NCERT Class 8 History India After Independence

India After Independence

A New and Divided Nation

When India became independent in August 1947, it faced a series of very great challenges. As a result of Partition, 8 million refugees had come into the country from what was now Pakistan. These people had to be found homes and jobs. Then there was the problem of the princely states, almost 500 of them, each ruled by a maharaja or a nawab, each of whom had to be persuaded to join the new nation. The problems of the refugees and of the princely states had to be addressed immediately. In the longer term, the new nation had to adopt a political system that would best serve the hopesand expectations of its population.

India’s population in 1947 was large, almost 345 million. It was also divided. There were divisions between high castes and low castes, between the  majority Hindu community and Indians who practised other faiths. The citizens of this vast land spoke many different languages, wore many different kinds of dress,  ate different kinds of food and practised differentprofessions. How could they be made to live together in one nation-state?

To the problem of unity was added the problem of development. At Independence, the vast majority of Indians lived in the villages. Farmers and peasants depended on the monsoon for their survival. So did the non-farm sector of the rural economy, for if the crops failed, barbers, carpenters, weavers and other service groups would not get paid for their services either. In the cities, factory workers lived in crowded slums with little access to education or health care. Clearly, the new nation had to lift its masses out of poverty by increasing the productivity of agriculture and by promoting new, job-creating industries.Unity and development had to go hand in hand. If the divisions between different sections of India were not healed, they could result in violent and costly conflicts – high castes fighting with low castes, Hindus with Muslims and so on. At the same time, if the fruits of economic development did not reach the broad masses of the population, it could create fresh divisions – for example, between the rich and the poor, between cities and the countryside, between regions of India that were prosperous and regions that lagged behind.

A Constitution is Written

Between December 1946 and November 1949, some three hundred Indians had a series of meetings on  the country’s political future. The meetings of this “Constituent Assembly” were held in New Delhi, but the participants came from all over India, and from different political parties. These discussions resulted in the framing of the Indian Constitution, which was adopted on 26 January 1950.

One feature of the Constitution was its adoption of universal adult franchise. All Indians above the age of 21 would be allowed to vote in state and national elections. This was a revolutionary step – for never before had Indians been allowed to choose their own leaders. In other countries, such as the United Kingdom and the United States, this right had been granted in stages. First only men of property had the vote. Then men who were educated were also added on. Working-class men got the vote only after a long struggle. Finally, after a bitter struggle of their own, American and British women were granted the vote. On the other hand, soon after Independence, India chose to grant this right to all its citizens regardless of gender, class or education. A second feature of the Constitution was that it guaranteed equality before the law to all citizens,

regardless of their caste or religious affiliation. There  were some Indians who wished that the political system of the new nation be based on Hindu ideals, and that India itself be run as a Hindu state. They pointed to the example of Pakistan, a country created explicitly to protect and further the interests of a particular religious community – the Muslims. However, the Indian Prime Minister, Jawaharlal Nehru, was of the opinion that India could not and must not become a “Hindu Pakistan”. Besides Muslims, India also had large populations of Sikhs and Christians, as well as many Parsis and  Jains. Under the new Constitution, they would have the same rights as Hindus – the same opportunities when it came to seeking jobs in government or the private sector, the same rights before the law.

A third feature of the Constitution was that it offered special privileges for the poorest and most disadvantagedIndians. The practice of untouchability, described as a “slur and a blot” on the “fair name of India”, was abolished. Hindu temples, previously open to only the higher castes, were thrown open to all, including the former untouchables. After a long debate, the Constituent Assembly also recommended that a certain percentage of seats in legislatures as well as jobs in government be reserved for members of the lowest castes. It had been argued by some that Untouchable or as they were now known, Harijan, candidates did not have good enough grades to get into the prestigious Indian Administrative Service. But, as one member of the Constituent Assembly, H.J. Khandekar, argued, it was the upper castes who were responsible for the Harijans “being unfit today”. Addressing his more privileged colleagues, Khandekar said:

We were suppressed for thousands of years. You engaged us in your service to serve your own ends and suppressed us to such an extent that neither our minds nor our bodies and nor even our hearts work, nor are we able to march forward.

Along with the former Untouchables, the adivasis or Scheduled Tribes were also granted reservation in seats and jobs. Like the Scheduled Castes, these Indians too had been deprived and discriminated against. The tribals had been deprived of modern health care and education, while their lands and forests had been taken away by more powerful outsiders. The new privileges granted them by the Constitution were meant to make amends for this.

The Constituent Assembly spent many days discussing the powers of the central government versus those of the state governments. Some members thought that the Centre’s interests should be foremost. Only a strong Centre, it was argued, “would be in a position to think and plan for the well-being of the country as a whole”. Other members felt that the provinces should have greater autonomy and freedom. A member from Mysore feared that under the present system “democracy is centred in Delhi and it is not allowed to work in the same sense and spirit in the rest of the country”. A member from Madras insisted that“the initial responsibility for the well-being of the people of th provinces should rest with the Provincial Governments”.

Let’s recall

1. Name three problems that the newly independent

(c) Economic planning by which both the state and the private sector played a role in development was called a _________ _________ model.

(d) The death of _________ sparked off such violent protests that the government was forced to give in to the demand for the linguistic state of Andhra.

4. State whether true or false:

(a) At independence, the majority of Indians lived in villages.

(b) The Constituent Assembly was made up of members of the Congress party.

(c) In the first national election, only men were allowed to vote.

(d) The Second Five Year Plan focused on the development of heavy industry.

Let’s discuss

5. What did Dr Ambedkar mean when he said that “In politics we will have equality, and in social and economic life we will have inequality”?

6. After Independence, why was there a reluctance to divide the country on linguistic lines?

7. Give one reason why English continued to be used in India after Independence.

8. How was the economic development of India visualised in the early decades after Independence? nation of India faced.

2. What was the role of the Planning Commission?

3. Fill in the blanks:

(a) Subjects that were placed on the Union  List were _________, _________ and _________.

(b) Subjects on the Concurrent List were _________ and _________.

Please refer to attached file for NCERT Class 8 History India After Independence