3 Review(s)

To make proposals for further advancement towards the goal of responsible government, the Government of India Act, 1919 provided that ten years should elapse, and then a Royal Commission would be appointed ‘for the purpose of inquiring into the working of the system of government, the growth of education, and the development of representative institution, in British India, and matters connected therewith, and the Commission shall report as to whether, and to what extent, it is desirable to establish the principle of responsible government, or to extend, modify, or restrict the degree of responsible government then existing their in, including the question whether the establishment of Second Chambers of the local legislatures is, or is not desirable’. Though the commission was to have been set up ‘at the expiration of ten years’ it was established at the end of seven years of the functioning of the Act of 1919. The Indian Commission, widely known as the Simon Commission after the name of its Chairman, Johan Simon submitted its report in two volumes. The first volume made a survey of the political constitutional, financial, education a, social and administrative development in India and second volume was devoted to its recommendations. The Simon Commission favoured introduction of responsible government and federalism in India and renewed ‘the solemn pledge of the British people with regard to the progressive realisation of responsible government in British India’. This reprint of report of the Indian Statutory Commission comes at a time when the country is celebrating fortieth anniversary of independence and there is keen interest in the pre independence era.