Reorganisation of states

During the freedom struggle, the Congress had promised to redraw the provinces on the basis of language. At its Nagpur session in 1920, it reorganised its own provincial committees by language.

After partition, however, leaders like Nehru feared that dividing the country by language might lead to more divisions, and they postponed the idea.

People did not accept the delay. In the Telugu-speaking areas of the Madras province, the Vishalandhra movement demanded a separate state. Potti Sriramulu, a Gandhian leader, went on an indefinite fast and died after 56 days. Violent protests followed, and in December 1952 the Prime Minister announced the formation of a separate Andhra state.

This opened the door. The States Reorganisation Commission, set up in 1953, recommended that state boundaries should reflect the boundaries of languages. The States Reorganisation Act of 1956 created 14 states and 6 union territories.

Later changes:

Many feared that linguistic states would break up India. The opposite happened. By accepting people's languages and regional identities, the reorganisation removed a major source of conflict and made the states more democratic, since people could now govern in their own language.

The lesson: accepting diversity strengthened unity.