This act does not took power of British east Indian completely thats why this act was called "REGULATION" Act.
This was the first step taken by the British Parliament to control and regulate the affairs of the East India Company in India.
The act provided for the appointment of a Governor-General along with four Councillors in the Presidency of Fort William (Calcutta), jointly called the Governor-General in Council.
Warren Hastings became the first Governor-General of Bengal.
Executive Council of the Governor-General was established having Four members. and there was no separate legislative council.
Due to this act Governors of Bombay and Madras were subordinated to the Governor-General of Bengal.
It prohibited servants of the company from engaging in any private trade or accepting bribes from the natives.
The Supreme Court was established at Fort William (Calcutta) as the Apex Court in 1774.
Pitt’s India Act Of 1784
This act created clear difference between commercial and political functions of the company i.e. COURT OF DIRECTORS for Commercial functions and BOARD OF CONTROL for political affairs.
Under regulation act there was 4 Member in Governor General's Council but this act Reduced the strength of the Governor General’s council to three members.
In this Act, all the territories for the company were called “The British possessions in India”. This indicated the ownership of British Crown over the territory of East India Company in India and Placed the Indian affairs under the direct control of the British Government.
Governor’s councils were established in Madras and Bombay.
Charter Act Of 1813
The Company’s monopoly over Indian trade terminated.
Trade with India open to all British subjects.
The company’s rule was extended to another 20 years.
This act granted permission to the missionaries to come to India and grant for indian literature and promotion of science.
Charter Act Of 1833
Governor-General (of Bengal) became the Governor-General of India.
First Governor-General of India was Lord William Bentick.
This was the final step towards centralisation in British India.
Beginning of a Central legislature for India as the act also took away legislative powers of Bombay and Madras provinces.
The Act ended the activities of the East India Company as a commercial body and it became a purely administrative body.It provided that the company’s territories in India were held by it ‘in trust for His Majesty, His heirs and successors.
This act added Fourth Member in Governor-General in Council( which had been reduced by the Pitt’s India act 1784) & Lord Macaulay was the 4th Member However, certain limits were imposed on the functioning of the 4th member.
For example, the 4th member was not entitled to act as a member of the council except for legislative purposes.
This act provided that all laws made in India were to be laid before the British parliament and were to be known as Acts.
The charter act of 1833 is considered to be an attempt to codify all the Indian Laws.
The Governor-General-in-Council was directed under the Charter act of 1833, to set up an Indian law Commission.
India’s first law commission was set up under Charter act of 1833 and Lord Macaulay was made its Chairman.
Charter act of 1833 was the first act which made provision to freely admit the natives of India to share an administration.
Charter Act Of 1853
The legislative and executive functions of the Governor-General’s Council were separated.
6 members in Central legislative council. Four out of six members were appointed by the provisional governments of Madras, Bombay, Bengal and Agra.
It introduced a system of open competition as the basis for the recruitment of civil servants of the Company (Indian Civil Service opened for all).
This act provided for appointment of a separate Governor for the Presidency of Bengal, distinct from the Governor General.
This act doesn't fix any Time frame for British rule in India.
This act also empowered the Court of Directors either to constitute a new Presidency or appoint a Lieutenant Governor.
No new presidency was constituted but in 1859, a new Lieutenant governor was appointed for Punjab.
It reduced Number of directors of east india company from 24 to 18.
Government of India Act of 1858
This Act was known as the Act for the Good Government of India, provided for liquidation of East India Company.
This act Abolished Board of Control and Court of Directors.
The rule of Company was replaced by the rule of the Crown in India.
The powers of the British Crown were to be exercised by the Secretary of State for India.
He was assisted by the Council of India, having 15 members.
He was vested with complete authority and control over the Indian administration through the Viceroy as his agent.
The Governor-General was made the Viceroy of India & Lord Canning was the first Viceroy of India.Lord Stanley was made first Secretary of state.
Viceroy was made responsible to Secretary of State for India. Viceroy was to be a direct representative of the British Crown in India.
Indian Councils Act Of 1861
It introduced for the first time Indian representation in the institutions like Viceroy’s executive+legislative council (non-official). 3 Indians entered the Legislative council.(Lord Canning nominated three Indians to his legislative council-the Raja of Banaras, the Maharaja of Patiala and Sir Dinkar Rao in 1962).
Legislative councils were established in Center and provinces.
The Act added to the Viceroy's Executive Council a fifth member - a jurist.
It provided that the Viceroy’s Executive Council should have some Indians as the non-official members while transacting the legislative businesses.
It accorded statutory recognition to the portfolio system.The Act empowered the Governor-General to delegate special task to individual members of the Executive council.
Initiated the process of decentralization by restoring the legislative powers to the Bombay and the Madras Provinces.
Councils were allowed to be established in other Provinces in Bengal in 1862 and North West Frontier Province (NWFP) in 1886, Burma and Punjab in 1897.
Indian Council Act Of 1892
Introduced indirect elections (nomination).
The word “election” was, however, not used in the act.
Enlarged the size of the legislative councils.
It provided for the nomination of some non-official members of the (a) Central Legislative Council by the viceroy on the recommendation of the provincial legislative councils and the Bengal Chamber of Commerce, and (b) that of the Provincial legislative councils by the Governors on the recommendation of the district boards, municipalities, universities, trade associations, zamindars and chambers.
Enlarged the functions of the Legislative Councils and gave them the power of discussing the Budget and addressing questions to the Executive.
Indian Councils Act Of 1909
This Act is also known as the Morley- Minto Reforms.
It changed the name of the Central Legislative Council to the Imperial Legislative Council.
It retained an official majority in the Central Legislative Council but allowed the provincial legislative councils to have a non-official majority.
The member of the Central Legislative Council was increased to 60 from 16.
Introduced a system of communal representation for Muslims by accepting the concept of ‘separate electorate’.
It also provided for the separate representation of presidency corporations, chambers of commerce, universities, and zamindars.
Satyendra Prasad Sinha became the first Indian to join the Viceroy’s Executive Council. He was appointed as the law member.
Government Of India Act Of 1919
This Act is also known as the Montague-Chelmsford Reforms.
The Central subjects were demarcated and separated from those of the Provincial subjects.
The scheme of dual governance, ‘Dyarchy’, was introduced in the Provincial subjects.
Under the dyarchy system, the provincial subjects were divided into two parts – transferred and reserved. On reserved subjects, Governor was not responsible to the Legislative council.
The Act introduced, for the first time, bicameralism at the center.
Legislative Assembly with 140 members and Legislative council with 60 members.
The Act also required that the three of the six members of the Viceroy’s Executive Council (other than Commander-in-Chief) were to be Indians.
It Provided for the establishment of the Public Service Commission.
Provincial legislative councils were further expanded and 70% of the members were to be elected.
The system of communal and class electorates was further consolidated It extended the principle of communal representation by providing separate electorates for Sikhs, Indian Christians, Anglo-Indians and Europeans. &Women were also given the right to vote.
It relaxed the central control over the provinces by demarcating and separating the central and provincial subjects.
It created a new office of the High Commissioner for India in London and transferred to him some of the functions hitherto performed by the Secretary of State for India.
It provided for the establishment of a public service commission. Hence, a Central Public Service Commission was set up in 1926 for recruiting civil servants.
Government Of India Act Of 1935
The Act provided for the establishment of an All-India Federation consisting of the Provinces and the Princely States as units, though the envisaged federation never came into being.
The Act divided the powers between the Centre and the units into items of three lists, namely the Federal List, the Provincial List and the Concurrent List.
The Federal List for the Centre consisted of 59 items, the Provincial List for the provinces consisted of 54 items and the Concurrent List for both consisted of 36 items.
The residuary powers were vested with the Governor-General.
The Act abolished the Dyarchy in the Provinces and introduced ‘Provincial Autonomy’.
It provided for the adoption of Dyarchy at the Centre.
Introduced bicameralism in 6 out of 11 Provinces. These six Provinces were Assam, Bengal, Bombay, Bihar, Madras and the United Province.
It Provided for the establishment of Federal Court.
It abolished the Council of India, established by the Government of India Act of 1858. The secretary of state for India was provided with a team of advisors.
It provided for the establishment of a Reserve Bank of India
Indian Independence Act Of 1947
It declared India as an Independent and Sovereign State.
Established responsible Governments at both the Centre and the Provinces.
The Act divided India into two new dominions-the Dominion of India and the Dominion of Pakistan.
The date that was declared as the date of India's Independence was 15th August 1947.
Designated the Viceroy India and the provincial Governors as the Constitutional (normal heads).
It assigned dual functions (Constituent and Legislative) to the Constituent Assembly and declared this dominion legislature as a sovereign body.
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