavidyalaya-pt-vinay-chandra-maudgalya-vishnu-digambar-jayanti/article65836482.ece
  3. [3] https://scroll.in/article/877915/reliving-gandharva-mahavidyalayas-glory-days-with-a-duet-by-narayanrao-vyas-vinayakrao-patwardhan
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Q. The first Gandharva Mahavidyalaya, a music training school, was set up in 1901 by Vishnu Digambar Paluskar in [A] Delhi [B] Gwalior [C…
At a glance
Origin: Mostly Current Affairs Fairness: Low / Borderline fairness Books / CA: 0/10 · 10/10

This is a classic 'Cultural History' bouncer. It sits outside standard political history books (Spectrum) but is foundational in Indian Classical Music history. The strategy is to track the 'Institutionalization of Arts'—who moved art from royal courts to public classrooms.

How this question is built

This question can be broken into the following sub-statements. Tap a statement sentence to jump into its detailed analysis.

Statement 1
In which city was the first Gandharva Mahavidyalaya (a music training school) set up in 1901 by Vishnu Digambar Paluskar?
Origin: Web / Current Affairs Fairness: CA heavy Web-answerable

Web source
Presence: 5/5
"The first Gandharva Mahavidyalaya was established by him on 5 May 1901 at Lahore."
Why this source?
  • Explicitly states the first Gandharva Mahavidyalaya was established by Paluskar on 5 May 1901.
  • Names the city where it was established: Lahore.
Web source
Presence: 5/5
"Vishnu Digambar Paluskar founded the Gandharva Mahavidyalaya in Lahore in 1901."
Why this source?
  • News article clearly attributes the founding of the Gandharva Mahavidyalaya to Paluskar in 1901.
  • Specifies the city of foundation as Lahore.
Web source
Presence: 5/5
"It was on May 5, 1901, that Vishnu Digambar Paluskar established a music school called Gandharva Mahavidyalaya in Lahore."
Why this source?
  • Provides the exact date (May 5, 1901) when Paluskar established the school.
  • Clearly identifies the location of the school as Lahore.

Rajiv Ahir. A Brief History of Modern India (2019 ed.). SPECTRUM. > Chapter 30: Development of Education > Development of Technical Education > p. 572
Strength: 4/5
“The Engineering College at Roorkee was set up in 1847; the Calcutta College of Engineering came up in 1856. In 1858, Overseers' School at Poona was raised to the status of Poona College of Engineering and affiliated to Bombay University. Guindy College of Engineering was affiliated to Madras University. Medical training started with establishment of a medical college in Calcutta in 1835. Lord Curzon did much to broaden the whole basis of professional courses—medicine, agriculture, engineering, veterinary sciences, etc. He established an agriculture college at Pusa which acted as a parent institution of similar institutions in other provinces.”
Why relevant

Mentions Poona (now Pune) as a location where higher professional institutions (engineering/medical) were set up, indicating Poona/Pune was an educational hub in the 19th century.

How to extend

A student could combine this pattern (Poona/Pune as an education centre) with knowledge that Vishnu D. Paluskar was Maharashtrian to check whether Gandharva Mahavidyalaya was founded in Poona/Pune.

Rajiv Ahir. A Brief History of Modern India (2019 ed.). SPECTRUM. > Chapter 12: Era of Militant Nationalism (1905-1909) > Programme of Swadeshi or National Education > p. 266
Strength: 4/5
“Bengal National College, inspired by Tagore's Shantiniketan, was set up with Aurobindo Ghosh as its principal. Soon national schools and colleges sprang up in various parts of the country. On August 15, 1906, the National Council of Education was set up to organise a system of education literary, scientific and technical—on national lines and under national control. Education was to be imparted through the vernacular medium. A Bengal Institute of Technology was set up for technical education and funds were raised to send students to Japan for advanced learning.”
Why relevant

Notes that national schools and cultural institutions (e.g., Tagore's Shantiniketan/Bengal National College) were founded in regional cultural centres around this period.

How to extend

Use the pattern that music/arts schools tended to be established in prominent regional cultural centres (Bengal, Bombay/Poona, etc.) to narrow likely cities for Paluskar’s school and then verify.

Rajiv Ahir. A Brief History of Modern India (2019 ed.). SPECTRUM. > Chapter 30: Development of Education > Developments > p. 566
Strength: 3/5
“In 1857, universities at Calcutta, Bombay and Madras were set up and later, departments of education were set up in all provinces. The Bethune School founded by J.E.D. Bethune at Calcutta (1849) was the first fruit of a powerful movement for education of women which arose in 1840s and 1850s. Bethune was the president of the Council of Education. Mostly due to Bethune's efforts, girls' schools were set up on a sound footing and brought under government's grantsin-aid and inspection system. An Agriculture Institute at Pusa (Bihar) and an Engineering Institute at Roorkee were started. The ideals and methods of Wood's Despatch dominated the field for five decades which saw rapid westernisation of education system in India, with educational institutions run by European headmasters and principals.”
Why relevant

Shows Calcutta was an early and important centre for innovative education (e.g., Bethune School), implying major cities were common birthplaces for new educational ventures.

How to extend

A student could list major educational/cultural cities (Calcutta, Poona/Pune, Bombay, Madras) and then check which of these aligns with Paluskar’s regional background to test the claim.

Rajiv Ahir. A Brief History of Modern India (2019 ed.). SPECTRUM. > Chapter 9: A General Survey of Socio-Cultural Reform Movements > Dayananda Saraswati and Arya Samaj > p. 223
Strength: 3/5
“School and College, while the Arya Partinidhi Sabha, Punjab and a majority of the local Arya Samaj branches were taken over by the Mahatma Party. Swami Shraddhanand opened the Gurukul in 1900 at Gujaranwala (in West Punjab, now in Pakistan). In 1902, the Gurukul was moved to Kangri near Haridwar, hence the name, Gurukul Kangri. The gurukul aimed at providing an indigenous alternative to Lord Macaulay's education policy by offering education in the areas of vedic literature, Indian philosophy, Indian culture as well as modern sciences and research. The Gurukul believed in radical social reform. It founded the Kanya Mahavidyalaya at Jalandhar in 1896, and sponsored education for widows.”
Why relevant

Describes founding and relocation of Gurukul institutions (Gujarawala -> Kangri near Haridwar) showing that cultural/educational reformers founded vernacular/indigenous schools in specific towns around 1900.

How to extend

Apply this rule—reformers established schools in particular towns—to search for the town where Paluskar, as a cultural reformer in music education, might have founded Gandharva Mahavidyalaya.

History , class XI (Tamilnadu state board 2024 ed.) > Chapter 10: Advent of Arabs and Turks > Music and Dance > p. 152
Strength: 2/5
“Music was an area where the syncretic tendencies were clearly visible. Muslims brought their musical instruments like Rabab and Sarangi. Amir Khusrau proclaimed that Indian music had a pre-eminence over all the other music of the world. The Sufi practice of Sama, recitation of love poetry to the accompaniment of music, was instrumental in promotion of music. Pir Bhodan, a Sufi saint, was considered a great musician of the age. Royal patronage for the growth of music was also forthcoming. received an impetus in the official court. Ziaud-din Barani lists the names of Nusrat Khatun and Mihr Afroz as musician and dancer respectively in the court of Jalaluddin Khalji.”
Why relevant

Discusses historical patronage and institutional presence of music (in courts and Sufi practice), indicating that cities with strong musical traditions were logical sites for formal music schools.

How to extend

Combine the idea that music schools arise where musical practice is strong with a map of Indian musical centres to prioritize candidate cities for verification against Paluskar’s school.

Pattern takeaway: UPSC loves 'Firsts' in cultural modernization. If a personality is famous for 'saving' an art form, ask: Where did they set up their first brick-and-mortar school?
How you should have studied
  1. [THE VERDICT]: Bouncer for generalists, Sitter for Art & Culture specialists. Source: Niche Cultural History / Web (Wikipedia/The Hindu).
  2. [THE CONCEPTUAL TRIGGER]: The transition of Indian Art from the 'Gharana/Court' system to the 'Institutional/Syllabus' system during the British Raj.
  3. [THE HORIZONTAL EXPANSION]: Memorize the 'Big 5' Cultural Institutions: 1. Gandharva Mahavidyalaya (Paluskar, Lahore, 1901) 2. Marris College of Music (Bhatkhande, Lucknow, 1926) 3. Kerala Kalamandalam (Vallathol, 1930) 4. Kalakshetra (Rukmini Devi, Madras, 1936) 5. Pracheen Kala Kendra (Chandigarh).
  4. [THE STRATEGIC METACOGNITION]: When studying personalities (Paluskar, Bhatkhande, Tagore), map them to: Institution Founded + City + Pre-Independence Geography (Lahore/Dhaka were major hubs).
Concept hooks from this question
📌 Adjacent topic to master
S1
👉 National/Swadeshi educational institutions (early 20th century)
💡 The insight

The early 1900s saw the establishment of indigenous schools and colleges as part of a national education programme, a context in which new cultural institutions (including specialised training centres) were founded.

High-yield for UPSC: questions often ask about the Swadeshi-era push for national education and institution-building. Mastering this links cultural mobilisation with political nationalism and helps answer questions on education policy, indigenous alternatives (gurukuls, national colleges), and cultural revivalism.

📚 Reading List :
  • Rajiv Ahir. A Brief History of Modern India (2019 ed.). SPECTRUM. > Chapter 12: Era of Militant Nationalism (1905-1909) > Programme of Swadeshi or National Education > p. 266
  • Rajiv Ahir. A Brief History of Modern India (2019 ed.). SPECTRUM. > Chapter 9: A General Survey of Socio-Cultural Reform Movements > Dayananda Saraswati and Arya Samaj > p. 223
🔗 Anchor: "In which city was the first Gandharva Mahavidyalaya (a music training school) se..."
📌 Adjacent topic to master
S1
👉 Music, dance and syncretic cultural traditions
💡 The insight

Formal music training institutions arise from the long-standing, syncretic traditions of music and dance in India and their patronage, which shaped later efforts to institutionalise music education.

Valuable for culture and society questions: understanding the historical role and transmission of music clarifies why formal schools emerged and how cultural revival tied into social and national movements. This enables answers on cultural history, institutionalisation of arts, and continuity/change in performing traditions.

📚 Reading List :
  • History , class XI (Tamilnadu state board 2024 ed.) > Chapter 10: Advent of Arabs and Turks > Music and Dance > p. 152
  • Rajiv Ahir. A Brief History of Modern India (2019 ed.). SPECTRUM. > Chapter 12: Era of Militant Nationalism (1905-1909) > Programme of Swadeshi or National Education > p. 266
🔗 Anchor: "In which city was the first Gandharva Mahavidyalaya (a music training school) se..."
🌑 The Hidden Trap

Vishnu Narayan Bhatkhande organized the 'First All India Music Conference' in 1916 in Baroda. While Paluskar focused on performance/devotion, Bhatkhande focused on theory/codification.

⚡ Elimination Cheat Code

Chronological Geography: In 1901, Delhi (Option A) was not yet the capital (shift happened in 1911) and was culturally less significant than Lahore or Calcutta. Lahore was the educational capital of North-West India (undivided Punjab) and a hub for Arya Samaj and reformist movements, making it a logical venue for a modern, reformist music school.

🔗 Mains Connection

Mains GS1 (Indian Heritage): This marks the 'Democratization of Culture'. Paluskar took music out of the 'Kothas' and Courts, sanitized the lyrics, and made it respectable for the middle class, paralleling the Social Reform Movements.

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