<abstract xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml"><p>The transfer of railway technology within the British Empire, and particularly to India provides the focus for this paper that explores—conceptually, historiographically and substantively—what was transferred and how that transfer took place. Drawing upon the large-scale technical system literature and labor history the paper highlights various kinds and levels of transfer agents working through, albeit in an often-contested fashion, Afro-Asian labor processes as central components within the transfer process when railway construction was involved. Railway construction is then counterpoised to railway operation where the transfer process exhibited greater British dictation and adherence to British practice.</p></abstract>

The transfer of railway technology within the British Empire, and particularly to India provides the focus for this paper that explores—conceptually, historiographically and substantively—what was transferred and how that transfer took place. Drawing upon the large-scale technical system literature and labor history the paper highlights various kinds and levels of transfer agents working through, albeit in an often-contested fashion, Afro-Asian labor processes as central components within the transfer process when railway construction was involved. Railway construction is then counterpoised to railway operation where the transfer process exhibited greater British dictation and adherence to British practice.

The Transfer of Railway Technologies and Afro-Asian Labor Processes within the British Empire

HoST - Journal  of History of Science and Technology

This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 3.0 License.

The transfer of railway technology within the British Empire, and particularly to India provides the focus for this paper that explores—conceptually,...

The Transfer of Railway Technologies and Afro-Asian Labor Processes within the British Empire

Published Online: Oct 04, 2018

Page range: 31 - 74

DOI: https://doi.org/10.2478/host-2018-0003

Keywords
Colonialism/imperialism, infrastructure, railways, technology transfer, labor processes

© 2018 Ian J. Kerr, published by Sciendo

This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 3.0 License.

The Transfer of Railway Technologies and Afro-Asian Labor Processes within the British Empire

Published Online: Oct 04, 2018

Page range: 31 - 74

DOI: https://doi.org/10.2478/host-2018-0003

KeywordsColonialism/imperialism, infrastructure, railways, technology transfer, labor processes

© 2018 Ian J. Kerr, published by Sciendo

This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 3.0 License.

Keywords
Colonialism/imperialism, infrastructure, railways, technology transfer, labor processes