Racindia

The Economy of British India includes the Economy of the Indian subcontinent under the British Colonial authority.

History

In the second half of the 19th century, both the direct administration of India by the British crown and the technological change ushered in by the industrial revolution, had the effect of closely intertwining the economies of India and Great Britain.

The rush of technology was also changing the agricultural economy in India: by the last decade of the 19th century, a large fraction of some raw materials—not only cotton, but also some food-grains—were being exported to faraway markets.

Colonial rule brought a major change in the taxation environment from revenue taxes to property taxes resulting in mass impoverishment and destitution of the great majority of farmers. It also created an institutional environment that, on paper, guaranteed property rights among the colonizers, encouraged free trade, and created a single currency with fixed exchange rates, standardized weights and measures, capital markets, a well developed system of railways and telegraphs, a civil service that aimed to be free from political interference, and a common-law, adversarial legal system. with industrial development stalled, agriculture unable to feed a rapidly growing population, one of the world’s lowest life expectancies, and low rates of literacy.

An estimate by Cambridge University historian Angus Maddison reveals that India’s share of the world income fell from 22.6% in 1700, comparable to Europe’s share of 23.3%, to a low of 3.8% in 1952.

Notes

1. ^ (Stein 2001, p. 259), (Oldenburg 2007)
2. ^ (Oldenburg 2007), (Stein 2001, p. 258)
3. ^ (Oldenburg 2007)
4. ^ (Stein 2001, p. 258)
5. ^ (Stein 2001, p. 159)
6. ^ a b c (Stein 2001, p. 260)
7. ^ (Bose & Jalal 2003, p. 117)
8. ^ Williamson, John and Zagha, Roberto (2002). “From the Hindu Rate of Growth to the Hindu Rate of Reform“. Working Paper No. 144. Center for research on economic development and policy reform.
9. ^ Roy, Tirthankar (2000). “1″, The Economic History of India. Oxford University Press, 1. ISBN 0-19-565154-5. 
10. ^ “Of Oxford, economics, empire, and freedom”, The Hindu (October 2, 2005). 
11. ^ Roy, Tirthankar (2000). “10″, The Economic History of India. Oxford University Press, 304. ISBN 0-19-565154-5. 
12. ^ Roy, Tirthankar (2000). “preface”, The Economic History of India. Oxford University Press. ISBN 0-19-565154-5. 

References

• Stein, Burton (Late of School of Oriental and African Studies, University of London) (2001), A History of India, New Delhi and Oxford: Oxford University Press. Pp. xiv, 432, ISBN 0195654463, <http://www.amazon.com/History-India-World/dp/0631205462/ref=pd_ybh_a_7/104-7029728-9591925>.

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Categories: Economy of India | Economic history of India