eve of independence Flashcards
low level of economic development (5)
1) india had an independent economy before the advent of britishers. mostly agriculture but we were famous for handicraft industry- silk, textile, precious stone
2) britishers concerned with protection and promotion of their own economic interests. goal- turn india into a supplier of raw materials and market for the finished products made in their country
3) no efforts were made to study india’s national and per capita income.
4) notable people who tried to calculate but yieled inconsistent results- findlay shirras, vkrv rao (most significant estimates), william digby, rc desai and dadabhai naoroji
5) india’s growth rate of aggregate real output was said to be at less than 2% with meagre 1/2% in per capita output per year
muslin
daccai muslin- cotton textile from dhaka bengal
malmal- finest variety of muslin- malmal shahi and malmal khas
agriculture sector (problems)
1) agrarian economy but experienced stagnation and deterioration
2) low productivity was common
3) a bit growth but only because of increase in land area for cultivation
problems- 1) land settlement
2) commercialisation of agriculture
land settlement
1) responsible for deterioration- zamindari system
2) spread in bengal presidency and other eastern states
3) profit accruing out of crops went to cultivators instead of farmers
4) zamindars only cared about the revenue, leading to immense misery and social tension
5) revenue settlement- dates to deposit specified sums of revenue were fixed failing which zamindars were to lose their rights
commercialisation/ other problems
1) low level of technology, lack of irrigation facilities, negligible use of fertilizers
2) production of cash crops to food crops- commercialisation
3) agriculture was starved of investments in terracing, desalinisation of soil, flood control, drainage
4) some shifted from food to commercial but small tenants didn’t have resources or incentive to invest
