18th to 20th century Slavery in India

when abolition did come play in 1843, officials inadvertently used term slave reprimanded, actual practices of servitude continued unchanged. scholar indrani chatterjee has termed abolition denial. in rare cases when anti-slavery legislation enforced, addressed relatively smaller practices of export , import of slaves, did little address agricultural slavery pervasive inland. officials in madras presidency turned blind eye agricultural slavery claiming benign form of bondage in fact preferable free labour.

according sir henry bartle frere (who sat on viceroy s council), there estimated 8,000,000 or 9,000,000 slaves in india in 1841. in malabar, 15% of population slaves. slavery officially abolished in india indian slavery act v. of 1843. provisions of indian penal code of 1861 abolished slavery in india making enslavement of human beings criminal offense.

indentured labor system

after united kingdom abolished slavery mid 19th century, introduced new indentured labor system scholars suggest slavery contract.

in new system, called indentured labourers. south asians began replace africans brought slaves, under indentured labour scheme serve on plantations , mining operations across british empire. first ships carrying indentured labourers left india in 1836. in second half of 19th century, indentured indians treated inhumanely enslaved people had been. confined estates , paid pitiful salary. breach of contract brought automatic criminal penalties , imprisonment. many of these brought away homelands deceptively. many inland regions on thousand kilometers seaports promised jobs, not told work being hired for, or leave homeland , communities. hustled aboard waiting ships, unprepared long , arduous four-month sea journey. charles anderson, special magistrate investigating these sugarcane plantations, wrote british colonial secretary declaring few exceptions, indentured labourers treated great , unjust severity; plantation owners enforced work in plantations, mining , domestic work harshly, decaying remains of immigrants discovered in fields. if labourers protested , refused work, not paid or fed: starved.