Who among the following commented, when India was beginning to lay out railways in 1853, as “truly the forerunner of modern industry”?

Correct option is C

Karl Marx, in his writings on British colonialism, notably in his article “The Future Results of British Rule in India” (published in the New York Daily Tribune, 1853), commented on the introduction of railways in India. He considered them a “forerunner of modern industry”, symbolizing the transformative power of British colonial capitalism, albeit imposed through exploitative means.
While Marx criticized British imperialism for its destructive impact on India's traditional economy and society, he simultaneously acknowledged the railways as a major infrastructural development which would, in time, introduce capitalist relations and industrial change, however coercively.

Additional Knowledge:

R. P. Dutt: A Marxist historian and author of India Today.
Dadabhai Naoroji: Known for the ‘Drain Theory’, critiqued British economic policies .
V. I. Lenin: Focused more on imperialism in the early 20th century, particularly in his work Imperialism: The Highest Stage of Capitalism.