#Tamara Yesmin Toma

[indizombie]

In 1790, the company decided to demarcate Bengal in the north. The boundary of the plain land with the hilly region was also demarcated after that. According to the new boundaries, the hilly lands came under the control of the Khasias and the plain lands under the control of the company. Through this the social distance of Khasias with Bengalis was also created. The ethnic diversity of the region was lost as the control of the company was established through creating division in the liberal Bengali-Khasia society. After 1790, all private trade in the Khasia areas was banned. On the other hand, the authority of the plain land in Sylhet, including the power of business registration, was handed over to the collector.

Tamara Yesmin Toma, ‘The Greeks and the limestone trade in Sylhet during the British period‘, Business Standard

[indizombie]

The collectors of the company were annoyed with the Greek merchants as they had good trade relations with the Khasias. British collectors suspected that the Greeks and other lower-class Europeans would supply guns and other weapons to the Khasias and incite them against the British to resist control of the company. The collectors often even seized arms from European traders in the hilly areas. They feared that the flames of the Khasia attack would affect the company's rule in Dhaka as well. So they kept a close watch on the Greek merchants. They also feared that these merchants would establish separate colonies by establishing their dominance in the Khasia region. In 1788, the company's fears came true as Bengali and Khasia zamindars, including Ganga Singh, attacked a company office in Pandua.

Tamara Yesmin Toma, ‘The Greeks and the limestone trade in Sylhet during the British period‘, Business Standard

[indizombie]

The limestone of Sylhet, famous in India for its high quality, could not be found anywhere else in the country. The East India Company mentioned the limestone of Sylhet in the treaty with Mir Jafar and Mir Qasim. But before the British, the Greeks and Armenians had invested in the limestone mines.

Tamara Yesmin Toma, ‘The Greeks and the limestone trade in Sylhet during the British period‘, Business Standard

[indizombie]

The lime business then required the approval of the collector and the company allowed the extraction of limestone only in Sunamganj and Companyganj. It is believed that Companyganj developed as a focal point of the company's trade relations with the hilly region. However, the merchants of the plain lands continued to lease mines in the Khasia region. Many British limestone traders also started extracting limestone illegally from those areas with the support of the company. A new law in 1799 opened up the lime business to everyone, including the Greeks. But the Greeks had already shifted their trade focus to other directions. At last, the British merchants established their monopoly over the limestone mines in Sylhet. Over time, the presence of the Greeks became a story out of the past in Sylhet.

Tamara Yesmin Toma, ‘The Greeks and the limestone trade in Sylhet during the British period‘, Business Standard

[indizombie]

Miners used to extract limestone from different mines in different years. They used to select the mines depending on availability of transport facilities. The stones were broken by iron shovels and stored in the mountainside. They were transported by boats during the rainy season. The limestones then were processed through using various techniques and sent from Sylhet to Dhaka and Kolkata. The traders used make double profits even after paying all the taxes, wages of the labourers and other officials. Very few businesses could offer more profit than this one during in those days.

Tamara Yesmin Toma, ‘The Greeks and the limestone trade in Sylhet during the British period‘, Business Standard