Answer:
In
the late 18th century, the East India Company was buying tea and silk from
China for sale in England. As tea became a popular English drink, trade in tea
became important, moving upto 30 million pounds in value. This created a problem
because England at this time produced nothing that could be sold in China.
The Chinese were suspicious of foreign goods and Chinese rulers did not
allow foreign goods to enter China, so payment could be made only in silver
coins or bullion which was unacceptable to the British because it would
impoverish the nation.
The British therefore started an illegal trade in opium
with Chinese merchants. The profit from opium trade could be used to buy tea
and silk from China. The British needed more and more opium to export to China
and therefore they insisted that Indian farmers should grow opium to fulfil the
opium demand from China.
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