Question

What attracted the European trading companies to India?

Answer 1

Hint: Portuguese were the first Europeans to arrive at India for the trading purposes. They were also the last to leave India on the sea route. After Vasco da Gama it was Francisco de Almeida who arrived in India. He came to India as the Viceroy of Portuguese.

Complete answer: When the European trading companies came to India, they were looking for new lands. The criteria for these ‘new lands’ was that the goods are cheaper than what they are in Europe. They wanted land from which they could buy goods at a cheap price. The major benefit lied when they carried them back to Europe. This was because the cheap goods that were available in India were sold at higher prices in Europe. Europeans were more developed in their trading practices than Indians and thus they took advantage of India and its resources. Cotton as well as silk commodities were popular in Europe. The fine qualities of these goods produced in India had a prominent market in Europe. India is famous for its spices like Pepper, cloves, cardamom and cinnamon etc. These were in great demand in Europe too and were traded. India at that time was a land of resources but these resources were not much utilized. The Europeans recognized the possibilities that could bear magnificent results and hence were deeply interested in India. Hence, these were some of the reasons that attracted European trading companies to India.

Note: The Dutch were the first to establish their factory in Masulipatnam in Andhra Pradesh. It was in 1605. Consequently, they also established trading centres in numerous other parts of India.