Name: The Unofficial Sources of Indian History
Uploaded: 2019-07-19
Duration: 4 min 18 s
Description: The British recorded Indian history with an emphasis on their rule and administration. What other sources can be used to understand the Indian side of history?

Question

Why did the British preserve official documents? Why did they undertake surveying and mapping on a large scale?

Accepted Answer

The British preserved official documents and undertook surveys for mapping on a large scale because of the following reasons:

Official documents were preserved by the British because they believed that the act of writing was crucial to properly run and govern a country.

They assumed that if they organised the reports and official documents, they would be better able to utilise them in the future. For instance, William Shire wrote the biography of Mahatma Gandhi as he spent with him during the Dandi March.

Surveying and mapping were undertaken on a wide scale by the British in order to have a better understanding of the territory they ruled.

By the early nineteenth century, surveys were being conducted to map the entire country in order to determine the quality of the soil, cropping patterns, and topography of the region.

Why did the British preserve official documents? Why did they undertake surveying and mapping on a large scale?

Important Questions on Beginning of The Modern Period

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