Scribd Logo
Upload

Welcome to Scribd!

  • 45 views

    Agricultural Sector: Indian Economic Development Indian Economy On The Eve of Independence

    Uploaded by

    Rashi Rastogi
    The agricultural sector in pre-colonial India was primarily self-sufficient, with villages producing their own food. However, under British colonial rule, the agricultural system became exploitative and focused on commercial crops for British industries rather than food for Indians. The colonial policies, such as the zamindari system, appropriated most agricultural profits and did not invest in improving productivity. As a result, over 85% of Indians depended on agriculture but the sector stagnated under colonial rule, leading to frequent famines.

    Copyright:

    © All Rights Reserved
    Download as DOCX, PDF, TXT or read online from Scribd

    Agricultural Sector: Indian Economic Development Indian Economy On The Eve of Independence

    Uploaded by

    Rashi Rastogi
    45 views2 pages
    The agricultural sector in pre-colonial India was primarily self-sufficient, with villages producing their own food. However, under British colonial rule, the agricultural system became exploitative and focused on commercial crops for British industries rather than food for Indians. The colonial policies, such as the zamindari system, appropriated most agricultural profits and did not invest in improving productivity. As a result, over 85% of Indians depended on agriculture but the sector stagnated under colonial rule, leading to frequent famines.

    Original Title

    Agricultural Sector

    Copyright

    © © All Rights Reserved

    Available Formats

    DOCX, PDF, TXT or read online from Scribd

    Did you find this document useful?

    Is this content inappropriate?

    The agricultural sector in pre-colonial India was primarily self-sufficient, with villages producing their own food. However, under British colonial rule, the agricultural system became exploitative and focused on commercial crops for British industries rather than food for Indians. The colonial policies, such as the zamindari system, appropriated most agricultural profits and did not invest in improving productivity. As a result, over 85% of Indians depended on agriculture but the sector stagnated under colonial rule, leading to frequent famines.

    Copyright:

    © All Rights Reserved
    Download as DOCX, PDF, TXT or read online from Scribd
    Download as docx, pdf, or txt
    45 views2 pages

    Agricultural Sector: Indian Economic Development Indian Economy On The Eve of Independence

    Uploaded by

    Rashi Rastogi
    The agricultural sector in pre-colonial India was primarily self-sufficient, with villages producing their own food. However, under British colonial rule, the agricultural system became exploitative and focused on commercial crops for British industries rather than food for Indians. The colonial policies, such as the zamindari system, appropriated most agricultural profits and did not invest in improving productivity. As a result, over 85% of Indians depended on agriculture but the sector stagnated under colonial rule, leading to frequent famines.

    Copyright:

    © All Rights Reserved
    Download as DOCX, PDF, TXT or read online from Scribd
    Download as docx, pdf, or txt
    of 2

    Indian Economic Development

    Indian economy on the eve of Independence

    Agricultural Sector
    Did you know that the deaths due to starvation alone during British rule are estimated to be
    between 15 to 29 million? Such numbers indicate the adversities of colonial India. The pre-
    colonial India was primarily producing two crops– rice and wheat. Despite this, it was self-
    sufficient and sustainable. The incidence of colonization forced changes in the agricultural
    sector such as commercialization.

    The Pre-Colonial Scenario of Agricultural Sector

    During the pre-British era, a major part of India’s population was dependent on agriculture.
    The farming technologies and irrigation facilities were not satisfactory. However, agriculture
    in villages was self-sustaining and independent.

    The village communities either purchased or consumed the raw materials and articles
    directly. Consequently, starvations and famines were rare if not frequent. Of course,
    agricultural practices remained primitive, but the villages functioned independently and were
    self-sufficient. All of this went for a toss when the Britishers set feet on the Indian
    subcontinent.

    The Colonial Saga

    Britishers were keen on establishing a monopoly in India. They saw India as a means to drive
    their home country towards a state of unmatched power. Colonisers drew out every ounce of
    Indian resource and every drop of Indian blood for their selfish motives. Such was the state of
    exploitation.

    During the British rule also the Indian economy remained agrarian. Rough estimates claim
    that about 85% of the economy derived their livelihood directly or indirectly from
    agriculture. Though, unlike the pre-colonial India, the feature of self-sufficiency vanished in
    the colonial state. This led to various famines which the colonizers paid no heed to provided
    it didn’t affect their profit margins. Effectively, the agricultural sector continued to
    experience deterioration and stagnation, particularly marked by low levels of agricultural
    productivity.

    Stagnation of Agricultural Sector during British Rule

    The Indian agricultural sector, which supported almost the entire economy, went towards
    stagnation. There was a negligible introduction of reforms to ensure an increase in

    R.R.Classes 43,Shivaji Marg , Hewett Road, Lucknow. Phone -8299601690


    productivity. On the contrary, the Britishers continued to extract profits which broke the
    knees of Indian agricultural sector.

    The major cause of this sorry state of Indian agriculture was the various land settlement
    systems of the colonial government.  The highlight of this was the zamindari system which
    was practiced in the then Bengal presidency. Under this, the majority of profits went to the
    zamindars instead of the cultivators, ultimately filling up the pockets of their colonial bosses.

    Just like their colonial masters, the zamindars did nothing to improve the state of agriculture.
    They were only concerned with collecting rent despite the economic condition and the plight
    of the cultivators. However, the revenue settlement policy particularly fuelled this ruthless
    nature adopted by the zamindars. Under this, the rent can be paid until a fixed date, failing
    which their colonial masters would take away all their rights.

    Other Factors

    Agricultural technologies remained primitive with no efforts to improve conditions from the
    British side. Even after the introduction of fertilizer technology farmers used natural manure,
    which resulted in low yields. This coupled with lack of proper irrigation facilities aggravated
    the misery.

    The motive behind agricultural activities shifted from self-sustainability to commercialization


    focused upon the increase of profits of colonials. As a result, there was an increase in the
    yield of cash crops, but it helped the farmers in no way. Farmers were now mass producing
    cash crops instead of food crops, which were ultimately used for the benefit of British
    industries. These cash crops include cotton, jute, oilseeds, sugarcane, tobacco etc.

    Additionally, at the time of partition, a large portion of fertile and highly irrigated land went
    to Pakistan, especially the jute producing areas that went with East Pakistan (now
    Bangladesh). Hence, the jute industry received a heavy setback. By and large, the Britishers
    further added to the plight of Indian agricultural system and left with an enormous task ahead
    of us.

    R.R.Classes 43,Shivaji Marg , Hewett Road, Lucknow. Phone -8299601690

    You might also like