UPSC Prelims 2021 · GS Paper I
Question 33: History and Culture
In the first quarter of seventeenth century, in which of the following was/were the factory/factories of the English East India Company located?
- 1.Broach
- 2.Chicacole
- 3.Trichinopoly
Select the correct answer using the code given below.
AnswerUPSC’s answer is (a).
In the early 17th century the English East India Company set up factories at Surat and nearby Broach on the western coast, and at Masulipatnam on the east. Broach (Bharuch) had a factory in this period. Chicacole (Srikakulam) and Trichinopoly (Tiruchirappalli) were not English factory sites then; Trichinopoly became prominent only in the Carnatic Wars of the 18th century. Remember: early English presence was along the Gujarat coast and at Masulipatnam.
- 1. The Company had a factory at Broach in the early 17th century.
- 2. Chicacole was not an English factory site in this period.
- 3. Trichinopoly figures only in the 18th-century Carnatic Wars.
How you could have got this
- If you were sure statement 1 is correct, (c) and (d) go: each of them leaves 1 out.
What you needed to know: The Company had a factory at Broach in the early 17th century.
- Then, if you were sure statement 2 is not correct, (b) goes: it includes 2.
What you needed to know: Chicacole was not an English factory site in this period.
Only (a) is left. You didn’t need statement 3.
Which options go is worked out from UPSC’s key and the options, not by a model.
Why each option is right or wrong
- (a) Right: only Broach had an English factory in that period.
- (b) Wrong: Chicacole did not.
- (c) Wrong: Trichinopoly did not.
- (d) Wrong: neither Chicacole nor Trichinopoly had one then, and it omits Broach.
Answer: UPSC’s key. Explanation: written by UPSC Grade, not by UPSC.
Source: UPSC, Civil Services (Preliminary) Examination 2021, General Studies Paper I, Series A. The paper on upsc.gov.in.