Question

How had the First World War created a new economic situation in India? Explain with three examples.

Answer 1

Hint: The first World war was fought from 1914 to 1918, these four years had affected the entire world including India. It was fought between the powers of Europe and Britain had used Indian soldiers for this war. It had a major effect on the economic conditions of India at that time.

Complete answer: There were a lot of effects on the Indian economic conditions because of the World war, three of these were:-
 a. Because the British had to fund the ammunition and other war requirements they raised the taxes being levied from peasants and businessmen in India, this led to inflation and rising prices, which was especially a problem for the poor farmers of India.
b. One good thing which happened was that because of a rise in demand for Industrial goods the businessmen and merchants of India saw an increase in their profits because the market had expanded.
c. Another problem which was faced by the Indians was the crop failure in 1918, which led to extreme food shortages and farmers in crushing debts.
Another problem which was faced by the Indians was the crop failure in 1918, which led to extreme food shortages and farmers in crushing debts. The British government started forcefully recruiting Indian soldiers from villages as they needed more foot soldiers however this led to increasing resentment in people. Another problem faced was that the young men being recruited were also the bread earners of their families, with they left for war their families were left stranded with no source of income.

Note: An important thing to note is that when the Indian soldiers returned home after the war, they came back with experiences of how the British had colonised other parts of the world like Africa and other countries in Asia, this helped them in their freedom struggle.