NCERT 8th Class (CBSE) Social Science: Colonialism And Urban Change

Question:Give Example to show that the British neglected the walled city.

Answer: 

1. In the process of the designing a new capital, the British neglected the walled city.
2. There was no proper system of water supply. Nor were there proper drainage facilities.
3. There was no concept of underground drains. At some places, open surface drains were dug.
4. The grand havelis of the walled city also gradually collapsed. There were very few traditionally rich families left.
5. The British did not do anything to maintain the havelis were sold off.
6. Thus, these example show that walled cities were neglected by British.

Question: Why was there large-scale de-urbanization on India?

Answer: With industrialization in Britain there was large scale de-urbanization and de-industrialization in India. The following reasons were responsible for it:

1. The British turned India into a colony. India was made to export raw materials to England for use in the industries there. Goods manufactured in England were sent to India. People bought these goods in large number as they were much cheaper than the goods made India. This drove lakhs of Indian artisans out of work. The local textile industry was completely ruined. Towns such as Dacca and Murshidabad, which were famous for their textiles, became less important.
2. The British annexed large parts of India. The native rulers were displaced. As a result, there was a steep fall in the demand for luxury goods. The towns that produced these luxury goods declined in importance.

Question: What changes did Delhi witness in the twentieth century?

Answer: In  1911, King George V was crowned in England. To celebrate the occasion, a grand durbar was held in Delhi. It was in this durbar that the decision to shift the capital from Calcutta to Delhi was announced. The British the beautify The new city was deliberately made very different from the old city.

1. The British wanted to wipe out the memory people
2. They wanted to show the enlightened nature of their rule and how much they were doing for the people of India.
3. Edwin Lutyens and Herbert Baker embarked on the task of building the city of New Delhi. Worked on the city began on a hill, called Raisina.
4. Hill, where the Victory’s Palace (now the Rashtrapati Bhawan) was built. The Rajpath led to this. The Secretariat buildings ( now the North Block and the  South Block), India Gate and the Parliament House (Sansad Bhawan) were also built.
5. The new city of Delhi took shape along the lines of imperial style of architecture.
6. The new city had broad roads, big bungalows and many gardens. New Delhi was also a very clean city efficient system of water supply disposal of sewage and good drainage facilities.