Activity · Part 3

( structuring of States based on languages sparked a debate between national identity and linguistic-cultural identity. Some such communities include Bodos in Assam and the Coorgis in Karnataka. Even if two neighbouring States, spoke the same language, it still caused unrest concerning the assertion of national identity owing to caste, ethnic, and religious differences. Nevertheless, in , languages were recognised but later languages were acknowledged, which shows the growing demand among linguistic-cultural communities aspiring for political identity. Borders Prior to independence, the land was divided into Provinces, Princely States, and Presidencies. Once States were declared, the borders had to be negotiated especially between States such as Karnataka and Maharashtra, Maharashtra and Gujarat, Haryana and Punjab, Odisha and West Bengal, and between Andhra Pradesh and parts of Madras Presidency. Apart from the other differences, the dominant linguistic communities asserted their specific regional and cultural forms of power and identity. These very specific cultural and linguistic identities received patronage from the State. Here again, the State had to accommodate the cultural- linguistic minorities who spoke languages other than the language of the dominant population. As expected, the dominant population started to assert their power over the minorities, by imposing the language of the dominant linguistic population in administration, education, employment, judiciary, and economy. To tackle the cultural autonomy, development issues, and regional inequalities. States had to strategise a standard agenda that ensured overall development of all linguistic communities. In spite of the efforts by the government to ensure uniformity, two cultures emerged, the elite and the mass. Rise of Regional Political Parties The regional parties across States started to emerge because of region-based identity movements and loyalty towards one’s own region. Most of the political parties were capitalised on the local bases of power. The economic inequality and regional disparities slowed down the development pace and in some cases stalled progress. When regional political parties began to emerge, it meant more challenge for the Centre because the problems at the grassroots were not the same throughout the country. Formation of States The Parliament