What steps did Company (EIC) had taken to improve the Primary Education in India?
Answers
Answer:
Modern education began in India under British rule. Before the British, India had its own educational systems like the Gurukulas and the Madrassas. The East India Company, during their first 60 years of rule didn’t care much for the education of those they ruled in India. (Even in England, universal education came about at a much later stage.)
Three agents of modern education in India
The British Government (East India Company)
Christian missionaries
Indian intellectuals and reformers
Development of Modern Education
The company wanted some educated Indians who could assist them in the administration of the land.
Also, they wanted to understand the local customs and laws well.
For this purpose, Warren Hastings established the Calcutta Madrassa in 1781 for the teaching of Muslim law.
In 1791, a Sanskrit College was started in Varanasi by Jonathan Duncan for the study of Hindu philosophy and laws.
The missionaries supported the spread of Western education in India primarily for their proselytising activities. They established many schools with education only being a means to an end which was Christianising and ‘civilising’ the natives.
The Baptist missionary William Carey had come to India in 1793 and by 1800 there was a Baptist Mission in Serampore, Bengal, and also a number of primary schools there and in nearby areas.
The Indian reformers believed that to keep up with times, a modern educational system was needed to spread rational thinking and scientific principles.