Chapter 8 Nation Building And Its Problems

 Q.No.1:- What are the reasons being used by Nehru for keeping India

secular. Do you think that these reasons were only ethical and

sentimental? Were there some prudential reasons as well?

OR

Why India was declared a secular state?

OR Write a short note on

Nehrus nation building?

Ans:- Introduction:- Pt. Jawaharlal Nehru, the first prime minister of free

India, addressed & special session of the constituent Assembly that night,

this speech is known as Tryst with destiny.

Pt. Jawaharlal Nehru gave following reasons to make India a secular

state.

1. Pt. Jawaharlal Nehrus approach to the problem of life was

scientific and realistic. He opposed traditional customs and

conventions.

2. Pt. Jawaharlal Nehru wanted to separate religion and politics. To

make essential that democratic government should be based on

secularism.

According to Pt. Jawaharlal Nehru to built a unified nation. It is essential

that secularism should be adopted. There should be no official religion of

the state. To protect the Muslim minority, and to create confidence among

Muslims. Pt. Jawaharlal Nehru favored secularism. Pt. Jawaharlal Nehru

was a staunch secularist. To protect the rights of Muslims India was

declared a secular state.

Q.No.2:- It is said that nation is to a large extant an “imagined

community” held together by common beliefs, history, political

aspirations and imaginations. Identify the features that make India a

nation?

OR Which factors are

responsible for making India a nation?

Ans: - Introduction:- The word Nation comes from the Latin word “Natus”

which means born. A nation, therefore, means a people having common

origin of coming from a common stock. According to Leacock, “A nation is

a union of men having racial or ethnographic significance.”

A nation is a group of people bound together by certain ties like

common religion, common culture, common beliefs, common history,

common political aspirations and imagination etc. In such a manner that

they have a sense of oneness. Before independence, the question often

arose whether India should be called a nation or not. Many foreign writers

refused to accept India as a nation.

There are many features that make India a nation. Some of them are

discussed below:-

1. Unity in Diversity:- India is a country of many languages, many

religions, many races and different customs, yet after the achievement of

independence there is evident amongst its people a consciousness of unity

. There is a current of unity in Indians diversity. This was seen at the time of

Sino-India conflict and the indo-Pakistan wars.

2. Sovereign State:- India is a fully sovereign both in national and

international matters. Our government is fully sovereign, backed by the

united will of the people.

3. Spiritual Feeling:- Nationality is a spiritual feeling and the people of

India had this felling even before independence and they have that feeling

now also. Despite all the differences amongst the various communities

inhabiting India, people have the feeling of one nation.

4. National integration:- It is due to national integration that we can

say with pride that India was a nation before 1947 and it is a nation even

now.

5. Secular state:- In India, all the religions are respected equally and it

has encouraged national integration.

Q.No.3:- What was the task of the state Re-organization commission?

What were its most silent recommendations?

OR

What do you know about Fazal Ali commission?

Ans: - The formation of Andhra Pradesh spurred the struggle for making of

other states on linguistic lines in other parts of the country. These struggles

forced the central Government into appointing a state Reorganization

commission in 1953 to look into the boundaries of states. The commission

in its report accepted boundaries of states should reflect the boundaries of

different languages. On the basis of its report, the state Reorganization Act

was passed in 1956. This led to the creation of 14 (Fourteen) states and 6 (

six) union territories.

Integration of states was the major problem after independence.

Sardar Patel regrouped these states with his untiring efforts. But soon the

demand for regrouping of states on linguistic basis gained momentum.

Congress formed a committee for the reorganization of states on the basis

of its proceedings in Jaipur conference. Pandit Nehru announced the

appointment of this commission in Lok Saba on 2nd December 1953 for

impartial perusal of the issue. This commission was headed by Fazal-Ali, S

D.Pannikar and Hiraday-Math Kunjru, were its members. The commission

recommended the regrouping of states on the basis of language and

culture as well.

Recommendations: - Following were the recommendations of state

reorganization commission OR Fazal Ali Commission; -

(1) Proper attention should be given to cultural and communicative needs

of other communities, speaking different languages in a monolingual state.

(2) Linguistic minorities should be well protected.

(3) Attention should be paid to the development of other regional languages

besides Hindi.

(4) English should be the medium of instructions in universities and higher

training institutes.

(5) Idea of a separate nation should be uprightly rejected.

(6) The idea of one language, one province should not be promoted.

Reorganization of states on monolingual basis would prove fatal to the

national integration.

QNO4:- DISCUSS EVENTS WHICH LED TO THE PARTITION OF INDIA?

OR

WHAT WERE THE CAUSES FOR PARTITION OF INDIA?

ANS: - The following events led to the partition of India:

(1) Adamant attitude of Ali Mohammad Jinnah;- Ali Mohammad Jinnah

was mainly responsible for the partition of India. He refused to listen to the

nationalist appeals and considered formation of interim government in his

absence by the congress in 1946 as a treachery on the part of the British.

(2) Communal riots;- Violence & Dis-order due to “Direct-action day” (of

16Aug. 1946) of the Muslim league was also responsible for the partition of

India. The Muslims killed Hindus in Calcutta, Noakhali & Tipperah and

Hindus killed Muslims in Bihar. The interim government was helpless

spectator.

(4) The British threat of leaving the country; - The British threat of

leaving the country by June 1948, whether in peace or in chaos, left no

alternative to division except civil war.

(5) Divide & rule policy of British; - Divide & rule policy of British was

also responsible for the partition of the country.

Q.5:- WHAT WERE THE CONSEQUENCES/EFFECTS OF THE

PARTITION OF INDIA?

ANS: -

(1) Transfer of population & killings of people; - The first consequence

of the partition of India was the unplanned and tragic transfer of population

that human history has known. On both the sides of border, there were

large scale killings & atrocities. In the name of religion people of one

community killed the people of another community.

(2) Refugee problem; - The second consequence of the partition of India

was “refugee problem”. The people who crossed the border found that they

had no home & for them independence means life in refugee camps.

(3) Division of properties; - The 3rd consequence of the partition of India

was that partition led to the division of properties, liabilities, Financial

assets & employees of government.

(4) Problem of minorities; - Even after large scale migration of Muslims to

Pakistan, about 12% of the total population of India were Muslims. The

biggest problem before Indian government was how to deal with Muslim

minorities & other religious minorities.

Q.6:- HOW IS LANGUAGE DETRIMENTAL TO INDIAN POLITICS?

ANS: - Language is detrimental to Indian politics in the following ways:

(I) Because of emotional nature of language, it has given rise to lingual

fanaticism

(II) It is responsible for the rise of regionalism in India.

(III) Because of the reorganization of states on linguistic bases the demand

for creation of more states on similar bases are assuming alarming

proportions.

QNO7:-Explain the following terms;-

Consequence of partition of India in 1947:

1- Challenges to nation building faced by India at the time of

independence

2- Mountbatten plan.

3- Provisions of the Indian independence Act 1947.

4- Nehrus approach to nation building

6- Legacy of partition of India.

7- Jawahar Lal nehru

8- Ali Mohammad jinnah

9. Sardar vallahbhai Patel.

Ans

(1) consequences of partition of India in 1947;- On 14-15 August

1947, India was partitioned into two states I.e. India & Pakistan due to

partition of British India into India & Pakistan. The main consequences

of partition were the tragic transfer of population & killings of people,

Refugee problem, Division of properties & financial assets.

(2) Challenges to nation building faced by India at the time of

independence:-After independence India faced three main challenges

which are as under:

1- To shape a nation that was united

2- To establish democracy, or to develop democratic conventions in

accordance with the constitution.

3- Third challenge was the development & welfare of the whole society

& not of privileged sections of society.

3- Mountbatten plan Or 3rd June plan:- on 3rd June 1947 British

Governor General Lord Mountbatten announced the partition plan

according, to which the British would hand over power as early as August

1947 instead of June 1948 as planned earlier.

4- The Indian independence act 1947:- It was based on the famous

Mountbatten plan, & was passed by the British parliament on 5th July

1947 . The act received the assent of the crown on July 18,1947 &

became effective on 15, August 1947 .its main provisions were .

(1)- Two dominion states (India & Pakistan) came into existence on 15

August 1947,

(2-) The boundaries between the two dominion states were to be

determined by a boundary commission headed by sir. Cyril Radcliff

(3)- Both the states shall have right to frame their constitutions by

their respective constituent assemblies.

(4)- The British government will not exercise any authority over the two

dominions after August 15, 1947, etc.

5-Nehrus approach to nation building; - According to Pt. Nehru, to build

a unified nation, it is essential that secularism should be adopted. To

protect Muslim minority & to create confidence among Muslims Pt. Nehru

favored secularism.

6- Legacy of partition of India; - The partition of India in 1947 left a

number of problems unsolved & unanswered. The biggest problem before

India at that time was national integration. National integration is not a one-

time process. And for a country like India given its ethnic, religious &

cultural diversities, it was a quite complicated phenomenon. According to

Nehru India has a unique capability to synthesize alien cultures & this has

been the secret of Indias unity in diversity.

7- Jawahar Lal nehru :- Born on14 November 1889 & died on 27 May

1964) was the first Prime Minister of India and a central figure in Indian

politics before and after independence. He emerged as the paramount

leader of the Indian independence movement under the tutelage of

Mahatma Gandhi and ruled India from its establishment as an independent

nation in 1947 until his death in 1964. He is considered to be the architect

of the modern Indian nation-state: a sovereign, socialist, secular, and

democratic republic. He was also known as Pandit Nehru due to his roots

with the Kashmiri Pandit community while many Indian children knew him

as "Uncle Nehru" (Chacha Nehru).

(8) Muhammad Ali Jinnah born on 25 December 1876 & died on 11

September 1948 was a lawyer, politician, and the founder of Pakistan.

Jinnah served as leader of the All-India Muslim League from 1913 until

Pakistan's creation on 14 August 1947, and then as Pakistan's first

Governor-General until his death. He is revered in Pakistan as Quaid-i-

Azam and Baba-i-Qaum (Father of the Nation). His birthday is observed as

a national holiday.

(9) Sardar vallahbhai Patel:- First home minister of India, born on 31

October 1875 & died on 15 December 1950 was an Indian barrister and

statesman, a leader of the Indian National Congress and a founding father

of the Republic of India who played a leading role in the country's struggle

for independence and guided its integration into a united, independent

nation. In India and elsewhere, he was often addressed as Sardar, which

means Chief in Hindi, Urdu, and Persian.

He led the task of forging a united India, successfully integrating into the

newly independent nation those British colonial provinces that had been "

allocated" to India. Besides those provinces that had been under direct

British rule, approximately 565 self-governing princely states had been

released from British suzerainty by the Indian Independence Act of 1947.

Employing frank diplomacy with the expressed option to deploy military

force, Patel persuaded almost every princely state to accede to India. His

commitment to national integration in the newly independent country was

total and uncompromising, earning him the title of "Iron Man of India”. He is

also affectionately remembered as the "Patron saint of India's civil servants

" for having established the modern all-India services system. He is also

called the Unifier of India.

A commemoration of Patel, held annually on his birthday, 31 October,

known as the Rashtriya Ekta Diwas (National Unity Day), was introduced

by the government of India in 2014.