Vision 2021 Society

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VISION IAS
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SOCIETY
S.N. TOPIC
1. Salient Features of Indian Society
PAGE NO.
1-26
2. Communalism 27-35
3. Regionalism 36-50
4. Secularism 51-58
5. Role of Women and Women's Organisation 59-106
6. Population and Association Issues 107-163
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2021
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Student Notes:
SALIENT FEATURES OF INDIAN SOCIETY

Contents
1. Introduction ............................................................................................................................... 2
2. Characteristics of Indian Society ................................................................................................ 2
3. Features of Indian Society .......................................................................................................... 2
3.1. Caste System ....................................................................................................................... 2
3.1.1. Changes in the Caste system ........................................................................................ 4
3.1.2. Factors Affecting the Changes in Caste System ............................................................ 4
3.2. Religious Pluralism .............................................................................................................. 5
3.2.1. Different Religious Groups in India .............................................................................. 5
3.3. Kinship, Marriage and Family .............................................................................................. 5
3.3.1. Kinship .......................................................................................................................... 5
3.3.2. Marriage ....................................................................................................................... 6
3.3.3. Family in Indian Society ................................................................................................ 6

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3.4. Diversity in India.................................................................................................................. 9

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3.4.1. Various forms of diversity in India.............................................................................. 10

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3.4.2. Factors Leading to Unity Amidst Diversity in India..................................................... 11

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3.4.3. Factors that threaten India’s unity ............................................................................. 11

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4. Vision IAS GS Mains Test Series Questions............................................................................... 12
5. Previous Year UPSC GS Mains Questions ................................................................................. 26

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DELHI JAIPUR PUNE HYDERABAD AHMEDABAD LUCKNOW

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Student Notes:
1. Introduction
• Indian society is an exemplification of multicultural, multi-ethnic and multi-ideological
constructs, which co-exist, at once striving to strike harmony and also to retain its
individuality.
• Based on the generous concept of Vasudhaiva Kutumbkam (the world is one family), Indian
society possess a great cultural heritage. During the course of its evolution, it has
accommodated and integrated many communities and their ways of life from time to time.
2. Characteristics of Indian Society

• Multi-ethnic society- Indian society is multi-ethnic in nature due to co-existence of wide
variety of racial groups in India. India is home to almost all the racial profiles prevalent in
the world,
• Multilingual society- Across the length and breadth of the country, more than 1600
languages are spoken. Among them the major languages are Hindi, Telugu, Tamil, Kannada,
Malayalam, Bengali etc.
• Multi-class society- Indian society is segmented into multiple classes. This division can be
on the basis of birth as well as financial and social achievements during one's lifetime.
• Patriarchal society- Indian society is largely a patriarchal society where men tend to enjoy
greater status than women . However, some tribal societies are matrilineal societies where
women have the dominant decision making power.
• Unity in diversity- This is an inherent feature of Indian society. Diversity in India exists at
various levels in different forms. However, beneath this diversity, there is fundamental unity
in social institutions and practices.
• Co-existence of traditionalism and modernity- Traditionalism is upholding or maintenance
of core values. Whereas modernity refers to questioning the tradition and moving towards
rational thinking, social, scientific and technological progress. Due to the spread of
education and technological advances, modern thinking among Indians has increased.
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However, the family life is still bound by traditional value and belief systems.
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• Balance between spiritualism and materialism- Spiritualism's main focus is to promote an

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individual's experience with God. Whereas materialism is a tendency to consider material

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possessions and physical comfort as more important than spiritual values. Indian society is
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largely possess spiritual orientations. However due to increased Westernisation,

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materialistic tendencies have also become quite visible.

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• Balance between Individualism and collectivism- Individualism is a moral, political or social

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outlook that stresses human independence, self-reliance and liberty. Whereas collectivism
is the practice of giving a group priority over each individual in it. There exists a fine balance
between them in Indian society.
• Blood and kinship ties- Blood relations and kinship ties enjoy a stronghold over other social
relationships. They continue to govern the political and economic spheres of life.
3. Features of Indian Society

3.1. Caste System
• Caste can be defined as hereditary endogamous group, having a common name, common
traditional occupation, common culture, relatively rigid in matters of mobility,
distinctiveness of status and forming a single homogenous community.
• The caste system in India is mainly associated with Hinduism and has governed the Hindu
society for thousands of years. Some of the features of caste system in India include the
following:

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Student Notes:
o Segmental division of society: It means that social stratification is largely based on

caste. Membership to a caste group is acquired by birth, on the basis of which people
are ranked in relative to other caste groups.
o Hierarchy: It indicates that various castes are categorized according to their purity and
impurity of occupations. Just like a ladder, castes are ranked from higher to lower
positions. Pure caste is ranked at the top and impure is ranked at the bottom.
o Civil and religious disabilities: These comprise of restrictions based on contact, dress,
speech, rituals etc. and are placed on every caste group. It was done in order to
maintain purity of specific caste groups. Example, lower caste groups had no access to
wells, they were restricted from entering temples etc.
o Endogamy: Members of a particular caste have to marry within their caste only. Inter-
caste marriages are prohibited. However, in urban areas, the phenomenon of inter-
caste marriage is increasing.
o Untouchability: It is the practice of ostracizing a group by segregating them from the
mainstream by social custom. Untouchability was a corollary of the caste system,
wherein the untouchables (those belonging to the lowest caste groups) were deemed
impure and polluted.
o Manual scavenging: Manual scavenging eventually became a caste-based occupation,
which involves the removal of untreated human excreta from bucket toilets or pit
latrines. It has been officially abolished by the Prohibition of Employment as Manual
Scavengers and their Rehabilitation Act 2013.
o Caste based violence in India: Increasing trend of caste based violence are related to
instances of inter-caste marriage and assertion of basic rights by Dalits including land
rights, freedom of expression, access to justice, access to education etc. e.g. A group of
Dalits were attacked in Una, Gujarat when they had participated in the movement for
demand of land ownership for the Dalits.
o Policy of caste based reservation: The system of caste-based reservation in India
comprises of a series of affirmative action measures, such as reserving access to seats
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in the various legislatures, to government jobs, and to enrollment in higher educational

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institutions. E.g. Scheduled Caste groups are given 15% reservation in government
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services and educational institutions.

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Student Notes:
3.1.1. Changes in the Caste system

• Trends for inter-caste marriage: Purity of blood was one of the main aim of the caste
system. As a result, inter-caste marriages were socially forbidden. Due to economic and
social necessities, inter-caste marriages on western lines are being performed at increased
frequency
• Challenge to orthodoxy: Orthodox practices of the caste system such as child marriage, ban
on widow re-marriage, ban on conversion, insensitiveness of superior class towards the low
caste people are being challenged in the wake of urbanization.
• New food habits: Due to frequent mixing of the people at meetings, conferences, seminars
etc., food habits have changed. Moreover, people have adapted to new social norms such
as eating at the same table, accepting food prepared by low caste people without any
reservations etc.
• Changes in occupation: Occupational mobility has become the new feature. Leaving behind
their traditional roles, Brahmins have become traders whereas Vaishyas have joined
teaching and so on.
• Improvement in the position of lower caste: Due to steps initiated by the government,
position of lower castes have improved economically as well as socially.
3.1.2. Factors Affecting the Changes in Caste System
• Sanskritisation: Sanskritisation as a process of change is the mobility concerned with
positional change in the caste system. By changing the customs and rituals such as by
adopting vegetarianism and teetotalism, people belonging to the low castes are claiming a
‘higher’ position in the caste hierarchy.
• Westernisation: Due to changes in the spheres of education, food habits, dressing sense,
style of eating, manners etc., westernization has brought occupational changes cutting
across the caste barriers.
• Modernisation: It is a process which primarily relies on scientific outlook, rational attitudes,
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high social mobility, mass mobilisation and specialisation in work. It has made caste system
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more flexible. For instances, in the urban areas, castes are gradually becoming classes. The
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emergence of middle class with a rational outlook and goal orientation is a testimony to the
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fact.
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Industrialisation and urbanisation: With the growth of industrial towns and cities,
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migration has spiralled up. Unlike the source regions, destination areas witness fewer
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adherences to caste rules.

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Democratic decentralisation: The reservation provided in the Panchayati Raj system has
given the opportunity for the lower castes to empower themselves.
• Caste and politics: They both are closely linked to each other. In fact, the link has led to an
empowerment among the lower castes since they ventilate their feelings through elections
and power lobby. Dalit politics is one such example, where Dalits are trying to assert their
identities and have become successful in capturing power in various states.
• Legislative measures: A variety of social legislations have been introduced in the post-
independence era which aim to safeguard the interests of the down-trodden, to eradicate
untouchability and to facilitate the social and economic development of the depressed
castes. For instance, Untouchability (offences) Act, 1955 provided for punishment against
the practice of untouchability.

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Student Notes:
3.2. Religious Pluralism

3.2.1. Different Religious Groups in India
India is a secular country comprising various religions of the world, which are further
subdivided into several sects and cults. Religion in India is characterized by a diversity of
religious beliefs and practices. The Indian subcontinent is the birthplace of four world
religions—Hinduism, Buddhism, Sikhism and Jainism.
Further, variants of Hinduism such as Vaishnavism, Shaivism, etc is practiced. Even in Islam,
multiple variants such as Shia, Sunni tenets are followed. Animistic and naturistic religions are
also followed by tribal groups. Thus, there is a plurality of multiple religions and each religion
has individual salient tenets and associated festivals and customs.
3.3. Kinship, Marriage and Family

3.3.1. Kinship
Kinship system refers to a set of persons recognized as relatives either by virtue of a blood
relationship or by virtue of a marriage relationship. According to the Dictionary of
Anthropology, kinship system includes society recognized relationships based on supposed as
well as well actual genealogical ties. These relationships are the result of social interaction and
are recognized by society.
Kinship system represents one of the basic social institutions. Kinship is universal and in most
societies plays a significant role in the socialisation of individuals and the maintenance of group
solidarity, It is supremely important in the primitive societies and extends its influence on
almost all their activites - social, economic, political, religious, etc.
Types of Kinship
• Affinal Kinship: The bond of marriage is called ‘affinal’ kinship. When a person marries, he
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establishes relationship not only with the girl whom he marries but also with a number of
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other people in the girl’s family. Moreover, it is not only the person marrying who gets
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bound to the family members of the girl but his family members also get bound to the
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family members of the girl. Thus, a host of relations are created as soon as a marriage takes
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place.
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• Consanguineous Kinship: The bond of blood is called consanguineous kinship. The

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consanguineous kin are related through blood whereas the affinal kin are related through
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marriage. The bond between parents and their children and that between parents and their
children and that between parents and their children and that between siblings is
consanguineous kinship.
Regional differences regarding kinship systems and marriage in North and South India
• North India: In North India, there are mostly patrilineal groups, with descent traced in the
male line from father to son. Members of a patri-lineage cooperate in in ritual and
economic activities. Caste endogamy is strictly practiced. Further, marriage is prohibited
within the same gotra or clan and village exogamy is commonly preferred. Thus, marriage
prohibitions tend to bar marriage over a wide area in terms of kinship as well as space.
• South India: The Southern zone presents a very complicated pattern of kinship system and
family organization. While there is dominance of patrilineal and patrilocal system, but
simultaneously matrilineal (descent from maternal line) and matrilocal systems also exist.
Rules of marriage also vary in South India.

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Student Notes:
3.3.2. Marriage
Marriage is an important social institution. It is a relationship, which is socially approved and
sanctioned by custom and law. It is also a set of cultural mechanisms which ensure the
continuation of the family. It is more or less a universal social institution in India.
Structural and functional changes in the marriage system
The marriage system had undergone radical changes especially after independence. Even
though the basic religious beliefs associated with marriage have not crumbled down, many of
the practices, customs, and forms have changed. The recent changes in the marriage system are
as follows:
• Changes in the aim and purpose of marriage: In traditional societies the primary objective
of marriage is ‘dharma’ or duty; especially among Hindus. But today the modern objective
of marriage is more related to ‘life-long companionship’ between husband and wife.
• Changes in the form of marriage: Traditional forms of marriages like polygamy, polygyny
are legally prohibited in India. Nowadays, mostly monogamous marriages are practiced.
• Change in the age of marriage: According to legal standards, the marriageable age for boy
and girl stands at 21 and 18 respectively. Average age of marriage has gone up and pre-
puberty marriages have given place to post-puberty marriages.
• Increase in divorce and desertion rates: Relaxed legislative provisions for divorce have
virtually affected the stability of the marriage, particularly in the urban areas. . It is mainly
due to economic prosperity and internet connectivity. Internet has exposed people to the
different social trends prevalent across the world and has revolutionized the institution
in an otherwise conservative Indian society.
• Live in relationships: They are on a steady growth rate in India especially among the youth
in metropolitan cities. The institution also has legal recognition as a three judge bench of SC
in 2010 observed that a man and a woman living together without marriage cannot be
construed as an offence and held that living together is a Right to Life and Liberty (Article
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21). SC has also acknowledged that children born out of such relations are legitimate and
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have property rights of their parents under Section 16 of Hindu Marriage Act, 1955.
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3.3.3. Family in Indian Society

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The family is the basic unit of society. It is the first and the most immediate social environment
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to which a child is exposed. It is in the family a child learns language, the behavioral Patterns
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and social norms in his childhood.

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In some way or the other the family is a universal group. It exists in tribal, rural and urban
communities and among the followers of all religious and cultures. It provides the most
enduring relationship in one form or other.
Characteristics of Family
• Family is a basic, definite and enduring group.
• Family is formed by the relatively durable companionship of husband, wife who procreate
children.
• Family may be limited to husband, wife or only the father and his children or only the
mother and her children.
• Family is generally smaller in size companied to other social groups, organizations and
associations.
• Family can also be large in size in which persons belonging to several generations may live
together.

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Student Notes:
Types of family
1. On the basis of marriage:
Polygamous families may be described as families in which either spouse is allowed to have
more than one spouse simultaneously.
Monogamous families are those families in which the marriage is limited to one spouse.
2. On the basis of residence:
Patrilocal family: The family in which after marriage wife comes to reside in the family of
her husband is known as patrilocal family. The patrilocal family is also patriarchal and
patrilineal in nature.
Matrilocal family: The family in which after marriage husband comes to reside in the family
of her wife is known as matrilocal family. It is just opposite of patrilocal family. This type of
family is also Matriarchal and Matrilineal in nature.
Bilocal family: In this type of family after marriage the married couple change their
residence alternatively. Sometimes wife joins in her husband’s house while at some other
times husband resides in wife’s house. That is why this type of family is also known as
family of changing residence.
Neolocal family: After marriage when newly married couple establish a new family
independent of their parents and settled at a new place this type of family is known as neo-
local family.
3. On the basis of size and structure:
Nuclear Family: A nuclear family is a family which consists of husband, wife and their
unmarried children. The size of nuclear family is very small. It is an autonomous unit. There
is no control of the elders because newlyweds crate a separate residence for themselves
which is independent of elders. It is also known as primary family.
Joint or Extended Family: It includes members of three to four generations. It is an
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extension of parent child relationship. This family is based on close blood ties. It is like the
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joint family of Hindu Society.

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The eldest male member is the head of the family. It is characterized by common residence,
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common kitchen, commensality, sharing of property, performance of ritual bonds,

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reciprocal obligations and sentiments.

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Extended family consists of father, mother, their sons and their wife, unmarried daughters,
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grandchildren, grandfather, grandmother, uncles, aunts, their children and so on. This type
of family found to exist in rural community or agrarian economy
4. On the basis of Authority:
Patriarchal Family: The family in which all the power remains in the hands of patriarch or
father is known as patriarchal family. In other words in this type of family power or
authority is vested in the hands of eldest male member of the family who is supposed to be
the father. He exercises absolute power or authority over the other members of family. He
owns family property.
After his death authority transferred to the eldest son of family. In this family descent is
known through father line. In this type of family wife after marriage come to reside in his
husband’s house. Joint family system among the Hindus is a fine example of patriarchal
family.
Matriarchal family: This type of family is just opposite of patriarchal family. In this family
power or authority rests on the eldest female member of the family especially the wife or

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Student Notes:
mother. She enjoy absolute power or authority over other members of the family. She owns
all the family property. In this family descent is known through the mother.
Headship is transferred from mother to the eldest daughter. Husband remain subordinate
to his wife in a matriarchal family. This type of family is found among the Nayars of Kerala
and among the Garo and Khasi tribes of Assam.
5. Family on the basis of descent:
Patrilineal family: The family in which descent or ancestry is determined through father line
and continues through father it is known as patrilineal family. The property and family
name is also inherited through father line. The patrilineal family is also patrilocal and
patriarchal in nature.
Matrilineal family: Matrilineal family is just opposite of the patrilineal family. The family in
which descent is determined through mother line or continues through mother it is known
as Matrilineal family. The property and family name is also inherited through mother line.
This right transferred from mother to daughter. A woman is the ancestor of family. The
Matrilineal family is Matrilocal and Matriarchal in nature. This type of family found among
the Nayars of Kerala and among tribals like Garos and Khasis.
Functions of the family
• Primary function- Some of the functions of family are basic to its continued existence.
o Production and rearing of the child
o Provision of home
o Instrument of culture transmission
o Agent of socialization
o Status ascribing function
o Agency of social control
• Secondary function
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o Economic functions: With economic advancements, family has become more

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consuming unit than a producing one. Members are engaged in earning wages for
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ensuring socio-economic well-being of the family.

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o Educational functions: Family provides the basis for the child’s formal learning. In spite
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of great changes, the family still gives the child his basic training in the social attitudes
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and habits important to adult participation in social life

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o Religious functions: Family is a center for the religious training of the children. The
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children learn from their parents various religious virtues.

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o Recreational functions: Family provides the opportunities to parents and children for
engaging in various recreational activities such as playing indoor games, dancing,
singing, reading etc.
Structural and functional changes in the Indian family system
With the advent of industrial civilization with modern technology the structure and functions of
the family fatedly changed. Today most of the traditional activities of the family were
transferred to outside agencies; this further weakening the bonds that in the past kept the
family together. There occurred a reduction in the educational, recreational, religious and
protective functions of the family which have been more or less taken over by various
institutions and agencies created for that purpose.
Some of the major changes in the Indian family system are discussed below:
• Changes in family: Family which was a principal unit of production has been transformed in
the consumption unit. Instead of all members working together in an integrated economic

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Student Notes:
enterprise, a few male members go out of the home to earn the family’s living. These
affected family relations.
• Factory employment: It has freed young adults from direct dependence upon their families.
This functional independence of the youngsters has weakened the authority of the head of
the house hold over those earning members. In many cities even women too joined men in
working outside the families on salary basis.
• Influence of urbanization: Various sociologists have revealed that the city life is more
favorable to small nuclear families than to big joint families. Thus, urban living weakens
joint family pattern and strengthens nuclear family patterns.
• Legislative measures: Prohibition of early marriage and fixing the minimum age of marriage
by the child marriage Restraint Act, 1929, and the Hindu Marriage Act, 1955 have
lengthened the period of education. Even other legislations such as the Widow Remarriage
Act, 1856, Hindu Marriage Act, 1955, Hindu succession Act, 1956, all have modified inter
personal relations within the family, the composition of the family and the stability of the
joint family.
• Changes in marriage system: Changes in the age of marriage, freedom in mate-selection
and change in the attitude towards marriage has diminished marriage is not very much
considered a religious affair but only a social ceremony. Modern marriage does not
symbolize the superior authority of the family head over other members.
• Influence of western values: Values relating to modern science, rationalism, individualism,
equality, free life, democracy, freedom of women etc. have exerted a tremendous change
on the joint family system in India.
• Changes in the position of women: Main factor causing changes in the position of women
in our society lie in her changing economic role. New economic role provided a new
position in society and especially with respect to men.
Current status
Over the years, various sociologists have affirmed in their studies that the rise of nuclear
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families — consisting of a couple and their unmarried children — is consistent with rapid
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urbanization.
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According to the 2001 census, out of 19.31 crore households, 9.98 crore or 51.7% were nuclear
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households. In the 2011 census, the share grew to 52.1% — 12.97 crore nuclear out of 24.88
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crore households. However, there is the decline in the proportional share of nuclear households
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in urban areas. From 54.3% of the urban households of 2001, nuclear families have fallen to
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52.3% of all urban households. In contrast, in rural areas, the share of nuclear families has risen
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from 50.7% to 52.1%.

Joint families, meanwhile, fell substantially from 19.1% (3.69 crore) to 16.1% (4 crore) across
India. In rural areas, the dip was sharper – from 20.1% to 16.8% – than in urban India where it
fell from 16.5% to 14.6%. Thus, the declining share of urban nuclear families is attributed to
increased migration as well as lack of housing.
3.4. Diversity in India

India is a plural society both in letter and spirit. It is rightly characterized by its unity and
diversity. A grand synthesis of cultures, religions and languages of the people belonging to
different castes and communities has upheld its unity and cohesiveness despite multiple foreign
invasions.
National unity and integrity have been maintained even through sharp economic and social
inequalities have obstructed the emergence of egalitarian social relations. It is this synthesis
which has made India a unique mosque of cultures. Thus, India present seemingly multicultural
situation within in the framework of a single integrated cultural whole.

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Student Notes:
The term ‘diversity’ emphasizes differences rather than inequalities. It means collective
differences, that is, differences which mark off one group of people from another. These
differences may be of any sort: biological, religious, linguistic etc. Thus, diversity means variety
of races, of religions, of languages, of castes and of cultures.
Unity means integration. It is a social psychological condition. It connotes a sense of one-ness, a
sense of we-ness. It stands for the bonds, which hold the members of a society together.
Unity in diversity essentially means “unity without uniformity” and “diversity without
fragmentation”. It is based on the notion that diversity enriches human interaction.
When we say that India is a nation of great cultural diversity, we mean that there are many
different types of social groups and communities living here. These are communities defined by
cultural markers such as language, religion, sect, race or caste.
3.4.1. Various forms of diversity in India
• Religious diversity: India is a land of multiple religions. Apart from the tribal societies,
many of whom still live in the pre-religious state of animism and magic, the Indian
population consists of the Hindus (82.41%), Muslims (11.6%), Christians (2.32%), Sikhs
(1.99%), Buddhists (0.77%) and Jains (0.41%). The Hindus themselves are divided into
several sects such as Vaishnavas, Shaivates, Shaktas, Smartas etc. Similarly, the Muslims are
divided into sects such as Shias, Sunnis, Ahmadiyas etc.
• Linguistic diversity: Languages spoken in India belong to several language families, the
major ones being the Indo-Aryan languages spoken by 75% of Indians and the Dravidian
languages spoken by 20% of Indians. Other languages belong to the Austroasiatic, Sino-
Tibetan, Tai-Kadai, and a few other minor language families and isolates. India has the
world's second highest number of languages, after Papua New Guinea.
• Racial diversity: 1931 census classified India’s racial diversity in the following groups- The
Negrito, The Proto-Australoid, The Mongoloid, The Mediterranean, The Western
Brachycephals and the Nordic. Representatives of all the three major races of the world,
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namely Caucasoid, Mongoloid, and Negroid, are found in the country.

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• Caste diversity: India is a country of castes. The term caste has been used to refer to both
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varna as well as jati. Varna is the four-fold division of society according to functional
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differentiation. Thus, the four varnas include Brahmins, Kshatriyas, Vaishyas and Shudras
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and an outcaste group. Whereas Jati refers to a hereditary endogamous status group
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practicing a specific traditional occupation.. There are more than 3000 jatis and there is no
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one all India system of ranking them in order and status. The jati system is not static and
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there is mobility in the system, through which jatis have changed their position over years.
This system of upward mobility has been termed as “Sanskritization” by M. N. Srinivas.
• Cultural diversity: Cultural patterns reflect regional variations. Because of population
diversity, there is immense variety in Indian culture as it is a blend of various cultures.
Different religion, castes, regions follow their own tradition and culture. Thus, there is
variation in art, architecture, dance forms, theatre forms, music etc.
• Geographical diversity: Spanning across an area of 3.28 million square kilometre, India is a
vast country with great diversity of physical features like dry deserts, evergreen forests,
lofty mountains, perennial and non-perennial river systems, long coasts and fertile plains.
In addition to the above described major forms of diversity, India also has diversity of many
other types like that of settlement patterns - tribal, rural, urban; marriage and kinship patterns
along religious and regional lines and so on.

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Student Notes:
3.4.2. Factors Leading to Unity Amidst Diversity in India

• Constitutional identity: The entire country is governed by one single Constitution. Even,
most of the states follow a generalised scheme of 3-tier government structure, thus
imparting uniformity in national governance framework . Further, the Constitution
guarantees certain fundamental rights to all citizens regardless of their age, gender, class,
caste, religion, etc.
• Religious co-existence: Religion tolerance is the unique feature of religions in India due to
which multiple religions co-exist in India. Freedom of religion and religious practice is
guaranteed by the Constitution itself. Moreover, there is no state religion and all religions
are given equal preference by the state.
• Inter-State mobility: The Constitution guarantees freedom to move throughout the
territory of India under Article 19 (1) (d), thus promoting a sense of unity and brotherhood
among the masses.
• Other factors such as uniform pattern of law, penal code, administrative works (eg. All India
services) too lead to uniformity in the criminal justice system, policy implementation etc.
• Economic integration: The Constitution of India secures the freedom of
Trade, Commerce and Intercourse within the Territory of India under Article 301. Further,
the Goods and Service Tax(GST) have paved way for ‘one country, one tax, one national
market’, thus facilitating unity among different regions.
• Institution of pilgrimage and religious practices : In India, religion and spirituality have
great significance. . From Badrinath and Kedarnath in the north to Rameshwaram in the
south, Jagannath Puri in the east to Dwaraka in the west the religious shrines and holy
rivers are spread throughout the length and breadth of the country. Closely related to them
is the age-old culture of pilgrimage, which has always moved people to various parts of the
country and fostered in them a sense of geo-cultural unity.
• Fairs and festivals: They also act as integrating factors as people from all parts of the
country celebrate them as per their own local customs. Eg. Diwali is celebrated throughout
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by Hindus in the country, similarly Id and Christmas are celebrated by Muslims and
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Christians, respectively. Celebration of inter-religious festivals is also seen in India.

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• Climatic integration via monsoon: The flora and fauna in the entire Indian subcontinent,
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agricultural practices, life of people, including their festivities revolve around the monsoon
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season in India.
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• Sports and Cinema: These are followed by millions in the country, thus, acting as a binding
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force across the length and breadth of India.

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3.4.3. Factors that threaten India’s unity

• Regionalism: Regionalism tends to highlight interests of a particular region/regions over
national interests. It can also adversely impact national integration. Law and order situation
is hampered due to regional demands and ensuing agitation.
• Divisive politics: Sometimes, ascriptive identities such as caste, religion etc. are evoked by
politicians in order to garner votes. This type of divisive politics can result in violence,
feeling of mistrust and suspicion among minorities.
• Development imbalance: Uneven pattern of socio-economic development, inadequate
economic policies and consequent economic disparities can lead to backwardness of a
region. Consequently, this can result in violence, kickstart waves of migration and even
accelerate demands of separatism.. For instance, due to economic backwardness of the
North East region, several instances of separatist demands and secessionist tendencies
have sprung up in the region.
• Ethnic differentiation and nativism: Ethnic differentiation has often led to clashes between
different ethnic groups especially due to factors such as job competition, limited resources,

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Student Notes:
threat to identity etc. E.g. frequent clashes between Bodos and Bengali speaking Muslims in
Assam. This has been accentuated by son of the soil doctrine, which ties people to their
place of birth and confers some benefits, rights, roles and responsibilities on them, which
may not apply to others.
• Geographical isolation: Geographical isolation too can lead to identity issues and
separatist demands. The North-East is geographically isolated from the rest of the country
as it is connected with the rest of the country by a narrow corridor i.e the Siliguri corridor
(Chicken’s neck). The region has inadequate infrastructure, is more backward economically
as compared to the rest of the country. As a result, ithas witnessed several instances of
separatism and cross-border terrorism, among others.
• Inter-religious conflicts: Inter-religious conflicts not only hamper relations between two
communities by spreading fear and mistrust but also hinder the secular fabric of the
country.
• Inter-state conflicts: This can lead emergence of feelings related to regionalism. It can also
affect trade and communications between conflicting states. For instance, Cauvery river
dispute between Karnataka and Tamil Nadu.
• Influence of external factors: Sometimes external factors such as foreign organizations
terrorist groups, extremist groups can incite violence and sow feelings of separatism. E.g.
Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) has been accused of supporting and training mujahideen to
fight in Jammu and Kashmir and sow separatist tendencies among resident groups.
In-spite of the challenges posed by diversity, there can be no doubt on the role played by socio-
cultural diversity in sustaining and developing Indian society.
Problem is not of diversity per se, but the handling of diversity in India society. The problems
of regionalism, communalism, ethnic conflicts etc. have arisen because the fruits of
development haven’t been distributed equally or the cultures of some groups haven’t been
accorded due recognition.
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Hence, Constitution and its values must form guiding principles of our society. Any society
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which has tried to homogenize itself, has witnessed stagnation in due-course and ultimately
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decline. The most important example is this case is of Pakistan which tried to impose culture on
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East-Pakistan ultimately leading to creation of Bangladesh.

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4. Vision IAS GS Mains Test Series Questions

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1. In the light of multi-cultural society of India, can we say that multi-culturalism and
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pluralism are the two sides of a coin of “unity in diversity”?

Approach:
• First explain both these terms and try to bring out the similarities/differences
between them.
• Then describe these terms in the specific context of India. While answering this keep
in mind the theme of “unity in diversity”.
• You can argue either in favour or against the statement, i.e. whether they are two
sides of the same coin or altogether different.. However, either viewpoint needs to
be supported with logical and coherent arguments. While arguing against the
statement, you can show how multi-culturalism differs from pluralism and how
some interpretations of multiculturalism has seen pluralism being lost in its
definition. While arguing in favour you can show how both are essentially similar in
striving to achieve the same objectives. The following answer uses the latter
approach.

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Student Notes:
Answer:
Let us first see briefly the similarities and differences between pluralism and
multiculturalism:
Pluralism Multiculturalism
Public Individuals are treated as The public sphere is not culturally
Sphere equals in a common (neutral) neutral. Public sphere is an arena for
public sphere. cultural negotiation. No group
should dominate in a way that
excludes other cultural forms.
Cultural Different cultures allowed in a Different cultures are encouraged.
Diversity separate cultural sphere, but Individuals are considered part of
society has no obligation to collectivities that provide meaning
acknowledge or support to their lives. Multiculturalism seeks
alternative cultural forms. ways to support these collectivities.
Thus, pluralism also allows for
the dissolution of cultural
formations.
Dominant 1. equality of opportunity 1. affiliation
Principals 2. freedom of association 2. cultural recognition
A lot has been said about the success of multiculturalism in India. We have vibrant
communities of Hindus, Muslims, Sikhs, Christians, Jains, Buddhists, Parsis etc. that
have blended well and enhanced the progress of India. We are one of the most diverse
countries in the world in terms of cultural, religious and linguistic diversity. And this
diversity owes mainly to our vast geographical extent and successive waves of migration
from all over the world.
Striking a balance between unity and diversity or managing unity in such diverse socio-
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cultural situations, is always a challenge for a nation. Pluralism and multiculturalism are
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two ways to manage this conundrum simultaneously.

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In India, pluralism describes the reality of cultural diversity. It attempts to create a

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society in which the best of all inputs continue to integrate. It allows for many different
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groupings but does not try to impose a uniform status on all of them.
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Our multiculturalism, on the other hand, means showing respect and tolerance to other
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cultures and faith. It holds that all minority values must have equal status to those of
the majority. It also allows assertion of different identities in every sphere of life. The
Indian constitution also provides fundamental rights for the preservation of this variety.
This assertion of variety can be seen in linguistic reorganization of states, political
representation, rise in demand for minority rights, indigenous rights, anti-hindi
movements etc. These assertions present a new way of assimilation where all
communities find their respective place in making of nation-state. No community is left
out in creating a rainbow nation. Multiculturalism and pluralism provides a new
paradigm for stability which increases cohesiveness and integrity of nation.
Thus from the above discussion we can say that pluralism is the more general term for
any kind of plurality while the multiculturalism is the proactive application of plurality
to maintain and harmonize the diversity and heterogeneity in society in general and
nation-state in particular.

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Student Notes:
2. Is India's linguistic diversity a threat to national integration?

Approach:
• Briefly explain the nature of linguistic diversity
• Then explain what are the problems which are/can be faced due to this diversity
• Finally conclude on a positive note that even after such linguistic diversity, India has
unity
Answer:
Nature of India’s linguistic diversity:
In India, there are more than 200 languages, being spoken by different groups. There
exists ‘linguistic pluralism’ in India, which is a state of ‘mutual existence’ of several
languages in a contiguous space. The plurality of languages has led to ‘language
problems’, in the past. These problems being: i) Linguistic reorganization of the states in
India ii) Status of ‘minority languages’ in the states iii) Official language issue.
Language Problems and National Integration:
• Linguistic reorganization of states was primarily done for administrative
convenience. It also helped in fulfilling the aspirations of different linguistic groups
in India, without threatening national unity.
• Discriminatory practices or policies against ‘linguistic minorities’ in different states,
can in the long term threaten national integration. Prejudiced treatment against
linguistic minorities, can perpetuate ‘separatism’. Example: Bengali speaking people
in Assam, Kanada, Malayalam speaking people in Andhra Pradesh. There are
various Constitutional Provisions, to safeguard the interests of ‘linguistic
minorities’, enshrined in Articles: 29, 30, 347, 350.
• ‘Hindi, English’ are the ‘official languages’ of the Union. There are ‘regional
languages ‘recognized as the ‘official languages’ of the states. There has emerged a
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‘hierarchy of official status’. The 1960s witnessed ‘anti-Hindi’ agitations’, in the

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southern states, speaking Dravidian family of languages. The fear of Hindi becoming
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the ‘national language’ was allayed by the continuance of English as the official
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language. Also the ‘Three language formula ‘was devised to accommodate the
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different languages, in the educational curriculum.

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Linguistic Unity and National integration:

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• However, the linguistic heterogeneity has not always been disruptive for national
integration. With linguistic diversity, one has also witnessed, the development of an
‘all India common vocabulary.’ Ex. Sanskrit, which has not only acted as bridge
between different Indo Aryan languages, but also between Indo Aryan and
Dravidian languages. Ex. In contemporary times, “Hinglish”, which is the blending of
English language with Hindi and other languages spoken in India.
• The mainstream cinema ‘’Bollywood’’, has immensely contributed to the
development of an all India vocabulary.
• The popularity of many ‘Epics’ and ‘fictional non-fictional literature’, has lead their
translation into many different languages. This has also contribute to ‘linguistic
unity’ in India.

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Student Notes:
3. Explain India s 'diversity in unity’. Illustrate from the socio- cultural life of people.
Approach:
• Write down how India is a plural society with extensive diversity in religion, races,
languages, culture, heritage etc.
• Provide some examples for each
Answer:
India's Diversity in Unity:
India's Diversity in unity refers to the existence of plural-ethnic, racial, religious and
linguistic cultures together within the nation of India.
The concept heralds the geo-political unity of the nation state of India encompassing
several diverse cultures within its uniform matrix.
The test examples of 'Diversity in Unity' can be highlighted through the following
examples from the socio-cultural life of the Indian people.
The Indian festivals are known for their enhancement and liveliness throughout the
world. The most important example, Diwali is celebrated by all. However, the meaning
and methods of celebration change across various religions and regional communities.
The architectural heritage symbolizes India's historic past and glory. The Taj Mahal is
famous as the symbol of love and dedication across all people. At a broader level, it is
quite interesting to see people of various cultures visiting such heritage monuments;
accepting them as their common heritage.
• The Multi-National corporations have brought in a new 'cosmopolitan' culture to
India through globalization; these companies employ people across various
ethnicities, caste and class, creating a diverse yet unified environment.
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The caste system as a system of hierarchy identifies an Indian. So much so, that it
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has taken within its hold, people across various caste, communities and religions.
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The 'power of patriarchy' is another common thread of value found prevalent in

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India. It includes the diverse sexes – men and women too.

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The Popular phenomena such as Cricket and Bollywood also represent diverse
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cultures celebrating together. The Indian Premier league is a good example of this.
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4. While democratic institutions in India have led to changes in the caste structure,
these changes have at best led to only partial re-distributive outcomes for the
backward castes. Discuss.
Approach:
Introduce by defining the caste structure in brief. Then bring out the reasons which led
to changes in caste structure while illustrating on the changes. Further, point out the
positive and negative aspects of such changes and conclude accordingly.
Answer:
Caste as a social institution has existed historically and had been characterized by
hierarchical relations between different social groups. However, this hierarchical nature
of social order violates the trinity of liberty, equality and dignity enshrined in
constitution and recognised in Ambedkar's words "one man one vote and one vote one
value".

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Student Notes:
In Post-independence India, under the twin influence of affirmative polices for sc/st's in
legislature, government jobs and education along with the democratizing influence of
universal adult franchise, it was expected to correct for historical injustices and give
effect to the redistributive agenda of the state and thereby weakening the hierarchical
foundation of caste on the social life of individuals
The democratizing influence of universal adult franchise led to the rise of dominant
castes in the agriculturally prosperous belts of north India which was followed by their
capture of state power. It meant that some caste groups irrespective of their position in
the caste hierarchy were able to wield influence and gain prominence and social
recognition.
It was further followed by the rise of backward class movement in 1980's and 90's
which gave rise to caste groups backed regional political parties like BSP, SP etc. in north
India. These parties on the other hand were able to become vehicles of social
mobilization and registering their presence in wielding power in the state.
The mandalization of politics in India post 1990 has belied the expectation of social
scientists that the developmental agenda of the state will wipe out primitive social
institutions like caste, whereas other's like M.N Srinivas have argued that under the
aegis of a democratic state the vertical hierarchical nature of caste based social groups
has been replaced by a horizontal arrangement of competing caste groups free from
any stigma of purity and pollution and this has been termed as the modern avatar of
caste.
However, recent studies have pointed out that the benefit of affirmative state policies
have been cornered often by the dominant groups within the OBC and SC categories,
which are a manifestation of the unfulfilled promises of democratic institution.
This elite capture and the introduction of class element within caste which can be seen
in the need felt in recent years to create subcategories as in within the preexisting
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backward caste and communities. has led to the fracturing of dalit identity into
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categories like 'maha dalits' or 'ati dalits'.and backward class and extremely backward
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class in Bihar.
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Also it has also been lamented that rather than weakening caste consciousness
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democracy has strengthened it and this has been seen by some as impeding the aim of
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promoting fraternity between the subjects of the state.

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Perhaps this examples support the thesis that democratic institution in India though
have succeeded in imparting some changes in the caste structure but it were limited to
partial redistributive outcomes as far as backward caste categories has concerned.
5. “Linguistic, regional and tribal identity rather than religion has provided the most
important basis for the formation of ethno-national identities in India”. Explain.
Approach:
• Briefly describe different basis like language, region, tribe and religion as the basis
of identification with a community. Then examine how these identities have played
a role in determining the identity discourse in the country.
• Students can agree, disagree, or take a middle path on the view that religion has
not played so important role in shaping the ethno-national identity in the country.
• Cite relevant examples wherever needed.

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Student Notes:
Answer:
Ethnic identity is a basis for distribution of social rewards like money, prestige and
power. In most societies one or more ethnic groups dominate others in economic,
political and cultural matters. Ethnic politics can, therefore, take the appearance of
‘ethnic stratification’, resulting in the emergence of ‘ethnic nationalism’.
Nations are created when ‘ethnic groups’, in a multi-ethnic state are transformed into a
‘self-conscious political entities’. The goals of ‘sovereignty and self-determination’, lead
to ethno nationalism.
Often minority groups try to play the ethnic card in order to acquire a better deal for
themselves in a plural society. When subjugated groups, fail to achieve success
according to the norms established by the dominant group the nature of their response
tends to be ‘ethnic antagonism’ which may take the form of
• Struggle of the indigenous people’s right to their land and culture,
• competition by ethnic groups for obtaining scarce resources
• Movements for a separate nation.
India is one of the most diverse countries in the world in terms of languages, regional
disparities, cultures, ethnicity and religions. When such diverse state is engaged in
nation building through the construction of national identity, smaller identities move in
the opposite direction, when they feel that they are about to lose their identity. Hence,
Ethno-national identities in India have been shaped by the relative concentration of
these factors in a region clubbed with the sense of regional deprivation.
For Example: Instances of Naga, Mizo, Manipur ethno nationalism, Khalistan movement
of 1980s
In India, post-independence, major factors that contributed to the emergence of ethnic
mobilization were:
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the pitfalls of nation-building process,

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• the faulty modernization process, and

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• the nature of the nation-state.

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The most important basis for the formation of identity was language. Community
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aspirations vented out as the demand for linguistic states, ultimately leading to major
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redrawing of the internal boundaries on the basis of language.

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Secondly, the postcolonial development process tried to integrate and assimilate ethnic
communities towards the mainstream development process while ignoring their
cultural and economic specificities. The centralized planning and the capitalist
modernization further lead to the exclusion of various tribal communities from
mainstream. This led to the mass displacement of tribals from their historical and
traditional lands, without commensurate benefits of development being provided to
them.
As a result, a combination of ethnicity based on tribal identity, language, regional
deprivation and ecology provided the basis for intense regionalism resulting in the
formation of states like Jharkhand, Chhattisgarh, Uttarakhand and very recently
Telangana.
Similarly, the ethnic demand for homeland created a number of smaller states in the
northeast. For instance, the greater Assam was Balkanized into Nagaland, Meghalaya,
Arunachal Pradesh and Mizoram to meet the demands of these ethnic groups.

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Student Notes:
However, mere making of territorial boundary did not solve the problem; on the
contrary, it further aggregated it. It is argued that the creation of separate state further
fanned the fire when “various smaller and bigger communities started to demand
establishment of more states; on the other hand, the state showed their inability to
deliver the basic goods”
However, in the Post-independence era, there are instances of religion becoming the
basis of identities especially among the Muslims and Sikhs. For example: demand for
the formation of Khalistan is an evidence of religion becoming the basis of identity.
However, demands from Muslims are more concerned with their relative backwardness
and poverty and a sense of security. Yet such instances of assertion of religious
identities are fewer when compared to language, regional deprivation etc.
Hence, it can be said that religion has played a relatively minor though not negligible
role in determining the ethno-national identities in India.
However, it must be emphasized that during recent times with the emergence of right-
wing political forces in the country, religion has again come into prominence as the
basis of national identity where nationalism is often misplaced with commitment to
religious and cultural traditions of the majority. This may result in the right-wing forces
in minorities asserting their religious identities to counter the right-wing of majority. It
may lead to not a very pleasant scenario of religion becoming dominant factor in
determining the identities of the communities from the minor one it currently is.
6. In recent times, there has been a clamor for implementing Article 44 of the Indian
Constitution. To what extent is such a demand justified, given the socio-cultural
diversity of India.
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Approach:
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Introduce the answer by mentioning what Article 44 is. The answer should discuss the
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possibility of implementing this Article, considering the socio-cultural diversity of India.

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Answer:
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Article 44 of the Part IV directs the Indian State to implement Uniform Civil Code in the
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country. Uniform civil code means to replace the personal laws based on the scriptures
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and customs of each religious community with a common set governing every citizen.
These laws cover marriage, divorce, inheritance, adoption and maintenance.
The Indian-state is socially and culturally one of the most diverse countries in the world,
in terms of religion, language etc. Historically, most states feared that, identity politics,
recognition of social differences, was a threat to state unity. In such a context, time and
again, there has been a repeated demand to impose uniform civil code in India. There
seems to be some substance in the argument, considering the examples of some states,
like in Spain, Sri Lanka, and erstwhile East Pakistan.
Further, different communities have their separate Personal laws that often go against
the law of the land, apart from violating the rule of law, basic humanistic and rational
law. Therefore, it may be desirable that there is a common legal system which is equally
applicable to all the communities residing in India.
However, deeper analysis reveals that, it was the imposition of majoritarian culture and
the corresponding neglect of the customs and social symbols of the minority that led to

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Student Notes:
social unrest in the above mentioned countries. Moreover, suppressing cultural

diversity can be very costly in terms of the alienation of the minorities whose culture is
treated as ‘non-national.’ Further, the very act of suppression can provoke the opposite
effect of intensifying community identities and social unrest, as happened in few
neighboring states.
Contrary to the above, case studies from around the world have demonstrated that
enduring democracies can be established in polities that are multicultural. Explicit
efforts are required to end the cultural exclusion of diverse groups and to build multiple
and complementary identities. Such responsive policies provide incentives to build a
feeling of unity in diversity. Indian Constitution rightly embodies this notion. Though,
India is culturally diverse, comparative surveys of long-standing democracies show that
India has been very cohesive despite its diversity.
Thus, national cohesion doesn’t require the imposition of a single identity and the
denunciation of diversity. Successful strategies to build state-nations can and do
accommodate diversity constructively by crafting responsive policies of cultural
recognition. They are the time tested solutions for ensuring the longer term objectives
of political stability and social harmony. Hence, any effort to implement Article 44
should be based on popular consensus.
7. Marriage and family institutions in India are marked by continuity as well as change.
Discuss in the context of legislations and socio-economic changes that have been
taking place over the past few decades in India.
Approach:
• First, give a brief introduction to the answer on how marriage and family
institution in India are important .
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• Second, highlight the reasons for change in these institutions i.e. socio- economic
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reasons and the impact of the legislations ( preferably more recent ones)
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separately.
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• Finally, conclude the answer by highlighting that despite changes , how the essence
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of marriage and familial relations are still intact.

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Answer:
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Marriage and family institutions are the repositories of the core values of the Indian
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society. These institutions are still seen as a social legitimation to have children . We
can see the domination of patriarchal values and feudal mindsets in these institutions.
However, under the impact of socio-economic changes and legislations, they are
undergoing many changes.
Factors influencing change and continuity in Marriage and family institutions
• Economic Changes
o Industrialisation and Urbanisation: Growth of cities and city culture have a
direct impact on the family and marriage.
▪ modern industries have lessened the economic functions of the family and
led to the replacement of Joint family structure with Nuclear families.
▪ Status of women in the family has improved as they have become more
educated and started working, thus along with other male members in the
family ,they also now have a say in family issues.

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Student Notes:
▪ In partner selection, job and salary are given more importance, than the
family background , caste or religion. Also the online matrimonial sites have
come up which has reduced the role of elders of the family.
▪ To fulfil career and individual ambitions , “delayed marriages” and “long –
distance marriages” have become a common feature
▪ Marriage is often held in cities more as a social or a civil ceremony than a
religious ceremony. The duration of marriage ceremony is also cut short in
the city . Elaborate customs are either avoided or shortened ; court
marriages preferred.
▪ In cities, the cases of divorce , desertion , separation , broken families etc
alongwith pre-marital and extra-marital sex relations are seen.
• Social Changes
o Modern education , values and western ideologies such as rationalism,
individualism , equality of sex, democracy , individual freedom , secularism , etc
have influenced the outlook of educated young men and women . Hence, they
want to take their own decisions and make choices on the main events of their
life such as line of education , job and marriage.
• Influence of legislations on Marriage:
o Dowry Prohibition Act, 1996 , Domestic Violence Act( DVA) , 2005, etc -
have made the position of women stronger .Now the women are given justice
against the "invisible violence" at home-physical and verbal abuse,etc which
they used to go through either because of dowry demands or otherwise.The
DVA, 2005, includes in its ambit live-in partners caters to the changing
dynamics of relationships.
o The ‘divorce’ laws have been made more flexible with the amendment of The
Hindu Marriage Act, 1955 in 1986, by including the ground of ‘incompatibility’
and ‘mutual consent’ apart from the reasons provided earlier like adultery,
conversion of religion, etc. This has led to the institution of marriage more
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susceptible to conflicts, fights, giving lesser scope to “compromise” and time to

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save marriage and family. But on the other hand, it also gave the option to both
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men and women to come out of a “bad marriage” which they otherwise used
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to be in just to fulfil societal obligations.

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o Women are given right in the ancestral property and a legal right to share
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property along with male members, after the Hindu Succession Act of 1956
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was amended in 2005. This has made the economic position of women
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stronger.
However, despite changes, the core values in the institutions of marriage and family are
still intact. Mutual fidelity and devotion is still respected.
8. Even after years of independence and despite modern legislation, the antiquated
practice of child marriage still persists in certain sections. What are the reasons for
persistence of child marriage in India? How does it affect our society? What can be
done to eradicate this practice?
Approach:
• Give reasons encompassing social, cultural and economic issues for child marriages.
These reasons should be more specific with respect to the persistence of child
marriage.
• Secondly mention the impact that child marriage has on society as a whole in this
modern context.
• Finally suggest some practices to eradicate this menace.

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Student Notes:
Answer:
Child marriage is a traditional practice that in many places happens simply because it
has happened for generations – and straying from tradition could mean exclusion from
the community. On top of this, there is limited capacity among officials and lack of
willingness to go against community decisions, since officials are themselves part of the
community.
In communities where a dowry or ‘bride price’ is paid, it is often welcome income for
poor families; in those where the bride’s family pay the groom a dowry, they often
have to pay less money if the bride is young and uneducated.
Many parents marry off their daughters young because they feel it is in her best
interest, often to ensure her safety in areas where girls are at high risk of physical or
sexual assault. Limited education opportunities, low quality of education, inadequate
infrastructure, lack of transport and therefore concerns about girls’ safety while
travelling to school significantly contribute to keeping girls out of school and therefore
tend to favour child marriage.
Girls are often seen as a liability with limited economic role. Women’s work is confined
to the household and is not valued. Archaic laws such as those of Muslim Personal Law
allows the marriage of girls aged between 15 and 18.
Child marriage ensues the vicious cycle of poverty. With little access to education and
economic opportunities, they and their families are more likely to live in poverty. Child
brides are often disempowered, dependent on their husbands and deprived of their
fundamental rights to health, education and safety. A system that undervalues the
contribution of young women limits its own possibilities. In this way, child marriage
drains country of the innovation and potential that would enable them to thrive.
There is a need to implement a convergent strategy:
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Law enforcement: Capacity-building on laws, support mechanisms such as a child

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marriage telephone hotline.

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Girls’ empowerment: Life skills, protection skills.

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• Community mobilization: Working with influential leaders, oaths and pledges,

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counselling, folk and traditional media.

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• Promoting convergence of sectors at all levels, in particular with education and

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social protection schemes and programmes.

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• Building a social movement on the lines of Bachpan Bachao Aandolan which would
emphasize on an IEC campaign and generating community support against such
practices.
9. What are Personal Law Boards? Are their decisions binding on citizens? How can the
incongruence between the principles followed by them and those of the common law
courts be reconciled? Discuss.
Approach:
• Give a brief overview about personal laws.
• Define personal law boards.
• Bring out some measures from the past as well the problem that need to be solved
to reconcile the incongruence.
Answer:
In India different religions are governed by their own personal laws. Every religion
follows its own personal law in the matters pertaining to marriage, adoption,

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Student Notes:
successions etc. All these matters are decided and mobilized by various personal law
boards representing the religion.
Personal Law Boards are non-governmental organization constituted to adopt suitable
strategies for the protection and continued applicability of Personal laws in India. The
Boards present themselves as the leading body of religious group opinion in India.
These Boards work liaise with and influence the Government and guide the general
public about the critical issues. They primarily defend the personal laws from any laws
or legislation that they consider infringes on it.
The decisions of these Boards which are backed up by the legislations like that of the
Hindu Law act (1955-56), Muslim personal law (shariat) application acts, 1937 etc. are
binding on the citizens. However, those decisions which infringe upon the Fundamental
rights of the citizens are not binding, although not following them can have
repercussions like community boycott or personal attacks.
The incongruence between the principles followed by them and those of the common
law courts can be reconciled through greater interaction between them, judges, law-
makers, religious leaders and community. This will help to iron out the differences in
the legal opinion regarding matters of personal law. Hardly any forums for such
interactions exist as of now. It should be done on urgency considering the divisive and
sensitive nature of such issues. Some other measures can be:
• Clearly interpreting Article 25 in conjunction with Article 44.
• Addressing the fears of minorities by citing example of Hindu Law which has
become part of regular law courts and proved quite progressive.
• Most vulnerable and victimized section that is women need to be brought into
these Boards and codes should be made keeping their plights in minds.
• A comprehensive review of the personal laws with an aim to align the with modern
progressive ethos.
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10. Exclusion, humiliation-subordination and exploitation are all equally important in

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defining the phenomenon of untouchability. Explain. Give an account of the

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provisions in the Indian Constitution and the steps taken by the government to
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compensate for past and present caste discriminations.

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Approach:
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• Define the phenomenon of untouchability on the three dimensions of exclusion,

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humiliation-subordination and exploitation.

• Then bring out provisions in the Indian Constitution prohibiting the menace.
• Finally bring out steps taken by the government over a period of time and how the
state has tried to compensate for past and present caste discriminations.
Answer:
Untouchability is an extreme and vicious aspect of the society that prescribes stringent
social sanctions against members located at the bottom of the purity-pollution scale. It
is widely prevalent in all spheres of life and has evolved over time and expanded in
form of exclusion, humiliation-subordination and exploitation. It has grown its
dimension from caste factor to other factors like religion, poverty, ethnicity etc..
The performance of publicly visible acts of humiliation and subordination include
common instances like the imposition of gestures of deference such as taking of
headgear, carrying footwear in the hand, standing with bowed head, not wearing clean
or ‘bright’ clothes, and so on.

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Student Notes:
Moreover, untouchability is also associated with economic exploitation of various kinds,

most commonly through the imposition of forced, unpaid labor, or the confiscation of
property.
In terms of exclusion, religion exclusion, exclusion of persons with disability, caste based
exclusion etc. are giving new dimensions to untouchability.
Some provisions of Indian Constitution to fight against Untouchability
• Under Article 17 of the Constitution, Untouchability has been prohibited on any
ground.
• Article 14 providing equality before law, article 15 providing equality and equal
access to public places etc.
• Article 46 under DPSP says that the State shall promote educational and economic
interest of the Scheduled Castes and the Scheduled Tribes, and shall protect them
from social injustice and exploitation.
Some of the Government Initiatives
• Parliament passed Untouchability (offences) Act in 1955 which was further
amended and renamed in 1976 as Protection of Civil Rights Act, 1955.
• For further expansion of Article 17 of the Constitution, Scheduled Castes and
Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act of 1989 was passed, which was
amended in 2005 to give it more teeth.
• Setting up of National Commission for SCs and STs as well as setting up of National
Human Right Commission.
To compensate for past and current discrimination, the government has taken steps
like:
• Providing reservation which involves the setting aside of some places or ‘seats’ for
members of the Scheduled Castes in different spheres of public life.
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• Introduction of reservation for SCs and STs in 73rd and 74th Amendment Acts to
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contest elections at the Panchayat level.

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11. Even as the caste system has weakened in recent times, caste based identity has
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strengthened particularly in the wake of democratic politics in India. Comment.

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• State the factors that have weakened the hold of caste in society
• Also, list the reasons why caste based identity has strengthened, with focus on
democratic politics.
• Suggest some ways to weaken caste identities.
Answer:
Caste system is a hereditary system of social and occupational segregation based on
notions of purity and pollution. It legitimized and reinforced the existing structure of
social inequality. Recent times show a paradoxical situation- as on the one hand, caste
system has weakened, on the other, caste-based identities have strengthened due to
political mobilization.
Factors leading to weakening of caste system
• Change in hierarchical structure: Caste hierarchy based on purity and pollution has
weakened because of secularization. Additionally, wealth is replacing birth as the
basis of social prestige.

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Student Notes:
• Breakdown of Jajmani system: Jajmani system involved exchange of goods and

services, with each jati contributing its share based on occupational specialty.
However, it is dissipating due to traditional breakdown of occupation and
industrialization.
• Sanskritization: It is a process by which low Hindu caste groups/tribes change their
customs, rituals etc. emulating a higher caste group to attain vertical mobility.
• Disruption of traditionally ordained occupational system: Due to globalization and
rise of services sector.
• Anonymous urban life: With increasing migration, city life is becoming anonymous
where caste identities of co-habitants is seldom known.
• Modernization of education and legal system.
Factors strengthening caste identity
• Caste based politics: Political parties are increasingly mobilizing caste groups for
votes, strengthening caste identities. It is evidenced by emergence of many
regional parties.
• Caste based affirmative actions: Provision of caste based reservation in education
and jobs has strengthened the caste identities. For example, recent demand of OBC
status by some caste groups.
• Collective mobilization: Caste groups are also mobilizing and collectively demanding
equality and non- discrimination in the wake of incidents of atrocities on Dalits.
• “Dominant caste” phenomenon: Landowning classes have also come to wield
political power in some states due to sheer numbers, like in UP and Bihar.
Some experts have called this phenomenon as “casteism”. It is good in short term,
because it links the modern democracy with the masses through caste based political
mobilization and participation. However, it may threaten emergence of single national
identity.
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Some solutions:
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• Further promote participation of people in free market: Increased prosperity would

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further dilute the caste identities.

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• Strengthen Section 123 of RPA 1951: To prevent parties from invoking votes solely
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on caste grounds.
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• Rationalize reservation system: To target benefits only to deserving candidates so as

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to usher in egalitarian society.

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12. The present form of caste as an institution has been shaped both by developments
during the colonial period as well as changes witnessed in independent India. Discuss.
Approach:
• Give a brief overview of the origin of caste system and its evolution.
• Discuss the caste system prevailing during British rule and how it got shaped by it.
• Then briefly discuss the measures taken to improve upon it post-independence and
how it got influenced.
• Suggest further measures that are needed.
Answer:
Caste is an institution uniquely associated with the Indian sub-continent. The English
word ‘caste’ is actually a borrowing from the Portuguese casta, meaning pure breed.
The word refers to a broad institutional arrangement that in Indian languages

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Student Notes:
(beginning with the ancient Sanskrit) is referred to by two distinct terms, varna and jati.
It is generally agreed , that the four Varna classification is roughly three thousand years
old. However, the ‘caste system’ stood for different things in different time periods.,
The institution of caste as we know it today has been profoundly impacted by the
Brtish Colonial rule as well as developments since independence:
Changes during British rule/Colonial period
• The colonialists conducted methodical and, intensive surveys and reports on the
‘customs and manners’ of various tribes and castes all over the country so as to
govern them effectively. The 1901 Census sought to collect information on the
social hierarchy of caste this kind of direct attempt to count caste and to officially
record caste status changed the institution itself. Before this, caste identities had
been much more fluid and less rigid
• The land revenue settlements and related arrangements and laws served to give
legal recognition to the customary (caste-based) rights of the upper castes.
• At the other end of the scale, towards the end of the colonial period, the
administration also took an interest in the welfare of downtrodden castes, referred
to as the ‘depressed classes’ at that time. For e.g. the Government of India Act of
1935 gave legal recognition to the lists or ‘schedules’ of castes and tribes marked
out for special treatment by the state.
Caste considerations had inevitably played a role in the mass mobilizations of the
nationalist movement. The dominant view in the nationalist movement was to treat
caste as a social evil and as a colonial ploy to divide Indians.
Post-independence period
• After independence, the state was committed to the abolition of caste based
inequality and explicitly enshrined this into the Constitution. The political promise
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of the constitution was accompanied by fast paced economic changes. Thus,

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without sufficient measures to promote equality in the economic sphere caste

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inequalities remained strong, caste based .

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• The development activity of the state and the growth of private industry also
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affected caste indirectly through the speeding up and intensification of economic

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change. Modern industry created all kinds of new jobs for which there were no
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caste rules.
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Urbanisation and the conditions of collective living in the cities made it difficult for
the caste-segregated patterns of social interaction
• to survive.
• Caste proved to be strongest in cultural and domestic spheres. Endogamy
remained largely unaffected by modernization.
• The democratic politics in India is deeply conditioned by caste, thereby making
caste considerations important in electoral politics. In fact, 1980s witnessed the
emergence of caste based political parties.
• Reservation in jobs and education has contributed to caste consciousness and in
fact strengthened caste based movements that seek reservation.

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Student Notes:
5. Previous Year UPSC GS Mains Questions

1. The life cycle of a joint family depends on economic factors rather than social values.
Discuss.
2. Describe any four cultural elements of diversity in India and rate their relative significance
in building a national identity.
3. In the context of the diversity of India, can it be said that the regions form cultural units
rather than the States? Give reasons with examples for your view point.
4. The spirit of tolerance and love is not only an interesting feature of Indian society from
very early times, but it is also playing an important part at the present. Elaborate.
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transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or
otherwise, without prior permission of Vision IAS.

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Student Notes:
COMMUNALISM
Contents
1. Introduction ............................................................................................................................. 28
2. Definition of Communalism ..................................................................................................... 28
3. Elements of Communalism ...................................................................................................... 28
4. Features of Communalism ....................................................................................................... 28
5. Factors aiding Communalism in India ...................................................................................... 28
6. Evolution of Communalism in India: ........................................................................................ 29
6.1. Pre-Independence ............................................................................................................. 29
6.2. Post-Independence ........................................................................................................... 30
7. Current issues regarding communalism ................................................................................... 31
8. Measures to address the problem of communalism: .............................................................. 31
10. Previous Year UPSC GS Mains Questions ............................................................................... 35

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Student Notes:
1. Introduction
India is a land of multiple faiths and religions leading often to violence and hatred among the
people. Those who fan this religious violence do not consider religion as a moral order but use
it as a means and weapon to pursue their political ambitions. Communalism essentially leads to
violence as it is based on mutual religious hatred. This phenomenon leads to distinction
between a communal organization and a religious organization.
2. Definition of Communalism
Communalism, in the Indian context, is most commonly perceived-form as the phenomenon of
religious differences between groups that often leads to tension, and even rioting between
them. In its not so violent manifestation, communalism amounts to discrimination against a
religious group in matters such as employment or education
The causes of communal clashes as such are rarely religious in its fundamental character. In
India, communalism arises when religion is used as a marker to highlight socio-economic
disequilibrium between communities and as a force multiplier to demand concessions.
A man of religion is not communal, but a man who practice politics by linking it with religion is
communal. Hence we can define communalism as “political trade in religion”.
3. Elements of Communalism
Communalism or communal ideology consists of three basic elements or stages- one following
the other:
• Mild: It is the belief that people who follow the same religion have common secular
interests i.e. common political, social and cultural interests.
• Moderate: In a multi-religious society like India, the secular interests of followers of one
religion are dissimilar and divergent from the interests of the followers of another religion
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• Extreme: Interests of different religious communities are seen to be mutually incompatible,

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antagonistic and hostile.

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4. Features of Communalism
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• It is multifaceted process based on orthodoxy and intolerance.

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• It also propagates intense dislike of other religions.

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It stands for elimination of other religions and its values.

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• It adopts extremist tactics including use of violence against other people.

• It is exclusive in outlook, a communalist considers his own religion to be superior to other
religions.
5. Factors aiding Communalism in India

• Political factors: British policy of divide and rule led them to focus on using religion to
divide India. This culminated in separate electorates for Muslims, which was later given to
Sikhs and Anglo Indians. Other political factors include religion-based politics, partiality of
political leaders towards their communities etc.
• Economic factors: Communalism in India has its beginnings in the British policy of ‘divide
and rule’. A prominent reason why this policy gained currency was that the Muslim middle
class had lagged behind the Hindus in terms of education, which contributed to their low
representation in government jobs. Due to lack of enough economic opportunities at that
time, a government job was highly coveted by the middle classes. The demand for a

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Student Notes:
separate nation of Pakistan got the fervour due to marked inequalities in socio-economic
indicators including representation in the seats of power.
The Mappila Rebellion, the first so-called communal clash was also more of a proletarian
strike against the landed gentry than a communal riot. It only so happened that the landed
gentry were Hindus and the peasants were Muslims.
In India, politics of opportunism, is the biggest cause of communalism driven by the
middle/ upper class for secular gains and trusted by the lower sections that identify with
the cause.
• Historical factors: British historians projected ancient India as being ruled by Hindus and
Medieval period as the period of Muslim rule, when Hindus were exploited and threated.
Some influential Indians too supported this projection.
• Social factors: Issues like beef consumption, Hindi/Urdu imposition, conversion efforts by
religious groups etc., further created a wedge between the Hindus and Muslims.
6. Evolution of Communalism in India:

6.1. Pre-Independence
Communal ideology in a person, party or movement went through the mentioned three stages
and two phases (Liberal and Extremist) during the Indian National Movement and ultimately
resulted in the bifurcation of India and creation of Pakistan.
• Liberal Phase:
o Post 1857 revolt, the British preferred Hindus over Muslims in matters of employment,
education etc. Muslim intellectuals too realized that Muslims lagged behind their Hindu
counterparts in terms of education, government jobs etc. Eventually, Syed Ahmed Khan,
a Muslim intellectual founded Aligarh College to fight the bias against modern
education among Muslims. He also started numerous scientific societies in the 1860s,
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in which both Hindus and Muslims participated.

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o Communalism in India got its initial start in the 1880s when Syed Ahmed Khan opposed
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the national movement initiated by the Indian National Congress. He decided to

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support British causes and opposed the functioning of the Indian National Congress and
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deemed it a pro- Hindu party, which was against Muslim interests.

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o Eventually, prominent Muslims like Aga Khan, Nawab Moshin-ul-Mulk etc. founded the
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All India Muslim League, to consolidate Muslim interests. One of its major objectives
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was to keep the emerging intelligentsia among Muslims from joining the Congress.
o Simultaneously, Hindu communalism was also being born. It manifested in Hindu
leaders disseminating notions of tyrannical Muslim rule, espousing the language issue
and giving it a communal twist. They declared Urdu to be the language of the Muslims
and Hindi of Hindus. Further, anti-cow slaughter propagation was undertaken in the
1890s and it was primarily directed against Muslims.
o Eventually organizations like the Punjab Hindu Sabha (1909), All India Hindu Mahasabha
(1st session in 1915), etc. were founded.
o Revivalist movements like Arya Samaj, Shuddhi Movement (among Hindus), Wahabi
Movement , Tanzeem and Tabligh movements(among Muslims) etc. gave further
impetus to communalist tendencies.
o This phase saw eventual communalization of leaders like Syed Ahmed Khan, Lala Lajpat
Rai, M.A. Jinnah, Madan Mohan Malvia etc.
o The British gave a momentum to the communalist divide through their administrative
decisions and policies such as division of Bengal, Morley- Minto reforms (1909),
Communal Award (1932) etc.

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Student Notes:
• Extremist Phase:
o Post 1937, India witnessed extreme communalism based on the politics of fear,
psychosis and irrationality. During this phase, the interests of Hindus and Muslims were
deemed to be permanently in conflict.
o Communalism acquired a popular base among urban lower middle class groups and
mass movements around aggressive, extremist communal politics emerged.
o Communalism also became the only political recourse of colonial authorities and their
policy of divide and rule.
o During the period, M.A. Jinnah declared that ‘Muslims should organize themselves,
stand united and should press every reasonable point for the protection of their
community.’ He eventually stated that Muslims would be suppressed under the Hindu
dominated Congress after the British left India and thus, the only recourse would be a
separate state for Muslims i.e. creation of Pakistan.
o Hindu communalism too did not lag behind. The Hindu Mahasabha and the Rashtriya
Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS), began propagating extreme communalism. They demanded
that the non-Hindu groups of India adopt the Hindu culture and language and hold
Hindu religion in reverence. They too espoused that Hindus and Muslims are two
separate social and political entities with opposing interests.
Consequences of Communalism: The manifestations of communal killings and disturbances
resulted in Calcutta killings (1946) in which thousands lost their lives within a span of five days,
butchery of Hindus at Naokhali in Bengal and Muslims in Bihar, the carnage of partition riots in
various parts of India and the assassination of Gandhiji by a Hindu fanatic. Communalism also
resulted in the division of India and creation of Pakistan.
6.2. Post-Independence
Colonialism, is perceived as the prominent factor for emergence of communalism in India.
However, overthrowing of colonial rule proved to be only a necessary condition for fighting
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communalism, not sufficient. Because even post-independence, communalism persisted and

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has been the biggest threat to the secular fabric of our nation.
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Reasons for persistence of communalism in post-independence period

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• Slow development of the economy

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Improper cultural synthesis

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Perceived or relative deprivation

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• Regional or social imbalance in development

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• Political mobilization in the age of democracy has led to consolidation of communal

sentiments.
Post-independence communal violence outbreaks include the following
• Anti-Sikh riots (1984): Sikhs in large numbers were murdered by mobs post assassination of
the then Prime Minister, Mrs Indira Gandhi.
• Issue of Kashmiri Hindu pundits (1989): Spread of Islamic fundamentalism and terrorism in
Kashmir valley led to mass killing and large-scale exodus of Kashmiri pundits during 1989-
90. The region continues to be threatened by communal violence.
• Babri Masjid incident (1992): On December 1992, a large crowd of Hindu kar sevaks
demolished the 16th century Babri masjid (mosque) in Ayodhya, Uttar Pradesh claiming the
site to be Ram Janmabhoomi (birthplace of Ram). This led to months of inter-communal
rioting between the Hindus and Muslims resulting in deaths of hundreds of people.
• Godhra Riots (2002): In February 2002, four coaches of the Sabarmati Express were set on
fire. The passengers, mostly Hindu pilgims were returning from Ayodhya after a religious

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Student Notes:
ceremony at the site of the demolished Babri Masjid. Following the attacks, several Hindu
groups declared state-wide bandh in Gujarat and started brutally attacking Muslim colonies.
This went on for months post Godhra incident, resulting in the death and displacement of
thousands of Muslims.
• Assam violence (2012): There were frequent clashes between the Bodos and Bengali
speaking Muslims due to increased competition for livelihood, land and political power. In
2012, one such outbreak escalated into a riot in Kokhrajhar, when unidentified miscreants
killed four Bodo youths at Joypur. This was followed by retaliatory attacks on local Muslims
killing two and injuring several of them. Almost 80 people were killed, most of whom were
Bengali Muslims and some Bodos. Approximately, 400,000 people were displaced to
makeshift camps.
• Muzzafarnagar Riots (2013): The clashes between the Hindu Jats and Muslim communities
in Muzaffarnagar, UP resulted in at least 62 deaths, injured 93 people and left more than
50,000 displaced. The riot has been described as "the worst violence in Uttar Pradesh in
recent history", with the army being deployed in the state for the first time in the last 20
years.
7. Current issues regarding communalism

Currently, manifestation of communalism in India can be witnessed in several forms. These
include:
• Hadiya case: A 24 year old Hindu woman, Akhila, who converted to Islam and took a new
name, Hadiya was at the centre of the ‘love jihad’ controversy. While she alleged that she
converted to Islam and chose to marry her husband out of choice, her father filed a Habeas
Corpus petition and claimed that she was forced to convert to Islam and was targeted as a
recruit of ISIS. The Kerala High Court annulled her marriage, sent her to her parents’ home
and observed that “she was a weak and vulnerable girl capable of being exploited.”
However, the Supreme Court protected her freedom to choose her religion and freedom of
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movement and asked her to return to college to continue her studies.

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• Beef consumption and ensuing deaths: The issue of beef consumption and transportation
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has been a contentious issue in India and has triggered communal outbreaks in various
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parts of the country. Muslims were the target of 51% of violence centred on bovine issues
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over nearly eight years (2010 to 2017) and comprised 86% of 28 Indians killed in 63
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incidents, according to an IndiaSpend content analysis.

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• Ghar Wapsi programmes: It is a series of religious conversion activities, facilitated by

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Indian Hindu organizations such as the Vishva Hindu Parishad (VHP) and Rashtriya
Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS), to facilitate conversion of non-Hindus to Hinduism. While the
organizing groups claimed that people voluntarily came forward to convert to Hinduism,
some participants claimed that they were forced to do so.
• Religious fundamentalism among youth: It has been deemed as a major challenge among
the youth. There is on-going threat of radicalization among Kashmiri youth, which can give
an impetus to already existing separatist tendencies. Further, the youth have fallen prey to
fundamentalist tendencies of terrorist groups like the ISIS as many Indian radicalized youth
have joined the group. Minister of Home Affairs estimates that 75 Indians have joined the
ISIS. However, the reach of the terrorist organization is spreading in India, especially
through the medium of social media.
8. Measures to address the problem of communalism:

The problem of communalism in India is grave and can have far-reaching consequences. Thus,
persuasive as well as punitive measures are required to curb its spread.

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Student Notes:
• Building solidarity and assimilation of various religious groups at different levels in society-
workplace, neighborhood etc. by fostering a secular culture eg. celebrating each other’s
religious festivals.
• Swift and prompt response to radicalization by a militant group on social media through
police action, counselling sessions for those radicalized especially adolescents etc.
• Ensuring that political parties refrain from using religion, religious ideologies in order to
garner votes through strict vigilance by institutional mechanisms such as the Election
Commission, media, civil society etc.
• Instances of an inter-religious marriage of two consenting adults should not be construed
as “love jihad issue” and highlighted in the media. Thus, media persons should be sensitized
regarding the issue.
• Mobs leading communal riots should be controlled and strict action should be taken against
them as a combative measure.
• Stern law should be framed by the Parliament against communal violence. The weaknesses
of laws have resulted in escape of politicians and other influential persons who have openly
indulged in inciting communal violence.
• The CBI or a special investigative body should investigate communal riots within a
stipulated time frame. Further, special courts should hear such cases for quick delivery of
justice to victims.
• Police and other bodies upholding law and order should be held accountable as sometimes
the police bow down to pressure from politicians and remain inactive during communal
violence and in the course of its follow up eg. while filing FIRs, arresting the accused,
producing charge sheets etc. Thus, legal reforms must be introduced which hold them
accountable for swift action.
• Pluralistic settlement where members of different communities live together should be
encouraged by removing existing barriers as religious segregation strengthens communal
identities and reinforces negative stereotypes of other religious groups. Eg. taking action
during instances of intolerance where Muslims, Dalits, North-Eastern citizens etc. are
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denied housing owing to their identities. Sachar Committee report on the status of Indian
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complaints of intolerance and exclusion.

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• Secular education should be taught in all educational institutions, which will led to
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• History education should be de-communalized as the present categorization of Indian

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history into ancient, medieval and modern has contributed to communal thinking as it has
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effectively divided history into the Hindu period, Muslim period and Christian period
respectively. This has given rise to notions that India was a Hindu country which was
‘invaded’ by Muslims and Christians.
• Increased employment opportunities for minorities can lead to decrease in communal
discord. Thus, there should be focus on skilling members of minority communities through
various programmes and initiatives.
• Religious heads can play an important role in dissemination of ideas of diversity of religion,
ideas, etc. which can help in spreading peace among different communities.
• The government should not ban minority practices in order to appease the majority group.
E.g. the state should not show a preference for vegetarianism.
• Uniform Civil Code should be formulated and implemented with the consensus of all
religious communities so that there is uniformity in personal laws.
• Media, movies and other influential should be used in promoting religious harmony and
peace.

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Student Notes:

1. Discuss the socio-economic factors responsible for the growth of communalism in
India.
Approach:
• The answer should clearly bring out the socio-economic reasons for the
proliferation of communalism in India with suitable examples. There is no need to
discuss philosophical or religious reasons here.
Answer:
• Communalism refers to a “belief or ideology according to which all people
belonging to one religion have common economic, social and political interests
and these interests are contrary to the interests of those belonging to another
religion”. There are three stages (degrees), discernible in the development of
communalism:
o Mild: People following the same religion have similar interests
o Moderate: Dissimilarity of interests between people of different religions
o Extreme: Interests of people following different religions are antagonistic to
each other, based on fear and hatred of other religions.
• Communalism is an important issue in Indian context as it has been a recurrent
source of tension and violence.
• In its not so violent manifestation, communalism amounts to discrimination against
a religious group in matters such as employment or education
• The causes of communal clashes as such are rarely religious in its fundamental
character. In India, communalism arises when religion is used as a marker to
highlight socio-economic disequilibrium between communities and as a force
multiplier to demand concessions.
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• Improper cultural synthesis, perceived or relative deprivation, regional or social

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imbalance in development and lack of opportunities may be pointed out as the

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reason for the genesis of communalism. Political mobilization in the age of

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democracy tends to consolidate these movements.

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• The rise of communalism has been a very complex process. Communalism in India
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has its beginnings in the British policy of ‘divide and rule’. A prominent reason why
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this policy gained currency was that the Muslim middle class had lagged behind the
ay
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Hindus in terms of education, which contributed to their low representation in

government jobs. Due to lack of enough economic opportunities at that time, a
government job was highly coveted by the middle classes. Moreover, the post-1857
anti-Muslim bias of the British also gave a slight edge to the Hindus, who took to
modern enterprises/professions with great keenness. As a result, the demand for a
separate nation of Pakistan got the fervor due to marked inequalities in socio-
economic indicators including representation in the seats of power.
• The first so-called communal clash during colonial rule was the Mappila Rebellion,
which was more of a proletarian strike against the landed gentry than a communal
riot. It only so happened that the landed gentry were Hindus and the peasants
were Muslims.
• Hence a stagnant secularization process (involving separation of religion and
politics) due to: (1) Slow development of economy, (2) Competition between
Hindu and Muslim elite (3) Weak mercantile bourgeoisie vis-a-vis feudal lords, (4)
British policy of divide-and rule led to growth of communalism in pre-
independence era.

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Student Notes:
• Post-independence, things did not change much for Muslims, which was well
substantiated with the findings of Sachar committee report. According to this
report:
o The literacy rate among Muslims is far below the national average and this
gap is greater in urban areas and for women.
o Working population ratios are lower for Muslims than any other socio-religious
community and this is more so in the rural areas.
o Moreover, Muslim workers are concentrated in self-employment- small traders,
enterprises etc. due to more exposure to disruptions and damage caused by
urban conflict and violence.
o Muslims have poor access to bank credit. The average size of credit is meager
and low compared to other socio-religious groups.
• Hence, among all the socio-religious communities, Muslims are the most
economically vulnerable, educationally backward and financially excluded.
• State over the years has failed to wither away this vicious cycle of illiteracy-
unemployment-poverty despite many policies being framed to deal with the
menace.
• As a consequence, youth are getting disillusioned, discontent, frustrated, looking
for ways to exert pressure there by further aggravating extreme communalism.
• Hence, the demand of the situation is to act swiftly on the recommendations of the
Sachar committee and create a conducive environment for the holistic
development of Muslim community. Generate awareness amongst the youth so
that they don’t fall in the trap of the politics of opportunism where people for their
secular gains take undue advantage of their plight.
2. The persistence of Communalism as a significant internal security threat, is rooted in

the deadly cocktail of identity politics, developmental deficit and systemic deficiency
in state capacity to handle such threats. Comment.
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Approach:
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Answer can begin with a brief introduction of the kind of problems communalism
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brings with itself. Students should bring out how communalism is rooted in three ills ID
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politics, developmental deficit and systemic deficiency. Credit must be given to those
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students who are able to identify that of the three, ID politics is the core of
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communalism. Without it, the other two factors don’t give rise to communalism. No
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marks would be awarded for digressing towards naxalism and such other issues.
Answer
Communalism in a broad sense implies blind allegiance to one’s own communal group
– religious, linguistic or ethnic – rather than to the larger society or to the nation as a
whole. In its extreme form, a communalist sees her own communities’ interests being
jeopardised by the interests of other communities. Hence it manifests itself in hatred
towards groups perceived as hostile, ultimately leading to violent attacks on other
communities. (Just for understanding)
Communalism is a major internal security threat that our country is facing. It ruptures
social bonhomie, creates social tensions, mutual distrust, alienates certain social
groups, and creates breeding ground for further violence and harnessing of
disgruntlement by forces inimical to India’s interest. The root causes of communalism
are following -

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Student Notes:
Systemic Problems
• Conflict resolution mechanisms are ineffective;
• Intelligence gathered is not accurate, timely and actionable and
• Bad personnel policies - poor choice of officials and short tenures - lead to
inadequate grasp of local conditions.
• The administration and the police fail to anticipate and read indicators which
precipitated violence earlier;
• Even after the appearance of first signals, the administration and police are slow
to react;
• Field functionaries tend to seek and wait for instructions from superiors and
superiors tend to interfere in local matters undermining local initiative and
authority;
• The administration and police at times act in a partisan manner and
• At times there is failure of leadership, even total abdication on the part of those
entrusted with maintenance of public order.
• Rehabilitation is often neglected, breeding resentment and residual anger and
• Officials are not held to account for their failures, thus perpetuating slackness and
incompetence.
Developmental Deficit
• In most cases, inadequate development creates genuine grievance in a community.
Their grievance can then be harnessed by opportunistic communal element to
breed animosity towards other groups.
Identity Politics
It refers to mobilization of masses on the communal lines. While the other factors could
be present in many places in our country. They succeed in communalising the situation
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only when there is political mobilisation on communal lines.

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Thus while addressing systemic flaws and developmental deficiencies, we need to

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address political undercurrents as well. Institutions like National Integration Councils

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must be better utilized in this context.

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1. Distinguish between religiousness/religiosity and communalism giving one example of how

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the former has got transformed into the latter in independent India.


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Student Notes:
REGIONALISM
Contents
1. Region ...................................................................................................................................... 37
1.1. Characteristics of regionalism ........................................................................................... 38
1.2. Regionalism in Indian Politics ............................................................................................ 38
1.3. Bases of Regionalism ......................................................................................................... 39
1.4. Forms of Regionalism ........................................................................................................ 41
1.5. Positive Impacts of Regionalism........................................................................................ 43
1.6. Negative Impacts of Regionalism ...................................................................................... 43
1.7. Is Regionalism a threat to National Integration? .............................................................. 43
3. Past Year UPSC GS Mains Questions ........................................................................................ 50

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Student Notes:
1. Region
The term region is difficult to define. It is understood in different ways in different contexts.
However, it has been generally defined as “a homogeneous area with physical and cultural
characteristics distinct from those of neighboring areas”.
A region is a relative term, the meaning of which changes with its usage. When we talk of a
region, what we generally imply is that it is socio-culturally distinct and that it is sufficiently
unified to have a consciousness of its customs, traditions, values and ideals. Because of this
consciousness the people of the region possess a sense of identity distinct from the rest of the
regions be it a nation or a continent or the earth itself.
A region is characterized by a widely shared sense of togetherness among the people. This
togetherness results from a wide variety of sources like geography, topography, religion,
language, customs and mores, political and economic stage of development, way of living,
commonly shared historical experiences, etc.
Region provides the basis for the emergence of regional identity. It results in loyalty towards
the region and ultimately takes the shape and form of regionalism. It gives way to regional
politics.
The politics of regionalism in India has both positive and negative aspects. Speaking in positive
terms, it implies an intense desire for concretizing an identity based on such interest as ethnic,
language, religion, etc. For example, the erstwhile Jharkhand movement which covered wide
regions of Bihar, Orissa, West Bengal and Madhya Pradesh, had come together as a unified
group to protect and promote their socio-economic and political interests. This process involves
reaffirming their identity as tribal groups. The movement finally succeeded in forcing the
government in reorganizing the states and the formation of Jharkhand State came about on 15th
November 2000 as the 28th State of the Indian Union. It has been carved out of the State of
Bihar and it largely comprises forest tracks of Chhotanagpur plateau and Santhal Paragana.
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The negative aspects of regionalism is that it can threaten nation-building efforts such as, the
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demand for Khalistan in Punjab which is giving rise to terrorism and violence within and outside
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Punjab. The positive aspect has been ignored by most of the analysts of Indian political
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situation. This phenomenon reflects the psychology of relative deprivation on the part of
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people of an area. They point out that deprivation is deliberately inflicted on them by those in
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power, particularly when socio-economic programmes have resulted in wide economic

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disparities among various regions. This has led to discontentment and agitation among the
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backward or not so developed regions of the country.

The concept of region is therefore, closely linked with the concept of regionalism. Now let us
see what regionalism means.
Regionalism: Regionalism can be defined as a phenomenon in which people’s political loyalties
become focused upon a region. In other words, it implies people’s love of a particular region in
preference to the country and in certain cases in preference to the state of which the region is a
part. Thus the phenomenon of regionalism is centered around the concept of region.
Regionalism in India is rooted in India’s diversity of languages, cultures, tribes, and religions. It is
also encouraged by the geographical concentration of these identity markers in particular
regions, and fuelled by a sense of regional deprivation. Indian federalism has been a means of
accommodating these regional sentiments.

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Student Notes:
1.1. Characteristics of regionalism

• Regionalism is conditioned by economic, social, political and cultural disparities.
• Regionalism at times is a psychic phenomenon.
• Regionalism is built around as an expression of group identity as well as loyalty to the
region.
• Regionalism presupposes the concept of development of one's own region without taking
into consideration the interest of other regions.
• Regionalism prohibits people from other regions to be benefited by a particular region.
1.2. Regionalism in Indian Politics

Regionalism is a pre-independence phenomenon. It became predominant in post-
independence period. The politics of regionalism started with the implementation of
constitutional reforms under Government of India Acts of 1909, 1919, and 1935. The
establishment and role of Justice Party in Chennai, and to a lesser extent, of Akali Dal in Punjab
in pre-independence period are examples of emerging regionalism in India.
After independence there are four major landmarks in the development of regional politics.
• After independence, democratic form of government was established. Its main aim was
nation-building on the principles of democracy, secularism national unity and social justice.
All parts of the country wanted a fair deal in nation-building. They started competing with
each other for their development. Anything short of expectation led to disenchantment and
it resulted in the emergence of regional politics.
• There was integration of the Princely States. Small states were integrated with the big
states. People continued to nurse loyalties to old territorial units. This was the most
important factor for the success of Princes in elections. The Princes often received
overwhelming support in their former territories in the newly created states and relatively
much less in other parts of the same state.
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Reorganization of states on linguistic basis also played a very vital role in the development
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of regional politics. Twenty eight states were reshaped and reduced to 14 states along with
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centrally administered territories. Later new states were created, then for example Bombay
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was divided into Gujarat and Maharashtra, Punjab into, Punjab and Haryana. But these
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states were not constituted entirely on linguistic basis. Many other factors like ethnic-cum-
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economic considerations gave us Nagaland, Meghalaya, Manipur, Tripura, Jharkhand,

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Haryana, Punjab and Chhattisgarh. Language-cum-culture factors created Maharashtra,

Gujarat and Uttaranchal; historical and political factors are responsible for U.P. and Bihar;
integration of princely states in and need for viable groupings gave birth to M.P. and
Rajasthan; language and social distinctiveness resulted in the creation of Tamil Nadu,
Kerala, Mysore, Bengal and Orissa. Thus various factors have played a decisive role in the
composition of the Indian federation.
In spite of all these considerations, language remained the most important factor in the
reorganization of states. It became such an important force in the context of regionalism
that linguistic regionalism gained ground in Indian politics.
• Another factor which gave rise to regional and parochial tendencies in the country was the
personal and selfish ends of politicians. Immediately, after Independence the struggle for
power started among some parties. For enhancing their own authority and prestige, the
regional and state leaders did not hesitate to weaken the authority of the center or in some
cases of states. The creation of more states meant more governors, chief ministers,
Members of Legislative Assembly or MLAs etc. The professional politicians explored the

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Student Notes:
narrow and sectarian sentiments of ignorant masses for fulfilling their personal and selfish
ends.
Keeping these landmarks in mind, can you now identify the bases of regionalism in India?
1.3. Bases of Regionalism

Regionalism is a multidimensional phenomenon. Its bases are varied. Here we will discuss the
geographical, historical, cultural, economic and politico-administrative bases of regionalism.
• Geographical Bases: Usually people relate their regional identity to certain specific
geographical boundaries. After independence integration of Princely States resulted in the
merger of small states into new big states. The loyalties of citizens were torn between old
territorial boundaries and new territorial structures. As pointed out earlier this was the
major factor responsible for the success of princes in elections particularly when they
contested from their former territories in the newly created states. However, it would be
wrong to over-estimate the importance of geographical boundaries. It is true that
memories of old geographical boundaries of princely states still haunt the people and are
exploited by political leaders but it can hardly be denied that they are yielding place to new
and bigger territorial identities like Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh and Orissa.
• Historical and Social Bases: Historical and social bases constitute the bedrock of the politics
of regionalism. Several components in this category are not only important individually but
also in conjunction with each other.
o History: It supported regionalism with cultural heritage, folklore, myths and symbolism.
The most striking example is that of Dravida Kazhagam (DK) and the Dravida Munnetra
Kazhagam (DMK) in Tamil Nadu and Shiv Sena in Maharashtra and Telugu Desham (TDP)
in Andhra Pradesh. But history cannot be considered as the most important basis of
regionalism. Economic and political factors have combined with history to generate
regionalism. This can again be seen in the change in the stand of DMK from secession
to one of autonomy within the federal framework of the Constitution.
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o Language: Language is perhaps the most important mark of group identification.

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Language expresses the shared life, thought structure and value patterns of people. It
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has the capacity to unite the people together and make them work to improve their
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common destiny. In this sense linguistic homogeneity strengthens a positive movement.

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As early as 1920, Congress had accepted the principle that language must be adopted
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as criterion for demarcating the territorial boundaries of provincial units. Establishment

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of State Reorganization Commission (SRC) in 1955 was the result of demand for
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formation of regional units based on linguistic regionalism. SRC could not completely
follow the principle of one language one state. This could not be treated as the sole
criteria for the demarcation of state boundaries. Bilingual states like Bombay, Punjab,
etc. were created. However, splitting up of Bombay in 1960, Punjab in 1966, and Assam
since mid-sixties into linguistically more homogeneous states gave further impetus to
linguistic regionalism in Indian politics.
If language had been synonymous with region, the political aspiration of every linguistic
group would have been satisfied by the formation of separate states. This, however, is
neither a reality nor a foreseeable possibility. The first reason being that languages
spoken in India run into hundreds. Even if major languages are taken into account, large
groups of linguistic minorities are bound to be left inside the state whose language
cannot be enshrined in the constitution as an official language.
Secondly, Hindi speaking people are distributed over a very large territory. Their
number is over 300 million at the beginning of twenty first century. One state cannot be

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Student Notes:
created for them. They have been divided into six states namely, U.P, Bihar, M.P.,
Rajasthan, Haryana and Himachal Pradesh and a couple of Union territories. There has
rarely been a demand for the formation of single state of Hindi speaking people. On the
contrary there have been demands for separate states comprising languages or dialects
within this wider linguistic group. This can be found in the occasional demand for a
Maithili or for recognition of Rajasthani, Haryanvi, etc. as scheduled languages in the
Constitution.
Thus regionalism is closely associated with language but is not synonymous with
linguism. Regionalism can take place inside a linguistic state (for example creation of
Marathi speaking Maharashtra). The seven states of North East India refer to
themselves as seven sisters. They have tried to form common bonds on the basis of
their problems of development. They have also tried to develop a regional identity.
These seven states include Assam, Arunachal Pradesh, Manipur, Meghalaya, Mizoram,
Nagaland and Tripura. In other words, language is not the sole generator of regionalism.
It is one of the several bases of regionalism in India. In most cases of linguistic
regionalism many interrelated factors are usually found to be working together.
o Caste: An important example of the caste factor providing impetus to linguistic
regionalism can be seen in the case of Tamil Nadu. Tamil regionalism gained ground as a
result of non-Brahmin movement. Non-Brahmin castes of Tamil speaking region had
been able to provide a powerful united thrust against Brahmins who had earlier
enjoyed unquestioned dominance in economy, society and polity.
o Religion: Religion like caste does not play a significant role except when it is combined
with dominance and linguistic homogeneity as in Punjab or fed on a sense of religious
orthodoxy and economic deprivation as in Jammu and Kashmir.
If casteism reinforced and propelled linguistic regionalism in cases of Tamil Nadu, the
demand for the formation of Punjabi Suba though presented in linguistic garb had
religious overtones. They were mainly responsible for evoking people’s political
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loyalties on massive scale rather than their love for their mother tongue. It is difficult to
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qualify the mix of communalism and linguism in this particular case. But some studies
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make it very clear that demand for Punjabi language state was certainly reinforced by
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regular invocation of Punjabi speaking masses’ loyalty towards Sikh religion.

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Taking into account these three factors i.e. language, caste and religion one can say that
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the study of regionalism in Punjab and Tamil Nadu makes it very clear that political
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movements for regional demands were carried out formally in the name of language
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but in reality they had substantive non-linguistic bases too.

• Economic Bases: Economic factor is the crux of regional politics. India is a developing
country. The resources are limited while the demand for resources for the development of
various regions is unlimited or disproportionate to resources. Economic policies have led to
regional imbalances and wide economic disparities among various regions resulting in
discontentment among them. It may be recalled that most of the demands for constituting
new states were primarily based on allegedly unfair and unequal distribution of
development benefits and expenditure in multi-lingual states. The erstwhile movements for
a separate Uttarkhand state in the hill districts of U.P., a Jharkhand state carved out of parts
of Bihar and the demand for a state of Bodoland comprising a part of Assam may be
counted as examples of this type. The demand for separate states in these instances are
mainly on the belief that these regions have been economically deprived by their respective
states. Economic factors have usually assumed prime importance in regional politics.
• Politico-Administrative Bases: The politico-administrative basis of regionalism is also
important but politics as such does not create regionalism. It only accentuates regionalism.

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Student Notes:
Politicians take advantage of the situation of regional discontentment and unrest. They
convert it into movements for strengthening their individual and factional support bases. It
is a known fact that fighting within Congress gave rise to Telangana agitation. Regional
political parties like TDP (Andhra Pradesh), DMK (Tamil Nadu), Akali Dal (Punjab) have been
surviving because of regional sentiments. Border dispute, like the one between
Maharashtra and Karnataka, is also based on regional sentiments. Other important facts of
politics of regionalism are the real or assumed charges of political discrimination among
various regions by the central ruling elite.
1.4. Forms of Regionalism

• Demand for State Autonomy: The first and the most challenging form of regional politics
was in the demand of people in certain states or regions to secede from the Indian Union
and become independent sovereign states. Such demands occurred soon after
independence but they are mostly non-existent now. The important examples in this
context are that of the Plebiscite Front (Kashmir), Mizo National Front (Lushei Hills of
Assam), Nagaland Socialist Conference (Naga Hills District of Assam) etc.
• Supra-state Regionalism: This implies that more than one state is involved in the issue of
regionalism. It is an expression of group identity of some states. They take a common stand
on the issues of mutual interest vis-a-vis another group of states. The group identity is
usually in relation to certain specific issues. It does not in any way imply the total and
permanent merger of identity of the states into the identity of group. Rivalries, tensions
and even conflicts do take place among a few states belonging to a group.
For example, the rivalry existing between south and north India on such issues as language
or location of steel plants illustrates the point. The grouping of the North Eastern States for
greater access to economic development is another instance. Let us refer to the language
issue once again in order to illustrate how supra-state regionalism is found In India.
South India is separated from North along several differentials, geographically south is
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composed of peninsular uplands or Deccan, the mountain ranges of Eastern and Western
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Ghats and coastal plains.

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In terms of political history too, south has never been incorporated into the empires of the
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North. This was done for the first time during the British regime.
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After independence a major rift was caused over the issue of the official language for India.
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The Constitution envisaged the replacement of English by Hindi for official purposes of the
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Union as the language of communication between the centre and the states and between
states. The state legislatures of Indian Union were given authority to adopt one or more
languages including Hindi for use as the state language. The Constitution provides that the
official language of the union should be Hindi with Devanagiri script, with international
numerals for a period of 15 years from the commencement of the Constitution.
However, parliament could by law extend the use of English as the link language. The
attempt to introduce the provision regarding the official language has generated more
intense language rivalry than unity. The opposition to Hindi found its strongest political
expression in the southern states. Most of the people in these states as well as those in the
non-Hindi speaking areas of Eastern India objected to the imposition of Hindi. It was feared
that their own languages would be ultimately replaced by Hindi, which they considered
inferior. The adoption of Hindi as an official language and as a compulsory subject in
schools was seen as imposition of a comparatively underdeveloped language upon those
whose language contains a richness of thousands of years.

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Student Notes:
In the 1950’s several movements to oppose the imposition of Hindi sprang up. In 1956, the
Academy of Tamil Culture convened in Chennai the Union Language Convention which
stated in a resolution that it would be greatly unjust to make any other language (meaning
Hindi) take the place of English when a population of 100 million are totally unacquainted
with that language.
Significantly this Convention included representatives from different political organisations
i.e., Rajagopalachari (Swatantra), Ramaswamy Naickar (D.K.), Rajan (Justice Party),
Annadurai (DMK) and many others. At a National Conference held on 8th March 1958,
Rajagopalachari declared that ‘Hindi is as much foreign to non-Hindi speaking people as,
English to protagonists of Hindi’.
Growing opposition to Hindi in south India led Nehru in 1959 to assure the people of South
that (a) there will be no imposition of Hindi on them and that (b) English will be an
associate regional language which can be used for official purpose so long as people require
it. The decision would be left not to the Hindi speaking people but to the non-Hindi
speaking people.
In late 1964 many things revived the southern fears of “Hindi Imperialism”. With the death
of Pt. Nehru the southern fear about imposition of Hindi had revived. The alarm grew at the
expiry of 15 years when Hindi was to be used in place of English as the official language.
The fears of Southern non-Hindi states could not be removed even by the Official Language
Act, 1963 which made possible the continued use of English both at the centre and in the
states.
On the Republic Day in 1965, in pursuance of Act 343 of Indian Constitution Hindi became
the official language of India. The southern states reacted vehemently. The DMK party
designated 26th January 1965 as a day of mourning. The student community started an
agitation, against the imposition of Hindi. The DMK, which led this agitation, gained greater
prestige. It became the ruling party in the state of Tamil Nadu when the elections took
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place after two years.

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The DMK urged that all the fourteen languages be the official languages of the respective
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states with English as the link language between the states and the centre. The communists
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as well as Kamaraj favored a three-language formula (viz. English, Hindi and the mother
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tongue). In June 1965 it was announced that proposal given by Kamaraj (the president of
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the Congress) has been accepted. The language policy resolution of the Government of
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India gave official recognition to Hindi, English as well as the regional language.
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The policy resolution also indicated that steps should be taken to develop Hindi. English
continued to be recognized as an important link language. The events described above
show that the language became an important issue around which supra-state regionalism
developed.
• Inter-state Regionalism: It is related with state boundaries and involves overlapping of one
or more state identities, which threaten their interests. River water disputes, in general, and
other issues like the Maharashtra-Karnataka border dispute in particular can be cited as
examples.
• Intra-state Regional Politics or Sub-regionalism: This refers to regionalism, which exists
within a state of the Indian Union. It embodies the desire of a part of a state for the identity
and self-development. It may also reflect a notion of deprivation or exploitation of a part of
the state at the expense of another. This type of regionalism can be found in many parts of
India. The important examples of this kind of sub-regionalism are a Vidarbha in
Maharashtra, a Saurashtra in Gujarat, a Telangana in Andhra Pradesh, an East U.P. in Uttar
Pradesh and Chhattisgarh in Madhya Pradesh.

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Student Notes:
• Son of Soil theory: It ties people to their place of birth and confers some benefits, rights,
roles and responsibilities on them, which may not apply to others. It is accentuated by
factors such as competition for resources, jobs, economic disparities, etc. Examples of
implementation of the concept to further the cause of regionalism include campaign for
safeguard of interests of Maharashtrians by the Shiv Sena, clashes among Bodos and
Bengali speaking Muslims in Assam, among others.
1.5. Positive Impacts of Regionalism

• It can lead to inter-group solidarity in a particular region. People belonging to a region may
feel the need to come together to protect their vested interests, setting aside their
differences.eg. Tripura Tribal Autonomous District Council that was formed in 1985 has
served to protect an otherwise endangered tribal identity in the state by providing a
democratic platform for former separatists and has reduced the bases of political
extremism in the state.
• Given the increasing uncertainty in the contemporary globalized world, regionalism has
become a source of identity among people. The accommodation of such identities is
healthy for maintaining the socio-cultural fabric of India.
• It may induce competition among people of a region and propel them to do better to
improve the status of their region. Eg. Competitive federalism in India and ensuing
competition among states regarding resources, setting up of industries, infrastructural
facilities, etc.
1.6. Negative Impacts of Regionalism

• It can have adverse impacts on national integration, as loyalty to a particular region remains
stronger than loyalty to the nation.
• It can be exploited and used for political leverage in order to garner votes.
•
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Development plans can be implemented unevenly, in order to curb regionalist and

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secessionist demands. Thus, it can lead to unbalanced development.

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When agitations to satisfy regional demands occur, law and order situation is disturbed. It
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can also result in violence.

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• It can give a leeway to external factors (E.g. terrorist groups, extremist groups) to get
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involved in regional issues and create disruption by inciting the masses.

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1.7. Is Regionalism a threat to National Integration?

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Regionalism is not significant merely as a disintegrating force. Regionalism is not opposed to

national integration. Both can exist together in a creative partnership. Both are in favor of
development.
Regionalism stresses the development of a region and national integration for the development
of the nation as a whole. If we want to reconcile the competing claims of regionalism and
national integration the political system of the country should remain federal and democratic.
Regionalism is not disruptive of national solidarity. The important condition for national
solidarity is that nationalism should be able to hold the different types of regional sub-
nationalities together. In other words, there should be healthy reconciliation between
regionalism and nationalism.
Regionalism can make federalism a greater success. In this aspect the accentuation of regional
identities should not-become problematic. It is quite natural that regional communities, who
are conscious of their distinctive culture, should interact with federal government on the basis
of more equal partnership.

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Student Notes:
It will reduce the centralizing tendencies in a nation and power will shift from the centre to the
states. Conceived in any form, regionalism and sub-regionalism are unavoidable in a country as
vast and diverse as India. Their existence is not only an important condition for the expression
of genuine national sentiment, but it is logically generated because of the establishment of the
nation state. Nothing is, therefore, more basic to the concept of federalism than regionalism
and sub-regionalism.

1. There have been instances of people advocating that they be given the major, if not
the sole, right to work in their states or regions. Analyze the economic, demographic
and socio-cultural factors which have given rise to these ‘sons of the soil’ movements.
Approach:
• The question asks about the issue of ‘sons of the soil’ or nativist movements.
Explain what nativist movements are. While giving the explanation try to bring out
the features, reasons for their rise, context etc. clearly so that no confusion remains
regarding the distinction between nativist movements and linguistic or secessionist
movements. There is no need to talk about these other two kinds/waves of regional
movements. But your explanation of nativist movements should be clear in itself, so
that one is able to comprehend clearly what nativist movements are..
• Then explain the socio-cultural, demographic and economic factors that may give
rise to these movements.
Answer:
The ‘sons of soil’ or nativist movements emerged in the sixties and seventies in some
parts of India. The ‘sons of the soil’ began to demand that they be given the major, if
not the sole, right to work on the soil of their linguistic states and reap the economic
benefits therein without interference from people belonging to other linguistic
communities. The demand was economic but was mediated through specific linguistic
identities. The Shiv Sena of the sixties and seventies and the Assam movement, which
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culminated in 1985, may be considered to belong to this genre. In both cases the
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enemy is within, the ‘aliens’, who by careful manipulation deny the native sons of the
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soil the benefits of economic advancement that their native state offers.
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These movements thus carry with their economic demands a vital linguistic element,
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and it is on the basis of discrimination on linguistic grounds that the economic demands
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are sought to be worked out. Other states and that too, some linguistic groups from
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these other states are seen as threats by the natives and singled out as particularly
offensive. Never is the whole country held responsible. They acknowledge that it is only
through the machinery at the Centre that their grievances can be redressed. Though
these movements usually have strong popular support, but they lead to an intractable
conflict as they press actively for discrimination against other citizens who, in principle,
should enjoy equal rights in matters of state employment.
Factors responsible:
Socio-cultural and demographic factors:
• Cultural prejudice can be one of the reasons behind the rise of nativist movements.
More dissimilar the immigrant population is ethnically or culturally, stronger is likely
to be the opposition.
• It is possible that racial and cultural prejudices that inform opinions on immigration
are really epiphenomena of economic self-interest concerns.
• Normally, an increase of labour supply, such as that due to immigration, increases
labour competition and depresses wages, hurting the low skilled most. That union

Student Notes:
members, in some cases, have been found to favour immigration restrictions

supports this line of argument. Further, it has been found that less-skilled want
more restrictions on immigration and the more skilled want fewer.
• As communities and groups that were once backward in education become
educationally more advanced, they could demand that their states ensure them a
larger share of jobs in public services.
• Areas with nativist movements are found to be mainly those which have
experienced a rapid growth of educational opportunities for the lower middle
classes.
• Political Competition is another factor. The desire of regional elites to capture
power has also led to the rise of nativist movements. Many states in India have
more than two significant parties and interstate migrants often are an ethnic
minority, living amidst a native, ethnic majority. In such a situation, a party may
seek to make ethnic identities relevant through actions against a minority.
Economic factors:
• Economic self-interests. While the poor believe easily that immigration hurts them
the most, workers can be led to believe that it depresses wages.
• There is also a widespread notion that migration from other states burdens the
public budget of the state as well.
• During economic downturns, the frequency and intensity of nativist movements
generally see a rise.
• Growing unemployment, particularly among the educated.
• Uneven development. Continuous neglect of an area or region by the ruling parties
may be another factor.
2. Post-independence India has witnessed many instances of extreme form of

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regionalism. Is regionalism a threat to national integrity? How can regional

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aspirations be addressed within the constitutional framework?

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Approach:
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• Give a brief definition of regionalism.

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Give an account of rise of sense of regionalism in India.

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• Describe how it becomes a threat to national integrity.

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• Bring out some Constitutional provisions which try to deal with regional
aspirations.
Answer:
Regionalism, as an ideology and political movement, seeks to advance the causes of
regions. If the interest of one region or a state is asserted against the country as a
whole or against another region or state in a hostile way, and if a conflict is promoted
by such alleged interests, then it is called regionalism.
Post independence, India has witnessed many instances of regionalism maifested in:
the demand of Dravida Nadu, Telangana movement, Bodoland movement in Assam,
Khalistan movement. Interstate disputes also carried regionalist undertones. The
underlying causes range from regional disparity to the son of soil concept as well as
diversity of languages, cultures, ethnic groups etc.
Regionalism is often seen as a serious threat to the development, progress and unity of
the nation. Internal security challenges by the insurgent groups, who propagate and are

Student Notes:
motivated by the feelings of regionalism pose grave challenge to the internal security of
the country.. Regionalism at times transforms into secessionism, especially in border
areas often getting support from neighboring countries.
The Constitution of India has adequate provisions to address the issue of regional
aspirations.
• Indian federalism provides a mechanism for addressing regionalism and reconciling
of regional identities within the democratic framework.
o The 73rd and 74th Amendment acts further addressed the regional aspiration by
devolving power and resources to be used as per regional needs.
• The regions under 5th and 6th Schedule enjoys certain autonomy which give them
scope to maintain their own culture and develop according to their own need.
• The provision of PESA Act, 1996 is a step towards bringing reconciliation with the
regional aspirations.
• Art 371 has special provisions helpful in addressing concerns of some states.
These provisions need to be implemented in true spirit and with adequate political will
to address the issues engendering regionalism.
3. Ethnic similarities are as important as territorial boundaries in promoting the feeling

of common brotherhood among the citizens of a country. In context of the above
statement, examine the problems faced by people from North-East in other parts of
India. Also analyse the steps taken by the government in this regard.
Approach:
Examine the various instances of name-calling e.g. Nido Tania murder case in Delhi and
Bangalore exodus to portray how lack of ethnic similarity of North-East Indians creates
a foreign feeling among the people from those of mainland and how this leads to
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friction among them. Further one should give an account of the measures taken by
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government and also suggest further measures.

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Answer:
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The mysterious death of Loitam Richard in Bangalore, the murder of Ramchanphy

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Hongray in New Delhi, the suicide by Dana Sangma and other such incidents serve as
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reminders of the insecure conditions under which people, particularly the young, from
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the north-east of India have to live with in the metros of this country. Major problems
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faced by people from north east in other parts of the country are:
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• Pervasive racial discrimination that people from the region face in metropolitan
India.
• Despite hailing from an integral part of India, these survivors of racial abuse feel
compelled to overlook instances of mental, physical and verbal assault on a daily
basis.
• People from North-East have to suffer jibes and verbal or non-verbal abuse due to
their different facial look.
• Time and again, male students from the northeast have been compelled to
relocate elsewhere after the locals ganged up against them.
Some of the steps taken by the government
• Delhi Police has announced an array of steps, including setting up of a new unit
and a helpline number to address any grievance faced by people from the north
east.

Student Notes:
• Ministry of Home Affairs constituted a committee in February, 2014 to look into

the various concerns of persons hailing from the North Eastern States who are
living in different parts of the country, especially the Metropolitan areas, and to
suggest suitable remedial measures which could be taken by the Government
• The Government has already encouraged to include history of North-East in
school curriculum which can be a way to bring North-east closer to the main
stream.
Some other possible steps
• Unless there is legal protection for the north easterners, their rights will always be
trampled by those who have no regard for their existence. An anti-racism law is an
important measure that the Indian government must take.
• Racism is a social problem and it can only be solved at the societal level. This can
be done through awareness, campaign, educating the mainland people about the
unique history, culture, languages of north-east India.
• A great initiative to end this disjuncture of knowledge would be by introducing
more information about the North Eastern region or the southern region, or any
other regions which have been ignored since years, into the curriculum of state
education boards and other central educational boards, especially NCERT books.
• The responsibility of the police also lies in registering an FIR and then taking quick
action in cases of racial abuse.
• Another important step could be to create sustainable employment opportunities
in the North Eastern Region to prevent the distress migration of the people from
north east.
4. What is regionalism? Despite persistent regional inequalities, it is increasingly

becoming less important in the Indian scenario. Analyse.
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Approach:
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Definition of regionalism.
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• Explain regional inequality in brief.

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• Then explain why it has been becoming less important – social, economic, political
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factors.
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Answer:
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• Regionalism stands for the love of a particular region or an area in preference to

the nation or any other region. In Indian context, regionalism refers to assertion of
distinct ethnic, linguistic or economic interests by various groups within the nation.
Since the roots of regionalism lie in linguistic, ethnic, economic and cultural
identities of the people living in specific geographical area, political scholars have
treated various forms of regionalism which include economic regionalism, linguistic
regionalism, political regionalism and even sub-regional movements in the general
frame of regionalism.
• India since Independence has witnessed different forms of regional inequalities in
terms of economic growth, resources , infrastructure, etc. giving rise to sub-
regional feelings , hence demand for separate states ex. Movements in Vidarbha
region, Darjeeling / Gorkhaland in West Bengal , demand for Telangana ( now a
State), etc. disputes like water sharing construction of irrigation and power dams ,
etc. ( between Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh, Kerala ,Karnataka, Haryana , Delhi ,
etc.).

Student Notes:
Thus, even though inequality among different states and regions could be a potential
source of trouble but despite breeding discontent and putting pressure on the political
system, this problem has not so far given rise to regionalism or feeling of a region being
discriminated against the other.
Reasons for lack of Regionalism or regional feelings:
• Economic interdependence between different regions has necessitated the need
for migration to different cities and states, thereby reducing loyalties towards a
particular region.
• Political-Central government influence the rates of growth in poorer states and
regions so as to reduce their economic distance from the richer states and regions.
Planning Commission, BRGF, Special category status, grants etc. to poorest states
have tried to bridge the gap between rich and poor states. Thus, we can say that,
‘Son’s of soil’ doctrine has tended to be an aberration but it has more to do with
political opportunism rather than a general feeling.
• Thus contributing to reducing the regional disparities and regional and sub-regional
feelings.
• Socio-cultural-The demand for creation of states on linguistic basis had also been
given importance since 1962 and more recently with the creation of Telangana.
• Students belonging to different states come to metros to take admissions in
Universities, which also aids in diluting parochial regional ideals and values and
developing an all-India perspective.
• Regional feelings are also being subsumed under the wave of globalization which is
making India more homogenous in culture and way of living.
Thus, we can say that due to the efforts of Central Govt. the regional feelings have so
far been kept under limits. Also, Regionalism in its entirety is not negative as it plays a
vital role in preserving cultural diversity of the country and can also at the same time be
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of great help in removing regional disparities in development. However, if uncontrolled,

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it can also become a cause of national disintegration.

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5. Regionalism in India is not only rooted in India's diversity of languages, cultures,

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tribes and religions but also fuelled by a sense of regional deprivations. Discuss.
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Approach:
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• Introduction should briefly define regionalism in the Indian context.

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• The discussion should involve various factors that engender regionalism and the
role played by sense of regional deprivations in exacerbating the phenomenon.
• Conclude with underlining the strengths that have enabled India to address the
challenges emanating from regionalism
Answer:
As an ideology and political movement regionalism seeks to advance the causes of
regions. It involves a process in which sub-state actors become increasingly powerful.
Within India, regionalism has been based on the diversity of culture, language, tribes,
religions and other socio-cultural factors as seen below:
• Language: Language, which forms a core tenet of identity, has led to feelings of
regionalism as seen in various parts of India. A nefarious manifestation of this has
been the sons of soil doctrine which argues that particular state belongs to majority
linguistic group inhabiting it or constitutes an exclusive "homeland" for regional
language speakers. Politically, regional aspirations have been sought to be assuaged
by the creation of linguistic states such as Maharashtra and Gujrat.

Student Notes:
• Tribal Identity: The regional aspirations of North-east were mainly based on the
distinction of tribal identity. These aspirations becamebecame more focal and
prominent in the 1980's. The whole North-East region has witnessed altogether
different political reorganization aimed at preservation of the distinct identities
and meeting regional aspirations.
• Economic inequality and Regional deprivation: Increasingly along with
geographical concentration of diversity, regional deprivations, perceived and real,
have provided a bulwark to the development of regionalism in India. For Instance,
the partition of India turned the North-East region into a land locked region and
affected it economically. Due to this isolation from the mainstream India, the region
remained backward in terms of developmental parameters. Hence, from the
beginning, the national government felt a responsibility to counter the imbalance in
regional development. Recently the creation of Telangana after a long struggle
underscores the significance of regional deprivation all the more.
• Combination of multiple factors: in the creation of three new states in 2000,
namely Chhatisgarh, Uttaranchal and Jharkhand language did not play a prominent
role. Rather, a combination of ethnicity based on tribal identity, language, regional
deprivation and ecology provided the basis for intense regionalism resulting in
statehood.
Being a vast and diverse country India has seen multiple challenges emanating from
regionalism based on multiple factors. However, the spirit of unity in diversity and
constitutional mechanisms of democracy and federalism has enabled it to ward of
these challenges from becoming destabilizing.
6. Regional aspirations in the North East have been dominated by demands for
autonomy, movements for secession, and opposition to ‘outsiders’. Discuss with
relevant examples.
Approach:
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• Discuss various demands for autonomy, movements for secession, and opposition
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to outsiders in N-E region.

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• Briefly discuss the reasons for the above and give a suitable conclusion.
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Answer:
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Many issues like poverty, under-development, identity, extremism, insurgency etc.

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plague the North East (NE) region. However, three issues have dominated politics of NE
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while other issues of the region are closely related to these three issues.
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Demands for autonomy:

• At independence entire region except Manipur and Tripura comprised State of
Assam. Demands for political autonomy arose when non-Assamese felt that Assam
government was imposing Assamese language on them.
• Even post completion of reorganisation of NE in 1972, demands for autonomy
didn’t end. In Assam, communities like Bodos, Karbis and Dimasas demanded
separate States.
• Karbis and Dimasas have been granted autonomy under District Councils while
Bodos were granted Autonomous Council within constitutional provisions.
Secessionist movements:
• Mizoram: After independence a movement for secession in Mizo hills gained
popular support. Two decades of insurgency led by Mizo National Front under the
leadership of Laldenga and backed by Pakistan ended after a peace agreement in
1986.

Student Notes:
• Nagaland: Led by Phizo, a section of Nagas declared independence from India in

1951. After a period of violent insurgency a section of Nagas signed an agreement
with government of India but this was not acceptable to other rebels. The problem
in Nagaland still continues.
• Assam: The United Liberation Front of Assam (ULFA) is a separatist outfit operating
in Assam. It seeks to establish a sovereign Assam with an armed struggle. The
government of India banned the organisation in 1990 citing it as a terrorist
organisation.
Movements against outsiders:
• Large scale migration into north-east gave rise to a special kind of problem that
pitted ‘local’ communities against people who were seen as ‘outsiders’ or migrants.
• These latecomers are seen as encroachers on scarce resources.
• The Assam Movement from 1979 to 1985 led by All Assam Students’ Union (AASU)
is best example of such movements against ‘outsiders’. Assamese suspected that
there were huge numbers of illegal Bengali Muslim settlers from Bangladesh.
Problem of immigration has remained a political issue which is reflected in frequent
clashes in Assam.
• Sme feeling informs the hostility of local population to Chakma refugees in
Mizoram and Arunachal Pradesh.
• Recent demand of inner line permit system and the associated violence in Manipur
is another example of movement against outsiders.
The isolation of the region, its complex social character, backwardness, laxity of political
class, vast international border and weak communication between and rest of India
have further added to the delicate nature of politics here.
However, efforts are being made and should be further scaled to address the region’s
concerns:
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Continuous dialogue between Centre, state governments, rebel groups and civil
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society. Rebel groups need to understand that their demands of independence and
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autonomy based on ever-narrowing identities cannot be fulfilled without

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comprising external and internal security of country.

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• Steps for better development and connectivity in the region by apt implementation
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of policies and able administration.

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Effective implementation of the Sixth Schedule provisions.

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3. Past Year UPSC GS Mains Questions

1. Growing feeling of regionalism is an important factor in generation of demand for a
separate state. Discuss.
2. What is the basis of regionalism? Is it that unequal distribution of benefits of development
on regional basis eventually promotes regionalism? Substantiate your answer.


Student Notes:
SECULARISM
Contents
1. Meaning of Secularism ............................................................................................................. 52
2. Difference Between Western Concept of Secularism and Indian Secularism .......................... 52
3. Distinctive Features of Indian Secularism ................................................................................ 53
4. Contemporary Issues................................................................................................................ 54
4.1. Uniform Civil Code (UCC) .................................................................................................. 54
4.2. Issue of Instant Triple Talaq ............................................................................................... 55
4.3. Entry Movements to Places of Religious Worship Led by Women’s Organizations .......... 55
6. Previous Year UPSC GS Mains Questions ................................................................................. 58

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Student Notes:
1. Meaning of Secularism
Secularism is a principle which advocates the separation of religion from politics. It is the
principle of separation of government institutions and persons mandated to represent the state
from religious institutions and religious dignitaries. Thus, religion should be separate from
aspects of state and governance.
Secularism is a normative doctrine which seeks to realize a secular society that is, one devoid of
either inter-religious domination or the intra-religious domination. It promotes freedom within
religions and equality between, as well as, within religions. It also includes separation between
the state and religion. In fact the nature and extent of separation may take different forms,
depending upon the specific values it is meant to promote and the way in which these values
are spelt out.
2. Difference Between Western Concept of Secularism and

Indian Secularism
Indian secularism Western secularism
Equal protection by the state to all religions. Separation of state and religion as mutual
It reflects certain meanings. First secular exclusion it means both are mutually exclusive
state to be one that protects all religions, in their own spheres of operation.
but does not favor one at the cost of other
and does not adopt any religion as state
religion.
The idea of inter-religious equality is at the Interpreted liberty as liberty of individual and
core of Indian secularism. Equal focus has freedom as freedom of the individual and
been given on the inter-religious and the equality as equality between individuals. There
intra-religious equality. It not only deals with is little scope for community based rights or
the religious freedom of the individuals but minority based rights.
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with the minority communities also.

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It promotes state sponsored reforms in the There is a mechanism for the intra-religion
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religious sphere on equal footing. equality in the western notion of secularism,

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not of inter-religion equality thus state

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maintains an arm’s length distance from religion

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in all matters.
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Indian secularism allows for principled state West adopted this model due to the two
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intervention in all religions. Such reasons it was more or less homogenous society
intervention betrays disrespect to some in comparison to India so they naturally focus
aspects of every religion. The secular state on the intra-religious domination and strict
does not have to treat each aspect of every separation of the state from the church is
religion with equal respect. It allows equal emphasized to realize the individual freedom.
disrespect for some aspects of organized
religions. Example practicing social evils as
essential part of religion.
In the context of India, it is sometimes argued that the concept of secularism has been
imported from the west. But it is clear from the above differences that in the west, strict church
and state separation is the main area of focus; while in India peaceful co-existence of all
religions is the focus.

Student Notes:
Constitutional Provisions Regarding Secularism in India

In India, freedom of religion is a Fundamental Right and is guaranteed through the following
provisions:
• Article 25: guarantees freedom of conscience and free profession, practice and propagation
of religion.
• Article 26: every religious denomination has the freedom to manage its religious affairs.
• Article 27: Freedom from payment of taxes for promotion of any particular religion.
• Article 28: Freedom as to attendance at religious instruction or religious worship in certain
educational institutions.
Other Constitutional safeguards regarding religion include the following:
• Article 15: Prohibition of discrimination on grounds of religion, race, caste, sex or place of
birth.
• Article 16: Equality of opportunity in matters of public employment and no citizens shall be
ineligible for employment on grounds only of religion, race, caste, sex, descent, place of
birth.
• Article 29: Protection of distinct language, script or culture of minorities
• Article 30: Rights of all minorities, whether based on religion or language, to establish and
administer educational institutions of their choice.
• The Preamble of India states that India is a secular country (added after 42nd Amendment
Act, 1976).
3. Distinctive Features of Indian Secularism

The Indian idea and practice of secularism, though was inspired by its western origins yet, was
firmly rooted in India’s own unique socio-historical circumstances- i.e. the remarkable religious
diversity in contrast to the mono-religious nature of western societies, the freedom struggle
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which advocated an equal support & equal respect for all religions, upon the fact that the
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practice of one’s religion was not seen as antithetical to practice of democracy but as one which
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would strengthen it in the long run.

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The Indian conception of secularism thus recognized the deeply religious nature of Indian
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society & infused the principle of equality within the practice of religion. Secularism was turned
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into an non-negotiable basic feature of constitution & the term itself was reinvented to allow
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intervention of state into religious matters when it was being done to promote not only inter
religious equality ( ie equal rights for all citizens irrespective of their religious preferences, along
with added protection for religious minorities) but also intra religious equality ( by ensuring that
one sect of a religion does not dominate over other).
The desirability of state intervention into religious matters has been upheld under the Indian
conception of secularism to give space to progressive voices within every religion and to allow
disagreement with some aspects of religions. For example, the abolition of untouchability, sati,
dowry, the amendment of Hindu marriage & inheritance laws & the demand for establishing
the uniform civil code etc. can be seen as an application of this concept.
At the same time, the Indian ideal of secularism clearly cautions against allowing religion to
interfere in state matters, thereby disallowing mobilizing the electorate on religious lines for
winning elections on one hand while strictly spelling out that the Indian nation-state shall have
no state religion.

Student Notes:
Some Judicial Pronouncements Regarding Secularism in India

• Secularism has been deemed as one of the pillars of “Basic Structure of the Indian
Constitution”. The Supreme Court in the Keshavanada Bharati case (1973) held that the
basic structure of the Constitution cannot be altered by the Parliament.
• In the S. R Bommai vs Union of India case (1994), the Supreme Court observed the
following, “Notwithstanding the fact that the words 'Socialist' and 'Secular' were added in
the Preamble of the Constitution in 1976 by the 42nd Amendment, the concept of
Secularism was very much embedded in our constitutional philosophy” Thus, secularism
which was implicit in the Constitution was made explicit.
• In Stanislaus vs State of Madhya Pradesh case (1977), The Supreme Court held that the
right to propagate religion (under Article 25) does not include right to forcible conversion as
it may disturb public order.
• In Ratilal vs State of Bombay (1954), it was held that regulations by the state should not
interfere with essentials of religion.
• In the Church of God (Full Gospel) in India vs K. K. R. Majestic Colony Welfare Association
(2000), it was held that as the right to religion is subject to public order, no prayers (through
voice amplifiers or beating of drums) should be performed by disturbing the peace of
others.
• In St. Stephen’s College vs University of Delhi (1992), the court held that autonomy of a
minority institution cannot be taken away as it will defeat the purpose of right to establish
and administer educational institutions by minorities.
4. Contemporary Issues
In contemporary times, various issues regarding secularism and freedom to practice and
administer religion have come to the forefront. These include the following:
4.1. Uniform Civil Code (UCC)

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Article 44 of the Constitution states that "the State shall endeavour to secure for citizens a
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uniform civil code throughout the territory of India." It essentially means a common set of laws
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governing personal matters for all citizens of the country, irrespective of religion.
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Positive aspects of Uniform Civil Code include

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• It will divest religion from social relations and personal laws and will ensure equality in
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terms of justice to both men and women regardless of the faith they practice.
• There will be uniform laws for all Indians with regard to marriage, inheritance, divorce etc.
• It will help in improving the condition of women in India as Indian society is mostly
patriarchal whereby old religious rules continue to govern the family life and subjugate
women.
• Various personal laws have several loopholes, which are exploited by those who have the
power to do so. Due to uniformity, such loopholes will cease to exist or will be minimised
• Informal bodies like caste panchayats give judgements based on traditional laws. UCC will
ensure that legal laws are followed rather than traditional laws.
• It can help in reducing instances of vote bank politics. If all religions are covered under
same laws, politicians will have less to offer to communities in exchange of their vote.
• It will help in integration of India as a lot of animosity is caused by preferential treatment by
the law in favour of certain religious communities.

Student Notes:
Challenges in Implementing Uniform Civil Code Include

• Implementation of UCC might interfere with the principle of secularism, particularly with
the provisions of Articles 25 and 26, which guarantee freedom relating to religious
practices.
• Conservatism by religious groups, which resist such changes as it interferes with their
religious practices.
• It is difficult for the government to come up with a uniform law that is accepted by all
religious communities. All religious groups- whether majority or minority have to support
the change in personal laws.
• Drafting of UCC is another obstacle. There is no consensus regarding whether it should be a
blend of personal laws or should be a new law adhering to the constitutional mandate.
4.2. Issue of Instant Triple Talaq

Instant triple talaq is a form of Islamic divorce practiced in India, whereby a Muslim man can
legally divorce his wife by stating the word talaq three times in oral, written or more recently
electronic form. The practice has raised several controversies and discussions regarding issues
of justice, gender equality, human rights and secularism.
In Shayara Bano vs Union of India case (2017), the Supreme Court declared the practice of
triple talaq as unconstitutional by a 3:2 majority.
Positive Outcomes of the Judgement
• It ensures equality by upholding fundamental rights guaranteed by Articles 14 and 21 of the
Constitution.
• It ensures gender equality especially for Muslim women as the provision of triple talaq
resulted in feelings of insecurity among them. Arbitrary talaq also impacted their social
status and dignity.
• It upholds core constitutional provisions, as fundamental rights guaranteed by the
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Constitution override the provisions of personal laws

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Negative outcomes of the judgement

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• It goes against Article 26 of the Indian Constitution, which guarantees freedom in matters
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of religion every religious denomination and sect (including Hanafi school, which is followed
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by Shayara Bano).
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Opponents contend that it is not the court’s role to “determine the true intricacies of faith”.
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Also, there is contention that Muslim Personal Law (Shariat) Act 1937, has not codified
talaq-e-bidat (triple talaq) into a statutory law, thus, it does not fall under Article 13.
• The challenge is to inform the Muslim masses that the abolition of the practice does not go
against the Shariah but it is closer to the original tenets of Islam.
4.3. Entry Movements to Places of Religious Worship Led by

Women’s Organizations
• Shani Shignapur Temple: A group of women called the Bhumata Rangaragini Brigade led a
movement to break the 400 year old tradition of the Temple barring women from entering
its inner sanctum. Eventually, the Bombay High Court stated that “No law prevents women
from entering a place of worship and if men are allowed, then women too should be
permitted.”
• Sabrimala Temple: In Sabarimala temple, Kerala, women between the ages of 10 and 50
are not allowed to enter the temple, since they are in the menstrual age group. A 1991
Kerala High Court judgement supported the ban on women. However, the case has been

Student Notes:
referred to a three judge bench of the Supreme Court to deem whether excluding
menstruating women constitutes “essential religious practice.”
• Haji Ali Dargah: In 2012, the Dargah Trust barred women from entering the sanctum
sanctorum of the Haji Ali dargah. The trust cited verses from the Quran and Prophet
Mohammed to claim that Islam does not permit women to enter dargahs/mosques. The
trust also claimed the fundamental right “to manage its own affairs” under Article 26 of the
Indian Constitution. This was opposed by several women’s organizations. Eventually, the
Bombay High Court lifted the ban saying it contravenes the Constitution and women should
be allowed entry “at par with men”. It also held that the Trust cannot enforce a ban
“contrary to the fundamental rights” (i.e. Art 14, 15 and 25) enshrined in the Constitution.

1. "Secularism cannot exist as a positive value in society without equality, social justice
and democracy". Examine in the context of India.
Approach:
• First explain briefly what secularism means.
• Next analyze the Indian conception of secularism – secularism equated with
religious harmony. Argue how secularism is a pre-requisite for harmony, not the
other way around. Also examine whether secularism should be seen exclusively
through the prism of religion or is it a much wider concept.
• While doing so, consider the three keywords mentioned in the question – equality,
social justice and democracy. Analyze how these are a prerequisite if secularism is
to be conceived as a positive value.
Answer:
Secularism implies not only the separation of religion and state but also religious
freedom, the autonomy of religious groups, withdrawal of state sanction for religious
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norms and a minimization of religious groups as categories of public policy and as

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actors in public life.

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The debate on secularism in India has been mainly political: relationship between state
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and religion, interrelationship between different communities, and interdependence of

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secularism and democracy. A common quest connecting these three issues has been
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the quest for religious harmony, which in the course of time came to be identified with
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secularism.
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However, it has been argued that secularism is not a product of religious harmony. In
fact, religious harmony is achievable only if secularism is in place. This is particularly
true for a multi-religious society like India. The answer to what constitutes secularism in
such a society lies in the ability of the state and society to internalize values and ethics,
informed by reason and humanism. It is also important to ensure that secularism is not
posited exclusively within the realm of religion, but other areas of human existence,
such as culture and economy are also incorporated into the secular conception.
This is important to ensure that religious differences recede to the background and a
common bond unites different groups. This is why some like Pt. Nehru had also argued
that secularism could be a reality only within the rubric of social justice. He had
emphasized the role of economy in the construction of a secular society. According to
him the real thing was the economic factor. He had argued that if were to lay stress on
the economic factor, religious differences would automatically recede to the
background and a common bond would unite different groups. This opinion of Nehru

Student Notes:
has been interpreted to mean that secularism could be a reality only within the rubric
of social justice. Others like Dr. Ambedkar also considered secularism not only a political
issue but also a moral issue.
Further, the basic aim of secularism being to ensure equality of all religious
denominations, it implies, the concept of secularism is derived from the principle of
democratic equality. In fact, it has been argued that secularism gains meaning and
substance only when it refers to the principle of democratic equality. Logically, a prior
commitment to the principles of democracy is a condition for equality of all religious
groups.
Still further, the conception of secularism as only religious harmony is based on a
monolithic view of religion. Such a view does not take into account the differentiation
within it. The fact is that within each culture there are several cultural and social groups
between whom contradictions and complementarities exist. Due to the prevalence of
the cultural and social hierarchies that exist within religion, attempts to bring about
religious harmony cannot cover all followers of any religion.
Thus realizing communal harmony without creating material and ideological
foundations to generate and sustain it seems extremely difficult. The importance
attributed to religious harmony is indeed logical, given the reality of a multi-religious
society. But it is not sufficiently inclusive to reconcile the cultural differences. For
realizing inclusiveness, cultural plurality is not sufficient; what is essential is cultural
equality. Integral to the concept of secularism, therefore, is cultural equality; so also are
democracy and social justice. Without these three interrelated factors – equality,
democracy and social justice – secularism cannot exist as a positive value in society.
2. How are minorities defined in India? Does the commitment to ensure special rights for
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minorities contradicts the idea of secularism? Discuss in the context of India.

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Approach:
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• Explain how minorities are defined in India.

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• Discuss the special rights given to minorities in India and whether it contradicts
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secularism.
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Answer:
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The Constitution of India uses the word ‘minority’ (in Article 29 to 30 and 350 A to 350
B) but does not define the word ‘minority’ as such. The minorities in India include:
• Religious minority- As per National Commission for Minorities Act, 1992 it include
Muslims, Sikhs, Christians, Buddhists, Zoroastrians (Parsis) and Jains. Sects within a
religion are not considered a religious minority.
• Linguistic minority -They pertain mainly to a State and not at the National level.
The linguist minority must have a separate spoken language. It is not necessary that
the language must have a distinct script.
It is to be noted that, a group which constitutes a ‘statistical minority’ at national level
may not enjoy minority status in all State/UTs. Supreme Court in TMA Pai Foundation
case considered the question of the unit for the purpose of determining the definition
of ‘minority’ within the meaning of Article 30(1).
It held that ‘a minority either linguistic or religious is determinable only by reference to
demography of the State and not by taking into consideration the population of the

Student Notes:
country as a whole’. Thus, religious and linguistic minorities, have to be considered

State-wise for the application of central and state laws.
Special rights to minorities and secularism
In India, the safeguards for minorities under the constitution of India are firstly in the
form of fundamental rights (Article 25 to 30). Article 29 talks about preserving the
distinct language, script or culture of any citizen, while Article 30 is more specific and
talks about right of religious and linguistic minorities to administer educational
institutions and non-discrimination by State in granting aids to such institutions.
However, at times these safeguards invites the accusations of favouritism or
‘appeasement’ and of being anti-secular (a secular state being one that doesn’t favour
any particular religion over others). In reality, the Protection of minorities requires that
they be given special consideration especially in a context where the normal working of
the political system places them at a disadvantage vis-à-vis majority community.
In India, even economically strong minorities like Sikhs and Parsis may be disadvantaged
in a cultural sense because of their small numbers relative to overwhelming majority of
Hindus. Without special protection, secularism can turn into an excuse for imposing the
majority community’s values and norms on the minorities.
The idea of giving some special right to the minorities is not to treat them as a
privileged section of the population but to give to the minorities a sense of security.
Special rights for minorities were designed not to create inequalities but to bring about
equality by ensuring the preservation of the minority institutions and by guaranteeing
autonomy in the matter of administration of these institutions.
Hence, deeming these special rights as contradiction will be to take a lop-sided
understanding of secularism without attending to the needs of all sections of society.
Counter-views and debate on this arrangement should be seen as the trait of a healthy
democracy.
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1. How do the Indian debates on secularism differ from the debates in the West?
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Student Notes:
ROLE OF WOMEN AND WOMEN’S ORGANIZATION

Women are the largest untapped reservoir of talent in the world
– Hillary Clinton
Contents
1. Introduction ............................................................................................................................. 60
2. The Profile of Women in India ................................................................................................. 60
2.1. Social Structure, Social Processes and Women................................................................. 62
3. Nature, Range and Patterns of Women’s Work ....................................................................... 65
3.1. What is Women’s Work? ................................................................................................... 65
3.2. Unpaid Work in Home-Based Production and Family Farms ............................................ 65
3.3. Female Child Labour.......................................................................................................... 67
3.4. Paid Work .......................................................................................................................... 67
3.5. Women Workers and the Growth of Unorganized Sector ................................................ 69
4. Women’s Issues: A Manifestation ............................................................................................ 69
5. Women’s Issues: Responses ..................................................................................................... 70
5.1. Women’s Movements ....................................................................................................... 70
5.1.1. Women’s Movement as a Social Movement .............................................................. 70
5.1.2. Dimensions of Indian Women’s Movement ............................................................... 70
5.1.3. Pre-Independence Women’s Movements.................................................................. 71
5.1.4. Post-Independence Women’s Movements ................................................................ 75
6. An Analysis of Women’s Current Situation .............................................................................. 83
7. National Policy for Women ...................................................................................................... 89
7.1. National Policy for Empowerment of Women, 2001 ........................................................ 89
7.2. Priority Areas for a New National Policy for Empowerment of Women ........................... 89
8. Conclusion ................................................................................................................................ 90
9. Appendix .................................................................................................................................. 90
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9.1. Legislative Acts .................................................................................................................. 90

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9.2. Constitutional Provisions for Women in Our Constitution ............................................... 91

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9.3. Government Response ...................................................................................................... 91

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9.4. Women Empowerment Programs/Schemes by GoI ......................................................... 93

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10. Vision IAS GS Mains Test Series Questions............................................................................. 94

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11. Previous Year UPSC GS Mains Questions ............................................................................. 106

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Student Notes:
1. Introduction
Imagine the following scenarios:
• You are waiting for a bus at the bus stop and a young man takes out a knitting needle and
wool and starts knitting. A school girl who is also waiting for a bus climbs a tamarind tree to
look for a raw tamarind.
• A couple lives in your neighbourhood. The husband stays at home and takes care of their
two-year-old daughter and manages other household chores while the wife works in a bank
as a manager.
Do these events surprise you? What reactions do you expect to hear from people with respect
to these incidents? What is so unique about these scenes / events that people have to express
their surprise or pass such comments? Why cannot a man knit or a girl climb a tree? What is
wrong if a man stays at home and takes responsibility for child care and house work? Why
cannot a woman give full time attention to her career? These images surprise people because
they are contrary to the existing practices, which they usually see in society. It is our culture,
which has built many stereotype images of men and women, and over a period of time most
people have come to accept it as the right image.
Women can thus be described as a social category. There have been a series of women’s issues
in terms of low access to productive resources, medical facilities, educational and employment
opportunities and various other social and economic discriminations faced by them. Women
play various roles in their lifetime ranging from a mother to that of a breadwinner but are
almost always subordinated to male authority; largely excluded from high status occupation
and decision making both at work and at home. Paradoxically, even in our Indian society where
women goddesses are worshipped, women are denied an independent identity and status.
In recent years, particularly with the rise of Women’s Liberation Movement, this discrimination
against women has been widely debated. Two main positions have emerged from this debate.
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One maintains that this inequality between the two sexes is determined to some degree by
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the biologically or genetically based differences between men and women.

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As against this, the second position argues that they result from socially constructed power
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relations and are culturally determined.

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2. The Profile of Women in India

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As per World Economic Forum survey, India’s Global Gender Gap Index, 2017 ranking is 108 out
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of 144 countries, behind neighbours China and Bangladesh, primarily due to less participation of
women in the economy and low wages.
1) Sex Ratio & Mortality Rate–Sex ratio is used to describe the number of females per 1000 of
males. As per census 2011 sex ratio for India is 940 females per 1000 of males, i.e. females
form a meager 47% of the total population. The State of Haryana has the lowest sex ratio in
India and the figure shows a number of 877 females to that of 1000 males while Kerala has
the highest of 1084 females per 1000 males.
Mortality rate or the death rate measures the frequency of deaths. This is an annual rate
and is calculated for different age groups as number of deaths for 1000 live births. The age-
specific death rate data indicates high rate of female infant mortality (0-4 years) and
maternal mortality (5-24 years). The life expectancy rate represents the mean life length an
individual is expected to survive given the prevailing mortality conditions. It has been
observed that the chances of longer life expectancy is higher among women during older
years, whereas women in the younger years continue to have relatively higher death rates.

Student Notes:
Declining Child Sex Ratio

• As per the Census, 2011 the child sex ratio (0-6 years) has shown a decline from 927
females per thousand males in 2001 to 919 females per thousand males in 2011
• Some of the reasons for neglect of girl child and low child sex ratio are son preference and
the belief that it is only the son who can perform the last rites, that lineage and
inheritance runs through the male line, sons will look after parents in old age, men are the
bread winners etc.
• Exorbitant dowry demand is another reason for female foeticide/infanticide.
• Small family norm coupled with easy availability of sex determination tests may be a
catalyst in the declining child sex ratio, further facilitated by easy availability of Pre-
conception sex selection facilities.
The consequences of declining child sex ratio:
• It has led to a sharp increase in violence against women.
• Increased violence against women has led to more son preference, as parents feel it is
difficult to keep women safe.
• In a study conducted by the Centre for Social Research, Haryana, fear of violence against
women is a major cause of female foeticide.
• Apart from this, there have been increasing cases of polygamy due to shortage of women.
There are cases of forcible marriage of widows.
• There has been commodification of women as well, with practices of purchasing of brides
from poor areas.
• Economic consequences are that there is a huge proportion of productive population
which is missing. Lack of women impairs the ability of men to work, and has led to
increased work pressure on the men.
The government has tried to counter the declining sex ratio through initiatives like Beti
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Bachao, Beti Padhai; Sukanya Samriddhi Yojana etc.

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2) Health - Studies on hospital admissions and records have shown that males get more
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medical care compared to girls. 2% of the female population is absolute anaemic. 12% of
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the female population of the country suffers from repeated pregnancy (80% of their
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productive life is spent in pregnancy) & lack of nutrition.

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Reproductive Health
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• Maternal Mortality Rate in India has dropped from 167 to 130

• The number of contraceptives has increased, but is far from reaching the 100% mark
• Institutional deliveries: Number of institutional deliveries rose by 15% from 2004 to 2014,
mostly aided by JSY.
o Deliveries in government hospitals rose by 22%, and it fell by 8% in private hospitals
o Home births dropped by 16%
• But JSY has not been able to cater to the lowest most rung of the society. This is primarily
due to lack of facilities in rural areas, and lack of doctors there
• Also, quality of antenatal care is vital to reduce the risk of still births and pregnancy
complications, and that is not in a very good position in India.
3) Literacy - The female literacy levels according to the Literacy Rate 2011 census are 65.46%
where the male literacy rate is over 80%. While Kerala has the highest female literacy rate
of 100% , Bihar is at the lowest with only 46.40%

Student Notes:
4) Employment – Of the total female population 21.9% are a part of Indian workforce.
Majority of women are employed in the rural areas and in agriculture. Amongst rural
women workers 87% are employed in agriculture as laborers, cultivators, self-employed like
hawkers etc., i.e. in the unorganized sector which almost always remains invisible. Despite
the equal remuneration Act 1976, women are paid lower wages, occupy lower skilled jobs,
have less access to skill training and promotion.
5) Political status – Though India had a first women Prime Minister Late Ms. Indira Gandhi,
nonetheless women are not fairly represented in the Parliament & other State & Local
bodies. With only around 9 per cent women in upper house and around 11 per cent in the
lower house of parliament, India ranks 99th in the world in terms of female representation
among MPs.
However, 73rd & 74th amendments to the constitution have ensured the participation of
women in PRIs with a reservation of 1/3rd for women. Today more than 30 million women are
actively participating in the political decision making process at the grass root.
Political Status of Women

• Women have a very low status in the political scenario in the country.
• The number of women in the Parliament has never crossed the 20% mark till now. 50% of
the population is represented by less than 20% participation is a clear indication of the
poor political status of women.
• The government had proposed a reservation for women in the Parliament, but the bill has
still now been passed.
• In the Panchayats, 33% of the seats are reserved for women. This has led to development
of many women leaders, but in many places the concept of sarpanch pati has emerged
where the women is just the nominal sarpanch, whereas her husband is the real decision
making authority.
• Such practices needs to be discouraged, and women should be provided with more
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political empowerment.
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• Political empowerment to women can have the following impacts:

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o More focus on women related issues

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o More sensitive handling of women related issues at the top level can have an
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immense impact on the status of women

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o It would help in inspiring other women to take up such roles, and thus it can help
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create multiple women leaders

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What are the reasons behind such a low status being accorded to women in India?
Let us explore these reasons in the social structure and social processes characterizing Indian
society.
2.1. Social Structure, Social Processes and Women

In this section let us try to understand the various structures that create the secondary status of
women and perpetuate the discrimination through various social processes.
i) The Caste Structure
The subordination of women was crucial to the development of caste hierarchy. The higher
the caste the greater were the constraints on women. It is observed that the development
of gender division, based on the control of female sexuality, was integral to the formation of
the social structure.

Student Notes:
It might be relevant to ask: What was the need to control women’s sexuality? What was it
that women’s power would endanger? How was it linked to material resources? For
unravelling these questions it is important to understand the system of caste.
Historically, Indian society is categorized into thousands of sub-castes regionally known as
‘jatis’. However, the pan-Indian social hierarchy is based on the ‘varna’ hierarchy, which
divides the Hindu population in four major groups: the Brahmin (priestly caste) at the top,
followed by the Khatriya (warrior caste), then the Vaishya (commoners, usually known as
trading castes) and at the bottom the Shudra (agricultural laborers and artisan). Some who
are beyond the caste hierarchy were considered to be untouchables. The caste boundaries
are maintained through strict purity – pollution principles, rules of commensality and
endogamy, commitment to caste occupation and ascribed life-style. Ritual purity is in the
nature of religious status but also coincided with economic wealth and social esteem. That
is, the upper castes own more property and the lower castes are property less or have the
least property. Over the decades the association of ritual status and economic status has
undergone change. The concept of ‘dominant caste’ demonstrates this.
Three of the major signs of purity: vegetarianism, teetotalism and tight constraints on
women, indicate that a significant degree of ritual purity comes through domestic activities.
The control on women comes from two major aspects-
1. Women’s disinheritance from immovable property, removing them from the public
sphere and limiting them to the domestic sphere in the form of seclusion.
2. Far greater control is exercised by men over women’s sexuality through arranged
marriage, child marriage, the prohibition of divorce, and strict monogamy for women,
leading to sati and a ban on widow remarriage, including infant or child widows.
These strictures were enforced most strictly by the upper castes to maintain ritual purity,
biological purity, caste supremacy and economic power. Lower caste groups attempting to
achieve upward status mobility with improvement in economic power, also imbibe upper
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caste norms of constraining women’s freedom.

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The ideological and material basis for maintaining the caste system was closely regulated by
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religious scriptures and the patriarchal, patrilineal and patrilocal family ideology.
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ii) The Institution of Family

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Family is the most important social unit in which members live in a network of mutual ties,
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roles and obligations, that it is a unit of procreation, it nurtures the young and socializes
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them (i.e. transmits tradition, culture, religious and social values) to enable them to
perform various roles in the society. Family performs the function of continuity of
generations and the transmission of private property. The role of the family in procreation
is closely intertwined with the pattern of descent and religious prescriptions/priorities.
Descents are of two types: patrilineal and matrilineal. In the patrilineal descent system the
property of the family is transmitted through the male offspring for example, father to son.
In the matrilineal system the property is transmitted through the women, for example,
mother to daughter.
At present, barring the Nair community of Kerala, the Khasis of the north-east, the Garos of
the North-eastern India, and certain tribes in the Lakshdweep, all the other communities
practice patrilineal descent system. The worship of mother goddesses is prevalent in all
parts of India.
Closely connected to the patrilineality is the practice of patrilocality, i.e., the transfer of
residence of women to the village/residence/family of the husband, after marriage. The
sons stay with the father. The property laws, therefore, forbade daughters from inheriting

Student Notes:
immovable property, since such property would pass to their husband’s family on marriage.
Instead women were given a portion of movable property (like jewellery) to take with them,
known as dowry.
This provides material reason for anxiety over the birth of daughters. Moreover, the
religious scriptures, especially the Hindu religion place a high preference for sons.
According to the code of Manu, a man could achieve merit only by protecting the purity of
his wife and through her, of his sons. A son is necessary for lighting the funeral pyre of the
father, propitiating the souls of agnatic ascendants through ‘shradha’ and thereby enabling
the father and agnatic ascendants to attain moksha (to be relieved from rebirth). The role
of the women is to beget sons, perpetuate the male descent and facilitate the performance
of rituals. This hierarchy of male and female roles create differential evaluation of children
with a strong son preference on the one hand and daughter neglect on the other, in terms
of access to food, health care, education, freedom, rights and justice.
iii) Socialization within the Family
Socialization performs the function of transmitting culture, tradition, social values and
norms. Apart from parental socialization in the family, various agencies like the schools,
peer groups, literature and films play a role in early socialization and adult socialization.
Girls and boys receive differential socialization, which further perpetuate asymmetric roles
and relationship. Boys are equipped with higher education and skills in order to perform
the ‘breadwinner’s’ role and the girls are initiated into domestic chores at an early age,
given lesser education, trained to work hard and to develop low self-esteem. Boys receive a
status of permanence as against girls who are seen as temporary members of the family.
Very few families enable their daughters to develop an independent identity and dignity.
The family ideology which determines ‘suitability’ and ‘unsuitability’ of certain jobs for
women is also reflected in job stereotyping in labor market.
It has been observed that school books perpetuate images of mother as the ‘housewife’,
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father as the ‘breadwinner’; boys playing with guns and trucks and girls playing with toys
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and dolls. Though several schools encourage involvement in sports for boys and girls, there
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are stereotyped patterns of playing. Boys play football, basketball and cricket and girls skip
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and involve in restricted games. Media messages about women and girls perpetuate
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stereotyped sexist images which enable the media industry to maintain its market.
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iv) Class Structure and Women’s Work

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Class is defined primarily by the ownership of property or capital or economic resources. In

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simple terms, in a capitalist structure hierarchy is determined by wage, relation viz., people
who work for a wage and people who hire workers for wages in rural areas, where the
social, economic and political power coincide with caste structure. The constraints on
women that vary from upper to the lower castes are reinforced by the class structure as
well. Women of upper castes/classes are secluded, and participate in activities in the
domestic sphere.
Women from middle castes with medium and small holdings are more likely to work on
their own fields and in certain cases work for wages. Women from artisan castes/classes
contribute to the home-based production They belong to the bottom of the hierarchy
where seclusion and restriction on social mobility are not practiced.
In the urban context, where there is a transition to non-agricultural occupations (from an
‘ascribed’ to ‘achieved’ status situation) the upper castes form the predominant group
among middle classes. Women of this class emerged from seclusion during the century to
acquire education and employment. The important aspect is that the economic

Student Notes:
dependence on men is broken. However, this did not drastically change the subordination
of women. The class structure appears to build upon the existing gender hierarchy in the
caste structure. The family within the class structure also derives status from women’s
education and employment. Women perform status – maintaining and enhancing activities
to the family – as educated housewives, mothers and earners. Advertisements in
matrimonial columns are ample evidence of this trend.
Women’s subordination is entrenched in the caste and class hierarchies which have to be
understood. Otherwise, women’s issues will be misunderstood as mere cultural accidents
and violence on women as stray incidents.
3. Nature, Range and Patterns of Women’s Work

Women do various types of work. Their household work remains mostly invisible and
unrecognised. Here it is essential to categorise various types of work done by women in terms
of paid and unpaid work. This will give us a broad idea to understand the significance of
women’s work both in the family and in the society.
3.1. What is Women’s Work?

Women were the major producer of food, textiles and handicrafts throughout human history
and continue to provide a major labour input where production is still in the small scale
subsistence sector.
Defining the exact nature, scope and magnitude of women’s work remains a problem area
because a good deal of women’s work is either invisible or is only partially accounted for in the
data on workforce participation.
Components of women’s work include housework, paid and unpaid work related to home-
based craft activities, family enterprise or business and paid work outside home. You must have
observed differential work participation of men, women and children within the family both in
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quantitative and qualitative terms. The kind of work women do is determined by women’s
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position in the society and family’s location in the social hierarchy.

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The basic elements of women’s work within the home are related to the division of labour
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between men and women. Activities included under ‘housework’ broadly differ according to
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age, gender, income, occupational group, location (rural/urban), size and structure of the
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family.
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3.2. Unpaid Work in Home-Based Production and Family Farms

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Economists distinguish between production for self-consumption and production for the
market. Only the latter is counted as ‘work’. The parameters of work used in official data reflect
this bias. Much of the work that women do in household industries and processing of
agricultural products, if unpaid, is not recognised as ‘work’ in the data systems.
In rural areas the women from the poorer households engage in various activities such as
cooking, processing of food for household consumption, storing grains, childcare, fetching
fuelwood, fodder and water, collection of forest produce, preparation of cow dung cakes, care
of livestock and cattle and house repair and maintenance. Much of this work, which is
important for the maintenance of families, is largely done by women. However, this work is
unpaid and is not accounted for as productive work as it is meant for self-consumption. The
conventional definition of ‘work’ does not include activities, which are of ‘use-value’ and do not
have ‘exchange-value’.

Student Notes:
Activities like dairying, small animal husbandry (poultry, piggery, goatery etc.) fisheries,
handloom weaving, handicrafts, pottery etc. are family activities and every member assists in
some aspects of production. A major part of the work is done within the home and yet a
woman is not accorded the status of a worker. Non-valuation of women’s unpaid work within
the home results in non-recognition of women’s crucial economic contribution.
Quantifying Women’s Work in GDP

Quantifying women's work in GDP:
• Women play a very important role in households, but their contribution is not a part of the
GDP calculation and hence goes unnoticed or rather not quantified
• This is because it is very difficult to quantify the work done by women.
• In the contemporary society, working women are facing double exploitation because they
are forced to do the household work even after working at homes.
• This quantification of women's work is important for them to gain recognition, and for their
roles to be given more importance.
• If this cannot be quantified, then atleast there needs to be more value given to their work.
Missing Women
Lack of participation of women in workforce:
• According to IMF working paper: India has one of the lowest female labour force
participation (FLPF) rates among emerging markets and developing countries.
• 20.5% women employed in organized sector in 2011
• Women's participation in workforce is skewed towards certain sectors: unorganized sector;
manufacturing and services (just 18% of rural employment for women); agriculture
(dominates at 75%); blue collar jobs (women are losing blue collar jobs, while gaining white
m
collar ones)
co
l.
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Reasons for low labour force participation:

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• Increased income of men: as men start to earn more, women tend to cut back their work to
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concentrate more on household activities.

sp
h.
• Caste factor: in some upper castes, there is a stigma attached to women working outside
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the home
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• Safety issues and harassment at work place

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• Increasing numbers of women of working age are enrolling in secondary schools.

(economic survey 2014-15)
• Nature of eco growth: not been able to create large number of jobs in sectors that could
readily absorb women, especially those in rural areas.
How to bring women into workforce:
• Bridging gender gaps in secondary and tertiary education.
• Creating employment opportunities in male dominated sectors.
• Ensuring skill training for women in key sectors
• Increasing reach of financial sector in order to service the women entrepreneurs better
• Strengthening legal provisions for women and the enforcement of these laws (like
harassment at work place)
• Reshaping societal attitudes and beliefs about women participation in the labour force.

Student Notes:
3.3. Female Child Labour

Girls continue to provide free labour in home-based production system. Studies on rural girl
child labour show that she works nine hours a day providing goods and services, which keep her
out of school. She works on an average 318 days a year in the fields and at home providing free
labour.
More girls are being inducted into work while more boys are sent to school thus widening the
gap between boy’s and girl’s opportunities. They are employed in agricultural and related
industries in large numbers. Girls are also employed in large numbers in carpet industry of
Kashmir, in lock making in Aligarh, in gem polishing in Jaipur, in match industry in Sivakasi and in
bidi rolling. In fact, in the match industry of Sivakasi, ninety per cent child workers are girls
under the age of fourteen, working under hazardous conditions. Female children working in
home based industries are beyond the purview of child labour laws. These laws are not
enforced even in factory based industries. Even in piece-rate system, her labour is seen as an
extension of her mother’s labour and is not given an independent value. Such work cuts them
off from schooling, literacy, learning technical skills and improving their job prospects. These
handicaps remain insurmountable throughout the life.
Right to Education
• As per RTE, all children (both girls and boys) are entitled to free primary school education
till the age of 14. But still, primary education in India is not universal. The most
disadvantaged of the lot include the girls, for whom education is not seen as necessary.
• Reason for this:
o Parents consider teaching household chores to girls are more important than
education, and this is due to the ingraining of patriarchy and the confinement of girls
inside the house.
o Another reason which keeps girls away from school is the concern for their safety and
m
sexuality.
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o Also, schools are generally located at a distance, with zero or very few number of
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female teachers.
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o No bathrooms inside the school premises or lack of separate bathrooms for girls and
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boys is another disincentive

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•
h.
As per statistics, the Literacy Rate for Women is 65%, whereas it is 82% for men. This
es
difference reflects how far women are behind men in terms of education
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ay
• Illiteracy of women has far reaching consequences, and it has an impact on their children
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also. Also, low schooling leads to poor quality of care for their children, leading to higher
infant and child mortality, and it sometimes leads to malnutrition because lack of education
makes it difficult for women to adopt appropriate health promoting behavior such as
immunization of children.
• Government measures: 'Sarva Siksha Abhiyan' and 'Beti Bachao, Beti Padhao' are initiatives
to promote the education of girl child.
3.4. Paid Work

Women also work for wages in fields, forests, mines, factories, offices, small-scale and
household industries. The nature and extent of such work differs according to the location of
family in the social hierarchy. In the rural sector the subsistence work burden falls heavily on
women, while in higher castes and higher income groups ‘non-work’ of women is given more
value. Many micro studies have reported inverse relationship between income level of the
household and nature of women’s work participation. Women in the subsistence sector have no
option but to work. However, their options are limited as they are non-entrants or drop-outs

Student Notes:
from school. They are often the primary breadwinners of the family, but the ideological bias
views men as the primary breadwinner of the family.
i) Education, Paid Employment and Household Responsibilities
The spread of education among the middle and upper class women has opened up new
avenues of employment. However, education does not necessarily lead to employment. On
one hand, illiteracy among the majority of women in the lower socio-economic group
constitutes a major barrier to increasing and diversifying work and training opportunities.
On the other hand, pre-defined roles, ideology and labour market forces in a labour surplus
economy effectively restrict women’s work opportunity among educated women of certain
sectors.
In middle class families, women work for improving or maintaining the standard of living of
the family or to provide a cushion against rising cost of living. Working outside home on the
same terms and conditions, as men, does not absolve them from their domestic
responsibilities. As a result, the dual burden of work exerts physical, mental and emotional
strain on them. One of the consequences of double burden may be delayed promotions or
sacrificing new job opportunities due to family responsibilities.
ii) Agricultural and Industrial Sectors
Gender inequalities exist in all sectors. Inequalities are reflected in distribution of women
workers in different sectors, across job hierarchies and in wages and earnings between men
and women.
In the latter half of the twentieth century there was very little structural change in women’s
employment. The proportion of female agricultural workers which was less than one-third
of the total workforce in 1951 rose to more than fifty per cent, which means greater
dependence on agriculture sector. In 1993-94, as many as 86.2 percent female workers
were engaged in the primary sector, which includes agriculture and allied sector such as
m
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forestry, livestock etc., in the rural areas. Within agriculture they mostly work as agricultural
l.
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labourers or cultivators.
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ho
The wave of Industrialisation has created more work opportunities for a small section of
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educated women but at the same time reduced work opportunities for unskilled women
sp
h.
workers working in textiles, jute industries etc. As a result, women workers got
es
concentrated in plantations, food products, tobacco and textiles, cane and bamboo work,
ur
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silk worm, rearing coir products, domestic services, education and health services. The high
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concentration of women in household industries rather than factory-based production

affects their status as workers with no control on their labour and earnings.
iii) Women in Services and Professions
As far as women in services and professions are concerned there is no wage discrimination
but they are concentrated in certain types of soft skill jobs like teachers, nurses, typists and
stenographers and very few occupy higher positions in administration, business and
technical jobs.
Despite impressive increase in the number of educated women in urban areas the gap
between men and women in the services and professions is large. It can be attributed to
the following factors-
a) Girls are generally socialised for their domestic roles.
b) Less investment in the vocational and technical training of women
c) Male stereotypes determine attitude to work and differential expectations from girls
education, which is rarely seen as an investment for future.

Student Notes:
d) Higher concentration of girls is found in humanities and social sciences rather than
vocational and technical courses.
e) There is less physical mobility among women after marriage.
Women in Leadership Role

• Many reports have pointed out that the number of women in leadership roles in India is
very low.
• But this number is gradually increasing, which is a very positive sign.
• Many big corporates are headed by women, example Pepsi by Indra Nooyi, Axis Bank by
Shikha Sharma, ICICI Bank by Chanda Kocchar (who just quit) etc.
• Many argue that there is existence of a glass ceiling, which restricts the promotion of
women to the top most positions. This glass ceiling exists due to the persistence of
patriarchy in the society, and also due to the fact that the present leadership consists of
men who promote the interests of men only
• But it is very inspiring to see that many women have been successful in breaking this glass
ceiling.
• More focus on social, economical and political empowerment, and better education
facilities for women can help more women in reaching the leadership roles in the society.
iv) Earning Differentials

An expression of discrimination against women in labour market is wage differential. They
not only get unequal pay for equal work but many jobs that women do are categorised as
low skilled jobs for which lower wages are paid. For example, men usually do weaving
which is better paid while spinning, usually done by women, is low paid. In construction
also men are supposed to do skilled jobs and women do unskilled work and get lower
wages. Sexual divisions of labour and lower duration of women’s work are reflected into
lower wages for women. Earning differentials also reflect differences in skill acquisition,
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education and training.

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l.
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3.5. Women Workers and the Growth of Unorganized Sector

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A majority of women are working in the rural and urban unorganized sector without the
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protection of labour legislation regarding wages, hours of work, working conditions, health and
h.
maternity benefits and childcare services. Those women workers include agricultural and
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construction labourers, women in dairying, small animal husbandry, fisheries, forestry,

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handlooms and handicrafts, small vendors and hawkers selling vegetables and food items,
washer-women, scavengers, domestic servants, crafts workers and piece-rate workers in home
based production. The labour force in this sector is characterised by higher incidence of casual
labour and intermittent nature of work, low wages, and low capital incentives.
4. Women’s Issues: A Manifestation

There are different forms of violence on women, which act as threats to women’s independent
identity and dignity. Some forms of violence are:
1) Female foeticide & infanticide- According to a survey by British medical journal, Lancet,
nearly 10 million female abortions have taken place in India in the last 20 years, which is
rampant amongst the educated Indian middle class as well.
There are organizations like Swanchetan, which are working towards educating and bringing
awareness in people against the ghastly act.
2) Rape, sexual harassment & abuse- It acts as a deterrent to women’s freedom and
perpetuates the notion that women are the weaker sex.

Student Notes:
The recent Dec. 16 Delhi Gang rape case, shook the entire country and led to protests all
across the country, setting up of Justice Verma panel & helped in the fast track judgment of
the case. However rampant cases of rape of Dalit women, acid attacks and eve teasing go
unnoticed.
3) Domestic violence and dowry deaths- Violence on women in the family were considered
family problems and were never acknowledged as “crimes against women” until recently. It
is prevalent in all classes of society.
4) Prostitution- A large number of women destitute or victims of rape who are disowned by
family fall prey to prostitution forcibly. There are no governmental programs to alleviate the
problem of prostitution.
5) Objectification of women- Indecent Representation of Women (Prohibition) Act, 1986
prohibits indecent representation of women through advertisements or in publications,
writings, paintings etc. However, a whole lot of indecent representation of women is done
through literature, media, paintings etc. upholding the “right to freedom of expression”.
5. Women’s Issues: Responses

5.1. Women’s Movements
The roots of the Indian women’s movement go back to the nineteenth century male social
reformers who took up issues concerning women and started women’s organizations. Women
started forming their own organization from the end of the nineteenth century first at the local
and then at the national level. In the years before independence, the two main issues they took
up were political rights and reform of personal laws. Women’s participation in the freedom
struggle broadened the base of the women’s movement.
In post-independence India, large number of women’s autonomous groups has sprung up
challenging patriarchy and taking up a variety of issues such as violence against women, greater
share for women in political decision making, etc. both at the activist and academic level. India
has a rich and vibrant women’s movement but it has still a long way to go to achieve gender
m
co
equality and gender justice

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5.1.1. Women’s Movement as a Social Movement

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Conventionally social movements are viewed as intended and organized collective actions
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based on certain defined aims, methodology for collective mobilization, distinct ideology,
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identified leadership and organization. A social movement involves collective action that is
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distinct from individual action. Thus a social movement essentially involves sustained collective
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mobilization through either informal or formal organization.

5.1.2. Dimensions of Indian Women’s Movement
Unlike the women’s movement in the West, the Indian women’s movement began in the
shadow of colonial rule and the commitment to attain freedom from colonial rule. Thus, the
Indian women’s movement transcended the limited gender framework unlike the women’s
liberation struggles in the other parts of the world, especially in the West where the principal
purpose was to address the relationship between women and men in the private and public
spheres. Questions of independence and freedom from the colonial power were inextricably
linked with the consciousness of the Indian women’s movement, a consciousness of women in
relation to the larger society, not only to men.
Since the late 19th century Indian society, witnessed an active feminist movement. The early
attempts at reforming the conditions under which Indian women lived were mainly carried out
by western educated middle and high-class men. Soon they were joined by the women of their
families. These women along with the men began organized movements fighting against the

Student Notes:
oppressive social practices such as female infanticide, sati, child marriage, laws prohibiting
widow remarriage, etc.
The public participation of these women of middle and high caste and class background led to
the birth of women’s organizations in the early 20th century. They began fighting for the status
and rights of women but this task was unambiguously located within the agenda of the
freedom struggle as a whole. Another strand in the women’s movement developed roughly
around this time. The Left-radical tendency was shaped in women’s movement by their
activities among women of the working class. Women with Left political leanings were involved
in working class and revolutionary peasant struggles, such as the struggle in Telangana.
After Independence, many of the bourgeois-liberal section advocated for representation of
women within the system. Late 1960s and early 1970s witnessed the resurgence of women’s
movement, mainly due to the repercussion of the problems that cropped up at the national
front (such as price rise) and the women’s active mobilizations at the international front. The
struggle against the Emergency saw the rise of many new women’s groups, which rejected the
politics of earlier women’s organizations. These groups sprang up as part of the movement for
democracy and against gender discrimination and later emerged as autonomous organizations
without any explicit party affiliations though many of them were drawn from political parties.
They mainly intended to raise feminist issues in mass organizations such as trade unions or
kisan samitis. Many autonomous groups, which were mostly women-only groups, without party
affiliations and conventional hierarchical organizational structures, were also formed mainly
dealing with domestic issues such as domestic violence.
Women’s movement of the late 1970s and early 1980s were dominated by such autonomous
women’s groups, which were mostly city based. At the same time feminist consciousness had
taken place in some of the rural movements too. Overall, Indian Women Movement witnessed
three tendencies in terms of their affiliations- the bourgeoisie liberals, the left radicals and the
autonomous groups.
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5.1.3. Pre-Independence Women’s Movements

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The roots of the Indian women’s movement go back to the early nineteenth century when
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ho
social reformers, beginning with Ram Mohan Roy (1772-1833), began to focus on issues
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concerning women. Following them, improving the condition of women became the first tenet
sp
of the Indian social reform movement. Women’s inferior status, enforced seclusion, early
h.
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marriage, condition of widows and lack of education were the main facts documented by
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reformers throughout the country. However, women’s movement is linked to both social reform
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movements & the nationalist movement.

5.1.3.1. Socio-Religious Reform Movement
Women’s Organizations Started by Men
Men who belonged to the socio religious reform associations began the first organization for
women. They are as follows:
1) Brahmo Samaj: It was founded by Raja Ram Mohan Roy in 1825 & attempted to abolish
restrictions and prejudices against women, which included child marriage, polygamy,
limited rights to inherit property. Education was seen as the major factor to improve the
position of women.
• Civil Marriage Act, 1872 was passed, which permitted inter-caste marriage, legalized
divorce and fixed 14 and 18 as the minimum age of marriage for girls and boys
respectively.
• Raja Ram Mohan Roy played an important role in getting Sati abolished.

Student Notes:
2) Prarthana Samaj: It was founded by MG Ranade & RG Bhandarker in 1867. Its objectives
were more or less similar to that of Brahmo samaj but remained confined to western India.
Justice Ranade criticized child marriage, polygamy, restriction on remarriage of widows and
non access to education.
3) Arya Samaj: It was founded by Dayanand Saraswati in 1875. Unlike the above two it was a
religious revivalist movement, revitalizing the ancient Hindu traditions. It advocated reform
in the caste system, compulsory education for men and women, prohibition of child
marriage by law, remarriage of child widows. It was opposed to divorce & widow
remarriage in general.
4) Social reformers mentioned above eulogized the position of women in ancient India.
However radicals like Ishwarchandra Vidyasagar, Jyotibha Phule and Lokhitwadi Gopal Hari
Deshmukh accused the caste system responsible for the subjugation of women in society.
5) Similar movements began in Islamic community as well. Begum of Bhopal, Syed Ahmad
Khan & Sheikh Abdullah in Aligarh and Karmat Hussain in Lucknow spearheaded a
movement to improve women’s education.
The male-inspired and male-guided organizations for women did valuable work in educating
women and giving them their first experience with public work. While the men wanted the
women to be educated and take part in public activities, but at the same time they regarded
the home as the primary focus for women. Gender equality was never an agenda for any of the
movements mentioned above. They had a very limited perspective of changing the position of
women within the family through education, as education would improve women’s efficiency as
housewives and mothers!
Women’s Organization Started by Women
By the end of the nineteenth century, a few women emerged from within the reformed families
who formed organizations of their own. One of the first to do so was Swarnakumari Devi,
daughter of Devendranath Tagore, a Brahmo leader, and sister of the poet Rabindranath Tagore,
who formed the Ladies Society in Calcutta in 1882 for educating and imparting skills to widows
m
co
and other poor women to make them economically self-reliant. She edited a women journal,
l.
ai
Bharati, thus earning herself the distinction of being the first Indian woman editor.
tm
ho
In the same year, Ramabai Saraswati formed the Arya Mahila Samaj in Pune and a few years
t@
sp
later started the Sharda Sadan in Bombay. The National Conference was formed at the third
h.
session of the Indian National Congress in 1887 to provide a forum for the discussion of social
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issues. The Bharat Mahila Parishad was the women’s wing of this and was inaugurated in 1905.
ay
It focused on child marriage, condition of widows, dowry and other “evil” customs. The Parsis,
m
the Muslims and the Sikhs all formed their own women’s organizations.
Women in Calcutta, Bombay, Madras and other smaller cities formed associations whose
members were drawn from among a small group of urban educated families. They were useful
in bringing women out of their homes, giving them an opportunity to meet other women, doing
philanthropic work, encouraging them to take an interest in public affairs and thus broadening
their horizon. It also gave them the experience of managing an organization.
National Women’s Organization
The early women’s organizations were been confined to a particular locality or city. In 1910,
Sarala Devi Chaudhurani, daughter of Swarnakumari Devi formed the Bharat Stree Mandal
(Great Circle of India Women) with the object of bringing together “women of all castes, creeds,
classes and parties… on the basis of their common interest in the moral and material progress
of the women of India.” It planned to open branches all over India to promote women’s
education. Branches were started in different cities such as Lahore, Amritsar, Allahabad,
Hyderabad, Delhi, Karachi and other cities. Purdah was regarded by Sarala Devi as the main

Student Notes:
obstacle for women’s education and teachers were sent round to women’s homes to educate
them. She wanted women to escape male domination and as a result only women were
allowed to join her organization. However, the Bharat Stree mahila Mandal proved to be a
short lived venture.
5.1.3.2. National Freedom Movement
“Women is the companion of man gifted with equal mental capacities”
-Mahatma Gandhi
At the time when women’s organizations were fighting for women’s political and economic
rights and trying to improve their position by education and social reform, women’s struggle
entered a new phase with the arrival of Mahatma Gandhi on the Indian political scene. Women
had been associated with the freedom struggle before that too. They had attended sessions of
the Indian National Congress and taken part in the Swadeshi movement in Bengal, 1905-11 and
in the Home Rule Movement. But the involvement of really large number of women in the
national movement began when Gandhiji launched the first Non Co-operation Movement and
gave a special role to women. Peasant women played an important role in the rural satyagrahas
of Borsad and Bardoli. Women participated in the Salt satyagraha, in the Civil Disobedience
Movement, in the Quit India Movement and in all the Gandhian satyagrahas. They held
meetings, organized processions, picketed shops selling foreign cloth and liquor and went to
jail.
Gandhiji took interest in collective mobilization of women to fight for political freedom as well
as for their social and political rights. He felt that women were most suited for Satyagraha as
they have great qualities appropriate for non-violent struggle. While thousands of women
joined the freedom movement in response to Gandhi’s call, there were others who could not
accept his creed of non-violence and joined revolutionary or terrorist groups. Their hatred of
the British was intense and their plan was to make attempts on European lives as widely as
possible. They believed in individual acts of heroism not in building a mass movement.
m
co
l.
Women participated in the freedom movement because they were inspired by patriotism and
ai
tm
wanted to see the end of foreign rule. It is debatable as to how far this participation liberated
ho
them. Women’s participation in the freedom movement did not lead to a separate autonomous
t@
sp
women’s movement since it was part of the anti-colonial movement. While women who
h.
picketed shops, marched in processions or went to jail or threw bombs did not question male
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leadership or patriarchal values, it did generate in them a sense of self-confidence and a

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realization of their own strength. Many returned to their homes but others continued their
m
activities in the public arena. It transformed the lives of many young widows such as Durgabai
Deshmukh or Kamaladevi Chattopadhyaya. Women won respect for their courage and the large
numbers in which they participated in the freedom struggle. The first woman to participate in
the nationalist movement during salt march was Sarojini Naidu who later became the first
woman president of the Congress.
Women’s participation in the national movement helped in breaking several of the old barriers
of tradition and custom. Women’s organization side by side raised their voices for removal of
social injustice meted to them, which resulted in passing of the resolution on Fundamental
Right of equal rights for both the sexes at the Karachi session of the Indian National Congress in
1930. The declaration reads as follows:
1. All citizens are equal before the law, irrespective of religion, caste, creed or sex.
2. No disability attaches to any citizen, by reason of his or her religion, caste, creed or sex, in
regard to public employment, office of power or honour, and in the exercise of any trade or
calling.

Student Notes:
3. The franchise shall be on the basis of universal adult suffrage.

4. Woman shall have the right to vote, to represent and the right to hold public offices.
Agrarian Struggles and Revolts
It is often assumed that only middle class educated women participated in social movements.
Part of the struggle has been to remember the forgotten history of women’s participation.
Women participated along with men in struggles and revolts originating in tribal and rural areas
in the colonial period. The Tebhaga movement in Bengal, the Telangana arms struggle from the
erstwhile Nizam’s rule, and the Warli tribal’s revolt against bondage in Maharashtra are some
examples.
Women in Labour Movement
In 1917 Anasuya Sarabhai had led the Ahmedabad textile workers’ strike and in 1920 under her
leadership the Majoor Mahajan, the Ahmedabad textile mill workers union was established. By
the late 1920s, the presence of women in the workers’ movement was noticeable. There were
several prominent women unionists and women workers were consciously organized and a
special role was given to them in the workers’ movement. Bombay was the center of this
development and Maniben Kara emerged as the socialist leader of railway workers and Ushabai
Dange and Parvati Bhore as Communist leaders of textile workers. In the 1928-29 Bombay
textile mill workers’ strike, women played a leading role, as they did in the Calcutta strike during
the same years.
Other Major Organizations
The early 20th century saw the growth of women’s organisations at a national and local level.
The Women’s India Association (WIA) (1917), All India Women’s Conference (AIWC) (1926),
National Council for Women in India (NCWI) (1925) are ready names that we can mention. The
Women’s India Association (WIA) was formed in 1917 by Margaret Cousins, an Irish and an
Indian nationalist. This was followed by the formation of the National Council of Indian Women
m
(NCIW) in 1926 and All India Women’s Conference (AIWC) in 1927. The first of all India women’s
co
organisation came into existence in 1926, with the setting up of the National Council for
l.
ai
tm
Women in India (NCWI). The NCWI aimed at securing women’s rights through social reforms
ho
and women’s and children’s welfare. The All India Women’s Conference (AIWC) was set up in
t@
1927 in Poona. Its members were primarily women from the upper and upper-middle classes
sp
h.
and princely families, women members of the Indian National Congress Party, the Communist
es
ur
Party, professional women like doctors and educationalists, and social workers. The AIWC took
ay
up the questions of women’s education, and it was at its initiative that the Lady Harding College
m
for women was set up in Delhi in 1932. It also organized a large number of literacy schools and
handicraft centres, which helped women from poor families learn basic skills in order to earn
and be relatively independent economically.
A significant concern for women’s group in this period, in particular the AIWC, was the
campaign against child marriage. As a result of this struggle the Sarada Act was passed in 1929,
fixing the age of marriage at fourteen for girls and eighteen for boys. In the 1930’s the AIWC
directed its energies towards fighting for women’s equal rights in inheritance and marriage, and
reforms in the personal laws of different communities. Jyoti Singh in Gujarat (1934) played an
active role in harnessing energies of women. Several women active in the nationalist movement
became founders of women’s organizations. While many of them began with a limited focus,
their scope extended over time. For instance, the AIWC began with the idea that ‘women’s
welfare’ and ‘politics’ were mutually exclusive.

Student Notes:
5.1.4. Post-Independence Women’s Movements

In the post-Independence period a series of institutional initiative has been introduced for the
emancipation of women in the society. The most important of these pertain to the
constitutional provisions and social legislation for women and planned economic development.
Women’s movement has been widely influenced by these broad socio-economic and political
processes of this period.
5.1.4.1. Constitutional Provisions and Social Legislation
The Constitution of independent India followed the basic principle of women’s equality as
accepted in the Fundamental Rights Resolution of the Karachi Congress. The provision of Article
15(3), which empowered the state to make special provisions for women and children, suggests
that there was a realization of women’s disadvantaged position and the need for the state to
enact special measures to bring them at par with men.
During freedom movement it was felt that with the nation’s Independence would disappear
many of the disabilities, and problems of women attributed to colonial rule. The national
government undertook to remove the legal disabilities suffered by women and initiated major
reforms in Hindu family laws. The legal reforms in the 1950s sought to provide greater rights to
Hindu women in marriage, inheritance and guardianship. However, they failed to bridge the gap
between legal and social realities. Similar changes in the family laws of other communities like
Muslims, Christians, Parsis and Jews, have not yet come up due to political resistance despite
the Directive Principle of State Policy clearly stating the need for uniform laws for all the
communities.
With these legislative measures in the fifties women’s organisation became passive and lost the
vigour shown during the pre-Independence period. Several of these organisations received
government grants and their activities were shaped by the grants they received for activities
like adult education, nutrition programmes for children, tailoring classes under vocational
training programmes and family planning programmes. Most of these organisations were urban
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based and the leadership came from the educated middle and upper class women.
co
l.
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In the post-Independence period, two important organisations for rural women were set up,
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i.e., Kasturba Memorial Trust and Bharatiya Grameen Mahila Sangh(Indian Rural Women’s
ho
t@
Organisation). Their main objective was to assist the rural women in developing leadership
sp
potential.
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5.1.4.2. Planned Development and Women’s Issues

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m
In the post-Independence period it was assumed that economic development policies i.e.,
agriculture development and modernization, industrialization, technological development etc.,
will bring about better life for everyone including women. The overall growth strategies failed
to take note of the existing class, caste and gender inequalities. Planned development in India
increased socio-economic inequalities. Let us discuss the observation in more detail.
The Five Year Plans
From Welfare to Development to Empowerment

Over the year the planning strategies (line of action) for women have shifted from Welfare to
Development and to Empowerment. It is this shift which needs to be critically examined if we
wish to understand the role of the state in women's empowerment.
First to Fifth Five Year plans

The approach of the First Five Year Plan (1951-56) was to provide adequate services to promote
the welfare of women so as to enable them to play their legitimate role in family and

Student Notes:
community. Here, the emphasis was on welfare and hence women were treated as mere
recipients of incentives, which the state chose to give. The plan called for setting up of special
organizations both at the central and state levels for promoting the welfare of women. The
Central Social Welfare Board was set up in 1953. It has its branches in the states. These boards
have been supporting and conducting a number of programmes, mainly with a thrust on (with
an emphasis on) economic advancement.
The approach of the Second, Third, Fourth and Fifth Five Year Plans was in no way different
from that of the First Five Year Plan. The welfare approach still guided policies and programmes,
which were launched for women's development. Only two special schemes were introduced
during this period. These were, the condensed Course of Education and Women and Socio-
Economic Programme introduced during the second plan (1956-61) and Working Girls Hostels
and Short Stay Homes introduced during the Fourth Plan (1969-74).
Towards Equality- A Report, which Actually Set the Government and Voluntary Groups
Thinking.
Conceding to the representations made by the international women’s movement, the United
Nations declared 1975–1985 as the International Decade of the Woman and organised the
World Conference on Women in Mexico (1975). The World Plan of Action formulated during the
Conference stressed the need for research, documentation and analyses into processes in
society that create structures of gender inequalities. In India, the National Committee on the
Status of Women had been set up to examine the status of women in the country and to
investigate into the extent to which the constitutional and legal provisions had impacted on
women’s status including their employment and education.
The Committee was the first major attempt to review and evaluate data on various aspects of
women’s status. It was also empowered to comment on the directions of change in women’s
roles, rights and opportunities due to development.
The Committee came out with its findings in the form of a report, popularly known as the
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Towards Equality Report (1974), which became a major landmark for the women’s movement.
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The beginnings of the women’s movement in India, has often been traced back to this report.
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The report revealed the deplorable condition of women in the country evident from
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demographic data, an analysis of the socio-cultural conditions prevalent, the legal provisions
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and safeguards, economic role played by women in all sectors, women’s access to education,
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political participation, the policies and programmes for welfare and development, the impact of
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mass media, etc.

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This Report, paved the way for serious thinking on the status of women in different social
institutions in India, because it showed that women far behind men in enjoying the equal rights
conferred on them by them by the constitution. This Report led to a debate in the parliament
and showed the failure of the welfare approach, which treated women as recipients of benefits
and not as equal partners in the development efforts.
The report also made several recommendations which included stressing the important role of
the State and the community in the achievement of ‘gender equality’. It highlighted the need
for a concerted effort to eradicate oppressive practices such as dowry, polygamy, bigamy, child
marriage, ostentatious expenditure on weddings, and it emphasised the need for a campaign
on legal awareness, the provisions of crèches, better working conditions for women including
equal remuneration for equal work, the compulsory registration of marriages, law reform on
aspects concerning divorce, maintenance, inheritance, adoption, guardianship maternity
benefits, the universalisation of education, etc.

Student Notes:
The new consciousness that emerged after the publication of Toward Equality has to the setting
up of the Women's Welfare's and Development Bureau in 1976 under the Ministry of Social
Welfare. Four Separate working groups on employment of Women, Adult Education
Programmes for Women, Women in Agriculture and Rural Development were also up to work
out strategies for action.
Sixth Five Year Plan: The Shift from Welfare to Development
From the Sixth Plan (1980-85) onwards, a marked shift took place from the Welfare to a
Development approach. While the welfare approach treated women as beneficiaries or
recipients of benefits, the development approach recognized women as participants in
development and not as development targets. It was not enough to introduce a few women
specific schemes, but there was need to strive for an all-round development of women. Look at
the examples given below:
Example 1: A women in the village was given tailoring lessons under one of the government
schemes. But, she had no other means of economic needed to open a small tailoring business.
So her training was going waste. She was treated as a target of a welfare programme and
afterwards nobody asked her what she really wanted. This is an example of the welfare
approach with fixed targets.
Example 2: Before sanctioning women's development programme in a village, a meeting of the
women who were residents of the village was called. They were asked to name a few
programme which they thought would be helpful to them to better their economic status. They
were also asked to give suggestions as to how best these programmes could be implemented.
Since the women identified the setting up of a milk- cooperative and basket weaving as their
priorities, the development agency started a milk co-operative and provided the initial funding.
Training in basket weaving, especially keeping the market needs in view was also given. In this
case women were not treated simply as beneficiaries or receivers of a welfare programme, but
they were consulted about their choice of a programme and also involved in managing the
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programme. This is an example of the development approach.

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Towards the end of the Sixth Five Year Plan i.e., Plan i.e., in 1985, the Department of Women
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and Child Development was set up as part of the Ministry of Human Resource Development.
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This Department was created to function as a central agency to formulate and implement plans,
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policies and programmes for the development of women and children.

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The Seventh Five Year Plan

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The Seventh Five Year Plan (1985-1990) laid emphasis on generation (creation) of employment
opportunities for women. Two new schemes-Support to Training and Employment (STEP) and
Awareness Generation Programme for Rural and poor Women (AGP) were introduced. Three
important Reports, which were to serve as useful guidelines for future development
programmes of the government were also released during the seventh plan period. These
were:
• Sharma Shakti (Report of the National commission on Self-Employed Women and Women
in the Informal Sector).
• National Perspective Plan on Women in (1988-2000).
• SAARC Guide Book on Women in Development.
The Decade 1990-2000 was declared as the SAARC decade of the Girl Child and as part of this
event, programmes laying special thrust on (giving special importance to the ) the overall
development of girl children were launched.

Student Notes:
Landmarks (highlights) of the Eighth Plan

The Eighth plan period also saw a revolutionary amendment to the Constitution of India, which
provided for the reservation of one-third of the seats in Panchayat raj institutions and urban
local self-governing bodies such as municipalities and corporations to women. The 73rd and
74th constitutional amendments, which made this reservation possible, have gone down in the
in the history of women's empowerment in India as a 'democratic revolution'. Today, there are
more than 40.000 women in local governing bodies across the country, a phenomenon (an
occurrence), which would never have been possible, if a provision for reservation of 1/3 seats
for women had not been made.
The Ninth Five Year Plan- From Development to Empowerment-
It was during of the Ninth Five Year plan (1997-2002) that two significant development took
place in the framework (outline) for chalking out women's development programmes. Hitherto,
women were either being treated as target for development programmes or as participants.
But not much attention was paid for creating an environment that would enable women to
exercise their rights or enjoying their freedom. The Ninth Plan put forth the concept of
Empowerment, which would create an enabling environment where, women can experience
freedom not just in letter, but also in action. To achieve this goal, a National Policy for the
Empowerment of Women was accepted by the Government of India in 2001. The second
significant development, which took place during the Ninth Plan period was the adoption of a
Women’s Component Plan. This plan directed both the Central and State governments to
earmark (set apart) at least 30 per cent of the funds/benefits in all sectors for women's
development.
Women's Empowerment Year, 2001
The Government of India declared 2001 as the year of Women's Empowerment. Three primary
objectives were set to be achieved during this year. These were:
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• Creating and raising large scale awareness of women's issues with active participation and
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involvement of women and men.

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• Initiating and accelerating action for improvement access to and control of resources by
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women.
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Creating enabling environment for enhancing self-confidence and autonomy of women.

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A number of policies and programmes were initiated during this year to ensure equal
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participation of women and men in the social, economic and political life of the nation.
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Two prominent schemes that were launched for women during 2001 were: Swayamsiddha and
Swadhar.
Swayamsiddha is an integrated programme, which supports the empowerment of women
through a network of Self-Help Groups of women. It aimedto bring together all the women
related schemes of the central and state governments at the block level. The government also
launched the Swashakti Project to help the setting up of women's Self-Help Groups in villages
by giving financial incentives. In many villages, Self Help Groups have been doing great work is
not only encourages savings but also mobilizing women to fight against oppression in their
families and villages. Self Help Groups also offer essay credit to members to start or improve
small-scale business enterprises.
Whereas Swadhar was launched to prove rehabilitation to women in difficult circumstances
such as destitute windows, women prisoners released from jail and without family support,
women survivors of natural disaster and victims of sexual crimes. Shelter homes are planned to
be constructed in which rehabilitation programmes will be offered a holistic basis.

Student Notes:
The Tenth Plan (2002-07)

A Working Group on Empowerment of women was constituted to prepare a base paper, to
provide guidelines for future programmes for women's empowerment. This paper has made
the following recommendations:
• Women must be helped to equip themselves to face the challenges being thrown up by
globalization.
• Even through a number of development policies and programmes have been formulated to
empower women, not all women could make use of these programmes because of the
prevailing social discrimination against them. So investments on health, education and
capacity building must be stepped up in future.
• During the last 10 years there has been a decline in expenditure on health, education and
welfare. Since this affects women's development seriously, efforts must be made to
increase investments on those sectors, which actually help women's development.
The concept of Gender Budgeting was also incorporated during this Plan. Alongside NREGA
scheme specially targeting women was also started.
MGNREGA and Women

• MGNREGA provides a legal guarantee for one hundred days of employment in every
financial year to adult members of any rural household willing to do public work-
related unskilled manual work at the statutory minimum wage.
• Act covers entire country except for districts which have 100% urban population.
• More than 65 per cent of the works taken up under the programme are linked to
agriculture and allied activities.
• In the initial years, MNREGA was a true game-changer, rural wages started climbing
and reports also pointed towards a decline in migration to urban centres.
• More than half the jobs going to women workers and almost a third to members of
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scheduled castes and scheduled tribes.

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• 57% of all workers are women, more than the statutory requirement of 33% and the
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highest in three years.

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• It gave a large number of women their first opportunity to earn income in cash, reduced
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reliance on moneylenders
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• It has led to a substantial increase in women’s control over resources, including cash in
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hand and the likelihood of having a bank account, and improvement in women’s ability to
make independent decisions about their health.
The Eleventh and the Twelfth Plan

The idea of ‘Inclusive Growth’ related to inclusion of various marginalized groups, of which the
women category has also been specifically addressed too. The Current Plan has also to take up
various provisions which include the – All India Mahila Bank and the Nirbhaya Fund.
The 12th Five Year Plan Working Group (WG) on ‘Women’s Agency and Empowerment’ builds
on the view that development is a process of expanding freedoms equally for all individuals,
and considers gender equality as a core development goal in itself. It expands the definition of
women’s empowerment by looking at it as a process, which enables women to have a notion of
dignity and self-worth, bodily integrity, freedom from coercion and control over resources. It
affirms that empowerment is achieved when, along with the condition of women, their position
improves and their freedoms and choices are enlarged economically, socially and politically.
Empowerment must enable all women to negotiate these freedoms and increase their

Student Notes:
capabilities. The overall framework takes steps to advance substantive equality by addressing
the causes and consequences of social, economic and political exclusion on all women
especially the dalits, tribals,minorities, women with disability, migrant, displaced and trafficked
women, women in the unorganized workforce, women infected and affected by HIV/AIDS,
single and excluded women especially widows and women in conflict zones.
The Plan advocates a shift from mere ‘income’ poverty of women to the adoption of a ‘multi-
dimensional’ approach to poverty and wellbeing. The Multidimensional Poverty Index (MPI)
complements the income poverty measures by reflecting all the other deprivations with respect
to education, health and living standard that a poor person simultaneously faces.
Overall review of the Plans Since the planning period began in 1951, a number of programmes
have been designed and implemented for women's empowerment. But all these efforts have
not been able to remove gender discrimination inherent in such sectors as family life, health,
education, employment and political participation. Dedicating one year to women's
empowerment or one decade to girl children will not automatically bring about women's
emancipation. There must be a commitment to make all these programmes functional in a way
as to remove gaps between men and women on the one hand, and among women of different
groups on the other. The need of the hour is an Action Plan, which believes in action and not
just in taking about women.
5.1.4.3. Role of Voluntary Organizations
One of the weaknesses in the political strategies of women’s organisations in the 1950s and
1960s was their inability to mobilise ordinary women and failed to address the issues that
concerned them. The lack of efforts to reach to the masses and expand the base of women’s
movement limited its effectiveness and agenda for action. The position of peasant and working
class women deteriorated and only a small minority of women benefited.
Resurgence of Women’s Movements in the 70s: Issues and Actions
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The late 1970s and 1980s was marked by a resurgence of women’s struggle and emergence of
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new women’s groups and organisations. After their participation in nation’s independence
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struggle women again withdrew from public life and the debate on women’s issues also faded
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out from the public arena.

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However, many women activists, who were working with political parties, trade unions, peasant
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and workers movements, realised that they were hesitant to take up issues which concerned
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women exclusively. The issues women raised were the retrenchment of women from textile
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mills and other industries due to technological changes and replacing them by men who
received training on new machines, lack of maternity benefit to women workers, lack of
provision of children at work place, wage discrimination between men and women, inadequate
education and training facilities for women workers and discrimination at work places. This led
to the emergence of separate women’s organisations in various parts of the country, which
seriously attempted to organise poor women for a positive change.
Emergence of New Organizations and Approaches
The growing economic hardships of rural poor and urban women (fifty percent of the
households were below poverty level at the end of the Sixth Five Year Plan) and failure to take
up women’s issues by the general agrarian and industrial workers’ movements resulted in
women labourers organising separately. Let us now look at the new organisations and
approaches in more detail.

Student Notes:
i) Organisation
New organisations such as Self-Employment Women’s Association (Gujarat), Working
Women’s Forum (Tamil Nadu), Sramik Mahila Sangathna (Maharashtra) concerned
themselves with the plight of women workers in the unorganised sector. Organising women
labour and taking up the issues of their wages, working conditions, exploitation and health
hazards became an important task for these women’s organisations. Research on women in
the unorganised sector helped in developing new strategies for dealing with the problems
of poor rural and urban workers. Anti-price rise movement in 1973-74 was a united front of
women’s organisations belonging to several parties.
ii) Approaches
In the late nineteen seventies several women’s organisations emerged which were not
affiliated to political parties or to trade unions. They were called ‘autonomous women’s
organisations’. They rejected the ‘welfarist’ approach adopted by the previous women’s
organisations, many of which were set up during the pre-Independence period, and
adopted ‘protest polities’ for mobilising women on specific issues.
Deforestation and Ecological Movement
Economic hardships faced by women in the Himalayan region due to cutting down of
forests resulted in spontaneous mobilisation of women. They hugged the trees to prevent
the contractors from felling them. This is popularly known as Chipko movement. The
disappearance of forests means acute hardships to women who are primarily responsible
for the collection of fuel, fodder, fruits, herbs for medicine and other forest produce which
give them income and employment. This is why we find that women are even now in the
forefront of these ecological agitations.
Issue Based Movements in the 1970s and 1980s
The autonomous women’s organisations’ took up issues related to women’s oppression like
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dowry, violence within the family, alcoholism among men and wife-beating, discrimination
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at the work place etc. to mobilise women for collective action. For the first time some
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groups in Mumbai, Delhi, Hyderabad, Patna etc. raised issues such as sexual exploitation of
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poor scheduled castes and scheduled tribe women by upper caste landlords.
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Issues of rape, dowry murders, crime and violence against women were taken up. All India
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anti-dowry and anti-rape movements were launched by women’s organisations and Civil
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liberties and democratic rights organisations also joined them. They launched important
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issue based movements. Let us examine few of these movements.

iii) Anti-dowry Movements
Dowry murders have witnessed a sustained campaign by several women’s organisations
and civil rights groups. Journalists wrote extensively about the dowry problem. In the 1980s
several women’s and other progressive organisations formed a joint front in Delhi called
“Dahej Virodhi Chetna Manch”. Organisations in other major cities also campaigned
through protest, demonstrations, discussions, street theatre, posters etc. against the
ghastly murders of young brides for dowry. After much deliberation, the Dowry Prohibition
(Amendment) Act, 1984 was passed. The Act sets a limit to the amount given in dowry but
does not ban dowry. While cruelty by the husband and his relatives leading to suicide or
death has become an offence, punishable with imprisonment, still dowry deaths continue.
iv) Anti-sati Movement
In 1829 the practice of Sati was abolished through a legislation which marked the
culmination of a debate initiated by the British. The burning of a young widow Roop Kanwar

Student Notes:
in 1988 on the funeral pyre of her husband in Deorala, Rajasthan, sparked off strong
protests by women’s organisations. The delayed response of the government came in the
wake of mounting agitation in the shape of Commission of Sati (Prevention) Bill, which was
hurriedly passed in the Parliament. The Act assumes that it is a practice sanctioned by the
custom. It does not seek to punish those who profit by raising money by selling
photographs and raising donations in the name of so called ‘sati’. There is nothing on
preventive action. It is strange that the barbaric practice, against which social reformers
raised their voices, still persists in a country, which reveres mother goddesses.
v) Anti-rape Movement
An anti-rape movement was launched in the last decade demanding review of the Supreme
Court judgment in a rape case, which acquitted the culprit. Women activists forced the
government to review Rape Laws. Several women’s organisations and legal and social
activists held discussions with the Law Commission to amend the law and in 1983 Criminal
Law (Amendment) Act was passed.
In the 1990s women took up the issue of communalism and globalisation through a wider
networking both at the national and international level. At the beginning of the twenty-first
century the women’s organisations in India are linked together through networks on
different issues and campaigns. While former methods of protest and advocacy are still
used, new methods of resistance and mobilisation for change are also being evolved.
Nirbhaya case and Verma Committee

• Justice JS Verma Committee was formed in the aftermath of the Nirbhaya rape case.
• Some of the recommendations of the committee are:
o It sought comprehensive amendments to the criminal laws, seeking 20 years
imprisonment for gang rape and lfie term for rape and murder.
o To implement police reforms to provide them with better autonomy, and for better
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functioning of the police force

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o An officer who doesn’t report a FIR or delays it for a rape case should be punished
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o It had framed a protocol for medical examination of a rape victim

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o The government should tackle the issue of trafficking of children and it should also
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maintain data on the same

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o All marriages in India should be registered mandatorily in the presence of a magistrate

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who would ensure that no dowry has been taken for the marriage
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o It also argued to make marital rape a punishable offence

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Other Organizations in Voluntary Sector

NFIW: The National Federation of Indian Women in India (NFIW) is amongst the largest
women’s organization in India today. It was founded in 1954 as the women’s wing of the
Communist party of India (CPI), with Aruna Asaf Ali among its prominent leaders.
AIDWA: The All India Democratic Women’s Association (AIDWA) (1981) takes upon itself the
task organising the masses of women in town and villages of India and of building a powerful
broad based women’s movement for the uplift and betterment of the lot of the women as a
whole, to remove all discrimination between man and woman, to fight for democracy, equal
rights and emancipation of women, in a society free from exploitation. It is the women's wing
of the Communist Party of India (Marxist).
The women’s movement during 1970s and 1980s while being effective in bringing women’s
issues back into the arena of public debate was only a beginning of the long struggle ahead for
equality, justice and dignity to all women.

Student Notes:
SHGs and Women

• SHGs have been successful in fulfilling their aim of empowering women, and to help
eradicate poverty in rural areas.
• The impact of SHGs on women are as follows:
o It has led to their social and economical empowerment
o It has helped women gain more control over decision making in households
o It has been helpful in providing women with financial autonomy, in participation in
community driven program, self employment autonomy
o It has helped instill a saving spirit among the members
• Though SHGs have had an immense impact on the status of women, but they can be made
more effective in the following ways:
o Through proper capacity building, training and skill upgradation of women
o Motivating SHG women to participate in government sponsored community driven
programs
o Proper rating and categorization of SHGs
o Providing technical help to the SHGs so that they can also utilize the ongoing ICT
revolution and grow further
6. An Analysis of Women’s Current Situation

According to Census-2011, India has reached the population of 1210 million, as against 301
million in 1951, of which 58, 64, 69,174 (48.5 %) were females. The population of India
accounted for 17.5% of the total world population and occupied second place. The sex ratio
was 930 in 1971 and it has increased to 940 according to 2011 Census. The female literacy also
increased from 18.3% in 1961 to 74.0% in 2011 and a decrease in male-female literacy gap from
26.6% in 1981 to 16.7 per cent in 2011.
Women empowerment in India is heavily dependent on many different variables that include
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geographical location (rural/urban), educational status, social status (caste and class) and
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age. Policies on women empowerment exist at national, state and local levels in many
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sectors including health, education, economic opportunities, gender based violence and
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political participation. The scope and coverage of the schemes launched has been expanding
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that include initiatives for economic and social empowerment of women and for securing
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gender equality. The following schemes at present are aiming at women empowerment and
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gender equality in India:

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• Integrated Child Development Services (ICDS) (1975)

• Rajiv Gandhi Scheme for Empowerment of Adolescent Girls (RGSEAG) (2010)
• The Rajiv Gandhi National Crèche Scheme for Children of Working Mothers.
• Integrated Child Protection Scheme (ICPS) (2009-10)
• Support to Training and Employment Programme for Women (STEP)
• Dhanalakshmi (2008)
• Short Stay Homes
• Swadhar
• Ujjawala (2007)
• Scheme for Gender Budgeting (XI Plan)
• National Mission for Empowerment of Women
• Rashtriya Mahila Kosh (1993)
• Beti Bachao Beti Padao
• SABLA-Scheme for Adolescent Girls

Student Notes:
In spite of the above schemes and programmes, there are significant gaps between policy
achievements and actual practice at the community level. The Global Gender Gap Index (2017)
ranking of the country has fallen from 87 in 2016 to 108 in 2017 out of 144 countries according
to the recent report of the World Economic Forum. According to the 2017 report, India has
closed 67% of its gender gap, but this is less than many of its neighbours such as Bangladesh,
which ranked 47, and China, which was placed 100. Also, on an average 66% of women’s work
in India is unpaid, compared to 12% of men’s. India’s greatest challenges were in the economic
participation and opportunities for women. India did not perform too well in the health and
survival pillar either. India, however, fully closed the gap in primary and secondary education
enrolment for the second year in a row.
Global Gender Gap Index

The index measures gender gap as progress towards parity between men and women in four
indicators
• Educational attainment,
• Health and survival
• Economic opportunity and
• Political empowerment.
Countries are ranked based scores on scale ranging from 0 (highest imparity) to 1 (least
imparity). It is released every year by World Economic Forum since 2006.
Iceland is most gender-equal country with score of 0.878. It is followed by Norway (2nd rank),
Finland (3), Rwanda (4) Sweden (5), Nicaragua (6), Slovenia (7), Ireland (8), New Zealand (9) and
the Philippines (10).
Overall 68% of global gender gap has been closed, deterioration is seen compared to 2016
when gap closed was 68.3%. At current rate of progress, global gender gap will take 100 years
to bridge, compared to 83 last year. The case is worse in terms of workplace gender divide as it
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will take 217 years to close.

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EDUCATIONAL ATTAINMENTS
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No doubt, India has attained significant improvement in women’s literacy which was 8.9 %
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in 1951, improved to 65.5 % as on 2011. As a result the male-female gap in literacy has
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narrowed down from 26.6% in 1981 to 16.7% in 2011. However, the Human Development
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Report-2011 observed that the population with at least secondary education (% age 25
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and above) was only 26.6% for females as against 50.4% for males.(Human Development
Report-2011).
Net Attendance Ratio at primary and upper primary levels in rural areas and in urban areas
was found for females were completely low during 2007-08 (India Human Development
Report-2011). Net Attendance Ratio at higher secondary level for females was only 20.0% in
rural areas and 39.0% in urban areas. Inspite of the implementation of programmes like
“Sarva Siksha Abhiyan”, still 21.8% of the girl children (6-17 years age) were found out of
schools.
Although the gender differential in literacy has declined over time, the differential remains
high even in the youngest age group among those 15-19 years of age, the percentage
of females who are literate (74%) is 15%, which is less than the males (89%). The
National Family Health Survery-3 (2009) observed that there are great disparities in literacy
by wealth especially for Women.

Student Notes:
• ECONOMIC PARTICIPATION AND OPPORTUNITY

Women’s participation in labour force is seen as a signal of declining discrimination and
increasing empowerment of women. It is thought that feminization of the workforce is also
a sign of improvement of women’s opportunities and position in society. In India, the
statistics show that in both rural and urban areas, the Labour force Participation Rate had
declined in 2009-10 as compared to 1003-94 particularly for females.
Surveys reveal the fact that in India there are considerable gender disparities in Labour
force Participation Rates. The female labour force participation rate has declined from
49.0% to 37.8% and from 23.8% to 19.4% in rural and urban areas respectively between
1993-94 and 2009-10. The second conclusion is that in 2009-11, the female labour force
participation rate is only 19.4% as against 76.2% for males.
The low labour force participation rates are attributed to reasons that women’s work is
statistically less visible, non-monetized and relegated to subsistence production and
domestic side and estimation reveal that this proportion accounts for 60.0% of unpaid
work and 98% of domestic work. The India Human Development Report-2011 observed
that poor access to education was one of the reasons for higher labour force participation
rate in rural areas particularly for females. Further, there is huge gender disparity in both
rural and urban areas for females with reference to Worker Population Ratio.
Women’s workforce participation rate was almost half of that of men in rural areas and less
than a third in urban areas. These figures make it clear that the achievement of economic
development for the past 60 years did not had a telling effect on Workforce
Participation Rate for females in India as almost no change took place in this vital index of
women empowerment.
• EMPLOYMENT SCENARIO
Employment can also be an important source of empowerment for women, particularly for
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cash and in the formal sector. Employment empowers women by providing financial
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independence, alternative source of social identity and exposure to power structures.

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It is observed that women’s employment both in rural and urban areas is very low
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compared with men, particularly in urban areas. It is also found that 49.4% of the women
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are employed in rural areas (as against 88.7% of males) as the agricultural work is typically
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more compatible with women’s responsibilities as well as with low education. Employment
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by age also exhibits a serious gender gap. Employment is found at peak in all the age groups
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for men, whereas for women it is found at peak in the age group of 30-39 years (also for
males). In each and every age group, the percentage of women employment is low
compared to that of men in our country.
• ACCESS TO RESOURCES
Access to resources is important for economic freedom of women as freedom of movement
is linked with their economic independence and also infuses with power and expands
agency. The National Family Health Survey-3 has identified five important variables
namely: knowledge of loan programme, get loan, having bank account, higher educational
attainment and working outside as a measure of economic independence.
NFHS-3 has also captured “exposure to media” through four variables namely: reading
newspaper every day, listening radio every day, watching TV every day and knowing
about modern contraceptives, as the measurement indicators of women’s empowerment.
The media is important source of information and exposure to new ways of thinking and
doing things. Besides, radio listening, TV watching and reading newspapers or magazines

Student Notes:
are important leisure activities and represent an important indication of women’s

empowerment and have the potential for enabling environment by facilitating greater
control over their own time use.The survey showed that women’s access to resources is
dismally poor in our country.It is quite disappointing to note that the women who have a
bank saving account was found very low at 15.07% and in spite of knowing about loan
programmes, they have failed to secure a loan. 36.4% of the women had the freedom to
work in outside. These variables are closely associated with level of education and the
higher education, a potent source of empowerment was found at only 7.3% for women.
It is also evident that women have least exposure to mass media and almost all women
know (98%) about modern contraceptives. The percentage of women who read
newspapers and listen to raid every day was estimated at 12.5% and 17.1% only. However,
about the modern contraceptives had a great bearing on the estimation of index for access
to resources at 0.7259
• CONTROL OVER OWN EARNINGS
“Empowerment” also means “to invest with power”. In the context of women
empowerment, it refers to increased control over their own lives, bodies and environment.
Hence, an important indicator of “agency” is decision making power. For women
particularly the post-marriage phase of life decides the capability of women to overcome
barriers all translate into increased/decreased agency.
According to NFHS-3, married men are more likely to be involved in decisions about the use
of their own earnings than married women. The data also show that men have higher level
of decision making power compared to women to use their own earnings. Further, it is
evident that most than two third of women are unable to make decisions alone about the
use of their own earnings.
• PARTICIPATION IN HOUSEHOLD DECISIONS
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NFHS-3 has collected data on how women are participating in several other decisions and
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who usually makes them. Specifically, decisions related to own health care, large household
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purchases and visits to family or relations are considered for analysis.

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The data on specific decisions and how they are being taken by the women exhibit that
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73%, 91% and 89% of women even today are not able to take decisions alone with
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respect to their own health care, large household purchases and could not decide
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themselves even to visit their family or relatives respectively. Less than 50% of women
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have participated in decisions about visits to their family or relations jointly and only
35.1% of women have participated in decisions about their own health care jointly.
• SPOUSAL VIOLENCE
Domestic violence is one of the most common forms of gender-based violence experienced
by women across the world. Domestic violence results into violation of human rights and
economic costs. It leads to both short term and long term detrimental effects on the health
and welfare of women and their children. Living with constant threat of domestic violence
is, as considered by experts, acts as a source of disempowerment of women.
Domestic violence takes the forms like emotional, physical and sexual violence by their
husbands. It was observed that 27% of currently married women age 15-49 have
experienced the violence during a survey period of 12 months according to NFHS-3. 55% of
women who have experienced physical and sexual violence reported that they were injured
by their husbands. Cuts, eye injuries, sprains, dislocations, deep wounds, broken bones,
broken teeth and other serious injuries were the types of injuries reported.

Student Notes:
Domestic violence act

Domestic Violence Act:
• The act defines the term 'domestic'. The scope of term women has been widened and it
now includes 'live in partners', wives, sisters, widows, mothers, single women, divorced
wife.
• Definition of domestic violence has been widened- includes actual abuse or threat of abuse
that is physical, sexual, verbal, emotional and economic
• It provides the right to secure housing in the matrimonial or shared household.
• It provides for appointment of protection officers and NGOs to provide assistance to
the woman for medical examination, legal aid and safe Shelter.
• Non-compliance or discharge of duties by the protection officer is also sought to be made
an offence under the Act with similar punishment.
• A progressive piece of legislation in the direction of providing equal socioeconomic
rights and empowerment to the women in the country.
• Non bail-able offence if booked under this act
Criticism of the act:
• Gender biased- There are increasing number of false cases
• Verbal abuse and mental harassment are open to subjective interpretation- this is being
misused
• Lack of awareness, especially in rural areas
• Insensitivity of male police officers, judicial magistrates during hearing
• Absence of economic, psychological and support system for victim women
• Excludes marital rape
• Insufficient budgetary allocation to states: states could not assign 'Protection officers'
Way forward:
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• NGOs relating to women empowerment should be encouraged to protect women from

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domestic violence
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• Faster delivery of cases

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• PRIs should play a progressive and empathetic role towards such cases
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• More sensitive training to be given to officers concerned at every stage

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• More awareness drive especially in rural areas

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Long term solution: Women should be financially empowered through various govt
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schemes and programs
• AUTONOMY OF WOMEN
Autonomy of women in control over decision making freedom in sexual relations, freedom
of movement and women's attitude towards wife-beating are considered as indicators of
women empowerment by the experts. Autonomy of women in refusing sexual intercourse
with their husbands is a very forceful expression of women's control over their sexuality
and control over one’s sexual life is integral to women’s well-being and autonomy.
According to NFHS 3, the data analysed on female autonomy deals with two important
determinants of autonomy of women as indicators of empowerment. The data reveal that
more than 78% of women in India had hold on sexual intercourse with their husband. Wife
beating is found in India as one of many types of domestic violence on women. It is
observed that it is fairly accepted by the women themselves. Wife beating was justified by
the women to the extent of more than 64% of women were found must assertive in
rejecting the wife beating as the overall index worked out to 0.9599.

Student Notes:
Marital Rape Debate

Why marital rape must be a crime?
• Arguments against making it a crime:
o There is too little education and too many customs and beliefs in the Indian society
• Arguments in favour of making it a crime:
o Justice JS Verma committee, which recommended sweeping changes in the law relating
to offences against women, called for marital rape to be made an offence.
• The present Indian law exempts non-consensual sex between a husband and wife, not
being less than 15 years of age, from being charged with rape. However, by another
provision it makes rape of a wife who is living separately a criminal offence.
• The age limit of 15 years above which marital rape is not an offence is inherently
problematic, as normally sex with a girl up to the age of 18 is an offence regardless of
consent.
• The exemption given to marital rape, as Justice Verma noted, “stems from a long out-dated
notion of marriage which regarded wives as no more than the property of their husbands”.
Marital rape ought to be a crime and not a concept.
• There will be objections such as a perceived threat to the integrity of the marital union and
the possibility of misuse of the penal provisions. It is not really true that the private or
domestic domain has always been outside the purview of law. The law against domestic
violence already covers both physical and sexual abuse as grounds for the legal system to
intervene.
• It is difficult to argue that a complaint of marital rape will ruin a marriage, while a
complaint of domestic violence against a spouse will not. It has long been time to jettison
the notion of ‘implied consent’ in marriage. The law must uphold the bodily autonomy of
all women, irrespective of their marital status.
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Uniform Civil Code and Women

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Art 44: state shall endeavor to secure a UCC for its citizens, throughout the territory of India.
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Uniform Civil Code essentially means a common set of laws governing personal matters for all
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citizens of the country, irrespective of religion.

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Arguments in favour of UCC:

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• Article 25 of the Constitution empowers the State to frame any law to regulate or restrict
“secular activity which may be associated with religious practice”-therefore, it is argued,
Article 25 is no bar to having a Uniform Civil Code.
• DPSP as per Art 44 of the Constitution
• Inconsistency in personal laws has been challenged as it violates Art 14, which ensures the
right to equality. Litigants have contended that their right to equality is endangered by
personal laws that put them at a disadvantage.
Benefits of UCC:
• Divest religion from social relations and personal laws, ensuring equality, unity and
integrity of the nation and justice to both men and women.
• All the laws related to marriage, inheritance, family, land etc. would be equal for all
Indians.
• Help improve condition of women in India.
• Will help society move forward, and take India towards its goal of becoming a developed
nation where women are treated fairly and given equal rights.

Student Notes:
• Various personal laws have loop holes which are exploited by informal bodies like
Panchayats etc.
• Help reduce vote bank politics-- as politicians will have less to offer to communities in
exchange for their votes.
• help in integration of India
• Could induce custodian of faith to look inwards and seek to codify and reform age old
personal laws in conformity with current modernizing and integrative tendencies.
• UCC is present in countries like Germany, Italy, Egypt and Turkey.
Challenges in implementing:
• Law Ministry: 3 chief impediments: separatism, conservatism and misconceived notions
about personal laws.
• India has a strong and long history of personal laws and it cannot be given up easily.
• Broad consensus must be drawn among diff communities.
• Biggest obstacle in implementing the UCC, apart from obtaining a consensus, is the
drafting. How to blend all the set of personal laws which are present in society will be a
major challenge.
Way forward:
• Take an evaluation survey of all communities to suggest reforms within personal laws on
modern and liberal lines.
• Need for bringing awareness among citizens through discussion, deliberations, and
academic seminars among members of various communities.
• Need of piecemeal reform rather than a holistic reform starting with what minorities
are most comfortable of doing away with.
7. National Policy for Women

7.1. National Policy for Empowerment of Women, 2001
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The Government of India had adopted the National Policy for Empowerment of Women on 20th
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March, 2001 with the objective to bring about the advancement, development and
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empowerment of women and to eliminate all forms of discrimination against women.

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Given the long term nature of issues which impact on women, need was felt to strengthen the
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processes that promote all-round development of women by focussing on a coordinated

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approach for implementation of the schemes of the concerned Ministries/Departments and by

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creating an enabling environment conducive to social change. With this in view, the
Government has set up National Mission for Empowerment of Women in 2010 with the
objective of convergence of schemes/programmes of different Ministries/Departments of
Government of India as well as State Governments/UT Administrations.
7.2. Priority Areas for a New National Policy for Empowerment of

Women
• Health including food security and nutrition
• Education
• Economy
• Governance and Decision Making
• Violence Against Women
• Enabling Environment
• Environment and Climate Change

Student Notes:
Policy also describes emerging issues such as making cyber spaces safe place for women,
redistribution of gender roles, for reducing unpaid care work, review of personal and
customary laws in accordance with the Constitutional provisions, Review of criminalization of
marital rape within the framework women’s human rights etc. relevant in the developmental
paradigms.
8. Conclusion
Looking back at the last four decades we can say with a fair amount of certainty that women’s
position in Indian society has changed. This change has been to women’s advantage. There has
no doubt been a wider recognition of women’s rights, several steps taken towards equality
among genders, a greater sensitivity towards gender discrimination, etc. The women’s
movement comprising of autonomous women’s organisations, other women’s groups, women’s
studies centres, etc., has played no small role in the bringing about of this change. We can,
therefore, say without hesitation that, over the last 40 years, the women’s movement has
affected the socio-political environment in India. However, this change has been at a gradual
pace and has even affected certain sections more than others leaving yet much to be desired.
Despite the current fragmentation, women’s groups have come together with one concerted
voice on certain issues such as violence, health, employment conditions including wages, legal
rights and law reform. The issues today are sexual harassment at the work place, the violence of
development, caste and communal violence, lobbying for increased political participation of
women in the highest levels of decision-making, etc.
The list will go on as long as there is a women’s movement. Many scholars have illustrated how
the women’s movement has not been static but has been compelled to respond to changing
political, social, economic and other national realities and not exclusively influenced by women-
specific issues and problems.
9. Appendix
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9.1. Legislative Acts

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Parliament from time to time has passed several legislations to empower women & to provide
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them a legal basis in their fight for equality & justice. Some of them are:
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1) Sati (Prevention) Act 1987 – The practice of Sati which was first abolished in 1829, was
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revised and made illegal in 1887. It provided for a more effective prevention of the
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commission of sati and its glorification and for matters connected therewith.
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2) Amendment to criminal Act 1983- This Act talks about domestic violence as an offence,
rape is also made a punishable offence.
3) Special Marriage Act 1954- It has been amended to fix the minimum age of marriage at 21
yrs for males & 18 yrs for females.
4) Hindu Succession Act 1956- Equal share to daughter from property of father, while a widow
has the right to inherit husband’s property. An amendment in this Act in 2005 enabled
daughters to have equal share in ancestral properties.
5) Immoral Traffic Prevention Act (ITPA), 1986- Suppression of Immoral Trafficking in women
and girls Act (SITA) 1956 was amended in 1986 & renamed ITPA. SITA was enacted to
prohibit or abolish traffic in women and girls for purposes of prostitution. It was amended
to cover both the sexes & provided enhanced penalties for offenses involving minors.
However the system has failed to crack the mafia working both at interstate and
international levels.
6) Dowry Prohibition Act 1961- Now court is empowered to act in his own knowledge or on a
complaint by any recognized welfare organization on dowry murder. Indian Evidence Act is

Student Notes:
also amended to shift the burden of proof to husband & his family where bride dies within
7 yrs of marriage.
7) Maternity benefit Act 1961- An Act to regulate the employment of women for certain
period before and after childbirth and to provide for maternity benefits like paid leaves for
6 months.
8) Medical Termination of Pregnancy Act 1971- Legalize abortion in case if fetus is suffering
from physical or mental abnormality, in case of rape & unwanted pregnancy within 12
weeks of gestation period & after 12th week, before 20th week if the pregnancy is harmful
for the mother or the child born would be severely deformed.
9) Indecent Representation of Women (Prohibition) Act, 1986- This Act prohibits indecent
representation of women through advertisements or in publications, writings, paintings,
and figures or in any other manner and for matters connected therewith.
10) Domestic Violence Act 2005- It seeks to determine domestic violence in all forms against
women & make it a punishable offence.
11) Criminal Law (Amendment) Act 2013 – In the backdrop of Dec 16 gang rape, this Act was
passed amending the CrPC. The new law has provisions for increased sentence for rape
convicts, including life-term and death sentence, besides providing for stringent
punishment for offences such as acid attacks, stalking and voyeurism. Through the revised
Bill, the government has amended various sections of the Indian Penal Code, the Code of
Criminal Procedure, the Indian Evidence Act and the Protection of Children from Sexual
Offences Act.
9.2. Constitutional Provisions for Women in Our Constitution

1) Article 14 - Men and women to have equal rights and opportunities in the political,
economic and social spheres.
2) Article 15(1) - Prohibits discrimination against any citizen on the grounds of religion, race,
caste, sex etc.
3) Article 15(3)- Special provision enabling the State to make affirmative discriminations in
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favor of women.
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4) Article 16- Equality of opportunities in matter of public appointments for all citizens.
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5) Article 23- Bans trafficking in human and forced labor

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6) Article 39(a)- The State shall direct its policy towards securing all citizens men and
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women, equally, the right to means of livelihood.

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7) Article 39(d)- Equal pay for equal work for both men and women.
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8) Article 42- The State to make provision for ensuring just and humane conditions of work
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and maternity relief.

9) Article 51 (A)(e)- To renounce the practices derogatory to the dignity of women
10) Article 300 (A)- Right of property to women
11) 73rd & 74th Amendment Act 1992- Reservation of 1/3rd of seats in local bodies of
panchayats and municipalities for women.
(The day on which 73rd amendment became operational i.e April 24th is also declared as
Women’s Empowerment Day).
9.3. Government Response

1) Committees on the status of women in India (CSWI) – This was set up in a response to
United Nation’s general assembly Declaration of Elimination of Discrimination Against
Women 1967. It submitted its report in 1974, which stressed the fact that poor are not a
homogenous group & highlighted the unequal burden of poverty on women.
2) Draft National Plan of Action for Women- GoI has drawn up a national plan based on CSWI
report. The plan accords priority to the need of concrete action in the areas of education,

Student Notes:
health, welfare and employment with special reference to weaker section of society
especially women.
3) It was only in 1980s that women were recognized as a separate group and a separate
chapter viz “Women and Development” was included in the 6th Plan Document (1980-
1985) for the first time. Then subsequently it was included in the 5 year plans to ensure
that fruits of development & benefits of Govt. programs do reach women.
4) National Commission for women 1991 - The National Commission for Women was set up
as statutory body in January 1992 under the National Commission for Women Act, 1990 to:
• Protect and promote the interest and safeguard the right of women.
• Study all matters related to constitutional and legal safeguards provided for women, to
review existing legislation & suggest amendments if necessary.
• Look into the complaints and take notice of the cases involving deprivation of women &
provide support legal or otherwise to helpless and needy women.
• It recommended the Govt. to play an active role by incorporating a component of
organizing in all govt. schemes, project etc for the poor, to promote organization of
women at a broader level.
National Commission for Women: A toothless tiger?

• NCW is the apex national level organization of India with the mandate of protecting and
promoting the interests of women.
• The major functions of NCW include:
o Investigating and examining all the matters relating to the safeguards which women
are provided under the Constitution
o It presents reports to the central government on the work done by the commission
o It also makes recommendations for effective implementation of safeguards to the
central as well as state governments
o It reviews the legislations related to women, and points out the shortcomings
o It looks into complaints, and can take suo moto action in such cases
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o It works towards women rights and women empowerment

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But the NCW has not been able to play a very effective role. This can be clearly seen by the
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slow improvement in the status of women in India, and also the increasing cases of
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violence against women.

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• Some of the reasons for this are:

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o The financial assistance provided to the commission is less to cater to its needs, and to
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fulfill its mandate

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o The members are appointed by the government, and this is a major shortcoming, as
the commission cannot select its own members
o The recommendations of the commission are not mandatory; therefore the NCW lacks
any concrete legislative power. Recommendations of the commission are not binding
on the government
• All these reasons have led the commission to be more of a toothless tiger.
5) National Institute of Public Cooperation and child Development- NIPCCD, New Delhi is an
autonomous organization under the aegis of Department of women and child
development. Its objective is to:
• Develop and promote voluntary action in social development through training &
capacity building of Govt. and Non Govt. functionaries
• Take a comprehensive view of women and child development & develop and promote
programs in pursuance of national policy of children.
• Develop measures for coordination of governmental and voluntary action in social
development.

Student Notes:
9.4. Women Empowerment Programs/Schemes by GoI

For empowering the women, various program have been initiated by GoI as below:
1) Gender Budgeting- This concept was first introduced in Australia in mid 1980s & India
incorporated this in its budget since 2005-06.
It is not an accounting exercise but an ongoing process of keeping a gender perspective in
policy/ program formulation, its implementation and review. GB involves dissection of the
Government budgets to establish its gender differential impacts and to ensure that gender
commitments are translated in to budgetary commitments.
• Nirbhaya fund- In a tribute to the recent Delhi gang-rape victim of Dec 2012,
government in the union budget 2013-14,announced setting up of a 'Nirbhaya Fund' of
Rs 1,000 crore for safety and empowerment of women.
• An all-women bank was also proposed to be set up by October, 2013 with an initial
capital of Rs 1,000 crore for the purpose to facilitate women empowerment
2) Working Women Hostel- The objective of the scheme is to promote availability of safe and
conveniently located accommodation for working women, with day care facility for their
children, in urban, semi urban, or even rural areas where employment opportunity for
women exist.
3) Support to training cum employment for women (STEP)- Ministry of Women and child
development launched this program in the year 1986, for training and employment for
women below poverty line in traditional sectors like agriculture, small animal husbandry,
dairying, fisheries etc. where women are employed on a large scale. Its basic aim is to
upgrade skills of women for self and wage employment.
4) Swayamsidha- It is an integrated program, seeks to empower women through awareness
generation, achievement of economic independence through micro-level income-
generating activities and by establishing convergence of various services such as literacy,
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health, rural development etc. It also aims at organizing women into Self-Help Groups,
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developing access to micro credit.

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5) Swa Shakti – This project aims at establishment of more than 16000 self reliant women
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SHGs(Self Help Groups) having 15-20 members each & thereby enhance women’s access to
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and control over resources for betterment of their lives. Also to sensitise and strengthen
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the institutional capacity of support agencies to pro actively address women’s need.
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6) Rashtriya Mahila Kosh – It is a national level mechanism to meet the micro credit needs of
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the poor and asset-less women in the Informal Sector. From inception in 1993 till February
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2001, total credit worth Rs. 100 crore was sanctioned to benefit more than 400,000 women
through 827 NGOs spread over the country. RMK has a very good recovery rate of 90 to 95
per cent.
7) Swadhar- This scheme aims to provide basic necessities to marginalised women and girls
who are living in difficult circumstances without any economic or social support. Under this
scheme women are provided with emotional support and counselling. The target group is
mainly women who are victim of violence or survivors of natural disaster, trafficked women,
and women without no families.

Student Notes:

1. Any discourse on environmental movements in India is incomplete without analysing
the role of women in it. Comment.
Approach:
• Elaborate on the basics of environmental movements in India. Then argue how,
access to natural resources is central to Women’s lives in India, which is the basis of
environmental movements in India.
• Further, an analysis could be given of CHIPKO movement, which is indeed the
starting of environmental movements in post-independent India. Conclude w.r.t.
the birth of ecofeminism in India.
Answer: [Student Note: Answer has been kept long to discuss the issue in detail.]
• Environmental movement is a “diverse scientific, social and political movement for
addressing environmental issues.”
• Environmental movements in developing countries are struggles of the
dispossessed, the marginalized, the victims of discrimination, among whom can
be counted women, tribal and the non-commercial farmers.
• Reasons for the movement are control over natural resources; resistance offered
by ecosystem people to the resource capture by omnivorous; environmental
degradation; socio-economic reasons (tribal issues).
• Hence, any discourse on environmental movements in developing countries cannot
be complete without understanding how they are related to livelihood issues & its
gendered context. This is in contrast to the discussions on environment
conservation in developed countries which often revolves around the issues of
quality of life, animal rights etc.
• Women have direct contact with natural resources like fuel, food and fodder,
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forest, water and land especially in rural areas where 70% of Indian population
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reside and directly dependent upon natural resources. Women are also responsible
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for using these resources to satisfy the basic needs of their families.
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Women have given different perspective to the environmental issues due to their
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different experience base. They view the issue in a broad and holistic manner
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aiming at long term benefits of subsistence and survival as against short term
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commercial gains.
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• Therefore, conservation of natural resources and promotion of environment

cannot be done without involving the women in planning and training for
promoting the values for conservation and promotion of environment.
• The emergence of the Indian environmental movement can perhaps be dated to
1973, when the famous Chipko movement began in the central Himalayas. The
Chipko movement emerged as a protest against granting of permission for access to
the forests to commercial timber operators, while the local people were refused
access to the forests for making agricultural implements.
• The movement which spread rapidly to other villages saw the active involvement of
women. They worked jointly with the men of their community, and in some cases
even against them, when they differed with them over the use of forest resources.
Women were more concerned with the long-term gain of saving the forests and
environment, and hence, subsistence and survival issues, rather than short-term
gain through commercial projects like monoculture forests, potato-seed farms, etc.
• The scope of the movement broadened and involved issues of male alcoholism,
domestic violence, women’s representation in village councils, as well as against

Student Notes:
mining in the hills. It helped women recognize the inter-connections between

nature and human sustenance. The movement was carried forward largely by
women using Gandhian techniques of protest.
• It was just the beginning, which was followed by several other movements such as
Green Belt movement in 1977 (planting trees), Appiko movement (hugging the
trees) , Narmada Bachao Aandolan etc. which saw significant participation of
women at all levels.
• We need to analyze women’ s interaction with nature and their responses to
environmental degradation with respect to the material reality of gender, caste,
class and race based division of labor, property and power. It is the poor, lower
class and lower caste, and within them, the peasant and tribal women, who are
worst, affected and hence, they are the most active in the protests. Women are
victims of environmental degradation as well as active agents in the regeneration
and protection of the environment. The adverse class-gender effects of these
processes are reflected in the erosion of indigenous knowledge systems and
livelihood strategies on which poor, rural women depend.
• The history of environmental movements in India shows that women have bear the
major brunt of environmental degradation & hence have also been the first ones to
spearhead conservation movements from Chipko to the Narmada Bachao Andolan.
• Moreover the strong connection between women and the issues of the
environment led to the emergence of the concept of ecofeminism. The term which
grew out of the various social movements that were occurring all over the world
involves the concept of feminism, peace and the ecology and signifies the role of
women in environmental conservation.
2. Feminization of agriculture has led to women empowerment in rural India. Critically

analyse.
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Approach:
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Define first what do we mean by two terms-feminization of labour & feminization

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of poverty & relate it to Indian agriculture. Next would be to talk about how both
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of them are related to the invisible hand of patriarchy & finally to point out how
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feminization or defeminisation of labour force is determined by the intertwining of

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market forces with patriarchy.

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Answer:
The gendered division of labour under the pervasive influence of patriarchy has
traditionally ensured that women are restricted to household work which is easily
passed off as unpaid domestic labour. However the invisible hand of patriarchy is not
only at work within the household but also in cases where women manage to gain an
entry into the labour market.
The participation of women in agriculture & thus outside the traditional domain of
domestic work has been in the backdrop of agrarian distress in agriculture which
forced the male members of families to move out of rural-agriculture - low wages
sector into the relatively better paying jobs in the informal sector in urban economies.
It is believed that this phenomenon has been induced by casualization of work,
unprofitable crop production and distress migration. Migration has been noticed to
other rural areas, to urban slums and to highly labour-exploitative sectors of the
economy such as construction.

Student Notes:
This trend in the agriculture sector was most visible during 1999-2005 period in India
marked by declining agriculture growth rates which saw a distress migration of male
members to relatively better paying jobs either in the urban informal economy or the
agriculturally prosperous states and “distress employment” of 17 million females in this
sector.
This phenomenon of increased participation of women workforce in the agriculture
sector was termed as feminization of agriculture which itself was a manifestation of
feminization of poverty- the fact that in a market economy functioning under a
patriarchal mind set females often find themselves cornered into relatively lesser
paying jobs with minimal rights, no job security, sexual harassment at workplace & a
gender insensitive policy framework which has failed to take up the issue of capacity
building of female farmers on a priority basis.
For example: Women employed as wage labour receive lower wage than men do. Even
when women are categorised as cultivators, their ownership and control over resources
such as land, livestock, farm machinery, and transport equipment are limited. In
addition, their access to credit, technology and market information is highly
restricted. Their opportunities for education, skill formation and of shifting to better
paid work are also narrow. Disadvantages experienced by women become apparent
once women’s work comes out into the open, as in the case of female wage labour and
women-headed households. Female wage labourers are the lowest paid in the
economy. The women-headed households in rural areas are seen in the lowest income
class. Hence, the major implication of feminisation of agriculture is the increasing
burden of work on them and lower compensation.
Therefore, it is evident from above illustration that increase in female participation in
agriculture was thus driven by the need to supplement declining family income (or
rather male income) termed as “distress employment” & not by any desire to give them
an equal status either in the formal economy or within the household with the result
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that females worked on wages that their male counterparts found to be below
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subsistence level in the first place.

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Feminization being an unintended consequence of the low agricultural growth did not
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lead to the women empowerment in true sense. Moreover, the limited increase in
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bargaining power of rural women within family fuelled by participation in formal

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economy itself was short lived. This is exemplified by the fact that women labour force
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participation in rural areas declined again in 2005-2009 period which was marked by
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relatively better agricultural growth rates & increasing wages as a result of positive
influence of MGNREGA &Rashtriya Krishi Vikas Yojana (RKVY), a phenomenon which
has been termed as defeminisation of agriculture leading to withdrawal of 19 million
females from this sector during this period
Thus while increasing labour force participation of women definitely carries the
potential of uplifting their position within the family & society, no sustainable gains
can be made unless the gendered division of labour is frontally attacked by gender
sensitive policies of the state which actively support women employment. Moreover,
the nexus between market forces & patriarchy will have to be broken in the first place
for which the state & civil society will have to play a vibrant role.

Student Notes:
3. Why is it that the societal trends that maintain a violent order against women have
remained intact, when there has been a legal expansion of women’s rights in India?
Approach:
• Argue on the lines that -Rights may be self-evident or constitutionally secured;
however they do not automatically implement themselves.
• Comment on why, despite far reaching legislations, rape and sexual assault are still
common and how caste based institutions (Khap Panchayats, Kangaroo Courts)
have asserted their rights over that of the Women. – i.e. Societally sanctioned rape
and assault cases in India
Answer:
The gravest issue which has confronted the Indian society over the years is the violent
order against women. "Violence against women is a manifestation of historically
unequal power relations between men and women" and that "violence against
women is one of the crucial social mechanisms by which women are forced into a
subordinate position compared with men". These include violence carried out by
‘individuals’ as well as ‘states.’
It has got manifested in the form of rape; domestic violence; sexual harassment;
coercive use of contraceptives; female infanticide; prenatal sex selection; as well as
harmful customary or traditional practices such as honor killings, dowry
violence, female genital mutilation, marriage by abduction and forced marriage.
Some forms of violence are perpetrated or condoned by the state such as war
rape; sexual violence and sexual slavery during conflict; forced sterilization; forced
abortion; violence by the police and authoritative personnel; stoning and flogging.
Many forms of violence such as trafficking in women and forced prostitution are often
perpetrated by organized criminal networks.
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In Indian context, past year has seen a much delayed yet needed discussion on women
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security & related issues in the civil society, media & legal domain which fuelled the
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establishment of Justice Verma committee, the passage of sexual harassment at

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workplace bill and a proactive supreme court taking up gender related issues in a big
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way. Yet, the paradoxical finding has been a study in 2011 conducted by the
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International Men and Gender Equality Survey (IMAGES) on gender attitudes which
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showed that 68 per cent of the Indian men surveyed agreed that women should
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tolerate violence to keep their families together, while 65 per cent believed that
sometimes a woman deserves to be beaten. The most interesting finding from the
study was this one — 92 per cent of those surveyed knew of the laws pertaining to
violence against women. The figure quoted above tells us that legislation alone is not
going to stop violence against women from occurring.
This apparent paradox of expanding legal rights on one hand& a backlash from a
society can be seen either in the form of either poorly formulated or poorly
implemented laws dealing with gender related issues in India, whether it is the case of
laws relating to foetal sex determination or the poor conviction rate in rape cases or the
persistence and thriving of Khap Panchayats in rural areas despite the Supreme Court
describing them as unconstitutional and illegal; lack of adequate institutional
mechanism to ensure its implementation, lack of awareness amongst the women
about their rights.
However this ‘apparent paradox’ has a simple logical explanation- the deeply
patriarchal nature of society which legitimises the use of violence to discipline women.

Student Notes:
The hegemony of this parochial mind-set and lack of gender sensitivity, which can be
seen in the fact that some degree of violence against women is considered as both
necessary and desirable not only by males but also by females in Indian society. The
gross under reportage of violence related cases against women in India is a result of
this basic fact.
Against this backdrop of a patriarchal society, the state passes some progressive laws
but lacks the capacity to effectively implement them because the vital political will is
missing in the first place. Secondly “The Law decides the direction in which society
might go, it is the culture and family which decides the direction in which the society
actually goes”. Hence it’s the failure on the part of institutions such as education
system, family values and norms etc. to deal with the menace of the violence against
women.
The only way out of this trap is to bring the society out of the cultural inertia which has
adversely affected the supposedly progressive laws to fight the violent order at all its
stages: formulation, implementation, evaluation.
Perhaps a good point to start is by providing reservation to women in the legislative
bodies so that instead of viewing women in development, we ensure women and
development.
4. What are the factors responsible for high infant mortality rate in India? Discuss its
implications for Indian women. Suggest steps that have been taken by the
government to address this problem.
Approach:
Answer can be divided in three parts:
•
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First discuss the socio-economic and cultural factors that lead to high infant
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mortality in India along

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•
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In few concrete points discuss the implications of the phenomena for women.
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• Enumerate important steps taken by the government for reducing infant mortality.
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Answer:
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Infant Mortality Rate (IMR) is the number of infants dying before reaching one year of
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age, per 1,000 live births in a given year. According to the 2011 Census report IMR in
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India stands at 40. India is unlikely to achieve the targets under the Millennium
Developmental Goals. Many research studies conducted so far have indicated that,
besides medico-clinical causes, the SOCIO-ECONOMIC factors are important
determinants in high infant mortality.
• Economic Factors- Household income is measure determinant in the facilities that
can be availed during maternity and after birth. Access to healthcare, prenatal care,
nutrition, immunization and information about the care to be taken during
pregnancy directly depends on the economic profile of the family. Rampant poverty
and unemployment leads to absence of toilet facilities, sanitation and hygiene,
particularly menstrual hygiene. It directly contributes in higher rates
• Social and cultural factors- Girls are married young & pressurized after marriage to
conceive early. Resorting to foeticide to get rid of the girl child still is a common
practice. Pregnant women are not fed adequately due to superstitious belief and a
fear of growth of the foetus, lending the delivery difficult. Immunization of
pregnant women is avoided as also the vaccination of the child. Restrictions on girls

Student Notes:
in terms of education social roles reduce awareness about standard health

practices leading to higher mortality.
Implications for Women:
• Health: Women suffer from mental and physical agony because of high infant
mortality. Trauma of infant death affects the mental health of women. A low or sad
mood, loss of interest in fun activities, changes in appetite, sleep, and energy,
feelings of worthlessness, shame, or guilt and thoughts that life is not worth living
are common implications because of infant mortality.
• Social: Social stigma attached to infant deaths leads to harassment, domestic
violence and falling prey to superstitions.
• Economic: Morbidity and mental illness induced by infant mortality reduces
capacity to participate in economic activity thereby increasing economic hardships
for women.
Under the National Rural Health Mission (NRHM) the following programmes/schemes
and awareness campaign is launched by the Government to reduce infant mortality
rate:
• Janani Shishu Suraksha Karyakaram (JSSK) has been launched on which entitles all
pregnant women delivering in public health institutions to absolutely free and no
expense delivery including Caesarean section. The initiative stipulates free drugs,
diagnostics, blood and diet, besides free transport from home to institution,
between facilities in case of a referral and drop back home. Similar entitlements
have been put in place for all sick infants accessing public health institutions for
treatment.
• Navjaat Shishu Suraksha Karyakram (NSSK), a programme for training health care
providers on essential newborn care and resuscitation.
• Village Health and Nutrition Days in rural areas as an outreach activity, for provision
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of maternal and child health services.

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Rashtriya Bal Swasthya Karyakram (RBSK), an introduction of child health screening

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for 4Ds i.e. defects at birth, deficiencies, diseases, development delays and their
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management among the children.

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• Improving Infant and young child feeding practices including breastfeeding

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promotion.
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5. Investment in the future of girl child is not only a question of economic priority but
also one of social attitude. Comment. How can the government schemes help change
entrenched social attitudes vis a vis the girl child?
Approach:
• Explain both the economic and social imperative in investment for a girl child.
• Focus on the need for attitude change.
• Discuss the role of government schemes in bringing attitude change.
• Futuristic and positive conclusion.
Answer:
Investment in the future of a girl child is inextricably linked to the goal of gender
equality and women empowerment. This includes investing in their education, health,
skill development, etc. McKinsey’s 2015 report, ‘The Power of Parity: Advancing
women’s equality in India’, estimates that India can add $700 billion of additional GDP

Student Notes:
in 2025 by matching the momentum towards gender parity to the fastest country in the
region. A majority of this would come from improving labour force participation by 10
percentage points. This will require bridging both social and economic gaps.
Some of the ways in which investment in the future of girl child can help improve social
attitude are:-
• Greater participation of men in women empowerment programmes like He4She
campaign
• Innovative methods such as nukkad nataks
• Naming and shaming of the perpetrators of women related crimes.
• Making women more aware of their rights and involving them in formulating
policies.
Role of government
Government welfare schemes bring out change in attitude of society and address the
gender discrimination by creating a positive environment in favor of the girl child. The
roles played by such schemes are as follows
• Elimination of all forms of violence against women and the girl child.
• Strengthening legal systems aimed at elimination of all forms of gender
discrimination - enjoyment of all human rights and fundamental freedom by
women on equal basis with men in all political, economic, social, cultural and civil
spheres
• Creating an environment through positive economic and social policies for full
development of girl child in order to enable them to realize their full potential.
• Equality in decision making in social political and economic spheres.
• Equal access to health care, quality education at all levels, career and vocational
guidance, employment, equal remuneration, occupational health and safety, social
security and public life etc.
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Examples
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• Beti Bachao, Beti Padhao (BBBP) Scheme was launched to empower the girl child
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and enable her education and bring positive change in the societal attitude towards
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the birth of the girl child.

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•
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The Sukanya Samriddhi Scheme help in encouraging people to save for a girl child
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and discourage child marriages

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• The Ladli Scheme Implemented by Delhi & Haryana Government aims at curbing
female foeticide and improving the social state of the girl child by supporting
education and protecting them from discrimination.
There is a necessity for people’s involvement for success of any programme. For
women, the ability to exercise choice will be limited unless there is a change in social
attitude.
6. Even though the provision of reservation for women has enhanced their presence and
visibility, this has not necessarily translated into their empowerment. Do you agree?
On what grounds is the reservation for women in Parliament opposed?
Approach:
• The first part of the question demands to analyse if their has been any progress in
providing real empowerment to women by providing political rights to them.

Student Notes:
• The second part of the question demands to list down the various causes or views
that are opposing the bill to guarantee reservation for women in parliament.
Answer:
Women in India represents nearly 50% of the total population yet has mere 12%
representation in parliament . Though India embarked on a journey of universal adult
franchise even after 5 decades the statistics show that the political equality has not
transformed into social and economic equality for women in India.
• Visibility is taken for tokenism, an oft quoted example is that women sarpanches
survive because of the sarpanch pati or beta .
• HDI report ranks india 132 out of 148 countries on gender inequality index.
• Female labor participation is mere 29% as compared to 80% of men.
• Women ownership is still 4% whereas 73% of food production is done by rural
women.
The above statistics are disheartening but it cannot be ruled out completely that
reservation do not have a positive impact on status of women in the society.
In favour:
• In states like M.P , kerala , chattisgarh, rajasthan where the reservation has been
extended to women in local municipal corporations and PRIs , positive impact on
governance is visible where they are headed by women.
• They have contributed immensely in overcoming social taboos and constraints like
removal of ghunghat , sitting at same height as men on chairs etc.
• Though it begins at token equality that caused acute discomfort and even
confrontation, women especially dalit has been able to push boundaries and create
space in the decision making sphere across all sectors.
All this may lead to a gradual change in cultural values of community which will slowly
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lead to not only equality in socio-economic area but also commensurate political
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equality with decision making capability.

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Opposition to the 108th constitutional bill providing reservation to women are on

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following grounds:
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• India being a Patriarchial society, thereby denying women any role in political
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participation
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• Traditional orthodox groups like khap panchayat etc in opposition and political
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pressure over parties as loss of vote bank, electoral calculations.

• Fear of usurpation of power by few in the form of entry of related women of
politician in parliament, thus capturing the whole process under the aegis of
nepotism and favoritism.
• Disincentive for MP and MLA as seats will be on rotation basis so they might not
focus on their constituencies.
• Reservation do not lead to real empowerment as seats are contested by women
from rich families, business and political families.
• Denies equality of opportunity to males to contest from those seats.
Though the bill is opposed, still it should be pursued so as to enable inclusive growth to
all in the society and also to guarantee democratic rights to women at par with men.

Student Notes:
7. Over the past few years, there have been innumerable cases of domestic workers,
nearly all of them female, being abused and exploited by their employers. What are
the factors that make domestic workers vulnerable to abuse and exploitation?
Enumerate the provisions in Domestic Workers Welfare and Social Security Act 2010
to prevent their exploitation.
Approach:
• Briefly discuss the case of exploitation of domestic workers.
• Enumerate the factors that make them vulnerable.
• Enumerate the provisions in Domestic Workers Welfare and Social Security Act
2010.
Answer:
Every year thousands of complaints of exploitation and abuse of domestic workers are
received with most of them about unpaid wages, food and sleep deprivation and long
work hours with verbal, physical and sexual abuse. The reported cases are miniscule per
cent of actual abuse of a workforce consisting of 80% of women.
Several factors have led to such state:
• Absence of legal protection through a specific law.
• Paid domestic work continues to be excluded from the central list of scheduled
employments under the Minimum Wages Act of 1948. It is also not covered under
Payment of Wages Act (1936), Workmen’s Compensation Act (1923), Contract
Labor Act (1970) or the Maternity Benefit Act (1961).
• Only seven states have the provision of minimum wages for them. Hence, wage
fixation and payment is arbitrary. Even, where it has been fixed, the wage rate is
very low.
• Sector is dominated by women. In India, 73% of working women are illiterate or
educated upto primary level. Thus, they are unaware of their rights and fail to unite
themselves.
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• Majority of domestic workers are distress migrants, SCs/STs and EWS, seeking
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employment desperately. They accept work under any conditions and become
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vulnerable to exploitation as well as caste and class discrimination.

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• Mobilizing domestic workers to assert their rights is difficult. Also, workplace is an

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extremely amorphous term in this particular context, as it typically connotes more

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than one household. The isolated and unprotected nature of the activity makes
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workers vulnerable.
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To improve the situation of domestic workers, NCW drafted ‘Domestic Workers Welfare
and Social Security Act, 2010’ Bill. Some important provisions are as follows:
• It brings domestic workers under the ambit of organized sector.
• Three tier architecture of Central Advisory Committee to implement and review the
Act, State Advisory Board for implementation in states and District Boards at the
district level.
• It creates a Domestic Workers Welfare Fund.
• Defines rights of full-time domestic workers and process of their registration and
identification.
• It also has provisions for registering part-time helps and migrant domestic workers.
• It seeks to regulate minimum wages, working conditions and working hours..
• The bill mandates domestic worker to be above 18 years.
Since, India is signatory to ILO Convention on Domestic Workers, it is high time that we
pass this bill which is hanging since years to protect the rights of the domestic workers.

Student Notes:
8. Gender justice is often hindered by religious sensitivity over women related issues. In
this context, discuss how gender justice can be ensured while also keeping in mind
religious sensitivity of different communities.
Approach:
• Citing examples, discuss how gender justice reforms are affected due to religious
sensitivities.
• Discuss the need for consideration of religious sensitivity while pursuing reforms.
• Suggest ways through which the two can be balanced.
Answer:
Abolition of sati and child marriage and progressive legislations like Widow Remarriage
or Hindu Remarriage Act were opposed on the basis of religious and patriarchical
traditions. Similarly, Shah Bano judgement was opposed as it was seen interfering with
the personal laws of Muslims. Presently, many steps to render gender justice are being
opposed by citing their interference with the fundamental right to freedom of religion.
For example:
• Abolition of Triple Talaq.
• Reform of personal laws and implementation of Uniform Civil Code.
• Entry of females in the inner sanctum of temples and dargah.
• Nullifying rulings of personal law courts amongst minorities.
It is often argued that these steps amount to interference of State in the personal lives
of people.
Religious texts provide sufficiently as to how people should operate in matters of
worship, marriage, divorce or adoption. Misinterpretation of these texts by some
religious bodies however block progressive legislations and create a rift in the society
between various communities. As a result, minorities perceive such reforms as a threat
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to their identity. They start believing that steps like Uniform Civil Code amount to
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imposing majoritarian culture and practices on them.

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But, social reformers believe that practices which undermine the independence and
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integrity of women amount to gender injustice. That these practices are out of time and
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reflect gender prejudices. They point out that the interpreters of religion have mostly
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been men which is a reason for perpetuation of such practices.

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Hence, the issue of gender injustice vis-à-vis religion is a sensitive issue and needs to be
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tackled cautiously. Perception that the State is interfering in the religious and cultural
practices does not augur well for peace and unity of the country. It should also be
remembered that social, religious and cultural beliefs that are correct in one age may
have been unacceptable at another time. For example slavery was the economic
bedrock of the imperial age which is however a reprehensible belief today.
Ensuring Gender Justice while respecting religion
• Promoting education and awareness among women about civil rights and liberties.
If women themselves take up their issues it would create a greater impact. Role of
educators and family is critical in these efforts.
• A change that comes from within is widely accepted. Hence, the notion of gender
equality should be promoted using community leaders and religious texts. This will
force people to consider dichotomy of their thinking and they would be more open
to reforms.
• Citing examples of suffering of women due to some religious diktats.

Student Notes:
• Upward socio-economic mobility of women.

• Gradual exposure to reforms after extensive dialogues with the various
stakeholders involved. Avoiding hasty legislations.
• Upholding constitutional values of freedom of religion without constricting the
universal rights of women.
It should be kept in consideration that social reforms cannot be enforced by
governmental or judicial diktats overnight. They have to be nurtured through patient
persuasion, enlightened leadership and personal examples and only then they will be
acceptable widely.
9. It has been observed by some that emergence of a distinct “female vote bank” has
made political parties and leaders take women related issues seriously. Critically
examine in the context of electoral mobilisation in India in the recent times.
Approach:
• Contextualise the argument with recent examples.
• Highlight the limitations of the argument on multiple fronts.
• Provide a balanced conclusion on the issue.
Answer:
In recent times the importance accorded to issues affecting women in the electoral
agendas of political parties has been attributed to the emergence of a ‘female vote
bank’.
• For instance, in the most recent assembly elections in Bihar the issue of prohibition
was widely perceived to be influenced women voters.
• Similarly, in the recent assembly elections in Goa the issue of ban on casinos has
been described to be influenced by the consideration of female votes.
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• Statistically, the participation of women in last few assembly elections in states like
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Bihar has outstripped that of the male voters, giving further credence to the idea.
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• Issue of women safety and women related violence and abuse has become an
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important issue during elections.

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However, this idea has certain limitations:

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• The phenomenon has been observed in only a few states and any wide spread
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study is lacking.
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• Many, observers argue that the lack of attention to women is due to a lack of
women as a consolidated voting bloc. Their interests stand to be a function of their
socio-economic class, race, religion, ethnicity, and other demographic
characteristics of age and location rather than gender alone.
• The arguments about the ‘female vote bank’ as an important consideration in the
calculation of political parties and leaders are also not reflected in the number of
female candidates proportionate to their population.
• The lack of reservation for Women in Parliament and State assemblies also weaken
the argument.
On the positive, the governments across the country irrespective of ruling political
parties have initiated policies and schemes for the welfare of females. These include
maternity benefit programmes, nutrition and education of girl child and reservation for
women in local government. These have been influenced by a wider activism and
participation of women rather than being a direct outcome of the ‘female vote bank’
considerations.

Student Notes:
The ‘female vote bank’ is only a reflection of a wide range of tactics being adopted by
women to make their voices heard and their issues addressed. The concept of ‘vote
bank’, tied to a particular party and community, might not be conducive for advancing
the cause of the females in the long term. Rather, the empowerment of women and
their full participation in all walks of life as citizens is a far more powerful idea.
10. Portrayal of stereotypical sensational images of women not only reduces their
identity to a mere object of desire but also reinforces the patriarchal structure of the
society. Discuss with examples.
Approach:
• Introduce by giving the current status of women i.e. how they are portrayed.
• With examples provide the true picture of different sectors which portray women
as commodities.
• Discuss how it reinforces patriarchy.
• Conclude by providing a solution to this problem.
Answer:
It is said that there is no tool for development more effective than the empowerment
of women but many a times this empowerment gets disguised when women are
portrayed on various forums in either of the two characters - as an object of desire or
as their all-pervasive stereotypical roles.
Literature and media are two streams which portray women in different yet similar
light. Though the recognition of women’s identity in literature and media is similar to
each other but both claim to redefine the women’s position in their own ways.
Literature promises a holistic representation of women’s self, lending them an enviable
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comparable status with men. On the one hand women is portrayed as divine in our
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classical literature, on the other hand, poets like Harivanshrai Bachchan and Mirza
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Ghalib identify the romantic glory associated with women. However, media believes in
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only exposing their physical domains to make them commercially viable.

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Advertisements in particular reinforce this notion. For ex- deodorant ads have explicit
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sexual suggestions, even ads relating to men undergarments show woman. Another
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aspect of advertisements is its act of creating a world of perfection where women

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remain pretty angels sans any blemishes or scars on their body. It casts precarious
psychological impact on women not being an “ideal women” created in the ads.
Hindi and particularly regional cinema also reinforces women‘s traditional role as wife
and mother mostly. The women are made to look alluring and appealing to attract
sections of the audience. Defining women as sex objects has become the leading
representation in the media. Women are presented as sexual objects to be enjoyed by
men, which in turn leads to false consciousness.
Such representations reinforce patriarchal structure in a society, in the sense that they
are believed to be less competent even after being equal or more qualified and also
less paid than their male counterparts.
This representation of women is based on the gender discrimination. Right now
dissemination of feminist sensitivity is the only remedy for effecting the desirable
change.

Student Notes:
However, things are improving a little bit and signs of change are seen in certain recent
instances such as women march against President elect Trump for his remarks
admitting to sexual misconduct and harassment allegations against him, women in
progress ad campaign which shows independent women along with their emotional
side, example of Roshni Misbah – “hijabi biker” from delhi. All these shows a ray of
hope for a better future for women.

1. “Male membership needs to be encouraged in order to make women’s organization free
from gender bias.” Comment.
2. How does patriarchy impact the position of a middle class working woman in India?
3. Discuss the various economic and socio-cultural forces that are driving increasing
feminization of agriculture in India.
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Student Notes:
POPULATION AND ASSOCIATED ISSUES

Contents
1. Why to Study Population?...................................................................................................... 109
2. What is Demography? ............................................................................................................ 109
3. How to Determine Population Trends? .................................................................................. 109
4. How to Make Sense of Such Population Data? ...................................................................... 110
4.1. Distribution and Density of Population ........................................................................... 110
4.1.1. World Distribution of Population ............................................................................. 110
4.1.2. Distribution of Population in India ........................................................................... 111
4.2. Factors Influencing the Distribution of Population ......................................................... 112
4.2.1. Geographical Factors ................................................................................................ 112
4.2.2. Economic Factors ..................................................................................................... 113
4.2.3. Social and Cultural Factors ....................................................................................... 113
4.3. Determinants of Population Change ............................................................................... 113
4.3.1. Fertility ..................................................................................................................... 114
4.3.2. Mortality .................................................................................................................. 116
4.3.3. Migration .................................................................................................................. 117
4.4. Trends in Population Growth .......................................................................................... 118
4.4.1. Projected growth in the world population............................................................... 118
4.4.2. Trend in Growth of Indian Population ...................................................................... 120
5. Theory of Demographic Transition ......................................................................................... 121
5.1. Demographic Dividend .................................................................................................... 122
5.2. Optimum Population ....................................................................................................... 123
6. Population composition ......................................................................................................... 124
6.1. Age Composition ............................................................................................................. 124
6.1.1. Dependency Ratio .................................................................................................... 124
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6.2. Sex composition .............................................................................................................. 125

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6.3. Transgender composition................................................................................................ 125

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6.4. Divyang composition ....................................................................................................... 125

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6.5. Literacy composition ....................................................................................................... 125

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6.6. Working Population Composition ................................................................................... 126

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6.7. Adolescents ..................................................................................................................... 128

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6.8. Issues related to Youth .................................................................................................... 128

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6.9. National Youth Policy ...................................................................................................... 129

7. The population pyramid (The age-sex pyramid) .................................................................... 131
7.1. Expanding Population ..................................................................................................... 131
7.2. Constant Population ........................................................................................................ 131
7.3. Declining Population ....................................................................................................... 131
7.4. Regional variations in age-structure pyramid ................................................................. 132
8. Population Issues ................................................................................................................... 133
8.1. Population Problems of Underdeveloped Countries ...................................................... 133
8.1.1. Problems of Over-population................................................................................... 133
8.1.2. Problems of Under-Population ................................................................................ 133
8.2. Population Problems of Advanced Countries ................................................................. 134
8.3. Declining sex ratio in India .............................................................................................. 135
9. Population Policies in India .................................................................................................... 136
9.1. National Population Policy 2000 ..................................................................................... 137
10. Appraisal of National Population Policy 2000 ...................................................................... 139
11. NPP-2000: The Way Forward ............................................................................................... 139

Student Notes:
11.1. Measures taken to control the population growth of India .......................................... 140
12. Appendix (Population Maps and tables) .............................................................................. 142
13. Vision IAS GS Mains Test Series Questions........................................................................... 156
14. Previous Year UPSC GS Mains Questions ............................................................................. 163
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Student Notes:
An educated, enlightened and informed population is one of the surest ways of promoting the
health of a democracy – Nelson Mandela
1. Why to Study Population?

Indian population may overtake the population of China within the next couple of decades,
eventually making India the most populous nation of the world. It is in this way the population
is quite often seen as a liability, a major hindrance to development and quality of life of the
people. Such a large population invariably puts pressure on a country’s limited resources and is
also responsible for many socio-economic problems in the country. But is it true? Let’s think
and understand. Has population not been an asset, a resource for the country? Today, India is
considered as a leading nation in the world in terms of human power. One of the major
contributing factors for this global standing has been the young, educated and productive
people of our country. They are contributing to the development of not only our country, but
many of the foreign countries also. In this context, population is an asset for the economy, the
greatest resource of the country rather than a liability. Let us evaluate this resource. How? It’s
through the science of population, ‘Demography’.
2. What is Demography?
Demography is the science of systematic study of population. The term is of Greek origin and is
composed of the two words, ‘demos’ (people) and ‘graphein’ (describe), implying the
description of people. Demography studies the trends and processes associated with
population including – changes in population size; patterns of births, deaths, and migration; and
the structure and composition of the population, such as the relative proportions of women,
men and different age groups. There are different varieties of demography, including formal
demography which is a largely quantitative field, and social demography which focuses on the
social, economic or political aspects of populations. Formal demography is primarily concerned
with the measurement and analysis of the components of population change. Its focus is on
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quantitative analysis for which it has a highly developed mathematical methodology suitable for
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forecasting population growth and changes in the composition of population. Population

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studies or social demography, on the other hand, enquires into the wider causes and
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consequences of population structures and change. Social demographers believe that social
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processes and structures regulate demographic processes; like sociologists, they seek to trace
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the social reasons that account for population trends.

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3. How to Determine Population Trends?

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What is/are the primary source of such data?

All demographic studies are based on processes of counting or enumeration – such as the
census or the survey – which involve the systematic collection of data on the people residing
within a specified territory.
Census: The procedure of systematically acquiring and recording information about the
members of a given population. The term is used mostly in connection with ‘national
population and door to door censuses’ to be taken every 10 years. For example, the Economic
Census in India is a Central Sector Scheme, with 100% Central Assistance and is conducted in all
the States and Union Territories of the country, in collaboration with State/UT Governments.,
The Economic Census data, over the years, have provided a base for under taking follow up
surveys by NSSO and other governmental and non-governmental agencies to study the
structure and composition of the various industrial sectors and their contribution.
Survey: The National Sample Survey Office (NSSO) in India is a unique setup to carry out
surveys on socio-economic, demographic, agricultural and industrial subjects for collecting data

Student Notes:
from house-holds and from enterprises located in villages and in the towns. It is a focal agency
of the Govt. of India (under the newly created Ministry of Statistics and Programme
Implementation (MOSPI)) for collection of statistical data in the areas which are vital for
developmental planning.
4. How to Make Sense of Such Population Data?

The following three questions can holistically address our concerns about the population data.
Q.1. How many people are there and where are they located?
Q.2. How has the population grown and changed through time?
Q.3. What are their age, sex composition, literacy levels, occupational structure and health
conditions etc.?
Let us answer these questions one by one.
4.1. Distribution and Density of Population

Patterns of population distribution and density help us to understand the demographic
characteristics of any area. The term ‘Population Distribution’ refers to the way people are
spaced over the earth’s surface. Broadly, 90 per cent of the world population lives in about 10
per cent of its land area. India’s population as on March 2011 stood at 1,210 million, which
account for approx. 17% of the world’s population. These 1.21 billion people are unevenly
distributed over our country’s vast area of 3.28 million square km, which accounts for 2.4 per
cent of the world’s area.
4.1.1. World Distribution of Population
According to World Population Prospects: 2015, the world population reached 7.3 billion as of
mid-2015. Sixty per cent of the global population lives in Asia (4.4 billion), 16 per cent in Africa
(1.2billion), 10 per cent in Europe (738 million), 9 per cent in Latin America and the Caribbean
(634 million),and the remaining 5 per cent in Northern America (358 million) and Oceania (39
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million). China (1.4 billion) and India (1.3 billion) remain the two largest countries of the world,
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both with more than 1 billion people, representing 19 and 18 per cent of the world’s
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population, respectively.
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2013 World population map: http://www.prb.org

In 2015, 50.4 per cent of the world’s population is male and 49.6 per cent is female. The median
age of the global population, that is, the age at which half the population is older and half is
younger, is 29.6 years. About one-quarter (26 per cent) of the world’s people is under 15 years
of age, 62 per cent are aged 15-59 years, and 12 per cent are 60 or over.

Student Notes:
4.1.2. Distribution of Population in India
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India’s Population Distribution by Density:

Density of population is expressed as number of persons per unit area. It helps in getting a
better understanding of the spatial distribution of population in relation to land. Population
density provides a better picture than total population especially when the population is
unevenly distributed.

Student Notes:
The density of population in India (2011) is 382 persons per sq km. There has been a steady
increase of about 265 persons per sq km over the last 60 years as the density of population
increased from 117 persons/ sq km in 1951 to 382 persons/sq km in 2011.
4.2. Factors Influencing the Distribution of Population

4.2.1. Geographical Factors
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Availability of water: It is the most important factor for life. So, people prefer to live in
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areas where fresh water is easily available. Water is used for drinking, bathing and cooking
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– and also for cattle, crops, industries and navigation. It is because of this that river valleys
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are among the most densely populated areas of the world. It is no wonder that civilizations
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like the Indus and Mesopotamia developed at the banks of rivers which ensured adequate
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and assured water supply for settlement. Deserts have low density of population due to
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scarcity of water. Only oases within the deserts are densely populated and here the
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population is limited by the availability of water.

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• Landforms (Relief): People prefer living on flat plains and gentle slopes. This is because
such areas are favourable for the production of crops and to build roads and industries. The
mountainous and hilly areas hinder the development of transport network and hence
initially do not favour agricultural and industrial development. So, these areas tend to be
less populated. The Ganga plains are among the most densely populated areas of the world
while the mountains zones in the Himalayas are scarcely populated. The thinness of the
atmosphere at latitudes above 4000m makes breathing difficult and exertion very fatiguing.
Therefore only those high plateaus where farming and communications have been
relatively easy have settlements and everywhere else the settlements are concentrated in
the valleys.
• Climate: An extreme climate such as very hot or cold deserts is uncomfortable for human
habitation. Areas with a comfortable climate, where there is not much seasonal variation
attract more people. Areas with very heavy rainfall or extreme and harsh climates have low
population.

Student Notes:
• Soils: Fertile soils are important for agricultural and allied activities. Therefore, areas which
have fertile loamy soils have more people living on them as these can support intensive
agriculture.
4.2.2. Economic Factors
• Minerals: Areas with mineral deposits attract industries. Mining and industrial activities
generate employment. So, skilled and semi–skilled workers move to these areas and make
them densely populated.
• Urbanisation: Cities offer better employment opportunities, educational and medical
facilities, better means of transport and communication. Good civic amenities and the
attraction of city life draw people to the cities. It leads to rural to urban migration and cities
grow in size. Mega cities of the world continue to attract large number of migrants every
year.
• Industrialization: Industrial belts provide job opportunities and attract large numbers of
people. These include not just factory workers but also transport operators, shopkeepers,
bank employees, doctors, teachers and other service providers.
4.2.3. Social and Cultural Factors
Some places attract more people because they have religious or cultural significance. In the
same way – people tend to move away from places where there is social and political unrest.
Many a time governments offer incentives through various types of policies to people to live in
sparsely populated areas or move away from overcrowded places.
Population growth
The population growth or population change refers to the change in number of inhabitants of a
territory during a specific period of time. This change may be positive as well as negative. It can
be expressed either in terms of absolute numbers or in terms of percentage. Population change
in an area is an important indicator of economic development, social upliftment and historical
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and cultural background of the region.

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Growth of Population: Change of population in particular area between two points of time is
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known as growth of population. For example, if we deduct the population of India 1991 (84.63
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crore) from population of 2001 (102.70 crore) then we shall get the growth of population (18.07
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crores) in actual numbers.

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Growth Rate of Population: This is the change of population expressed in percentage.

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4.3. Determinants of Population Change

Three factors determine the change in the size of the population of any country: how many
persons are born, how many persons die, and how many persons are added to the population

Student Notes:
after considering the number of persons leaving the country and the number of persons coming
into the country. The last of these factors, that is, migration does not play a large role in
determining population growth at the national level. However, it does have influence at local
and regional level. It, therefore, becomes necessary to consider in greater detail the other two
factors, that is, fertility and mortality. Migration, as such, would be discussed later.
4.3.1. Fertility
Fertility is an important determinant of population growth. In this section, we shall discuss the
measurement, levels and trends and implications of high fertility.
Measurement of Fertility
At the outset, it is necessary to differentiate between fecundity and fertility. Fecundity refers to
the physiological capacity to reproduce. Fertility, on the other hand, refers to the actual
reproductive performance of an individual or a group. While there is no direct measurement of
fecundity, fertility can be studied from the birth statistics. The crude birth rate is an important
measure of fertility for which only live births, that is, children born alive are taken into account.
The crude birth rate is calculated by dividing the number of live births occurring during a
calendar year in specified areas by the midyear population of that year. The crude birth rate is
generally expressed per thousand of population.
The crude birth rate directly points to the contribution of fertility to the growth rate of the
population. It suffers from certain limitations mainly because it has in the denominator the total
population which includes males as well as very young and very old women who are biologically
not capable of having babies.
There are other more refined fertility measures like the general fertility rate, the age-specific
fertility rates, etc., that overcome these limitations.
General Fertility Rate: It is the number of live births per 1000 women, aged 15-49 years (child
bearing age group), in a given period.
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Age-Specific Fertility Rate: The number of live births occurring during a given year or reference
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period per 1000 women of reproductive age classified in that age group.
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ASFR = (Ba/Ea)* 1000, where

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Ba – number of births to women in age-group in a given year or reference period.

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Ea – number of person-years of exposure in that age-group during the specified reference

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period.
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Total Fertility Rate: The total fertility rate refers to the total number of live births that a woman
would have if she lived through the reproductive age group and had the average number of
babies in each segment of this age group as determined by the age-specific fertility rates for
that area.
Determinants of High Fertility
Several factors contribute to the high fertility of Indian women. Let us examine some of these
factors:
a) Religious Ideologies
b) Universality of the institution of marriage.
c) Early marriage and early child-bearing.
d) Preference for sons ingrained in the Indian culture.
e) Lack of right of self-determination with reference to reproduction.
f) High infant and child mortality rates - (unsatisfactory health, low nutritional status and
poverty) also contribute to a large family size.

Student Notes:
g) Economic, social, cultural as well as religious value of children in the Indian society.
h) Absence of adoption of methods of conception control.
It is important that none of these factors is to be seen in isolation. Indeed, it is the combination
of several factors that contribute towards the high fertility rate in India.
While considering the factors contributing to high fertility, it is also necessary to consider
traditional Indian norms which regulate the reproductive behavior of couples. Breast-feeding is
universally practiced in Indian sub-continent and this has an inhibiting influence on conception.
Certain taboos are also practiced during the postpartum period when the couple is expected to
abstain from sexual activity. The practice of going to the parental home for delivery, specially
the first one, common in some parts of the country also ensures abstinence after childbirth
leading to postponement of the next pregnancy. Cohabitation is also prohibited on certain
specified days in the month. It is also common knowledge that a woman would be ridiculed if
she continued to bear children after she had become a grandmother.
Implications of High Fertility
Apart from contributing in a big way to the population problem of the country, high fertility
affects the family and, in turn, society in many ways.
Women are tied down to child-bearing and child-rearing for the best years of their productive
lives. They are, therefore, denied the opportunity to explore other avenues for self-expression
and self-development. This could lead to frustration. Excessive child-bearing affects their own
health and that of their children. Looking after a large number of children puts a further strain
on the slender physical and emotional resources of such women.
The burden of providing for a large family sits heavily on the bread-winner of the family.
The constant struggle to maintain a subsistence level is exhausting. To escape from the
problems of everyday life, he may take to drinking. This would lead to further deterioration
of the economic and emotional well-being of the family.
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The children, often unwanted, unloved and neglected, are left to their own to make life
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bearable. The children in large families often have to start working at a very early age to
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supplement the slender financial resources of the family. They even indulge in delinquency
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and are, therefore, denied the opportunity to go to school and get educated.
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The girl child is the worst sufferer in these circumstances. She is often not sent to school at
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all, or is withdrawn from school at an early age to help her mother in carrying out domestic
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chores and to look after her younger siblings when the mother is at work. Early marriage
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pushes her into child-bearing, and the vicious cycle continues. The children, both boys and
girls, in a large family are thus often denied the joys of childhood, and are pushed into adult
roles at a very early age.

Student Notes:
FERTILITY RATE IN INDIA

As per Sample Registration System TFR in 2011 and 2012 was 2.4 and has declined to 2.3 in
2013. 24 States and UTs having already achieved the replacement level of fertility of 2.1.
It is to be noted that no targets were set under MDG for Total Fertility Rate (TFR).
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4.3.2. Mortality
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Measurement of Mortality
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Out of many measures, it is sufficient to describe three basic measures of mortality: the crude
death rate, the expectation of life at birth, and the infant mortality rate.
• Crude Death Rate: It is the ratio of the total registered deaths occurring in a specified
calendar year to the total mid-year population of that year, multiplied by 1000.
• Expectation of Life at Birth: The average expectation of life at birth is a good measure of
the level of mortality because it is not affected by the age structure of the population. The
term “average expectation of life” or life expectancy represents the average number of
years of life which a cohort of new-born babies (that is, those born in the same year) may
be expected to live if they are subjected to the risks of death at each year, according to the
age-specific mortality rates prevailing in the country at the time to which the measure
refers. This measure is complicated to calculate but easy to understand.

Student Notes:
India’s life expectancy at birth

An Indian born in 1950 could expect to live for 37 years, whereas today India’s life
expectancy at birth nearly doubled to 68 years, by 2050, it is projected to increase to 76
years. As a result, India’s population will rise from 1.3 billion today to an estimated 1.7
billion by 2050, with a much larger elderly share of around 340 million. Including the pre-
retirement phase (i.e., population age 45+), the proportion will rise to over 30%, or almost
600 million persons. Between 2011 and 2050, the number of oldest old people of age 75
and above is expected to increase by 340%.
• Infant Mortality Rate: Infants are defined in demography as all those children in the first
year of life who have not yet reached age one. In countries like India, where health
conditions are poor, infant deaths account for a substantial number of all deaths. The infant
mortality rate is, therefore, often used as an indicator for determining the socio-economic
status of a country and the quality of life in it.
INFANT MORTALITY RATE IN INDIA
As per the Sample Registration System (SRS) Reports published by the Registrar General of
India, the Infant Mortality Rate (IMR) in the country has declined steadily from 47/1000
live births in 2010 to 40/1000 live births in 2013.
Under the Millennium Development Goal (MDG) 4 target was to reduce Child Mortality
by two-third between 1990 and 2015. In case of India, it translated into a goal of reducing
Infant mortality rate from 88 per thousand live births in 1990 to 29 in 2015.
United Nations has recently set Sustainable Development Goals and Targets. The target
for India is to attain Under 5 Mortality Rate of 25/1000 live births by 2030.
• Maternal Mortality Rate: The maternal mortality ratio represents the risk associated with
each pregnancy, i.e. the obstetric risk. Maternal death is the death of a woman while
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site of the pregnancy, from any cause related to or aggravated by the pregnancy or its
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management but not from accidental or incidental causes. It is measured as number of

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maternal deaths per 100000 live births.

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Maternal Mortality rate in India

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As per Sample Registration System (SRS), 2011-13 reports Maternal Mortality Ratio (MMR)
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is 167 per 1,00,000 live births in the Country.

Under the Millennium Development Goal (MDG) 5, the target is to reduce Maternal
Mortality Ratio (MMR) by three quarters between 1990 & 2015. This translates to reducing
the MMR from 560 in 1990 to 140 in 2015.
4.3.3. Migration
Apart from birth and death there is another way by which the population size changes. When
people move from one place to another, the place they move from Place of Origin to Place of
Destination. The place of origin shows a decrease in population while the population increases
in the place of destination.
Migration may be interpreted as a spontaneous effort to achieve a better balance between
population and resources. Migration may be permanent, temporary or seasonal. It may take
place from rural to rural areas, rural to urban areas, urban to urban areas and urban to rural
areas.

Student Notes:
Immigration: Migrants who move into a new place are called Immigrants.
Emigration: Migrants who move out of a place are called Emigrants.
People migrate for a better economic and social life. There are two sets of factors that influence
migration.
The Push factors make the place of origin seem less attractive for reasons like unemployment,
poor living conditions, political turmoil, unpleasant climate, natural disasters, epidemics and
socio-economic backwardness.
The Pull factors make the place of destination seem more attractive than the place of origin for
reasons like better job opportunities and living conditions, peace and stability, security of life
and property and pleasant climate.
Migration can be internal (within the country) or international (between the countries).
Internal migration does not change the size of the population, but influences the distribution of
population within the nation. Migration plays a very significant role in changing the
composition and distribution of population.
(For more on Migration refer the material on migration)
Natural Growth of Population: This is the population increased by difference between births
and deaths in a particular region between two points of time.
Natural Growth= Births-Deaths
Actual Growth of Population=Births – Deaths + in Migration – out Migration
Positive Growth of Population: This happens when the birth rate is more than the death rate
between two points of time or when people from other countries migrate permanently to a
region.
Negative Growth of Population: If the population decreases between two points of time it is
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rate or people migrate to other countries.

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4.4. Trends in Population Growth

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4.4.1. Projected growth in the world population

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Currently, the world population is growing slowly than in the recent past. Ten years ago, world
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population was growing by 1.24 per cent per year. Today, it is growing by 1.18 per cent per
year, or approximately an additional 83 million people annually. The world population is
projected to increase by more than one billion people within the next 15 years, reaching 8.5
billion in 2030, and to increase further to 9.7 billion in 2050 and 11.2 billion by 2100.
• Africa is the fastest-growing major area: More than half of global population growth
between now and 2050 is expected to occur in Africa. Africa has the highest rate of
population growth among major areas, growing at a pace of 2.55 per cent annually in 2010-
2015. Consequently, of the additional 2.4 billion people projected to be added to the global
population between 2015 and 2050, 1.3 billion will be added in Africa. Asia is projected to
be the second largest contributor to future global population growth, adding 0.9 billion
people between 2015 and 2050, followed by Northern America, Latin America and the
Caribbean and Oceania, which are projected to have much smaller increments. In the
medium variant, Europe is projected to have a smaller population in 2050 than in 2015. A
rapid population increase in Africa is anticipated even if there is a substantial reduction of
fertility levels in the near future.

Student Notes:
• High Population growth in least developed countries (LDCs)-High population growth will
remain the feature of a group of 48 countries designated by the United Nations as the least
developed countries (LDCs), of which 27 are in Africa. Although the growth rate of the LDCs
is projected to slow from its current 2.4 per cent annually. Between 2015 and 2100, the
populations of 33 countries, most of them LDCs, have a high probability of at least tripling.
Among them, the populations of Angola, Burundi, Democratic Republic of Congo, Malawi,
Mali, Niger, Somalia, Uganda, United Republic of Tanzania and Zambia are projected to
increase at least five-fold by 2100.
• Europe is projected to experience shrinking population: the populations of 48 European
countries or areas in the world are expected to decrease between 2015 and 2050. Several
countries are expected to see their populations decline by more than 15 per cent by 2050,
including Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Croatia, Hungary, Japan, Latvia, Lithuania,
Republic of Moldova, Romania, Serbia, and Ukraine. Fertility in all European countries is
now below the level required for full replacement of the population in the long run (around
2.1 children per woman, on average), and in the majority of cases, fertility has been below
the replacement level for several decades. Fertility for Europe as a whole is projected to
increase from 1.6 children per women in 2010-2015 to 1.8 in 2045-2050, but such an
increase will not prevent a likely contraction of the total population size.
• Most of the increase in world population can be attributed to a short list of countries: At
the country level, much of the overall increase between now and 2050 is projected to occur
either in high-fertility countries, mainly in Africa, or in countries with large populations.
During 2015-2050, half of the world’s population growth is expected to be concentrated in
nine countries: India, Nigeria, Pakistan, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ethiopia, United
Republic of Tanzania, United States of America, Indonesia and Uganda, listed according to
the size of their contribution to the total growth.
• Increasing longevity around the world; progress against major challenges: significant gains
in life expectancy have been achieved in recent years. Globally, life expectancy at birth rose
by 3 years between 2000-2005 and 2010-2015 (from 67 to 70 years). All major areas shared
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in the life expectancy gains over this period, but the greatest increases were in Africa,
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where life expectancy rose by 6 years in the 2000s after rising by only 2 years in the
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previous decade.
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Under-five mortality, expressed as the probability of dying between birth and a child’s fifth
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deaths among children under age five fell from 71 per 1,000 live births in 2000-2005 to an
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estimated 50 per 1,000 in 2010-2015. Absolute declines were particularly large in Sub-
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Saharan Africa (142 to 99 per 1,000) and in the least developed countries (125 to 86 per
1,000). The reduction of under-five mortality, which has received intense global attention as
the target of Millennium Development Goal 4
• Populations in many parts of the world are still young; opportunity for demographic
dividend: Populations in many regions are still young. In Africa, children under age 15
account for 41 per cent of the population in 2015 and young persons aged 15 to 24 account
for a further 19 per cent. Latin America and the Caribbean and Asia, which have seen
greater declines in fertility, have smaller percentages of children (26 and 24 per cent,
respectively) and similar percentages of youth (17 and 16 per cent, respectively). In total,
these three regions are home to 1.7 billion children and 1.1 billion young persons in 2015
Proportions of children in the populations of many countries of these regions are projected
to decline further in the near-term future, while the size and the proportion of populations
in the prime working ages can be expected to grow. Countries with a relatively high ratio of
working to dependent populations have the possibility of benefitting from a “demographic

Student Notes:
dividend,” provided that appropriate labour market and other policies allow for a
productive absorption of the growing working-age population and for increased
investments in the human capital of children and youth.
• Globally, population aged 60 or over is the fastest growing:
As fertility declines and life expectancy rises, the proportion of the population above a
certain age rises. This phenomenon, known as population ageing, is occurring throughout
the world. By 2050, all major areas of the world except Africa will have nearly a quarter or
more of their populations aged 60 or over.
Population ageing is projected to have a profound effect on the number of workers per
retiree in various countries, as measured by the Potential Support Ratio (PSR), defined as
the number of people aged 20 to 64 divided by the number of people aged 65 and over.
Currently, African countries, on average, have 12.9 people aged 20 to 64 for every person
aged 65 or above, while Asian countries have PSRs of 8.0, Europe and Northern America at
or under 4. Japan, at 2.1, has the lowest PSR in the world (although seven European
countries also have PSRs below 3). This will put fiscal and political pressures on the health
care systems as well as the old-age and social protection systems of many countries in the
not-too-distant future.
4.4.2. Trend in Growth of Indian Population
It is significant that the percentage decadal growth during 2001-11 has registered the sharpest
decline since Independence. It declined from 23.87% for 1981-1991 to 21.54% for the period
1991-2001, a decrease of 2.33 percentage points. For 2001-2011, this decadal growth has
become 17.64%, a further decrease of 3.90 percentage points.
Similarly, the average exponential growth rate for 2001-2011 has declined to 1.64% per annum
from 1.97% per annum during 1991-2001. The average annual exponential growth rate during
1981-1991 was 2.16.
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The growth rate of population in India over the last one century has been caused by annual
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birth rate and death rate and rate of migration and thereby shows different trends. There are
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four distinct phases of growth identified within this period:

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Phase I: The period from 1901-1921 is referred to as a period of stagnant or stationary phase of
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growth of India’s population, since in this period growth rate was very low, even recording a
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negative growth rate during 1911-1921. Both the birth rate and death rate were high keeping
the rate of increase low. Poor health and medical services, illiteracy of people at large and
inefficient distribution system of food and other basic necessities were largely responsible for a
high birth and death rates in this period.
Phase II: The decades 1921-1951 are referred to as the period of steady population growth. An
overall improvement in health and sanitation throughout the country brought down the
mortality rate. At the same time better transport and communication system improved
distribution system. The crude birth rate remained high in this period leading to higher growth
rate than the previous phase. This is impressive at the backdrop of Great Economic Depression,
1920s and World War II.
Phase III: The decades 1951-1981 are referred to as the period of population explosion in India,
which was caused by a rapid fall in the mortality rate but a high fertility rate of population in the
country. The average annual growth rate was as high as 2.2 percent. It is in this period, after the
Independence, that developmental activities were introduced through a centralised planning
process and economy started showing up ensuring the improvement of living condition of

Student Notes:
people at large. Consequently, there was a high natural increase and higher growth rate.
Besides, increased international migration from neighbouring countries contributed to the high
growth rate.
Phase IV: In the post 1981 till present, the growth rate of country’s population though
remained high, has started slowing down gradually. A downward trend of crude birthrate is held
responsible for such a population growth. This was, in turn, affected by an increase in theme an
age at marriage, improved quality of life particularly education of females in the country. The
growth rate of population is, however, still high in the country, and it has been projected by
World Development Report that population of India will touch 1,350 million by 2025.
The analysis done so far shows the average growth rate, but the country also has wide variation
in growth rates from one area to another which is discussed below. Refer to Fig S4 and S5.
5. Theory of Demographic Transition

The demographic transition theory is a generalized description of the changing pattern of
mortality, fertility and growth rates as societies move from one demographic regime to another.
The term was first coined by the American demographer Frank W. Notestein in the mid-
twentieth century, but it has since been elaborated and expanded upon by many others.
The theory suggests that population growth is linked to overall levels of economic development
and that every society follows a typical pattern of development-related population growth.
There are four stages to the classical demographic transition model:
Stage 1: Pre-transition
The first stage is that of low population growth in a society that is under-developed and
technologically backward. Growth rates are low because both the death rate and the birth rate
are very high, so that the difference between the two (or the net growth rate) is low which is
characterized by high birth rates, and high fluctuating death rates.
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Stage 2: Early transition

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During the early stages of the transition, the death rate begins to fall. As birth rates remain
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high, the population starts to grow rapidly. This ‘population explosion’ happens because death
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rates are brought down relatively quickly through advanced methods of disease control, public
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health, and better nutrition. However, it takes longer for society to adjust to change and alter its
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reproductive behaviour (which was evolved during the period of poverty and high death rates)
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to suit the new situation of relative prosperity and longer life spans. In India too, the
demographic transition is not yet complete as the mortality rate has been reduced but the birth
rate has not been brought down to the same extent( In fact there exists a demographic divide in
India with Southern stages showing advanced stage of demographic transition)
Stage 3: Late transition
In this stage, the fertility rate declines and tends to equal the death rate. Birth rates begin to fall
due to various fertility factors such as access to contraception, increases in wages, urbanization
etc. . As a result, the rate of population growth decelerates.
Stage 4: Post-transition
Post-transitional societies are characterized by low birth and low death rates. In fact, birth rates
may drop to well below replacement levels. So, population growth is negligible, leading to a
phenomenon of shrinking population (like in Japan and Germany)

Student Notes:
5.1. Demographic Dividend

Demographic dividend occurs when the proportion of working people in the total population is
high because this indicates that more people have the potential to be productive and
contribute to growth of the economy.
More than 63% of the population in India is in the age group of 15-59 years, broadly termed as
India’s demographic dividend.
This working age group must support itself as well as those outside this age group (i.e., children
and elderly people) who are unable to work and are therefore dependents. Changes in the age
structure due to the demographic transition lower the ‘dependency ratio’, or the ratio of non-
working age to working-age population, thus creating the potential for generating growth.
• As per Sample Registration System (SRS) (2013) data, the proportion of economically active
population (15-59 years) or, India’s ‘demographic dividend’, has increased from 57.7 to 63.3
per cent during 1991 to 2013. On account of better education, health facilities, and increase
in life expectancy, the percentage of elderly (60+) has gone up from 6.0 to 8.3 per cent
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respectively in the same period.

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• The growth rate of the labour force will continue to be higher than that of the population
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until 2021. According to an Indian Labour Report (Time Lease, 2007), 300 million youth will
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enter the labour force by 2025, and 25 per cent of the world’s workers in the next three
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years will be Indians.

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• It is projected that by 2020 the average age of India’s population will be the lowest in the
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world—around 29 years compared to 37 years in China and the United States of America,
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45 years in West Europe, and 48 years in Japan. Consequently, while the global economy is
expected to witness a shortage of young population of around 56 million by 2020, India will
be the only country with a youth surplus of 47 million (Report on Education, Skill
Development and Labour Force (2013-14) Volume III, Labour Bureau,
But this potential can be converted into actual growth only if the rise in the working age group
is accompanied by increasing levels of education and employment. If the new entrants to the
labour force are not educated then their productivity remains low. If they remain unemployed,
then they are unable to earn at all and become dependents rather than earners. Thus, changing
age structure by itself cannot guarantee any benefits unless it is properly utilised through
planned development. Strategies exist to exploit the demographic window of opportunity that
India has today. But India’s recent experience suggests that market forces by themselves do not
ensure that such strategies would be implemented. Unless a way forward is found, we may miss
out on the potential benefits that the country’s changing age structure temporarily offers.

Student Notes:
According to the United National population research, during the last four decades the
countries of Asia and Latin America have been the main beneficiaries of the demographic
dividend. Advanced countries of Europe, Japan and USA have an ageing population because of
low birth rates and low mortality rates. Neither the least developed countries nor the countries
of Africa have as yet experienced favourable demographic conditions according to the research
by UN population division. China’s one child policy has reversed the demographic dividend it
enjoyed since the mid 1960s according to a World Bank global development report.
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Source: Economic Survey 2016-17
5.2. Optimum Population

The size, distribution and structure of the population within the country must be viewed in
relation to its natural resources and the techniques of production used by its people. The extent
to which resources are used and the way in which they are used determine whether an area is
under- or overpopulated. A country is said to have an optimum population when the number of
people is in balance with the available resources. Optimum conditions can only be maintained if
the exploration of new resources or the development of other forms of employment keeps
pace with increases in population.
If the population becomes too large then the “law of diminishing returns” beginsto operate.
This implies that up to a certain point an increase in the number of people working on the land
leads to a marked increase in production. Once the optimum population has been reached,
however a further increase may increase production but at a decreasing rate, so that output per

Student Notes:
capita declines. As more people become dependent on the same resource base each individual
will become poorer. On the other hand if there are not enough people to develop all the
resources of an area its standard of living may remain lower than it could be, were its full
potential realized.
For example in terms of present day technology, Central Asia may be considered under
populated. But in the past, Central Asia was inhabited by pastoralists who knew nothing of
modern technology. The resources which they were capable of exploiting were often
overstrained, so much in fact that the waves of Central Asian peoples invaded surrounding
areas in search of land and spread as far as eastern Europe, India and northern China. Thus the
region was over-populated during that period.
Under population and overpopulation therefore must be considered mainly in terms of the
stage of development of the country concerned. An advanced country can be considered as one
where agriculture is efficient, industry, communications, trade and commerce, and social
services are well developed and the resources of the country are fully utilized. There is no real
shortage of labour but unemployment is small.
6. Population composition
Population composition gives the description of population defined by characteristics such as
age and sex, place of residence, ethnic characteristics, tribes, language, religion, marital status,
literacy and education, occupational characteristics, etc.
6.1. Age Composition

The age structure of the population refers to the proportion of persons in different age groups
relative to the total population. The age structure undergoes a shift in response to changes in
levels of development and the average life expectancy. Initially, poor medical facilities,
prevalence of disease and other factors make for a relatively short life span. Moreover, high
infant and maternal mortality rates also have an impact on the age structure.
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With development, quality of life improves and with it the life expectancy also improves. This
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changes the age structure. Consequently, smaller proportions of the population are found in
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the younger age groups and larger proportions in the older age groups. This is also referred to
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as the ageing of the population.

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The population of a nation is generally grouped into three broad categories:

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Children (generally below 15 years): They are economically unproductive and need to be
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provided with food, clothing, education and medical care.

Working Age (15-59 years): They are economically productive and biologically reproductive.
They comprise the working population.
Aged (Above 59 years): They can be economically productive though they and may have
retired. They may be working voluntarily but they are not available for employment through
recruitment.
Trends in India: Observe Table T2 and Figure S7. What can you infer?
6.1.1. Dependency Ratio
The dependency ratio is a measure comparing the portion of a population which is composed
of dependents (i.e., elderly people who are too old to work, and children who are too young to
work) with the portion that is in the working age group, generally defined as 15 to 59 years. The
dependency ratio is equal to the population below 15 or above 60, divided by population in the
15-59 age group; the ratio is usually expressed as a percentage.

Student Notes:
A rising dependency ratio is a cause for worry in countries that are facing an aging population,
since it becomes difficult for a relatively smaller proportion of working-age people to carry the
burden of providing for a relatively larger proportion of dependents. On the other hand, a
falling dependency ratio can be a source of economic growth and prosperity due to the larger
proportion of workers relative to non-workers. This is sometimes referred to as the
‘demographic dividend’, or benefit flowing from the changing age structure. However, this
benefit is temporary because the larger pool of working age people will eventually turn into
non-working old people.
6.2. Sex composition

Sex composition is a very significant indicator of the quality of population of a country as a
human resource. In fact, primarily it is understood on the basis of sex ratio.
The Sex Ratio refers to the number of females per 1000 males in a given area at a specified
time period.
The Child Sex Ratio is the sex ratio in the age group 0-6 years (child) in a given area at a
specified time period.
Natural Advantage v/s Social Disadvantage
Females have a biological advantage over males as they tend to be more resilient than males
yet this advantage is cancelled out by the social disadvantages and discriminations that they
face.
Life expectancy at Birth in India
67.3 years for male and 69.6 years for female in 2011-2015.
Trends in India: Observe Figure S8 – S12. What does it suggest?
6.3. Transgender composition

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During Enumeration of Census 2011, for the first time three codes were provided i.e. Male-1,
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Female –2 and others -3. In case the respondent wished to record neither '1' nor '2', then
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enumerator was instructed to record sex as 'other' and give code '3'. Still, it is important to note
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that the Census on India does not collect any data specifically on 'transgender'. Thus, the
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category of 'other' would not only include 'transgender' but also any person who desires to
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record sex under the category of 'other'. It is also possible that some transgenders would have
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returned themselves either male or female depending upon their choice. The population of
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'other' as per Census 2011 is 4,87,803.

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6.4. Divyang composition

The 2011 census shows 207.8 lakh households having disabled persons in the country
constituting 8.3 percent of the total households. Total households having disabled persons
show an increase of 20.5 lakhs from last census.
Out of the total disabled population of 2.68 crores in Census 2011, 1.46 crores (54.5%) are
literates and the remaining 1.22 crores (45.5%) are illiterates. One decade ago, the percentage
of literates among disabled population was 49.3% and the remaining 50.7% were illiterates.
6.5. Literacy composition

Literacy as a prerequisite to education is an instrument of empowerment. The more literate the
population the greater the consciousness of career options, as well as participation in the
knowledge economy. Further, literacy can lead to health awareness and fuller participation in
the cultural and economic well-being of the community. Literacy levels have improved
considerably after independence and almost two-thirds of our population is now literate. But,

Student Notes:
literacy rate has struggled to keep pace with the rate of growth of the Indian population It
varies considerably across gender, across regions, and across social groups. As can be seen,
female literacy has been rising faster than male literacy, partly because it started from relatively
low levels. Literacy rates also vary across different social groups – historically disadvantaged
communities like the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes have lower rates of literacy, and
rates of female literacy within these groups are even lower. Regional variations are still very
wide, with states like Kerala approaching universal literacy, while states like Bihar are lagging far
behind. The inequalities in the literacy rate are especially important because they tend to
reproduce inequality across generations. Illiterate parents are at a severe disadvantage in
ensuring that their children are well educated, thus perpetuating existing inequalities. See Fig.
S 13 and S 14?
EDUCATIONAL CHALLENGES
• While only 73 per cent literacy has been achieved as per Census 2011, there has been
marked improvement in female literacy. Male literacy at 80.9 per cent is still higher than
female literacy at 64.6 per cent but the latter has increased by 10.9 percentage points
compared to 5.6 percentage points for the former.
• According to the DISE (District Information System for Education), total enrolment in
primary schools increased from 134 million to 137 million in 2011- 12 and then declined to
132 million in 2013-14 while upper primary enrolment grew from 51 million to about 67
million. This is in line with the changing demographic age structure.
• India has achieved near universal enrolment and enhanced hard and soft infrastructure
(schools, teachers, and academic support staff).
• However, the overall standard of education is well below global standards. PISA
(Programme for International Student Assessment) 2009 results ranked Tamil Nadu and
Himachal Pradesh 72 and 73 out of 74 participants, higher only than Kyrgyzstan, exposes
the gaps in our education system. PISA, which measures the knowledge and skills of 15-
year-olds with questions designed to assess their problem-solving capabilities, rates these
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two states at the bottom, with the scores in mathematics and science falling way behind
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the OECD (Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development) average. India did
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not participate in PISA 2012.

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• ASER (Annual Status of Education Report) findings reported about low levels of learning
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amongst the 5 to 16 age group in rural India since 2005. The worrying fact is that these are
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floor level tests (basic 2-digit carry-forward subtraction and division skills), without which
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one cannot progress in the school system.

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• The policy prescription lies in shifting attention away from inputs to outcomes and focusing
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on building quality education and skill development infrastructure

• With the changing demography and declining child population, the inadequacy of human
capital at the base of the pyramid leading to a huge backlog in basic skills could become a
big impediment in India’s growth.
6.6. Working Population Composition

The population of India according to their economic status is divided into three groups, namely;
main workers, marginal workers and non-workers.
Standard Census Definition
Main Worker is a person who works for at least 183
days in a year.
Marginal Worker is a person who works for less than
183 days in a year.

Student Notes:
Work participation rate is defined as the percentage of total workers (main and marginal) to
total population.
It is observed that in India, the proportion of workers (both main and marginal) is only 39 per
cent (2001) leaving a vast majority of 61 per cent as non-workers. This indicates an economic
status in which there is a larger proportion of dependent population, further indicating possible
existence of large number of unemployed or under employed people.
The proportion of working population, of the states and Union Territories show a moderate
variation from about 25 per cent in Goa to about 53 per cent in Mizoram. The states with larger
percentages of workers are Himachal Pradesh, Sikkim, Chhattisgarh, Andhra Pradesh,
Karnataka, Arunachal Pradesh, Nagaland, Manipur and Meghalaya. Among the Union
Territories, Dadra and Nagar Haveli and Daman and Diu have higher participation rate.
It is understood that, in the context of a country like India, the work participation rate tends to
be higher in the areas of lower levels of economic development since number of manual
workers are needed to perform the subsistence or near subsistence economic activities.
The occupational composition (see box) of India’s population (which actually means
engagement of an individual in farming, manufacturing trade, services or any kind of
professional activities) shows a large proportion of primary sector workers compared to
secondary and tertiary sectors. About 58.2 per cent of total working population are cultivators
and agricultural labourers, whereas only 4.2% of workers are engaged in household industries
and 37.6 % are other workers including non-household industries, trade, commerce,
construction and repair and other services. As far as the occupation of country’s male and
female population is concerned, male workers out-number female workers in all the three
sectors.
The number of female workers is relatively high in primary sector, though in recent years there
has been some improvement in work participation of women in secondary and tertiary sectors.
It is important to note that the proportion of workers in agricultural sector in India has shown a
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decline over the last few decades (66.85% in 1991 to 58.2% in 2001).
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Consequently, the participation rate in secondary and tertiary sector has registered an increase.
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This indicates a shift of dependence of workers from farm-based occupations to nonfarm based
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ones, indicating a sectoral shift in the economy of the country. The spatial variation of work
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participation rate in different sectors in the country is very wide. For instance, the states like
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Himachal Pradesh and Nagaland have very large shares of cultivators.

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On the other hand states like Andhra Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Orissa, Jharkhand, West Bengal
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and Madhya Pradesh have higher proportion of agricultural labourers. The highly urbanised
areas like Delhi, Chandigarh and Puducherry have a very large proportion of workers being
engaged in other services. This indicates not only availability of limited farming land, but also
large scale urbanisation and industrialisation requiring more workers in non-farm sectors. (Table
T4 and Fig. S 15)
LABOUR FORCE PARTICIPATION IN INDIA
The Economic Survey (2015-16) states that the proportion of economically active population
(15-59 years) has increased from 57.7 per cent to 63.3 per cent during 1991 to 2013, as per
Sample Registration System (SRS) data for 2013.
• The Fourth Annual Employment-Unemployment Survey conducted by the Labour Bureau
during the period January 2014 to July 2014 has shown that the Labour Force Participation
Rate (LFPR) is 52.5 % for all persons.
• However, the LFPR for rural areas stands at 54.7% which is much greater than that for
rural areas i.e. 47.2 %.

Student Notes:
• The LFPR for women is significantly lower than that for males in both rural and urban
areas.
• As per the Survey, the Unemployment Rate is 4.7 % in rural areas and 5.5% in urban
areas. The total unemployment rate reported is 4.9% as per the Labour Bureau Survey.
These figures are much higher than the all India unemployment rates of the National
Sample Survey Office (NSSO, 2012-11) which reported unemployment rate of 2.3% for rural
areas, 3.8% for Urban Areas and 2.7% for India as a whole.
For state wise labor participation rate refer TABLE T8.
6.7. Adolescents
An important aspect of population growth in India is the growth of its adolescents. At present
the share of adolescents i.e. up to the age group of 10-19 years is about 21 per cent (2011)..
The adolescent population,
though, regarded as the
youthful population having
high potentials, but at the
same time they are quite
vulnerable if not guided and
channelized properly. There
are many challenges for the
society as far as these
adolescents are concerned,
some of which are lower age
at marriage, illiteracy –
particularly female illiteracy,
school dropouts, low intake of nutrients, high rate of maternal mortality of adolescent mothers,
high rates of HIV/AIDS infections, physical and mental disability or retardation, drug abuse and
alcoholism, juvenile delinquency and committance of crimes, etc. (Refer Table T5)
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In view of these, the Government of India has undertaken certain policies to impart proper
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education to the adolescent groups so that their talents are better channelized and properly
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utilized.
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The National Population Policy 2000 identifies them as an “under-served population group”,
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because their needs have not been specifically addressed so far. The Policy describes various
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strategies to address different needs of adolescents. These are:

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(i) provide accurate information about physical, physiological, psychological and social
changes and developments that take place during adolescence;
(ii) develop the needed life skills to empower them to avoid risky situations and to attain
sound physical, mental and social health;
(iii) provide food supplements and nutritional services; and
(iv) make available the needed health and counseling services available to them.
6.8. Issues related to Youth

The National Youth Policy 2014 defines the age of youth as persons between the age 15-29
years. Youths in India today face various challenges related to employment, drug abuse, suicidal
tendencies, adverse impact of media and social-media and stress arising out of changing
societal structure especially due to emergence of nuclear families.
Employability Challenge- Over 30% of youth aged 15-29 in India are not in employment,
education or training (NEETs). This is more than double the OECD average and almost three
times that of China. NEET status of youths results due to not enough quality jobs being created

Student Notes:
in the system and because youths have little incentives or face too high constraints to be in the
education and training systems.
Drug Abuse- Due to India’s close proximity with major opium growing areas of the region, India
is facing the serious menace of drug trafficking and as a spillover effect, drug abuse especially
among the youth is a matter of concern. Being signatory to all the three UN conventions and
SAARC convention, India has enacted Narcotics Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Act, 1985
and Prevention of Illicit Trafficking of Narcotics Drug and Psychotropic Substances Act, 1988
through which the country is addressing various aspects of drug problem.
Suicidal Tendencies- Though India’s suicide rate is the 12th highest in the world, the country is
unfortunately home to the highest number of suicides among people in the 15-29 age group –
35.5 in 100,000 people. It is significant that the highest number of suicides is reported from
states with a high literacy level. Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu, West Bengal, Kerala and Karnataka
report more than 53 percent of the national total.
Radicalization- Recent reports about a group of Indians joining the ISIS have raised concerns
about the possibility of an increasing number of young professionals joining global jihadist
groups. Second area of concern is the recent trend in India's domestic politics where radical
groups and ideologies are being propagated, causing greater polarization among communities
Political exclusion- Young people have been excluded from development programs and
activities in numerous ways. As an age cohort, youth are less likely to be involved in governance
and decision-making processes, as a result of economic, political, and procedural barriers that
prevent their participation. As the beneficiaries of services, youth are also likely to face
marginalization due to their membership in excluded demographic groups, including: women,
indigenous, disabled, LGBTQI, refugee, ethnic minority, migrant, and economically
impoverished. Often marginalized from local and national development gains, youth are
particularly vulnerable to economic shocks, social instability, and conflicts.
The World Programme of Action for Youth (WPAY), adopted by the United Nations General
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Assembly in 1995, provides a policy framework and practical guidelines for national action and
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international support to improve the situation of young people worldwide.

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6.9. National Youth Policy

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The vision of NYP-2014 is to empower youth to achieve their full potential, and through them
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enable India to find its rightful place in the community of nations. For achieving this vision, the
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Policy identifies five well-defined objectives and 11 priority areas and suggests policy
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interventions in each priority area. The priority areas are education, skill development and
employment, entrepreneurship, health and healthy lifestyle, sports, promotion of social values,
community engagement, participation in politics and governance, youth engagement, inclusion
and social justice.
The focused approach on youth development and empowerment involving all stakeholders, as
envisaged in NYP-2014, would result in development of an educated and healthy young
population, who are not only economically productive, but are also socially responsible citizens
contributing to the task of nation-building.
It will cover the entire country catering the needs of all youth in the age-group of 15-29 years,
which constitutes 27.5 per cent of the population according to Census-2011, that is about 33
crore persons. It will replace NYP-2003, to take care of developments since 2003 and future
policy imperatives.
The NYP-2014 proposes broad policy interventions for the youth consistent with the 12thPlan
priorities and does not propose any specific programme/ scheme, having financial implications.

Student Notes:
All concerned Ministries/ Department would be requested to bring focus on youth issues within
the framework of their plans/ programmes/ schemes etc.
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Student Notes:
7. The population pyramid (The age-sex pyramid)

The age-sex structure of a population refers to the number of females and males in different
age groups. A population pyramid is used to
show the age-sex structure of the population.
The shape of the population pyramid reflects
the characteristics of the population. The left
side shows the percentage of males while the
right side shows the percentage of women in
each age group. The following three diagrams
show different types of Population Pyramids.
7.1. Expanding Population

The age-sex pyramid in such a case is a
triangular shaped pyramid with a wide base
and is typical of less developed countries.
These have larger populations in lower age
groups due to high birth rates.
7.2. Constant Population

Here, the age-sex pyramid is bell shaped and
tapered towards the top. This shows birth
and death rates are almost equal leading to a
near constant population.
7.3. Declining Population

This pyramid has a narrow base and a tapered
top showing low birth and death rates. The
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population growth in developed countries is

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usually zero or negative.

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Population pyramid of India through years

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Student Notes:
These pyramids show the effect of a gradual fall in the birth rate and rise in the life expectancy.
As more and more people begin to live in an older age, the top of the pyramid grows wider. As
relatively fewer new births take place, the bottom of the pyramid grows narrower. But the birth
rate is slow to fall, so the bottom doesn’t change much between 1961 and 1981. The middle of
the pyramid grows wider and wider as its share of the total population increases. This creates a
‘bulge’ in the middle age groups that is clearly visible in the pyramid for 2026. This is what is
referred to as the ‘demographic dividend’.
7.4. Regional variations in age-structure pyramid

As with fertility rates, there are wide regional
variations in the age structure as well. While
a state like Kerala is beginning to acquire an
age structure like that of the developed
countries, Uttar Pradesh presents a very
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different picture with high proportions in the

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younger age groups and relatively low

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proportions among the aged. India as a whole

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is somewhere in the middle, because it

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includes states like Uttar Pradesh as well as

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states that are more like Kerala.

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The following diagram shows the estimated

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population pyramids for Uttar Pradesh and

Kerala in the year 2026. Note the difference
in the location of the widest parts of the
pyramid for Kerala and Uttar Pradesh. The
bias towards younger age groups in the age
structure is believed to be an advantage for
India. Like the East Asian economies in the
past decade and like Ireland today, India is
supposed to be benefitting from a
‘demographic dividend’. This dividend arises
from the fact that the current generation of
working-age people is a relatively large one,
and it has only a relatively small preceding generation of old people to support. But there is
nothing automatic about this advantage – it needs to be consciously exploited through
appropriate policies.

Student Notes:
8. Population Issues
8.1. Population Problems of Underdeveloped Countries
There are underdeveloped countries where the level of technological development inhibits
agricultural efficiency and the establishment of industry even though the resources exist in the
country. Such countries have additional problems if they are overpopulated like China or India.
In these countries the modern industrial economy has been grafted on to a traditional
agricultural and the two have not been properly balanced. Another group of countries which
are underdeveloped are those which lack population, although they sometimes have advanced
societies and command modern technological methods. These countries, such as Brazil,
Colombia, Peru, Zaire or Russia have tremendous resources which cannot be fully because of
lack of population. Their problems are often accentuated by adverse climatic conditions.
8.1.1. Problems of Over-population
• Rapid population growth: Large populations increase rapidly especially in the absence of
family planning practices. This leads to a large population of young people who are
dependent on relatively small section of working population. At the same time the large
number of young people put extra strain on social services.
• Unemployment: In many underdeveloped countries industry is not well established and
there are few employment opportunities for unskilled workers. Unemployment is therefore
high. On the other hand there is a shortage of skilled workers because there are few
facilities for training. In overpopulated rural areas unemployment or underemployment is
also a major problem; people migrate to towns where it is often even more difficult to find
work. Moreover, the towns become overcrowded, making living conditions poor.
• Poor standards of living: Standards of health and hygiene and housing are low which leads
to health problems and malnutrition and the spread of diseases. Ignorance of people and
lack of financial resources further add to the problem.
•
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Under-utilization of Agricultural resources: Traditional methods of agriculture, outdated or

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inadequate equipments. Lack of financial resources for improving farms, nonuse or misuse
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of marginal agricultural land, such as highlands, may all help to keep agricultural production
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much lower than its potential. Difficulties of rationalizing farming techniques and reforming
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land tenure to give larger, more economic farms are aggravated by lack of capita and by
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traditional attitudes of farmers who are often slow to adopt new ideas.
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Slow growth of industry: Apart from lack of capital which makes the actual exploitation of
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resources difficult, the population factors are important. The labour force though large in
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number is unskilled and has no background of industrial employment. Similarly, though a

large population should provide a good market for the finished goods, the majority of
people are poor and cannot afford to buy the products. To produce good cheaply for a small
market mechanized manufacture is most economical but this employs very few workers and
does not help the unemployment situation.
• Traditional attitudes militating against change: Traditional or religious attitudes may
militate against change or may make conditions worse. Birth-control is forbidden by
Catholic Church, for instance, and caste restrictions on occupations in India also help to
slow down development. Less important is the conservatism of rural people regarding
farming methods and the introduction of new crops (e.g. genetically modified crops). The
latter attitude can be modified by education but it is often hard to modify the religious
attitudes.
8.1.2. Problems of Under-Population
• Uneven Distribution of Population: Average population densities for under populated
countries are low. Small populations increase slowly, even though birth rates are often high.

Student Notes:
Immigration is an important source of people but it is usually to the towns and cities rather
that rural areas/countryside. At the same time cities with their better living conditions
attract people from the already sparsely settled countryside. Imbalance between town and
country is a major problem of under populated countries.
• Remoteness: It is difficult to increase settlement in sparsely populated areas because
people are unwilling to forego the amenities of the town. Where there are few people it is
uneconomic to provide elaborate communications, health, education or other facilities.
This in turn increases the unwillingness of people to settle in such areas.
• Under Utilization of resources: Lack of population makes it difficult for a country to
develop its resources to the full. Minerals will usually be extracted, especially precious
metals and petroleum, because the desire for wealth will overcome other considerations.
Agricultural resources are more difficult to develop because they require more and harder
work over a long period of years before they show a good return.
• Slow growth of Industry: This is due to shortage of labour, especially skilled labour in under
populated countries, e.g. in the South American and African countries. Imported skilled
labour raises the cost of industrial development. Moreover the small population does not
provide an adequate market even where the standard of living is high.
• Climatic Problems: Hostile climate or relief conditions make settlement difficult. Such
conditions obstruct development and are likely never to be fully overcome.
In under populated countries needs to be increased but this will only work if immigrants
possess the right skills and are prepared to live in sparsely populated areas. In the 19th century,
when the USA was settled people were prepared to develop the land because many of them
were landless peasants, but immigrants to under populated countries today generally prefer
town life. To open up under populated areas is both difficult and expensive and require huge
capital investments.
8.2. Population Problems of Advanced Countries
• Ageing Population: Due to low birth rate the proportion of young people in the population
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is relatively small. Low death rate and high life expectancy mean that there is an ever-
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increasing proportion of older people in the population. Many retire from active work in
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their sixties and then become dependent on the working population. Provisions of pension
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and other facilities, e.g. health services for elderly people pose financial challenges.
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• Small Work force: As educational standards improve children remain longer at school and
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join the workforce later. This, combined with the low birth rate, means that the labour force
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expands only slowly while industrial and other employment opportunities continue to
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multiply. Despite a high degree of mechanization in most industries many countries are
short of workers. Another problem is that the workforce is generally well educated and
skilled and there is a shortage of unskilled workers. Because the majority of workers are
skilled and the work force is relatively small wages are high.
• Rural Depopulation: Steady movement of population occurs from countryside to towns due
to the pull factors of city life. The fewer people in the countryside make it less economical
to provide services or do business. This creates disparity between towns and countryside.
• Urbanization: As towns expand, the pressure on transport, water supplies, sewage and
refuse disposal grows and creates problems. Smoke and chemical effluents from factories
produce air and water pollution. Traffic congestion and noise are other problems. A tension
created by urban life leads to far higher incidence of mental illness than in underdeveloped
countries. Urban sprawl is another problem; the expanding towns engulf land which would
otherwise be suitable for agriculture and thus reduce self-sufficiency in many countries.
Most advanced countries have areas where agriculture or industry could be improved or where
the population is too large. Similarly the underdeveloped countries all have large towns where

Student Notes:
the problems are similar to those of urbanized societies everywhere. It is also important to bear
in mind the differences between under developed countries. Some have a much better
resource base or a smaller population, and these, such as Argentina, Mexico and Malaysia, are
much more likely to be able to overcome their problem than countries with few resources and a
large population with fixed traditional ideas.
Factors that affect population growth
The overarching factor that affects population growth is low socio-economic development.
(Link literacy and population rates- TFR)
• For example, Uttar Pradesh has a literacy rate of 56%; only 14% of the women receive
complete antenatal care. Uttar Pradesh records an average of four children per couple.
• In contrast, in Kerala almost every person is literate and almost every woman receives
antenatal care. Kerala records an average of two children per couple.
Other factors
• Infant mortality
o In 1961, the Infant Mortality Rate (IMR), deaths of infants per 1000 live births, was 115.
The current all India average is much lower at 57. However, in most developed
countries this figure is less than 5.
o IMR is the lowest at 15 in Kerala and the highest at 73 in Uttar Pradesh. Empirical
correlations suggest that high IMR leads to greater desire for children.
• Early marriage
o Nationwide almost 43% of married women aged 20-24 were married before the age of
18. This figure is as high as 68% in Bihar. Not only does early marriage increase the
likelihood of more children, it also puts the woman’s health at risk.
• Level of education
o Fertility rate usually declines with increase in education levels of women.
• Use of contraceptives
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o Temporary vs Permanent- According to NFHS III (2005-06), only 56% of currently

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married women use some method of family planning in India. A majority of them (37%)
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have adopted permanent methods like sterilization.

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• Other socio-economic factors

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o The desire for larger families particularly preference for a male child also leads to
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higher birth rates. It is estimated that preference for a male child and high infant
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mortality together account for 20% of the total births in the country.
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8.3. Declining sex ratio in India

The sex ratio is an important indicator of gender balance in the population.
SEX RATIO TRENDS IN INDIA

The Sex Ratio in the country has shown an improvement. As per the Census, sex ratio has
increased from 933 females per thousand males in 2001 to 943 females per thousand males in
2011. State/UT-wise details of sex ratio are annexed.
As per the Census, 2011 the child sex ratio (0-6 years) has shown a decline from 927 females
per thousand males in 2001 to 919 females per thousand males in 2011.
Some of the reasons for neglect of girl child and low child sex ratio are son preference and the
belief that it is only the son who can perform the last rites, that lineage and inheritance runs
through the male line, sons will look after parents in old age, men are the bread winners etc.
Exorbitant dowry demand is another reason for female foeticide/infanticide. Small family norm

Student Notes:
coupled with easy availability of sex determination tests may be a catalyst in the declining child
sex ratio, further facilitated by easy availability of Pre-conception sex selection facilities.
Refer Table T5 and T6.
Several factors may be held responsible for the decline in the child sex ratio including – severe
neglect of girl babies in infancy, leading to higher death rates; sex specific abortions that
prevent girl babies from being born; and female infanticide (or the killing of girl babies due to
religious or cultural beliefs). Each of these reasons point to a serious social problem, and there
is some evidence that all of these have been at work in India. Practices of female infanticide
have been known to exist in many regions, while increasing importance is being attached to
modern medical techniques by which the sex of the baby can be determined in the very early
stages of pregnancy. The availability of the sonogram (an x-ray like diagnostic device based on
ultra-sound technology), originally developed to identify genetic or other disorders in the fetus,
may be used to identify and selectively abort female foetus.
The regional pattern of low child sex ratios seems to support this argument. It is striking that
the lowest child sex ratios are found in the most prosperous regions of India. Punjab, Haryana,
Chandigarh, Delhi, Gujarat and Maharashtra are among the richest states of India in terms of
per capita incomes, and they are also the states with the lowest child sex ratios. So the problem
of selective abortions is not due to poverty or ignorance or lack of resources. For example, if
practices like dowry mean that parents have to make large dowry payments to marry off their
daughters, then prosperous parents would be the ones most able to afford this.
However, strikingly the sex ratio is lowest in the most prosperous regions. It is also possible
(though this issue is still being researched) that as economically prosperous families decide to
have fewer children – often only one or two now – they may also wish to choose the sex of
their child. This becomes possible with the availability of ultra-sound technology, although the
government has passed strict laws banning this practice and imposing heavy fines and
imprisonment as punishment. Known as the Pre-Natal Diagnostic Techniques (Regulation and
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Prevention of Misuse) Act, this law has been in force since 1996, and has been further
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strengthened in 2003. However, in the long run the solution to problems like the bias against
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girl child depends more on how social attitudes evolve, besides laws and rules.
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9. Population Policies in India

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Population dynamics affects the developmental prospects of a nation as well as the health and
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well-being of its people. This is particularly true of developing countries that have to face
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special challenges in this regard.

Do you know that discussions on population growth and the need to adopt a population policy
had begun in India even before Independence? A Sub-Committee on population was set up by
the National Planning Committee appointed in 1938 by the Interim Government. This
Committee, in its resolution in 1940 said, “in the interest of social economy, family happiness
and national planning, family planning and a limitation of children are essential”.
In fact, India was perhaps the first country to explicitly announce such a policy in 1952. The
aim of the programme was to reduce birth rates “to stabilize the population at a level
consistent with the requirement of national economy”.
The population policy took the concrete form of the National Family Planning Programme. The
broad objectives of this programme have remained the same – to try to influence the rate and
pattern of population growth in socially desirable directions. In the early days, the most
important objective was to slow down the rate of population growth through the promotion of
various birth control methods, improve public health standards, and increase public awareness
about population and health issues.

Student Notes:
The Family Planning Programme suffered a setback during the years of the National Emergency
(1975-76). Normal parliamentary and legal procedures were suspended during this time and
special laws and ordinances issued directly by the government (without being passed by
Parliament) were in force. During this time the government tried to intensify the effort to bring
down the growth The Family Planning Programme suffered a setback during the years of the
National Emergency (1975-76). Normal parliamentary and legal procedures were suspended
during this time and special laws and ordinances issued directly by the government (without
being passed by Parliament) were in force.
During this time the government tried to intensify the effort to bring down the growth rate of
population by introducing a coercive programme of mass sterilization. Here sterilization refers
to medical procedures like vasectomy (for men) and tubectomy (for women) which prevent
conception and childbirth. Vast numbers of mostly poor and powerless people were forcibly
sterilized and there was massive pressure on lower level government officials (like school
teachers or office workers) to bring people for sterilization in the camps that were organized for
this purpose. There was widespread popular opposition to this programme, and the new
government elected after the Emergency abandoned it.
The National Family Planning Programme was renamed as the National Family Welfare
Programme after the Emergency, and coercive methods were no longer used. The programme
now has a broad-based set of socio-demographic objectives. A new set of guidelines were
formulated as part of the National Population Policy of the year 2000.
9.1. National Population Policy 2000

The National Population Policy 2000 has made a qualitative departure in its approach to
population issues. It does
not directly lay emphasis
on population control. It
states that the objective of
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economic and social

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development is to improve
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the quality of lives that

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people lead, to enhance

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their well-being, and to

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provide the opportunities

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and choices to become

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productive assets
(resources) in the society.
Stabilizing population is an
essential requirement for
promoting sustainable
development. The
immediate objective of
the NPP 2000 is to address
the unmet needs for
contraception, health care
infrastructure, and health
personnel, and to provide
integrated service delivery
for basic reproductive and
child health care. The medium term objective is to bring the total fertility rate (TFR) to
replacement levels by 2010 through vigorous implementation of inter-sectoral operational

Student Notes:
strategies. The long term objective is to achieve a stable population by 2045 with sustainable
economic growth, social development, and environmental protection.
Total Fertility Rate at Replacement Level: It is the total fertility rate at which newborn girls
would have an average of exactly one daughter over their lifetimes. In more familiar terms,
every woman has as many babies as needed to replace her. It results into zero population
growth.
Stable Population: A population where fertility and mortality are constant over a period of
time. This type of population will show an unvarying age distribution and will grow at a
constant rate. Where fertility and mortality are equal, the stable population is stationary.
The history of India’s National Family Welfare Programme teaches us that while the state can do
a lot to try and create the conditions for demographic change, most demographic variables
(especially those related to human fertility) are ultimately matters of economic, social and
cultural change.
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10. Appraisal of National Population Policy 2000

In pursuance of the National Population Policy-2000, Government has taken a number of
measures under Family Planning Programme and as a result, Population Growth Rate in India
has reduced substantially which is evident from the following:-
▪ The percentage decadal growth rate of the country has declined significantly from 21.5%
for the period 1991-2001 to 17.7% during 2001-2011.
▪ Total Fertility Rate (TFR) was 3.2 at the time when National Population Policy, 2000 was
adopted and the same has declined to 2.3 as per Sample registration Survey (SRS) 2013
conducted by the Registrar General of India.
In spite of the perceptible decline in Total Fertility Rate (TFR) from 3.6 in 1991 to 2.3 in 2013,
India is yet to achieve replacement level of 2.1. Twenty four states/UTs have already achieved
replacement level of TFR by 2013, while states like UP and Bihar with large population base still
have TFR of 3.1 and 3.4 respectively. The other states like Jharkhand (TFR 2.7), Rajasthan (TFR
2.8), Madhya Pradesh (TFR 2.9), and Chhattisgarh (TFR 2.6) continue to have higher levels of
fertility and contribute to the growth of population.
11. NPP-2000: The Way Forward

NPP-2000 cannot be solely judged a success or failure on the basis of Fertility rates alone. Total
fertility rates ignore the larger mission of NPP-2000, namely the promise of high quality
reproductive healthcare. While southern states like Kerala and Andhra Pradesh are successfully
prioritizing proper implementation and women’s health, the vast majority of states continue to
compromise reproductive health with poor service.
The solution to poor implementation is clear: state governments and other administrators of
NPP-2000 need to prioritize reproductive health at every level of the family planning program.
To do so, the family planning program must expand. Large scale networks are a crucial piece of
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this recommendation. By formalizing the relationships among Panchayats, NGOs, grassroots

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organizations, and state officials, the family planning program will likely garner greater support
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and transparency. The Ministry of Health and Family Welfare should take steps to attract health
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care workers and doctors to the family planning field. In addition, staff must be properly trained
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and held accountable for their work. Competitive pay should be offered to family planning
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professionals so as to maintain high quality services in the long-term.

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Further, transportation limitations must be addressed in order to reach men and women of
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disadvantaged populations (i.e. slum residents, tribal castes, and rural residents). Finally, men
must be included in discussions of family planning practice. Ample evidence suggests that
husbands make decisions related to family planning and healthcare, yet data from the most
recent Demographic and Health Survey (2005) reveal that men are less knowledgeable of
contraceptive methods than their female partners. Collaborative family planning decisions
made by men and women are likely to yield fertility outcomes which satisfy both partners.
Thus, administrators of the National Population Policy (2000) should take steps to educate men
about the benefits of family planning.
What families lack is education, information, and adequate access to contraceptives. If the
National Population Policy (2000) is to eliminate the unmet contraceptive needs of all Indians,
implementation of the family planning program must reflect an appreciation of family
preferences and high quality healthcare.
What else should a future population policy address?
Apart from achieving the basic demographic goals, a future population policy must also address
the skewed female and child sex ratio which is spreading from urban into rural areas.

Student Notes:
Discriminatory social barriers like the absence of women’s ownership rights over land and
property are responsible for the continuing son preference.
Second important area that a future population policy must address relates to migration. The
Census 2011 has given the picture of interstate and intrastate migration triggered by
employment, business, education, marriage and other variables. Unplanned migration to the
metros and large cities puts pressure on the infrastructure, housing and water availability and
creates insider-outsider tension. If this is factored into the population policy, it would make for
more foresight and greater coordination, and avoid the inevitable outcome of mushrooming
slums and unplanned habitations.
Next comes the ageing factor. The growing population of the elderly and the increase in life
expectancy accompanied by chronic diseases has the potential to deflect resources from the
primary task of providing education and skill development. Dependency ratios are increasing
rapidly while the joint family system has disintegrated. The market of caregivers is today
unregulated, expensive and undependable. The business opportunity to match the growing
needs of this population cohort after factoring in their growing disability needs to be a part of
the population policy.
A population policy that protects our demographic assets while preparing for difficult
challenges that lie ahead will protect future generations from catastrophic consequences.
11.1. Measures taken to control the population growth of India

On-going interventions
• More emphasis on Spacing methods like IUCD.
• Availability of Fixed Day Static Services at all facilities.
• Quality care in Family Planning services by establishing Quality Assurance Committees at
state and district levels.
• Improving contraceptives supply management up to peripheral facilities.
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• Demand generation activities in the form of display of posters, billboards and other audio
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and video materials in the various facilities.

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• National Family Planning Indemnity Scheme’ (NFPIS) under which clients are insured in the
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eventualities of deaths, complications and failures following sterilization and the providers/
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accredited institutions are indemnified against litigations in those eventualities.

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• Compensation scheme for sterilization acceptors - under the scheme MoHFW provides
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compensation for loss of wages to the beneficiary and also to the service provider (& team)
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for conducting sterilisations.

• Increasing male participation and promotion of Non Scalpel Vasectomy.
• Emphasis on Minlap Tubectomy services because of its logistical simplicity and
requirement of only MBBS doctors and not post graduate gynecologists/surgeons.
• Accreditation of more private/NGO facilities to increase the provider base for family
planning services under PPP.
New Interventions under Family Planning Programme
• Scheme for Home delivery of contraceptives by ASHAs at doorstep of beneficiaries: The
govt. has launched a scheme to utilize the services of ASHA to deliver contraceptives at the
doorstep of beneficiaries.
• Scheme for ASHAs to ensure spacing in births: Under this scheme, services of ASHAs to be
utilised for counselling newly married couples to ensure delay of 2 years in birth after
marriage and couples with 1 child to have spacing of 3 years after the birth of 1stchild.
• Boost to spacing methods by introduction of new method PPIUCD (Post-Partum Intra
Uterine Contraceptives Device.

Student Notes:
• Introduction of the new device Cu IUCD 375, which is effective for 5 years.
• Emphasis on Postpartum Family Planning (PPFP) services with introduction of PPIUCD and
promotion of minilap as the main mode of providing sterilisation in the form of post-
partum sterilisation to capitalise on the huge cases coming in for institutional delivery
under JSY.
• Compensation for sterilisation acceptors has been enhanced for 11 High Focus States with
high TFR.
• Scheme for provision of pregnancy testing kits at the sub-centres as well as in the drug kit
of the ASHAs for use in the communities to facilitate the early detection and decision
making for the outcome of pregnancy.
• RMNCH Counselors (Reproductive Maternal New Born and Child Health) availability at the
high case facilities to ensure counseling of the clients visiting the facilities.
• FP 2020- Family Planning Division is working on the national and state wise action plans so
as to achieve FP 2020 goals. The key commitments of FP 2020 are as under :
o Increasing financial commitment on Family Planning whereby India commits an
allocation of 2 billion USD from 2012 to 2020.
o Ensuring access to family planning services to 48 million (4.8 crore) additional women
by 2020 (40% of the total FP 2020 goal).
o Sustaining the coverage of 100 million (10 crore) women currently using contraceptives.
Reducing the unmet need by an improved access to voluntary family planning services, supplies
and information. In addition to above, Jansankhya Sthirata Kosh/National Population
Stabilization Fund has adopted the following strategies as a population control measure:-
• Prerna Strategy: JSK has launched this strategy for helping to push up the age of marriage
of girls and delay in first child and spacing in second child the birth of children in the
interest of health of young mothers and infants. The couple who adopt this strategy
awarded suitably. This helps to change the mindsets of the community.
• Santushti Strategy: Under this strategy, Jansankhya Sthirata Kosh, invites private sector
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gynaecologists and vasectomy surgeons to conduct sterilization operations in Public Private

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Partnership mode. The private hospitals/nursing home who achieved target to 10 or more
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are suitably awarded as per strategy.

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• National Helpline: JSK also running a call centers for providing free advice on reproductive
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health, family planning, maternal health and child health etc.

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• Advocacy & IEC activities: JSK as a part of its awareness and advocacy efforts on population
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stabilization, has established networks and partnerships with other ministries, development
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partners, private sectors, corporate and professional bodies for spreading its activities
through electronic media, print media, workshop, walkathon, and other multi-level
activities etc. at the national, state, district and block level.

Student Notes:
12. Appendix (Population Maps and tables)
Fig. - S1
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Fig. - S2
Fig. - S3
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Fig. - S4
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Fig. - S5
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Fig S6
Trivia: Population Doubling Time: Population doubling time is the time taken by any population
to double itself at its current annual growth rate.
Fig. - S7 – Age Structure in India 2011

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Fig. – S8
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Fig. - S9
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Fig. - S 10
Fig. - S 11
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Fig. S 12
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Fig. - S 13
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Fig. - S 14 – Literacy Rate – India 2011

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Fig S 15
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Fig. S16
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Table T1
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Table T3
Table T4
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Table T5
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Table T6 – Old Age Population Projection
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TABLE T6-CHILD SEX RATIO in DIFFERENT STATES
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TABLE T7-ADULT SEX RATIO IN DIFERENT STATES
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TABLE T8: State/UT-wise usual status (adjusted), Workforce Participation

Rates (%) in the rural and urban areas in the country during 2011-12.

1. Census 2011 indicates that there is a stark north-south divide with respect to the
ongoing demographic shifts in India. Explain this phenomenon and discuss its policy
implications for both northern and southern states?
Approach:
• Explain the difference between demographic shift taking place in northern and
southern states. For instance as per recent data, one in every 3 children in 0-14 is
from UP or Bihar. On the other hands southern states have stabilized their
population long back and are now seeing a rapid rise in their old age population.
• Policy implications such as – northern states need to invest more on education, skill
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building etc. While southern ones due to their ageing population should invest
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more on healthcare, pensions, insurance.

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Answer:
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There is a significant north-south divide on demographic growth in India as seen in the

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2011 census.
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• The southern states are showing faster decline in the population growth rate as
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compared to the northern states. For instance as per recent data, one in every 3
children in 0-14 is from UP or Bihar. On the other hands southern states have
stabilized their population long back and are now seeing a rapid rise in their old age
population.
• As a result of this, there is scarcity of unskilled labor in the south which is currently
filled in by migration from other parts of the country.
• India will have extremely different structure of population across states; while in
some states the population age structure will be adult concentrated and will move
to old age, other states will have still more concentration of child and young
population. This implies that the governments need entirely different policies to
tackle issues in these contexts.
• It means that northern states need to invest more on education, skill building etc.
While southern ones due to their ageing population should invest more on
healthcare, pensions, insurance.

Student Notes:
2. What is reproductive health? How does it differ from the existing family planning and
maternal and child health programmes?
Approach:
• The answer should clearly define the concept of reproductive health. It should
bring out the basic ideas, motivations and the approaches taken by the existing
family planning and maternal and child health programmes and contrast it with the
ideas driving a reproductive health programme.
Answer:
According to WHO, reproductive health implies that “people are able to have a
responsible, satisfying and safe sex life and that they have the capability to reproduce
and the freedom to decide if, when and how often to do so”. Implicit in this are the
right of men and women to be informed of and to have access to safe, effective,
affordable and acceptable methods of fertility regulation of their choice, and the right
of access to appropriate health care services that will enable women to go safely
through pregnancy and childbirth and provide couples with the best chance of having a
healthy infant.
Reproductive health interventions are most likely to include attention to the issues of
family planning, STD prevention and management and prevention of maternal and
perinatal mortality and morbidity. Reproductive health can also address issues such as
harmful practices, unwanted pregnancy, unsafe abortion, reproductive tract infections
including sexually transmitted diseases and HIV/AIDS, gender-based violence, infertility,
malnutrition and anemia, and reproductive tract cancers.
In India, the Reproductive and Child Health Programme, was launched in 1997.Its aim
was to integrate services for the prevention and management of unwanted pregnancy,
the promotion of safe motherhood and child survival, and the prevention and
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management of reproductive tract infections and sexually transmitted infections. The

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programme aimed at expanding services to meet the needs of hitherto under-served

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and neglected population groups, including adolescents, and economically and socially
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disadvantaged groups, such as urban slum and tribal populations.

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How this concept is different from existing family planning and maternal and child
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health programmes:
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• The objectives, design and evaluation of family planning programmes were largely
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driven by a demographic imperative, without due consideration to related health

issues such as maternal health or STD prevention and management.
• In general, such programmes exclusively targeted women, taking little account of
the social, cultural and intimate realities of their reproductive lives and decision-
making powers.
• They tended to serve only married people, excluding, in particular, young people.
• Services were rarely designed to serve men even though they have reproductive
health concerns of their own, particularly with regard to sexually transmitted
diseases.
Hence, a reproductive health approach would differ from a narrow family planning
approach in several ways. It would aim to build upon what exists and at the same time
to modify current narrow, vertical programmes to ones in which every opportunity is
taken to offer women and men a full range of reproductive health services in a linked
way.

Student Notes:
3. Demographic Dividend, if not nurtured properly can become Demographic Disaster.

Explain in the context of India.
Approach:
• Focus should be on the initiative of Government to harness the huge demographic
dividend of the countries and the progress we made in this sphere till now.
• Also need some reference on the Ill-effects of Not Properly handling the vast
Demographic Dividend, which in absence of Skills and Employment, may result in
their disenchantment.
• Some facts regarding Demographic dividend.
Answer:
• Demographic dividend refers to a period, “when a greater proportion of population
are young and in working age group”.
• According to latest reports, 65% of India is under 35 year of age, 50% of India is
under 25 year of age. Average Age in India is 29 years, unlike other countries
including Japan with average age 47, China with 40+, Europe with 46, US with
average age of 40. Today India has Youthful, Productive and Dynamic population
ready to work and transform the world. According to ILO, by 2020, we will have 116
million people in the age group of 20-24 in comparison to China having only 94
million.
• A population bulge in the working age group is considered advantageous. Firstly
due to this bulge, the dependency ratio declines. Secondly, surplus available for
investment after the current consumption increases which results into spurring
economic growth.
• This situation just creates a potential for economic growth, it does not guarantee
it.It depends on two factors: firstly, on the quality of those entering the workforce
and secondly on the employment opportunities are available to them.
• Hence, if we educate and train these youth, we can transform not just our own
economy and society but the world.
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• Moreover, youth is known for their idealism and energy and if their energy is not
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properly harness by providing them skills and training, it may lead to youth unrest
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and also pose security threat in the form of Maoist insurgency that include
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unemployed, frustrated, under-educated youth in its cadre.

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• Although, IT software, back-office services and research and development activities

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are all booming. But none of these, however, has jobs for the underprivileged, the
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undereducated and the under skilled.

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• Jobs are the missing element in the Indian economy today and job-generation will
be the key to India sustaining its blistering growth rates. India will need to create
jobs in large-scale, labor-intensive manufacturing to stop these extremist
movements from turning into something even more serious.
• In order to get there, it will require the government to relax labor laws that
penalize large scale manufacturing and that force companies to use expensive
labor-substituting technology rather than the cheap manpower that India has in
abundance.
• It will, above all, require the government to create the fiscal space for massive
investment in human capital through health and education so that the productive
potential of India’s young workforce can be fully utilized.
• It will also require a colossal investment in physical infrastructure, lifting
infrastructure spending as a share of GDP to 7-8 per cent from 4.6 per cent. If India
acts urgently, it may well be next global economic powerhouse, as everyone wants
to believe. If not, all bets are off.

Student Notes:
4. What are the reasons behind National Population Policy failing to check population
growth in India?
Approach:
• Straight forward question. Write down few of the reasons.
• Conclude with few suggestions.
Answer:
• India was the first country to launch a national programme on population in 1952.
In fact India’s quest for population stabilization began in 1951 with the formulation
of the first five year plan. Yet more than 60 years goals remain elusive.
• In India, there has not been an effective institutionalized mechanism to reduce
birth rate. On the other hand, efforts to bring down the death rate have been quite
successful. Improvement in conditions of health and hygiene has lowered the death
rate. The family planning movement gains national importance in such a situation
of imbalance development and population growth.
• Hence, the government for the first time formulated a policy( effort to regulate
economic and social conditions which are likely to have demographic
consequences) in 1976, with an aim to decrease birth rate, legalize abortion, check
the concentration of population, giving incentives and disincentives. But it
boomeranged because of its coerciveness, overzealous attitude and compulsory
sterilization.
• Further, the government with a revived approach to fight the menace of population
growth introduced the national population policy in 2000. It aimed at achieving
the objective of stable population by 2045, at a level consistent with the
requirement of sustainable economic growth, social development and
environmental protection. Its objective was to address the needs for contraception,
healthcare, infrastructure and health personnel and to provide integrated service
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delivery for basic reproductive and child health care. The policy had set goals for
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2010 with respect to IMR, MMR, TFR, institutional deliveries etc. but it failed to
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achieve these targets.

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The reasons for the failure were lack of political will, lack of responsive policy, lack
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of awareness, cultural inertia etc. hence government came up with the revised
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population policy in 2010.

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• The aim of the national policy was to impress upon the people the need for small,
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planned families for their own good as well as for the wellbeing of their children.
The 20 point programme envisages family planning on voluntary basis as a people’s
movement. What is needed to inculcate awareness among the people through the
media and oral communication about the significance of the small family norm.
Female literacy and education can play a decisive role in bringing down the rate of
population growth.
• The following suggestions have been put forward to curb population growth:
o Group acceptance of small sized family.
o Personal knowledge about family planning methods.
o Ready availability of birth control devices and services.
• Hence, the crux of the population policy is the reduction of the national birth rate;
irrespective of social, cultural and economic milieu. Coercing people to adopt family
planning methods has not worked. Volition alone, created through awakening, can
be an effective measure.

Student Notes:
5. How does economic development influence the demography of a society? Discuss in

the context of India.
Approach:
Basic theme of the question is relationship between economic development and
demographic changes. Answer can be approached in following ways:
• Explain briefly the general trend in demography with respect to economic growth in
India.
• Discuss in detail what demographic changes brought about by economic growth in
Indian society e.g. decreasing fertility rate, sex ratio etc.
Answer:
Economic development and demographic changes are intimately related with each
other. High level of economic development led to decline in fertility rate, population
growth, mortality rate and rise in life expectancy and literacy rate. Similarly, India have
experienced fundamental changes in population growth rate, fertility rate, life
expectancy and age structure in the process of economic development over the years.
Following are the nature of these changes:
• High level of economic growth (6-8 %) in last two decades favouring particular
regions have led to increasing concentration of population in urban areas. The ratio
of urban population have consistently rose to 31 percent in 2011 giving rise to
increased population density in urban areas.
• There is a steep decline in overall population growth rate from 24.5% in 1981 to
17.6% in 2011. This decline corresponds with increasing level of economic growth
and rise of service sector.
• The growing literacy rate from 54% in 1991 to 74% in 2011 can be attributed to
increasing economic development as demand for skill force and opportunities for
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employment increases.
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• Slow economic growth in rural economy in recent decades have led to large scale
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migration leading to change in demographic structure of urban and rural areas.

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With the increasing level of economic development and growth of health services,
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changing food pattern, the life expectancy of population is continuously increasing

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in India.
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• India is witnessing rise in proportion of working age population (15-64) called as

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demographic dividend which is considered both the result of economic condition

of society and have implications for economic development.
• The participation of workers in labour market have increased over the years with
the growth of new sectors of the economy like in service sector.
6. The uneven spatial distribution of population in India suggests its close relationship
with physical, social and historical factors. Elaborate.
Approach:
• Briefly discuss about the uneven spatial distribution of population in India.
• Discuss how it is closely related with physical, social and historical factors.
Answer:
• The spatial spread of population in India is not uniform. The uneven density of
population in India is clear from the fact that in Arunachal Pradesh the average

Student Notes:
number of population is only 17 persons per km2, whereas it is 11,297 persons per
km2 in Delhi as per 2011 census.
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Figure: Population density, 2011

• There is a very wide regional variation in population distribution of India. An
uneven spatial distribution of population in India suggests a close relationship
between population and physical, socio- economic and historical factors.
• Physical factors
o As far as the physical factors are concerned, it is clear that climate along with
terrain and availability of water largely determines the pattern of the
population distribution.
o Like the North Indian Plains, deltas and Coastal Plains have higher proportion of
population than the interior districts of southern and central Indian States,
Himalayas, some of the North-Eastern and the western states.

Student Notes:
o However, development of irrigation (Rajasthan), availability of mineral and

energy resources (Jharkhand) and development of transport network
(Peninsular States) have resulted in moderate to high concentration of
population in areas which were previously very thinly populated.
• Socio-economic and historical factors
o Among the socio-economic and historical factors of distribution of population,
important ones are evolution of settled agriculture and agricultural
development; pattern of human settlement; development of transport
network, industrialisation and urbanisation.
o It is observed that the regions falling in the river plains and coastal areas of
India have remained the regions of larger population concentration. Even
though the uses of natural resources like land and water in these regions have
shown the sign of degradation, the concentration of population remains high
because of an early history of human settlement and development of transport
network.
o On the other hand, the urban regions of Delhi, Mumbai, Kolkata, Bangalore,
Pune, Ahmedabad, Chennai and Jaipur have high concentration of population
due to industrial development and urbanisation drawing a large numbers of
rural-urban migrants.
We can conclude that in any region the density and distribution is influenced by
more than one factor. Take for example of North-Eastern region of India. Here
several factors are responsible for low density of population. These factors are high
rainfall, rough terrain, dense forests and poor quality of soil and many socio-
economic and historical factors.
7. India was one of the first countries to explicitly announce an official population policy
in 1952. Critically analyse various aspects of the population policy of the country over
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the years.
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Approach:
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• Introduction to the answer should breifly define population policy. Also, briefly
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contextualize evolution of the population policy beginning with the National Family
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Planning Programme in 1952.

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• Provide the features of the population policy as it has evolved over the years in
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terms of different approaches adopted and important policy documents such as the
National Population policy 2000. Critical analysis could be presented through the
achievements and failures of the policies over the year.
• Conclude on a positive note acknowledging the progress made as well as the
ingoing efforts.
Answer:
A population policy is one which seeks to influence various demographic variables, such
as rate and pattern of growth, birth rate, mortality rate and more. Population was
identified as a strategic component of the development plan in independent India. This
led to the introduction of National Family Planning Programme in 1952 which was
mainly aimed at controlling the rate of growth of population through the means of birth
control methods.
• During the National Emergency, efforts to control population intensified.
Unfortunately, coercive methods, such as forcible mass sterilization, were used
which caused resentment amongst the people towards the population policy.

Student Notes:
• Subsequently the programme was renamed as National Family Welfare Program,

wherein the focus shifted to controlling population through welfare of the people.
The coercive methods to control population were dropped and broad-based socio-
demographic objectives were adopted instead.
• A new Set of guidelines were formulated as part of the National Population Policy,
2000. It set forth targets to be achieved by 2010, which were holistic in nature,
covering wide areas which impacted public health and pattern of population
change.
• The overall performance has been less than satisfactory, both in terms of
implementation and achieving targets. The focus areas, initially, were too narrow,
such as population control by contraception and sterilization. Rather, the focus
should have been on socio-economic factors which cause high rate of population
growth. The targets of NPP, 2000 remain unachieved even in 2015.
• That being said, there have been many significant achievements in the fifty years
since the formation of the first policy. There have been reductions in the Crude
Birth Rate, Infant Mortality Rate (IMR) and a vast improvement in the life
expectancy. The population has stabilized as the Total Fertility Rate reduced to
below 3, but it has taken too long to achieve.
Over the decades, the population policy has undergone transformation in terms of
policy and actual programme implementation and currently being repositioned to not
only achieve population stabilization goals but also promote reproductive health and
reduce maternal, infant & child mortality and morbidity.
Recent steps such as National Rural Health Mission, will certainly improve our
performance in achieving the targets. India should take inspiration from neighbors like
Sri Lanka with better record on population parameters.

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1. Review the population policy of the Govt. of India giving the distinguishing features. (2001)
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2. Outline the main targets fixed in the National Population Policy 2000. What have been the
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follow up measures to this policy? (2002)

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3. Define Sex ratio in the population of India. What is its present status? (2002)
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4. Critically examine whether growing population is the cause of poverty OR poverty is the
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mains cause of population increase in India. (2013)

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Telegram : UPSC CSE Free Material (OPTIMISTIC IAS)

www.visionias.in ©Vision IAS

SALIENT FEATURES OF INDIAN SOCIETY

2. Characteristics of Indian Society ................................................................................................ 2

3. Features of Indian Society .......................................................................................................... 2

3.1. Caste System ....................................................................................................................... 2

3.1.1. Changes in the Caste system ........................................................................................ 4

3.1.2. Factors Affecting the Changes in Caste System ............................................................ 4

3.2. Religious Pluralism .............................................................................................................. 5

3.2.1. Different Religious Groups in India .............................................................................. 5

3.3. Kinship, Marriage and Family .............................................................................................. 5

3.3.1. Kinship .......................................................................................................................... 5

3.3.2. Marriage ....................................................................................................................... 6

3.3.3. Family in Indian Society ................................................................................................ 6

3.4. Diversity in India.................................................................................................................. 9

3.4.1. Various forms of diversity in India.............................................................................. 10

3.4.2. Factors Leading to Unity Amidst Diversity in India..................................................... 11

3.4.3. Factors that threaten India’s unity ............................................................................. 11

4. Vision IAS GS Mains Test Series Questions............................................................................... 12

5. Previous Year UPSC GS Mains Questions ................................................................................. 26

Telegram : UPSC CSE Free Material (OPTIMISTIC IAS)

DELHI JAIPUR PUNE HYDERABAD AHMEDABAD LUCKNOW

2. Characteristics of Indian Society

• Balance between spiritualism and materialism- Spiritualism's main focus is to promote an

individual's experience with God. Whereas materialism is a tendency to consider material

largely possess spiritual orientations. However due to increased Westernisation,

materialistic tendencies have also become quite visible.

• Balance between Individualism and collectivism- Individualism is a moral, political or social

3. Features of Indian Society

DELHI JAIPUR PUNE HYDERABAD AHMEDABAD LUCKNOW

o Segmental division of society: It means that social stratification is largely based on

in the various legislatures, to government jobs, and to enrollment in higher educational

services and educational institutions.

DELHI JAIPUR PUNE HYDERABAD AHMEDABAD LUCKNOW

3.1.1. Changes in the Caste system

adherences to caste rules.

DELHI JAIPUR PUNE HYDERABAD AHMEDABAD LUCKNOW

3.2. Religious Pluralism

3.3. Kinship, Marriage and Family

• Consanguineous Kinship: The bond of blood is called consanguineous kinship. The

DELHI JAIPUR PUNE HYDERABAD AHMEDABAD LUCKNOW

3.3.3. Family in Indian Society

and social norms in his childhood.

DELHI JAIPUR PUNE HYDERABAD AHMEDABAD LUCKNOW

joint family of Hindu Society.

common kitchen, commensality, sharing of property, performance of ritual bonds,

reciprocal obligations and sentiments.

DELHI JAIPUR PUNE HYDERABAD AHMEDABAD LUCKNOW

o Economic functions: With economic advancements, family has become more

ensuring socio-economic well-being of the family.

and habits important to adult participation in social life

children learn from their parents various religious virtues.

DELHI JAIPUR PUNE HYDERABAD AHMEDABAD LUCKNOW

from 50.7% to 52.1%.

3.4. Diversity in India

DELHI JAIPUR PUNE HYDERABAD AHMEDABAD LUCKNOW

namely Caucasoid, Mongoloid, and Negroid, are found in the country.

DELHI JAIPUR PUNE HYDERABAD AHMEDABAD LUCKNOW

3.4.2. Factors Leading to Unity Amidst Diversity in India

Christians, respectively. Celebration of inter-religious festivals is also seen in India.

force across the length and breadth of India.

3.4.3. Factors that threaten India’s unity