Sambhav-2023

Answer 1

Approach

• Briefly explain the emergence of Press in India.
• State the contribution of press in nationalism and struggle for independence.
• List the restrictions placed by the British government.
• Give a suitable conclusion.

Introduction

Press in India started with the first newspaper, The Bengal Gazette or Calcutta General Advertiser, by James Augustus Hickey in 1780. Press in its initial phase was primarily an outspoken critic of the misdeeds of British administration and its officers.

Some examples of early newspapers are: Payam-e-Azadi” or the Message of Freedom (1857) by Nana Saheb Peshwa, The Hindu and Swadesamitran by G. Subramaniya Aiyar, The Bengalee by Surendranath Banerjea, Voice of India by Dadabhai Naoroji, Kesari (in Marathi) and Maharatta (in English) under Balgangadhar Tilak.

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Contribution of Indian Press:

• Propagation of national ideology: The early phase of the nationalist movement from around 1870 to 1918 focused more on political propaganda and education than on mass agitation or active mobilisation of masses through open meetings. The Indian National Congress in its early days relied solely on the press to propagate its resolutions and proceedings.
• Connected the masses: The newspaper's impact was not limited to cities and towns; these newspapers reached the remote villages, where each news item and editorial would be read and discussed thoroughly in the ‘local libraries.
  • Through its wide reach the press connected the masses in the country. Bal Gangadhar Tilak, through his newspapers, was among the first to advocate bringing the lower middle classes, the peasants, artisans and workers into the Congress fold.
• Spread Awareness: In these newspapers, government Acts and policies were put to critical scrutiny. They acted as an institution of opposition to the government. The press made people aware of the colonial exploitation.

Restrictions by Government

• Government on its part had enacted many strident laws, such as Section 124 A of the Indian Penal Code, which provided that anyone trying to cause disaffection against the British Government in India was to be transported for life or for any term or imprisoned up to three years.
• The Vernacular Press Act (VPA) of 1878 was designed to ‘better control’ the vernacular press and effectively punish and repress seditious writing. The act came to be nicknamed “the gagging Act”. The Act discriminated between English and vernacular press and offered no right of appeal.
  • Under VPA, proceedings were instituted against Som Prakash, Bharat Mihir, Dacca Prakash and Samachar. Amrita Bazar Patrika turned overnight into an English newspaper to escape the VPA. In 1883, Surendranath Banerjea became the first Indian journalist to be imprisoned.

Conclusion

The Role of the press was significant as it acted as a breeding ground for discontent voices of India, which saw prevailing narrative of colonial authorities as false and wanted to register their protest.

Nationalist Leaders such as Tilak and Gandhi through their newspapers and editorials took advantage to reach to the readers of the remotest parts of India. Thus, generating a nationalistic feeling and mobilizing the masses to fight for freedom of a “Nation” – an imagination which already had grasped minds of masses in urban and rural areas alike.

Answer 2

Approach

• Introduce briefly British Economic policy in general.
• Explain the three stages of British Economic policy in detail.
• Conclude suitably.

Introduction

The British colonists in India made structural changes in Indian economy or drained away India’s wealth as tribute. British rule in India caused a transformation of India’s economy into a colonial economy, i.e., the structure and operation of Indian economy were determined by the interests of the British economy. According to historians, at the beginning of the 18th century, India had some 23 per cent of the world economy. This share came down to some 3 per cent when India got independence.

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The British's economic policy in India was carried on broadly through three phases. The first phase (1757-1813) of ‘mercantilism’ was one of direct plunder in which surplus Indian revenues were used to buy Indian finished goods to be exported to England. In the second phase (1813-1858) of free trade India was converted into a source of raw material and a market for British manufactured goods. The third phase (1858 onwards) was one of finance imperialism in which British capital-controlled banks, foreign trading firms and managing agencies in India. This phased exploitation was carried out through a range of economic policies, primarily in the industrial and agricultural sectors of the colonial economy.

First Stage (Mercantilism)

• In this phase there was large-scale drain of wealth from India which constituted 2–3 per cent of Britain’s national income at the time. It was this wealth that played an important role in financing Britain’s industrial revolution.
• In this stage, there was no large-scale import of British manufactures into India, rather, the reverse occurred—there was an increase in export of Indian textiles, etc. The weavers were, however, ruined at this stage by the Company’s monopoly and exploitation. They were forced to produce for the Company under uneconomic compulsions.

Second Stage

This stage is also termed as Colonialism of Free Trade. It started with the Charter Act of 1813 and continued till 1860s. India was to serve as a market for the ever-increasing output of British-manufactured goods especially textiles. At the same time, the new capitalists in England, needed from India exports of raw materials, especially cotton and foodgrains. The export of raw materials was increased sharply to meet the dividends of the Company and profits of British merchants. In this phase, the following dominant features were visible:

• India’s colonial economy was integrated with the British and the world capitalist economy. This was made possible with the introduction of free trade.
• The Permanent Settlement and the Ryotwari system in agriculture were introduced to transform traditional agrarian structure into a capitalist one.
• Administration was made more comprehensive and included villages and outlying areas of the country.
• Personal law was largely left untouched since it did not affect colonial transformation of the economy.
• Modern education was introduced to provide cheap manpower to the vastly expanded administration.
• The taxation and the burden on peasants rose sharply due to economic transformation and costly administration.
• India absorbed 10 to 12 per cent of British exports and nearly 20 per cent of Britain’s textile exports. After 1850, engine coaches, rail lines, and other railway stores were imported into India at a large scale.
• The Indian Army was used for British expansion of colonialism in Asia and Africa.

Third Stage

The third stage is often described as the Era of Foreign Investments and International Competition for Colonies. It began around the 1860s in India owing to several changes in the world economy. These changes were as follows:

• Britain’s industrial supremacy was challenged by several countries of Europe, the United States, and Japan.
• The pace of industrialization increased sharply (use of petroleum as fuel for the internal combustion engine and the use of electricity for industrial purposes were significant innovations).
• The world market became more unified due to the revolution in the means of international transport. Liberal imperialist policies got replaced with reactionary imperialist policies, which were reflected in the viceroyalties of Lytton, Dufferin, Lansdowne, and Curzon. The strengthening of colonial rule over India was meant to keep out the rivals as well as to attract British capital to India and provide it security. As a result, a very large amount of British capital got invested in railways, loans (to the Government of India), trade etc. in India. The notion of training the Indian people for self-government vanished.
• Now, the aim of British rule was declared as permanent ‘trusteeship’ over the Indians. The Indians were declared to be permanently immature—a ‘child’ people—needing British control and trusteeship. Geography, climate, race, history, religion, culture, and social organisation were all cited as factors in making the Indians unfit for self-government or democracy. The British thus tried to justify their rule over Indians for centuries to come—all in the name of civilising a barbaric people— “the White Man’s burden”.

Conclusion

Thus, the British's economic policy in India was started with mercantilism and ended with patronage and prevailed the suppression of Indians in all the forms more than the centuries.