NEW BOOK: CURRENCY LEGISLATIONS OF THE EAST INDIA COMPANY, 1772-1835

Title : The Sikka and the Raj: A History of Currency Legislations of the East India Company, 1772-1835.
Author : Sanjay Garg
ISBN : 9788173049705
List Price : Rs 1,495.00
First Published : 2013
Pages : 544
Edition : Hardbound

In the process of colonization of India by the British, currency proved to be a vital weapon as it directly affected almost every aspect of the economic life of the society. The book encapsulates the story of Indian currency during the early days of the colonial rule in India. It presents a comprehensive account of the currency policy of the British East India Company, which it pursued to establish a uniform currency in India.

The process of currency legislations enacted by the Company, the circumstances leading to the adoption of these legislations, as well as the effects of these legislations on the prevailing economic conditions in the country, have been analyzed with a view to establish a relationship between the stability of the currency vis-à-vis the economic colonization of India by the East India Company.

By integrating numismatic data with the archival sources, the book scrutinizes various internal and external forces which were at work in shaping the monetary structure during early days of the colonial rule in India, and presents a new insight about the role of currency in the colonization process of India.

The objective of this study is not merely to have a ‘cause and effect’ understanding of the currency reforms carried out by the East India Company, but also to delve into the often-overlooked or neglected prognosis of the ‘what and how’ of its process.

All related archival material – a series of 39 Regulations (1793-1833) and two Acts (1835) – has been incorporated in the appendices which makes this book a veritable tool for reference and further research.

DR. SANJAY GARG is a numismatist of international repute. He obtained his Ph.D. in History from the Jawaharlal Nehru University and Diploma in Archival Studies from the National Archives of India, New Delhi.

Author of several books and research papers, Dr. Garg was also a recipient of the Charles Wallace Fellowship at the University of Cambridge, Fitzwilliam Museum, U.K. (1998); Resident Fellowship at Centro Incontri Umani (Socio-Cultural Centre), Ascona, Switzerland (2009); Robinson Visiting Scholarship at the Ashmolean Museum of Art and Archaeology, University of Oxford, together with the Kraay Visitorship at the Wolfson College, University of Oxford, UK (2010).

Dr. Garg has served at the National Archives of India for 24 years and is at present heading the Research Division of the SAARC Cultural Centre, Colombo. He is also the Executive Editor of the SAARC Culture and Editor of the Numismatic Digest.

Purchase the book, see: The Sikka and the Raj: A History of Currency Legislations of the East India Company, 1772-1835. (www.manoharbooks.com/BookDetails.asp?bookid=126970)

Wayne Homren, Editor

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