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Structural Change – Class 12 Sociology notes, important questions and MCQs

NCERT Class 12 Sociology, chapter 7. Notes, key terms, important questions with answers and MCQs.

Chapter overview

Structural change refers to transformations in the basic structures of society, such as the economy, polity and settlement patterns. Colonialism brought major structural changes to India through capitalism, industrialisation and urbanisation. British rule built a modern administrative and legal structure, railways and ports, and new cities, while destroying some traditional industries and urban centres. Independent India continued industrialisation and urbanisation under planning.

Colonialism and capitalism

Colonialism used India as a source of raw materials and a market for British manufactured goods, integrating it into world capitalism.
Industrialisation in Britain led to deindustrialisation in India, as handloom weaving and crafts declined; modern industries such as jute in Calcutta and cotton textiles in Bombay emerged.
The colonial state introduced a modern bureaucracy, laws, a census and a uniform administration, and labour migrated to plantations, mines and factories, sometimes overseas as indentured labour.

Urbanisation

Old towns that depended on royal courts (such as Murshidabad, Dhaka and Surat) declined, while new colonial port cities such as Bombay, Calcutta and Madras grew.
Hill stations, cantonments and railway towns developed; cities were divided into 'white towns' and 'black towns'.
After independence, the state promoted heavy industry, planned cities such as Chandigarh and Bhubaneswar, and steel towns such as Rourkela and Bhilai.

Key terms

Structural change: change in the basic structures of society
Capitalism: an economic system based on private ownership and profit
Deindustrialisation: decline of traditional industries
Indentured labour: workers bound by contract to work for a fixed period, often overseas
Urbanisation: growth of towns and cities and of the share of urban population

Important questions with answers

What is deindustrialisation?2 marks

Deindustrialisation refers to the decline of traditional Indian industries such as handloom weaving and handicrafts during colonial rule, as cheap machine-made British goods flooded Indian markets and India was made a supplier of raw materials.

How did colonialism change urbanisation in India?3 marks

Older towns linked to royal courts and traditional trade, such as Murshidabad, Dhaka and Surat, declined, while new port cities like Bombay, Calcutta and Madras grew as centres of trade and administration; hill stations, cantonments and railway towns also developed, often segregated into white and black towns.

Discuss the structural changes brought about by colonialism in India.5 marks

Colonialism transformed the basic structures of Indian society. Economically, it integrated India into the world capitalist system as a supplier of raw materials such as cotton, indigo and jute, and a market for British manufactured goods. Cheap machine-made goods led to deindustrialisation, ruining weavers and artisans and pushing many into agriculture. At the same time, modern industries such as jute mills in Calcutta, cotton mills in Bombay and later steel at Jamshedpur developed, creating an industrial working class. Commercialisation of agriculture and new land revenue systems changed rural relations. Labour migrated to tea plantations in Assam, mines and factories, and overseas as indentured workers. Politically, the British created a centralised state with a modern bureaucracy, army, police, courts and codified laws, and used the census to classify the population. Railways, telegraph and ports were built mainly to serve trade and control. Urban patterns changed, as old court towns declined and colonial port cities, hill stations and cantonments grew, often segregated by race. After independence, India continued structural change through planned industrialisation, public sector enterprises, steel towns such as Rourkela and Bhilai, and planned cities such as Chandigarh and Bhubaneswar.

Quick revision

Colonialism linked India to world capitalism.
Deindustrialisation and new industries.
Colonial cities and migration.
Post-independence industrialisation and planned cities.

Exam tips

Name three colonial port cities and three declining older towns.
Link industrialisation in Britain with deindustrialisation in India.

Practice MCQs

Decline of traditional industries in colonial India is called
1. industrialisation
2. deindustrialisation
3. urbanisation
4. globalisation
Show answer
Answer: (b) deindustrialisation. Handloom weaving suffered.
Which was a colonial port city
1. Murshidabad
2. Bombay
3. Agra
4. Patna
Show answer
Answer: (b) Bombay. It grew with trade.
An economic system based on private ownership and profit is
1. feudalism
2. barter
3. socialism
4. capitalism
Show answer
Answer: (d) capitalism. Colonialism spread it.
Workers bound by contract to work abroad were called
1. indentured labourers
2. free labour
3. bonded peasants
4. slaves by birth
Show answer
Answer: (a) indentured labourers. Many went to Fiji, Mauritius and the Caribbean.
Which steel town was developed in Odisha after independence
1. Bhilai
2. Durgapur
3. Rourkela
4. Jamshedpur
Show answer
Answer: (c) Rourkela. It was built with German collaboration.
Older towns such as Surat and Murshidabad declined because
1. they were destroyed by earthquakes
2. they were deserted by farmers
3. they became too large
4. trade routes and political centres shifted to colonial ports
Show answer
Answer: (d) trade routes and political centres shifted to colonial ports. Courts and trade moved.
Why did industrialisation in Britain lead to deindustrialisation in India
1. Indian goods became more popular
2. tariffs protected Indian crafts
3. India built more factories
4. cheap machine-made British goods replaced Indian crafts and India supplied raw materials
Show answer
Answer: (d) cheap machine-made British goods replaced Indian crafts and India supplied raw materials. Colonial policy favoured Britain.
Colonial cities were often divided into
1. rural and urban areas
2. rich and poor villages
3. industrial and agricultural zones only
4. 'white towns' for Europeans and 'black towns' for Indians
Show answer
Answer: (d) 'white towns' for Europeans and 'black towns' for Indians. Segregation reflected racial hierarchy.

All chapters of Class 12 Sociology

Written by Kundali IQ from standard, well-established facts to help with revision. This is not an official NCERT publication; always read your textbook too.