Question

UPSC Prelims 2020 Question:

Wellesley established the Fort William College at Calcutta because

1. he was asked by the Board of Directors at London to do so
2. he wanted to revive interest in oriental learning in India
3. he wanted to provide William Carey and his associates with employment
4. he wanted to train British civilians for administrative purpose in India

Answer (Detailed Solution Below)

Option 4: he wanted to train British civilians for administrative purpose in India

Detailed Solution

Explanation:

Fort William College is an orientalist training centre set up by Governor General Lord Richard Wellesley in 1800 within the Fort William complex. Its objective was to foster Indian languages and effect the moral and intellectual improvement of the newly recruited European civil servants and military officers.
Wellesley felt that both academic and moral training were necessary to make the new bureaucrats to become capable at facing the challenge of governing an alien people.
Its expenses were designed to have been met by contributions from civilians in India and an uncertain allocation that was to come from the operation of the Government Printing Press.

Therefore, option (4) is the correct answer.

Subject: History | The British Administrative reforms

Latest UPSC Exam 2026 Updates

Last updated on March, 2026

→ UPSC Final Result 2025 is now out.

→ UPSC has released UPSC Toppers List 2025 with the Civil Services final result on its official website.

→ Anuj Agnihotri secured AIR 1 in the UPSC Civil Services Examination 2025.

→ UPSC Marksheet 2025 is now out.

→ UPSC Notification 2026 & UPSC IFoS Notification 2026 is now out on the official website at upsconline.nic.in.

→ UPSC Calendar 2026 has been released.

→ Check out the latest UPSC Syllabus 2026 here.

→ UPSC Prelims 2026 will be conducted on 24th May, 2026 & UPSC Mains 2026 will be conducted on 21st August 2026.

→ The UPSC Selection Process is of 3 stages-Prelims, Mains and Interview.

→ Prepare effectively with Vajiram & Ravi’s UPSC Prelims Test Series 2026 featuring full-length mock tests, detailed solutions, and performance analysis.

→ Enroll in Vajiram & Ravi’s UPSC Mains Test Series 2026 for structured answer writing practice, expert evaluation, and exam-oriented feedback.

→ Join Vajiram & Ravi’s Best UPSC Mentorship Program for personalized guidance, strategy planning, and one-to-one support from experienced mentors.

→ Shakti Dubey secures AIR 1 in UPSC CSE Exam 2024.

→ Also check Best UPSC Coaching in India

Tags: factual UPSC Prelims 2020 UPSC Prelims 2020 Question