In 1955, Dr. Bhimrao Ambedkar, the father of the Indian Constitution, proposed a radical solution to the "suffering and poverty of the Northern states" in his book 'Thoughts of Linguistic States'. He argued that the only remedy was to break up Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, and Madhya Pradesh into smaller states.
Ambedkar's Proposal and Its Aftermath
Ambedkar's specific proposal for Uttar Pradesh was to divide it into three smaller states: Eastern UP with Allahabad/Prayagraj as the capital, Central UP with Kanpur as the capital, and Western UP with Meerut as its capital. Interestingly, 45 years after this proposal, in the year 2000, Uttarakhand (the entire northern part of UP and the Western UP region of Ambedkar's proposal) was carved out of Uttar Pradesh.
The Relevance of Ambedkar's Idea Today
Despite the formation of Uttarakhand, Uttar Pradesh remains the most populous state in India with an enormous population of more than 25 crores. The discussion of splitting the state into three parts is still ongoing and often intensifies during election cycles. But how much relevance does this discussion hold, and does it have any weight?
Arguments in Favor of the Split
- Effective Governance and Development: Uttar Pradesh's sheer size poses challenges for effective governance and development. Smaller states could facilitate better administration and targeted development programs.
- Addressing Regional Disparities: UP has diverse regions with varying levels of development. Areas like Bundelkhand and Purvanchal are economically backward compared to Western and Central UP. Splitting the state could help address these regional disparities and ensure more focused development in the underserved areas.
- Political Landscape: In India, where any political party needs 272 seats to form a government at the center, UP alone holds 80 Lok Sabha seats and plays a crucial role in every Lok Sabha election.
The Economic Perspective
The Yogi Adityanath government has set an ambitious target for 2027 to make UP a trillion-dollar economy, which has not even crossed $300 million yet. However, a MoneyControl analysis suggests that at the current growth rate, it is not possible for UP to cross the $1 trillion mark until 2035. Given the enormous population size of India or UP, per capita income is much more important than the overall GDP, and there is no escaping the harsh fact that Uttar Pradesh is too big to succeed.
Lessons from Uttarakhand
Historically, smaller states have done better. In the case of Uttarakhand, which was split from Uttar Pradesh in 2000, the GDP has grown with an average of 8% and 14% in the post-COVID times, making it one of the fastest-growing Indian states. On the other hand, in the same time period, since 2000, UP's GDP has grown at around 6% and 8% in the post-COVID times. Uttarakhand's per capita income ranks 7th in India and is all set to breach the 3 lakh mark in this fiscal year, which is 3 times higher than that of UP (ranks 28th). In fact, it is even higher than the most developed region of Uttar Pradesh, Western UP.
As Uttar Pradesh continues to grapple with the challenges of governance, development, and regional disparities, the idea of splitting the state into smaller units, as envisioned by Ambedkar, deserves serious consideration. The success of Uttarakhand and the potential benefits of targeted development programs in smaller states make a compelling case for revisiting this idea. However, any decision should be based on a comprehensive analysis of the pros and cons and should prioritize the well-being and progress of the people of Uttar Pradesh.
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