Q. Bring out various factors responsible for declining of village Industries in India.

Model Answer:

Village industries, once integral to India’s self-sufficient rural economy, have witnessed precipitous decline due to multiple interconnected factors spanning colonial exploitation to contemporary market dynamics.

Colonial De-industrialization

• Unfair Competition: Manchester textiles flooded Indian markets through one-way free trade policy—heavy duties on Indian exports but duty-free British imports
• Railway Exploitation: Transport network primarily extracted raw materials and distributed British goods, undermining local producers
• Loss of Patronage: Collapse of princely states eliminated traditional support for skilled artisans

Post-Independence Policy Neglect

• Planning Bias: Nehru-Mahalanobis model prioritized capital-intensive heavy industries, marginalizing village industries in development planning
• Unequal Competition: Traditional artisans faced competition from modern small-scale industries with superior access to technology and institutional credit

Structural Transformations

• Jajmani System Breakdown: Disintegration of reciprocal economic relationships between artisan castes and land-owning patrons, as documented by William Wiser
• Market Exploitation: Dependence on middlemen due to lack of direct access to markets, credit, and quality raw materials

Socio-Cultural Shifts

• Changing Preferences: Consumer shift toward mass-produced goods—plastic replacing earthenware, machine textiles replacing handloom
• Skill Erosion: Low social status and meager incomes discourage younger generations from learning traditional crafts

Conclusion:

The decline represents both economic marginalization and cultural loss, necessitating comprehensive policy intervention to preserve these industries’ economic and heritage value.