UPSC Mains 2014 GS Paper 1 Q6: model answer
Examine critically the various facets of economic policies of the British in India from mid-eighteenth century till independence.
What the question wants
Critically examine the different facets of British economic policy over almost two centuries.
How to structure it
Examine critically: break into facets (phases and sectors), then judge their effects.
- Phases of colonialism
- Land revenue and agriculture
- Trade, industry and drain
- Infrastructure, finance and verdict
How to think it through
Two centuries in 150 words? Impossible, unless you use phases. Use the classic three: mercantile (Company trade and plunder), free trade (industrial capitalism), finance capital (railways, loans). Then hit the facets. A critical exam means noting railways and irrigation too, while showing whose interest they served.
Model answer
In 1750 India produced roughly a quarter of the world's manufactures; by 1900, by Paul Bairoch's estimates, the share had fallen to about 2 per cent. British policy, in three stages, explains much of that fall.
Phases
- Mercantile phase (1757–1813): Company monopoly, plunder after Plassey, use of Indian revenue to buy exports.
- Free trade phase (1813–1858 onwards): India as a market for British manufactures and a source of raw materials.
- Finance capital phase (later 19th century): investment in railways and plantations with guaranteed returns.
Land revenue and agriculture
- Permanent Settlement (1793), Ryotwari and Mahalwari: high revenue demand, rise of moneylenders, commercialisation of crops, famines.
Trade and industry
- One-way free trade ruined handicrafts (de-industrialisation); limited modern industry; tariffs against Indian goods.
- The drain of wealth (Dadabhai Naoroji): home charges, salaries and profits remitted to Britain.
Infrastructure and finance
- Railways, ports and irrigation served export trade and administration; guaranteed returns to British investors.
The verdict
British policy created some modern infrastructure but subordinated India's economy to Britain's needs, leading to de-industrialisation, agrarian distress and recurrent famine.
Draw: Three-step timeline: mercantile → free trade → finance capital.
Keywords, cases and data to drop in
Plassey 1757, Charter Act 1813, Permanent Settlement 1793, drain theory, home charges, guarantee system.
Where most answers lose marks
- Writing only the drain theory. 'Various facets' wants land, trade, industry, infrastructure.
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Question text as printed in the official UPSC Civil Services (Main) question paper. The model answer is original Battle IAS work; use it to learn structure, not to memorise.
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