Mentors Comment:
- The question has two parts and they are crystal clear in their demands. First, you have to discuss what were the challenges that Indian leadership faced while integrating these princely states into the Union of India. Secondly what were the mechanisms and steps used to overcome this challenge.
- In the intro, discuss the role of princely states in British India.
- Then come to the first part of the question and discuss what were the challenges in integrating these states. Religion of rulers and common people, political nature of these states, nonclarity from the British while framing rules for these states during independence, sense of independence for the rulers, interference of Pakistan, challenges of Junagadh, Kashmir and Hyderabad will form the key arguments of this part.
- Then discuss how Sardar Patel and other leaders moved forward to tackle these challenges. Persuasion, patriotism, tactical diplomacy and force was used to get these states with independent India.
- Towards the end, show how all these steps helped to form a unified India with distinct political identity which has held its own even after 73 years of independence.
Answer:
While the British were leaving India after almost 200 years of ruling, Indian leadership had a large task in their hands: Uniting and Integrating a large of India into a single political unit. This problem was tremendous while dealing with the Princely States. Though a major part of British India was ruled by the British directly still there were many princely states who were ruled by the British indirectly. With the partition of India and Pakistan, India still had more than 500 smaller princely states which were not part of the two nations.
The problem in front of Indian leaders was twofold.
- Of transforming the states into viable administrative units;
- Of absorbing them into the constitutional units.
Challenges with Princely States were:
- During the time of proclamation of India’s independence, Britain took a stand that princely states can either join India or Pakistan or they can remain independent.
- This clause created much confusion.
- For the rulers of princely states, they cannot even imagine ceding their power under the Indian constituent Assembly.
- These states followed different administrative methods; some were aristocratic, strong differences between the states themselves, people with different opinions, mindsets, and culture to name a few reasons.
- Princely states started demanding independence after lapse of British paramountcy.
- It was argued that after British withdrawal the situation in the Princely states would turn into lawlessness and anarchy and it is important to be associated with a center of power to handle the situation.
- The emergence of hundreds of independent states would make the struggle of Indian independence futile.
- Therefore integration of princely states became a major agenda for Indian leaders.
- Eventually, rulers of all the 652 states with exception of Junagarh, Kashmir and Hyderabad had signed the Instrument of Accession by 15 August, 1947.
- Junagadh Nawab wanted to join Pakistan but his people wanted to join Indian dominion.
- Hyderabad wanted a sovereign status.
- Kashmir had a Hindu prince and a Muslim majority population. The prince envisaged a sovereign status for the state and was reluctant to accede to either India or Pakistan.
- The 3 major issues that impeded the integration process were, firstly their demand for independence, secondly the demand to integrate with Pakistan and finally the problems of administrative integration after political integration.
- Also, Pakistan was influencing the decisions of these states by offering financial as well as political tools to these states if they acceded in Pakistan. This was a headache for Indian leadership.
How these challenges were overcome:
- To ensure that princely states did not succeed in their bid for independence, Viceroy Lord Mountbatten and Congress leaders initiated deliberations with the rulers.
- Sardar Patel, chief architect of creating the Union of India, appealed to the patriotic feeling of rulers to join the Indian dominion in matters of defense, communication and external affairs.
- An Instrument of Accession (IoA) was drafted according to which the rulers agreed to transfer the control of Defence, External Affairs and Communication.
- Various states had joined the Indian Union but others remained precariously outside.
- In the case of Hyderabad force was used, in Junagadh plebiscite was conducted and the Maharaja of J&K signed IoA after threat of attack from Pakistan.
- Accession itself did not mean integration. After British withdrawal, popular protest grew in the princely states under the States Peoples Congress demanding full democratic representation.
- Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel used this opportunity to negotiate for full integration into India and in exchange, he offered to the rulers a tax-free privy purses guaranteed under the Constitution, the right to retain their titles and their property and palaces.
- In two years from independence full integration was achieved. Apart from the diplomatic tactics of Congress leaders, it was the popular protest and demands that drove the integration process.
Overall with skillful diplomacy, persuasion and timely use of force, India was able to integrate all the princely states in its territory to integrate with India within a few years of Independence. India was able to use better mechanisms through democratic centralized credentials of the Indian state for better integration of states thereby bringing in a sense of unity among various states which is ever strong after all these years since independence.
Comments
31 responses to “Discuss the problems that impeded the integration of the princely states into the Indian Union. How were these problems tackled? (15 Marks)”
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Hi Vineeth
Underline imp points.
Work on your English. It lacks proper structuring and grammar at many places which makes the statements confusing.
The 1st part of the answer is decent but the 2nd part lacks enough material.
In the 2nd part, discuss how Sardar Patel and other leaders moved forward to tackle these challenges. Persuasion, patriotism, tactical diplomacy and force was used to get these states with independent India.
Good conclusion
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Sir i have a question, please suggest me a way out. Everyday when daily AWE is uploaded, then for every question first i read all the relevant sources then write that question and upload it….In this process i am reading every points but when i am writing from memory some points get missing. So is it the right procedure?
And for gs papers what are the most important things to build my knowledge depth as we have to write 20 questions at a time in mains.??? In my previous writings also you had mentioned about this kind of problems. I am very confused and frightened too . I know without the knowledge depth i can’t score good.Please help me sir…..
Writing concise in 10 min is most important.. Rest is your wish..
Hi Sanu
It’s perfectly alright to miss some points. It’s human in nature. Do not worry. Just keep in mind that when attempting 10 markers, then each subheading should have around 3 4 points and for 15 markers, they should have 6 7 points. To give maximum points use PESTEL approach. And lastly, cater to the demand of the question: Write what is asked and not what you know.
For the GS papers, the foremost important thing is to complete the syllabus and write as many answers as you can. That is the only solution to master the mains GS answers. Nothing else will serve the purpose. The more you read and write, the more content and knowledge you will gain for the actual mains examinations.
The intro is good but can be shortened a bit.
Good 1st part of the answer.
The 2nd part can be elaborated more. Take the cue from the mentor’s comments. You will get the approach from there.
The overall content is decent.
But the conclusion is missing. Work on it.
Good language
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Hi Amit
Underline important points.
Do not write the intro as a bullet point.
Your 1st part of the answer lacks depth and content.
Religion of rulers and common people, political nature of these states, non-clarity from the British while framing rules for these states during independence, sense of independence for the rulers, interference of Pakistan, challenges of Junagadh, Kashmir and Hyderabad will form the key arguments of this part.
The 2nd part is dealt nicely.
Work on your presentation. Points should look well structured and fluid.
Good conclusion
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Hi Mohita
Decent answer.
The points are well placed.
Good language.
The overall structure is decent.
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Hi Shivanand
The answer lacks content, depth, and structure.
You missed the demands of the question. It is a 15 marks question and hence the content has to be more.
The question has two parts and they are crystal clear in their demands. First, you have to discuss what were the challenges that Indian leadership faced while integrating these princely states into the Union of India. Secondly what were the mechanisms and steps used to overcome this challenge.
In the intro, discuss the role of princely states in British India.
Then come to the first part of the question and discuss what were the challenges in integrating these states. Religion of rulers and common people, political nature of these states, nonclarity from the British while framing rules for these states during independence, sense of independence for the rulers, interference of Pakistan, challenges of Junagadh, Kashmir and Hyderabad will form the key arguments of this part.
Then discuss how Sardar Patel and other leaders moved forward to tackle these challenges. Persuasion, patriotism, tactical diplomacy and force was used to get these states with independent India.
Towards the end, show how all these steps helped to form a unified India with distinct political identity which has held its own even after 73 years of independence.
Read the model answer
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Hi Swetha
Please avoid using a subheading for your intro and conclusion.
Underline the key points.
Your overall coverage of the answer is very good.
The points are well placed and are in-depth.
Good structure.
But avoid lengthy statements. Keep your statements short. That will make your points crisp and more effective.
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Hi Khus
No need to discuss the administrative division of British India and the need for Princely states.
Always stick to the core of the question and do not move out of the periphery of the question.
Your direction of the main body is OK but the points are placed haphazardly. There has to be some structure to it.
Work on your structuring and presentation of the answer.
Good language.
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Sorry sir for very late submission. Kindly review. Will be on time from next week onwards.
Hi Divya
Good intro.
But the 1st part lacks content.
Keep in mind that when attempting 10 markers, then each subheading should have around 3 4 points and for 15 markers, they should have 6 7 points.
Read the model answer for extra talking points.
Good 2nd part.
The overall language is decent.
Decent presentation
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Hi Pratik
A very good attempt.
You have discussed all the necessary points in a relevant manner.
The presentation is also decent.
The flow of the answer is superb.
Keep it up.
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Hi Balakumaran
Good intro.
The answer lacks balance.
You have covered the 1st part of the question really well.
But the 2nd part is not answered.
In the 2nd part, discuss how Sardar Patel and other leaders moved forward to tackle these challenges. Persuasion, patriotism, tactical diplomacy and force was used to get these states with independent India. Towards the end, show how all these steps helped to form a unified India with distinct political identity which has held its own even after 73 years of independence.
Read the model answer.
The language is good and the coverage in the 1st part is very good.
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Please review.
Hi Paran
Elaborate your points in the 1st part of the main body.
The rest of the answer is very good.
The content is very good.
The structuring is also decent.
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Hi Siddhant
A very good answer.
You have covered the demand of the question in an apt manner.
The points are well placed.
A very good presentation.
The content is in-depth and has decent coverage.
The intro and conclusion are perfect
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Please review
Hi Sahithya
Rather than discussing the issues of Junagadh, Hyderabad, and Kashmir overall, discuss the general issues also. Discuss issues like religion of rulers and common people, political nature of these states, non-clarity from the British while framing rules for these states during independence, sense of independence for the rulers, interference of Pakistan. These points along with the points of Junagadh, Hyderabad, and Kashmir will form the base of your 1st part.
Similarly, do not discuss the 2nd part only through the eyes of these 3 states. What more was needed to bring the rest of the states in the Indian fold?
Read the model answer for all the talking points.
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Hi Ayush
A very lengthy intro. Avoid it.
The overall content is decent but it is a bit over-explained.
Keep the points short and crisp.
The direction of the answer is decent.
The structure is very decent.
Underline important points.