Kerala Syllabus 10th Standard Social Science Solutions Chapter 4 British Exploitation and Resistance

Kerala State Syllabus 10th Standard Social Science Solutions Chapter 4 British Exploitation and Resistance

Kerala Syllabus 10th Standard Social Science Textbook Question 1.
‘The revenue policy of the British was the major cause for the decline of agricultural sector in India’. Examine this statement analysing the features of the Permanent Settlement.
Answer:
The Permanent Settlement was introduced by Lord Cornwallis, the Governor General of British India, in Bengal, Bihar and Orissa. Its features were:

  • In this system, the tax was collected by zamindars.
  • Zamindar was the owner of the entire land – where he had the jurisdiction to collect tax.
  • While the zamindars became the owners of land, the actual farmers became peasants.
  • Farmers were to pay up to 60% of the yield as tax.
  • Tax was to be paid even at the time of poor yield.
  • Tax was to be paid in cash strictly before the cut-off date.

Farmers were the immediate victims of British rule. It was the land revenue system implemented by the British that destroyed the backbone of farmers. The aim of their tax policy was to maximize income.

When the farmers were unable to pay tax in cash before ‘ the deadline, they had to take loan from money lenders at a high rate of interest. The loans were obtained by mortgaging the agricultural land. The agricultural land of the farmers, who could not pay back the loan and interest, was seized by money lenders.

Question 2.
Match Column A with Column B.

A

B

1. Santhal rebellion 1. Malabar
2. Mappila rebellion 2. Dadabhai Naoroji
3. Kurichiya rebellion 3. Rajmahal Hills
4. Drain Theory 4. Wayanad

Answer:

A B
1. Santhal rebellion 3. Rajmahal Hills
2. Mappila rebellion 1. Malabar
3. Kurichiya rebellion 4. Wayanad
4. Drain Theory 2. Dadabhai Naoroji

Question 3.
What were the circumstances that led to the commercialisation of agriculture during the British period?
Answer:

  • The British land revenue policies like permanent Settlement, Ryotwari System and Mahalwari System impoverished the Indian peasants.
  • High tax imposed on them made the peasants poor.
  • Cultivation of commercial crops instead of food crops.
  • To pay high rate of tax before the deadline, farmers cultivated crops that had higher market price.
  • The farmers were compelled to cultivate crops according to the market needs.

Question 4.
Analyse the causes of the Indigo Revolt.
Answer:
The demand for indigo increased after the progress in textile industry. The British industrialists gave the farmers a good amount as advance for the cultivation of indigo. The farmers yielded to the temptation of the British and widely planted indigo as they were in trouble with no other means to pay the heavy land tax. Each farmer who accepted the advance amount from the British was liable to plant indigo in a fixed portion of his land.

The farmers were also compelled to cultivate it at the most fertile part of the agricultural land. Due to the interference of the British agents in the harvesting season, the farmers received only a lower price for indigo. When artificial colours were invented, indigo became obsolete. This exploitation of the British forced the indigo farmers for a revolt.

Question 5.
‘Kurichiya rebellion was a resistance by the tribes against the British exploitation ’. What were the circumstances that led to the Kurichiya rebellion?
Or
Evaluate the circumstances that led to the Kurichiyas and Kurumbas of Wayanad to turn against the British.
Answer:
Kurichiya revolt was a tribal insurgency against the British. It was organised by the Kurichiya and the Kurumba tribes of Wayanad in 1812. Its reasons were:

  • Imposition of excessive tax by the British.
  • Compulsion for paying tax in cash.
  • Seizing the agricultural land for non-payment of tax.

Question 6.
What were the causes of the decline of the Indian textile industry?
Answer:

  • The import of machine-made textiles from Britain.
  • Low price of machine made textiles.
  • The expansion of railway. It helped the British to carry imported fabrics from port towns to interior villages and the cotton collected from the villages to the ports for exporting to Britain.
  • Traditional weavers lost their village markets.
  • Higher taxes imposed on the price of Indian textiles exported to Britain.
  • Local taxes imposed by the East India Company.

Question 7.
Do you think that the famines in India were the creation of the British? Why?
Answer:
The main reasons for the famine and poverty in India were the economic policies introduced by the British in India and their exploitation. Most of the people lived on the brink of famine all throughout the British rule. The economic exploitation of the British, decline of traditional industries, high tax, drain of wealth and resources, decline of agricultural sector and the exploitation by the landlords and money lenders all pushed the people to poverty.

When poverty became acute, famines broke out in different parts of the country. About 2 crore people died in the 24 famines that occurred in the second half of the 19th century.

Question 8.
Evaluate the role of ‘Drain Theory’ by Dadabhai Naoroji in stimulating national feeling among the Indian masses.
Answer:
Through his studies, Dadabhai Naoroji publicized the facts on the deterioration of Indian economy under the British rule. His studies were based on empirical data. He established the fact that a huge amount of money was flowing to Britain every year. He proved that the drain of wealth was the root cause of poverty and starvation in India.

This was known as ‘Drain Theory’. Indian wealth flew to Britain by the export of Indian raw materials, salary and pension to the British officers in India, profit gained through the sale of the British products in India and tax from India. Dadabhai Naoroji could make the people aware that the economic policy of the British impoverished India.

The common people realized that the poverty and exploitation they faced had been the creation of the British. It reinforced their anti-. British attitude which finally led to the growth of nationalistic feeling among the people.

Question 9.
Analyse the causes of the Revolt of 1857.
Answer:
Historians termed the Revolt of 1857 as India’s First War of Independence. This was an organized agitation launched by peasants, handicrafts men, kings and soldiers who were dissatisfied with the harmful policies of the British. There were many causes that led to the revolt.

Dissatisfaction among Indian soldiers:
Poor salary and abuse by the British officers were the major reasons for the resentment of sepoys. The rumour that the cartridge in the newly supplied Enfield rifles were greased with the fat of cows and pigs provoked them. It wounded the religious sentiments of the Hindu and Muslim soldiers. The soldiers who were unwilling to use the new cartridges were punished by the officers.

Discontentment among native kings:
The British rule had adversely affected the kings too. In addition to the Doctrine of Lapse, the princely states were convicted of inefficient rule and were annexed by the British. This made the kings to lead the rebellion.

Miseries of farmers and craftsmen:
The tax policy of the British pushed the farmers to poverty. Cottage and handicrafts industry declined due to the British policies. In the second half of the 19th century, different sections of oppressed people, mobilized against the British and launched organized agitations.

Question 10.
What were the sources of economic drain from India to Britain?
Or
What are the methods by which the wealth of India drained to Britain according to the Drain Theory of Dadabhai Naoroji?
Answer:

  • Tax from India
  • Salary and pension to the British officers in India.
  • Export of Indian raw materials
  • Profit gained through the sale of British products in India.

Question 11.
Do you think that the Swadeshi Movement was a mass movement? Why?
Answer:
The Swadeshi Movement was organised as a part of anti-partition movement of Bengal in 1905. The method of Swadeshi resistance was the boycott of foreign goods and consumption of indigenous products. As part of the agitation, foreign goods were collected and burnt publicly. The extensive use of indigenous products by discarding foreign items rejuvenated Indian industry.

Massive participation of women, labourers and students were the remarkable feature of this movement. Washermen took a vow that they would not wash foreign clothes. The priests swore that they would not perform rituals and prayers using foreign items. Women boycotted foreign bangles and utensils. Students quit school to take part in the movement.

Question 12.
Prepare the diagram that depicts the features of the Permanent Settlement, the Ryotwari and the Mahalwari land revenue systems.
Kerala Syllabus 10th Standard Social Science Solutions Chapter 4 British Exploitation and Resistance 1
Answer:
Permanent Settlement

  • Zamindar was the owner of entire land.
  • Pay upto 60% of the yield as tax.
  • Tax was to be paid in cash.
  • Actual farmers became tenants.

Ryotwari System

  • Introduced in South India.
  • Land revenue was collected directly from farmers.
  • Ownership of land was vested with farmers.
  • Tax rates frequently increased.

Mahalwari System

  • Village headman collected the tax.
  • Tax rate was excessive.
  • The entire village was considered as a single unit for tax collection.
  • Introduced in north-west regions.

Question 13.
How did the British land revenue policy make the peasantry fall easy prey to the exploitation of moneylenders? Explain.
Or
Evaluate how the revenue system implemental by the British adversely affected the agricultural sector.
Answer:
The land revenue system implemented by the British destroyed the backbone of the farmers. The land revenue policies implemented by the British adversely affected the agricultural sector. When the farmers were unable to pay tax in the form of money before the deadline, they had to take loan from moneylenders at a high rate of interest. The loans were obtained by mortgaging agricultural land. The agricultural land of the farmers who could not pay back the loan and interest, was seized by moneylenders.

10 Th Std History Notes Question 14.
Conduct a discussion on ‘British policies and commercialization of agriculture ’.
Answer:
During the British rule, the farmers were compelled to cultivate crops according to the market needs. As a result, commercial crops were cultivated instead of food crops. This transformation is known as commercialisation of agriculture.

The tax policies of Permanent Settlement and the Ryotwari system had great impact on agricultural sector. The farmers had to pay high rate of tax in the form of cash before deadline. To meet this, they cultivated the crops that had higher market price. The products that had demand in the European markets were given higher price.

Thus the Indian lands became the cultivating fields of indigo, cotton, jute for Europe. The commercialisation of agriculture led to the emergence of interference of British agents. Due to their interference, the farmers were forced to sell their products at low price.

Question 15.
Imagine yourself as a journalist. Prepare a news report on the plight of indigo farmers of the 19th century.
Answer:

Indigo farmers in misery Bengal :

The farmers of Bengal became t producers of indigo. The British forced the farmers to cultivate indigo for the factories set up by the industrialists in Bengal. They gave farmers a good amount as advance for the cultivation of indigo.

The farmers were in trouble with no other means to pay the heavy land tax. So they yielded to the temptation of the British and widely planted indigo. Due to the interference of British agents during harvesting season, the farmers received only a lower price for indigo. Now artificial dyes are used instead of indigo. This made the plight of the farmers more miserable for they had used much of their land for indigo cultivation.

As they had cultivated indigo in the most fertile part of their land, they were unable to cultivate food crops. Most of the farmers are on the brink of eviction due to high lease rate. The indigo farmers of Bengal prepare for an agitation against their unending misery and exploitation.

Question 16.
Analyse the circumstances that led to the Indigo Revolt.
Answer:
The British gave the farmers a good amount as advance for the cultivation of indigo. The farmers yielded to the temptation of the British and widely planted indigo as they were in trouble with no other means to pay the heavy land tax. The British gave only low price than the market price to the farmers. They had no freedom to cultivate the crops that give high profit. With the invention of artificial dyes, indigo became obsolete. This made the plight of the farmers miserable.

Question 17.
Analyse the reasons for the decline of Indian textile industry and complete the diagram below.
Kerala Syllabus 10th Standard Social Science Solutions Chapter 4 British Exploitation and Resistance 2
Answer:

  • Large scale import of machine-made textiles from Britain.
  • Low price of machine made textiles.
  • The expansion of railway.
  • Imported textiles reached villages.
  • High tax levied on textiles.
  • Imported textiles were cheap.

Question 18.
Prepare an article on the problems faced by different sections of people due to the British policies in India.
Answer:
Weavers gave up their work massively due to the exploitation and torture of the British officers. They forced the weavers to work at meagre wages and to exchange the products to them at cheaper rate. So they searched for other jobs. The village industries like pottery, tanning and carpentry declined. This pushed the villages to famine and poverty.

In the 19th century, the British industrialists started modem industries like textile, jute, steal and paper. The labourers in these industries were also exploited. Prolonged working hours, meagre wages and unhealthy accommodation were the problems that they faced. The workers agitated when they suffered extreme exploitation.

Question 19.
Discuss the causes of the Revolt of 1857 based on the hints given below.
i) Miseries of farmers.
ii)  Poverty of the craftsmen.
iii) Dissatisfaction of kings.
iv) Miseries of the sepoys.
Answer:
The historians termed the Revolt of 1857 as India’s First War of Independence. All sections of people were dissatisfied with the British rule.

i) Miseries of farmers:
The land revenue policies of the British in India namely the Permanent Settlement, Ryotwari System and Mahalwari System impoverished the peasants. When the farmers were unable to pay tax in cash before the deadline, they had to take loan from moneylenders at a high rate of interest by mortgaging their land.

The moneylenders seized the agricultural land of farmers who could not pay back loan and interest. The farmers who cultivated commercial crops as a result of the commercialization of agriculture also had to suffer losses.

ii) Poverty of the craftsmen:
The British policies completely ruined not only the agricultural sector, but also the handicrafts in India. Large scale import of machine-made British textiles was the major reason for the ruin of Indian texti le industry.

Weavers gave up their work massively due to the exploitation and torture of the British officers. They searched for other jobs. The village industries like pottery, tanning and carpentry also declined. The ruins of agricultural sector and handicrafts industry led India to famine and deaths due to starvation.

iii) Dissatisfaction of Kings:
The British rule had adversely affected the kings also. In addition to the Doctrine of Lapse, the princely states were convicted of inefficient rule and were annexed by the British. Lord Dalhousie, the British Governor General, annexed the princely states of Satara, Jhansi, Nagpur and Sambalpur using the policy of Doctrine of Lapse. This made them to lead the revolt.

iv) Miseries of the Sepoys:
Poor salary and abuse by the British officers were the major reasons for the Sepoy’s resentment. The rumour that the cartridge in the newly supplied Enfield rifles were greased with the fat of cows and pigs provoked them. It wounded the religious sentiments of Hindus and Muslim soldiers. The soldiers who were unwilling to use the new cartridges were punished by the officers.

Thus the Revolt of 1857 was the first organised rebellion in India against the wrong British policies.

Social Science Short Notes For Class 10 Kerala Syllabus Question 20.
Prepare a note on Drain Theory.
Answer:

  • Dadabhai Naoroji put forward the Drain Theory.
  • Through his studies, he published the facts on the deterioration of Indian economy under the British rule. He established the fact that a huge amount of money was flowing to Britain every year. He proved that the drain of wealth was the root cause of poverty and starvation in India. This is known as Drain Theory. This is included in his work ‘Poverty and Unbritish Rule in India’.
  • The Indian wealth flew to Britain by:
    • Export of Indian raw materials.
    • Salary and pension to British officers in India.
    • Profit gained through the sale of the British products in India
    • Tax from India.

Question 21.
Conduct a Seminar on ‘How the economic exploitation of the British earned the emergence of nationalism ’.
Answer:

Seminar

Topic: The Economic Exploitation of the British and the emergence of Indian Nationalism
Introduction:
The economic exploitation of the British created an anti-British feeling among different sections of people. This attitude was a major factor that led to the emergence of Indian nationalism in the 19th century.

Emergence of Indian nationalism :
Nationalism is the sense of unity among the people of a country irrespective of caste, creed, religion and region. Indian National Congress was an example for such an organised form of nationalism.

The land revenue policy of the British pushed the farmers to poverty. The high land tax made most of the peasants landless. Commercialisation of agriculture was another reason that led to the decline of agricultural sector. Traditional industries also suffered a set back due to the economic exploitation of the British. Anti-British feelings became intense, resulting in a state of unity among the people. This unity can be termed as nationalism.

Indian National Congress:
The Indian National Congress led the anti-British struggle from 1885 till India attained independence in 1947. The earlier leaders of the Congress were much conscious of the economic exploitation of the British and the resultant poverty faced by the Indians. They unveiled the British attempts to convert India as a market for selling British products, and a mere centre for collecting raw materials for British industries.

Dadabhai Naoroji and Drain Theory:
Dadabhai Naoroji through his studies publicized the facts on the deterioration of Indian economy under the British rule. He established the fact that a huge amount of money was flowing to Britain every year. He proved that the drain of wealth was the root cause of poverty and starvation in India. His finding known as ‘Drain Theory’ is included in his work ‘Poverty and Unbritish Rule in India’.

Ideas of early Congress leaders:
The earlier leaders like Dadabhai Naoroji, Ramesh Chandra Dutt and Gopal Krishna Gokhale had a pivotal role in making the common people aware of the economic policy of the British that impoverished India.

The common people realized that the poverty and exploitation they faced had been the creation of the British. It reinforced their anti-British attitude. The nationalism grown out of such awareness is termed as ‘Economic Nationalism’.

Swadeshi Movement and Nationalism:
To check economic drain, the early national leaders pleaded with the people to boycott foreign goods and strengthen Indian industry by consuming Indian products. The major strategy adopted for the anti-partition movement in Bengal in 1905 was the boycott of foreign goods and consumption of indigenous products.

Indian nationalism attained further strength from Swadeshi Movement. The protests against the British policy of looting India’s wealth and impoverishing the Indians transformed as Indian nationalism.

Kerala Syllabus 10th Standard Social Science Solutions