The English East India Company appointed Gomasthas - The East India Company in India wanted to have trade monopoly over cotton production. The company did not want the Indian weavers to supply their cotton products to other European companies. It tried to eliminate the traders and brokers connected with the cloth trade and established a direct control over the weavers by appointing paid servants called the gomasthas to supervise weavers, collect supplies, and examine the quality of cloth.

These gomasthas gave loans to the weavers to purchase the raw material for their productions. Once they took loans, weavers they were obligated to the British and they had to hand over the cloth they produced to the gomastha only. They could not take it to any other trader.