Which business community is described as a good example of a new community that emerged to take advantage of opportunities provided by colonialism?
Answer & explanation
Correct answer: option 1
The correct answer is Option (1) → Marwaris
Option (1) Marwaris — Correct. The Marwaris became a successful business community only in the colonial period. They used new chances in colonial cities such as Calcutta for trade and moneylending, and they kept their economic power after Independence.
Option (2) Nakarattars — Incorrect. The Nakarattars are an older merchant community of Tamil Nadu. They come up only as a comparison, because their banking also rested on wide social networks of trust, so they are not the new community of the colonial period.
Option (3) Gujarati Banias — Incorrect. The Gujarati Banias are a long-standing trading community. Their trade goes back well before British rule, so they do not fit a community that emerged under colonialism.
Option (4) Bohras — Incorrect. The Bohras are an old trading community with roots well before British rule. Their trade did not begin in the colonial period, so they do not fit a community that emerged under colonialism.
NCERT (2026-27): “Colonialism and the Emergence of New Markets … |