Question

Who introduced a uniform postage system in India?
A)William Bentinck
B)Lord Rippon
C)Lord Dalhousie
D)Lord Cornwallis

Answer 1

Hint: In 1854, a new Post Office act was passed by the British India government and the uniform postage system was introduced in India.

Complete answer:
Lord William Henry Cavendish-Bentinck served as the governor general of India from 1828 to 1835. He helped in bringing in many social reforms in India against social evils which included the abolition of Sati, and suppression of female infanticide and human sacrifice. With the help of Thomas McCaulay, he introduced English as the language of instruction in India.

George Frederick Samuel Robinson, 1st Marquess of Ripon was appointed the Viceroy of India by the British in 1880. He introduced the Ilbert Bill which granted a lot of legislative powers to native Indians including the power to senior Indian judges to try Europeans in the courts of India. This was hugely opposed by the Europeans on the grounds that native Indian judges would not be impartial in their verdicts. He also supported Lord Dietrich Brandis to reorganize the Madras Forest Department.

James Andrew Broun-Ramsay, 1st Marquess of Dalhousie was appointed as the governor general of India as well as the governor of Bengal in 1848. He sought to improve the social conditions of India. But was hugely opposed due to his authoritarian style of governance. He was often deemed as forceful and tough but was widely considered as an able administrator.
He aided developments in communication systems in India like railways, roads, postal and telegraph services and established a uniform postal code across India.

Charles Cornwallis, 1st Marquess Cornwallis was appointed as the governor general of British India in 1782. He engaged in reforms that affected many areas of civil, military, and corporate administration. Cornwallis was responsible for "laying the foundation for British rule throughout India and setting standards for the services, courts and revenue collection that remained remarkably unaltered almost to the end of the British era."

Hence, the correct answer is option (C)

Note: Lord Dalhousie was a lifelong supporter of female education in India. He introduced the Educational Dispatch of 1854 which favoured Women’s education. Dalhousie along with Bethune are credited with changing policy in favor of Women's education. He even personally supported the Bethune Women school from his own money set up by Bethune after his death.