Educational and Cultural Developments - I | Maharashtra State PSC (MPSC): Preparation - MPSC (Maharastra) PDF Download

 Page 1


EDUCATIONAL AND CULTURAL
DEVELOPMENTS-I
INTRODUCTION :
In this lesson we shall review the cultural trends as witnessed
through the different walks of life such as Education, Literature, Historical
Research and Fine Arts. We have already referred to the general state
of religious sentiments and philosophicai ideas during the course of our
narration. They evidently constitute the real inspiration and the motive
force for the developments in the different areas of cultural life. We shall
now consider intellectual pursuits and artistic activity in this lesson.
Maharashtra after the defeat of the Maratha Chiefs and finally the
Peshwa, was struggling through gloom towards the light of modern times.
The Society in Maharashtra was standing on the threshold of imminent
change, and that was to be unpleasant one. Whether that change was
to produce regeneration or push the nation towards further degeneration
could not be predicted at that time. Edward Gibbon’s reflections on the
decline and fall of the Roman Empire would be instructive in this context
He writes:
Page 2


EDUCATIONAL AND CULTURAL
DEVELOPMENTS-I
INTRODUCTION :
In this lesson we shall review the cultural trends as witnessed
through the different walks of life such as Education, Literature, Historical
Research and Fine Arts. We have already referred to the general state
of religious sentiments and philosophicai ideas during the course of our
narration. They evidently constitute the real inspiration and the motive
force for the developments in the different areas of cultural life. We shall
now consider intellectual pursuits and artistic activity in this lesson.
Maharashtra after the defeat of the Maratha Chiefs and finally the
Peshwa, was struggling through gloom towards the light of modern times.
The Society in Maharashtra was standing on the threshold of imminent
change, and that was to be unpleasant one. Whether that change was
to produce regeneration or push the nation towards further degeneration
could not be predicted at that time. Edward Gibbon’s reflections on the
decline and fall of the Roman Empire would be instructive in this context
He writes:
“The improvement of Society may be viewed under threefold
aspect (1) The poet or philosopher illustrates his age and country by the
efforts of a single and spontanneous production .... (2) The benefits of
law and policy, of trade and manufactures of arts and sciences are more
solid and permanent, and many individuals may be qualified, by
education and discipline, to promote in their respective stations, the
interest of the Community .... (3) Fortunately for mankind, the more useful,
or at least, more necessary arts can be performed without superior
talents or national subordination, without the powers of one or the union
of many ..... Private genius and public industry may be extirpated, but
these hardy plants, survive the tempest, and strike an everlasting root
into the most unfavourable soil.”
The Maratha political and military power was eclipsed and the
culture of Maharashtra was in the shadow of the growing Imperial rule of
the East India Company of England, however it survived most unfavorable
circumstances.
Looked at against this background, the cultural trends in dependent
Maharashtra were to filter through the smoke screen drown by the
Western thought and  institutions. We shall now try to catch a glimpse of
these changes as witnessed through Education, Literature, Historical
Research and Fine Arts in that order.
 TRENDS IN EDUCATIONS :
Maharashtra was not illiterate and ignorant when the Englishmen
started their government in that region. There was a tradition of learning
and ‘pathshalas’ were being conducted at many places. The report of
Mountstuart Elphinstone in this respect would give the impression that....
there were more schools in the towns and villages on the eve of the
British than When they left. No doubt education was confined to the
Brahmanas, banias and agricultural classes as had to do with accounts.
The thought uppermost in the minds of the Maratha rulers and their
people was the usefulness of education. According to their business
like system, reading, writing and arithmetic was the minimum need for
the majority of the people; higher learning in religious texts, medicine
and astronomy was to be the monopoly of a few, The disproportionate
emphasis on this spiritual learning by the Peshwas created a class of
indolent scholars. The annual feasts and gifts for men born in the Brahman
community brought the administration into disrepute. It is interesting to
notice that the Sanskrit Pathshalas started in Pune in 1821 could hardly
attract students and an English class had to be attached to it to increase
the number. Western learning became popular among the traditional
cultured classes mostly the Brahmans, and the new trend was towards
Page 3


EDUCATIONAL AND CULTURAL
DEVELOPMENTS-I
INTRODUCTION :
In this lesson we shall review the cultural trends as witnessed
through the different walks of life such as Education, Literature, Historical
Research and Fine Arts. We have already referred to the general state
of religious sentiments and philosophicai ideas during the course of our
narration. They evidently constitute the real inspiration and the motive
force for the developments in the different areas of cultural life. We shall
now consider intellectual pursuits and artistic activity in this lesson.
Maharashtra after the defeat of the Maratha Chiefs and finally the
Peshwa, was struggling through gloom towards the light of modern times.
The Society in Maharashtra was standing on the threshold of imminent
change, and that was to be unpleasant one. Whether that change was
to produce regeneration or push the nation towards further degeneration
could not be predicted at that time. Edward Gibbon’s reflections on the
decline and fall of the Roman Empire would be instructive in this context
He writes:
“The improvement of Society may be viewed under threefold
aspect (1) The poet or philosopher illustrates his age and country by the
efforts of a single and spontanneous production .... (2) The benefits of
law and policy, of trade and manufactures of arts and sciences are more
solid and permanent, and many individuals may be qualified, by
education and discipline, to promote in their respective stations, the
interest of the Community .... (3) Fortunately for mankind, the more useful,
or at least, more necessary arts can be performed without superior
talents or national subordination, without the powers of one or the union
of many ..... Private genius and public industry may be extirpated, but
these hardy plants, survive the tempest, and strike an everlasting root
into the most unfavourable soil.”
The Maratha political and military power was eclipsed and the
culture of Maharashtra was in the shadow of the growing Imperial rule of
the East India Company of England, however it survived most unfavorable
circumstances.
Looked at against this background, the cultural trends in dependent
Maharashtra were to filter through the smoke screen drown by the
Western thought and  institutions. We shall now try to catch a glimpse of
these changes as witnessed through Education, Literature, Historical
Research and Fine Arts in that order.
 TRENDS IN EDUCATIONS :
Maharashtra was not illiterate and ignorant when the Englishmen
started their government in that region. There was a tradition of learning
and ‘pathshalas’ were being conducted at many places. The report of
Mountstuart Elphinstone in this respect would give the impression that....
there were more schools in the towns and villages on the eve of the
British than When they left. No doubt education was confined to the
Brahmanas, banias and agricultural classes as had to do with accounts.
The thought uppermost in the minds of the Maratha rulers and their
people was the usefulness of education. According to their business
like system, reading, writing and arithmetic was the minimum need for
the majority of the people; higher learning in religious texts, medicine
and astronomy was to be the monopoly of a few, The disproportionate
emphasis on this spiritual learning by the Peshwas created a class of
indolent scholars. The annual feasts and gifts for men born in the Brahman
community brought the administration into disrepute. It is interesting to
notice that the Sanskrit Pathshalas started in Pune in 1821 could hardly
attract students and an English class had to be attached to it to increase
the number. Western learning became popular among the traditional
cultured classes mostly the Brahmans, and the new trend was towards
learning the English language and western science through English in
preference to Sanskrit and Marathi.
The Policy of the English rulers
Among the officials of the East India Company who governed the
Bombay Presidency  the Governor who could take a dispassionate view
of the educational needs of the conquered people, was obviously
Mountstuart Elphinstone. He was not obsessed with ideas of superiority.
He wanted to improve the native schools and wished to retain the useful
restraints of religion. The Directors of the Company also felt that all
learning must be useful and it might be given through Hindu or
Mohammedan media. The real problem before the administrators in
Maharashtra was that of acquiring more funds and finding more devoted
workers for the plan of education.
The Charter of the East India Company came up for renewal in
1833, fifteen years after the Maharashtrian People had lost their
independence. In that Charter Act, the policy to improve the administrative
systems in India was clearly laid down. The important provision which
was to affect the intellectual life of the Indian people was the declaration
that No native of the said territories (Companies territories in India) nor
any natural born subject of His Majesty, resident therein shall by reason
only of his religion, place of birth, descent, colour or any of these be
disabled from holding any office or employment under the Company.
This gave an impetus to the aspirants for government employment.
It was now clear that the work of administration was to be conducted
in the English language. The old fashioned instruction in India could not
provide suitable candidates for responsible appointments. That
consideration alone was enough to determine that the higher education
must be imparted chiefly through the English language. The Governor-
General in Council issued the Resolution dated March 7, 1835. It stated
“the great object of the British Government ought to be the promoting of
European literature and science among the natives of India, and that
the funds appropriated to education, would be best employed in English
education ‘alone’”. The word ‘alone’ was thought unreasonable by many.
However , in the subsequent legislation there was a provision to encourage
vernacular tongues and classical languages of the East.
The Charter Act of 1853 went one step further as the Indian Civil
Service Examination was thrown open to the public and entry to that
service was to be given through an open competition. The famous
education Despatch sent by Sir Charles Wood in 1854 was another
inducement for the educated people for setting their sights still higher.
The Despatch laid down the foundation of the existing systems of
Page 4


EDUCATIONAL AND CULTURAL
DEVELOPMENTS-I
INTRODUCTION :
In this lesson we shall review the cultural trends as witnessed
through the different walks of life such as Education, Literature, Historical
Research and Fine Arts. We have already referred to the general state
of religious sentiments and philosophicai ideas during the course of our
narration. They evidently constitute the real inspiration and the motive
force for the developments in the different areas of cultural life. We shall
now consider intellectual pursuits and artistic activity in this lesson.
Maharashtra after the defeat of the Maratha Chiefs and finally the
Peshwa, was struggling through gloom towards the light of modern times.
The Society in Maharashtra was standing on the threshold of imminent
change, and that was to be unpleasant one. Whether that change was
to produce regeneration or push the nation towards further degeneration
could not be predicted at that time. Edward Gibbon’s reflections on the
decline and fall of the Roman Empire would be instructive in this context
He writes:
“The improvement of Society may be viewed under threefold
aspect (1) The poet or philosopher illustrates his age and country by the
efforts of a single and spontanneous production .... (2) The benefits of
law and policy, of trade and manufactures of arts and sciences are more
solid and permanent, and many individuals may be qualified, by
education and discipline, to promote in their respective stations, the
interest of the Community .... (3) Fortunately for mankind, the more useful,
or at least, more necessary arts can be performed without superior
talents or national subordination, without the powers of one or the union
of many ..... Private genius and public industry may be extirpated, but
these hardy plants, survive the tempest, and strike an everlasting root
into the most unfavourable soil.”
The Maratha political and military power was eclipsed and the
culture of Maharashtra was in the shadow of the growing Imperial rule of
the East India Company of England, however it survived most unfavorable
circumstances.
Looked at against this background, the cultural trends in dependent
Maharashtra were to filter through the smoke screen drown by the
Western thought and  institutions. We shall now try to catch a glimpse of
these changes as witnessed through Education, Literature, Historical
Research and Fine Arts in that order.
 TRENDS IN EDUCATIONS :
Maharashtra was not illiterate and ignorant when the Englishmen
started their government in that region. There was a tradition of learning
and ‘pathshalas’ were being conducted at many places. The report of
Mountstuart Elphinstone in this respect would give the impression that....
there were more schools in the towns and villages on the eve of the
British than When they left. No doubt education was confined to the
Brahmanas, banias and agricultural classes as had to do with accounts.
The thought uppermost in the minds of the Maratha rulers and their
people was the usefulness of education. According to their business
like system, reading, writing and arithmetic was the minimum need for
the majority of the people; higher learning in religious texts, medicine
and astronomy was to be the monopoly of a few, The disproportionate
emphasis on this spiritual learning by the Peshwas created a class of
indolent scholars. The annual feasts and gifts for men born in the Brahman
community brought the administration into disrepute. It is interesting to
notice that the Sanskrit Pathshalas started in Pune in 1821 could hardly
attract students and an English class had to be attached to it to increase
the number. Western learning became popular among the traditional
cultured classes mostly the Brahmans, and the new trend was towards
learning the English language and western science through English in
preference to Sanskrit and Marathi.
The Policy of the English rulers
Among the officials of the East India Company who governed the
Bombay Presidency  the Governor who could take a dispassionate view
of the educational needs of the conquered people, was obviously
Mountstuart Elphinstone. He was not obsessed with ideas of superiority.
He wanted to improve the native schools and wished to retain the useful
restraints of religion. The Directors of the Company also felt that all
learning must be useful and it might be given through Hindu or
Mohammedan media. The real problem before the administrators in
Maharashtra was that of acquiring more funds and finding more devoted
workers for the plan of education.
The Charter of the East India Company came up for renewal in
1833, fifteen years after the Maharashtrian People had lost their
independence. In that Charter Act, the policy to improve the administrative
systems in India was clearly laid down. The important provision which
was to affect the intellectual life of the Indian people was the declaration
that No native of the said territories (Companies territories in India) nor
any natural born subject of His Majesty, resident therein shall by reason
only of his religion, place of birth, descent, colour or any of these be
disabled from holding any office or employment under the Company.
This gave an impetus to the aspirants for government employment.
It was now clear that the work of administration was to be conducted
in the English language. The old fashioned instruction in India could not
provide suitable candidates for responsible appointments. That
consideration alone was enough to determine that the higher education
must be imparted chiefly through the English language. The Governor-
General in Council issued the Resolution dated March 7, 1835. It stated
“the great object of the British Government ought to be the promoting of
European literature and science among the natives of India, and that
the funds appropriated to education, would be best employed in English
education ‘alone’”. The word ‘alone’ was thought unreasonable by many.
However , in the subsequent legislation there was a provision to encourage
vernacular tongues and classical languages of the East.
The Charter Act of 1853 went one step further as the Indian Civil
Service Examination was thrown open to the public and entry to that
service was to be given through an open competition. The famous
education Despatch sent by Sir Charles Wood in 1854 was another
inducement for the educated people for setting their sights still higher.
The Despatch laid down the foundation of the existing systems of
Vernacular schools. There was rapid development of vernacular schools
in the villages and the setting up of the University of Bombay in 1857
acted as a powerful stimulus for academic pursuits. V. A. Smith regard-
‘‘The foundation of the three Universities in the very year of the Cawnpore
massacre and the siege of Delhi- as a symbol of the birth of a new
India’’ .
India  under the crown
The educated elite in Maharashtra as elsewhere in India had
regarded the Sepoys Mutiny of 1857 as a retrograde step towards
restoration of feudalism in India. Much progress in the spreading of
Western education was made upto the outbreak of the revolt in 1857.
The trend clearly noticeable in the 1850s was towards broadening the
base of education. Female education was receiving more attention.
Jyotirao phule had broken a new ground by opening schools for girls as
well as for untouchables in Pune. This was to affect the future course of
academic activity.
The training institutes for teachers and the provision of grant- in-
aid code for private Schools and colleges provided a tremendous
stimulus to private individuals and societies to open schools.
The Bombay Government established a Department of Public
Instruction and the Director of Public Instruction was to conduct periodical
inspection and recommend the deserving schools and colleges for the
grant-in-aid from the Government. A new enthusiasm was evident in the
academic world on the even of the transfer of the Government of India
from the Company to the Crown.
After the transfer there was no fundamental change in the
educational policy. The Degrees from the University of Bombay had
created new ‘hopes and expectations in the minds of the young
graduates. The I. C. S. examinations were now open for the competition
by Indian candidates. Mr. S. B. Thakur was the first student from
Maharashtra to undertake the voyage to England in 1868. It was during
this time that more private schools were started not only in the two cities
of Bombay and Pune but in many district towns; high schools were
started. Government did not compete with the private schools and private
schools were given equality with the Government schools.
National Schools
The Hunter (Education) Commission of 1882·83 recommended
that Local Boards should take up the responsibility to set up schools
everywhere within their purview. There was a new awakening that the
sentiment of nationalism should be cultivated through the schools and
colleges. New English School in Pune was established in 1880. Eminent
Page 5


EDUCATIONAL AND CULTURAL
DEVELOPMENTS-I
INTRODUCTION :
In this lesson we shall review the cultural trends as witnessed
through the different walks of life such as Education, Literature, Historical
Research and Fine Arts. We have already referred to the general state
of religious sentiments and philosophicai ideas during the course of our
narration. They evidently constitute the real inspiration and the motive
force for the developments in the different areas of cultural life. We shall
now consider intellectual pursuits and artistic activity in this lesson.
Maharashtra after the defeat of the Maratha Chiefs and finally the
Peshwa, was struggling through gloom towards the light of modern times.
The Society in Maharashtra was standing on the threshold of imminent
change, and that was to be unpleasant one. Whether that change was
to produce regeneration or push the nation towards further degeneration
could not be predicted at that time. Edward Gibbon’s reflections on the
decline and fall of the Roman Empire would be instructive in this context
He writes:
“The improvement of Society may be viewed under threefold
aspect (1) The poet or philosopher illustrates his age and country by the
efforts of a single and spontanneous production .... (2) The benefits of
law and policy, of trade and manufactures of arts and sciences are more
solid and permanent, and many individuals may be qualified, by
education and discipline, to promote in their respective stations, the
interest of the Community .... (3) Fortunately for mankind, the more useful,
or at least, more necessary arts can be performed without superior
talents or national subordination, without the powers of one or the union
of many ..... Private genius and public industry may be extirpated, but
these hardy plants, survive the tempest, and strike an everlasting root
into the most unfavourable soil.”
The Maratha political and military power was eclipsed and the
culture of Maharashtra was in the shadow of the growing Imperial rule of
the East India Company of England, however it survived most unfavorable
circumstances.
Looked at against this background, the cultural trends in dependent
Maharashtra were to filter through the smoke screen drown by the
Western thought and  institutions. We shall now try to catch a glimpse of
these changes as witnessed through Education, Literature, Historical
Research and Fine Arts in that order.
 TRENDS IN EDUCATIONS :
Maharashtra was not illiterate and ignorant when the Englishmen
started their government in that region. There was a tradition of learning
and ‘pathshalas’ were being conducted at many places. The report of
Mountstuart Elphinstone in this respect would give the impression that....
there were more schools in the towns and villages on the eve of the
British than When they left. No doubt education was confined to the
Brahmanas, banias and agricultural classes as had to do with accounts.
The thought uppermost in the minds of the Maratha rulers and their
people was the usefulness of education. According to their business
like system, reading, writing and arithmetic was the minimum need for
the majority of the people; higher learning in religious texts, medicine
and astronomy was to be the monopoly of a few, The disproportionate
emphasis on this spiritual learning by the Peshwas created a class of
indolent scholars. The annual feasts and gifts for men born in the Brahman
community brought the administration into disrepute. It is interesting to
notice that the Sanskrit Pathshalas started in Pune in 1821 could hardly
attract students and an English class had to be attached to it to increase
the number. Western learning became popular among the traditional
cultured classes mostly the Brahmans, and the new trend was towards
learning the English language and western science through English in
preference to Sanskrit and Marathi.
The Policy of the English rulers
Among the officials of the East India Company who governed the
Bombay Presidency  the Governor who could take a dispassionate view
of the educational needs of the conquered people, was obviously
Mountstuart Elphinstone. He was not obsessed with ideas of superiority.
He wanted to improve the native schools and wished to retain the useful
restraints of religion. The Directors of the Company also felt that all
learning must be useful and it might be given through Hindu or
Mohammedan media. The real problem before the administrators in
Maharashtra was that of acquiring more funds and finding more devoted
workers for the plan of education.
The Charter of the East India Company came up for renewal in
1833, fifteen years after the Maharashtrian People had lost their
independence. In that Charter Act, the policy to improve the administrative
systems in India was clearly laid down. The important provision which
was to affect the intellectual life of the Indian people was the declaration
that No native of the said territories (Companies territories in India) nor
any natural born subject of His Majesty, resident therein shall by reason
only of his religion, place of birth, descent, colour or any of these be
disabled from holding any office or employment under the Company.
This gave an impetus to the aspirants for government employment.
It was now clear that the work of administration was to be conducted
in the English language. The old fashioned instruction in India could not
provide suitable candidates for responsible appointments. That
consideration alone was enough to determine that the higher education
must be imparted chiefly through the English language. The Governor-
General in Council issued the Resolution dated March 7, 1835. It stated
“the great object of the British Government ought to be the promoting of
European literature and science among the natives of India, and that
the funds appropriated to education, would be best employed in English
education ‘alone’”. The word ‘alone’ was thought unreasonable by many.
However , in the subsequent legislation there was a provision to encourage
vernacular tongues and classical languages of the East.
The Charter Act of 1853 went one step further as the Indian Civil
Service Examination was thrown open to the public and entry to that
service was to be given through an open competition. The famous
education Despatch sent by Sir Charles Wood in 1854 was another
inducement for the educated people for setting their sights still higher.
The Despatch laid down the foundation of the existing systems of
Vernacular schools. There was rapid development of vernacular schools
in the villages and the setting up of the University of Bombay in 1857
acted as a powerful stimulus for academic pursuits. V. A. Smith regard-
‘‘The foundation of the three Universities in the very year of the Cawnpore
massacre and the siege of Delhi- as a symbol of the birth of a new
India’’ .
India  under the crown
The educated elite in Maharashtra as elsewhere in India had
regarded the Sepoys Mutiny of 1857 as a retrograde step towards
restoration of feudalism in India. Much progress in the spreading of
Western education was made upto the outbreak of the revolt in 1857.
The trend clearly noticeable in the 1850s was towards broadening the
base of education. Female education was receiving more attention.
Jyotirao phule had broken a new ground by opening schools for girls as
well as for untouchables in Pune. This was to affect the future course of
academic activity.
The training institutes for teachers and the provision of grant- in-
aid code for private Schools and colleges provided a tremendous
stimulus to private individuals and societies to open schools.
The Bombay Government established a Department of Public
Instruction and the Director of Public Instruction was to conduct periodical
inspection and recommend the deserving schools and colleges for the
grant-in-aid from the Government. A new enthusiasm was evident in the
academic world on the even of the transfer of the Government of India
from the Company to the Crown.
After the transfer there was no fundamental change in the
educational policy. The Degrees from the University of Bombay had
created new ‘hopes and expectations in the minds of the young
graduates. The I. C. S. examinations were now open for the competition
by Indian candidates. Mr. S. B. Thakur was the first student from
Maharashtra to undertake the voyage to England in 1868. It was during
this time that more private schools were started not only in the two cities
of Bombay and Pune but in many district towns; high schools were
started. Government did not compete with the private schools and private
schools were given equality with the Government schools.
National Schools
The Hunter (Education) Commission of 1882·83 recommended
that Local Boards should take up the responsibility to set up schools
everywhere within their purview. There was a new awakening that the
sentiment of nationalism should be cultivated through the schools and
colleges. New English School in Pune was established in 1880. Eminent
teachers like Vishnushastri Chiplunkar, Gopal Ganesh Agarkar, and Bal
Gangadhar Tilak were teaching at that school. The Deccan Education
Society was founded in Pune in 1884, and shortly after that Fergusson
College came into existence. Ahmednagar Education Society, and
Shikshan Prasarak Mandal, Pune and Aryan Education Society in
Bombay started their academic activities.
This ushered in a new era of setting up of Private high schools,
and colleges free from the influence of ambitious men struggling to
secure lucreative government employment. These institutions inspired
young graduates to work for the uplift of the nation in every respect.
Trend towards the Legal Profession
The two streams of education namely the classical and general
system began to develop fast after taking over the Government of India
by the Crown. In the general system the medical studies and the technical
courses were also becoming popular. The founding of the Grant Medical
College in Bombay created powerful interest among the non-Hindu
students in the beginning. However gradually the Brahman students
overcame the sentimental restraints about. defilement by touching animal
corpses etc and they completed with other candidates for admissions
to medical courses.
The real rush for the legal studies began after the enactment of the
Indian High Courts Act of 1861 and the issuance of the first edition of
the Criminal Procedure Code in the same year. It is worthwhile pointing
out that the political leaders of India in the second half of the 19th Century
and the first quarter of the 20th Century were men of legal profession.
As already pointed out M. G. Ranade was the first LL.B. from Bombay
in 1866. His career as a jurist created an urge among ambitious young
men to establish a successful legal practice. The developments after
the establishment of the Indian National Congress encouraged legal
studies.
 Indian Universities Act of 1904
The establishment of the three original universities in, the year of
the Mutiny has been commended by English historians as a brave act
indicating that the men in authority were free from malice towards the
people who rose against their political power. The real fact however is
that the three centres of higher learning namely Bombay, Calcutta and
Madras were not affected by the upheaval in the Gangetic plain, and
the educated men considered the revolt as reactionary and unnecessary .
Another factor that needs clarification is that the much trumpeted
claim that the universities served as bridge between East and West
needs some modification. These universities modeled on the London