The primary reason for reorganising State boundaries in India after Independence was to ensure that people speaking the same language lived in the same State. This aimed to preserve cultural identity, improve governance and address regional, ethnic and linguistic differences effectively.
Read the given text and answer the following questions: “The creation of linguistic States was the first and a major test for democratic politics in our country. After Independence, the boundaries of several old States were changed to ensure that people who spoke the same language lived in the same State. Some States were created to recognise differences based on culture, ethnicity or geography. For example, Nagaland, Uttarakhand and Jharkhand were created to address specific tribal and regional identities. Initially, leaders like Prime Minister Nehru worried that linguistic States would encourage separatism and weaken national unity. However, the experience proved otherwise. The linguistic States, such as Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, or Maharashtra, strengthened solidarity among people while preserving their cultural diversity. It also made governance more efficient, as officials and citizens could work in a common language. However, demands for smaller States or separate identities (like Telangana from Andhra Pradesh) continue to arise, showing that federalism must balance unity and diversity dynamically”. (i) What was the primary reason for reorganising the State boundaries in India after Independence? (ii) How did the formation of linguistic States disprove the initial fears of national leaders? (iii) “Linguistic States strengthened unity but also sparked new demands”. Analyse this statement with two examples.
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