State Aid to Industry Madras 1921-37

The State A id to Industries Act passed in 1923 seemed to epitomise the spirit of the Indian Industrial Commission that active promotion of industry was a legitimate function of the government. But 12 years later the Public Accounts Committee of the Madras legislature held that the act had not served its purpose. The contest around the nature of the rules and the definition of enterprises eligible for state aid was the form in which the real contest between rising capitalist interests in India and the colonial administration was conducted.