Rajyotsava: the celebration of Statehood

Several Indian states celebrate their birthday on November 1. That is the day in 1956 when Indian states were reorganized to integrate people who shared the same language and culture but were scattered across British India and various kingdoms. Literary giants led the charge, e.g., Alur Venkata Rao, Gorur Ramaswamy Iyengar and AN Krishna Rao in Karnataka. Their triumph did not come easily. Many Hutatmas (martyrs) gave their lives during the Samyukta Maharashtra movement. Potti Sriramulu’s fast for a united Andhra Pradesh ended in his death. But that tragedy forced the hand of policymakers and linguistic states were born.

Less than sixty years later, we see Andhra Pradesh tearing itself apart. Language and state pride, which even galvanized its people to elect the Telugu Desam party three decades ago, no longer suffice to hold its people together. Citizens from the Telangana region have long expressed their frustration at being less than equal stakeholders. They are finally on the verge of statehood.

India’s political map has changed substantially since 1956. A number of new, smaller states were created to accommodate the aspirations of regional and ethnic groups. The creation of Chhattisgarh and Jharkhand in 2000, again on November 1, addressed the demands of tribal populations in Madhya Pradesh and Bihar respectively. Meghalaya was carved out from Assam as a state for the Khasi, Garo and Jaintia tribes.

But the Telangana development has arisen not for ethnic or other “natural” reasons but because of economic imbalances and perceived marginalization. Such imbalances arise because of historical factors or because economic investment gets concentrated in capital cities or in specific belts and creates a virtuous cycle of growth. In Karnataka, such an imbalance is starkly visible.Bangalore contributes more than half the state’s tax revenues. No other city has emerged as a second economic hub of significance. Other states like Tamil Nadu (with Coimbatore, Madurai and Chennai) and Maharashtra (with Pune, Nagpur and Mumbai) have managed to spread their growth engines across their geography.

For linguistic states to hold together, they must find a way to prevent imbalances from worsening. State governments can play a proactive role by parlaying their resources strategically. Historically, the location of high courts in Kochi and Allahabad helped these cities develop as alternative hubs. Governments should consider moving departments away from the capital to select cities, where they would be the core around which new economic ecosystems can emerge. In Karnataka, the state’s Visvesvaraya Technological University has been located in Belgaum, which adds strength to that city’s potential as an educational hub in the Bombay-Karnataka region.Special status to underdeveloped regions can also draw in much-needed investment. A case in point is Karnataka’s establishment of a separate Development Board for Hyderabad-Karnataka region under the newly- created Article 371 J of the Constitution.

Another way of addressing regional economic imbalances is to create new cities. A McKinsey report projects that cities will generate 70% of net new employment by 2030. To establish cities, states can take advantage of the National Manufacturing Policy (NMP) which will aid investment in existing industrial clusters.

More importantly, the NMP plans to set up National Investment and Manufacturing Zones which are envisaged as entire greenfield industrial townships. States will also benefit from mega infrastructure projects such as the Delhi Mumbai Industrial Corridor (DMIC) which will create several new cities in between. More such corridors, e.g., between Mumbai and Bengaluru are on the anvil, with investments planned for select cities en route.

The idea of a state, held together by a shared history, language and culture, is as compelling today as it was in 1956. But such a state must ensure that it is economically inclusive across its regions. It should also welcome citizens from every part of the country to join its own people in their efforts to grow and prosper. That kind of state will represent the idea of India, at the same time as it celebrates its unique heritage on the occasion of rajyotsava.

MV Rajeev Gowda is a Professor at the Indian Institute of Management Bangalore and a national spokesperson for the Congress party. These views are personal.