Highlights

Divisive politics raise continual calls for further division of States-for reasons of language or something else into smaller States. How Small? How Many? In this Digital Age why not – Bigger? Ideal size, – parameters of formation of States, — geographic, economic, etc, and Representation thereof.

Quotations for Consideration

• “United we stand, divided we fall” – Old proverb.
• “Coming together is beginning. Keeping together is progress. Working together is success.” – Henry Ford.
• “A thing is not necessarily true because a man dies for it.” – Oscar Wilde.
• “The great enemy of the truth is very often not the lie: deliberate, continued, and dishonest; but the myth: persistent, persuasive, and unrealistic.” – John F. Kennedy.
• “A common language is the most obvious binding element in any society”. – Michael Howard.

Key Concepts

• Unity in Diversity – 28 States, 9 Union Territories (UTs), 25 major languages and over 1600 dialects, with 6400 plus Castes and even more sub-castes, 6 Major Religions, 29 plus major Festivals, and a lot more Colour and Culture.
• All parts of India belong equally to all Indians.
• Calls for changing the existing linguistic based States into Smaller or Bigger States, if at all allowed, should be on Administrative and Economic grounds and not for chauvinistic reasons.
• High Population Density Metros to be treated as Special Mini States / UTs. (See “Urbanization – planning for the inevitable”).

Sardar Patel, the Country’s first Home Minister and Deputy Prime Minister is credited to have foiled the British Design to leave the ‘Raj India’ as 565 separate and independent Principalities and Kingdoms, by bringing them all together in an even closer fusion as an independent India. However, even he could not prevent the Partition.

We keep emphasizing our strength of ‘Unity in Diversity’, but today, self interested individuals have found it convenient to raise chauvinistic calls for divisive Politics that may end up ‘Balkanizing’ India into more than the original 565 units.

Where even;

Kodagu – a single district with 6 lakhs population and an area of 1,400 Sq Kms,

Gorkha land – 2 districts with 30 lakhs population and an area of 6450 Sq Kms,

Bodoland – 4 districts with 30 lakhs population and an area of 8795 Sq.Kms, and

Vidarbha – 11 districts with 2.3 crores population and an area of 97,321 Sq.Kms amongst many others, all seek to highlight their differences and seek separate Statehood, instead of noting their commonalities and seeking prosperity in joint economic development.

Many of such calls for division of States are being made by a ‘Vocal Minority’, noticed and highlighted by the Media, as against the ‘Silent Majority’ which does not agree with such calls, but is not noticed as it is silent. Perhaps holding a proper opinion Poll sponsored by the Media amongst the registered Voters in the relevant region will bring about clarity of such demands and prove the point.

However, this does not mean that their pleas are not deserving of a hearing. Many of their plaints do require to be attended to in a speedy, equitable and transparent manner, especially as some of the existing States are perhaps not properly administrable. But we also, need to keep in mind that the present set-up is pretty good on the whole and needs only modifications not complete restructuring. Also, such a ‘Vocal Minority’ often seeks to get its way by resorting to ‘Bandhs’/ disruptions and even by threats towards those against their views. Gandhiji used ‘Bandhs’ as a disruptive tactic against foreign Rule. To today use this tactic against our own duly elected government is only being stupid and selflishly opportunistic and should hence, be declared illegal and those resorting to such tactics be exposed and made accountable for the loss and hardship incurred by the public (See – ‘Law & Order’).

Perhaps they should recall what Edward M. Kennedy said – “violence is an admission that one’s ideas and goals cannot prevail on their own merits.”

We need to be clear on how small can a State be? We all know that statistics can be deceptive. When we note that the small States do better, we are over looking that some of the so called small States (Chhattisgarh – 27 Districts, Area 1, 35, 190 sq. kms, Pop 2.55 Crores) are bigger in land area than many of the so called larger States (Tamilnadu – Districts 32, Area 130,058, Pop 6.24 Crores).

We also, over look the assumption of the initial / base levels on which the comparisons are drawn, thus arriving at very high growth rates. No adjustments are made for increasing investments being cleared in these past few years, especially in extractive (Minerals etc.) Industries. Otherwise a State like Jharkhand (24 Districts, Area 79, 714 sq. kms, Pop 3.30 Crores), where the then Chief Minister is alleged to siphoned off tens of thousands of Crores, could not realistically be showing a 11.1 percent growth in GDP against an expectation of 6.9 percent as in 2012. Surely it is no one’s contention that greater growth comes from greater corruption.

Other small States are only viable due to Tourism, both Domestic and International. They would continue to so benefit even if they were part of a larger State which would be able to bring more resources to bear on further improving the facilities and encouraging even more tourism. It is obvious that the growth potential of many States, or large areas within the State, have remained suppressed not due to the State being unviable or improperly governed, but more due to lack of adequate infrastructure and encouragement to entrepreneurship (a Central Government function) and too much corruption. Small States also, soon fall prey to this phenomenon. (eg: Kerala – 14 Districts, Area 38, 863 sq. kms, Pop 3.18 Cr. and Uttarakhand – 13 Districts, Area 53, 483 sq. kms, Pop 1.01 Crores and now Jharkhand).

Pages: 1 2 3 4 5 6