The Age of Industrialisation
Class 10th Social Science- The Age of Industrialisation
THE AGE OF INDUSTRIALISATION
NCERT TEXTBOOK QUESTIONS
Q.1. Explain why the port of Surat declined by the end of the eighteenth
century.
Ans.
The
European companies gradually gained power by securing concessions and monopoly
rights to trade. This resulted in the decline of old ports through which local
merchants operated.
Q.2. Explain why the East India Company appointed Gomasthas to supervise the
weavers in India.
Ans.
The
English East India Company appointed Gomasthas for the following reasons:
(i) To eliminate the existence
of traders and brokers and establish a direct control over the weavers.
(ii) To eliminate weavers from
dealing with other buyers by means of advances and control.
In this manner, weavers who
took loans and fees in advance were obligated to the British.
Q.3. Why did industrial production in India increase during the First World War?
Ans.
Till the First World War, industrial growth in India was slow. The war created a
dramatically new situation. Manchester imports into India declined due to the
war. The British factories became busy with producing things needed for the
army. Indian mills now suddenly had a large market to supply. The long war made
the Indian factories supply them with jute bags, cloth for army uniforms, tents
and leather boots, horse and mule saddles and a host of other items. Many
workers were employed for longer hours. After the war Manchester goods lost
their hold on the Indian market. British economy collapsed as it could not
compete with the USA, Japan and its European rivals. The Indian industrialists
captured the local market. Small scale industries prospered.
Q.4. Explain what is meant by proto-industrialisation.
Ans.
Proto-industrialisation was the stage when large scale industrial production
took place in the absence of modern factories for international market. A close
relationship between town and countryside developed in which a network of close
commercial exchange existed between a merchant and a farmer. The former stayed
in town and employed producers working in family farms, not in factories. At
each stage of production, about 20 to 25 workers were employed by each merchant.
Q.5. Explain why women workers attacked spinning jenny.
Ans.
Many workers, especially women, were opposed to the use of spinning jenny and
these machines were targetted and destroyed in many instances of rebellion.
Spinning jenny was capable of speeding up the spinning process and reduceing the
labour demand. A worker could set in motion a number of spindles and spin
several threads at the
same time by turning one
single wheel. Naturally, the fear of unemployment which was the biggest problem
of England in those days made them hostile to spinning jenny. Women who survived
on hand spinning attacked them
and the conflict continued for
a long time.
Q.6. Why did some industrialists in nineteenth-century Europe prefer hand labour
over machines?
Ans.
Machines required large capital investment. Introduction of machines did not
necessarily affect the traditional process of production for a long time.
(i) The need for machines
varied according to available labour. Where there was plenty of labour, wages
were low. Countries like Britain and USA did not have problem of labour
shortage. Industrialists had no problem of labour shortage or high wage costs in
these countries.
(ii) The wear and tear of
machines made investors very cautious and wary of full dependence on machines.
They preferred human labour which were more dependable and cheaper in those
days.
Q.7. Imagine that you have been asked to write an article for an encyclopaedia
on Britain and the history of cotton. Write your piece using information from
the entire chapter.
Ans.
Britain and history of cotton:
(i) Cotton textile production
became the symbol of industrialisation in Britain in the eighteenth century.
(ii) The invention of cotton
mill by Richard Arkwright made cotton production more easier and faster.
(iii) Factories in England
emerged as early as the 1730s and their numbers increased steadily. It was due
to changes in the production process of carding (process of preparing cotton or
wool fibres prior to spinning), twisting, spinning and rolling.
(iv) The raw cotton import
increased from 2.5 million pounds in 1760 to 22 million pounds in 1787.
(v) The manufacturing industry
of Manchester became the largest producer of cotton textiles which were exported
to other countries and to her colonies. They produced fine textiles and
industrialization spread to other towns
and cities. With the spread of industrialization in other European nations,
competition was fierce and led to monopoly of trade and colonisation.
Q.8. How did the East India Company procure regular supplies of cotton and silk
textiles from Indian weavers?
OR
What steps were taken by the East India Company to control market of cotton and
sillk goods?
Ans.
The
English East India Company used different means to procure silk and cotton from
the weavers:
(i) Appointment of paid
supervisors called Gomasthas. They also collected supplies and examined cloth
quality of the weavers.
(ii) Prevention of Company
weavers from dealing with other buyers through a system of advances and loans.
MULTIPLE CHOICE QUESTIONS
Q.1. The word ‘Orient’ refers to :
(a) All the countries outside
Europe
(b) Countries to the east of
the Mediterranean, usually referring to Asia
(c) Countries, which according
to a western viewpoint, are traditional, mysterious and premodern
(d) Both (b) and (c)
Ans.
(d)
Q.2. The picture of the “Two Magicians” shows
(a) Aladdin from the orient
who built a beautiful palace with his magic lamp
(b) A modern mechanic who with
his magic tool builds bridges, ships, towers and high-rise buildings
(c) The difference between
East and West, Aladdin represents the East and the past and the mechanic, the
West and
modernity
(d) All the above
Ans.
(d)
Q.3. The new merchants could not set up business in the towns in Europe, because
:
(a) the rules did not allow
them to do so
(b) there were not enough
products to start business with, as guilds had monopoly
(c) the powerful trade guilds
and urban crafts made it difficult for new merchants to start business in towns
and restricted their entry
(d) the merchants wanted to do
business with village people
Ans.
(c)
Q.4. How can we prove that the first symbol of factory system was cotton?
(a) Its production boomed in
the late 18th century
(b) In 1760, Britain was
importing 2.5 million pounds of raw cotton for its cotton industry
(c) By 1787, its import soared
to 22 million pounds
(d) All the above
Ans.
(d)
Q.5. Who are called Staplers and Fullers?
(a) A Fuller ‘fulls’ or
gathers cloth by pleating
(b) Stapler ‘staples’ or sorts
wool according to its fibre
(c) Both (b) and (c)
d) Staplers and Fullers are
dyers
Ans.
(c)
Q.6. Working for urban merchants was welcome for the peasants’ households
because
(a) it gave a chance to
countryside to compete with urban guilds
(b) proto-industrial
production supplemented their shrinking incomes from cultivation and allowed
fuller use of family’s labour resources
(c) it helped them to produce
better while sitting at home
(d) none of the above
Ans.
(b)
Q.7. Where and when did the earliest factories come up?
(a) In the beginning of the
18th century in England
(b) In the 1730s in England
(c) In the late 18th century
in Europe
(d) None of the above
Ans.
(b)
Q.8. Carding is a process :
(a) in spinning
(b) in weaving
(c) in which cotton or wool
fibres are prepared for spinning
(d) in which finishing of
cloth is done
Ans.
(c)
Q.9. Which industry followed the cotton industry in England and why?
(a) The wool industry, because
production of wool increased in England
(b) Iron and steel industry,
because of the growth of railways from the 1840s in England and
in colonies in the 1860s
(c) Iron and steel industry,
because textile industry was no longer important
(d) Mining industry, because
of loss in textile industry
Ans.
(b)
Q.10. Who invented the first steam engine and who improved upon it?
(a) James Watt produced the
first steam engine and Newcomen improved it
(b) Richard Arkwright produced
the first steam engine which Newcomen improved it
(c) James Watt improved the
steam engine produced by Newcomen
(d) None of the above
Ans.
(c)
Q.11. The typical worker in the mid-nineteenth century, according to historians,
was:
(a) a machine operator (b)
traditional craftsperson and labourer
(c) unskilled labourers (d) a
technology expert worker
Ans.
(b)
Q.12. Which of the following statements is/are not true about the life of
workers in the early 19th century?
(a) Till the mid-nineteenth
century, about 10% of urban population were extremely poor
(b) During the periods of
economic slump (like the 1830s) the unemployment figures went up from 35 to 75
per cent
(c) The wages increased
throughout the 19th century and welfare of workers improved
(d) The income of the workers
depended on the period of employment and not the wage rate alone.
Ans.
(c)
Q.13. The women in the woollen industry attacked the introduction of spinning
jenny because
(a) fear of unemployment made
the women workers hostile to the introduction of new technology
(b) the women did not know how
to work the machine
(c) the women depended on
hand-spinning
(d) all the above
Ans.
(d)
Q.14. How can we prove that the old ports like Surat and Hooghly declined with
the coming of the European companies?
(a) Exports from these ports
fell dramatically
(b) In the last years of the
17th century, the gross value of trade that passed through Surat had been Rs 16
million. By the 1740s, it had slumped to Rs 3 million.
(c) The credit that financed
the trade dried up
(d) The local bankers went
bankrupt slowly
Ans.
(b)
Q.15. A gomastha was :
(a) an officer of the East
India Company who looked after the textile trade
(b) an officer of the Company
who acted as a go-between the Company and Indian traders
(c) a paid servant of the
Company who supervised weavers, collected supplies and examined the quality of
the cloth
(d) none of these
Ans.
(c)
Q.16. Which of the following statements is not true about how the Company
prevented weavers from dealing with other buyers?
(a) The Company offered their
weavers the highest rates
(b) The Company gave loans to
weavers to purchase raw materials for their production
(c) Those who took loans had
to sell the cloth they produced to the Gomasthas
(d) The weavers could not sell
their product to any other trader
Ans.
(a)
Q.17. In 1772, Henry Patulla, a Company official, had declared that
(a) Indian textiles would soon
lose their charm and people will not buy them
(b) the demand for Indian
textiles would never shrink as no other country produced goods of the same
quality
(c) Indian textiles could
never compete with mill-made goods
(d) none of the above
Ans.
(b)
Q.18. The American Civil War caused new problems for Indian weavers. How?
(a) Indian weavers could not
get sufficient supply of raw cotton of good quality
(b) The Americans stopped
supplying raw cotton to Britain due to the Civil War and the latter turned to
India, and exports from India increased raising the price of raw cotton
(c) Indian weavers could not
afford to buy raw cotton at exorbitant prices
(d) All the above
Ans.
(d)
Q.19. Weaving industry finally collapsed by the end of the 19th century. Why?
(a) All raw materials vanished
from India
(b) Indian weavers took to
other professions because of high prices of raw materials
(c) Indian factories came up
and began flooding the market with machine-made goods
(d) The British totally
monopolised the textile trade
Ans.
(c)
Q.20. Which of the following causes led to the decline and collapse of weaving
industry in India?
(a) By the 1850s, export
markets collapsed, local markets shrank
(b) The cheap,
machine-produced goods of Manchester glutted the Indian market
(c) The civil war in America
stopped cotton exports to Britain which now imported raw cotton from India and
Indian weavers were deprived of raw cotton which sold at exorbitant price
in India
(d) Both (b) and (c)
Ans.
(d)
Q.21. The export of Indian yarn to China declined in 1906. Why?
(a) The Chinese started
producing better yarn themselves
(b) Indians started using
their own yarn at home
(c) Produce from the Chinese
and Japanese mills flooded the Chinese market
(d) Indians started making
cloth instead of exporting yarn
Ans.
(c)
Q.22. A fly shuttle is:
(a) a mechanical device which
increased production in factories, allowing weavers to operate large looms for
wider cloths
(b) a mechanical device, used
by weavers, moved by means of ropes and pullies
(c) the device which places
horizontal threads (the weft) into the vertical threads (the warp)
(d) both (b) and (c)
Ans.
(d)
Q.23. What items did Indian factories supply during the First World War?
(a) guns and other ammunition
(b) jute bags, cloth for army
uniforms, tents, leather boots, horse and mule saddles, besides other things
(c) medicines for hospitals
(d) all the above
Ans.
(b)
Q.24. The main interests of the European Managing Agencies, which dominated
industrial production in India, were :
(a) tea and coffee
plantations, acquiring land at cheap rates
(b) investing in mining,
indigo and jute required for export trade
(c) both (a) and (b)
(d) products which were needed
in India
Ans.
(c)
Q.25. Which of the following statements is not true about the effect of the
First World War on industrialisation in India?
(a) Indian mills had to double
their production, during the war to supply the war needs
(b) New factories were set up,
old ones ran multiple shifts
(c) New workers were employed,
made to work longer hours
(d) Manchester exports to
India doubled during the war years
Ans.
(d)
Q.26. Why are advertisements needed to create new consumers?
(a) To make the consumers
aware of products
(b) To make new products
appear desirable and necessary
(c) To shape the minds of
people, create new needs, a new culture and expand markets
(d) all of these
Ans.
(d)
Q.27. Who among the following produced a popular music book that had a picture
on the cover page announcing the Dawn of the Century?
(a) New Comen (b) James Watt
(c) E. T. Paul (d) Mathew
Boulton
Ans.
(c)
Q.28. Which among the following is associated with Gomasthas?
(a) Trader (b) Businessman
(c) Unpaid Servant (d)
Supervisor appointed by the company
Ans.
(d)
Q.29. Which one of the following factories was considered as a symbol of new era
in England in the late eighteenth century?
(a) Iron and steel (b) Metal
(c) Jute (d) Cotton
Ans.
(d)
Q.30. How does advertisement help us to create new consumer?
(a) It makes products appear
desirable and necessary
(b) It tries to shape the
minds of people and create new needs
(c) It helps in expanding the
markets for products
(d) All the above
Ans.
(d)
Q.31. Name the person who created the cotton mill in England?
(a) Richard Arkwright (b)
James Watt (c) Mathew Boulton (d) Newcomen
Ans.
(a)
Q.32 Who devised the Spinning Jenny?
(a) Richard Arkwright (b)
James Watt
(c) James Hargreaves (d)
Samuel Luke
Ans.
(c)
Q.33. The introduction of which new technology in England angered women?
(a) The spinning jenny (b) The
underground railway
(c) The steam engine (d) None
of these
Ans.
(a)
Q.34. Which pre-colonial port connected India to the Gulf countries and the Red
Sea ports?
(a) Bombay (b) Hooghly (c) Surat (d)
Machhalipatanam
Ans.
(c)
Q.35. Where in India was the first cotton mill set up?
(a) Kanpur (b) Bombay (c)
Ahmedabad (d) Madras
Ans.
(b)
Q.36. Which one of the following Indian ports lost its importance during
colonial rule?
(a) Bombay (b) Calcutta (c) Surat (d)
Madras
Ans.
(c)
Q.37. Which of the following was not a European Managing Agency dominating
industrial production in India?
(a) Andrew Yule (b) Bird
Heiglers and Co.
(c) Jardine Skinner and Co.
(d) Elgin Mills
Ans.
(d)
Q.38. By which of the following phenomena was the pattern of industrial change
in India conditioned?
(a) Colonial rule (b) Weakness
of Mughal rule
(c) Poverty of the countryside
(d) Struggle between the
European powers to control India
Ans.
(a)
Q.39. Which one of the following was the job of the Gomastha?
(a) Supervise weavers (b)
Collect supplies
(c) Examine the quality of the
cloth (d) All the above
Ans.
(d)
Q.40. The person who got people from villages, ensured them jobs, helped them
settle in cities and provided them money in times of need was known as :
(a) Stapler (b) Fuller (c)
Gomastha (d) Jobber
Ans.
(d)
Q.41. Production processes involving carding, twisting, rolling and stapling are
associated with :
(a) Textile Industry (b)
Railway industry (c) Shipping industry (d) Glass industry
Ans.
(a)
Q.42. Which one of the following problems was not faced by cotton weavers in
India?
(a) Export market had collapsed (b) They
did not have good quality cotton
(c) Imported goods were cheap
(d) There were frequent
strikes in Indian industries
Ans.
(d)
Q.43. In Victorian Britain, the aristrocrats and bourgeoisie preferred hand-made
goods as :
(a) they were cheap (b) they could be
obtained easily
(c) they were made of better
material (d) they symbolised refinement and class
Ans.
(d)
Q.44. Who improved the ‘Steam Engine’ produced by Newcomen?
(a) Marcopolo (b) James Watt
(c) Hargreaves (d) Richard Arkwright
Ans.
(b)
Q.45. Who was Dwarkanath Tagore?
(a) A social reformer (b)
Musician (c) Industrialist (d) Painter
Ans.
(c)
Q.46. Which were the most dynamic industries in Britain during the 19th century?
(a) Cotton and metal (b) Metal and sugar
(c) Ship and cotton (d) Cotton and sugar
Ans.
(a)
Q.47. Where was the first Indian jute mill set up?
(a) Bengal (b) Bombay (c)
Madras (d) Bihar
Ans.
(a)
Q.48. Which of the following was not a problem of Indian weavers at the early
19th century?
(a) Shortage of raw material (b) Clashes
with Gomasthas
(c) Collapse of local and
foreign market (d) Setting up of new factories
Ans.
(b)
Q.49. When did the exports of British cotton goods increased dramatically?
(a) in the early 17th century (b) in the
early 18th century
(c) in the early 19th century
(d) in the early 20th century
Ans.
(c)
Q.50. Where was the first cotton mill set up in India?
(a) Ahemedabad (b) Kanpur (c)
Bombay (d) Madras
Ans.
(c)
Q.51. Which of the following mechanical devices used for weaving, with ropes and
pullies, which helped to weave wide pieces of cloth?
(a) Handloom (b) Powerloom (c)
Fly Shuttle (d) Spinning Jenny
Ans.
(c)
Q.52. In 1911, 67 percent of the large industries were located in which one of
the following places in India?
(a) Bengal and Bombay (b)
Surat and Ahmedabad
(c) Delhi and Bombay (d) Patna
and Lucknow
Ans.
(a)
Q.53. Who among the following set up the first Indian jute mill in Calcutta in
1917?
(a) Seth Hukumchand (b) G.D. Birla
(c) Jamsedjee Nusserwanjee
Tata (d) None of the above
Ans.
(a)
Q.54. What was “Spinning Jenny”?
(a) A machine (b) A person (c)
An industry (d) None of the above
Ans.
(a)
Q.55. Who established six joint stock companies in India during 1830-40?
(a) Jamsedji Nusserwanjee Tata
(b) Dinshaw Petit
(c) Seth Hukumchand (d)
Dwarkanath Tagore
Ans.
(d)
Q.56. Which one of the following ports decayed by the end of the eighteenth
century?
(a) Calcutta (b) Goa (c) Surat (d) None
of the above
Ans.
(c)
Q.57. In which one of the following years did the first cotton mill in Bombay
(Mumbai) come up?
(a) 1854 (b) 1855 (c) 1862 (d)
1874
Ans.
(a)
Q.58. Who among the following was usually employed by the industrialists to get
new recruits?
(a) Gomastha (b) Policeman (c)
Sepoy (d) Jobber
Ans.
(d)
Q.59. In which one of the following years did the earliest factories in England
come up?
(a) 1710 (b) 1720 (c) 1730 (d)
1740
Ans.
(c)
Q.60. Whom did the British government appoint to supervise weavers, collect
supplies and examine the quality of cloth?
(a) Jobber (b) Sepoy (c)
Policeman (d) Gomastha
Ans.
(d)
Q.61. Which among the following cities had trade links with South Asian ports?
(a) Masulipatam and Hoogly (b)
Masulipatam and Surat
(c) Surat and Bomaby (Mumbai)
(d) None of the above
Ans.
(a)
Q.62. Which one of the following European managing agencies did not control
Indian industries?
(a) Bird Heiglers and Company
(b) Andrew Yule
(c) Indian Industrial and
Commerce Congress (d) Jardine Skinner and Company
Ans.
(c)
Q.63. Which of the following helped the spread of handloom cloth production?
(a) Import duties (b)
Government regulations
(c) Technological changes (d)
Imposition of export duties
Ans.
(c)
Q.64. Surat and Hooghly were replaced with :
(a) Bombay and Orissa (b)
Bombay and Calcutta
(c) Masulipatam and Calcutta
(d) None of the abvoe
Ans.
(b)
Q.65. Who produced the Steam Engine?
(a) James Watt (b) James Mill
(c) Newcomen (d) Crompton
Ans.
(c)
Q.66. Industrial Revolution refers to :
(a) Mass production by
factories (b) Collection of raw material
(c) Process of raw material
(d) None of these
Ans.
(a)
Q.67. Which of the following were the pre-colonial ports of India?
(a) Surat and Masulipatam (b)
Madras and Hoogly
(c) Madras and Bombay (d)
Bombay and Hoogly
Ans.
(a)
Q.68. Which of the following was the main function of jobber, employed by the
industrialists?
(a) To collect money (b) To
set up industries
(c) To get a new recruit (d)
To supply raw material
Ans.
(c)
SHORT ANSWER TYPE QUESTIONS
Q.1. What factors were responsible for an increasing demand of goods? Give an
example.
Ans.
Expansion of trade and acquisition of colonies in the seventeenth and eighteenth
centuries led to increasing demand of goods. For example, acquisition of
colonies was an important activity undertaken by Europeans in the eighteenth and
nineteenth centuries. When colonies were established, they had more resources
and markets for their products and volume of trade increased.
Q.2. What were the first symbols of industrialisation?
Ans.
Cotton and metal (iron and steel) production were the first symbols of
industrialisation. Factories in England emerged as early as the 1730s and their
number increased steadily. It was due to changes in the production process of
carding (process of preparing cotton or wool fiber sprier to spinning),
twisting, spinning and rolling.
Q.3. Write a short note on trade guilds.
Ans.
Trade guilds were associations of producers that trained craft persons and
artists. They exercised control over production through regulated competition
and prices. They also restricted the entry of new people into the trade. Most of
them were granted the right to produce specific
products by their rulers.
Q.4. What other sectors of production benefitted from ordinary inventions?
Ans.
Cotton and metal were steam-powered industries. Some small and ordinary
inventions
contributed in many
non-mechanized sectors like food processing, building, pottery, glass
work, tanning,
furniture-making and production of implements.
Q.5. What is the most recent views regarding industrial revolution of the
eighteenth and mid nineteenth
centuries?
Ans.
Modern historians have now recognised the important role of the traditional
craft persons and labourers of the mid-nineteenth century in recent years.
Technological changes were slow and expensive. They were not as effective as
claimed because merchants and manufacturers were cautious in using them for
their cost and maintenance.
Q.6. Write a short note on the condition of a labour’s life in Victorian
Britain.
Ans.
Victorian Britain was a period when there was no shortage of labour. Poor
peasants and vagrants moved to the cities in large numbers in search of work.
Their wages were thus low and they were exploited by the producers.
Q.7. Explain why machines did not necessarily affect employment of labours.
Ans.
Machines required large capital investments. Introduction of machines did not
necessarily affect the traditional process of production for a long time. The
need for machines varied according to available labour. Where there was plenty
of labour, wages were low.
Q.8. What were the limits of machine-made products?
Ans.
Machines were limited by its inability to produce variety of products. Machines
produced only uniform, standardised products meant for mass markets. However,
demands in European markets were mainly for intricate and specific designs.
Q.9. Who invented the Spinning Jenny? How did it work?
Ans.
Spinning jenny was devised by James Hargreaves in 1764. It speeded up the
spinning process and reduced the labour demand. One single turning of the wheel
could set in motion a number of spindles and spin several threads of yarn.
Q.10. What is the monopoly of trade?
Ans.
Monopoly of trade is the practice in which a country develops a system of
management and control, eliminating competition, control costs, ensure regulated
supply of products. For example, British colonisers used to monopolise products
such as silk and cotton in India.
Q.11. How did the Indian weavers react to the monopoly of cotton production?
Ans.
The
increasing dependence on income generated from the sale of raw cotton and their
loss of independence for sale and bargaining power led many weavers to take
extreme action. Desertion and migration by farmers of Carnatic and Bengal
weavers were common. Some
joined the traders in
revolting against officials.
Q.12. Discuss the impact of Indian national movement on Indian entrepreneurs.
Ans.
During the period of national movement in the early twentieth century, Swadeshi
activists mobilised people not to use foreign goods. They boycotted and burned
foreign goods which affected their sale. Indigenous industrialists organised
themselves to demand tariff protection and grants from the Government which led
to the establishment of certain regulations. Indian industries benefitted,
especially during the wartime, as it was able to diversify the
products into war goods, steel
and iron, etc.
PREVIOUS YEARS’ QUESTIONS
Q.13. Give one negative impact of the development of cotton textile industry in
England on Indian weavers.
Ans.
They could not get enough supply of raw cotton of good quality. The American
Civil War stopped the supply of raw cotton to England and the British forced
Indian weavers to buy raw cotton at exorbitant prices.
Q.14. Explain the miserable conditions of Indian weavers during the East India
Company's regime in the eighteenth century.
Ans.
Once the East India Company established political power, it started asserting
monopoly right to trade. It proceeded to develop a system which gave it control
to eliminate all competition, control costs and ensure regular supply of cotton
and silk goods. It took the following steps. First, it eliminated the existing
traders and brokers and established direct control over the weaver. It appointed
a special officer called the 'gomastha' to supervise weavers, collect supplies
and examine the quality of the clothes. Second, it prevented the Company weavers
from dealing with other buyers. They advanced loans to weavers to purchase the
raw materials, after placing an order. The ones who took loans had to give their
cloth to the gomashta. They could not sell it to any other trader. Weavers took
advance, hoping to earn more. Some weavers even leased out their land to devote
all time to weaving. The entire family became engaged in weaving. But soon there
were fights between the weavers and the gomashtas. The latter used to march into
villages with sepoys and often beat up the weavers for delays in supply.
In many places like Carnatic
and Bengal, weavers deserted the villages and had to migrate to other villages.
In many places they revolted against the Company and its officials. Weavers
began refusing to accept loans after some time, closed down their workshops and
became agricultural labour.
Q.15. Write a short note on the role of advertisement during the British rule.
Ans.
Manchester industrialists used their labels on clothes sold in India with bold
letters, “Made in Manchester” to inspire confidence amongst the buyers. Images
were sometimes used instead of labels. Common images of the time were images of
Gods and Goddesses, probably to give the product a divine approval. Sometimes,
figures of emperors and nawabs also adorned calendars, which were an effective
advertising tool as they could be hung and used by everyone and everywhere.
OR
How did the British manufacturers attempt to take over the Indian market with
the help of advertisements? Explain with three examples.
OR
Explain four ways that helped the British to take over the Indian market with
the help of advertisements.
Ans.
(i)
When Manchester industrialists began selling cloth in India, they put labels on
the cloth bundles. The label served two purposes. One was to make the place of
manufacture and the name of the company familiar to the people. The second was
that the label was also a mark of quality. When the buyers saw “Made in
Manchester” written in bold on the label, they felt confident about buying the
cloth.
(ii) Besides words and texts,
they also carried images. Beautifully illustrated images of Indian Gods and
Goddesses appeared on these labels. For example, images of Kartika, Laxmi,
Saraswati were shown on imported cloth label.
(iii) Historic figures like
those of Maharaja Ranjit Singh were used to create respect for the product. The
image, the labels, the historic figures were intended to make the manufacture
from a foreign land appear somewhat familiar to Indian people.
(iv) Manufacturers printed
calendars to popularise their products calendars could be used ever by people
who could not read. Advertisement could be seen day after day, throughout the
year, when hung on the walls.
Q.16. Explain with examples how an average worker in mid-nineteenth century was
not a machine operator but a traditional craftsperson and labour.
Ans.
The
most dynamic industries in Britain were cotton and metals. But these industries
did not displace traditional industries. Even at the end of 19th century only
20% of the total workforce was employed in technologically advanced industries.
Ordinary and small innovations were the basis of growth in many non-machanised
sectors such as food processing, buildings, pottery, glasswork, tanning etc.
Again, technological changes occurred slowly. New machines were expensive and
broke down often. Repair was costly. Take the case of steam engine. James Watt
improved the steam engine produced by new comer in 1781. But for years there
were no buyers. There were only 321 steam engines in England at the beginning of
the 19th century. Of these 50 were in cotton industry, nine in wool and rest in
mining. Steam engines were used much later so a typical worker in the mid-19th
century was not a machine operator but a
traditional craftsperson.
Q.17. Explain any three problems faced by the Indian weavers by the turn of the
19th century.
Ans.
The
three problems faced by weavers by the turn of the 19th century were :
(i) Decline in export market :
By 1860s insufficient supply of raw cotton of good quality affected the Indian
weavers. Due to the American civil war, the supply of raw cotton from USA had
stopped. Britain turned to India for new cotton export. This resulted in price
rise and the Indian weavers suffered. In the beginning of the 19th century,
there was a sharp decline in Indian export of cotton piece exports. In 1811-12,
33% of exports were made
in price goods. In 1850-51, it
was no more than 3%.
(ii) The British started
dumping mill-made and machine-made British goods in India. British exports to
India for textile goods increased from 31% to over 50% in the 1870s. The local
markets collapsed as they were glutted with Manchester imports. Machine-made
goods were sold at lower prices and Indian weavers could not compete with them.
(iii) Another problem cropped
up for weavers. At the end of the 19th century, India started producing cotton
textiles in factories and punished and the weavers for delays in supply, often
beating and flogging them. The weavers lost the power to bargain for prices and
sell to different buyers. The Company paid them a miserably low price. The loans
tied them to the Company. It led to deserted villages and migration to other
cities.
Q.18. Explain the impact of First World War on Indian industries.
OR
Why did industrial production in India increase during the First World War?
Ans.
Till the First World War, industrial growth in India was slow. The war created a
dramatically new situation. Manchester imports into India declined due to the
war. The British factories became busy with producing things needed for the
army. Indian mills now suddenly had a large market to supply. The long war made
the Indian factories supply them with jute bags, cloth for army uniforms, tents
and leather boots, horse and mule saddles, and a host of other items. Many
workers were employed for longer hours. After the war Manchester goods lost
their hold on the Indian markets. British economy collapsed as it could not
compete with the USA, Japan, and its European rivals. The Indian industrialists
captured the local market. Small scale industries prospered.
Q.19. Explain any three major problems faced by new European merchants in
setting up their industries in towns before the Industrial Revolution.
Ans.
New
European merchants faced problems in setting up their industries in towns for
three major
reasons :
(i) The urban crafts and trade
guilds were powerful. These were associations of producers that trained
craftspeople and maintained control over production.
(ii) They regulated
competition and prices and restricted the entry of new people into the trade.
(iii) Rulers granted different
guilds monopoly right to produce and trade in specific products.
Q.20. How had a series of inventions in the eighteenth century increased the
efficiency of each step of the production process in cotton textile industry?
Explain.
Ans.
A
series of inventions in the 18th century increased the efficiency of each step
of the production process in cotton textile industry.
(i) Each step means carding,
twisting, spinning and rolling. They enhanced the output per worker, enabling
each worker to produce more and produce stronger threads and yarn.
(ii) Richard Arkwright created
the cotton mill. Before this, cloth production was carried out within village
households. Now costly machines could be set up in the mill and all the mill
processes were completed under one roof.
(iii) Spinning jenny devised
by James Hargreaves in 1764 speeded up the spinning process and reduced labour
demand. By turning one single wheel, a worker could set in motion a number of
spindles and spin several threads at a time.
(iv) The steam engine,
invented by James Watt in 1781, was used in cotton mills.
(v) Factories came up in large
numbers and by 1840, cotton textile became the leading sector in
industrialisation. The expansion of railways also helped in production of
textile goods.
Q.21. What is meant by proto-industrialisation? Why was it successful in the
countryside in England in the 17th century?
Ans.
Proto-industrialisation refers to first or early form of industrialisation. Even
before the factories came up in England and Europe, there was large-scale
industrial production for an international market, not based on factories. This
phase of industrialisation is referred to as proto-industrialisation. Guilds
were associations of producers that trained crafts people, maintained control
over production, regulated competition and prices and restricted the entry of
new people into the trade.
Q.22. ‘Technological changes occurred slowly in Britain.’ Give three reasons for
this.
Ans.
Technological changes occurred slowly because :
(i) New technology was
expensive and merchants and industrialists were cautious about using it.
(ii) They did not spread
dramatically a cross the industrial landscap.
(iii) The machines often broke
down and repair was costly.
(iv) They were not as
effective as their inventors and manufacturers claimed.
For example : For years there
were no buyers for the steam engine improved by James Watt and they were not
used in the industry till much later in the 18th century. So even the most
powerful technology had enhanced productivity of labour manifold was slow to be
accepted by industrialists.
Q.23. What led to expansion in handloom craft production between 1900 and 1940?
Ans.
In
the 20th century, handloom craft actually expanded, handloom cloth production
expanded steadily almost trebling between 1900 and 1940.
(i) This was partly due to
technological changes. Handicrafts people adopted new technology which improved
production without pushing up the costs excessively. Weavers started using a
fly shuttle which speeded up production and reduced labour demand. By 1941,
over 35% of handlooms in India were fitted with fly shuttles. In Travancore,
Madras, Mysore, Cochin and Bengal the proportion was 70 to 80%. There were
several other
innovations that helped
weavers.
(ii) The demand for finer
Varities bought by the well-to-do was always stable, unlike the coarse variety.
Famines did not affect the sale of Banarasi or Baluchari saris. Mills could not
produce saris with woven borders, or the famous lungis and handkerchiefs of
Madras. Handlooms cloth production in the 20th century almost trebled between
1900-1940.
Q.24. Vasant Parkar, who was once a mill worker in Bombay, said :
‘The workers would pay the jobbers money to get their sons work in mill .... The
mill worker was
closely associated with his village, physically and emotionally. He would go
home to cut the harvest
and for sowing. The Konkani would go home to cut the paddy and Gahti, the
sugarcane. It was
accepted practice for which the mills granted leave.’
(i) Why do workers pay a
jobber?
(ii) In what ways did the mill
workers remain associated with the village?
(iii) Why did mill workers go
to the village?
Ans.
(i)
Workers paid a jobber because he got jobs for them, helped them to settle in the
city and provided them money in times of crisis. For these favours he was paid.
(ii) The workers in the mill
came from the villages or neighbouring districts. For example, 50% workers in
the Bombay cotton industries in 1911 came from neighbouring districts of
Ratnagiri, from mills of Kanpur, from surrounding districts of Kanpur.
(iii) Most often mill workers
moved between the villages and the city, returning to their village homes during
harvests and festivals.
Q.25. Explain any three functions of a jobber.
Ans.
The
three functions of a jobber were :
1. To recruit new people from
his village and ensure them jobs.
2. To help them to settle in
the cities.
3. To provide money to the
workers in time of crisis.
Q.26. Who were the Gomasthas? Why did the weavers and Gomasthas clash?
Ans.
Gomasthas were paid servants of the East India Company. Their job was to
supervise weavers,
collect supplies, and examine
the quality of cloth. The weavers clashed with the Gomasthas because they were
outsiders with no long-term link with the villages. They acted arrogantly
marched into villages with sepoys and peons and punished weavers for delays.
They often beat and flogged the workers.
Q.27. Mention the name of three Indian entrepreneurs and their individual
contribution during the nineteenth century.
Ans.
The
three Indian industrialists of the 19th century were :
(i) Dwarkanath Tagore,
(ii) Dinshaw Petit &
Nusserwanjee Tata
(iii) Seth Hukum Chand
Dwarkanath Tagore set up six
joint stock companies in the 1830s and 1840s. In Bombay, Dinshaw Petit and
Nusserwanjee Tata built huge industrial empires in India. Seth Hukumchand, a
Marwari businessman set up the first jute mill in Calcutta in 1917.
Q.28. Why were Victorian industrialists not interested to introduce machines in
England? Give any four reasons.
OR
Why were some industrialists in the 19th century Europe prefer hand labour over
machines.
Ans.
The
four reasons are :
(i) There was no shortage of
human labour in the Victorian England. When there is plenty of labour, wages are
low, the industrialists did not want to introduce machines that got rid of human
labour, and required large capital investment.
(ii) In many industries demand
for labour was seasonal (for example, gas works and breweries) So more workers
were needed in peak season. So, industrialists usually preferred hand labour,
employing workers for the season only.
(iii) A range of products
could be produced only by hand labour. Machines could produce standardised goods
for a mass market. The demand in the market was for goods with intricate designs
and specific shapes (for example, hammers). These required human skills, not
mechanical technology.
(iv) In Victorian Britain, the
upper classes the aristocats and the bourgevisie preferred things produced by
hand. Handmade products symbolised class and refinement. They were better
finished and carefully designed. Machine made goods were for exports to colonies
only.
Q.29. What role did the Indian merchants play in the growth of textiles
industries before 1750? Explain any three points.
Ans.
Before 1750, Indian merchants were involved in a network of export trade. Silk
and cotton goods from India dominated the international market in textiles.
Surat and Gujarat Coast connected India to Gulf and Red Sea ports. Masaulipatam
on the Coromondal Coast and Hooghly in Bengal had trade links with Southeast
Asian ports.
Indian merchants managed
financial production, carrying goods and supplying exporters. They gave advances
to weavers, procured the woven cloth from weaving villages and carried supplires
to the ports. At the port, the big shippers and export merchants had brokers who
negotiated the price and bought good from the supply merchants operating inland.
Q.30. After industrial development in England, what steps did the British
government take to prevent competition with the Indian textiles?
Ans.
The
British Government prevented competition with Indian textiles by :
They imposed import duties
on textile goods so that Manchester goods could sell in Britain without facing
any competition from outside.
The industrialists persuaded
East India Company to sell British goods in Indian markets, and export of
British cotton goods increased.
At the end of 18th century
there was virtually no import of cotton goods from India. The value of cotton
goods constituted 31% in 1850 but by 1870s the figure was over 50%.
Q.31. How did a series of changes affect the pattern of industrialisation by the
first decade of the 20th century? Explain any three.
Ans.
When the Swadeshi Movement, the nationalists mobilised people to boycott foreign
cloth
(i) Industrial groups oranised
themselves to protect their collective interests. They pressurized the
government to increase tariff protection and grant other concessions
(ii) From 1906, export of
Indian yarn to China declined, so industrialists in India began shifting from
yarn to cloth production.
(iii) Cotton piece goods
production doubled in India between 1900 and 1912.
Q.32. Mention any three restrictions imposed by the British government upon the
Indian merchants in the 19th century?
Ans.
The
British Government in the 19th century tighteneed their control over Indian
merchants.
(i) They were barred from
trading with Europe in manufactured goods.
(ii) They had to export mostly
raw materials and food grains — raw cotton, opium, wheat and indigo — required
by the British. They were also edged out of the shipping industries.
(iii) European Managing
Agencies, in fact, controlled a large sector of Indian business : three of the
biggest ones were, Bird Heighlers Co, Andrew Yule, and Jardine Skinnr & Co. In
most cases Indian financiers providedthe capital while the European Agencies
made all investment and business decision. Indian businessmen were not allowed
to join European merchant, industrialists.
Q.33. Why did Indian industrialists begin to shift from yarn to cloth
production? Give three reasons.
Ans.
Indian industrialists began to shift from yarn to cloth production for the
following reasons:
(i) The Swadeshi Movement
mobilised people to boycott foreign cloth. This encouraged Indian industrialists
to produce cloth, as Indian mills had a vast home market to supply, and
Manchester imports into India declined.
(ii) Export of Indian yarn to
China declined from 1906 as produce from Chinese and Japanese mills flooded the
Chinese market. So Indian industrialists to began to shift from yarn to cloth
production.
(iii) After the First World
War, Manchester could not capture its position in Indian markets. This enabled
the local industrialists in the colonies to capture the home market, and
consolidate their position.
Q.34. Why did the East India Company appoint Gomasthas in India?
Ans.
The
company tried to eliminate the existing traders and brokers connected with the
cloth trade, and establish a more direct control over the weaver. It appointed a
paid servant called the gomastha to supervise weavers, collect supplies,
and examine the quality of cloth.
Q.35. Why there was no shortage of human labour in Victorian Britain in the mid
of nineteenth century?
Ans.
Poor peasants and vagrants moved to the cities in large numbers in search of
jobs, waiting for work. Industrialists did not want to introduce machines that
got rid of human labour and required large capital investment. A range of
products could be produced only with hand labour. For instance, in
mid-nineteenth-century Britain, 500 varieties of hammers were produced and 45
kinds of axes. These required human skill. Moreover, in Victorian Britain, the
upper classes preferred things produced by hand.
Q.36. Why did women workers in Britain attack the Spinning Jenny? Give any three
reasons.
Ans.
(i)
Spinning Jenny spreeded up the spinning process and reduced labour demand. (ii)
The fear of unemployment made workers hostile to the introduction of new
technology.
(iii) When the Spinning Jenny
was introduced in the woollen industry, women who survived on hand spinning lost
their job and began attacking the new machines.
Q.37. Why do historians agree that the typical worker in the mid-nineteenth
century was not a machine operator but the traditional craftsperson and
labourer? Explain.
Ans.
(i)
The industrialists were very hesitant to introduce new machines for a variety of
reasons.
(ii) Due to abundance of human
labour, industrialists had no problem of labour shortage or high wage costs.
Machines required large capital investment.
(iii) Goods with intricate
designs and specific shapes (like hammer, axes, etc.) required human skill, not
mechanical technology.
(iv) The upper classes
preferred things produced by hand.
LONG ANSWER TYPE QUESTIONS
Q.1. Give two examples of modern development associated with progress but which
also led to problems.
Ans.
(i)
Environment : The phenomenon called the global warming is a direct
product of excessive emission of chlorofluorocarbons and other harmful gases,
including burning of fossil fuels (coal, petrol, shale oil) which supply nearly
90% of all the energy used by industrially developed nations. This will cause
large-scale natural destruction by rising oceans and pollution.
(ii) Nuclear weapons and
diseases : Nuclear weapons are mankind’s worst invention in the name of
progress, as witnessed in the atomic bombing of Hiroshima and Nagashaki in Japan
during the Second World War. Its after-effects are even worse with long-term
consequences of radiation and diseases.
Q.2. Explain why the seventeenth century merchants from towns in Europe began
employing peasants and artisans within the village.
Ans.
Merchants preferred employing peasants and artisans within the village because
it was difficult to open new businesses in towns and cities where the guilds
were very much organised. They restricted new merchants and regulated their
competition. Therefore, they preferred the countryside to set up new businesses.
The relationship between the new merchants and farmers were closer even though
they lived in different environments.
Q.3. Describe the nexus of merchants and cotton textile producers in
proto-industry.
Ans.
In
the proto-industrial stage, cotton was produced in the following ways:
(i) Merchant clothier bought
wool from stapler, the person who sorted wool according to its fibres.
(ii) Then he took the wool to
spinners to produce spun yarns.
(iii) Yarn (threads) were
finally given to the weavers for weaving and the fullers who gathered cloths by
pleating and finally sent to dyers for colouring. As a result, a close
relationship between town and countryside developed in which a network of
commercial exchange existed between merchants and farmers.
Q.4. Give reasons for the increase in production of cotton textile.
Ans.
Reasons for increase in cotton textiles were :
(i) Inventions of eighteenth
century, e.g. cotton mill by Richard Arkwright.
(ii) Enhanced output per
worker by machines like cotton mills.
(iii) Quality products with
stronger threads, etc.
(iv) Maintenance of Mills made
easier if located in one place.
(v) Efficient management due
to regulations.
Q.5. What do you understand by the term “Industrial Revolution”?
Ans.
Industrial Revolution is the period in history when production process was
changed from
manual to mechanised one due
to many technological inventions and building of infrastructure.
It is said to have begun in
England and spread to other European nations in different times and
degrees. The invention of
cotton mill or factory system, spinning jenny, steam engine,
telegraphs and railways, etc,
brought Industrial Revolution in Europe. It spread to other parts
of the world much later.
investment and business
decision. Indian businessmen were not allowed to join European
merchant, industrialists.
Q.33. Why did Indian industrialists begin to shift from yarn to cloth
production? Give three reasons.
Ans.
Indian industrialists began to shift from yarn to cloth production for the
following reasons:
(i) The Swadeshi Movement
mobilised people to boycott foreign cloth. This encouraged Indian industrialists
to produce cloth, as Indian mills had a vast home market to supply, and
Manchester imports into India declined.
(ii) Export of Indian yarn to
China declined from 1906 as produce from Chinese and Japanese mills flooded the
Chinese market. So Indian industrialists to began to shift from yarn to cloth
production.
(iii) After the First World
War, Manchester could not capture its position in Indian markets. This enabled
the local industrialists in the colonies to capture the home market, and
consolidate their position.
Q.34. Why did the East India Company appoint Gomasthas in India?
Ans.
The
company tried to eliminate the existing traders and brokers connected with the
cloth trade, and establish a more direct control over the weaver. It appointed a
paid servant called the gomastha to supervise weavers, collect supplies,
and examine the quality of cloth.
Q.35. Why there was no shortage of human labour in Victorian Britain in the mid
of nineteenth century?
Ans.
Poor peasants and vagrants moved to the cities in large numbers in search of
jobs, waiting for work. Industrialists did not want to introduce machines that
got rid of human labour and required large capital investment. A range of
products could be produced only with hand labour. For instance, in
mid-nineteenth-century Britain, 500 varieties of hammers were produced and 45
kinds of axes. These required human skill. Moreover, in Victorian Britain, the
upper classes preferred things produced by hand.
Q.36. Why did women workers in Britain attack the Spinning Jenny? Give any three
reasons.
Ans.
(i)
Spinning Jenny spreeded up the spinning process and reduced labour demand.
(ii) The fear of unemployment
made workers hostile to the introduction of new technology.
(iii) When the Spinning Jenny
was introduced in the woollen industry, women who survived on hand spinning lost
their job and began attacking the new machines.
Q.37. Why do historians agree that the typical worker in the mid-nineteenth
century was not a machine operator but the traditional craftsperson and
labourer? Explain.
Ans.
(i)
The industrialists were very hesitant to introduce new machines for a variety of
reasons.
(ii) Due to abundance of human
labour, industrialists had no problem of labour shortage or high wage costs.
Machines required large capital investment.
(iii) Goods with intricate
designs and specific shapes (like hammer, axes, etc.) required human skill, not
mechanical technology.
(iv) The upper classes
preferred things produced by hand.
Ans.
The
First World War changed the British fortune. Their mills were mostly used for
war production and Indian mills started production for home market too. Indian
factories started producing and supplying war goods such as jute bags, uniforms,
leather boots, horse and mule saddles and other such items.
Effects:
(i) New factories were set up
while old ones ran multiple shifts.
(ii) Many new workers were
employed and made to work long hours.
(iii) The war created an
industrial boom in India.
(iv) After the war, Britain
lost her economic predominance and could not compete with the new technologies
of Germany and Japan.
(v) Local industrialists also
consolidated their position.
Q.11. Discuss the changes brought by the age of industries in India giving
appropriate examples.
Ans.
The
age of industries brought major technological changes, growth of factories and
the making of new industrial labour forces. Indian industries grew out of the
necessities and as a consequence of the colonial economy. For example, Europeans
who invested on cash crops (tea, jute, cotton) and minerals like coal, copper,
etc, needed railways. Therefore, steam-run trains were introduced connecting
different parts of India. Then, telegraphs were also introduced for
communication and security reasons. During the war time, India benefitted by
getting some concessions and protection from the government. The industries also
diversified in their products especially due to war needs.
PREVIOUS YEARS’ QUESTIONS
Q.12. Explain the main features of proto-industrialisation. [2010]
OR
Throw light on production during the proto-industrialisation phase in Europe in
the 17th and 18th centuries with an example
OR
Enumerate the features of proto-industrialisation. [2011 (T-1)]
OR
How did the poor peasants and artisans benefit during the
proto-industrialisation phase?
Ans.
Proto-industrialisation refers to a phase of industrialisation which was not
based on factories. Even before factories began to appear, there was large-scale
industrial production for international market.
(i) In the 17th and 18th
centuries merchants in Europe began to move to the countryside. They gave money
to peasants and artisans to produce for an international market. The demands of
goods had increased due to colonisation and the resultant expansion of trade.
Merchants could not increase production in towns due to the monopoly and power
of the
crafts and trade guilds. They
had the monopoly to produce certain goods and did not allow the entry of new
competitors. The guilds were associations of producers that trained
craftspeople, maintained control over production, and regulated prices.
(ii) The peasants and farmers
started working for the merchants. At this time open fields were disappearing
and the poor farmers were looking to new avenues of livelihood. Merchants
offered advances to produce goods to them which the peasants eagerly accepted.
They could stay in the countryside and continue to cultivate their small lands.
Proto-industralisation added
to their shrinking income.
(iii) The proto-industrial
system became a network of commercial exchanges. A merchant clothier purchased
wool from a wool stapler, carried it to the spinners, weavers took up the later
stages of weaving, and later fullers and dyers stepped in. The finishing of the
cloth was done in London before the export merchant sold it to the international
market. At every stage of production 20 to 25 workers were employed by each
merchant, with each clothier thus controlling hundreds of workers.
Q.13. Describe the peculiarities of Indian industrial growth during the First
World War.
Ans.
Before the First World War
industrial growth was slow.
War created a different
situation.
British occupation with the
war, Manchester imports into India declined.
Indian mills had a vast
market to supply.
Indian factories supplied
jute bags, cloth for army uniforms, tents and leather boots, and host of other
items.
New factories were set up
and old ones started working multiple shifts.
Many new workers employed,
worked for longer hours.
Boom in industrial
production; India also produced war goods.
Britain failed to recapture
its former economic power.
Within the colonies, that is
the Indian industrialists consolidated their position, captured the home market
and took the place of foreign manufacturers.
Q.14. How did the Industrial Revolution in England affect India’s economy?
Ans.
(i)
Industrial Revolution in England led to the beginning of long decline of textile
exports from India. In 1811-12 cotton goods accounted for 33% of India’s
exports; by 1850-51 it was no more than 3 per cent.
(ii) As industries developed
in England, industrial groups forced the government to impose import duties on
textile goods, so that British goods could sell in Britain without competition.
They forced the Company to sell their goods eg in eg India, so as a result, by
1850 import of goods to India increased to 50% as compared to 31% earlier.
(iii) Indian markets were
glutted with machine-made Manchester goods which were cheaper and Indian weavers
could not compete with them. Indian markets suffered from paucity of raw
material, for which they had to pay a higher price, as Indian raw materials were
bought by the British at a cheaper price.
Q.15. Give reasons why the handloom weavers in India survived the onslaught of
the machinemade textiles of Manchester?
Ans.
Handloom weavers in India survived the onslaught of machine-made textiles of
Manchester, because of :
(i) The technological changes.
They adopted new technologies which improved production without putting up the
costs.
(ii) The use of a fly
shuttle with a loom increased productivity per worker speeded up production
and reduced labour demand. By 1941, over 35% of handlooms in India were fitted
with fly shuttles. In some regions like Travancore, Madras, Mysore, Cochin and
Bengal the proportion was 70 to 80 per cent. There were several other
innovations that
helped weavers improve their
production.
(iii) Another reason was that
the demand for finer varieties of yarn, bought by the well-to-do was stable. The
coarser cloth, bought by poor, suffered in comparison when there were famines or
bad harvests. The rich could buy Banarasi or Baluchari sarees even when there
were famines. Mills could not produce sarees with woven boders or famous lungis
of Madras, so the weavers survived. They could not be easily displaced by mill
production.
Q.16. Discuss four factors responsible for the decline of the cotton textile
industry in India in the mid-nineteenth century.
Ans.
The
four factors responsible for the decline of cotton textile industry in India
were :
(i) European managing agencies
which dominated industrial production in India, were interested in certain kinds
of products. They established tea and coffee plantations, invested in mining,
indigo and jute. These products were required for export trade and not for sale
in India.
(ii) Indian businessmen set up
industries in the late 19th century which avoided competition with the
Manchester goods. The Manchester goods were cheaper and mill-made.
(iii) The British disallowed
Indian merchants to trade with Europe in manufactured goods. They had to export
raw materials and food grains — raw cotton, opium, wheat and indigo.
(iv) The British monopolised
and controlled a large sector of Indian industries. Their agencies mobilized
capital, set up joint stock companies and managed them. They made all the
decisions in their favor
though the Indian businessmen provided the finance.
Q.17. Explain why industrial production in India increased during the First
World War.
OR
How did industrial production in India increase during the First World War.
OR
“The First World War created favorable conditions for development of industries
in India.” Give examples.
Ans.
Industrial production in India increased during the First World War
(i) British mills became busy
with war production and Manchester imports into India declined.
(ii) Suddenly Indian factories
had a vast home market to supply goods.
(iii) Indian factories were
called upon to supply war needs : jute bags, cloth for army uniforms, tents and
leather boots, horse and mule saddles and a host of other items.
(iv) New factories were set up
and old ones ran multiple stuffs. Many new workers were employed and everyone
was made to work longer hours. Over the war years industrial production boomed.
(v) After the war, Manchester
could not recapture its old position in the Indian market. The economy of
Britain collapsed after the war, cotton production and exports fell. Local
industrialists in India consolidated their position, substituting foreign goods
and capturing the home market.
Q.18. “The modern industrialisation could not marginalise the traditional
industries in England.” Justify the statement with any four suitable arguments.
Ans.
(i)
The new industries could not easily displace traditional industries. At the end
of 19th century itself, less than 20% of total workforce was employed
in advanced technological industrial centres. Textile industry itself produced a
large portion of its output not within the factories, but outside, within
domestic units.
(ii) In non-mechanised sectors
such as food processing, building, pottery, glass work, tanning furniture making
and production of implements, ordinary and small innovations were the basis of
their grants.
(iii) Technological changes
were not accepted at once by the industrialists. Their growth was slow as new
technology was expensive and often broke down; and repairs are costly.
(iv) The traditional craftsmen
and labour and not a machine operator was still more popular. Hand-made things
were popular, as machines produced mass designs and there was no variety. For
example, human skill produced 45 kinds of axes and 500 varieties of hammers,
which no machine could produce.
Q.19. What measures were adopted by the producers in India to expand the market
for their goods in the nineteenth century?
Ans.
When Indian businessmen set
up industries in the late 19th century they avoided competing with Manchester
goods in the Indian market.
Since yarn was not an
important part of British imports into India, the early cotton mills of India
produced coarse cotton yarn (thread) rather than fabric.
Imported yarn was of the
finest quality.
The yarn produced in Indian
spinning mills was used by handloom weavers or exported to China.
Dwarkanath Tagore set up six
joint stock companies in 1830s and 1840s. In Bombay Parsis like Dinshaw Petit
and Nusserwanjee Tata accumulated their wealth through exports to China. Some
merchants traded with Burma while others had links with Middle East and East
Africa. Some operated in India itself and when opportunities of investment
in industries opened up, set
up factories.
Q.20. Describe any four impacts of Manchester imports on the cotton weavers of
India.
Ans.
(i)
Cotton weavers faced two problems. Their export market collapsed, and the local
market shrank being glutted with Manchester imports. The imported machine-made
goods were cheaper and of better quality.
(ii) Due to American civil war
Britain turned to India for cotton. As raw cotton exports increased prices of
raw cotton shot up. Indian weavers were starved of supplies and forced to buy at
exorbitant prices.
(iii) By the end of 19th
century, factories in India began production, flooding the market with
machine-goods.
Q.21. What were the principal features of industrialisation process of Europe in
19th century?
Ans.
(i)
The most dynamic industries in Britain were cotton and metals. Cotton was the
leading sector in the first phase of industrialisation. Soon iron and steel led
the way.
(ii) The new industries could
not easily displace traditional industries. A large portion of textile output
was produced not within factories but within domestic units.
(iii) The pace of change in
‘traditional’ industries was not set by stream-powered cotton or metal
industries but by ordinary and small innovations.
(iv) The technological changes
occurred slowly. They didn’t spread dramatically across the industrial
landscape.
Q.22. Explain how the condition of the workers steadily declined in the early
twentieth century Europe.
Ans.
The
abundance of labour in the market affected the lives of workers. Thousands
tramped to cities for work. Many job-seekers had to wait weeks, spending nights
in open sky or under bridges or in night shelters.
Seasonality of work in many
industries meant prolonged periods without work. After the busy season was over,
the poor were in the streets again hardly eating enough. The workers’ wages
increased but so did the prices enabling lesser purchase of goods. Most of the
workers were irregularly and seasonally employed pushing them to the brink of
starvation and disease.
Q.23. Why in Victorian Britain, the upper classes preferred things produced by
hand? Give four reasons.
Ans.
(i)
Handmade products came to symbolise refinement and class.
(ii) They were better
finished, individually produced, and carefully designed.
(iii) Machine-made goods were
for masses, for colonies, not for classes.
(iv) Handmade goods were
costlier, of better quality and fine threads.