Question

Jawaharlal Nehru proudly proclaimed the ____ as the 'Temples of modern India'.
A) Steel industries
B) Heavy industries
C) dams
D) schools

Answer 1

Hint: It's a physical barrier that prevents or inhibits water or subsurface streams from flowing. They establish reservoirs that not only prevent floods, but also offer water for irrigation, human consumption, industrial use, aquaculture, and navigation.

Complete answer:
Since it was believed at the time that the construction of massive dams would address many of India's issues, Jawaharlal Nehru proudly declared the dams as the "temples of contemporary India." He believed that they would generate energy, provide water for irrigation for farmers, and provide water for households and enterprises. The main goal of constructing multifunctional river projects in India was to combine agricultural and village economic development with rapid industrialization and urbanisation.

Let us look at the given options:
A) Steel industries: This option is incorrect because the steel industries had already developed in India. In his speech, Jawaharlal Nehru did not call them the ‘Temples of modern India’.
B) Heavy industries: This option is incorrect because Jawaharlal Nehru, in his speech, called dams the ‘Temples of modern India’. He believed that the construction of these dams would solve many problems.
C) Dams: This is the correct options. Modern dams or multipurpose projects have been dubbed "temples of modern India" by Jawaharlal Nehru. The reason for this was that these programmes combined agricultural growth with rapid industrialisation, resulting in improvement in both the rural and metropolitan economies.
D) Schools: This option is incorrect because he did not call schools the ‘Temples of modern India’.

Thus, the correct answer is Option (C) Dams.

Note: A multipurpose project is one that serves multiple purposes at the same time. A multipurpose project is a dam built over a river that serves more than one purpose at the same time. The multipurpose project's main goals include flood management, irrigation, hydroelectric power, navigation, fishing, and tourism, among others.