2017 GS Paper I, all questions

UPSC Prelims 2017 · GS Paper I

Question 26: History and Culture

The object of the Butler Committee of 1927 was to

aDefine the jurisdiction of the Central and Provincial Governments.
bDefine the powers of the Secretary of State for India.
cImpose censorship on national press.
dImprove the relationship between the Government of India and the Indian States.

AnswerUPSC’s answer is (d).

The Butler Committee (Indian States Committee, 1927), headed by Sir Harcourt Butler, was set up to examine the relationship between the paramount power (the British Crown, acting through the Government of India) and the Indian princely states. It held that the states' treaty relations were with the Crown and should not be transferred to any Indian government without their consent. It had nothing to do with provincial jurisdiction, the Secretary of State's powers or press censorship.

Why each option is right or wrong
  • (a) Wrong: central and provincial jurisdiction was not the Butler Committee's subject.
  • (b) Wrong: the Butler Committee did not define the Secretary of State's powers.
  • (c) Wrong: it had no brief to impose press censorship.
  • (d) Right: it examined relations between the paramount power and the Indian States.

Answer: UPSC’s key. Explanation: written by UPSC Grade, not by UPSC.

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Source: UPSC, Civil Services (Preliminary) Examination 2017, General Studies Paper I, Series A. The paper on upsc.gov.in.