Tag: traditional crafts and decline of indian industries

Tippu Sultan's sword was made up of the Wootz steel, which was manufactured in Southern India. Wootz Steel is produced by a method known in ancient India. The process involved preparation of porous iron, hammering it while hot to release slag, breaking it up and sealing it with wood chips in a clay container, and heating it until the pieces of iron absorbed carbon from the wood and melted. The steel thus produced had a uniform composition of 1–1.6% carbon and could be heated and forged into bars for later use in fashioning articles, such as the famous medieval Damascus swords.

Hindustan Steel Limited  was established in 1954 as a construction organization under the Ministry of Steel, Govt of India. It was formed with a mandate of developing and sourcing indigenous capabilities for setting up of integrated steel plants in India. It has a rich exposure in extraction of minerals and coal from open cast mines, removal of over burden etc. during the last decade.

Bokaro Steel Plant (BSP) is located in the Bokaro district of Jharkhand. . It is the fourth integrated public sector steel plant in India built with Soviet help. It was incorporated as a limited company in 1964. It was later merged with the state-owned Steel Authority of India Limited (SAIL).

The first Railway line in Kerala was in Tirur from Beypore on 12th March 1861. It was 30.5 km long. Tirur is a town in Malappuram district in Kerala. Though no trains originate from this station, almost every train stops on it.

French were the last among Europeans to reach India for trade. They established French East India Company in 1664 CE. In India, the French opened their first ware house at Surat in 1668 C.E. They opened their trade centers at Pondichery, Maslipatnam, Calicut, Maha, Karaikal and Chandranagar. Pondicherry was the capital of the French.

In the beginning, English followed Peaceful Trade as their policy. But, they took advantage of the deteriorated political situation of India to establish their political supremacy. The Merchants of England who aspired to have trade with the East Countries, founded The East India Company in 1600 CE. They established trade links with India with the permission of Queen Elizabeth.