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Lord William Bentick (1828–35)
- Most liberal and enlightened Governor-General of India. Under the provision of the Charter of India Act 1833, he became the first Governor-General of India. Last Governor General of Bengal.
- Charter Act of 1833: East India Company was asked to close its commercial activities as early as possible. and it was made into an administrative body for British Indian possessions till 1858. The company's monopoly right to trade with China was removed. No Indian subject of the Company was to be debarred from holding an office on account of his religion, place of birth, descent and colour.
- Resolution of 1835: An act of legislation to reallocate funds was required by the British Parliament to spend on education and literature in India. This led to introduction of English as official language. English was made medium of higher education in India, on recommendation of Macaulay Committee. Regarded as the Father of Modern Western Education in India.
- Credited with suppression of thugees with help of Colonel Sleeman.
- He founded Calcutta Medical College in 1835.
- Abolition of Sati and other cruel rites, 1829 on the effort of Raja Ram Mohan Roy.
- Annexation of Mysore (1831), Coorg (1834) and Central Cachar (1834).
- Treaty of ‘perpetual friendship’ with Ranjeet Singh in 1831, where English remained outside the context of Sind and allowed Ranjit Singh to make headway).
- Abolition of the provincial courts of appeal and circuit set up by Cornwallis, the appointment of commissioners of revenue and circuit.
Sir Charles Metcalfe (1835–1836)
- Famous Press Law, which liberated the Indian press was passed. He is called the Liberator of Indian Press.
- Participated in the 1st Anglo-Afghan War (1836–42).
- The tripartite treaty was signed between East India Company, Maharaja Ranjit Singh and Shah Shuja.
Lord Ellenborough (1842–44)
- He brought an end to the Afghan War.
- Sindh was annexed in 1843 under the guidance of Charles Napier.
- Abolished slavery in 1843.
- He abolished Titles and Pensions.
- Made Shimla the summer capital for the British.
- Gurkha regiments were raised.
- Recommended Thomsonian system of Vernacular education for the Northwestern Provinces in 1853.
- “Wood’s (Charles Wood, President of the Board of Control) Educational Despatch” of 1854 and the opening of Anglo-vernacular schools and government colleges. Wood’s despatch focused on the creation of education departments, universities in large cities like Bombay or Madras, one government school in every district, grants in aid to affiliated private schools, and training to native Indian in vernacular. It led to the opening of Anglo-Vernacular Schools and Government Colleges in India. It was called the Magna Carta of English education in India.
- An Engineering College was established at Roorkee.
- Foundation of the modern postal system in India (1854).
- A separate public works department was set up.
- Second Anglo-Sikh War, 1848-49: Punjab was annexed by the British in March 1849 (under Lord Dalhousie) as per the Treaty of Lahore. The eleven-year-old Maharaja, Duleep Singh was pensioned off to England. Dalhousie was recognised for his role in the annexation of Punjab to the British and was made a Marquis. The famous Koh-i-Noor diamond went into British hands.
- Involved in the 2nd Anglo-Burmese War (1852) and annexation of Lower Burma or Pegu.
- Berar and Awadh were annexed on charges of maladministration.
- Introduction of Doctrine of Lapse and annexation of Satara (1848), Jaitpur and Sambalpur (1849), Udaipur (1852), Jhansi (1853), Nagpur (1854) and Awadh (1856). According to this doctrine, any princely state under the direct or indirect (as a vassal) control of the East India Company, should the ruler not produce a legal male heir, would be annexed by the company.
- Railway Minute of 1853; and laying down of the first railway line connecting Bombay and Thane in 1853.
- Telegraph (4000 miles of telegraph lines to connect Calcutta with Bombay, Madras and Peshawar) and postal (Post Office Act, 1854) reforms.
- Ganges Canal was declared open (1854), and the establishment of separate public works departments in every province.
- Widow Remarriage Act (1856) after the valuable effort of Ishwar Chandra Vidhyasagar.
