Regionalism-A Hinderance to Social Devalopment

INDEX

1. Introduction: Sociology of cultural diversities……………………. regionalism?.................................... .......................... .......................... ......................... ............ 2. What is regionalism?....................... development?................................................ ............. 3. What is social human development?................................... development?.............................. ...... 4. How it hinders the social human development?........................

Theories a) SocioSocio-Psy Psycho cholog logica icall analysi analysiss  b) SocioSocio-Cul Cultur tural al Anal Analysi ysiss c) Social Social Barrie Barriers rs Approac Approach h d) Relati Relative ve Depriv Deprivati ation on e) Theory of polariz polarization ation and cluster cluster effect effect causes?..................................... ......................... .......................... ......................... ............ 5. What are its causes?.........................

a) Marxis Marxistt School School – Have Have and and Have Have not’s not’s  b) Political Political Scientist Scientist – Power Power Struggl Strugglee c) Grow Growin ing g popu popula lati tion on d) Inadequ Inadequate ate infrast infrastruc ructur turee e) Inequal Inequality ity among among states states f) Failur Failuree of cont control rol of of centre centre over over stat states es g) Provoca Provocatio tion n by politic political al leader leaderss

Regionalism: Regionalism: A Hindrance to Social Human Development h) Neglect Neglect of the centre in the the industrial industrial development development of specific specific states states 6. Regionalism as a political ideology………………………………. •

Why regionalism?

a) Poli Politi tica call moti motiva vati tion on  b) Econ Econom omic ic Inte Intere rest st c) To protect protect cultural cultural identit identities ies and safegua safeguarding rding language language •

Regionalist political party Vs Regional party

•

Concepts related to regionalism

a)

Secession

 b)

Federalism

c)

Parochialism

d)

Decentralization Regionalism Vs Nationalism/ Unitarisation

7. Schools of Regionalism……………………………………………… Positive school of regionalism 1. Fulfi Fulfils ls democr democrati aticc urges urges 2. Facili Facilitat tates es politic political al manage managemen mentt 3. Smoo Smooth thens ens deve develo lopm pmen entt 4. Greater Greater access access to particip participation ation and decision decision making making process process 5. Loca Locall accou account ntab abil ilit ity y 6. Nati Nation onal al unit unity y

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Regionalism: Regionalism: A Hindrance to Social Human Development

 Negative school of regionalism 1. Balkan Balkaniza izatio tion n of the countr country y 2. Each act act of fragmen fragmentatio tation n leads to further further fragment fragmentation ation 8. Regionalist issues in India…………………………………………………………………

Anti North Indian attitude of MNS workers Attacks on Bihari labourers by the United Liberation Front of Assam Bodoland demand within Assam Kanada Rakshana Vedike in Karnataka Kaveri water issue between Tamil Nadu and Karnataka Electricity sharing issue between Punjab and Delhi Demand for separate states:Vidharba, Gorkhaland, Telengana, Seemachal, Khalisthan 9. International Regionalist issues………………………………… •

 North-South divide in the United Kingdom

•

Communities, regions and language areas of Belgium

•

Unstableness in the countries like Pakistan, Canada, Belgium, Czechoslovakia, Yugoslavia, Russia

•

Pakistan-Bangladesh issue

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Regionalism: Regionalism: A Hindrance to Social Human Development

10. Regionalism in media……………………………………………… 11. Conclusion…………………………………………………………… 

Vision 2020

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Regionalism: Regionalism: A Hindrance to Social Human Development 1. Introduction: Introduction: Sociology Sociology of of cultural cultural diversities diversities Sociology is a subject made up of competing theories in the society. Ever since the subject  began to get popular its main aim was to interpret the definition of ‘social order’. It sought to understand the components of the society such as social institution and social relationships contribute to or deflect the very existence of the society. According to the theories which have gained wide acceptance, culture exhibits the way, the human interpret their biology and environment. The cultural change can be defined as the human adaptation to the historical events. Moreover culture can be seen as the primary adaptive mechanism of humans and takes place much faster than a biological evolution. A Culture, with its attendant roles, statuses, values and norms similarly constrains our range of   possible behaviors. It leads the individual choosing to limit his or her range of behavior. People do not behave in the same way and there are cultural differences in the same country or region. This is mainly due to the different levels of socialisation. Membership of a certain cultural group generates certain norms and values that are important in an individual’s life. These values and norms may accord or dissent with other cultural groups or general social values and norms. But this disagreement is a large part of the necessary dynamic process whereby societies adapt and change. How this anomie does occur? On the one hand you a have people actively desiring success. On the other hand you have a large number of   potentially unhappy people when they discovered that supposed means to such success does not deliver the goods. In India regionalism has been a heavy weight for a long long time. In the pages of Indian history, you will never find a nationalistic movement before 20 th century. The imperialistic rulers always used regionalism as a tool to implement their policies and gaining public support. They always followed the policy of division. They didn’t allow the concept of  unified India to grow beyond an abstract idea. Gaining independence in 1947 had changed the whole character of India as a geographical as well as a political unit; the mindset of the  people first needed to be changed to make them understand that they belonged to India as a whole. Various constitutional steps, such as strengthening of All India Services, adoption of 

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Regionalism: Regionalism: A Hindrance to Social Human Development single citizenship, a strong central government and an independent judiciary were taken to achieve this goal. But with the passage of time it was very clear that the feeling of regionalism very much thrive in India. Local leaders with big aspirations in politics took advantage of the public feelings and regionalism imbalances. The things didn’t end there, from regionalism there originated sub-regionalism which tries to protect the rights of the people in a particular subregion and to see that they were properly represented in the governing bodies. In this way the idea of regionalism got deeply attached to Indian politics such that uprooting it is becoming an increasingly arduous task.

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Regionalism: Regionalism: A Hindrance to Social Human Development 2. Wh What at is is regi region onal alis ism? m? A region is a defined territorial unit and a nucleus of a social aggregation for multiple  purposes1 including particular language or languages, jatis, ethnic groups, tribes, particular  social settings and cultural pattern, music, dance, folk arts etc. Several variables engage in a simultaneous inter-play in varying degrees over a considerable period of time, which then sets a particular theory apart from other areas. The region is characterized by a widely shared sentiment of ‘togetherness’ and ‘separateness’ from others in the people, internalized from a wide variety of sources which might include common prosperity and comraderie developed in a common struggle. Regionalism is analogous to nationalism, which can also be called as Micro-nationalism. The conflict tends to arise out of the ‘nationality question’ of the constituent cultural communities of a multicultural country vis-à-vis their macro-national identity along with the regional disparities exiting in the various parts of a multicultural country. People in such countries wish to cling on to both their collective political (state) identity and their respective cultural identities and notions of ‘homeland’. If this framework is tampered in any form, there would be predictable conflict giving rise to the threats and resistances because one or the other community may feel deprived objectively or subjectively by specific cultural community by historical accident or political machination. The fact that nation and the states in these multicultural countries are not co-terminous reinforces this issue further. Taking advantage of the situation the dominant cultural community tries to pose a threat to the distinct identity of the dominated cultural community. The latter responds to this situation by asserting its identity in separatist nationalist terms.

Nationality in multicultural countries

1

A.S Narang ,  Indian Government and Politics, Gijanjali Publishing House, 2004 6 TH Edition, New Delhi p 409

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Regionalism: Regionalism: A Hindrance to Social Human Development The tampering of the cultural identities in many such multi-cultural countries occurred for the first time during the period of colonial rule. The colonial administration in most of these countries created artificial provincial units which didn’t match the cultural linguistic affiliation and traditional homelands of the people, which resulted in the cumulative socioeconomic dominance of the majority community over the minority community. As the danger  of loosing one’s identity was very much involved, the minority communities reacted to this  by claiming their territorial-cultural specificity in clear nationalistic terms. It can be concluded that nationalism in the colonial era assumed a multi-dimensional character which can be defined as 1. In the political political level level as a united united Anti-impe Anti-imperialis rialistt struggle struggle to liberate liberate the country country from from the foreign rule 2. In the cultural cultural level level it was seen seen as the the movement movement for self self fulfillmen fulfillmentt through through self rule rule for a people living in a culturally different homeland.

The policy of reorganization

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2

On 15th of December 1953, when Potti Sriramulu succumbed to death not able to sustain 52 days of marathon fast that was undertaken to demand a separate state for Telugu speaking  people, little did he realize that his death would become a launch pad for the dawn of Political Regionalism in India – that would in course of time alter the whole landscape of India. But the brand of regionalism that evolved after Potti after  Potti Sriramulu’s Sriramulu’s death was legitimate, genuine and logical. It reflected the aspirations of people at that time. It stood for fulfilling the longstanding desire of people to have their own linguistic state. Thus, Andhra Pradesh  became the first linguistic state of India. Today, Nellore district of Andhra Pradesh is renamed as Potti Sriramulu. After the death of Sriramulu of Sriramulu,, reluctant Nehru reluctant Nehru was forced to accede to the various cries from other parts of the country with similar demands. In 1954, a States Reorganization Committee was formed with Fazal Ali as its head, which recommended the formation of  16 new states and 3 Union Territories based on the language people spoke in those respective regions. This heralded a new phase in the Indian politics. The subsequent movements for separate states

2

Retrieved 23:48 hrs April 10 th 2009

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Regionalism: Regionalism: A Hindrance to Social Human Development and territories gave birth to slew of regional parties which eventually became prominent in national level and thus started coalition culture in Indian politics. The policy of reorganization was implemented keeping three ends in view. 1. Co-terminali Co-terminality ty between between administrat administrative ive and and cultural cultural unit unit 2. Accommodati Accommodating ng the whole whole population population on equal equal footing footing under under one centralizin centralizing g one civil-political authority 3. Large-scale Large-scale state-spo state-sponsore nsored d modernizatio modernization n programme programme so that that desirable desirable interaction interaction  between social collectivities would be promoted. Unfortunately, none of these goals has come true. Not only has the desired co-terminality criterion between administrative unit and cultural not been fully met, but also the expected ‘displacement syndrome’ and the much hoped for singular loyalty to the state have not emerged. The scheme mainly benefited the bigger or mainstream nationalities.

3. What What is socia sociall human human devel developm opment? ent?

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Regionalism: Regionalism: A Hindrance to Social Human Development It is a human centered theory of development must necessarily base itself on the idea that the progressive development of the external capabilities of society is a reflection of a progressive development of the internal consciousness and capacities of human  beings, not just the result of external factors or the creation and application of better  tools and instruments. Society changes outwardly because people change inwardly. We have defined social human development as the increasing complexity of the social organization that enables it to release, organize and express human energies and creativity more effectively to achieve the goals of the society – regardless of whether  those goals are political, economic, social or cultural. A fundamental premise of our framework is that the process by which societies develop, companies develop and individuals develop is the same. They are only various expressions at different levels of the same process of human development. We can apply a similar definition to the development of the individual. Individuals develop by increasing their capacity to release, organize and express their energies and capacities to achieve the goals they aspire for – regardless of whether those goals are physical health, economic well-being, social recognition, mental understanding or  spiritual enlightenment. The theory of Social Human development links social process and individual  processes to be interdependent. Individuals support and serve society using the knowledge, skills and values acquired through the society’s collective effort in the  past. The term ‘development’ has broader meanings when it comes to development of  the society. It includes the advancement in physical infrastructure such as towns, cities, sanitation and transport; social infrastructure such as defense, governance, food  production, trade, finance, industry, and education; mental infrastructure of organized information, technology, science and other forms of knowledge; cultural/spiritual organization of beliefs and values that determine human aspirations and behavior.

4. How it hinders hinders the social social human development development? ?

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Regionalism: Regionalism: A Hindrance to Social Human Development

Theories a) SocioSocio-Psy Psycho cholog logica icall analysi analysiss As its name suggest it is merging of sociology and psychology of individuals and society. It is study of how human mind is influenced by thoughts, feelings, and  behaviors present in the society and how we are prone to social influence. It is said that human behavior is a result of mental states and immediate social situations. When we apply this theory to the regionalism causing hindrance to social human development, it can be derived that there is a big mental element controlling the society. Selfishness, greediness etc. are the human emotions which can be found  behind every demand for separatism or regionalist movement. Every social action has its roots in the thought process of an individual. When the same idea is conveyed into the masses it turns into a social idea. The study of social development mainly includes the study of attitude of individuals. In social psychology, attitudes are defined as learned, global evaluations of a person, object, place, or issue that influence thought and action 3. It can be very varied like liking chocolate ice cream, endorsing values of a particular political party. This part of the human mind is very weak as it is vulnerable to the social factors. Persuasion is an active method of influence that attempts to guide people toward the adoption of an attitude, idea, or behavior by rational or emotive means. Persuasion can be accomplished by either superficial aspects of the communication or the internal logic and evidence of the message. Whether someone is persuaded by a popular celebrity or  factual arguments is largely determined by the ability and motivation of the audience . People are influenced by the situation; general attitudes are not always good  predictors of specific behavior. Social influence refers to the way people affect the thoughts, feelings, and behaviors of others. Like the study of attitudes, it is a traditional, core topic in social psychology. Conformity is the most common and  pervasive form of social influence. It is generally defined as the tendency to act or  think like other members of a group. The two major motives in conformity are 3

D Bem, Beliefs, attitudes, and human affairs,CA Books. Belmont, 1970

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Regionalism: Regionalism: A Hindrance to Social Human Development normative influence, the tendency to conform in order to gain social acceptance, and avoid social rejection or conflict, as in peer pressure; and informational influence, which is based on the desire to obtain useful information through conformity, and thereby achieve a correct or appropriate result. Another method of social influence is of Compliance refers to any change in behavior that is due to a request or suggestion from another person. All the regionalist parties exist with certain agenda of group dynamics in order to persuade the common man by influencing their attitude in such a way that it touches them in the most influential and weakest part i.e. their  motherland’s freedom, for which every e very person would undoubtly stand for.

 b) SocioSocio-Cul Cultur tural al Anal Analysi ysiss This theory has an ideological vanguard of ‘The survival of the fittest’ motion put forward by Charles Darwin. Sociocultural evolution is an umbrella term for theories of cultural evolution and social evolution, evolution, describing how cultures and societies have developed over time. Although such theories typically provide models for  understanding the relationship between technologies, technologies, social structure, structure, the values of a society, society, and how and why they change with time, they vary as to the extent to which they describe specific mechanisms of variation of variation and social change. Regionalism is indeed a catalyst of social change. The main motive behind regionalism is social progress, with a narrower outlook than the rest. The main difference between progress through nationalism and progress made through the  propagation of regionalism is that they differ in motives. The former one insist development to all or peaceful and co-operative existence. Whereas the competition among the neighboring regions or institutions is the driving force of development attained, they don’t care about overall development of the unit.

c) Rela Relati tive ve Depri Depriva vati tion on

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Regionalism: Regionalism: A Hindrance to Social Human Development Relative deprivation is the experience of being deprived of something to which one thinks one is entitled. Schaefer 4 defines it as "the conscious experience of a negative discrepancy between legitimate expectations and present actualities." Its origins are from the biological concept of relative of  relative fitness, fitness, where an organism that successfully outproduces its competitors leaves more copies in the gene pool. It is a term used in social sciences to describe feelings or measures of economic of  economic,, political  political,, or social or social deprivation that are relative rather than absolute. In the present scenario Relative deprivation refers to the discontent citizen of a larger  unit feel when they compare their positions to those of similarly situated and find that they have less than their peers. It is a condition that is measured by comparing one group’s situation to the situations of those who are more advantaged. This process is stimulated through psycho-social analysis of the group and persuasion. In India we can see petty politicians taking advantage of this social behavior to their personal  benefits and lust for power.

d) Theory of polariza polarization tion and cluster cluster effect effect In politics In politics,, polarization is the process by which the public opinion divides and goes to the extremes. It can also refer to when the extreme factions of a political party gain dominance in a party. The people often get attracted towards the poles of distribution or intensity. Polarization, also happens when support for a political figure or position differentiates itself along political along political party lines.Leaders of the regionalist parties creates an impression among the masses that they are the messengers or the protectors of their  and faith and rights. This is also called as vote bank politics. This will hinder the basic motive of the democracy in the country.

5. Why regionalism grew? a) Marxis Marxistt School School – Have Have and and Have Have not’s not’s Contradictions out of the development strategy adopted in the country are one of main reason for regionalism in the country. In a period when capitalism in some parts of the 4

Richard T. Schaefer,  Racial and Ethnic Groups, 11th Ed., Pearson Education, 2008, p.69

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Regionalism: Regionalism: A Hindrance to Social Human Development world has already advanced significantly and is subordinating the backward societies, development through capitalist path in the latter gives rise to peculiar problems. Gap  between the producer states and consumer states came bigger than bigger. For  example producer states like Maharashtra and consumer states like Bihar and Kerala.

 b) Cult Cultur ural al aspe aspect ctss Minorities seek protection for their cultural values against deliberately hostile actions  by the majority in the fields of school and languages so much as the desire for   protection against deliberately hostile actions by the majority in the field and languages so much as the desire for protection against the effects on their culture of  natural, economic and social developments. The ability to protect the cultural identity very much depends upon economic and political power. This become important in India, because in view of scarce resources the conviction that minorities are vulnerable to discrimination, exploitation and suppression by those who control the state and its resources is easy to grow. The concentration of power at the centre, absence of sound language policy and very ambivalent attitude towards secularism have continued fear among linguistic and cultural groups that attempts were made to assimilate them in larger Hindi culture.

c) Growing Growing populatio population n and rise rise of linguistic linguistic chauvin chauvinism ism Disregard of the special provision relating to language spoken by minorities of the state, the rearrangement of the state boundaries of the state and imposition of the language of majorities on the minorities added to the economic frustration stirred up riots and inter regional rivalries in the country.

d) Imbalanced Imbalanced economic economic growth growth and and Inadequate Inadequate infrastru infrastructure cture After independence, India lacked a balanced economic growth in all regions. Instead of caring for the interest of the country as a whole, political leadership became narrow minded and began to clamour for progress of their won state or region. Disparities in

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Regionalism: Regionalism: A Hindrance to Social Human Development  per capita income among states are very intense because of negligence and lack of   planning from the part of government. In a way economic component is the crux of  regionalism consisting of slow development, regional imbalances and paradox of  adopted path of development. After 60 years of independence public started feeling that benefits of the development maybe difficult to attain in the national level and have started looking towards local and regional level leadership. In spite of the acceptance of the goal or removal of regional disparities at ideological and programmatic levels, insertion of these ideas in the constitution and plan documents and adoption of various policy measures after more than 50 years of  independence the regional inequalities and disparities not only continue but in many cases have increased.

e) Growth Growth of priva private te politi political cal armie armiess Almost all the states have spawned a military native movement directed against outsiders. The fundamental issue has the employment for the local people and many state governments either officially or unofficially have supported the protection of   jobs for the ‘sons of the soil’. Shiv Sena of Maharashtra is one example of this.

f) Failur Failuree of cont control rol of of centre centre over over stat states es Central policies on resource transfers have not only been unable to prevent the increasing gap between the rich and poor states, but may have contributed to accentuating the disparities. Control of state machinery at various levels helps not only in getting better share of  economic surpluses but greater long term promotion of class interests. For this  purpose landed classes and indigenous bourgeoisie have been trying to increase their  influence within the legislature, executive and other organs of state machinery. They have also created their class organizations outside the legislature and political parties and control over them, within the legislature. The emerging contradictions between the landed classes on hand and metropolitan and indigenous bourgeoisie on the other  is reflected in tensions over Centre-State relations too.

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Regionalism: Regionalism: A Hindrance to Social Human Development g) Provoca Provocatio tion n by politic political al leader leaderss To enhance their authority and power and they didn’t hesitate propagating regionalism among people. Narrow and sectarian instincts of the common masses were at times stirred up by the politicians to serve there own narrow interests.

h) Neglect Neglect of the centre in the the industrial industrial development development of specific specific states states Increasing awareness of the people in the back ward parts of India that they were neglected in the matter of education and job opportunities, in setting up of plants and factories, in the construction of dams and bridges and above all, in the allocation of  central funds and grants. Apart from the sense of deprivation in the neglected states or  regions the developed efforts and benefits concentrated in certain areas or states have also given birth to vested interests, particularly in the vested interests, particularly in the rural parts of the developed states. In spite of agriculture having become quite  profitable they want subsides to continue even at cost of neglect of other areas. Success of Akali Dal in Punjab, Lok Dal in Haryana and western parts of UP, to an extent Telgy desan in Andhra Pradesh and movements like shetkari /sangathan in Maharashtra etc. are pointers to this direction.

6. Region Regionali alism sm as a polit politica icall ideolo ideology gy •

Why regionalism?

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Regionalism: Regionalism: A Hindrance to Social Human Development The introduction of electoral politics under these conditions tended at the outset only to reinforce the strategic position of the dominant land owning castes by enlarging their role as intermediateries in relationship between the village and outside authorities in the administration and government. In spite of the complete domination of the party countrywide central power could not  be consolidated at the expense of the local authorities. authorities. Prior to 1967 elections feeling that the congress policies were moving away from their interests these local dominant classes left the congress to join some other parties or form their own regional parties. Thus within the plural society the sudden arrival of the expanding activities of  government, the dispersion of power and democratisation of power have resulted in the growth of popular participation in local, state and national politics. This has caused the emergence of two political cultures operating at different levels in the Indian society. One culture is in the districts which can be characterized as emerging mass political culture. It permeates local politics, both urban and rural, local party organization, and local administration. Although it is permeated with traditional elements, it is not wholly traditional, for it has many modern components. The second political culture predominates in New Delhi. It is personified India’s  planners, many of national political leaders, and the senior administrative cadre. It is an elite political culture. The conflict between the two is reflected in regionalism. There is a cycle of  regionalism the cycle begins with the revival of poetry and language and ends with  plans for the economic invigoration of regional agriculture and industry, with  prospectus for more autonomous political life. Its concrete manifestation comes through Regional Parties. The main reason behind every political regionalist movement is a) Poli Politi tical cal moti motiva vatio tion n

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Regionalism: Regionalism: A Hindrance to Social Human Development  b)  b) Econ Econom omic ic Inter Interes estt c) To protect protect cultural cultural identiti identities es and and safeguar safeguarding ding language language •

Regionalist political party Vs Regional party Regional parties with strong and emotional bases in their communities and/or regions have been a feature of Indian politics since independence. By definition regional  parties are those which generally and exclusively operate within a limited geographical area of a state or which represent primordial loyalties. These single state  parties are distinguished by their adoption of a regional autonomy of states in the Indian union, for their focus on issues specific to their states or for their base within a religious minority. Broadly speaking the regional parties fall into two main categories. 1. Classi Classicc regional regional ethnic ethnicity ity/cu /cultu ltural ral based based parties parties 2. Region Regional al partie partiess on pers persona onalit lity y basis basis Whereas regionalist parties are regional political parties promoting autonomy for its region. They are mostly rebellious in their ideas or actions. It is very difficult to curb their secessionist approach and bring back the nationalistic feeling. ULFA of Assam is one of its kinds. Most of the regional parties existing in India, in the beginning were formed as regionalist parties for example DMK of Tamil Nadu, Akali Dal of Punjab. All regionalist parties are also regional, while only a portion of regional parties are also regionalist. Because regional parties often cannot receive enough votes or  legislative seats to be politically powerful, they may join political join  political alliances or seek to  be part of a coalition government. government.

•

Forms of regionalism in India Regionalism is a country-wide phenomenon, and often, it took the form of wellconceived and well organized agitations and campaigns. Almost every state has

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Regionalism: Regionalism: A Hindrance to Social Human Development spawned a militant native movement directed against outsiders. The fundamental issues ha been employment for local people and many state governments, either  officially or unofficially, have supported the protection of jobs for the ‘sons of the soil’. Regionalism in India has assumed various forms and found expression in more than one way a)

Secession The act of withdrawing from an organization, union, or especially a political entity is called secession. This can be often dangerous when it is done in political lines. It is a wake –up call for the mother unit or a country to realize the grave injustice done. It originated when there is a lethal threat to minority or the government cannot adequately defend an area. There are five types of secession.

•

Anarcho-Capitalism: Individual liberty to form political associations and private  property rights together justify right to secede and to create a “viable politival order” with like-minded individuals.

•

Democratic Secessionism: The right of secession, as a variant of the right of selfdetermination, is vested in a “territorial community” which wishes to secede from “their existing political community”; the group wishing to secede then proceeds to delimit “its” territory by the majority.

•

Communitarian Secessionism: Any group with a particular “participation-enhancing” identity, concentrated in a particular territory, which desires to improve its members’  political participation, has a prima a prima facie right to secede.

•

Cultural Secessionism: Any group which was previously in a minority has a right to  protect and develop its own culture and distinct national identity though seceding into an independent state.

•

The Secessionism of Threatened Cultures: If a minority culture is threatened within a state that has a majority culture, the minority needs a right to form a state of its own which would protect its culture.

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Regionalism: Regionalism: A Hindrance to Social Human Development There is always of a question of justification of Secession. Secession is justified only if  secessionists can create a viable, if minimal, state on contiguous territory. Besides it follows the democratic principle, right to movement and the will of the majority. It helps in Preserving culture, language, etc. from assimilation or destruction by a larger or more  powerful group. The motive of secession is self rule and profit. In India Khalistan and Mizo National Front etc are some secessionist movements. The constitution of India doesn’t allow secession; it would be suppressed by military at any cost.  b)

Federalism Federalism is a system of government in which sovereignty is constitutionally divided  between central governing authority and constituent political units. The power maybe divided equally or merit wise distribution. From the outset, India has been defined as a union of states. This aids in administration, but it has many unsavory effects, including the growth of discrimination between states.

c)

Parochialism The word parochialism means being of a narrow view and working only for the  benefit of the local society. This may be both economic as well as social. In the Indian context, this is seen very often. A prime example would be the Karnataka-Tamil Nadu water dispute.

d)

Decentralization Decentralization is the process of delegating administrative and legislative powers to entities lower than the central government. As documented earlier, this delegation of   powers would cause divisive forces to work for their own benefit.

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Regionalism: Regionalism: A Hindrance to Social Human Development

Regionalism Vs Nationalism/ Unitarisation  Nationalism is always an inherent quality in every individual of a well established nation. When there is denial of opportunities or violation of rights of a majority of   people of a particular geographical entity, regionalism overtakes nationalism just  because the situation demands it. There are several examples when regionalist were supported world wide with a slogan "right to live as a nation". When Bangladeshis expressed their anguish to Pakistanis  before their break up, they were dubbed anti-nationalists. The suppressed Bangladeshi emotions erupted. The rest was history. Ironically it was same India that helped Bangladesh to break from Pakistan. Then there is this recent story of Kosovo. Kosovo tried to break away from Serbia. From being branded as rebels, regionalist etc, Kosovo gathered world wide support support to exist as a separate nation. The population of  Kosovo is 1/7th of Mumbai. There may be nothing wrong in whatever has been projected by Thackeray but he cannot afford to draw attention to the problems by creating a wedge between communities and identities. True, the Centre may have failed in distribution of wealth and resources to the Indian population, but here, the subject is of pure management. Let politics be a healthy exercise to unite and not to divide. There is always a  provision to force the authorities to grant higher budgetary allocations for speedy development and given the way, the investments are pooled in a proper environment of security, able law and order, it can be safely presumed that locals can be accommodated in jobs. And there is always provision for the people of the other states also to earn their livelihood in any part of the country.

7. Sc Scho hool olss of Regi Region onal alis ism m

Positive school of regionalism

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Regionalism: Regionalism: A Hindrance to Social Human Development This school feels that the quest of a regional identity is not essentially antithetical to the urge for a national identity and the two can co-exist in a situation of mutually rewarded partnership. The followers of the regionalist school believe that to stand for  one and decentralization is the natural instincts of humans. a) Fulf Fulfil ilss demo democra crati ticc urge urgess  b) Facili Facilitate tatess polit political ical mana managem gement ent c) Smoo Smooth then enss deve develo lopm pmen entt d) Greater access access to participati participation on and decision decision making making process process e) Loca Locall acco accoun unta tabi bilit lity y f) Nati Nation onal al unity nity

 Negative school of regionalism This school of thought sees the growth of regionalism as inimical to national integration. The reasons to support regionalism are as follows: a) Balk Balkan aniz izati ation on of the the count country ry  b) Each act act of fragmentatio fragmentation n leads leads to further further fragmentat fragmentation ion

8. Region Regionali alist st issu issues es in in India India

Anti North Indian attitude of MNS workers Continuous large scale arrival of industrial labour from south India and other parts of  India and other parts to Bombay, from Bihar and Orissa to Calcutta and agricultural labour from eastern UP and Bihar to Punjab. Of the movements the most virulent has  been Shiv Sena, founded in 1966 in Bombay. Exploiting Maharashtrian grievances and economic frustration, the Shiv Sena under the banner of ‘Maharashtra for the Maharashtrians’ has directed its attack, both verbal and physical, primarily at south and north Indian immigrants.On the one hand it affects the cultural harmony of those areas by creating apprehensions among the linguistic and cultural groups about their   position. Second it generates ill-feeling in the local work force, who either are unable to get jobs or in view of migratory labour’s willingness to work at lower rates become

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Regionalism: Regionalism: A Hindrance to Social Human Development unable to bargain effectively with the local employees. This gives birth to the sectional organizations and the sons of soil agitations. The phenomenon of Shiv Sena is a glaring example of this.

Attacks on Bihari labourers by the United Liberation Front of Assam The United Liberation Front of Assam is a terrorist group from Assam, among many other such groups in North-East in  North-East India. India . It seeks to establish a sovereign Assam via an armed struggle in the Assam Conflict. Conflict. The Government of India had banned the organization in 1990 and classifies it as a terrorist group, while the US State Department lists it under "Other groups of concern" 5. It initiated major violent activities in 1990. Military operations against it by the Indian Army that began in 1990 continue till present. In the past two decades some 10,000  people have died in the clash between the rebels and the government. After  1985 and  before it was banned in 1990, 1990, ULFA was credited in the media with many public activities. Soon after the demolition of the Babri Masjid in 1992, 1992, the ULFA was reported to have stopped Hindu-Muslim riots in the Hojai region of Nagaon district by displaying arms openly. It has continued a public discourse of sorts through the local media (newspapers), occasionally publishing its position on political issues centred on the nationality question. It has participated in public debates with public personalities from Assam. During the last two local elections the ULFA had called for  boycotts,  boycotts, though media reports suggest that it had intimidated activists of the then ruling parties ( Congress and AGP respectively). Some of the major assassinations by ULFA include that of Surendra Paul in May 1990, 1990, the brother of businessman Lord Swraj Paul, that precipitated a situation

5

“United Liberation Front of Asom (ULFA) - Terrorist Group of Assam”, South Asian Terrorism Terrorism Portal Retrieved on 17:19 hrs April 16 th 2009

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Regionalism: Regionalism: A Hindrance to Social Human Development leading to the sacking of the Government of Assam under Prafulla under  Prafulla Kumar Mahanta and the beginning of Operation of  Operation Bajrang. Bajrang. In 1991 a Russian engineer was kidnapped along with others and killed. In 1997, Sanjay Ghose, a social activist and a relative of a high ranking Indian diplomat, was kidnapped and killed. The highest government officer assassinated by the group was local AGP minister  Nagen  Nagen Sharma in 2000. 2000. An unsuccessful assassination attempt was made on AGP Chief Minister Prafulla Minister  Prafulla Kumar Mahanta in 1997. 1997. A mass grave, grave, discovered at a destroyed ULFA camp in Lakhipathar forest, showed evidence of  executions committed by ULFA. ULFA continues to attempt ambushes and sporadic attacks on government security forces. In 2003, the ULFA was accused of killing labourers from Bihar in Bihar in response to molestation and raping of many Assamese girls in a train in Bihar. This incident sparked off anti-Bihar sentiment in Assam, which withered away after some months though. On August 15, 2004, an explosion occurred in Assam in which 10-15 people died, including some school children. This explosion was reportedly carried out by ULFA. The ULFA has obliquely accepted responsibility for the blast. [7] This appears to be the first instance of ULFA admitting to public killings with an incendiary device. In January 2007, the ULFA once again struck in Assam killing approximately 62 Hindi speaking migrant workers mostly from Bihar. On March 15, 15, 2007, 2007, ULFA triggered a blast in Guwahati, injuring six persons as it celebrated its 'army day'. The ULFA has put forward a set of three pre-conditions for talks and negotiations with the Indian government. The government has rejected these pre-conditions. The  pre-conditions are: 1. The talk talkss should should be be held in a third third count country. ry. 2. The talks talks should should be held under under United United Nations Nations supervi supervision. sion. 3. The agenda agenda of of the talks talks should should include include the soverei sovereignty gnty of of Assam. Assam.

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Regionalism: Regionalism: A Hindrance to Social Human Development

Demand for  Dravida  Dravida Nadu As early as 1960s the DMK and the Nan Tamil organised a joint campaign through out madras state demanding its secession from India and making it an independent sovereign state of Tamiland. DMK proposed that the states of madras, Andhra Pradesh, Kerala and Mysore should secede from the Indian union and form an independent ‘Republic of Dravida Nadu’. 1962: C.N Annadurai maintained that the people of South India were of different stock from that of the north. He alleged that the south has been ignored and neglected  by union government in plans of India’s industrial development. 1963: Constitution bill which enabled it to make laws providing penalties for any  person questioning the sovereignty and integrity of Indian union. DMK dropped its demand for separate nation Dravida nation. 1974: Anti-Malayali demonstration in Madras city by Tamil Protection Organization demanding to give employment to Tamilians alone.

Bodoland demand within Assam The Bodo agitation is led by the Assam Bodo Students Union which is demanding a separate state and has resorted to wide scale violence and series of crippling bandhs to  pursue their demand. One of the basic reason Assam agitations is because of the expansion of education, particularly higher education, but not industrialisation and other job creating institutions is increasing the army of educated youths in the  backward regions. These frustrated young men are allured by the movements against the inflow of people from other countries ands states. On the other hand these unemployed youths are also attracted by the caste, communal and other sectional agitations fighting for the protection of rights on sectarian lines.

Demand for Telengana

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Regionalism: Regionalism: A Hindrance to Social Human Development An early manifestation of regionalism was the Telangana movement in what became the state of Andhra Pradesh. The princely ruler of Hyderabad, the nizam, had attempted unsuccessfully to maintain Hyderabad as an independent state separate from India in 1947. His efforts were simultaneous with the largest agrarian armed rebellion in modern Indian history. Starting in July 1946, communist-led guerrilla squads began overthrowing local feudal village regimes and organizing land reform in Telugu-speaking areas of Hyderabad, collectively known as Telangana (an ancient name for the region dating from the Vijayanagar period). In time, about 3,000 villages and some 41,000 square kilometers of territory were involved in the revolt. Faced with the refusal of the nizam of Hyderabad to accede his territory to India and the violence of the communist-led rebellion, the central government sent in the army in September 1948. By November 1949, Hyderabad had been forced to accede to the Indian union, and, by October 1951, the violent phase of the Telangana movement had been suppressed. The effect of the 1946-51 rebellion and communist electoral victories in 1952 had led to the destruction of Hyderabad and set the scene for the establishment of a new state along linguistic lines. In 1953, based on the recommendation of the States Reorganisation Commission, Telugu-speaking areas were separated from the former Madras States to form Andhra, India's first state established along linguistic lines. The commission also contemplated establishing Telangana as a separate state, but instead Telangana was merged with Andhra to form the new state of Andhra Pradesh in 1956. The concerns about Telangana were manifold. The region had a less developed economy than Andhra, but a larger revenue base (mostly because it taxed rather than  prohibited alcoholic beverages), which Telanganas feared might be diverted for use in Andhra. They also feared that planned dam projects on the Krishna and Godavari rivers would not benefit Telangana proportionately even though Telanganas controlled the headwaters of the rivers. Telanganas feared too that the people of  Andhra would have the advantage in jobs, particularly in government and education. The central government decided to ignore the recommendation to establish a separate Telangana state and, instead, merged the two regions into a unified Andhra Pradesh.

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Regionalism: Regionalism: A Hindrance to Social Human Development However, a "gentlemen's agreement" provided reassurances to the Telangana people. For at least five years, revenue was to be spent in the regions proportionately to the amount they contributed. Education institutions in Telangana were to be expanded and reserved for local students. Recruitment to the civil service and other areas of  government employment such as education and medicine was to be proportional. The use of Urdu was to continue in the administration and the judiciary for five years. The state cabinet was to have proportional membership from both regions and a deputy chief minister from Telangana if the chief minister was from Andhra and vice versa. Finally, the Regional Council for Telangana was to be responsible for economic development, and its members were to be elected by the members of the state legislative assembly from the region. In the following years, however, the Telangana people had a number of complaints about how the agreements and guarantees were implemented. The deputy chief  minister position was never filled. Education institutions in the region were greatly expanded, but Telanganas felt that their enrollment was not proportionate to their  numbers. The selection of the city of Hyderabad as the state capital led to massive migration of people from Andhra into Telangana. Telanganas felt discriminated against in education employment but were told by the state government that most non-Telanganas had been hired on the grounds that qualified local people were unavailable. In addition, the unification of pay scales between the two regions appeared to disadvantage Telangana civil servants. In the atmosphere of discontent,  professional associations that earlier had amalgamated broke apart by region. Discontent with the 1956 gentlemen's agreement intensified in January 1969 when the guarantees that had been agreed on were supposed to lapse. Student agitation for the continuation of the agreement began at Osmania University in Hyderabad and spread to other parts of the region. Government employees and opposition members of the state legislative assembly swiftly threatened "direct action" in support of the students. The Telangana movement grew out of a sense of regional identity as such, rather than out of a sense of ethnic identity, language, religion, or caste. The movement

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Regionalism: Regionalism: A Hindrance to Social Human Development demanded redress for economic grievances, the writing of a separate history, and establishment of a sense of cultural distinctness. The emotions and forces generated  by the movement were not strong enough, however, for a continuing drive for a separate state. In the late 1980s and early 1990s, the People's War Group, an element of the Communist Party of India (Marxist-Leninist), renewed violence in Andhra Pradesh but were dealt with by state police forces. The Telangana movement was never directed against the territorial integrity of India, unlike the insurrections in Jammu and Kashmir and some of the unrest in northeastern India 6.

Inter state disputes Another form of regionalism in India has found expression in the form of inter state disputes. There is a dispute over Chandigarh over Punjab and Haryana. There are disputes boundary disputes for example between Karnataka and Maharashtra on Belgaum where Marathi speaking population is surrounded by Kannada speaking  people, between Kerala and Karnataka on Kasargod, between Assam and Nagaland on Rengma reserved forests. The first important dispute regarding the use of water source was over the use of  water resources of three rivers mainly Narmada, Krishna and Cauvery in which states of Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan, Gujarat and Maharashtra were involved. Another  dispute arose among the states of Maharashtra, Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh over  the use and distribution of waters of the Krishna river. Disputes also arose between use of Cauvery waters among the states of Tamil Nadu, Kerala and Karnataka. Disputes between Punjab, Rajasthan and Himachal Pradesh overt the use of waters of  Ravi river. The Electricity sharing issue between Punjab and Delhi is another example of this.

Demand for Khalisthan

6

“Regionalism”, Country Studies. Retrieved from on April 16th 18:26 hrs

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Regionalism: Regionalism: A Hindrance to Social Human Development Khalistan is the name given to the proposed nation-state encompassing the present Indian state of Punjab and all Punjabi-speaking areas contiguous to its borders. A movement for Khalistan precipitated when the Indian Army attacked the Darbar Sahib (Golden Temple) in June 1984. The attack, which was planned several months  beforehand and was timed for an important anniversary in the Sikh calendar, sought to maximize Sikh casualties. The army operation was followed by wholesale killings of  Sikh males between the ages of 15 and 35 in Punjab’s villages. These events, together  with organized massacre of Sikhs in India’s major cities in November 1984, and daily terror families subsequently experienced in Punjab’s villages gave rise to resistance. A Sarbat Khalsa (general congregation of the Sikh people) was convened at the Akal Takht, the Sikh seat of temporal authority in Amritsar, on January 26, 1986. The gathering passed a resolution favoring the independence of Punjab (Khalistan). Khalistan is envisaged as a secular state, rejecting theocracy and espousing a liberal form of nationalism in which all communities may live as equals 7. March 1981: Chief Khalsa Diwan in Sikh Education Conference passed a resolution demanding Khalistan and seeking associate membership in united nations. June 1981: Demand for Khalistan was originally voiced by a former member of akali dal, which was taken up in various milder forms by Sikh Gurudwara Prabandhak  Committiee. 15thAugust 1981: Khalsa voulenteers gathered in a Gurudwara and saluted their flag which had the map of proposed khalistan state inscribed in the centre. Extremist Sikh movements such as the demand for Khalisatan are purely urban middle class phenomenon. The urban Sikh has been unable to convert his economic  power into political power-the way the rural Sikh has. And his insecurity is further  aggravated by the fact that the 75% of Hindu population in Punjab is concentrated in towns. This causes urban Sikh to resist being overwhelmed by Hindu values. 7

Dr Awatar Singh Sekhon and Dr Harjinder Singh Dilgeer , “KHALISTAN: The Struggle To Regain Lost Sovereignty” Retrieved from < http://www.khalistan.net/sov-one.htm> on April 14 th 10:28 hrs

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Regionalism: Regionalism: A Hindrance to Social Human Development 9. Interna Internatio tional nal Regi Regiona onali list st issues issues •

 North-South divide in the United Kingdom In Great Britain the term North-South divide refers to the economic and cultural differences between southern England - the South East, East, Greater London, South West and parts of East of East - and the rest of the United Kingdom, generally including Scotland, Wales, Wales, North East England, England , North West England and Yorkshire and the Humber . The status of the Midlands is often disputed, although the region tends to have had historically more in common with the North than the South, even though geographically most areas of the Midlands are more Southern than Northern; this ambiguity also applies to South Wales and to East Anglia. In political terms, the  North is generally more left-wing and supports the Labour Party whereas the South is more right wing and supports the Conservative Party8.

•

Communities, regions and language areas of Belgium Belgium is a federal state comprising three communities, three regions, and four  language areas. For each of these subdivision types, the sum of their circumscribed surfaces composes the entire country; in other words, the types overlap 9. The language areas were established by the Second Gilson Act, which entered into force on August 2, 2, 1963 1963.. The division into language areas was included in to the Belgian Constitution in 1970. Through constitutional reforms in the 1970s and 1980s,

8

Bland, J Martin (3 July 2004). "North-south divide in social inequalities in Great Britain". British Medical Journal.< http://bmj.bmjjournals.com/cgi/content/full/329/7456/52>. Retrieved on 2009-03-10.

9

“Politics — State structure”,  Flanders.be. Flemish Government. Retrieved on 2007-05-24 . 1306>.

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Regionalism: Regionalism: A Hindrance to Social Human Development regionalisation of the unitary state led to a three-tiered federation federation:: federal federal,, regional, and community governments were created, a compromise designed to minimize linguistic, cultural, social and economic tensions. Belgium is undergoing a polarization of political attitudes between those who wish to maintain a highly centralized unitary state and those who favor a loosely structured federal system based on culture. The government, caught between these conflicting  points of view, has attempted to preserve the viability of the state by giving increasing cultural and economic autonomy to Flanders and Wallonia, the two major unilingual regions of the country. However, this solution has exacerbated relations with the Brussels-Capital district; for the majority there believe that they have been compromised on the issues of regional autonomy and territorial expansion and resent the growing threat of federalism. During this period of rapid decentralization, it is crucial that the national capital, as the only bilingual part of the state, become a center  of cross-cultural institutions instead of another divisive region 10.

•

Other Regionalist movements: Unstableness in the countries like Pakistan, Canada, Belgium, Czechoslovakia, Yugoslavia, Russia 11

10.Conclusion 

Vision 2020 It can be traced that regionalism slowly turned from non violent means to violent means to achieve their goals. From Potti Sriramulu’s non violent means of fatsing to Maharashtra Nav Nirman Sena (MNS) and ULFA’s violent means, regionalism has come a long way. Regionalism in present day India is readily used for political gains  by petty politicians and secessionist organizations. Economic reasons are exploited

10

Glenn V. Stephenson, Cultural Regionalism and the Unitary State Idea in Belgium, Geographical Review, Vol. 62, American Geographical Society, 1972

11

For further details visit title=List_of_active_autonomist_and_sec essionist_movements&oldid=284187680> Retrieved at 18:31 hrs hrs th April 16 2009

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Regionalism: Regionalism: A Hindrance to Social Human Development for political dividends. When violence is used against people in the name of  regionalism it is a criminal act and is punishable. Article 19 of the Constitution of  India provides a citizen of India to move freely throughout the territory of India, to reside and settle in any part, and to practice any profession, or to carry on any occupation, trade or business. When ULFA (United Liberation Front of Assam) militants or MNS(Maharashtra Navnirman Sena) activists used violence against poor  migrant workers, they clearly violated law of the land and also the Constitution which is above all, even above the Parliament. Do we need to fear Regionalism?

 No. Regionalism in India is only a short cut to attain the political ambitions by emotionally exploiting the sentiments of the people. The fear of Balkanization is void of any logic. India is bound by a common culture that has flourished on this land many thousand years ago. The states which fought for complete independence are now part of Indian Union and they have renounced for some extent violence; they include Mizoram, Nagaland, Kashmir, Bodoland, Tamli Nadu. India is too big for  these states to fight against and win. Today regional parties define how the governments are formed and conducted both at the centre and the state level. Indeed it is a good development as some political entities such as RJD, BSP, LJP, DMK, AIADMK, AI ADMK, BJD have to some extent represented those people who were neglected in the political process for long time. As long as they thrive for regional development without discriminating against outsiders, regionalism is good for India. I may be Kannadiga or Tamil but I am an Indian first. My identity outside India is that of an Indian.Every Indian in India is a son of soil. Soil of Maharashtra is no different than the soil of Bihar in its essence and of origin.

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Regionalism: Regionalism: A Hindrance to Social Human Development

Findings of the project 1. Is the optimism optimism of the the positive positive school school logical logical or the pessimism pessimism of the the negative negative school mistaken? 2. With the the increasing increasing political political and and social social awareness awareness among among all the levels levels of the the people, people, it is not difficult to mobilize masses for demand a piece of land under the sun. 3. Problems Problems can be suppresse suppressed d for long long or or put down down with with firm hands. hands. 4. The gulf gulf between between “them” “them” and “us” “us” has to to be bridged bridged by through through accommodatio accommodation n and compromises. 5. Rationale Rationale of new smaller smaller states need need not necessa necessarily rily be perceived perceived as as balkanizati balkanization on or  regionalization.

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Regionalism: Regionalism: A Hindrance to Social Human Development 6. Regionalizat Regionalization, ion, if sensibly sensibly handled handled will will not disintegr disintegrate ate India. As As such the demand demand for new states has to be effectively scotched and conceded after only after careful scrutiny of each case on the basis of economic development and administrative convenience.

Bibliography Books, Journals etc 1. Dr. Fadia, Fadia, B.L, Indian Government Government and and Politics Politics,7 ,7th edition, Sahitya Bhavan Publications, Agra, 2007 2. K.Nanda, K.Nanda, Subhrat, Subhrat, Nationali Nationalism sm and Regionali Regionalism sm in India, India, Kalpaz Publication, Delhi, 2007 3. Narang, Narang, A.S, A.S, Indian Indian Governm Government ent & Politics, Politics, 6th edition, Gitanjali Publishing Hlouse, 2000

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Online sources 1. “MLA Citation Style”, MLA Handbook for Writers of Research Papers, 6th edition, April 16 2009 09:14 hrs < http://www.liu.edu/cwis/cwp/library/workshop/citmla.htm>

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