Post-independence India

Modern states are large and complex with several cultural and economic problems and historical experiences add complexity to their problems. Since independence Indian states have had to deal with the demands of separate statehood largely based on language, culture, ethnicity, religion, etc. Later the basis for separate statehood demands was largely shifted to better governance and greater participation, administrative convenience, economic viability in the developmental needs of sub-regions. As democracy takes firm roots, such aspirations also grow. The hitherto neglected sections of the populations realize their importance; demand new provinces or states want new borders and secure autonomy.

Ethnicity And Influence On Creation Of Separate States

1. Relative cultural deprivation causes ethnic minorities like Nagas to aspire for separate territorial statehood. Nagas are culturally heterogeneous groups of different communities/tribes having a different set of problems from the mainstream population.
2. The demand for autonomy is the motive behind Gorkhaland, which is a proposed state covering areas inhabited by the ethnic Gorkha (Nepali) people, inhabiting Darjeeling hills and Dooars in the northern part of West Bengal.
3. Denial of economic opportunities caused Bodos, the largest ethnic and linguistic community in northern Assam to demand a separate state of Bodoland. The agitation resulted in an agreement in 2003 between the GoI, the Assam state government, and the Bodo Liberation Tigers Force. According to the agreement, Bodos were granted the Bodoland Territorial Council (BTC), within the State of Assam under Sixth Schedule.
4. Distinct language consciousness caused Tulu people to demand a separate Tulu Nadu state since the late 2000s, considering unique language and culture as the basis for their demand.
5. Though ethnicity and ideology, the former more than the latter—remain major influences on separatist and autonomist groups in parts of India like the northeast, religion is increasingly beginning to influence the political agenda of some of these groups. Religious distinctiveness, when coterminous with ethnicity, exacerbated the sense of otherness in the Naga and the Mizo hills.

Reasons Other Than Ethnicity

1. Telangana leaders accused the people of Andhra of “colonizing the region” by grabbing their jobs and land, and the government of not investing in the region’s infrastructure.
2. Chhattisgarh was carved out of Madhya Pradesh came into being on 1 November 2000 as the 26th State of the Union. It fulfils the long-cherished demand of the people for better regional development.
3. In Vidarbha that comprises the Amravati and Nagpur divisions of eastern Maharashtra, the backwardness of the region due to the neglect of successive state governments is justified as the basis for the demand for a separate state. The State Reorganisation Act of 1956 recommended the creation of Vidarbha state with Nagpur as the capital, but instead, it was included in Maharashtra state, which was formed on May 1, 1960.
4. The movement for a separate Saurashtra state was initiated in 1972 by Ratilal Tanna. Lack of better water supply to the region, lack of job opportunities, and subsequent youth migration have been cited as major reasons for the demand for statehood. Saurashtra is also linguistically different from the rest of the state.

Economic and social viability rather than political considerations based on homogeneous ethnic identity must be given primacy. Parent states that lose out in terms of physical and human capital may be adequately compensated. There should be certain clear-cut parameters and safeguards to check the unfettered demands. It is better to allow democratic concerns like development, decentralisation, and governance rather than religion, caste, language, or dialect to be the valid bases for conceding the demands for a new state. Apart from this the fundamental problems of development and governance deficit such as the concentration of power, corruption, administrative inefficiency, etc also must be addressed to tackle the demand for separate statehood.