The author wants India to rid herself of certain past bonds because
Answer & explanation
Answer: (d) they obstruct her physical and spiritual growth
The author wants India free of shackles that bind and divide her people, suppress vast numbers of them and 'prevent the free development of the body and the spirit'. That reason is option (d); everywhere else he speaks of pride in the past.
- ✗ (a) He sees the past as relevant: he does not wish to cut himself off from it and calls himself a link in an unbroken chain.
- ✗ (b) Contradicts the passage: 'I am proud of that great inheritance'.
- ✗ (c) His sense of belonging to a chain going back to 'the dawn of history' shows deep interest in India's history.
- ✓ (d) Stated in the passage: the shackles 'prevent the free development of the body and the spirit' — physical and spiritual growth.
Remember · For a 'because' question, find the reason clause in the passage itself; options contradicting the author's stated feelings fall away.
Question and answer: UPSC's official GS Paper II (2018, Series A) — paper ↗ · answer key ↗. Explanation: Minimalist IAS, checked 30 Sept 2026 (how we verify). ·