Thematic selection: India
Located in South Asia and occupying a large part of the Indian subcontinent, India is the world’s most populous country. It is characterised by strong ethnic, linguistic, religious and cultural diversity. Hinduism is the country’s majority religion. Islam, which has been present in India for a very long time, is the second religion. The caste system, a source of social inequality, structures Indian society. Each caste, a localised, hereditary, endogamous social group, is distinguished by its system of values and practices and occupies a hierarchical position, whether dominant or not, within society.
In 1947, the Partition of the British Indian Empire led to the creation of two states, India and Pakistan. The Indian Constitution, promulgated in 1950, made India a federal, secular and democratic parliamentary republic in search of unity in diversity and the abolition of all discrimination based on gender, religion, caste or place of birth. Positive discrimination, based on a quota system, was introduced to compensate for the social inequalities and exclusion inherited from the caste system.
The rise of Hindu nationalism, embodied by the current political leadership, raises questions about the future of democracy in the face of ethnic and religious domination. Industrialisation, urban development, rural exodus, parliamentary democracy, social modernisation... All these economic, political and social transformations are having a profound effect on Indian society, which is grappling with major environmental problems arising from these transformations and raising questions about the country’s future.
Explore this selection in our reading rooms and online:
- On the Subject Guides:
- On the Digital library,
- the Sciences Po Archives website
- and the catalog with the le India collection.
