SSC CGL History · Modern India
19th Century Social and Religious Reform
The reform societies of Bengal, western India and beyond, their founders and years, and the campaigns against sati, for widow remarriage and against caste.
Why this matters
Thirty-seven questions in the bank: 17 from the 2023 shifts, 17 from the 2024 shifts and only three from the 2025 shifts, and 31 of them EASY. Nearly every question names a society and asks its founder, or names a founder and asks the society, so the founder table on each concept is what to learn.
Concept 1 of 3: Ram Mohan Roy, the Brahmo Samaj and Vidyasagar
Reform began in Calcutta. Ram Mohan Roy attacked idol worship and sati with books, newspapers and debate; the Brahmo Samaj carried his ideas on; Vidyasagar then fought for widows. Learn the bodies in the order they were founded.
Definition
In time order:
- Tuhfat-ul-Muwahhidin (A Gift to Monotheists), 1803 to 1804: Ram Mohan Roy's book in Persian against the worship of many gods.
- Atmiya Sabha (1814), Calcutta: Ram Mohan Roy.
- Hindu College, Calcutta (1817): backed by Ram Mohan Roy and David Hare. Ram Mohan Roy was the first reformer to see modern (Western) education as the way to spread modern ideas.
- Brahmo Sabha (1828), Calcutta, later the Brahmo Samaj: Ram Mohan Roy. He and the Samaj wrote and debated against sati.
- Sati banned (1829) by Lord William Bentinck. The Company had held back for years, fearing a religious backlash.
- Tattvabodhini Sabha (1839): Debendranath Tagore, who later led the Brahmo Samaj.
- Hindu Widows' Remarriage Act (1856): passed after the campaign of Ishwar Chandra Vidyasagar, a Sanskrit scholar who also fought child marriage and polygamy.
- Brahmo Samaj of India (1866): Keshab Chandra Sen's breakaway.
Practice this conceptself-check · 5 quick reps
The same idea in a real exam question:
SSC CGL · 2025 · Tier I, 14 Sep 2025, Shift 3 · Q31Easy
Example 1 · Modern India · 19th Century Social and Religious Reform
How did Raja Rammohan Roy contribute to the movement against the practice of Sati in early 19th-century Bengal?
Vidyasagar was a Sanskrit scholar
The title Vidyasagar came from the Sanskrit College, Calcutta. A statement calling him a Persian scholar is false.
Two Hindu Colleges
The Hindu College at Calcutta dates from 1817. A college founded in 1791 is the Sanskrit (Hindu) College at Benaras, set up by Jonathan Duncan.
Concept 2 of 3: Arya Samaj, Prarthana Samaj and reform in western India
Bombay and Pune had their own reformers. Two of their societies are asked again and again: the Prarthana Samaj, a cousin of the Brahmo Samaj, and the Arya Samaj, which called for a return to the Vedas.
Definition
In time order:
- Paramahansa Mandali (1849), Bombay: a secret society against caste rules, with Dadoba Pandurang; Karsondas Mulji was linked with it.
- Rahnumai Mazdayasnan Sabha (1851): Parsi religious reform, founded by Naoroji Furdonji, Dadabhai Naoroji and others.
- Prarthana Samaj (1867), Bombay: founded by Atmaram Pandurang; M. G. Ranade and R. G. Bhandarkar were its leaders.
- Satyashodhak Samaj (1873), Pune: Jyotiba Phule, against caste.
- Arya Samaj (1875), founded in Bombay by Swami Dayanand Saraswati. Its call: Back to the Vedas, which it held to be the source of all true knowledge.
- Stree Purush Tulana (1882): Tarabai Shinde's comparison of women and men, an early feminist book.
- Deccan Education Society (1884) and Fergusson College (1885), Pune: Bal Gangadhar Tilak, Agarkar, Chiplunkar and others.
| Body or work | Year | Founder or leader |
|---|---|---|
| Paramahansa Mandali | 1849 | Dadoba PandurangQ |
| Rahnumai Mazdayasnan Sabha | 1851 | Dadabhai Naoroji and othersQ |
| Prarthana Samaj | 1867 | Atmaram Pandurang; led by Ranade and BhandarkarQ |
| Satyashodhak Samaj | 1873 | Jyotiba Phule |
| Arya Samaj | 1875 | Swami Dayanand SaraswatiQ |
| Stree Purush Tulana | 1882 | Tarabai ShindeQ |
| Fergusson College | 1885 | Tilak and the Deccan Education SocietyQ |
Practice this conceptself-check · 5 quick reps
The same idea in a real exam question:
SSC CGL · 2024 · Tier I, 26 Sep 2024, Shift 1 · Q33Easy
Example 2 · Modern India · 19th Century Social and Religious Reform
Match the following social reform organisations with their respective founders.
| Social reform organisations | Their founders |
|---|---|
| a) Brahmo Samaj | i. Swami Vivekanand |
| b) Ramakrishna Mission | ii. Atmaram Pandurang |
| c) Prarthana Samaj | iii. Raja Ram Mohan Roy |
| d) Arya Samaj | iv. Dayananda Saraswati |
The Arya Samaj began in Bombay
Dayanand founded the Arya Samaj in Bombay in 1875, though it grew strongest in Punjab. An option of Lahore for its founding is a trap.
Gokhale did not found Fergusson College
Tilak and the Deccan Education Society founded it. Gokhale joined later as a life member and teacher.
Concept 3 of 3: Theosophy, Vivekananda, and the Muslim, Sikh and caste reformers
Outside Bengal and Bombay, reform took many shapes: a world body that praised Indian religions, a monk who spoke for Hinduism abroad, Muslim and Sikh revivals, and leaders of castes and tribes that the older reformers had left out.
Definition
The bodies and their leaders:
- Theosophical Society: founded in New York in 1875 by Madame H. P. Blavatsky and Colonel H. S. Olcott; headquarters moved to Adyar, Madras (1882). Annie Besant later led it and promoted the study of ancient Indian religions.
- Swami Vivekananda: spoke at the World's Parliament of Religions, Chicago, 1893; founded the Ramakrishna Mission (1897), with its headquarters at Belur Math.
- Aligarh Movement: Sir Sayyid Ahmad Khan; Muhammadan Anglo-Oriental College (1875).
- Singh Sabha Movement: began at Amritsar in 1873.
- Satnami movement: Guru Ghasidas, in Chhattisgarh, among the leather-working Chamars.
- Sree Narayana Guru, Kerala: "one caste, one religion, one god for humankind".
- B. R. Ambedkar: the Samata Sainik Dal (1927) and a temple entry movement begun in 1927.
- Thakkar Bapa: lifelong work for tribal (Adivasi) communities; the Bhil Seva Mandal (1922).
| Movement or body | Leader | Fact |
|---|---|---|
| Theosophical Society | Blavatsky and Olcott | New York 1875; Adyar from 1882Q |
| Ramakrishna Mission | Swami Vivekananda | 1897; Belur MathQ |
| Aligarh Movement | Sayyid Ahmad Khan | Muhammadan Anglo-Oriental College, 1875Q |
| Singh Sabha Movement | Sikh reformers | Amritsar, 1873Q |
| Satnami movement | Guru Ghasidas | Chhattisgarh, among leather workersQ |
| Samata Sainik Dal | B. R. Ambedkar | 1927Q |
Practice this conceptself-check · 5 quick reps
The same idea in a real exam question:
SSC CGL · 2025 · Tier I, 24 Sep 2025, Shift 2 · Q46Easy
Example 3 · Modern India · 19th Century Social and Religious Reform
Thakkar Bapa was a dedicated social worker and freedom fighter primarily known for his lifelong efforts towards the upliftment and welfare of which section of Indian society?
Besant led the Theosophists but did not found them
Blavatsky and Olcott founded the Theosophical Society in 1875. Annie Besant joined later and led it in India.
Ramakrishna did not found the Mission
The Ramakrishna Mission was founded by his disciple Vivekananda in 1897, eleven years after Ramakrishna's death.
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)
Arya Samaj, Prarthana Samaj and reform in western India7 rows
| Body or work | Year | Founder or leader |
|---|---|---|
| Paramahansa Mandali | 1849 | Dadoba PandurangQ |
| Rahnumai Mazdayasnan Sabha | 1851 | Dadabhai Naoroji and othersQ |
| Prarthana Samaj | 1867 | Atmaram Pandurang; led by Ranade and BhandarkarQ |
| Satyashodhak Samaj | 1873 | Jyotiba Phule |
| Arya Samaj | 1875 | Swami Dayanand SaraswatiQ |
| Stree Purush Tulana | 1882 | Tarabai ShindeQ |
| Fergusson College | 1885 | Tilak and the Deccan Education SocietyQ |
Theosophy, Vivekananda, and the Muslim, Sikh and caste reformers6 rows
| Movement or body | Leader | Fact |
|---|---|---|
| Theosophical Society | Blavatsky and Olcott | New York 1875; Adyar from 1882Q |
| Ramakrishna Mission | Swami Vivekananda | 1897; Belur MathQ |
| Aligarh Movement | Sayyid Ahmad Khan | Muhammadan Anglo-Oriental College, 1875Q |
| Singh Sabha Movement | Sikh reformers | Amritsar, 1873Q |
| Satnami movement | Guru Ghasidas | Chhattisgarh, among leather workersQ |
| Samata Sainik Dal | B. R. Ambedkar | 1927Q |
Watch out for (6)
- Vidyasagar was a Sanskrit scholar→ Ram Mohan Roy, the Brahmo Samaj and Vidyasagar
- Two Hindu Colleges→ Ram Mohan Roy, the Brahmo Samaj and Vidyasagar
- The Arya Samaj began in Bombay→ Arya Samaj, Prarthana Samaj and reform in western India
- Gokhale did not found Fergusson College→ Arya Samaj, Prarthana Samaj and reform in western India
- Besant led the Theosophists but did not found them→ Theosophy, Vivekananda, and the Muslim, Sikh and caste reformers
- Ramakrishna did not found the Mission→ Theosophy, Vivekananda, and the Muslim, Sikh and caste reformers
Test yourself on Modern India
20 past SSC CGL questions from this chapter, timed at 12 minutes and marked the way the exam marks it. You see your score and every answer the moment you finish. Free to start.