Colonialism and the Nature of Capitalist-Enterprise in India

This article is an attempt to analyse the nature of "capitalist' enterprise in colonial India. The focus is on the nature of the labour processes used within the enterprises, the means of control exercised over the workers and the political relations of the owners or managers with the state apparatus. Specific cases of the retardation of the productive forces and the adoption of regressive labour processes are presented. The paper may be looked upon as an agenda for research as well as a contribution to the debate on the nature of colonial society.