Topic Of The Day:- The Unifier Of Modern India
Remembering Sardar Patel’s Stupendous Role In Integrating The Princely States Into Independent India
“By common endeavour we can raise the country to a new greatness, while a lack of unity will expose us to fresh calamities.” These pragmatic but profound remarks defined the vision and the sterling character of Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel, the principal unifier of modern India.
Force Behind Unification
Sardar Patel’s foresight and tactful navigation of the most turbulent period in post-Independence, and the resolve he demonstrated in integrating the more than 500 disparate princely States into the Dominion of India is an unparalleled accomplishment in modern history.
Hailing Patel’s feat, Lord Mountbatten, the last Viceroy of India, had said: “By far the most important achievement of the present government is the unification of the States into the Dominion of India. Had you failed in this, the results would have been disastrous… Nothing has added to the prestige of the present government more than the brilliant policy you have followed with the States.”
Patel was a statesman with a strong sense of realpolitik, a realist to the core and an earthy politician whose sole aim was to build a strong and united India.
What makes the merger of the princely States truly incredible is the fact that the princely rulers had the option at that time to either accede to India or Pakistan or remain independent. Yet, Patel’s sagacity, foresight, patriotism, tact, persuasive powers and abiding commitment to fair play enabled him to untanglea highly complex political and social problem of an unprecedented scale, without triggering any kind ofrevolt or civil unrest.
However, he was also compelled to use coercion by launching ‘Operation Polo’ to liberate and integrate Hyderabad after the Nizam of Hyderabad entertained false hopes of either joining Pakistan or remaining independent. In a swift operation lasting five days, Hyderabad State was liberated in September 1948.
Writing about Patel’s decisiveness in the Christian Science Monitor, W. Gordon Graham observed: “Hyderabad, a State covering 80,000 square miles in the heart of peninsular India, was at that time in the grip of an unscrupulous minority which aimed at secession from India. Had the bid succeeded, India might not have survived as a political unit. This situation needed a man of iron who would not balk at coercive action, and in the Sardar, India had at that vital moment just the man.”
Indeed at the most critical time when the country’s political unity was in jeopardy, India found the man of the moment in Sardar Patel, who displayed amazing patience, tact and a steely determination in dealing with an intransigent ruler, who refused to see the writing on the wall and even wanted to take the issue to the United Nations. Displaying statesmanship of the highest order, Sardar Patel prevented the attempts to not only Balkanise India but internationalise the issue as well. The complicated case of Junagarh, Gujarat, was also handled with dexterity by Patel. I feel that the problem of Jammu and Kashmir would have been resolved long back had Sardar Patel been given a free hand to handle it at that time.
MEANINGS AND WORDS
1) endeavour
Meaning : try hard to do or achieve something.
Synonyms : attempt
Antonyms : surrender
Example : “he is endeavouring to help the Third World”
2) pragmatic
Meaning : dealing with things sensibly and realistically in a way that is based on practical rather than theoretical considerations.
Synonyms : practical
Antonyms : idealistic
Example : “a pragmatic approach to politics”
3) profound
Meaning : (of a state, quality, or emotion) very great or intense.(adj)
Synonyms : deep
Antonyms : slight
Example : “profound feelings of disquiet”
4) tactful
Meaning : having or showing skill and sensitivity in dealing with others or with difficult issues.
Synonyms : discreet
Antonyms : careless
Example : “they need a tactful word of advice”
5) turbulent
Meaning : characterized by conflict, disorder, or confusion; not stable or calm.
Synonyms : violent
Antonyms : peaceful
Example : “the country’s turbulent history”
6) disparate
Meaning : essentially different in kind; not able to be compared.
Synonyms : diverse
Antonyms : analogous
Example : “they inhabit disparate worlds of thought”
7) Viceroy
Meaning :
Tamil Meaning :
Synonyms :
Antonyms :
Example :
8) unification
Meaning : the process of being united or made into a whole.
Synonyms : fusion
Antonyms : division
Example : “the costs of German unification”
9) incredible
Meaning : impossible to believe.
Synonyms : extraordinary
Antonyms : credible
Example : “an almost incredible tale of triumph and tragedy”
10) accede
Meaning : agree to a demand, request, or treaty.
Synonyms : acquiesce
Antonyms : demur
Example : “the authorities did not accede to the strikers’ demands”
11) persuasive
Meaning : good at persuading someone to do or believe something through reasoning or the use of temptation.
Synonyms : deny
Antonyms : demur
Example : “an informative and persuasive speech”
12) abiding
Meaning : (of a feeling or memory) lasting a long time; enduring.
Synonyms : enduring , constant
Antonyms : temporary
Example : “he had an abiding respect for her”
13) untangle
Meaning : free from a tangled or twisted state.
Synonyms : unravel
Antonyms : ravel
Example : “fishermen untangled their nets”
14) revolt
Meaning : take violent action against an established government or ruler; rebel.
Synonyms : rebellion
Antonyms : calm
Example : “the Iceni revolted and had to be suppressed”
15) coercion
Meaning : the action or practice of persuading someone to do something by using force or threats.
Synonyms : violence
Antonyms : democracy
Example : She searched his gaze and responded with irritation, “If coercion is willing, then yes.”
