The revisionist view of colonialism which seeks to portray colonialism in a positive light has now become once again fashionable. This is particularly true for countries which in recent years have been doing very well, countries in East, Southeast and South Asia such as China, South Korea, Indonesia and India. Surprisingly, the view that is now being argued is that the current success of this region is closely connected with the colonial experience. It is suggested that it is the colonial opening up, which created the conditions for the economic take off in these countries.

Colonialism had a positive impact on the colonies and that particularly the expansion of trade, creation of transport and communication infrastructure, etc., under colonialism were very beneficial for the colony and created positive initial conditions in the postcolonial situation. It is believed colonialism actually developed India and at independence left India among the top ten industrial countries of the world.

Colonial Legacy

British imperialism was more pragmatic than that of other colonial powers. Its motivation was economic, not evangelical. There was none of the dedicated Christian fanaticism which the
Portuguese and Spanish demonstrated in Latin America and less enthusiasm for cultural diffusion than the French (or the Americans) showed in their colonies. For this reason they westernized India only to a limited degree.

British interests were of several kinds. At first the main purpose was to achieve a monopolistic trading position. Later it was felt that a regime of free trade would make India a major market for British goods and a source of raw materials, but British capitalists who invested in India, or who sold banking or shipping service there, continued effectively to enjoy monopolistic privileges. India also provided interesting and lucrative