Tuesday, June 29, 2010

Growth of Nationalism in India

The Rise of National Consciousness

The rise of national consciousness in the 19th century was essentially the result of the British rule. The economic, political, and social changes brought about by the British rule resulted in the oppression of all classes of people giving rise to a widespread dissatisfaction among the masses. The uniform system of administration, development of post and telegraph, railways, printing press and educational institutions created by the British Indian Government became instrumental in providing favourable condition for the rise of the nationalism.

The British economic policies in India led to the ruin of agriculture and handicraft industries. The British agrarian policy was mainly aimed at drawing out maximum land revenue. The peasants had to borrow money from moneylenders. The money lenders charged exorbitant rates of interest. The Government helped the zamindars and moneylenders. As a result of British land revenue policy a large number of peasants were reduced to landless labourers. In the field of industry the artisans faced great hardships. Thus almost all the sections of Indian society were suffering under the British rule. This discontent expressed itself in the form of scattered revolts. RevTo overcome the problems the British evolved some administrative measures and new policies. These measures also helped the development of national consciousness among Indians.

Factors for the rise of Nationalism
Several factors were responsible for the rise of nationalism in India. For a better exploitation of Indian resources the British brought large parts of India under a uniform system of administration. The emergence of the Indin nation was a major factor in the rise of nationalism. The British adopted a policy of destruction of local self sufficient economy and introduced modern industry and trade on an all India basis. This made India’s economic life a single one and interlinked the economic life of the Indians. The very existence of foreign rule that oppressed all the Indian people irrespective of their caste, religion or region acted as a unifying factor.

Political Unity under British Rule
India was provided with political and administrative unity under the British rule. Common subjection, common institutions and common laws bagan to shape India in a common mould. This political unity fostered the spirit of nationalism.

Communication Network: Post and telegraph services were extended and improved. All the major towns were linked with telegraph. The first railway line was constructed in 1853 between Mumbai and Thana. People living at distant places got new opportunity to interact with one another. The modern means of communication enabled people living in different parts of the country to maintain regular contacts with one another and promoted the cause of nationalism.

The role of the Press and literature: The introduction of printing press made the transformation of ideas less expensive. A number of newspapers and periodicals started appearing. The Indian press played a notable role in mobilizing public opinion, organizing political movements and promoting nationalism. Newspapers like the Indian Mirror, The Bengalee, The Amrita Bazar Patrika, Bombay Chronicle, The Hindu etc exposed the excesses of the British administration. The press became the mirror of Indian nationalism. National; literature in the form of novels, essays and patriotic poetry also played an important role in arousing national consciousness. Bankim Chandra Chatterjee and Tagore, in Bengali, Lakshminath Bezbarua in Assamese, Vishnu Shastri in Marathi, Subrahmanya Barati in Tamil, Bharatandu Harishchandra in Hindi and Asaf Husain Hali in Urdu were some of the prominent nationalist workers of the period.

Western Thought and Education: As a result of the spread of modern western education and thought during the 19th century , a large number of Indians imbibed a modern rational, secular, democratic and nationalist political outlook.
They also began to study, admire and emulate the contemporary nationalist movements of European nations. Rousseau, Paine and other western thinkers became their political guides, while Mazzini, Garibaldi, and Irish nationalist leaders became their political heroes. The educated Indians were inspired by the dream of a modern, strong, and united India. Modern education also created a certain uniformity of outlook and interests among the educated Indians. The English language became the medium of communication and exchange of ideas between educated Indians from different linguistic regions of the country.

Economic Exploitation
The impact of British rule on the economy of India was disastrous. The British drained off the resources of India in a most systematic and unjust way. Indian agriculture and industry received a set back. The trade policy of the British in India destroyed Indian trade. Famines became a regular feature of Indian economy.

Rediscovery of India’s past: Many British writers and officials advanced the thesis that Indians had never been able to rule themselves in the past, that Hindus and Muslims had always fought one another. They argued that the Indians were destined to be ruled by foreigners, that their religion and social life were degraded and uncivilized making them unfit for democracy or even self- government. The nationalist leaders tried to arouse the self- confidence and self-respect of the people by countering this propaganda. They pointed to the cultural heritage of India with pride and referred the critics to the political achievements of rulers like Asoka, Chandragupta Vikramaditya and Akbar.
In this task they were helped and encouraged by the work of European [ Max Muller, Monier William etc.] and Indian scholars in rediscovering India’s national heritage in art, architecture, literature, philosophy, science and politics. The re-discovery of India’s past history and culture had a deep impact on the minds of the educated class. This gave a new sense of confidence to the educated Indians and inspired them with a new spirit of patriotism and nationalism.

Racial arrogance of the rulers: Another factor for the growth of national sentiments in India was the tone of racial superiority adopted by many Englishmen in their dealings with Indians. Racial arrogance branded all the Indians irrespective of their caste, religion or class with the badge of inferiority. This made them conscious of national humiliation, and led them to think of themselves as one people when facing Englishmen.

Ilbert Bill controversy: Racial discrimination was carried in judicial matters also. The Ilbert Bill is a typical example. As per the British law a European subject could be tried only by a European judge. To put an end to the judicial disqualification based on race distinction Viceroy Lord Ripon asked the Law member Ilbert to prepare a bill enabling an Indian judge to try a European. There was a great opposition to the Bill among the European community. Finally the Bill had to be modified in such a way that a European can be tried only by a jury, half of whom were to be Europeans. This virtually defeated Ripon’s aim and he resigned. This sort of racial discrimination contributed to the growth of nationalism.

Repressive Measures of Lord Lytton
The reactionary policies of Lord Lytton also caused the rise of nationalism in India. His costly Afhan adventure, the pompous Delhi Durbar in the background of a terrible famine, the abolition of impoert duties, the Vernacular Press Act imposing restrictions on the freedom of the press, the Arms Act and the lowering of the age of admission to ICS examinations were all created feelings of mistrust and suspicion in the minds of the people.

Social Reform Movements
The socal reform movements like Brahmo Samaj, Arya Samaj, Theosophical Society and Ramakrishna Mission created in the minds of the people an intense love of the motherland based on deep faith in its past glory and future gratness. Leaders like Swami Vivekananda played leading roles not only in eradicating social evils but also in reviving pride in our ancient culture and heritage. They had roused the people from their slumber and projected their national consciousness.
Rise of Middle Class
The British rule led to the rise of a new middle class comprising businessmen, industrialists and financiers. This class was conscious of the fact that the British rule was a hindrance in the path of industrial progress and perosperity of the country. So they joined the national movement and helped it with money.

Reference
Bipan Chandra : Modern India
Sumit Sarkar : Modern India
Bipan Chandra edtd : Freedom Struggle
NCERT Text book
SCERT Text book Kerala

1 comment:

  1. helpful but u should give a little bit more effort on language for better understanding u are giving points in short that's good but their is no clarification on the particular topic

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