UNDERDEVELOPMENT OF INDIAN SOCIOLOGY 21
colonial power realized that the knowledge of Indian social life and culture was an essential requirement for the maintenance of its dominance. Since then, it has made a phenomenal growth and has shown^ in the process., sufficient capability to adapt itself to shifts in the socio-political structure.
However, the underdevelopment of Indian sociology has very much to do with foreign sway over the political economy of the country. This article aims to outline the history of sociology in India, against the back, ground of its dependence on, and intimate relationship with, one or the other of the imperialist countries. The continuing trends of western ideological elements and their academic and social relevance to Indian society will also be observed.
COLONIAL SOCIOLOGY
Critics ofpre-independence sociology often characterize it as ^colo" nial sociology5'. Such a characterization, though true, ignores a large number of sociological writings which were not only divorced from the colonial interests but critical of colonialism in one way or the other. By overlooking dissent in pre-independence sociology one fails to account for the internal contrdictions of the su^jject which was grafted on to a totally alien social milieu, and also to recognize the impact of national and other struggles. This does not mean that pre-independence sociology was to any considerable extent separated from the colonial interest. On the other hand, the critical and committed outlook was manifestly weak, and slow in developing. The major sources of underdevelopment of critical and relevant sociology may be located in the following three factors: (1) its dependence on British sociology, which had a tardy growth in Britain itself, thus limiting the dynamics of sociology in India;l (2) the difference in the socio-economic conditions in Britain and India restricted the usefulness of the borrowed tools; and, (3) the character of struggles for independence and other causes in India was not particularly conducive to the development of the academic discipline. Thus, the irrelevance ofpre-independence sociology was a product of socio-academic conditions. But not all that went with sociology in that period was colonial. It had dissent, in a limited way. Besides, colonial sociology did not end with the advent of independence. It has continued either as it was, or in modified forms with respect to several aspects of sociology, even decades after India became independent.
As indicated earlier, the birth of sociology in India can be traced to the days when colonial authorities realized that the knowledge of Indian tradition and social life was essential for smooth administration. Sociology received much of its impetus from the colonial power. As such it was made to serve the interests of colonialism and its allies, feudalism and bureaucratic capitalism. The British administration encouraged investigation of the. village communities and the system of land tenure