Chapter 1057: Magadha class Steam Boat (1)
24th March 1688
The news of the Jerusalem Suez accord is yet to reach the public of the Bharatiya Empire, but just because it is yet to reach the mainland, things are no less lively.
When Vijay attended the industrial exhibition, he only attended for a single day, while the rest of the days of the week-long exhibition had become a carnival for the merchants.
However, just because Vijay left early did not mean his arrival did not have any lasting effects on the exhibition; it was actually the complete contrary. Putting aside the fact that it was because of his arrival that so many people had come to the exhibition this year, with numbers reaching several million over the span of seven days, figures that had never been observed before in the history of the exhibition’s existence. The booths and people he visited and spent the longest time with felt the raw impact of his influence firsthand.
The Kathyayani Sisters, who invented not only the phonograph but also the telephone, had their booth swarmed by merchants from all over the world, from the regions of ASEAN, vassal kingdoms, the Middle East, Africa, and even from Europe, clamouring to invest in their business and purchase the patents.
Naturally, the Kathyayani Sisters couldn’t accept any investment for the phonograph because they had already decided to accept the help of the emperor and take advantage of the expertise of the Sri Ranga Industrial Tools, but they did end up getting thousands of orders for their cheap, portable, and high quality telephone products. moreover, when they were In a dilemma for the money to set up factories to start the production, all five major banks of the empire readily agreed to loan out an interest-free 2 million varaha that could be repaid two years later, and not only that, a politician from the coastal region of Vijayanagar even offered to sell a plot of industrial land for the construction of the factory at a cheap price for the Kathyayani Sisters to move their business there and settle down themselves.
Jaya Verma, who originally had no expectations for his Verma Mechanism other than making back the investment he had spent on those years researching and practising his skills, had his fate completely turned around after the emperor personally visited his booth and praised him.
Since his Verma Mechanism was not only extremely complicated, beautiful to look at, and also practical, as it could be helpful in deciphering all the events of a Vedic calendar, not to mention the skill and artistry it took to manufacture it, it immediately became a must-have for the rich people, top industrial enterprises, and foreign nobles.
Of course, Jaya Verma was overwhelmed, since although he could use the machine tools to manufacture the parts, the assembly had to be done by himself, and it was a complicated assembly process he did not know if anyone else could fulfil.
So, after thinking of something in order to lessen the burden, he declared that he would only manufacture 100 Verma Mechanisms per year, and he would take a fixed 50,000 Varaha as payment for each mechanism.
He hoped that by his decision, the audience would be reduced, but who would have expected that what he did only stoked the eagerness of the elites who wanted to differentiate themselves from the nouveau riche, and they immediately placed orders for the Verma Mechanism, with some even offering to pay more.
Even a niche product like the speaking machine, which had no obvious uses and was destined to be buried among the hundreds of weird inventions made every year, after receiving the Emperor’s praise, received orders from hundreds of hospitals and medical universities across the empire, as they felt the machine could be an excellent way to demonstrate to students the functioning of the throat. A few musical academies that teach singing in a much more technical and scientific way also ordered a few to demonstrate sound generation, breathing techniques, and other things using the speaking machine.
Of course, other products that Vijay had personally seen, even if he had no reaction to them and they were mediocre, sold out just because he had come into contact with them.
The sixth-generation machine tools sold like hot cakes, completely emptying Sriranga Industrial Tools’ inventory within a few days.
Even the newer machines, such as the steam-powered rail profile rolling mill and the steam-powered wheel lathe, were immediately sold out. Companies like Raya and Steel, Tata Ironworks, and others quickly realised that rails could now be produced at a much faster pace. This allowed them to complete their existing orders ahead of schedule and take on additional contracts.
As a result, despite each costing a million varaha, they snapped up all the available machine tools. A similar situation unfolded with the five major locomotive companies, which did not even allow other manufacturers to access the slotting machines, plate-bending rolls, or most of the riveting machines. The competition for these machines was fierce, with every company determined to secure the tools that would give them a decisive advantage.
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" I am telling all my readers that we are on the cusp of unprecedented growth; the 6th generation machine tools, although they may not appear to be very relevant to our daily life, are the same machines that form the foundation of our modern industries. "
" With the 6th generation machine tools built for the steam engine, the efficiency, reliability, and durability have increased to a whole new level, so what does it mean for consumers like us? The answer is simple, since the manufacturers can manufacture industrial goods at a faster rate with less maintenance, lower utilisation of resources, and huge markets to buy the products ranging from the mainland to the vassal kingdoms, ASEAN, the Middle East, Africa, and Europe, consumers can expect to see the prices of all their favourite industrial goods drastically reduced. "
" Maybe the typewriter, which costs over 3 months’ salary of a middle-income family, would now cost a month’s salary or less. "
" Maybe the high-quality silk clothes will remain the same in price, but the clothes that normal people wear might become much cheaper. Maybe, with the advancement of the Gupta Ram Loom, the lower-income families, the migrants, and the labourers can now afford respectable and dignified clothing within their budget. "
" And apart from all this, even imagining the innovations that could be made with machining accuracy of 0.009mm is making my pen shake as I write. Thankfully, the editor will clean up all the mess, so my ugly penmanship wouldn’t have to be exposed to the public. "
With such an article in Business Weekly, the people became even more aware of what was happening in the empire and how the new inventions would affect their lives.
The aftereffects of the article were almost immediate. Mangaluru Stock Exchange, valued at 4.5 billion varaha, immediately rose by a whopping 12% and reached a valuation of 5.04 billion, an increase of half a billion in a week, leaving all the investment bankers, daily traders, and retail investors dumbfounded.
As for the Kolkata Stock Exchange, although its rise was not as drastic as the older and more reputable MSE, it also saw a rise of 10%, where it went from 4 billion to 4.4 billion, an increase of 400 million.
Naturally, the economic drivers of the boom, Mahabali Enterprises, Himalayan Group, Dynasty Corporation, Aakarsh Group of Industries, Kombay Minerals, Jyothy Minerals, Tata Ironworks, Hima and Joshi Textiles, Bakshi Textile Group, and many other important industrial groups, all rose in valuation by an average of 9%. After knowing the data, which was once again made into a report and published for the people to see, the people were overjoyed. The confidence in the economy increased, and the investment in industries saw the biggest rise ever. Even the people who were usually cautious and only invested in sectors like agriculture and mining had a rare change of mind and got into uncharted waters by stepping into industrial investments.
As for the Europeans, their eyes were red with jealousy, hatred, and even a little envy. Why couldn’t it be them who made so much money? If only they could invest in the stock exchanges.
Inadvertently, the Immigration Department of the Ministry of External Affairs saw the largest number of applicants to naturalise after the exhibition.
Days passed, and the heat brought by the economic boom slowly began to cool down, but suddenly several pieces of news were made public, which was like sprinkling water into boiling oil, making people break into discussions.
Bhagat Shipyard, Raya Shipyard, Berunda Shipyard, Chola Shipyard, Ashoka Shipyard, and even Reliance Shipping and Shipbuilding, Reddy Shipyard, and Dharani Shipyard announced that they had successfully built an all-metal ship powered by a steam engine.
In a remote village of Gupta Nagari,
Under the banian tree
" What, how is it possible? "
" Hey, old man, do you dare to doubt me? "
" Of course. "
" Last time I asked you to read what the newspaper had mentioned about our village, and you boasted about what was written to such a level that I thought we were all going to become rich, but it turned out that only a road was going to pass through, and the village had not been turned into a special economic zone like you claimed. "
" But now I’m asking you to read the newspaper, and you’re telling me that metal ships can float on water, that too without sails? "
" Tell me, old man, do I look like a buffoon? "
" But, but that is really what is written on the paper. I’m not lying this time. "
" Tch, even if I die, I won’t believe you. "
The argument of the two older people who sit on the Rachha and discuss all the world’s affairs is only a microcosm of what was happening throughout the empire.
Hearing the news, rich merchants left everything and immediately rushed to the north and south coasts as if their lives depended on it. The various logistic companies like VRL Logistics, Brown Logistics, Samudra Vahak Lines, Dakshin Marine Freight, Sindhu Sethu Shipping Company, Varuna Sea Logistics, Bharatiya Oceanic Movers, and other companies were no different.
The Arkha Dristy Lines of all the major shipyards across the empire were overwhelmed. And hearing the news, even the kings from the Vassal Kingdoms set off. Although from experience they understood that it would not be their turn to purchase the new ship, curiosity drove them to move forward.
Even though they had seen the Antarvahini Class ship, which was an inland steam-powered paddle boat only used in the canals and navigable rivers, and they had seen a turret ship designed and manufactured by Bhagat Shipyard for defense built using metal, both did not count, since one was a ship with a steam engine but built of wood, and the other was a metal ship that was basically an island which stayed in one place. They wanted to see what this new boat, which combined the advantages of an all-metal ship and steam power, was.
Unable to handle the number of inquiries the shipyards were getting, all of them came to a unanimous decision to hold a public showcase of the new ship.
It was only then that some calmness returned to their life, but unfortunately, while the shipyards avoided troubles, the same troubles fell on the heads of the Port Authority, like a ball hitting their heads out of nowhere and for no apparent reason. They were informed by their superiors that at least several thousand people would be attending the conference, so they immediately had to arrange the venue and set up all the safety procedures according to BSI events protocol.