Which of the following was adversely affected by the introduction of railways in India by the Britishers?

Self sufficiency of village economies

The British introduced the railways in India in 1850 and it is considered as one of their most important contributions. The railways affected the structure of the Indian economy in two important ways. On the one hand it enabled people to undertake long distance travel and thereby break geographical and cultural barriers while, on the other hand, it fostered commercialisation of Indian agriculture which adversely affected the self-sufficiency of the village economies in India. The volume of India’s exports undoubtedly expanded but its benefits rarely accrued to the Indian people. The social benefits, which the Indian people gained owing to the introduction of the railways, were thus outweighed by the country’s huge economic loss.