Saturday 18 April 2015

1) What were the most important economic consequences and enduring legacies of European rule in India? Critically examine.

Ans:Britishers ruled India for 200 years and made deep impact on almost every aspect of Indian life including political, economic, social and cultural dimensions. One of the most important and conspicuous impact was on the economic front on India.

Even though there were some important positive contributions like construction of
railways, telegraph, development of modern industry which happened only in second half of 19 century and rise of Indian Capitalist Class, most of the impacts had deep adverse and negative impact. Some of the important among them include:

* Deliberate Deindustrialization—Ruin of Artisans and Handicraftsmen
* Impoverishment of Peasantry, Pauperization of Industrial Labourers
* Emergence of repressive New Land Relations , Commercialisation of Indian Agriculture
* Stagnation and Deterioration of Agriculture
* Economic Drain. Famine and Poverty

Some of the enduring legacies include :
* Administrative and Judicial System, primary among them is Indian Civil Services
* Infrastructure — Primary among which includes Railways
* Institutionalization of Law and Order which includes important acts like Indian Police Act and Indian Penal Code
* Westernised System of Education

Even though some of the legacies like Infrastructure, System of Education have aided in Indian development, most of them were undertaken with an attempt to serve British interests. As B.G. Tilak famously quoted with respect to Railways that 'It's was like decorating some one's else's wife'.

However, the most important enduring legacy of Britishers is 'Colonial Mentality' which has continued to impede India's development and identity.


Ans2:During the colonial period, the Britishers touched each and every aspect of our life, and left a lasting impact in some of the fields. No doubt, the British rule suppressed some of our valuable traits and spirit of originality, which if left to themselves, would have led our nation grow in another way - perhaps in a better way too. But in other aspects, the Britishers also helped the Indians in modernisation, even though it was unintentional.

The economic consequences of the rule include the pathetic condition of the local industry, ever deteriorating condition of farmers due to discriminatory taxes, exploitation of tribals and massive drain of wealth to Britain
The legacy left by British in India can be seen in the following fields:

1. The introduction of machines and technology, like the railways in 1853 (a majority of the railway lines are British laid, with only a minority added post independence)

2. Creation of ICS (now known as IAS, IPS, etc.), suggested in Macaulay report. UPSC is the
modern form of Federal PSC, which was then entrusted the task of recruiting officers.

3. The education system of India is still largely following the principles laid by British, with only minor reforms in recent times.

4. The British legacy can also be seen in various forms of art and architecture, as the British introduced various artforms from around the world in India.

5. Various subjects, like Sociology, Anthropology, Philosophy, etc., were taken from the British education curriculum, as they developed in Europe in their early stages.

6. The Anglo Indians contributed in their own way to the Indian culture, in form of literature and philosophy. Their importance is still recognised in the political field, in the form of 2 reserved seats in Parliament.

7. The revenue administration structure of the country is also similar to that of British times, with the Idea of CAG too copied from there.

8. The separate railway budget was introduced by the British in Acworth committee in 1924, and has continued in practice ever since.

9. Cricket can also be taken as a legacy of the British, which is now helping India in developing bonds beyond the political regime, in various countries.

Thus, to sum up, the British rule in India ushered in a new era in many ways, laying the foundation for the present Indian to stand as an individual entity. Of course, besides these benefits Indians had to bear the adverse effects of foreign rule for a long period too.

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