English (Core) · Class 12 Languages
Ch 5Indigo — Class 12 English (Core), concept-first.
To read the chapter well, a student should keep in mind that Fischer is describing not just a local dispute over a crop but a turning point in the history of a nation.
35
Q&A
1
Concept
40m
Section weightage
Section C · Literature Textbooks (Flamingo & Vistas) · across all 19 lessons
Key concepts
Hover a concept to preview it and jump to its most relevant Q&A.
Indigo Cultivation Economics
Imagine you are a farmer in Bengal in the late 18th century. A British planter comes to your village and says he will give you a cash advance — money right now — if you agree to grow indigo on a part of your land instead…
Most relevant Q&A
- Strike out what is not true in the following. a. Rajkumar Shukla was (i) a sharecropper. (ii) a politician. (iii) a delegate. (iv) a landlor…Free
- Why is Rajkumar Shukla described as being 'resolute'?Free
- Why do you think the servants thought Gandhi to be another peasant?Free
- List the places that Gandhi visited between his first meeting with Shukla and his arrival at Champaran.Preview
- What did the peasants pay the British landlords as rent? What did the British now want instead and why? What would be the impact of syntheti…Preview
Chapter contents
The NCERT structure, section by section. Open a section to see its questions, then read the concept-first solution.
About the Author and the Text
To read the chapter well, a student should keep in mind that Fischer is describing not just a local dispute over a crop but a turning point in the history of a nation.
Summary of the Lesson
Shukla brings Gandhi to Champaran The chapter begins with a poor, illiterate peasant named Rajkumar Shukla, who comes from the Champaran district of Bihar and is determined to bring the injustice suff…
Themes
The Champaran chapter is rich in ideas, because Fischer uses one local struggle to illustrate the guiding principles of Gandhi's entire public life.
Character Sketches
Louis Fischer's account of the Champaran struggle turns on a handful of vividly drawn figures — Mahatma Gandhi at the centre, the persistent peasant Rajkumar Shukla who sets the story in motion, the f…
Mahatma Gandhi
Gandhi is the central figure of the chapter, and Fischer presents him as a leader whose strength lies in courage, patience and unshakeable principle.
Rajkumar Shukla
Rajkumar Shukla is the poor, illiterate sharecropper whose determination sets the entire episode in motion.
The Indigo Peasants
The sharecroppers as a group are important both as victims and, by the end, as people transformed. At first they are shown as poor, frightened and resigned, so intimidated by the landlords that they d…
The British Landlords and Officials
The planters and the colonial officials form the opposing force. The landlords are portrayed as exploitative and grasping, extracting labour and money from the helpless peasants and clinging to their…
Title and Message
The plain, one-word title of this Flamingo lesson points straight at the crop at the centre of the peasants' suffering, and the story built around it carries a message far larger than a dispute over a…
The Significance of the Title
The single word "Indigo" names the crop that lies at the very centre of the peasants' suffering, and so the title points straight to the heart of the chapter.
The Message of the Story
The message of "Indigo" reaches well beyond the details of the sharecropping dispute. Its deepest lesson is that ordinary people, however poor and powerless, can overcome even a strong and long-establ…
Summary
- Context: The chapter is an excerpt from Louis Fischer's biography The Life of Mahatma Gandhi, focusing on his 1917 intervention in the Champaran indigo dispute in Bihar.
Think as you Read
+−Think as you Readi8 questions
- Q1Strike out what is not true in the following. a. Rajkumar Shukla was (i) a sharecropper. (ii) a politician. (iii) a delegate. (iv) a landlor…Free
- Q2Why is Rajkumar Shukla described as being 'resolute'?Free
- Q3Why do you think the servants thought Gandhi to be another peasant?Free
- Q4List the places that Gandhi visited between his first meeting with Shukla and his arrival at Champaran.Preview
- Q5What did the peasants pay the British landlords as rent? What did the British now want instead and why? What would be the impact of syntheti…Preview
- Q6The events in this part of the text illustrate Gandhi's method of working. Can you identify some instances of this method and link them to h…Preview
- Q7Why did Gandhi agree to a settlement of 25 per cent refund to the farmers?Preview
- Q8How did the episode change the plight of the peasants?Preview
Understanding the Text
+−Understanding the Texti4 questions
- Q1Why do you think Gandhi considered the Champaran episode to be a turning-point in his life?Free
- Q2How was Gandhi able to influence lawyers? Give instances.Free
- Q3What was the attitude of the average Indian in smaller localities towards advocates of 'home rule'?Preview
- Q4How do we know that ordinary people too contributed to the freedom movement?Preview
Talking about the Text
Working with Words
Thinking about Language
+−Thinking about Languagei2 questions
Things to Do
About the Unit
The NCERT textbook rounds off this lesson with a short "About the Unit" box that names the central idea students should carry away from Fischer's account of Champaran, together with a quieter secondar…
Additional Practice
Extra exam-style practice questions written by us on this lesson — beyond the NCERT textbook's own exercises — for more CBSE board-exam preparation.
+−Additional Practicei14 questions
- Q1Why did Rajkumar Shukla want Gandhi to visit Champaran, and how did he finally succeed in persuading him? Answer in about 30-40 words.Free
- Q2Explain the long-term-lease 'tinkathia' system under which the Champaran peasants had to grow indigo. Why was it deeply unfair to them?Free
- Q3How did the arrival of synthetic indigo from Germany change the situation of the sharecroppers and their landlords? What new demand did the…Free
- Q4Why did Gandhi disregard the official order to leave Champaran? What did his act of civil disobedience achieve? Answer in about 30-40 words.Preview
- Q5Describe the scene outside the courthouse when Gandhi was summoned. What did the spontaneous gathering of peasants show about the change alr…Preview
- Q6How did the case against Gandhi collapse, and why did the authorities eventually agree to an official inquiry into the peasants' grievances?Preview
- Q7Why did Gandhi agree to a settlement of only 25 per cent refund of the money extorted from the peasants? Why was the amount less important t…Preview
- Q8How did Gandhi combine the fight for the peasants' rights with wider social reform in Champaran — in education, health and sanitation?Preview
- Q9'The battle of Champaran is won.' Explain how the Champaran episode was a triumph of satyagraha. Answer in about 120-150 words.Preview
- Q10'What I did was a very ordinary thing. I declared that the British could not order me about in my own country.' What does this remark reveal…Preview
- Q11How did the Champaran episode teach the peasants a lesson in courage and self-reliance? Answer in about 120-150 words.Preview
- Q12Why is the lesson titled 'Indigo'? Explain the significance of the title in relation to the peasants' exploitation and their struggle.Preview
- Q13Draw a character sketch of Gandhi as he emerges in 'Indigo'. What qualities of leadership does he display?Preview
- Q14Gandhi's method in Champaran shows that true leadership empowers people to help themselves. Discuss this idea with reference to the lesson.…Preview