Its a great little book focusing only on the creation, rise and fall of the East India Company. The Company thrived in the chaotic times both in Britain and India with a partnership between the English businessman cum adventurer and the Hindu Baniya. Together they managed to forge an opportunity where individuals, both English and Indians, made a lot of money. I agree with the author's view that the East India Company was able to introduce modernity into India but I also think that this modernity was inevitable as Indians would have latched onto superior goods and technology in any case as they have a natural eye for good and easy life. I cite the example of African countries and their current plight as evidence. African countries were colonized as well, but they did not soak all the technology and educational skills in a similar fashion. So the great Indian IT industry of today, selling its services all over the West, owes its birth and grooming directly to English occupation.
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