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REGIONALISM Student Notes: Contents REGIONALISM Student Notes: Contents 1. Regionalism- An Introduction .................................................................................................... 2 1.1. Characteristics of regionalism ............................................................................................. 2 1.2. Types of Regionalism ........................................................................................................... 2 1.3. Regionalism in Indian Politics .............................................................................................. 3 1.4. Basis of Regionalism ............................................................................................................ 4 1.5. Reasons for persistence of regional disparities in India ...................................................... 6 1.6. Impact of Regionalism ......................................................................................................... 6 1.7. Regionalism and National Integration ................................................................................. 7 1.8. Regionalism & Federalism ................................................................................................... 8 1.9. Clashes related to Regionalism in India .............................................................................. 8 2. Past Year UPSC GS Mains Questions .......................................................................................... 9 3. Vision IAS GS Mains Test Series Questions ................................................................................. 9 Copyright © by Vision IAS All rights are reserved. No part of this document may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise, without prior permission of Vision IAS. DELHI JAIPUR PUNE HYDERABAD AHMEDABAD LUCKNOW CHANDIGARH 1 www.visionias.in # 8468022022 ©Vision IAS https://t.me/UPSC_PDF Download From > https://upscpdf.com https://t.me/UPSC_PDF 1. Regionalism- An Introduction Student Notes: A region is a homogenous area which is culturally and physically distinct from the neighbouring areas. In a region, people are aware of their similarities, however distinct they may be from others. Based on this idea, they develop an identity. And based on this identity, they start professing their political loyalties towards the region rather than to the state or the nation to which they belong. Regionalism is rooted in India's diversity w.r.t. (with respect to) caste, religion, language, class etc. When all these factors get geographically concentrated, along with the feeling of relative deprivation (i.e. a feeling that their community is not able to have access or benefit from such access to the resources of the land), it is referred to as regionalism. So, 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 for 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. 1.1. Characteristics of regionalism Regionalism is conditioned by economic, social, political and cultural disparities: • It is, at times, a psychological phenomenon. For example, India and Pakistan were divided to solve problems that were perceived and feared, rather than being actually present. • It is built around an expression of group identity as well as loyalty towards the region. For example, the tribals in Jharkhand-Chhattisgarh area consider their land to be sacred, and trace their identity to a common ancestor of the region. They do not tolerate outside interference, especially since outsiders do not understand their ways and customs. Such outsiders may even consist of non-tribals belonging to the same state. • It presupposes the concept of development of one's own region without taking into consideration the interest of other regions. The recurrent and ever ongoing river water disputes between states and nations could be traced to such factors. • Regionalism, at times, prohibits people from other regions to be benefited by a particular region. The demand for a ‘Marathwada’ (Maharashtra for Marathwadas) is a case in point here. 1.2. Types of Regionalism 1. Demand for State Autonomy: Regional politics manifested in the form of people in certain states or regions demanding to secede from the Indian Union and become independent sovereign states. Such demands occurred soon after independence and are largely 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. 2. Supra-state Regionalism: It emerges in the form of expression of group identity of some states. Some states unite to take a common stand on the issues of mutual interest. 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. Eg: Dravida Nadu demand prior to the re-organisation of the states,1956. Similarly, the grouping of the North Eastern States for greater access to economic development is another instance. 3. Inter-state Regionalism: It is related to 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. DELHI JAIPUR PUNE HYDERABAD AHMEDABAD LUCKNOW CHANDIGARH 2 www.visionias.in # 8468022022 ©Vision IAS Google it:- https://upscpdf.com https://t.me/UPSC_PDF Download From > https://upscpdf.com https://t.me/UPSC_PDF 4. Intra-state Regional Politics or Sub-regionalism: This refers to regionalism, which exists Student Notes: within a state of Indian Union. It embodies the desire of a part of a state for 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 Vidarbha in Maharashtra, Saurashtra in Gujarat, Telangana in Andhra Pradesh, East U.P. in Uttar Pradesh etc.. 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. 1.3. Regionalism in Indian Politics Although regionalism is a pre-independence phenomenon, it became predominant in the post- independence period. The politics of regionalism can be traced back to the British Raj. It commenced with the implementation of constitutional reforms under Government of India Acts of 1909, 1919 and 1935. For instance, division of Bengal for “administrative reasons” could be thought of as one example. The establishment and role of Justice Party in Chennai, and to a lesser extent, of Akali Dal in Punjab in pre-independence period were a few examples of the emerging regionalism in India at that time. After independence, there were four major landmarks in the development of regional politics. • A democratic form of government was established post-independence with objectives such as nation-building on the principles of democracy, secularism national unity and social justice. Since, all parts of the country competed with each other in their efforts at nation- building, anything short of expectations led to disenchantment and it resulted in the emergence of regional politics. DELHI JAIPUR PUNE HYDERABAD AHMEDABAD LUCKNOW CHANDIGARH 3 www.visionias.in # 8468022022 ©Vision IAS Google it:- https://upscpdf.com https://t.me/UPSC_PDF Download From > https://upscpdf.com https://t.me/UPSC_PDF Student Notes: • Another factor was the integration of the Princely States. Despite integration of small states with the big ones, people continued to hold loyalties to old territorial units. As a consequence, Princes of erstwhile princely states continued to do well in elections. • Reorganization of states on linguistic basis is another critical factor in terms of fanning regional politics. Twenty eight states were reshaped and reduced to 14 states along with centrally administered territories. Furthermore, new states continued to be created later. These states were not constituted entirely on linguistic basis. Factors like:- o Ethnic-cum-economic considerations led to the formation of Nagaland, Meghalaya, Manipur, Tripura, Jharkhand, Haryana, Punjab and Chhattisgarh. o Language-cum-cultural factors created Maharashtra, Gujarat and Uttaranchal; o Historical and political factors are responsible for U.P. and Bihar; o Integration of princely states and need for viable groupings gave birth to M.P. and Rajasthan; o 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
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