| Publication |
2014.
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| Summary/Abstract |
It has a composite culture developed through a historical process wherein the emphasis has been on unity in
diversity. South Asia has been the victim of repeated foreign aggressions. The richness of the region perhaps attracted the aggressors from far and wide. In the successive waves of invasions since the ancient times, the Aryans, the Greeks, the Shakes, the Huns, the Turko-Afgans, the Mughals and others came to the region. In the modern period, the Europeans viz. Portuguese, Dutch, French and the British came to South Asia, though it was the British who finally established their hold in the region. The British invasion was qualitatively different from the earlier ones. Whereas the earlier invaders came, settled down here and got completely assimilated with the indigenous people, the British integrated the region into their empire and ruled it from London. The region was linked with the industrially advanced intemational market in order to exploit its natural resources. South Asian economy and society became subordinated to the imperialist political economy and social development. The region was transformed into a market for the British machine made goods, a source of raw material and foodstuffs, and an important field of capital investment. The entire structure of economic relations between Europe and the South Asia involving trade, finance and technology continuously developed the colonial dependence and underdevelopment of the latter. This new politico-econornic system of subordination, called as colonialism, resulted in the emergence of Europe as a leading
capitalist region while the colonies were reduced to backward.
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