Question

The colonial government gave much importance to the practice of ______

Answer 1

Answer:

Surveying.

Explanation:

They believed that a country has to be totally known before governing it.

Answer 2

The colonial government gave much importance to the practice of surveying

Explanation:

• The British attached considerable importance to the survey method as they claimed that before successful governance of a government , the nation needed to be better known. They then carried out extensive surveys at the beginning of the 19th century to map the whole nation.
• They conducted revenue surveys in villages. This was to know the soil quality, topography, flora, fauna,local histories, & cropping pattern. The aim was to record all the facts that were considered necessary to manage the area.
• Census operations were conducted every ten years by the end of the 19th century. Accurate lists of the population of the various Indian provinces were provided, including statistics on castes, occupation & religion. There were different surveys undertaken too such as botanical surveys, archaeological surveys, zoological surveys, forest surveys, & anthropological surveys.