Tag: economics

However, cotton was produced in various parts of the Indian sub-continent and it took days to bring it to the nearest port to transport it to England through ships, the only major means of international communication then. The British then had to build a link from the hinterland to India’s major ports for quicker transport of cotton and other goods as demand soared. This expedited matters for the British to introduce a railway in India.

The large proportion of illiterate females is another reason for the low literacy rate in India. Inequality based on gender differences resulted in female literacy rates being lower at 65 %than that of their male counterparts at 82.

In 1850, the first experimental electric telegraph line was started between Calcutta and Diamond Harbour. In 1851, it was opened for the use of the British East India Company. The Posts and Telegraphs department occupied a small corner of the Public Works Department, at that time.

Lord Dalhousie introduced telegraph in India, The use of telegraph brought spectacular changes in the communication system and helped the British in maintaining law an order. They immediately knew about any outbreak and can deploy their force to control any situation.

The British introduced the telegraph  to maintain law and order in India  because they it's help they  could quickly be informed of where an uprising was taking place and quickly send reinforcements there.

During the British rule, there was some infrastructural development in areas such as roads,  railways, ports, water transport, posts, and telegraphs. But the motive behind this development was simply to foster the colonial interest of the British government. They were never interested in the growth of Indian economy. these infractures like road etc. were used to mobilize the army and carriying out raw materials.

Railways led to increased agricultural output, export of food-grains, widening of markets, commercialization of agriculture, and, hence, cropping pattern. As railways widened the markets for the agricultural sectors, Indian agriculture became linked to the world trade cycles.