With Blood and Flame : How the British Empire changed Bengal

Marred with exploitation, violence, and oppression, the British empire in India was primarily driven by economic interests and later a form of rule characterized by the extraction of resources, forced labor, and the suppression of Indian culture and traditions. Among the many, the Bengal region faced the severest impacts. The prosperous economic center was an attractive target due to its fertile land, cotton, silk, steel, textiles, jute and tea. The empire exploited these resources by imposing high taxes on farmers and workers and exporting raw materials to Britain at artificially low prices.

The wringing of Bengal in the imposition of high taxes with the forced labor of peasants resulted in widespread poverty and malnutrition, but also destroyed the region’s economic status and its traditional agriculture system. The most devastating was the subsequent empire-orchestrated famines from 1770, 1866, and 1943, resulting in the deaths of millions and transforming the area from one of the wealthiest to deep poverty, hunger, and a tyrannical divide among religious identity.

When British colonial rule ended in August 1947, two new countries, India and Pakistan, split Bengal. West Bengal went to India, and East Bengal formed the eastern wing of Pakistan. In 1971, the eastern wing of Pakistan (East Pakistan) became independent Bangladesh.

More than 75 years later, and despite economic and progressive social indicators in both Bengals, the horrors of the past still resonate in the present conditions.