ABSTRACT
One of the most important factors in the administrative impact of Britain on India has been the development, first of the imperial and then of the provincial services. The basic principles defined for it by John Lawrence, himself a civilian, were simplicity of rules, respect for Indian customs, small districts and the concentration of all authority in the person of the Deputy Commissioner. Many Indians resent the assumption that in the nineteenth century the considerations necessarily excluded their forefathers from high administrative posts. Young Englishmen from the universities would inevitably bring to India a new tradition of incorruptibility and provided they were in an overwhelming majority, their spirit would permeate the services and give Indian administration a fresh start. In 1860 the Government of India appointed a Commission on Police Administration in India and in effect it recommended the adoption in all provinces of the Bombay system.
