1000 Words Essay – Write a Essay about National Integration

India is a country of immense diversity. Race, language religion and caste etc. constitute
the major of other Groups of people in India differ from each  not only in physical or demographic characteristics but also in distinctive patterns of behavior. These patterns of behavior are determined by social and cultural factors like language, region, religion and caste. Castes are divided into sub-castes, language into dialects, region into subregions, and religion into sects on ethnic lines. The Indian sub-continent is a museum of different races. lu is said that India is a “Veritable tower of Babel.”. In the wo ds of A.R. Desai, ndia presents a spectacle of Museum on “ongues The diversity in India is unique. Being a large country with large population, India presents endless varieties of physical features and cultural patterns. In short, India is “the epitome of the world.” The vast population is composed of people having diverse creeds, customs and colors.

Economic development, level of education and political culture of the people in various social segments differ from region to region. Notwithstanding the various diversities evinced in India, there are the bonds of unity which are located in a certain underlying uniformity of life as well as in certain mechanisms of integration. Unity amidst diversity is visualized in the geo-political sphere; tradition of accommodation, emotional bond etc. India’s political unity is an offshoot of the religious and cultural unity. The First bond of unity of India is found in its geo-political integration. Politically, India is now a sovereign State. Every part of it is governed by the same Constitution and same Parliament. We share the same political culture marked by the norms of  secularism and socialism. Quite in line with the traditional bonds of unity the Indian State in post-Independence era has rightly opted for a composite culture model of national unity than a uniform culture model. The composite culture model for the preservation and plurality of cultures within the frame work of an integrated nation. Hence, the significance of our choice of the norm of secularism, implying equal regard for all religions, as our policy of national integration.

There have been occasional riots at times serious riots. For example, we cannot forget the linguistic riots in Tamil Nadu in protest against the imposition of Hindi the riots in Gujarat between Hindus and Muslims In spite of all our unity and integrity, in spite of all the attempts of past and present national integration is hindered due to some factors. Along with these factors some new challenges have emerged during last decades These have created a lot of difficulties in the process of state-building as well as nation-building. All these factors are discussed below:

DIVERSITY OF CONSTITUENTS India is a heterogeneous society It is made of a number of diverse groups. The first potential threat to the Indian nation state lies in The Indian society was and is divided in terms of religion, caste, language and ethnic origin. The British were able to some what control the diverse groups by following the policy of pitting one group against the other. But the divisive tendencies were sharply manifested even during the nationalist movement when different groups apparently united to remove the British rule from India. One of the more serious challenges that Indian national leaders in India face even now is how to integrate the interests of the divergent group. Each of them has its own distinctive aspirations, history, and way of life. Attempts to minimize confrontation between conflicting groups do not always succeed. As we have already seen, the adoption of an egalitarian model of society is one important strategy to contain the divisive tendencies. It is, of course, necessary that these divisions are not allowed to threaten the nation state

REGIONALISM AND CULTURAL IDENTITIES Regionalism is also a threat to national integration. Some of the social elements having their separate cultural identity want to preserve it even at a political level and for this purpose some of these segments want further reorganization of the states. We find that national politics in our country is still marked by emergence of regional nationalities. This is quite evident i the formation of States on linguistic basis is also evident in demands by some regional identities such as the Gorkha for Gorkhaland, for example. Creation of Jharkhand State is the outcome of the by some demands  tribals. Similarly, India the Gorkha hill Council was created in 1988. Despite the early gains of consolidation of the nation state, diverse cultural identities asserted themselves. One example of this is the opposition in the Southern States to Hindi as the national language. Another example is the demand for reorganization of states

CASTEISM Casteism has always played a dirty role in matters of politics and reservation policy and has created a wide between different segments of society. Unfortunately the caste system has been recognized by the framers of the Constitution by providing a protective discrimination to Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes. Though the reservation was made for a limited period, it is being extended from time to time. The reservation of seats in the educational institutions and jobs on the caste basis strengthened the caste feeling and resulted in the possibilities of new types of inequalities and caste conflict.  As casteism is considered a social evil and caste ideology does not go well with the egalitarian model of a socialist society, role of caste in national politics is viewed as a necessary evil. It is seen a factor which poses a challenge to the task of nation-building. All the same in the absence of an alternative basis for people to come together, caste continues to play a decisive role in Indian national politics

LINGUISM Due to linguistic and regional loyalties the national feeling gradually erodes. Linguistic tensions are manifested in the borders which are bilingual. For example are divided on the basis of Konkani and  Languages. There is also conflict between Marathi and Kannada-speaking people in Belgaum.Language become, especially since Independence, a powerful source of political articulation. For instance in the South, particularly in Tamil Nadu, language sentiments have been propagated among the people for getting power within State politics The people of different linguistic groups who are concentrated in a State seem to think only in terms of interests of their own States. This undermines consideration of national issues and causes parochial feelings. The erosion of national feeling due to linguistic loyalties threatens the sovereignty of our country

COMMUNAUSM communalism refers to the tendency of any socio-religious group to maximize its economic, political and social strength at the cost of other groups. This tendency runs counter to the notion of the secular nation state that India purports to be. Secularism in the Indian context is defined as the peaceful co-existence of all religions without State patronage to any of them. The State is to treat all of them equally. Yet, in a secular State like India, we very often hear, see and read about communal conflicts. While making conscious efforts towards the goals of democracy and socialism, the India national State has not been free of communal clashes. There is historical evidence to prove that various religious communities in India have coexisted peacefully through course, there is also evidence that flects the conflict between religious communities. The most well known clashes have been between Hindus and Muslims. One of the major social problems of India in the 80s has been the communal divide problem. When one group asserts its interests and identity at the of another group the communal divides emerge. Some cities such as Moradabad Meerut, Aligarh and Boroda etc. has appeared as the centers of communal riots

SOCIALINEQUALTIES In every society there is a system of social stratification. It refers to inequality in society based on unequal distribution of goods, services, wealth, power, prestige, duties, rights, obligations and privileges. Take for example, the social inegualities created by the system. Being a hereditary and endogamous system, the scope for social mobility is very little Social privileges and financial and educational benefits are by large accessible to only caste groups. Social inequalities have a disintegrating effect on the process of nation-building.

REGIONAL DISPARITIES The unequal development of different regions of has negatively affected the character of national integration. The un equal development has become the major cause of many social movements after the independence. For instance, the Jharkhand movements which involved tribal groups from Bihar, M.P. Bengal and Orissa stresses the backwardness of the region among other issues. While demanding a separate State, people, involved in this movement argue that the rich natural resources of the area have been drained out to benefit others. The dissatisfaction caused by the perceived and or actual threat of material deprivation has led people to think that the socio-economic development of their region is not possible if they continue to be a part of the Indian Union. Thus the regional disparities in terms of socio-economic development have at times proved to be a threat to the concept of united nation-state

ETHNONATIONALTY  ANDETHNIC CONFLICTS: Ethnonationalism and ethnic conflict has hindered national integration. Whereas the modern concept of nationalism is closely linked with the concept of nation-state, scholars have described another prevailing notion or nationalism such as religious nationalism, ethnonationalism etc. Although nationhood is denied to the Nagas, the Nagas understand themselves as nation in the sense of ethno nationality. The concept of “ethno national sim” best defines the self understanding of the ethnic groups in North east India in the various forms of their struggle for identity. Ethnonationalism is a phenomenon of political movement launched on the basis of ethnic identity. It is to mention that the nation-building came to be challenged by the eruption of ethnic conflicts. In the political parlance of India today, the very term “North East” has almost come to devote a region characterized by ethnopolitical movements. Since India’s independence in 1947, we have not seen a single-decade of calm in political atmosphere in the region. Instead each decade saw new movements of political unrest, most of which turned to violent revolutions. One need not make a substantial argument to show that these movements have their origin in the ethnonational understanding of the identity. Insurgency, an extreme form of ethnopolitical upsurge, has rocked five of seven States at one time or another, and the remaining two States are highly poised for a similar movement. Nibaan Bora’s words depict the situation well: Insurgency took roots in Nagaland and Manipur in the early fifties, immediately after the establishment of the Republic (of India), those in Mizoram in the sixties, in Tripura in the seventies, while in the case of Assam it has arrived in eighties. Meghalaya and Arunachal Pradesh are just now menacingly militant, not yet insurgent though,Karbi Anglong (District of Assam) too is equally poised.

TRIBAL IDENTITY To a member of the Indian national mainstream, a Khasi, a Naga or Mizo are tribals. The “tribal” carries a denotation of primitivity and inferiority of the people for whom the name is applied. The attitude of the national mainstream that primitivises and thereby inferiorizes the tribals is  serious conflict with the proud self. understanding of the tribals in the northeast. Such a pride is exhibited in their ethnonational feeling Their fear of losing their identity were the major actor that led to ethnopolitical movements of insurgency. In tracing the historical development of insurgency in Nagaland, Asoso Yonuo attributes the people’s unpleasant experience of interaction with the ‘non-tribals’ to be one of the main causes of the revolution. The Naga National councils original demand was some sort of regional autonomy, he says, and in course of their interaction with the non-tribals they developed the fear of losing their identity… in the midst of Hindu rule leading to a demand for outright sovereign independent Nagaland State.

ROLE OF POLITICAL PARTIES: The regional political parties play a dirty role in exploiting the regional feelings of the people. Regional political parties formed on the basis of linguism at times form the Govt. The States like Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh, Mizoram, Jammu & Kashmir may be cited as examples in this regard. It has been experienced that such political parties in power often complicate the Centre-State relationship In brief, it can be concluded that various forces pose challenge to national integration in India. India as a ‘notions’ acute identity identity also suffers As G. Aloysiw has rightly notes, Indian nationalism far, has failed to construct the nation in India. While the dominant India the centre continues its quest for self-identity, those in the periphery react to such poentially hegemonic and oppressive move Although existing as a nation- state for the last fifty years, India has been struggling to find the central integrative force that can bind us together as a ‘nation’. India with its vastness both from the point of view of geographical spectrum, social diversities, and culture and spiritual autonomy, has always been a political federacy. The modern concept of nationhood has rechristened the entire mind and body politic of the country. Promotion of national solidarity through generation of a new climate conducive to it has been the goal of great men and major political institutions of the country. A cross current of religions and rituals, castes and Sub-castes, creeds and colors, diet and dress patterns, dialects, scripts and languages and above all localism and regionalism presents a political scenario that demands wholesome sociological attention. India has believed in the past and believes today that creativity and change through continuity and a sense of unity amidst diversities is paramount to national integration.