Colonialism has much less to commend it than to condemn it. Not only has British colonialism reinforced the caste system in India and allowed the British to commandeer the natural resources of India as its own, in some ways, Britain left India much worse off than it was before. Britain's neglect of irrigation tanks and canals, for example, led to famines. Mike Davis, in Late Victorian Holocausts, "points out that there were 31...serious famines in 120 years of British rule compared to 17...in the 2000 years before British rule" ("The benefits of colonialism, and the way ahead...," 2005). The difference in the number of deaths was exponential. For example, during the seven famines that took place during the first half of the 19th century, a million and a half deaths occurred, but during the 24 famines in the last half of the 19th century, over 20 million deaths were listed in official records ("The benefits of colonialism, and the way ahead...," 2005).
On the other hand, there was one benefit of British colonialism in India-the opportunity for education. Of course, providing educational opportunities was not a completely magnanimous gesture on the part of the British; they wanted "to create 'interpreters between rulers and the ruled'" (Sanne, n.d., p. 12). As Sanne (n.d., p. 12) states, "In every province, the Departments of Public Instruction had control over the education of Indians." In the end, however, a better education was something that many Indians walked away with at the end of British colonialism, and it paid them great dividends in the post-colonial era.
The benefits of colonialism, and the way ahead. (2005). Musings. Retrieved on December 12, 2009 from: http://arunsmusings.blogspot.com/2005/01/benefits-of-colonialism-and-way-ahead.html
Sanne, S. (n.d.). British Colonialism in India and Its Influence on Indian Society. Retrieved on December 12, 2009 from: http://
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