Why did the British gave up its colonies?

The popular answer is that Britain became weak after WW2 and hence maintaining colonies became expensive.

Remember that the might of the British empire increased after first world war. They were able to control the Indian unrest by enacting the draconian Rowlatt Act, which essentially extended the wartime repressive measures. The Jallianwala Bagh incident and the secret Inquisition in Punjab and Cellular jails demonstrated the superiority of colonial rulers in India.

But India obtained its freedom not because of WW2 or the passive struggle of Gandhi. The heroic battles fought by INA soldiers in the NE jungles had awakened people. Netaji was sure that if INA succeeds in hoisting its flag in India, then that will awaken the dormant freedom spirit of Indians. Even though the Japanese and INA soldiers were defeated in the battle of Imphal/Kohima, their sacrifices did not go in vain. The trial of INA leaders and the 1946 navy mutiny forced the British to quit.

When the former PM Lord Clement Atlee visited India after independence, he had a friendly chat with the former Chief Justice of Kolkata HC, P.B. Chakrabarty. His direct question to Atlee was that since Gandhi’s Quit India movement had tapered off quite some time ago and in 1947 no such new compelling situation had arisen that would necessitate a hasty British departure, why did they have to leave? Moreover, the victorious allies had plundered Germany, Japan and Netaji's INA. The havoc of atom bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki had brought Japan to its heels. The world was ideologically and politically divided into Communist and Capitalist blocks. 

In his reply Atlee cited several reasons, the principal among them being the erosion of loyalty to the British Crown among the Indian army and navy personnel as a result of the military activities of Netaji. Toward the end of our discussion he asked Atlee what was the extent of Gandhi’s influence upon the British decision to quit India. Hearing this question, Atlee's lips became twisted in a sarcastic smile as he slowly chewed out the word, mi-ni-mal.

After the Indian independence, Britain could no longer hold on to colonies in Africa and Asia. The reason is that services of Indian soldiers and the resources from India were not available. The grains from India were exported to feed the troops and laborers in colonies. It was the Indian soldiers who fought most of the war as cannon fodders while the coward white men hid in trenches or comfort buildings. Millions of indentured labores worked as coolie slaves in many colonies. Also a non violent leader like Gandhi was not there in any other British colony in the world.

Soon after India gaining freedom, a violent guerrilla campaign started in Malaya peninsula. Thousands were killed, but an effective political and military response prevented a Communist take-over. Malaysia became independent in 1957. In the Middle East, Britain hurriedly abandoned Palestine in 1948. Ghana became Britain's first African colony to reach independence in 1957. By 1967 more than 20 British territories were independent. The Chinese took back Hong Kong in 1997.

June 6th 2019 marks the start of the 75th anniversary of the D-Day Landings and the Battle of Normandy, the largest amphibious assault in history with almost 7,000 ships and aircrafts. The British queen and 16 other heads of state have gathered in the British city of Portsmouth to commemorate the event. 

But the battle of Imphal/Kohima that happened in India are totally ignored by our history text books. Britain's struggle to repel a combined force of Netaji and Japan around Imphal and Kohima in 1944 has been adjudged as the greatest ever battle involving British forces, in a contest run by the National Army Museum

The 1757 transition of the world

The course of events that happened after Clive's victory in the battle at Palashi (Plassey) on June 23 1757 points to the prosperity of Bengal at that time. This was the first battle of the British against a princely state on the Indian Subcontinent, leading India towards 190 years long slavery. It was a sham battle. The battle was lost by soldiers who did not fight. Not even a single bullet was fired. The story of torrential rain drenching the nawab's ammunition and the British protecting their own with tarpaulin brought from Madras is a plain lie. Nawab's men are more aware of the weather pattern in Bengal than the British and they knew how to protect themselves and their paraphernalia from an impending rain.

After the battle, Clive immediately plundered Siraj’s treasury, leaving new Nawab Mir Jafar with nothing. Moreover, the new puppet Nawab was asked to pay a heavy amount as compensation to company officials and traders of the city for the attack on Calcutta by previous ruler and also for the black hole tragedy. Clive took a jagir, an endowment of tax revenue for life and became one of the richest men in England. The Mughal emperor, Shah Alam II, recognized British power and gave the Company official authority to collect taxes, making the Company the virtual rulers of Bengal. 

England soon became a sink of Indian wealth filled by the junior and senior servants of the East India Company.

Money played a major role in wars all over the world

The vast majority of payments were made in specie (coins minted from gold and silver). Paper money was not yet widely accepted. The gold and silver coins looted by Clive was used in the expansion of empire in India. The specie collected from across the world were lent to the British government by the BEIC during the Napoleonic Wars that were highly expensive. 

After 1757, the BEIC were having plenty of unaccounted money or black money. This money was used to create highly destructive wars throughout the world. The Indian economy continued to be haunted by the problem of black money until the Demonetization in November 2016. 

The very first beneficiary of Nawab's treasury, looted by Clive, was Hyder Ali of Mysore who was a petty officer in the Mysore army. The Mysorean treasury was virtually bankrupt at the time of Plassey battle. Hyder Ali scored points from this financial breakdown. In 1757 Hyder Ali was called to Seringapatam to join the fight against Nizam and the Marathas. Upon his arrival he found the Mysorean army in disarray and near mutiny over pay. It was Hyder Ali who arranged for the army to be paid. In 1758 Hyder Ali led successful campaigns against Marathas and Calicut. By 1759 Hyder Ali was in command of the entire Mysorean army. The young raja Krishnaraja rewarded Hyder Ali's performance by granting him the title Nawab of Mysore. He became the de facto ruler of Mysore as Sarvadhikari (Chief Minister) by 1761.

The question is how did Hyder Ali arranged the money?

The specie coins looted by BEIC was loaned to Hyder Ali through his French associates. After 1757, the British in India became predominantly powerful and the French had no option except to accept the British hegemony. After the third Carnatic war, the French agreed to support British client governments. It should be remembered that the French and British traders in India were not enemies after 1757. They mutually communicated and helped each other. The Second Opium War (1856-1860) against China was jointly fought by the British and French forces.

Why did the British help Hyder who was opposed to the British expansion?

The British and French traders were eying the vast treasures of gold in the temples of Kerala. They used the Mysore Sultans as proxy conquerors. Both Hyder Ali and Tipu were guided and closely monitored by the French generals. There were two French commanders known as Lally and Pimoran advising Haider and Tipu at the Battle of Pollilur in 1780. Tipu's forces were also joined by his French allies in some of the key events of the conflict, including the siege of Mangalore in 1783. When the French government at home signed the Treaty of Paris in 1783, the French soldiers in India officially became the friends of British, leaving Tipu's Mysore in an uncomfortable position. His French allies, by observing strict neutrality, had deserted him at all crucial moment in the war with the British. In the hope of attracting further French support, Tipu established a Jacobin club at Mysore in 1797, adopted a liberty red cap and styled himself as Citizen Tippoo.

A King who was a Jacobian - https://samharshbangalore.blogspot.com/2013/05/a-king-who-was-jacobian.html

But for Tipu's campaigns in Kodagu and Kerala against native kingdoms, his French allies extended their military, financial, political, diplomatic support and equipped him with modern weapons like highly armed cannonade contingent. This can be proved by the endless iron cannon balls that can be found in the Nalnad region of Kodagu even today.

Coorg was strategically, a buffer zone which linked Mangalore and Malabar. Kodavas were the master of the guerrilla warfare hence they succeeded every time in ambushing the enemy. Tipu first invaded Kodagu with his well-equipped 15000 army men carrying French Cannon with an intention of conquering Kodagu overnight. The troop of 5000 Kodavas retaliated, defeated Tipu’s army and chased them out of Kodagu. Likewise Tipu was defeated by Kodavas 31 times. 

Tipu decided to conquer Coorg by hook or by crook. So he hatched a cowardly plan with the the French. Tipu with the help of General M. Lally requested Kodavas to make peace stating his real enemies are the British and Marathas and not the Kodavas. He invited all Kodavas unarmed for a friendly feast. On 13th December 1785, more than 125 thousand Kodavas gathered at Devattparamb on the banks of Cauvery river. When the sun set behind the mountains of Kodagu, the French forces and Tipu’s soldiers hiding behind forest shrubs attacked the unarmed Kodavas and slaughtered them in cold blood like how Colonel dyer killed people at Jallianwallah bagh.

This pillage turned entire Coorg into a graveyard. Over 60,000 Kodavas were massacred in Devattparamb and around 65,000 Kodava survivors including women and children were captured. Among them the women were raped and children were forcefully converted. The scale of the massacre was so huge that the water in the Cauvery river turned red for 12 consecutive days

Tipu's cavalcade in North Malabar was led by the French Commander Monsieur Lally. In December 1789, Tipu Sultan attacked the Travancore lines (a defence fortification by the side or Periyar river) from the north, signalling the commencement of the Battle of Nedumkotta. Even though the Travancore state had a protection treaty with the British, the company troops stationed near Nedumkotta became passive spectators. While Tipu regrouped, Madras Governor Holland engaged in negotiations with Tipu rather than mobilizing the military. The secret pact hatched by Tipu and Holland clearly shows that Tipu never had any enemity with the British.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nedumkotta

Tipu's attack was successfully repulsed by the Travancore soldiers alone. The Mysore army suffered major casualities in this battle and Tipu himself became permanently lame. Tipu's waterloo started here.

Again in 1790 Tipu planned the attack on Travancore using special troops called from Srirangapatam and Bangalore. The Travancore army was no match for the huge Mysore army. So the Diwan Raja Kesavadas thought out a different game plan. A temporary bund, like a small dam, was constructed upstream in Periyar River blocking large quantity of water. The victorious march of the Mysorean army reached Aluva and camped on the banks of Periyar River. However by this time, during night, a small group went upstream and managed to break the walls of the dam at Bhoothathankettu causing heavy flash floods downstream of the river. All the ammunition and gunpowder of Tipu's army got wet and became inactive. At the same time the British army was planning an attack on Srirangapatnam. Hence Tipu was forced to leave Malabar never to return.

Even though Travancore soldiers played a major part in decimating Tipu's might, the Raja of Travancore was not involved in the peace treaty concluded after the third Anglo Mysore war. The Marathas and Nizam were allowed to partake the spoils of war. When the Diwan of Travancore complained this, the response from the British was that since the war was initiated for the  protection of Travancore, the state must pay for the entire war expenses. 

The British were more scared about the fighting spirit of the Nair soldiers of Kerala and Sikhs of Punjab. The Travancore state single handedly beating Tipu's army was not fully liked by the British. The strategy used by the British to bring Travancore to its heels was to squeeze the treasury of the state. The state had to pay heavy amount to the British and this continued until independence.

The gold looted from temples during the Malabar campaign was stored in the Treasury at Srirangapatanam. After defeating the Mysore army in 1799, the British lifted the entire gold and carted away in clipper ships to Europe. It is preserved in the underground vaults of Bank of England.

Waterloo of Tipu - https://submergedhistory.blogspot.com/2017/11/the-waterloof-of-tipu-sultan-at.html

The plot for a bloody revolution in Paris (French Revolution) was also hatched in London. The gold looted from Kerala and Kodagu by Tipu's French allies were used for funding the Jacobins Club of Paris. The Reign of Terror (1793 – 94) by Jacobins resulted in the death of tens of thousands of innocent people in France. Tipu Sultan himself was a member Jacobins club.

The British Origins of the French Jacobins - https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/abs/10.1177/0265691414546456

When the Jacobins Club lost its acceptance among people of Europe, especially after its reign of terror, the club was dissolved. Napoleon was promoted instead. Napoleon was expected to do a deadly campaign of loot and plunder in Europe just like how Hyder Ali and Tipu Sultan conducted their military campaign in Kerala. Instead Napoleon turned against the practice of usury or money lending and soon became an enemy of the British. The British war against Napoleon was enormously expensive. Troops had to be paid, and weapons, rations had to be purchased. The vast majority of this payment had to be done in specie - coins minted from gold and silver. Paper money was not yet widely accepted, and a steady flow of hard cash was essential for the British war effort. The BEIC came forward to lent money to the British government and gold and silver coins from across the world poured into England.

Money that paid for all wars is GOLD - https://ageofrevolution.org/200-object/coins-that-paid-for-the-battle-of-waterloo

The other impacts of Plassey battle are

The British decided to give up its tax income from American colonies because the revenue from Bengal was comparatively much higher. America was not an industrialized nation then. Agriculture was the predominant occupation. The American colonies seperated from Britain in 1776.

The industrial revolution in Europe started soon after the Plassey victory. The wealth from the subcontinet and precious vedic knowledge were stolen and used for pure commercial advancement. The museums in London and Germany are keeping many of the stolen relics and artefacts from India.

Despite an incomplete conquest, the Company ruled most of India by the early 1800s by replicating the Bengal model elsewhere, creating compliant puppet rulers so that it could rule territory efficiently, inexpensively and irresponsibly. But the British failed to subdue the Sikhs in the Punjab, the last holdout, until 1848. 

How did Clive win the battle?

The local bankers like Jagat Seth, Omichand and Armenian money lenders helped Clive. Armenians are believed to have arrived on the bank of Hooghly before the East India Company's Job Charnock decided to establish a British trading post in Calcutta. In the 18th and 19th centuries they ran trading companies, shipping lines, coal mines, real estate and hotels.

There were several notorious pedlars and kingmakers in Clive’s Bengal — quite a few of them Armenians. 

It was also an Armenian, Khojah Israel Sarhad, in the court of Mughal emperor Farrukh Sayar who helped the East India Company get their Grand Firman in 1715, that first granted them duty-free trading rights in Bengal. Earlier in 1688,  the English company accessed the Mogul court with the help of an Armenian in the Mughal court.

Without Armenians, the victory at Plassey would have been a mirage for Clive and the Company, especially after the chaotic situation of 1756. After the Black Hole tragedy of Calcutta - 

In the dark days succeeding the sack or Calcutta and the tragedy of the Black Hole, an Armenian merchant secretly supplied the British fugitives who had taken refuge in their ships down the river at Fulta, with boat loads of provisions for six months. If not for the humane Armenians, the British fugitives might have been starved to surrender. And in the momentous days before the famous battle of Plassey, the same Armenian was employed by Clive to negotiate with Mir Jaffar.

It was during Akbar’s reign that the Armenian’s wealth and influence grew. Akbar is not only believed to have had an Armenian queen, he also had an Armenian doctor and chief justice.

Also read the book, Armenians in India From the earliest times to the present day By Mesrovb Jacob Seth, 1937 - https://www.rarebooksocietyofindia.org/book_archive/196174216674_10152469741581675.pdf

Rule of Red Flags from Plassey until Brexit

Red Flag was the emblem of the revolutionary minded radicals of Eastern Europe during 17th and early 18th centuries. Most regiments of the British Army from the 17th to the 20th centuries wore Red coats. The British Army's infantry has been nicknamed as redcoats or devils by the colonists during the American war of independence (1765 - 1783). The Jacobin Club that ruled France during the Reign of Terror (1793–1794) made the red flag the national emblem. Another little known fact is that Tipu was one of the founder member of the Jacobian Club of Srirangapatna. A Tree of Liberty was planted in his palace on May 15, 1797. The Red flag was ceremonially raised and Sultan wearing the liberty Red cap was described as Citizen Tippoo.  The pirate ships of Ching Shih were called also the Red Flag fleets. Later the terms like Red flag, Red army, Red terror became synonymous with communism.

The true significance of the Red Shield (Roth Schild in German) was recognized and adopted by an itinerant money lender goldsmith in Germany by name Mayer Amschel Bauer. He opened a shop or counting house on Judenstrasse (or Jew Street) during 1950s. Over the door leading into the shop he placed a large Red Shield and changed his name to Rothschild.

The redcoats took over India after the battle of Palashi (Plassey) in 1757. A battle never took place there, exists only on paper. The commander of Bengali forces under Nawab Siraj ud-Daulah, Mir Jafar was lured with the promise of throne. After the Battle, Clive looted Nawab's treasury leaving nothing for the new Nawab and in effect fully disbanding his military power. Mir Jaffar was made a stooge Nawab. The gold and diamonds of Siraj Ud Daula was given as a personal gift to Clive.

There were several notorious pedlars and kingmakers in Clive’s Bengal — quite a few of them Armenians and local Hindu bankers. 

The Armenians are believed to have arrived on the bank of Hooghly before the East India Company's Job Charnock decided to establish a British trading post in Calcutta. In the 18th and 19th centuries they ran trading companies, shipping lines, coal mines, real estate and hotels. It was also an Armenian, Khojah Israel Sarhad, in the court of Mughal emperor Farrukh Sayar who helped the BEIC get their Grand Firman in 1715, that first granted them duty-free trading rights in Bengal. Earlier in 1688, the company accessed the Mogul court with the help of an Armenian in the court.

Without Armenians, the victory at Plassey would have been a mirage for Clive and Company, especially after the chaotic situation of 1756. In the dark days succeeding the sack of Calcutta and the tragedy of the Black Hole, an Armenian merchant secretly supplied the British fugitives who had taken refuge in their ships down the river at Fulta, with boat loads of provisions for six months. If not for the humane Armenians, the British fugitives might have been starved to surrender. And in the momentous days before the famous battle of Plassey, the same Armenian was employed by Clive to negotiate with Mir Jaffar.

Company's greed increased several fold after the Plassey victory. The traitors also could never enjoy the fruits of victory. Jagat Seth (banker to the world) was killed by the troops of Mir Qasim in 1763. Mir Qasim was initially supported by the company as he was in friendly terms, but later he had attempted to curb their power and throw them out of Eastern India. Omichund was arrested by the English on suspicion of treachery. The Trial and Hanging of Raja Nand Kumar the first judicial murder in British India. He was the Governor of Hugli under Nawab Siraj-Ud-Daulah in 1756. He was nicknamed Black Colonel due to his loyalty to the Company in 1757. 

England before 1757 was a  gaming, robbing nation, without principles, genius, character or allies. After 1757, England turned into a sink of Indian wealth. English people became gentle men, intellectuals, carrying the self induced burden of civilizing the whole world (White man's burden), moralizing the world preaching modern justice etc. France and America became their friendly allies. 

The French in India had no option except to accept the British hegemony. After the third Carnatic war (1961), the French agreed to support all British client rulers in India. The French and British traders in India never fought after this.

The British used Hyder Ali as a Trojan Horse to plunder the vast amount of treasures accumulated in the temples of western coast. The Mysorean treasury was virtually bankrupt in 1757. Hyder Ali, a petty officer of its army then, and his son became emperors and was soon eliminated, all within a span of 42 years.

The master plan for the rise and fall of Tipu was crafted by the British. Clive, who started his career in India at Madras and Cuddalore, was well familiar with the Nawabs and Maharajas of South India. Robert Clive had spent most of the years before the battle in the South (Tamil Nadu) and not in Bengal. He landed at Madras in May 1744. He had served in Madras and Cuddalore and fought in the Trichinopoly district and Arcot. 

The traders of Britain and France often intervened in local power struggle in order to install friendly leaders by nominating and supporting different individuals for succession. The British were supporting Mohammed Ali who was based in Trichinopoly and the French were on the side of Chanda Sahib of Arcot. Clive’s real fame came from his victory at Arcot in the battle of Kaveripauk (1752). Mohammed Ali was officially recognized as the new ruler. The British PM Pitt the Elder terming Robert Clive as the heaven-born general said - "We had lost our glory, honour, and reputation everywhere but India : there the country had a heaven-born general". He took up his position as the Governor of Fort St David in June 1756 and was soon ordered to lead the expedition to Bengal — and Plassey.

The unaccounted black money looted from Bengal was used (through French) to groom Hyder Ali Khan as the ruler of Mysore. In 1758 Hyder Ali led successful campaigns against Marathas and Calicut and by 1759 he was in command of the entire Mysorean army. He became the de facto ruler of Mysore as Sarvadhikari (Chief Minister) by 1761.

The dirty undignified job of temple vault breaking, temple foundation digging, ornament snatching were done by Tipu Sultan with the aid of his local Moplah spies and the booty was accumulated at a convenient spot like bees gathering honey from flowers far away. The French generals closely monitored Tipu, all his activiites and passed the information to the British.

The French allies of Tipu remained neutral in all his conflict with the British. But for Tipu's campaigns in Kodagu and Kerala against native kingdoms, his French allies had extended their military, financial, political, diplomatic support and equipped him with modern weapons like highly armed cannonade contingent.

The famine that wiped out one third of the population of Bengal in 1770 was a direct impact of the British policy like high taxes, hoarding and export of food grains etc. By the time of the famine, monopolies in grain trading had been established by the Company and its agents. Clive was back in England by the time of the famine, enjoying his wealth at home. When asked about the suffering of millions, Clive simply answered that his priorities had been to protect the interests of shareholders, not those of the local population; his responsibility was to the EIC — not to poor Indians and Bengalis whom he described as either servile, mean, submissive and humble, that he deserved no criticism for doing his job. 

These answers met with howls of derision. His attitude had a much more dramatic impact on the other side of the world. Reports about how the British had behaved circulated extensively in America. Leaflets and pamphlets were widely distributed in Pennsylvania that described the EIC as an institution well versed in Tyranny, Plunder, Oppression, and Bloodshed. If the British were prepared to let those in India die from hunger, why not in the colonies in America too? 

For the British, the tax income from American colonies were not significant as compared to the riches obtained from Bengal. America was not an industrialized nation then. The industrial revolution started a little later. Agriculture was the predominant occupation. Also the British army was weakened by need to fight in the Caribbean and India. Distinguished generals like William Medows, Sir Eyre Coote, Archibald Campbell, Charles Cornwallis etc started their career in America and then headed for in India. The colonies seperated from Britain in 1776.

The industrial revolution in Europe started soon after the Plassey victory. The wealth from the subcontinet and precious vedic knowledge were stolen and used  for their commercial advancement. The museums in London and Germany are keeping many of the stolen relics and artefacts from India.

The plot for French Revolution was also hatched in London. The gold looted from Kerala and Kodagu by Tipu's French allies were used for funding the Jacobins Club of Paris. The Reign of Terror (1793 – 94) by Jacobins resulted in the death of tens of thousands of innocent people. When the Jacobins Club lost its acceptance among people of Europe, especially after its reign of terror, the club was dissolved. Napoleon was promoted instead. Napoleon was expected to do a deadly campaign of loot and plunder in Europe just like how Hyder Ali and Tipu Sultan conducted their military campaign in Kerala. Instead Napoleon turned against the practice of usury or money lending and soon became an enemy of the British. The British war against Napoleon was enormously expensive. Troops had to be paid, and weapons, rations, and ships had to be purchased. The vast majority of this payment had to be done in specie - coins minted from gold and silver. Paper money was not yet widely accepted, and a steady flow of hard cash was essential for the British war effort. The BEIC came forward to lent money to the British government and gold and silver coins from across the world poured into England.

Not many are aware about the Red Flag Fleet, the pirates that ruled the South China Seas during 17th century and early 18th century. China was a hostile nation then for the British traders. But the British converted China into a nation of opium addicts. How? 

They first created a mafia under the Chinese female Kaifeng Pirate by name Ching Shih (or Zheng Shi). She commanded over 80,000 outlaws and the 1,800 pirate ships under her command was called the Red Flag Fleet. They were invincible with the expanding reserves of loot and the long range guns they used. In Pirates of the Caribbean part 3 ( 2007 ) she has a mention. Opium distribution was done by a Chinese mafia controlled by Kaifeng pirates. Chinese middle and upper class were forced at gunpoint to smoke opium. These called as "command performances", persisted until addiction took over. 

After years of notoriety on the South China Seas Ching Shih finally retired by accepting an offer of amnesty from the Chinese government, but not without first negotiating to maintain the riches and power she earned as a pirate lord.

Exactly 259 years after the Plassey victory, the Brexit referendum took place on June 23 2016 in UK and Gibraltar to ask the electorate if the country should remain a member of, or leave the European Union (EU). The battle of Plassey also took place on the same date in June. 

The color red symbolizes danger, so also the red flags.

The picture in the post shows the luxurious life of British in India and selling opium to Chinese by force. Only the licensed agents of BEIC was allowed to sell opium. All other drug traffickers were caught and decapitated.

References

Also read the book, Armenians in India From the earliest times to the present day By Mesrovb Jacob Seth, 1937 - https://www.rarebooksocietyofindia.org/book_archive/196174216674_10152469741581675.pdf

From Battle of Plassey to Brexit: June 23 is a memorable date in history of Britain - https://www.oneindia.com/feature/from-battle-plassey-brexit-june-23-memorable-date-in-british-history-2134807.html

How Robert Clive and Donald Trump are joined by history - https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/home/sunday-times/all-that-matters/how-robert-clive-and-donald-trump-are-joined-by-history/articleshow/56539384.cms

A King who was a Jacobian - https://samharshbangalore.blogspot.com/2013/05/a-king-who-was-jacobian.html

Coins that paid for the battle of Waterloo - https://ageofrevolution.org/200-object/coins-that-paid-for-the-battle-of-waterloo

The British Origins of the French Jacobins - https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/abs/10.1177/0265691414546456

The Rise and fall of traditional water harvesting systems in India

The traditional water harvesting practices in India had developed gradually through thousands of years of farming experience. They were time tested, highly customised and suitable for each geographical region. Its diversity varies from the systems found at hot desert of Rajasthan to the cold desert of trans-Himalayan Ladakh, from the sub-temperate Himalayan mountains to the high tropical interspersed mountain ranges in South plateaus, the flood-prone Indo-Gangetic plains etc. They are called kuhals in Jammu, kuls in Himachal Pradesh and guls in Uttarakhand, zings in Ladakh, eris in TN. Tankas, kundis, bawdis, jhalaras and a host of others are found in the hot desert of Rajasthan.

The Water harvesting and agro-ecological systems are more fragile. They have to be continuously monitored, maintained and repaired. If any break happens then the system may collapse irreversibly. The aim of GM seed MNCs is to obtain monopoly in agriculture by breaking the traditional ones. Many Desi cattle breeds are extinct now due to the introduction of hybrid European breeds through Artificial Insemination. The A2 milk that enriched children until 60 years back is not there now.

The decline of century old traditional farming practices started its decline with the advent of British colonialism and bad government policies after independence. The natural resources like grains and timber were most needed for the British war efforts all over the world. The wealth of the land came from its internal resource mobilisation of village republics that were self contained. The surplus generated in the villages also supported people outside. In addition the British tried to destroy the traditional agriculture and industries in order to create an easy market for their goods. The muslin production in Bengal was destroyed by various means. William Bolts, a merchant in his book "Considerations on India Affairs", recorded instances of extreme brutality against silk weavers including cutting off their fingers.

The British had made an an extensive survey of agriculture system in TN during 1740s. In the Arcot District, they found that 54 Quintals of rice was harvested from one acre of land using simple manure and pesticides like cow urine and cow dung. Robert Clive who spearheaded the comapny's loot campaign in Bengal estimated that the number of cows in Bengal outnumbered the number of men. Similar was the situation in the rest of India. As a part of the Master plan to destabilize the India, cow slaughter was initiated. The first slaughterhouse in India was started in 1760, with a capacity to kill thirty thousand per day and at least one crore cows were eliminated in an years time. With the decline in cattle population, industrial manure like urea and phosphate made way to India.

Arthur Cotton, a pioneer of modern irrigation in India, noted in 1874 about local water harvesting systems as : "There are a multitude of old native works in various parts of India... These are noble works, and show both boldness and engineering talent. They have stood for hundreds of years. When I first arrived in India, the contempt with which the natives justly spoke of us on account of this neglect of material improvements was very striking; they used to say we were a kind of civilised savages, wonderfully expert about fighting but so inferior to their great men that we would not even keep in repair the works they had constructed, much less even imitate them in extending the system."

The colonial rulers neglected anything they could not own or earn money from. The declining grain production in Bengal was a great worry for the empire. So they invited an irrigation expert by name William Willcocks for advise. In a series of lectures delivered in Calcutta in the 1920s, Willcocks stunned everyone by arguing that the absolute best that the government could do was to revive the ancient flood irrigation system of the region.

With the progress of British rule, there was also a gradual shift in emphasis from minor irrigation works like tanks, wells, bandharas (dams) and small river channels to large dams and canals commanding extensive areas. The region, which never revived the wisdom of its ancestors, remains the poorest in the world.

The education system stressed the need for moving away from traditional practices. The educated Anglicized elites no longer appreciated or understood ancient wisdom. They were so successful that when India became independent, the leaders of modern India also turned their backs on the traditional systems and invested almost exclusively in mega-irrigation projects.

Puranas recommend protection of nature

The importance of protecting natural resources can be found in ancient texts, inscriptions and archaeological remains. Sayings related to trees are found in Puranas like Vrikshayurveda as -

दशकूपसमा वापी दशवापीसमो ह्रदः ।

दशह्रदसमः पुत्रो दशपुत्रसमो द्रुमः ॥

dasha-kupa-sama vapi, dasha-vapi-samo hrada

dasha-hrada-sama? putro, dasha-putra-samo druma

One vapi (tank) is as good as ten wells, one lake is as good as ten tanks, one son is as good as ten lakes and one tree is as good as ten sons.

The prosperity of the famous Vijayanagar kings (1336-1564) derived from its natural resources and agriculture. Great religious merit was also attached for taking care these practices. An inscription dating to 1413 states: "A ruined family, a breached tank or pond, a fallen kingdom, whomsoever restores, or repairs a damaged temple, acquires merit four-fold of that which accrued from them at first".

The region had turned into a dry land after its conquest by Deccan Sultans and rule of Nizams during Colonial Raj.

The Veeranam Lake in TN, built in the tenth century by Chola Kings, is still storing water and supplying it to Chennai city and rural farmers. The controversial Veeranam project was meant for supplying water to Chennai city. The project, conceived in 1967, was stalled due to corruption allegations.

Success Stories

The traditional rainwater harvesting alone converted a drought-prone village in Maharashtra, Ralegan Siddhi, into a rich agricultural village. It was a was poverty stricken village in 1975. Krishna Bhaurao Hazare, a retired driver from the Indian army, began constructing storage ponds, reservoirs and gully plugs. Due to the steady percolation of water, the groundwater table began to rise. Simultaneously, government social forestry schemes were used to plant 300,000-400,000 trees in and around the village.

The Arvari river flows through a drought stricken region in Rajastan. According to historical records of the region, the river Arvari used to provide groundwater recharge to wells in the area. The river was brought back to life by the villagers themselves through over 200 water harvesting structures built in the 70 villages in the catchment of Arvari. It has become a perennial river ever since.

Decline Of Water Harvesting Systems after independence

The main reasons for the disappearance of water harvesting systems after independence are

(1) With the construction of large dams and canals, the reliance on local water harvesting structures also vanished. So people converted the ponds, wells and tanks into more profitable commercial properties. The appreciation land value due to the profusion real estate black money is also a factor.

(2) The increased dependence on ground water due farm modernization and power subsidies.

(3) Conversion of farms lands into commercial properties.

(4) Cutting down of trees.

Zero Budget Natural Farming

The Economic Survey 2019, on agriculture sector, has suggested adoption of Natural Farming along with application of appropriate technologies to make agriculture sustainable for the 12.5 crore small and marginal farmers, which together account of 85% of the total farmers in the country. The finance minister, while presenting her maiden Union Budget on Friday, stressed on the need to go back to the basics on Zero-Budget Natural Farming (ZBNF), saying this model needs to be replicated throughout the country.

It is not a new thing. Such methods were existing throughout India until 18th century. The extinction of Desi cattle, extensive use of fertilizers & pesticides after the Green Revolution and disappearance of traditional water harvesting systems have changed the farming ecosystem. After the liberalization of Indian economy, the farmers are in a perpetual debt trap. Agriculturist Subhash Palekar started experimenting with zero budget farming with the aim of pulling the farmers out of this debt trap.

The myriad of beneficial microbes and substances found with the Desi cow dung and urine is cultured and fermented to create a miracle preparation called Jivamrutha or The Nectar of Life. The dung and urine of desi cattle contain high concentration of micro-organisms that helps to draw up worms from the lower layers of soil to the top. This cheap, simple, and effective ferment has an even stronger capacity to attract beneficial organisms. This makes the soil more permeable helping rain water to penetrate deep into the earth. After preparation, Jivamrutha, with its billions of beneficial microorganisms, is then applied to fields, where the ferment generously attracts and feeds even more microorganisms, earthworms, and bacteria, which in turn break up micronutrients like nitrogen, making them available to plants.

From just one single cow it is possible to produce all that a farmer needs to farm up to 30 acres! With zero external inputs, this completely changes the costs for a farmer. The European hybrid cows are not useful at all for a ZBNF farmer.

Access to free water resources is essential for ZBNF. Rain fall happens at Zero Budget and its storage via soil recharge also comes with zero budget. The natural cycle is that each and every drop of rain water that fall on land has to reach ocean. The purpose of RWH systems is to delay the cycle time. When there is free surface runoff, the rain water reaches ocean within 48 hours to one week time. With soil recharge this cycle time can be increased to 6 months or even a year.

Among all the suggestions for bettering the agricultural economy, the first choice should be for improving the water harvesting practices. This alone can leap India forward. Any neglect of this sector will be a disaster like the present water crisis experienced by Chennai people.

The Economic survey 2019 also said that around 89% of groundwater extracted is used for irrigation and crops such as paddy and sugarcane consume more than 60% of irrigation water.

What happened to Desi cattle

Kerala is one of the first state to introduce European hybrid cows through Artificial Insemination. For the implementation of Indo-Swiss Project during 1960s, Kerala launched a dual campaign of crossbreeding cattle and exterminating unproductive indigenous cattle. The government implemented the infamous Kerala Livestock Improvement Act of 1961. The act required farmers to castrate productive bulls within one month under threat of penalization. The act ultimately resulted in the mass culling of native breeds. Most bulls were sold for slaughter in the years after 1961.

Here are a set of tests to accurately identify native cows

(1) A hump on the shoulder

(2) oily skin, a straight back, beautiful eyes, has a friendly character and has its beauty

(3) a pronounced dewlap (a fold of loose skin hanging under the throat of a cattle)

(4) ability to dispel insects by shaking their skin

(5) Native cow dung has a pleasant fragrance, is semisolid, and falls like a ring rather than the flat cowpats of the hybrids.

(6) insect holes at the place where dung falls is a clear sign of the microbial attractiveness of native cow dung

(7) modest requirements for food and water