SOCIO ECONOMIC TRANSITION IN LATE EIGHTEENTH AND EARLY NINETEENTH CENTURY COASTAL orissa

Abstract

Orissa now known as Odisha came under the Maratha occupation in 1751.The Marathas ruled roughly over fifty years and they were supplanted by the British in 1803. In 1803, the British conquered the Cuttack portion of Orissa which included Puri, Cuttack and Balasore and the other adjoining regions. Immediately after the occupation of Orissa, the British undertook many radical measures which transformed the overall character of Orissan society and economy. Orissa traded into the path of modernity. A traditional conservative society underwent several changes in the social structure and economic reorganization. During one hundred years from 1750-1850, Orissa witnessed two transitional phases. The first fifty years is characterized by the end of the Mughal rule and the beginning of the Maratha rule. The Marathas failed to consolidate their rule. In its very infancy, the Maratha suzerainty ended and the British East India Company occupied Orissa in 1803. Immediately thereafter, the British administration brought about significant policy changes in the matters of administration which included land revenue administration, police and judiciary. Modern bureaucracy was instituted in Orissa. As elsewhere in other parts of India. Orissa was prepared to be taken to the path of modernity. Therefore, the transition helped the British in preparing its strategy to control the people and sustain its rule over the Orissan people. newlineGeographically, the subject relates to the coastal regions newline