WBCS Preliminary Examination 2023 — General Studies · Question 107 of 200

Answer: (A) Kolkata – Ghusuri

India's first cotton mill, the Fort Gloster mill, was set up in 1818 on the Hooghly near Kolkata — at Ghusuri (Howrah) according to standard textbooks — but it did not succeed. The first successful modern mill was the Bombay Spinning and Weaving Company, started in 1854 by Cowasji Nanabhai Davar. Ahmedabad's first mill came in 1861 and Jamsetji Tata's Empress Mills at Nagpur in 1877. Nicknames: Ahmedabad is the "Manchester of India", Kanpur the "Manchester of North India" and Coimbatore the "Manchester of South India". For comparison, the first jute mill was at Rishra (1855).