Ananya, a history student, is reading a record of 1002 pages that was placed before the British Parliament. Over 800 of its pages are appendices. They reproduce petitions of zamindars and ryots, reports of collectors from different districts and statistical tables on revenue returns. Her teacher reminds her that in those years many groups in Britain were angry with the East India Company, and that this record came out of that debate. He also tells her that historians today do not accept every claim in it without question.
Ananya's teacher refers to groups in Britain who opposed the East India Company's monopoly over trade with India and China. What did these groups want?
Answer & explanation
Correct answer: option 1
The correct answer is Option (1) → A revocation of the Company's Royal Charter
Option (1) A revocation of the Company's Royal Charter — Correct. The groups opposed to the monopoly wanted a revocation of the Royal Charter that gave the Company this monopoly. Private traders and industrialists wanted the Indian market opened to them.
Option (2) Higher duties on goods of private traders — Incorrect. Private traders wanted a share in the India trade for themselves. Higher duties on their own goods would have hurt them.
Option (3) A fixed revenue demand on Bengal zamindars — Incorrect. A revenue demand fixed for all time was the Permanent Settlement, a Company measure in Bengal. These groups were attacking the trade monopoly instead.
Option (4) A larger Company army for new conquests — Incorrect. Political groups argued that the conquest of Bengal helped only the Company and brought nothing to the British nation.
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