Essay, Paragraph or Speech on “Would Small States Make For A Happier India?” Complete Essay, Speech for Class 10, Class 12 and Graduation and other classes.

Would Small States Make For A Happier India?

“From the human point of view”, writes Vincent Smith, “India has been often described as an ethnological museum in which numberless races of mankind may be studied. It is a multi-lingual multi-racial and multi-religious country comprising at present 25 states and 7 Union Territories. Although to quote the State Reorganization Commission Report 1955, “the Indian Union is Indestructible—the individual States are not”. Boundaries of existing regions have often been modified to meet regional, linguistic and other demands. Erstwhile Union Territories like Goa have been given the status of States, and new States (such as Sikkim) have been added to the Indian Union from time to time, all depending on the exigencies of the situation. The basic objective of the States Reorganization Commission was to examine the question of reorganization of the States of the Indian Union so that welfare of the people of each constituent unit as well as the nation as a whole is promoted.”

If this criterion is our constant guiding factor in the governance of this vast and diverse country, we come to realize that there is no uniformity in the size of our States..Some states like Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh and Maharashtra are so large in size that several small States joined together would have less area/population than any one of these. While the unification of India into one indivisible Whole was not only necessary and expedient in the post-independence phase, the sub-division of such larger States as the erstwhile ‘ Punjab into Punjab, Haryana and Himachal Pradesh was motivated by political considerations as was the creation of Andhra Pradesh on linguistic basis. But a time has come to keep the welfare of the people in mind. And this can be best looked after by smaller administrative units. A small states is, in fact, like one particular class in a big school where students enjoy smooth and friendly relations with one another and the teachers always strive to do their best so that the wards assigned to them come out with flying colours as compared to other classes in the same school.

A small states can easily manage its own affairs and administer central laws to the people whereas a large state like Uttar Pradesh is almost unmanageable on account of its population or Madhya Pradesh on account of its area. Education, social welfare, healthcare, revenue collection can be better husbanded in a small state. Where the benefits of welfare measures reach the people sooner, there is speedier justice and less corruption. Social evils like unemployment and indiscipline are also easy to tackle by a responsive administration and the dormant youth power can be properly channelized into constructive areas for the good of the state and ultimately of the nation. Problems tend to magnify themselves in an unwieldy set-up,. various pulls and pressures distort the perceptions of administrators, and the people are left to fend for themselves.

But small states are no panacea for all our ills. When we think of small states, we must also redefine the probable parameters for the formation of these states. Solving the problem of unemployment again sounds fascination. But in a small state, providing employment to all eligible youth, would prove to be a crushing burden on the state’s economy. Then, what about center-State relations ? Our Constitution, being quasi-federal, does not allow free functioning of the states as the centre intervenes in all important matters concerning a particular State. Will small states be allowed to function as autonomous units and the Centre be assigned only matters like defense, communications, foreign relations and currency ? This would imply a drastic amendment to the existing Constitution. And in small states, where the ideal would be efficiency and effective administration, wouldn’t petty politicians abound and get busy in feathering their own nests ? People, who always dream of being in positions of power, would get plum posts and try to emulate their more fortunate brethren in big states. It would be a sad state of affairs, indeed. Small states would be the beehive of activity for unscrupulous, small-time politicians, anti-social elements and the dregs of society. All these evils may drag India back to the pre-independence conditions, when as many as 570 small states and principalities, having their own laws, existed. If these conditions are to be revived, the worst sufferers would be the hapless people. Therefore, while advocating for small states as the harbinger of a brave new world for the masses, it is necessary to keep the pros and cons of the issue in mind.

It must, therefore, be left to the wisdom of the people above to sort out this problem of small big states in a federal structure like India. How one wishes one could have states reorganized on the American pattern where there is smooth sailing between the ruler and the ruled and at the same time, the country is among the richest, the most industrialized, the most developed and the most advanced nations in the world.