INDIA-PAKISTAN INDEPENDENCE AND SEPARATION - A SUCCESS STORY? PART2.

Until the majority of Indians progressed to the point where being India is their first loyalty.  Instead of their loyalty to their religious faith.  

India will continue to  be susceptible to outbreaks of religious and communal outrages, terrorism. 

However, to its credit, it has sofar been able to repress these and prevent their too frequent occurrence. Although the fear of them occurring is still there. 

Socially and  culturally, much of India is still living in the past, with the rights of the individual still being subsumed by the prerogative of the family and its religious community,

India, with her vast human resources and tremendous intellectual and scientific property and potential.  

Clearly has the potential to be another economic powerhouse, somewhat similar to China, in Asia, as well as the world. 

However, whether and to what extent India will realise her true 21st Century potential, is debatable. 

Considering that the this vast nation of people of many ethnic, religious and linguistic origins, is still very much beset with the same kind of religious, ethnic, class and economic problems which it was struggling with in and before 1947. 

The country has a rapidly increasing  middle and upper class citizens, but its poor and economically disenfranchised population is no smaller. Which is not a situation which is unique to India, and instead, is the global tendency.

And yet, such is the rich religious, ethnic and cultural diversity of this country, that it continues to reflect the ancient along with the modern.  

With religious and cultural affiliations continuing be probably the most pervasive core ethos around which Indian - as well as Pakistanis - organise their lives. 

Religious affiliation was the engine which drove Indians into separating into two countries during the country's independence. 

And, although India is still a multi-faith, multi-ethnic and multi-linguistic country, Indians, especially rural Indians, still have a long way to go before they will truly become a fully assimilated people. 

At present, each religious group hold on to their religion as if it is the source of their very being, the essence of their identity. 

To be continued.