Speculations are rife that Prime Minister Modi and the ruling BJP are toying with the idea of a large-scale bifurcation of states. A proposal is to have around 50 states in place of the existing 28 states and 8 Union Territories — the present clusters being minor and periodic improvements from what was prescribed in the 1956 state formation act. UP, Bihar, Madhya Pradesh and Telangana got divided over time. Punjab, Haryana and the Union Territory of Chandigarh came into being in 1966. Delhi got a status change in 1991 but is not a full-fledged state.
While the state re-organization was executed in 1956 based on language frontiers, the situation more or less remains so except for the fact that the Hindi belt has different states and Telugu-speaking people have two states in the form of Telangana and Andhra Pradesh now. The Atal Behari Vajpayee term saw bifurcation of UP, Bihar and Madhya Pradesh with additional states emerging, like Uttarakhand, Jharkhand and Chhattisgarh. Yet, the dichotomy between states remains glaring. Uttar Pradesh, for instance, has a population of 20.5 crore, while the smallest state Goa, which got a status upgrade in 1987, has just around 18 lakh people. Maharashtra has a population of nearly 12 crore. Vajpayee started with a process that was not carried forward. State reorganization is not an easy task. There are bound to be protests from sections that feel they were the losers one way or the other. For instance, a grant of independent status to Mumbai will rob the rest of Maharashtra of the huge financial benefits they gain from the western metropolis. Yet, the people of Vidarbha region, which has a functional winter capital status by virtue of holding of the assembly session there in this season, will appreciate a full-fledged state status.
True, the protests can mostly be neutralized if a reorganization plan introduced for the sake of administrative convenience and equitable regional development is effected nationwide. This carries with it a strong message that will not be easy to challenge. What this requires is grit and determination on the part of those who govern the nation. A painstaking study before such an action is a must. The Opposition must be taken into confidence, unlike the scenarios in the past like the introduction of the farm reform legislation. The eight years of the Modi government have left most ailing areas of national life untouched. Several sectors cry for change, re-organization and reforms. The past two years of the Covid-induced lull cannot be the excuse for inaction in the long term.
