Identify the instrument responsible for the formation of ethno-national identity in India.
Answer & explanation
Correct answer: option 3
The correct answer is Option (3) → Language
Option (3) Language — Correct. Language coupled with regional and tribal identity has provided the most powerful instrument for the formation of ethno-national identity in India. The linguistic states set up after the States Reorganisation Commission show this: one can be Kannadiga and Indian, Bengali and Indian, Tamil and Indian at the same time.
NCERT (2025-26): “6.2 Regionalism in the Indian Context … Language coupled with regional and tribal identity – and not religion – has therefore provided the most powerful instrument for the formation of ethno-national identity in India. However, this does not mean that all linguistic communities have got statehood. For instance, in the creation of three new states in 2000, namely Chhatisgarh, Uttaranchal and Jharkhand, language did not play a prominent role. Rather, a combination of ethnicity based on tribal identity, language, regional deprivation and ecology provided the basis for intense regionalism resulting in statehood.…” |