Regionalism

Definition 

• Regionalism is the expression of a common sense of identification and purpose by people within a defined geographical area, united through its precise language, tradition and so forth.
• In a high quality sense, it encourages people to broaden a sense of brotherhood and oneness which seeks to protect the interests of a particular area and promotes the welfare and development of the state and its humans.
• In the Indian context usually, the term ‘regionalism’ has been used in a terrible sense.

History of Regional Movements in India

• Origin in Colonial Era:

• • • The roots of local cognizance in India may be determined in colonial rules, differential attitudes and treatment by the British closer to princely states and people of the presidencies evolved regionalist dispositions amongst them.
    • British exploitative economic policies absolutely omitted some regions, giving manner to financial disparities and local imbalances.

• Movements in Southern India:

• • • The records of regional actions in India can be traced again to the Forties Dravida Movement or the Non-Brahmin movement that started within the current Tamil Nadu.
    • In the 1950s and 60s, India witnessed mass (and violent) mobilisation for the needs of statehood.

• Establishment of States Reorganisation Committee:

• • • Revolts for separate states all throughout India resulted in the formation of the States Reorganisation Committee (headed by Faisal Ali).
    • It encouraged reorganisation of Indian states on linguistic lines, thus reinforcing the regionalist dispositions.

• Insurgencies in North East India:

• • • During the 1970s and 80s, the tribal insurgencies for separation and statehood within the northeastern area of India intensified and the Union government surpassed the North-jap States Reorganisation Act, 1971.
    • It declared the UTs of Manipur and Tripura and the Sub-State of Meghalaya as states.

• Major Changes within the 21st Century

• • The decade of 2000s witnessed movements for the creation of separate states because of a rising sense of local deprivation.
  • It resulted in the formation of the three new states – Chhattisgarh out of Madhya Pradesh, Jharkhand out of Bihar and Uttarakhand out of Uttar Pradesh.
  • In 2014, the nation of Telangana was created by the division of Andhra Pradesh.

Different Types of Regional Movements in India

• Secessionism: It is a shape of regionalism that includes militant and fundamentalist organizations advocating a separation from India on the basis of ethnicity or some other factor.
• Separatism: It is a demand for separate statehood in the Indian Union.
• Demand for Full Statehood: The union territories had been forwarding such demands like the NCT of Delhi.
• Demand for Autonomy: Since the 1960’s, with the emergence of regional events, the demand for state autonomy has been gaining an increasing power due to the crucial political interference.
• Demand for Regional Autonomy inside a State: In some of the states, people belonging to several regions had a disturbing reputation in their local identities.

Causes of Growing Regionalism

• Historical and geographical isolation, insider-outsider complex that nurturers nativism and son-of-the-soil ideology
• Uneven development, non-stop forget about a place and internal colonialism, notwithstanding being rich in herbal sources some regions remain economically underdeveloped.
• Imposition of an ideology that is probably in struggle with the ideology that people of a defined were owning for a long time.
• Linguistic aspirations and expression of ethnicity have long remained an impressive foundation of regionalism.

Impacts of Regionalism

• Positive Impacts:

• • • Positive regionalism outcomes within the rise of local parties which is fine from the attitude of democracy.
    • Regionalism frequently attracts the focus of policymakers at the underlying local problems.
    • Positive regionalism promotes a sense of pleasure in connecting to one’s roots and lifestyle.

• Negative Impacts:

• • Regional moves often result in violent agitations, disturbs the regulation and order scenario and has terrible implications on the financial system of the state as well as the country.
  • Regionalism once in a while undercuts the national hobby by being a hurdle in global diplomacy.
  • Regionalism often promotes Vote- Bank politics, thereby weakening national integration.
  • Regionalism threatens the time-tested material of ‘Unity in Diversity’, if promoted in an ultra-manner.

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