Sub-Nationalism - An Eminent Force of Regional Development: A Case of Bihar (original) (raw)

ICSSR Sponsored National Seminar on “Journalism and Freedom Movement”, Department of Journalism & Mass Communication, Gopal Narayan Singh University, Bihar, 2022

Abstract

Nationalism, as a political phenomenon, is a concept invented in modern Europe. The origin of European nations in the 18th and 19th centuries was due to the removal of feudalism and the advancement of capitalism, led by the entrepreneur class to protect the domestic market within the national boundaries. The market became the driving force for the movement and its ideological manifestation was 'nationalism'. In the Indian context, the question of 'Indian identity or, 'national self-definition emerged during the anti-colonial struggle. Historically being a polyethnic and multilingual country, the regional consciousness was beginning to emerge parallel with the national consciousness in India. Nationalism was developed at two levels: First, at the all-India level; based on cultural homogeneities and common anti-imperialism views, and second at the regional level; based on regional cultural homogeneity (Bengali, Gujarati, Marathi, etc.). This solidarity that arises out of a sense of identification with a belief in a common past, shared culture, and linguistic similarity, manifested itself with the longing for the creation of and control over a political-administrative unit, which resulted in subsequent socio-economic development. In the Indian context, this phenomenon developed as strong sub-nationalism in non-Hindi linguistic areas but unfolded differently in the Hindi-speaking belt between Punjab and Bengal, particularly in Bihar, an administrative unit of the Bengal Presidency during the colonial period. The regional sub-nationalistic identity in Bihar was never developed as strongly to cut above the class and caste divide for a widespread state-centric movement for its development, and it remains weak to date if not absent. This study is an attempt to understand the non-development of sub-nationalism in Bihar which is one of the strong factors of the economic backwardness of the state.

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