Tag: british india

Shashi Tharoor and his Ideology on the British Rule in India

Shashi Tharoor is a writer and that too an extraordinary one. He is a legend and his pen has the power to change the world through his words. He writes others maybe imagine but can not put into appropriate words. He has many published works which are just perfect. One such work of his is the book named An Era of Darkness : The British Empire in India. This book was also published in United Kingdom under the name Inglorious Empire : What the British did to India. It was of course a best seller. This book basically depicts what is in Shashi Tharoor’s mind about the British rule in India. His ideology about the British Empire is written in this amazing work. Through this book he wants us to know about “the origins of the difficulties that confronted India.” , as stated by himself. In simple words, he wants us to understand about the evils of the British Rule in India and how it affected us. He strongly desires an apology from the British, same as whole of the country does. In his opinion, an apology would be most desirable, rather than compensation by cash or other valuables. This book also exposes the corruptions during that period along with questions their claim on superiority.

Photo by Pixabay on Pexels.com

He deeply explains the way how it all came to the establishment of British Empire and also about why it all happened. He puts light on the manipulations of the British on the people of our country. He has clearly stated in his book that “this book is an argument and not a story.” He argues that the ruling record of the Indian governments is far better than the British. He accepts the fact that the British has in fact paid the reparations in form of aids over the years, but he is adamant that they were not due to guilt. According to Tharoor, India suffered many problems and conflicts due to racism, wars, disputes for kingdoms and other several problems, under the British Rule. He also states in his book that “this just basic knowledge about the history of our country but is still unknown even to the educated Indians.” He stresses on his point of the reparations, by saying that day by day it is getting late to amend things but it’s certainly not that late. The damage is done but can still be somewhat repaired to some extent.

Tharoor has remarked that every single thing the British did and the rules they imposed on the citizens were for their own benefit and not ours. He is right of course in all his arguments. The correct word for the Rule of British in India has to be ‘rotten’. The British Rule and their Empire was rotten in terms of all the policies they put up to follow, all the standards as compared to ours. He has done an impeccable job on the book and made us realize what we had forgotten with time.

BRITISH INFLUENCE ON URBANIZATION IN INDIA

INTRODUCTION

India shares a long history of urbanization, with Indus Valley Civilization dating back to 2350 BC as its first stepping stone towards urbanization. After this and post-independence period, with the emergence of Planning Commission, India witnessed the urbanization which it had never seen before. And this period marks the progression and flourishing of urbanization in India. However, cities in India have been urbanized in number of phases. The urbanization history in India has 5 different phases (given by historians) :

  1. The Pre – Historic Period (Indus): 2350 – 1800 BC
  2. The Early Historic Period (Aryans and Dravidians): 600 BC – 500 AD
  3. The Medieval Period (Mughal): 600 – 800 AD
  4. The British Period: 800 AD – 1947
  5. Post Independence Period: 1947 – till date

URBANIZATION IN BRITISH PERIOD

The British came to India in 1858 when India was one of the most urbanized nations due to Mughal supremacy. But in the early phase of British rule, Indian cities witnessed decline in the level of urbanization and during the later phase of British rule, the Indian cities regained the lost importance and new towns and cities emerged and newer urban form was added to existing cities.

Fort St. William in Calcutta is one of the best examples of factories constructed during British Era and fortified for protection.

URBAN DECLINE IN 19TH CENTURY

The main reasons for urban decline during the British Period were:

  1. Lack of interest in British in economic development, prosperity and growth of India and their negative attitude towards the traditional industries of India which were present during that period.
  2. The alteration of urbanization in India due to the industrial revolution in England.
  3. The diversion in existing trade routes due to sudden growth and building of rail networks.
  4. Disrupted monopoly in trade especially in port towns.

BRITISH CONTRIBUTION TO URBANIZATION SCENES IN INDIA

  1. Emergence of three metropolitan port cities which emerged as leading colonial cities (Calcutta, Bombay and Madras).
  2. Creation of hill stations and plantation settlements.
  3. Modification of urban landscape in existing cities.
  4. Introduction of civil lines, camps and cantonments.
  5. Improvement in connectivity through railways.
  6. Enhanced scope of industrialization.
  7. Improvements in urban amenities and urban administration.

CONCLUSION

British era had both positive and negative impact in India but the extent of positive changes is more. The process of urbanization and building of new cities can be seen as the breaking of the continuum. During British Period, the Indian cities emerged as the focal points of urbanization and westernization. The westernization brought by the British Period continued to guide the destiny of urban elite in India. It helped in transforming the agriculture as a means of commerce by introducing new crops like indigo, tobacco, coffee etc. Thus, British Era can be seen a the period when India came across fundamental economic transition, mechanized industries and developed connectivity through railways and foreign trade. But the British Era didn’t consider the rural – urban conflict which increased the gap between urban and rural areas of India.

Thus, it can be concluded that British rule had definitely been useful in providing the foundation of development and urbanization to India. As per Census 1941, which is the last census before Independence, India had 49 one lakh cities and 2500 urbanized towns. So, when this urbanization is compared to previous trans, it can be seen that the urbanization attained zenith during the end of British period as compared to past events.

žIn 1941, which marks the last census before independence, There were 49 one-lakh cities in India and in all round 2500 urbanized towns. Urbanization attained zenith during end of this period compared to entire past events.

Colorism In British India .

British colonialism further exacerbated colourism. The British Raj, or the official British rule over India, began in 1858 and lasted until the independence of India and the partition of Pakistan in 1947. During this time, a pseudo-scientific concept called “social Darwinism” became popular. The term, a reference to Charles Darwin’s work on evolution, describes the common belief that factors such as skin colour, bone structure, and facial features were determinants of levels of intelligence, and it became part of the justification for Britain’s treatments of its colonised natives. In India, Britain’s general strategy seemed to involve keeping fair-skinned Indians as allies by privileging them over darker-skinned Indians. A system of institutionalised segregation was established and, while some institutions segregated against all “[coloured] people”, many segregated only against “black Indians”, with signs clearly stating: “Indians and dogs not allowed”. Conversely, lighter-skinned Indians were given preference over their darker counterparts and were hired more frequently.

Although there was some pushback against this mistreatment by the British, the Indian people were, in general, less motivated to protest because the caste system had already cemented clear divisions along racial lines. Centuries of rule by foreigners had already cemented the idea that power belonged to light-skinned individuals, and it meant that when an external, more malicious force came in to uphold those divisions, people were less inclined to object.

However, colourism has always been an intersectional issue. The oppression people face due to colourism is often paired with, and/or magnified by their gender, caste, social status, financial status, and education. Despite the longevity of the issue, civil society is only now beginning to dismantle institutional colourism. “Dark is Beautiful” is an organisation fighting colourism by organising workshops to educate the youth on the dangers of colourism and by creating petitions and lobbying against the leading fairness cream brands. In the future, it seeks to “involve… many people and [organisations], including politicians, sportspersons, and influential people.” “India’s Got Colour” is another campaign that aims to end systemic bias against skin colour. One of its ambassadors, Nandita Das, an actress and producer, travels around the country to educate children in schools on the pervasiveness of colourism and to share her story and recount the different treatment she received from the media due to her skin colour. In Bollywood, instances of brownface, the act of intentionally darkening one’s skin, have started receiving more public backlash than ever before.

Colourism refers to prejudice against individuals with a dark skin tone. In India, it is reflected in many parts of society, from advertisements on billboards to lyrics in songs to household anecdotes. It can manifest itself in very apparent ways, such as in advertisements for skin lightening products showcasing women achieving their dreams only after lightening their complexion, but it can also take on more subtle forms. Regardless, its influence is pervasive. In 2015, the Indian National Museum conducted a study where they surveyed one hundred college students from across the country, inquiring about the skin colour they considered to be a beauty ideal. When asked to describe “pretty”, 71% of the respondents cited words alluding to lighter skin tones, including “fair” and “light”. While this study featured a relatively small sample size, the trends it highlights are common in Indian society and perpetuated through the media. In fact, 90% of all Indian advertisements show lighter-skinned models, and most Bollywood movies feature a cast of exclusively light-skinned actors.

Beyond a lack of representation of dark-skinned individuals in the media, having darker skin is seen as a disadvantage for many other prospects as well, from “hireability” to chances of marriage. The latter is especially true in rural villages wherein women with a darker skin tone are seen as less desirable and face greater challenges in finding a spouse. Another damaging result of colourism is the rise of the ever-growing skin lightening market and the health risks this market presents. The Tata Institute of Social Science (TISS) conducted a study in which they surveyed 1,238 women and 746 men on their use of fairness creams. Of those, 59.6% of women and 46.1% of men reported using fairness products at some point in their lives. When asked why, 31.2% said they wanted to look “beautiful” and 36.2% believed looking fairer would help them “feel culturally accepted”. These skin lightening products have serious, and often long-lasting, side effects. In 2006, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) released a notice stating that it no longer recognises over-the-counter skin bleaching products as safe or effective. Despite this, India’s skin lightening market is projected to continue growing with an April 2018 study estimating that by 2023, it would be worth “Rs. 5,000 crore”, or about $700 million USD.