Question

Highlight the salient features of India’s pre independence occupational structure.

Discuss briefly any two salient features of India’s pre-independence occupational structure.

Answer 1

The occupational structure, which refers to the distribution of the population engaged in different occupations, showed no variation throughout the British rule. The following are the salient features of India’s pre-independence occupational structure:

1. Agriculture-The Prime Occupation: Under colonial rule, India was basically an agrarian economy, employing nearly 85% of its population. As India had massive poverty during the colonial rule, a large proportion of the population was engaged in the agricultural sector to earn their subsistence. But due to the prevalence of the Zamindari system, the agricultural sector lacked investment and, thereby, its growth was highly constrained. Thus, in other words, despite employing a significant proportion of the population, the growth of the agriculture sector was meager.
2. Industry-The Bleak Occupation: Apart from agriculture, a small proportion of the population was employed in the manufacturing sector. Nearly 10% of the total workforce was engaged in the manufacturing and industrial sector. This was due to the stiff competition that the Indian industries faced from the machine-made, cheap goods from Britain. Further, the lack of investment, initiatives, and the unfavourable tariff structure constrained the industrial sector. Thus, the Indian industrial sector failed to contribute significantly to India’s GDP.
3. Unbalanced Growth: The three sectors of the Indian economy, i.e., agricultural, industrial, and tertiary sectors, were unequally developed. While the agricultural sector was relatively developed, the other two sectors were in their infancy. In addition, there was regional variation in the occupational structure of India. While on the one hand, states like Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh, and Bombay experienced a fall in the agricultural workforce, on the other hand, states like Orissa, Rajasthan, and Punjab experienced a rise in the agricultural workforce.