Papers by Nabanita Sharma
The Indian Economic and Social History Review, 2024
Opium was one of the highly valued-commodities traded in the northeastern frontier of British Ind... more Opium was one of the highly valued-commodities traded in the northeastern frontier of British India. This article argues that the introduction of opium in the region was in line with the British policy of introducing high-value commodities trade in the colonies. This policy helped extract raw materials and expand exchanges in new territories. Second, this policy of introducing cash crops was subtle. Opium was introduced as a cash crop decades before tea was 'discovered' in the region. The acreage remained low as compared to tea plantations. Opium's value in terms of its revenue-generating capacity was the highest in comparison with tea and salt. Lastly, opium was disposed of through the state-run, monopolistic trade networks. Opium cultivation was discontinued in the British territories in Assam in 1860. All demands for poppy were subsequently met by importing opium from the rest of South Asia. The state-run and state-promoted tea and opium trades sustained the empire's control over resources and lubricated the state machinery. Monopoly over the opium trade was crucial to control labour/resources and finance the Empire. The colonial regime built the 'narco-state' in the northeastern frontier to expand and sustain its trading interests. The exploration of the colonial policies and measures in this regard also interrogates the nature of political economy in the region in the period under study.
Indian Historical Review, 2022
The British East India Company (EIC) and other European traders entered Assam for trade. The regi... more The British East India Company (EIC) and other European traders entered Assam for trade. The region thrived on traditional places of exchange. These were haats (markets at the village and district level held at regular intervals), duars, fairs and chawkeys (trading posts of Ahom-age). The Treaty of Yandabo (1826) marked the entry of EIC in parts of Assam. Regimental towns, documented as bazaars in government records, appeared in the nineteenth century. By the end of the nineteenth century, census towns also emerged. These towns accommodated regular markets, periodic haats, fairs and other trading places. This article is based on primary sources of Buranjis, travelogues, military reports, journals, memoirs and archival records. The theoretical works of Walter Christaller (1966) and Philip D. Curtin (1984) and works of literature have been used to understand the growth and operation of marketplaces. This article finds that modern bazaars were connected to the traditional haats, fairs ...
Contemporary South Asia, 2020
This book focuses on the region sandwiched between the plain of Assam and the hills of Nagaland, ... more This book focuses on the region sandwiched between the plain of Assam and the hills of Nagaland, which serves as the political boundary between the two small states of Northeast India. Dolly Kikon ...
International Journal of Research -GRANTHAALAYAH, 2020
Trade and commerce in the Brahmaputra valley of colonial Assam is understudied. This paper attemp... more Trade and commerce in the Brahmaputra valley of colonial Assam is understudied. This paper attempts to study the trade and commercial activities in the valley while keeping in mind the transition from pre-colonial to colonial rule. The late Ahom sources do not speak purposefully about trading activities in the valley. Early colonial sources term the region as backward and averse to trade. The valley came under colonial rule in 1826 with the Treaty of Yandabo. Were the first few decades of the nineteenth century in the Brahmaputra valley backward in matters of commerce? How different was the latter half of the nineteenth century? Analysis of Ahom chronicles, archival sources, and personal papers available in the National Archives of India has helped in finding structural changes in trade and commercial activities in the valley in the century under study. These findings help in understanding the nature of colonial economic policy and present economic structure of the region better.
The Indian Economic & Social History Review, 2022
The article seeks to show how Assam’s riverine environment, and its natural resources, generated ... more The article seeks to show how Assam’s riverine environment, and its natural resources, generated and inflected a process of commercialisation in the nineteenth century. Historically, present-day Assam was connected to the rest of the world through the Brahmaputra river and its tributaries. In the early decades of colonial rule, plants such as caoutchouc and tea were discovered in the valley. These developments, together with transportation networks built with state and private capital, heralded a new phase of commerce in the region. A rich scholarship in South Asian history has shown how the river played a crucial role in the economic changes in different regions. The article belongs in that scholarship but stresses the role of the river as an artery of transportation rather than as an agricultural resource. The river system facilitated Assam’s closer integration with the world economy and the colonial regime.
Economic and political weekly , 2021
International Journal of Scientific & Technology Research, 2019
The Assam Agitation against alleged foreigners in Assam raised identity questions amongst the div... more The Assam Agitation against alleged foreigners in Assam raised identity questions amongst the diverse ethnic groups living in the state. The Agitation showed dominance of a middle-class Assamese speaking group of people. The eulogy of ―mother Assam‖ brought a short-lived sense of unity amongst the people. The demand for Udayachal during the Agitation and Bodoland afterwards shows growing ethnic boundaries in the region. This paper is an attempt to find the roots of ethnicity based autonomy demands in the Assam Agitation. The Agitation, irrespective of the validity of its aspirations, reflected unparalleled unity of people. It also showed an ugly facet of communal clashes at the same time.
STUDIES OF TRIBES AND TRIBALS, Oct 8, 2019
Health seeking behaviour are those activities commenced by individuals in response to a symptom e... more Health seeking behaviour are those activities commenced by individuals in response to a symptom experience. Health seeking behaviour is a major concern in tribal health. In this review paper, the researchers presented evidence on health seeking behaviour and its barriers. A significant number of tribal people still use home remedies and approach traditional medicine practitioner /healers. If not cured, they approach private clinics. Barriers for health seeking behaviour identified among tribes of India when visiting hospitals were inaccessibility, lack of infrastructure, manpower and their behaviour, inconvenient visiting hours, disease condition. Also personal issues like fear of losing daily earning, cultural beliefs, affordability, illiteracy and unacceptability.
Asian Ethnicity, 2022
The Treaty of Yandabo (1826) marked the colonial conquest of the Brahmaputra valley. Following tw... more The Treaty of Yandabo (1826) marked the colonial conquest of the Brahmaputra valley. Following two decades witnessed calculations and speculations about the prospect of the region as a part of the British colonial empire. Discovery of tea plants and the existence of tradable commodities such as cotton, silks and salt made the region look promising for the East India Company. The early-colonial rulers introduced policy changes in the1820 s and the 1830 s. Existing historiography on wasteland rules has clarified that these regulations were aimed at making land available for tea plantations. At the same time monetization of the region with one uniform currency was undertaken. This paper argues that in the face of these developments, commerce remained an important part of the economy, as before. Creation of a land market by wasteland regulations and uniform coinage facilitated the Empire's trade and made the region a part of the colonial commerce.
Contemporary South Asia, 2014
Book Reviews by Nabanita Sharma
Contemporary South Asia, 2020
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Papers by Nabanita Sharma
Book Reviews by Nabanita Sharma