Beneficial or Detrimental : British Rule over India - CER

Dadabhai Naoroji (1825-1917) was an Indian political leader. He lived most of his adult life in London where he had a business and was the first Indian to serve in the British Parliament, representing a section of London. The excerpt below comes from a speech given by Naoroji on February 15, 1871 to a Meeting at the Society of Arts in London an organization whose regular lecture series featured discussion of issues related to transportation, business, art, architecture, technology, housing, education, and urban and rural affairs. The society’s members included British royalty, authors, and philosophers, who paid a yearly subscription that funded the organization’s work which included initiatives to improve education in England.

An excerpt from “On the Commerce of India”

The Benefits of British Rule for India:

In the Cause of Civilization: Education, both male and female. Though yet only partial, an inestimable blessing as far as it has gone, and leading gradually to the destruction of superstition, and many moral and social evils. Resuscitation of India's own noble literature, modified and refined by the enlightenment of the West.

Politically: Peace and order. Freedom of speech and liberty of the press. Higher political knowledge and aspirations. Improvement of government in the native states. Security of life and property. Freedom from oppression caused by the caprice or greed of despotic rulers, and from devastation by war. Equal justice between man and man (sometimes vitiated by partiality to Europeans). Services of highly educated administrators, who have achieved the above-mentioned results.

Materially: Loans for railways and irrigation. Development of a few valuable products, such as indigo, tea, coffee, silk, etc. Increase of exports. Telegraphs. Generally: A slowly growing desire of late to treat India equitably, and as a country held in trust. Good intentions. No nation on the face of the earth has ever had the opportunity of achieving such a glorious work as this. I hope in the credit side of the account I have done no injustice, and if I have omitted any item which anyone may think of importance, I shall have the greatest pleasure in inserting it. I appreciate, and so do my countrymen, what England has done for India, and I know that it is only in British hands that her regeneration can be accomplished. Now for the debit side.