The Introduction of Western Education in India and

its Impact on the Contemporary Society

1. Introduction: -

Education is a powerful tool to unlock the golden door of freedom which can change the
world. With the progress of time major changes took place in Indian education system. The
British East India Company which had come in India as a trader gradually it had become rulers
and administrators. The most important contribution of the British to the national life of the
Indians was introduction and spread of western education. With the spread of western education
in India, particularly in Bengal, the traditional sense of values regarding religion, education,
culture and sense of beauty underwent a change and new sense of values developed. In my
seminar paper I am trying to highlight how the western education or the English as a medium of
education introduce in India and what was its impact.

2. Indigenous Education: -
The modern system of education came to be established in India during the British period
at the cost of the traditional indigenous system. Before the British established a new system of
education in India both the Hindus and the Muslims had their own systems of education. Both
the systems went into oblivion gradually and suffered a set– back because of political turmoil
and lack of a strong centralized political authority and want of suitable patronage1. Indian
education had always been of a classical and spiritual rather of a practical nature. It was
communicated through the sacred classical languages of the Hindus and the Muslims, namely
Sanskrit, Arabic and Persian2. The Tols and Madrassas were the highest seminaries of learning
meant for the specialists. These institutions were not meant for education of an elementary kind.
For primary education, there were in the villages, Patsalas and Maktabs where the Gurus and
Maulavis imparted knowledge. There was no school for the education of the girls though the
Zamindars often had their daughters educated at home3. The indigenous Indian Education started
with the advent of the British. The colonial interests of the British shaped the then educational
policies of India.

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3. Reason to Adopt English Education:-
The development of education system during the British period was determined by the
needs of the colonial powers. British took a keen interest in introducing the English language in
India. In his book, ‘Education in British India’ Arthur Howell says. "Education in India under
the British Government was first ignored, then violently and successfully opposed, then
conducted on a system now universally admitted to be erroneous and finally placed on its present
footing"4. They had many reasons for doing so: - Educating Indians in the English language was
a part of their strategy. The Indian would to ready to work as clerks on low wages, while for the
same work, the British would demand much higher wages. This would reduce the expenditure on
administration. It was also expected to create a class of Indian, who were loyal to the British and
were not able to relate to other Indians. In addition, they would also help to increase the mark for
British goods. They wanted to use education as a means to strengthen their policy and their
political authority in the country. They assumed that a few educated Indian would spread English
culture to the masses and that they would be able to rule through this class of educated Indians.

4. Role of different section in the development of Western Education: -

The demand for European knowledge had already grown in the country. The progressive
popular opinion was in favour of bringing Indians into a closer touch with their rulers. Cultural
fascination for the western learning, independently of monetary gain, was attracting many in that
direction. Richer classes had already started learning English and the middle classes also began
to show keen interest for studying that language5. Although the East India Company was
established in 1600 A.D., it took no educational activities for nearly one hundred years of its
existence6. The first impetus came from two directions, the missionaries and the enlightened
Indians.

4.1. Role of Missionary: -

The missionaries were the pioneers in the field of education. Their earlier efforts were
confined mostly to the Madras presidency. The most important reason of the missionary was to
convert people to Christianity. Dr. D. O. Allen an eminent missionary of the American Board
says that “Missionaries should educate the people, in order to make them capable of
understanding and appreciating the facts and evidences the doctrines and duties of the

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Scriptures”7. Missionary activities were more or less non-existent in Bengal. It was due to the
fact that the company adopted a policy of religion neutrality soon after the victory of Plassey. In
1783 British Parliament prohibited the entry of all private Europeans without license into India.
As Sherring observes, “The entire number of missionaries sent out up to the end of the eighteen
century was only 50, and at no time were there more than ten in the field” 8. The missionaries set
up various schools and colleges throughout the country. Notable amongst these institutions were
the Baptist Mission College, Serampore (1818), The Bishop’s college, Calcutta (1820), the
General Assembly’s Institution (the present Scottish Church College), Calcutta (1830) and the
Wilson College, Bombay (1832).

4.2. Role of Indian intellectuals and reformers: -

Beside the missionaries, there were men in Bengal, who no doubt play an important role
towards western education. Chief among them were Raja Ram Mohan Roy, David Hare and Sir
Edward Hyde East. They founded the Hindu College at Calcutta on 20th January, 1817. The
declared object of the Hindu College was to instruct the son of Hindus in the European and
Asiatic languages and science, and the first place in importance was assigned to English. To
meet the need for English education, English books were necessary. This was met by the School
Book Society, which was established in 1817. The Secretary of this society was David hare and
Radhakanto Deb9. As an advocate of western education Raja Ram Mohan Roy strongly
opposed to the Government decision to set up a Sanskrit college at Calcutta. He petitioned
Governor-General Lord Amherst and stated that establishment of a Sanskrit Collage “would be
best calculated” the document pointed out “as improvement of the native population is the object
of the Government, it will consequently promote a more liberal and enlightened system of
instruction, embracing mathematics, natural philosophy, chemistry, anatomy with other useful
sciences which may be accomplished with the sum”.10

5. Official Measures: -
In the beginning of the English rule, the Company was opposed to the spread of western
education in India. The Company believed that if Indians get an education in English, the spirit
of independence will increase in the minds of Indians and maybe India will be overthrown by the
company. For this reason Company encouraged Indians to study oriental language. However,

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due to pressure from the missionaries, Indian intellectuals and the British Parliament the British
Government was forced to take some effective effort to develop Indian Education system.

5.1. Charles Grants’s Observations: -

The idea of setting up a network of schools for teaching English was first mooted by
Charles Grant, a Civil servant of the Company and the father of modern education in India, for as
he had observed “the result of dense and wide spread ignorance was the moral degradation of the
people” and “could be removed only by education, first of all by education in English” 11. But he
failed to persuade the directors to his views. Charles Grant’s suggestions of English education to
Indian people are of great historical importance because he saw the future development in Indian
education as early as in 1792. His suggestion of English education was adopted by William
Bentinck about forty years later on the advocacy of Macaulay.

5.2. Charter Act of 1813: -

The development of modern system of education in India may be said to have begun with
the Charter Act of 1813. Which provided through the section 43 that “a sum of not less than
one lakh of rupees in each year shall be set apart and applied to the revival and
improvement of literature and for the introduction and promotion of knowledge of the
science among the inhabitants of the British territories in India.”12 The Charter Act of 1813,
therefore, forms a turning point in the history of Indian education. With it “the education of the
Indian people was definitely included within the duties of the Company; comparatively large
amount was annually secured for educational activities; thereby lying the foundation of the
modern educational system”13.
Section 43 of the Charter Act 1813 had only defined the objects of the educational policy,
viz. ‘the revival and improvement of literature’, ‘the encouragement of learned natives of
India’ and ‘the introduction and promotion of a knowledge of sciences among the
inhabitants of the British territories in India’; but it had no directions regarding the methods
to be employed to secure these objects14. Actually the Company had not been given any specific
instruction on this issue. Consequently, the direction of education remained uncertain during the
next 22 years on the following issues:

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 a. The Medium of Instruction: It could not be decided whether the medium of
instruction should be English or Indian Languages.
b. Aim of Education of the British Policy: Whether education should be available to all
or should be given to only a selected few.
c. Type of Knowledge: Whether to preserve and promote Oriental learning or to
introduce Western knowledge, culture and science.
d. Agency of Education: Whether the Government should assume direct responsibility
of educating the Indians or the Indigenous system of education of the country to continue.
e. Role of Missionaries: Whether the missionaries should be given a free hand in their
educational practices or should the Company itself shoulder the total responsibility.

5.3. The General Committee of Public Instruction: -

Though the Charter act of 1813 provides one lakh rupees per annum for the devlopment
of education of India, but nothing was done till 1823.15 In that year a General Committee of
Public Instruction(GCPI) was set up in Bengal to guide the company on the matter of education.
The Committee consisted of ten members and the grant of one lakh of rupees provided by the
Charter Act of 1813 was also placed at the disposal of the Committee. The president of this
Committee was W.H Harrington and the secretary was H.H Wilson.16 Most of these members
were Oriental scholars of repute. The Orientalists dominated the committee and advocated the
promotion of Oriental learning rather than the Anglican one. The Committee of Public
Instructions consisted of members with Orientalist attitude till 1824. However, when new
members, imbued with the growing liberal influences were recruited, the committee lost its
homogeneous character and in 1835 the differences of opinion over the competing aims of
oriental and occidental learning began to come to surface. As a result of the Orientalist-Anglicist
controversy, the spread of education in India was halted until 1835, when Macaulay’s Resolution
provided a somewhat clear picture of the British education policy.

5.3.1 The Anglicists - Orientalist Controversy:-

At the beginning the committee works to develop the oriental language and established
the new center of oriental education. The new idea soon had its impact on the committee of pulic
instruction. The committee was gradually divided into groups popularly known as Orientalists

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and Anglicists. The Anglicists maintained that all instruction should be given through English.
The Orientalists insisted on teaching through the Oriental language. To settle the controversy, the
Government appointed a committee. Among the Orientalists were many distinguished officers of
the Government and their view prevailed for some time. When Lord Mecaulay was appointed the
Chairman of the Committee in 1835, the parties were so evenly balanced that thing had come to
a deadlock.17 Lord Macaulay wrote a minute which turned the scales against the Orientalists.

5.4 Macaulay’s Minute:-

Lord Macaulay came to India in June 10, 1834, as the law member of the Governor
General’s Executive council and was appointed as the President of the committee of Public
Instruction18. He was appointed to settle down the controversy between Anglisists and
Orientalists. He, however, declined to take any active part in the proceedings of the committee
till the question of issue was finally decided by the Government. After realizing the main
problem, Macaulay wrote his famous Macaulay Minute. The result was the famous Minute of
Lord Macaulay, which attempted to provide a solution to the dilemma posed by the educational
clause in the Charter Act of 1813. In his Minute dated the 2nd of February, 1835 Macaulay
wrote:

This one lakh of rupees is set apart not only for ‘reviving literature in India', but also ‘for
the introduction and promotion of the knowledge of the Sciences among the in habitants of the
British territories’ — words which are alone sufficient to authorize all the changes for which I
contend.19

Macaulay argued that the word “literature” occurring in the Section of 43 of the Charter
Act of 1813 could be interpreted to mean English literature, that the epithet of a “learned native
of India” could also be applied to a person versed in the philosophy of Locke or the poetry of
Milton, and the object of promoting a knowledge of sciences could only be accomplished by the
adoption of English as the medium of instruction.20

Macaulay wrote in his Minute, “We must at present do our best to form a class of
persons, Indian in blood and color, but English in taste, in opinions, in morals and in intellect”.21

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Macaulay rejected the claims of Arabic and Sanskrit as against English because he considered
that English is the key to modern knowledge and English is the language sponsored by the ruling
class. He also stated that “a single shelf of a good European library was worth the whole native
literature of India and Arabia”.22

5.5. Lord Bentinck's Resolution of the 7th March 1835: -

Lord William Bentinck Governor General of India (1828-1838) approves the Minute by
writing one line beneath it, “I give entire concurrence to the sentiments expressed in the Minute”
He passed the Resolution of March 1835 which was the first declaration of the British
Government in the sphere of education in India. The Resolution of March 1835 eventually
determined the aim, content and medium of instruction in India. Promotion of Western science
and arts was acknowledged as the avowed object of the British Government in India.23 On the
7th of March 1835 the Bentinck resolution was issued.

6. Impact of western Education on the contemporary society: -

The new education system bought a profound effect on the contemporary Indian Society.
Coming in contract with English education, Indian people are familiar with the ideals of western
civilization, knowledge-science, nationalism, democracy, freedom, humanism and its help to
understand the weakness of country, nation and the society. The English language tied the
educated Indian in unity. Rational, Social and religious movements started in different regions of
Bengal and India. Western Education helps to awaken Indians’ nationalist intimacy.
Spread of western education in India naturally generated a spirit of national unity and
national independence. The internal revolution in Japan in 1867 all the more accentuated these
patriotic feelings. India was deeply and greatly influenced by nationalism and democracy of the
west. The greatest impact of western education could be seen in the growth of nationalism
among the Indians in general and the Bengalees in particular. Hundreds of years blocked water
reservoir Brock down and streams of western ideology and knowledge flowed. But it is true that,
the western education limited to a handful of people in the country, it’s never got the opportunity
to become a mass hit. The western Education system limited in the high cast upper families in
towns.

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Conclusion: -
Indian socio-cultural and religious thoughts underwent a transformation as a result of the
western contact. The Newly-emerged English educated middle class, being influenced by the
scientific & rational outlook of the west, now-began to examine the Indian socio-religious
institutions and sought to find a justification on the basis of reason. The spirit of enquire gave
birth to irresistible forces of socio-cultural and religious reforms in the first half of the nineteenth
century.

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 Reference

1. Purkait, Biswa Ranjan, ‘Milestones in Modern Indian Education’, New Central Book Agency,
Kolkata, 1992, p.1
2. Ghosh, Suresh Chandra, ‘Education Policy in India since Warren Hastings’, Naya Prokash,
Calcutta, 1989, p. 2
3. Ibid, p. 3
4. Howell, Arthur, ‘Education in British India Prior to 1854 and in 1870-71’, Superintendent of
Government Pritinting, Calcutta, 1872, p. 3
5. Datta Kalikinkar. and Narain Vishnu Anugrah, ‘A Comprehensive History of India Volume
Eleven- The Consolidation of British Rule in India (1818-1858)’, People’s Publishing House,
New Delhi, 1985, p. 588
6. Nururllah, Syed & Naik, J. P., ‘History of Education in India during the British Period’, The
MacMillan Company, New York, 1943, p. XIV
7. Singh Madhukar, ‘Growth of Western Education in British India’, Retrieved from
https://www.academia.edu/12215764/growth_of_western_education_in_british_india, Retrieved
on 4/12/2018, 8.20pm.
8. Datta Kalikinkar. and Narain Vishnu Anugrah, Op. cit., p. 589
9. Chaudhuri Kiran Chandra, ‘History of Modern India’, New Central Book Agency, Calcutta,
1983, p. 419
10. Ibid, p. 277
11. Ibid, p. 276
12. Mahajan Vidya Dhar and Mahajan Savitri, ‘British Rule in India and After’, S. Chand & Co.
(Pvt) Ltd, New Delhi, 1971, p. 583
13. Nururllah Syed and Naik J.P., Op. cit, p. 67
14. Ibid, p. 68
15. Chaudhuri Kiran Chandra, Op. cit, p. 419
16. Ghosh Suresh Chandra, ‘The History of Education in Modern India; 1757-1998’, Orient
BlackSwan, New Delhi, 2013, p. 23
17. Mahajan Vidya Dhar and Mahajan Savitri, Op. cit, p. 584
18. Datta Kalikinkar. and Narain Vishnu Anugrah, Op. cit, p. 597

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19. Sharp, Henry & Richey, J.A., ‘Selections from Educational Records.Vol. I’, Superintendent
of Government Printing, Calcutta, 1920, pp. 107-08
20. Nururllah Syed and Naik J.P., Op. cit, p. 103
21. Chand, Jagdish ‘Education in India during British Period’, Anshah Publishing House, New
Delhi, 2007, p. 5
22. Ghosh Suresh Chandra, ‘The History of Education in Modern India’, Op. cit, p. 31
23. Sharma, Ram Nath & Sharma, Rajendra Kumar, ‘History of Education in India’, Atlantic
Publishers & Distributors (P) Ltd, New Delhi, 2012, p. 84

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