Which of the following statements is/are correct? 1. The Dutch East India Company was formed after the formation of the British East India Company. 2. Vasco da Gama reached Calicut in 1498. Select the correct answer using the code given below.

The British East India Company was established on December 31, 1600, when Queen Elizabeth I granted a royal charter to the 'Governor and Company of Merchants of London trading with the East Indies' [1][2][4]. In contrast, the Dutch East India Company (Vereenigde Oost-Indische Compagnie or VOC) was formed later, on March 20, 1602, through the amalgamation of several smaller trading companies by the States-General of the Netherlands [3][4]. Therefore, statement 1 is correct as the Dutch company followed the British one. Regarding statement 2, the Portuguese explorer Vasco da Gama successfully discovered the direct sea route to India via the Cape of Good Hope, reaching Calicut on the Malabar Coast in May 1498 [5][6]. This event marked the beginning of direct European maritime trade with India, making statement 2 correct as well.

Sources

1. [1] Rajiv Ahir. A Brief History of Modern India (2019 ed.). SPECTRUM. > Chapter 3: Advent of the Europeans in India > Why the English Succeeded against Other European Powers > p. 57
2. [2] Modern India ,Bipin Chandra, History class XII (NCERT 1982 ed.)[Old NCERT] > Chapter 3: The Beginnings of European Settlements > The Beginnings of European Settlements > p. 51
3. [4] Rajiv Ahir. A Brief History of Modern India (2019 ed.). SPECTRUM. > Chapter 3: Advent of the Europeans in India > The Dutch > p. 35
4. [3] History , class XI (Tamilnadu state board 2024 ed.) > Chapter 16: The Coming of the Europeans > The Dutch > p. 250
5. [5] History , class XI (Tamilnadu state board 2024 ed.) > Chapter 16: The Coming of the Europeans > Introduction > p. 243
6. [6] http://museum.wa.gov.au/explore/dirk-hartog/voc-united-dutch-east-india-company