TEXT QUESTIONS :
1. What kinds of cloth had a large market in Europe ?
Ans: Cotton and silk cloth had a large market in Europe .
2. What is jamdani ?
Ans: Jamdani is a fine muslin cloth on which decorative motifs are woven on the l00m .
3. What is bandanna ?
Ans: The word bandanna refers to any brightly coloured and printed scarf for the neck or head.The term is derived from the Hindi word bandhana and referred to a variety of brightly coloured cloth .
4. Who are the Agaria ?
Ans: Agaria was a community specialized in the craft of iron melting .
5. Fill in the blanks :
(a) The word chintz comes from the word ____________ .
(b) Tipu’s sword was made of __________ steel .
(c) India’s textile exports declined in the _________ century .
Ans: (a) Chhint (b) Wootz (c) Nineteenth .
6. How do the names of different textiles tell us about their histories ?
Ans: The names of textiles used are as follows :
i) Bandanna is derived from the word bandanna(Hindi for tying) and referred to a variety of brightly coloured cloth produced through tying and dying .
ii) Chintz is derived from the Hindi word chhint, a cloth with small and colourful flowery designs .
7. Why did the wool and silk producers in England protest against the import of Indian textiles in the early eighteenth century ?
Ans: By early eighteenth century, the British were worried about popularity of Indian textiles . The wool and silk makers in England protested against the import of Indian textiles . In 1720, the British government enacted a legislation banning the use of printed cotton textile in India .
8. How did the development of cotton industries in Britain affect textile producers in India ?
Ans:
i) Indian textiles had to compete with British textiles in the European and American markets .
ii) Exporting textiles to England also became increasingly difficult since heavy duties were imposed on Indian textiles .
9. Why did the Indian iron smelting industry decline in the nineteenth century ?
Ans: The industry declined because :
i) The colonial government prevented people from entering the reserved forests .
ii) In some areas the government did grant access to the forest.But the iron smelters had to pay a very high tax to the forest department for every furnace .
iii) By the late nineteenth century iron and steel was being imported from Britain.Iron smiths in India began using the imported iron to manufacture utensils and implements .
10. What problems did the Indian textile industry face in the early years of its development ?
Ans: The textile factory industry in India faced many problems :
i) It found difficult to compose with the cheap textiles imported from Britain .
ii) Government supported industrialization by imposing heavy duties on imports . The colonial government in India usually refused such protection .
11. What helped TISCO expand steel production during the First World War ?
Ans: In 1914 the First World War broke out steel which was produced in Britain was used to meet the demands of war in Europe . So imports of British steel in India declined and Indian railways turned to TISCO . And TISCO became the biggest steel industry in Britain .
12. Find out about the history of any craft around the area you live. You may wish to know about the community of craftsmen, the changes in the techniques they use and the markets they supply.How have these changed in the past 50 years ?
Ans: Goa once known for its jewelry now has a rich tradition of handicrafts . One can also see artisans in remote villages crafting beautiful traditional items.
Ranges of handicrafts from 100 rural artisans are displayed for sale at many places in Goa by the Goa Handicrafts, Rural and Small Scale Industries Development Corporation (GHRSSIDC) owned by the state . Some of the art and craft of Goa comprise of :
1) Brass Work
Goa’s artisans mould brass into various designs and shapes . Some of them include a hanging oil lamp, statue, candle stands, ashtrays and the most famous handicraft of Goa, the lamp Samai that is a tree like oil lamp with flower motifs . The art of crafting brass metal still surprises modern techniques in simplicity and beauty even though it is generations old .
2) Wooden Lacquer – ware
In Goa this art also known as ‘wood turning’ is a century old . Here a variety of attractive toys and decorative cum utility items are created with great skill after special wood is manipulated . Some of the items created include corner stands, baby carts, cradles etc .
3) Paper Machine
In this art waste paper is put to good use and colorful items used in daily life are made such as jewellery boxes, wall hangings, pen stands and flower vases .
4) Bamboo Craft
One of the oldest arts practiced in Goa is bamboo and crane craft introduced by the Mahar community artisans who produced items for fishermen and farmers . Some of the items produced are flower pots, baskets, pen stands, and lightweight furniture and letter holders .
5) Terracotta Pottery
One of the arts that continues to lend character to Goan homes and in which each art piece is known for its artistic finish is terracotta pottery . It includes items such as pen holders, decorative flower pots, floral designs, ashtrays and figurines of saints and gods and it is also one of the earliest arts known to mankind .
13. On a map of India , locate the Centre’s of different crafts today . Find out when this Centre’s came up .
Ans:
Andhra Pradesh is known for its productions of silk sarees, pearl jewellery and stone setting ornaments of exclusive designs .
Kamrup in Assam is famous for different craft products made of brass and bell metal; while Muga silk is another specialty of Assam .
Bidar in Karnataka is famous for manufacturing metal ware made of an alloy of zinc and copper, which is termed as Bidriware .
Phulkari is a special type of mirror embroidery that is practiced only in Punjab .
Bandhani is a tie-dye pattern done on the fabrics in rural Gujarat, along with bangles made of ivory and colourful plastic .
Imagine you are a textile weaver in late – nineteenth -century India. Textiles produced in Indian factories are flooding the market. How would you have adjusted to the situation ?
Ans:
i) Following industrialisation when British machine made goods, and also textile produced in Indian factories started flooding the market, Indian weavers very badly affected as they faced fierce competition from machine made goods .
ii) The demand for certain products like Banarsi, Baluchari sarees and Lungis from Madras could not easily replaced by machine made cloth .
iii) I would suggest starting new cotton mills in major cities .
iv) I would have suggested the improvement in production methods to ensure higher production . Markets will be differently focused such that richer will be focused for weaved products and poor for the coarse cloths . The factories that were fully drowned are suggested to change their occupation either focus on cotton or agriculture .