Gs 1 Regionalism Vision Ias Value Addition Material.pdf

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VALUE ADDITION MATERIAL – 2018 PAPER I: SOCIETY REGIONALISM

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REGIONALISM Contents 1. Region....................................................................................................................................2 1.1. Characteristics of regionalism ..........................................................................................3 1.2. Regionalism in Indian Politics ...........................................................................................3 1.3. Bases of Regionalism .......................................................................................................4 1.4. Forms of Regionalism ......................................................................................................6 1.5. Positive Impacts of Regionalism .......................................................................................8 1.6. Negative Impacts of Regionalism .....................................................................................8 1.7. Is Regionalism a threat to National Integration?...............................................................9 2. Vision IAS GS Mains Test Series Questions ..............................................................................9 3. Past Year UPSC GS Mains Questions .....................................................................................16

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1. Region The term region is difficult to define. It is understood in different ways in different contexts. However, it has been generally defined as “a homogeneous area with physical and cultural characteristics distinct from those of neighboring areas”. A region is a relative term, the meaning of which changes with its usage. When we talk of a region, what we generally imply is that it is socio-culturally distinct and that it is sufficiently unified to have a consciousness of its customs, traditions, values and ideals. Because of this consciousness the people of the region possess a sense of identity distinct from the rest of the regions be it a nation or a continent or the earth itself. A region is characterized by a widely shared sense of togetherness among the people. This togetherness results from a wide variety of sources like geography, topography, religion, language, customs and mores, political and economic stage of development, way of living, commonly shared historical experiences, etc. Region provides the basis for the emergence of regional identity. It results in loyalty towards the region and ultimately takes the shape and form of regionalism. It gives way to regional politics. The politics of regionalism in India has both positive and negative aspects. Speaking in positive terms, it implies an intense desire for concretizing an identity based on such interest as ethnic, language, religion, etc. For example, the erstwhile Jharkhand movement which covered wide regions of Bihar, Orissa, West Bengal and Madhya Pradesh, had come together as a unified group to protect and promote their socio-economic and political interests. This process involves reaffirming their identity as tribal groups. The movement finally succeeded in forcing the government in reorganizing the states and the formation of Jharkhand State came about on 15 th November 2000 as the 28th State of the Indian Union. It has been carved out of the State of Bihar and it largely comprises forest tracks of Chhotanagpur plateau and Santhal Paragana. The negative aspects of regionalism is that it can threaten nation-building efforts such as, the demand for Khalistan in Punjab which is giving rise to terrorism and violence within and outside Punjab. The positive aspect has been ignored by most of the analysts of Indian political situation. This phenomenon reflects the psychology of relative deprivation on the part of people of an area. They point out that deprivation is deliberately inflicted on them by those in power, particularly when socio-economic programmes have resulted in wide economic disparities among various regions. This has led to discontentment and agitation among the backward or not so developed regions of the country. The concept of region is therefore, closely linked with the concept of regionalism. Now let us see what regionalism means. Regionalism: Regionalism can be defined as a phenomenon in which people’s political loyalties become focused upon a region. In other words, it implies people’s love of a particular region in preference to the country and in certain cases in preference to the state of which the region is a part. Thus the phenomenon of regionalism is centered around the concept of region. Regionalism in India is rooted in India’s diversity of languages, cultures, tribes, and religions. It is also encouraged by the geographical concentration of these identity markers in particular regions, and fuelled by a sense of regional deprivation. Indian federalism has been a means of accommodating these regional sentiments.

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1.1. Characteristics of regionalism • • • • •

Regionalism is conditioned by economic, social, political and cultural disparities. Regionalism at times is a psychic phenomenon. Regionalism is built around as an expression of group identity as well as loyalty to the region. Regionalism presupposes the concept of development of one's own region without taking into consideration the interest of other regions. Regionalism prohibits people from other regions to be benefited by a particular region.

1.2. Regionalism in Indian Politics Regionalism is a pre-independence phenomenon. It became predominant in postindependence period. The politics of regionalism started with the implementation of constitutional reforms under Government of India Acts of 1909, 1919, and 1935. The establishment and role of Justice Party in Chennai, and to a lesser extent, of Akali Dal in Punjab in pre-independence period are examples of emerging regionalism in India. After independence there are four major landmarks in the development of regional politics. •

After independence, democratic form of government was established. Its main aim was nation-building on the principles of democracy, secularism national unity and social justice. All parts of the country wanted a fair deal in nation-building. They started competing with each other for their development. Anything short of expectation led to disenchantment and it resulted in the emergence of regional politics.

•

There was integration of the Princely States. Small states were integrated with the big states. People continued to nurse loyalties to old territorial units. This was the most important factor for the success of Princes in elections. The Princes often received overwhelming support in their former territories in the newly created states and relatively much less in other parts of the same state.

•

Reorganization of states on linguistic basis also played a very vital role in the development of regional politics. Twenty eight states were reshaped and reduced to 14 states along with centrally administered territories. Later new states were created, then for example Bombay was divided into Gujarat and Maharashtra, Punjab into, Punjab and Haryana. But these states were not constituted entirely on linguistic basis. Many other factors like ethnic-cumeconomic considerations gave us Nagaland, Meghalaya, Manipur, Tripura, Jharkhand, Haryana, Punjab and Chhattisgarh. Language-cum-culture factors created Maharashtra, Gujarat and Uttaranchal; historical and political factors are responsible for U.P. and Bihar; integration of princely states in and need for viable groupings gave birth to M.P. and Rajasthan; language and social distinctiveness resulted in the creation of Tamil Nadu, Kerala, Mysore, Bengal and Orissa. Thus various factors have played a decisive role in the composition of the Indian federation. In spite of all these considerations, language remained the most important factor in the reorganization of states. It became such an important force in the context of regionalism that linguistic regionalism gained ground in Indian politics.

•

Another factor which gave rise to regional and parochial tendencies in the country was the personal and selfish ends of politicians. Immediately, after Independence the struggle for power started among some parties. For enhancing their own authority and prestige, the regional and state leaders did not hesitate to weaken the authority of the center or in some

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Student Notes: cases of states. The creation of more states meant more governors, chief ministers, Members of Legislative Assembly or MLAs etc. The professional politicians explored the narrow and sectarian sentiments of ignorant masses for fulfilling their personal and selfish ends. Keeping these landmarks in mind, can you now identify the bases of regionalism in India?

1.3. Bases of Regionalism Regionalism is a multidimensional phenomenon. Its bases are varied. Here we will discuss the geographical, historical, cultural, economic and politico-administrative bases of regionalism. •

Geographical Bases: Usually people relate their regional identity to certain specific geographical boundaries. After independence integration of Princely States resulted in the merger of small states into new big states. The loyalties of citizens were torn between old territorial boundaries and new territorial structures. As pointed out earlier this was the major factor responsible for the success of princes in elections particularly when they contested from their former territories in the newly created states. However, it would be wrong to over-estimate the importance of geographical boundaries. It is true that memories of old geographical boundaries of princely states still haunt the people and are exploited by political leaders but it can hardly be denied that they are yielding place to new and bigger territorial identities like Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh and Orissa.

•

Historical and Social Bases: Historical and social bases constitute the bedrock of the politics of regionalism. Several components in this category are not only important individually but also in conjunction with each other. o

History: It supported regionalism with cultural heritage, folklore, myths and symbolism. The most striking example is that of Dravida Kazhagam (DK) and the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) in Tamil Nadu and Shiv Sena in Maharashtra and Telugu Desham (TDP) in Andhra Pradesh. But history cannot be considered as the most important basis of regionalism. Economic and political factors have combined with history to generate regionalism. This can again be seen in the change in the stand of DMK from secession to one of autonomy within the federal framework of the Constitution.

o

Language: Language is perhaps the most important mark of group identification. Language expresses the shared life, thought structure and value patterns of people. It has the capacity to unite the people together and make them work to improve their common destiny. In this sense linguistic homogeneity strengthens a positive movement. As early as 1920, Congress had accepted the principle that language must be adopted as criterion for demarcating the territorial boundaries of provincial units. Establishment of State Reorganization Commission (SRC) in 1955 was the result of demand for formation of regional units based on linguistic regionalism. SRC could not completely follow the principle of one language one state. This could not be treated as the sole criteria for the demarcation of state boundaries. Bilingual states like Bombay, Punjab, etc. were created. However, splitting up of Bombay in 1960, Punjab in 1966, and Assam since mid-sixties into linguistically more homogeneous states gave further impetus to linguistic regionalism in Indian politics. If language had been synonymous with region, the political aspiration of every linguistic group would have been satisfied by the formation of separate states. This, however, is neither a reality nor a foreseeable possibility. The first reason being that languages

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Student Notes: spoken in India run into hundreds. Even if major languages are taken into account, large groups of linguistic minorities are bound to be left inside the state whose language cannot be enshrined in the constitution as an official language. Secondly, Hindi speaking people are distributed over a very large territory. Their number is over 300 million at the beginning of twenty first century. One state cannot be created for them. They have been divided into six states namely, U.P, Bihar, M.P., Rajasthan, Haryana and Himachal Pradesh and a couple of Union territories. There has rarely been a demand for the formation of single state of Hindi speaking people. On the contrary there have been demands for separate states comprising languages or dialects within this wider linguistic group. This can be found in the occasional demand for a Maithili or for recognition of Rajasthani, Haryanvi, etc. as scheduled languages in the Constitution. Thus regionalism is closely associated with language but is not synonymous with linguism. Regionalism can take place inside a linguistic state (for example creation of Marathi speaking Maharashtra). The seven states of North East India refer to themselves as seven sisters. They have tried to form common bonds on the basis of their problems of development. They have also tried to develop a regional identity. These seven states include Assam, Arunachal Pradesh, Manipur, Meghalaya, Mizoram, Nagaland and Tripura. In other words, language is not the sole generator of regionalism. It is one of the several bases of regionalism in India. In most cases of linguistic regionalism many interrelated factors are usually found to be working together. o

o

Caste: An important example of the caste factor providing impetus to linguistic regionalism can be seen in the case of Tamil Nadu. Tamil regionalism gained ground as a result of non-Brahmin movement. Non-Brahmin castes of Tamil speaking region had been able to provide a powerful united thrust against Brahmins who had earlier enjoyed unquestioned dominance in economy, society and polity. Religion: Religion like caste does not play a significant role except when it is combined with dominance and linguistic homogeneity as in Punjab or fed on a sense of religious orthodoxy and economic deprivation as in Jammu and Kashmir. If casteism reinforced and propelled linguistic regionalism in cases of Tamil Nadu, the demand for the formation of Punjabi Suba though presented in linguistic garb had religious overtones. They were mainly responsible for evoking people’s political loyalties on massive scale rather than their love for their mother tongue. It is difficult to qualify the mix of communalism and linguism in this particular case. But some studies make it very clear that demand for Punjabi language state was certainly reinforced by regular invocation of Punjabi speaking masses’ loyalty towards Sikh religion. Taking into account these three factors i.e. language, caste and religion one can say that the study of regionalism in Punjab and Tamil Nadu makes it very clear that political movements for regional demands were carried out formally in the name of language but in reality they had substantive non-linguistic bases too.

•

Economic Bases: Economic factor is the crux of regional politics. India is a developing country. The resources are limited while the demand for resources for the development of various regions is unlimited or disproportionate to resources. Economic policies have led to regional imbalances and wide economic disparities among various regions resulting in discontentment among them. It may be recalled that most of the demands for constituting

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Student Notes: new states were primarily based on allegedly unfair and unequal distribution of development benefits and expenditure in multi-lingual states. The erstwhile movements for a separate Uttarkhand state in the hill districts of U.P., a Jharkhand state carved out of parts of Bihar and the demand for a state of Bodoland comprising a part of Assam may be counted as examples of this type. The demand for separate states in these instances are mainly on the belief that these regions have been economically deprived by their respective states. Economic factors have usually assumed prime importance in regional politics. •

Politico-Administrative Bases: The politico-administrative basis of regionalism is also important but politics as such does not create regionalism. It only accentuates regionalism. Politicians take advantage of the situation of regional discontentment and unrest. They convert it into movements for strengthening their individual and factional support bases. It is a known fact that fighting within Congress gave rise to Telangana agitation. Regional political parties like TDP (Andhra Pradesh), DMK (Tamil Nadu), Akali Dal (Punjab) have been surviving because of regional sentiments. Border dispute, like the one between Maharashtra and Karnataka, is also based on regional sentiments. Other important facts of politics of regionalism are the real or assumed charges of political discrimination among various regions by the central ruling elite.

1.4. Forms of Regionalism •

Demand for State Autonomy: The first and the most challenging form of regional politics was in the demand of people in certain states or regions to secede from the Indian Union and become independent sovereign states. Such demands occurred soon after independence but they are mostly non-existent now. The important examples in this context are that of the Plebiscite Front (Kashmir), Mizo National Front (Lushei Hills of Assam), Nagaland Socialist Conference (Naga Hills District of Assam) etc.

•

Supra-state Regionalism: This implies that more than one state is involved in the issue of regionalism. It is an expression of group identity of some states. They take a common stand on the issues of mutual interest vis-a-vis another group of states. The group identity is usually in relation to certain specific issues. It does not in any way imply the total and permanent merger of identity of the states into the identity of group. Rivalries, tensions and even conflicts do take place among a few states belonging to a group. For example, the rivalry existing between south and north India on such issues as language or location of steel plants illustrates the point. The grouping of the North Eastern States for greater access to economic development is another instance. Let us refer to the language issue once again in order to illustrate how supra-state regionalism is found In India. South India is separated from North along several differentials, geographically south is composed of peninsular uplands or Deccan, the mountain ranges of Eastern and Western Ghats and coastal plains. In terms of political history too, south has never been incorporated into the empires of the North. This was done for the first time during the British regime. After independence a major rift was caused over the issue of the official language for India. The Constitution envisaged the replacement of English by Hindi for official purposes of the Union as the language of communication between the centre and the states and between states. The state legislatures of Indian Union were given authority to adopt one or more languages including Hindi for use as the state language. The Constitution provides that the

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Student Notes: official language of the union should be Hindi with Devanagiri script, with international numerals for a period of 15 years from the commencement of the Constitution. However, parliament could by law extend the use of English as the link language. The attempt to introduce the provision regarding the official language has generated more intense language rivalry than unity. The opposition to Hindi found its strongest political expression in the southern states. Most of the people in these states as well as those in the non-Hindi speaking areas of Eastern India objected to the imposition of Hindi. It was feared that their own languages would be ultimately replaced by Hindi, which they considered inferior. The adoption of Hindi as an official language and as a compulsory subject in schools was seen as imposition of a comparatively underdeveloped language upon those whose language contains a richness of thousands of years. In the 1950’s several movements to oppose the imposition of Hindi sprang up. In 1956, the Academy of Tamil Culture convened in Chennai the Union Language Convention which stated in a resolution that it would be greatly unjust to make any other language (meaning Hindi) take the place of English when a population of 100 million are totally unacquainted with that language. Significantly this Convention included representatives from different political organisations i.e., Rajagopalachari (Swatantra), Ramaswamy Naickar (D.K.), Rajan (Justice Party), Annadurai (DMK) and many others. At a National Conference held on 8th March 1958, Rajagopalachari declared that ‘Hindi is as much foreign to non-Hindi speaking people as, English to protagonists of Hindi’. Growing opposition to Hindi in south India led Nehru in 1959 to assure the people of South that (a) there will be no imposition of Hindi on them and that (b) English will be an associate regional language which can be used for official purpose so long as people require it. The decision would be left not to the Hindi speaking people but to the non-Hindi speaking people. In late 1964 many things revived the southern fears of “Hindi Imperialism”. With the death of Pt. Nehru the southern fear about imposition of Hindi had revived. The alarm grew at the expiry of 15 years when Hindi was to be used in place of English as the official language. The fears of Southern non-Hindi states could not be removed even by the Official Language Act, 1963 which made possible the continued use of English both at the centre and in the states. On the Republic Day in 1965, in pursuance of Act 343 of Indian Constitution Hindi became the official language of India. The southern states reacted vehemently. The DMK party designated 26th January 1965 as a day of mourning. The student community started an agitation, against the imposition of Hindi. The DMK, which led this agitation, gained greater prestige. It became the ruling party in the state of Tamil Nadu when the elections took place after two years. The DMK urged that all the fourteen languages be the official languages of the respective states with English as the link language between the states and the centre. The communists as well as Kamaraj favored a three-language formula (viz. English, Hindi and the mother tongue). In June 1965 it was announced that proposal given by Kamaraj (the president of the Congress) has been accepted. The language policy resolution of the Government of India gave official recognition to Hindi, English as well as the regional language. DELHI 7

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Student Notes: The policy resolution also indicated that steps should be taken to develop Hindi. English continued to be recognized as an important link language. The events described above show that the language became an important issue around which supra-state regionalism developed. •

Inter-state Regionalism: It is related with state boundaries and involves overlapping of one or more state identities, which threaten their interests. River water disputes, in general, and other issues like the Maharashtra-Karnataka border dispute in particular can be cited as examples.

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Intra-state Regional Politics or Sub-regionalism: This refers to regionalism, which exists within a state of the Indian Union. It embodies the desire of a part of a state for the identity and self-development. It may also reflect a notion of deprivation or exploitation of a part of the state at the expense of another. This type of regionalism can be found in many parts of India. The important examples of this kind of sub-regionalism are a Vidarbha in Maharashtra, a Saurashtra in Gujarat, a Telangana in Andhra Pradesh, an East U.P. in Uttar Pradesh and Chhattisgarh in Madhya Pradesh.

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Son of Soil theory: It ties people to their place of birth and confers some benefits, rights, roles and responsibilities on them, which may not apply to others. It is accentuated by factors such as competition for resources, jobs, economic disparities, etc. Examples of implementation of the concept to further the cause of regionalism include campaign for safeguard of interests of Maharashtrians by the Shiv Sena, clashes among Bodos and Bengali speaking Muslims in Assam, among others.

1.5. Positive Impacts of Regionalism •

• •

It can lead to inter-group solidarity in a particular region. People belonging to a region may feel the need to come together to protect their vested interests, setting aside their differences.eg. Tripura Tribal Autonomous District Council that was formed in 1985 has served to protect an otherwise endangered tribal identity in the state by providing a democratic platform for former separatists and has reduced the bases of political extremism in the state. Given the increasing uncertainty in the contemporary globalized world, regionalism has become a source of identity among people. The accommodation of such identities is healthy for maintaining the socio-cultural fabric of India. It may induce competition among people of a region and propel them to do better to improve the status of their region. Eg. Competitive federalism in India and ensuing competition among states regarding resources, setting up of industries, infrastructural facilities, etc.

1.6. Negative Impacts of Regionalism • • • • •

It can have adverse impacts on national integration, as loyalty to a particular region remains stronger than loyalty to the nation. It can be exploited and used for political leverage in order to garner votes. Development plans can be implemented unevenly, in order to curb regionalist and secessionist demands. Thus, it can lead to unbalanced development. When agitations to satisfy regional demands occur, law and order situation is disturbed. It can also result in violence. It can give a leeway to external factors (E.g. terrorist groups, extremist groups) to get involved in regional issues and create disruption by inciting the masses.

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1.7. Is Regionalism a threat to National Integration? Regionalism is not significant merely as a disintegrating force. Regionalism is not opposed to national integration. Both can exist together in a creative partnership. Both are in favor of development. Regionalism stresses the development of a region and national integration for the development of the nation as a whole. If we want to reconcile the competing claims of regionalism and national integration the political system of the country should remain federal and democratic. Regionalism is not disruptive of national solidarity. The important condition for national solidarity is that nationalism should be able to hold the different types of regional subnationalities together. In other words, there should be healthy reconciliation between regionalism and nationalism. Regionalism can make federalism a greater success. In this aspect the accentuation of regional identities should not-become problematic. It is quite natural that regional communities, who are conscious of their distinctive culture, should interact with federal government on the basis of more equal partnership. It will reduce the centralizing tendencies in a nation and power will shift from the centre to the states. Conceived in any form, regionalism and sub-regionalism are unavoidable in a country as vast and diverse as India. Their existence is not only an important condition for the expression of genuine national sentiment, but it is logically generated because of the establishment of the nation state. Nothing is, therefore, more basic to the concept of federalism than regionalism and sub-regionalism.

2. Vision IAS GS Mains Test Series Questions 1.

There have been instances of people advocating that they be given the major, if not the sole, right to work in their states or regions. Analyze the economic, demographic and socio-cultural factors which have given rise to these ‘sons of the soil’ movements.

Approach: •

•

The question asks about the issue of ‘sons of the soil’ or nativist movements. Explain what nativist movements are. While giving the explanation try to bring out the features, reasons for their rise, context etc. clearly so that no confusion remains regarding the distinction between nativist movements and linguistic or secessionist movements. There is no need to talk about these other two kinds/waves of regional movements. But your explanation of nativist movements should be clear in itself, so that one is able to comprehend clearly what nativist movements are.. Then explain the socio-cultural, demographic and economic factors that may give rise to these movements.

Answer: The ‘sons of soil’ or nativist movements emerged in the sixties and seventies in some parts of India. The ‘sons of the soil’ began to demand that they be given the major, if not the sole, right to work on the soil of their linguistic states and reap the economic benefits therein without interference from people belonging to other linguistic communities. The demand was economic but was mediated through specific linguistic identities. The Shiv Sena of the sixties and seventies and the Assam movement, which culminated in 1985, may be considered to belong to this genre. In both cases the enemy is within, the ‘aliens’, who by careful manipulation deny the native sons of the soil the benefits of economic advancement that their native state offers. DELHI 9

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Student Notes: These movements thus carry with their economic demands a vital linguistic element, and it is on the basis of discrimination on linguistic grounds that the economic demands are sought to be worked out. Other states and that too, some linguistic groups from these other states are seen as threats by the natives and singled out as particularly offensive. Never is the whole country held responsible. They acknowledge that it is only through the machinery at the Centre that their grievances can be redressed. Though these movements usually have strong popular support, but they lead to an intractable conflict as they press actively for discrimination against other citizens who, in principle, should enjoy equal rights in matters of state employment. Factors responsible: Socio-cultural and demographic factors: • • •

• • •

Cultural prejudice can be one of the reasons behind the rise of nativist movements. More dissimilar the immigrant population is ethnically or culturally, stronger is likely to be the opposition. It is possible that racial and cultural prejudices that inform opinions on immigration are really epiphenomena of economic self-interest concerns. Normally, an increase of labour supply, such as that due to immigration, increases labour competition and depresses wages, hurting the low skilled most. That union members, in some cases, have been found to favour immigration restrictions supports this line of argument. Further, it has been found that less-skilled want more restrictions on immigration and the more skilled want fewer. As communities and groups that were once backward in education become educationally more advanced, they could demand that their states ensure them a larger share of jobs in public services. Areas with nativist movements are found to be mainly those which have experienced a rapid growth of educational opportunities for the lower middle classes. Political Competition is another factor. The desire of regional elites to capture power has also led to the rise of nativist movements. Many states in India have more than two significant parties and interstate migrants often are an ethnic minority, living amidst a native, ethnic majority. In such a situation, a party may seek to make ethnic identities relevant through actions against a minority.

Economic factors: • • • • •

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Economic self-interests. While the poor believe easily that immigration hurts them the most, workers can be led to believe that it depresses wages. There is also a widespread notion that migration from other states burdens the public budget of the state as well. During economic downturns, the frequency and intensity of nativist movements generally see a rise. Growing unemployment, particularly among the educated. Uneven development. Continuous neglect of an area or region by the ruling parties may be another factor.

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Student Notes: 2.

Post-independence India has witnessed many instances of extreme form of regionalism. Is regionalism a threat to national integrity? How can regional aspirations be addressed within the constitutional framework?

Approach: • • • •

Give a brief definition of regionalism. Give an account of rise of sense of regionalism in India. Describe how it becomes a threat to national integrity. Bring out some Constitutional provisions which try to deal with regional aspirations.

Answer: Regionalism, as an ideology and political movement, seeks to advance the causes of regions. If the interest of one region or a state is asserted against the country as a whole or against another region or state in a hostile way, and if a conflict is promoted by such alleged interests, then it is called regionalism. Post independence, India has witnessed many instances of regionalism maifested in: the demand of Dravida Nadu, Telangana movement, Bodoland movement in Assam, Khalistan movement. Interstate disputes also carried regionalist undertones. The underlying causes range from regional disparity to the son of soil concept as well as diversity of languages, cultures, ethnic groups etc. Regionalism is often seen as a serious threat to the development, progress and unity of the nation. Internal security challenges by the insurgent groups, who propagate and are motivated by the feelings of regionalism pose grave challenge to the internal security of the country.. Regionalism at times transforms into secessionism, especially in border areas often getting support from neighboring countries. The Constitution of India has adequate provisions to address the issue of regional aspirations. •

• • •

Indian federalism provides a mechanism for addressing regionalism and reconciling of regional identities within the democratic framework. o The 73rd and 74th Amendment acts further addressed the regional aspiration by devolving power and resources to be used as per regional needs. The regions under 5th and 6th Schedule enjoys certain autonomy which give them scope to maintain their own culture and develop according to their own need. The provision of PESA Act, 1996 is a step towards bringing reconciliation with the regional aspirations. Art 371 has special provisions helpful in addressing concerns of some states.

These provisions need to be implemented in true spirit and with adequate political will to address the issues engendering regionalism.

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Student Notes: 3.

Ethnic similarities are as important as territorial boundaries in promoting the feeling of common brotherhood among the citizens of a country. In context of the above statement, examine the problems faced by people from North-East in other parts of India. Also analyse the steps taken by the government in this regard.

Approach: Examine the various instances of name-calling e.g. Nido Tania murder case in Delhi and Bangalore exodus to portray how lack of ethnic similarity of North-East Indians creates a foreign feeling among the people from those of mainland and how this leads to friction among them. Further one should give an account of the measures taken by government and also suggest further measures. Answer: The mysterious death of Loitam Richard in Bangalore, the murder of Ramchanphy Hongray in New Delhi, the suicide by Dana Sangma and other such incidents serve as reminders of the insecure conditions under which people, particularly the young, from the north-east of India have to live with in the metros of this country. Major problems faced by people from north east in other parts of the country are: • • • •

Pervasive racial discrimination that people from the region face in metropolitan India. Despite hailing from an integral part of India, these survivors of racial abuse feel compelled to overlook instances of mental, physical and verbal assault on a daily basis. People from North-East have to suffer jibes and verbal or non-verbal abuse due to their different facial look. Time and again, male students from the northeast have been compelled to relocate elsewhere after the locals ganged up against them.

Some of the steps taken by the government • •

•

Delhi Police has announced an array of steps, including setting up of a new unit and a helpline number to address any grievance faced by people from the north east. Ministry of Home Affairs constituted a committee in February, 2014 to look into the various concerns of persons hailing from the North Eastern States who are living in different parts of the country, especially the Metropolitan areas, and to suggest suitable remedial measures which could be taken by the Government The Government has already encouraged to include history of North-East in school curriculum which can be a way to bring North-east closer to the main stream.

Some other possible steps • • •

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Unless there is legal protection for the north easterners, their rights will always be trampled by those who have no regard for their existence. An anti-racism law is an important measure that the Indian government must take. Racism is a social problem and it can only be solved at the societal level. This can be done through awareness, campaign, educating the mainland people about the unique history, culture, languages of north-east India. A great initiative to end this disjuncture of knowledge would be by introducing more information about the North Eastern region or the southern region, or any other regions which have been ignored since years, into the curriculum of state education boards and other central educational boards, especially NCERT books. JAIPUR PUNE www.visionias.in

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Student Notes: • •

4.

The responsibility of the police also lies in registering an FIR and then taking quick action in cases of racial abuse. Another important step could be to create sustainable employment opportunities in the North Eastern Region to prevent the distress migration of the people from north east.

What is regionalism? Despite persistent regional inequalities, it is increasingly becoming less important in the Indian scenario. Analyse.

Approach: • • •

Definition of regionalism. Explain regional inequality in brief. Then explain why it has been becoming less important – social, economic, political factors.

Answer: •

•

Regionalism stands for the love of a particular region or an area in preference to the nation or any other region. In Indian context, regionalism refers to assertion of distinct ethnic, linguistic or economic interests by various groups within the nation. Since the roots of regionalism lie in linguistic, ethnic, economic and cultural identities of the people living in specific geographical area, political scholars have treated various forms of regionalism which include economic regionalism, linguistic regionalism, political regionalism and even sub-regional movements in the general frame of regionalism. India since Independence has witnessed different forms of regional inequalities in terms of economic growth, resources , infrastructure, etc. giving rise to subregional feelings , hence demand for separate states ex. Movements in Vidarbha region, Darjeeling / Gorkhaland in West Bengal , demand for Telangana ( now a State), etc. disputes like water sharing construction of irrigation and power dams , etc. ( between Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh, Kerala ,Karnataka, Haryana , Delhi , etc.).

Thus, even though inequality among different states and regions could be a potential source of trouble but despite breeding discontent and putting pressure on the political system, this problem has not so far given rise to regionalism or feeling of a region being discriminated against the other. Reasons for lack of Regionalism or regional feelings: • •

•

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Economic interdependence between different regions has necessitated the need for migration to different cities and states, thereby reducing loyalties towards a particular region. Political-Central government influence the rates of growth in poorer states and regions so as to reduce their economic distance from the richer states and regions. Planning Commission, BRGF, Special category status, grants etc. to poorest states have tried to bridge the gap between rich and poor states. Thus, we can say that, ‘Son’s of soil’ doctrine has tended to be an aberration but it has more to do with political opportunism rather than a general feeling. Thus contributing to reducing the regional disparities and regional and sub-regional feelings.

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Socio-cultural-The demand for creation of states on linguistic basis had also been given importance since 1962 and more recently with the creation of Telangana. Students belonging to different states come to metros to take admissions in Universities, which also aids in diluting parochial regional ideals and values and developing an all-India perspective. Regional feelings are also being subsumed under the wave of globalization which is making India more homogenous in culture and way of living.

Thus, we can say that due to the efforts of Central Govt. the regional feelings have so far been kept under limits. Also, Regionalism in its entirety is not negative as it plays a vital role in preserving cultural diversity of the country and can also at the same time be of great help in removing regional disparities in development. However, if uncontrolled, it can also become a cause of national disintegration. 5.

Regionalism in India is not only rooted in India's diversity of languages, cultures, tribes and religions but also fuelled by a sense of regional deprivations. Discuss.

Approach: • • •

Introduction should briefly define regionalism in the Indian context. The discussion should involve various factors that engender regionalism and the role played by sense of regional deprivations in exacerbating the phenomenon. Conclude with underlining the strengths that have enabled India to address the challenges emanating from regionalism

Answer: As an ideology and political movement regionalism seeks to advance the causes of regions. It involves a process in which sub-state actors become increasingly powerful. Within India, regionalism has been based on the diversity of culture, language, tribes, religions and other socio-cultural factors as seen below: •

•

•

•

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Language: Language, which forms a core tenet of identity, has led to feelings of regionalism as seen in various parts of India. A nefarious manifestation of this has been the sons of soil doctrine which argues that particular state belongs to majority linguistic group inhabiting it or constitutes an exclusive "homeland" for regional language speakers. Politically, regional aspirations have been sought to be assuaged by the creation of linguistic states such as Maharashtra and Gujrat. Tribal Identity: The regional aspirations of North-east were mainly based on the distinction of tribal identity. These aspirations becamebecame more focal and prominent in the 1980's. The whole North-East region has witnessed altogether different political reorganization aimed at preservation of the distinct identities and meeting regional aspirations. Economic inequality and Regional deprivation: Increasingly along with geographical concentration of diversity, regional deprivations, perceived and real, have provided a bulwark to the development of regionalism in India. For Instance, the partition of India turned the North-East region into a land locked region and affected it economically. Due to this isolation from the mainstream India, the region remained backward in terms of developmental parameters. Hence, from the beginning, the national government felt a responsibility to counter the imbalance in regional development. Recently the creation of Telangana after a long struggle underscores the significance of regional deprivation all the more. Combination of multiple factors: in the creation of three new states in 2000, namely Chhatisgarh, Uttaranchal and Jharkhand language did not play a prominent JAIPUR PUNE www.visionias.in

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Student Notes: role. Rather, a combination of ethnicity based on tribal identity, language, regional deprivation and ecology provided the basis for intense regionalism resulting in statehood. Being a vast and diverse country India has seen multiple challenges emanating from regionalism based on multiple factors. However, the spirit of unity in diversity and constitutional mechanisms of democracy and federalism has enabled it to ward of these challenges from becoming destabilizing. 6.

Regional aspirations in the North East have been dominated by demands for autonomy, movements for secession, and opposition to ‘outsiders’. Discuss with relevant examples.

Approach: • •

Discuss various demands for autonomy, movements for secession, and opposition to outsiders in N-E region. Briefly discuss the reasons for the above and give a suitable conclusion.

Answer: Many issues like poverty, under-development, identity, extremism, insurgency etc. plague the North East (NE) region. However, three issues have dominated politics of NE while other issues of the region are closely related to these three issues. Demands for autonomy: • • •

At independence entire region except Manipur and Tripura comprised State of Assam. Demands for political autonomy arose when non-Assamese felt that Assam government was imposing Assamese language on them. Even post completion of reorganisation of NE in 1972, demands for autonomy didn’t end. In Assam, communities like Bodos, Karbis and Dimasas demanded separate States. Karbis and Dimasas have been granted autonomy under District Councils while Bodos were granted Autonomous Council within constitutional provisions.

Secessionist movements: •

•

•

Mizoram: After independence a movement for secession in Mizo hills gained popular support. Two decades of insurgency led by Mizo National Front under the leadership of Laldenga and backed by Pakistan ended after a peace agreement in 1986. Nagaland: Led by Phizo, a section of Nagas declared independence from India in 1951. After a period of violent insurgency a section of Nagas signed an agreement with government of India but this was not acceptable to other rebels. The problem in Nagaland still continues. Assam: The United Liberation Front of Assam (ULFA) is a separatist outfit operating in Assam. It seeks to establish a sovereign Assam with an armed struggle. The government of India banned the organisation in 1990 citing it as a terrorist organisation.

Movements against outsiders: • •

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Large scale migration into north-east gave rise to a special kind of problem that pitted ‘local’ communities against people who were seen as ‘outsiders’ or migrants. These latecomers are seen as encroachers on scarce resources.

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• •

The Assam Movement from 1979 to 1985 led by All Assam Students’ Union (AASU) is best example of such movements against ‘outsiders’. Assamese suspected that there were huge numbers of illegal Bengali Muslim settlers from Bangladesh. Problem of immigration has remained a political issue which is reflected in frequent clashes in Assam. Sme feeling informs the hostility of local population to Chakma refugees in Mizoram and Arunachal Pradesh. Recent demand of inner line permit system and the associated violence in Manipur is another example of movement against outsiders.

The isolation of the region, its complex social character, backwardness, laxity of political class, vast international border and weak communication between and rest of India have further added to the delicate nature of politics here. However, efforts are being made and should be further scaled to address the region’s concerns: •

•

Continuous dialogue between Centre, state governments, rebel groups and civil society. Rebel groups need to understand that their demands of independence and autonomy based on ever-narrowing identities cannot be fulfilled without comprising external and internal security of country. Steps for better development and connectivity in the region by apt implementation of policies and able administration.

Effective implementation of the Sixth Schedule provisions.

3. Past Year UPSC GS Mains Questions 1. Growing feeling of regionalism is an important factor in generation of demand for a separate state. Discuss. 2. What is the basis of regionalism? Is it that unequal distribution of benefits of development on regional basis eventually promotes regionalism? Substantiate your answer.

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