Indian Economic Development | Chapter:1 |CBSE | Class-12
Indian Economy On The Eve Of Independence
|Chapter -1 |Short Notes| CBSE |Class-12
7. OCCUPATIONAL STRUCTURE ON THE EVE OF INDEPENDENCE-
Occupational structure refers to distribution of working population across primary, secondary and tertiary sectors of the economy.
1) Agriculture: The Principal Source of Occupation: On the eve of independence. about 72.7% of working population was engaged in agriculture. Percentage of population dependent on agriculture is much less in advanced countries of the world. This establishes backwardness of the Indian economy at the time of independence.
2) Industry: An insignificant Source of occupation: On the eve of independence, barely 9% of the working population in India was engaged in manufacturing industries, mining. etc.
It further proves how backward the Indian economy was at the time of independence.
3) Unbalanced Growth: Growth is said to be balanced when all sectors of the economy are equally developed. However, in case of India, secondary and tertiary sectors were in their infant stage of growth.
Hence, the conclusion that Indian economy at the time of independence was asymmetrical and therefore, backward.
8. INFRASTRUCTURE ON THE EVE OF INDEPENDENCE-
Infrastructure refer to the elements of economic change (like means of transport. communication, banking), and elements of social change (like growth of educational, health and housing facilities) which serve as a foundation for growth and development of a country.
Railways were developed to transport finished goods from Britain to the interiors of the colonial India (with a view to widening the size of the market). It aimed at widening the size of the market for the British products in India.
Ports were developed to handle export of raw material to Britain and import of finished goods from Britain. Post and telegraphs were developed to enhance administrative efficiency.
Roads were developed to facilitate transportation of raw material from different parts of the country to the port.
IMPACT OF RAILWAYS IN INDIA-
Positive
a) Facilitate expansion of domestic market.
b) Facilitate commercialisation of agriculture.
c) Enabled people to break the barriers of distance.
d) Faster movement of food grain across different parts of the country.
Negative
a) Contributed to colonial exploitation of Indian Economy.
b) led to spread of domestic market for British products.
Was there any Positive Impact of the British Rule in India?
(I) Commercial Outlook of the Farmers: Forced commercialisation of agriculture under the British rule exposed the subsistence farmers to uncertainties of the market. True, but it also led to a gradual change in outlook of the farmers. The farmers started considering market price of the produce as an important determinant of their production decisions.
(2) New Opportunities of Employment: Spread of railways and roadways opened up new opportunities of economic and social growth.
(3) Control of Famines: Rapid means of transport facilitated rapid movement of food grain to the famine-affected areas. Accordingly, famines were controlled.
(4) Monetary System of Exchange: There was a transition from barter system of exchange to monetary system of exchange. Growth of monetary system of exchange facilitated division of labour, specialisation, and large scale production.
(5) Efficient System of Administration: The British government in India left a legacy of an efficient system of administration. This served as a ready reference for our politicians and planners.
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