Today's Practice Question

Que. 1. Describe any four cultural elements of diversity in India and rate their relative significance in building a national identity. (UPSC - 2015) [150 Words]
Ans.: Diversity connotes collective differences among people that differentiates one group of people from another.
India is considered as a mega culturally diverse country due to the existence of various groups that provide a unique blend to India’s diversity. These culturally diverse elements have given India an identity that is heterogeneous compared to any such large countries.
 
Cultural elements of diversity in India: 

• Religious Diversity
  All major religions of the world are found and practised in India. The foreign religions have interacted with regional culture and formed a unique blend that is not formed elsewhere.
  Ex: Blend of Parsi culture with indigenous culture in Maharashtra . 
• Language
  India is home to a large number of languages that we cannot find in any other countries. These languages have evolved over centuries and some are very rare. This diversity in language has provided India a colourful blend. Fundamental unity is found in the ideas and themes expressed in these languages. 
• Festivals
  Every region and community in India has their own festivals based on their cultural identity. These festivals are the backbone of their culture and are delicately preserved and followed. These festivals allow the identity of communities to transmit over generations.
  Ex: Lohri in Punjab , Pongal in Kerala, Bihu in NE states. 
• Races
  India is home to major races of the world. These races have mixed with each other over hundreds of years to give rise to present ones. This has allowed the existence of unique races in India.
  Ex: Indo-Aryan races in India, Dravidian etc. 
• Pilgrimages 

• Unity in diversity
  The different cultural elements have allowed India to be seen as a country that respects all traditions and beliefs. This has reiterated India’s commitment to towards unity in diversity motto.
• Building tolerance
  Existence of various forms of diverse culture in India has made India an example of tolerance. When the world is fighting over colour and language, India’s acceptance of cultural diversity is a beacon of hope. 

Thus, cultural diversity has an important role in shaping India’s national identity that is not based on any language or religion but instead on common hopes and aspirations.

Que. 2. Caste as a system has gradually declined but casteism has become stronger. Examine [150 Words]
Ans.: The caste system is one of the unique features in Indian Society. Its root can be traced back to thousands of years. 

• According to Anderson and Parker, “Caste is that extreme form of social class organization in which the position of individuals in the status hierarchy is determined by descent and birth.”
• Caste as a social stratification system is a salient feature of Indian society. Traditionally, caste system is defined as a system of hierarchically arranged endogamous social groups according to purity and pollution of occupation which is hereditarily fixed in India. 

However, due to various reasons like, efforts of social reformers like Phule, Gandhiji, Ambedkar, economic development growth of literacy, occupational mobility, constitutional provisions such as Right to Equality, caste as a system is gradually declining in India but Casteism which refers to one-sided loyalty in favour of a particular caste has even increased in India. 

According to R. N. Sharma, ‘casteism is a blind group loyalty towards one’s own caste or sub-caste, which does not care for the interests of other castes, and seeks to realize the social, eco­nomic, political and other interests of its own group’. 
Casteism has increased in India over the time reason being : 
i. Casteism increases, when a particular group tends to improve the status of its own caste. In order to achieve such status, the members even adopt the most improper methods to enhance the prestige of their caste.  
ii. Marital rules such as endogamy, i.e., marriage within the group is another factor. Under the caste system, which allows casteism to perpetuate, such restrictions placed on marriage forces an individual to marry within his own caste group, which brings about cohesion within the group, thereby increasing casteism.  
iii. Communication between rural and urban areas became easy through urbani­zation. The feelings of caste were easily carried through the members from rural areas to urban areas through migration. The members of the caste have to face various problems and as a result, a need to provide security on com­munal basis was felt. This factor of need for security also encourages casteism.  
iv. Easy access to the means of transport and communication is another factor, which contributes to the growth of casteism. Members of the same caste, who were previously not much in touch with each other, are now able to establish intimate relationships. The spread of the feeling of casteism became easy through mass media, such as newspapers, magazines, etc. 
v. Using caste as political vendetta by political groups for vested interests thus increasing Casteism 
However due to various socio- economic efforts like inter-caste marriage , rise in literacy level, westernisation etc this casteism has suffered a major blow here.