scholarly journals Impact of British Raj on the Education System in India: The Process of Modernization in the Princely States of India – The case of Mohindra College, Patiala

2017 ◽  
Vol 5 (1) ◽  
pp. 13-28
Author(s):  
Kanika Bansal

British rule is said to have been responsible for the modernization witnessed in the Indian civilization. The impact of this process was quiet evident from the changes adopted by the Indians in their life style, thinking processes, attires, food and education. Besides the advancements made in the spheres of roads, transports, postal services etc, their rule acted as a significant period of transition from the indigenous style of education to western education. The foundations were laid by the East India Company and the Christian Missionaries to employ Indians for administrative tasks as well as to serve their political, economical and colonial interests. Originally the access to education was limited to the royal families, as the British were of the opinion that Indians could become aware of their rights and positions and protest against their Raj posing a threat to the British establishment in India. Lord Curzon’s efforts in the 20th century gave way to spread of higher education within the masses and channelized Indian education system. However the rulers of the Princely States in of India who were granted autonomy by the British to manage their own kingdoms acted as major agents to undertake the social and educational reforms within their territories. With the spread of education from elementary to higher levels, many new schools, universities and other institutions were developed during this period which are symbols of educational advancement as well as hold high architectural merit. Patiala, aprime princely state is a well known academic centre also important for its rich culture since the British Raj. Education in Patiala originated under the Maharajas with the opening of the school of languages in 1860A.D. With the introduction of Mahindra College (the first Degree College in a city) in 1870, became came an important educational centre. It was the only college between Delhi and Lahore for a long time that promoted contemporary higher learning in Northern India. The historic college building represents an aesthetic mix of regional interpretation of Indo-Saracenic style of architecture. Later on many educational institutes catering to medical facilities, sports education etc. was set up in this princely state. This paper is thus an attempt to explore the education reforms during the British Raj, the changes that happened and their triggers. It also brings out reforms initiated in Princely States specifically Patiala as a seat of learning and a detailed study of the Mohindra College, Patiala, that represents an excellent example of educational institutions developed during the 19th century. The present study was done as a part of an academic project undertaken during Masters of Architecture under the able guidance of Prof Kiran Joshi..

2020 ◽  
Vol 4 (1) ◽  
pp. 143-153
Author(s):  
Abdul Rashid Tahir ◽  
Qaswar Abbas Khan

Different ethnic groups of India challenged the British Raj in the Great War of Independence-1857. A large number of local soldiers from different districts of Punjab province also left the British Army to stand up against the brutality of East India Company. Meanwhile, the people of the Gogera District played their vital role against the colonial forces. Among them, Ahmad Khan Kharal, Murad Fatiana, and their comrades set up a freedom fight at a vast level to challenge the hegemony of the imperialistic Army.  Their struggle had such momentum that it nullified the British control over a large area of Punjab, especially the Gogera District. Another development that invited the colonial wrath was that the people of the Gogera District refused to give revenue to the British government. This was an open rebellion that posed a serious challenge to the British Authority. The freedom fighters under the leadership of Ahmad Khan Kharal sacrificed their lives to protect their religious, cultural, and ethnic values.  In this article, the resistance and the revolutionary role of the masses of Gogera are evaluated.


2014 ◽  
Vol 9 (S310) ◽  
pp. 74-77
Author(s):  
M. Sansottera ◽  
L. Grassi ◽  
A. Giorgilli

AbstractWe study the secular dynamics of extrasolar planetary systems by extending the Lagrange-Laplace theory to high order and by including the relativistic effects. We investigate the long-term evolution of the planetary eccentricities via normal form and we find an excellent agreement with direct numerical integrations. Finally we set up a simple analytic criterion that allows to evaluate the impact of the relativistic effects in the long-time evolution.


2021 ◽  
Vol 5 (I) ◽  
pp. 164-186

The formal colonial rule of Britain ended seven decades ago but the experience deeply influenced the minds of the masses and altered their lives and psyche for a long time to come. Post-colonial issues such as loss of identity, hybridity, otherness, appropriation, etc are frequently highlighted by the Anglophone writers of the sub-continent. The authors of Pakistani descent have contributed remarkably to post-colonial literature. The present research aims to analyze Nafisa Haji’s novel The Writing on My Forehead (2009) to investigate the Western influence on the minds and behaviors of the people of the subcontinent. Homi K. Bhabha's analytical lens (1994) is the primary guide for this research. Three elements of hybridity, namely mimicry, ambivalence, and unhomeliness, as proposed by Bhabha are explored. The concepts of diaspora and othering in the work under discussion are also briefly touched. This research is qualitative and descriptive in nature. The results of the detailed textual analysis indicate that various characters are hybrids of East and West. The phenomena of ambivalence and mimicry can be clearly observed in their conduct and thinking. The most important characters in this regard are Saira, Adeeba (also known as Big Nanima), and Kasim who openly mimic the Western culture. Minor characters like Adeeba’s parents and Shabana, though averse to Western culture at the surface level, are unconsciously influenced by it. The phenomena of othering, diaspora, and unhomeliness are also briefly touched. In this way, the present study sheds light on the impact of colonialism on the lives of colonial subjects and links it with the continued hegemony of the West over the Easterners. It will be helpful for students, teachers and researchers who wish to study Haji’s fiction and the impact of the phenomenon of colonialism.


Author(s):  
Svetlana E. Sidorova

The article examines the doctrine of lapse, which was actively used in the 1840-1850s by the British authorities in India. The status of princely state could be abolished and the land was transferred to the East India Company if the ruler was either manifestly incompetent or died without a male heir. In 1854, this was the fate of the Nagpur princely state, one of the largest political formations in the South Asian subcontinent. The liquidation of the court and princely privileges took several years and was accompanied by an exchange between Bhosle family and the British officials of memoranda, notes and letters, which reveal in detail the “kitchen” – practices and theoretical justifications – of this kind territorial annexations. Methodologically, the proposed analysis is localized in the field of Emotion Studies and is specifically devoted to imperial feelings that developed in the zone of interaction between different levels of the power hierarchy formed by the colonial situation. The Sepoy uprising of 1857-1858, which became one of the consequences of the “doctrine of lapse” policy and endangered the very existence of the British Raj, forced the British authorities to abandon the further territorial expansion and pay more attention to the sentiments of local rulers, many of whom sided with the rebels. Later establishing ties with local traditional elites, building emotionally trusting relationships with them became an important area of activity of the colonial administration, in which a lot of funds and efforts were invested.


2017 ◽  
Vol 30 (01) ◽  
pp. 23-32
Author(s):  
Nazir Ahmad Bhat ◽  
Shabir Ahmad Ganaie

Purpose This paper of this study is to attempt to explore the status of collection in agricultural libraries of Northern India and assess the magnitude of impact of the advent of electronic information resources (EIRs) on the contemporary acquisition. Design/methodology/approach While adhering to the survey method, the questionnaire was used as a data collection tool to collect data from university librarians. Telephonic interaction and e-mail correspondence were also used to clear doubts, remove ambiguities and obtain data of higher significance from the respondents. Findings The majority of the agricultural libraries in Northern India have a sound collection of information resources in the print form, which may continue to act as a source of attraction for users in the future for a long time to come. Yet, the acquisition of information resources in the print form across the studied libraries continues at routine pace, and as such the advent of e-resources seems to have not yet laid any prominent impact on acquisition of resources in print form. E-Books have not yet been fully incorporated into the library collection and that e-journal collection “CeRA” (Consortium for Electronic Resources in Agriculture) seems to gratify the needs of users of these libraries, as no additional e-journals are seen to be subscribed to at present. Research limitations/implications Only seven agricultural libraries have been taken as a sample. Moreover, the work is confined to only two aspects, i.e. current status and the impact of EIRs on acquisition of information resources. Other aspects like those of collection development, storage and accommodation, preservation, library functionality and library services need to also be studied. Originality/value This is first work of its nature in Northern India with agricultural libraries as their domain. The findings will help the librarians and the library advisory committees decide on logical grounds about the proportion at which the print and electronic forms of information resources need to be acquired.


2004 ◽  
Vol 9 (1) ◽  
pp. 19-45 ◽  
Author(s):  
KANCHAN CHOPRA ◽  
SAROJ KUMAR ADHIKARI

Modeling the factors determining ecological and economic value gives rise to conceptual and methodological problems. Economic valuation typically focuses on use value in the short run, whether within or outside the market. Ecologists, however, are more concerned with ecological values, which provide an underlying long-run notion of value interpreted in a more general sense. This paper investigates the nature of the link between these two aspects of value in the context of a wetland in Northern India, which is also designated as a Ramsar site and a national park. A dynamic simulation model in a ‘STELLA’ environment is set up to understand the linkages between underlying ecological relationships and economic value emerging from them. The simulations point towards a critical dependence of economic value (direct and indirect income derived from the park) on ecological health indices. A non-linearity is to be seen in the impact of an increase in ecological health indices on tourist traffic. This responsive or elasticity with respect to ecological health is more at higher values of the indices, indicating thereby that once efforts at conservation increase the attractiveness of the park above a certain level, the impact may be cumulative and returns in terms of income may rise more than proportionately.


2021 ◽  
Vol 4 (Special Issue) ◽  
pp. 40-48
Author(s):  
Punita Kapoor

In 1849, Punjab was annexed by the English East India Company. This paper deals with the Punjab Exhibition of 1881, where along with textiles, arts and other local handicrafts of India were put on display. Claiming to revive the indigenous Indian arts, crafts and textiles, the exhibition represents the politics of selected exhibits that catered to the taste1 and choice of the British. The exhibition helps in understanding the objective and importance of conducting imperial exhibitions, as exhibitions were also redefining the European homes. A detailed analysis of the exhibition foregrounds how colonial rule redefined the idea and representation of indigenous handicrafts and art. The indigenous handicraft was also immensely being guided by the European market. Thus, the paper focuses on the aspects and strategy adopted by the British at promoting and preserving Indian art and textile. Moreover, efforts at preservation of the arts got institutionalised in the form of art schools. These were set up for the purpose of promoting and building taste for Indian traditional art in the British markets. The paper attempts to understand how the British shaped the notion of heritage and cultural difference between the coloniser and colonised and the ‘self’ and the ‘other’ through the exhibition. By analyzing the Punjab Exhibition 1881, the paper aims to deal with some pertinent issues such as strategic organisation and representation of the exhibits, as well as the legacy of the exhibition during colonial rule. The paper argues that though the British took to organising exhibitions to promote and preserve Indian art and textile, but in reality, it was a disguise aimed at establishing imperial supremacy over the colonised and maintain a hierarchical relationship of aesthetic and traditional culture between the ruler and the ruled.


2018 ◽  
Vol 18 (2) ◽  
pp. 134-151
Author(s):  
Andrea Circolo ◽  
Ondrej Hamuľák

Abstract The paper focuses on the very topical issue of conclusion of the membership of the State, namely the United Kingdom, in European integration structures. The ques­tion of termination of membership in European Communities and European Union has not been tackled for a long time in the sources of European law. With the adop­tion of the Treaty of Lisbon (2009), the institute of 'unilateral' withdrawal was intro­duced. It´s worth to say that exit clause was intended as symbolic in its nature, in fact underlining the status of Member States as sovereign entities. That is why this institute is very general and the legal regulation of the exercise of withdrawal contains many gaps. One of them is a question of absolute or relative nature of exiting from integration structures. Today’s “exit clause” (Art. 50 of Treaty on European Union) regulates only the termination of membership in the European Union and is silent on the impact of such a step on membership in the European Atomic Energy Community. The presented paper offers an analysis of different variations of the interpretation and solution of the problem. It´s based on the independent solution thesis and therefore rejects an automa­tism approach. The paper and topic is important and original especially because in the multitude of scholarly writings devoted to Brexit questions, vast majority of them deals with institutional questions, the interpretation of Art. 50 of Treaty on European Union; the constitutional matters at national UK level; future relation between EU and UK and political bargaining behind such as all that. The question of impact on withdrawal on Euratom membership is somehow underrepresented. Present paper attempts to fill this gap and accelerate the scholarly debate on this matter globally, because all consequences of Brexit already have and will definitely give rise to more world-wide effects.


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