UPSC History Optional · Paper II · 2021 · Q2(a) · 20 marks
India has been the world leader in the field of hand spun and hand woven yarn and cloth for many centuries. Many nationalist and Marxist critiques considered that the British dominion deliberately shattered the traditional and world famous handicrafts of India. Comment.
- Chapter
- Economic Impact of British Colonial Rule
- Topic
- Deindustrialisation and the Decline of Handicrafts
Model answer
A full model answer to this question is available.
Read the model answer →Similar questions from other years
- “Weaving”, says R. C. Dutt, “was the national industry of the people and spinning was the pursuit of millions of women.” Indian textiles went to England and other parts of Europe, to China and Japan and Burma and Arabia and Persia and parts of Africa. Elucidate.Paper II · 2013 · Q2(a) · 25 marks
- ‘The role of the East India Company proved disastrous to the handicraft industry in India for a number of reasons.’Paper II · 1991 · Q1(b) · 20 marks
- ‘The British industrial policy in the nineteenth century ruined the Indian handicrafts’.Paper II · 2001 · Q1(c) · 20 marks
- The Industrial Revolution in England accelerated the decline of traditional Indian handicrafts and cottage Industries. Critically examine the factors responsible for this decline and its impact on the Indian economy and society.Paper II · 2026 · Q7(a) · 20 marks
- “From Asia to Europe, from head to foot, everyone was clothed in Indian textiles.” Qualify this statement with a critical account of India's foreign trade with special reference to textiles.Paper I · 2026 · Q7(c) · 15 marks
- “A powerful left-wing group developed in India in the late 1920s and 1930s, contributing to the radicalization of national movement.” Critically examine.Paper II · 2015 · Q2(c) · 10 marks