The East India Company set up its trading activities first in:
Answer & explanation
Correct answer: option 3
The correct answer is Option (3) → Surat
The Company had first set up its trading activities in the well-established port of Surat on the west coast; only later did the search for textiles take it to Madras on the east coast.
Note: This question is taken from the chapter ‘Colonial Cities’ which was there in the pre-rationalised NCERT and has been deleted from subsequent editions of NCERT, including the NCERT book (2026-27).
NCERT (Pre-rationalised): “4.1 Settlement and segregation in Madras … The Company had first set up its trading activities in the well-established port of Surat on the west coast. Subsequently the search for textiles brought British merchants to the east coast. In 1639 they constructed a trading post in Madraspatam. This settlement was locally known as Chenapattanam. The Company had purchased the right of settlement from the local Telugu lords, the Nayaks of Kalahasti, who were eager to support trading activity in the region.…” |