History & Culture The Gandhian Era GS Paper I

The Gandhian Era — Quick Revision

One-page UPSC revision of the Gandhian era (1915–1934): satyagrahas, Congress sessions and presidents, pacts, Round Table Conferences and key personalities.

SyllabusGS I · The Freedom Struggle — its various stages and important contributors and contributions from different parts of the country

By 3 min read Updated Oct 2026 #quick revision#history#gandhian-era

A last-week revision sheet for 1915–1934. Dates and sessions here are the most-swapped facts in Prelims options.

Timeline at a Glance

DateEvent
9 Jan 1915Gandhi returns from South Africa
1917Champaran Satyagraha (indigo, tinkathia)
1918Ahmedabad mill strike (first hunger strike); Kheda Satyagraha (revenue)
Mar 1919Rowlatt Act passed
6 Apr 1919All-India hartal against the Rowlatt Act
13 Apr 1919Jallianwala Bagh massacre, Amritsar
Oct 1919Hunter Committee appointed
1 Aug 1920Non-Cooperation launched; Tilak dies
Sept 1920Calcutta special session adopts Non-Cooperation
Dec 1920Nagpur session ratifies it; Congress constitution revised
Nov 1921Boycott of the Prince of Wales’s visit
5 Feb 1922Chauri Chaura; movement withdrawn at Bardoli (12 Feb)
Jan 1923Swaraj Party formed
Nov 1927Simon Commission appointed (reaches India Feb 1928)
Aug 1928Nehru Report
1928Bardoli Satyagraha — Vallabhbhai becomes “Sardar”
Dec 1929Lahore session — Purna Swaraj
26 Jan 1930First Independence Day
12 Mar–6 Apr 1930Dandi March
Nov 1930–Jan 1931First Round Table Conference (Congress absent)
5 Mar 1931Gandhi–Irwin Pact
23 Mar 1931Bhagat Singh, Sukhdev, Rajguru executed
Mar 1931Karachi session — Fundamental Rights resolution
Sept–Dec 1931Second Round Table Conference (Gandhi attends)
16 Aug 1932Communal Award
24 Sept 1932Poona Pact
Nov–Dec 1932Third Round Table Conference (Congress absent)
1934Civil Disobedience formally withdrawn

Who Was Where

PersonAssociation
Rajkumar ShuklaInvited Gandhi to Champaran
Anusuya SarabhaiAhmedabad mill strike
Saifuddin Kitchlew, SatyapalArrests that preceded Jallianwala Bagh
Ali brothers, Abul Kalam Azad, Hakim Ajmal KhanKhilafat
C.R. Das, Motilal NehruSwaraj Party
C. RajagopalachariVedaranyam salt march
K. KelappanPayyanur salt satyagraha; Guruvayur temple-entry
Sarojini NaiduDharasana salt works raid
Khan Abdul Ghaffar KhanKhudai Khidmatgars (“Red Shirts”)
Rani GaidinliuResistance in the Naga hills
B.R. AmbedkarPoona Pact with Gandhi

Gandhi’s Writings and Journals

WorkNote
Hind Swaraj1909, written in Gujarati; critique of modern civilisation
Indian OpinionSouth Africa
Young India, NavajivanEdited from 1919
HarijanFrom 1933
The Story of My Experiments with TruthAutobiography (Gujarati original)
High-yield facts
  • First civil disobedience: Champaran. First hunger strike: Ahmedabad. First non-cooperation: Kheda.
  • Purna Swaraj — Lahore 1929 (Nehru). Fundamental Rights resolution — Karachi 1931 (Patel).
  • Gandhi attended only the Second Round Table Conference.
  • Poona Pact: separate electorate for Depressed Classes replaced by joint electorate; reserved seats 71 → 148.
  • Udham Singh killed Michael O’Dwyer (1940), not Dyer.

Traps

  • Non-Cooperation was adopted at Calcutta (special session), ratified at Nagpur.
  • Simon Commission was appointed in 1927, arrived in 1928.
  • The Communal Award was announced by British Prime Minister Ramsay MacDonald, not by the Viceroy.
  • Chauri Chaura is in Gorakhpur district (United Provinces), not Bihar.
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