Which of the following statements correctly explains the impact of Industrial Revolution on India during the first half of the nineteenth century ?
- (a) Indian handicrafts were ruined. ✓ UPSC's answer
- (b) Machines were introduced in the Indian textile industry in large numbers.
- (c) Railway lines were laid in many parts of the country.
- (d) Heavy duties were imposed on the imports of British manufactures.
Why the answer is (a)
• Britain's Industrial Revolution flooded India with cheap machine-made textiles after 1813, while Indian handloom exports lost their markets; weavers and artisans were ruined and 'deindustrialisation' set in — option (a).
• Machines in Indian textile mills (b) came only after 1854 (Bombay); railways (c) began in 1853 — both in the second half of the century.
• Heavy duties (d) were imposed on Indian goods entering Britain, not on British goods entering India, which faced free trade.
• Hence option (a).
Why the other options are wrong
- (b) Machines were introduced in the Indian textile industry in large numbers.
- Indian textile mills came after 1854, in the second half of the century.
- (c) Railway lines were laid in many parts of the country.
- Railways began in 1853, not in the first half.
- (d) Heavy duties were imposed on the imports of British manufactures.
- Duties were placed on Indian goods in Britain, not on British imports.
Asked in the GS Paper I of the UPSC Civil Services Preliminary Examination 2020, held on 4 October 2020. Question and answer key: Union Public Service Commission. Explanation: UPSC Answer Check.