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Discrimination or Social Networks? Industrial Investment in Colonial India

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  • Gupta, Bishnupriya

    (Department of Economics, University of Warwick)

Abstract

Industrial investment in Colonial India was segregated by the export oriented industries, such as tea and jute that relied on British firms and the import substituting cotton textile industry that was dominated by Indian firms. The literature emphasizes discrimination against Indian capital. Instead informational factors played an important role. British entrepreneurs knew the export markets and the Indian entrepreneurs were familiar with the local markets. The divergent flows of entrepreneurship can be explained by the comparative advantage enjoyed by social groups in information and the role of social networks in determining entry and creating separate spheres of industrial investment.

Suggested Citation

  • Gupta, Bishnupriya, 2013. "Discrimination or Social Networks? Industrial Investment in Colonial India," The Warwick Economics Research Paper Series (TWERPS) 1019, University of Warwick, Department of Economics.
    • Handle: RePEc:wrk:warwec:1019
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    Cited by:

    1. Chaudhary, Latika & Swamy, Anand V., 2017. "Protecting the borrower: An experiment in colonial India," Explorations in Economic History, Elsevier, vol. 65(C), pages 36-54.
    2. Munshi, K., 2017. "Caste and the Indian Economy," Cambridge Working Papers in Economics 1759, Faculty of Economics, University of Cambridge.
    3. Alvaredo, Facundo & Bergeron, Augustin & Cassan, Guilhem, 2017. "Income concentration in British India, 1885–1946," Journal of Development Economics, Elsevier, vol. 127(C), pages 459-469.
    4. Aldashev, Gani & Guirkinger, Catherine, 2017. "Colonization and changing social structure: Evidence from Kazakhstan," Journal of Development Economics, Elsevier, vol. 127(C), pages 413-430.
    5. Esteves, Rui & Geisler Mesevage, Gabriel, 2019. "Social Networks in Economic History: Opportunities and Challenges," Explorations in Economic History, Elsevier, vol. 74(C).
    6. Gani Aldashev & Catherine Guirkinger, 2016. "Colonization and Changing Social Structure: Kazakhstan 1896-1910," Working Papers ECARES ECARES 2016-10, ULB -- Universite Libre de Bruxelles.
    7. Bishnupriya Gupta & Dilip Mookherjee & Kaivan Munshi & Mario Sanclemente, 2018. "Community Origins of Industrial Entrepreneurship in Pre-Independence India," Boston University - Department of Economics - The Institute for Economic Development Working Papers Series dp-318, Boston University - Department of Economics.

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