NCERT Solutions Class 8 Social Science Chapter 6 Colonialism and the City

Let’s recall

1. State whether true or false:

(a) In the Western world, modern cities grew with industrialisation.

(b) Surat and Machlipatnam developed in the nineteenth century.

(c) In the twentieth century, the majority of Indians lived in cities.

(d) After 1857, no worship was allowed in the Jama Masjid for five years.

(e) More money was spent on cleaning Old Delhi than New Delhi.

Answer:

(a) True

2. Fill in the blanks:

(a) The first structure to successfully use the dome was called the Jama Masjid.

(b) The two architects who designed New Delhi and Shahjahanabad were Edward Lutyens and Herbert Baker.

(c) The British saw overcrowded spaces as unhygienic and unhealthy.

(d) In 1888, an extension scheme called the Lahore Gate Improvement Scheme was devised.

3. Identify three differences in the city design of New Delhi and Shahjahanabad.

Answer:

4. Who lived in the “white” areas in cities such as Madras?

Answer:

The British lived in the “white” areas in cities such as Madras.

Let’s discuss

5. What is meant by de-urbanisation? Answer:

(i)In the late eighteenth century, a host of smaller cities declined in India; many towns manufacturing specialized goods declined due to a drop in the demand for the finished-goods.

(ii)Old trading centres and ports too declined when the flow of trade moved to new centres.

(iii)Similarly, earlier centres of regional power collapsed when local rulers were defeated by the British and new centres of administration emerged.

(iv)This process is often described as de-urbanisation.

6. Why did the British choose to hold a grand Durbar in Delhi although it was not the capital?

Answer:

(i)The British were fully aware of the symbolic importance of Delhi.

(ii)During the Revolt, the British had realised that the Mughal emperor was still important to the people who saw him as their leader.

(iii)It was therefore important to celebrate British power with pomp and show in the city controlled by the Mughal emperors earlier; Delhi was also the city which had turned into a rebel stronghold in 1857.

7. How did the Old City of Delhi change under British rule?

(i)In 1803, the British gained control of Delhi after defeating the Marathas. However, Delhi became the capital of British India in 1911.

(ii)The British who settled here learned Urdu/Persian culture and poetry and participated in local festivals.

(iii)With the establishment of the Delhi College in 1792, a great intellectual development in the fields of sciences, humanities and the Urdu language occurred. This intellectual phenomenon from 1830 to 1857 is known as the Delhi renaissance.

(iv)The British wanted to efface the Mughal past attached to Delhi. The area around the Fort was completely cleared of gardens, pavilions and mosques.

(v)Mosques in particular were either destroyed, or put to other uses. No worship was allowed in the Jama Masjid for five years.

(vi)One-third of the city was demolished, and its canals were filled up. In the 1870s, the western walls of Shahjahanabad were demolished for the railway construction.

(vii)The British lived in the sprawling Civil Lines, in the north Delhi, away from the Indians in the Walled City.

(viii)The Delhi College was turned into a school, and shut down in 1877.

8. How did the Partition affect life in Delhi?

Answer:

(i)As a result of the Partition, the population of Delhi swelled, the kinds of jobs people did changed, and the culture of the city became different.

(ii)Thousands of people in Delhi were killed and their homes looted and burned.

(iii)Muslims left Delhi for Pakistan, abandoning almost 44,000 homes. Sikh and Hindu refugees came to the city from Pakistan. They forced Muslims to leave or sell their properties.

(iv)Nearly 500,000 refugees came to Delhi from Punjab. They stayed in camps, schools, military barracks and gardens, hoping to build new homes.

(v)New refugee colonies such as Lajpat Nagar and Tilak Nagar came up at this time, with many shops and stalls, schools and colleges.

(vii)The new migrants coming to Delhi were rural landlords, lawyers, teachers, traders and small shopkeepers.

(viii)Partition changed  their  lives and had to take  up new jobs as hawkers, vendors, carpenters and ironsmiths and many  prospered in their  new businesses.