CDS History · Modern India
Acts and Administration
The Acts that shaped British rule from the Regulating Act of 1773 to the Indian Independence Act of 1947, and the colleges, services, census and commissions through which India was run.
Why this matters
Twenty-one CDS questions from 2016 to 2026, seven of them HARD. The Acts are asked as 'which statement is not correct', so learn what each Act did and also what it did not do. The census came back twice, in 2016 and 2024, with the same two dates.
Concept 1 of 3: From the Regulating Act to the Councils Act of 1861
Parliament slowly took control of a trading company that had become a government. First it put a Governor-General over it, then it took away its trade, and after 1857 it took away its rule. In 1861 a few Indians were let into law-making for the first time, but only to discuss what was put before them.
Definition
The Acts in order:
- Regulating Act (1773): the Governor of Bengal became Governor-General of Bengal, with a council of four. Warren Hastings was the first.
- Charter Act (1813): ended the Company's monopoly of Indian trade.
- Charter Act (1833): ended its monopoly of the China (and tea) trade. The Company became a purely administrative body.
- Act V of 1843: courts would not enforce any claim of a master over a slave, so masters lost the use of the courts.
- Government of India Act (1858): the Crown took over from the Company. It was the first law for India's direct rule, run through a Secretary of State, with no popular element.
- Indian Councils Act (1861): nominated non-official members joined the Governor-General's council for law-making. They could only consider the bills placed before them, and the Governor-General kept his veto and his power to issue ordinances.
| Act | Year | What it did |
|---|---|---|
| Regulating Act | 1773 | Governor-General of Bengal; Warren Hastings the firstQ |
| Charter Act | 1813 | Ended the monopoly of Indian trade |
| Charter Act | 1833 | Ended the monopoly of the China trade |
| Act V | 1843 | Masters could not use the courts to claim slavesQ |
| Government of India Act | 1858 | Crown took over; no popular participationQ |
| Indian Councils Act | 1861 | Nominated non-officials added for law-making onlyQ |
Practice this conceptself-check · 3 quick reps
The same idea in a real exam question:
CDS · 2021 · CDS (I) 2021 — General Knowledge · Q33Moderate
Example 1 · Modern India · Acts and Administration
When was the monopoly of China trade lost by East India Company ?
1813 for India, 1833 for China
The Charter Act of 1813 ended the Company's monopoly of Indian trade. Its China trade monopoly went only in 1833.
1861 did not weaken the Governor-General
'The Governor-General did not have effective legislative power' is false for 1861. He kept the veto and could issue ordinances.
Concept 2 of 3: From the Press Act to the Independence Act
After 1858 each new Act gave Indians a little more say, while keeping real power in British hands. CDS tests the boundary: separate electorates began in 1909, dyarchy in 1919 touched only the provinces, and the 1935 Act built the frame the Constitution later used.
Definition
The later Acts:
- Vernacular Press Act (1878, Lord Lytton): gagged the Indian-language press. The only Indian member present in the Legislative Council was Raja Jotendra Mohan Tagore.
- Indian Councils Act (1909, Morley-Minto Reforms): separate electorates for Muslims for the first time.
- Government of India Act (1919, Montagu-Chelmsford Reforms): dyarchy in the provinces only. The central executive was not responsible to the legislature. It extended communal representation and separated central and provincial subjects.
- In 1919 Annie Besant, Sarojini Naidu and Herabai Tata gave evidence for votes for women before the Joint Select Committee.
- Government of India Act (1935): a Federal Court (set up in 1937), provincial autonomy, and seats reserved for women within each community's share.
- Indian Independence Act (1947): introduced on 4 July, Royal Assent on 18 July. It created two Dominions, India and Pakistan, and gave each Constituent Assembly unlimited power. It did not lay down the framework of the Constitution.
| Act or code | Year | Fact CDS asks |
|---|---|---|
| Cornwallis Code | 1793 | Rules of Cornwallis's administration in BengalQ CDS 2019 (II) asked these four in order: 1793, 1878, 1881, 1909. |
| Vernacular Press Act | 1878 | Only Indian member present: Jotendra Mohan TagoreQ |
| First Indian Factory Act | 1881 | First law on factory labour |
| Morley-Minto Reforms | 1909 | Separate electorates for MuslimsQ |
| Montagu-Chelmsford Reforms | 1919 | Dyarchy in the provinces; centre not responsibleQ |
| Government of India Act | 1935 | Federal Court; seats for women within communal sharesQ |
| Indian Independence Act | 1947 | Two Dominions; did not frame the ConstitutionQ |
Practice this conceptself-check · 4 quick reps
The same idea in a real exam question:
CDS · 2019 · CDS (II) 2019 — General Knowledge · Q61Moderate
Example 2 · Modern India · Acts and Administration
Which one of the following statements about the Government of India Act, 1919 is not correct ?
Dyarchy was provincial only
The 1919 Act brought dyarchy to the provinces. 'It made the central executive responsible to the legislature' is the false statement.
The 1947 Act did not write the Constitution
The Indian Independence Act ended British rule and created two Dominions. The framework the Constitution drew on came from the 1935 Act.
Concept 3 of 3: Colleges, services, census and commissions
To run India the British needed trained officers, doctors, numbers and schools. Each of these began with a named person or a date that CDS likes to ask.
Definition
How India was run:
- Indian Medical Service: began in 1764, first to look after the troops. It recruited by competitive examination, and Indians were admitted from the 1850s.
- College of Fort William (1800): founded at Calcutta by Lord Wellesley to train the Company's young officers in Indian languages and law.
- Simla: Viceroy John Lawrence formally moved the government and his council there for the summer from 1864.
- Census: first attempted in 1872 (Lord Mayo); regular every ten years from 1881 (Lord Ripon).
- Hunter Commission (1882): endorsed Wood's Despatch of 1854, with greater emphasis on primary education.
- Gokhale's bill (1911) in the Imperial Legislative Council sought free and compulsory primary education; it was defeated in 1912.
- Lord Curzon reorganised agriculture: an Inspector-General of Agriculture and the research institute at Pusa.
| Step | Year | Who or what |
|---|---|---|
| Indian Medical Service begins | 1764 | First for the troops; Indians later admittedQ |
| College of Fort William | 1800 | Lord WellesleyQ |
| Wood's Despatch | 1854 | Plan for education in India |
| Simla made the summer seat | 1864 | John LawrenceQ |
| First census attempt | 1872 | Lord MayoQ CDS 2016 (II) and CDS 2024 (II) both asked 1872 and 1881. |
| Regular ten-yearly census | 1881 | Lord Ripon |
| Hunter Commission | 1882 | Primary education stressed |
| Free and compulsory education bill | 1911 | Gopal Krishna GokhaleQ |
Practice this conceptself-check · 4 quick reps
The same idea in a real exam question:
CDS · 2020 · CDS (I) 2020 — General Knowledge · Q105Hard
Example 3 · Modern India · Acts and Administration
The Hunter Commission (1882) appointed to survey the state of education in India
The census is ten-yearly
'Always undertaken as a five-year exercise' is false. The census has been decennial (every ten years) since 1881.
Indians did enter the IMS
'Indians were never admitted to the IMS' is the wrong statement. Indians entered it through the competitive examination from the 1850s.
Summary — formulas & gotchas at a glance
A revision cheat-sheet for the formulas and gotchas above. Click any concept name to jump back to its full explanation.
Reference tables (3)
From the Regulating Act to the Councils Act of 18616 rows
| Act | Year | What it did |
|---|---|---|
| Regulating Act | 1773 | Governor-General of Bengal; Warren Hastings the firstQ |
| Charter Act | 1813 | Ended the monopoly of Indian trade |
| Charter Act | 1833 | Ended the monopoly of the China trade |
| Act V | 1843 | Masters could not use the courts to claim slavesQ |
| Government of India Act | 1858 | Crown took over; no popular participationQ |
| Indian Councils Act | 1861 | Nominated non-officials added for law-making onlyQ |
From the Press Act to the Independence Act7 rows
| Act or code | Year | Fact CDS asks |
|---|---|---|
| Cornwallis Code | 1793 | Rules of Cornwallis's administration in BengalQ CDS 2019 (II) asked these four in order: 1793, 1878, 1881, 1909. |
| Vernacular Press Act | 1878 | Only Indian member present: Jotendra Mohan TagoreQ |
| First Indian Factory Act | 1881 | First law on factory labour |
| Morley-Minto Reforms | 1909 | Separate electorates for MuslimsQ |
| Montagu-Chelmsford Reforms | 1919 | Dyarchy in the provinces; centre not responsibleQ |
| Government of India Act | 1935 | Federal Court; seats for women within communal sharesQ |
| Indian Independence Act | 1947 | Two Dominions; did not frame the ConstitutionQ |
Colleges, services, census and commissions8 rows
| Step | Year | Who or what |
|---|---|---|
| Indian Medical Service begins | 1764 | First for the troops; Indians later admittedQ |
| College of Fort William | 1800 | Lord WellesleyQ |
| Wood's Despatch | 1854 | Plan for education in India |
| Simla made the summer seat | 1864 | John LawrenceQ |
| First census attempt | 1872 | Lord MayoQ CDS 2016 (II) and CDS 2024 (II) both asked 1872 and 1881. |
| Regular ten-yearly census | 1881 | Lord Ripon |
| Hunter Commission | 1882 | Primary education stressed |
| Free and compulsory education bill | 1911 | Gopal Krishna GokhaleQ |
Watch out for (6)
- 1813 for India, 1833 for China→ From the Regulating Act to the Councils Act of 1861
- 1861 did not weaken the Governor-General→ From the Regulating Act to the Councils Act of 1861
- Dyarchy was provincial only→ From the Press Act to the Independence Act
- The 1947 Act did not write the Constitution→ From the Press Act to the Independence Act
- The census is ten-yearly→ Colleges, services, census and commissions
- Indians did enter the IMS→ Colleges, services, census and commissions
Test yourself on Modern India
20 past CDS questions from this chapter, timed at 20 minutes and marked the way the exam marks it. You see your score and every answer the moment you finish. Free to start.