question_answer

'Many of the modern towns in India were developed during the period of British domination.' Substantiate the statement.

Answer:

The British and other Europeans have developed a number of towns in India. They first developed some trading ports such as Mumbai, Chennai, and Kolkata. Surat, Daman, Goa, Pondicherry, etc. for the ease of trade and commerce. Gradually they established their administrative centres, hill towns, summer resorts etc. Towns based on modern industries also evolved after 1850, e.g. Jamshedpur. After independence, a large number of towns have been developed as administrative headquarters, e.g. Chandigarh, Bhubaneswar, Gandhinagar, Dispur, etc. and industrial centres such as Durgapur; Bhilai, Sindri, Barauni etc. Some old towns also developed as satellite towns around metropolitan cities such as Ghaziabad, Rohtak, and Gurgaon around Delhi. With increasing investment in rural areas, a large number of medium and small towns have developed all over the country.