Post Independence

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OnlyIAS Nothing Else PRAHAAR- Post-Independent India
Political History ________________________________________________________________________ 4

One party rule (1947-64) _____________________________________________________________________________ 4
Elections in independent India _________________________________________________________________________ 5
Issues witnessed during this period _____________________________________________________________________ 6
Decline of Congress__________________________________________________________________________________ 7
The Opposition Parties (1947-64) _______________________________________________________________________ 7
Succession from Nehruvian era _______________________________________________________________________ 10
From Shastri to Indira Gandhi _________________________________________________________________________ 11
General elections of 1967 and its impact on Indian politics __________________________________________________ 12
Back to Congress dominance and the leadership of Indira Gandhi (1969-73) ____________________________________ 13
Reasons behind split in the Congress._________________________________________________________________ 13
The emergency and its aftermath ______________________________________________________________________ 14
The JP movement __________________________________________________________________________________ 15
Imposition of the emergency _________________________________________________________________________ 16
Janta government rule ______________________________________________________________________________ 17
Coming back of the Congress _________________________________________________________________________ 18
The Rajiv Gandhi years ______________________________________________________________________________ 19
Foreign policy initiatives ___________________________________________________________________________ 21
The 1990s and the new millennial _____________________________________________________________________ 21
National Integration ___________________________________________________________________ 24

Integration of the Princely states ______________________________________________________________________ 24
Integration of princely states after independence _______________________________________________________ 25
Language issue ____________________________________________________________________________________ 26
National language ________________________________________________________________________________ 26
Official language _________________________________________________________________________________ 26
Linguistic reorganization of states _____________________________________________________________________ 27
Intensified struggle for linguistic reorganization of states _________________________________________________ 28
Issue of minority language _________________________________________________________________________ 28
Regionalism _______________________________________________________________________________________ 29
Demand for Dravid-Nadu __________________________________________________________________________ 29
Telangana movement _____________________________________________________________________________ 30
Shiv-Sena against Kannadigas _______________________________________________________________________ 30
Khalistan movement ______________________________________________________________________________ 30
Bodoland demand within Assam ____________________________________________________________________ 30
MNS targeting North-Indians _______________________________________________________________________ 30
Inter-state disputes _______________________________________________________________________________ 31
Impact of regionalism _______________________________________________________________________________ 31
Integration of the Tribals ____________________________________________________________________________ 31
India’s tribal policy _______________________________________________________________________________ 32
The Punjab Crisis of the 1980s ________________________________________________________________________ 34
Terrorism in Punjab_______________________________________________________________________________ 34
Response of the government _______________________________________________________________________ 34
The aftermath of Operation Bluestar _________________________________________________________________ 35
The Kashmir issues _________________________________________________________________________________ 35
Implications of the revocation of special status _________________________________________________________ 36
Issues associated with revoking of special status ________________________________________________________ 37
North Eastern states ________________________________________________________________________________ 37
Steps taken by the Government to tackle the issue ______________________________________________________ 38
The Naxalite movement _____________________________________________________________________________ 38
Foreign Policy _________________________________________________________________________ 40
Features of India’s foreign policy post-independence ______________________________________________________ 40
Reasons behind India pursuing independent foreign policy ________________________________________________ 40
India’s role in international affairs _____________________________________________________________________ 41
Relationship with the superpowers ____________________________________________________________________ 42
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USA ___________________________________________________________________________________________ 42
Soviet Union ____________________________________________________________________________________ 43
Relationship with neighbours _________________________________________________________________________ 44
Nepal __________________________________________________________________________________________ 44
Burma _________________________________________________________________________________________ 44
Pakistan ________________________________________________________________________________________ 44
China __________________________________________________________________________________________ 46
Sri-Lanka _______________________________________________________________________________________ 48
Evolution of India’s Foreign policy _____________________________________________________________________ 48
Phase1 – 1947 to 1991 ____________________________________________________________________________ 48
Phase 2 – 1991 to 2008 ____________________________________________________________________________ 49
Phase 3 – 2008 to present times_____________________________________________________________________ 49
Indian economy in Post-Independent India__________________________________________________ 50

Capitalist V/s Socialist Economy _______________________________________________________________________ 50
Planning Commission and 1st five year Plan ______________________________________________________________ 50
Second Five year Plan: Focus on Industries ______________________________________________________________ 51
Analysis of Economic Policy of Nehruvian Era ____________________________________________________________ 52
Land reforms and cooperatives_________________________________________________________________ 52
PHASES OF LAND REFORM ___________________________________________________________________________ 52
Bhoodan Movement ________________________________________________________________________________ 53
Gramdaan Movement_______________________________________________________________________________ 54
Cooperativization and community development programs __________________________________________________ 54
Green Revolution __________________________________________________________________________________ 54
Cooperatives ______________________________________________________________________________________ 56
Indian economy from 1965-91 _________________________________________________________________ 57
Phase-1: The onset of economic troubles _______________________________________________________________ 58
Analysis of Phase -1_______________________________________________________________________________ 58
Phase 2: Higher growth or Hindu Growth Rate - 1980-1991 _________________________________________________ 59
Reforms by Indira Gandhi __________________________________________________________________________ 59
Era of Rajiv Gandhi _______________________________________________________________________________ 59
Critical analysis of Phase-2 _________________________________________________________________________ 59
Reformative Era - 1991 onwards ______________________________________________________________________ 59
Liberalisation____________________________________________________________________________________ 60
Globalisation ____________________________________________________________________________________ 60
Indian economy in the new millennium: 30 years of LPG reforms _____________________________________________ 61
Positive Impacts _________________________________________________________________________________ 61
Negative impacts of LPG reforms ____________________________________________________________________ 61
2021 Crisis And AATAMNIRBHAR BHARAT _____________________________________________________________ 62
Technological development ______________________________________________________________ 63

Phase-I, Era of Nehru _______________________________________________________________________________ 63
Dams and Steel plants are new Temple of India _________________________________________________________ 63
Phase II 1970-Present _____________________________________________________________________________ 63
Evolution of Science and technology Policy ______________________________________________________________ 64
Social Movements during Post Independence India ___________________________________________ 65

Women Moments __________________________________________________________________________________ 65
Student’s movements ________________________________________________________________________ 70
Sociological factors _________________________________________________________________________________ 70
Early Independence: Protests on linguistic lines - 1950s-1970s _______________________________________________ 71
Anti-Hindi movement in Tamil Nadu, 1965_______________________________________________________________ 71
1970s-1990s Emergency and aftermath _________________________________________________________________ 71
Mandal Era _______________________________________________________________________________________ 71

2
Agrarian Movement _________________________________________________________________________ 72

Early phase: Land reforms to Naxalbari _________________________________________________________________ 72
NAXALBARI MOVEMENT IN WEST BENGAL ____________________________________________________________ 72
Phase- II: 1970s-1990s ______________________________________________________________________________ 72
1990s to 2019 _____________________________________________________________________________________ 73
Current farm protest ________________________________________________________________________________ 73
Caste movements ___________________________________________________________________________ 73
Phase 1: 1947 to 1970s ______________________________________________________________________________ 73
Phase 2: 1980s till Now ______________________________________________________________________________ 74
BACKWARD CLASS CASTES MOVEMENTS _________________________________________________________ 74
Phase-1 1947-2000 _________________________________________________________________________________ 74
Phase 2: 2001- Present ______________________________________________________________________________ 75

3
POLITICAL HISTORY
PYQ
1. Write a critical note on the evolution and significance of the slogan “Jai Jawana Jai Kisan”. 2013
2. Discuss the contribution of Maulana Abul Kalam Azad to pre-and post-independent India. 2013
3. Analyze the circumstances that led to Tashkent Agreement in 1966. Discuss the highlights of the agreement. 2013
4. Critically examine the compulsions which prompted India to play a decisive roles in the emergence of Bangladesh.
2013
Introduction
 India became a free nation in 1947 through transfer of power from the British. India has since then evolved into a
vibrant constitutional democracy and made rapid advances in several domains.
 The political history after independence started with the dominance of a single party, i.e., the Congress both at
the Centre and at the states level. The dominance was first shaken at the states level which witnessed coalition
governments, in many cases it was marked by instability due to defection.
 At the Central level, the Janta party formed the first non-Congress government after India witnessed the draconian
provisions of emergency imposed by the Indira Gandhi government.
 However, the politics continued to revolve around the Congress party which witnessed series of victories and
debacles. It was only after the NDA government, first in 1999 and then in 2014 and 2019 that Indian politics saw
serious alternative to the Congress party.
Here, the political history is dealt in the following phases:
 One Party rule- from 1947 to 1964
 Opposition Parties – from 1947 to 1964
 Succession from Nehruvian era- the rule of Lal Bahadur Shastri and Indira Gandhi, fall of the Congress party
dominance
 Back to Congress dominance and the rule of Indira Gandhi – from 1969 to 1973
 The emergency and its aftermath
 The Rajiv Gandhi years
 The 1990s and the new millennial
ONE PARTY RULE (1947-64)

India is perhaps the only post-colonial nation to sustain democracy in true sense after independence. Although the
initial years after independence was dominated by a single party i.e., the Congress, a multi-party system based on free
competition with strong parliamentary institutions also developed.
The first three general elections and the Congress dominance
 First general elections: In the first general elections held in 1952, Congress bagged 364 out of the 489 seats in
the Lok Sabha. The party which was second to Congress was Communist Party of India which won only 16
seats.
o The Congress achieved big victory in states as well except Travancore-Cochin, Madras and Orrisa. Even
in these states Congress managed to form the government.
o So, the Congress ruled all over the country both at the state level and national level.
 Second and the third general elections: In the second and the third general elections held in 1957 and 1962
respectively, Congress maintained the same position in the Lok Sabha by winning three fourth of the seats.
Not a single opposition party was able to bag even one-tenth of the seats won by the Congress.

4
o At the state level, Congress did not get majority in a few cases.
o The most important among this was the CPI led coalition government formed in Kerala, which was
the first communist government formed through democratic process.
Was the Congress dominance maintained undemocratically?
 Unique case of India: India is not the only country to experience one party dominance. But the Indian case is
different from rest of the world.
In many countries, dominance of one party was ensured by subjugating democracy.
o For example, constitution of China, Cuba and Syria permits only a single party to rule the country.
o Other states like Myanmar, Egypt etc. are effectively one-party rule due to legal and military measures.
 But in case of India, one party dominance happened through democratic process.
 In India, free and fair elections were conducted in which many parties contested. The loosing candidate and
the parties accepted the loss with grace.
 Thus, it can be seen that dominance of Congress party was maintained democratically.
Why the Congress party was so successful?
 Inheritor of national movement: Congress was seen as inheritor of national movement. Many leaders who
had participated in the freedom struggle were now contesting as Congress candidates.
 Well organized party: Congress was well organized party with organizational network up to the local level.
 ‘First off the blocks’ advantage. By the time other parties could even think of strategies, Congress had already
started its campaign.
 All inclusive: As it was till recently a national movement, its nature was all inclusive.
 Weak opposition: Opposition parties remained weak as they found common ground with one or the other
wings of the Congress than with each other.
Congress as umbrella organization amalgamating various shades of ideology
 Elitist to inclusive party: Congress began as a party dominated by urban elite, upper caste and upper middle
class. But with time it brought together various diverse groups like industrialists and peasants, urban dwellers
and villagers, owners and workers.
o So, by the time of independence Congress was transformed into a rainbow-like coalition representing
India’s diversity in every sense.
 Democratic leadership: After independence, Congress was transformed into a distinct political party.
However, the party’s leadership decided to retain all embracing consensual character.
 Accommodative party: It accommodated revolutionary and the pacifist, conservative and the radical,
extremist and moderate, right, left and all shades of the Centre.
o Though after an amendment in the party that no person belonging to other political party or group
having its own constitution could be its members, many socialists left the party. Still many socialists
stayed with the Congress.
 Tolerance to diverse views: There was tolerance of different viewpoints, tendencies and open dissent. It
remained sensitive to and functioned as medium for reconciliation, accommodation and adjustment of
divergent class, sectional and regional interests.
Thus, Congress retained its all-embracing inclusive character not only because of inheritance of national movement
but also due to the party leadership’s belief in democratic ideals.
ELECTIONS IN INDEPENDENT INDIA

5
After the finalization of the Constitution, Election Commission of India was set up in January 1950 with Sukumar Sen
being the first the first Chief Election Commissioner.
Challenges in conducting elections
 Delimitation of constituencies was going to be a mammoth task given the size of the country.
 Preparing the electoral rolls: The Election Commission faced a lot of problems in preparing the electoral rolls.
For example, names of nearly 40 lakh women were not recorded. They were listed as wife of…, or daughter
of ……
 First of its kind: No election of this scale was ever conducted till that time. There were 17 crore eligible voters
who were to elect 489 Members of Lok Sabha and 3200 MLAs.
 Illiteracy: Given that only 15% of the voters were literate, ECI had to device some special method of voting.
 Universal adult franchise: India chose to adopt Universal adult franchise even when at that time many
European countries had not given women the right to vote.
Outcome of the electoral exercise
 Large turnout of voters: With 46.6 % eligible votes turning out to vote. Not only the people from the urban
areas but also from the rural areas participated. There was remarkable participation of women, SCs and STs.
 Ability of the voters to exercise their choice despite high illiteracy: the number of invalid votes cast was as
low as 3 to 4%.
 Competitive elections: Elections were competitive and on average there were four candidates per seat.
 Wide acceptability of the election results: When the results were declared, it was accepted as fair even by
the losers.
Many observers in India and abroad had criticized the India’s experiment with universal adult franchise as bold and
risky. They were expecting grand failure. For example, Organiser, a magazine wrote that Nehru “would live to confess
the failure of universal adult franchise”.
However, the Indian experiment had proved the critics wrong. It proved that democracy can be practiced anywhere
in the world.
ISSUES WITNESSED DURING THIS PERIOD
DEBATE REGARDING RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN THE PARTY’S LEADER AND THE GOVERNMENT
Congress being at the helm of affairs after independence, a major question that arose among the party’s leadership
was - what should be the relationship between the party’s leader and the government?
 One group led by J B Kriplani held that president of the party should have direct role in government’s policy
making.
 Other group led by Nehru and Sardar Patel held that proceedings and papers of the government are secret
and as such cannot be divulged to people outside the government.
 Kriplani believed that the party cannot extend full cooperation to the government unless it is taken into full
confidence on important policy matters affecting the nation.
 But Nehru and Patel opined that government is constitutionally accountable to the elected legislature and not
to the party.
 Finally, the matter settled in favour of Nehru when the supporter of party’s supremacy Purushottamdas
Tandon resigned from Congress presidency and Nehru became the president.
DIFFERENCES BETWEEN NEHRU AND SARDAR PATEL

6
Point of Nehru Patel

Contradiction
Economic He envisioned a socialist India. Nehru replicated For Sardar Patel, creation of wealth for ushering
Policy Soviet’s Planning Commission and Five-Year societal prosperity was desirable trait.
Plans while restricting the scope of private
sector.
Foreign Policy 1. Nehru was opposed to giving recognition to 1. Patel questioned the legitimacy of India’s
the state of Israel. foreign policy in delaying recognition to
2. Nehru considered Chinese as friends and Israel.
failed to foresee possible attack by the 2. Patel had warned that while India regard
Chinese. China as friend, they do not regard India as
3. For Chinese occupation of Tibet, Nehru such.
considered it as foregone conclusion. 3. Patel was deeply anguished when India was
4. In case of Kashmir issue, Nehru decided to unable to defend the rights of Tibetan people.
take the matter to the UN. 4. Patel was not in favour of taking the Kashmir
issue to the UN.
On Civil Nehru considered that Indian Civil Service was Patel on the other hand saw all India bureaucratic
Services neither Indian, nor civil nor a service. service as critical to binding a nation that has just
won independence.
In spite of the differences, the two continued to stick together and there was no final parting of ways. Besides, there
was considerable mutual affection and respect for each other. After Gandhiji’s death they realized that their
cooperation is all the more necessary.
DECLINE OF CONGRESS
A certain tendency towards deterioration is perhaps inevitable in a ruling party but decline should remain within
tolerable limits. This was not the case with the Congress party.
 Nehru in 1948 had observed that there is progressive collapse of the morale and the idealistic structure in
the party.
 Factions, factionalism and factional intrigues and disputes emerged which led to non-democratic functioning
at the lower level of the organization.
 Neglect of ideology made Congress lost touch with the people and it no longer appealed to the intelligentsia
and the younger people.
 Idealist youths preferred to join opposition parties and thus Congress failed in training new generation of
leaders to replace the old ones.
 A large no of congressmen were no longer satisfied with the party work and craved for official position and
patronage.
 The growing weakness of the party was revealed in the Lok Sabha by-elections loss of three strongholds in
1963.
 A failed attempt was made through Kamraj plan (made by Nehru and Madras CM K Kamraj) in 1963, wherein
a no of Union ministers and CMs of states would resign and take up organizational work.
 The outcome of the plan was that it failed to restore the prestige and importance of party organizational
work, but increased the importance of state party bosses in central politics.
THE OPPOSITION PARTIES (1947-64)

7
THE SOCIALIST PARTY

It was formed within Congress in 1934 by group of young leaders who wanted more radical and egalitarian Congress.
Its important leaders included Jay Prakash Narayan, Achyut Patwardhan, Acharya Narendra Dev, Asoka Mehta etc.
Reasons behind breakaway of the Socialists from the Congress
 Ideological difference: They believed that their ideology of democratic socialism distinguished them from both
the Congress as well as the Communists.
 In 1948, the Congress amended its Constitution to prevent its members from having a dual-party membership.
 Apprehensions about congress: They believed that Congress was favouring the capitalists and the landlords and
ignoring the peasants and the workers. They believed that after achieving independence there was no necessity
to remain united with the non-socialists in the Congress.
 They were minority in the Congress and were facing resistance and organizational discrimination at the party’s
local level.
 They had false optimism regarding the popularity of their party.
Reasons behind decline of the Socialist party.
 Difficult to distinguish: It was difficult for them to present themselves as alternative to Congress when in 1955,
Congress declared its goal to be the socialist pattern of society.
 Congress was the most popular party of the time and neither the Socialist nor the Communist were capable of
replacing the Congress.
 Few advocated cooperation with congress: Some of the Socialists like Rammanohar Lohia increased their
distance from and criticism of the Congress. Some socialists like Asoka Mehta even advocated limited cooperation
with the Congress.
 Quarrels and splits: From the beginning, it was racked by ideological and factional quarrels and it regularly
underwent splits. The Socialist party went through many splits and reunions leading to formation of many socialist
parties. For example, Kisan Mazdoor Praza Party.
 Electoral performance: The Socialist optimism regarding their popularity was exposed in the general elections
when it won only 12 seats with 10.6% of the votes in the Lok Sabha elections of 1951-52.
THE COMMUNIST PARTY

The Communist Party of India (CPI) was part of the Congress since 1936 but it parted way in 1945.
Changing position of CPI regarding the political situation in India
 Supported congress: Initially it recognized that India had become free and advised all progressive forces to
rally around the Congress against pro-imperialist forces.
 Criticized congress: Later, under Soviet’s guidance it declared that India’s independence is fake. Nehru has
become a medium of imperialism and government was ruling in a fascist manner.
 Called for armed uprising: In 1948, it called for immediate armed uprising amidst deteriorating economic
situations. The party was indulged in several terrorist acts including armed peasant struggle against the Indian
government.
 At the end of 1951, the party decided that overthrow of the state was to be part of future agenda and party
would now focus on upcoming general elections.
 At its Madurai Congress in 1953, it accepted that government was following independent foreign policy but
its internal policy was still not independent.
 At its Palghat Congress in 1956, it accepted that India won independence in 1947 but the government policies
were directed at building capitalism.

8
 At its Amritsar Congress in 1958, it declared that it was possible to advance to socialism through peaceful and
parliamentary means.
 At its Vijaywada Congress in 1961, the party decided to follow policy of struggle as well as unity towards the
Congress expecting it to split along progressive-reactionary lines.
Promising performance at the general elections
 CPI focused only on those areas where it had recognizable strength i.e., Andhra and Kerala.
 Largest Opposition Party: Along with its front organization, the People’s Democratic Front in Hyderabad, it
contested only 61 seats for Lok Sabha and won 23 emerging as the largest Opposition Party.
 Better performance: In the Lok Sabha elections of 1957, it performed even better by winning 27 seats. It also
won representation in almost every state legislature
 Formed government: It won majority in Kerala and formed the first democratically elected Communist
government in the world.
 Strong political force: In 1962 Lok Sabha elections, it won 29 seats with close to 10% of the votes. By this time,
it had emerged as strong political force in Kerala, West Bengal and Andhra.
Split in the CPI
 The party was torn by controversies and conflicts and many differences arose on issues such as Russia-China
differences etc.
 Divided into CPI and CPM: In 1964 the party was divided into CPI and Communist Party (Marxist) or CPM. The
CPI represented ‘right’ and the ‘centrist’ trend while the CPM represented ‘left’ trend.
 Ideologies of the CPM
o Class rule: The CPM believed that Indian state was the organ of class rule of capitalists and the
landlords.
o Peaceful means are not enough: They believed that the objective of achieving people’s democratic
state could not be achieved through peaceful and parliamentary means.
o Armed struggle was necessary: According to CPM, it was necessary to start agrarian revolution and
armed struggle under the leadership of working class and its party.
 The CPI too wanted anti-imperialist revolution and anti-feudal revolution but by forming a national
democratic front. They wanted to achieve their objectives through peaceful and parliamentary means.
Failures of CPI
 CPI failed to understand the complex Indian social development and changing mood of the people. For
example, it took eight years for CPI to understand that India had become free in 1947.
 Not influenced by bourgeois ideology: The party failed to appreciate correctly the character of freedom
struggle. It was not influenced by bourgeois ideology rather it was a movement to make united and strong
India which can become vehicle for social improvement.
 It failed to become alternative to Congress and to come up with its own agenda of national development and
social justice.
 Centralized structure: CPI’s centralized, bureaucratic and secret party structure didn’t suit a democratic and
open society.
BHARTIYA JAN SANGHA

It was formed in 1951 with Shyama Prasad Mukherjee as its founder President. Its genesis is traced to Rastriya Swayam
Sevak Sangha and Hindu Mahasabha.
How Jan Sangha was different from other parties in terms of ideology and programs?

9
 One Culture and One Nation: It underscored the idea of ‘One Country, One Culture and One Nation’. It
believed that country could become modern, progressive and strong on the basis of Indian culture and
traditions.
 Akhanda Bharat: It called for reunion of India and Pakistan in Akhanda Bharat.
 Hind as a medium: It wanted to replace English with Hindi as the official language of India.
 Opposed Muslim appeasement: It was opposed to granting of concessions to religious and cultural minorities.
It accused the Congress of resorting to Muslim appeasement.
 It advocated for developing nuclear weapon especially after China conducted its nuclear tests in 1964.
Electoral performance of Jan Sangha
 Poor performance: In the Lok Sabha elections of 1952, it won only 3 seats with 3.06% of national votes.
Similarly in the Lok Sabha elections of 1957, it won only 4 seats.
 The high-water mark of Jan Sangha before it became BJP was reached in 1967 when it won 35 seats in Lok
Sabha.
 Lost it political hold in West Bengal after the death of Syama Prasad Mukherjee.
THE SWATANTRA PARTY

It was formed in August 1959 after the Nagpur resolution of the Congress which called for land ceilings, take over of
food grains trade by the state and adoption of cooperative farming. It was led by old Congressmen like C
Rajagopalachari, K M Munshi, Minoo Masani etc.
First Authentic All-India Secular Conservative Party
 It opposed the active role of the state in economic development.
 It wanted to radically restrict centralized planning and the role of the public sector.
 It opposed any nationalization of the private enterprises and any extension of land reforms.
 In foreign affairs, it opposed non-alignment and close relationship with the Soviet Union.
 It favored close cooperation with the US and the Western Europe.
Reasons behind failure of the Swatantra Party
 No space in Indian politics: At that time, there was no space in Indian politics for a conservative party, for
radicalization of politics was still in progress.
 The right-wing class interests were still diverse and fragmented.
 The Congress was moderate in dealing with and conciliatory towards the property class.
 The rich and the middle peasants were still not alienated from the Congress as Cooperative farming was put
in the cold storage and land ceilings posed little threat.
 Business class was also not very unhappy and accepted that the government must play an active role in
politics.
 Narrow social base: Social base of the party was quite narrow consisting of some industrialists and
businessmen, princes, jagirdars and ex landlord turned capitalist farmers.
SUCCESSION FROM NEHRUVIAN ERA

The 1962 war with China and the death of Nehru in May 1962 posed many questions before the juvenile Indian state.
Many critics in India and abroad predicted that Indian political system would be greatly damaged, but the transition
happened in a smooth and dignified manner which revealed the strength of Indian democracy.
From Nehru to Shastri

10
After the death of Nehru, there were two contenders for the post of Prime Minister. One was Moraji Desai and the
other was Lal Bahadur Shastri. The Congress group of leaders who were collectively known as Syndicate favoured for
Lal Bahadur Shahtri, for he had wider acceptability.
Problems faced during the Prime Minister ship of Shastri
 Problem of official language-from 1965, English was proposed to be replaced by Hindi as official language of
India. This was vehemently opposed by the southern states.
 Demand for Punjabi subah- there was growing demand for separate state of Punjab from the combined state
of Haryana and Punjab.
 Stagnating Indian economy- there was Industrial slowdown and balance of payment had worsened.
 Severe shortage of food- there were severe droughts in several states in 1965 and buffer stocks had depleted
to precarious level.
 Mis adventurism from Pakistan- seeing opportunity in India’s debacle in Indo-China war, Pakistan sent well
trained infiltrators to Kashmir and started undeclared war with India.
Shastri’s response in dealing with the problems
 Indecisive response: Initially the response was indecisive with many problems being allowed to simmer. For
eg,, the government allowed the language problem to deteriorate.
 Decisiveness of shastri: With passage of time, Shastri began to assert himself and show decisiveness. For eg.,
Indian government was the first to criticize US bombing of North Vietnam.
o With respect to Kashmir issue, Shastri not only ordered the Indian troops to defend the state but also
to cross the ceasefire line and seal the important passes through which infiltrators enter.
 He also decided to create State Food Trading Corporation and initiate green revolution strategy to deal with
the food crisis.
 Jai Jawan, Jai Kisan: He gave the slogan Jai Jawan, Jai Kisan to enthuse the soldiers to defend the country and
cheer farmers to increase food production.
FROM SHASTRI TO INDIRA GANDHI

The sudden demise of Shastri in Tashkent, once again brought the issue of succession in question. Syndicate under the
leadership of Kamaraj chose Indira Gandhi, for they saw her to be more pliable and malleable.
Problems before Indira Gandhi as Prime Minister
 Punjab problem-Punjab problem was on the boil. Communalism was on the rise which erupted into
separatism and extremism.
 Insurgency in the North-east- Naga and Mizo areas were in rebellion with demands of separatism.
 Deteriorating economy- economy was in recession, industrial growths and exports were declining. Rains had
failed for the second consecutive year in 1966 and famine conditions prevailed in large parts of the country.
 Foreign policy enigma- USA taking advantage of its position in exporting wheat to India and financial aid
wanted India to change its farm policy and also its stance on Vietnam. Further there was China-Pakistan axis
which was leading to diversion of resources to military.
 Popular agitations- spiraling prices, food scarcity, growing unemployment and deteriorating economic
conditions led to popular demonstrations and strikes. These agitations often turned violent.
 Degradation of Parliament as institution- there was constant indiscipline and disturbances in the Parliament.
Criticism often took the form of personal attacks.
Indira Gandhi’s response in dealing with the situation

11
 Punjab and North-eastern issue- She accepted the demand of Punjabi suba by creation two new states of
Haryana and Punjab. She dealt firmly with the north-east insurgents and the same time willing to negotiate
with them
 Economic Front- She vacillated from taking strong decisions. Further, her decision of devaluating rupee turned
out to be a wrong one.
 Foreign policy- Understanding fully well the motives of USA, she condemned the US’s bombing of Vietnam
and began to stress the need for non-aligned countries to co-operate economically and politically.
 Food Crisis- The problems of procurement and distribution was dealt on war footing. There were very few
famine deaths as compared to millions dying during the colonial period.
GENERAL ELECTIONS OF 1967 AND ITS IMPACT ON INDIAN POLITICS

Outcome of elections
 High voter turnout: There was great political awakening among the people, the turnout of eligible voters in
1967 was 61.1%, highest turnout witnesses so far.
 Congress retained majority: Though Congress managed to retain its majority in Lok Sabha, it lost its majority
in eight states, viz., Bihar, Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan, Punjab, West Bengal, Orissa, Madras and Kerala.
 Left parties: In West Bengal and Kerala, left parties gained while in the remaining states beneficiaries were
the feudal, right wing and communal parties.
Impact on Indian politics
 Rise of rich and middle-class peasants in Indian politics-
- Defection: one of the reasons behind Congress’s debacle in the elections of 1967 was the defection of the rich and
the middle-class peasants from the Congress camp.

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- Land reforms: They feared that government’s policy of land reforms and food grain procurement would threaten
their hegemonic position in the country side.
- Continuation of hegemony: The hegemonic position of this class over the rural social, political and economic scene
continues till today.
 Coalition governments-
 Multiplicity of parties: Congress monopoly in the states was replaced by not a single party but a multiplicity of
parties. As a result of this coalition governments were formed in all the states except Tamil Nadu.
 Unstable government: All the coalition governments proved to be unstable and suffered from constant tensions.
 Changing loyalties of the MLAs: Many governments were changed due changing loyalties of the MLAs.
o For example, between 1967 general elections and 1970, Bihar had seven governments while Uttar
Pradesh had four.
 Defection: Another distinguishing feature of the coalition governments was the beginning of policy of defections.
o Many government changes in the northern states were the result of defections.
o In Haryana defecting legislators began to be called as Aya Ram, Gaya Ram (incoming Ram and outgoing
Ram)
Stability at centre: One of the positives of this period was that Central government remained stable in spite of small
majority enjoyed by the ruling party.
BACK TO CONGRESS DOMINANCE AND THE LEADERSHIP OF INDIRA GANDHI (1969-73)

 Instability in state governments: The general elections of 1967 had seen the low of the Congress. The
following years saw instability in state governments. This coupled with poor economic condition forced people
to look for a stable government with decisive leadership.
 1969 general elections: Initially the right Vs the left divide in the Congress and also the willingness of the
Syndicate in the Congress party to not let Indira Gandhi control the state of affairs led to the split in the
Congress. However, following the 1969 general elections Indira Gandhi emerged as dominant leader of both
the party and the government.
 Split in the Congress
o The Congress split into two organizations viz. Congress (R) – R for requisitionists led by Indira Gandhi
and Congress (O) – O for Organization led by Syndicates after Indira Gandhi was expelled from the
party for having violated party discipline.
o The Congress (O) occupied by left-of-centre position in Indian politics and Congress (R) occupied right-
of-centre position.
 Indira Gandhi led govt: The Congress (R) took away 220 of the party’s Lok Sabha MPs, while 68 parted ways
with Congress (O). Ultimately, Indira Gandhi formed the government with the support of other allies.
REASONS BEHIND SPLIT IN THE CONGRESS.

 Dispute regarding relation between its ministerial and organizational wings- Syndicates asserted that
Congress working Committee should formulate the policies and government should be accountable to the
party. However, Indira Gandhi was opposed to this.
 Differences over the implementation of radical 10 point program- The ten point program comprised of social
control of banks, nationalization of general insurance, curbs on business monopolies etc. The left and the right
faction was divided over its implementation.
 Foreign policy- The left favored closer relations with Soviet bloc, Yugoslavia, Egypt and other non-aligned
countries while the right favored greater co-operation with west particularly the US.

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 Reliance on outside support- Both the right and the left started relying on outside support of the opposition
parties ideologically closer to them. For eg, the left favoured co-operation with the communists and Syndicates
with Swatantra.
 Rift over the Presidential candidate- the high point of the differences was marked over the Presidential
candidate. While the Congress dominated by the Syndicates supported Sanjiva Reddy, Indira Gandhi
supported V.V. Giri.
Getting back the lost ground-1971 general election
 Radical policies implemented: After the split and having formed the government with the support of
Communist parties, some socialists, DMK and the Akali dal, Indira Gandhi tried to implement radical policies.
o For eg., nationalizatiom of private banks, abolition of privy purses.
 Lack legislative support: But she lacked support in the Parliament to get pass the important legislations. So,
she dissolved the Lok Sabha in December, 1970 and called for fresh election in February, 1971, one year ahead
of time.
 Garibi Hatao: The Congress (O) went into the election with grand alliance, their campaign slogan being Indira
hatao. Indira Gandhi having taken radical steps in the government went with the slogan of Garibi hatao.
 Promise of stable government: She targeted the disadvantaged groups, and also promised to the middle and
the propertied class of providing a stable government.
 Indira Gandhi swept the polls: The result of 1971 general elections was that Congress (R) swept the polls and
bagged 352 out of the 518 Lok Sabha seats.
o Unchallenged leader: The astounding victory not only brought back the lost ground of the Congress
but also made Indira Gandhi unchallenged leader of her times.
 Majority in all states: In 1972, elections were held in all the states except Uttar Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, Kerala
and Orissa. Congress, once again won majority in all the states.
Steps taken by the government during 1971-74
 In the year 1972, general insurance was nationalized followed by nationalization of coal industry.
 Monopolies and Restrictive Trade Practices (MRTP) was passed in 1969 and MRTP commission was
appointed in 1971 to implement the act.
 Ceilings on agricultural landholdings: Legislations were passed in several states to reduce ceilings on
agricultural landholdings and distribute surplus lands to landless and marginal farmers.
 Cheap food grain distribution: Government introduced a program of cheap food grain distribution to
economically vulnerable sections of the society and cash scheme for creating employment in rural areas.
 Banking expansion: It was made compulsory for the nationalized banks to open branches in unserved areas.
 Government imposed ban on donations by joint stock companies to political parties to reduce businessmen’s
influence in politics.
 The 24th and 25th Constitutional amendment acts were passed to clear the hurdle in implementing directive
principles (even if they violate certain provisions of fundamental rights.
 Pokhran test: A major success was achieved when atomic energy commission detonated underground
nuclear device in may 1974 in Pokhran.
THE EMERGENCY AND ITS AFTERMATH

India's largest political crisis since independence occurred in1975, when an internal emergency was declared on June
26.
Upheavals in the country before the imposition of emergency

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 Economic downturn- By the beginning of 1972, economy was in recession combined with growing unemployment,
rampant inflation and scarcity of foodstuffs.
 Crisis after the Bangladesh war- Apart from the cost involved in the Bangladesh war, there was additional burden
of feeding and sheltering nearing 10 million refugees from Bangladesh.
 Oil shock of 1973- The world prices of crude oil increased four-fold which resulted in rise in prices of petroleum
products and fertilizers. This further resulted in depletion of foreign reserves.
 Food crisis- monsoon rains failed for two consecutive years in 1972-73 leading to terrible droughts in most parts
of the country.
 Deteriorating law and order situation- worsening economic situation, high unemployment and rise in prices of
general commodities led to large scale industrial unrest, student’s protest and popular demonstrations which
often turned violent.
o For example, in May 1973, there was mutiny in Uttar Pradesh by the provincial constabulary which
clashed with the army leading to deaths of over thirty-five constables and soldiers.
 Growing corruption in most areas of the life- government efforts to control the situation turned futile due to
inefficient and corrupt administration. The high point of corruption was seen when younger son of Indira Gandhi
was given the license to manufacture fifty thousand Maruti cars a year.
 Gujarat and Bihar unrest- the faction-ridden Congress governments in Bihar and Gujarat faced popular
movements under the leadership of Jay Prakash Narayan and Moraji Desai. The unrest spread beyond Gujarat and
Bihar to cover other parts of the country.
THE JP MOVEMENT
 Call for total revolution: Jay Prakash Narayan, popularly known as JP, who had earlier announced retirement from
politics gave a call for total revolution or a struggle against the system which had become corrupt and save
democracy from authoritarian regime.
 Efforts to paralyze government: He exhorted the students and people to put pressure on existing legislators to
resign, paralyze the government, gherao the state assembly and set up parallel governments all over the state.
 In the Raj Narain case, 1975, the Allahabad High Court convicted Indira Gandhi of having indulged in corrupt
campaign practices and declared her election invalid.
 Indira Gandhi refused to resign and appealed in Supreme Court. JP and the coalition of opposition parties not
willing to wait for the decision of the Supreme Court demanded Indira Gandhi’s resignation and called for country
wide campaign to force the issue.
 Force for Indira Gandhi’s resignation: In a rally of 25 June, 1975, they announced nationwide one week campaign
to force Indira Gandhi to resign would be initiated on 29 June.
Flaws in the JP movement
 Vague ideology- though JP was a critic of Parliamentary democracy, he did not propose any alternatives to it.
Similarly, the policies of total revolution were not properly defined.
 The movement was capable of creating a space for fascist component- JP’s call for total revolution and critique
of parliamentary democracy encouraged despair towards democratic institutions.
 No viable alternatives- the approach of JP was almost negative as it did not suggest any alternative except
 Undemocratic character of the movement- they intended to dissolve the democratically elected legislatures and
the governments through extra constitutional mass agitations.
 Incitement to the army, police and civil services to rebel- he urged them to not obey the laws that were unjust
and beyond the call of the duty.
Positives of the movement

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 Challenge the corruption prevailing in the administration- one of the objectives of the movement was to remove
corruption prevailing in the government.
 Conduit for the masses to express their grievances- people of the country were faced with a no of problems like
rise in prices of the essential commodities, unemployment, shortage of food grains etc. Under such circumstances,
they needed a platform to express their grievances.
 Ensure accountability in the government- by protesting against corruption and inefficiencies prevailing in the
government.
 Strengthening democracy- the movement ensured that the government doesn’t become indifferent to the
concerns of the masses.
IMPOSITION OF THE EMERGENCY

 Emergency: Indira Gandhi imposed emergency on 26 June, 1975 under Article 352 of the Indian Constitution.
 Censorship on the Press: Government imposed strict censorship on the Press and stifled all protests and
opposition to the government.
 Opposition leaders were arrested: Hundreds of main opposition leaders were arrested under Maintenance of
Internal Security Act (MISA). JP, Moraji Desai, Atal Bihari Vajpayee, Chandra Shekhar Azad were among them who
were arrested.
 Several organizations were banned including Jamaat-i-Islami, CP(ML), RSS, Anand Marg etc. A large number of
anti-social elements were also arrested like smugglers, hoarders, goondas etc
 Parliament was made ineffective and some of the speeches of the MPs who opposed emergency were not
reported in the press.
 Blow on judicial review by parliament: A series of laws, constitutional amendments and decrees were passed to
reduce the powers of the judiciary to check the functioning of executive. For eg., through 42 nd amendment act of
the constitution, judicial review power of the judiciary was taken away.
RESPONSE OF THE PUBLIC TOWARDS THE EMERGENCY

It was only small section of the intelligentsia which reacted with hostility towards the emergency. A large majority of
the people initially reacted with passivity and acquiescence. It was only from the starting of 1976 that emergency
started to become unpopular among the masses.
Reasons behind delayed opposition from the public
 No recent memory of an authoritarian rule among the public. A vast majority of the public was impressed by the
well-publicized emergency measures.
 Harsh towards anti-social elements: Apart from the arrest of opposition leaders, harsh measures were almost
directed against anti-social elements or against communal right wing or far left.
 Prevention of anarchy: Public was relieved when they witnessed restoration of public order for it meant that
country was saved from anarchy.
 Improvement in administration and economy: There was general improvement in the administration as was
seen in the government servants becoming punctual and considerate to the public. Major improvements were
seen in economy and price of essential commodities started to come down.
 Hopes were raised in the masses by the announcement of twenty-point program by the government which had
the objective of uplifting vast majority of poor people. For example, 1.1 million acres of surplus land was
distributed among the landless.
 Imposed through constitutional means: People felt that emergency was an interim measure to tackle anarchy
prevailing in the country. Further, emergency was imposed through constitutional and legal means which was
legitimized by the courts.

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However, the acceptance among the public did not last long and people started resenting it from mid-1976. There
were several reasons behind this.
 Economic reasons: Economic growth achieved in the first year did not last long. Prices started to rise again;
agricultural output started to decline.
 No real progress was made in the lives of the poor and the marginalized. There was still dependence on the
corrupt and inefficient bureaucracy for the implementation of twenty-point program.
 Blocked grievances: Imposition of emergency prevented any avenues of airing the grievances of the public.
 The unchecked power of the police and the bureaucracy led to abuse of power which affected poor the most.
 Ignorance of governance: Government was also in complete ignorance of what people were facing due to
censorship of the press.
 Forced sterilization: The emergence of Sanjay Gandhi (younger son of Indira Gandhi) as parallel center of power
became one of the major reasons behind growing unpopularity of emergency. Sanjay Gandhi had become
infamous for forced sterilization and clearing of slums in the city.
ENDING THE EMERGENCY AND ELECTIONS OF 1977

 Elections announced: Indira Gandhi announced in January 1977 that elections would be held in March, 1977.
 Free and fair election: Political prisoners were released, press censorship was removed and elections were held
in free and fair manner.
 Janta Party and allies victory: With popular sentiments against the emergency, the Janta party (merger of
Congress(O), the Jan Sangh, the Bhartiya Lok Dal and the socialist party) and its allies emerged victorious winning
330 out of 542 seats. Among the various contenders, Moraji Desai was chosen for the post of Prime Minister
o Congress managed to secure just 154 seats.
 Dismissal of state governments: The Janta government argued that Congress governments at the states lost its
mandate and thus dismissed nine Congress ruled state governments and ordered fresh elections.
o Janta party and its allies won in all the states except in West Bengal and Tamil Nadu.
JANTA GOVERNMENT RULE

Short stint of Janta government and coming back of Congress to power
The Janta government collapsed in July 1979 as result of uneasy coalition that had come together to form the
government.
Positives of Janta government’s rule
 Political
 The Janta government proved that how well established the roots of the democracy are in India
 The Janta party provided the first alternative to the Congress party which was ruling at the Centre since
independence.
 Constitutional
 The forty fourth constitutional amendment act brought changes to remove authoritarian features of emergency
regie and restore liberal democracy
 It restored some of the powers of the supreme court and the high courts
 In respect of national emergency, the term internal disturbance was replaced with armed rebellion
 The President can declare emergency only on the written recommendations of the cabinet.
 It provided that fundamental rights guaranteed under Articles 20 and 21 cannot be suspended under emergency.

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 It gave constitutional protection to publications in newspapers of true reports of the proceedings of Parliament
and state legislatures.
 Economic
 Employment to the rural unemployed was provided through ‘Food for Work’ program.
 It was used to improve village infrastructures like school buildings, roads etc.
Why the Janta government was not able to complete its full term?
 Uneasy coalition: The Janta government was formed through uneasy coalition comprising of the communal,
right wing and also the extreme left-wing parties.
 Social tensions: The government was unable to deal with the social tensions prevailing in the rural areas.
There were higher numbers of atrocities on the rural poor and the scheduled castes.
 Large scale violence and lawlessness was observed and the government was proving to be ineffective in
handling the situation.
 Government did not fulfil its earlier demands for land reforms and higher wages for agricultural labourers.
 No alternative economic policy: Janta government was opposed to industry-oriented growth but at the
same time it failed to evolve any alternative economic policy.
 Slow growth rates: Both industry and agriculture witnessed slow growth rates. Prices of essential
commodities like kerosene and foodstuffs witnessed sharp increase.
COMING BACK OF THE CONGRESS

 Further split in congress: In 1978, Congress party split into Congress(I) and Congress(U).
o Indira Gandhi represented Congress(I) while the dissidents of the Congress formed Congress(U), U
represented Devraj Urs.
 Congress(I) tasted its first success after the serious setback of 1978 when it won state assembly elections of
Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh.
 In the general elections of Lok Sabha held in January 1980, Congress(I) secured 353 out of 529 seats.

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Reasons behind resurgence of Congress

 Revenge than justice by Janta govt: The Janta government resorted to vengeance against Indira Gandhi. For eg.,
Shah Commission was appointed to look into the malpractices and abuses committed by the Indira Gandhi
government.
o The common people felt that Indira Gandhi was already punished for her acts by the defeat she faced in
the elections and the Janta government’s acts appeared more like revenge than justice.
 Support of marginalized people: People from the marginalized communities like the Harijans, poor, women still
considered Indira Gandhi as saviour.
 Factionalism: People were disenchanted with Janta government’s mal-governance and constant dispute and
factionalism.
Positives of the resurgent Congress’s rule
 Economic
 Rate of inflation was brought down to 4% in 1984.
 Economy started to bloom with economic growth of over 4% per annum.
 The Green revolution started earlier began to bear its fruits with high production seen in agriculture.
 Measures were taken to liberalize the economy though on a cautious note.
 Planning was resumed and steps were taken to strengthen public sectors.
 Foreign policy
 The seventh summit of NAM was held in India with Indira Gandhi as its Chairman.
 India started to move from idealism to realism. While Mrs. Gandhi refused to condemn the action of Soviet action
in Afghanistan, she advised to withdraw their troops.
 She also tried to improve relations with the US and normalize relations with China and Pakistan.
 Six-nations Five-continents initiative- an initiative to put pressure on the super powers to reduce weapons and
eliminate nuclear weapon.
 Internal security
 She dealt with the militancy of Punjab with iron hand.
 The Operation Blue Star led to the killing of Sikh militant Jarnail Singh Bhindranwale and the militancy was
controlled in Punjab.
Drawbacks of the rule
 Various conflicts: Several communal, caste and linguistic conflicts continued to linger for several years. For
example, the Punjab crisis, the militancy in the north-east.
 Atrocities on SCs and STs continued unabated as they started to assert their constitutional and legal rights.
 Poor governance: The Congress ruled state governments were unable to provide good governance and
administration. This led to defeats in the states of Karnatka and Andhra Pradesh.
THE RAJIV GANDHI YEARS

With the assassination of Mrs. Indira Gandhi on 31 October, 1984, Rajiv Gandhi (although being reluctant) was chosen
as the new PM by the Congress leaders. In the general elections held in December 1984, Congress won by its largest
majority, winning 415 out of 543 Lok Sabha seats.
Problems faced by Rajiv Gandhi government

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 A horrific massacre of Sikhs happened in various parts of the country especially in Delhi. It was alleged that some
local level leaders and Congress party workers assisted the massacre.
 Bhopal gas tragedy- due to poisonous emission of chemicals from the factory of Union Carbide, around 2000
people lost their lives and thousands being rendered seriously ill.
 Relations with neighboring countries
 Disputes related to water continued with Bangladesh which seemed to move more in the Islamic direction.
 Nepal grew more closer to China and asked Indians to get work permits to work in Nepal.
 Relations with Sri Lanka took a nose dive due to the Sri Lankan Tamil issue.
 Corruption and scandals- the scandals of Fairfax and HDW submarine deal along with Bofors kickback issue
tainted the image of Rajiv Gandhi form Mr Clean to corrupt.
Initiatives and achievements of the Rajiv Gandhi Government
Internal Security- Punjab and Assam accords were signed that helped in restoring normalcy in the respective areas.
Technology
 Computerization program: One of the biggest achievements was impetus given to computerization program that
fructified into India becoming software giant at the global stage.
 Six technology missions were set up which were to provide scientific approach in solving the pressing problems
of India.
o These included the drinking water mission, literacy mission, immunization of pregnant women and
children, White revolution, expanding edible oil production and bringing one telephone to every village
of the country.
Economy
 Further steps were taken to liberalize the economy.
 To improve the conditions of the poor, Jawahar Rozgar Yojana was launched with the aim of providing
employment to at least one member of every rural family for 50-100 days in a year.
 Education
 Operation Blackboard was launched with the objective of providing basic amenities to the schools.
 Navodaya Vidyalayas were established for providing quality education to the meritorious children of rural poor
families.
Social sector
 Women empowerment: With respect to women, National perspective Plan for Women was drafted in 1988 which
tried to address the issues of health and education of women. Further legislation was passed which provided for
punishment in dowry related offences.
 Environment- A new Ministry of Environment was created and environment clearance was made mandatory for
big projects.
Political and bureaucratic

 Anti-defection law was passed to check defection of legislators.
 Steps were taken to deepen the Panchayati Raj Institutions and further pass a legislation to give them
Constitutional status which did not materialize.
 Lok Adalat act was passed as alternative dispute resolution mechanism.

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 Consumer Protection Act was passed to empower the consumers.
FOREIGN POLICY INITIATIVES

 Rajiv Gandhi held the first summit of Six-nation Five-continent initiative to put pressure on super powers to reduce
weapons and eliminate nuclear weapons. The initiative matured into Action Plan for Nuclear Disarmament.
 For tackling apartheid in South-Africa he set up AFRICA (Action for Resisting Invasion, Colonialism and Apartheid)
was set up at Non-Aligned summit at Harare.
 Diplomatic recognition was accorded to SWAPO, organization fighting for Namibian independence.
 Rajiv Gandhi became the first to visit China after Nehru which saw thawing in Indo-China relations (after the Indo-
China war of 1962).
 India provided help to Maldives when it was faced with coup (a sudden, violent, and illegal seizure of power from
a government) attempts.
 India’s role was important in Vietnamese withdrawal form Kampuchea (Cambodia).
 Modernization of the armed forces- which led to the doubling of the defence expenditure. India Navy’s capability
was bolstered by the purchase of second aircraft carrier from Britain and lease of nuclear-powered submarine
from Soviet Union.
THE 1990S AND THE NEW MILLENNIAL

 Defeat of congress: In the general elections of 1989, the Congress party was defeated with corruption becoming
the main issue of election.
o Muslim appeasement: Also, with the legislation passed by the Rajiv Gandhi government to negate the
Shah Banu judgement, the congress party was seen as Muslim appeasement party.
 Second non-Congress government: V.P. Singh became the new PM and the second non-Congress government was
formed at the Centre.
 At the foreign policy level, the government took the decision of completely withdrawing troops from Sri Lanka.
Trade and transit dispute with Nepal was also settled amicably.
 The two controversial events that took place during this time was the implementation of the Mandal
Commission’s recommendations and rath yatra by Lal Krishna Advani undertaken for the construction of Ram
Mandir on the disputed site of Babri Maszid in Ayodhya.
o The rath-yatra was followed by efforts to demolish Babri Maszid, which resulted in communal clashes.
 Implementation Mandal Commission’s recommendations provided 27 % reservations to the OBCs.
o The announcement was followed by violent demonstrations especially in north India, where some youths
resorted to self-immolation.
 Short lived govts: The V.P. Singh government did not last long. He was followed by Chandra Sekhar Azad as PM
who remained for a short while at the office until the Congress party once again formed the government after the
general elections of 1991.
 Formation of Narsimha Rao government- after the general elections of 1991, Congress and its allies were voted
to power and P.V. Narsimha Rao became the new PM.
 Important steps taken by the Narsimha Rao government included:
- Liberalization Privatization and Globalization (LPG) Reforms.
- Bringing normalcy in Punjab and improving situation in Kashmir and Assam.
- 73rd and 74th constitutional amendment acts were passed which took democracy to the grass root level.

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 Short lived coalitions: Between 1996 and 1999, several coalition governments were formed who could not
last until NDA government was formed in 1999.
 In 2004, UPA government came to power led by Congress in which Manmohan Singh became the PM.
 Some of the important decisions that were taken during the regime were:
- RTI act, which ushered in a system a transparency and accountability.
- Right to education was made a fundamental right under Article 21.
- Signing of Civil Nuclear deal with the US.
 In 2009, UPA again came to power with Manmohan Singh leading the helm of affairs.
o During this tenure of the UPA government, a lot of corruption scams came to the surface. For eg, the
Commonwealth games scam, coal gate scam, 2G scam etc.
 Anti-corruption crusade was launched under the leadership of Anna Hazare.
 Corruption became such an issue at the national level that it was one of the reasons behind fall of the UPA
government.
 In 2014, National Democratic Alliance government came to power under the leadership of PM Narendra
Modi.
 Important aspects of NDA1 rule
 End of coalition politics: Although the National Democratic Alliance was formed with the help of alliance
parties like Siromani Akali Dal, Shiv Sena etc supporting the BJP, the 2014 elections in a way marked the end
of coalition politics.
 Economy
o Control of inflation- inflation which was going beyond control was brought under reasonable limits,
especially in the food items.
o Doubling farmer’s income- the government set the target of doubling farmer’s income through
various government initiatives like soil health card scheme, e-NAM, per drop more crop etc.
o Demonetization- of specified currency notes to deal with black money and terrorist funding
o GST- to rationalize indirect structure
 Social Sector
o Sabka sath sabka vikas – to focus on inclusive development.
o Beti bachao beti padhao initiative – to deal with skewed sex ratio and improve literacy of the females
o Swacha Bharat Abhiyan – to eliminate open defecation and bring behavioural change in the public
towards public cleanliness.
o Ayushman Bharat initiative- under which secondary and tertiary health care upto Rs 5 lakhs is
provided to a poor and economically weaker family.
 Environment
o Ambitious target in the Paris Climate deal- India had set the target of achieving 33% to 35 % reduction
in CO2 emissions per unit GDP by 2030 as compared to 2005 levels, also India’s renewable energy
would comprise of 40% of total energy mix.
o Namami Gange initiative- to restore river Ganga to its pristine state.
 National Integration
o Historic Naga agreement was signed- however something tangible is yet to be seen at the ground
level.
 Foreign Policy

22
o Neighbourhood first policy- where neighbours are given priority in foreign policies. In 2014 oath
taking ceremony of PM, all the SAARC countries head of states were invited.
o Act East- from look east with enhanced collaboration with east Asian and south-east Asian countries.
o From non-alignment to multi alignment- with greater focus on economic relationship.
 Important aspects of NDA 2 rule
o COVID-19 pandemic- India was severely hit by the global pandemic with severe stress on the health
infrastructure. Lakhs of fatalities were reported and many families lost their breadwinners.
o Economy- suffered severe jolt with the impact of the global pandemic. Negative growth rate was
observed with unemployment rate hitting all time high.
o Foreign relation- Chinese incursion in Ladakh resulted in long stand off between the armies of India
and China with several casualties being reported from both the sides. One of the positive aspects was
that India emerged leading global manufacturer of vaccines in the wake of global demand for COVID-
19 vaccines.
o National Integration- Jammu and Kashmir’s special status was revoked through amendment of
Article 370, paving the way for further integration. Further, the state of Jammu and Kashmir was
reorganized into union territories of Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh.
o Landmark judgement of Supreme Court in Ramjanma bhumi case- where the Supreme court ruled
in favour of construction of Ram temple at the disputed site. The Sunni Wakf Board was provided
land at other location for the construction of mosque.
Though independent India started its political journey from one party rule, it has moved into the phase where several
parties have claimed their space. While other post-colonial nations went into the grip of authoritarian rule (either
through one party rule or military rule), India not only maintained its democratic status but also managed to overcome
the difficult phase of emergency rule. India continues to be a dynamic democracy serving as role model for several
other nations.

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NATIONAL INTEGRATION
PYQ
1. Has the formation of linguistic States strengthened the cause of Indian Unity? 2016
2. Growing feeling of regionalism is an important factor in the generation of demand for a separate state. Discuss 2013
National integration means “creating a mental outlook which will promote and inspire every person to place loyalty
to the country above group loyalties and the welfare of the country above narrow sectarian interests.”
– Dorothy Simpson
National Integration is the cementing force that binds the citizens of the country into a unified entity. It is the
awareness of a common identity among citizens of the country which means that although the citizens belong to
different religions and speak different languages they recognise the fact that they are all one. Linguism, Regionalism,
Communalism, Casteism are some of the factors that hinders regionalism.
At the time of independence faced a no of challenges with respect to national integration. The first and the foremost
challenge before India was to shape a united nation that would accommodate its diversity. The next challenge was to
establish and maintain democracy and imbibe within the heart and soul of the Indians who were hitherto used to
authoritarian rule.
INTEGRATION OF THE PRINCELY STATES

 Nearly 40% of colonial India's area was held by fifty-six small and major states controlled by princes with varied
degrees of autonomy under the British paramountcy system.
 The fate of the princely states after the British left became a source of concern in 1947. Many of the larger
princely states began to fantasize about and plan for independence.
 Sardar Patel was given additional command of the newly formed States' Department, with V.P. Menon as its
Secretary. They set out to deal with the obstinate states as quickly as possible.
Important princely states who were integrated before independence

Travancore
 The state was under the rule of Maharaja Chithira Thirunal, but the de-facto ruler was the Dewan of the state C P
Ramaswamy Aiyer.
 They planned for an independent state of Travancore, but when the Dewan was attacked the Maharaja agreed for
accession.
 Travancore formally joined India on 30 July, 1947.
Jodhpur
 The young King of Jodhpur was wooed by Pakistan to merge with it.
 However, under tactical play and pressure put by Sardar Patel, Jodhpur agreed to accede to India.
 On 11 August, Maharaja Hanvant Singh, the King of Jodhpur signed instrument of accession and it was
integrated into the Indian Union.
Bhopal
 Its ruler was Habibullah Khan who was supported by Jinnah.
 However, the majority Hindu population revolted against the ruler.
 Finally, under the pressure from Sardar Patel, he signed instrument of accession with India in July 1947 and
became part of the Indian Union.

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INTEGRATION OF PRINCELY STATES AFTER INDEPENDENCE
JUNAGADH
 Nawab’s announcement to join Pakistan: The state had no geographical contiguity with Pakistan, yet its nawab
announced accession to Pakistan.
 People in favour of India: The overwhelmingly Hindu population desired integration with India.
 Revolt by the people: Hence, the people organized a popular revolt and forced the nawab to flee.
 Invitation to Indian government to intervene: The Dewan of the state, Shah Nawaz Bhutto, invited Indian
government to intervene.
 Accession to India through plebiscite: Indian troops marched into the state and plebiscite was held in February
1948 which went in favour of India.
KASHMIR
 Desire of independent state: The ruler of Kashmir denied accession to both India and Pakistan fearing
democracy in India and communalism in Pakistan.
 Invasion of Pathan tribes in Kashmir: With the onset of winter in the year of 1947, several Pathan tribesmen
led unofficially by Pakistan army invaded Kashmir and pushed towards Srinagar.
 Request for Indian help: Maharaja of Kashmir asked for Indian help but India under international law was
unable to help as Kashmir had not acceded to India.
 Intervention of Indian troops: After Maharaja acceded to India, India sent its troops which helped in pushing
back the militants although they still retained control over parts of the state.
 India reaches UNSC: India decided to take the matter to the UN Security Council which took side of Pakistan
and accepted ceasefire on 31 December, 1948 which exists till date.
 UN’s resolution: The UN passed a resolution to conduct referendum in Kashmir under UN supervision after
Pakistan withdraws its troops from parts of the state.
HYDERABAD
 Claim of independent status: The Nizam of Hyderabad did not accede to India and claimed an independent
status.
 Standstill agreement: In November, India signed stand still agreement with Nizam to give time to Nizam to
make up his mind.
 Strengthening of military by Nizam: But Nizam had other plans in his mind. He hoped to build up its military
strength and force India to accept its sovereignty.
 Repression by Razakars: The Nizam also provided help to the Communal organization Ittihad ul Muslimin and
its paramilitary wing Razakars which committed acts of repression on the common people.
 Communist movement: A powerful communist led peasant movement also developed in Telangana region.
The peasant dalams(squads) organized defence against Razakars.
 India send its troops: In the circumstances where Nizam continued importing arms and repressions of
Razakars continued, Indian government sent troops in September 1948. The Nizam surrendered and acceded
to the Indian Union.
MANIPUR
 Instrument of accession with autonomy: Instrument of accession was signed with Maharaja of Manipur, Bodh
Chandra Singh while assuring him that internal autonomy would be provided.

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 Constitutional monarchy: Maharaja had to hold elections in the state under public pressure in June 1948. The
state thus became a Constitutional monarchy, also it was the first part of India to conduct elections based on
universal adult franchise.
 Merger agreement: In 1949, India signed merger agreement with the Maharaja without consulting the
Legislative Assembly of Manipur.
 This was not taken in good taste, the repercussions of which are felt to this day.
FRENCH AND PORTUGUESE SETTLEMENTS

 Integration of French settlements: French settlements were handed to India in a peaceful manner after
prolonged negotiations.
 Reluctance of Portuguese: Portuguese, on the other hand were adamant on not handling its settlements to
India.
 NATO’s support to Portugal: NATO allies supported Portugal’s position and Portuguese resorted to repression
of common people in the face of independence movement in Goa.
 Operation Vijay: Ultimately, Indian troops marched in Goa in 1961 (under Operation Vijay) when asked for
support by the popular movements.
 Integration of Goa with the Indian Union: The Portuguese surrendered without a fight and Goa was merged
with the Indian union.
Conclusion
Smaller states were amalgamated with neighbouring states or merged to establish "centrally governed territories."
Many were merged into five new unions, forming Madhya Bharat, Rajasthan, Patiala and East Punjab States Union
(PEPSU), Saurashtra, and Travancore-Cochin; Mysore, Hyderabad, and Jammu and Kashmir remained separate states
of the Union in their former shape.
LANGUAGE ISSUE
Like many other nations, India doesn’t possess a single language. More than 19500 languages are spoken in India as
mother tongue. Language apart from being the medium of communication is closely associated with the culture of
people. This complex interplay created a problem in front of the newly independent nation to choose a language as
national or official language
NATIONAL LANGUAGE
 The issue of making Hindi as the national language led to the conflict between the Hindi-speaking and non-
Hindi speaking regions of the country.
 Amicable resolution: It was resolved when the constitution makers accepted virtually all the major languages
as the ‘languages of India.’
OFFICIAL LANGUAGE
 Opposition of English as official language: Gandhiji was opposed to the idea of making English as the official
language of India as it was a foreign language.
 Two official languages of India: Apart from English, Hindi (written in Devnagari) chosen over Hindustani
(written in urdu) became the official languages of India.
 A time frame (1965) was set to switch completely from English to Hindi. This became a bone of contention
between the Hindi and non-Hindi speakers.

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 Official Language Commission: As per the Constitutional provisions, an Official Language commission was set
up in 1955. It recommended that Hindi should start progressively replacing English in various functions of the
Central government.
 Resentment against the report: However, two members of the commission, one each from Tamil Nadu and
West Bengal dissented with the report.
 The Joint Parliamentary Commission reviewed the report of the commission.
 President issued an order in 1960, stating that after 1965 Hindi would be the principal official language but
English would also continue as associate official language without any restriction.
 Increased demonstrations were witnessed especially in south India against making of Hindi as the sole official
language, as it was seen as discriminating against the non-Hindi speakers.
 Assurance from Nehru: Nehru, in 1959, in order to remove their fears assured in the Parliament that English
would continue as the official language as the people required.
 Official Languages Act: To this effect, Official Languages Act, 1963 was passed to remove restrictions which
had been placed in the Constitution regarding the use of English as the official language beyond 1965.
 Further in 1967, Indira Gandhi government amended the Official Languages Act of 1963.
 The main objective of the amendment was that indefinite bilingualism was adopted.
In the years to come, the issue of language remained non-relevant except on occasions when three language formula
were proposed in the education policy.
LINGUISTIC REORGANIZATION OF STATES

The boundaries in pre-independent India were drawn in a haphazard manner serving the imperial needs of the
Britishers. The case of reorganizing the states on linguistic basis came to the forefront immediately after
independence.
Benefits of aligning administrative units on linguistic lines
 Close affinity of language with culture: Language is closely related to culture and customs of people. Growth
of mass literacy and education can be achieved only through mother tongue.
 Ease of administration: When administration and politics is conducted in the language of the people,
democracy in true sense is achieved.
 Development of provincial language: Gandhiji encouraged people to behave as Indians but at the same time
said that provincial languages can develop to their fullest only when reorganization takes place on linguistic
basis.
Due to these reasons, political mobilization of the masses by the Congress was done in regional languages. In 1921,
Congress amended its Constitution and reorganized its regional branches on linguistic basis.
Why the national leadership was averse to linguistic reorganization in the initial years after independence?
 National Unity as foremost priority: The most important task after independence, according to the national
leaders was consolidation of national unity.
 Problems associated with linguistic reorganization: Partition resulted into serious administrative, economic
and political problems, the linguistic reorganization probably could have resulted into further economic and
law and order problems.
 Intensified regional rivalries: Redrawing of boundaries could have intensified linguistic and regional rivalries
and thus damage the unity of the country.
 The Dhar Commission appointed in 1948 to look into the feasibility of linguistic provinces, suggested against
such measures as it might threaten national unity.

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 Again in 1948, JVP (Jawahar Lal Nehru, Sardar Vallabh bhai Patel and Pattabhi Sitaramayya) committee advised
against the creation of linguistic states for the time being.
In the words of Jawahar Lal Nehru, ‘First things must come first and the first thing is the security and stability of India.'
INTENSIFIED STRUGGLE FOR LINGUISTIC REORGANIZATION OF STATES
 Fast unto death strike by Patti Sriramallu: In October, 1948, a popular freedom fighter, Patti Sriramalu,
undertook fast unto death for the demand of separate state of Andhra.
 Violent demonstrations: His death led to severe violence, demonstrations, rioting all over Andhra.
 Government accedes to the demand: The government concede to the demand of Andhra which was finally
came into existence in October 1953.
 State Reorganization Commission: The government also appointed State Reorganization Commission (SRC),
with Fazal Ali, K.M. Panikkar, H.N. Kunzru as its members in 1953.
 Recommendation to redraw boundaries on linguistic basis: The SR Commission agreed to redrawing of
boundaries on linguistic basis after giving due consideration to administrative and economic factors.
 State Reorganization Act: The State Reorganization Act was passed by the Parliament in November 1956. It
provided for fourteen states and six centrally administered territories.
 Exceptions: However, there were exceptions where linguistic principle was not applied like Punjab and
Bombay.
 Maharashtra and Gujarat were separated in the year 1960 with Bombay as the capital of Maharashtra, while
Haryana and Punjab were separated in 1966.
State Reorganization is best regarded as clearing ground for national integration. Reasons behind this are as follows:
 No negative effect on federal structure: It has not affected the federal structure of the Union and not
weakened the Centre as many had feared.
 No Complaints: Complaints regarding discrimination on the basis of language in raising and expending of
resources have been hardly heard.
 According to Rajni Kothari, State Reorganization on linguistic lines has removed major source of discord and
created homogeneous political units which has strengthened national unity.
 Cementing agent in national integrity: Language, rather than being source of division has actually proved to
be a cementing agent.
However, various problems like boundary disputes, issue of linguistic minorities and economic issues such as sharing
of waters, power etc still exists.
ISSUE OF MINORITY LANGUAGE

 Prevalence of linguistic minorities: A large number of linguistic minorities exist in linguistically reorganized
states.
 Provision of Fundamental Rights: To address these problems, certain fundamental rights are provided to
the minorities.

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 For example, Article 30 gives right to establish and administer educational institutions to linguistic and
religious minorities. Similarly,
 Article 347 states that President may direct that a language shall be officially recognized in a state when a
demand is made by a minority.
 Commissioner for linguistic minorities: The Commissioner for Linguistic Minorities investigates and reports
on the matters related to the implementation of safeguards.
 Inadequate enforcement: However, the Constitutional safeguards have not been adequately enforced.
 Discrimination: The Commissioner for Linguistic Minorities has reported discrimination against linguistic
minorities in matters of schooling, admission to technical and medical institutions, employment in state
public services etc.
REGIONALISM
If the interest of one region or a state is asserted against the country as a whole or against another region/state in a
hostile way, and if a conflict is promoted by such alleged interests, then it can be called as regionalism.
Causes of regionalism
1. Regional economic inequality- at the time of independence, economic development was unevenly distributed
across the regions. For eg., in 1948, Bombay and West Bengal accounted for more than 59% of total industrial
capital of the country.
2. Cultural dominance- minority language groups in an otherwise homogeneous linguistic state tends to be
marginalized. For eg., northern region of the Bengal consists of Gorkha people who speak Nepali, but they are
dominated by the Bengali culture of the state.
3. Low level of infrastructural facilities- like schools, hospitals
4. Low level of social development- in terms of low literacy rate, high burden of diseases and mortality become
reasons for regional discontent.
5. Son of the soil doctrine-according to this theory, the resources of the state belong only to the local residents.
6. Political and administrative failure- it gives rise to sub-regional movements for separate states. Jharkhand,
Chhattisgarh, Uttarakhand and Telangana states are the result of this failure only.
Clashes in India having the tone of regionalism
DEMAND FOR DRAVID-NADU

 Dravidian movement: It emerged with the Dravidian movement which started in Tamil Nadu in 1925.
 Self-Respect movement: The movement initially known as Self Respect Movement focused on empowering
Dalits, poor and the non-brahmins.
 Against Hindi: Later it stood against imposition of Hindi as sole official language on the non-Hindi states.
 Demand for Dravid-Nadu: But it was the demand for the creation of Dravid Nadu which created secessionist
movement.
 Secessionist demand: In the 1960s the DMK and the Nan Tamil organized a joint campaign throughout Madras
state demanding an independent sovereign state of Tamil.
 DMK proposed that states of Madras, Andhra, Kerala and Mysore should secede from the Indian union and
form an independent Republic of Dravid-Nadu.

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TELANGANA MOVEMENT
 Discontentment of people: In the years after the formation of Andhra Pradesh state, people of Telangana
expressed dissatisfaction over how the agreements and guarantees were implemented.
 Discontent with the 1956 Gentleman’s agreement intensified in January 1969, when the guarantees that had
been agreed on were supposed to lapse.
 Student’s agitation: Student agitation for the continuation of the agreement began at Osmania University in
Hyderabad and spread to other parts of the region.
 Direct Action: Government employees and opposition members of the state legislative assembly threatened
“direct action” in support of the students.
 Separate state of Telangana: This movement since then finally resulted last year one separate state of
Telangana.
SHIV-SENA AGAINST KANNADIGAS

 Agitation against Kannadigas: In 1966, Shiv Sena, in Maharashtra, launched its agitation against Kannadigas
in the name of Marathi pride.
 The first targets of its agitation were South Indians who were the workers of Udupi hotels in Mumbai.
 Retaliation against violence on Marathi people: This agitation was labelled to be a retaliation of the lathi-
charge on Marathi speaking people in the border areas.
KHALISTAN MOVEMENT
 Secessionist movement: It was during the era of 1980s that Khalistan movement with its aim to create a Sikh
homeland, often called Khalistan, cropped up in the Punjab region of India and Pakistan.
 Communal tone: This demand has also the colours of communalism, as there demand is only for Sikhs.
BODOLAND DEMAND WITHIN ASSAM

 Demand of Bodoland: 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.
 Lack of employment opportunities: One of the basic reason Assam agitations is because of the expansion of
education, particularly higher education, but not industrialization and other job creating institutions is
increasing the army of educated youths in the backward regions.
 Movement against migrants: These frustrated young men are allured by the movements against the inflow
of people from other countries and states.
 Agitation for rights: 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.
MNS TARGETING NORTH-INDIANS

 Violence against north-Indians: It was in 2008 that Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) workers began their
violent agitation against North Indians.
 Bhojpuri films were not allowed to run on theatres in Maharashtra.
 Marginalized migrants as targets: The targets were vendors and shopkeepers from North India in various
parts of Maharashtra.

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INTER-STATE DISPUTES
 Another form of regionalism in India has found expression in the form of interstate disputes.
 Boundary disputes: There are 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.
 Dispute over a territory: There is a dispute over Chandigarh in Punjab and Haryana.
 Interstate water dispute: 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.
 Disputes also arose between use of Cauvery waters among the states of Tamil Nadu, Kerala and Karnataka.
 Another dispute arose among the states of Maharashtra, Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh over the use and
distribution of waters of the Krishna River.
 Disputes between Punjab, Rajasthan and Himachal Pradesh overt the use of waters of Ravi River.
 Dispute on electricity sharing: The Electricity sharing issue between Punjab and Delhi is another example of
this.
IMPACT OF REGIONALISM
Positive
 Important role in nation-building- regional recognition in terms of state hood or state autonomy gives
self determination to the people
 Enhanced democratization- regional identities helps in taking democracy closer to the people. For eg.,
Tripura Tribal Autonomous District Council formed in 1985 has helped in protecting tribal identity in the
state.
 Balanced regional development- many movements of regionalism have been demanded for securing
development which ultimately ensures balanced regional development.
Negative
 Internal security challenge- movements for seccesion often creates internal security challenge. For
eg., the greater Nagaland movement.
 Impacts polity- policies are launched to satisfy regional demands which are extended to all pockets of
the country. Hence national policies are decided by regional demands.
 Vote bank politics- which are against healthy democratic procedures. These often take the form of
demand for separate state.
 Uneven implementation of development plans – generally regions to which heavy-weight leaders
belong are focused or the regions which have faced regional demands.
 Hurdle in international diplomacy- as was seen in the case of West Bengal blocking Teesta agreement
with Bangladesh.
INTEGRATION OF THE TRIBALS
The task of integrating the tribals was onerous given their unique culture and identity and their relative isolated
dwellings.

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Problems faced by the tribals

 Erosion of relative isolation- colonialism brought radical transformation in the lives of the tribals. Britishers
cleared forest for exploring newer sources of revenue. They brought with them money lenders, traders, middle
men, revenue farmers who disrupted the traditional way of life of tribals.
 Increased indebtedness- with the introduction of revenue farming, the tribals were engulfed in indebtedness
and lost their lands to outsiders and became share croppers, rack rented tenants on their own land.
 Destruction of culture- the missionaries were involved in conversion of the tribals which was associated with
destruction of arts, dances, weaving and their whole culture.
 Transformation in the relationship of tribals with the forest- the tribals depended on the forest for food, fuel,
fodder and raw materials for making handicrafts. But the forest laws brought by the colonial authorities
forbade shifting cultivation and access to forest products.
 Oppression and extraction by government officials- lack of knowledge and resources at many times led to
the oppression of tribals by the government officials.
INDIA’S TRIBAL POLICY
 There were two main approaches to the tribal policy.

 The first was the isolationist policy. It suggested to leave the tribals alone, uncontaminated by the outside
influences.
 The second was the assimilationist approach. It suggested assimilating them completely into the Indian society.
 According to Jawaharlal Nehru, India to the tribals should signify not only a protecting force, but a liberating one.
 He rejected both the approaches given above. Instead, he suggested the policy of integration by making them
integral part of the nation.
 He laid down Tribal Panchsheel as a guiding principle for government policies.

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o First, the tribals should develop along the lines of their own genius.
o Second, tribal rights in land and forests should be respected.
o Third, encourage the tribal languages.
o Fourth, for administration, reliance should be placed on tribal themselves.
o Fifth, there should be no over-administration of the tribal areas.
Constitutional safeguards provided to tribals
Educational & Cultural Safeguards Social Safeguard

 Art. 15(4) - Special provisions for advancement  Art. 23 - Prohibition of traffic in human beings and
of other backward classes (which includes STs); beggar and other similar form of forced labour;
 Art. 29 - Protection of Interests of Minorities  Art. 24 - Forbidding Child Labour.
(which includes STs);
 Art. 46 - The State shall promote, with special
care, the educational and economic interests of
Political Safeguards
the STs
 Art.164(1) - Provides for Tribal Affairs Ministers in Bihar,
 Art. 350 - Right to conserve distinct Language,
MP and Orissa;
Script or Culture;
 Art. 330 - Reservation of seats for STs in Lok Sabha;
 Art. 350 - Instruction in Mother Tongue.
 Art. 337- Reservation of seats for STs in State
Legislatures;
Economic Safeguards  Art. 334 - 10 years period for reservation (Amended
 Art.244 – Clause (1) Provisions of Fifth Schedule several times to extend the period.);
shall apply to the administration & control of the  Art. 243 - Reservation of seats in Panchayats.
Scheduled Areas and Scheduled Tribes in any
State other than the states of Assam, Meghalaya,  Art. 371 - Special provisions in respect of NE States and
Mizoram and Tripura which are covered under Sikkim
Sixth Schedule, under Clause (2) of this Article.
 Art. 275 - Grants in-Aid to specified States (STs & Service Safeguards
SAs) covered under Fifth and Sixth Schedules of Under Art.16(4),16(4A),164(B) Art.335, and Art. 320(40)
the Constitution.
In spite of the Constitutional safeguards, tribal’s welfare and progress has been slow. The reasons behind it are as
follows:
 Weak execution of programs and schemes- due to which tribals except that of the north-east continue to remain
poor, indebted, landless and unemployed.
 Divergence in Central and state government policies- which acts as hindrance in development.
 Non-expenditure of the allocated resources- the resources allocated to the tribals are either not spent or spent
without corresponding results.
 Lack of sensitization of administration- towards the tribals.
 Violation of laws- laws pertaining to transfer of lands from tribals to non-tribals continue to be evaded.

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 Industrialization and urbanization- which continues to take place at the cost of forests on which tribals are
dependent.
 Slow progress of education- education when not provided in the language of the tribals disinterests them.
 Class difference- has been developing in the tribal societies and fruits of development are reaped by the elites of
the tribals.
THE PUNJAB CRISIS OF THE 1980S

Punjab was engulfed by a separatist movement in the 1980s that morphed into a terror campaign and has been
correctly defined by some as a low-intensity war and a dangerous crisis for the Indian nation.
Genesis of the separatist movement
 Sikh nationalism- the two movements viz., the Singh Sabha movement and the Akali movement helped in
propagating sikh nationalism through Khalsa schools.
 Growth of communalism- the akalis asserted that religion and politics cannot be separated in skihism.
 Allegation of discrimination against the sikhs- by the Akalis.
 Partition of India- partition was tragic event particularly for the people of Punjab who lost their traditional
lands to Punjab and also the loss of near and dear one in post partition violence.
 Anandpur Sahib resolution- which demanded autonomy for the state of Punjab. It also sought the right to
frame its own constitution.
 Khalistan movement- in which leaders like Jarnail Singh Bhindranwale propagated the idea of return to Khalsa
or more orthodox form of Sikhism.
 Role of Pakistan- it provided training, weapons, ideological indoctrination and safe areas for hiding terrorists.
TERRORISM IN PUNJAB
 Violence on Nirankari sect: The terrorist campaign by Bindranwale and his associates began on 24 April, 1980
with the killing of the head of Nirankari sect.
 Hindus become new target: Terrorist’s killings till September,1983 was limited to Nirankaris, government
officials and sikhs who were opposed to Bhindranwale, but after September, indiscriminate killings of Hindus
started.
 Lootings and robberies: They also resorted to lootings of banks, jewellery shops and home guard armouries.
 Bhindranwale sheltering in Akal Takht: In December, 1983, Bhindranwale moved into the safe haven of Akal
Takht of Golden temple, hoping to evade action by the state.
 Proving Indian state as incapable: All the activities of the terrorists were aimed at proving that Indian state
was incapable of ruling in Punjab and hence separation was a logical conclusion.
RESPONSE OF THE GOVERNMENT

 Indecisiveness of the government: Initially the government’s response was that of indecisiveness.
Government refused to take action against the terrorists for three long years.
 In the words of KPS Gill, the former DGP of Punjab, ‘Nothing encourages the terrorists to greater audacity than
the spectacle of weakness in the political leadership, and of confusion in the security forces.’
 Loss of Police’s morale: Failure of the government to act at the time of murder of a Sikh, A.S. Atwal, DIG of
police created a scene of chaos in Punjab.

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 Military response from the government: Finally, in June 1984, government was forced to take military action
as the situation was growing out of Control.
 Operation Blue Star: In the military operation codenamed as Operation Blue Star, terrorists were flushed out
of Golden temple which included the killing of Bhindranwale.
 Collateral damage: However, there was severe collateral damage. Many innocents lost their live, Akal Takht
was virtually razed to ground and Harminder Sahib was riddled with bullet marks.
THE AFTERMATH OF OPERATION BLUESTAR

 Assassination of Indira Gandhi: After the operation, the terrorists vowed vengeance against Indira Gandhi.
She was assassinated on 31 October, 1984 by two of sikh security guards.
 Anti-Sikh riots: The assassination was followed by anti-sikh riots particularly in Delhi and north India in which
many innocent sikhs lost their lives.
 Succession of Rajiv Gandhi: Rajiv Gandhi succeeded Indira Gandhi and released many jailed leaders including
H.S. Longowal.
 Punjab Accord: In August 1985, Rajiv Gandhi and H.S. Longowal signed the Punjab accord to find solution to
the problem of Punjab.
 Victory of Akalis: Elections were conducted September 1985 in which Akalis emerged victorious.
 Failure to control militancy: The Akali government failed to control militancy in Punjab and thus President’s
rule was imposed in May 1987.
 Control of militancy by Narsimha Rao government: However, things did not improve until the coming of P.V.
Narsimha Rao at the centre and Congress government in Punjab in 1992 who took stern measures to control
militancy.
 By 1993, Punjab was virtually freed of terrorism.
THE KASHMIR ISSUES

The accession of Kashmir into the Indian state has already been dealt with in the chapter of Integration of Princely
states.
Jammu and Kashmir after the accession
 Occupation of Kashmir by Pakistan: Kashmir was divided into two parts at the time of accession: one portion
went to India, and the other was occupied by Pakistan. Despite the UN's involvement, India and Pakistan have
not reached an agreement on Kashmir.
 Denial of basic rights: Western Pakistani refugees, who fled the country in 1947, continue to be denied basic
rights and identity in the country. These individuals are eligible to vote in Lok Sabha elections but not in local
body or assembly elections.
 Conditional state subject rights: As Safai Karamcharis, around 200 Valmiki families were brought from Punjab
to J&K in 1957. They have been granted conditional state subject rights, which means they can own property
but not work.
 Anti-India protests: The valley faced curfew several times when anti-India protests intensified in 1988.
 Peak of terrorism: During 1989, terror reached its climax in the state with state sponsored terrorism from
Pakistan. Political instability reached to a level where Farooq Abdullah had to resign as CM.
 In the military firing of January, 1990, around hundred people were killed. After the incident militant activities
increase exponentially in the valley.
 Attack on Doordarshan: In one of the incident, Doordarshan of Srinagar was attacked and its director was
killed.

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 Exodus of Kashmiri pandits: Attacks on the Hindu community also started which led to the exodus of Kashmiri
pandits from the valley. The Kashmiri pandits have been demanding rehabilitation for a long time which have
still not been met.
About Article 370 and 35A
 Special Status: Article 370 granted special status to the state of Jammu and Kahsmir.
 Limited application of Constitutional provisions: The Constitutional provisions were hitherto not applicable
to Jammu and Kashmir except for defence, foreign affairs and communications.
 Separate constitution and flag: Jammu Kashmir had a separate flag, constitution and penal code.
 Permanent Citizenship: Article 35A gave the power of deciding permanent citizens of the state to the
legislative assembly of the state.
 Revocation of special status: On 5th August, 2019, President of India revoked the special status granted to the
state of Jammu and Kashmir under Article 370.
 This was done by issuing Constitution (Application to Jammu and Kashmir) Order, 2019 in exercise of the
powers conferred by Clause (1) of Article 370.
 Jammu and Kashmir Reorganization bill: Further, the Jammu and Kashmir Reorganization Bill, 2019, passed
by Parliament divides the state of Jammu and Kashmir into two new Union Territories (UTs): Jammu & Kashmir,
and Ladakh.
IMPLICATIONS OF THE REVOCATION OF SPECIAL STATUS

 No separate constitution: Jammu and Kashmir(J&K) will no longer have a separate constitution, flag and
anthem.
 Single citizenship: J & K will now have single citizenship instead of dual citizenship.
 Applicability of laws: All laws passed by the Parliament will now be applicable to J & K including the Right to
Information Act
 IPC: The Ranbir Penal Code will be replaced by Indian Penal Code
 Article 35 A which hitherto gave special rights and privileges to the permanent residents of the state stands
null and void
STATUS OF UNION TERRITORY OF J & K AND LADAKH

 J & K will have five Lok Sabha seats while Ladakh will have one Lok Sabha seat.
 J & K will have a Lt Governor instead of Governor.
 The UT of J & K will have an Assembly, like in Delhi and Puducherry which will have a term of five years
 The assembly can make laws on the subjects mentioned in the state list and concurrent list except public order
and police
Why was the special status revoked? Positives of revoking special status of J & K
The need for revoking the special status was felt due to the  Mainstreaming of the people of J & K and
following reasons. Ladakh with the rest of India by bringing
 Temporary provision - Article 370 was incorporated in the uniformity in laws and policies and
Constitution as temporary and transition provision schemes.
 Democratic deficit- a number of progressive laws such as  Strengthening of democratic principles –
Right to Information Act, Right to Education were not by application of progressive laws like RTI,
applicable to J & K

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 Mal governance – due to lack of accountability on the Right to education, SC and ST (Prevention
government people of J & K suffered from mal governance of atrocities) Act etc
 Insurgency – J & K is suffering from insurgency which started  Inclusive development of the people of J &
during the early 1990s K and Ladakh.
 International events – like the resurgence of the Taliban in  Decline in insurgency- according to reports
Afghanistan and rapprochement of US and Pakistan called for recruitment of terrorist in the region has
sorting out issues in J & K fallen by 42%
 Alienation of Ladakh – which led to the degradation of socio-  Economic Growth – with increased
economic status of the people of Ladakh avenues for investment economic
 Rehabilitation of Kashmiri pandits requires a conducive activities in the two UTs are bound to rise.
environment.
ISSUES ASSOCIATED WITH REVOKING OF SPECIAL STATUS

 Constitutional Issue: According to clause (3) of Article 370, President would require recommendations of the
Constituent Assembly of Jammu and Kashmir to revoke the special status.
o However, to overcome this challenge a subclause was added to Article 367, according to which the
term Constituent Assembly of Jammu and Kashmir means the Legislative assembly of Jammu and
Kashmir and Government of Jammu and Kashmir means Governor of Jammu and Kashmir acting on
the aid and advice of Council of Ministers.
 Special status of J & K was revoked without bringing a constitutional amendment
 Violation of Article 3 – which requires referring the bill for reorganization of state to the state legislature.
However, this was not done in case of J & K
 Issue of federalism – This is the first case in India where a state has been degraded to the status of Union
Territory.
 Violation of international principles – the maxim of pacta sunt servanda requires that instrument of accession
must be honoured.
 Judicial interpretation of special status of J & K – the supreme court in Santosh Kumar Vs State of Jammu and
Kashmir and others said that J & K had special status due to historical reasons.
 No concurrence of state assembly: In another case of SBI Vs Zaffar Ullah Nehru, the Supreme court had held
that Article 370 cannot be repealed without the concurrence of the Constituent Assembly of Jammu and
Kashmir.
NORTH EASTERN STATES

 Differential treatment by the British: Throughout the colonial period, North east (NE) was treated separately
and differently from the rest of the India.
 Part of Bengal Province: The region formed part of Bengal province and it was treated as if it were as adjacent
subordinate area of Bengal province even when it became a separate province of Assam in 1874.
 Introduction of Line System: With Bengal Eastern Frontier Regulation of 1873, a line system was introduced
on the pretext of protecting minority indigenous ethnic groups.
 Problem in national integration: The history of separation and isolation from the rest of the India during the
colonial period created problem for national integration.
 North-East at the time of independence: At the time of independence, NE region composed of Assam plains
of the old Assam province, the hill districts, the NE frontier tracts of the NE borderland and the princely states
of Manipur and Tripura.

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 Integration of Sikkim: Initially Sikkim was Indian protectorate state which became full-fledged Indian state in
1975.
Formation of NE states
 Creation of Nagaland: The Indian government conceded to the demand of separate state of Nagaland in 1963
after the Indo-China war of 1962, heightened demand for separate Nagaland and growing insurgency in the
region.
 Subsequent creation of other states: With the establishment of Nagaland, demands for separate state from
other hill regions grew stronger. Thus, in course of time several states came into existence viz., Manipur,
Meghalaya, Tripura, Arunachal Pradesh and Mizoram.
Issues of NE regions
 According to the second ARC report, NE region represents a state of constant anarchy where rule of law and
governance are subverted to serve the needs of militants.
 Alienation- the geographical inaccessibility combined with broader racial differences with the rest of the India
creates a sense of alienation.
 Ethnic tensions- NE is home to more than 50 ethnic rebel groups, where some are demanding complete
autonomy while others are demanding ethnic homeland.
 Specific regional issue- such as inter-tribal conflict, illegal migration from the neighbouring states,
unemployment of youth etc.
STEPS TAKEN BY THE GOVERNMENT TO TACKLE THE ISSUE

 Armed Forces Special Powers Act (AFSPA) was enacted to deal with the militancy and insurgency in the region.
 In the early 1990s military operations named as Operation Rhino and Bajrang were launched to deal with ULFA
militants.
 Assam Rifles deal with the insurgents of Assam.
 Peace talks with the rebels- for eg., dialogue with MNF ended militancy in Mizoram in 1986.
 Development initiatives- such as the creation of new ministry of DONER to specifically deal with NE region.
 Provision of the fifth and sixth schedule areas to provide autonomy in the scheduled and the tribal areas.
 Accepting the demand for the creation of new states.
THE NAXALITE MOVEMENT

 Dissatisfaction of young leaders to CPM policies: A section of the CPM consisting of young leaders accused
the party of falling prey to parliamentarism.
 Peasant uprising in Naxalbari: The rebel CPM leaders started peasant uprising in small Naxalbari area of West
Bengal.
 Expulsion of Naxalites by CPM: The CPM expelled the rebel leaders who came to be known as Naxalites.
 Attraction of youths to Naxalite movement: The Naxalite movement drew many young people especially
college and university students who were dissatisfied with current politics.
 Formation of CPI(ML): In 1969, Communist Party- Marxist Leninist (ML) came into existence under the
leadership of Charu Mazumdar.
 Ideologies of CPI(ML):
o The CPI(ML) believed that Indian state was fascist and the agrarian relation was still feudal.
o They believed that protracted guerrilla warfare based on China model was the form of revolution that
India should take.

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 Limited success: The CPI (ML) was successful in organizing armed peasant bands in some areas and in attacking
policemen and rival CPI as agents of ruling class.
 Failure to root ideology: However, they failed in rooting their ideology in rural India.
 Division in the party: Faced with state repression, they split into various groups.
 Further downfall: The disavowal of Cultural revolution and Maoism in 1960s and early 1970s by the post Mao
leadership further contributed to their downfall.
The process of national integration is an ongoing process which never ceases. Although, India has achieved many
successes in controlling secessionist movements and preventing disintegrating forces from achieving their objectives,
a lot needs to be done to control militancy, terrorism and left wing extremism. Further the inter-states conflicts based
on various issues such as unresolved boundaries, water disputes needs to be resolved amicably.

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FOREIGN POLICY
India’s foreign policy has evolved since independence. After independence, India chose to pursue independent foreign
policy based on non-alignment. India tried to maintain cordial relations with both the super powers but its support
was totally based on issues. With time, India moved from idealism to realism. For eg., the treaty of friendship with the
Soviet Union was done to protect India’s interests against hostile neighbours. In the new millennium, India has moved
from non-alignment to multi-alignment with greater emphasis on economic relationship. India has also placed greater
emphasis on neighbourhood before placing itself as one of the poles of multipolar world.
FEATURES OF INDIA’S FOREIGN POLICY POST-INDEPENDENCE

 Independent foreign policy: India pursued an independent foreign policy in spite of the fact that she was
economically weak and food insecure.
 To remain non-aligned: India chose not to be part of either of the two blocs in which the world was divided after
the second world war. India’s non-alignment policy was far beyond being just neutral to having freedom to decide
each issue on its merit.
o Her non-alignment policy advanced the process of democratization of international relations by
encouraging the newly independent countries to pursue independence in foreign policy.
 Against colonialism: India supported the colonial and ex-colonial countries in their struggle against colonialism.
For example, efforts were made at Asian relations Conference to unite states bordering Indian Ocean against the
Dutch attempts to recolonise Indonesia in 1948.
 Promoted world peace and nuclear disarmament. For example, at the Belgrade meet of 1961, Nehru along with
Nasser of Egypt and Tito of Yugoslavia called for nuclear disarmament.
 Protection of economic interest: Another major function of the policy was to protect her economic interest. For
this, she developed economic ties with the countries of both the blocs. For example, while the steel plant of Bhilai
was established with the support of Soviet Union, the steel plant of Rourkela was established with the help of
Germany.
 Militarily too, she was not dependent on a single country. For example, India bought 104 Toofani aircraft from
France, 26Mi-4 helicopters from Soviet Union.
 Active member: India also maintained active membership of various UN bodies, IMF and the World Bank.
REASONS BEHIND INDIA PURSUING INDEPENDENT FOREIGN POLICY

 India’s principles during freedom struggle: India had gained independence by relying on non-violence,
democratic values, struggle against colonialism etc. These principles would have remained meaningless if India
was not to pursue independent foreign policy.
o India’s great civilization made it imperative to pursue independent foreign policy.
 To avoid power struggle: Joining either of the blocs would have resulted in India becoming pawn in the contest
for power.
 Newly independent nation: The immediate task before India was to fight poverty, mass illiteracy, secure food
security etc. These tasks could not have been achieved without remaining non-aligned.
 To play active role in world politics: By pursuing an independent foreign policy, India was able to play active
role in world politics. For eg., the support provided to the newly independent country of the Congo.
 Secure cooperation from both blocks: By remaining non-aligned India secured economic co-operation from
both the blocs. India received technology and food aid from both the Western countries and the Soviet Union.

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INDIA’S ROLE IN INTERNATIONAL AFFAIRS
THE KOREAN WAR

 Division of Korea: After the end of second world war, Korea was divided into communist North controlled
soviet camp and South Korea controlled by western powers.
 Indian support to US: In 1950, North Korea invaded S. Korea. At this instance, India supported the US, calling
N. Korea as the aggressor.
 To prevent outside interference: But when the US decided to set up unified command in Korea for protecting
the south, India abstained from voting in the UN for it wanted to prevent entry of outside powers into the
conflict.
 The US forces under the command of the UN after pushing N. Korea out of south crossed the 38th parallel into
the north.
 Chinese aggression: China sent its troops in support of N. Korea. For this, US framed a resolution in the UN
declaring China as the aggressor.
 India voted against this resolution, as clearly in this case US was the aggressor.
 Finally, a formula framed by Krishna Menon was accepted in the UN for the Korean problem.
 A Neutral Nations Repatriation Commission was set up with an Indian, Gen Thimayya, as its chairman.
FRENCH INDO-CHINA CONFLICT

 French Indo-China was French colonial territories in South East Asia.
 US support to France: In the French Colonial war with the Viet Minh(of Democratic Republic of Vietnam), US
wanted to support France.
 India’s role: India played a vital role to obtain guarantees from China for the neutralisation of Cambodia and
Laos in return for the promises made by Britain and France that they would not allow US to have bases there.
 Supervision by India: India supervised the imports of foreign armaments into Lao, Cambodia and Vietnam as
the Chairman of International Control Commission.
SUEZ CANAL
 Nationalisation of canal: In 1956, Egypt nationalized the Suez Canal in response to the US and Britain’s
pressure on her to renounce its policy of non-alignment.
 The Western powers like the Britain and France who were the users of the canal demanded international
control over it.
 India’s stand: India maintained that Suez Canal was integral part of Egypt under the Constantinople
Convention (1988).
o At the London’s Conference,1956, India devised a formula where Egypt would retain control of the
canal and there would be advisory role for the users.
 Attack on Egypt: However, France and Britain got Israel to attack Egypt.
 The withdrawal of the foreign troops took under UN supervision and the Indian troops participated in large
numbers in peace keeping force.
 India continued to support Egypt: In the subsequent negotiation, India continued to support Egypt while the
interests of Britain and other users.
HUNGARY

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 The Soviet Union intruded in Hungary in 1956 to crush the rebellion whose objective was to take Hungary out
of the Soviet bloc.
 Indian stand: Though India officially did not condemn the Soviet’s action, she did not send ambassador to
Budapest for two years to show unhappiness.
THE CONGO
 Congo gained independence: The copper rich Katanga province (of Congo) led by Tshombe announced
independence not much after the Congo had gained independence from Belgium. Tshombe was backed by
Belgium who sent its troops to Congolese capital apparently to protect her citizens.
 All the global powers got involved in the Congo with US supporting the President Kasavubu, Soviet supporting
PM Lumumba and the Belgians supporting the army leader.
 Indian role: After the murder of Lumumba, India demanded UN to play a decisive role, get rid of foreign troops,
stop the civil war, convene the Parliament and form a new government.
 The Security Council adopted a resolution in 1961 to stop the civil war. The Indian armed forces successfully
brought civil war to the close.
RELATIONSHIP WITH THE SUPERPOWERS
USA
India desired friendly relationship with the US for she needed technology, machines, development aid, food for her
people and moral support in nation building process.
However, the friendship could not develop due to the following reasons:
 Support to Pakistan: The UN Security Council, dominated by US and its allies evaded a decision on the Indian
charge of Pakistani aggression in 1948 in spite of the fact that UN Commission reported presence of Pakistani
troops in Kashmir.
 India’s recognition of Communist China was unpalatable to the US.
 India’s stand on Korea: US did not appreciate India’s stand in the Korean war when she voted against US’s
resolution in the UN charging China as the aggressor.
 Arms supply to Pakistan: Pakistan, ostensibly was provided arms in 1952 by the US to deal with the Soviet’s
threat from Afghanistan. However, the kind of arms provided could never cross Hindu Kush and could only be
used against India.
 On the issue of Goa’s integration to India, US took the side of Portugal.
It has been opined that even if India had wished to align with the US, its antipathy towards India would not have
decreased. This was due to the following reasons:
 Dislike for the Congress: The US had inherited from the British who had helped in setting up CIA, the dislike
for the Congress which had brought down the mighty British empire.
 Warm attitude for Muslim league: This was in contrast to the positive attitude towards the Muslim league
which was considered pro-British and supported in war efforts.
 Anticipation about India: It had anticipated that because of India’s diversity, it would disintegrate and hence
cannot form bulwark against communism.
 Pro-colonial trened in USA: There were strong pro-colonial trends in America which had supported British and
French to return to their colonies after the war.
At the same time, there were some positives too in the relationship.
 People to people relations remain friendly.

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 Economic ties grew as the US was the source of machine and technology.
 The Soviet’s friendship with India increased India’s value.
 The Kennedy administration made an effort to improve the relation with India by sending Galbraith as
ambassador who had likings for India.
 The relations also changed with the Chinese attack on India, when India looked towards US for help.
PRESENT STATUS:
 Civil nuclear deal: The India-US relationship did not see much improvement until the end of cold war. Things
took positive turn after the India US civil nuclear deal. From then onwards, relationship has been improving
by leaps and bounds.
 Multi-faceted relation: India-US relations have become increasingly multi-faceted, covering cooperation in
areas such as trade, defense and security, education, science and technology, civil nuclear energy, space
technology and applications, environment, and health.
 Strengthen defence relation: India's relationship with the US especially on defence and strategic issues has
strengthened. For eg., there has been change in U.S. export control laws that places India in a privileged
category of NATO and non-NATO U.S. allies. The US has also designated India as an integral part of the Indo-
pacific narrative by the conception of Quad.
SOVIET UNION
 The relationship with the USSR started on a cooler note. The reasons for this are:
- There was a perception in Soviet that India was still under the imperialist influence.
- Communists’ ambivalence towards the Indian freedom struggle was transferred to the independent Indian nation.
- India’s decision to stay in the Commonwealth of nations was seen as proof of India’s surrender to imperialism.
 However, with time relations started to improve especially after India’s role in the Korean war crisis.
 Food and material supplies: When US vacillated over its decision to send food supplies to India, Soviet sent
supplies to help India tide over the draught. During the early 1960s, India received supply dropping aircraft,
helicopters and engineering equipment for the Border Roads Development Board, which helped in
constructing roads along the borders with China.
o Though the western powers had promised military support after the China war, it was Soviet Union
who provided us with arms, ships and aircrafts which bolstered the capability of the armed forces
 USSR support to in national integration: From 1955 onwards, Soviet gave full support to India on the Kashmir
issue. It used or threatened to use its veto power on the Kashmir issue in the security council which were
unfavourable to India.
o USSR also supported India on integration of Goa.
 During China’s aggression: During the most crucial time of China’s aggression on India, Soviet Union
maintained neutrality, which was a great achievement for India at that time.
 Military support: In 1962, Soviets allowed India to manufacture MiG aircrafts. India became the first non-
communist country to acquire this capability.
 Economic development: It was not possible to navigate the path of economic development without the help
of USSR. It helped in establishing steel plants in Bhilai and Bokaro. By 1973-74, it was estimated that 85 percent
of our machine-making machines were produced in projects set up with Soviet aid.
 However, it was not a one-sided affair. Soviet Union too gained from the friendly relations with India.
- India was an entry point for the USSR of the newly independent Afro-Asian countries, which helped in the cold
war.

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- Soviets had a long border with China with many disputed areas, friendship with India kept China in check.
- India’s non-alignment tilted the balance away from the west which was a help for the Soviets.
PRESENT STATUS:
 Although, the ties of India and other western countries have improved, it has not in any way lessened the good
ties with Russia. India and Russia continue to share a common strategic rationale for their relationship. Apart
from bilateral synergies, the two are members of various multilateral organizations including BRICS, RIC, G20,
East Asia Summit, and SCO—where avenues for cooperation on issues of mutual importance exist.
RELATIONSHIP WITH NEIGHBOURS
NEPAL
 India signed treaty of Peace and Friendship in 1950 with Nepal.
 This gave unrestricted commercial transit through India to Nepal.
 It also secured Nepal’s total sovereignty at the same time making both the countries responsible for each
other’s security.
 In the recent years, Nepal seems to be drifting towards China.
 China considers Nepal as a key partner in Belt and Road initiative and plans to invest in the infrastructure
and provide passage for Nepali imports and exports.
 Nepal has also drew a new political map claiming Indian territories of Limpiyadhura, Kalapani and Lipulekh
la.
 Considering the strategic significance of Nepal, India is dealing diplomatically to resolve the border
dispute.
 Further, the vaccine diplomacy and investment in infrastructure projects apart from historical friendly
relations is poised to take India Nepal relations to a higher trajectory.
BURMA
 With Burma too, the issues of Indian settlers and long unchartered territory was settled amicably.
 India considers Myanmar an important neighbour given its strategic significance and as such has invested in
infrastructure and connectivity projects.
 However, the recent issues of Rohingyas and military coup seems to present challenge in the India Myanmar
relations.
PAKISTAN
 Though India and Pakistan share cultural, geographical, linguistic and economic ties yet their relationship has
been mired in complexity.
 The partition of India and Pakistan was associated with one of the largest communal violence with an
estimated loss of one million lives. It also displaced around 12.5 million people.
 Pakistan’s first mis-adventurism against India was just after independence when it sent militants in Kashmir to
force merge the state into Pakistan. The details of which has been discussed in the chapter- Integration of
Princely states.
WAR OF 1965

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- India China war as ray of hope for Pakistan: The 1962 debacle of India at the hands of China sent ray of hopes in
Pakistan who looked it as an opportunity to attack India.
- Pakistan’s occupation of Rann og Kuch: In 1965, Pakistan occupied a disputed and un-demarcated area in the
Rann of Kutch. However, both sides agreed to refer the dispute to international arbitration.
- Undeclared war by Pakistan: In the month of August in the same year, Pakistan started undeclared war against
India by sending well trained infiltrators in the Kashmir valley.
- Aggressive reply from India: In response, the then PM of India, Lal Bahadur Shastri ordered the army to cross the
ceasefire line and seal the passes through which infiltrators were coming.
- Pakistan’s further attack and strong response from India: Pakistan then launched massive tank and infantry attack
on India. Shatri ordered troops not only to defend Kashmir but also to move towards Lahore and Sialkot.
- Ceasefire: Under the pressure of UN security council, both sides agreed to ceasefire.
- India was successful in not only defending its own territory but also gaining some strategic locations of Pakistani
territory.
- Tashkent agreement: Finally, both sides agreed to pre-war situation through the Tashkent agreement.
Positives for India
- Restoration of lost pride: India’s lost pride after the loss to China was restored.
- Politically stronger and unified India: India emerged as politically stronger and more unified.
- Litmus test of secularism: India’s test of secularism passed with flying colours; Indian muslims had given whole
hearted support to the war, muslims in the armed forces fought as bravely as other counterparts, infiltrators failed
in getting support of the Kashmiri people.
Negatives for India
- Soviet Union belied hopes: The Soviet Union belied hopes when unfavourable terms to India were put in the
Tashkent agreement.
- Loss of strategic locations: As a result of Tashkent agreement, India lost strategic locations like the Haji pir pas
which she had gained in the war.
- Death of Shastri: PM Shastri died of sudden heart attack in Tashkent which created uncertainty in Indian politics.
WAR OF 1971-72
- Reason behind the war: The reason for the war was the conflict between east and west Pakistan.
- Discrimination of East Pakistan by West Pakistan: The central Pakistani government seated in west Pakistan
refused Sheikh Mujibur Rehman, whose party won majority in the 1970 general elections to become the PM of
Pakistan.
- Suppression of demonstrations: The agitations and protests that culminated in east Pakistan was heavily
suppressed by the Pakistani government. This led to the thousands of people from east Pakistan seeking refuge in
India.
- Involvement of India: India became involved in the conflict after Pakistani air force launched pre-emptive strikes
in India’s north-west.
- India’s retaliation: India retaliated with well-co-ordinated attacks from the three forces leading to surrender of
Pakistani army in Dhaka.
- New country of Bangladesh is born: The ultimate result of the war was that a new country in the form of
Bangladesh came into existence.
GAINS FOR INDIA FROM THE BANGLADESH WAR

- India as pre-eminent power: India emerged as the pre-eminent power in the South Asian region.

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- Solution of refugee problem: Refugee problem was solved to a large extent with around ten million refugees
promptly and safely sent back to their homes in Bangladesh.
- Independence in foreign affairs: India’s independence in foreign affairs was asserted through this war. India
emerged victorious even though major powers like US were against India.
- Blow to the two nation theory: The emergence of Bangladesh was big blow to the two-nation theory.
- Gain of strategic locations: India got strategic location of the Kargil sector which was helpful in safeguarding the
road link between Srinagar and Leh.
- Simla agreement: Through the Simla agreement, India and Pakistan agreed to resolve all differences bilaterally
without the interference of outside power.
Challenges for India after the war
- Refugee problem: India had to deal with the refugee problem in the North-east.
- Diversification of resources: to the war affected developmental efforts.
- Economic crisis: India faced with serious economic problems like high inflation, slump in industrial and agricultural
growth, unemployment etc.
KARGIL WAR OF 1999

- Conflict broke out when Pakistani forces intruded and occupied strategic locations on the Indian side of the LoC.
- India launched counter offensive in which Pakistani forces were pushed back to the original side of the LoC.
Implications of the war
- It was the first war after both the countries had tested nuclear weapons.
- Recognising potential of escalation in the war, President Bill Clinton of US demanded Pakistani side to rein in their
troops.
PRESENT STATUS
 Proxy wars by Pakistan: The twenty-first century witnessed several proxy wars being carried out by Pakistan. The
recent being the Pulawama terrorist attack in which 40 CRPF personnel died. Thus, the India Pakistan continues to
ride the rough patch.
 Intent to resolve the issue: In the latest of the developments, in February 2021, India and Pakistan issued a joint
statement for the first time in years, announcing that they would observe the 2003 ceasefire along the Line of
Control (LoC). The countries have agreed to a strict observance of all agreements, understandings and cease firing
along the Line of Control (LoC) and all other sectors with effect from the midnight of February 24-25, 2021.
CHINA
 Policy of friendship: India chose to adopt a policy of friendship from the very beginning.
 Fully aware of China’s character: PM Nehru in knew that a strong China is expansionist China, but choosing
to be friendly with China was nothing but an imperative for India.
 Delaying hostility from China: With Pakistan already hostile towards India, having such an attitude towards
China would have meant preparing for two front war and diverting precious resources towards strengthening
of military.
 India had hoped that with the common experience of suffering imperialism, the two would join hands to tackle
poverty and under-development.
 India recognises China: India became the first non-socialist country to recognise China.

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 India avoids confronting China on Tibet issue: In the year 1950, when China annexed Tibet, India was unhappy
that she was not taken into confidence but did not question China’s right over it as Tibet had been subjugated
by China many time in history.
 India-China signed a treaty in 1954, wherein India recognised China’s right over Tibet and both the sides
agreed to be governed by the principles of Panchsheel.
 Dalai Lama enters India with his followers: In 1959, following a revolt in Tibet, Dalai Lama fled to India along
with his followers.
 The asylum provided by India to the Dalai Lama irked the Chinese and small skirmishes began to take place at
the border.
CHINESE AGGRESSION OF 1962

- Attack on Thagla ridge: Chinese troops attacked Thagla ridge on 8 September,1962 and dislodged India troops.
- This was considered as minor incident by the Indian PM.
- Attack incursion in the NEFA: In October 1962, Chinese army over ran the Indian posts in eastern sector in NEFA.
- Wester sector was attacked: In the western sector too, thirteen forward posts were captured by the Chinese in
the Galwan valley.
- Unilateral withdrawal: However, the Chinese army declared unilateral withdrawal after 24 hours.
Impact of the war
- Loss of self-respect: It dealt a heavy blow to the self-respect of newly independent country.
- Setback for non-alignment policy: The policy of non-alignment seemed to have suffered a huge set back.
- India’s need of Western powers: India could no longer ignore the Western powers as India had reached to the US
for help during the war.
- Opportunistic Pakistan: Pakistan tried to make everything out of this opportunity by creating pressure from the
western powers on India to surrender Kashmir in return for military aid.
- Links with US agencies: US agencies developed link in India in the name of Countering Chinese threat. They even
planted a nuclear-powered device in the Himalayas to monitor Chinese military activity.
- Military agreements with the US: To strengthen the armed forces, India signed military agreements with the US.
 For nearly three decades, India China relations saw no thaw until the visit of the then PM Rajiv Gandhi to China
in 1986.
 The visit was followed by efforts to solve long standing issues, improve trade and extension of consular contacts.
PRESENT STATUS
 Though India China relations have gone through roller coaster, the recent couple of years have seen the low
point of the relations with the Galwan valley stand off continuing till date.
 "The relationship right now is going through a very difficult phase, because in violation of agreements and
understandings of many, many years the Chinese have deployed a very large part of their military on and close
to the Line of Actual Control without explanation." – India’s foreign minister S. Jaishankar
 Earlier, India and China conducted two informal dialogues between the head of the states. The relationship
seemed to have improved for brief period until the occurrence of global pandemic and Chinese incursions in
India’s territory.
 However, both the sides continue to hold talks in order to resolve the issue peacefully.

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SRI-LANKA
 Issue of Tamils: The major focal point in the India Sri-Lanka relationship has been the issue of Sri-Lankan
Tamils.
 Immigration of Sri Lankan Tamils in India: The problem began when thousands of Tamils from Sri Lanka fled
to Tamil Nadu in India in 1983.
 Repression by Sri Lankan government: This was in response to the heavy repression by the Sri Lankan
government on Jaffna, the base of the Liberation Tigers of the Tamil Eelam (LTTE).
 LTTE: The organization of LTTE was fighting for Tamil autonomy and later independence from Sri Lanka.
 People in favour of Tamilian issue: Public opinion in India, especially in Tamil Nadu was strongly in favour of
India doing something to help the Sri Lankan Tamils.
 Rajiv Gandhi Jayewardene accord: Rajiv Gandhi and President Jayewardene signed an accord by which Sri-
Lanka’s northern and eastern region where Tamils were in majority would be merged in a single province and
sufficient autonomy would be provided.
 The accord also said that LTTE would be dissolved and Indian army could be called by the Sri-Lankan govt. to
implement the accord.
 LTTE fights India: However, LTTE was not taken into confidence and the Indian army got involved in messy
fight with Tamil guerrillas.
 Withdrawal of troops by India: The Indian government had to finally withdraw their troops in 1989 with the
change in government in Sri-Lanka.
The aftermath
- Assassination of Rajiv Gandhi: In 1991, an LTTE suicide bomber killed Rajiv Gandhi at the public meeting near
Chennai.
- End of popular support to Tamil issue: This ended the popular support Tamil militants had enjoyed in Tamil Nadu.
- Withdrawal of India: India had to scale down its active involvement in Sri-Lanka.
- Defeat of LTTE: Ultimately, LTTE was crushed in the fourth round of war in 2009.
Why the Rajiv-Jayewardene accord could not succeed?
- Too ambitious: It was too ambitious in its scope trying to address all the three contentious issues between India
and Sri-Lanka i.e., strategic interests, people of Indian origin in Sri-Lanka and Tamil minority rights in Sri-Lanka.
- Lack of political support: Its success depended on sustained political support from both the countries. So, the
accord got side lined, when leader unhappy with the accord came to power.
Present status
 Recently, the India-Sri-Lanka relation revolves around the influence of China in Sri-Lanka, fishermen issue and the
UNHRC resolution against Sri-Lanka.
EVOLUTION OF INDIA’S FOREIGN POLICY

India’s foreign policy shaped in response to the global political and social order which can be categorised into three
phases.
PHASE1 – 1947 TO 1991

 Two poles post the world wars: World was dominated by two rival super powers viz., the USA and the USSR.
 Birth of United Nations: United Nations was born which was shaped by the victorious World war II allies i.e.,
USA, USSR, UK and France.

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 Control of economic system by the West: Global economic and financial system was usurped by the US and
its European allies who developed the Bretton Woods arrangement viz., the World Bank and the IMF.
 GATT/WTO shaped the global trade.
 Non-alignment: India’s response was to adopt the policy of non-alignment.
 It meant that India did not identify with either of the super power but aimed to get political, economic and
security support from both the camps.
 Stable phase: This was stable phase of India’s foreign policy and best suited for the time.
PHASE 2 – 1991 TO 2008

 Collapse of Soviet Union and balance of payments crisis in India: The two major events of this phase were
the collapse of former USSR and the balance of payment crisis.
 US as sole super power: US remained as the major political, economic and military power.
 Lesser Poles: Lesser other poles of the world included European Union, Russia, China, Asia including Japan and
India and Brazil in South America.
 India’s response was to wean itself away from non-alignment to multi alignment.
 LPG reforms: Opened herself to globalization and paid attention to the immediate neighbours.
PHASE 3 – 2008 TO PRESENT TIMES

 Sub-prime crisis: At the starting of this phase US and the global financial and banking systems were severely
jolted.
 Global impact of economic crisis: Economic meltdown not only affected the advanced economies but also the
Asian giants in the likes of South Korea, Taiwan, Thailand etc.
 Shift in balance of power: Though, the US still remains the dominant power its share of power is gradually
shifting towards China.
 Rise of multiple poles: The rise of multiple poles like EU, ASEAN, Russia, Japan, BRICS etc has been much faster
than in the previous phases.
 Th fulcrum of global power is gradually shifting from west to east.
 Focus of India diplomacy: Indian diplomacy is primarily focused on USA, China and other P5 member countries
and our neighbourhood.
 Act East: Look East has been expanded to Act East.
 Focus on Africa and South America: Africa has been brought into focus and Latin America does not remain
distant anymore.
 Economic diplomacy has taken priority over political and security issues.
Present status: At the 2019 Raisina Dialogue in Delhi in January this year, Foreign Secretary Vijay Gokhale declared,
“India has moved on from its non-aligned past. India is today an aligned state—but based on issues.”
Further, India wish to become part of the global rule making process. India has vocally advanced the cause for the
reformation of global bodies, particularly the UNSC and the Bretton Woods institutions.
With the objectives of preserving India’s territorial integrity, promotion of international peace and security and
economic development of the nation, India continues to pursue her foreign policy in the realms of new political and
economic order . With a lot of development taking place in India since independence and India securing its position as
world’s largest democracy, she rightfully continues to claim her place in the global order of affairs.

49
INDIAN ECONOMY IN POST-INDEPENDENT INDIA
PYQ
1. Why did the Green Revolution in India virtually by-pass the eastern region despite fertile soil and good availability of
water? 2014
2. Critically discuss the objectives of Bhoodan and Gramdan movements initiated by Acharya Vinoba Bhave and their
success. 2013
Independence brought dreams of not just individual, but also economic, social and political freedom. India’s
independence was in itself a turning point in its economic history. The country was hopelessly poor as a result of steady
deindustrialization by Britain.
 Less than a sixth of Indians were literate. The abject poverty and sharp social differences had cast doubts on
India’s survival as one nation.
 Cambridge historian Angus Maddison’s work shows that India’s share of world income shrank from 22.6% in
1700—almost equal to Europe’s share of 23.3%—to 3.8% in 1952.
CAPITALIST V/S SOCIALIST ECONOMY

The Indian leadership faced significant challenges in ensuring well-being and economic development, and in order to
achieve these goals, they used one of two economic development models: the liberal – capitalist model used in the
United States and Europe, and the socialist model used in the Soviet Union.
 The political leadership believed that since planning was not possible in a market economy, the state and
public sector would inevitably play a leading role in economic progress.
 The Industrial Policy Resolution of 1948 proposed a mixed economy.
 Earlier, the Bombay Plan, proposed by eight influential industrialists including J.R.D Tata and G.D. Birla,
envisaged a substantial public sector with state interventions and regulations in order to protect indigenous
industries.
 Prime minister Jawaharlal Nehru’s development model envisaged a dominant role of the state as an all-
pervasive entrepreneur and financier of private businesses.
PLANNING COMMISSION AND 1 S T FIVE YEAR PLAN

 Planning Commission: India set up the Planning Commission in 1950 to oversee the entire range of planning,
including resource allocation, implementation and appraisal of five-year plans.
 The five-year plans were centralized economic and social growth programmes modelled after those prevalent
in the USSR.
o India’s first five-year plan, launched in 1951, focused on agriculture and irrigation to boost farm output
as India was losing precious foreign reserves on food-grain imports.
 It was based on the Harrod-Domar model that sought to boost economic growth through higher savings and
investments.
STRATEGY FOR INDUSTRIALIZATION AND NEHRUVIAN CONSENSUS

INDUSTRIAL POLICY 1948: It defined the broad contours of the policy delineating the role of the State in industrial
development both as an entrepreneur and authority
 It made clear that India is going to have a Mixed Economic Model.
 The Industrial Policy 1948 emphasised the role of cottage and small-scale Industries in economic development.
 It classified industries into four broad areas:
o Strategic Industries (Public Sector): It included three industries in which Central Government had
monopoly. These included Arms and ammunition, Atomic energy and Rail transport.

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o Basic/Key Industries (Public-cum-Private Sector): 6 industries viz. coal, iron & steel, aircraft
manufacturing, ship-building, manufacture of telephone, telegraph & wireless apparatus, and mineral
oil were designated as “Key Industries” or “Basic Industries”.
 These industries were to be set-up by the Central Government. However, the existing private
sector enterprises were allowed to continue.
o Important Industries (Controlled Private Sector): It included 18 industries including heavy chemicals,
sugar, cotton textile & woollen industry, cement, paper, salt, machine tools, fertiliser, rubber, air and
sea transport, motor, tractor, electricity etc.
 These industries continue to remain under private sector however, the central government,
in consultation with the state government, had general control over them.
o Other Industries (Private and Cooperative Sector): All other industries which were not included in the
above mentioned three categories were left open for the private sector.
INDUSTRIAL POLICY 1956

Government revised its first Industrial Policy (i.e. The policy of 1948) through the Industrial Policy of 1956.
 It was regarded as the “Economic Constitution of India” or “The Bible of State Capitalism”.
 IPR, 1956 classified industries into three categories:
o Schedule A → consisting of 17 industries was the exclusive responsibility of the State. Out of these 17
industries, four industries, namely arms and ammunition, atomic energy, railways and air transport
had Central Government monopolies; new units in the remaining industries were developed by the
State Governments.
o Schedule B → consisting of 12 industries, was open to both the private and public sectors; however,
such industries were progressively Stateowned.
o Schedule C → All the other industries not included in these two Schedules constituted the third
category which was left open to the private sector. However, the State reserved the right to undertake
any type of industrial production.
 The IPR 1956, stressed the importance of cottage and small-scale industries for expanding employment
opportunities and for wider decentralization of economic power and activity.

 The main thrust of this policy was the effective promotion of cottage and small industries widely dispersed
in rural areas and small towns.
 In this policy the small sector was classified into three groups—cottage and household sector, tiny sector and
small-scale industries.
 The 1977 Industrial Policy restricted the scope of large business houses so that no unit of the same business
group acquired a dominant and monopolistic position in the market.

 Industrial Policy of 1980 sought to promote the concept of economic federation, to raise the efficiency of the
public sector and to reverse the trend of industrial production of the past three years and reaffirmed its faith
in the Monopolies and Restrictive Trade Practices (MRTP) Act and the Foreign Exchange Regulation Act (FERA).
SECOND FIVE YEAR PLAN: FOCUS ON INDUSTRI ES

 The second five-year plan (1956-61) laid the foundation for economic modernization to better serve India’s
long-term growth imperatives.
 Launched in 1956, it was based on the Mahalanobis model that advocated rapid industrialization with a focus
on heavy industries and capital goods.
o The Mahalanobis plan was, in a way, an invocation of the spirit of swadeshi or self-reliance.

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 Emergence of Licence Raj: The second five-year Plan and the Industrial Policy Resolution 1956 (long
considered the economic constitution of India) paved the way for the development of the public sector and
ushered in the licence Raj.
 Profounding Socialism: The resolution set out as a national objective the establishment of a socialist pattern
of society.
 Division of Industries: It also categorized industries into three groups. Industries of basic and strategic
importance were to be exclusively in the public sector.
o The second group comprised industries that were to be incrementally state-owned.
o The third, comprising mostly consumer industries, was left for the private sector. The private sector,
however, was kept on a tight leash through a system of licences.
3RD 5 YEAR PLAN, FOCUS ON STEEL AND POWER INDUSTRIES: NEW TEMPLES OF INDIA
 Nehru identified power and steel as the key bases for planning. He described the 680ft Bhakra multi-purpose
project as the new temple of a resurgent India.
 The politics of big dams aside, the huge Bhakra-Nangal dams are among several hydel projects India built to
light up homes, run factories, and irrigate crops.
o The second plan set a target to produce 6 million tonnes of steel.
ANALYSIS OF ECONOMIC POLICY OF NEHRUVIAN ERA

 Performance of 1 five year plan: The plan was a success, with the economy growing at an annualized 3.6%,
beating the target of 2.1%.
 The entire educational system was left untouched and unreformed and could not reach masses.
 Industry, during the first three Plans, grew even more rapidly than agriculture, at a compounded growth rate
of 7.1 per cent per annum between 1951 and 1965.
 Import substitution in this area was seen as an imperative not only because it was thought to be critical for
self-reliance and reduction of external dependence, also because it was assumed that Indian exports could
not grow fast enough to enable the import of the necessary capital goods and machinery.
 Performance of 2nd five year plan: The quest to quickly industrialize had caused a large reallocation of funds
away from the farm sector. Agriculture outlay was nearly halved to 14% in the second Plan.
o Food shortages worsened, and inflation spiked. Imports of food-grains depleted precious foreign
exchange reserves.
 Agricultural sector: During the first three Plans, Indian agriculture grew at an annual rate of over 3 per cent, a
growth rate 7.5 times higher than that achieved during the last half century or so of the colonial period
 The Mahalanobis model was exclusively a supply-side model. There was no recognition of a possible demand
constraint to capital accumulation and little scope for slackening demand growth to subvert the growth
process.
LAND REFORMS AND COOPERATIVES

Commercialization of agriculture in colonial India facilitated the extraction of surplus from the peasantry (through land
revenue demand in cash) and the transfer of this surplus from India to Britain by bringing agricultural produce to the
export market which is otherwise called “Drain of wealth”.
 At the time of independence Ownership of land was highly concentrated, Land was not organized and thus a
number of small fragments existed. Cultivators often had to supplement their farm income by working as hired
laborers like their poorer landless counterparts.
PHASES OF LAND REFORM

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After independence, there were generally two phases to the land reform process.
The first phase, sometimes known as the institutional reform phase, began shortly after independence and lasted until
the early 1960s, focusing on the following characteristics:
 ZAMINDARI ABOLITION: The main aim of the abolition of intermediaries was to bring the cultivator into direct
relationship with the government.
o By 1949, zamindari abolition bills were introduced in a number of provinces with the report of the UP
Zamindari Abolition Committee acting as the initial model for many others.
o The government responded by getting the constitutional amendments passed (first, fourth and
seventeenth) and strengthening the hands of the State legislatures by making the question of violation
of any fundamental right or insufficiency of compensation not permissible in the courts.
o The abolition of zamindari was quite successful and about two crore erstwhile tenants became
landowners.
Tenancy Reforms: Under the Zamindari and ryotwari systems, tenancy cultivation had been quite common in India.
There were broadly three categories of tenants:
 Occupancy tenants-They enjoyed permanent and heritable rights on land. They had security of tenure and
could claim compensation from the landlords for any improvement on the land.
 Tenants at will: They did not have security of tenure, made to pay exorbitant rent to the landlords and could
be evicted from the land whenever the landlord so desired.
 The Sub tenants were appointed by the occupancy tenants.
The tenancy reforms were introduced in 1950's and 60's and the main objectives of the reforms were:
 To guarantee security of tenure to tenants who had cultivated a piece of land continuously for a fixed number
of years, say six years – met only with limited success.
 To seek the reduction of rents paid by tenants to a fair level which was generally considered to range between
one-fourth to one-sixth of the value of the gross produce of the leased land.
o only the upper stratum of tenantry which had secured occupancy rights and was often
indistinguishable from a landowner, was able to enforce the payment of legal rates of rent.
 The tenant should gain the right to ownership of the lands he cultivated subject to certain restrictions –
achieved only partially.
Evaluation of Tenancy reforms
 Tenancy reforms were particularly successful in the states of West Bengal and Kerala.
o In West Bengal, Operation Barga in 1977 was launched for tenancy reforms.
 Tenancy laws by and large failed to provide security of tenure to tenants.
 Reduction of rent to a fair level was almost impossible to achieve as often market determined rents were
always higher than those mentioned in legislation.
Ceilings on size of landholdings

Ceilings were proposed to make land distribution more equitable. However, it met with many difficulties, such as:
 High Ceiling limits: In many states, ceilings fixed were very high.
o Further, in most areas, ceilings were placed on individuals and not on family.
 Exemption clause: Benami transactions were also made to escape the ceiling. Further, many exemption
clauses were added, which made imposition of ceiling with many loopholes.
o It could be implemented with some success only in Jammu and Kashmir.
To make the ceiling legislations more effective, the government also brought 34 Constitutional amendment Act to the
constitution and included the revised ceiling laws in the Ninth Schedule.
 With this renewed effort in the 1970s, some success was achieved in redistribution of the surplus land.
However, still only 2% of the cultivable area could be redistributed.
BHOODAN MOVEMENT

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Bhoodan advocated for voluntary land re-distribution. This movement was started in 1951 by Acharya Vinoba Bhave,
a Gandhian social worker.
 He founded the federation of constructive workers ‘Sarvodya Samaj.'
 He and his supporters embarked on a foot march (padyatra) to persuade major landowners to donate at least
1/6th of their property for redistribution to the landless.
 The goal was 50 million acres, or 1/6th of the 300 million acres of land available.
 The campaign began in the village of Pochapalli in the Telangana region of Andhra Pradesh. It received over 4
million acres as a donation in the early stages. The movement, however, lost steam after a while. Furthermore,
the majority of the donated land was either contested or unsuited for farming.
o In 1955, Bhoodan Movement had taken a new form into Gramdaan movement
GRAMDAAN MOVEMENT
It was inspired by Gandhi's belief that all village land belongs to Gopal or God, and that all land in a Gramdan village
belongs to all residents collectively.
 The movement began in Orissa, where it was most successful. This movement, it is claimed, arose primarily in
areas where class distinction had not yet been established.
COOPERATIVIZATION AND COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT PROGRAMS

Though it had been suggested by J C Kumarappa's Agrarian Reforms Committee, the first 5 year plan set the
groundwork for India's cooperative movement.
The government prioritised service cooperatives, and cooperative farming was only practised on a voluntary basis in
mature conditions.
Critical analysis: For a variety of reasons, the movement was unable to flourish.
 Proxy farmers: To get around land ceiling rules, wealthy farmers used proxy members.
 Misappropriation of funds: These were used by the wealthy to obtain enormous financial support from the
government in the form of subsidies, agricultural seeds, fertilisers, and other items.
 Politicization: Credit societies and other service cooperatives were generally effective, but they were limited
by the fact that they, too, slipped into the hands of the rural elite and were politicised.
 Lacking Motivation: Instead of being truly motivated, the pilot cooperative farms were operated like any other
government-sponsored initiative.
CRITICAL ANALYSIS OF FIRST PHASE OF LAND REFORMS

Land reforms did not yield the same dramatic outcomes as they did in other regions of the world, such as China, where
communes were established.
 Increased investment in Agriculture: They did, however, lead to a significant degree of self-cultivation and, as
a result, increased investment in agriculture to improve output.
o It also succeeded in eradicating feudal characteristics from Indian agriculture.
 There were undoubtedly additional grounds for reforms' failure.
o Increasing Population: As the population grew, tiny benefits in the form of redistribution and ceilings
became useless.
o Lacking Industrialization: The surplus workforce was likewise not absorbed by industrialization.
GREEN REVOLUTION
Phase-II: The green revolution and self-sufficiency in food production
On the agrarian front, the comprehensive land reform measures initiated soon after independence, the setting up of
a massive network for agricultural extension and community development work at the village level, the large
infrastructural investment in irrigation, power, agricultural research, and so on, had created the conditions for
considerable agricultural growth in this period.

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NEED FOR GREEN REVOLUTION

It was brought in the background of stagnated growth in agriculture, high food imports through schemes like PL-480,
draughts and rising population.
 Rising population and Stagnant agricultural growth: Between 1951 and 1966, food grain production increased
at a pace of 2.8 percent per year.
o This was insufficient to meet the burgeoning population's consumption demand, which was growing
at a rate of more than 2% each year.
 Food import: As a result, starting in the mid-1950s, India began to rely on food grain imports to feed its rising
population.
o India and the United States signed Public Law (PL) 480 in 1956, allowing India to receive food aid,
largely in the form of wheat.
 Consecutive wars: India was unable to divert its resources into rural investments due to two wars (with China
in 1962 and Pakistan in 1965).
 Successive droughts: Two consecutive droughts, in 1965 and 1966, put the country into an unprecedented
food crisis, with food grain production and yield falling by 19% and 17%, respectively, in 1966.
 Cold war: Imports of food grains were increased to avoid hunger.
o Food aid was used to "twist the arms" of recipient countries to obtain conformity during the Cold
War, and India was a victim of this approach.
GREEN REVOLUTION STARTED

The Green Revolution was a period of agricultural reform that began in Mexico in the 1940s. Norman Borlaug is
credited for starting the Green Revolution.
 He created new disease-resistant, high-yielding wheat types.
 Green revolution technology proliferated throughout the world in the 1950s and 1960s as a result of their
success.
The Green Revolution is the introduction of High Yielding Variety (HYV) seeds, fertilisers, insecticides, improved
irrigation systems, mechanised equipment, and contemporary agricultural techniques.
 The green revolution's goal was to use technology to boost food production while also introducing more
western-style farming techniques.
Phases of Green Revolution
 Phase I (1966 - 72): Throughout 1966, India requested the shipment of 18,000 tonnes of HYV wheat seeds,
which were distributed in Punjab, Haryana, and western Uttar Pradesh's highly irrigated areas.
 Phase II (1973 - 80): The spread of the green revolution to new areas in eastern UP, Andhra Pradesh, coastal
Karnataka, and Tamil Nadu was aided by the extension of HYV technology from wheat to rice, which was aided
by the growth of tube wells (both private and public).
 Phase III (1981 - 90): The green revolution spread to West Bengal's eastern region, Bihar, Assam, and Odisha,
which were formerly low-growth areas.
ACHIEVEMENTS OF GREEN REVOLUTION

The Green Revolution raised food grain production from 74 MT in 1966-67 to 105 MT in 1971-72, and India became
self-sufficient in that year, with grain imports falling to practically nil.
 Reduced Import of Food-Grains: India became self-sufficient in food grains and had enough stock in the
central pool that it was even able to export food grains at times.
 Benefits to the Farmers: Farmers were able to increase their income after the Green Revolution was
implemented.
o Farmers re-invested their extra revenue in order to boost agricultural output.
 Industrial Growth: The Revolution ushered in large-scale farm mechanisation, resulting in increased demand
for tractors, harvesters, threshers, combines, diesel engines, electric motors, pumping sets, and other devices.

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 Rural Employment: Due to multiple cropping and fertiliser use, there was a significant increase in the demand
for labour.
o By constructing linked facilities such as factories and hydroelectric power plants, the Green Revolution
provided a large number of jobs, not only for agricultural labourers but also for industrial workers.
ISSUES WITH THE GREEN REVOLUTION

 Produced water intensive crops: Cereals, for example, accounted for nearly half of the dietary water
footprint.
o Punjab is a major wheat and rice-growing region, and as a result, it is one of India's most water-scarce
areas.
 Heavy use of chemicals: Pesticides and synthetic nitrogen fertilisers were widely used during the Green
Revolution to boost irrigation projects and crop types.
 Soil Degradation: The soil's nutrients were depleted as a result of repeated crop cycles in order to ensure
higher crop yield.
o Farmers boosted fertiliser use to match the demands of new types of seeds.
o Because of the use of these alkaline compounds, the pH of the soil has risen.
 Regional Disparity: Green Revolution has resulted in increasing gaps in economic development within and
between regions.
o The green revolution spread only in irrigated and high-potential rainfed areas. The villages or regions
without the access of sufficient water were left out that widened the regional disparities between
adopters and non-adopters.
o Punjab, Haryana, and western Uttar Pradesh in the north, and Andhra Pradesh and Tamil Nadu in the
south, are the most benefited regions from green revolution.
o It has largely avoided Assam, Bihar, West Bengal, and Orissa, as well as dry and semi-arid portions of
Western and Southern India.
o It has hardly touched the Eastern region, including Assam, Bihar, West Bengal and Orissa and arid and
semi-arid areas of Western and Southern India.
 Health Hazards: Phosphamidon, Methomyl, Phorate, Triazophos, and Monocrotophos, among other chemical
fertilisers and pesticides, have been linked to a range of serious ailments, including cancer, renal failure,
stillbirth, and birth deformities.
Conclusion: Need of evergreen Revolution

The Green Revolution's benefits came at the expense of negative environmental consequences in areas where
intensive farming was practised.
 When population pressure is high, however, there is little choice but to produce more food.
 As a result, Dr. M S Swaminathan, India's Father of the Green Revolution, emphasised the necessity for the
Evergreen Revolution.
 Productivity is expected to rise as a result of the Evergreen Revolution, but in ecologically friendly,
economically viable, and socially sustainable ways.
COOPERATIVES
The cooperative sector was supposed to cover a range of important areas in the First Plan (1951-56) such as
agriculture, small-scale manufacturing, housing, and so on.
The prevention of economic power accumulation, wider dispersal of ownership of productive capital, active
participation of citizens in development programmes, and elimination of poverty and unemployment are all important
objectives of cooperative sector development.
 When the Cooperative Credit Societies Act was passed in India for the first time in 1904, the cooperative
concept became a reality.

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 In 1912, the Cooperative Societies Act was passed, allowing non-credit societies and cooperative federations
to be registered.
In 1949, the Congress Agrarian Reforms Committee, commonly known as the Kumarappa Committee, suggested
that states be given the authority to impose differing levels of cooperation for various types of farming.
 The First 5 year Plan took a cautious approach when advocating that small and medium-sized farms be
encouraged and aided in forming cooperative agricultural societies.
 The Second Plan sounded upbeat, emphasising the importance of taking important efforts to establish the
groundwork for the development of cooperative farming.
o with the goal of bringing a significant amount of agricultural land under cooperative farming over a
ten-year period.
In the Nagpur Session of 1959, the Congress party enacted the Nagpur Resolution, which envisioned an agrarian
pattern based on joint cooperative farming in the future, and it stipulated that such a pattern be realised within three
years.
 The Third Plan demonstrated a shift in attitude toward cooperative farming, advocating a modest goal of
establishing 10 pilot projects in each region.
o As a result, through the community development movement, cooperative farming was gradually made
dependent on general agricultural efforts as well as developments in credit, marketing, distribution,
and processing.
STORY OF AMUL:
Amul began the dairy cooperative movement in India and formed an apex cooperative organization, Gujarat Co-
operative Milk Marketing Federation Ltd (GCMMF), which today is jointly owned by some 2.2 million milk producers
in Gujarat, India. Dr. Verghese Kurien, founder chairman of Gujarat cooperative milk marketing federation, is the
man behind the success of AMUL. It is based in Anand town of Gujarat and has been a sterling example of a co-
operative organization's success in the long term. The Amul Pattern has established itself as a uniquely appropriate
model for rural development. Amul has spurred the White Revolution of India, which has made India one of the
largest milk producers in the world.
Impact of Amul
 Women Empowerment: Women's empowerment was aided by Operation Flood. With the support of NGOs
like SEWA, Operation Flood was able to build about 6,000 women's dairy cooperative groups.
 Spillover Impact: Other cooperatives were affected by Operation Flood as well. Cooperatives for fruit and
vegetable growers, oilseed cultivators, small-scale salt producers, and tree growers, all of which were started
by the NDDB, were doing exceptionally well.
Analysis of Cooperative movement in India
 Overall service cooperatives fared better than the farming cooperatives. Nonetheless, there were many
shortcomings in service cooperatives.
o The cast-based hierarchical system was strengthened by service cooperatives.
o Cooperative leaders are generally selected from the trading and money lending communities.
 Exclusion of Landless: The National Commission on Agriculture discovered in 1971, the landless were virtually
excluded from obtaining credit through credit cooperatives.
 Loans failure: Failure to repay loans was a key problem for credit cooperatives, resulting in a high percentage
of overdues.
o Contrary to popular belief, the wealthy and landowners were more likely to default than the poor and
small farmers.
INDIAN ECONOMY FROM 1965-91
The war with China had exposed India’s economic weakness. Chronic food shortages and price rise convinced Lal
Bhadur shashtri that India needed to move away from centralized planning and price controls.

57
 Thus, He renewed focus on agriculture, accepted a larger role for private enterprise and foreign investment,
and trimmed the erstwhile Planning Commission’s role.
PHASE-1: THE ONSET O F ECONOMIC TROUBLES

The quest to quickly industrialize had caused a large reallocation of funds away from the farm sector. Agriculture
outlay was nearly halved to 14% in the second Plan.
 Failure of Monsoon and inflation: Two consecutive monsoon failures in 1965 and 1966 added to the pressure
on agriculture, which was already stagnating, and resulted in a drop in agricultural output.
 War Burden: The two conflicts in 1962 (China) and 1965 (Pakistan) resulted in a large surge in defence
spending.
o resulting in a cumulative fiscal deficit of 7.3 percent of GDP for the governments in 1966-67.
 Insufficient Reserve: The weak balance of payments, which had been deteriorating since 1956-57, worsened
much more in 1964-65, with a foreign exchange reserve of around $340 million, enough to cover less than two
months of imports.
As a result, after 1967, a succession of radical economic policies were implemented, all of which would have a long-
term impact on India's development efforts. Some of these include:
 Nationalization of Financial Institutions: The 14 major private commercial banks were nationalized on 20 july
1969.
o Insurance was nationalized in 1972.
o The main aim of the move was to accelerate bank lending to agriculture at a time when big businesses
cornered large chunks of the credit flow.
 Nationalization of power sector: Coal industry was nationalized in 1973
 Promotion of competitive environment in Business: Monopoly and Restrictive Trade Practices Act (MRTP),
severely restricting the activities of large business houses, was passed in 1969.
o Any business group with combined assets above Rs. 20 crores was declared a monopoly and effectively
debarred from expanding its business after 1969.
o A series of measures increasing government control and intervention were introduced.
 The Foreign Exchange and Regulation Act (FERA) was passed in 1973 putting numerous restrictions on foreign
investment and the functioning of foreign companies in India, making India one of the most difficult
destinations for foreign capital in the world.
 Acquisition of Sick firms: The government also decided to take over and run sick companies, such as a number
of textile mills, rather than allow such loss-making companies to close down.
 Suspension of five year Plans: India suspended five-year plans briefly, drawing up annual plans between 1966
and 1969 instead. This was done as the country was not in a position to commit resources over a longer
period.
ANALYSIS OF PHASE -1
 Boosting Financial Inclusion: Bank nationalization helped boost farm credit and lending to other priority
sectors.
o Financial savings jumped as banks were made to open branches in rural areas. Without competition,
however, the lenders became complacent.
o politically-influenced lending decisions led to crony capitalism.
 Countering BoP challenge: On 6 June 1966, Indira Gandhi took the drastic step of devaluing the Indian rupee
by a sharp 57%. The rupee fell to 7.50 per US dollar from 4.76.
o This was done to counter India’s significant balance of payments crisis.
 The devaluation aimed to boost exports amid limited access to foreign exchange.
o Instead, it accelerated inflation and drew wide criticism.

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PHASE 2: HIGHER GROWTH OR HINDU GROWTH RATE - 1980-1991
REFORMS BY INDIRA GANDHI

She initiated big-ticket economic reforms in order to secure an International Monetary Fund loan.
 The sixth five-year plan (1980-85), in essence, pledged to undertake a string of measures aimed at boosting
the economy’s competitiveness.
 Delicensing: This meant the removal of price controls, initiation of fiscal reforms, a revamp of the public sector,
reductions in import duties, and de-licensing of the domestic industry, or in other words ending the licence
Raj.
ERA OF RAJIV GANDHI

The Rajiv Gandhi government (1984 - 89) introduced certain reforms in the second half of the 1980s like
 Relaxation in the grant of licenses, reduction in import restrictions,
 Introduction of export incentives,
 Raised the MRTP asset limit fivefold to Rs. 100 crore.
 The 1985-86 budget lowered direct taxes for companies and raised exemption limits for income tax.
 Government relaxed capital markets in 1982-83 to get more foreign money, particularly from non-resident
Indians.
It helped India achieve a higher growth rate of over 5.5 percent of GDP in the 1980s, breaking the previous three-
decade record of 3.5 percent growth, dubbed the "Hindu rate of Growth" by Prof. Raj Krishna.
CRITICAL ANALYSIS OF PHASE-2

 No Fundamental shift in Economy: Rather than a total transition away from the regime of controls, these
modifications were more akin to loosening controls and operating them more flexibly than a fundamental shift
away from it.
 Structural Bottleneck not countered: While the Indian economy appeared to be doing well in the 1980s, long-
term structural weaknesses were developing in the system.
o as a result of widespread industrial control, the licence raj, the Monopolies and Restrictive Trade
Practices Act (MRTP) 1969, nationalisation of banks and other industries, self-sufficiency, and an
inward-looking trade policy.
 High Imports: Imports were nearly twice as high as exports in the second half of the 1980s, resulting in a
massive trade deficit (export earnings were only 55 percent of imports).
o All of this prompted India to use more and more short-term borrowings by the late 1980s.
 Weak Macroeconomic indicators: All these led India towards negative macroeconomic fundamentals.
o fiscal deficit of 8.4%, current account deficit of 3.1%,
o high inflation of 17%, and huge foreign debt, among other things, in 1990-91
o all these put a lot of strain on the Balance of Payments (BoP).
REFORMATIVE ERA - 1991 ONWARDS

The 1991 economic crisis, essentially a balance of payments problem, is generally seen as the overriding factor that
led to the dismantling of the licence/quota raj.
Three factors made the economic situation precarious from January to July 1991:
 High short term debt: About $6 billion in short-term debt was rolled over every 24 hours via overnight
borrowings on foreign capital markets.
 Hot currency withdrawal: NRI deposits totaling more than $10 billion began to be hastily withdrawn.
 Depleting foreing reserve: By June 1991, the country's foreign exchange reserves had plummeted to just $1
billion, barely enough to cover imports for a month, let alone debt service obligations.
Response of RBI

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On 1 July 1991, the Reserve Bank of India lowered the value of the currency by 9%, and then by 11% just two days
later. This was when the economy was facing its worst crisis.
 However, Devaluation is no longer a real option for governments and policymakers as exchange rates are
determined by markets. Currency value is now calibrated by the central bank.
To avoid this perilous economic position, India contacted the World Bank and the IMF for a $7 billion loan to help
handle the crisis.
 In exchange, these organisations demanded that India open up its economy by lifting limitations in several
sectors, reducing the role of the government in numerous areas, and abolishing trade barriers.
 India had no choice but to accept these terms, and the New Economic Policy was unveiled as a result.
 The policy's main goal was to lower the barriers to private enterprises entering the market and make the
economy more competitive.
In the backdrop of this alarming situation, economic reforms were introduced. These reforms are divided into two
categories:
1. The stabilization measures [short term]
2. The structural reform measures [Long term]
The government implemented a number of initiatives that fit into three categories: liberalisation, privatisation, and
globalisation, as well as the "LPG Policy."
 The first two are policy strategies, while the third is a result of those initiatives.
LIBERALISATION
Almost all industrial licencing was removed, with the exception of alcohol, cigarettes, dangerous chemicals, high-end
electronics, aircraft medications, and pharmaceuticals.
 Defence equipment, atomic energy generation, and railway transport are the only industries now allocated
for the public sector.
o The market has been permitted to determine prices in many businesses.
 Financial market reforms: These changes resulted in the development of private sector banks, as well as the
entry of foreign banks subject to specific restrictions on FII, such as merchant bankers, mutual funds, and
pension funds, from investing in Indian financial markets.
 Tax Reforms: Individual income taxes have been steadily decreasing since 1991. The rate of company tax has
been decreased, and procedures for paying income tax have been simplified.
 Foreign exchange reforms: The rupee was initially depreciated against international currencies. This resulted
in a rise in foreign exchange inflows.
o Markets now normally decide exchange rates based on foreign exchange demand and supply.
 Trade and Investment Policy Reforms: It was encouraged to improve the efficiency of local enterprises and
to encourage the adoption of contemporary technologies in order to boost industrial production
competitiveness and attract foreign investment and technology into the economy.
o Except for hazardous and ecologically sensitive industries, import licencing was discontinued.
Privatisation: It means transfer of government services or assets to the private sector. State-owned assets may be
sold to private owners, or statutory restrictions on competition between privately and publicly owned enterprises may
be lifted.
 Reducing burden: Various government-owned firms have had their ownership and management decreased
or sold off.
 Disinvestment: The government began disinvestment by selling off PSU equity. The goal of this action was to
increase financial discipline and make modernization easier.
 Autonomy to PSUs: The government has also attempted to boost PSU efficiency by allowing them to make
managerial choices on their own.
GLOBALISATION

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Globalization essentially means integration of the national economy with the world economy. It implies a free flow
of information, ideas, technology, goods and services, capital and even people across different countries and societies.
It increases connectivity between different markets in the form of trade, investments and cultural exchanges.
 Globalization is the result of liberalisation and privatisation initiatives. Greater interconnection and
integration are associated with globalisation.
 It entails the establishment of networks and activities that cut beyond economic, social, and geographic
borders.
 Due to globalization is multi dimensions, have been formed various outlooks about impact of it on culture.
coexistence with different cultures isn’t possible.
INDIAN ECONOMY IN THE NEW MILLENNIUM: 30 YEARS OF LPG REFORMS

Critical analysis of LPG reforms
POSITIVE IMPACTS
 GDP improved: The growth rate of India’s GDP which had fallen to 0.8 per cent in the crisis year of 1991–92
recovered quickly to 5.3 per cent by 1992–93 and rose further to 6.2 percent in 1993– 94.
o The GDP growth averaged 7% in the 25 years from 1992 to 2017, compared with an average of 5% in
the preceding ten years and 4% in the preceding 20.
 Reduction in Deficit: The central government’s fiscal deficit, which had reached 8.3 percent of GDP in 1990–
91, was reduced and averaged roughly 6 per cent between 1992-97.
 Boom in the external sector: The external sector also showed considerable improvement. Exports, which
registered a decline of 1.5 per cent in dollar terms during 1991-92, recovered quickly and maintained an
average growth rate of nearly 20 per cent between 1993-96.
 Poverty situation and Rural distress: The improvement in the poverty situation was helped by the fact that
the government increased the overall Social Services and Rural Development expenditure from 1993–94.
o as growth accelerated, poverty declined. Between 2004-05 and 2011-12, the last year for which official
data on poverty are available, about 140 million people were pulled above the poverty line.
 Reduced inflation: The annual rate of inflation, which touched a high of 17 per cent in August 1991, was
brought down to below 5 per cent in 1996.
 High Standard of Living: With the outbreak of Globalisation, Indian economy and the standard of living of an
individual has increased. This change is notified with the purchasing behaviour of a person, especially with
those who are associated with foreign companies.
 Social Infrastructure: Both male and female life expectancy have increased significantly. The infant and
maternal mortality rates have also decreased and India has succeeded in eradicating crippling diseases such
as polio and smallpox.
o According to the latest census data the crude death rate at all India level has declined significantly
from 9.8 to 6.3 during 1991 to 2017.
o The child mortality rate has depicted a perceptible decline from 26.5 in 1991 to 8.9 in 2017.
NEGATIVE IMPACTS OF LPG REFORMS

This is not to say that there were no shortcomings. Some of the reforms begun in 1991, especially in the financial
sector, have yet to be completed. We have not done as much as we should have in the health and education sectors;
environmental concerns have not been adequately built into our development strategy.
 Commanding heights: The private sector was not allowed to invest in a number of sectors thought to be critical
for development. The so-called “commanding heights” were reserved for the public sector despite its
lacklustre performance.

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 Rising inequalities in income and wealth: The rise in economic inequality has been consistent and has been
seen on measures of consumption expenditure as well as on incomes.
o wages of highly skilled employees have shown a secular upward trend, a large majority of workers,
particularly in the unorganized sector, haven’t seen wages rise commensurately in real terms.
o Along with a trend towards casualization and contractualization, there has been a worsening of
employment quality and lack of social security even for those employed in the organized sector.
 Marginalised classes become more vulnerable: Economic inequality has certainly been a hindrance for the
majority of the poor to benefit from the fruits of economic reforms.
o The failure of the government to deal with structural inequality has also created a class of
marginalized and vulnerable people.
o health and education have also led to further marginalization of the disadvantaged groups from the
mainstream.
 Social Unrest: The net result of the accentuation of the trend of rising inequality has been social unrest across
social categories and across states.
 Rise of crony capitalism: the reforms have failed to create a level playing field with crony capitalism, not just
obvious in the case of natural resources such as petroleum, coal, iron and spectrum, but also among industries
which have seen the opening up of markets and deregulation.
 Jobless Growth: the non-farm sector, which has been the engine of growth, has failed to absorb either those
displaced by the agricultural sector or the new entrants to the labour force.
o The agricultural sector continues to remain the largest employer with the absolute number of workers
declining only recently.
o The lack of employment opportunities for a large majority is now reflected in social unrest such as the
clamour for reservation by certain groups such as the Patidars, Marathas and the Jats.
The decades prior to 1991 may have been years of slow growth, but it is equally true that state-led growth did create
capacities which enabled the economic reforms to reap the benefits of liberalization.
Taxation reforms
To remove bottlenecks, the goods and services tax(GST) was implemented. India is now one of the few countries to
have an indirect tax law that unifies various central and state tax laws.
 The new system has removed tax barriers across states and created a single common market, ensuring a free
flow of goods without trucks being halted at borders for payment of interstate levies.
 GST is expected to bring together state economies and improve overall economic growth of the nation.
 In the last four years, our tax base has almost doubled from 66.25 lakh to 1.28 crore.
2021 CRISIS AND AATAMNIRBHAR BHARAT

The economic impact of the COVID-19 pandemic in India has been largely disruptive. India's growth in the fourth
quarter of the fiscal year 2020 went down to 3.1% according to the Ministry of Statistics.
According to the World Economic Outlook Report 2021, India's economy would increase by 12.5 percent in 2021 and
6.9 percent in 2022.
 However, the pandemic has resulted in widespread unemployment in the informal economy, and poverty has
begun to rise after decades of reduction.
 The migrant labour dilemma has exposed the growth model's flaws.
the ‘Atmanirbhar Bharat Abhiyan (or Self-reliant India Mission)’
 The Prime Minister in his address to nation on 12.05.2020 announced an economic stimulus package for Rs
20-lakh-crore (estimated at 10% of the GDP), towards building a Atmanirbhar Bharat, or a self-reliant, resilient
India.
 The Package is to cater to various sections including cottage industry, MSMEs, labourers, middle class,
industries, among others.
Conclusion

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The fundamental issues of inequality, lack of social progress and inability of the economy to generate jobs require a
strategic response if the process of reforms and growth has to continue. It is time for the next generation of reforms
that deal with the structural bottlenecks to growth rather than more of the same.
TECHNOLOGICAL DEVELO PMENT

The British left India as a poor, dependent, underdeveloped, socially, and economically backward nation. It was the
vision of Pandit Nehru, and the need of India at that time that led to the foundation of the Indian Institute of
Technology in 1950 after only three years of independence.
PHASE-I, ERA OF NEHRU

For Jawaharlal Nehru, science was an “enzyme of hope”, a romance, a dream, and a constructive way of imagining the
nation, which he wanted everyone to experience.
 Foundation of new Educational Institutions: The government spent a lot of money to improve basic,
secondary, higher, and technical education.
 Nehru advised state governments not to cut spending on basic education because it was essentially a
governmental responsibility.
o Establishment of IITs: On 18 August 1951 the minister of education Maulana Abul Kalam Azad
inaugurated the Indian Institute of Technology at Kharagpur.
o The Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR) also expanded during this time due to the
initiation of Shanti Swarup Bhatnagar, who is popularly known as the father of Indian research
laboratories.
DAMS AND STEEL PLANTS ARE NEW TEMPLE OF INDIA

In 1954, while inaugurating the Bhakra Nangal dam, the then Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru christened it as the
'temple of modern India'.
 The Rourkela Steel plant was set up in 1959 in the Sundargarh district of Odisha in collaboration with
Germany.
 The Bhilai Steel Plant was established with Russian collaboration in Durg District of Chhattisgarh and started
production in 1959.
 Durgapur Steel Plant, in West Bengal, was set up in collaboration with the government the United Kingdom
and started production in 1962
 steel plant was set up in 1964 at Bokaro with Russian collaboration.
Development in defence technology: the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) was set up in
1958.
o After its formation, it has developed several large programs and essential technology, including
aircraft, small and large arms, artillery systems, electronic warfare (EW) systems, tanks, and armored
vehicles, sonar systems, command and control systems, and missile systems.
 Development in the nuclear energy sector: The nuclear energy program of India has its origin in 1944. Dr.
Homi Bhaba approached the Tata trust and, with their financial support, TIFR was founded in Mumbai.
o The Department of scientific research and natural resources was also set up in 1954.
 The central government established Hindustan Antibiotics Limited in 1954 and then the Indian Drugs and
Pharmaceuticals Limited (IDPL) with Soviet assistance.
As per Nehru, “Science was not merely an individual’s search for truth; it was something infinitely more than that
if it worked for the community”
PHASE II 1970-PRESENT

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 Development in the nuclear energy sector: The roots of nuclear power in India lie in the early acquisition of
nuclear reactor technology from several western countries, particularly the American support for the Tarapur
Atomic Power Station and Canada's CANDU reactors.
o India successfully tested the first nuclear bomb in 1974, under the guidance of nuclear physicist Raja
Ramanna at Pokhran.
o Dr. A.P.J.Abdul Kalam describes nuclear power as the “gateway to a prosperous future”.
 Satellite and communication revolution: Vikram Sarabhai, as chairman of the Indian National Committee for
Space Research, in the mid-1960s envisioned the use of satellite technology for communication, remote
sensing and weather prediction.
o with the success of the Satellite Instructional Television Experiment (SITE), and the launch of the
Aryabhata satellite from the Soviet Union.
o Later, the launch of the INSAT and IRS series of satellites, bringing communication and television
services to millions of people across the country.
o Timely prediction of weather events like cyclones using India-made satellites has helped save lives.
o Through pioneering use of the VSAT (Very Small Aperture Terminal) technology, banking and other
services were revolutionized in the 1980s.
 IT revolution: In order to break the monopoly of big companies and spur indigenous software and hardware
development, the Department of Electronics was established in 1970.
o Public sector companies like Electronics Corporation of India Limited (ECIL), Computer Maintenance
Corporation (CMC) and state electronics development corporations were established.
 Contribution of Rajiv Gandhi
o In India, Rajiv Gandhi's government paved the way for technology-induced development, particularly
in the field of ICT, in 1984.
o He embarked on a successful path to development by launching a huge computerization programme
in the public sector, as well as commercial and public sector businesses and administrative
departments.
o Railways, banking operations, schools, and other important sectors have announced computerization
plans by 1985.
 Performance in Biotechnology: India today is known as the ‘pharmacy of the world’ as Indian companies are
supplying affordable drugs and vaccines to not only developing countries but also to developed countries.
 C-DOT and telecom revolution: The switching technology was considered strategic and only a handful of
companies possessed it. The waiting period for a telephone line in India in the 1970s was several years, and
connectivity in rural areas was extremely poor.
o The first attempt to develop an indigenous electronic exchange was initiated at the Telecom
Research Centre (TRC) in the 1960s and the first breakthrough was a 100-line electronic switch
developed in 1973.
 Exploration of Antarctica: In 1981, the Indian Antarctic Programme was started when the first Indian
expedition was flagged off for Antarctica from Goa. More missions were subsequently sent each year to India's
base Dakshin Gangotri.
 Development in space technology: the Indian space research organization (ISRO) was set up in 1969.
Aryabhatta, the first Indian satellite, was launched by the Soviet Union in 1975.
o In recent times, ISRO has conducted two successful space projects, Chandrayaan, and Mangalyaan in
2008 and 2014 respectively.
o At present, our main priorities are Chandrayaan-3 and the Gaganyaan mission”.
EVOLUTION OF SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY POLICY

 Scientific Policy Resolution 1958: SPR 1958 laid the foundation of the scientific enterprise and scientific
temper in India.

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 1983 Technology Policy Statement: The fundamental goal of TPS 1983 was to promote and develop
indigenous technology in order to achieve technological self-sufficiency.
o Adoption of indigenous technology would assist maximise the use of local (human and material)
resources while reducing vulnerabilities in important locations.
 Policy on Science and Technology in 2003: Its purpose was to keep up with science and technology in order
to remain competitive in an increasingly globalised world while also achieving the fundamental goal of fair and
sustainable development.
o It was proposed that the government invest extensively in research and development, with the goal
of boosting investment to 2% of GDP (GDP).
 Science, Technology, and Innovation Policy 2013: The decade of innovation from 2010 to 2020 has been
declared.
o It was agreed that, in order to remain globally competitive, a shift to a knowledge-based economy was
required.
o This policy statement was an important step in establishing a strong national innovation ecosystem.
 The 5th Draft National Science, Technology and Innovation Policy (STIP) has been come in public domain.
o Unlike previous STI policies which were largely top-driven in formulation, the 5th national STI policy
(STIP) follows core principles of being decentralised, evidence-informed, bottom-up, experts-driven,
and inclusive.
Conclusion
The introduction of disruptive and influential technology brings with it new challenges and opportunities. The COVID-
19 pandemic gave a compelling opportunity for R&D institutions, academia, and industry to collaborate and
collaborate towards a common goal, synergy, and collaboration.
SOCIAL MOVEMENTS DURING POST INDEPENDENC E INDIA
PYQ
1. “Empowering women is the key to control population growth”. Discuss 2019
2. What are the continued challenges for women in India against time and space? 2019
3. ‘Women’s movement in India has not addressed the issues of women of lower social strata. Substantiate your view.
2018
4. How does patriarchy impact the position of a middle-class working woman in India? 2015
5. Male membership needs to be encouraged in order to make women’s organization free from gender bias. Comment.
2013
6. Debate the issue of whether and how contemporary movements for assertion of Dalit identity work towards
annihilation of caste. 2014
WOMEN MOMENTS
In India, there is a difference between pre-independence and post-independence women's movements. Men led the
pre-independence movements, which were mostly about social improvements. In contrast, the post-independence
movement advocated gender equality, questioned gender-based labour divisions, and highlighted the patriarchal
structure's oppressive nature.

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BREAK OF WOMEN MOVEMENT FROM PRE-INDEPENDENCE TO POST-INDEPENDENCE

● Acceptance of gender equality: The very essential feature of equality of men and women in all sectors of life
was included in the formulation of the Indian Constitution. Acceptance of gender equality in the constitution
was the fulfilment of a hope of women's entitlement to an independent identity for the women... with clear
recollections of pre-independence society and the freedom struggle.”
● Article 15(3) states that “Nothing in this article shall prevent the State from making any special provision for
women and children”.
● Women’s participation in administration: Women's chances were created through the establishment of a
variety of administrative entities. A handful of women have been sworn in as members of the government.
● According to Veena Majumdar, “The Constitutions radical departure from inherited social values represented
to women of that generation its greatest intrinsic quality.
● There was a break in the activity of feminists and women's movements in India for the next two decades, the
1950s and 1960s.
● Women, on the other hand, began to realise that the constitutional guarantee of equality did not, in and of
itself, fix equality issues, particularly in a country as diverse as India.
● Various women's movements voiced concerns about property rights, the gender-insensitive character of
development, and dowry, rape, and divorce laws, among other issues.
EARLY PHASE OF INDEPENDENCE: 1947-1970S

● After independence, India began to look inward to resolve social issues and create a systematic development
plan for women.
● Post-independence feminists began to redefine the extent to which women were allowed to engage in the
workforce.
o Prior to independence, most feminists accepted the sexual divide within the labour force.
● Legislative adjustments: The overall views toward women's issues were concerned with essential legislative
adjustments immediately after two decades of independence. Many measures were passed to make
namesake equality a reality, including the Special Marriage Act of 1954, the Hindu Marriage Act of 1956, the
Inter State Succession Act of 1956, and the Dowry Prohibition Act of 1961.
The period from the late 1960s has been marked by an economic crisis and stagnation, rising prices, increasing
landlessness and generalised discontent both in the rural and urban areas.
● The left parties took interest in the economic crisis and started organising movements.
● Though women’s issues were not taken up, women were mobilised in large numbers and they participated in
the general struggle of the rural poor, tribals and industrial working class.
○ This saw its culmination in the anti-price movement of 1973 as a united front organisation of women.
WOMEN’S MOVEMENTS IN THE 1970-1980S

● Women's movements lost vitality after independence in the 1950s and 1960s, and there was a gradual
decline of concern for women's issues.
● The late 1970s and early 1980s saw a resurgence of women's movements, as well as the formation of new
groups and organisations.
● Women's movements in the 1970s broke out from the narrow focus of legislation and education as the
primary objectives, and began to address issues that affected women holistically.
● Retrenchment of women in industries, particularly textiles, absence of maternity benefits for women
employees, salary discrimination, poor training, and workplace discrimination were among the complaints
raised.
○ About 70 women's organizations came together and formed the Mahagai Pratikar Samyutka Samiti-
The Anti-Price Rise Women's United Front-to fight rising prices, and also to bring prices down.

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○ SEWA was founded in 1972 by Gandhian and civil rights leader Ela Bhatt as a branch of the Textile
Labour Association (TLA).
■ It works towards “strengthening women's leadership, their confidence, their bargaining
power within and outside their homes and their representation on policy-making and
decision-making fora.
These organisations are known as "independent women's organisations" because they are not associated with any
political parties or trade unions.
● They abandoned the previous generation's "welfare" approach in favour of a "protest polities" strategy that
entailed mobilising women around specific causes.
ANTI-ARRACK MOVEMENT
In the early 1990s, women in rural Andhra Pradesh took it upon themselves to fight against liquor dependency among
their men and the subsequent verbal, physical and emotional abuse that followed.
● They had just one simple demand: “no drinking or selling liquor”. Led by a woman called Sandhya, the
movement began as a dharna at the collectorate followed by the demand to stop sale of liquor in the village.
● The women led struggle ultimately led to a statewide ban on liquor in 1995.
Remarking on the uniqueness of the movement, political scientist Kancha Ilaiah wrote that “the methods that they
use are neither Gandhian nor Marxian but uniquely their own.”
Between 1977 and 1979, new women’s groups emerged in cities like Delhi, Bangalore, Hyderabad, Bombay,
Ahmedabad, Patna, and Madras.
● They organised protest actions against dowry murders, beauty contests, sexist portrayal of women in media,
pornographic films and literature imported from abroad, introduction of virginity tests by the U.K. immigration
authorities, custodial rape and pitiable condition of women in prison.
○ Organizations like Mahila Dakshata Samiti, National Federation of Woman, All India Democratic
Women’s Association, Nari Raksha Samiti played an important role in initiating and conducting the
campaigns against dowry.
ISSUES TAKEN UP BY THE NEW WOMEN’S GROUPS

While providing support to women facing problems concerning marriage, divorce, maintenance, alimony, property
rights, custody of child/children and guardianship rights, the activists realised that the existing personal laws and most
of the customary laws were discriminating against women.
● These antiquated laws were enacted in the colonial period to serve the interests of the British bureaucrats.
● Shariat Law subjugated Muslim women by imposing purdah, allowing polygamy and unilateral divorce by
men to his wife/wives and by depriving divorced Muslim women of maintenance rights.
● The underlying philosophy of all these personal laws was that: women are not equal to men.
o They are governed by the patriarchal ideology. Irrespective of their religious backgrounds, these
personal laws perpetuate patrilineage, patrilocality, double standard of sexual morality for men and
women and perceive women as dependent on men.
● As the issue of personal laws is intertwined with the religious identities, the secular women’s movement had
to face tremendous hostility from the elites of the different communities, mass organisations, the patriarchal
secular lobby.
LEGISLATIVE REFORMS
● From the very beginning of the women’s movement legal reforms has been the top most priority. Women’s
organizations campaigned for reforms in the rape law (1980) and dowry prohibition Act.
● India was the first to enact the Family Courts Act (1984).

67
● Protection of Women from Domestic Violence (DV) Act (2005) was enacted due to pressure exercised by the
women’s movement to safeguard interests of survivors of domestic violence.
o The marked features of the Act are: recognition of the right to residence, provision for the
appointment of Protection officers and the recognition of service providers.
o Satya Rani Chadha mobilised rallies, seminars and protest marches—a campaign that led eventually
to stricter laws, the setting up of special cells in police stations to monitor crimes against women and
countless convictions.
1980S-1990S: TOWARDS EQUALITY

In 1980, the Five-Year Plan decided to focus on the health, employment and education of women, marking the
beginning of the third wave of Indian feminism.
This wave of feminism became broader as the intersectionality of caste, class and culture were recognised by the state.
The movement entered the private sphere to claim equal rights pertaining to marriage, divorce, succession, justice
for dowry and sexual violence, and economic opportunities.
● The Status of the Women’s Committee appointed by the Government of India released a voluminous report
in 1974. This report is called ‘Towards Equality.
● During the 1970s and 1980s, the women’s movement highlighted the marginalisation of women from the
economy.
● The efforts of women activists were directed in agitation and propaganda for women’s rights, street-fighting
against escalating violence against assertive women and team building to counter sexual harassment at the
work place.
● Its horizontal and vertical networking has created a congenial atmosphere to execute development agenda
with the help of effective use of information technology, communication channels, modern managerial
practices, efficient law and order machinery.
REPRODUCTIVE RIGHTS OF WOMEN

When it comes to the reproductive rights of women, most of the efforts of the women’s groups in India have been
directed against excesses committed in the name of family planning programmes.
● Rural areas are still backward: Still in the interior parts of India, poor women have been the main targets of
the abusive sterilization operations and unsafe injectable and oral contraceptives.
o Issues of rural girls: Recent researches on adolescent girls and abortion have highlighted the problem
of teenage pregnancies, trafficking of young girls for sex trade and the complicity of the criminal justice
system.
● Banning sex determination: The campaign against sex determination resulted in the central legislation
banning amniocentesis, chrion-villai-biopsy and sex pre-selection techniques for femicide. But, much is
needed to be done to make the legislation effective in the real life.
● It was in the early 1980s that women’s studies’ centers, functioning autonomously or within the university
system, started accepting empirical and experiential evidence from the women’s movement.
WOMEN’S MOVEMENT AND THE DEVELOPMENT AGENDA

During 1970s and 1980s, the women’s movement highlighted the marginalisation of women from the economy.
The efforts of women activists were directed in agitation and propaganda for women’s rights, street-fighting against
escalating violence against assertive women and team building to counter sexual harassment at the work place.
● Agenda of empowerment: In the 1990s, the women’s movement demanded its legitimate place within the
mainstream with its own agenda of empowerment of women with partnership with men.

68
● Difficulties faced: The most difficult areas have been providing educational opportunities for the poverty
groups, dalit and tribal women, low-cost housing, environmental and occupational safety and human rights
concerns.
○ The state, political parties and beneficiaries of women’s groups too have a duty to ensure democratic
and multicultural atmosphere within which the women activists can take judicious and gender-just
decisions.
● Gender Budgeting as a tool is used by elected women representatives to promote gender equality.
The movement also took up the rights of Dalit and marginalised women. The developmental programmes and
women’s groups largely directed their effort to raise the economic and social status of women. Principally, women’s
groups sought the empowerment of women to integrate them into the mainstream.
WOMEN MOVEMENT IN DIGITAL ERA

With the effects of economic liberalisation and the advent of modern technology, by the 2000s, women in India
witnessed a cultural shift that stressed on rights such as women’s freedom, choice and independence. Although the
term ‘fourth-wave feminism’ originated in the West, it emerged in India almost synchronously due to the widespread
use of social media.
● The digital revolution has paved the way for a new iteration of feminism. The digital space can bolster
feminist activist movements by encouraging inclusion and improving accessibility in organising collective
action.
o It also helps weave local stories with global narratives to highlight common structural inequalities.
At the same time, however, the digital space can also become a breeding ground for sexism and
misogyny.
● The ‘Everyday Sexism Project’, an online initiative launched in 2012 by British feminist writer Laura Bates, is
one of many online movements that marked the beginning of the fourth wave of feminism.
o It has encouraged tens of thousands of women around the world to write about the sexual
harassment, workplace discrimination and instances of body shaming they encounter in their
everyday lives.
● In 2014, two US-based feminists created the #FeministsAreUgly hashtag on Twitter to satirise the notion
that feminists are unattractive, and to allow women of colour to speak about cultural privilege and the
dominant norms of beauty.
o The discourse around sexual harassment has also gained momentum around the world, and has the
potential to expose the latent toxic culture of sexualised power.
● the ‘Me Too’ movement against sexual harassment, led by American activist Tarana Burke, gained
worldwide popularity through Twitter in 2017.
Although the fourth wave of feminism is still in its nascent stage in India, women are using digital tools to demand
accountability from their governments, corporations and leaders.
● In India, digital feminist movements largely rely on social media platforms.

● In 2017, the #LahuKaLagaan hashtag took over on Twitter to campaign against the 12 percent tax on sanitary
napkins, with the “period tax” being scrapped in 2018 as a result of the movement.
● In 2012, in the aftermath of the death of a 23-year-old rape victim in Delhi, widespread protests broke out
under the ‘Nirbhaya movement’.
o The protests spread to social media as well. Hashtags like #Delhibraveheart were used by millions in
support of justice for the victim.
Conclusion

69
Cyberfeminism goes beyond previous feminist waves that conceived women as a homogenous group, whose interests
could be represented by a singular agenda. To avoid replicating the damaging universalism of old-style feminism, it is
essential that cyberfeminism becomes more diverse, decentralised and democratic.
STUDENT’S MOVEMENTS
Youth movements have played a key role in social transformation. As Chock (2012) quite rightly pointed out, "Young
people are key actors in powerful social movements that transform the course of human history.
The roots of a student movement in India could be traced back to nearly 200 years ago with the formation of the
Academic Association in undivided Bengal’s Hindu College under the guidance of Henry Louis Vivian Derozio, a teacher
there and a reformer, in 1828.
● The first students’ strike in undivided India took place in 1920 in King Edward Medical College, Lahore, against
academic discrimination between Indian and English pupils.
After Independence, almost all major political parties started their student wings and several independent student
groups catering to socially and economically deprived sections also came up. Post-independent India has seen several
students’ movements that have been etched into the memory of the nation.
SOCIOLOGICAL FACTORS
The major sociological factors leading to youth and student movements are as follows:
● Quest for freedom: Students and youth have time and again stood for their quest for freedom. For instance,
during the National Liberation Movements in India.
o During the Emergency in India (1975-77), students of Jawaharlal Nehru University, Delhi University
etc., played a major role in keeping the spirit of defiance alive in their quest for freedom
● State policy: any policy which adversely affects the students or youth is bound to lead to student and youth
agitations.
o For example, the reservation policy pursued by the Government of India has time and again led to
student and youth movements in 1990, 2006 and 2015.
● Unemployment: Unemployment often leads to student or youth unrest. As Rudolph Gyan D'Mello pointed
out: "The unemployed, whatever their economic condition, are focal points of tension in society.
o When unemployment is fuelled by the educated, the situation can become potentially inflammable"
● Deprivation and injustice: Social deprivation and injustice also provoke youths to launch social movements.
Two tribal youths,
o Rajkhiram Thakur and Oakhiram Thakur, set up tribal hostels so that tribal students would not have
problems with their schooling.
● Education system: The education system naturally affects the students the most. In most countries, the
education system is authoritarian and bureaucratic. Due to structural conditions prevailing in our education
system, the teachers often deliberately distance themselves from students and becomes like a banker doling
out knowledge
● Generation gap: virtually every student and youth movement in terms of generation gap.
o They range from the youthful bohemianism of the hippies in the sixties much more sophisticated
ideology based movements like the New Left or Civil rights Movements in the sixties of the last
century.
● Social background: The social background of students or youths greatly affects their chances of becoming an
activist.
● Alienation: Alienation may be regarded as a major factor leading to youth movements. Reasons for such
alienation could also be the fact that current system of education to a large extent fails to generate
employment.

70
● Use of quick information system like Internet: The 21st century has seen extensive use of the social media
in organizing protest movements. Using digital tools, members of the wired generation emboldened each
other to challenge the status quo.
EARLY INDEPENDENCE: PROTESTS ON LINGUISTIC LINES - 1950S-1970S

● Early instances of student agitations in the post-colonial context can be traced to movements such as the
demand for linguistic states in the 1950s (in Odisha, and even leading to the creation of Andhra Pradesh and
later Telangana) and the Madras anti-Hindi agitation of 1965.
ANTI-HINDI MOVEMENT IN TAMIL NADU, 1965

● After Nehru’s death in 1964, the Congress government in the state introduced a three-language formula in
the state assembly, leading to students taking to the streets.
● Students across the state launched a stir against the Official Languages Act of 1963, which made Hindi an
official language along with English.
● The agitation ended when then PM Lal Bahadur Shastri assured that Nehru’s promise would be kept.
1970S-1990S EMERGENCY AND AFTERMATH

An entire generation of India’s political leaders emerged from the Jayaprakash Narayan (JP) movement against the
Emergency.
● The very genesis of the JP movement lay in student agitations in Gujarat known as the ‘Navnirman Andolan’
(Reconstruction Movement) in 1974.
● The movement began due to a hike in hostel food fees in Gujarat colleges and universities. Moved by JP’s call
for ‘sampoorna kranti’ (total revolution), a number of students – including the current home minister and
prime minister – cut their political teeth during the movement.
● The student-backed JP movement was successful in relegating Indira Gandhi to the margins of Indian
democracy and installing the first non-Congress government at the centre.
The post-Emergency period of the 1980s saw a militant turn in student politics and activism with the Assam agitation
and the Punjab problem.
● Many students in Assam were mobilised on the question of protecting indigenous Assamese identity.
● The Assam agitation is considered a landmark student agitation in Indian history. Some of the participants
like former All Assam Students Union (AASU) president Prafulla Kumar Mahanta made the overnight transition
from university hostels to the state assembly.
The Sikh militancy also mobilised several young men who took up arms against the Indian state, demanding a
separate Sikh state or Khalistan.
● As historian Shruti Kapila points out in the context of the youth militancy, “A postcolonial Punjabi politics of
seditious militancy effectively brought the Indian State to its knees…”
MANDAL ERA
In the light of the implementation of the recommendations of the Socially and Educationally Backward Classes
Commission (SEBC), or Mandal Commission, by the V.P. Singh government, a series of anti-Mandal protests largely led
by upper-caste students hit the Hindi heartland.
● The figure of Rajiv Goswami, a young upper-caste student, immolating himself became emblematic of the
Mandal protests.
● The Ram Mandir movement and neoliberal market reforms along with the Mandal agitation shaped the
politics of the Hindi heartland for the next quarter of the century.
Current phase: post-liberalisation student movements and agitations

71
The last phase of student movements or agitations chronologically falls within what Khaliq Parkar of JNU calls ‘post-
liberalisation student movements and agitations.’
● These include the spate of protests against the CAA and NRC but can be traced to the JNU agitation of
February 2016 and the agitation against Rohith Vemula’s suicide at University of Hyderabad.
● Telangana Movement: Another major student agitation that led to the creation of a new state was the
Telangana movement.
o Though spearheaded by K. Chandrashekhar Rao and the Telangana Rashtriya Samiti (TRS), it was
largely a student-driven agitation witnessing jail-bharo (fill the jails) campaigns, particularly from
Osmania University and University of Hyderabad.
Conclusion
the postcolonial context students have largely been mobilised on the basis of local grievances and campus politics as
opposed to the colonial context where the objective was national liberation or Independence
AGRARIAN MOVEMENT
Land ownership and distribution have long been at the heart of peasant movements for agricultural reform in India.
Tenant, sharecropper, small farmer not regularly employed, hired labour, and landless labourers are all considered
peasants. Several peasant groups arose throughout the British period over economic issues, although they had
minimal success.
EARLY PHASE: LAND REFORMS TO NAXALBARI

The are the policy measures introduced by the state during the 1950s, both at the national and provincial levels to
bring about the agrarian transformation — through land reforms, community development programmes and
agricultural Extension schemes; the green revolution in select areas of the country during the 1960s
● These developments have resulted in the emergence of new sets of issues, rise of new agrarian classes and
decline of erstwhile classes, new types of organisations and patterns of political mobilisation.
● The agricultural labourers and poor/small peasants have been mobilised into collective actions throughout
the post-Independence era in different states of India by different kinds of organisations
NAXALBARI MOVEMENT IN WEST BENGAL

In 1967, the Communist Party of India (Marxist-Leninist) had started a liberation movement by
imitating the Chinese Model, in the village of Naxalbari, Darjeeling district in north Bengal.
● The main issue of the movement was to secure rights for the marginalized sections of the agricultural
community.
● During the movement, several peasant committees were set up and land was redistributed. Several landlords
were put on trial and executed. Village defence squads were established with agricultural labourers as its
leaders. Later the revolution was quickly liquidated.
● The Naxalbari movement is one of the most widespread movements of the present times. Now, it no longer
confines its issues to land reforms, but also on larger issues of corruption, exploitation, maladministration.
PHASE- II: 1970S-1990S

The social discontent in Indian society since the 1970s was manifold.
The two decades of the last century — the sixties and seventies, witnessed the movements of a section, which is
known by different names — farmers, middle peasants, kulaks, rich peasants or rural rich.
These movements had their own organisations and leadership.
● The BKU demanded higher government floor prices for sugarcane and wheat, abolition of restrictions on the
inter-state movement of farm produce, guaranteed supply of electricity at reasonable rates, waiving of
repayments due on loans to farmers and the provision of a government pension for farmers.

72
● Activities conducted by the BKU to pressurise the state for accepting its demands included rallies,
demonstrations, sit-ins, and jail bharo (courting imprisonment) agitations. These protests involved tens of
thousands of farmers – sometimes over a lakh
● It was a very disciplined agitation of the farmers and all those days they received regular food supply from
the nearby villages.
● The organisation used traditional caste panchayats of these communities in bringing them together over
economic issues.
● Until the early nineties, the BKU distanced itself from all political parties. It operated as a pressure group in
politics with its strength of sheer numbers.
● The organisation, along with the other farmers’ organisations across the States, did manage to get some of
their economic demands accepted.
The farmers’ movement became one of the most successful social movements of the ’eighties in this respect. The
success of the movement was an outcome of political bargaining powers that its members possessed
1990S TO 2019
Unlike the earlier movements, those of the farmers in the era of globalisation have reacted to the issues related to
globalisation.
● The attempt of the western countries, especially to interfere in the agrarian economy of the country, especially
through the Dunkel Draft and GATT evoked different reactions from the farmers movement.
● They opposed the attempt of the government to change the patent laws, demanded abrogation of the
subsidies given by the European governments to their farmers.
● They also opposed the Multinational Companies which used Indian natural resources like water to
manufacture soft drinks.
● In fact, intellectuals like Vandana Shiva argue that modern technology popularised in the green revolution has
harmed the fertility of land rather than helping it.
CURRENT FARM PROTEST

● The farmers protesting against the three farm laws, demanding a repeal of three farm laws — Farmers'
Produce Trade and Commerce (Promotion and Facilitation) Act, 2020; the Farmers Empowerment and
Protection) Agreement on Price Assurance and farm Services Act 2020 and the Essential Commodities
(Amendment) Act, 2020.
● They also demanded a legal guarantee on Minimum Support Prices (MSP) for their crops.
● To break the impasse, the government has so far held eleven rounds of talks with the farmers.
● Farmer leaders, however, said they would settle for nothing less than a complete repeal of the laws and a legal
guarantee for the procurement of crops at government-fixed MSP.
CASTE MOVEMENTS
Independent India made a reservation policy for Untouchables as part of its constitution. The social and economic
inequality that exists in India can be ended only through reservation for the lower castes. The reservation system had
created a strong and articulated middle class among the Scheduled Castes.
PHASE 1: 1947 TO 1970S

There has not been a single, unified Dalit movement in the country now or in the past. Different movements have
highlighted different issues related to Dalits, around different ideologies. However, all of them assert a Dalit identity
though the meaning may not be identical or precise for everyone.
● In the post-independence period, Dalit groups were mainly fighting against the perpetual caste based
inequalities and material injustices that the Dalits faced in spite of constitutional guarantees of equality and

73
justice. Effective implementation of reservations and other such policies of social justice was one of their
prominent demands.
G. Shah (2004) has tried to classify such movements into two types, namely
● Reformative: the former tries to reform the caste system to solve the problem of untouchability.
● alternative movement: attempts to create an alternative socio-cultural structure through conversion to some
other religion or by acquiring education, economic status or political power.
By the early 1970s, the first generation Dalit graduates, especially those living in city slums began to assert themselves
from various platforms.
o Dalit Panthers, a militant organisation of the Dalit youth, was formed in Maharashtra in 1972 as a part of
these assertions.
o The larger ideological agenda of the Panthers was to destroy the caste system and to build an
organisation of all oppressed sections like the landless poor peasants and urban industrial workers along
with Dalits.
o The movement provided a platform for Dalit educated youth to use their creativity as a protest activity.
o Dalit writers protested against the brutalities of the caste system in their numerous autobiographies and
other literary works published during this period.
● The Dalit Movement sought social fairness and dignity after independence, and they strove to construct
electoral majorities based on caste mobilisation.
PHASE 2: 1980S TILL NOW
● Dalit political organisation grew in strength during the 1980s. The BAMCEF (Backward and Minority Classes
Employees Federation) was founded in 1978. It took a strong stance in favour of the bahujan - the SC, ST, and
OBC minority – gaining political power.
● Present Dalit consciousness have got divided between two classes.
○ First doors benefited from reservation market reforms and they become the capitalist
○ second class is still engaged in traditional occupational jobs like bonded labour sanitation worker and
have note taken benefit of market reforms and reservation as per the NCRB data atrocities against
the Dalit are rising.
● Dalit movements have lost unity and coordination among themselves. There are different organisations in
different states having their own agenda and methodology.
BACKWARD CLASS CASTES MOVEMENTS

From the 1920s, a number of organisations united around the issue of caste sprang up in different parts of the country.
● These included the United Provinces Hindu Backward Classes League, All-India Backward Classes Federation,
All India Backward Classes League. In 1954, 88 organisations were counted as working for the Backward
Classes.
Both backward class and Dalit movements have been able to challenge the Brahminical social order and mobilize
people towards attaining their social and legal rights through protests and movements.
PHASE-1 1947-2000
● In 1956, the Government of India appointed the Kaka Kalelkar Commission, which identified nearly 3000
tribes or clans as OBC. According to the Mandal Commission (1980), OBCs account for 52 percent of the
population, including non-Hindus.

74
● With the emergence of the Green Revolution in Haryana and Punjab dominant castes like JAts and Yadav
emerged. They controlled a significant portion of the rural economy and benefited.
● The Mandal Commission report implemented in 1992 gave impetus to this dominant caste as few of them
were classified under socially backward classes and benefited under OBC quota.
PHASE 2: 2001- PRESENT
● The recommendation for OBC reservations in central government institutions was finally implemented in 1992
while the education quota came into force in 2006.
● Over two decades after its implementation, experts say gross inequity continues to exist in how the benefits
of the reservations are enjoyed by different communities within the OBC.
● Few dominant castes that emerged during the Green Revolution now face an agrarian crisis and they have
less economic Returns and it is reducing their dominant status.
● the way out the thing that is left is government jobs as it gives them a status and Honour however it can be
achieved only through the benefit of reservation
● Thus, This phase is marked by active participation of students from backward classes and almost all of them
are demanding reservation under OBC quota.
○ incidents like Patidar Andolan, Gujarat, Maratha agitation, Maharashtra and Jat agitation in Haryana
are significant movements observed till now.
Conclusion
The lower castes by organizing themselves in the pursuit of collective interest were able to make their presence felt
and put forward their demands. The involvement of these castes organization in politics has changed their position in
hierarchical pattern of Hindu society.

75

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Political History ________________________________________________________________________ 4

National Integration ___________________________________________________________________ 24

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Indian economy in Post-Independent India__________________________________________________ 50

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ONE PARTY RULE (1947-64)

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ELECTIONS IN INDEPENDENT INDIA

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