The Prince of Wales Island, together with Province Wellesley, had been administered under the Bengal Presidency until 1805, when Penang was made a separate Presidency on par with Madras, Bombay and Bengal. By then, Penang also served as a penal station; in 1796, 700 Indian convicts were shipped in from the Andaman Islands. The practice of employing Indian convicts continued throughout the 19th century as a means to provide the necessary labour for public infrastructure works, such as the construction of roads, drains and public buildings.