Oxfam report states nearly USD33.8T of India's wealth transferred to Britain's elite during colonial era
Date
1/21/2025 4:12:59 AM
(MENAFN) Oxfam, a UK-based rights organization, has released a report claiming that nearly USD33.8 trillion of India's wealth was siphoned off to the richest 10 percent in Britain during the colonial era. This amount, Oxfam notes, would be sufficient to cover London in £50 notes more than four times over. The report, titled “Takers not Makers,” estimates that this figure accounts for nearly half of the USD64.82 trillion extracted from India between 1765 and 1900, a period during which India was under British colonial rule.
The report highlights that Britain's colonial rule, which lasted more than 250 years until India’s independence in 1947, contributed significantly to wealth inequality, with the extracted resources enriching Britain's elite. Not only the wealthiest, but also Britain’s emerging middle class benefited from these resources, receiving an additional 32 percent of the wealth, according to Oxfam.
Moreover, the report underscores the broader economic impact of colonialism, particularly on India's industrial output. The colonial powers, including Britain, implemented protectionist policies that severely undermined India's textile industry, which had been globally dominant. In 1750, the Indian subcontinent produced about 25 percent of the world’s industrial output, but by 1900, this had fallen dramatically to just 2 percent. Oxfam attributes this decline to the destructive economic policies of colonialism, which hindered India's economic development and industrial growth.
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