TABLE OF CONTENTS TOPIC PAGE NO. UNIT-I [THE CHALLENGES OF NATION BUILDING] Challenges for the new nation 01 The initial leadership 03 The colonial legacy 06 Economic Backwardness 08 The colonial state 11 UNIT-II [CONSOLIDATION OF INDIA AS A NATION] Assassination of Gandhiji 13 Political Unification of India 13 Unity in Diversity 19 The issue of official language 22 The linguistic organisation of the States 28 Minority languages 36 Integration of tribals 38 Different models of tribal development 39 Roots of India’s tribal policy 40 Tribals in the North-East 43 Regionalism and regional inequality 47 Economic imbalances and regionalism 48 Sons of the Soil Doctrine 52 UNIT-III [THE YEARS OF HOPE AND PROMISE] Establishment of Democratic institutions 55 The Administrative structure 57 Development of Science and Technology 58 Social Change 59 Community Development programmes 61 The post-independence foreign policy 63 International role 65 Relations with super-powers 67 Relations with Neighbours 70 Indo-Pak war 70 The 1962 Chinese attack on India 72 i UNIT-IV [LAL BAHADUR SHASTRI & INDIRA GANDHI YEARS] Lal Bahadur Shastri as Prime Minister 78 The Indo-Pak war of 1965 and the Tashkent agreement 82 Indira Gandhi: The early years 86 The Green Revolution 88 The Emergence of Bangladesh as a New Nation 90 The Simla Agreement, 1972 96 Smiling Buddha 98 Total revolution of Jayaprakash Narayan 100 The imposition of Emergency: an attack on the Constitution 104 Public response to the emergency 105 The end of the emergency and 1977 elections 108 The Janta interregnum and Indira Gandhi’s second home coming 110 The Punjab Crisis and Operation Blue star 114 UNIT-V [INDIA AFTER INDIRA GANDHI TILL 1991 ECONOMIC REFORMS] Indira Gandhi’s assassination 117 Rajiv Gandhi as Prime Minister 118 The Shah Bano Case 125 The Elam Tigers and Assassination of Rajiv Gandhi 127 Rise of Terrorism in Kashmir and the exodus of Kashmiri pandits 129 The BoP crisis and the Economic reforms of 1991 130 UNIT-VI [LAND REFORMS AND CONTRIBUTION OF WOMEN] Land reforms: an introduction 133 Zamindari abolition and tenancy reforms 134 Land ceiling 141 Bhoodan and Gramdan movements 146 Indian Women since Independence 146 UNIT-VII [NAXALISM AND ISI SPONSORED TERRORISM] The Naxalbari movement 153 The Kargil War 156 Operation Shakti 159 Cross-border terrorism and separatist movement in Kashmir 163 ii UNIT-VIII [THE DAWN OF THE NEW MILLENNIUM] Democratic political systems 167 Entrenchment of Democracy 167 Popular participation in political processes 169 Forms of political protest 169 Economic performance 170 Economic problems and dangers 172 The areas of darkness 173 Poverty 173 Quality of life 174 The promises to keep 176 iii POST INDEPENDENCE INDIAN HISTORY EDEN IAS UNIT-I THE CHALLENGES OF NATION BUILDING CHALLENGES FOR THE NEW NATION Prime Minister of free India, addressed a special session of the Constituent Assembly that night. This was theAt the famous hour ‘trystof midnight with destiny’ on 14-15 speech August that 1947, you are India familiar attained with. independence. This was the Jawaharlalmoment Indians Nehru, had the been first waiting for. You are aware that there were many voices in our national movement. But there were two goals almost everyone agreed upon: one, that after Independence, we shall run our country through democratic government; and two, that the government will be run for the good of all, particularly the poor and the socially disadvantaged groups. Now that the country was independent, the time had come to realise the promise of freedom. Prime Minister Jawahar Lal Nehru speaking from the Red Fort, 15 August 1947 theThis country. was not The going year to be1947 easy. was India a year was of born unprecedented in very difficult violence circumstances. and trauma Perhaps of displacement. no other country It was byin thisthen situation was born that in a independent situation more India difficult started than on that its journey of India toin achieve1947. Freedom several objectives.came with theYet thepartition turmoil of that accompanied independence did not make our leaders lose sight of the multiple challenges that faced the new nation. taintedFifteenth by August, despair, 1947, for the the country first day had of beenfree India,divided. was Large celebrated parts of with the muchtwo new exuberance nations were and elation.engulfed The by sacrifices of generations of patriots and the blood of countless martyrs had borne fruit. But this joy was scarcity of food and other consumer goods, and a fear of administrative breakdown. communal riots. There was a mass exodus of people from both states across the new borders. There was Independence had been accompanied by a multitude of problems, and, of course, centuries of backward- ness, prejudice, inequality, and ignorance still weighed on the land. The debris of two centuries of colonial- As Nehru declared in his 14 August speech, ‘The achievement we celebrate today is but a step, an opening ofism opportunity, had to be cleared to the andgreater the promisestriumphs of and the achievements freedom struggle ... That to befuture fulfilled. is not The one long of easehaul andhad restingjust begun. but of incessant striving so that we may fulfil the pledges we have so often taken.’ 1 POST INDEPENDENCE INDIAN HISTORY EDEN IAS First Prime Minister Jawahar lal Nehru There were the immediate problems of the territorial and administrative integration of the princely states, migrated from Pakistan, the protection of Muslims threatened by communal gangs, the need to avoid war withthe communal Pakistan, andriots the that Communist accompanied insurgency. Partition, Restoration the rehabilitation of law and of ordernearly and six politicalmillion refugees stability whoand puthad- ting in place an administrative system, threatened with breakdown because of Partition and the illogical division of the army and higher bureaucracy virtually on religious lines, were other immediate tasks. As Or in the words of the political scientist W.H. Morris-Jones, the task was ‘to hold things together, to ensure Nehru declared in 1947, ‘First things must come first and the first thing is the security and stability of India.’ survival, to get accustomed to the feel of being on the water, to see to it that the vessels keep afloat.’ Dr. Rajendra Prasad 2 POST INDEPENDENCE INDIAN HISTORY EDEN IAS In addition there were the medium-term problems of framing a constitution and building a representative democratic and civil libertarian political order, organizing elections to put in place the system of represen- tative and responsible governments at the Centre and in the states, and abolishing the semi-feudal agrari- an order through thorough-going land reforms. The newly-formed independent government also had the long-term tasks of promoting national integration, pushing forward the process of nation-in-the-making, facilitating rapid economic development, removing endemic poverty, and initiation of the planning process. evolveIt also soughta foreign to policy bridge which as quickly would as defend possible Indian the gap independence between mass and expectationspromote peace aroused in a world by the increasing freedom- lystruggle engulfed and by their the Coldfulfilment, War and to getgetting rid of divided centuries-long into hostile social power injustice, blocs. Allinequality, these problems and oppression, had to be and dealt to with within the framework of the basic values to which the national movement had been committed and within the parameters of a broad national consensus. The people and the political leadership set out to handle these short-term and long-term problems fuelled by an optimism, a certain faith in the country’s future and with a joie de vivre. This mood was to persist for of Nehru and his policies, they too shared this feeling of hope. Those who have lived through the Nehru era most of the Nehru years. Though many, especially on the left, were dissatisfied with and basically critical nearly a decade as prime minister: ‘There is no lack of drama in this changing world of ours and, even in often now feel that they were lucky to have done so. Nehru himself once again expressed this feeling after wideIndia, world we live today in an than exciting to work age. inI have India.’ always Some considered of this euphoria it a great disappeared privilege forwith people the India-China of this generation war of to live during this period of India’s long history ... I have believed that there is nothing more exciting in the sense of defeatism. Nehru had always believed that ‘India’s greatest need is for a sense of certainty concern- 1962. The war brought in a degree of realism but even so neither Nehru nor the country experienced any imparting to the millions. ing her own success.’ And it was this sense of excitement and of the coming success which he succeeded in THE INITIAL LEADERSHIP The First Nehru Cabinet Ministers dedication and idealism besides the presence of a strong nation-wide party, the Congress. Beside the great NehruIndependent stood aIndia group embarked of leaders on whoits tasks had with played the abenefit notable of rolean outstanding in the freedom leadership, movement. having There tremendous was his deputy prime minister, Sardar Patel, a leader who possessed a strong will and was decisive in action and strong in administration. Then there were the learned Maulana Abul Kalam Azad, the erudite Rajendra Prasad, and C. Rajagopalachari, endowed with a razor-sharp intellect. At the state level, were several lead- ers like Govind Ballabh Pant in U.P., B.C. Roy in West Bengal, and B.G. Kher and Morarji Desai in Bombay, who enjoyed unchallenged authority in their states. All these leaders had skills and experience to run3 a POST INDEPENDENCE INDIAN HISTORY EDEN IAS modern and democratic administrative and political system which they had acquired through organizing a mass movement, building up a political party, and participating in colonial legislatures for decades.