Indian economy on the eve of independence | One Shot | Chapter 1 | Indian economic development

The speaker introduces a series on Indian Economic Development, comprising 8 chapters to be covered in 8 videos. He emphasizes understanding and learning through a storyline approach and notes the importance of interpreting and making notes to succeed in the education system. The first chapter starts with an overview of Indian economy pre-independence, during British rule, and post-independence, stressing the need to grasp the historical context before diving into the syllabus.

The Indian economic syllabus is divided into three units: Indian conditions pre-British, during British rule, and post-1947, addressing problems like unemployment and environment in Unit 2, and comparing India with neighbors Pakistan and China in Unit 3. The lesson begins with the overview of British impact, demonstrating how British rule led to the manipulation and degradation of India's agrarian economy, emphasizing how they exploited India's resources for their benefit.

The explanation continues with an in-depth exploration of Indian economic conditions under British rule, identifying it as a primarily agrarian society known for its handicrafts pre-colonization. The British exploited India by introducing economic policies like using India as a feeder economy, leading to poverty, resource exploitation, and stunted growth in agriculture and industry. The discussion covers key events like the Battle of Plassey in 1757 and Britain's systematic economic degradation.

A detailed examination of India's agriculture pre-independence highlights the agrarian economy, largely driven by agriculture and handicraft. The British Land Settlement System exploited cultivators, demanding fixed rents benefiting landlords and the British, rather than cultivators. The shift from subsistence to commercial agriculture forced dependence on cash crops like tea and coffee, which depleted land quality, emphasizing the negative impacts of commercialization, productivity decline, and financial scarcity in agriculture under the British.

British economic policies led to systematic deindustrialization, undermining handicraft industries through policies that favored British goods, leading to unemployment and economic dependency. The absence of capital good industries hindered economic growth, low contribution to GDP, poor role of public sector investment, and dependency on imports marked the industrial sector during British rule.

India's foreign trade under British rule was marked by an exploitative pattern of importing raw materials and exporting finished goods mostly to Britain. The establishment of the Suez Canal in 1869 facilitated easier British extraction of resources, emphasizing how India was economically drained to benefit British industry. Export surplus income was diverted for British war expenses and infrastructure, further depleting India's economy.

India's demographic conditions under British rule included a high birth and death rate, low literacy, poor health facilities, and high infant mortality, reflecting the dire poverty and lack of development. Though a census was started in 1881, the demographic conditions worsened until changes in 1921 marked significant demographic shifts. The occupational structure remained primarily agricultural with minimal development in industrial sectors.