RAS question
The Partition of Bengal in 1905 was annulled in 1911 during the reign of which Viceroy?
Correct answer: (D) Lord Hardinge.
The 1905 Partition of Bengal was annulled in 1911 during the viceroyalty of Lord Hardinge.
Explanation
Lord Hardinge is the answer because he was Viceroy of India from 1910 to 1916, covering the 1911 annulment of Bengal's partition. Britannica states that his government reversed Lord Curzon's unpopular Partition of Bengal and used the December 1911 visit of King George V and the queen to announce the transfer of India's capital from Calcutta to New Delhi. The annulment took place at the Delhi Durbar of December 1911, along with the linked administrative change: Bengal was reorganised on linguistic lines, with Bihar and Orissa separated. This makes Hardinge central to the RAS theme of anti-partition agitation, imperial concession, and the capital shift. His period also connects to revolutionary activity, as he survived a 1912 assassination attempt in Delhi.
Why the other options are wrong
- (A) Lord Minto served from 1905 to 1910, so his viceroyalty ended before the 1911 annulment.
- (B) Lord Curzon ordered the Partition of Bengal, but he left office in 1905 and was not Viceroy when it was reversed.
- (C) Lord Chelmsford served from 1916 to 1921, after the 1911 annulment had already taken place.
Concept
This tests the Modern Indian History link between Bengal partition politics, nationalist pressure, and British administrative responses. It recurs in RAS because the 1911 annulment is tied to both the Delhi Durbar and the transfer of the capital from Calcutta to Delhi.