SOCIETY

A BRIEF INTRO TO THE SUBJECT

Why study society?

• To develop the perspective on the Indian social system.

• To sensitize the government/public officials on the discourse of society.

• To apply best practices of governance in the eradication of social problems.

Three Solutions suggested for tribals consolidation after independence:

Isolation:

• It was introduced in the context of the tribals by Verrier Elwin.

• According to this policy, tribals must be separated to conserve and preserve their culture.

Assimilation:

• The policy was suggested by GS Ghurye who considered tribals as backward Hindus.

• It is defined as a process by which individuals of different cultural groups are absorbed in the
dominant culture of the society.

• The focus is to ensure social cohesion by reducing differences. For example, the Hindu Code
bill (Jains, Sikhs, Buddhists, etc)

Integration:

• The policy was introduced by the leadership in post-independent India which meant "tribal
should progress but they should progress in their own way". Constitution follows the policy
of integration.

• Integration is defined as a process of incorporation of different cultures into mainstream

society to the extent that individual culture is retained.

• For examples:

- Multilingualism in the education system (National Education Policy).

- Cultural festivals.
- Tribal Panchsheel policy:

a. Tribal should develop alone their own genius- No compulsion or imposition from outside.

b. No over-administration.

c. Rights in forests and land should be respected.

d. Assistance should be sought in managing polity and economy.

e. Development should be assessed based on outcome rather than the money spent.

How to study society:

• i. Deconstruct the syllabus.

 • ii. Note making.

• iii. PYQs.

• iv. Answer writing.

Salient Features of Indian Society:

i. Diversity
a. Linguistic: Issues: linguistic chauvinism.
b. Religious: Issues: communalism, religious fundamentalism.
c. Regional: Issues: regionalism.
d. Racial: Issues: racial intolerance.
e. Ethnic: Issues: ethno-nationalism.

Conclusion- Unity in Diversity

ii. Caste System.

iii. Joint Family.

iv. Patriarchy.

v. Secularism.

vi. Multiculturalism.

vii. Agrarian Society

viii. Democracy, Decentralisation

Multiculturalism:

• It refers to the peaceful coexistence of diverse cultures.

• People tend to celebrate, retain, and transmit their culture from one generation to another.
(vs Culture Pluralism- dominant culture exists)

• It has two schools of thought: a. Melting Pot b. Salad Bowl.

a. Melting Pot: People of different cultures melt together deserting their individual
cultures. For example, the USA- identity of being American subsides other identities.
b. Salad Bowl: It describes a heterogeneous society where different cultures are
brought together as ingredients of salad and where individual flavour is retained. For
example, the cosmopolitan culture of Delhi.
ix. Cultural Lag:

• Two aspects of culture:

i. Material culture: Like roads, clothing, etc.

ii. Non-material culture: Value system, etc.

• Core consists of non-material culture: like beliefs, ideologies, value system, etc.

• Periphery consists of material culture: infrastructure, technology, social media etc.

• Forces of change at core and periphery.

 • When there is a difference between the pace of the change of core and periphery, it leads to
cultural lag. Ex- Simultaneous existence of tradition and modernity / materialism and
spiritualism

Effect of globalisation on Indian society:

• It can be divided into two parts:

i. Structure:

a) Sections: Women, Old Age, Youth, Middle Class, Child, etc.

b) Institution: Joint Family, Marriage, Caste, Religion, Media, Education, etc.

ii. Culture:

- Homogenisation- Uniform culture- McDonalisation of food habits, obsession of

English language-status symbol not medium of communication
- Hybridisation- Hinglish, global + local- not selling beef in Navratra, spiderman in
Bhojpuri, e-Satsang
- Revival of local culture- Tribal products on Amazon, International Yoga Day, Millet
Decade, Demand for Indian fashion goods in global market-chikankari, Indian
cuisines served in international market, education in mother tongue, proliferation of
godmen

Social Empowerment:
• It is defined as the ability of an individual to have autonomy in decision-making and
confidence to bring changes in the structure that has kept the individual marginalised over a
period of time. (conclusion to many answer in society-women, caste,etc)

• Political and economic empowerment is meaningless without social empowerment.

• For example, the concept of Sarpanch Pati.

Q. Discuss the negative consequences of abolishing child labour.

Q. Critically discuss the paradox where on one hand sex ratio has improved (1020 for 1000 men)
however sex ratio at birth is still a matter of concern (929).

Sources:

• NCERTs: Class XII (Indian Society), Social change and development in India, Human
Geography, India People and Economy+ Do all society PYQs

• Mains 365.

• Current Affairs.

SOCIETY

• Approach to Society:

Concept: A network of social relationships based on pattern of interaction among individual

members is called Society.
Impact of British Rule on Indian society.
Salient features of the Indian society: joint family, caste, patriarchy, diversity, etc.
Impact of British Rule on Indian Society:
i. Tradition ii. Forces of Change iii. Modernity.

Tradition Forces of Change Modernity

i. New Social change:

• English language

• Secular education

• Printing technology
• Ascriptive status • Transport and • Achievement
communication -- status.
• Hierarchy
> Dissemination of ideas
• Egalitarianism
• Strong religious
ii. New social order:
orientation • Secularisation
• Industrialisation- led to caste
• Collectivism • Individualism
neutral jobs
• Particularism • Universalism
• Urbanisation (urbanism-
ideology which has two
features heterogeneity and
anonymity)

• New indicators of social

status --> new elite class.

Ascriptive status/Ritual status:

• Anything that one enjoys just by the virtue of birth. Examples: born in an upper caste in a
caste-ridden society, male in patriarchal society

Achievement status:

• When a status is secured by achieving something. It is based on social, political, and

economic factors.

Hierarchy:

• When individuals are arranged in layers one above the other, it is referred as a hierarchy.

• However, when hierarchical arrangement leads to different access to resources then it is

referred as stratification.

• For example, gender, caste, race, ethnicity, etc. are the basis of stratification in Indian society.

Egalitarianism:

• It is based on the belief that all are equal and deserve the same kind of opportunity.

Secularisation:
 • It is a social process in which the significance of religion declines. Ex- marriage not longer
sacred, marriage as sacred institution is declining- less about rituals but more about
commercialization and commodification of marriage (yellow for haldi), etc

Particularism and Universalism:

• Some people are more important than others i.e. relationship obligation is given primacy
over law whereas in Universalism, everyone is treated equally.

• It was perceived that with forces of change, Indian society would transform into a modern
society.

However, Dipankar Gupta called it mistaken modernity and MN Srinivas called it westernisation.

Modernisation vs Westernisation: (*find counter arguments to every topic)

Parameters Westernisation Modernisation

Progressive transformation of the

Blind imitation of the culture of
Concept social, political, economic, and
the West (MN Srinivas)
psychological aspects of society.

Westernisation deals with

peripheral aspects of the It deals with changes at a fundamental
Nature culture. For example, food level. For example, education,
habits, dressing styles, music technology, infrastructure, etc.
preferences, etc.

It is an elite concept limited to It is a mass affair that penetrates all

Scope
the upper and middle classes. levels of society.

It is a matter of personal choice Modernisation is not against tradition;

Desirability but restricting it in the name of it is only against those traditions which
modernisation is wrong. are regressive in nature.

• Question: "India needs modernisation and not westernisation". Critically analyse the
statement.

JOINT FAMILY
 • Family is defined as a social group consisting of people united by the ties of blood, marriage
or adoption.

• Family performs the following functions-

1) Common residence.
2) Economic cooperation.
3) Sexual gratification.
4) Reproduction.

• If a family extends for 3 or more generations, it is called a Joint Family. (Nuclear family- max
2 generations; Joint Family- min 2 generations)

TYPES OF FAMILY

1)On the Basis of Marriage

a) MONOGAMY- Straight (with single partner) and Serial Monogamy (more than one
marriage)

Social Significance of
Globalisation Secularisation
Religion is declining

Divorce+
Shift from straight to Separation+Second Marriage is no
serial Monogamy marriages not longer sacred
stigmatised

b) POLYGAMY- Polygyny (1 H and many W) and Polyandry (1 wife and many husbands)

NFHS 5- According to NFHS 5 report, max incidences of polygamy among tribals of north east,
are 2.1% among Christians, 1.9% among Muslims, 1.3% among Hindus, 1.6% among other
religious groups.

Q. Discuss how skewed sex ratio leads to increase in polyandrous marriages.

Punjab University Report: According to a report by Punjab University, there is a rise in

polyandrous marriages due to three factors- Poverty (bride price given by boy families as less
women), Lack of agricultural land (fragmentation of economic assets if many wives) and skewed
sex ratio.

c) SOLOGAMY
- Sologamy is an act of marrying oneself in a public ceremony.
- It is a concept that recently emerged in India, where a female named Shama Bindu
practised it.
- It is a symbolic ceremony to emphasise self and independence and it is perceived
that education and economic empowerment had made women independent and
she is no longer dependent on others for survival.
2) On the Basis of Residence: Shift from Patrilocality to Neolocality (due to globalisation leading to
diverse job opportunities which are concentrated in certain area which creates grounds for
migration)
Economic Survey mentioned that it is because of patrilocality that child sex ratio is skewed.
a) Patrilocal
- After marriage girl goes to the Husband's place.
- This creates grounds for fragmentation of the assets (As a married girl brings along
her share of property).
b) Matrilocal
c) Neolocal
3) Based on Ancestry- Patrilineal (tracing the lineage from father’s side- gotra, sur name, property
rights in father’s property, living in extended family from father’s side) and Matrilineal
• Economic Survey mentioned that it is because of patrilineality that child sex ratio is skewed.
This gives rise to Son Meta preference and Unwanted Girl child.
4) Based on composition- Joint and Nuclear Family
a) Joint Family: It consists of at most 2 generations.

TRADITIONAL INDIAN JOINT FAMILY: It has the following characteristics-

1) Patrilineal.

2) Patrilocal.

3) Common residence.

4) Common Kitchen.

5) Common sharing of Property.

6) Centralised authority where the power is wielded by the oldest male member.

7) Age and sex are the main ordering principles of family hierarchy.

FUNCTIONS AND DYSFUNCTIONS OF JOINT FAMILY

Juvenile Delinquencies increasing due to moral corruption as joint families are disintegrating due to
globalisation since JF performed the major function of primary socialisation.

Child cuddling has been replaced?

FUNCTIONS DYSFUNCTION

Primary Socialisation Lack of Privacy

Agency of Social Control High fertility rate- low cost of child upbringing

Agency of Social insurance (From

each according to their ability and Low status of Women- Patrilineality and Patrilocality
to each according to their need)
 Economic Cooperation (Prevents
fragmentation of Assets and Disguised unemployment.
secures economy of expenditure)

Emotional Support + Source of

Low standard of living.
Identity (IN GROUP)

Reciprocal obligation among members (we behave

as per expectation of others and loose our true
self)- leads to Self-Alienation

Issue of Ghettoisation (Us vs Them) – We are one

and others are outsiders

Reproduction of Social labour- never question your

elders- socialise to obey authority- reproducing a
class of labour that would never question the
society but no progressive reforms and status
quoism)

Emerging as an arena of contradiction and conflict

According to feminists, In the context of Joint

Families sexual division of labour is very prominent
which limits the opportunity for upward mobility of
women

Disintegration of joint family leads to:

1) Mental health issues among children- suicides

2) Crime committed against children and by children- Juvenile Delinquencies

3) Increase in vulnerability of old age people.

Ghettoisation and Related Concepts:

• Ghettoisation is defined as a process which leads to the creation of ghettos (Geographical areas
habited by people who belong to the same family)
• Formation of Ghettos leads to a lack of cultural integration.

Reproduction of Social Labour: Joint Family acts as a conditioning device which always teaches us to
obey our elders hence it leads to the reproduction of social labour (i.e. people are socially fit and will
never question the authority and hence no scope for conflict and change)

Arena of contradiction and conflict: The values given by the Joint family are not in sync with the societal
values. For Example- collectivism vs individualism, cooperation vs competition, Delayed gratification vs
consumerism. Hence, Family is emerging as an arena of conflict and contradiction.
LIFE CYCLE OF A JOINT FAMILY

Case of Disintegration:
Disintegration Re Integration
1) Migration
i) Push factor
- Agriculture is in distress.
- Lack of alternative employment opportunities.
- Lack of Basic infrastructure.
ii) Pull factor
- Industrialisation
- Commercialisation if Agriculture.
- Globalisation
- Better infrastructure.
2) Westernisation- Change in lifestyle; Friendship>> Kinship; Alternatives to institution of
marriage (Live in Relationship)

3) Modern Value System- Questioning of regressive practices like caste endogamy, Sexual
division of labour.

According to Milton Singer, whenever there is women empowerment probability of

disintegration of a Joint family is high.

4) Theoretical: To evade land ceiling laws, partition on paper happened which sowed the seeds
of disintegration of the Joint family.

5) Legal Reforms: Laws such as the Minimum Wage Act and property rights law, reduced the
financial dependence on families.

Case of RE-Integration:

1) Chain Migration (bhai bi hai to vahin job kr lete hai) + High cost of living has resulted in
Reintegration.

2) Child rearing in Dual career family.

3) Among the sociologists, there was an observation that although structural disintegration of
the Joint family, functional jointness was still retained, For Example: Ritual obligation,
celebrating festivals, physical financial obligation etc. Hence, they concluded that it might be
a joint household which is getting disintegrating (common household, common kitchen)
rather than a joint family.

4) Changing nature of work- Work from home

5) Feeling of Nativism- love for the land

6) Industrialisation (Provides the economic basis required to sustain a joint family)

Q. Life cycle of a JF is governed by economic factors rather than social values. Discuss.

Q. Discuss the impact of work from home on family relationships.

IMPACT OF GLOBALISATION ON JOINT FAMILY

a) On structure:
 - Disintegration of Joint Family.
- Disintegration of Joint household rather than Joint Family.
- Emergent forms of family:
• Nuclear family with extended ties- Common Whatsapp Group
• Single-parent household: Because of secularisation- Increase in divorce and
separation, Increased culture of adoption (new amendment in Surrogacy
Act- Allows single parent), and Feminisation of old age (1033/1000),
Surrogacy (35-45 yrs), Pre-marital sex is now more of a choice rather than a
taboo, Marriage is no longer a universal institution- people choose not to
marry, Lack of legal recognition to LGBTQ marriages
• Female-headed household: Because of male-specific distress migration,
Females are the main beneficiaries of the government schemes (PMAY),
women empowerment, Sologamy, Feminisation of old age
• Live in a relationship/ Cohabitation: Because of change in values system-
freedom of choice, Individualism, Lack of courage to take responsibility,
Commitment phobia; Social Factors- Caste endogamy, lack of family support,
Lack of marital rights to the LGBTQ (civil union has refused to comment on it-
left to Parliament); Legal stringency and stigma associated with divorce
(threat to marriage institution or not?)
• DINK Family (Double income no kid)- new form like DINKOD (only dogs)
• Dual career family- (Both partners are working).
• Conjugal symmetrical families (Both partners have the same negotiating
power, irrespective of whether both partners working or not)- women
empowered when this.

• Question: What are the factors responsible for the emergence of DINK families?

b) On Functions:
- Traditionally family was both the unit of production and consumption (agrarian
society), but with globalisation, there was industrialisation (workplace changed) and
the factory system of production emerged and now family was just reduced to the
unit of consumption.
- If there is globalisation there are diverse job opportunities, and for these diverse job
opportunities, there is a specialised institutions of knowledge which means the role
of family with respect to education has underwent a change.
- There has been a change with respect to spouse selection (tech and social media)
which is now transferred to the technology (Jeevan Saathi.com, shaadi.com).
However, two functions cannot be taken- Primary Socialisation and Agency of Social
Control. (NEP- ECCE in it due to issue of disintegration of family)
c) On Interpersonal Relations:
- Democratic relationship.
- The status of women has improved.
- Due to the penetration of social media ties with extended kin have improved.
However, to same social media leads to isolation and neglect.

Question: "Institution of Joint Family is characterised by both continuity and change". In the context
of this statement, discuss the impact of globalisation on joint family.
INTRO (explain the context in Intro)- No institution remains static for all time to come. Same goes for
the institution of joint family. However, it has not undergone a complete change rather there are
some aspects which are continuing.

Question: Discuss the statement in the context of the impact of globalisation on Indian Society.

CASTE SYSTEM

Definition: The caste system is defined as a system of social stratification that consists
of hierarchically arranged closed endogamous strata where membership is ascriptive, contact
is restricted and mobility is theoretically impossible.

Concept of the caste system

1. Varna (Book View)

• Idea of Varna- Social organization by means of economic cooperation.

• Theories/Version - D.N.Majumdar identified 5 theories:

• Divine origin theory

- It finds its mention in Purushok thyme in Rigveda where caste was created by Lord
Brahma for the harmonious performance of various social functions for the
maintenance of society.
- It was only a symbolic description but is indicative of the work performed by each of
them.
• Karma and transmigration of the soul
- It specifies that a man is born in a particular caste based on the actions of a previous
incarnation.
- A person who accepts the caste system and performs its obligation is considered to
be living according to dharma.
• Occupational Theory (by Nesfield)
- The sole reason for the development of the caste system was occupation.
• Racial Theory (Risley)
- According to Risley racial differences along with endogamic alliances led to the
emergence of the Varna system.
- According to him, Indo-Aryans who came from Persia had a fourfold classification-
Priest, warriors, cultivators, artists, and Aryans wanted to maintain their ideas and
purity.
• Colour Theory
- Varna is divided into Arya and Dasa based on colour
• Broken Men Model (BR Ambedkar)

2. Jati

• Field view / Contextual view

• Jati's model has empirical validation- that purity and pollution is practised.

• Localized/ regional concept where within varna and there exist multiple jatis, further divided
into sub jatis.

• According to this, caste is based on the principle of purity and pollution.

 - Based on this we have- Hierarchy (upper caste is pure, rest are unpure), separation
of contact (to maintain purity), and occupational division of labor (death, birth,
excreta was unpure so there must be somebody to absorb that pollution- thus
cremation grounds, daai, manual scavengers allotted to lower castes)

• A IAS officer Baraat not allowed to pass for hours due to concept of purity and pollution as
this ritual is only performed by upper caste. (Sanskritisation)

• For example: SBM 1.0- to make household toilets SBM 2.0- to convince people to use those
toilets as people not using them due to principle of purity and pollution since excreta is
polluting so it cannot be there in household and there must be someone to clean it.

• Swatch Bharat Mission's abolition of manual scavenging and discrimination based on caste
will not be addressed until and unless the attitude toward respective purity and pollution is
changed. (how to change attitude- Ethics)

• The Great Indian Sanitation Scam- In Jodhpur Municipal Corporation, badli work was
noticed wherein dominant caste take up Govt sanitation worker jobs but don’t do that
instead sub contract the work to Dalit sub castes and pay them a part of their salary.

Features of caste system

- Innate nature- born in caste and die in same.

- Hierarchy
- Commensality- rules of inter dining- eat food separately by different castes
- Occupation division of labour
- Endogamy
- Disability and privileges
- Caste councils- like Khap Panchayats to enforce it. Anuloma and Pratiloma marriages
(honor killings for this- girl of upper caste and boy of lower caste)

Transformation of the caste system

1. Traditional:

• Based on Pollution and purity

- Hierarchy
- Separation of contact
- Occupational division of labour

2. Forces of change

• Industrialization
• Urbanization
• Modern value system
• Role of State- Reservation, Land Reforms, Mandal commission

3. Contemporary Reality:

• With industrialisation, there is the emergence of caste neutrality jobs which has challenged
the Occupational Division of Labour.
 • With Urbanisation, Urbanism- Heterogeneity and anonymity (not bothered about each other
caste) lead to a secular pattern of living that is challenging separation of contact.

• Modern values systems promote rationality (scientific temper/logic) challenging the

hierarchy based on notion of purity and pollution.

Role of state:

A. Reservation-

• Opportunities for people belonging to lower castes with respect to higher education, govt
jobs, and political representation.

• Provides opportunity for Upward mobility however with respect to Secular hierarchy
(political, economic, social standing – not on ritual hierarchy i.e. standing of caste remains
same)

• To move up in Ritual Hierarchy- Blind imitation of the culture of the upper caste in order to
improve your status in ritual hierarchy is called Sanskritisation.

• Class within caste: Since the benefit of reservation is not equally reaped by all it has led to
elitism.

B. Land reforms

• Due to land reforms, there emerged a section that became dominant due to land
ownership, numerical strength (middle and small peasants ideology matched with them),
political power, etc. (Zamindari abolished- thus, rich peasants got the land ownership and
cultivation rights both, hence flourished and further empowered after green revolution)

• They were known as the dominant caste.

Features of dominant Caste:

• The concept exists at the regional level.

• Ex. Thakurs in eastern UP, Pattidars in Gujrat, Marathas in Maharashtra, etc.

• They act as a watchdog and protector of culture in the region.

• They act as an agent of justice by resolving inter and Intra-caste conflicts.

• They also serve as a model for Sanskritization.

• They also play the role of Pressure groups to draw attention of govt towards the neglected
issues. However, currently, they are facing crises in about market and hence, demanding
reservations under OBC status,

Why dominant caste demanding reservation under OBCs?

• Please refer to the diagram from the class.

Traditional

- Agriculture community
- Emerged due to land reforms
- Consolidated their position post-green revolution.
 - Did not reap many benefits and education opportunities.

Contemporary reality

- Rural crisis- Agriculture is in distress.

- Crisis of dominance- feeling of relative deprivation
- Urban crisis- Lack of alternative employment opportunities
- Closing down of major industries
- Outsourcing of jobs
- Shrinking of govt jobs
- Changing value systems- Obsession with city life
- Skewed sex ratio (100 boys and 20 girls, settled boys preferred, need of Gov jobs)

• With respect to the labour market problem, reservation is not the solution due to the
following reasons:

- It is the means not the end.

- There is a decline in govt jobs due to maximum governance and minimum govt.
- There exists informalisation in the labour market.
- According to the Indian Staffing Federation, 45% of total govt jobs are outsourced.
- According to Justice Rohini's panel, 1% of OBC has corned 50% of OBC benefits and
20% of OBC have not received any benefits.

• Hence, Reservation might be a necessary condition but it is not sufficient to resolve the
labour market problem.

C. Mandal commission:

• Post the Mandal commission, there was an alteration in the caste system where instead
of vertical arrangement with an element of stigma towards lower caste, there exists
horizontal competition for backwardness without any stigma.

• It was referred to as the modern avatar of caste.

ROLE OF CASTE IN POLITICS

Politics- Rajneeti- Raj karne ki neeti /strategy to rule

Pre-independence:

• Christian missionaries spread the message of Christianity as a reformatory movement

against dogmatic practices.

• With the English language, secular education led to the emergence of an educated elite who
wanted to reform society with respect to discriminatory practices. e.g. caste system.

• Opportunities with respect to jobs were initially reaped by the upper caste and hence their
position got consolidated both with respect to ritual and secular hierarchy. This UC came to
be known as ‘Entrenched Caste’

Post-Independence:

• Phase 1: Land reforms led to the rise of the Dominant caste. Hence it was marked by the
struggle of power between the "Entrenched caste" and "Dominant caste". Ex- Brahmins vs
Thakurs in eastern UP, Jat vs Rajput in Rajasthan (There cannot be two swords in one sheath)
 • Phase 2: Due to struggle btw DC and EC, there started mobilization of people on caste lines
(esp. lower caste) to strengthen their vote bank known as the Politicization of caste. e.g.
distribution of tickets based on caste composition, once the govt. is formed then
representation of all caste groups in govt., political parties supporting the caste groups to
gain their vote.

• Phase 3: It was believed that due to the rise of multiple caste alliances, caste-neutral jobs,
and secular patterns of living, caste identities will cease to exist.

But the objective of this phase was not achieved due to the Casteization of politics (caste-
based political parties). Ex- BSP, SP, Bhimsena, Maratha Kranti Morcha, Harijan Sevak Sangh.

Question: Critically Analyze to what extent the politicization of caste and casteization of politics are
threat to Indian democracy.

Answer:

1) Political Empowerment: It has allowed marginalized communities to gain political representation

and assert their rights.

2) Neutralization of caste: They have been able to challenge the hegemony of upper-caste elites.

3) Democratization of political space when power is not concentrated in the hands of a few
dominant groups.

4) Socially inclusive policies.

5) Inclusive policy making and enhances Social Justice

However, it has also led to the fragmentation of society when caste identity often take precedence
over national identity.

1) Political parties in their quest for votes exploit caste divisions leading to the
entrenchment of identity politics.
2) Casteization of politics undermines the principle of democracy as caste loyalties are
more important than competence.
3) When politics becomes overly caste centric it may perpetuate social inequalities.
4) It can also pose a threat to national unity as it can lead to social polarization which
can result in caste-based clashes.

Hence, the challenge for Indian democracy lies in balancing the need for caste-based representation
with the imperative of fostering a political culture that transcends caste divisions.

Andre Beteille: in The Hindu, wrote: "India's destiny is not cast in stone"

• Caste-neutral jobs (No Division of labor)

• Secular pattern of living (No SoC)

• Commensality rules are diluting (Anonymity + Heterogeneity)

• Rise in Inter-caste marriages.

• People are achieving mobility with respect to secular hierarchy.

 Conclusion: Caste has been dislodged from the ritual domains because the principles of purity
and pollution are weakening. Although caste has entered the psyche of people during electoral
politics, the hype is created by media.

Counter Arguments (By Gail Omvedt)

• According to IHDS: Only 5% of marriages are intercaste, remaining prefer to get married
within the sub-caste which implies that caste endogamy is still a reality.

• According to MoSJE: 66,696 are manual scavengers out of which 97.25% belong to the SC
community which implies that caste-based division of labour is still a reality.

• According to a study by Amit Thorat and Omkar Joshi, states that 30% of urban households
practice untouchability. Hence it refutes the concept of a secular pattern of living due to
urbanism.

• According to a study by Satish Deshpande, covert untouchability is prevalent in society. e.g.

separate utensils, not renting the accommodation.

• According to ActionAid NGO, 25% of surveyed villages didn't allow lower caste people to
work on their land as casual labour. In 3/4th of the surveyed villages, they were not allowed
to sell milk either to cooperatives or people directly.

Rural caste and Urban caste:

• Refer to the infographic drawn on the board.

• It was predicted that with development and better education and opportunity caste would
cease to exist however on the contrary it has shown immense resilience and has acquired
associations. e.g.

Political Association BSP, SP, Bheem Sena, Maratha Kranti Morcha, etc.

DICCI (Dalit Indian Chamber of Commerce and Industry), NSCFDC

Economic Association
(National SC Finance and Development Corporation)

Marriage: Brahmin matrimony, Rajput matrimony in newspaper

Social Association
Education: Dalit Sahitya, Vaishya Education Society.

Question 1: "The caste system is assuming new identities and associational forms and hence caste
system cannot be eradicated in India". Comment.

(Intro- problems associated with caste, linking statement- efforts made to eradicate it by indust,
urbani, role of state, despite this the caste system is assuming new identities and associational forms.
Body – above box, efforts should be made to eradicate the discriminatory aspects of caste)

Question 2: Has caste lost its relevance in understanding Indian society? Elaborate your answer with
examples. (Has lost relevance, not lost relevance)

Question 3: Why has caste identity in India both fluid and static?
Answer: Think it in three dimensions- Ritual Dimension (principle of purity and pollution), Economic
Dimension, Structure dimension

RESERVATION

Concept; It is a concept, where a certain percentage of seats are reserved for socially and
educationally backward communities.

Rationale:

1) To correct the historical injustice.

2) To Ensure equality of opportunity.

3) To give effect to redistributive agenda of the State.

Debate concerning reservation:

Arguments For Arguments Against

Meritocracy is meaningless without equality of

Merit will be compromised
opportunity.

In a democracy, it is a political necessity to give

Administrative efficiency is negatively impacted
representation to all sections.

To achieve above mentioned rationale- above It may further strengthen the stereotype by
three types discrediting the success as a result of reservation

It has been reduced to the status of political tool

To correct the stereotypes- LC has low IQ in the hands of politician to serve their vested
interest.

It has further widened the divide in society and

Strengthening the Cultural capital. few believe it has become a tool for reverse
discrimination.

Promote diversity at the level of jobs and

It has created a Domino Effect.
education.

Class within caste has widened the grounds for

Inclusive development
intra-caste disputes

Reduce gaps between haves and have-nots to Instead of means, reservation has become an end
achieve social justice. for many.

caste consciousness has been strengthened which

Helps to achieve social empowerment
has led to in-groupism.
 The problem of Brain Drain. It goes against the
To achieve the objectives of the Constitution in
capability approach of Amartya Sen- invest on skill
both letter and spirit.
development, education, health

To achieve Sustainable development goals. Social unrest creates a fiscal burden on the govt.

Empowerment of Dalit women by

Enhances corruption- fake certificates
intersectionality approach.

Way Forward:

• A new yardstick needs to be developed to determine the backwardness. e.g. NALSA

judgment 2014 to include transgenders under OBC.

• Give reservations through social mapping. e.g. apex court in M. Nagaraj and Jarnail Singh
case stated to introduce creamy layer in SC/ST.

• Complete overhauling of the education system. e.g. widening the ambit of RTE to
incorporate secondary education, and bringing the public at par with private education.

• Promote a culture of entrepreneurship(self-employment). i.e. transforming youth from job

seekers to job generators, making agriculture lucrative for youth.

• Periodic evaluation of the policy of reservation and plug-in the loopholes.

• Perception management is the need to the hour.

DALIT CAPITALISM

Concept: When capitalism is seen as a solution for the liberation/emancipation of Dalits, it is referred
to as Dalit Capitalism.

The term was coined by Chandra Bhan Prasad.

• "Dalit": Refers to a section of people who are socially discriminated against with
economically marginalized. The term was first used by Jyotirao Phule and popularized during
the 'Dalit Panther' movement in Maharashtra in the 1970s.

Question: What is Dalit Capitalism and to what extent it can be considered as a panacea for the
emancipation of Dalits?

Answer:

Arguments For:

• Upward social mobility.

• Position in the secular hierarchy will improve.

• Community empowerment can happen.

• It will help in breaking the stereotypes.

• Emergence of Role models will have a pull effect.

• It can reduce the discrimination in the society

 • It can also help in strengthening social capital.

• It will challenge occupational division of labour

• It will help in reducing the demand for reservations.

• It can provide a medium to preserve and promote traditional knowledge and skills.

• Increase the risk- taking ability of the community

The govt. of India has created a special venture fund with a corpus of 606 cr. of which 450 cr.
has already been sanctioned to 120 companies with at least 51% of shareholding by SC
entrepreneurship.

Arguments against:

• Capitalism as a system inherently promotes inequality.

• There is no guarantee that it will change the existing mindset.

• Endowments are necessary but entitlement (ability to transform capital into asset) is the
need of the hour. Hence it will benefit only those who are skilled (class within caste).

• Dalit capitalists may confront systemic challenges. e.g. delay in project approval, challenges
in managing the enterprise, denying access to credit and lack of developed social capital
might reduce their access to business networks.

• It may lead to the politicization of caste due to increased nexus between politicians and
entrepreneurs.

• It may create a feeling of relative deprivation among the forward caste which can lead to
conflicts.

VIOLENCE AGAINST DALITS

• According to NCRB, increase in violence against Dalits by 1.2% in 2021.

• In 2021, 70818 cases are pending which constitutes 96% of cases and the conviction rate is
36% (less)

Reasons for the increase in Violence against Dalits:

• According to Christopher Jefferlot, increased mobility in the secular hierarchy has challenged
the hegemony of the upper caste which led to relative deprivation and can be seen through
violent manifestation.

• According to Gail Omvedt, violence against Dalits is a counter-reaction to the process of

Sanskritization.

• Lack of 3 A’s with respect to the justice system- awareness, accessibility, and affordability.

• Lack of caste-sensitive attitude among law enforcement agencies.

• Fear of retaliation.

• Dependence on the perpetrators with respect to income sustainability.

 • There exists a lack of reporting as many victims consider it as a matter of fate. (Retribution of
past karma)

• Glorification of fringe elements also reduces deterrence concerning crime against others. Ex-
Calling person like Armaan Malik on Big Boss OTT

• Lack of efforts to correct malpractices in society also leads to the continuation of derogatory
practices.

• However, the apex court has observed that sometimes existing laws are misused. i.e. instead
of being used as a shield, it is used as a weapon to settle the personal scores and it is
referred to as 'new legal terrorism' (in reference to Sec 498A and SC/ST Prevention of
Atrocities Act).

However, misuse doesn't justify the dilution of laws but creates grounds for better regulation of
laws.

Question: Despite the increase in legal provisions violence against Dalits is on the rise. Discuss.

CASTE CENSUS
Q: "Caste must be counted because it counts". Discuss the statement in light of the recent
debates over castebased census.

Approach: • Define Caste and caste-based census.

• Give reasons why it must be counted.

• Also provide the reason why it should not be counted.

• Provide a balanced conclusion.

Caste refers to a unique system of social stratification, peculiar to Indian society, which is
characterized by particularistic-ascribed pattern of behavior. Caste-based census refers to a
population enumeration that collects socioeconomic data on the various caste groups
within a society. Significance of Counting the Caste: • Reliable Data: The representation in
political and administrative institutions of various communities can be ensured with
availability of reliable data. • Determinant of Economic Development: Caste determines
the economic prospects of a person, especially in rural areas. According to Satish
Deshpande, it is arguably most important regulator of life-chances today. • Understanding
Inequalities: M. Vijayanunni portrayed it as a move to challenge the status quo by
highlighting inequality and eventually eliminating caste. • Political Representation:
According to Christophe Jaffrelot, a caste census would assist in mapping political
representation and allowing for the better inclusion of underrepresented groups. • Better
Targeting: The supporters argue that it will be useful in better intersectional planning and
targeting of social schemes. While there are various potential benefits of the Caste-based
census, there are also certain apprehensions regarding the use of the exercise. Issues with
Caste-based Census: • Hardening of the Caste identities: As argued by M N Srinivas, A
fresh enumeration on caste would lead to fresh mobilization and a further hardening of
caste identities. • Complexity of Caste System: A.M. Shah points out the difficulty in
collection of data given the multiplicity of names and the contextual manner in which the
terms are used. • Demographic Changes: Ghanshyam Shah talks about the difficulty being
exacerbated due to migration, inter-caste marriage, modern employment practices etc. •
Available Alternatives: Y. Singh points out on already available data from various
committees and commissions. • Privacy concerns: Data and privacy concerns have
persisted due to which there had been partial release of SECC data. • Suhas Palshikar
argues that, “It is true that Bihar’s caste census opens up door for more informed public
policy on social justice. However, mere conducting a caste census is no guarantee of such a
policy shift- particularly in view of the populist pressures parties have themselves built
and under which they operate”. As Nandini Sundar (Caste as Census Category: Implications
for Sociology) puts, a caste census by itself may put little to our understanding but may
complement the sociological understanding along with historic and ethnographic
contextualization.
WOMEN ISSUES
• Concept of Gender and its manifestation at individual, cultural, and structural levels-
the impact of gender stereotyping on the social position of women.
• Patriarchy: Its concept, manifestation, and at the structural level- family, kinship,
knowledge system, symbolism, religion, caste.
• Patriarchy vis-a-vis work: Concept of public patriarchy, sectors- agriculture, service,
industry, informal sector (gig economy), and issues such as low FLFP, the wage gap,
and unpaid work.
• Violence against women: statistics, manifestation-Sexual harassment at workplace,
DV, Dowry, Surrogacy; causes, govt. effort, lacunae, way forward.
• Women empowerment.
GENDER
• Gender is defined as a socially constructed aspect of difference between men and
women.
• Sex is a biological concept, Gender: Social Concept
• We are not born with Gender; we are born to do Gender.
• Manifestations of gender:
- At the individual level: Gender tells us about the Identity of a male/female.
- At the cultural level: behaviour, values, aspirations, attitude, choices, etc-Blue
for boys and Pink for Girls; Something wrong in relationship, boy must be
wrong; Girls gifted kitchen set and barbie doll, boys gifted cars, etc
Toxic masculinity: It refers to behaviour, attitude, or societal expectation that
perpetuates stereotypes about men and enforces rigid gender roles. It leads to:
 1) Emotional repression which leads to mental health issues.
2) Aggression is considered as a strength that increases the risk of violence both
against others and self. Ex- Alpha Male concept- movies like Animal
3) Pressure to be a breadwinner which creates self-alienation, neglect of health
and risk of burnout.
4) Homophobia: It creates a hostile environment for the LGBTQ community.
5) Man refuses to seek medical help for injuries as it is considered a sign of
weakness.
6) Objectification of women: Treating women as an object of sexual desire.
Not all men exhibit such behaviour.
Toxic feminity: It refers to harmful behaviour expectations imposed on women by
society. e.g.
1) Unrealistic beauty standards.
2) Emotional labour: women are expected to manage emotions and perform
caregiving roles- Pink Collar jobs
3) Subjugation in relationships: internalize misogyny as women adopt sexist
attitudes towards themselves and others.
4) Suppression of authenticity (true self) that leads to self-alienation. Women
assume that they are weak and hence they have to be dependent on others.
• Structural: It leads to sexual division of labour: Men (public sphere) and women
(domestic spaces)
• Anecdote: Titanic scene- life boats coming – All women and children get on the
lifeboat and each man to himself.
IMPACT OF GENDER STEREOTYPING ON THE SOCIAL POSITION OF WOMEN

Gender Stereotype Impact

1) Domestic division of labour.

Women are caring and nurturing. 2) Undervaluation of care work

leading to wage Gap (as no new skills,
it is their nature)

Pink collared jobs (nurse, primary

Women have soft skills.
school teachers, etc.).

Women are more emotional

Glass ceiling, Glass Cliff.
rather than rational.

Women are weak, passive, and

Violence against women.
dependent.
 Glass Ceiling: There exists a transparent ceiling in every organization beyond which
women are not promoted. e.g. According to a study by Delloite, only 4.7% of CEOs
are women. India is yet to witness a female CJI.
Glass Cliff: it refers to a situation in which women are more likely to be placed in
leadership roles during the time of crisis where the risk of failure is high. e.g. Marrisa
Mayer was appointed as CEO of Yahoo in 2012 when it was struggling against Google
and Facebook. Despite her efforts the performance declined and eventually it was
sold to Verizon in 2017. Indira Gandhi made PM at time of agrarian crisis, war,
untimely death of PM. Kamala Harris
Question: Discuss the impact of gender stereotyping on the position of men in society.
PATRIARCHY
• It is defined as a system of social structures and practices in which men oppress,
exploits, and dominates women.
• Although patriarchy refers to the domination of men, women equally perpetuate
patriarchy and this concept is known as Patriarchal Bargain. e.g. Mother-in-
law/Mother has a preference for a male child (son meta preference)
- women politicians agree/allegiance with political parties and do not support
women's issues.
• Patriarchal Bargain: Women strike a bargain with patriarchy to support male
dominance to gain protection, status, and resources inside the system which they
think they might lose if they challenge the system.
- In male-dominated industries women tolerate sexist behaviour to advance
their careers.
- Some women may participate in victim shaming and distance themselves
from any threat of violence.
• Manifestation: Patriarchy is not constant and gender relations vary across time and
space. The nature of control and subjugation although a pan-Indian feature varies
with respect to class, caste, religion, ethnicity, etc.
Hence, Brahminical patriarchy is different from tribal patriarchy (literacy factor,
drunken abuse- but status and respect much better, tribal sex ratio better than
national avg) and is different from Dalit patriarchy.
Question: What are the challenges confronted by women across time and space? (10
mark/150 words)
STRUCTURES OF PATRIARCHY
• Family:
1) Informal agency of socialization.
2) The first lessons of gender stereotyping are learned at the family level.
 3) Patrilineality and Patrilocality; It reduces the status of the girl child in the
family where the boy child is considered as Inheritor and the girl child is
considered as 'Paraya Dhan'.
4) Ex- blue for… girls; gender differentiation in toys, career choices, behaviour-
girl needs to be docile, submissive, etc
• Knowledge System:
1) The patriarchal construction of knowledge also perpetuates patriarchy.
2) It is manifested in the role of media and the education system.
• Media: Objectification and commodification through ads. Glorification of anti-social
behaviour and damsel in distress image of women.
• Education: The issue is in the content (gender stereotypes- setting beauty standards,
division of labour), infrastructure (lack of functional toilets is a prime reason for girl
dropout according to ASER), and attitude of teachers(patriarchal).
• Symbolism:
- A more subtle way of perpetuating patriarchy is creating a self-sacrificing
image of women. i.e. ideological indoctrination with respect to the concept
of ideal womanhood. Ex- Multi-tasking by only women.
- This image is created through television. Ex- Gopi Bahu, Anupama, Sandhya-
IPS officer- subah shaam household chores- when on job?
• Religion:
- The social construction of various practices in its patriarchal form draws its
legitimacy from religion and religious institutions as some customs and
practices regard male authorities as superior.
- There are laws and norms in different religions concerning family, marriage,
adoption, inheritance, etc. are biased against women. e.g. polygamy, triple
talaq, nikah halala, son meta-preference, etc.
- Devi Dichotomy concept by Veena Das: Although we worship many
goddesses they are denied access to basic resources. Annapurna Devi, yet
women malnourished; Lakshmi Devi, yet women not financially independent
• Caste:
- Caste and gender are closely related as the sexuality/Chastity of women is
directly related to the purity of caste.
- The caste system and caste endogamy exercise restrictions on the labour and
sexuality of women. Hence, caste is not just the social division of labour but
also the basis for the sexual division of labour.
Uma Chakravarty: How notions of purity and pollution which were confined to caste
have now extended to gender. e.g.
1. Restrictions of Pratiloma marriage
 2. Pre-marital sex is a taboo.
3. Working women are ridiculed.
4. Restrictions on women during periods.
5. Patriarchy vis-a-vis work: Refer to the diagram
Question: How does patriarchy impact the position of middle-class working women? (10
marks/150 words)
Answer:
Introduction: Define the Middle class.
Linking Statement: link the introduction with the demand of the question (sub-heading/
Paraphrasing).
Women: Impacting
- at the family level (dual burden, domestic violence, lack of financial
independence),
- at the societal level (public ridiculing, violence against women), and
- labour market level (Pink Collored Jobs, glass ceiling, glass cliff, wage gap,
sexual harassment).
Conclusion: If women are not empowered then it will challenge the development of the
nation. Barometer of any nation’s progress is determined by the treatment given to its
women.
(Middle-class definition: It is defined as the section of society which is known by its income,
occupation and education. The key characteristic of the middle class is they are the flag
bearer of traditional value system. (UC- western, LC-earning a livelihood is the focus so
neglect the traditional value system)
They are often confronted with the challenge of cultural lag. e.g. perpetuation of patriarchy
among the middle class.)
(Social Issues answer writing- Concept, Causes, Implications, Govt Efforts, Challenges, Way
forward)
WOMEN IN AGRICULTURE
• Statistics:
- 80% of the economically active women in the agriculture sector.
- 47% - self-employed and 33% - agriculture labourers.
- 14% of the landholding is held by women (According to Agri. Census)
- 80% of the farm work and 90% of the dairy work is done by women
(According to Oxfam)
- There is a wage gap of 30%.
• FEMINIZATION OF AGRICULTURE:
 It means measurable increase in the participation of women in the agriculture
sector. (53% women regd on EShram portal- Feminization of Informal sector)
('Feminization' can have various aspects like poverty, old age, etc.)
CAUSES:
o Economic factors:
- Cheap labour (30% wage gap)
- Male-specific distress migration. Due to poverty, women are required to
sustain the family income
- Most of the farmers are small and marginal farmers and cannot afford to hire
outside labour making them dependent on the women of the family.
- Globalization has created diverse job opportunities for skilled and educated
confining women in the agriculture sector.
o Socio-cultural factors:
- Easy to manage the dual burden.
- Globalization- Lack of opportunity for mobility concerning secular hierarchy +
lack of cultural capital (lack of education, skills, etc)
- Existence of sexual division of labour like sowing, and threshing.
- Cultural acceptance concerning women working in agriculture.
- Traditional knowledge with respect to crop farming etc. is considered a
valuable asset in agriculture.
- Feminization of old age.
- Farmers suicides.
- Flexible labour (introduced by Surinder Jodhka) i.e. less bargaining power,
can be employed in any field, at any wage, for any number of hours (due
to patriarchy).
- Eco-feminism.
- Easy accessibility to the farmlands addresses the issue of safety and security.
IMPLICATION OF FEMINIZATION OF AGRICULTURE:
o At the individual level:
i) Increase FLFP
ii)Financial independence of women
iii)
Autonomy in decision making
iv)Empowerment of women ensures a better future for children. For example, the
abolition of child labour, better nutrition, and education
v) The presence of women in public spaces will lead to the following:
- Entrepreneurship – Women Led SHGs
- Leadership skills
- It will provide opportunities to socialize
- Strengthening of social capital
- Reduction in the violence
o At the societal level:
 i) Attitude with respect to women might change where instead of being treated as a
liability they will be treated as an asset.
ii) Preservation of traditional knowledge with respect to agricultural practices
iii) It will help in establishing women as an agency of change which according
to Amartya Sen will have a domino effect- Malnutrition, IMR, CMR all will be
addressed.
iv) It will promote sustainable agriculture and address the problem of poverty and
hunger.
• According to the FAO, if women have equitable access to agricultural resources as
that of men agricultural productivity will increase by 4%.
CHALLENGES AND SUGGESTIONS
o Challenges:
i) Lack of ownership of assets.
ii) Lack of collaterals.
iii) Limited access to institutionalized credit system.
iv) Informal credit system (high rate of interest)
v) Fall into a trap of debt burden.
vi) Lack of awareness with respect to technological innovation.
vii) Only 5% of agriculture extension services reach women farmers and only 15% of
agriculture extension services agents are women.
viii) According to the Corteva Agriscience Report, 78% of women in agriculture are
subjected to some form of harassment.
ix) There exists a wage gap of 30%.
x) Lack of gender-friendly equipment (Mahindra company- Prerna Project)
xi) Lack of autonomy in decisions over important issues such as crop selection,
marketing, etc.
xii) An increase in household income leads to the domestication of women (applicable
to any aspect, not specific to farming).
o Suggestions:
i) Provide loans on soft terms.
ii) 'Project Prerna' by Mahindra and Mahindra concerning gender-friendly tools.
iii) Ensure participation of women through SHGs. For example, Dilasha Sanstha has
involved 7650 women SHGs to encourage them to do organic farming.
iv) Ensure safety and security to prevent any kind of harassment- Mahila Police
Volunteers in Haryana on Pilot basis to create awareness about legal proceedures
and their rights.
v) Establishing a service centers in the vicinity to provide easy access to information.
vi) Areas such as beekeeping, and poultry have immense scope for women farmers and
hence should be explored further.
Question:
 • Discuss various economic and socio-cultural forces that are driving the increasing
feminization of agriculture in India. (10 marks)
• To what extent feminization of agriculture has led to women's empowerment in
India? Discuss (10 marks)
Women empowerment (According to the UN- 5 Dimensions)
• Sense of self-worth
• Access to social, political, and economic resources
• Autonomy in decision-making
• Control over their reproductive life
• Ability to lead the direction of social change
(TOPICS TO BE PREPARED-CARE ECONOMY, WOMEN IN STEM, IN ENTREPNEURSHIP-
Mains365)
WOMEN IN INDUSTRY AND SERVICE SECTOR
- According to the Consulate General of Sweden in India, women in industry
vary from 3-12%.
- According to GE and Avatar Research, women in industries - 12%.
- ILO: Women in service and industry are less than 20%.
- Global Gender Gap Report 2022:
- Number of women in senior roles - 14.6%
- Women in managerial roles - 8.9%
- Women in technical field - 29.2%
- Deloitte: 4.7% of the CEOs in India are women.
Reasons for low representation in these sectors:
1. Lack of gender-friendly infrastructure at the workplace.
For example, lack of childcare facilities, a lack of separate functional toilets, lack of
CCTV cameras. Also, lack of Internal Complaint Committees in offices.
2. According to Indra Nooyi, women's biological clock and career clock are always
coinciding which results in a career break due to social and reproductive
responsibilities. (ILO has labelled it as a ‘motherhood penalty')
3. Lack of awareness among women with respect to opportunities in the sectors due to
lack of role models.
4. Women are socialized to do domestic chores due to gender stereotyping and as a
result increase in enrollment of women in higher education has not translated into
labour market participation.
5. According to the Teamlease report, around 1.1 million to 1.7 million women in India
have lost their jobs post-implementation of the Maternity Benefit Act.
 6. The issue of accessibility to the workplace in the absence of safety and security
along with women being associated with the prestige of the family results in low
female labour force participation.
7. Lack of incentive to work (wage gap, dual burden, social ridiculing).
8. According to the McKinsey Institute, due to mechanization 12 million women in
India will lose jobs by 2023.
Question: Critically examine the factors responsible for the skewed concentration of
women in particular sectors of the labour market.
WOMEN IN INFORMAL SECTOR
• According to the ILO, if women in part-time jobs along with the informal sector are
taken together, their participation in the labour market exceeds that of men.
• According to the e-Shram portal, 53% of registered workers are women.

Lack of min
Limited access
Patriarc wages,min working
Deprivat to Informal Deprivatio
hy conditions/social
ion education/skills/ sector n
security/opportunitie
formal jobs
s for career growth

Gig Economy- PPT

ISSUES CONFRONTED BY WOMEN AT THE WORKPLACE, WAGE GAP
• As per the Periodic Labour force Survey, women's participation in the labour force
has increased to 37% (2022-23).
Reasons for low labour force participation: PPT
i) Patriarchy, social ridiculing, and social stigma are associated with corporate culture.
ii) Infrastructural constraints
iii) The threat of sexual harassment.
Feminization U-hypothesis:
- Increased 29enrolment of girls in secondary education shows a declining
trend in FLFP.
- However, in the long run better educational opportunities and skill
development will be increased in FLFP.
Question: In the backdrop of declining FLFP critically examine its implication. (10 marks)
Wage Gap:
• There exists approximately 20% of wage gap between men and women.
• According to the OECD, the reasons are:
i) Lack of bargaining power among females.
ii) Undervaluation of care work.
• According to the ILO, a wage gap exists due to:
i) Underrepresentation of women in leadership.
ii) Motherhood penalty.
iii) Overconcentration in unpaid work.
iv) Undervaluation of feminized occupation.
UNPAID WORK
The work for which we are not paid any remuneration.
• Around 91.5% of the women are involved in unpaid work compared to 20% of the
men.
• Major types:
i) Household maintenance
ii) Care of family members
• Globally 75% of the women are doing unpaid work.
• Irrespective of educational achievement concentration of women in unpaid work
remains unaffected.
• ILO terms the unpaid world as a 'hidden engine' as it contributes to running the
society, economy, family, etc.
• According to the ILO, if we monetize unpaid work globally it amounts to $10 Trillion
per year.
Causes of increased concentration of women in unpaid work:
i) Stereotypes that women are better suited for domestic work.
ii) Gender-specific socialization
iii) Traditional practices such as restriction of mobility after marriage or society
not preferring working women.
iv) Lack of cultural capital.
v) Ideological indoctrination with respect to ideal womanhood.
vi) Some believe that Sexual division of labour consolidates family as an
institution.
Implication for unpaid work:
 i) It restricts the possibility of women empowerment as it declines their financial
independence.
ii) Negative impacts on physical and cognitive development.
iii) Lack of self-worth which may also lead to self-alienation.
iv) It will increase hierarchy in gender relations and gender inequality both in family
and society.
v) Occupational downgrading and segregation. Girl engineer but family suggests her to
work as a teacher in primary School
vi) It has a very high opportunity cost. Ex- Perpetuation of poverty, patriarchy, etc
vii) It deteriorates the quality of life, for example, sleep deprivation, social isolation,
discrimination in hiring, and mental health issues.
viii) Increased vulnerability to shocks and disasters. Ex- Husband died in COVID
then responsibility comes on women
Monetization of unpaid work:

Benefits Challenges

Commoditization of the care work will

It will contribute to the visibility reduce the emotional component of the
of unpaid workers. relationships and may destabilize the
family institution.

It will help women claim better It is difficult to capture the whole

status within patriarchal spectrum of unpaid work as women are
households. multitasking.

Monetization will provide

resources that can help women
develop their personality and Difficulty in implementation.
overall it can help establish
women as an agency of change.

It will further stereotype the work done

by women and she might further be
confined to domestic space.

Monetization does not guarantee

freedom to spend.

Way forward: 3Rs:

- Recognize the unpaid work done by women.
- Reduce unpaid work. (According to Oxfam, due to schemes like Ujjawala and
Jal Jeevan Mission, the burden of unpaid work has been reduced on women
by 22 minutes and their involvement in the paid work is increased by 60
minutes)
 - Redistribute i.e. men should also take responsibility- Defeminization of
Unpaid Work
VIOLENCE AGAINST WOMEN
Definition:
• Any gender-based violence which leads to mental, physical, and sexual harm is
referred to as violence against women.
• According to the NCRB, there is a 4% increase in violence against women in 2022 as
compared to 2021.
- 31.4 % of the violence against women falls under cruelty by the husband and
the relatives.
- There exists a regional variation with maximum cases in Delhi followed by
UP.
• According to the NCW, in 2021, there was a 46% rise in violence against women.
- UN Women cited this as a 'shadow pandemic' (In the shadow of pandemic,
new pandemic was emerging)
• 86% of the women never reported violence against women. Out of this, 77% have
not even discussed the violence.
• Out of 14%, only 7% could reach the appropriate authority.
Causes:
1) Institutionalization of patriarchy.
2) Different processes of socialization.
3) Objectification and commodification of women.
4) Economic dependence of women.
5) Traditional cultural practices. For Ex- Child Marriages (Bhavri Devi case- retaliation
for raising voice against CM), female genital mutilation
6) Structural limitations. For Ex- institutional weaknesses- there is a lack of stringent
laws, a lack of proper implementation, a lack of gender-sensitive attitudes, and a lack
of certainty.
7) Some acts such as alcoholism, gambling, drug abuse, etc.
8) Increased participation of women in the labour market acts as a threat to the
hegemony of men.
9) Similarly in a nuclear family due to a lack of social support system the women act as
a cushion to vent the frustration of men which also leads to increased violence
against women.
10) Lack of women representation in law enforcement bodies.
11) Broken Window Theory- Re enforcement of illegal behaviour
EFFORTS- PPT- Prepare Vulnerable sections- efforts- constitutional provisions, statutory,
inter. Conventions, Govt efforts, agencies
1975-85- UN declared it as a Decade for women empowerment
Question:
• Despite an increase in legal provisions violence against women is on the rise.
Discuss. (2016).
REASONS FOR PERSISTING CHALLENGES DESPITE LEGAL EFFORTS
Reasons:
1) Lack of judicial implementation of the provision leads to poor conviction rates and
delayed justice.
2) Lack of efforts with respect to attitudinal change- Law addresses only behavioural
component, not emotional and cognitive component
3) Fear of stigmatization
4) Lack of awareness among women with respect to rights and entitlements.
5) Lack of economic opportunities which denies them autonomy.
6) Underreporting of cases due to known accused, fear of retaliation, fear of social
isolation.
7) Patriarchal bargain leads to lack of social support for victims
8) Lack of political culture in the favour of women- thus women inclusive policies
doesn’t come.
9) Laxity on the part of law enforcement and the investigating agencies. Ex- in a case,
judge knew that harassment happened but no evidence taken like CCTV of lift and
after a week it was not there
10) Lack of proper infrastructure such as functional street lights, CCTV cameras, and
mobile police vans.
11) Lack of criminalization of crimes like marital rape.
12) Corruption of the value system
13) Cyberbullying and digital harassment have increased due to rise of technology
14) Broken window theory when for a petty crime a person is not reprimanded then the
chances of committing heinous crimes in later stages are very high. Ex- RG Kar Rape
case- the alleged person has a history of domestic violence case reported against him
15) Glorification of violence against women in the entertainment media.
16) Trivialization of patriarchal culture.
17) Bystander apathy
18) False cases are also reported
• According to Andre Beteille,"Law determines the direction in which society should
move but it's the culture which determines the direction in which society actually
moves.”
Question: Explain the paradox where on one hand violence against women justifies strong
laws whereas on the other hand same laws have been misused by some women.
Answer: Statistics- Example
 Linking Statement- However, concept of new legal terrorism
Body- Revenge seeking attitude, Lack of penalties/ provisions in case of misuse of laws,
Gender stereotypes-presumes the man is culprit, Corruption of value system (goals of
material success are more important than legitimate means), Lack of gender-neutral laws-
assumed man can never be harassed- Sexual Harassment, Improper Scrutiny of cases,
Desacrilisation of marriage- no longer divorce and separation is a taboo (498A is most
misused provision)
NCRB- only 10% cases misused, 90% are true. Misuse of laws never creates a ground for its
dilution rather the need for better regulation.
IMPLICATIONS AND WAY FORWARD
Question: Against the backdrop of an increase in violence against women, critically examine
its implication at the individual as well as collective level. (PPT)
Way forward:

Short terms measures Long terms measures

Self-defence training Moral overhauling of the society

Value-based education without any ideological

Establishing Fast-track courts
coloration

Setting up 24×7 helplines, mobile apps Gender sensitization of all stakeholders

More CCTVs and focus on women-friendly

Destigmatization of violence against women
mobility measures- GPS, Emergency Buttons

Bringing behavioural change through Nukkad

Social Innovations: Mahila police volunteers,
Natak, charismatic personalities, or IEC
one-stop centers, Pink Police Booths
campaign (Info, edu, communication)

Engage with men and boys as agents of change.

More awareness workshops for women
For example- He4She campaign

Strict patrolling and vigilance at night Educational reforms

Explore the potential of community policing Strengthening women's organizations and

and mohalla committees associations

Intersectionality approach to be adopted with

Educating children about good and bad touch
respect to all marginalized communities

Social media campaigns, create redressal Respecting rights with respect to bodily
mechanisms with respect to cyber violence autonomy
Use of technology to create gender-friendly
infrastructure and space

Creating a social support system for women

to discuss their issues

DOMESTIC VIOLENCE ACT- PPT- Sexual abuse i.e. marital rape addressed but it is a civil law
largely, Sec 85 of BNS
Reasons for increased instances of domestic violence:
1) Nuclear families are more prone to domestic violence.
2) Cultural acceptance of domestic violence.
- According to the Gender Social Norm Index by the UNDP: 25% of men and
women believe that it is okay for a husband to beat the wife.
- 40% of them believe men are better political leaders and 50% believe men
are better corporate executives.
3) Lack of alternative opportunities i.e. lack of parental support and financial
dependence on women.
4) Changing socio-economic relations, especially in urban areas. With respect to rural
areas, it is the issue of violence against young widows or when women are unable to
bear a boy child.
5) Disruption of social life due to factors like Covid.
(In the context of Uttar Pradesh initiatives like the Bell Bajao campaign (no need of
action just keep pressing the bell to make them know that you are watched) or
Suppress Corona Not Your Voice were taken to address domestic violence)
6) Lack of criminalization of marital rape.
WOMEN MOVEMENTS- PPT
DOWRY -PPT
Suggestions:
1) Promoting the concept of Adarsh marriages i.e. affluent people restrain from lavish
marriages.
2) Stigmatization of the practice of dowry, for example, naming and shaming or
mohalla committees.
3) Stopping the glorification of the gifting culture.
4) Outlawing extravagant weddings.
5) Ensure the girl child gets her share in ancestral properties.
6) Efforts to increase the financial independence of women.
7) Vicarious reinforcements should be resorted to set good examples in society.
8) Mass awareness drives regarding the negatives of dowry and making a people's
movement.
9) Strict implementation of laws in letter and spirit.
IMPACT OF GLOBALISATION ON DOWRY: Show off culture by Social Media, Consumerist
culture
Role of Youth in Politics- What can be done?
SEXUAL HARASSMENT AT WORKPLACE ACT- PPT
• According to a report by FICCI, 25% of the MNCs have yet not constituted an Internal
Complaint Committee.
• Approximately 70% of the women do not report the cases due to the following
reasons:
1) Lack of understanding of sexual harassment +gaslighting (10 people to make
you believe that you are overthinking)
2) A lack of faith in the complaint mechanism.
3) Fear of retaliation, social exclusion, and domestication.
4) Due to stigma associated with the status of women.
• Nisha Sharma Case, 2002- misuse of dowry law; Roopam Deval Bajaj case
MAINS 365: Surrogacy, Women in STEM, Women Entrepreneurship, Menstrual leave, Care
Economy- If these in news next year then cover these.
DIVERSITY
Concept of diversity: Collective difference which marks one group different from the other.
Manifestation of diversity: Linguistic, Religious, Regional, Racial, Ethnic
Problems associated: Linguistic nationalism, Communalism/religious fundamentalism,
Regionalism, Racial intolerance, Ethno-nationalism
• It is said that every individual is governed by two aspects i.e. culture (caste system)
and livelihood.
• If any one of them or both of them are discriminated against or dominated then it
creates the situation of objective reality (fact).
• However, there is a third-party intervention (socio-religious reformers) that leads to
a subjective realization of objective reality which leads to a feeling of relative
deprivation and which creates a feeling of resentment (temple entry movement,
self-respect movement)
• The above-mentioned framework can be applied in the following context:
- Bofors scam and the role of media (third party intervention) in exposing the
scam.
- JP Movement which mobilizes the masses against authoritarianism and
corruption.
- Anti-corruption movement by Anna Hazare- Pressure Groups
 - Role of Asom Jana Sangram Parishad during the 1979 Assam crisis. (Illegal
migrants from Bangladesh diluting their culture, majority and hence
influencing the election results by enrolling into voters list)
- The persistence of caste-based discrimination is considered to be the
retribution of past karma. However, with the emergence of socio-reform
leaders, there was a subjective realization of objective reality which led to
resentment.
Although it is important to ensure one has a realization about reality it should not be a false
realization. Hence the role of a third party is extremely important. (Depends on the intention
of third party- positive or negative- COVID 19- public health infra weak- but people mobilised
by 3rd party, it just the fabrication of mind)
LINGUISTIC DIVERSITY
Status:
1. India is a land of extreme linguistic diversity.
2. According to the Census 2011, 121 major languages and approximately 1599 other
languages are spoken in India.
3. So, it is characterized by 'kos kos par badle pani char kos par vaani.' (Every 3 km it is
the taste of water that changes, every 12 km language undergoes a change.)
4. Language is an integral part of our culture hence it is the source of both cohesion and
conflict.
Advantages of linguistic diversity:
1) Many Indigenous languages contain valuable knowledge, it reflects the country's rich
cultural heritage as these languages have their unique history, literature, and cultural
nuances.
2) Vernacular media can help in providing legitimacy to government policy and
programs and ensure better service delivery.
3) It exemplifies the salad bowl nature of India's multiculturalism.
4) It enhances the soft power and credibility of our democracy at the international
level.
5) It can help in achieving the goal of universal education by imparting elementary
education in the mother tongue.
6) Respect for linguistic diversity fosters a culture of tolerance which in turn promotes
social cohesion.
Challenges:
1) It might create an environment of linguistic chauvinism which when creates a feeling
of relative deprivation can create conflict in society.
2) It can give rise to language-based regionalism fuelling secessionist tendencies.
3) Communication barriers between the states.
4) It might create challenges for migrants or challenges for businesses to operate
across the region.
 5) Social Inequality for minority language speakers.
6) It creates administrative challenges.
7) Difficulty in finding jobs or accessing services for non-dominant speakers.
8) Native languages are dying due to lack of use and preservation.
Question: Implementation of language provision proved to be a challenging task in the
initial two decades of post-independence. Discuss. (Official language issue)
• Conclusionary remarks: Post-1967 the problem gradually disappeared from the
political scene demonstrating the capacity of the Indian political system to deal with
the problem democratically and promote national consolidation.
Question: To what extent linguistic reorganization of states has contributed to Indian
unity? Discuss. (Linguistic Reorganisation of States issue)
Arguments in favour:
1) If we want to ensure a massive spread of literacy universal education and the
development of tolerance linguistic reorganization is needed.
2) It helped in the development of provincial languages.
3) Linguistic reorganization helped resolve the basic source of conflict and helped in
keeping political extremism at bay.
4) Democracy can be realized in letter and spirit if administration and politics are
carried out in the language that is commonly understood by all.
5) According to Rajni Kothari, it created homogeneous political units that can be
administered through a medium that a large population can understand.
6) Linguistic reorganization made people feel that their right to self-determination was
respected.
Arguments against:
1) Linguistic reorganization did not resolve all the problems as we are extremely
diverse. It was like an opening of Pandora's box. For example, demand for
Gorakhaland, Mithilanchal, etc.
2) It has aggravated the consciousness among people concerning their linguistic identity
which has accelerated linguistic chauvinism.
3) Linguistic reorganization involves the possibility of political, administrative, and
economic dislocation. (1500 languages, 1500 states not possible)
4) It can threaten unity in diversity as when demands are not met it may lead to
negative regionalism. (regional feeling more imp than national identity)
5) It also had a spillover effect where different basis of creation of small states started
emerging.
RELIGIOUS DIVERSITY
Extent of diversity: Inter-religious and intra-religious
Inter-religious: Hinduism, Sikhism, Buddhism, Jainism
Intra-religious: Different sects and cults.
Sects:
1) It is defined as an offshoot of the existing religion due to disagreement over the
interpretation of the core beliefs or different interpretations of the beliefs.
2) For example, in Christianity- Catholics and Protestants; Shia and Sunni in Islam;
Vaishnavite and Shaivite, Shakta and Smarta in Hinduism.
3) A sect is defined as a close-knit group that consists of deeply committed members
and any dissent is not tolerated.
4) The individual voluntarily joins the sect and agrees to follow the beliefs.
5) Sects do not have a hierarchy of officials. However, if any authority exists it is of the
charismatic leader.
6) Sects are largely emerging among those groups that are marginalized. For example,
the Ravi Dasiya sect, Kabir Panth sect promoted the idea against caste-based
discrimination.
Cult:
1) It is defined as a loose-knit organization that is the result of cultural innovation or
cultural importation. Ex- Sahaj Yoga- Kundalni jagran- Nirmal Devi, ways to achieve
salvation- mass suicide se salvation milega
2) It is organized around charismatic personality and it often does not challenge
mainstream religion.
3) It accommodates dissent, it is a voluntary organization that is open to all.
Reasons for the growth of sect and cult:
According to OlRidge,
1. Religion guarantees salvation in the afterlife, and cult provides relief in this life.
2. Religion addresses spiritual needs and cult provides solutions to mundane (rojmarra)
problems.
3. Religion points out challenges in direct communication with God however cult
provides a medium where devotees can directly interact with charismatic
personalities.
4. Sects provide an alternative perspective to the youth who might feel trapped due to
social constructs such as the caste system.
5. Sects may also emerge as a result of urbanization or growing individualism. For
example, people from the middle class are joining sects and cults to access
community living.
6. Urban educated upwardly mobile class may feel relatively deprived due to spiritual
deprivation in the backdrop of capitalism and consumerism.
7. With modernization and secularization significance of religion has declined.
However, growing uncertainty or challenges posed by modernity there is a religious
 revivalism and one of the manifestations is the growth of sects and cults. (Science
doesn’t have all answers- COVID 19)
8. Today's society is driven by social media where the visibility of sects and cults has
increased and therefore their proliferation. (BK Shivani- Om Shanti)
Question: Analyse the salience of the sect vis-a-vis caste, region, and religion in Indian
society. (10 marks)

COMMUNALISM
Concept:
• It is an ideology according to which society is divided into different religious
communities having different socio, political, and economic (secular) interests.
• A man of religion is not communal but a man who practices politics by linking with
religion is communal.
• In short, communalism is referred to as "political trade in religion".
Manifestations: It has the following manifestations:
1. Mild: People belonging to the same religious community have
the same socio, political, and economic interests.
2. Moderate: People belonging to different religious communities
have different socio, political, and economic interests.
3. Extreme: People belonging to different communities not only have different
interests but mutually hostile/antagonistic interests. Zero Sum Theory- Power
in the society is constant. If power of one group increases, by default the
power of other group decreases. Progress of one section is at the cost of
another.
This is not true as power of the society increases as economy develops.
Types of Communalism:
1. Assimilationist:
When a dominant/majority religious group brings within its fold a minority religion
then it is referred as assimilationist communalism. For example, the Hindu Code Bill,
or tribes referred as backward Hindus.
2. Welfarist:
When religious communities work towards the welfare or socio-economic
development of their members. For example, scholarships, residential
accommodations, education institutions, etc.
3. Retreatist:
It refers to not participating or religious communities keeping themselves away from
political activities. For example, the Bahai community forbids its members from
 participating in politics- believe in unity of mankind. (based on religious
system→communalism)
4. Retaliatory:
It is based on zero-sum game theory, where religious groups are pitted against each
other since they are perceived to have mutually hostile interests. It is always a threat
to national integration.
5. Separatist:
When the state demands autonomy on religious lines, however, within the fold of
the Indian union. Example: Punjab state.
6. Secessionist:
When one demands secession based on religious lines i.e. threatening the internal
integrity of India is referred as secessionist communalism. Example: Khalistan.
The first three types of communalism are not threats to national integration, while the last
three types are threats to national integration.
Evolution of Communalism:
Pre-Independence:
1. Agricultural distress + lack of emergence of modern industries + lack of job
opportunities + rise of middle class due to education opportunities (in need of Jobs) →
discrepancy in demand and supply with respect to opportunities →
nepotism/favouritism (based on religion) → short-term benefits which gave validation
to communal politics.
❖ Communal bickering did start even prior to the emergence of Britishers. For
example, the destruction of temples, forced conversions and imposition of taxes
on religious practices of other religions.
However, the genesis could be traced to the British period.
2. The irony in the Indian context was such that the socio-economic differences
coincided with religious differences. For example, the Zamindar class belonged
largely to the Hindu community while the peasants mostly belonged to the Muslim
community.
Because of this reality, communalism emerged as a result of conflict between haves
and have-nots; rather than viewing the economic issues it was seen from the lens of
religious differences.
3. Communalism was also the result of a power struggle between the elite sections of
the society. (Info in copy)
4. Communalism was also the result of the divide-and-rule policy of the Britishers.
 The policy was adopted to counter growing nationalism and hence, communalism
became the main prop of colonialism.
For example, the separate electorate, the partition of Bengal, and the late response to
incidences of communal violence, patronage of communal media, etc.
5. Overthrowing of the colonial state was a necessary condition to tackle communalism
but not sufficient due to the following reasons.
- Failure of national leadership to unify the different sections of society as they
indulged in negotiations with religious leaders without making any direct
appeal to the masses.
- There was an implicit acceptance among the people that they only share
political and economic interests but are socially and culturally distinct.
- Giving a religious touch to a nationalist agenda. For example, using religious
festivals and symbols to mobilise the masses like Tilak using Ganesh Utsav,
taking a dip in the Ganges, etc.
- Glorification of a certain period of history to the extent of undermining
another historic period generated apprehensions among the educated people
of the religious groups, and their alienation from the freedom struggle, etc.
Example: Chhatrapati Shivaji is considered as a saviour of Hindus against
Islamist Delhi rulers, Muslim rulers were portrayed as outsiders, barbaric, and
oppressive, etc.
Post-Independence:
1. Lack of cultural integration → Generated Stereotype →Emotions of Anger/Hate →
violence manifestation/ behaviour →Minority group to survive resorted to technique
of invisibility → Ghettoisation (samne pado hi mat, alag jagah raho) → Lack of
Cultural Integration.
2. Divisive politics: Some politicians use religion to achieve political gains. For example,
manipulation by the leadership for the vote bank or selection of candidates based on
the religious composition of the constituency.
It is also known as communalisation of politics.
3. Politics of Appeasement: The overturning of Shah Bano's verdict to appease the
minority group.
4. Psychological factors: Lack of trust and understanding among different religious
groups which is further aggravated due to media.
- Sensitisation of trivial news.
- Trivialisation of real news.
- Sometimes media disseminates rumour as news.
- The situation has further worsened with the penetration of social media.
5. Administrative failure to tackle the incidences of communal violence.
 6. Socio-economic disparity among different religious communities provides fodder for
communal politics.
Question: Communalism arises either due to power struggle or relative deprivation Argue by
giving suitable examples. (Intro – communalism Definition, structure in copy)
Question: Differentiate between religiousness and communalism. By giving one example,
discuss how former turned into latter in post-Independence.

Religious Fundamentalism:
1. It is a violent offshoot of communalism.
2. As per Gabriel Almond: It is a visible pattern of religious militancy by which self-
styled true believers try to arrest the erosion of religious identity.
3. Rationale: People believe due to modernisation and secularisation, the world
around them has changed so much that it is difficult for them to protect, preserve,
and perpetuate their religious beliefs and practices.
4. Causes: Necessary: Modernisation and Secularisation.

Sufficient: Ideological cohesion (single sacred text).

- Supply of potential recruits (relatively deprived section).
- Charismatic leader- results in Destructive Obedience
- Information and technology- Dissemination of Ideas is faster
- Secular education → rational and scientific temper → questions regressive
practices → self-styled true believers think religious identity is declining → to
arrest that decline, they resort to religious fundamentalism.
Question: Modernity is breeding Religious Fundamentalism. Critically Analyse in context of
Indian Society.
5. Way Forward:
❖ Short-term measures: More deployment of a police force and enhanced
security through proper barricading.
- Prevent mass gatherings in one place. (Sec 144 of CrPC)
- Temporary suspension of the internet to prevent the spread of emotionally
charged and divisive content.
- An innovative diffusion framework can be adopted and we can persuade the
religious leaders to ensure peace and people do not indulge in violence.
- Providing mobile infrastructure with respect to medical emergencies.
- Patriotic feelings can be generated by playing motivational songs or the
power of sports can be explored to address the communal conflicts. Ex-
Vidarbha- farmer suicides in evening when it goes gloomy- so they started
playing motivational songs in evening, incidences of suicides reduced; 1983
world cup- India won Quarter Finals unexpectedly- area was prone to
communal riots, leadership announced to deploy television sets broadcasting
semi finals in the area, India won World cup – no communal riots broke out.
 - The police force should be well-equipped to ensure their safety.
- Setting up a peace community to address the issues.
- Drone surveillance can be used to prevent the diffusion of responsibilities.
Ex- Behavioural studies- Mob violence go brutal as there is no face. Thus, by
Drones you can held people accountable for their actions.
- Communal outfits should be immediately targeted and their capacity to
disrupt law and order must be crippled.
- The administration should make efforts to prevent the politicisation of the
issue.
❖ Long-term measures: Eradicate problems of poverty, illiteracy, and
unemployment.
- Value-based education without any ideological colouration.
- Responsible and restrained journalism.
- Reform in the criminal justice system. For example- speedy trials, adequate
compensation (main bread winner died), fast-track special courts, etc.
- Use of cinema and other cultural platforms to promote communal harmony.
- In the long run, banning communal outfits.
- Proper scrutinisation of domestic and international funding of the
organisation.
- Proper codified guidelines for administration to tackle the incidences of
violence.
- Stringent punishments for spreading communal violence.
- Creation of units for social media monitoring and fact-checking.
- Promoting religious harmony, cultural integration through civil societies,
community lunches, celebration of festivals, etc.
- Prevent the ghettoisation of communal groups to prevent the feeling of
isolation.
- Based on the Ranganath Mishra Committee report, proper sensitisation and
training of police personnel is required.

REGIONAL DIVERSITY
CONCEPT OF REGION
• A region is a homogeneous unit, physically and culturally distinct from the
neighbouring areas.
• People have the awareness that they are similar but distinct from others→
Formation of Regional Identity→ People start professing their political loyalties more
towards the region rather than State/Nation→ Regionalism
Examples: Boundary of region can transcend the state boundaries.
1. South Indian states are characterized by the Dravidian language which brings them
under one-fold.
 2. North Eastern Region is home to numerous tribes and ethnic groups but they share
historical experiences and ethnic ties due to geographical proximity and shared
practices. Manipur- Hill and valley area
3. There could be multiple regions within a state for example UP, Awadh, Braj,
Bundelkhand, Purvanchal, Paschim Pradesh, etc. Similarly, Rajasthan, Mewad,
Marwad, Shekhawati etc.
4. Religious and pilgrimage circuits. For example, religious practices define cultural units
that cut across states for example: Char Dham Yatra links regions across the states of
Uttarakhand, Odisha, Gujarat, and Tamil Nadu into a shared religious cultural unit.
5. Linguistic and cultural zones -The cultural unit of Bengal encompasses the state of
West Bengal and also Bangladesh. They share a common Bengali language, festivals,
and literature which binds people together despite political boundaries.
6. The Tamil cultural identity spans the Indian state of Tamil Nadu and parts of Sri Lanka.
Tamil language literature and the celebration of festivals illustrate this cultural
heritage.
Question: In the context of the diversity of India, can it be said that the region forms a
cultural unit rather than a state? Give reasons with examples. (After first revision, revise in
Question- Answer format)
REGIONALISM
• Regionalism is rooted in India's diversity with respect to language, caste, religion,
ethnicity, etc.
• When all these factors get geographically concentrated and there is a feeling of
relative deprivation then regionalism is bound to happen.

POSITIVE NEGATIVE

If to concretize our regional identities we resort to

regionalism. Example: Linguistic reorganization of states.

If you resort to violence.

If for the purpose of administrative convenience, we
resort to regionalism. Example: Uttarakhand (hill area
administration different from plain area- Ghost Hamlets
in hill area of Uttarakhand)

If for socio-economic development, people demand If demand is communal in nature.

separate state, then it is a positive aspect of regionalism.
Example: Telangana.

If it threatens territorial integrity of

the nation (secessionist demand)
 If it is based on ‘sun of soil’ theory

The concept of Regionalism is deeply based on the son of the soil doctrine.
Son of the soil Doctrine: -
• It is also referred to as the politics of nativism. It is defined as an ideology according
to which the natives of the land exercise their rights over the resources of the land
to the extent of exclusion of outsiders.
• It underlines the view that the state specifically belongs to the main linguistic group
and it constitutes an exclusive homeland for its main language speakers. For
example- Maharashtra, Karnataka, Assam, Meghalaya, etc.
Causes of Son of Soil:
1. Lack of culture of outmigration due to strong attachment to the land.
2. Son of soil often happens when there is a struggle for middle-class jobs (Ramdasiya
Sikhs (Brought by British to do menial jobs) in Meghalaya economic status improved
and in govt jobs, demand for their deportation to Punjab)
3. Presence of strong regional forces which tries to remain relevant by applying the zero-
sum game theory of power in the context of natives or migrants.
4. Discrepancy in demand and supply with respect to resources and opportunities.
5. Failure of state administration in both source (Develop to arrest outmigration) and
destination areas (make opportunities for both natives and migrants)
6. Due to rising aspirations, one has high expectations and anything short of expectation
will lead to disenchantment.
Basis of Regionalism:
1) Historical:
• Demand for regionalism is supported by myth, folklore, historical experiences, etc.
• For example: With respect to demand for Dravidistan, it was perceived that the Indo-
Aryan invasion that non-stratified polity and society were disrupted, and efforts were
made to establish Brahmanical hegemony.
• The movements against outsiders in Assam due to the history of inmigration of
Bengalis which altered their demography and impacted their culture and livelihood.
2) Geographical:
• Presence of Natural resources, climatic conditions, and topography.
• Geographical location such as strategic location (Siliguri Corridor- Trade affected of
NE region), Buffer Areas- Bundelkhand (UP and MP) (, Belgaun (Karnataka and
Maharashtra)
• Certain regions are vulnerable to crime due to their geographical location for
example: The drug problem in Punjab and Northeast.
 • The northeastern crisis can also be attributed to international borders and narrow
connectivity with the rest of India.
3) Socio-cultural factors- Language, Caste, Religion
• Language being the integral component of our identity is also the basis of
regionalism.
• Issue of official language, linguistic reorganization of states, bifurcation of greater
Assam, recent demand of Gorkhaland, etc.
• With respect to caste and religion even if the demands are raised, they are not
accepted as they threaten the secular fabric of India. Therefore, it is presented in the
garb of language or developmental issues. (like in case of Punjab bifurcation)
4) Politico administrative factor
• Politics never creates regionalism; politics only accentuates it by fanning the
sentiments of the masses to fulfill their own personal interest.
5) Economic Basis
• It is the most important factor. It forms the crust of regional politics and it is based on
the fact that resources are limited and demands are disproportionate.
• Even the policies of the government since independence have not been able to
address regional disparity. In fact, in many cases it has aggravated regional imbalance
and economic differences.
• Ex- Green Revolution- lopsided implementation→benefitted only rich farmers to the
extent of displacement of small and marginal farmers→increased disparity btw have
and have nots, Telangana had accused Andhra of colonising their land, jobs and also
blamed central govt for not investing enough in their infrastructure,
Underdevelopment of Assam one of the factor for Assam crisis.
Hence, it is the unequal distribution of unequal distribution of developmental benefits that
has created demand for small states.
Question: What is the basis of regionalism? Is Economic Inequality the most important
factor behind regionalism?
Question: Do you agree that regionalism in India is a consequence of cultural assertiveness?
Argue. (Assignment)
Question: Growing feeling of Regionalism is an important factor in the generation of
demand for separate state. Discuss.
TYPES OF REGIONALISM
a) Interstate regionalism.

• Inter-state river water dispute.

 • Conflict between states over territories.
b) Intra state regionalism.

• Sub regionalism
- West Bengal-Gorkhaland
- Assam-Bodoland
- Maharashtra-Vidarbha
- Gujarat- Saurashtra
c) Supra state regionalism.

• Groups of states are pitted against each other.

• Example: North India vs South Indian states with an official language; NE India vs Rest
of India on issue of development
d) Demand for secession.
• Demanding Separate nation. Example: Khalistan.
Impact of Regionalism: -
Positive:
1. It plays an important role in nation-building as it accommodates federal sentiments.
2. It helps in keeping political extremism at bay.
3. It gives people the right to self-determination.
4. It helps in realizing the essence of the salad bowl theory of multiculturalism.
5. Not always regional interest against the national interest in fact accommodating the
aspirations will reduce conflict.
6. Moderate regionalism may enhance the competitive spirit of the people which can
help in overall growth and development. Ex- Swachchta rating- healthy competition
Negative:
1. It's a tool for voting bank politics.
2. Unequal distribution of resources due to the presence of strong regional leaders may
result in feelings of relative deprivation.
3. Regionalism can be seen as a threat to the overall development and unity of the
nation especially when it has a violent connotation.
4. It may hinder international diplomacy. (Region transcends national boundaries-
Intervention of Indian govt in Sri Lankan civil war backfired with severity)

RACIAL DIVERSITY
Concept of Race
• Race is defined as a social group that consists of people having similar physical
characteristics such as facial features, colour, Complexation, the texture of hair etc.
• Race is a biological construct.
 • According to BS Guha, there are six types of races found in India:
1) Nordic
2) Negrito
3) Proto-Australoid
4) Mongoloid
5) Mediterranean
6) Western Brachycephalic
Caste and Race

Caste Race

Race on the other hand is the

Caste is referred to as stratification based on
characterisation of people based on
the principle of purity and pollution.
physical traits.

It originated in ancient Indian society linked

It developed during European
to the Varna System which later got
colonisation.
consolidated in the caste system.

The basis of caste is social and religious,

Race is biological and used to justify
which is associated with birth, occupation
discrimination
and endogamy.

Social mobility in theory is restricted but

Caste is ascriptive and social mobility is within the racial category, it is possible
restricted but in practice, we do observe it. depending upon socio-economic
conditions.

Caste continues to influence politics, social

Race plays a minimal role in India.
interactions, access to resources, etc.

Both caste and race intersect with other criteria such as gender, ethnicity, class, etc.
Racial Intolerance:
1. When people have a prejudiced attitude towards people of other races which often
results into discriminatory behaviour.
2. Causes: Obsession over fair complexation due to a colonial hangover,
commodification through advertisement, and the practice of racial chauvinism are
some of the key examples of the same
- Lack of Cultural Integration→Stereotyping→Ghettoisation
- Discrepancy in demand and supply wrt socio-economic, political resources
and opportunities→feeling of relative deprivation
 - It is often observed there is reinforcing of the stereotype on various cultural
platforms. Ex- Characterisation in Indian cinema.
- Other prominent examples:
• Normalisation of racism.
• Presence of fringe elements.
• Obsession with glass skin of Koreans
• There is a lack of racially sensitive attitudes, especially among law enforcement
agencies. For example, a mob attacked the Tanzanian students in Bangalore (2000);
In August 2021, a student from Congo died in police custody which resulted in
retaliation against Indians in Congo City; Similar incidents are observed against
northeastern students or against people with dark complexation
Implications of Racial intolerance
INDIVIDUAL LEVEL:
1) Growing resentment due to feelings of relative deprivation.
2) It negatively impacts mental health.
3) It leads to feelings of isolation, lowers confidence, and denies them self-respect
which in turn leads to self-alienation.
4) Anxiety, Distress may lead to increased incidences of suicides.
SOCIETY LEVEL:
1) It will threaten social capital due to a lack of harmony and more ghettoization.
2) Overall crime rate can increase
3) It may threaten unity in diversity, increase incidences of social conflict, regionalism,
skewed migration, and strengthen prejudices.
4) It promotes a culture of bullying or explicit biases.
NATIONAL LEVEL:
1) It threatens the potential of the nation to emerge as an education, tourism, and
business hub.
2) It dilutes our soft power.
3) It threatens the Indian diaspora.
4) It might lead to brain drain which negatively impacts the demographic dividend
5) Violation of human rights
6) Chances of external interference which may further destabilise the nation
7) Law and order situation leads to divergence of resources which leads to a lack of
investment in social infrastructure.
8) It dilutes India's value system with respect to "Vasudhaiva Kutumabakam".
Way Forward
The recommendation of the Bezbaruah Committee should be implemented.
- Stringent laws are the need of the hour.
- Fast-track courts for a speedy trial.
 - Use of social media outreach to create awareness in society.
- Provide legal awareness to racial minorities wrt grievance redressal.
- Bonding power over sports shall be encouraged.

ETHNO NATIONALISM
Ethnic group:
• It is defined as a social group, consisting of people united by ties of common
ancestry, history, culture, attachment to a geographical territory etc→ People
belonging to ethnic groups have sufficient awareness that they are similar but
distinct from others→Development of ethnic identity→Based on this identity and
differential access to resources →Ethnic stratification→Ethnic antagonism→When
an ethnic group becomes self-conscious of political ethnicity→Subjective realization
of objective reality→ Ethno-nationalism (nexus btw ethnicity and nationalism)
• Ex- Sri Lankan civil war- In copy
Definition: Ethnicity is a concept referring to a shared culture and a way of life.
• This can be reflected in language, religion, material culture, and cultural products
such as music, art forms, etc.
• Ethnicity is both a source of social cohesion and conflict.
• Ethno-nationalism is defined as a form of nationalism in which a nation is defined in
terms of ethnicity.
• Ethnicity vs Race: Ethnicity is rooted in cultural identity while race is associated with
physical characteristics.
• Ethnicity can be fluid (Bengalis, Punjabis but outside India its Indians) and encompass
multiple cultural identities.
• However, race is seen as more rigid due to its association with physical traits.
• Race has historically been used to justify unequal treatment and social hierarchies
whereas ethnicity can also be a source of conflict or cohesion but is more closely tied
to cultural identity and heritage.
Practice Question: Linguistic, regional rather than religious identity has been the basis of
ethno-nationalism in India. Argue. (10 marks/150 words).
Yes, any demand wrt religion will not be accepted, thus it is often expressed in the garb of
other identities. Ex- Punjab state coming into existence
Approach:
• Here keywords and examples are essential considering this is a 150-word answer.
• Here one may use diagrams and flow charts to make the presentation better.
 • Relevant headings and subheadings will keep your answer stick to the demand of the
question.
UNITY IN DIVERSITY
• Unity is defined as a sense of oneness or "we" feeling that helps bind people
together. It can be based on both Uniformity and Differences.
Bonds of Unity in India:
Geographical Bond: India stands geographically united with the Himalayas in the North and
the oceans on the other side.
• Amidst the geographical unity, we are also politically and culturally united.
1) Geo Political- People are politically united by the single constitution and
single citizenship.
2) Geo cultural- The institution pilgrimage bonds people together as temple
culture generates cultural affinity. For example, the Char Dham connects all
four parts of the country.
Regional Bonds
• Amidst the caste diversity there exists, the vertical bond of unity (as they speak same
language)
• Amidst the regional diversity, there exists a horizontal bond of unity with respect to
caste (Brahmins- same rituals, practices)
Religious Bonds
• Inter-Religious- Amidst the religious diversity there exists a common bond of unity
i.e. earning religious merit by visiting religious shrines.
• Intra-Religious- Amidst the diversity with respect to sects and culture, its the
teachings of religious scriptures that bind people together.
Miscellaneous Examples of Unity in Diversity include Pandemics (natural, social, economic
disaster), sports, festivals, constitution, art forms, All India services, education institutes,
food, corporate culture, social media, external threats- war, cinema, elections, currency,
transport and communication, and patriotism. (write what is diversity in this and where is
unity)
Question: What do you mean by Unity in Diversity? Illustrate with examples from socio-
cultural life.
Question: How does Indian Society maintain the continuity in traditional values? Enumerate
the changes taking place in it. (Assignment- on telegram also)
(1st part- rituals, ceremonies, festivals, social media, social control- rewards and
punishments, caste endogamy, Caste councils- Kangaroo courts and Khap Panchayats,
socialisation. India is in phase of cultural lag- blend of tradition and modernity)
SECULARISM
• It is defined as a principle of separation of the state and the people who have the
mandate to represent the state from religious institutions and dignitaries.
• It is devoid of both inter and intra-religious dominations.
• It seeks to promote equality and freedom both within and between the religions.
• The sphere of politics is separated from the sphere of religion but the nature and
extent of separation depends on the values it intends to promote.
USA Model of Secularism
• It defines secularism as a
- sphere of politics is separated from the sphere of religion.
- The state shall not adopt any religion as the state religion.
- No one shall be discriminated based on the religion she/he practices.
• The concept was given by Thomas Jefferson.
• Nature: There is a sphere of politics and there is a sphere of religion which are
mutually exclusive in nature. (Info in copy)
• Rationale: Religion is a private affair hence state neither has the right nor the duty to
interfere in religious matters.
• Scope: No Scope for state sponsored religious reforms.
• Rights: It only deals with individual rights not community specific rights.
• US secularism is often termed Soft Secularism. The secularism followed by France
is Hard secularism.
France Model of Secularism
• It is known as Lai’cite which emerged from the 1905 law of separation between state
and church.
• Nature: The state neither supports nor discourages any religion until it does not
infringe upon the rights of the citizen and the duty of the state.
• Rationale: It had a history of Church domination where both the king and the
commoners wanted to contain the authority of the Church by domesticating religion
hence, they came up with the concept of secularisation.
• Scope: Due to its commitment to secularism and the complete/strict separation of
religion from the state, any explicit display or expression of religious symbols and
practices is prohibited in the public sphere, including public spaces, public schools,
and public offices. (Hijab in Schools and burkini on beaches was prohibited)
• Hence the secularism in France is termed as Hard Secularism.
Indian Model of Secularism
• Concept: It is a sphere of politics that is separated from religion. However, it is not a
strict separation. (Info in copy)
• There is a porous wall of separation between the sphere of politics and the sphere
of religion.
• Politics can interfere- This is to give freedom to progressive voices within every
religion and show disagreement with certain aspects of religion.
For example, the Abolition of untouchability, the abolition of Talaq-e-Biddat, and
allowing entry of women into religious shrines- Haji- Ali-Dargah, Sabrimala Temple
• Indian Secularism maintains principled distance (a concept given by Rajiv Bhargava)
which is defined as the freedom of the state to decide whether to interfere or
abstain from interference depending upon what is required to ensure equality,
liberty, and justice.
• Rationale: Although it appears that the Indian model of secularism was borrowed
from the West. However, it is rooted in India's unique socio-religious circumstances
i.e. religiously plural nature of Indian society. Commitments of its leadership to
ensure equal respect for all religions.
• Scope: There exists a scope for state-sponsored religious reforms.
• Rights: It provides for both individual and community-specific rights.
Conclusion: Thus, in the context of India it is a positive secularism as it provides enough
space to promote and propagate their religion without infringing on the rights of others.
Question: How Indian Model of Secularism is different from West?
SECULARISATION
Concept:
• It is defined as a process by which religions' thinking, institutions, and practices loses
their social significance.
Manifestations:

• Decline in religious participation;

• Decline in religious significance;
• Individualisation;
• Freedom of thought;
• For example, the Modern Education System, Urbanisation, Technological
advancement, etc.
Dimensions of Secularisation:
 • Differentiation: Religion will be confined to being a matter of faith and not governing
social, political, or economic spheres of life. (pehle shaadi, occupation, education
everything was governed by religion)
• Privatization: Religion will be confined to private space.
• Decline in Social Significance: Above two lead to this.
To what extent Indian society is secularised?
Arguments for:
1. The education system has become exoteric and content is secular.
2. Society especially youth is becoming secular with respect to commensality,
accommodation, marriages, etc.
3. Urbanization leading to Urbanism.
4. Adoption of Secularism where the sphere of politics and religion is separated.
5. Industrialization is leading to caste-neutral job opportunities.
6. Different judicial pronouncements with respect to non-essential religious practices.
(Offering prayer on church is essential but doing it on loud speaker not essential: SC)
7. The desacralization of marriage.
8. Capitalism has led to consumerism which also goes against many religious beliefs.
9. Deliberation and discussion on Uniform Civil Code.
10. Globalization leading to the homogenization of culture.
11. Technological advancements and their application, for example, Medical Termination
of Pregnancy, Assistive reproductive technology, etc.
Arguments against:
1. Prevalence of caste system and caste-based division of labour.
2. Communal conflicts.
3. Counter reaction to the process of Sanskritisation.
4. Identity politics.
5. Religious revivalism.
6. Not recognizing the Right to marriage or having a child with respect to the third
gender.
7. Going back to the traditions with respect to marriage, birth, death, etc.
Question: What is the impact of post liberal economy (reaction to liberal economy) on ethnic
identity and communalism? (2023)
CONTEMPORARY ISSUES
UNIFORM CIVIL CODE

FOR AGAINST
Uniformity in laws will reduce the legal It goes against the essence of the salad bowl theory
burden of multi-culturalism

There is no blueprint regarding UCC which might

generate apprehension among minorities that it is the
imposition of majoritarian culture. Even if the idea is
Easy administration due to reduction
accepted it may create challenges at the level of
in ambiguity concerning the
implementation. For example, Uttarakhand UCC is
interpretation of laws. Promote
criticised with respect to provisions on live-in
National Integration
relationships (it is the denial of the right to privacy, the
act of moral policing, and bureaucratic burden, it may
lead to social stigma and discrimination)

Politicisation of UCC along with lack of emotional

It will create grounds for women's intelligence to view UCC from the lens of uniformity,
empowerment empowerment, justice, etc instead it will only be
viewed from the prism of religious differences

It will reduce the incidences of social

It threatens the policy of integration with respect to
conflict which in turn will promote
tribals
unity and integrity.

It will repeal unequal laws, for

example, Uttarakhand's UCC bans There exists a cultural lag, hence, acceptance of UCC
polygamy, bigamy, Nikah halala, Child might take some time
marriage, etc

It might create grounds for the imposition of cultural

It might reduce the possibility of using
hegemony which creates the situation for social
UCC as a tool for vote bank politics
conflict.

According to the 21st Law Commission, "UCC is neither

necessary nor it is desirable". Equality within the
Improve the status of vulnerable
religious community is required rather than between
sections
the community. The urge to ensure uniformity might
also threaten territorial integrity.
 21st Law Commission: The clause of women
empowerment might be an exaggerated vision since
guarantee of inheritance rights have not resulted in
any significant change concerning ownership of assets.

Any decision on UCC should be taken only after popular consensus, hence, the 22nd Law
Commission had asked to table UCC on various platforms for 3Ds (deliberation, Discussion,
and Debate).
Question: What challenges does the govt face in implementing UCC?
THE DOCTRINE OF ERP (ESSENTIAL RELIGIOUS PRACTICES) VERSUS JUDICIOPAPISM:
Judiciopapism: Over interference of the judiciary in religious matters.
ERP (ESSENTIAL RELIGIOUS PRACTICES):
• There are certain rituals, and practices which are integral to the religion and they
should be followed by those who adhere to the religion. (Article 25 not absolute
right- Public order, Morality, Health)
• The state can intervene if it's not an ERP.
• In the Shirur Math Case (1954), the court held that the state can intervene in
religious issues that are not ERP. The judiciary will decide what is ERP or not.
• Sanlekhana- Jain Practice- Raj HC- banned it as it is equivalent to suicide and it is not
ERP. SC overturned the judgement- As suicide is impulsive, sanlekhana can be
performed only in certain situations (very old, verge of dying, gave up materialist
world) How do you decide that it is not ERP? You should have consulted jain
philosophers, practitioners, texts to decide whether it is ERP otherwise it amounts to
judiciopapism.
With respect to Santhara, the Supreme Court lifted the ban and observed that the
High Court did not take the opinion of Jain Practitioners and it is an act of
Judiciopapism.
• For example, in Dr. Noor Jahan versus State of Maharashtra case 2016, the High
Court observed that the exclusion of women from Dargah is not an ERP, hence,
women are permitted to enter Haji Ali.
• In the Shayara Bano case 2017, Talaq-e-biddat was banned. In the Church of God
versus KKR Majestic colony case (2000), the court observed that offering prayer is an
ERP but not on loudspeaker.
SABARIMALA ISSUE: BAN IS LIFTED
 ARGUMENTS IN FAVOUR ARGUMENTS AGAINST

Banning the entry is derogatory to the Diversity should not be confused with
dignity of women discrimination

Prohibition was not an act of patriarchy but its

Individual rights cannot be at the mercy
origin had historical significance in celebrating the
of the mob
celibate nature of God.

Patriarchy in the religion cannot Entertaining PILs challenging various religious

supersede the right to freedom of practices can cause damage to the diverse fabric of
religion India

Any ban based on physiological

attributes is a manifestation of
untouchability under Article 17.
*This point was contested by the
dissenting judge on the grounds that
Article 17 is with respect to caste and
not gender. To which it was replied that
our constitution is not a static
document but based on the Doctrine of
Living Tree.

Question: What are the challenges to our cultural practices in the name of secularism?
1. The Pressure to conform to secularism might dilute the rich diversity of
customs and traditions.
2. It can also lead to the loss of cultural identity.
3. It might create a perception in society that the laws have primacy over
religious morality.
4. It creates ground for the state's intervention which might be perceived as an
act of cultural marginalisation by the affected community. (hegemony of
majoritarian religion)
5. In the name of secularism, there is a risk of cultural appropriation where
certain cultural practices are misrepresented (projected as discriminatory) for
political gains. This can lead to distortion of the original significance of
cultural tradition.
6. Politicisation of secularism can result in the selective enforcement of secular
policies which can disproportionately affect the religious communities.
Question: How our Secularism is based on Pluralism, Assimilation (Although, in the context
of Indian society, we abide by the principle of integration) and tolerance?
POPULATION AND ASSOCIATED ISSUES
* PREPARE EVERY TOPIC IN QUESTION ANSWER FORMAT- CREATE QUESTIONS AND CURRENT
BASED.

• Statistics: The debate concerning population growth- Liability or Asset

• Demography: Concept, Types, Demographic Dividend
• Factors Affecting Population Change: Fertility, Mortality, Migration
• Vulnerable sections: Children, Persons of Old-age, Persons with disabilities,
Transgenders
• Population Policy: Concept, Types, Evolution, Need for a new policy

Statistics: According to the UN Population Fund, India has surpassed China and emerged as
the most populous nation in the World.
It will continue to hold the top spot till 2100.
DEBATE CONCERNING POPULATION GROWTH
• Liability
(a) There are limited resources + disproportionate demand→
(b) It will lead to inequality with respect to the distribution of benefits,
opportunities, and resources→
(c) This will further create a sense of relative deprivation→
(d) It will lead to social conflict, creating a law-and-order crisis.
(e) This will lead to the diversion of resources, which will negatively impact the
social infrastructure.
(f) It will negatively impact the economic growth of the country.
(g) Intersectionality Approach: Major disadvantages will be with respect to
class/caste/gender/ethnicity/etc.
However, treating a high population as a liability is the one-sided accentuation of reality, as
the same population growth can be turned into an asset if we transform it into human
capital.
HUMAN CAPITAL
• Human capital refers to knowledge, skill, and health accumulated by an individual in
their life, which enable us to act as productive assets for society.
• Different Investments made to build Human Capital:
 (a) Investment in education and health.
(b) Job training
(c) Skill upgradation
(d) Migration for the search for better opportunities.
(e) Information regarding jobs in the labour market.
THE PROSPECTS OF HUMAN CAPITAL FORMATION
Individual Level
(a) Upward social mobility.
(b) Ability to realize the true potential.
(c) Higher earnings.
(d) Productive assets.

Family Level
a) Standard of living will increase.
b) Intergenerational benefits.
Societal level
a) Investing in human capital will lead to better social cohesion. (no feeling of relative
deprivation)
b) It will increase the trust in the institutions.
c) These together will strengthen the social capital.
d) Society needs sufficient human capital to produce further human capital, for
example, we need Qualitative teachers, trainers, and skill providers.
National Level
a) It creates the innovation potential.
b) Overall economic growth.
c) Potential for enterprises.
d) Potential for sustainable development and poverty reduction.
e) Benefits of Remittances.
f) The Image of the nation at the global level is enhanced.
g) There is an increase in female labour force participation.
h) The government has taken various steps concerning human capital formation.
Question: To what extent investment in human capital is the need of the hour? Discuss.
Question: In the backdrop of the prospects of human capital, discuss the challenges in
achieving the same.
(a) Knowledge: National Education Policy, Samagra Shiksha Abhiyaan, NIPUN
Bharat, Digital Education initiatives (DIKSHA, SWAYAM, etc.), etc.
(b) Skill: PM Kaushal Vikas Yojana, Grameen Kaushal Yojana, and Atal Innovation
Mission.
 (c) Health: For example- Ayushman Bharat-PMJAY+ Health and wellness centres,
Skill India, National Health Mission, etc.
DEMOGRAPHY
• Concept: It consists of two words ‘Demo’ and ‘Graphy’. It means the characteristics
of the population.
• It is defined as the trends and processes associated with the population. For
example, Birth Rate, Death Rate, Sex Ratio, Migration, Age Structure, Literacy Levels,
etc.
• Types: There are two types of demography: Formal demography and social
demography.
• Formal demography deals with statistical information dealing with the various
aspects of the population.
• Social demography deals with the social analysis of statistics related to population.
DISCUSSION ON QUESTION: There exists a stark North-South divide with respect to
demography. Discuss its impact on the policy formulation by the government. (150 words)
Body: wrt fertility level- tell first stark difference btw two- In south population stabilised long
before and north it is increasing. So, in south- geriatric care and north- maternal and child
care needs to be focused upon.
education level- Kerala- literacy level -100% (FR-1.8), UP- 67%- (FR-2.7) In north awareness
about reproductive health +promote girl education need to be focused
wrt migration: North- source of migration and South- destination of migration
One size fits all approach will not work. The need is of piecemeal engineering approach.
• Approach:
• Here mention the differences in the policy formulations with respect to differences in
the fertility level, education level, and migration.
DEMOGRAPHIC DIVIDEND
• Demographic Dividend is the economic growth potential generated due to the bulge
in the working age group.
• Currently, the population in the working age group (15-59 years) is 62.5%. It is
expected to increase to 65% by 2036.
• India is now termed as a 'young country' with an average age of 29 years. (The
average age of the population in China is 37 years, and in Japan is 48 years.)
DISCUSSION ON QUESTION: Examine how the bulge in the working age group creates a
potential for economic growth. (150 words)
 • Points
(a) Increased labour force participation→Total Productivity will increase
(b) Fluid intelligence of the young population (old population- crystallized
intelligence) which creates high potential for innovation and creativity.
(c) Youth has high risk-taking ability.
(d) It will create a pool of cheap labour→cost of production will decrease. The
availability of the labour force will enable the nation to achieve its global
aspirations.
(e) Independent population is more as compared to the dependent population,
which creates scope for more income→savings and investments.
(f) With more purchasing power potential, domestic consumption will increase.
(g) Due to less government spending on the dependent population, the fiscal
space for investment in the social infrastructure would be created. (more
revenue will be generated if more people income comes under income tax
bracket)
(h) It can contribute to economic growth through remittances.
(i) The working class is aspirational and hence will create pressure on the
government for better opportunities, which in turn will create grounds for
industrialization, urbanization, start-up culture, etc.
(j) It will reduce the social conflicts in the society.
However, this window of opportunity is for a limited period as the population will peak in
2041. Secondly, demographic dividend only offers a potential, it doesn't guarantee economic
growth.
Economic growth depends on two factors: the quality of the workforce and job
opportunities.
Question: India’s demographic dividend can turn into demographic disaster if not nurtured
properly. In the light of this statement, discuss why it is important for India to focus on this
opportunity.
Question: Demographic Dividend in India will remain only theoretical unless our manpower
becomes more educated, aware, skilled and creative. What measures have been taken by
the Govt to enhance the capacity of our population to be more productive and employable?
(Arrange in Heads- Health, education, skill, women- Gender inclusive development- what
steps, vulnerable sections- Dalit capitalism)
• Do Scheme document of prelims. (min+ objective of scheme- focus)
FACTORS DETERMINING OR AFECTING THE POPULATION CHANGE (Document)
(a) Fertility: It means the actual childbearing by women in their reproductive age group
(15-45 years).
(b) Fertility Rate: Fertility rate means the number of live children born per 1000 women
in the age group 15-49 years.
 (c) The total fertility rate (TFR) is 2 (According to NFHS 5). This is below the replacement
level (TFR=2.1).
(d) The exceptions to lower total fertility rates are UP (2.7), Bihar, Jharkhand, Meghalaya,
and Manipur. In light of this data, UP has released its population policy where the
target is to reduce the population or the fertility rate to 2.1 by 2026, and 1.7 by
2030.
FACTORS RESPONSIBLE FOR HIGH POPULATION GROWTH
(a) Poverty: Still, people believe that more children means more working hands.
(b) Lack of education and awareness with respect to reproductive rights,
benefits of small families, family planning methods, etc.
(c) Son-meta preference, early marriage, low status of women, religious beliefs
that prohibit the termination of pregnancy, etc.
(d) Increase in life expectancy due to improved health infrastructure and its
accessibility.
(e) Failure of implementation of Population Policies
(f) High Infant Mortality Rate, Child Mortality Rate, etc. also create a greater
desire for more children.
(g) Joint family norms- children will be taken care of.
(h) Universalization of the institution of marriage with the prime purpose of
reproduction.
Question: Critically Examine whether growing population is the cause of poverty or poverty
is the main cause of population growth in India.
(Body- 3 parts- how poverty is the main cause of population increase; However, other factors
also responsible; how High population growth is also the cause of poverty- However this is
one sided accentuation of reality- if this population is turned into asset, it would not create a
situation of poverty; What needs to be done?)
DISCUSSION ON QUESTION: Critically examine the factors responsible for the decline in
fertility rate and enumerate its consequences. (150 words)
Answer: The total fertility rate is 2.
Causes:
(a) The government's effort in the direction of family planning. For example, the
National Population Policy, access to contraceptives, Mission Parivar Vikas,
Vasectomy fortnight, etc.
(b) Improved nutrition, healthcare, living conditions, and education.
(c) Expanded choices for women along with the increased Female Labor Force
Participation.
(d) The change in societal values like delay in marriage age, preference for small
families, better status for women, etc.
 (e) Urban lifestyle, higher cost of living, the emergence of the nuclear families-difficult
to take care, etc.
Negative Consequences:
1. The aging population would reduce both savings and investments implying higher
taxes or lower spending on the old age population.
2. The increased burden of the aging population will create more demand for the care
economy (purple economy; old age- silver economy). However, due to the limited
government spending, it is not much developed.
3. Older people have more crystallized intelligence as against fluid intelligence, which
may reduce the potential for innovation and creativity.
4. Entrepreneurship vacuum as the older countries and their youth are less comfortable
in taking risks.
5. Shift in the family dynamics. (4 kids→ 1 kid or no kid)- Decreasing family size can
disrupt the traditional support system, which in turn can lead to psychological issues
(isolation, stress, increased incidences of suicides, etc.).
6. Decline in the demography may also lead to skewed migration patterns which may
attract immigrants to address the workforce shortages. However, it may end up
creating socio-cultural conflicts.
Positive Consequences: Already discussed.
MIGRATION
(a) Concept- Statistics, Who are migrants, Types of Migration
(b) Causes: Push and Pull factors.
(c) Consequences: For source region, destination region, and migrants.
(d) Way Forward
MIGRATION: CONCEPT (PPT)
• It is a process where the population is moving from one geographical unit to another
with the change in residence for a considerable amount of time.
• A migrant is a person whose current place of residence is different from his place of
birth or the last place of residence.
Types of Migration
• Based on Duration: Permanent, Semi-Permanent, Seasonal (No credible data-
majority goes unrecorded).
• Based on Destination:
(a) Internal: Rural to rural (62%), rural to urban (20%), Urban to urban (13%), and
Urban to rural (5%).
(b) International
• Major reason for women migration- marriage; men migration: employment
 • According to the Economic Survey 2017 inter-state migrants are around 60 million,
and inter-district migrants are around 80 million.
ECONOMIC CAUSES FOR MIGRATION
Source
• Push factor: Agriculture distress, lack of employment opportunities, etc.

• Pull Back factor: Government schemes and counter magnets (Delhi overcrowded-
develop Jaipur, chandigarh; pressure on Mumbai- develop Pune and Nashik; Pressure
on Bangalore- develop Hyderabad)
Destination
• Pull Factor: Industrialization, Globalization, etc.
• Push Back Factor: Congestion, high cost of living, etc.
SOCIO-CULTURAL CAUSES FOR MIGRATION
Source
• Push factor: Differential access to resources.
• Pull Back factor: Feeling of nativism and family reunification
Destination
• Pull Factor: Urbanism and marriage.
• Push Back Factor: Lack of cultural integration and ghettoization.
POLITICAL CAUSES FOR MIGRATION
Source
• Push factor: Violence and corruption.
• Pull Back factor: Strengthening of local governance.
Destination
• Pull Factor: Political freedom and safety and security.
• Push Back Factor: Son of soil policy.
CONSEQUENCES
Source Region
(a) Economic
• Loss of Human resources
 • Provide opportunities to the source area to employ greater focus in improving the
economic conditions of the reduced population.
• Benefits of Remittances.
• Low industrialization.
(b) Demographic

• The dependent population will increase.

• The feminization of work
• The decline in the birth rate.
• High probability of child labour.
(c) Socio-cultural
• Acts as an agent of social change, as new ideas get diffused to the source area.
• The absence of adult males may cause the dislocation of families, a dual burden, and
violence against women.
(d) Political
• It may lead to the emergence of ghost hamlets which overall decline the political
representation.
Destination Region
(a) Economic
• Availability of cheap labour.
• Overburdening of resources.
• The increased cost of living.
• Increase in the rental economy.
• It will promote the labour-intensive industries.
• Informalization of the labour market.
• Boost to the economy.
• Productivity will increase.
(b) Demographic
• Skewed sex ratio.
• Change in the ethnic composition of the profile.
• It negatively can impact both literacy and the health profile of the demography. (too
much demand- unequal access)
 • Violence against the marginalized may impact their morbidity (disease burden) and
mortality (death burden).
(c) Socio-cultural
• Promotion of multiculturalism but at the same time cultural chauvinism.
• Increased ghettoization based on primordial identities (by birth- caste, religion,
ethnicity).
• Slum proliferation.
• The problem of cultural lag.
• Rise of the middle class.
• Rise in regionalism- job for locals
• A struggle for limited resources might increase the incidences of crime.
(d) Political
• Son of soil policy.
• The challenges faced by the state administration because of excessive population.
• The change in political dynamics of the region.
• The constitution of various pressure groups that may impact the policies of the
government.
IMPACT ON MIGRANTS:
Positive impact- 4S’s
- Opportunity for upward social mobility.
- Strengthens social capital.
- Development of social tolerance.
- Opportunity for social innovation.
Negative impact-
- Devoid of skills, information, bargaining power, etc migrants are often caught
in the exploitative labour arrangement.
- Non-portability of benefits. (that’s why we came up with one nation, one
ration card- source area benefits not transferred)
- Their problems are aggravated by the absence of proper documentation.
- Their hardship magnifies once the state boundaries are crossed- culture
changes significantly (problem of marginal man-dhobi ka kutta na ghar na
ghat ka).
- They are an easy victim of identity politics.
- They often remain out of the bounds of both govt. and civil society due to a
lack of credible data.
 - There exists a problem of intergenerational transmission of poverty.
Since they are confined to the informal sector, there exist the following problems-
- Fear of job loss.
- Lack of social security benefits.
- Lack of creche facility (80% of children of seasonal migrants do not have
access to education and 40% have experienced abuse).
- Lack of housing and sanitation hygiene led to poor health.
- Lack of proper implementation of the Inter-State Migrant Workmen Act
1979.
Hence, they are subjected to political, economic, and social exclusion (UN concept of ghost
citizen)
Way Forward-
• Mainstream migration in National Development Plans.
• Prioritize the implementation of existing laws.
• Sensitise and train policymakers and government officials, employers, and financial
institutions regarding the obstacles faced by migrants in accessing public services.
• Revise the design of the Census and Surveys to incorporate sex-disaggregated data,
and age-disaggregated data on migration. (piecemeal engineering approach can be
followed after this)
• Conduct a detailed country-wide mapping of internal migration.
• Encourage state-level research institutions to develop state migration profiles-
nature, timing, duration, and magnitude of migration.
• Build the capacity of panchayats, establish migrant labour cells, and create
interdistrict and interstate coordination committees.
POPULATION POLICY IN INDIA- PPT
Questions:
• Critically examine the evolution of population policies in India (10 Marks).
• What do you mean by Population Policy? Enumerate the factors responsible for its
failure.
• In the context of 25 years since the last population policy. Critically examine the need
and nature of the new Population Policy (10 Marks)
PPT: Concept: Purposeful measure that aims to affect the demographic process- fertility,
mortality, and migration.
Types of policy:
 Ante Natal- Focus on reducing the Birth Rate to stabilize the population.
Distributional- To check the distribution of the population to avoid over-
concentration.
Evolution:
Pre-Independence:
• Period of indifference.
• R.K Mukherjee committee- self-control access to safe and cheap birth control
measures, opening birth control clinics, and increasing the age of marriage.
• Bhore committee- a deliberate effort to limit the size of the family is required.
Post-Independence:
• 1947-51, period of neutrality (integration of PS, Kashmir issue,1st war India-Pak. war,
agricultural crisis)
• 1951-61, period of experimentation (1952 National Family Planning Program, Clinical
Approach).
• 1961-71, extension approaches (education-based approach), cafeteria approach, and
selective approach.
• 1978- National Population Policy (NPP)- forced sterilization.
• 2000- 2nd NPP.
Clinical approach: According to this approach, services would be provided to those
couples who are motivated to visit family planning centres set up by the government.
Extension approach: To educate people about the benefits of a small family.
Cafeteria approach: The government will provide various options for family planning
but the choice will be given to the people to opt for any one of them.
Selective approach: They selectively target couples in the age group 25 to 35 to make
family planning a success.
National Population Policy 1978 (forced sterilisation during emergency was wrong as
it was forced but people thought it was male sterilisation-vasectomy was problem.
Thus, moved from vasectomy to female sterilisation-tubectomy)
- Renaming Family Planning to Family Welfare.
- Implementation of the Child Marriage Re-strain Act, which increased the
minimum age of marriage to 18 and 21 for girls and boys respectively.
- Voluntary sterilization.
- The monetary incentive for sterilization- more corruption (this was criticized
by M.S Swaminathan).
- Including population education as a part of the study curriculum.
 - Use of Media, for spreading awareness.
- Thrust towards research in reproductive biology and contraception.
The objective of Population Education (Definition in PPT)-
- Demographic concept and process- Nature of Demography
- Rapid growth of population and causes
- Influence of population trends.
- Population growth and development process.
- Evil effects of overpopulation on the environment.
- Develop an appreciation of facts- a small family is desirable, etc.
National Population Policy 2000
- VISION: It was introduced with the objective of social and economic
development.
- To improve the quality of life, to provide people with the opportunity and
choice to become a productive asset in society.
The policy had three objectives-
- Immediate objectives- to address the unmet needs for contraception,
healthcare, infrastructure, and workforce, and provide integrated service
delivery w.r.t to RCH- Reproductive and child health (MCH→RCH
(1997)→RMCH→RMNCH→ RMNCH+A) M-Maternal, N- New born, A-
Adolescence
- Mid-term target- to reduce TFR to 2.1 by 2010 (
- Long-term target- to stabilize the population by 2045.
Need for New Population Policy-
-Due to a lack of success on parameters such as IMR, CMR, and MMR, we
need a new Population Policy.
1. MORTALITY
Causes-
- Due to poverty, illiteracy, lack of proper implementation of govt. policies
w.r.t Pre-Natal, Peri-Natal, and Post-Natal.
Pre-Natal (during pregnancy)-PM Surakshit Matritva Abhiyaan (Prepare- Min,
Objectives)
Peri- Natal (during delivery)- Janani Suraksha Yojna.
Post-Natal (after child birth)- Janani Shishu Suraksha Karyakram.
• High fertility rate leading to Maternal Depletion Syndrome.
• Lack of qualitative medical infrastructure (will be covered in health lecture).
 • Unsafe abortions due to stigma related to adolescent pregnancy, and unwed
pregnancy.
• The patriarchal system denies women access to contraceptives, safe and legal
abortion, lack of access and awareness regarding menstrual health, freedom to
decide the timing and spacing of pregnancy, etc (Reproductive and sexual health
rights- MAINS 365)
• Lack of safe WASH (water, sanitation, hygiene).
• Superstitious beliefs and practices (Case Study in Rajasthan- If pregnant women eats
more then birth to girl child and vice versa. Eating Iron supplements by women
during pregnancy - bhoot pakad lega)
2. Skewed Sex Ratio: Although the Sex ratio has improved it still remains a challenge at
birth.
3. The pace at which the migration is happening and creating stress on infrastructure
and social relationships we need a policy to address this issue.
4. The age structure is changing, and the population is aging. Hence, we need a new
policy to reap the benefit of a longevity dividend.
Hence, we need a policy that addresses the above-mentioned issues, and focuses on the
young population, which is based on a piecemeal engineering approach, it should be a
convergent approach both horizontally (malnutrition, MCH, sanitation, edu, infrastructure-
all need to be focused) and vertically (local, state level, national level).
IMR- 35.2, MMR- 97, CMR- 42.
URBANIZATION
Urbanization-
Concept- the ideology of Urbanism.
Types of Urbanization- over-urbanization, suburbanization and counter-urbanization
Problems of Urbanization- housing- slums, socio-cultural, physical infrastructure.
Way forward.
CONCEPT: It is defined as the process of movement of people from rural to urban areas
which also involves change in occupation and value system.
URBANISM: It is the ideology associated with urbanization.
According to which society is organized along the following lines-
- High level of tech.
- Complex DoL (Division of Labour)/ specialization (More specialisation leads to
more interdependence)
- Economic independence.
 - Anonymity, heterogeneity, individualism, impersonality (lack of emotions) in
social relationships.
Types of Urbanization-
• INFO in copy
• Suburbanisation- It includes the migration of people and businesses to the suburbs.
It involves the development of residential, commercial, and industrial areas on the
periphery as it is more planned and organized. Ex- Noida
• Urban sprawl- It is defined as an uncontrolled and unplanned outward extension of
the city to the extent of engulfing the nearby rural areas.
It is characterized by the desire to live in big accommodations and access to private
transportation-car. However, it is confronted with the challenges of pollution, traffic
congestion, drainage problem, environmental degradation, and a decline in
community living. Ex- Ghaziabad
• Counter-urbanization- It is defined as a social and demographic process where
people move from urban to rural areas due to inner city deprivation, overcrowding,
pollution, and an overall decline in the quality of life, for example, farmhouse
culture.
PROBLEMS ASSOCIATED WITH URBANISATION
Some important statistics:
• According to the 2011 census, 31.19% of the population is in urban areas, and 17% of
them live in slums.
- 13% of them do not have sanitation facilities.
- 30% don't have access to safe drinking water.
• According to a report by the Rangarajan panel, 26.4% of the population is below the
poverty line.
• According to the World Bank, by 2035, the maximum number of poor will be in
urban areas.
Problems:
1. Problems of housing and slums
• According to UN HABITAT, slums are defined as residential dwellings that are
considered unfit for human habitation as they are overcrowded, poorly
ventilated, and lack access to basic resources required for dignified life.
• According to an expert panel on poverty, during the 12th Five Year Plan, slum
proliferation is a result of the failure of housing policies rather than
migration.
Possible Causes of failure of housing policies:
 a) Heritage of past construction. For example, Delhi has always expanded
horizontally and not vertically (high rise apartments- 24 floors; some think it will
lead to destruction of Delhi culture).
b) Lack of private developers to invest in the social housing-affordable housing
(High Gestation period; private sector not interested to invest as they are to
serve capitalistic interests- no affordable/social housing. The private sector is
more interested in commercial projects.)
c) Lack of capacity of government authorities to build decent projects. When the
private sector is not interested then the government sector has to step in which
also invites corruption.
Ex- Signature Apartment-was about to collapse; it was emptied to repair the
cracks, Narela flats build by govt authorities are not selling-Why?
d) Lack of Integrated Planning: The entire focus is on land use without taking into
consideration socio-economic factors, transportation, and environmental
factors. Slums are not created in a vacuum but rather they are created because
it is in close vicinity of the workplace. (Info in copy)
e) Failure of the government to implement the National Urban Housing and
Habitat Policy according to which 15% of the land has to be given for social
housing in a year.
f) The concept of gated communities has created grounds for social exclusion at
the top or Ghettoization based on high income (big playgrounds, parks, malls,
tennis courts) which further reduces the availability of land for social housing.
Ex- DLF Moti Nagar
Although slums were perceived to be a transitional problem but now become a permanent
structural issue.
Reasons:
• Slums constitute the most politically active section of the society hence a major vote
bank. Therefore, government restrains from any interference. Ex- Congress lost
power post emergency- demolition of slums.
• There exists a culture of poverty due to which there is lack of relative deprivation.
(now starting due to penetration of social media→consumerism→debt culture)
• Persons residing in slums also provide cheap labour for political rallies. (200 rupee
de diye aur itne mai unki need bi address ho jayegi as the place where they live not
costly)
• There exists a quid pro quo between the people residing in slums and the informal
sector labour market as both are economically interdependent on each other. (DLF
moti nagar and outside slum- affordable driver)
• Bureaucratic apathy and lack of government accountability are also responsible for
the proliferation of slums.
2. Socio Cultural Problem:
• Increased incidents of crime due to paucity of resources and feeling of relative
deprivation.
• Due to globalization, there has been a change in the value system like anonymity,
consumerism, individualism, bystander apathy, etc which has led to social isolation,
alienation, mental health issues, etc.
• The disintegration of joint families has aggravated the vulnerabilities of marginalized
groups.
• Due to the high cost of living, there is slum proliferation (which lacks basic resources
and is also acting as a den of pathological(disapproved) behaviours).
• Increased burden of non-communicable diseases due to over-dependency on
technology, McDonaldization of food habits, sedentary lifestyle (hours of laptop), lack
of green spaces for physical activities, and instant gratification.
• Homogenization of culture is leading to the dilution of traditional cultures and
practices.
• There are increased incidences of violence against women due to the rise in nuclear
families, Increased FLFP, skewed sex ratio, etc.
• Gentrification
- Urban growth has enhanced the infrastructure in the cities which has led to
gentrification.
- It is defined as the process where wealthy individuals move into an area
characterized by low-income residents leading to a change in socioeconomic
makeup and environment.
- It involves redevelopment of properties which increases their value and leads
to displacement of low-income families.
- For Example, Hauz Khas, Shahpur Jat in Delhi (expensive designers), and
Lower Parel in Mumbai, Park Street in Kolkata.
• Urban Flooding: It is defined as the inundation of an urban area due to heavy
rainfall, inadequate drainage system, and poor urban planning.
Causes of Urban Flooding:
- Creating more infrastructure to absorb the population has resulted in the
creation of jungles of concrete (water not absorbed and overflows)
- Poor drainage infrastructure leads to waterlogging and flooding.
- Encroachment of water bodies.
- Deforestation reduces the natural capacity to absorb water.
• Urban Heat Island: It refers to areas that experience warmer temperatures than the
surroundings due to human activities and infrastructure.
• Urbanization of Pandemic: When the spread and impact of infectious diseases is
influenced by the dynamics of urban areas (slum areas- congested, no sanitation)
then it is referred as the Urbanisation of the Pandemic.
 Causes:
- Slum Proliferation and lack of WASH (Water, Sanitation, and Hygiene).
- Increased density of the population.
- The problem of pollution has impacted the immunity of individuals.
- Lack of preparedness among local authorities with respect to risk
management.
- Increased interaction with wildlife has increased the possibility of zoonotic
infections.
• Beautification drives such as Chennai's Marine Beach, Musi Riverfront development
project have led to the displacement of the fisherman community.
• Similarly, the capacity of the poor and vulnerable is less vis a vis Environmental
shocks. For example- residents of Yamuna flood plains.
• Due to the burden on resources, social conflicts will be created which will dilute
social capital.
• The emergence of a new aspiring middle class has also creased ground for increased
child labour.
Question: Discuss the social prob which originated due to speedy process of urbanization in
India? (10 marks- 2014)
Question: Does Urbanization lead to more segregation and marginalisation of poor in metro
cities? (2023)
Question: With a brief background of the quality of urban life in India, introduce the
objectives and strategy of smart city mission. (10 years complete next year)
Smart Cities
• Launched in 2015, with the objective
- to provide core infrastructure, decent quality of life, clean and sustainable
environment, applications of smart solutions.
• Strategies used:
- Redevelopment is a renewal of existing urban areas to improve
infrastructure. For example, Bhendi Bazar (Mumbai).
- Retrofitting- Upgrading the infrastructure to make them more efficient and
sustainable. For Example, the local area development area in Ahmedabad.
- Greenfield project- Development of new urban areas with a focus on
sustainability and smart technologies. Ex- GIFT City, Naya Raipur
3. Infrastructural Problems

• According to the World Air Quality Report, 10 out of 50 of the world's most polluted
cities are in India. (*urban pollution article- pdf- important)
 • With respect to the water problem, it ranges from poor management of water
resources, leaky water distribution networks, and a vast volume of untreated waste
dumped into the water bodies. (These are the objectives of Water Plus Cities and
Garbage Free Cities- part of SBM)
• With respect to transportation, due to inadequate road infrastructure; the problem
of Capacity Overloading and the problem of road accidents. (In Sweden, they have
adopted a Mission Vision Zero with respect to Road Accidents).
Vision Zero (No Tolerance of any such act)- wrt child sexual abuse, violence against
women.
• Problems with respect to urbanization are also due to poor administration which is a
lack of 3F's (functionaries, function, funds).
Way Forward
• There should be a focus on the development of inclusive urban space where all
necessary goods and services should be available and affordable irrespective of
socio-economic background.
• Reform in urban administration: a separate cadre for city administrators and
professional management of urban local bodies.
For example- with respect to the smart city project, a political tussle was generated
between urban local bodies and state machinery over the creation of a Special
Purpose Vehicle (chairmanship was in hand of private sector)
- The problem of corruption at the level of implementation.
• A cascaded planning structure (layered planning) is the need of the hour.
• The new models of development is the need of the hour.
For Example-
1. Transport-oriented development: It is an approach to urban and regional
planning that places a strong emphasis on integrated transportation systems
with land-use planning.
- This model is designed to create more sustainable efficient and liveable
communities by prioritizing public transportation, walking, and cycling while
minimizing the reliance on private cars. (Info in copy)
2. Hub and Spoke Model:
- It is a regional planning and development approach that revolves around the
development of central areas by connecting them with the peripheral areas
that are to reduce the burden on the hub where the spokes can be
developed. (Info in copy)
- For Example, to address the crisis in Delhi, NCR is developed.
3. Sponge City Model
 - This model strengthens the ecological infrastructure and drains network to
ensure a proper flood management system.
- It explores the potential of urban areas such as the availability of trees, parks,
and lakes (sponge) which can absorb the rainwater and prevent flooding
hence planned edged sidewalks, inner-city gardens can build a sponge around
the city that can absorb water.
- Tapping different sources of funding, increase in property tax, monetization of
land assets, public-private partnership etc to ensure better urban
management.
IMPACT OF GLOBALISATION ON INDIAN SOCIETY
It is defined as a process by which national, and regional economies, societies, and cultures
get globally integrated due to the movement of ideas, funds, technology, people, trade and
commerce etc.
IMPACT ON CULTURE: Following 3 impacts-
1. Homogenisation (establishment of a uniform culture)- Examples:
- Obsession with English
- Jeans Culture
- Obsession with Western music, cinema, dance styles, etc
- The emergence of live-in relationship
- More instances of divorce
- The disintegration of joint family
- Secularization
- Walmartization- Reliance Fresh, Big Bazaar- kirana stores might loose jobs but
majorly affected after Blinkit, Zepto, etc
- Corporate Culture
- Mcdonaldisation of food habits
2. Hybridisation: (aka Globalisation i.e global+ local)
- For example, McDonald's not selling beef products
- Emergence of Hinglish
- Culture of Jeans and Kurta
- Fusion of music, dance forms, food habits- Gobi Manchurian etc.
- Hollywood movies dubbed in regional language
- Different forms of marriage
- Multiple languages are taught in education institutes.
- Nuclear families with extended ties.
- Ethnic Day celebration in corporate offices.
- Google translation services for regional languages
- MNCs displaying boards in regional languages
3. Revival of Local Culture: (Strengthening of local culture at the global level)
- Example: Celebration of International Yoga Day
 - Religious Revivalism
- Revival of Ayush
- Concept of GI tag
- International Year of Millets
- Elementary education in the mother tongue
- Vocal for Local Initiative
- Demand for Indian Fashion products in global markets
Question: Globalisation is generally said to promote cultural homogenisation but due to this
cultural specificity appears to be strengthened in Indian Society. Elucidate (10)
Question: To what extent globalisation has influenced core of culture diversity? Discuss. (10)
Impact of Globalization on Marriage
• Marriage is a social institution that is defined as a socially acknowledged and legally
approved union between a man and woman which also prescribes their rights and
duties.
• The function of marriage has been sexual gratification, the socialization of children,
the transmission of culture, and the fulfilment of economic needs.
• Purpose: To maintain the purity of lineage and progeny -to reproduce. (However,
with emergence of inter caste and inter faith marriages and DINK families, purpose
has under vent the change)
• Nature: From arranged alliances to love alliances today we have moved towards
confluent marriages (love until further notice)- due to hyper individuality,
globalisation, changing value systems- no adjustments and compromises.
• Types of Marriages:
1) Weekend Marriage: live with partner but without compromising individual
space- live with partner on weekends
2) Living apart from marriage: husband and wife living apart because of jobs
nature.
3) Empty shell marriage: staying together but no emotional connect (for children
or no divorces)
4) Open marriage: our relation is open to others as well
• Desirability: Neither marriage is considered universal nor functional any longer.
• Impacts: Deritualisation of marriage; commercialization of marriage; the emergence
of conjugal symmetrical relations.