Which one of the following statements about the Colonial economy is NOT correct ?
- A.The British presence inhibited indigenous capitalism
- B.Laissez-faire actively promoted indigenous capitalism
- C.The 'white collective monopoly' came earliest and remained most pronounced in Eastern India
- D.The Bombay hinterland was difficult to penetrate before the construction of railways
Correct answer
Explanation
The correct answer is B. Under colonial rule laissez-faire meant that the state left the economy open to British goods and capital; it did nothing to promote Indian capitalism and in practice left Indian enterprise unprotected.
Free trade let cheap Lancashire textiles flood Indian markets while Indian industry received no tariff protection until the 1920s. British managing agencies, banks, chambers of commerce and the colonial government worked together, giving European firms easy access to credit, railways and official favour. Historians call this the white collective monopoly. It was strongest in eastern India, where Calcutta's jute, tea and coal industries were dominated by European houses from the start. In western India the hinterland of Bombay was hard for outsiders to reach before railways, so Indian merchants such as the Parsis, Gujaratis and Marwaris kept control of trade and later built the cotton mills.
A is wrong to pick: British dominance did hold back Indian capitalism.
C is wrong to pick: European control was earliest and strongest around Calcutta.
D is wrong to pick: the Bombay hinterland stayed hard to penetrate until railways came.
Exam tip: Calcutta meant European dominance; Bombay meant Indian capital in cotton mills.
Practice Questions
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- A.B. P. Wadia
- B.S. A. Dange
- C.N. M. Joshi
- D.B. T. Ranadive
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Narayan Malhar Joshi was the main organiser behind the founding of the All India Trade Union Congress (AITUC) in Bombay in October 1920.
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- A.Bundelkhand
- B.Karnataka
- C.Chota Nagpur
- D.Madras Presidency
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Khuntkatti was the traditional land system of the Munda tribe of the Chota Nagpur plateau, in present-day Jharkhand. Under khuntkatti, land belonged jointly to the lineage (khunt) of the families who first cleared the forest and settled the village.
Read the full explanation →With whom did Subhas Chandra Bose form an alliance to destroy the Holwell Monument in Calcutta during 1939-40?
- A.The Communist Party of India
- B.The Muslim League
- C.The Hindu Mahasabha
- D.The Unionist Party
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Read the full explanation →The object of the Butler Committee of 1927 was to
- A.Define the jurisdiction of the Central and Provincial Governments.
- B.Define the powers of the Secretary of State for India.
- C.Impose censorship on national press.
- D.Improve the relationship between the Government of India and the Indian States.
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- A.The Regulating Act of 1773
- B.The Charter Act of 1793
- C.The Charter Act of 1813
- D.Government of India Act of 1858
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