Teaching Lesson Plan for 2022-23
PAPER: History of India, c. 1700-1950
COURSE: B A Prog
SEMESTER: IV
SESSION: 2022-23
TEACHER NAME: Dr. Renu Bahuguna
SYLLABUS
Unit I. India in the 18th century- Background and Debates
Unit II. Expansion and consolidation of British power: Special reference
to Bengal, Mysore, Maratha and Punjab
Unit III. Making of the British Colonial Economy:
[a] Land revenue settlements;
[b] Commercialisation of agriculture;
[c] Deindustrialisation;
[d] Drain of wealth
Unit IV. The Revolt of 1857: Causes, nature and consequences
Unit V Social and Religious Reform Movements in Colonial India:
[a] Overview of reformist and revivalist movements in the 19th century;
[b] Caste Movements (Phule, Sree Narayan Guru, Ambedkar);
[c] Peasant and tribal movements: an overview
Unit VI. Growth of the National Movement, 1858-1947:
[a] Early nationalism and foundation of the Indian National Congress;
[b] A critique of colonialism (moderates, extremists and militant nationalists);
[c] Mahatma Gandhi and mass nationalism: Non-cooperation, Civil
Disobedience, and Quit India movements; relationship between the masses
and leaders
Unit VII. Development of Communalism and the Partition of India:
[a] An overview of the growth of communalism;
[b] Towards Freedom and Partition
Unit VIII. Independent India: Making of the Constitution: The evolution of the
Constitution and its Main Provisions; basic features of the Constitution
COURSE DESCRIPTION
This paper provides a thematically arranged overview of the history of India
from the beginning of the eighteenth-century to the making of the republic in
1950. The first two units examine the British colonial expansion in the
eighteenth-century and proceed to discuss the consolidation of the colonial
state power in the political settings of nineteenth-century India. The third unit
critically situates the links between land revenue administration, export-
oriented commercialisation of agricultural production and deindustrialisation
and the rampant famine in colonial India. With a long-term perspective on the
ideological, institutional and political formations, the last four units introduce
the major tendencies in the anti-colonial nationalist and popular movements in
colonial and immediate post-colonial India.
TEACHING TIME(No. Of Weeks)
15 Weeks Approximately
CLASSES
The course is organized around daily lectures as per the time table. Students
will be given reading assignments each week to help them follow the course
content. These readings will be discussed in class in detail. Presentation
shall focus either on important themes covered in the class lectures, or on
specific readings. Interactive sessions through group discussions or group
presentations. shall be used to enable un-learning of prevailing
misconceptions about historical developments and time periods, as well as to
facilitate revision of issues outlined in the lectures. Supporting audio-visual
aids like documentaries and power point presentations, and an appropriate
field-visit will be used where necessary.
UNIT WISE BREAK UP OF SYLLABUS
Unit I. India in the 18th century- Background and Debates
This unit situates the major historiographical debates on the transformation of
the Indian society in the eighteenth-century. (Teaching Time: 2 weeks/ 10
Classes approx. and Tutorials.)
Unit II. Expansion and consolidation of British power: Special reference
to Bengal, Mysore, Maratha and Punjab
This unit discusses the process which led to the expansion and consolidation
of the British colonial power in India with the help of specific case studies.
(Teaching Time: 2 weeks/10 Lectures approx. and Tutorials.)
_
Unit III. Making of the British Colonial Economy:
[a] Land revenue settlements;
[b] Commercialisation of agriculture;
[c] Deindustrialisation;
[d] Drain of wealth
This unit provides a critical perspective on the changing patterns of land
relations, agricultural practices, and trade and industry in the Indian sub-
continent under the British colonial rule. (Teaching Time: 2 weeks approx.)
Unit IV. The Revolt of 1857: Causes, nature and consequences
This unit elaborates the various aspects of the Revolt of 1857 and understand
its impact on colonial rule and the Indian society. (Teaching Time: 1 week / 5
Classes approx. and Tutorials.)
Unit V Social and Religious Reform Movements in Colonial India:
[a] Overview of reformist and revivalist movements in the 19th century;
[b] Caste Movements (Phule, Sree Narayan Guru, Ambedkar);
[c] Peasant and tribal movements: an overview
This unit discusses the social and religious reform movements and early rural
insurgency in colonial India as a response to British colonialism. (Teaching
Time: 2 weeks/10 Lectures approx. and Tutorials.)
Unit VI. Growth of the National Movement, 1858-1947:
[a] Early nationalism and foundation of the Indian National Congress;
[b] A critique of colonialism (moderates, extremists and militant nationalists);
[c] Mahatma Gandhi and mass nationalism: Non-cooperation, Civil
Disobedience, and Quit India movements; relationship between the masses
and leaders
This unit explores the long-term development of institutions, ideologies and
different groups and individuals that shaped the political fields of the anti-
colonial nationalist movement in the nineteenth and twentieth centuries.
(Teaching Time: 2 weeks/10 Lectures approx. and Tutorials.)
Unit VII. Development of Communalism and the Partition of India:
[a] An overview of the growth of communalism;
[b] Towards Freedom and Partition
This unit critically situates the political and social contexts that led to
communal mobilization and its impact on the sub-continent’s social and
political fabric. (Teaching Time: 2 weeks/10 Lectures approx. and
Tutorials.)
Unit VIII. Independent India: Making of the Constitution: The evolution of the
Constitution and its Main Provisions; basic features of the Constitution
This unit situates the process of making the constitution as an attempt to
decolonize Indian society and its political practices. (Teaching Time: 2
weeks/ 10 Lectures approx. and Tutorials.)
ASSESSMENT
Internal Assessment: 25 Marks
Students will be regularly assessed for their grasp on debates and
discussions covered in class. Two written submissions; one of which could be
a short project, will be used for final grading of the students. Students will be
assessed on their ability to explain important historical trends and thereby
engage with the historical approach. Students in this course will primarily have
three modes of assessment:
1) Written assignment
2) Presentation
3) Class Test
Two assignments of 5 marks each. Students will have to write one essay
based assignment inclusive of bibliographies, and for the second assignment
they will have to prepare a presentation. There will be a Class Test of 10
marks. It will take place tentatively after the mid semester break.
Additionally there are 5 marks for Attendance
