De-industrialisation: Alternative view

'De-industrialisation' is an argument that British India, which started wit h a large and well-developed manufacturing tradition, saw a decline in its traditional industry during the colonial period, and that the modern indust ry which grew in its place did not compensate for the loss in employment an d income. This essay presents an alternative view, which suggests that trad itional industry did not decline that it changed in organisation and charac ter, and that these changes shaped the future course of Indian industrialis ation.