Which of the following statements correctly explains the impact of the Industrial revolution on India during the first half of the nineteenth century?
- Indian handicrafts were ruined
- Machines were introduced in the Indian textile industry in large numbers
- Railway lines were laid in many parts of the country
- Heavy duties were imposed on the imports of British manufacturers
Explanation
Option (a) is correct
- In India, traditional livelihoods, especially those of weavers and artisans, suffered severely due to British policies, but this did not coincide with the emergence of indigenous industries. Instead, the British East India Company’s monopolistic control and exploitative practices systematically dismantled India’s traditional economic structure, leading to deindustrialisation.
- The Company flooded the Indian market with cheap, machine-made textiles from England, undermining local crafts and forcing Indian artisans out of work. Furthermore, high tariffs and restrictive policies prevented Indian industries from flourishing, thereby stifling any potential industrial growth. The combination of suppressed local industries and the lack of protective policies for Indian artisans created a vacuum that the local economy could not fill. This stark economic divergence between industrializing Europe and a deindustrializing India deepened the economic disparities between the two regions, illustrating the profoundly destructive impact of British colonial policies on India’s economy.
