Unit 10: Imperialism & Nationalism in India
Describe the "Old India" and the "New India".
"Old India" is described as a place that is largely agricultural, uneducated, and very poor. One of the pictures in the article shows a woman washing clothes in a Mumbai slum and is labeled "Old India". New (or modern) India transitioned when India gained independence from its longtime colonial ruler, Great Britain. After that, some of the population became more aware of the outside world and left their traditions to join the advancing world.
How did World War I affect India?
- Britain forced its colonies to contribute vast sums of money, raw materials, soldiers, and other resources to support the war effort. - The price of imported goods and grains rose to unaffordable levels. Some areas of the subcontinent were hit by famines. - The Lucknow Pact was signed, which was an agreement to present shared political goals to the British. These included the demand for self-governance and expanding the number of Indians with the right to vote.
List three ways the British tried to strengthen their authority following the great Revolt of 1857.
- The British heavily recruited soldiers from areas that had remained loyal during the Great Revolt. - To prevent spouse from challenging their authority, the British banned them from top military positions and kept them isolated from society. - British officials restricted Indians through legislation (laws passed in the 1860s and 1870s made natural resources and public spaces "state property" of the colonial government).
Cabinet Mission
In response to the escalating protests, the British sent another delegation, the Cabinet Mission, to negotiate the terms of a British withdrawal. The Cabinet Mission held meetings with the leaders of Congress and the Muslim League. The Cabinet Mission offered a proposal that grouped provinces into three clusters, each with its own government. The plan would keep India united , but give the Muslim League control over policies in the Muslim-majority groupings. But both parties rejected the offer because of their differences.
Civil Disobedience
A mass campaign that called on Indians to engage in nonviolent demonstrations and peacefully break laws.
Indian National Congress
A political party in India established in the late nineteenth century. It was the party of Mahatma Gandhi and Jawaharlal Nehru.
Satyagraha
A strategy of nonviolent resistance.
How and why did the economy start to change after 1991?
Because at that time the government began to turn away from socialism, loosening regulations, opening India to foreign investment, and adopting other free-market practices.
How does India's economic growth compare to China's? Explain.
China is a decade ahead of India because China started its reforms in 1979 and India only started reforming in 1991. But one of India's greatest strength is the youth of its population. About 600 million people are younger than 25 and about 70% of the population is under 40. No other country has such a favorable demographic picture.
Explain how each of the following factors may help or hinder India's economic growth:
Democracy: Competing interests and politics slow the pace of change, or sometimes block it altogether. Demography (large population of young people): One of India's greatest strength is the youth of its population. About 600 million people are younger than 25 and about 70% of the population is under 40. No other country has such a favorable demographic picture. International Companies: Foreign brands like Coca-Cola, Suzuki, and Levi's became touchstones across the country. Many international companies have set up factories and offices in India to take advantage of its large pool of English speakers and comparatively low wages. Infrastructure: The country's infrastructure (roads, bridges, airports, and railroads) needs a complete overhaul. India leads the world in traffic fatalities, and a startling number of the victims are schoolchildren. Caste System: Even though India's constitution outlawed caste discrimination in 1950, it still persists and especially in rural areas. Education system: More than a third of Indians are illiterate, and India's education system is stymied by corruption, incompetence, and have long been considered inadequate. Most parents send their children to low-cost private schools.
Why did Gandhi focus on the salt tax in the Civil Disobedience campaign?
Gandhi believed that a protest of the salt tax would unite Indians of all backgrounds. Different movements, such as the "no rent" campaign, pitted the poor and wealthy against each other, but all Indians resented the salt tax.
Khadi
Home-spun cloth. It was a way the Indians boycotted foreign goods.
Why were the events in Jallianwala Bagh in Amritsar called a massacre? Explain.
It was a massacre because even though the Indians had no intention to riot or use violence, the British soldiers perceived them as a threat. British General Reginald Dyer ordered his troops to fire upon the crown. At least 370 Indians were killed and approximately one thousand wounded.
Pakistan movement
It was first introduced in 1933 as a title for the Muslim community in the northwest provinces. The Muslim League promoted it as a political identity that connected Muslims across all provinces. People joined for different reasons. Some felt discriminated against as religious minorities and did not believe the Congress would protect them after a British withdrawal. Others, who were members of the Congress as politicians and students, were upset with the ways Hinduism had been incorporated into the nationalist struggle against British rule. Islamic leaders believed a separate territory was necessary for Islam to survive changes in the subcontinent. In April 1946, the Muslim League announced the establishment of one independent country made up of all the Muslim-majority provinces in the northwest and northeast.
In the negotiations for independence, what were the goals for each of the following groups (what did they want independence to look like):
Muslim League: They wanted Pakistan: a self-governing, independent state made up of the Muslim-majority provinces in the northwest and northeast. Indian National Congress: They didn't want a separate Pakistan and demanded that independence should be given to a united India. British: They wanted India to be a unified, central Indian government because then, India could become an important ally to the British in the Cold War.
Muslim League
One of the main political parties in Pakistan. It was formed in 1906 in India to represent the rights of Indian Muslims; its demands from 1940 for an independent Muslim state led ultimately to the establishment of Pakistan.
What is outsourcing? What is a call center?
Outsourcing is when American companies put factories and offices in rising nations like India and China and give jobs to the local people. Call centers are offices that are set up to handle a large volume of telephone calls, especially for taking orders and providing customer service.
Which groups participated in the Non-Cooperation Movement?
People from rural regions to urban regions, and from peasants to middle-class people (students, professionals,etc.). Muslim Indians provided the most support, specifically a group of Muslim Indians known as the Khilafat Movement.
Mohandas Gandhi
Political and spiritual leader during India's struggle with Great Britain for home rule; an advocate of passive resistance (1869-1948).
How did World War II affect Congress and the Muslim League? Compare each group's position on the war and whether they gained or lost influence during the war.
The Communist Party was a growing party. The Muslim League supported the decision, even though the British did not consult them or other Indian group, because they believed that challenging the growing threat from Germany, Japan, and Italy outweighed resisting the British Raj. The Indian National Congress stated that it would only support the British war effort if Indians were immediately included in the central government and India must unconditionally receive independence after the war.
How did Indians protest the Rowlatt Bills?
The Rowlatt Bills allowed Indians to be detained and tried without jury. The Indians protested this by following Gandhi in satyagraha, nonviolent resistance.
Government of India Act
The law was intended to appease some groups, while maintaining tight control over the colony. The act maintained British's control over the central government in matters of defense (the railway system and finances). In the provinces, the act turned over governance to Indian representatives (British governors could override legislation and, at any point, abolish Indian-led governments in the provinces). The act also allowed thirty million Indians to be able to vote (1% of the population from 10%).
British Raj
The part of the Indian subcontinent under direct British rule until India and Pakistan achieved independence in 1947.
How did the Great Depression affect India? How did Indians protest their economic problems?
The prices of India's main cash crops plummeted, the British continued to demand taxes from the Indians, and many factory owners imposed longer workweeks and lower wages on employees. The Indians protested by carrying out workers' strikes and "no rent" campaigns in which tenants refused to pay their landlords. Many middle and upper class Indians boycotted British goods and foreign businesses. Even wealthy textile business owners began demanding the British for economic protection for Indian industries.
Self-determination
The process by which a country determines its own statehood and forms its own allegiances and government.
How did the railway system strengthen the British Raj? How did the railways affect Indian society?
The railways helped the British achieve two major goals: the quick transport of military troops and the rapid delivery of raw materials to coastal ports. They were also large moneymakers for the government and British private investors. The railways affected the Indian people because the forests disappeared, individuals and families were able to travel by train to religious festivals and on pilgrimages, and new towns popped up around railroad terminals. Urban centers doubled or tripled in size, while communities excluded from transportation routes were vulnerable to unemployment.
How does the story of Ashok Khade illustrate how India is at a crossroads?
The story of Ashok Khade shows that India's strict and discriminative caste system is holding back India's children. Ashok was forced to sit on the floor, below the other students, when he attended school. Other "untouchable" children would have probably followed their parents poor way of life, but Ashok is a special case because he was determined to be better and he did.
Rowlatt Bills
They allowed Indians to be detained and tried without jury.
Mohammad Ali Jinnah
Took on a leading role in directing the future of the Muslim League after previously being a member of Congress.
How did the British government respond to Civil Disobedience?
With mass arrests and force. Thousands of people were arrested and the British police brutally beat peaceful participants in the Salt March. Also, detention camps were set up in some provinces.