The Profession of Engineering and Unemployment in Colonial Madras (1859–1935)

Bibliographic Data

ID20179641
AuthorsGautam Chandra (0000-0001-7237-7438, Assistant Professor, Department of History, B. R. Ambedkar Bihar University, Muzaffarpur, Bihar, India), Pranjali Pranjali (Assistant Professor, Department of History, MDDM College, B. R. Ambedkar Bihar University, Muzaffarpur, Bihar, India)
Year2024
Volume51
Issue1
Pages23-38
Publication date2024-06-01
Peer ReviewedYes
Open AccessYes
TypeARTICLE
VenueIndian Historical Review (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 0376-9836 • E-ISSN: 0975-5977
PublisherSAGE Publications (PUBLISHER • US)
DOI10.1177/03769836241247157
OpenAlexW4396227764
LanguageEN
References cited7

The development of the engineering profession in colonial Madras did not originate from metropolitan models or indigenous precedents, but it was the result of the exigencies of running the empire. The Civil Engineering College, Guindy, was established in the year 1859 to supply the wants of the Public Works Department. Unlike the professions of law and medicine, the students of engineering completely relied on the state for their job, and the prospect of employment was not optimistic. By the 1930s, the problem of unemployment was apparent among engineering graduates, and a Madras Unemployment Committee was formed to examine the matter. However, the writings on the engineering profession have mainly dealt with the origin and growth of the institutes. The historiography is silent on the question of unemployment among emerging graduates. Viewed in this context, the article explores the progress of the profession of engineering and tries to locate the issue of unemployment among engineering students in colonial Madras

Archaeology · Colonialism · Economic growth · Economics · Empire · Historiography · Indigenous · Management · Metropolitan area · Political science · Sociology · Spanish Civil War · Unemployment · History · Indian Economic and Social Development · Law