The importance of national integration is obvious: it unites all people of the nation and the national

minorities in a country. The integrity implies that all people are equal regardless of their interests,
religion, race, sex, and class. National integration is a helpful way to protect the fundamental rights and
freedoms of people and to satisfy their right to judicial protection. Promoting national integration means
the country gives its people an opportunity to live together in peace and prosperity.

The most vivid example of a country that needs national integration is India. This country has almost the
largest population on the planet, and also can boast of the diversity of various cultures, traditions,
religions, beliefs, languages, and communities. The word “identity” is definitely not the suitable word to
describe India, however, Indians have made some efforts in order to support national unity in their
homeland.

India in the Past

If referring back to history, we will observe a total national disintegration in India. This thing caused
many political and social damages to the country as a whole. For example, due to disintegration, people in
India suffered from numerous humiliations, slander, and insult. Also, the native rulers could not properly
manage the country because they failed to unite all nations into one. As a result, India got into the hands
of Mughal soldiers and easily exposed to other states or even monopolies.

The British regime somehow changed India in educational, cultural and social aspects as well. Indians felt
a sort of unity between them when they started to borrow the customs of British people. The rulers of the
country temporarily forgot about all the inner differences among people and stopped dividing them into
castes. Unfortunately, it did not last long, and then they turned back their negative views on the national
identity soon after India became independent in 1947.

Challenges to National Integration in India

As it was mentioned above, India is a country comprising different languages, traditions, religions and
etc. But such a dievrsity may become the main obstacle on the way to the spirit of one nation. So what are
the major factors that influencing national integration?

 Cultural differences. Culture in the country is the prime reason why people become prisoners of
different regional identities. People from different regions of the country began to fight for their
superiority over other regions and wanted to gain autonomy or even independence.
 Caste system. Casteism made a very bad impact on people’s minds making them think they had
plenty of sins and deserved tortures and humiliation. Also, it caused distrust between all people in
India.
 Language diversity. As India has been a multilingual country for centuries, various communities
tried to establish by force the official language in the country. That led to endless strikes and
rallies.

Region. The differences among people on the basis of religions can be one of the main obstacles to
national unity. Though India is a secular county and treats all the religions equally, still sometimes
communal conflicts erupt leading to tragic loss of lives and properties. Well, one might come up with a
question like “Are there any chances for India to finally establish the national unity?” The answer is that
since India is a free country, it has all chances to fight for national integration and unity.
The importance of national integration in any state is indisputably obvious because it helps stabilize the
democracy, increase the economic growth, develop the nation and give people all vital rights and duties.
India has a pluralistic society and vast population, so it has a more complicated task to complete. Such a
wide range of cultures, customs, religions, and languages only enriches the country and allows it to
flourish but only provided that in this country reigns eternal peace and unity of people. If India takes a
course of becoming a powerful state with a strong nation, it will make much progress. We should
remember that when a society is organized and united, it will never be the object of mockery or attacks.
So, national integration is a valuable weapon for a country to achieve success.