Model Answer

The First World War (1914-1918) caused significant socio-economic disruptions in India, which contributed to the rise of mass mobilization for the independence movement. Some of the key disruptions included:

1. Economic Hardships

• Rise in National Debt: To fund the war, the British government significantly increased defense expenditure, leading to a rise in national debt by over Rs. 3 million between 1914 and 1923. This debt burden was passed on to the common people through heavy war loans and increased taxes. This economic strain was compounded by the rise in prices, leading to widespread hardship for the Indian populace.
• Food Shortages and Famine: The export of food grains to support the war effort, along with crop failures in 1918-19, led to food shortages and famine. The underproduction of crops during this period disproportionately affected vulnerable groups, such as women and children.

2. Distress Among Peasants and Workers

• Farmer Distress: Rising prices of industrial goods and food crops during the war were not matched by a corresponding increase in the prices of Indian agricultural raw materials. This led to severe distress among farmers, sparking protests like the Kisan Sabha movement in Uttar Pradesh (1918).
• Working-Class Discontent: Low wages, long working hours, and harsh working conditions, compounded by the demand for overtime to increase war production, led to widespread dissatisfaction among industrial workers.

3. Spread of Pandemic

• The return of Indian soldiers from the front lines in Europe facilitated the spread of the Spanish Flu (1918-1919), which claimed millions of lives and overwhelmed India’s already strained healthcare system.

Contribution to Mass Mobilization for Independence

The socio-economic impact of WW-I fueled the Indian independence struggle in several ways:

1. Political Awareness

Indian soldiers who fought in the war returned with heightened political awareness and a sense of injustice about colonial rule. This sense of empowerment contributed to the spread of nationalist ideas.

2. The Home Rule Movement

In response to the hardships caused by WW-I, the Home Rule Movement, led by leaders like Bal Gangadhar Tilak and Annie Besant, gained momentum. It called for self-governance and rallied public opinion against British policies.

3. Repressive British Policies

The British response to growing discontent included the imposition of martial law and the Rowlatt Act (1919), which restricted civil liberties. These oppressive measures further united Indian society, leading to Gandhiji’s Rowlatt Satyagraha.

4. The Khilafat-Non-Cooperation Movement

The harsh post-war Treaty of Sevres and the treatment of the Turkish Sultan (Khalifa) sparked the Khilafat Movement. Gandhiji’s Non-Cooperation Movement, which combined the Khilafat cause with the broader nationalist struggle, mobilized peasants, workers, and women.

Thus, the socio-economic disruptions caused by the war, alongside oppressive British policies, led to mass mobilization across various sections of Indian society for the independence movement.