Lord Dalhousie is often regarded as the “Maker of Modern India”
Lord Dalhousie established a number of Anglo-vernacular schools.
He also instituted social changes, such as the prohibition of female infanticide.
Enacted the passage of the Widow Remarriage Act (1856).
He pioneered passenger trains on railways, as well as the electric telegraph and uniform postage, describing them as the “three great engines of social improvement.”
He also built engineering institutions to supply resources for each presidency’s newly established public works department.
He modernized the civil service by instituting an open recruitment method.
He also increased the size of India’s Legislative Council.
Brought significant reforms in Education (Wood’s Despatch).
Education:
Sir Charles Wood, the president of the Board of Control, gave him instructions on education in India in 1854.
It was proposed that schools and colleges be created in each region, as well as a university in each Presidency town, namely Bombay, Madras, and Calcutta.
It was also suggested that the government encourage private businesses and individuals to open schools and universities that would be subsidized by the government.
Universities were established in Calcutta, Madras, and Bombay, as well as an Engineering and Agriculture college in Roorkee.
Railways, Telegraphs, and Postal Services
The railway connecting Bombay and Thane was completed in 1853.
The Post Office Act was passed in 1854.
In 1852, the Telegraph Department was established. The Telegraphs covered about four thousand miles. Telegraphs connected Calcutta to Peshawar, Bombay to Madras, and other key cities to one another.
The Public Works Department was administered by military boards before the Dalhousie period. For this reason, Dalhousie formed a distinct department. The Grand Trunk Road from Calcutta to Peshawar was restored under Dalhousie’s reign. The Ganges Canal, Punjab’s canals, and several bridges over various rivers were built.
Doctrine of Lapse
In the absence of a natural heir, Indian states’ sovereignty lapsed to the British, and monarchs could not adopt a son to succeed.
This doctrine was not created by Dalhousie. Adoption after the death of natural heirs “should be the exception, not the rule,” the Company’s Directors decided in 1844, “and should only be granted as a particular mark of favor or approval.”
Upon the death of natural heirs, the supreme power is transferred to the next in line. In fact, it was a way Dalhousie considered expedient to expand the Company’s territory.
