. The History of Education policies in British India can be classified into two – before 1857 (under the English East India Company) and after 1857 (under the British Crown).
1781: Governor-General of Bengal, Warren Hastings established Calcutta Madarasa for Islamic law studies. It was the first educational institute set by East India Company (EIC) governance.
1800: Governor-General Richard Wellesley founded the Fort William College in Calcutta to train the civil servants of EIC in Indian languages and customs. But this college was closed in 1802 due to disapproval of the British administration in England on Indianising the English civil servants.
The Charter Act of 1813
This was the first noted step towards modern education in the country by the British. This act set aside an annual sum of Rs.1 lakh to be used in educating the Indian subjects.
Macauley’s Minutes/ The English Education Act of 1835
Governor-General William Bentick’s tenure saw more funds being allocated to education, and the policies were based on the recommendation of Macauley’s minute.
Wood’s Dispatch of 1854
It is also known as the ‘Magna Carta of English education in India’ was the first comprehensive plan to envisage mass education in India. It prompted the government to take responsibility for education and suggested grants in aid to encourage private enterprises to invest in education.
1902: Raleigh Commission
Viceroy Curzon believed that universities were the factories producing students with revolutionary ideologies; hence he constituted the commission to review the entire university education system in India.
