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8/12/2019 British Imperial Railways in 19th Century India
1/10
British Imperial Railways in Nineteenth Century South AsiaAuthor(s): Laxman D. SatyaSource: Economic and Political Weekly, Vol. 43, No. 47 (Nov. 22 - 28, 2008), pp. 69-77Published by: Economic and Political WeeklyStable URL: http://www.jstor.org/stable/40278213.
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2/10
British
mperial
Railways
in
Nineteenth
Century
outh Asia
LAXMAN
D
SATYA
The
massive
redatory
nd
exploitative
ature
f
he
imperial ailway roject
nder
he
facade
ofBritain's
benevolence
o
the
people
of ndia ould nothave
been
furtherrom he
reality
f he material ondition
of he masses
under
olonial
hegemony.
his
paper
undertakes
comprehensivenalysis
f he
British
imperial
ailways
uring
he second
half f he 19th
century.uch related spectsas thedevelopment
of hecolonial
conomy,
he
role f
finance
apital,
the
comparativepread
ffect,
ritish
onopoly
nd
colonisation
f
he
ndian
conomy,
abour
n the
railway rojects,
olonial
orestry,
amine nd
disease,
etc,
re
dealtwith
t some
length.
Laxman
Satya [email protected])
s at
the
Department
f
History,
ock
Haven
University
f
Pennsylvania,
S.
1846,
the revenue
commissioner f
Bombay,
homas
Williamsonwrote
to the chairmanof
the Great
ndian
Peninsular
ailway
ompany
n
London
tating
hat,
The
great
runk-line,
unning
y
he
Malseje
Ghaut n
thedirectionf
Nagptir,
ould be mostdirectwhich ould
possibly
e selected o
connect
ombay
o
Calcutta.
Commercially,
t
wouldbe bestfor he
cotton f
Berar,
whilefor
he first 20 milesfrom
ombay
e
would
proceed
n the
mmediate irection
f he
military
tations
f
Ahmed-
nuggur,
aulna
nd
Aurangabad.1
Nothingouldbe more bvious han he win urpose f olo-
nial
railways
tated o
early
nd so
clearly
bove,
e,
commercial
and
military.
hese two
objectives
et the
tone
for he
mperial
railway roject
ntil he end
of
the
British
aj.
Four
years
ater,
the
same
company
ndertook he
constructionf
he
very
irst
20-24
miles
railway
ine
from
ombay
o Thana
completed
nd
opened
n
April
853.
By
1900,
over
4,000
miles
f racks ad
been
aid.3
his normous
roject
as financed
ntirelyy
British
private
nvestment
apital.
1
Imperial
Finance and
the
Colonial
Railway
Project
Private
ritish
ompanies
with
he
trong acking
f
he
govern-
ment
f
ndia
not
nly
uilt
ailways
ut lso
owned
hem.
here
were n
average
,405
milesunder onstructionvery ear ntil
the end
of
the
century.4
ome
150
million
ounds-sterling
as
invested
n ndian
railways
y
the
end
of he
19th
entury.
his
became
he
ingle
argest
nvestment
n
the
British
mpire.
he
government
f ndia
became
he
guarantor
o
the
railway
hare-
holders
ho
were
mostly
ritish.
rivate
ompanies
ould
uild
and
operate
heir
espective
ines
n different
egions
f
he ub-
continent
ith
guaranteed
per
cent
return
n
their
tock-
holders'
nvestment
ssured
y
he
ndian
evenues
f
he
mpire.
And
between
1869
and
early
1880s,
the
government
f ndia
itself
uilt
ailroads
or
rivate
ritish
ompanies.
ifty
million
pounds-sterling
rom
ndian
revenues
were set aside
by
the
colonial state to meet
the
guaranteeirrespective
f
the
company
osses.5
The
guarantee
ystem
romised
ts
hareholders
hat
f
he
companies
erformed
oorly,
he
taxpayers
f
ndia
would
pay
for
he oss.
Thus
he
ntire
rofit
ent
o the
railway ompanies
and
their
nglish
hareholders
hile
he
oss
was
borne
y
the
Indian
eople.
imply
ut,
his
was a
heads-I-win,
ails
you-loose
proposition .6
he
deployment
f
British
apital
n
uch
manner
was
an
example
f
private
nvestment
t
public
isk .
y
1870s,
theoutflow
f
interest
ctually
xceeded
the
inflow
f
fresh
capital
nto
ndia.7
And
by
he
end
of
he
19th entury,
he
otal
69
Economic
Political
weekly
H5EQ
November
22,
2008
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cost f ndian
ailways
mounted
o
350
million
ounds-sterling,
the
argest
utlet
or he
xport
f
British
apital.8
Under he
guarantee
ystem,
ll
contracts ere
given nly
o
British
ompanies.9
he
government
f ndia
provided
ree and
and
otherfacilities
ncluding
ecruitmentf
cheap
labour.10
Almost
ll
privateapital pent
n ndian
ailroads
as
raised
n
Britain.
he
railway
hares for ndian
investmentsould be
traded nlynLondontockmarkets. pparently,Itwasthepol-
icy
f herailroad
ompanies,
he East ndia
Company,
nd the
British
overnment
o hire
contractorsnd
discourage
ndian
enterprise .11
he
absolutely
isk
ree ature f he
Britishnvest-
mentmeant
hat,
The
ailway
rofits,
hich
ouldhavefinanced
India's wn
development,
ent
nstead
nto
he
pockets
f nves-
tors
n
Britain .12he annual
ribute
f
ndia o Britain
mounted
to about
5
million
ounds-sterling
nd
Britain's
mpire
n ndia
became
great
sset o the
rown.13 ith reliable
ebt
ervice,
the
railway
apital
marketn London
hrived
lthough
nvest-
ment n
rrigation
ould
havebeenfarmore
roductive
han his
kind
f
ailway
xpansion.14
The
guarantee ystem
ontributed
ubstantially
o
the
drain
offundsfrom he subcontinent.t naturally romptedmore
spending
n construction
er
trackkilometrehan ocal
condi-
tionswarranted.t
also created
profitable
onditions or
ven
wastefulonstructionhat
urther
ncreased he
ubsidy
nd the
drain.
The
unprofitable
ines
depended
or
heir
ery
xistence
upon
the
guarantee,
hich
ncreased
he drain.Had the drain
not
xisted,
t
s
unlikely
hat
rivate apital
n
such
large
cale
would have
ever
been invested
n Indian
railway
roject.
he
money
aid
out f ndian ax
revenues o
British
nvestors
n
ub-
sidieswas
substantial.t
is
estimated hat
between
1849
and
1900,
total f
Rs
568
million
as
paid
out.15
Recurring
rade
surpluses
forwhich the
people
of India
received
no return
marked he
steady
ncrease
n the
drain
throughout
he
19th
century.
or
example,,ust
forthe
year
1882-83,
he
balance
of
payment
based
on
railways
lone
amountedo
4.14
per
ent
f
he
ndiannational
ncome.
What
appens
o
country
hich
ear
n and
year
ut
oses
uch
sizeable
art
f ts np o
nother,
s ndia
id
uring
he
ntire
eriod
1858-98
and,
n
fact,
ight
rom
757)?
he act hatndia
ad ohave
a rate
f
aving
f
per
ent f tsnational
ncome
ust
o
pay
he
tribute....
uch
ontinuousoss f
avings
ad
crippling
ffectn he
economy.
herewould
nvestmentsomefrom o
stimulate
ny
expansion
f
he
conomy,
hen
he
ulk
f he
ossibleavings
as
annually
ost.16
India was
a
captive
economy
made to
serve Britain's
economic
eeds.
2
Colonial
Economy
nd
Railways
The
foundationsf his olonial
conomy
ere aid
well before
the
ntroduction
f
railways.
he
railway nly
trengthened
his
foundation.If
we
can
cheapen arriage,
e
may
reatly
ncrease
the
mports
f
foreign
rticles
nto
he
nterior;
nd
in
a
corre-
sponding egree,
xport
otton nd
other
gricultural
roduce. 17
Thisobservation
ade
by
n
East ndia
Company gent
n mid-
18405
aptly
ums
up
the
fundamentalharacteristicf
the
colonial
conomy
f
ndia n
the
19th
entury.
t
s
not
urprising
that
he
cotton aronsof
Lancashire
were
the
most
vehement
supporters
f
the ndian
railway roject.18hey
had
a
double
objective: irstly,
osell their
heap
machinemade cloth o the
millions f ndianmasses nd
secondly,
o ecure more eliable
source
f. aw
cotton
han
he United
tates.Karl
Marx
n
1853
prophesied,
. the
nglishmillocracy
ntendoendowndiawith
railways
with the exclusive
iew
of
extracting
t
diminished
expenses
the cotton and other raw materials for their
manufactures .19
The
railways
ushed
ndia nto n era of
lassical olonialism.
This was characterised
y
Indian
exports
f
agricultural
aw
materials
nd
imports
fBritishmanufactured
roducts.
ndia's
economy
was twisted to fit this
classical
colonial
pattern.
Throughout
he
19th
entury,
ritain
njoyed
trade
urplus
with ndia.But thad a
growing
eficit
n
ts
verall
nternational
tradewith ther
ations,
hichwereoffset
y
ubstantialndian
export
urpluses.
hese
exports rimarily
onstituted
gricul-
turalraw
materials uch as
cotton,
ute,
tea,
coffee, heat,
il
seeds,
pium, ugarcane,
obacco, tc,
while
mports
ere
made
up
of
mostly
lothefrom
nglish
mills,20
ailway
nd
military
hardware.Thus Indian
economy
xclusively
erviced
British
economicnterest.
The
British evised rather lever
way
o transfer
uge
ums
of
money
rom ndia to
England.
Each
year
fundswere trans-
ferred
o
pay
ff ebt n
secure
nd
profitableapital
nvestments
on the
railways.21
utthiswas
just
the
tip
of the
ceberg.
he
colonial
ystem equired
he
annual transferf funds rom he
colony
o the
metropolis
o
meet
n
array
f home
harges .22
These were funnelled
hrough
ndia's
rising xport
urplus.
Home
charges
ncluded he costofthe
ecretary
f
tate's ndia
officen
London,
osts f
wars
at
home nd
abroad,
urchase
f
military
tores,
ensions
or
ritish
ilitary
nd
civilian fficials
and for
ervicing
he
guarantee ystem. y
the
end of
the
19th
century,
hevisible ome
harges nnually
mounted
obetween
17
nd18million
ounds sterling.
hechief tems nthebill n
order f
magnitude
ere
guaranteed ailway
nterest,
ilitary
expenses,
nterest
n
ndia
debt,
urchases
f
government
tores
and
pensions.
n
addition o
this,
herewere
private
emittances
made
by
British
fficials
erving
n ndia nd
transfersf
profity
British
erchants
nd
invisible
harges
or
ervices,
ncluding
shipping,anking
nd
nsurance.23llof his
was extractedrom
the ndian
peasants hrough
eavy
axationntheform f and
revenue,
aking
way
resources
hat
therwise ouldhavebeen
used
for nvestmentn
the conomic
evelopment
ithin
ndia.24
During
he same
period
by
contrast,
eiji
Japan egistered
re-
mendous
conomic
rowth
nd ts ailroads ere ll
ndigenously
financednd served heeconomic nterestyhelpingobuild
modern
ation.25
onsequently,
he ndiannationalist ritersf
the
19th
entury
ike
Dadabhai
Naoroji,
C
Dutt,
G V
Joshi nd
others efused o believe hat
ndia
could
not
be
industrialised
without
oreign
apital.26
3
Comparative
Spread
Effect f
Railways
By
he ndof
he
19th
entury,
ndia
had become he
hief
xport
market or ritish
oods ncluding
extiles,
ron
nd steel
goods,
and other
roducts
eflecting
ritain'sndustrial
trength.
ndia
in
return
upplied
Britainwith raw
materials n the form
f
70
November
22,
2008
E3329
EconomicPolitical
eekly
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4/10
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unprocessedgriculturaloods.
The
economy rimarily
ecame
agrarian
s the
proportion
fthose
dependent
n
agriculture
grew
o over
0
per
cent.And he
government
f ndia ensured
that the British usiness nterests
enefited rom avourable
arrangements
orand nd
capital
n
ndia.
Commercial
griculture
as made
possible
by
the
transportation
infrastructure
rovided
bove all
by
the
railway.
y
the
end of the
centuryndiapossessed hefifthongest ailway ystem
n theworld.
The
pre-eminence
fBritish
xport
nterests as clear
n
ayout
hat
focused nroutes
o
the
ports
nd
a
rate
tructure
hat
isadvantaged
inla'nd
ransportation.27
The railroads lso
became
a
captive
nd
publicly
ubsidised
market
or
nglish
teel-makers
nd ocomotive
uilders.
ritish
obsession
nd
priority
orrailroads
neglected
ll other
public
works
rojects.
he
railroad
ystem
onsumed
3
times s
much
investment
s
all
hydraulic
orks
p
to 1880.
During
877-78
famine,
he
pro-irrigation
obbyists
ir
Arthur
Cottonand
Florence
ightingale
aised
heir oices
gainst
he
utter
orth-
lessness
f
railways
n
relieving
istress,
hile
t
cost
he
poor
f
India 160
million
rupees.
n the
20th
century
Gandhi
also
denouncedhe railroadss themainkiller ftraditionalndian
handicrafts
nd
depleting
ood
tocks
rom
he
ountryside.
mpe-
rial nvestment
n
irrigation
omplemented
he
railways
n
pro-
moting
ommercial
rops
or
xports
ather
han
rain
rops.28
The
government
f ndiadid
ittle
o
aid or timulate
he
devel-
opment
f
heavy
ndustry
r
management
kills
within
ndia.
The
colonial
tate
nd
the
railway
ompanies
ollowed
olicies
from
which
British
ndustry
nd financial
nstitutions
ere
the
primary
eneficiaries.
ndeed,
he
government
f
ndia
urged
he
railway ompanies
o
buy
British .
ndia
also
failed
o
reap
he
benefits
f
the
spread
effects
o
industry
hich
would
have
occurred.
nstead,
he
spread
effects
timulated
he
British
economy. 29
or
example,
fter he
railways
ad
depleted
he
reserves
fwood omake
harcoal,
oalbecame hemajor ource
of
nergy
sed
torun
he
railways.
he
needs
of
railways
timu-
lated
oal
production
ut
did
not ead
to
the
development
f oal
industry
ike
t did
in
England
nd
otfter
ountries.
xpensive
transport
osts
kept
the
delivered
price
of
coal
very high.
Consequently,
he
pread
ffects
rom
he
ncreased
roduction
of
oal
remained
imited.30
his
hindered
he ndustrialisation
f
the
conomy.
Any
ocal
ndustry
sing
oal
as
a
major
ource
f
nergy
ound
itself
mmediately
andicapped.
ndian
oal
became
very
xpen-
sive,
notbecause
of
the
costs
of
coal
production
ut
because
of
the
East
Indian
Railway
company's
monopoly
ver
access
to
major oalfields.hecompanymade t o expensiveotransport
coal
by
rail
hat
mports
rom
ritain
ould
ompete
with
ndian
coal
in ndian
market.
he
high
price
f
coal
had
a
dampening
effect
n
the
expansion
f
industries
ince
so
many
of
them
required
t
s
a
source
f
nergy.31
his
was more
articularly
o
n
the ase
of
ron
nd
steel
ndustries.
n
Britain,
he
railways
rig-
gered
he
development
f
heavy
ndustries
uch
s iron
nd
steel.
But
n
ndia,
his
id
not
happen
ecause
he
railways
ecame
n
instrument
f
xtracting
aw
material
ather
han
riggering
ndus-
trialisation.32
o
the
major
project
ike
the
railways
nstead
f
becoming
he
eading
ector
ailed
o
generate
he
multiplier
effect
eeded for ndia's ndustrialisation.he
layout
f the
track
upported
he
extractive
nd
market ocus f
British
co-
nomic
nterests,
inking
hehinterlando the
olonial
ort
ities
and those
cities
o
each other. he classic
hape
of
a
colonial
economy
as
only ossible
y
he
way
theBritish uilt
ailways
in India.33ndia's oss from
he
purchasing olicies
f the rail-
ways
blocked
ts
progress
n
developing eavy
ndustries.
he
spreadeffect
f
the railways
nstead stimulated he British
economy.
he British fficial
olicy
lso did
not
support
he
development
f
ndustry
n ndia nd the
ailways
ailed o
act s
a stimulant or
heavy
nd
machine-building
ndustries
s
they
didelsewhere
n theworld.34
Unlike
n
Europe
nd United
tates,
he
colonial
ailways
n
India
did not ead to the
growth
f
urban
entres.
he
railways
just
redistributed
he
urban
population
eading
o thedecline f
oldcities
nd commercial
entres.
or
xample,
he
major
Mughal
trading
ity
f
Mirzapur
n the
Ganges
eclined
nd the
popula-
tion
imply
oved ocolonial
ort
ities
utting
ll the raditional
industries
ocated
n such
inland
centres
t
a
disadvantage.35
The
railways
n
particular
rought
boutthis
new
process
f
de-urbanisationn the19th entury.36
The
British
ndustrial
conomy
ominated
very
acet f the
Indian
colonial
conomy utting
he atter
n
a
disadvantaged
position.
lanned
nd constructed
o serve
he
trategic
nd
eco-
nomic
eeds
of he
metropolis,
he
railways
acilitated
he
move-
ment
f
roops,
ispersal
fBritish
anufactured
oods,
nd
the
extraction
f
raw
materials
rom
interlands
o
port
ities.
he
railways
ailed
o
stimulate
he
growth
f
other
ncillary
ndus-
tries ecause
most
f he
quipment
nd hardware
as
mported
from
ritain.37
olid
rails,
bridge
irders
nd
work
ngine
were
all
bought
nd
brought
rom
ritain.38
ocomotives,
olling
tock,
and
other
ron
oods
were
lso
mported
rom
ritain.39
India.
became
pre-eminently
he land
of
large
iron
railway-bridges
whose ironworkswere] argelyprefabricatedn Britain nd
then ssembled
nd erected
t the
ndian
bridge
ites.
This,
f
course,
imited
he
technology
nd economic
benefits
ndia
received
rom
ailway
onstruction. 40
ot
ust
bridges,
more
then
20
per
cent
of
all
British-made
ocomotive
ngines
were
exported
o India.41
n addition
o
railway
machinery,latelay-
ers,
fishplates,
oints,
ails,
nd
sleepers,
he colonial
tate
lso
invited
British
killed
abour,
management,
quipment,
nd
financial
apital.42
Two
fifths
f
the
capital
aised
for
he
rail-
roads
were
pent
n
Britain.
killed
workers,
oremen
nd
engi-
neers
were
brought
rom
ritain
nd
paid
twice
he
home
rate,
plus
free
assage,
medical
are
and
allowances. 43
he
planning
and
overseeing
he
xecution
f
railway
onstruction
n ndia
was
entrusted
lmost
xclusively
o
British
ivil
nd
military
ngineers.
This
gave
he
ndian
ailways
colonial
haracter.44
hus,
ndian
railways
enerated
mployment
nd
industry
or
Britain
ather
than
or
ndia.
ndian
eople
paid
for
hese
olonial
ailways
ith
their
axes
while
he
profits
enefited
he
English.
4
Monopoly
over
Railways
Indian
ailways
id
not
xperience
ny
erious
ompetition
rom
alternative
odes
of
ransport.
either
he
government
f
ndia
nor
private
ompanies
howed
much
nterest
n
building
anals,
Economic
Political
eekly
13321
November
22,
2008
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-
- :
roads,
iver hannels or
teamers,
oatsorcarts. o the
ailways
had
a
virtual
monopoly
n
pricing
nd rates.There
was no
gov-
ernment
egulation
f the
railway
ompanies.
ach
company
operated
s a
profit-maximising
ntity.45
he totalrail business
was
controlled
y
ust
five
ompanies,
whichwereall British.
Therewas
virtually
o
competition
mong
hem.
he
companies
held
erritorial
onopoly
n ines.Customers
ad
to
do business
with hecompany hat dominated heirregion.This allowed
customers
ew
options
as their demand for services
were
severely
urtailed.
he
needs of
potential
ustomers ere dis-
regarded
s
priority
as
accorded
o the
military
nd
commerce.
Cotton
rowing
istricts
ere
the
first o be connected
y
the
railway
etwork. he
government
f
ndia,
n
fact,
ncouraged
cooperation
ather
han
competition mong
these
monopoly
British
ompanies.
The
companies
divided traffic
mong
themselves
nd
established
pheres
f nfluence.46The
railways
of
he
raj,
t
must
ot
be
forgotten,
ere
builtwith nd
through
the
lose nvolvementf hecolonial
overnment
f ndiawhich
was not
a
neutral,
uninterested
artystanding
bove the
construction
rocess. 47
The railway ompanies lso chargeddifferentialatesto
maximise
rofit.
ower
ateswere
charged
or
hipments
rom
the
ports
o the
nterior
han for
hipments
f similar istance
between
wo
nland
oints.
imilarly,
ostswerereduced or he
transport
fraw
materials
nd finished
roducts.48 ailways
clearly
ncouraged
lassic olonialism
n ndia.The
ayout
f he
lines avoured
hipment
o
the
ports
ather han
ncourage
nter-
nal
trade.
imilarly,
t
favoured
awmaterial
xport
nd finished
goods imports.
t also favoured
griculture
o
industry.
ts
colonial tatus
eprived
ndian
conomy
f
ny
protective
ariffs,
but
gave
the
advantage
f ow
transportation
osts
to
foreign
producers
naddition o low
sea-rates o
and
from ndia.49
he
British
mperial
tructureried o
keep
India
agrarian
or he
most
art
nd hemannernwhich he
ailways
ere onstructed
and
operated
ncreasedndia's
ependence
n
agriculture.50
nd
agriculture
ailed o
prove
obe a
growth
ector.t failed o
tim-
ulate other
ectors f the
economy.
t failed
to create
large
enough
emand or
nputs
rom ther
ectors.ncreases
n
output
camenot o
much rom
ncreases
n
productivity
ut
argely
rom
the
extension f
acreage.
The colonial
government
howedno
interest
n
any
kind
f and reforms.
arge-scale
bsentee and-
lordismontinuedo flourish
ntil he
end
of he British
ule
n
India.
Insufficient
inkages
were
t
theroot f
griculture's
ail-
ure
o
encourage
he
growth
f ndustrieshat
ould ervice
t. 51
Subjugated
y
the first ndustrial
ation
n
the
world,
he
Indian conomyffered classic ase of hecolonial emolding
of
pre-modern
conomy.52
n
fact,
ndia's
conomy
as
twisted
tofit
classical olonial
attern.53
he British
mpire
was built
and maintained
s a
collaboration
roject
etween he tate nd
private apitalism.54
his was
slightly
ifferentrom
apitalism
in
Britain,
here
he
parliament
rovided
rotection
o
British
commercend
ndustry.
n
ndia,
however,
he
mperial
tate
id
not
provide
ny
uch
protection.
nstead,
t
worked
owards he
advancement f
British
conomy.
Development
tself was
intended
olely
s
a
means
f
providing
ondonwith n
uninter-
rupted
flowof
dividend returnson
capital
investment. 55
Steamboats
nd
railways
were
argely
nitiated nd financed
y
private
merchantsor he
expansion
f trade.And
during
al-
housie's
eign
1850s)
heBritish
ilitary
nd
economic
oldwas
strengthened,
he colonial tate
was
advantaged
s
huge roop
movementould
be
accomplished
n a
very
hort ime.
hiswas
shown
learly
n
quelling
he
1857
ebellion
hereby
he
epoys
lacked he
dvantage
f
ailways.56
5 Colonisation
of
ndian
Economy
In one
sense,
he
railway
onstruction
f
he
econd
half
f he
19th
enturyompleted
he colonisation
f he ndian
conomy
pulling
ll ts rstwhilesolated
egments
nside
he
net
fBritish
free rade
mperialism.57
his new
phase
of British
mperialism
actually egan
with he
riumph
f
ailways
n
England
n
1840s.
But n
the
ndian
context,
his
free
rade
tage
of colonisation
began
mmediately
s
the
physical onquest
was
completed
n
1850s.
Railway
was the
kingpin
f hisnew
free
rade
egime.58
Farfrom
ndustrialising
he ndian
conomy,
t ed to a
depend-
ence on
British
ndustry.
n the
process,many
f ndia's radi-
tionalhandicrafts ithered
way.
The craftsmenhus
deprived
of heir mploymenteganto flood hecities,where ew ndus-
trieswere
growing
o
give
work o
the
unemployed.59
utmore
importantly,
he
railways
ereused for
he
progressiveubjuga-
tion fthe ndianmarket or
nglishndustry.
irst,
heBritish
destroyed
ndia's worldwide
xports
n handloom
extiles
nd
then nvaded
country's
wn
home market nd
destroyed
he
domestic
ndustry.
This
dual
economic
ssault
pon
ndiamarks
the econd
tage
f
British
olonialism
n
ndia,
et
by
he
rogress
of ndustrialisationn
England. 60
In
1882,
the Lancashire
obby
n Britain
ucceeded
n
com-
pletely
bolishing
ustoms
uties n British
oods ntering
ndia,
while
ondon
lapped
ountervailing
xcise
duty
n ndianman-
ufactured extiles. his
deprived
rotective
ariffso
the mar-
ginal
nfantextile
ndustry
entring
n
Bombay
ndAhmeda-
bad.
This
lso stunted
he
ndustrialisation
rocess
n ndia nd
prevented
he rise of
a
factory-based
extile
ndustry
t
a
time
when the artisanal
ndustry
ad
already
uffered
erious et-
backs.61hus n
a
colonial
etting,
he
railways
unctioneds
an
imperial echnology
erving
he
raj
s
a
symbol
nd
...as an essential
trategic,
efensive,
ubjugators
nd dministrative
'tool'....
t
anwell e
argued
hat he ormal
mperial
exus,
ithts
associatedocationnLondonf he
ontrolling
oards f irectorsf
the
private
ailway
ompanies
nd their nfluential
onsulting
Engineers,
swell s the ndiaOffice'stores
epartment,
tifledhe
emergence
f
truly
national'
echnology.62
6 Indian Labouron
Railway Projects
Rapid
ommercialisationf
griculture
rought
bout
y
olonial
railways
onverted
arge
numbers f
peasants
nto
andless
gri-
cultural
abourers.63ndia remained
redominantly
n
agricul-
tural
ountry.
he
percentage
f
he
otalworkforce
mployed
n
the
railway ndustry
emained mall nd did not ncrease. ince
the
railways
aused
a
decline
n
handloom
ndustryymaking
imported
actory
loth vailable
t
prices
ower
han
ocal weav-
ers ould
ffer,
he
proportion
f
workersn
agriculture
nd non-
agriculture
id not lter
ignificantly
ecause ndiawas reduced
72
November
22,
2008
GEE3
EconomicPoliticaleekly
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6/10
=- -
-
-
~~ -
- =
=
-
-
-
SPECIAL
ARTICLE
toan
agriculturalountry.
oss of
obs
as
a
result f decline n
alternative odeof
ransportation64
dded
furthero the and-
less
griculturalabouringopulation.
However,
his
apital-intensiveechnology
id not
hange
he
basic structure
f abour
process.
ndian
railway roject
was a
good
example
f colonial
apitalism
whereby
roductivity
as
raised
withoutmechanisation
nd a
capitalist
abour market
developed n a pre-capitalistabour relations f organisation
involving
ndian
gangers,
irdars,muccumdums, istris,
tc.65
Littlemechanisation
as
employed
xcept
basic
earth
moving
and
tone
hatteringrocesses
ike he
pick
nd
head-basket
ith
rail
dumping
ruck.66 bundant
abour
vailability
ecame an
excuse
o
keep
he evel
f
echnology
ow
so
cheap
abour
ould
be
profitably
xploited.
Majority
f
the
workers
remained
unskilled s
manual
abourers,
iggers
nd movers.
ndianrail-
ways
until he nd
of he
raj
remained
heavily
abour-intensive
operation
n which
men,women,
nd children
old their
abour
power.
he
organisation
f
arge
bodies
of workers
nto
gangs
was a
central
eature
f he
mperial
ailway
onstruction
roject.
The
gang-labour
ystem
as
in fact
ecruited
nd
controlled
y
Indian abour ontractorsn a classiccolonialpolicy f divide
and control.67
Often
ntire
amilies ere
mployed
ith hildren
s
old as
10
years.
Work
as
divided
longgender
ineswithwomen
arrying
earth,
ricks,
ocks nd men
doing
heavy
work
f
aying
ails,
hauling
imber,
tc.
Neither
he
ailway
ompanies
or
uropean
contractors
ook
ny esponsibility
or
aking
are
of
workers
nd
their
families.
he
government
f
India
also
did
not bother
because t
protected
he nterest
f
railway ompanies
nd
Euro-
pean
contractors
ather
han
that of
abourers.68
ost
abour
came
from
ural reas
and
from
andless
gricultural
abouring
and
marginal easant
lasses.
There
were lso
many
navvies'
r
families
who
specialised
n
construction
abour.
Chief
mong
them
were the
'waddars'
who
specialised
n
digging
arth
('mannu
waddar')
nd
moving
tones
'kallu
waddar').
Waddars
became
n
important
ource
f
railway
onstruction
abour
nd
the
railway
ompanies
sed
them
heavily,
ften
moving
heir
entire
amilies,
ver
ong
distances.
t
was
primarily
labour-
driven
apitalism
hereby
bundant
abour-served
he
needsof
capital
n situation
f
ow
echnological
nitiative.69
Often
he
ailway
ork
was
extremely
angerous
nd
ccident-
prone.
Construction
ccidents
were
common
nd
led to
many
deaths.
Working
n cliffs
o drill nd
blast
nto
ocks
ften
ent
workers
own
with
uspension
hat ashed
nto
ocks r
napped
taking
ife.
lasting
ith
owder
esulted
n
considerable
oss of
lifefrom lyingocks, lips, ave-ins, tc.DeathsofEuropeans
was
reported
n
great
detail
and
greatly
mourned.
ut
when
Indian
abourers
ied,
twas
either
gnored
r
merely
mentioned
as
a
cold
statistical
igure.70
ometimes
uropean
upervisory
staff
hysically
ssaulted
ndian
workers
riven
y
heir
osition
of
power
nd
racial
hatred.
n such
a
situation
he
labourers
hardly ot
ustice
fromhe
colonial
egal
system
nd
all white
juries
who
freelycquitted
he
English.71
In
the
bsence
f
redress
rom
he
mperial
egal
system,
he
labourers
truck
ork
when
Europeans
erpetrated
iolence
n
them.
However,
most
of
the labour
resistance
was directed
againstoppressiveworking
onditions nd low
wages.
Condi-
tions
n
railway
worksites
ere
brutal
nd
exploitative.
n aver-
age
180,601
to
221,253
personsper
annum were
employed
between
859
nd
1900
with126 to
155
persons
er
mile.72he
labour
emand
ften
evolved round
etter
orking
onditions
and
wages.
Strikes ccurred
n
this
ssue.
Demand
for
higher
wages
was
coupled
with emand
or reedomo eave ndresume
worktconvenience. ithholdingfwagesoften-triggerediots.
Wage
ssue
brought
he workers o
collective
ction;
rutality
pushed
hem nto
making
hat ction
iolent, 73
The
British
n ndia
distinguished
etween
mental ndmanual
work.
riven
y
he ame racial
prejudice, hey
eserved
mental
workfor hemselvesnd
delegated
manual abour o Indians.
Railways
id notbecome
he
raining
round
or
killed
erson-
nel
for ther ectors f
he
conomy.
ndians ame
o be
hired
s
lower-level
ersonnel
n
such
obs
as
engine
rivers
nd
guards.
All
management osts
continued o be held
totally y
Britons.
Thiswas
a
reflection
fracialdiscrimination.74ndian abourers
were
organised
nto mall
gangs
f
12-13
menunder he mmedi-
ate
charge
f
an Indianmistri
ganger)
who
n
turnwere ub-
jectedto close superintendenceyBritishnspectorsnd sub-
inspectors.
ost
abourers ereunskilled
ith
0
per
ent
f he
workforceemale
nd
put
nder
he trict
upervision
f
mported
British
ngineers.75
ritons lso
held the best
obs
as station-
masters
f
arge
tations,
rivers f
express
rains
nd
adminis-
trators.
he first
lass
passengers
ere lso all
British,
hile ndi-
ans
had
to travel
nly
hird lass.76
The ra of he
new
mperial-
ismwas
also
the
ge
in
which
acism
eached
ts enith.
urope-
ans,.
began
o confuse
evels
f
echnology
ith evels f
ulture
in
general,
nd
finally
ith
biological
apacity.
asy
conquest
had
warped
he
udgment
f
ven
he
cientific
lites. 77
Racial
prejudice
lso
guided
uropean
hinking.
hey
elieved
that
ndians
were
ncapable
f
making
ecisions
n their
wn,
wereunreliablenddidnotpossess he bilityodirect urope-
ans.
This
ntense
acial
prejudice
revented
ndians
rom
dvanc-
ing78
nd
only
ncreased
fter
857
ebellion
hen he
railways
were
treamlined
o
defend
he
strategically
mportant
arts
f
the
ndian
mpire.79
he
rail ine
was
also seen s
themain tra-
tegic
defence
or
he
European
population.80
he
railways
id
not
ffer
ery
many
ocial
benefits
o the
people
ither.
he
gov-
ernment
f
India
did
not
seriously
onsider
ncouraging
r
undertaking
lternative
nvestments.
he
capital
xpended
n
much
of
the
railway
ystem
would
have
yielded
higher
ocial
rates of
return
ad
it been
spent
on
other
projects81
uch
as
health,
ducation,
ousing,
anitation,ood,
ocal
ndustry,
kills,
etc.But hiswas not hegovernment'sriority.
ts
priority
nstead
lay
n how
best o
make he
natural
esources
f ndia
vailable
toBritish
ailway
ompanies.
ne
such
mportant
esource
as
the
forest.
7 South
AsianForests
and
Railways
One
of
he main
reasons
or
he
depletion
f
forestsn
the
19th
century
as
the
railways
nd
British
ngineers
ere
he
prime
movers
f his
roject.82
ood
was used
not
nly
or
leepers,
ut
also as
fuel
for
owering
ngines.
he
railways
lso used
enor-
mous
uantities
f
bricks.
ridges,
ulverts,
tation
uildings
nd
Economic
Political
eekly
CEE3
November
22,
2008
73
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7/10
workshops
onsumed ricks
n astronomicalumbers.or xam-
ple,
n
the
17
miles fHullohar ivision f he
East ndianRail-
ways
n
the secondhalf f
1858,
ome two million
rickswere
burnt
nd
4.5
million ere
n kilns
eady
or
iring
hile nother
sevenmillion
ere
molded. n thisdivision lone
therewere
50
brick
ilns nd 16 imekilns. hesekilnswere
kept
ontinuously
burning
ith irewood
upplied
rom orests. rick
making
as
a
major art f ndianrailway onstructionnd was tightlyon-
trolled
y
he
ailway
ompanies
nd
upplied y
he
government
of ndia.83
Wood romndian orests as also used
for
ailway leepers.
The
orestsf ndiawere earchednd
avaged
or
upplies
f
leeper
wood. .Indian oodwould
e
felled
n
forest,
ossibly
uite
istant,
by
oresters
nthe
mploy
f imber
ontractors,...
t
s clear
hat he
demandsor he
ailways
or ood
prime
ood or
leepers,
uild-
ings
nd
arriages,
nd
esser ood
or
irewood
or ilns nd or
uel
for
arly
ocomotives-increased
he
xploitation
f ndia's orestsnd
the
ressure
n
forest-dwelling
eople.84
In
fact,
when
heforests
eredeclared s reserved
or
ov-
ernment
nd
commercial se
only,
he
forest-dwellersere
forcedo move ut.This riggerederious lashesbetween eo-
ple
and
colonial oresterss the former esisted tate
ncroach-
menton
their
ge-old
customary
ights
o the use of forest
resources or
ustenance.85
Indianforests erewell known or
t
hardwood.
here
were
many
ifferentarieties f
tfoundn
different
arts
f he ndian
subcontinent,e, teak, al, deodar,
edar nd even hir
ine
im-
berwas
used. Since ailroads
prawled hroughout
he ubconti-
nent,
oneof he
forests
ere
pared.
t all
began
with he eak
forests
fMalabar oast nd theWestern
hats.
ong
before he
beginning
f
railways
heMalabar eakwas
severely
educed o
meet heneeds fBritish
oyal avy.86
he
railways nly
urther
decimated he forest.
y
1870s,
he teak of
Malabar
coast
was
already
epleted
ndthe
great
eak orestsf
upper
urma
egan
to be
harvested or
xport
o India.Whenthe
railways
were
extended
nto he
ndo-Gangeticegion,
ts
mpact
as felt nthe
Himalayan
orests.
imilarly,
herich
al forests
f
he ubmon-
tane
reas
stretching
or
housands
f
miles
fromwestern arai
down
into
Bengal
became the
target
or
he
railwayproject
because of
ts
tough
fibres hatwere
particularly
esistant o
white
nts. These rich al forests
ot rapidly epleted
or he
production
f
sleepers
nd no one took
any
responsibility
o
regenerate
al
trees.
Consequently,
al
production ipped
n the
late
19th
entury.87
In
the
1860s,
aced
with
he
depleted
tocks
nd
rising
osts
f
both al andteak, he olonial ailway uilders fnorthernndia
set heir
aze
farthernto hemountains n
deodar
tands.
Exploitation
f he
eodar orestsoon ecame he entralocus f he
firstalf
entury
f orest
epartment's
ork
n
the
Himalayas,
irst
for he
ontinuingepletion
f
he
deodar tands nd ater or he
gradual
tabilisation
f
commercially
aluable imberands
n the
system
f
Reservedorests.88
When
he
onstruction
f
major
ineswas undertaken
n
north-
western
ndia,
n
hedecades f
870s
nd
1880s,
he ommercial
exploitation
fdeodar eached ts limax. n the
early
870s,
or
example,
he
ingle argest roject
hat
tretchedrom elhi nto
Rajasthan equired
,00,000
sleepers.
or his normousnder-
taking,
he deodar forests f the
Punjab
hills,Kashmir,
pper
Ganges
nd
ndus
asinwere
equisitioned.
imilarly,
he
ongest
line from ahore o
Karachiwas
designed rimarily
o
export
Punjab
wheat o
Europe.
he
annualharvest f rees or
ailways
in
western
ttar radesh lonefluctuatedetween
8,000
and
1,47,000
n
1870s.
And
by
early
1880s
it
rose
to
double
that
figure.89one mile rack equired ,700 leepersnd1.5 onnes
ofwooden
keys
with
single leeper
tandard ize
of 0'
by
12
y
6 .90
This meant
that
each
sleeper
required
ne
fully-grown
hardwood ree o be
brought
own.
Dietrich
randis,
German orest
gent
was
appointed
s
an
inspector-general
f
ndian orests
y
he olonial tate.He
made
extensive
urveys
nd wrote
many eports ecommending
om-
mercial se ofndian orests.n his
1878
eport,
randis
bserved
that
ree
tands
n
the
Himalayas
were
good
source or
main-
taining
steady upply
f
leepers
o the
railways.
e estimated
an
annual
railway
emand f
over
,00,000
sleepers.
y
1880s,
as
many
econd-generationleepers
s
new ones were
required
for
eplacing
hose
hat
ad deteriorated
n
original
ines.91 ow-
ever, he ailwaysnfact, sednearlyouble henumberf leep-
ers
estimated
y
Brandis. uteven before
randis,
he colonial
forest
epartment
as created
1864)
o ensure
steady upply
f
timber or
railway
onstruction. he formationf
the forest
department
as no
coincidence,92
s the
railway roject
as
cen-
tral
othe
mperialgenda
of
arly
olonial
orestry
n ndia.93 o
the
reation f he olonial orest
epartment
nd the
xpansion
of
mperial
ailways
ere
ntimately
onnected.94
The
story
fforest
epletion
as
repeated
ll across ndia.The
establishment
f Madras
Railways,
or
xample, riggered
he
large-scale
epletion
f forests
n
Madras
Presidency.
adras
Railways
rimarily
sed firewoodmore hancoal. The
simple
reason
being
hatwood was
cheaper
hancoal.
However,
more
woodwas
required
o run he
railway ngine
han oal.The ver-
age
consumption
fwood
per ngine
mile n
1870s
was
89.53
bs,
while
hat f
oal was
only
6.75
bs.95 fter
epleting
reserve
forests,
he colonial
government
urchased arge quantities
f
firewood rom
rivate
orests.he dea of
protecting
orests
as
not
o much or
onserving
he
ecological
alanceor
protecting
the
environment,
utfor
he constant
upply
f
firewood
o the
Madras
Railways.
Protection f the forests
by
the forest
departmentrimarily
eant
rotecting
hecommercial
nterest
of
English ailway ompanies
nd the
government
f ndia.For
forests
ere
protected
nd reserved
nly
to be cut
down for
railway
se.96
Thepressure n forests o service herailway emandwas
generally
uite
heavy.
For
example,
n the revenue
year
of
1859-60
ome
2,45,763
erthswere
upplied
o Madras
Railways
and
all were made of wood.97No forest ould
possibly
tand
drain f
hat
nature,
specially
n a
situation,
here
he
olonial
government
id not ake
ny
erious
measure owards onserva-
tion. n
fact,
he orest
onservatorrandis imselfecommended
that
n Madras
Presidency
he
railways
hould e
encouraged
o
first
xtract
ully
rom
rivate
orests efore
orking
he
govern-
ment
orest eserves.98 hus the
egacy
of colonial
forestry
n
Madras
residency
as that n the
19th
entury
he
olonial
tate
74
November
22,
2008
B229
EconomicPolitical eekly
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extracted
arge
quantities
f timberfromboth
private
nd
government
orests.
8
Railways
nd
Disease
In
1859,
local
East ndia
Railway ngineer elayed
o his boss
the cholera
pidemic
hat
decimated housands f labourers
working
n
the railroads s
they
rrived rom ar off
places
inBengal.
Large
masses ontinuedo arrive lmost
aily,
heutmost xertions f
the
ngineers
ailed
o
get ogether
aterials or t once
hutting
hem,
and
a
large roportion
ad no shelter
or
many
ays
fter heir rrival
and
when
holerawas
raging mong
hem.
Apparently,
n that
pidemic
ome
4poo
coolies died on site.
However,
holerawas not he
nly
iller
f
abourers
uilding
he
colonial ailroads.
Malaria,
mallpox,
yphoid,
neumonia, ys-
entery,
iarrhoea,
lcers lso
attacked
oolies.
n
some
onger
sections ometimes
s much s
30
per
ent
r
more f heworkers
would
uccumb o disease
pidemic.
or
xample,
n
1888,
n the
Bengal-Nagpur
ine across he
subcontinent,
ome
2,000-3,000
workersied n a
single
tretch
nd their odieswere trewn
ll
alongthe ine and rottedwith no claimants.Apparently,he
stench
ecame o unbearable
hat hebodieswere
dragged
nto
pile
nd
it n massfuneral
yre.100
The deaths f
arge
bodiesof
abourers
ere
not
very
urpris-
ing onsidering
he
iving
onditions
tworksites.here
was
ack
of
proper
ousing,
anitation,
ooking
acilities,
rinking
ater
and
protection
rom xtreme
eather onditions
ike
rain,
heat
and cold.
Generally,
arge
bodies
ofworkers
eremobilised
n
construction
ites,
hence,
he
epidemic
pread
rapidly
n out-
break.
nce
begun,
twould
pread
uickly
mong
he ssembled
workers
nd
then
move
ntonear
nd far
illages.
he
construc-
tion
echniquesrovided
avourable
onditions
or he
breeding
ofmalaria
arrying osquitoes.
arth or
ailway
mbankments
often
was
dug
from
orrow-pits
long
the ineof
works.
hese
abandoned
its
filled
p
with
water
nd
vegetation
uring
he
rains
nd became
mosquito
atcheries.101he
railway
ines
were
laid
on
raised eds
that
ften
nterfered
ith
he
natural
ines f
drainage
and created
unwanted
ponds
and
waterholes
hat
became
breeding rounds
or
malaria
ectors.102
British
edi-
cal
agent
who tudied
malaria
n ndia
n
1927,
ameto
the
con-
clusion
hat
ailways
ereone
of
he
major
auses
of
malaria n
India.103
owever,
et
nother
actorf
malaria
roliferation
as
the olonial
rrigation
rojects
hat
ed to serious
nvironmental
consequences
ike
waterlogging,
alinity,
ndmost
f ll
malaria
deaths.104
Cutting
own
hundreds
f
rees or
very
mile f
ail-
waytiesfor verymileof rackageaid, eft oorly ooted rees
nearby
pen
o
buffeting
y
winds
which oon
oppled
hem
ver.
These
collapses reatly
ncreased
he area
of
thin oil
exposed.
Blasted
uring
he
dry
eason
by
he
rays
f
he unand
by
tor-
rential
ownpours
uring
he
rains,
hese
aterite-based
oils
were oon eeched
ut,
orming
ater-filledracks
nd
potholes
which
female
mosquitoes
intent
on
laying eggs
found
irresistible. 105
The
highly
mobile
nature
f
construction
ork
brought
is-
eases to
the worksites
rom istant
arts,
nd in
turn,
arried
newly cquired
diseases
onwards
o other ites.
The
labourers
often huttled etween
olonial
plantations
nd
railway
work-
sites
ravelling y
trains nd steamers. he
migrant
abourers
often
ent
owork ormonthsnd
years
hrough
isease-infested
region,
where
railways
ad
spread
ts
tentacles.
Many
f
them
perished
rom
eglect
nd
diseases either n
ourney
r
upon
arrival.106
alaria
was
by
far he
biggest
iller.
t
was
said,
a
death
sleeper
nd
some
1,700
leepers
were
neededfor ach
mileof rack n the Ghat ection fthe GreatndianPeninsular
Railways.107
he
environment
t
theworksitesreated
onditions
for he
repeated
utbreaks fmalaria nd
cholera. he ife
was
grim
nd hard for
he
poverty-stricken,
alnourished,
eak-
ened,
disease-ridden
en,
women nd
children. he labourers
lived
n
crowded,
nsanitary
nd
unhealthy
onditions.108nd
there
was
no effort ade to
improve
heir ot. n
fact,
eaviest
construction
ears
coincidedwith
famines,
897
2,732
miles)
and
1898
(2,962
miles)109
nd
the
railway
ompanies
nd the
colonial tate
xploited heap
famine
ang
abourers.
Proliferation
f
o
many
iseases
eading
o
deaths
learly
ndi-
cated
hat
he colonial
development
f
railways
nd canalswas
fundamentally
lawed nd
environmentally
nsound.
cological
transformationas theprincipaleason or he courge fkiller
diseases
uch s malaria
nd cholera.
Railroadswere
one of he
biggest
actors
n
that
transformation.
lthough
holerahad
existed
n
ndia from he
time f
the
ndus
Valley
ivilisation,
t
had
never een as
widespread
s ithad become
during
he
19th
century.
t had
always
been endemic
to small
geographical
locales.
The movement
f
conquering
mperial
rmies
nd
the
colonial
railways
ransformed
hese endemicdiseases
to
epi-
demic outbreaks
preading
hroughout
outh Asia
and
even
beyond.
Wherever
he
railways
went,
holera acillus
wentwith
it.110ibrio holerae
ivesfor
everal
ays
n
tanks
f
water
uch
as
those carried
board
railway
arriages.111
husthemodern
transportation
etwork
rovided
nvasion outes
fordiseases
such s cholera nd malaria.
Modernising
orks reatederious
'obstacles'
owater
lows,
aused
river
ystems
o
become
silted
up'
and
'moribund,'
eprived
oils of
enriching
utrients
nd
damaged
ropyields,
rainage
nd sanitation. 112hile
holera
slaughtered
illions
hus,
he British
overnment
ontinued
o
invest
eavily
n
railways
nd notmuch
n
public
ealth.113
Imperial
Railways
and Famines
Commercialisation
f
agriculture
nd railroads
went
hand
in
glove.
Commercial
rops
absorbed
pasture
nd
grazing
ands
putting
attle
t
risk.
nflation
n the
price
f
grass
ed
to theuse
of
attle
ropping
or uel.
carcity
f attle
manureed
todeclin-
ing productivityf and and increased hepaceof oilexhaus-
tion.
Dams
and canals
might
ave
afeguarded
he
rural
opula-
tion
n the event
f
drought.
ut
the
colonial tate
had all the
investments
n railroads nd
very
ittle
n social
projects.114
he
natural
esult
f
his rtificial
henomenon
as
famine. nd
he
railroads
ere
directly
nd
ndirectly
esponsible
or
t.Driven
y
the
official
octrine f
free trade
and
non-interference,
he
government
efused o
bring
ood
to feed the
starving.
t
did
nothing
o
prevent
rain speculators
rom
sing
railways
o
transfer ood
reserves
held in
places
stricken ith dearth o
another
art
of
the
country,
here
hey
would fetch
higher
Economic
Political eekly
rar?]
November
22,
2008
75
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price.115
he
colonial
elegraph
uilt
longside
ailways
nsured
that
rice
ikeswere oordinated
n
hundreds f owns
t once.
Modern
markets
ccelerated
ather
han
relieved amine.Rail-
roadshiked
he
price
f
grains
verywhereuring
amines
nd
made t
beyond
hereach f hecommon
eople.
The
peasantry
that
was
already
roaning
nder he
crushing
eight
f axes
o
finance
he
railroads
was
now
hit with
high
grainprices
hat
broughttarvationnddeath.116ndnotust he ailroads,ndian
agriculture
lso
paid
for
he
British
military
machine
nd
civil
bureaucracy
hat
kept
ndia, nder
ts
heels
until he end of he
British
aj.117
The colonial
railroads ot
only
reated
onditions or
grain
speculation
nd
profit-making,
utfurther
ggravated
amine
n
India
by facilitating
he
export
f
grains
broad. Substantial
amounts fbothfood nd non-food
rops
began
to
be
shipped
overseas.
t s
estimated
hat
s
much s
13
per
cent
f
hewheat
produced
n ndiawent o Britain.
y
1886,
ndiawas
supplying
23
per
ent fBritain's heat
mports.118hroughout
hecotton-
exporting
istrictsfthe Deccan
ncluding
he
puppet rincely
state f
Hyderabad,
orest
nclosures
nd
displacement
f
gram
bycotton reatlyeducedocalfood ecurityndput nplacea
classic olonial
conomy.119
uch
ofthe
wheat
nd
rice
urplus
was
exported
o
England.
ondoners
ere n effect
ating
ndia's
bread.
And
n the
ve
of
1896
famine,
hewheat elt fnorthern
Indiahad been
depleted
y
massive
xports
o
make
up
for
he
previous ear's
errible arvest
n
England.
Millions
f
famine-
stricken
n India
died
along
the railroad racks
tarving
nd
exposing
he
hollow
mperial
laims f he
ife-saving
enefits
f
steam
ransportation.120
ut heBritishontinuedobelieve hat
some
regions
f outhAsia
they
onstrued
o be endowed
with
rich oil
were mmune rom amine.
owever,
his
olonial on-
struction
urned ut
o
be
false ecause
massive amines arched
across
the
and
almost
very
decade since
the ntroductionf
railroads ith
890s
being
heworst ecade
of ll. At he
urn
f
the
century
colonial dministration
eport
or he cotton-rich
province
fBerar
Deccan
vividly
aptured
his
falsity
tating,
The idea thatBerar njoyed mmunityrom aminewas dis-
pelled
by
he
xperiences
f
1896-97
nd
1899-1900.
he
former
year
was one of
scarcity,mounting
o famine
n
parts
f the
province,
n the atter
ear
hefamine
was
severe,
nd
affected
thewhole fBerar. 121ndBerar
was
only microscopic
eflection
of
Britishndia.
9
Conclusions
So
despite
heBritish laims f
railways
s
the
light
f ivilisa-
tion o
ndia,
r Britain's enevolence
o
a backward
eople
for
their moral nd material
rogress ,
t s
argued
here
hat
he
colonial
railways
n facthad
a
regressivempact
n
the
and,
environment
nd the
people
of outhAsia.
The ndiannational-
ists n the19th enturyecried ot o much herailways er e,
but ts
colonial
nd
exploitative
haracter.122
evertheless,
he
British
mperialists
ill
heend
had the illusion f
permanence
and continued o believe hat
hey
were
n ndiafor hewelfare
and
security
f
ts
people
nd to maintain
aw and
order.123
hey
continued o
believe
n the beneficial ffects f
railways
nd
canals.
But
he
post-colonial
cholarship
n southAsia
has estab-
lished
that
the
impact
of British
mperial
ailways
was
quite
contrary
otheofficial
deology
f he
raj.
SAMEEKSHARUSTOOKS
1857
Essays
rom conomicndPolitical
Weekly
A
compilation
f
essays
hatwere
irst
ublished
n
the EPW
n a
special
ssue
n
May
007.Held
ogether
ith
n
introduction
y
Sekhar
andyopadhyay,
he
ssays
that
ange
n
hemend
ubject
rom
istoriography
nd
military
ngagements,
othe alit
iranganas
idealised
n
raditional
ongs
nd
he unconventional
rotagonists
n
mutiny
ovels
converge
n
onecommon
oal:
o enrich
he
xisting
national'
ebatesn he 857
Uprising.
The olume
as18
ssays
y
well nown
istorians
ho nclude
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NOTES
Thomas
Williamson,
revenue
commissioner,
Bombay
addressed o chairman f the GIPR
Company
Two
Letters n
the
Advantages
f
Railway
Communication
n
Western
India',
Richard
nd
John
aylor,
ondon, 846,
10.
2
Daniel
R
Headrick,
he
Tools
f
Empire:
echno-
logy
nd
European mperialism
n
theNineteenth
Century,
ew
York,
981,
184.
3
Ian
Kerr,
uilding
he
Railways f
the
Raj:
1850-
1900,Delhi, p38-39.
4
Ibid,
187.
5
Ibid,
p
17-18.
6
Headrick,
heTools
f mpire,
p
184-86.
7
Sugata
Bose
nd
Ayesha
alal,
Modern outh sia:
History,
ulture,
olitical
conomy,
ondon, 998,
P
103.
8
Bipan
Chandra,
Nationalismnd Colonialism
n
Modern
ndia,
Hyderabad,
992,
205.
9
Kerr,
uilding
he
Railways
f
he
Raj,
p
47.
10
Headrick,
heTools
f mpire,
184.
11
Ibid,
188.
12 Barbara Metcalf
nd Thomas
R
Metcalf,
Con-
cise
History
f
ndia,
Cambridge,
002,
p
96.
13
HermanKulke nd Dietmar
othermund,
His-
tory f
ndia,
New
Delhi,
986,
254.
14
Ibid,
p
268-69.
15
Cambridge
conomic
History f
India,
Vol
2,
DharmaKumar ndMeghnadDesai (eds),Cam-
bridge,
983,
p
741
nd
743.
16 Irfan
Habib,
ssays
n
ndian
History:
owards
Marxist
erception,
adras, 1995,
pp
279
and
360.
17
Thomas
Williamson,
wo Letters n the
Advan-
tages
f
Railway
ommunication
n Western
ndia,
p24.
18 See
Arthur
W
Silver,
Manchester
en nd ndian
Cotton
847-1872,
anchester,
966.
19 Headrick,
heTools
f mpire,
188.
20 Bose
nd
Jalal,
Modern outh
sia,
p
99.
21
Metcalf
nd
Metcalf,
Concise
History
f
ndia,
P125.
22
Sumit
arkar,
odern
ndia:
1885-1947,
h I.
23
Bose nd
Jalal,
Modern
outh
Asia,
p
99.
24
Metcalf
nd
Metcalf,
Concise
History f
ndia,
P125-
25
Zaheer
Baber,
The Science
f
Empire:
cientific
Knowledge,
ivilisation
nd Colonial
ule n
ndia,
Delhi, 996,
214.
26
Chandra,
ationalism
nd Colonialism
n
Modern
India,
p
108-10
27
Metcalf
nd
Metcalf,
Concise
istory f
ndia,
pi28.
28 Mike
Davis,
Late Victorian
olocausts:
l
Nino
Famines
nd
the
Making of
the
Third
World,
London, 001,
332.
29
Cambridge
conomic
istoryf
ndia, 749-
30
Ibid,
750.
31
Ibid, 758.
32
Laxman
D
Satya,
Colonial
Modernisation
nd
Popular
esistance',
cholars
, 1,
Winter
001, 27.
33
Metcalf
nd
Metcalf,
Concise
istory
f
ndia,
96.
34 Habib,
ssays
n ndian
History,p
364-65-
35 Cambridgeconomic istoryf ndia, 757.
36
Habib,
ssays
n ndian
History,
278.
37
Boseand
Jalal,
Modern
outh
Asia,
p
103.
38 Kerr,
uilding
he
ailways f
he
Raj,
p
2.
39
Headrick,
ools
f mpire,
188.
40
Kerr,
uilding
he
Railways f
he
Raj,
p
135.
41
Kulke
nd
Rothermund,
History
f
ndia,
p
270.
42
Cambridge
conomic
istory f
ndia, 749.
43 Headrick,
oo/5
f mpire,
188.
44
Ian
Derbyshire,
The
Building
f ndia's
Railways:
The
Application
f
Western
echnology
n
the
Colonial
Periphery,
850-1920'
n
Roy
MacLeod
and
Deepak
Kumar
eds),
Technologyf
the
Raj:
Western
echnology
nd Technical
ransfers
o
India,
700-1947,
ew
Delhi, 995, 185.
45
Cambridge
conomic
istory
f
ndia,
751.
46
Ibid,
p
742, 52
nd
755.
47
Kerr,
uilding
he
Railways f
he
Raj,
pp
164-85.
48
Cambridge
conomic
istory
f
ndia,
pp
756-57
and
752.
49 Ibid,
758.
50
Bipan
Chandra,
Nationalism nd Colonialismn
Modern
ndia, 75.
51
Cambridge
conomic
istory
f
ndia,
759.
52 Habib,
ssays
n
ndian
History,
336.
53 BoseandJalal,Modern outh sia,p 97.
54
Headrick,
oo/5
f mpire,
187.
55
Sheldon
Watts,
pidemics
nd
History:
isease,
Power nd
mperialism,
ew
Haven,
997,
168.
56
Deepak
Kumar,
cience
nd the
Raj: 1857-1905,
Delhi,
1997,
p
46-47.
57
See Peter
Harnetty,
mperialism
nd FreeTrade:
Lanchashire
nd
India
in the mid-Nineteenth
Century,
ancouver,
972.
58
Habib,
5say5
n
ndian
History,
360.
59 Headrick,
ools
f mpire, 189.
60
Habib,
ssays
n
ndian
History,
307.
61
Bose
and
Jalal,
Modern outh
sia,
p
102.
62
Derbyshire,
The
Building
f ndia's
Railways:
he
Application
f
Western
echnology
n the Colo-
nial
Periphery,
850-1920',
203.
63
Surendra
Patel,
Agricultural
abourers
n ndia
and
Pakistan,
ombay,
952,
p
9-20,
3-64.
64 Cambridgeconomic istoryf ndia, 748.
65 Kerr,
uilding
he
Railways f
he
Raj,
pp
152
nd
193-194-
66
Derbyshire,
The
Building
f ndia's
Railways:
he
Application
f
Western
echnology
n
heC