Question

Discuss briefly the estimates made by notable scholars regarding the national income and per capita income during the colonial rule in India.

Answer 1

1. Several notable scholars, such as Dadabhai Naoroji, William Digby, Findlay Shirras, V.K.R.V. Rao, and R.C. Desai, made earnest efforts to calculate national income during the colonial era.
2. Among these scholars, the estimates provided by V.K.R.V. Rao were considered very significant. However, the majority of these studies revealed that the country's overall real output growth during the first half of the 20th century remained below 2%, with a meagre annual per capita output growth of just 0.5%.