This course material is designed and developed by Indira Gandhi National

Open University (IGNOU), New Delhi, Krishna Kanta Handiqui State Open
University (KKHSOU), Guwahati and Vidya Mitra(MHRD).
BACHELOR OF ARTS (HONOURS) IN
HISTORY (BAHI)

BHI-09
History of India V (c.1526-1750)

BLOCK – 3

SOCIETY AND ECONOMY

UNIT-1 LAND RIGHTS AND REVENUE SYSTEM :
ZAMINDARS AND PEASANTS

UNIT-2 TRADE ROUTES AND PATTERNS OF INTERNAL

COMMOERCE ; OVERSEAS TRADE

UNIT-3 URBAN CENTRES, CRAFT AND TECHNOLOGY

UNIT 1 : LAND RIGHTS AND REVENUE SYSTEM :
ZAMINDARS AND PEASANTS
Structure
1.0 Objectives
1.1 Introduction
1.2 Revenue Assignees and Grantees
1.3 The Zamindar
1.3.1 Zamindari Rights
1.3.2 Military Strength of Zamindari
1.3.3 Chaudhuris
1.3.4 Other Intermediaries
1.4 Peasantry
1.4.1 Land Rights of Peasantry
1.4.2 Stratification of Peasantry’
1.4.3 Village Community
1.5 Relations between Agrarian Classes
1.6 Let Us Sum Up
1.7 answers to Check Your Progress Exercises

1.0 OBJECTIVES

In this Unit, we will discuss the agrarian relations in Mughal India. After reading this
Unit you will know about:

 the various classes who appropriated a share in the produce of the land;
 the zamindars and their rights;
 various categories of peasants and the village community;
 other intermediaries who enjoyed a share in the surplus produce; and
 the relations between various agrarian classes.

1.1 INTRODUCTION
A large part of the agricultural surplus was alienated in the form of land revenue.
Theoretically, the Emperor was the sole claimant . However, in actual practice, apart
from the state and its agents, a number of intermediaries also took away huge
amounts through various channels. In this Unit we will discuss the rights of various
classes to land and its produce. We will also discuss the interrelationship between
these classes.

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1.2 REVENUE ASSIGNEES AND GRANTEES
The state adopted two ways to realise the land revenue from the peasants. First, the
jagirdar were assigned certain areas with rights to collect revenue and utilise the
same for their salary and to meet their military obligations. Secondly, it collected
revenue through imperial revenue officers from the khalisa . The jagirdar had no
permanent rights over the areas so assigned due to frequent transfers. His claims
were confined to the authorised land revenue and other taxes.

While the Jagirdars were given revenue assignments in lieu of cash salary, there was
another category of people which was given revenue grants for their subsistence.
This was the class of religious men who were patronised by the state.

These grants were known as suyurghal or madad-i maash (aid for subsistence). A
separate department under the charge of the sadr us sudr looked after these grants. If
the aid was given in cash, it was known as wazifa. There were certain categories of
people who were qualified to receive madad-i maaah. These grants did not invest the
grantee with any right over land but were entitled to the prescribed revenue from its
produce. Akbar put the ceiling of such grants of land to 100 bighas per person. The
policy of Akbar was to grant half cultivable and half waste land to improve
agriculture.

The grant was for the lifetime of the grantee and the heirs could apply for a renewal.
Generally only a part of the grant was allowed to heirs. Jahangir confirmed all the
grants made by Akbar while Shah Jahan began to examine all grants given during the
previous reigns. He allowed 30 bighas to be inherited, Aurangzeb reduced it to 20
bighas. In the 30th year of his reign, he allowed the grant to be entirely hereditary,
by calling such grants as loan ('ariyat') and not property. In the latter part of his reign
as well as after his death, the grantees started enjoying the right to sell or transfer the
land, which, then, acquired the characteristics of a zamindari.

In Akbar's period, it was found that the revenue of such grants would not be over
5.84% of the total jama. The mapping of these grants shows that most of these were
concentrated in the upper Gangetic provinces (highest in Delhi and Allahabad). It
appears that no change had taken place in the proportion of the revenue alienated
through the grants till the early years of Muhammad Shah. The mapping, also show
that these grants were mainly in the urban areas. We find that over 70% of the
saurghal lay in the parganas which were under the control of the non-Muslim
zamindars .

Another type of grant (waqf) was given to institutions, etc. Revenues of certain lands
were permanently assigned for the maintenance of religious tombs, shrines,
madrasas, etc. Such grants could be given by the jagirdars also, and lasted till the
term of the jagirdar in that area.
The madad-i maash grants were intended to create pockets of influence and to
develop waste lands. Generally, these were given to Shaikhs and Sayyids and other
2
men of learning. In emergency they joined the government forces to curb local
disturbances. The total revenue alienated-in such grants was not large. There was a
tendency on the part of the grantees to acquire zamindari rights in their area and
elsewhere. Thus, some of them transformed themselves into small zamindars. By the
first half of the 18th century, these grants were treated as zamindari land in all
transactions.

Check Your Progress 1

1) What do you understand by revenue assignments?

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2) What were land grants? Who received these grants?
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1.3 THE ZAMINDARS

The zamindars were present in practically every part of the Mughal Empire and held
the most significant position in the agrarian structure of Mughal India. The word
zamindar is derived from two Persian words-zamin (land) and dar (holder). During
the pre-Mughal period, the word zamindar has been used in the sense of the chief of
territory. The fact that a chief had acknowledged the supremacy of a superior
sovereign power made no difference to his position within his own domain, so long
as he was allowed to retain it. From Akbar's time onwards, this term was officially
used for any person with any hereditary claim to a direct share in the peasant's
produce. The early local terms such as khot and muqaddam in the Doab, satarahi and
biswi in Awadh, bhomi in Rajasthan and banth or vanth in Gujarat were replaced by
the term zamindar. However, many of these terms continued to be used
interchangeably with zamindar in contemporary accounts. The areas without
zamindar were termed raiyati (peasant held).
Nurul Haran divides the zamindars into three categories.

a) Primary zamindars who had some proprietary rights over the land;
b) Secondary zamindars who held the intermediary rights and helped the state in
collecting land revenue; and
c) Autonomous chiefs-had autonomous rights in their territories and paid a fixed
amount to the Mughal State.

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1.3.1 Zamindari Rights
Zamindari did not signify a proprietary right in land. It was a claim on the produce of
the soil, co-existing in a subordinate capacity, with the land revenue demand of the
state. Yet, like any article of private property, it could, and was, freely bought and
sold. It was also inheritable and divisible, that is, the heirs of a zamindar could divide
the fiscal claims and perquisites of their inherited zamindari, in accordance with the
law of the land.

The zamindar acquired his rights by virtue of the historical tradition of control he
and his kinsmen exercised over the inhabitants of particular villages. At some time,
the zamindars had settled villages and distributed its land among the peasantry. In
eastern Rajasthan, wasidar (a category of peasants) were settled by the bhomia
(zamindars known there) in the village to undertake sometimes the cultivation of his
personal lands. The zamindar rights, therefore, were not created by the ruling classes,
but preceded them. The king, however, could create zamindari in villages where
none existed. He could also dislodge a zamindar, but this was a right he exercised
only in case of sedition or non-payment of revenue.

The medieval rulers recognised the rights of the zamindars, but were equally
insistent on treating them as agents of the government for revenue collection. When
the zamindari took this form, that is, it came to assist the government in the
collection of revenue, for the service (khidmat) so rendered, the zamindar was
entitled to a percentage of the total revenue collected. This percentage in official
documents is stated to be 10% and is described as nankar ("allowance"). When the
administration decided to collect the revenue through its own agents, by-passing the
zamindar, the latter was entitled to a share in the collection of revenues called
malikana. (proprietary right), and like nankar, was fixed at 10% of the total revenue
collected .

In Gujarat, this claim of the zamindar was described as banth or vanth, but unlike
malikana in Northern India, it was considerably higher. Like malikana, it was paid in
the form of cash. In the Deccan, it was called chauth (like "one fourth"), and as the
name suggests, stood at one-fourth of the revenues collected. Sardeshmukhi, another
fiscal claim of the zamindar in the Deccan, was equivalent to 10% of the revenues.
Under the Marathas, the cesses of chauth and sardeshmukhi came to be realised not
through a legal claim based on actual zamindari right, but by the sheer use of force.
Under Shivaji, while the claim of the :king cumprised one-fourth of the chauth and
the whole of surdeshmukhi, the other three-fourths of the chauth was to be retained
by the Maratha feudatory barons.

Besides their principal fiscal claim, the zamindars also exacted a number of petty
perquisites from the peasantry. Some of the well-known cesses so realised were.
(dastar shumari) (turban tax), house tax (khana shumari), cesses on marriage and
birth, etc. The zamindars used to collect taxes from weekly markets also in their
areas. At times, they are found collecting toll tax on merchandise passing through

4
their territories. The amount that the zamindars realised through these petty
perquisites is quite difficult to estimate; in all probability, in relation to their
principal fiscal claim, it was not quite considerable.

We have so far been discussing about the primary and intermediary zamindars, that
is, those who resided in the directly administered territories, and of whom .the
administration was anxious that they be reduced to the status of mere 'rent-
gatherers'. Apart from them, there were chiefs or chieftains-the rajas, raos, ranas and
rawatas-who were more or less autonomous in their estates, governning them
without any interference from the imperial administration . Their obligation to the
king did not go beyond paying him a fixed amount as tribute (peshkash). Their share
in the surplus produce of the peasant, therefore, ‘amounted to the difference between
what they collected from the peasants and what they paid to the king as peshkash.
The Imperial administration recognised their semi-autonomous status, and exercised
no control over their internal administration once they had paid the usual peshkash.
According to Irfan Habib, the difference between the zamindars and autonomous
chiefs "lay most clearly in the relationship with the imperial power which allowed
autonomy to the chiefs. But made ordinary zamindar mere propertied subjects of the
Emperor".

1.3.2 Military Strength of Zamindars

The zamindars employed their footmen and cavalry. These troops helped them in the
realisation of land revenue and subjugation of peasantry. Almost all zamindars had
their own small or big qilachas/garhi or forts. According to the Ain-i Akbari, the
troops of the zamindars in the whole Mughal Empire exceeded forty four lakhs. In
Bengal they possessed thousands of boats.

1.3.3 Chaudhuris
As mentioned earlier, the zamindar played a prominent role in the collection of land
revenue. Some of these zamindars were designated as chaudhuri for the purpose of
collection of revenue. One of the.prominent zamindars of a pargana was appointed
chaudhuri, generally one in each pargana.

The chaudhuri was supposed to collect the revenue from other zamindars of the
pargana. Apart from their customary nankar, these chaudhuris were entitled to
another share in the land revenue collected by them. This was termed chaudhurai
which amounted to two and a half per cent of the revenue collected. Unlike the
zamindar, the chaudhuri was appointed by the state and could be removed for
improper functioning.

1.3.4 Other Intermediaries

Each village had a number of hereditary officials. The most important of them was
the village headman (muqaddam in Northern India and Patel in the Deccan). He was
the person responsible for the collection of land revenue and maintenance of law and

5
order in the villages. For the services so rendered, he was granted a part of the
village land revenue-free, though, in some cases, he was also remunerated in cash at
a percentage of total land revenue realised. In addition, he was also entitled to
receive some amount of produce from peasants. In the task of the collection of land
revenue the muqaddam was assisted by the village accountant (patwari in Northern
India and Kulkarni in the Deccan). The patwari's task was to maintain a record (bahi)
of the revenue collected from the individual peasants and its payment to the state
authorities. His records, therefore, were of immense help to the administration in
assessing the revenue-paying capacity of the peasants and in fixing the total land
revenue claim on the village. Like the muqaddam he was also remunerated by the
grant of revenue.-free land or by a fixed commission in the total revenue collected.
However, being an employee of the village organisation, his allowance was much
smaller than that of the village headman. The office and the accompanying privileges
of both the muqaddam and patwari were hereditary.

Check Your Progress 2

1) Describe briefly the nature of zamindari rights?

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2) Write three lines on each of the following

i) Chaudhuris …………………………….................................................................
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ii) Muqaddam……………………………..................................................................
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1.4 PEASANTRY

In the earlier sections, we studied about the classes who enjoyed superior rights over
the produce of the land. In this section we will discuss the main producing classes.

The main agrarian class, directly involved with the agricultural production, was the
peasantry. Though the class had a number of strata within it, for the convenience of
study we are including all of them under one nomenclature.

The peasants constituted the primary class in rural society and the revenue collected
from them sustained the whole state apparatus. We have noticed in that the peasant

6
had to pay a large part of their produce as 'rand revenue. It appears that the bulk of
the peasantry lived on the subsistence level of existence.

1.4.1 Land Rights of Peasantry

There has been a long debate among historians regarding the rights of the peasantry
over land, Peasant's claim to land was not disregarded by the state, yet he was never
allowed the right to free alienation. It appears that peasants had all the rights over
land as long as he cultivated it. The zamindar or state had no right to evict the
peasant as long as he cultivated the land and paid the revenue. It seems that
proprietary rights in land were not quite developed during the Mughal period.
However, the most important aspect of the period is the varying claims over the
produce of the land.

In contemporary accounts we come across a number of references to the fight of the

peasantry from villages because of oppression or other problems. A number of
instances are available about peasants settling individually or in groups in various
regions. The mobility of the peasant was an established practice in Mughal India.
This mobility was more pronounced in cases of their oppression in one region or
natural calamities like floods and famines.

1.4.2 Stratification of Peasantry

The peasantry was not a homogenous class. The stratification was due to inequalities
in wealth and social status. Peasants with large resources cultivated bigger plots of
land, and even employed labourers on his fields. They could acquire head-ship of a
village muqaddam or patel) and enjoy a superior share in the produce of other
peasants. The divisions were so well-established that they are differently designated
even in official accounts and records. Richer peasants are referred to as Khudkasht
(self-cultivated) in Northern India, gharuhalas in Rajasthan and mirasdars in
Maharashtra. The poor peasants are referred to as reza ria'ya (small peasant) in
Northern India, paltis in Rajasthan and kunbh in Maharashtra..

The major reason for this can be found in the wide prevalence of cash-nexus. Since
land revenue in the larger part of India had to be paid in cash, peasants and
cultivators were forced to carry their produce to the markets or sell it to merchants or
moneylenders on the eve of harvest. In such a situation, those peasants who could
cultivate cash crops would be placed. In a better position, because of the higher
prices they fetched in the market than those who, owing to their scarce resources,
could only cultivate food crops for which the prices were comparatively low. Not all
peasants could shift to cash crop cultivation since it involved much expenses (good
seeds, better fertilisers, irrigation or facilities, and also more productive soil). The
requirement of the payment of land revenue in cash would thus cause a widening
gulf between the relatively better-off peasants whose resources allowed them to shift
to cash crop cultivation and the poor peasants who found even the cultivation of food

7
crops an arduous and expensive business. The regressive nature of land revenue
demand was another major factor that caused and intensified divisions within the
peasantry. The incidence of land revenue demand being uniform for both the rich
and the poor peasants, in actual fact it fell more heavily on the latter than on the
former. The village organisation, or what has often loosely been described as the
"village community", further perpetuated these divisions by levying lower revenue
rates on the Khudkasht peasants, and calling upon the rent ri'aya to meet the deficit
thus arising in the total revenue claim.

Economic inequalities were not the only basis of divisions within the peasantry.
They were also divided between the permanent residents of the village (Khudkasht
Northern India, mirasdar in Maharashtra and thalvaik in Deccan) and the temporary
residents (pai 'kasht in Northern India; upari in Maharashtra). Caste associations and
kinship ties (bhaichara), even as they served as linkages that afforded supra-local
affinities were also at the same time sources of divisiveness. Below the class of
peasants existed in rural India a large population of menial workers. Their number or
their proportion to caste peasantry is almost impossible to estimate, yet, in all
probability, they did constitute a significant portion of the rural population of India.
They are described in the contemporary literature as chamars, balahars, thoris and
dhanuks, etc. They were a cheap source of labour for the peasants and zamindars to
work on their fields during the sowing and harvest seasons. It was, therefore, in the
interest of both of them (i.e., the peasants and zamindars) to suppress and exploit
them. The creation of a huge reserve of labour force for agricultural production
reduced the cost of production, which enhanced the "surplus" produce of the peasant,
and thus allowed a greater exploitation of land revenue by the ruling power. In the
suppression of the menial workers, the state, the zamindars and the peasants were
equal collaborators.

1.4.3 Village Community

Generally the peasants of a village had a majority of the same caste. Such villages
were established historically by one clan or family. Apart from the peasants of the
dominant caste of a village, there were menial workers who came from lower castes.
From the contemporary accounts it appears that in many activities these villages
functioned as a community. It should not be taken to mean that there were any
communal land holdings. The fields were definitely held by individual peasants. The
revenue officials found it convenient to treat village as a unit for revenue assessment
and collection. The description of the patwari as a village official supports this. It is
reported that the patwari was supposed to keep the account of individual peasants
production and revenue liability. The payment to state was made by the village as a
unit. The revenue from the individual peasants was put in a pool whose in charge
was the patwari. From this pool, land revenue, fees and perquisites of certain
officials and sundry common expenses of the village were paid. Even the loan taken
from the moneylenders was paid back out of the village pool.

8
The dominant group of people in a village constituted the village panchayat. The
latter used to decide village affairs regarding dispute over land rights, disposal of
waste land, etc. It was also responsible to the state for arresting criminals,
compensating for the value of goods stolen or tracing them. These panchayats were
not above the state. The latter allowed it to discharge its traditional role in the village
society only if its activities were not hampering the basic interests of the state.

Some social groups in the, village were not directly involved in the agrarian
production, but they played some role' in the agrarian activities. The Mahajans acted
as middlemen between the state and peasants and had considerable control over the
rural society and economy. They would advance loans to individual peasants and
village. Collectively for buying seeds and equipment’s or pay revenue or for social
needs.

The village had artisans attached to it to provide their services and were paid at the
harvest. The system was very well organised in Deccan and Maharashtra. These
were called balutedars. We will discuss about them in some detail. The system of
village community, panchayats or balutedars was not uniformly applicable to all the
villages of the Mughal Empire. There were different types of structures in different
regions. Most villages had some sort of community structure, though varying in
degrees of control on their members.

1.5 RELATIONS BETWEEN AGRARIAN CLASSES

In the earlier sections of this Unit, we studied about various agrarian classes. We
noticed that a number of groups appropriated a share in the surplus of the produce,
i.e., jagirdars, religious grantees, zamindars and various intermediaries at the village
level. We have also studied about the producing class or peasantry. Here, in this
section, we will study the relations between these classes.

Both the zamindar and the jagirdars fed upon the surplus produce of the peasant, and
therefore, insofar as the exploitation of the peasantry was concerned, both acted as
each other's collaborators. Yet, the zamindar, being permanently based would not
allow exploitation that went beyond the alienation of surplus produce, for that would
lead to exodus of the peasantry and desertion of agricultural operations which would
in turn affect his own fiscal claims during the following year. The jagirdars, attitude
is best reflected in Bernier's account who visited India in the mid-17th century. He
writes that, because of the frequent transfers of jagirs the jagirdars governors and
revenue contractors were not bothered about the deplorable state of peasantry. They
therefore were interested in exploiting the peasantry to the maximum even at the cost
of their desertion and fields lying unattended.

9
Jawahar Mal Bekas, an 18th century writer observes that the hakim (Jagirdar) of a
day can in a moment remove a zamindar of five hundred years, and put in his stead a
man who has been without a place for a life-time. Irfan Habib further elaborates his
powers and writes that "as for peasants, the jagirdars claimed powers to detain them
on the land, like serfs, and bring them back, if they ran away." In the second half of
the 17th century due to the uncertainty of holding a jagir for a stipulated period, the
jagirdar oppressed peasants.-They had no regard for their welfare. According to Irfan
Habib, "While undoubtedly the Mughal administration sought to take measures to
regulate and moderate the jagirdar' exactions, it is not certain that these could reduce
the pressure for short-term maximization of revenue by individual jagirdars. Such
pressure not only inhibited extension of cultivation, but also involved the Mughal
ruling class in a deepening conflict with the two major agrarian classes, the
zamindars and the peasantry".

The divisions within the peasantry, as also the deep contractions that existed between
the peasants and agricultural workers, acted as severe constraints and weakened the
capabilities of this class. Disjointed and truncated, this class was quite incapable of
confronting the medieval despotic states. It did, however, revolt for two reasons: one,
when the revenue demand appropriated more than the surplus produce of the
peasants, thereby threatening their very subsistence. Peasant revolts in these
circumstances never went beyond asking for a reduction in revenue demand.
Peasants also revolted as followers of a zamindar who was leading a revolt against
the state or jagirdar (mostly on the question of his claim to the produce of the soil),
either in the hope that the end of revolt would lead to better conditions of living for
them or simply as rendering a serivce to their overlord. Peasant revolts of this nature
were actually zamindari revolts: the zamindars led them and the peasants served the
purposes of the zamindars alone.

Check Your Progress 3

1) Give a brief account of various categories of peasants.
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2) How did the village community function?

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3) Discuss the clash of interests between the jagirdar and zamindar?

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10
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1.6 LET US SUM UP

In this Unit, we studied that

 On behalf of the state, the jagirdar appropriated a major share in the
agricultural surplus;
 the revenue grantees enjoyed revenue-free lands granted to them by the state;
 the zamindar was not the owner of the land but had hereditar'y rights in the
produce of soil. These rights wen salable;
 when the zamindar collected revenue for the state, he was entitled to nankar.
When the state directly collected the revenue, the zamindar was paid a share
called malikana. The zamindars were entitled to a number of other petty
perquisites;
 the zamindars maintained troops;
 caste and kinship ties divided the zamindar and prevented its growth as the
governing class of India;
 village headman and other officials also appropriated a part of agrarian
surplus;
 the peasants had to pay larger part of his produce to the state, zamindar and
other intermediaries;
 the peasantry was not a homogenous group but was divided on the basis of
their income and holdings. Kinship and caste ties also divided them;
 landless peasants or village menial workers were the most oppressed class in
the agrarian society; and
 there was a serious clash of interests between the jagirdar and zamindar. In
case of conflicts between the two, the peasants were generally on the side of
the zamindars and suffered most in these clashes.

1.7 ANSWERS TO CHECK YOUR PROGRESS - EXERCISES

Check Your Progress

1) See Sec. 1.2
2) See Sec. 1.2

Check Your Progress 2

1) Zamidar's rights were over the produce of the land for'details see Sub-sec. 1.3.1
2) Sa Sub-sec. 1.3.3 and 1.3.4

11
Check Your Progress 3
1) Peasants can be divided into a number of categories on the basis of their land
holdings, resources and nature of rights see Sub-sec. 1.4.2
2) The common body of residents in a village worked as village community. See
Sub-sec. 1.4.3
3) The zamindar had permanent interests in their areas while Jagirdar were
transferable. The latter were interested in the maximum exploitation of peasantry
while zamindar were scared of the desertion of land by peasantry and loosing their
share of the revenue. See Sec. 1.5

12
UNIT 2 : TRADE ROUTES AND PATTERNS OF
INTERNAL COMMOERCE ; OVERSEAS
TRADE
Structure
2.0 Objectives
2.1 Introduction
2.2 Inland Trade
2.2.1 Local and Regional Trade
2.2.2 Inter-Regional Trade
2.2.3 Coastal Trade
2.3 Foreign Trade
2.3.1 Trade Routes and Means of Transport
2.4 Trade Routes
2.4.1 Trade Routes
2.4.2 Means of Transport
2.5 Means of Transport
2.6 Administration and Trade
2.7 Let Us Sum Up
2.8Answers to Check Your Progress Exercises

2.0 OBJECTIVES
In this unit we will discuss the inland and foreign trade of India during the Mughal
period. After going through this unit you will be able to:

 know the pattern of local, regional and inter-regional trade:

 list the main commodities of inland trade;
 have an idea about the pattern of India's foreign trade, both over land and sea
borne; and
 list the commodities of import and export.

2.1 INTRODUCTION
we will discuss the agricultural and non-agricultural production of India. In these
units we discuss the commodity production in different regions of the empire. We
also noticed that the volume of production was higher than the local consumption.
Large amounts of this surplus production were used for trading purpose.

13
 Trade in agricultural products started from the field itself. Similarly, commercial
transactions of craft products also started from artisan's household. All this took
place at various levels - local, regional, inter-regional and outside the country. In this
unit, we will discuss the pattern of inland and foreign trade during the seventeenth
century.

During this period, political stability and enhanced production gave a fillip to trading
activities. The volume of trade increased manifold. Another significant feature was
the entry of few prominent European countries in the trading arena of India. The
Portuguese had already settled in the Western parts of India by early 16th century. In
the 17th century, the French, Dutch and English also participated in large-scale
trading activities. .
In this unit, we will confine our discussion to two aspects:

i) the pattern of inland and foreign trade, and

ii) the main articles of export and import traffic.
With the increase in commercial activities, a number of specialised groups involved
in trade also grew. At the same time, some basic commercial practices were also
established. These aspects will be discuss. .
Let us begin with the inland trade .

2.2 INLAND TRADE

As referred to above, we will discuss the inland trade at local, regional and inter-
regional levels.

2.2.1 Local and Regional Trade

As discussed land revenue was realized in cash. This meant that the surplus
agricultural produce was to be sold. Bulk of this was sold in the village itself. Most
of this purchase was made by banjaras the traditional grain merchants. They, in turn,
carried it to other towns and markets. Tavernier, a French traveller who came to
India in the second half of the 17th century, says that in almost every village could
be bought rice, flour, butter, milk, vegetables, sugar and other sweets. In some
villages even sheep, goat, fowl, etc. were available. According to. him, every big
village would have even a sarraf or money-changer. In addition, every locality had
markets in the nearby towns where people from the surrounding areas would come to
buy and sell things. Apart from these regular markets, there were hat and penth
where people from the villages could exchange or buy things of their daily need.
These hats or penths were periodic markets which were held on fixed days in a week.
Sometimes there were hats for specific goods.

In these local markets, foodgrains, salt, simple tools and equipments of wood and
iron for agriculture and domestic needs and course cotton textiles were available.

14
These markets existed in all small townships and bigger villages. Banarsi Das
writing about Jaunpur around the middle of the 17th century noted that it had 52
parganas, 52 markets and 52 wholesale markets or mandis. This may suggest that
almost every pargana had a market and a wholesale market.

It seems that a network of small and big markets viz., hats, penths, mandis, and the
merchants in their individual capacities took care of the commercial activities in
various localities. According to Tapan Raychaudhuri, individual village was
probably part of a narrow circuit of exchange which encompassed the mandis
mediating the distribution of commodities.

These local trading centres were linked to bigger commercial centres in a region. If
we take Mughal provinces as regions, we notice that each of them had bigger
commercial centres serving as nodal centres for all the commodities produced in
various parts of the suba. Generally, these big towns also served as administrative
headquarters of the suba. Patna, Ahmedabad, Surat, Dacca, Agra, Delhi, Lahore,
MuItan, Ajmer, Thatta, Burhampur, Masuliputnam, Bijapur, Hyderabad, Calicut
,cochin etc. are a few examples of such trading centres. Our sources refer to these
places as big commercial centres not only for the products of their respective
regions, but also for serving as emporia for inter-regional and foreign trade. Each
had a number of markets. Ahmedabad alone had as many as 19 mandis in and around
it. If income accruing to a town from commercial taxes levied in its market is any
index of the size of the market, we may note that the income of Ahmedabad in the
second half of the 17th century from commercial taxes was estimated at around
42,86000 dams per annum. Similarly cities like Delhi, Agra, Dacca & Lahore had
separate markets for specific commodities. It is said that a noble's son in Delhi could
spend one lakh of rupees in a day without making much ado. J. Linschoten writing
about Goa around the end of the 16th century says auctions were held every day in
the principle street of the city. He further adds that there is one street that is full of
shops selling all kinds of silks, velvet, satin, and works of porcelain from China,
Linen and all sorts of cloth. These cities had large number of merchants, brokers and
sarrafs. There were a large number of sarais (rest-houses) in these cities for the
convenience of merchants and travellers.
The products from nearby towns, suburbs and villages found their way to these
centres. Patna, for example, had silk from Baikanthupur, cotton clothes from
Nandanpur and Salimpur; fruits vegetables, opium and sugar from different other
parts of the suba.

There were some towns that specialised in the trading of specific commodities: for
example, Burhampur (cotton mandi), Ahmedabad (cotton textiles), Cambay (gems
market), Surat-Sarkhej (indigo), Agra for Bayana indigo, etc.

15
All these commercial centres had mints which struck silver, copper and at some
places gold coins.

2.2.2 Inter-Regional Trade

During the period of our study, trade between different regions of India was quite
developed. Considering the time consuming and expensive mode of transport, such
largescale inter-regional trade was phenomenally high in volume. Goods produced at
one place were carried to long distance of hundreds and in some cases thousands of
miles for purposes of trade. The main commodities of largescale interregional trade
were foodgrains and various sorts of textiles. Luxury items, metals and weapons also
occupied a prominent place in the long distance trade. It would not be possible for us
to list the details of this trade in various kinds of commodities. Here we will give
only a brief idea about some important commodities.

In the east, Bengal had well developed trade relations with all parts of India. The
important trading centres of Bengal were Hugli, Dacca, Murshidabad, Malda,
Satgaon, Tanda, Hijili, Sripur, and Sonargaon. Of these Hugli was one of the most
prominent centres of trade.

Here products from Bihar, Orissa and some parts of Bengal were brought. Bengal
supplied foodgrains to all parts of the country. Rice and sugar from Patna also was
brought to the market of Bengal. Textiles of all sorts from Bihar, Benaras and
Jaunpur could be bought in Bengal. Textiles produced in Lakhawar, a small town
near Patna, were bought by merchants coming from all parts of India and even
abroad. The Bengal textiles were available at Patna and as far as Ahmedabad in.
Gujarat. The largescale silk manufacture in Gujarat and Bihar was completely
dependent on the raw silk from Bengal. The silk cloth produced from this raw silk
found its way to all parts of India and abroad. Saffron from Kashmir was freely
available in the markets of Bengal and Bihar. Bengal procured certain varieties of
cotton chintz from as far a place as Burhanpur. Bengal also had trade links with
Agra, Benaras and various other towns in the north.

In the west, Ahmedabad and Surat, the biggest commercial centres of the period,
attracted textiles from south, north and the eastern parts of India. Here they were
bleached and dyed for onwards sale. The silk manufactured in Gujarat from the raw
silk of Bengal was again taken to the markets in the north. Gujarat received all its
supply of pepper and spices from Malabar coast. Textiles were taken from Gujarat to
Multan and Lahore. Gujarat received lac from Bengal; the Sarkhej indigo, famous
for its quality, was also taken from Gujarat to all parts of India. Large scale trade
carried on between the towns of Gujarat, Konkan and Malabar.

In the north, Agra received large quantities of silk from Bengal. Carpets and textiles
from the Awadh region were taken to Gujarat, Bengal, Patna, Lahore and Multan.
The saffron, woodproducts, fruits and woollen shawls, etc. from Kashmir found their
16
way to the markets of north, west and east India. Kashmir supplied ice to Lahore,
Multan, Agra and Delhi. Paper from Shahzadpur (near Allahabad) was taken to all
parts of India.The famous indigo from Bayana (near Agra) was taken to Lahore,
Multan and southern parts. The famous marble from Rajasthan was taken to all parts
of the country, especially to Agra and Delhi. Foodgrains from north were taken to
Gujarat.

Most of the trade from south was along the coast. Large quantities of Bengal indigo
were sold in Masulipatan. Pepper and spices of the Malabar coast were taken to
Bijapur, Coromandel, the Konkan coast, and the Gujarat tobacco from Masulipatam
was taken to Bengal. Diamonds from Golkunda mines were taken to all parts of
India.

Minerals and metals which were produced at select places only were taken to all
parts of Mughal India. Salt produced mainly in Rajasthan and Punjab was taken to
all parts of north and south India. The coastal areas however produced it from sea
water by evaporation. The main sources of iron were Gwalior in central India,
Rajasthan, Punjab and Sindh. Good quality steel was made in Cutch in Gujarat, some
places in Deccan and South India. The bulk of copper was produced in Rajasthan.
Bihar, Sind, Rajasthan and parts of north India were important places to procure
saltpetre.

2.2.3 Coastal Trade

Because of long distances and slow transport system interregional trade was also
conducted through the sea route involving large number of coastal areas. This trade
was most prominent on the western coast. The eastern coast also had substantial
trading operations. The trading operations on the two coasts were organised in
different ways. Piracy on the western coast was rampant. As a result most of the
traffic here was conducted through convoys. While on the eastern coast small boats
plied throughout the year.

On the western coast between May and September the merchant boats in convoys
under protection plied two or three times between Goa and Cochin and Goa and
Cambay. The Cambay convoy would have around 200-300 boats and ships of
various sizes. They carried stuffs like wheat, oil, pulses, sugar, textiles and
miscellaneous other items. The convoy between Cochin and Goa were not so large
but carried a big range of commodities. Ships coming from Malacca and the east
were usually joined somewhere off Ceylon by coasting boats from Bengal and the
Coromandal coast, and the whole fleet was convoyed under protection to Cochin.

Boats ladden with copper, zinc, tin, tobacco, spices and chintz came from
Coromandal coast to the coastal towns of Bengal. Coromandal coast in turn received
copper, mercury, cinnanbar, pepper etc., from Gujarat, and spices from Malabar. The
coastal towns of Orissa also had links with Coromandal and Malabar coasts. Cloth,
17
foodstuffs, iron, steel and other metals brought from Vijaynagar and Golkunda
reached Bengal via Coromandal. Rice, textiles and various other items from various
towns from coast of Bengal reached to the western coast. The movement of coastal
trade was most prominent between Sind-Cambay; Gujarat-Malabar; Bengal-
Coromandal; and Malabar-Coromandal .

Check Your Progress 1

1) Describe the role played by hats and penths in the local trade.
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2) List ten places that worked as focal points for regional trade.
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3) Describe the inter-regional trade from other parts of country to Gujarat

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2.3 FOREIGN TRADE

For centuries India had maintained trading relations with other countries. The pattern
of trade and commodities underwent changes over the period. During the 16th and
17th centuries also India had a flourishing trade with a large number of foreign
countries. The significant aspect, of foreign trade during this period is the corning of
the Europeans. This increased India's foreign trade manifold. Most of this trade was
in the form of exports of Indian goods. The imports were very small. In this section,
we will take account of this foreign trade. We shall discuss it under the heads of
exports and imports.

1) Exports
Textiles, saltpetre and indigo formed the major share of Indian exports. Other
important items were sugar, opium spices and other sundry commodities.

Textiles
As we noticed in textile production in India had reached new heights during this
period. The increasing exports contributed to the increase in production.

18
Before the coming of the Europeans, the main purchasers of Indian cotton textiles
were the Mughals, Khorasanis, Iraqis and Armenians who carried them to Central
Asia, Persia and Turkey. These goods purchased from all parts of India were taken
by land route via Lahore. It is difficult to have an idea about the total volume of this
trade. The Dutch and English concentrated on Indian textiles from the 17th century
onwards. The main varieties of cotton fabrics were baftas, Samanis, Calico,
Khairabadi and Dariabadi, Amberty and Qaimkhani and muslin and other cotton
cloths. Later on, various varieties of cotton textiles from Eastern coast were also
procured. Chintz or printed cotton textiles were the most favourite items of export.
Carpets from Gujarat, Jaunpur and Bengal were also bought.

Silk cloth from Gujarat and Bengal also occupied a prominent place. Beside woven
cloth, there was a demand for cotton and silk yarn also. Moreland estimates that the
demand of the English Company alone was 200,000 pieces in 1625; 1,50,000 pieces
in 1628 and around 1,20,000 pieces in 1630. The famines of Gujarat in the 1630s
affected the supply, but during 1638-41 the shipment from Surat carried more than
50,000 pieces per year. After 1650, the east coast was also explored and the supply
from Madras was around a lakh pieces or more per year. The Dutch demand was also
more than 50,000 pieces a year. An account of 1661 estimates that the Armenians
bought cotton textiles worth 10 lakh rupees to be sent to Persia.

The above figures give only rough estimates for the exports; nevertheless, they '
provide an idea about the largescale textile exports.

Saltpetre
Saltpetre , one of the important ingredients for making gunpowder was much in
demand in Europe. There are no references to its export in the 16th century. In the
17th century, the Dutch started exporting it from Coromandal. Soon the English also
followed. During the first half of 17th century, the Dutch and the English were
exporting moderate quantities from Coromandal, Gujarat and Agra. In the second
half of the 17th century, its trade from Bihar via Orissa and Bengal ports started.
Soon Bihar became the most important supplier.

After 1658, the English were procuring more than 25,000 maunds of saltpetre per
year from Bengal ports. The quantity increased after 1680. The Dutch demand was
much higher (almost four times). The English demand for this commodity continued
during the 18th century.

Indigo
Indigo for blue dye was produced in most of northern India - Punjab, Sind and
Gujarat. The indigo from Sarkhej (Gujarat) and Bayana (near Agra) was much in
demand for exports. Prior to its supply to Europe, large quantities of this commodity
were exported to the Persian Gulf from Gujarat, and to Aleppo markets from Lahore.

19
 The Portuguese started its export around the last quarter of the 16th century.
Europe's demand was very large for dyeing woollen cloths. The Dutch and English
started exporting it in the 17th century. Besides, merchants from Persia purchased it
for Asiatic markets and Eastern Europe. The Armenians were also buying substantial
quantities. In the 17th century, the Dutch, English, Persians, Mughals, and
Armenians competed to procure the commodity. Around the middle of the 17th
century, the Dutch and English were procuring around 25,009 or 30,000 maunds per
annum. The demand continued to increase during the following years.

Other Commodities
Apart from the commodites listed above, a large number of other commodities were
exported from India. Opium was bought by the French, the Dutch and the English
Companies. The main sources of supply were Bihar and Malwa. The Bengal sugar
was also taken in bulk by the Dutch and English Companies. Ginger was exported to
Europe by the Dutch. Turmeric, ginger and aniseed (saunf) were exported by the
Armenians. Large scale trading operations were conducted between the ports of
Gujarat and Indonesian archipelago. From here cotton textiles were taken in bulk to
Indonesia and spices were brought in return. Brightly coloured cotton cloth and
chintz from India were in great demand. A large part of this trade was later on taken
by Coromandal from where textiles were exported to Indonesian islands and spices
were imported from there.

Imports
As compared to exports from India, the imports were limited to only a few select
commodities. Silver was the main item of import as it was brought to finance the
purchases of European Companies and other merchants from different parts of
Europe and Asia. Copper, too, was imported in some quantity. Lead and mercury
were other important commodities brought to India. Silk and porcelain from China
were imported into India by the English. Good quality wine, carpets and perfumes
were brought from Persia. Some items like cut glass, watches, silver utensils,
woollen cloths and small weapons from Europe were in demand by the artistocracy
in India. Horses from Central Asia were imported in large number for military uses.
The state was the main purchaser. Besides, India had trade relations with its
immediate neighbours in the hill kingdoms. Musk was brought from Nepal and
Bhutan to India where it was bought by the Europeans. Borax was also imported
from Tibet and Nepal. Iron and foodgrains were supplied in return to these hill
regions.

Check Your Progress 2

1) List the main commodities of export to European markets.

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20
 ……………………………………………………………………………………
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2) Write a brief note on indigo export from India .

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3) List the main items of import in India.

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2.4 TRADE ROUTES AND MEANS OF TRANSPORT

To meet the demands of the large volume of interregional and foreign trade, there
was a need for a network of routes and a developed transport system. In this section
we will take note of these two aspects which were crucial to the commercial
activities.

2.4.1 Trade Routes

In this sub-section we will discuss inland and overseas trade routes.

Inland Trade Routes

It is to the credit of Mughal Emperors that we find an elaborate network of trade

routes linking all the commercial centres of the Empire by the beginning of the 17th
century.

Generally, the roads were looked after by the state or chieftains through whose
territory they passed. In certain regions, these roads were obstructed by a large
number of rivers which were crossed by fords or sometimes bridges had to be built.
The fords and bridges were also built and maintained by state or nobles. However,
the condition of these roads during the rains was a bad commentary since long
stretches became unusable during the monsoons. We have records from travellers
lamenting the bad muddy condition of Surat-Burhanpur route during the rains. To
mark the alignment of roads as also to indicate the distance travelled, the state
provided towers known as kosminars. However, our sources tell us that only those
routes which were traversed more frequently had kosminars.

21
All the prominent routes had sarais at short intervals. These sarais were used by the
merchants and travellers as halting places. Apart from residential quarters, big sarais
also provided to the itinerant traveller space for storage of goods.

To give you an idea of some important trade routes we have listed them below:

Agra-Delhi - Kabul Route

Agra-Faridabad-Delhi-Sonepat-Panipat-Kamal-Ambala-Ludhiana-Fatehpur-Lahore-
Rohtasfort-Rawalpindi-Shamsabad-Peshawar-Fatehabad-Kabul.

Agra-Burhanpur-Surat Route
Agra-Dholpur-Gwalior-Narwar-Sironj-Handiya-Burhanpur-Talner-Nandurbar-
Kirka-Surat.

Surat-Ahmedabad-Agra
Surat-Broach-Baroda-Ahmedabad-Palampur-Jalore-Merta-Ludana-Hinduan
Fatehpur Sikri-Agra.

Agra-Patna-Bengal Route
Agra-Firozabad-Etawa-Sarai Shahzada-Allahabad-Banaras-Sahasram-Daud NagarPatna-
Munger-Bhagalpur-Rajmahal-Dampur-Dacca.

The river route from Agra to Bengal ran almost parallel to the land route.

Routes for Foreign Trade

Foreign and Indian merchants traded through, both, the overland and overseas routes.

i) Overland Route

The most frequented overland route during the medieval period was the one
connected with the 'great silk route'. The 'great silk route' beginning from Beijing
passed through Central Asia via Kashighar, Samarqand and Balkh and Kabul. Indian
hinterlands were connected with this great route at Lahore. It passed through Multan,
Qandahar (and then entered Persia via Yezd, and Isfahan), Baghdad, and after
crossing the Euphrates it reached Aleppo. From there, the commodities were taken to
Europe abroad ships.

ii) Overseas Route

The sea routes on both the Arabian Sea and the Bay of Bengal were well frequented.
Before the discovery of the sea route via the Cape of Good Hope, the most
frequented sea routes in the north were;
a) from Cambay, Surat, Thatta to the Persian Gulf and Red Sea;

22
b) from other parts like Dabhor, Cochin and Calicut to Aden and Mocha. At Mocha -
certain commodities were carried via Red sea and then through overland route to
Alexandria via Cairo. Alexandria was another point of distribution of commodities
into European countries. With the rounding of the Cape of Good Hope, the European
countries got new openings. Now they no more depended on Alexandria or Aleppo.
Instead, they dealt directly with India and South Asian countries.
As for Eastern seas, since long the Indian merchants were having seaborne trade with
China and the Indonesia Archipelago. From Hugli, Masulipatnam and Pulicat,
commodities were sent directly to Achin, Batavia and Malacca. Through the
Malacca straits, merchants used to go as far as Macao and Canton in China.

2.4.2 Means of Transport

We will confine our discussion to the means of transport in use for commercial
purpose only

Land Transport
oxen'played a major role. They were used as pack animals for carrying load on their
backs. We get references to grain merchants travelling with 10000-20000 pack
animals in one caravan called tanda. Apart from the banjaras, other merchants also
used them for transporting goods. Oxen-drawn carts were also used to transport
goods. An ox could carry four maunds and a cart 40 maunds. The oxen which drew
carts could travel 20 or 30 days without break, covering on an average 20-25 miles
per day. Camels were commonly used in the western part of the country for carrying
goods. They carried goods by land to Persia and Central Asia.

On high mountain regions, mules and hill ponies were used to carry heavy loads.
Here human labour was also employed .
River transport

Large number of rivers provided a network of river routes. The most frequent use of
boats was in Bengal and Sindh. There was regular traffic of goods between Agra and
Bengal through boats. The boats carrying goods from Agra via Yamuna joined
Ganga at Allahabad and went to Bengal. Contemporary sources refer to the plying of
hundreds of boats between Agra and Bengal. Manrique noticed around 2000 boats in
anchor at Rajmahal. Our sources refer to around forty thousand boats in Sindh.

Each 'patella' (a kind of flat boat) plying between Patna and Hugli had a carrying
capacity of around 130 to 200 tons of load. The other goods carrying boats had a
capacity of 1000 to 2000 maunds each.

While moving in the direction'of the flow of the river, it was much faster. Generally
it took less than half the time than by road. At the same time, river transport was
cheaper also. For example: from Multan to Thatta the goods by river would cost Rs.

23
314 per maund, while for a shorter distance by land it would cost around Rs. 2 per
maund.

2.5 ADMINISTRATION AND TRADE

The Mughal Emperors took keen interest in the trading activities. Their policy was
to encourage trade and offer concessions to merchants from time to time.

Customs and Road Tax

We have already discussed the customs and road taxes charged from merchants. We
would like you to note that the policy regarding these taxes changed periodically. For
example Jahangir abolished customs on the trade with Kabul and Qandahar. During
the famine of Gujarat, tax on a number of commodities were remitted. Aurangzeb at
his accession in 1659, abolished tolls and taxes on food stuffs.

We come across a number of royal orders and decrees abolishing taxes and customs
on certain items. Almost all the European companies-the British, Dutch and French-
procured royal orders for carrying merchandise without paying transit dues.
Aurangzeb at one stage abolished all road tolls. According to the decrees of the
Emperors, the state policy towards trade appears to be liberal but in actual practice it
was different.

Attitude of the Administration

The provincial governors, subordinate officers of the markets and customs officers
were most of the time reluctant to enforce liberal policies. They were always looking
for ways to fleece the merchants. The dues collected were often appropriated by
officials themselves. The problem was further agrravated when the officials
themselves indulged in trade. Nobles and high officials frequently tried to establish
monopolies on certain articles of trade.

Prince Shuja, the son of Shah Jahan had wide ranging trade interests. Mir Jumla, a
high noble, tried to establish his monopoly in Bengal. The English first tried to resist
it but finally surrendered agreeing to procure all saltpetre supply through him.
Shaista Khan, another prominent noble, also forced the English to sell all their goods
and silver to him in return of which they were assured free supply of saltpetre.
Shaista Khan's daily income was estimated around Rs. two lakh. His son, Burg
Umed Khan, also had extensive overseas trade.

Apart from these high placed nobles, subordinate officers also indulged in trade.
Legally, the officers and nobles were not debarred from undertaking buisness
activities. The problem was that competition was replaced by coercion and
exploitation by those in power.

24
We come across a number of petitions and requests by foreign Companies,
merchants and individuals complaining against official high-handedness. There are
innumerable royal orders and decrees granting relief. Because of the poor means of
communication and long distances the relief was delayed or at times not
implemented at all. The struggle continued throughout the period. In spite of these
hurdles, trade kept growing, attracting merchants from many countries.

Check Your Progress 3

1) List the main towns on Agra-Ahmedabad and Agra-Dacca route.
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2) Describe the sea-route from Indian ports to Europe.
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3) Why the imperial policy regarding commerce was not fully implemented?
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2.6 LET US SUM UP

In this unit we discussed inland and foreign trading activities during the period under
review. At the local and regional level the commercial or trading transactions were
confined to foodgrains, coarse cloth, salt, equipments of daily use and some other
commodities. It was mainly conducted through hats or penths - the periodic markets.
Small town markets also played a role. We notice that in such trading the flow of
commodities was mainly from the village to towns. Different regions of India had
developed trade links. Commodities from one region to another were carried through
a network of land and river routes. The coastal regions carried on this trade vis sea
route .This coastal trade was more prominent on the west coast .

The foreign trade balance was favourable to India. Large scale export of Indian
goods was carried to various parts of Asia and Europe. The main articles of export
were textiles, indigo, saltpetre, sugar, etc. The coming of English and Dutch gave an
impetus to foreign trade especially indigo and saltpetre. Imports to India were
limited. The main articles of import were silver, woollen cloth and various luxury
items.

25
The Mughal administration levied certain taxes and customs on the items of trade.
The Mughal rulers provided some exemptions in duties to European companies.
Trading ventures of the Mughal nobles and high ranking officials at times created
problems for merchants and European companies.

2.7 ANSWERS TO CHECK YOUR PROGRESS EXERCISES

Check Your Progress 1

1) Hats and penths played an important role in the distribution of various
commodities at the local level. For details of commodities so exchanged see Sub-
section 2.2.1

2) You may list places like Patna, Ahmedabad, Dacca, Surat, Agra, Lahore etc. See
Sub-section 2.2.1.

3) Ahmedabad and Surat in Gujarat were the biggest commercial centres attracting
commodities from, all parts of the country. For details see Sub-section 2.2.2.

Check Your Progress 2

1) Textiles both silk & cotton, saltpeter, indigo, sugar, etc. See section 2.3.

2) Indigo was exported to Europe and Asia. Two main varieties in demand were
Sarkhej and Bayana indigo. For details see Section 2.3.

3) Silver, glassware, small arms and woolen cloth were main items of import. See
Section 2.3.

Check Your Progress 3

1) See Inland Trade-Routes in Section 2.4 and answer.

2) See Routes for Foreign Trade in Section 2.4

3) The imperial policies could not be implemented because of corruption and

commercial interests of officials and nobles. See Section 2.5.

26
UNIT 3 : URBAN CENTRES, CRAFT AND
TECHNOLOGY
Structure
3.0 Objectives
3.1 Introduction
3.2 Urban Centres
3.3 Science
3.4 Agricultural Technology
3.5 Textile Technology
3.6 Military Technology
3.7 Shipbuilding
3.8 Metallurgy
3.9 Glass Technology
3.10 The Printing Press
3.11 Time-Reckoning Devices
3.12 Miscellaneous
3.13 Let Us Sum Up
3.14 Key Words.
3.15 Answers to Check Your Progress Exercises

3.0 OBJECTIVES
In this Unit you will:

 Read about the main developments in the various sectors of science and
technology during the Mughal period, and learn the nature of response of the
Indians to European science and technology.

3.1 INTRODUCTION
you were offered glimpses of technology in India during the Delhi Sultanate. The
emphasis in the above course was on the introduction of new crafts by the immigrant
Muslims. In the present Unit, focus will be on the new articles of technology and
agricultural crops and fruits, etc. brought by the Europeans during the 16th and 17th

27
centuries. We will also give you a brief statement on the state of science during this
period.

3.2 URBAN CENTRES

If we take an account of Mughal cities and population, we see that they were the pre-
images of what we are today. There were, of course, neither railways nor the canal
systems of the Punjab and the modern Uttar Pradesh. There were no metalled roads.

The various parts of the country and most of the important towns were connected by
Kacha roads, shaded by trees on either side of them and clearly demarcated by sarais
meant for merchants and travellers to spend the nights in security.

Agra, which was for a considerable time the capital, was well-connected with the
rest of the country. The Grand Trunk Road connected it with Dacca in the east and
Kabul in the north-west. This great road passed through Patna, Allahabad, Banaras,
Agra, Mathura, Lahore and Attock and reached Kabul. Another road started from
Agra and extended as far as Asirgarh. The main towns along the road were besides
Agra, Dholpur, Gwalior, Jodhpur, Sirohi, Ajmer and Asirgarh.

Mughal Urban Centres

A third important road ran from Agra to Ahmadabad. Another important road
connected Lahore with Multan. Navigable rivers, such as, the Indus, the Ganga, the
Yamuna, the Ganga and the rivers of Bengal were frequently used for traffic and
transport of troops and goods. Already during the 16th century, a number of major
towns had developed in the country.

According to Ralph Fitch, Agra and Fatehpur Sikri were larger than London, then
one of the biggest towns in Europe. Monserrate, the Jesuit priest who came to
Akbar’s court, says that Lahore was second to none of the cities in Europe or Asia.

A recent study shows that Agra more than doubled in size during the 17th century.
Bernier, who wrote in the middle of the 17th century, says that Delhi was not less
than Paris and the Agra was bigger than Delhi. During the period Ahmadnagar and
Burhanpur in the west, Multan in the north-west and Patna, Rajmahal and Dacca in

28
the east grew to become big towns. Thus, Ahmedabad was as large as London and its
suburbs and Patna had a population of two lakhs—a large size by the standard of
those times. All these towns were not only administrative centers, but developed as
centers of trade and manufacture.

3.3 SCIENCE
No breakthrough was made scientific studies concerning physics, astronomy, and
chemistry medicine, geography and mathematics. The traditional knowledge
continued to be taught, discussed and re-written in the form of commentaries without
adding anything worthwhile. The Indian and the Greco-Arabic views on scientific
issues held sway. A French traveller, Careri, observes about the Muslim scholars in
India:

"As for sciences they can make no progress in them for want of Books; for
they have none but some small manuscript works of Aristotle and
Avicenue in Arabic.’

But we should not deny the fact that there were some very learned and able scientists
during the period of our study. One of them was Mir Fathullah Shirazi who joined
Akbar's court at Agra in 1583 (d. 1588). Abdul Fazl opines that "If the old books of
wisdom had disappeared, he could have laid a new foundation [of knowledge] and
would not have wished for what had gone". Akbar mourned his death in these words:
"Had he fallen in the Hands of the Franks [Europeans], and they had demanded all
my treasures in exchange for him, I should gladly have entered upon such profitable
traffic and bought that precious jewel Cheap." He is credited with having invented
some mechanical devices and also the introduction of a 'true' solar calendar (called
Ilahi) at Akbar's Order in 1584. But he did not propound any new scientific theory or
formula distinct from the traditional ones in India at that time.

Indians were exposed to European learning. Abul Fazl was aware of the discovery of
America by Europeans: he gives the Persian term alam new for the "New World".
But this knowledge does not appear to have become a normal part of the teaching of
geography in India. Galileo's discovery (in contrast to Ptolemy's world-view) that it
is the Earth that moves round the Sun did not reach the Indian scientists. Similarly,
Newton's three Laws of Motion as well as his Law of Gravity were unknown in India
at this time, Bernier, a French physician, who came to India during the second half of
the seventeenth century, claims to have been in the company of a Mughal noble
Agha Danishmand Khan for five or six years, to whom he used to explain the new
discoveries of Harvey and Pecquet concerning circulation of the blood. .Bernier held
a very poor opinion of the India’s' knowledge of anatomy. Our hakims and vaids did
not show any interest in Harvey's discovery.

29
3.4 AGRICULTURAL TECHNOLOGY
We do not find any radical change during the Mughal period in so far as the plough,
iron ploughshare, irrigational devices, methods of sowing, harvesting, threshing and
winnowing are concerned However, for sowing, apart from broadcasting and seed-
drill, we get evidence for dibbling also. This method was employed especially for
cotton cultivation; a whole was made into the ground with a pointed leg, the seed
was put into it and covered with earth. As for threshing, besides using oxen, corn
ears were also beaten with stocks.
One remarkable development during this period was the introduction of some new
crops, plants and fruits. Many of these were brought by Europeans, especially the
Portuguese. The Mughals elite had started growing Central Asian fruits in India from
the days of Babur.

Tobacco, pineapple, cashew-nuts and potato were the most important crops and
fruits that came from America. Tobacco led to huqqa-smoking (hubble-bubble).
Besides, tomato, guava and red chillies were also brought from outside. Maize is not
listed in Abul Fazl's Ain-i Akbari. It seems that this, too, was introduced by
Europeans from Latin America.

Tobacco Smoking Huqqa

'The seeds of numerous varieties of melons and grapes grown around Agra were
brought Science and Technology from Central Asia. Cherries were introduced in
Kashmir during Akbar's reign.

Fruits of better quality were grown by seed propagation. It is doubtful whether the
art of grafting in horticulture was extensively practiced during the Delhi Sultanate.
P.K. Gode thinks that grafting became prevalent in India only after A.D. 1550. This
still was well known in Persia and Central Asia. However, mangoes of the best

30
quality were exclusively produced in Goa through grafting by the Portuguese. Some
European travellers to India paid glowing tributes to the delicious mangoes of Goa
called Alfonso, Our Lady, Joani Perreira, etc. Alfonso is still a celebrated variety in
India.

Among the Mughal Emperors, Shah Jahan alone takes the credit for getting two
canals dug (nahr faiz and Shah nahr).

Check Your Progress 1

1) What is dibbling? Discuss its use.

………………………………………………….…………………………………
……………………………………………………………………………………
……………………………………………………………………………………
……………………………………………………………………………………

2) Discuss the new crops and fruits introduced in India during the 16th-17th
centuries.
………………………………………………….…………………………………
……………………………………………………………………………………
……………………………………………………………………………………
…………………………………………………………………………………...

3.5 TEXTILE TECHNOLOGY

You have read in some detail about the textile craft. The section took note of
numerous processes, e.g., ginning, carding, spinning, weaving, dyeing, painting and
printing. You also know now that spinning-wheel was brought to India by the Turks.
In fact, no radical addition or improvement seems to have been made during the
seventeenth century. However, two developments amidst be highlighted; first,
carpet-weaving under Akbar's patronage at Lahore, Agra and Fatbpur-Sikri; and
second, production of silk and silk fabrics on a large scale.

The Europeans did not bring their own textile techniques to India, at any rate during
the first half of the seventeenth century. Actually, they did not possess any superior
technology in this area during this period, except perhaps to the English Company to
send silk dyers, throwsters and weavers to Qasimbazar in Bengal. Italian silk features
were introduced into India in the 1770s.

3.6 MILITARY TECHNOLOGY

You have read that stirrup, horseshoe and gunpowder were introduced into India by
the Turks. Firearms were used sporadically for the first time during the second half
of the 15th century in some regions of India like Gujarat, Malwa and Deccan. But
fire-arms on a regular basis developed through the agency of the Portuguese from

31
A.D. 1498 in South India, and by Babur in the North in A.D. 1526. Babur used guns
and cannons in battlles against the Rajputs and Afghans. These guns were actually
matchlocks. Europe knew of two more devices to fire a gun: wheel-lock (1520s) and
flint-lock (1620s) in which matchcord was dispensed with. Abul Fazl claims the
manufacture of handguns without matchcord in Akbars arsenal, but he is silent on
the alternative mechanism. This could be a flint-lock because wheel-lock eyes in
Europe was employed for pistols. At any rate, these handguns (flint-locks) were
produced on a limited scale, most probably for Akbar's personal use only because we
are told that Indians in North India were scarcely familiar with this technique during
the early decades of the seventeenth century. In fact, Mughal-paintings regularly
depict matchlocks down to Aurangzeb' s times.

Use Of Cannons

Medieval Swords

32
We need not go into details about the numerous traditional weapon - offensive and
defensive - like sword, spears, daggers, bows and arrows, shields and amours, etc. It
is interesting to know that the Indians in general preferred curved swords, in contrast
to the European's straight double-edged rapiers. The Marathas. however, late in the
seventeenth century took a liking to European swords.
For cleaning gun-barrels, Abul Fazl writes:

"Formerly a strong man had to work a long time with iron instruments in
order to clean matchlocks, His Majesty [Akbar], from his practical
knowledge, has invented a wheel, by the motion of which sixteen barrels
may be cleaned in a very short time. The wheel is turned by a bullock."

At another place, once again, Abul Fazl credits Akbar with the invention of a
mechanism by which seventeen guns were joined in such a manner as to be able to
fire them simultaneously with one matchcord.

3.7 SHIPBUILDING

The entire vessel in medieval times everywhere was constructed of wood. Various
methods 1 were employed to join the planks. One of these was rabbeting which was
widely practiced in India. This was basically on the tongue-and-groove principle: the
'tongue' of one plank was fitted into the 'groove' of another. The next step was to
smear the planks with indigenous pitch or tar, and lime with the double purpose of
stopping up any fissures and preserving the timber from sea worms. Fish-oil was also
used for doubing the planks. The Indians did not adopt tile European method of
caulking - a technique for making joints or seams of the planks tight or leakproof by
forcing oakum (made of loose fibre or untwisted old ropes, etc. 'i mixed with melted
pitch) between parts that did not fit tightly. The reason was caulking did not have
any technical superiority over the indigenous method for performing the same task.
Moreover, caulking was more expensive than the Indian practice.

Prior to the European advent, the planks of ships and boats were joined together by
stitching or sewing them with ropes made of coir, or sometimes with wooden nails.
The Europeans were using iron nails and clamps which made their vessels stronger
and durable. The Indians lost no time in adopting the new technique. Around A.D.
1510, Varthema noticed an immense quantity of iron nails in Indian ships at Calicut.
Abul Fazl (A.D. 1593-94) informs us that for a ship of Akbar 468 mans (maund) of
iron were used. Some Mughal paintings establish the presence of iron nails, strips
and clamps for constructing vessels.

Similar positive response to, European iron anchors is evidenced during *the
seventeenth century. Earlier, anchors were made of big stones.

33
 Iron Anchor
The Indians used buckets to bail out the leaked water in the ships. However, the
European iron chain-pumps started to be used in India, though not widely, during the
second half of the seventeenth century. But these were not manufactured in India:
they were purchased or borrowed from Europeans.

Check Your Progress 2

1. Discuss the mechanical devices used in guns during the 16-17th centuries.
…………………………………………………………………………………
…………………………………………………………………………………
…………………………………………………………………………………
…………………………………………………………………………………
2. What are rabbeting and caulking? Why Indians showed no preference to
adopt caulking technique in shipbuilding.

…………………………………………………………………………………
…………………………………………………………………………………
…………………………………………………………………………………
…………………………………………………………………………………

3.8 METALLURGY
We give below the main features of metallurgical practices in India

i) The fuel for smelting consisted of wood charcoal (coal was not known). Thus,
smelting was generally carried out at places which were near the source of wood
supply.
ii) The smelters used small furnaces which perhaps did not have refractory or heat-
resistant clay.
iii) The' bellows were ribless and small which did allow efficient air-blast to generate
very high temperature in the furnaces to reduce the ore to a totally liquified state.
iv) In case of iron and bronze, the metal was melted in diverse small furnaces
(sometimes eight in number) wherefrom the molten material went to the mould.

34
 Since the quality of the molten metal in each furnace was not necessarily the
same, the fabricated object could not have always been of high quality.

Abul Fazl describes the technique of making iron canons and handgun barrels at
Akbar's arsenal. Perhaps these techniques were newly invented. We do not know
whether improvements were made during the subsequent period. Cannons were
made of bronze, brass and iron.
Zinc metallurgy seems to have started in India somewhere around twelfth century
A.D. Abul Fazl mentions Jawar (modern Zawar) in Rajasthan where zinc was

35
procurable. Archaeological studies near Zawar have revealed the presence of sealed
clay retorts for zinc distillation (which, condensed/cooled, yielded the metal).

Copper mines were located at Khetri in Rajasthan. Tin was not a natural product of a
country: it was imported from other Asian regions. Bronze was in use right from the
days of the Indus valley culture. Alloys like brass (coper and zinc or tin) were
fabricated in India.

One must mention here the production of the true "wootz" iron in India from c. 400
B.C., especially in Andhra Pradesh. Probably "wootz' ' is a corruption of the Telugu
word "ukku". It was exported to centres of swordmaking like Damascus in Syria
(called Damascen swords).

3.9 GLASS TECHNOLOGY

Glass is a complex artificial industrial substance. We should not confuse it with
crystal, quartz, obsidian glass, glaze and faience. That glass was not scarce in India
has been ably shown by M.G. Dikshit (History of Glass), but he admits that Indian
glass objects "did not range or go beyond the manufacture of tit-bits like beads and
bangles"

With the arrival of Muslims, pharmaceutical phials, jars and vessels of glass came to
India from the Islamic countries, but there is no evidence to show that Indians had
started fabricating these objects in imitation.

During the 16th and 17th centuries, a variety of glass articles were brought to India
by the Europeans. All these were new for us: for example, looking-glasses (mirrors
made of glass). We know how to make mirrors of metals (bronze and copper) but not
of glass. Another object was spectacles made of glass lenses. The Europeans gave
these things to Indians as gift and, sometimes, they also sold them (but the market
was very limited). Thus, the Indians started using European glass articles without
manufacturing them during the period under study.

36
It seems that the technique of fabricating sand or hour-glass was known in India
during the 15th century, but the Mughal paintings exhibit European made sand-
glasses only, which were brought to India by the Europeans. However, the positive
evidence for its manufacture in India comes from the second half of the seventeenth
century.

Apart from these, we got from Europe drinking-glasses, magnifying or burning

glasses and prospective glasses (telescopes). Since the latter were made of glass
lenses like the spectacles, there was no question of their indigenous manufacture
during the seventeenth century.

3.10 PRINTING PRESS

It is amazing that the Chinese knowledge of wooden-block printing did not evoke
even a ripple of response in India in spite of frequent communication between the
two countries in the past. European movable metal types were brought to Goa around
A,D. 1550 by the Portuguese. The latter started printing books on Christian. Saints,
Sermons, grammars and vocabularies in the Marathi and Konkani languages and
dialects, but in Roman script rather than in the Devanagari script. .

Emperor Jahangir is once reported to have expressed doubt about types being cast in
Persian or Arabic scripts during a discussion with the Jesuits, whereupon the latter
promptly showed him a copy of the Arabic version of the gospel, probably printed at
Vatican in A.D. 1591. This topic was not brought up again by Jahangir.

In A.D. 1670s, Bhimji Parak, the chief broker of the English Company at Surat, took
a keen interest in this technology. A printer was sent to India in A.D. 1674 at
Bhunji's request, along with a press at the latter's expense. Bhimji intended to
contrive types in "banian characters after our English manner", but it could not be
feasible since the English printer did not know type-cutting and founding. No type
cutter was sent from England to assist Bhimji. Nevertheless, Bhimji persisted in this
endeavour to realize his dream of a printing-press with Devanagari fonts. He
employed his own men, obviously Indians, to do the job. The English factors at Surat
testify (A.D. 1676/77) that, "we have seen some paper printed in the banian character
by the persons employed by Bhimji which look very well and legible and shows the
work feasible". But then, at that crucial moment, Bhimji lost heart and abandoned
the project midway.

Check Your Progress 3

1. List the main glass items which the Europeans brought to India in the 17th
century.
……………………………………………………………………………………
……………………………………………………………………………………
……………………………………………………………………………………
……………………………………………………………………………………

37
2. Write a note on Bhimji Parak's efforts to start printing-press in Devanagari
characters.
……………………………………………………………………………………
……………………………………………………………………………………
……………………………………………………………………………………
……………………………………………………………………………………

3.11 TIME-RECKONING DEVICES

The history of horology unfolds a variety of devices adopted by mankind in different

countries. Among them, gnomons, sundials, clepsydras (water-clocks), sand-glasses,
mechanical clocks and watches stand out as the most significant contrivances for
time-reckoning with varying degrees of accuracy.

Glass
In India, during the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries, clepsydras of the sinking-
bowl variety appear to have been the most commonly used device for measuring
time, at any rate, in urban centres. The Persian term for the bowl was tas, while tas
gharial - denoted the whole mechanism (bowl and gong). The Indian word ghurial is
derived from the gong that was struck with a mallet to announce the time indicated
by the sinking-bowl. Water-clock is mentioned during the Delhi Sultanate in Afif s
Tarikh-i Feroze Shahi which related the installation of a tas ghurial by Sultan Feroze
Shah Tughlaq at Ferozabad during the second half of the fourteenth century. Babur
also describes the mechanism in the Baburnama. Abul Fazl, too, takes note of the
details.

Much before the Mughals, the Europeans had invented the two most essential
features of an ordinary mechanical clock - the weight-drive and escapement.
Europeans' clock and watches were often given in gift to Indians, especially the elite
groups (Jahangir was presented a watch by Sir Thomas Roe, but the Emperor's
memoirs does not mention this fact). The Jesuit church at Agra had a public clock-

38
face with a bell whose "sound was heard in every part of the city". Notwithstanding
the exposure of a substantial cross-section of Indians to European mechanical clocks
and watches for a long time, there is no evidence. To indicate its acceptance among
any social group of Indian society for general use. These were mere toys, and
novelties for the Indians who received them "diplomatic" or ordinary gifts. Tho one
important reason for non-acceptance was the incompatibility of the Indian time-
reckoning system with that of Europe at that time. In Europe, the system of twelve
equal double-hours prevailed, while the Indian system consisted of 4 quarters (pahr)
Further, each pahr was divided into gharis of 24 minutes each. Thus, the Indian
system had 60 "hours" (of 24 minutes) to the full day, and the European consisted of
24 hours of 60 minutes each .

3.12 MISCELLANEOUS

i) True Arch, dome and lime-mortar were already introduced into India by the
Turks .No significant development took place in building technology during
the seventeenth century. However, we may take note of one practice, that is,
preparation of a sort of "blue print" of the building to be constructed. This was
called tarh (outline) in Persian which consisted of drawing on a thick sheet of
paper by employing "grid of squares" (graph sheet) for indicating proportions.
We may also mention that Indian buildings did not have window-panes and
chimneys which Europeans used back home.
ii) The Indians did not employ metallis (copper) boilers to refine saltpetre like the
Europeans; tlle former continued with earthen pots to do the job.
iii)Oxen-drawn carts were in common use, especially for transporting commercial
goods. Horse-drawn carriages were very rare: they were meant only for
passengers. Sir Thomas Roe presented to Jahangir an English coach drawn by
four horses. The Emperor enjoyed a ride in it (he called it rath farangi). The
sovereign, and some nobles got such coaches built by Indian carpenters for
their use. But this interest was short-lived; it did not catch on during the
seventeenth century

Horse Drawn Carriage

39
 iv) Anoother chemical discovery was made in the early years of Jahangir's reign.
It was the rose-scent ('its Jahangir). The Emperor records in his Memoirs
(Tuzuk-i Jahangiri): This ' is a discovery which was made during my reign
through the efforts of the mother of Nur Jahan Begum. When she was making
rose-water, a scum (charbi) formed on the surface of the dishes into which the
hot rose-water was poured from the jugs. She collected this scum little by little;
when much rose-water was obtained a sensible portion of the scum was
collected. There is no other scent of equal excellence to it. In reward for that
invention, I presented a string of pearls to the inventress Salma Sultan Begum
... gave this oil (roghan) the name of 'its jahangir

v) Another chemical discovery was the use of saltpetre for cooling water. Abul
Fazl comments that saltpetre, which in gunpowder produces the explosive
heats, is used as a means for cooling water. He also gives the details of how to
do so.

vi) Emperor Akbar is reported to have invented an oxen-drawn cart which, when
used for travelling or for carrying loads, could grind corn also. For the latter
purpose, however, watermill was scarcely used in India under the Mughal rule.
One Mughal painting (A.D. 1603) depicts an undershot watermill to illustrate a
story set outside India proper. Even windmill (asiya-i bad; pawan chakki) for
grinding corn was very rare; one was erected at Ahmedabad in the seventeenth
century whose partial remains could be seen there. Ordinarily, handmills made
of two stones were used for this purpose. It was a very old Practice.

Check Your Progress 4

1. Why Indians showed reluctance to adopt the European time-reckoning devices .

……………………………………………………………………………………
……………………………………………………………………………………
……………………………………………………………………………………
……………………………………………………………………………………
2. Fill in the blanks:
i) Its Jahangiri was invented by__________
ii) Saltpetre was used for_______________
iii) Indian buildings did not have___________ and ____________in their house
iv) Indians used ___________boilers to refine saltpeter.

40
3.13 LET US SUM UP
This Unit introduced you to several aspects of Science and Technology in India
during the Mughal rule. The treatment of the subject-matter was on two levels: (a)
indigenous development, and (b) Indian response to European Science and
Technology.

No noteworthy contribution was made by the Indians in Science in this period. As

for technology, you must have noticed that some inventions were made and new
methods employed, especially in the military sector. In the chemical sector, too,
rose-scent and the use of saltpetre for water-cooling were entirely new discoveries.

The most important and interesting aspect of this Unit is the exposure of the Indians
to European Science and Technology. The Indian response in this respect was not
uniform. For example, while in shipbuilding we come across some positive
responses it was not so with regard to glass technology. Positive, negative and
indifferent responses varied from one technology to another due to diverse valid
reasons. As for Science, the Indians do not appear to have profited from the
European experience.

3.14 KEY WORDS

Clamps: a device designed to bind or constrict or to press two or more parts together
so as to hold them firmly in their relative position
Faience: earthenware decorated with opaque coloured glaze
Filatures: reeling of silk from cocoons

Fissures: crack of some length and considerable depth usually occurring from, some
breaking; a narrow opening

Flint(S)lock :a lock for gun used chiefly in the 17th and 18th centuries having a flint
fixed in the hammer that on striking the battery of the pan ignited the priming which
communicated its fire to be the charge through, the touchhole ,

Fonts: the act or process of casting or founding; a set of any sort of typological
material.
Founding: the act of melting and casting

Gnomons: pointer on a sundial; an object that by the position or length of its shadow
serves as an indicator especially of the hour of the day
Mallet: a hammer that has a cylindrical typically barrel-shaped bead of wood or of
other soft material

41
Obsidian: volcanic glass that is generally black, banded or spherulitic and has a
marked conchoidal fracture, a bright lusters, and a composition similar to rhyolite
but usually with more water
Phials: a small glass bottle for medicine

Rapiers : a straight two-edged sword especially of the 16th and 17th centuries with a
narrow pointed blade used chiefly for thrusting and heavier than the 18th century
small sword.
Throwster : one who throws silk or synthetic filaments
Wheel-lock: a gunlock in which sparks are struck from a flint.
Wootz: Kanarese ukku steel; a steel made in India by crude methods in small
crucibles according to the old process for making fused steel

3.15 ANSWERS TO CHECK YOUR PROGRESS EXERCISES

Check Your Progress 1
1. See Sec. 3.4. Define dibbling. Mention that it was a new agricultural device
used for sowing the seeds.

2. See Sec. 3.4. List the new crops and fruits introduced during the 16th and 17th
centuries. Also discuss from where these were transported and by whom.

Check Your Progress 2

1. See Sec. 3.6. Analyse that guns used were mainly matchlocks. Discuss that
mostly wheel and flint locks were used. Also elaborate that the use of these
techniques was quite limited.
2. See Sec. 3.5. Define both the techniques. Discuss that caulking was neither
technologically superior nor cheap than the indigenous techniques that is why
Indians hardly showed enthusiasms to adopt the alien technique.

Check Your Progress 3

1. See Sec 3.9
2. See Sec. 3.10. Discuss that Bhimji established his own press in Gujarat. He
succeeded in his efforts only to a limited extent. He left the project midway.

Check Your Progress 4

1. See Sec. 3.11. Discuss that Indians were aware of the European mechanical
clocks, but they had different time-reckoning system. Elaborate it.

2. i) Salima sultan Begum, ii) Cooling Water, iii) Window panes, chimneys,
iv) Earthen

42