Question

Which cities were called the presidency cities in the 19 th century India. Mention any two features of these cities

Answer 1

In the 19th century, Calcutta, Bombay and Madras were called the Presidency cities. Two features of these cities were

1. All three cities were the administrative centres of large provinces. Calcutta was the capital of the Bengal Presidency which covered all of North India, Bombay was the capital of the Bombay Presidency which covered all of Western India and Madras was the capital of Madras Presidency which covered all of South India. Besides being the capital of the Bengal Presidency, Calcutta was also the capital of British India.

2. These were the largest cities in British India and were major industrial and trading centres.