IMPACT OF BRITISH RULE ON ECONOMY AND COMMERCE IN INDIA

Positive effects of British rule on Indian economy – In course of time British rule brought with it modern industries in India. These proved helpful in industrializing India and put her on the industrial map of the world.

Under the British rule, means of communication and transport were improved. A cheap postal system was introduced. During the regime of Lord Dalhousie, the telegraph system was established. Though the railways were primarily meant to encourage the British industrialist and to facilitate the movement of British soldiers, they proved to be greatly beneficial to the people of India. The railways did go a long way in stepping up the pace of industrialization in India.

Harmful effects of British rule on Indian economy – The British rule also produced a series of adverse effects on the Indian economy. The total impact was to weaken all the economic potential for growth and brought untold poverty and misery to the Indian masses.

Industrial revolution resulted in Economic exploitation of Indian masses – The Industrial Revolution (1750-1850) started in England when the East India Company got the Diwani rights from the Mughal Emperor Shah Alam. In England, factory system developed and started producing finished commodities on a massive scale. These factories needed large quantities of raw materials which they could obtain from India easily because of their political power. On the other hand, the Indian market was readily available to British manufacturers for dumping their goods. This is how the Industrial Revolution in England resulted in economic exploitation of India.

Growing poverty of agriculturalists – Before the rise of British power the peasants in India were by no means contented and happy. However, they were not very miserable. The British rule increased the poverty and suffering of the farmers who constituted the larger proportion of the Indian population. When they were ruled by the Indian rulers, the Indians received and felt the personal touch. This they totally lost since the establishment of the British rule.

Flooding of Indian economy with British goods – When England followed the policy of free trade, Indian markets were flooded with English goods. Millions of small Indian producers were destroyed as their industries were ruined. In 1840, a number of Indians brought to the notice of the British parliament that while British cotton and silk goods imported to India paid only 3 ½ % and woolen goods 2%, Indian cotton goods imported to Britain had to pay 10% silk goods 20% and woolen goods 30%. The ruinous effects of the British commercial policy on India’s textile manufacture were highlighted by the governor generals report for 1834-35.

Increasing export of raw materials – With the establishment of British rule and introduction of a commercial policy favorable towards the British manufacturers, there was distinct trend towards increase in export of raw materials. The export of manufactured goods from India steadily declined and the export of raw materials increased rapidly.

Economic balance in the Indian economy destroyed – British rule resulted in destruction of the very basis of the Indian economy. It destroyed the balance and harmony between agriculture and domestic industry. Indian economy was a blend of agriculture and industry. It now became a dominantly agricultural economy. When the East India Company’s monopoly in trade ended, the Indian economy was openly exposed to exploitation by British commercial and trading interest.

Destruction of village self-sufficiency – British rule ended the age long self-sufficient village communities in India. The British Commercial Policy was disastrous to village communities. After the establishment of the British rule Indian villages started buying from outside tea, sugar, matches, umbrellas, cloth, kerosene, oil, mirrors, bangles, sewing machines, drugs, aluminum ware and several other commodities. This marked the destruction of the age old self sufficiency and self-reliance of village communities. The introduction of money by the British rulers also adversely affected the Indian village economies.

The decline of Indian handicrafts and its consequences – The decline of Indian handicrafts brought about by the discriminating policies of the British rulers, had the following consequences:

-       It led to an increase in the tremendous pressure of population on land.

-       The demand for land increased. This led to a rise in the rentals and prices of lands.

-       The rise in demand of land meant more fragmentation and subdivision of land.

-       Small land holdings were uneconomical. They did not provide to the cultivators even their subsistence needs and made them steeped in debt.

-       The farmers had to lose tehri lands ultimately. They became landless laborers / migrated to urban areas whereby increasing the number of the unemployed.

-       India which was a seller of rare artistic wares and much sought-after specialties was converted into a handy source of food stuffs and raw materials for materially advanced countries of the world.

Railways – an instrument of exploitation – Railways were introduced for movement of raw materials and proved an instrument of exploitation of India and her people by destroying Indian industries and trade. The Government of India guaranteed a very high rate of profit to the British investing companies, who provided capital for building railways in India. Consequently, railways proved to be an effective instrument of exploitation of India, by the British rulers. The freight structure was fixed in such a way that it helped the export of raw materials and the import of manufactures from England.

RIPON THE GOOD

 Why was Ripon called ‘Ripon the good’?

Florence Nightingale called Ripon ‘the Savior of India’ and his rule the beginning of a golden age in India.

Arnold White, on the other hand, thought that Ripon had ‘opened the door to the loss of India’.

Ripon was very popular with the Indians who long remembered him as ‘Ripon the Good and Virtuous’. In his presidential address at the Indian National Congress session at Lahore in 1909, Pandit Madan Mohan Malviya said, ‘Ripon was the greatest and most beloved viceroy whom India has known. He was loved and respected by educate Indians as I believe no Englishman who has ever been connected with India, except the Father of the Indian National Congress, Mr. Allen Octavian Hume and Sir William Wedderburn, has been loved and respected. Ripon was loved because he inaugurated that noble scheme of local self-government… because he made the most courageous attempt to act up to the spirit of distinctions, and to treat his Indian fellow subjects as standing on the footing of equality with their European fellow subjects… because he was a type of the noblest of Englishmen, who have an innate love of justice and who wish to see the blessing of liberty which they themselves enjoy extended to all their fellowmen’. One of the last acts of Ripon in 1909 was to vote for the Minto-Morley Reforms in the House of Lords. He died in 1909.

Unfortunately for India and Ripon the best measure of Ripon – Local self-government, substitution of merit for patronage and jobbery in filling posts in the higher branches of subordinate services, the Ilbert Bill – were defeated by the Indian bureaucracy. Very little was done in the sphere of local self-government or as Blunt puts it: ‘Poor little acts were passed allowing native communities to mend their own roads, provided the Commissioner does not think them incapable of doing so’. Perhaps the outcome of Ripon’s efforts was little. Ripon is remembered not that he had been able to do much, but as Surendranath Banerjee puts it, for ‘the purity of his intentions, the loftiness of his ideals, the righteousness of his policy and his hatred of racial disqualifications’. Ripon’s doings though unsuccessful raised hopes and aspirations which marked the beginning of political life in India. 

ADMINISTRATION OF RANJIT SINGH

The only system of government known to the Indian subcontinent at that time was despotism. Ranjit Singh had neither the necessary intellectual training for the inclination to make bold innovations in the system of government. The Maharaja was the embodiment of all civil and political authority in the state. Ranjit Singh however was a benevolent despot and looked to the welfare of the people. He considered himself as a servant of the Khalsa or the Sikh Commonwealth and acted in the name of the Khalsa. He even designated his government ‘Sarkar-i-Khalsaji’ and struck coins in the name of Guru Nanak and Guru Govind Singh.

Although the Maharaja was the pivot of the administration yet there was a Council of Ministers to help him in the task of administration. He divided the kingdom into provinces, each under a Nazim. A province was further sub divided into districts, each under the charge of a Kardar. At the village level the Panchayats functioned effectively.

Land revenue and justice – The main source of income of the state was land revenue which was collected with great severity. The state demand was fixed between 33% and 40% depending on the fertility and richness of the soil. Sir Lepel Griffin is correct in his judgment when he says that the Maharaja ‘squeezed out the unhappy peasant every rupee that he could be made to disgorge’ but took care not ‘to kill the goose that lay the golden egg’. The Maharaja was anxious to safeguard the interests of the peasantry and issued instructions to the marching armies not to destroy standing crops or damage them in anyway. To the sons of the peasantry, the Sikh army provided ample opportunities for employment.

The administration of justice was rough and ready. There was no hierarchy of courts as we find today. The administration of justice was more of a local than a national concern. The local officers decided cases according to local custom. The Adalat-i-ala was set up at Lahore which probably heard appeals from the district and provincial courts. Excessive fines were imposed on the criminals, of course depending on the means of the offenders. Even the most heinous crime could be foreign in return for money payment. Justice was thus looked upon as a source of income to the state.

Military administration – Ranjit Singh gave maximum care to the maintenance of an efficient army. If he had built a kingdom out of atoms with the help of armed strength, a strong army was necessary to maintain its frontiers. Besides, faced with enemies on all sides, an efficient army was a necessity. Ranjit Singh’s genius was best displayed in the organization of an excellent fighting army.

Ranjit Singh realized the essential weakness of Indian armies. Irregular levies poorly equipped and without proper training could hardly meet the challenges of the times. The Maharaja decided to build an army on the pattern of the army of the Company and recruited French officers to drill and discipline the troopers. Due emphasis was laid on the organization of the artillery department. Workshops were set up at Lahore and Amritsar for the casting of heavy guns and the manufacture of shot and power. Ranjit Singh adopted the system of ‘Mahadari’ or monthly payment of salaries to soldiers and officers and gave care to the equipment and mobilization aspects of the army.

A model army or Fauj-i-Khas was raised in 1822 by General Ventura and Allard. The special brigade had its own emblem and used French words of command in drill. The normal strength of this Model Army consisted of 4 battalions of infantry, 3 regiments of cavalry besides the artillery wing. Ilahi Baksh headed the artillery department of Fauj-i-Khas.

A special feature of Ranjit Singh’s army was the employment of Europeans in the service of the state. At one time there were 39 foreign officers drawn from different nationalities of the world, namely, Frenchmen, Germans, Americans, Greeks, Spaniards, Russians, Scotch, Englishmen and Anglo Indians. The Maharaja gave these European officers all types of inducements to settle in Punjab. Outstanding among these European officers were Ventura, Allard, Court, Gardner, Avitable. General Ventura headed the infantry department of Fauj-i-Khas, Allard was in charge of cavalry, while Court and Gardner reorganized the artillery department. These European officers rose to high positions in the civil administration for e.g., General Ventura was for sometime Governor of Duajat and Avitable became governor of Peshawar in 1837.

It has been estimated that I 1835 the strength of Ranjit Singh’s army stood at 75,000 which included about 35,000 regularly trained, disciplined and equipped troops. Ranjit Singh’s army proved an effective fighting force which got the better of the Afghans, the Gorkhas and the Dogras and even baffled the British in the two sikh wars.

Estimate of Ranjit Singh

Ranjit Singh stands out as fascinating personality I Indian history. Though ugly in physical appearance (Baron Hugel described him as the most ugly and unprepossessing man he saw throughout the Punjab), Ranjit Singh had an impressive personality. Fakir Aziz-ud-din, the Foreign Minister of Ranjit Singh, on an inquiry from an English officer as to which eye of the Maharaja was blind, replied: ‘The splendour of his face is such that I have never been able to look close enough to discover’.

Ranjit Singh was loved by the people of Punjab, Hindus and Muslims alike. If Ranjit Singh looked upon the Sikhs as his colleagues and co-religionists, he respected learned men of other religions also. Once the Maharaja wiped off the dust from the feet of a Muslim mendicant with his long grey beard.

Lepel Griffin calls Ranjit Singh ‘the beau ideal of a soldier – strong, spare, active, courageous and enduring’. Brave like a lion, Ranjit Singh led his armies and often fought in the forefront like a common soldier. He was thoroughly conversant with the various arts of war. He always planned his campaigns well in advance. While leading his campaigns against the tribesmen of the North West frontier region, he always engaged the tribesmen in the plains and took care not to follow them in their hills. Victor Jacquement, a French visitor to the court of Ranjit Singh, compares Ranjit Singh with Napoleon Bonaparte. True, Ranjit Singh used Machiavellian methods, the policy of ‘force and fraud’ to gain his ends, but he was never cruel and blood thirsty. Rather, he treated the vanquished with kindness and consideration.

According to Baron Von Hugel: ‘The sole aim of Ranjit Singh is the preservation and extension of his unlimited power and though his ambitious mind considered all means perfectly allowable to this end he has never wantonly imbued his hands in blood. Never perhaps was so large an empire founded by one man with so little criminality’.

As a ruler Ranjit Singh showed deep solicitude for the welfare of the people. He took adequate care to safeguard the interests of the common man against official oppression. It is said that a box was affixed outside his palace in which his subjects could lodge their complaints. The key of this box was personally kept by the Maharaja. He also paid personal visits to various parts of the country to acquaint himself with the actual state of affairs. Men of all communicates enjoyed the benefits of his mild and merciful administration. Faqir Aziz-ud-din, a Muslim, was his foreign Minister and was greatly trusted by the Maharaja. Jamadar Khushal Singh, the Dogra brothers, Teja Singh occupied very high positions in the Lahore Darbar. Dhian Singh Dogra was the Prime Minister and enjoyed the title of ‘Raja’. Above all, Ranjit Singh gave to the people of Punjab the blessings of peace, the like of which they had not seen in the past hundred years.

It is difficult to regard Ranjit Singh as a constructive statesman. The kingdom he had so assiduously built up disintegrated within a decade of his death, and the Maharaja himself cannot escape the responsibility for that. He had so greatly concentrated all administration in his hands that his disappearance from the scene caused not a ‘vacancy’ but a ‘void’ and the entire structure began to crumble. Besides, Ranjit Singh failed to subordinate the army to the civil authority. So long as he lived, his personal influence kept the army under control, but after his death, the army got out of control, but after his death, the army got out of control, dabbled in politics and reduced the civil government to a mere non-entity. Again, unlike Shivaji, Ranjit Singh did not breathe into the hearts of the people any sentiment that could keep them together after his death. Perhaps Shivaji’s successors were as incapable as Ranjit Singh’s successors, but the History of Maharashtra after the death of Shivaji is quite different from the history of Punjab after the Maharaja’s death. Nowhere is Ranjit Singh’s short sightedness more apparent than in his dealings with the English. Realizing full well that the English were throwing a cordon round his kingdom and fully cognizant of British expansionist designs he bided his time and avoided a conflict. On several occasions, he thought of going to war with the British, but his courage always failed him. The Maharaja left the inevitable task of fighting with the English to his weak and incompetent successors.

Notwithstanding his short-sighted policy Ranjit Singh occupies a high place in Indian history. The memory of this hero is still cherished by the people of Punjab. Summing up the achievements of Ranjit Singh Cunningham writes: ‘Ranjit Singh found the Punjab a warring confederacy, a prey to the factions of its chiefs, pressed by the Afghans and the Marathas, and ready to submit to English supremacy. He consolidated the numerous petty states into a kingdom, he wrestled from Kabul the fairest of its provinces and he gave the potent English no cause of interference’.  He rolled back the tide of invasion from the northwest and extended his sway up to the Northwestern Khyber Pass. Above all, he left behind a tradition of strength, and it is here that history enthuses posterity.

SIGNIFICANCE OF THE WAVELL PLAN

 The Wavell Plan – 1945

Lord Wavell who had succeeded Lord Linlithgow as Governor General in Oct 1943, now made an attempt to resolve the deadlock in India. In March 1945, he went to England for consultations. The result of his consultations was soon reveled. On June 14, he broadcast to the people of India the proposals of the British government to resolve the deadlock in India. He proposed the reconstruction of the Governor General’s Executive Council pending the preparation of a new constitution. With the exception of the Governor General and the Commander in chief (who would retain his position as war member) all other members of the executive council would be nominated from amongst leaders of Indian political life. This Council would have a balanced representation of the main communities, including equal proportions of Muslims and caste Hindus. It would work, if formed, under the existing constitution. Though the Governor General’s veto would not be abolished, it would not be used unnecessarily. The portfolio of External Affairs (other than those of tribal, and frontier matters which had to be dealt with as a part of the defense of India) was to be transferred from the Governor General to an Indian member of the Council. A conference of representatives chosen by the Viceroy was to be convened with a view to obtaining from the leaders of the various parties a joint list, or, failing it, separate lists of worthy people to constitute the new executive council. It was expected also that provincial minister in section 93 provinces would resume office and that there would be coalitions.

The members of the Congress Working Committee were let out of jail, and high hopes prevailed on all sides as invitations for the proposed Simla Conference went out to the leaders including Gandhiji. Meeting on June 25, 1945, the conference was adjourned after three days of discussion. On July 11, Mr. Jinnah had a short interview with the viceroy, during which he seems to have made it clear to the latter that the League wishing to be regarded as the sole representative of the Indian Muslims, was firmly opposed to the inclusion of any non-leaguer Muslims in the Viceroy’s list. But the Viceroy could not agree to this point of view. Three days later, Lord Wavell wound up the conference by declaring a failure of the talks.

The responsibility for the failure lies partly on Lord Wavell himself and partly on Mr. Jinnah. At a Press Conference, Mr. Jinnah stated: ‘On a final examination and analysis of the Wavell Plan, we found that it was a snare… this arrangement by which… we would have signed our death warrant. Next, in the proposed Executive we would be reduced to a minority of one third. All the other minorities such as Scheduled Castes, Sikhs, and Christians have the same goal as the Congress. On the top of this came the last straw… that even about the five members of the Muslim bloc which were allotted to communal will… the Muslim League was not entitled to nominate all the Muslim representatives. But we finally broke as Lord Wavell insisted upon his having one non-leaguer, a nominee of Malik Khizr Hyat Khan representing the Punjab Muslims’.

The Congress President (Maulana Azad) put the responsibility for the breakdown squarely on the shoulders of Mr. Jinnah. Lord Wavell, however, cannot escape the responsibility either. Lord Wavell’s procedure could have been easily iproved upon. He should have taken the leaders into confidence as regards the composition of his own list of members of the executive council. Possibly the Congress leaders might have been persuaded to accept that list either as a whole, or with minor modifications mutually agreed upon. Then, he should not have allowed the league practically to veto the whole plan and thus alone to block the path of progress. (Gandhiji, on whom the Cripps Proposal had fallen flat, felt that the Wavell Plan was sincere in spirit and contained the seeds of independence). It must be noted in this connection that the viceroy had assured the Congress President that ‘no party to the conference could be allowed to obstruct settlement out of willfulness’, but it seems that as in the parallel case of Cripps’, Wavell’s hands were stayed at the last moment. One tangible result of the failure of the Simla Conference was to strengthen the position of Mr. Jinnah and the Muslim League which was clearly manifested in the elections of 1945-46.

FOUNDATION COURSE II NOTES

 FOUNDATION COURSE II NOTES

Cick on the topic you would like to study / learn more about

Globalization and Indian society

Understanding the concepts of liberalization, privatization and globalization

Growth of information technology and communication and its impact manifested in everyday life - world wide web, GIS 

Impact of globalization on industry

Changes in employment and increasing migration

Changes in agrarian sector due to globalization

Rise in corporate farming and increase in farmers’ suicide

 

Human rights

Concept of human rights

Origin and evolution of the concept

The Universal Declaration of Human Rights

Human Rights constituents with special reference toFundamental Rights stated in the Constitution

 

Ecology

Importance of Environment Studies in the currentdevelopmental context

Understanding concepts of Environment

Ecology and their interconnectedness

Environment as natural capital and connection to quality ofhuman life

Environmental degradation – causes and impact on human life

Sustainable development – concept and components; povertyand environment

 

Understanding stress and conflict

Causes of stress and conflict in individuals and society

Agents of socialization and the role played by them indeveloping the individual

Significance of values, ethics and prejudices in developing the individual

Stereotyping and prejudice as significant factors incausing conflicts in society

Aggression and violence as the public express of conflict

 

Managing stress and conflict in contemporary society

Types of conflicts and use of coping mechanisms for managing individual stress

Maslow’s theory of self actualization

Different methods of responding to conflicts in society

Conflict resolution and efforts towards building peace and harmonyin society

 

While all the above topics can be expressed in your own words and have been discussed in class the links will help as guidelines for your answer. However, you may express your answers in your own words and giving / explaining your point of view. All the Best!!!

ARCHAEOLOGICAL SOURCES | ANCIENT INDIA

Assess the importance of archaeological sources for the study of social and economic history of India.

Sources are divided into archaeological and literary.

Archaeological sources include inscriptions, monuments, coins and other antiquities.

Literary sources include contemporary works written by court historians, autobiographies, surveys and accounts of the empire, court bulletins and newspapers, religious, literary and foreign accounts.

Archaeological sources

Archaeology derives its name from the Greek words, ‘archaious’ meaning ‘ancient’ and ‘logos’ meaning ‘knowledge’. Archaeology means ‘the science of ancient things’ or ‘ a branch of knowledge dealing with the remains of ancient human activity’.

The late Rai Bahadur K. N. Dikshit aptly says that archaeology is a handmaid to history, and this handmaid is thoroughly faithful and can be relied upon to bear the torch correctly to the dim recesses of long forgotten passages of history.

As archaeology means the systematic study of antiquities and the weaving of the earliest history of nations and peoples from the remains of buildings, burial places, implements and monuments, belonging to periods of which we have few or no written records, its importance as a valuable source is great.

The archaeologists have brought to life a great number of inscriptions of antiquity which were recorded on rocks and pillars. However, these inscriptions could not be read due to the ignorance of the script in which these inscriptions were written. But the mystery was solved by James Princep in 1837, by his discovery of the Brahmi script. Princep’s discovery inaugurated a new age in the research of India’s great historical antiquity. A number of scholars like Ferguson, Cunningham, Dr. Bhau Daji and Dr. Rajendra Lal Mitra made great contributions to the understanding of different branches of Indology.

Extensive excavations were carried out laying bare the remains of two great cities of what is known as the Indus Valley Civilization or Harappan Culture, the first urban civilization of the Indo-Pak subcontinent. The find of a few seals of this civilization at some sites in Iraq helped in dating the civilization to the later centuries of the third millennium B.C. The discoveries evoked great interest and extensive explorations were undertaken in Sind and Baluchistan. Many other sites of the Harappa Culture, together with other proto-historic sites, variously contemporary with or earlier or later than the Harappa were discovered.

Archaeological material which can be used for the reconstruction of history may be broadly classified under the following heads: inscriptions, numismatics and monuments.

Inscriptions – Ancient people used to inscribe writings on tombs, temples, stupas, palaces, houses, walls, rocks, slabs, bricks, earthenware pots, plates, precious and semi precious stones, sculptures, metals, metallic objects, etc.

The historians of ancient India attach highest value to inscriptions as they are the most important to the studies auxiliary to literature. They are authentic as most of them are engraved on stone and metal and are thus free from the process of tampering to which books or other documents written on perishable materials are liable. Although not always dated, the character of the script enables us to determine their approximate age. Thus we can be sure while using the material from inscriptions that they contain what was originally written. While in the case of books, there is a possibility of interpolations by known and unknown authors, that is not the case with the inscriptions. Their genuineness cannot be doubted.  

By analysing the contents of the inscriptions, they can be grouped under the following heads: commercial, magical, religious and didactic, administrative, eulogistic, votive, or dedicative, donative, commemorative and literary.

Commercial inscriptions – As regards commercial inscriptions, their specimens are to be found on the seals of the Indus Valley. Some of these seals must have been used for the stamping of bales of merchandise, commodities like pottery, etc. These seals may have been used by sea-faring people engaged in foreign trade. It seems that Nigamas and Srenis, which were commercial organisations had the power of minting their coins and they must have possessed seals to be used for commercial purposes. Their record on perishable materials must have disappeared. However, there are references to the use of seals for commercial purposes in other inscriptions such as the Mandasore stone inscriptions of the time of Kumaragupta and Bandhuvarman.

Magical inscriptions – Examples of magical inscriptions are found in the Indus Valley Seals which were used as amulets. These seals contained magical formulae on them. The seals have not been deciphered as yet and it is difficult to know their contents. However, they are very likely to contain the names of deities which are represented by the animals. The animals represented on the amulets are the antelope, buffalo, Brahmi Bull, composite animal, elephant, goat, hare, human figure, monkey, rhinoceros, short horned bull and tiger. Some of the deities represented by them are the moon, Yama, Siva, Indra, Brahma and Durga.

Religious and didactic inscriptions – Religious and didactic inscriptions deal with religious and moral matters. Possibly, some of the Indus Valley seals and tablets were objects of worship and were not used as amulets. The inscriptions of Ashoka are the best examples of the religious and didactic inscriptions. The edicts of Ashoka are appropriately called Dhamma-Lipi.

Administrative inscriptions – The inscriptions of Ashoka, engraved on rocks and pillars were found throughout his vast empire, from beyond the Indus int eh West to the Mysore Plateau in the South. These are royal proclamations and commandments mostly in his own words, and convey across 22 centuries the life and personality fo a great man and a great ruler with a striking vividness to which there is hardly any parallel  in the history of the world. The inscriptions of Ashoka form a class by themselves and contribute largely to our knowledge of the history of the period.

Eulogistic inscriptions – From the political point of view the eulogistic inscriptions (prasatis) are very important. Generally, they contain the name and genealogy of the ruler concerned. They also include the earlier career of the King, his military, political and administrative achievements, the existence of contemporary states coming into conflict with him and the inter state relations, the administrative system, the political ideals, the personal accomplishments of the king, his patronage, munificence and charity and mythological or puranic allusions by way of comparison and similes. One of the difficulties in these inscriptions is that there is a tendency on the part of the authors to exaggerate the achievements of their patrons.

Eulogistic inscriptions can be subdivided into two part – pure eulogy and eulogy mixed with other types. The edicts of Ashoka form a category by themselves. The Hathigumpha inscription of Kharavela of Kalinga belongs to the category of pure eulogy. It describes in detail the achievements of King Kharavela in a chronological order. The Allahabad Pillar Inscription of Samudragupta describes in great detail the personal qualities and military achievements of the great Gupta emperor and forms the chief document of his memorable reign. The Gwalior Prasasti of King Bhoja similarly throws light on the imperial Pratiharas, another forgotten dynasty of ancient India.

The number of inscriptions which contain eulogy mixed with other matter is very large. In practically every document of a permanent nature, reference is made to the glories of the ruling sovereign and his ancestors.

Votive or dedicative inscriptions – There are a large number of votive or dedicative inscriptions. It is possible that some of the tablets found in the Indus Valley contain votive inscriptions. Many of the dedicative inscriptions deal with the installation of images and the construction of temples.

Donative inscriptions – There are many donative inscriptions. Some such inscriptions refer to the donations of caves or other buildings for the residence of monks and ascetics. Some refer to the donation of money in the form of a permanent endowment. Out of these funds, the Brahamanas and the needy were fed, lamps were lighted in the temples, etc. In some inscriptions, there is a reference to the donation of lands and villages to the monasteries, educational institutions and the Brahmanas.

Commemorative inscriptions – Inscriptions of commemorative nature record such events as birth, death or other important events.

Literary inscriptions – A number of inscriptions have proved to be of great value for the reconstruction of the literary history of India. They help to determine the date of the poets and to trace the development of literature.

Inscriptions are found engraved on all sorts of material, but more commonly on metals and stones. Among the metals, copper was the material which was commonly used for the writing of inscriptions. An inscription copper plated was called Tamrapata, Tamrapatta, Tamrassana, Sasanapattra or Danapattra according to its contents. It is remarkable to note that land grants were invariably inscribed on copper plates and were handed over to the donee so that they may serve as title deeds. Fa-Hein tells us that he found in many Buddhist monasteries copper plates which referred to the grants of land. Some of them were as old as the time of Buddha.  

Copper plates were of different sizes and thickness. Some of them were so thin that they could be bent easily and there were others which were very thick and heavy. The size of a copper plate depended upon the contents of the document and the size of the commonly used writing material in the area where the copper plate was used.

Besides copper, instances of inscriptions on gold leaf or silver scrolls are known. Bronze and brass are more in evidence in the shape of plates, images and utensils. Iron was also used as material for inscriptions but on a modest scale. An important example is the famous iron pillar at Meharauli near Delhi.

The stone inscription include rock – surface, walls of artificial or natural caves, pavements, pillars, slabs, statutes and reliquaries. Besides, bricks, earthenware, clay tablets, terracotta plaques, wood, shells, crystal and even ivory were used as materials for inscriptions.

The various inscriptions are found in the languages current at different periods and localities – Sanskrit, Pali, mixed dialects, or the languages of Southern India such as Tamil, Telugu, Malayam and Kannada. Some of them are of considerable literary merit, being either in prose or verse or a combination of the two. The majority of the inscriptions are in the Bramhi script, written from left to right. But a good number are also inscribed in the Kharosti script running like Arabic and Persian, from right to left.

Numismatics

The importance of numismatics for the study of political, religious and economic history of India is very great. Coins help us to build up the history of the country in many ways. They give us the names of the kings who ruled at various times in different parts of the country. In many cases, the coins are the only information we have regarding the existence of certain kings. Without those coins, the very existence of those kings would have remained unknown. Many a times, the information from the coins can be used to corroborate the evidence from other sources such as the Puranas, etc. The coins also help us to fix up the chronology. The location of coins helps us to determine the extent of the territory of the king. The discovery of a large number of roman coins in India confirms the fact that there was a brisk trade between India and the Roman Empire. That also refers to the economic prosperity of India.

Gold was probably used as money during and before the time of Buddha but no gold coins have been found. The earliest coinage of India so far known are in silver and copper. They are called punch marked and cast coins because of the techniques employed in making them. They are uninscribed and therefore it is difficult to identify the names of their issuers. Punch marked coins are metallic pieces, more or less rectangular in shape, with symbols punched thereon. The cast coins, usually of copper and used along with the punch marked currency, were made from moulds.

After the Greek invasion of India, the practice of writing the names of the Kings on the coins was started.

The coins have also been a chief source of our information regarding the various Indian states, both monarchial and republics that flourished during the same period. Coins are good materials for our knowledge of constitutional and administrative history of ancient India. Coinage is also an important source of art history and iconography. Early Indian coins that contain either a combination of symbols or human or animal figures and symbols, often present the earliest form of a particular deity.

The issue of coins is naturally associated with the country’s economy. Accordingly, the role of coins in the reconstruction of economic history is obvious. The earliest of the punch marked coins are usually dated around fifth century B.C. These types of punch marked coins which were found in abundance over the whole of the Indo – Pakistan subcontinent are believed to have been issued by the Mauryas. They must have controlled trade routes converging in Afghanistan and commanded a favorable foreign trade. The import of big quantities of Roman gold into India and favorable trade balance led to the issue of gold coins by the Kushanas and later by the Guptas. Pliny’s lament on the drainage of Roman gold to India was well founded.

The legend the effigy on the coins aid the historian to reconstruct the religious history of the period. They serve as additional testimony to the evidence we get from the inscriptions.

Monuments

In addition to inscripitons and numismatics, monuments such as buildings or parts there of, statues of stone or metal, terracotta, ornamental and decorative fragments, pottery and various other objects of a miscellaneous character are of great importance in tracing the history and evolution of Indian art. In addition to individual monuments, sometimes we have the vast remains of an ancient city laid before us. Some of them, like Mohenjodaro and Harappa, have opened before us an altogether new type of civilization, reaching back to an age of which no memorial in India were known before.

Expert examination of buildings, monuments and works of art has greatly enriched our knowledge of Indo-Aryan culture. Stupas, temples and other religious buildings help us to trace the development of religious thought.

In India, numerous buildings, buddhist, Jain, brahamanical and secular offer a fascinating study. They are rich store houses of information for the story of Indina religion, art and society. The digging of the old sites of Pataliputra gives us some information regarding the old capital of the Mauryas. The excavation of Taxila throw light on the History of the Kushanas. A study of the sculptures found they give us an idea of the Gandhara School of Art. The excavations at Sarnath have added to our knowledge regarding Buddhism and Ashok. The excavations in Chinese, Turkestan and Baluchistan by Stein prove the close contacts of India with those countries.

It is a commonplace knowledge that the art of a country reflects to a fair extent its culture and thus provides a key to the proper understanding of some higher aspects of its civilization. The sculptural panels sometimes enable us to know something of the social life of the community.

 

 

 

 

LITERARY SOURCES | ANCIENT INDIA

How do indigenous literary sources help in the study of social and economic history of ancient India? Illustrate with examples.

Examine the literary sources for the study of socio-economic history of ancient India.

Discuss the importance of literary sources in the study of the social and economic history of ancient India.

Critically examine the importance of foreign literary sources for the study of the social and economic history of ancient India.

 

Sources are divided into archaeological and literary sources.

Archaeological sources include inscriptions, monuments, coins and other antiquitites.

Literary sources include contemporary works written by court historians, autobiographies, surveys and accounts of the empire, court bulletins and newspapers, religious, literary and foreign accounts.

The earliest literature of India is purely of a religious kind. However, the scholars through their patience and hardwork could succeed in extraction from it useful bits of historical information. As regards the sacred literature, reference may be made to the Rigveda, Samaveda, Yajurveda and Atharvaved. Out of the four vedas, the Rigveda is the most ancient and gives a lot of information regarding the history and the political system of the Aryans. It also gives us historical information relating to the progress of the Aryans in India their internal divisions and wars with the ‘Dasyas’. The Brahmanas are a prose commentary on the Sahitas or the Vedic hymns. The Aryankas and the Upanishads contain the philosophical meditations of the learned sages on god, the soul and the world. They give us a picture of the religious thought of the Aryans. Besides there are six vegangas which were intended to help the understanding of the Vedic text. In course of time special schools of thought came into existence for a systematic study of the various branches of Vedic knowledge. Those schools evolved special texts of their own known as Sutras. The Kalpasutras are manuals on rituals and there are four divisions of them. The Srautasutras deal with the rules relating to big sacrifices. The Grihyasutras deal with rules relating to domestic rights. The Dharmasutras deal with Dharma or Law. The Sulvasutras deal with the measurement and the building of places of sacrifice and fire altars.

The two great epics, the Ramayana and Mahabharata are the most famous books in Sanskrit next to the vedas. These epics contain what we may call the rudiments of history. Even the greatest critics do not deny the fact that the stories told in the epics may be magnified echoes of some historical events. The epics throw light on the political and social conditions of the people in their times. The Aryans had developed by then a large number of small kingdom along the banks of the Gangas and the Jamuna and their tributaries. The Aryans were warlike and were constantly forming alliances and waging wars. Though the power of the king was growing, big empires had not yet come into existence.

The Brahmasastras like the Smritis of Manu, Yajnavalkya, Vishnu, Brihaspati, Narada and others, also give us a lot of information about the Hindu society. They lay down the rules according to which the Hindus were required to conduct their lives. Punishments were also provided for the breach of those rules. According to Dr. Buhler the Manusmriti was composed between 200 BC and 200 AD. The other Smritis must have been written after that period.

The traditions preserved in ancient Indian literature notably the Puranas form the main source of information for the history of the earliest period and for the period before the 6^th century BC, they constitute our only source. According to Dr. Winternitz, the Puranas are valuable to the historians as a source of political history on account of their genealogies, even though they can only be used with great caution and careful discrimination. The Puranas, 18 in number, which are said to have been recited by the ’Suta’ Lomahsana or his son (Sauti), Ugrasravas. These Puranas throw light on all aspects and phrases of Hinduism.

The Poet Bana knew the Puranas very well and mentions that he attended a reading of the Vayu Purana in his native village. Kumarila Bhatla relies on the Puranas as a source of law. Shankara and Ramanuja referred to the Puranas as ancient and sacred texts. Al-Beruni was familiar with the Puranas came into being as early as the first century of the Christian era. There is a resemblance between the Buddhist Mahayana texts of the first century of the Christian era and the Puranas. All of the 18 Puranas are not equally important for historical purposes. As source material for History we depend largely on the Vishnu Purana, Vayu Purana, Matsya Purana, Bramha Purana and Bhavishya Purana. Dr. V. A. Smith has shown that the Vishnu Purana is very reliable as regards to the Andhra and Saisunga dynasties. The Vayu Purana describes the rule of Guptas as it was under Chandragupta I.

The Puranas help us in rebuilding the History of Ancient Indian geography in which we come across the names of a number of cities which existed in their times. According to N. Mukhopadhyaya the Puranas form an important portion of the religious literature of the Hindus, and together with the Dharmashastras and Tantras, govern their conduct and regulate their religious observance at the present day. According tot Pradhan, ‘the puranas profess to give us the ancient history of India. In doing so they begin form the earliest Rigvedic period describing genealogies of Kings who established kingdoms and principalities and thus parcelled out and ruled ancient India’.

Inspite of their utility in reconstructing the history of ancient India, the Puranas contain certain serous shortcomings. History is mixed up with fables and folk lore. The legends int eh Puranas are religious and not historical. They sometimes treat contemporaneous dynasties or rulers as successive, or omit some of them entirely. The Puranas are silent about the Kushanas, Indo Greeks, Indo Parthians, etc. Dr. Altekar points out that in the dynastic lists, the Puranas themselves do not say that each successor in the list was a son or relative of his predecessor. No dates are given and even names of kings are often inaccurate.

The Buddhist Literature give a lot of information regarding the period which immediately preceded the accession of Bimbisara. It throws light on many topics which are not dealt with by the Brahmanical writers. The Buddhist literature is found in two languages – Pali and Sanskrit. The Pali Buddhist Literature is divided into three Pitakas – The Vinaya Pitaka, the Sutta Pitaka and the Abhidamma Pitaka. Besides the religious literature of the Buddhists, there is a mass of non religious literature. The most important among these is the ‘Milinda Panha’ (Questions of King Milinda). It is names after the Greek King Menander. It discusses a number of questions and disputed points of Buddhism. The ‘Dipavamsa’ and ‘Mahavamsa’ are the chronicles of Ceylon. The ‘Lalitavistara’ and ‘Vaipulya Sutras’ are important works in Sanskrit dealing with Buddhism. The Lalitavistara contains the story of the life of Buddha. The Vaipulya Sutras deal with Buddhist doctrines in 9 books.

The Jatakas deal with the previous births of Buddha. According to the Buddhists, Gautama Buddha had to pass through a series of births before he was born as a Sakya Prince and got enlightenment. About 549 Jataka stories have been collected and published. The Jatakas are of unique importance as they represent the entire life and thought of their age. They give us supplementary information which help us to check up information available from Brahmanical works. The Jatakas throw light on the political, social, economic and religious condition of the people. The Jatakas have been assigned to the 2^nd or 3^rd century BC. According to Dr. Winternitz, ‘the Jatakas were of inestimable value, not only as regards literature and art, but also from the point of view of the history of civilization for the period of the third century BC.

Jain literature also contains a lot of historical information. Prof. Jacobi and Dr. Banarasi Das have done a lot of work on Jain literature.

Several literary and other secular works supplement our knowledge of ancient India. The Mudraakshas of Visaka Data gives the story of Chandragupta Maurya and Chanakya. It explains how the Nandas were overthrown and Chandragupta became the King of Magadha. The Arthashastra of Kautilya (Chanakya) contains a lot of information regarding the system of administration. It also gives an idea of the social and religious life of the people.

Patanjali’s Mahabhasya and Panini’s ‘Ashtahyayi’ are works of Sanskrit grammar, but there are occasional references to Kings, republics and other political events.

Certain writers brought out their literary works based on the lives of their royal patrons:

Banabhatta, the great master of Sanskrit prose, wrote ‘Harsha-Charita’ – the life of Emperor Harsha.

Two poets Vakpati and Bhilana, described the exploits of Yashovarman and Vikramaditya of the later Chalukya dynasty in two epic poems, the ‘Gaudavalsa’ and the ‘Vikramankadeva Charit’.

We also have a curious poetical work the ‘Rama Chatia’ in which the author uses throughout verses of double entendre, which taken one way describes the story of Ramayana and taken the other way describes the story of King Ramapala of Bengal. The other biographical works are ‘Kumarapala Charita’ of Jayasimha, ‘Kumarapala Charita’ of Hemchandra, Hammira Kavya of Naya Chandra, Navasashanka Charita of Padmagupta, Bhojaprabandha of Ballal, Prithvirajavijay by an anonymous writer, and Prithviraja Charita by Chand Bardai.

The various dramas written during this period also throw light on the political, social, economic, religious, and cultural aspects of ancient India.  The dramas of Kalidasa, such as ‘Shakuntala’ give useful information about the social life of the people. The two dramas of Bhasa known as ‘Svapnavasavadatta’ and ‘Pratijna Yaugandharanya’, give us interesting information about the political conditions of India in the time of King Pradyota of Ujjain. The three dramatic works ascribed to Harsha throw interesting light on the history of seventh century AD. Those plays are the ‘Nagananda’, the ‘Ratnavali’ and the ‘Priyadarsika’.

In Rajatarangini, Kalhana narrates the career of each King in chronological order. He gives a fair amount of detail, showing scrupulous impartiality in his criticism of men and events. Thus, he exhibits soundness of judgment and healthy liberality in his general expression of views. Gradually approaching nearer to his own age, Kalhana’s history becomes fuller and more filled with interesting accounts of men and things. It ceases to be merely a chronicle of dry details and faithfully presents the ebb and flow of national life, the periods of glory and misery and the greatness and weakness of men and rulers. Thus, Kalhana presents in his Rajatarangini all those minute details which make history a record of intense human interest, faithfully portraying the march of events through which a people works out its own destiny.

Kalhana’s Rajatarangini not only gives the History of Kashmir in a chronological order but also reflects Kalhana’s views on what he considered to be good government. According to Kalhana, the King should be strong rigidly controlling his underlings but benevolent towards his subjects and sympathetic towards their wishes. He should choose his advisors wisely and listen to their advice. At many places Kalhana has expressed his disapproval of the Damaras, the petty feudal chiefs who had reduced Kashmir to anarchy and misery. Kalhana was strongly opposed to bureaucracy.

As regards local history, references may be made to a large number of chronicles of Gujarat. These include well known works like Rasmala, Kirtikaumudi of Somesvara, Sukritasamkirtana of Arisimha, Prabandhachintamani by Mertunga, Parbandhakosa by Rajasekhara, Hammiramdamardana of Jayasimha, Sukritakirtikallolini of Udayaprabha, Vasantavilasa of Balachandra and others. These are treasure houses of stories and fables as well as historical anecdotes. The two biographies of Kumarapala and these chronicles enable us to trace the history of Gujarat, especially under the Chalukyas.

There are also local chronicles of Nepal, which merely contain a list of kings and the duration of their reigns, with only a few details here and there. The earlier portion of these Vamavalis, as they are called, is purely mythical, but there seems to be an historical basis for the accounts relating to the period commencing from the first century AD.

In the Dravidian language there are many historical references to the political history of India from the second century AD onwards. The Tamil Sangam works of the second and third centuries, gives us useful information about the South Indian civilization. In Kannada, Telugu and Malayalam there are many poems which give us useful information about the history of South India.

Foreign Sources

The accounts of any country and its people by foreign observers are of great interest to the historian of the country for they enable him to know what impression it made upon the mind of such observers and to estimate with greater confidence the part played by it in the general history of the world.

For the proper study of ancient Indian History, Greek sources are greatly important. India was known to the Greeks even before Alexanders invasion. But it is very unfortunate that most of this evidence is available to us only in fragments.

The first to write a book on India was Scylax, whom Darius sent in about 517 BC on a voyage of exploration to find out the course of the Indus. Next came the two great writers Herodotus and Clesias. Herodotus (484-406 BC) who, though much more exact, deals more with a great deal of fairy tales. However, he refers to the conquest of a small part of India by Darius and has also made some useful observations about the peoples of northwest borders of India. Clesias’ accounts are full of fables.

The historian who came in wake of Alexanders invasion are more exact than the previous writers. They are Nearchus, Onericritus, and above all the celebrated Megasthenes, the ambassador of Seleucus Nikator, in the court of Sandracottes (Chandragupta Maurya). The work of Megasthenes ‘Indica’ extend only in fragments to quoted by other authors, contains some useful information about the people and social system of India. It is a comprehensive work on India, apparently divided into 4 books describing the country, its soil, climate, animals and plants, its government and religion, the manner of the people and their arts. Although the work of Megasthenes is both interesting and authentic, it cannot but be charged with serious defects and shortcomings. This may be due to the fact that he was a foreigner and failed to understand the language, the customs and manners of the people.

Among the Greek accounts a special reference may be made to the classical writers, who through their writings throw useful light on the Geography and natural history of India. The earliest of them is the anonymous author of the ‘Periplus of the Erythraean Sea’. He was a Greek settled in Egypt, who made a voyage to the Indian coast about 80 AD, and left a record of its ports, harbors and merchandise. Ptolemy wrote a geographical account of India in the second century AD on scientific lines. Since he has derived most of his data from secondary sources, necessarily some errors have crept in but on the whole if gives some useful information. Pliny gave an account of the Indian animals plants and minerals in the first century AD. These classical accounts most of which have been translated into English were generally prompted by a spirit of exploration of unknown lands and reflect great credit on their authors and the scientific spirit of the age in which they lived.

The Chinese travellers who visited India in different periods of History have left their accounts about India which are of great help in reconstructing the ancient Indian History. From the beginning of the Christian era trade and cultural relations between Indian and China were of the most intimate kind and lasted for well over a thousand years. From about 400 AD onwards there was a regular stream of pious Chinese pilgrims pouring into India. Some of these were great scholars, who visited nearly the whole of the subcontinent and spent years in studying Indian learning at the famous universities of the age. About sixty pilgrims have left valuable records of their travels in India. Three of them, Fa Hein (fifth century AD), Hieun Tsang and It-sing (seventh century AD) are better known than others. They have recorded their experiences in fairly bulky volumes which are preserved in their original forms and have bee translated into English.

All three of them spent a number of years in India and learnt its language. Fa Hein and Hieun Tsang travelled widely almost all over the country. However, these eminent Chinese visitors were all devout Buddhist monks, whose journey to India was merely a pilgrimage to holy lands. Thus, their outlook was purely religious. Neither Fa Hein or ItSing refer to secular matters, except very incidentally nor do they mention the name of the King or Kings whose dominions were visited by them. However, Hieun Tsang gives some interesting information about his royal patron Harshavardhana and other contemporary kings of India. He also briefly refers to the political condition of the kingdoms through which he passed and devotes an entire chapter to a general account of India. Further the works of the Tibetan Lama Taranatha, the Dulva’ and some aspects of the ancient Indian History. The Chinese travellers through their writings have rendered great service by depicting the state of Buddhism in India.

The Arab travellers, geographers and historians were attracted by India from eight century AD. The early Arab writers deal with the country and its inhabitants rather than on history in the proper sense. Among early works, Kitab al Fihrist, a great biographical collection, the Kitab futuhal Boldan of Al Beladori, Dictionary of Countries by Al Kazwin are worthy of mention.

From nineth century onwards India figured prominently in Muslim chronicles. For instance, the Kitab al Yamini of Utbi covers the history upot 1022 AD. The best account of India was written by Abu Rihan, better knonw as Al-Beruni. His sphere includes the whole range of human sciences such as philosophy, mathematics, chronology, medicine, etc. His book Taukh al Hind is an erudite work throwing much light on ancient Indian culture. It is universally regarded as a comprehensive work on India ever written by a foreigner. Al Beruni was a man of versatile genius and a scholar of Sanskrit. He was a contemporary of Sultan Mahmud of Ghazni. While the ruthless conqueror was harrying India by fire and sword, destroying and plundering its cities and temples, the great Arabic scholar engaged himself in studying the culture and civilization of the country. However, form the point of view of Indian history Al Beruni’s great work suffers from two defects. In the first place, he says little or nothing of the political condition of India. Secondly, his account rests primarily on his study of Indian literature and is not based on personal observation. He gives an admirable survey of the mathematics, physics, chemistry, astronomy, astrology, geography, philosophy, religious rites, customs, social ideas, etc., of India.

STATE IN ANCIENT INDIA | ECONOMIC FUNCTIONS - ANCIENT INDIA

STATE IN ANCIENT INDIA

Give an account of economic functions and social responsibilities of the state in Ancient India

Evaluate the role of the state in the ancient Indian economy

Short note on Economic functions of the Ancient Indian state

Shore note on role of state in economic life

Show how the ancient Indian state discharged its functions and responsibilities

 

State, in ancient India, had to play an important role in the administration and safe conduct of socio-economic affairs. The state itself took part in a number of activities demanding a close watch and control on sectors like trade, commerce, agriculture, handicrafts and labor problems.

Agriculture has been the chief occupation of India since early Vedic age. In the Pre Mauryan period agriculture was prescribed as the normal occupation of the Vaishya or the common man by the authors of the Dharmashastras. It was the task of the state to adopt a wise policy of encouragement and support to the cultivators of the soil.

Kautilya’s ‘Arthashastra’ helps us to draw the outlines of the policy of government encouragement to agriculture. Kautilya gives references relating to the law of agricultural holding (vastu). The Vastu or holding of the cultivator is defined as comprising tenements (griha), fields (kshetra), gardens (arama), embanked reservoirs (setubandha) as well as tanks (tataka) and other sources of water supply (adhara). The possession of vastu by the cultivator was safeguarded by a number of penal clauses. Thus, a forcible occupation of vastu is visited with the thief’s penalty. Robbery accompanied with violence in respect of fields, tenements and so forth was punished. Even the act of grazing cattle on another’s field without permission of the owner was punished with a fine.

From other clauses in the ‘Arthashastra’ we learn that the cultivators were entitled to the full rights of ownership, including those of sale, lease and gift over their holdings. Definite procedures were laid down for the sale of vastu, homestead lands, fields, gardens, irrigation works and of embanked reservoirs as well as for the lease of tenements, wells, tanks, rice fields and gardens. The transfers by gift of sale of fields within the rural area were required to be entered by the gopa in his field register of the village.

Choice of crop – In the choice of their crops, the cultivators were usually granted complete freedom. The only exception to this rule occurred in Kautilya’s program for lease of newly colonized lands to the cultivators and for raising extra revenue for the King in case of financial emergency. Neglect of cultivation was punished with cancellation of the lease. The ‘Samaharta’ (the chief revenue officer) was empowered to raise a second crop by the compulsory labor of the cultivators.

Encouragement of Agriculture – For the encouragement of agriculture the state adopted a number of measures. These consisted of the grant of agricultural loans and revenue remission to the cultivators and the construction of irrigation works by state agency or with state help. The loans as well as remissions were required to be entered by the gopa in his census of resident families of the villages. Revenue remissions were to be granted for five and three years respectively in favor of one constructing new and restoration of old or ownerless irrigation works. The interest of the cultivator was upheld by a clause of law exempting him from arrest for non payment of debt during the season of cultivation.

Agrarian Policy – According to Kautilya’s ‘Arthashastra’, the possession of land in the kingdom of Kosala carried with it the right of its disposal to buyers. The Dharmashastras contain clauses of law relating to the owners right over his tenants as well as to the lease holder’s obligation to the owner of the land. The field laborer’s obligations to serve his master was strictly enforced and a servant abandoning his work in tillage was to be flogged.

The Jatakas relate to the assignment of lands and villages by Kings. Such assignments were made in favor of members of the royal family, of Brahamanas, of officials as well as of private individuals of lower status. They appear to have been so well known that new technical terms were used to designate their different varieties. The assignees enjoyed the revenue of villages granted by the Kings probably in hereditary succession. We come across a class of ‘gramakhojakas’(village landlords) who exercised administrative and judicial powers by the king’s grant.

We learn from Kautilya’s ‘Arthashastra’ that the general policy of state administration was to discourage, if not forbid, the assignment of lands. There is mention of acquisition of land by members of the royal family, which were required to be entered by the ‘akshapataladhyaksha’ in his state register of the kingdom. On the other hand, the whole royal establishment consisted of members of the King’s family as well as of the civil and military services who were paid salaries according to their respective grades.

There are references in the ‘Artharshastra’ that some minor officials and Brahmanas were granted assignments of fields in the newly colonized rural areas. But the officers enjoyed their assignments without right of sale or mortgage. The Brahmanas alone were granted permanent rent free occupation of their holdings. It was also a fact that villages liable to military service in lieu of revenue were known at that time. the list of such villages were required to be entered by the ‘samaharta’ in his revenue role of villages in the kingdom.

Functions of rural officers – Describing the functions of the rural officers in the reign of Chandragupta Maurya, Megasthenes observes that they keep rivers improved and the land measured as in Egypt and inspect the closed canals from which the water is distributed into conducts in order that all may have an equal share. They collect taxes and superintend the crafts connected with land – those of woodcutters, carpenters, workers in brass and miners. From the description of the class of farmers by Megasthenes it appears that they were not only the most numerous, but the most highly respected class since they were exempted from military service and that they enjoyed the right of freedom in their farms.

Gupta Age – During the Gupta Period as well the state patronized agriculture. A concrete illustration of state care for agriculture is furnished by the Junagadh Rock Inscription of Emperor Skandagupta belonging to 445-58 of the Christian era. It records the restoration of the Sadarshana Lake at Girnar by the local governor of Skandagupta.

Industrial and commercial expansion – The first great age of industrial and commercial expansion in ancient Indian history can be traced to the pre Maurya period. The most complete development of the state policy in the industrial and commercial field during this period can be traced in Kautilya’s ‘Arthashastra’. A double attitude of the state towards the artisans and traders is found in his work. Special care was taken for the encouragement of trade and industry, as they were recognized as state’s greatest assets. A strict control was maintained over industrial workers as well as over traders for protection of the public against various malpractices current at that time among these classes. This was accompanied by an equally strict control of marketing operation in the public interest.

The state undertook a number of measures for the encouragement and security of artisans and traders. These included the opening of trade routes and the foundation of trade marts within the rural area and the settlement of artisans and dealers at specific sites of the metropolitan city. The king was directed to protect trade routes against various obstacles and danger. In the same spirit the ‘navahyaksha’ was required to treat with fatherly kindness boats that were strayed from their routes or damaged by bad weather. In particular, he was required to levy the custom duties at half their usual rates or even to remit them altogether on goods damaged by water. He was also required to destroy pirate boats. More important were the special laws laid down for protection of the property of the artisans and traders.

Punishment – The Arthashastra refers to the punishment for the theft of articles of small and high value belonging to artisans and traders. A number of police regulations were prescribed for making various officers personally responsible for the security of the merchants’ goods in course of transit within their respective jurisdictions. A number of rural officers such as the village headman, the officer in charge of pastures, the officer in charge of five or ten villages and the officer empowered to arrest thieves were required according to the distance to which the stolen articles have been carried to make good the value of their merchandise they were deprived of by a theft committed in the night.

The state took appropriate measures to control the artisans and traders for the purpose of ensuring honest dealings with the public. The dishonest practices of these classes, it appears, had become so notorious as to induce the moralists of this age to condemn them to punishment in hell after death. Kautilya’s measures form the subject matter of a chapter dealing with the subject of public enemies. A number of administrative regulations were directed against specific trades and professions branded as comprising men who are really thieves though passing as honest men. The measures comprised, firstly, the appointment of special benches of three magistrates (pradeshtas) for enforcement of law and regulations. Secondly, specification of the terms and conditions of work of the classes concerned along with penalties for their violations. Thirdly, fixing the rates of their remuneration and fourthly, an inquisitorial control over those classes.

There are references in Kautilya’s ‘Arthashastra’ regarding the state control over marketing operations. There were entrusted partly to the ‘sulkadhyaksha’ (officer in charge of the city custom house) and partly to the officer called pandyadhyaksha (officer in charge of merchandise) and samstahadyaksha (officer charged with control of stocks of dealers).

The ‘sulkadhyaksha’ had to collect custom duty on imported merchandise within the city limits and to arrange for its public sale at a fixed price. The ‘sulka’ had to be paid sometimes in cash and sometimes in kind according to the local usage. The rules in the Smrities suggest that the payment was usually in kind. Sometimes we come across inscriptions stating the actual quality of ghee, oil, cotton, betel leaves, etc., that was collected as customs duties in different places. Cash collections also were not unknown and they must have been usual in the case of imports of gold, silver and jewels.

Custom duties – Custom duties varied according to the commodities as in modern times. Manu recommends a 16% duty on fuel, meat, honey, ghee, scents, medicines, flowers, vegetables, earthen pots and leather goods. The ‘Arthashastra’ however, recommends a lighter tariff of four to five percent on medicines, fuel, leather goods and earthen pots. However, wines and silken pieces were charged a higher duty varying from 6 ½ to 10 %. It is clear that the tariff derived from province to province and age to age according to the needs of policy of different governments. Kautilya recommends that commodities intended for religious ceremonies and sanskaras like sacrifices, marriages, etc., as also presents given to the bride, should be exempted from the custom duties.

Ferry tax and shop tax – Along with eh customs duty, the ferry tax had to be paid for passengers, goods, cattle and carts. Besides some states used to test and stamp weights and measures and charge a small fee for the same. A shop tax is referred to in inscriptions. The 10% tax on sale proceeds referred to by Megasthenes is unknown to the ‘Arthashastra’ or the Smrities. Most probably the Greek ambassador confounded the customs dues with the sales tax.

The ‘panyadhyaksha’ was charged with the double function of controlling the home market for consumption of indigenous and imported goods and exploring the foreign market for pushing the sale of indigenous merchandise. In so far the home market was concerned this policy was designed to protect the public against unfair dealings by traders, while allowing the latter specific concessions. As for the foreign market the ‘panyadhaksha’ was expected to offer friendly advice and warning to the merchants engaged in export trade.

The ‘Samsthdhyakshas’ functions described appropriately enough under the caption ‘suppression of public enemies’ (literally, eradication of thorns from rural and urban areas) related principally to the protection of the public against the various malpractices of dealers.

The state collected various taxes and dues from the industry. As far as petty artisans like smiths and carpenters were concerned, it appears that they were usually required to work one or two days a month for the state. The central government usually transferred the right to receive the labor tax to the local bodies which could utilize it in carrying out their schemes of works of public utility. Inscriptions refer to this tax as ‘karukara’, the tax on artisans.

Trade in wine – Trade in wine was under strict state control. It was manufactured partly in state distilleries and partly by private agency. The wine prepared by the latter had to pay an excise duty of 5%.

Mines – All mines were regarded as state property. Some of them were worked by the government, but others were often leased out as well. When such was a case, the lease had to pay a heavy excise duty. According to Sukra it was to be a 50% in the case of gold and diamonds, 33 ½ in the case of silver and copper and 16-25% in the case of other metals.

Salt – Excise duty was levied on salt. Salt deposits could be worked only by the state or its licensees. Copper plate grants donating villages usually invest the donee with the right to dig for salt and metals without the payment of any fee.

Calamities – Apart from the usual taxation, the state was naturally empowered to levy extra cesses to meet unforeseen calamities, or to finance costly works of public utility, or to carry out its plans of ambitious expansion. The Arthashastra describes these extra contributions as ‘prayanas’ or benevolences and lays down that the farmers may be called upon to pay about 25 and merchants from 5 to 50 % according to their circumstances.

According to the description of Megasthenese, the ‘astynomoi’ (the city commissioner or the magistrates in charge of cities) in the time of Chandragupta Maurya were divided into seven boards of which three are mentioned here.

The first board had to look after arts and handicrafts, the fourth board was in charge of sales and barter and had to look after ‘measures and the fruits of the season’ so that the latter might be sold by stamp. The fifth board had the charge of the work done by artisans. According to the parallel account of Kautilya we find that the control of artisans and traders in urban as well as in rural areas by means of elaborate laws and regulations was entrusted to benches of three ‘pradeshtas’ for the purpose of protection of the public against the malpractices of the artisans and traders.

Promotion of trade: The state took keen interest in promoting trade. The first known reference in the ancient history of India to the construction and maintenance of trade routes by the state is found in Kautilya’s ‘Arthashastra’. The trade routes were looked upon as an asset of the state. It is said that the possession of land and water routes counted among the characteristics of a good ‘janapada’. Kautilya mentions about a few concrete steps to be taken by the state in pursuance of this aim. The construction and security of trade routes was associated with the foundation of villages in Kautilya’s program of development of the wastelands. In another place Kautilya mentions about the foreign policy aimed at the possession of trade routes. By the time of Chandragupta Maurya, as we learn from Megasthenes, a great royal road had been built for linking Pushkaravati, beyond the Indus river, with Pataliputra the imperial capital. The Mauryan rulers took extreme care for the improvement of transport and communication. From the observation of Megasthenes we learn that the rural officials were required to mark roads with pillars at every ten stadia to show the distances.

Loans – One aspect of development of economy during the pre-Mauryan age is the extensive use of agricultural, industrial and commercial loans to which the records of this period bear witness. This led for the first time in India’s history to state regulations for fixing the legal rate of interest in general and on a graduated scale. The legal rate was made sufficiently elastic to allow the increase of the prescribed rate or rates upto a fixed limit.

Capitalistic system: The capitalistic system of production was a well established institution during ancient times together with the age old domestic system.

Agricultural Production Standard: The standard of agricultural production was fully developed in the working of the state farms of which we have a detailed description in Kautilya’s ‘Arthashastra’. We may trace this development firstly, in the technical qualification of the controlling staff, secondly, in the larger provision for agricultural labor and the appliances of cultivation, thirdly, in the application of the most advanced scientific agriculture of the time for sowing the seeds, fourthly, in the precise rules for the payment of wages of the laborers and lastly in the precise terms of the share of the crops allowed to the lease holders.

Domestication of animals: The first complete description of the state rearing of domestic animals is given by Kautilya. Draught animals were required for providing transport for civil and military purposes. In the layout of the metropolitan cities sites were set apart for stabling the cattle, horses, asses and camels belonging to the royal establishment. Two separate ‘adhyakshas’, functioned for the management of state herds. These were by ‘goadhyksha’, who was in charge not only of the cattle but also of camels, asses, goats and sheep belonging to the category of the state herds. The other was the ‘asradhyaksha’ who was in charge of the horses and mules.

Forests: Forests formed another important source of the state income. Kautilya includes forests as a separate item in his classification of sources of revenue. The economic products of the forest consisted according to Kautilya’s enumeration of the sub-types called the group producing hard wood, the bamboo group, the plant group, the group which produces ropemaking, paper manufacturing, dyeing materials and medicinal substances, the group which provides poisons, the remains of dead animals, base materials, bamboo and earthen ware.

Mines and minerals: Kautilya gives a vivid description of the state working of mines and minerals. A high officer in charge of mines (akardhyaksha) was entrusted with the overall control and supervision of all the relevant operations from start to finish, while other ‘adhyakshas’ with technical titles were required to deal with different branches of the mining industry and trade in minerals. The ‘akaradhyakha’ and his staff were required to have expert knowledge of the metallurgical sciences. They were entrusted with the discovery of disused mines. While the costly mines were leased out on a share or royalty basis, the rest were directly worked under his supervision according to the best technical process known at that time. The ‘akardhyaksha’ had to set up workshops for carrying out smelting and other operations according to the elaborate techniques described by Kautilya. Thereafter he had to arrange for marketing of the finished goods under strict official control. Living by the manufactured products with a state license was punished with compulsory labor at mines. Theft of mineral products was punished with eight times the value of the stolen article that of jewels being punished with death.

Textile Industry: The primary objective of the state textile factories was to produce fabrics for the needs of the civil and military administration. Rules for the working of the factories are laid down in the ‘Arthashastra’. Skilled male as well as female labor was employed for the operations of spinning and weaving. A special officer called ‘sutradhyaksha’ was incharge not only of spinning but also of the weaving operations.

Sale of state merchandise: The first known state trading, as of the state industries in ancient India occurs in Kautilya’s ‘Arthashastra’. According to Kautilya’s description the ‘panyadhyaksha’ (officer incharge of merchandise) had the task of promoting the sale of the state merchandise to the best advantage of home and abroad. He was to have a thorough knowledge of current market conditions. In so far as the home market is concerned he was required to collect the merchandise in excess of supply at one place for realization of its proper price and later to lower the price.

Marketing: Marketing of state merchandise of local manufacture was centralized. The state merchandise was to be sold at a fixed price to licensed dealers who were to be fined for lowering the price apparently for the purpose of attracting a larger number of customers. As regards foreign market, the ‘panyadhayaksha’ was to consider the differences in price levels of the local and the imported merchandise and to make a series of calculations for estimating the margin of profit likely to accure from the sale.

Weights and balances: There was an elaborate system of weights of balances, liquid and linear measures and measures of time. attempts were made to a standardization in the advanced state of administration of time. a state factory was set up for the manufacture of weights and measures and a special officer called the pautavadhaksha’ was placed in charge of the same. The weights were to be manufactured out of iron, or stone belonging to a particular locality, or of wood of a particular texture, while wooden vessels of a particular design and material were to be prepared for liquid measures. The inspection of weights and measures was to be carried by the ‘pauravadhyaksha’ every four months. A series of balances was manufactured so as to give a maximum advantage to the state in the collection of its dues.

Regulation of Coinage: The first clear account of state regulation of coinage occurs in Kautilya’s ‘Arthashastra’. According to Kautilya, the coins were struck by state authority. The work was entrusted to a special officer called ‘Lakshanadhyaksha’. Both silver and copper coins were issued. The silver coins were known as ‘ruparupya’ and copper coins were known as ‘tamrarupys’. Reference is made in another context to the manufacture of gold as well as silver coins, named respectively as ‘suvarnas’ and ‘dharanas’. The mint regulations were sufficiently precise.