NCERT Summary: Structural Change (Class 12) | Old & New NCERTs for IAS Preparation (Must Read) - UPSC PDF Download

Introduction

• The impact of colonial rule in India was far-reaching and touched every aspect of society, including the railways, industries, and postal service, as well as social, cultural, economic, and political spheres.
• Compared to earlier instances of stronger powers occupying weaker nations and annexing their territories, colonial rule, particularly British colonialism, had a unique impact due to its capitalist foundation.
• While pre-capitalist conquerors typically collected tribute without disrupting the existing economic foundation, British colonialism intervened directly to benefit British capitalism. Every policy was geared towards promoting and advancing British capitalism.

Implementing English

• The impact of colonialism on the use of English language in India is complex, with both positive and negative consequences.
• While English is widely spoken and written in India, leading to the development of a significant body of English-language literature and providing Indians with a competitive advantage in the global market, its use is still associated with privilege and can be a liability in the job market.
• At the same time, English has opened doors to opportunities for those who were historically denied access to formal education, such as the Dalits.
• The movement of people within India was also a significant result of colonialism, with individuals relocating from one region to another for work, including Jharkhandis moving to Assam to work on tea plantations.
• As government employees and professionals migrated to different parts of the country, a new middle class emerged, primarily from the British Presidency regions of Bengal and Madras.
• In addition, Indian ships were used to transport workers to other colonized lands in far-off Asia, Africa, and the Americas, leading to many deaths and leaving many individuals of Indian descent who could never return to their homeland.

Understanding Colonialism

• Capitalism is an economic system that operates on the basis of privately owned production equipment and seeks to maximize profits through organization.
• The development of Western capitalism was a lengthy process involving European exploration, resource exploitation, and significant advancements in science and technology.
• These developments were harnessed for use in agriculture and business, leading to the rise of Western capitalism, which was closely tied to Western colonialism.
• This history had a lasting impact on how capitalism evolved in colonized areas like India.
• As capitalism emerged as the dominant economic system, nation-states became the predominant political form, and the rise of nationalism was closely linked to this development.
• Nationalism asserted that all colonized societies, including India, had the right to sovereignty.
• Indian nationalist leaders fought for both political and economic freedom, proclaiming that swaraj, or freedom, was their birthright.

Urbanisation and Industiralisation

The Colonial Experience

• When discussing industrialization, we refer to the rise of machine production powered by non-living energy sources like steam and electricity.
• Modern industrial societies have most employed individuals working in factories, offices, or retail rather than agriculture.
• Britain, the first industrialized society, also experienced a transition from a primarily rural nation to an overwhelmingly urban one during the Colonial Era.
• The effects of British industrialization in India resulted in the decline of certain industries and historic urban areas.
• Cities, especially coastal ones like Mumbai, Kolkata, and Chennai, were crucial in the imperial economic system, serving as a conduit between Britain's economic core and India's peripheries.
• Bombay and Madras expanded while other cities like Surat and Masulipatnam declined.
• The impact of British industrialization in India resulted in more people moving into agriculture, unlike in Britain where it led to more urbanization.
• As a result, some older urban centers declined while new colonial cities emerged, such as Kolkata.
• Indian sociological writings often discuss the contradictory and unintended effects of colonialism.

Tea Plantations

• The colonial authorities were explicit about their use of harsh measures against laborers to benefit the planters, and they were aware that the laws in colonized nations did not have the same democratic standards as those at home.
• In 1851, India's tea industry began in Assam, where most of the tea gardens were located. However, because of the region's sparse population and the frequent placement of tea plantations on uninhabited hillsides, the majority of the required labor had to be imported from other provinces.

• The Assamese tea planters refused to provide the necessary financial and other incentives to entice workers to leave their remote homes and come to unfamiliar lands with adverse climates and unfamiliar diseases. Instead, they resorted to fraud and coercion, persuading the government to pass laws that aided them in this immoral endeavor.

Industrialisation in independent India

• Indian nationalists were greatly concerned with economic exploitation during colonial rule, as they juxtaposed images of India's legendary precolonial wealth with the severe poverty of British India. This sparked support for the Swadeshi movement and a focus on the domestic economy, as people began to recognize that modern ideas could help alleviate poverty.
• Indian nationalists believed that rapid industrialization was crucial for achieving social justice and economic growth. Jawaharlal Nehru envisioned a modern and prosperous India built upon a foundation of massive steel mills, dams, and power plants.

Urbanisation in independent india

• People often move from rural to urban areas in search of better employment opportunities, a higher standard of living, and a sense of anonymity.
• The desire for social factors such as anonymity and the freedom to choose a career can be significant motivators for this relocation.

• Economic factors also play a crucial role, with better job opportunities and a higher standard of living being key drivers of urban migration.
• However, conflicts between immigrants and locals can arise when people move to urban areas. Locals may object to immigrants' arrival, as they may feel responsible for providing housing and employment opportunities, leading to tension and disputes.

Conclusion

• It's clear that colonialism isn't just a subject from the past but something that still influences our lives today in various ways.
• The text also shows that industrialization and urbanization bring about changes not only in how things are produced, new technologies, and how crowded areas become but also in the overall lifestyle (Wirth, 1938).