To mark the occasion of 75th anniversary of independent India, NITI Aayog has envisaged the vision of “New India 2022”, by laying foundation for freedom from six problems — poverty, dirt, corruption, terrorism, casteism and communalism — by 2022. However, to achieve this vision India will have to first sort out root cause of these problems, the inter and intra­regional disparities, brought out due to historical and differential developmental reasons.

Regional Disparity :

• In India, regional disparities in the level of poverty, unemployment, income infrastructure, agriculture industry and above all the level of living of the people exist substantially across the regions. These disparities have been responsible for various agitations calling for division of states, migration, social unrest, pressure on urban centres and developed regions, unemployment, regionalism, communalism, frustration among rural youth etc.
• Numerous measures have been undertaken in the previous years of planning to achieve balanced regional development , yet the situation remains pitiable in the most resource rich states such as Orissa, Bihar, Madhya Pradesh, Assam, and Uttar Pradesh with high poverty pockets.

Various Inter-regional socio-economic disparities include:

• The benefit of irrigation development was mainly concentrated in northern, western and southern provinces during British period. Central and Eastern India were relatively neglected. This has had serious implications in the post­independence period also. While the former areas were ripe for benefiting from the green revolution package, the latter could not.
• Northern Region’s performance on the Human Development Index (HDI) is far from satisfactory. The most illiterate and malnutrition states are from North India, viz. Bihar, Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, West Bengal, Odisha etc.
• On skill development viz number of technicians, engineers and doctors per million population Northern Region States lag behind their Southern and Western counterparts.
• Underdevelopment breeds insurgency and insurgency retards development. The same is happening in North­Eastern India and Red Corridor region.

Government Initiatives :

• The government has worked at state level to close this gap through its various programmes committed at regional level like economic planning, establishment of Ministry of Development of North Eastern Region (DoNEr) for focussed development of NE region, granting Special State Status to poor and difficult terrain regions which increased their grant assistance, central assistance for State plans etc.
   

Intra -Regional Disparities:

• However, apart from the wide regional disparities, there continue to remain wide intra­regional disparities in various states like under development in Vidarbha and Marathwada region of Maharashtra, Saurashtra of Gujarat, Telangana and Rayalaseema region in erstwhile Andhra Pradesh, Eastern part of Uttar Pradesh etc. An important cause of regional tensions which lead to popular agitation and at times militant activities is such regional disparities in economic and social development which exist within some of the States

Various Intra-regional disparities include:

• Caste and gender-based divide: Caste based inequalities account for deprivation of education and health facilities for lower caste people. Also, India ranks 120 among 131 countries in female labour force participation rates which hampers their contribution in GDP and rates of gender-based violence remain unacceptably high.
• Rural-Urban Divide: There is a lack of livelihood opportunities, modern amenities and services, necessary for decent living in rural areas, and a vast gap between education in rural and urban India. Issues become worst in hilly and difficult terrains and far­flunged areas.
• Class based divide: The India Human Development Survey from 2011­12 showed that the bottom 10% of the households made only a tenth of the income earned by the top 10%. Even in cities, the population living in slums constantly faces political, economic and social exclusion.

Government Efforts:

• The government has been working for reducing intra­State regional disparities through number of Centrally Sponsored Programmes since last two to three decades for taking care of specific aspects of backwardness of such regions. The Tribal Development Programme, the Hill Area Development Programme, the Western Ghat Development Programme, the Drought Prone Area

Programme and Desert Development Programme are examples of such ongoing efforts :

• Despite consistent government efforts, policy making and financial planning, India is yet to achieve its egalitarian dream of “New India 2022”, for which tackling inequalities in our society require imaginative policy­making. While the development of depressed regions is a national responsibility, the solution mainly rests with the local leadership. The backward regions are needed to be identified and focussed development as per their needs ushered in, increase in investment in these areas through private sector by giving them incentives, improving governance and administration in these areas and right political attitude will help in closing the gaps of development.

Conclusion :

To truly achieve the vision of ‘new India 2022’ all the stakeholders at all levels will have to come together and work in tandem towards a mass movement and seek to emerge as a model for the rest of the world and ultimately by 2047, India will transform to become ‘SARVA­SHRESTHA BHARAT’. These goals are not mighty, rather achievable, because they aspire to eradicate all intra­regional and inter- regional disparities so that each individual has ample opportunities to achieve her best self.

Vision of New India 2022 :

The India tries to fulfil the vision of ‘New India’, as envisaged by NITI Aayog, which includes:

• Poverty Free India:
• Through Inclusive Growth
• Rapid Economic Development
• Agricultural Transformation: Doubling Farmers’ income by 2022, De­risking farmers
• Dirt And Squalor Free India:
• Swachh Bharat: India is on track to achieve ODF status by October 2, 2019.
• Clean Rivers: Namami Gange Program
• Clean Energy: By 2022, India aims to add renewable energy capacity of 175 GW.
• Corruption Free India:
• Goods & Services Tax: One of the biggest tax reforms that is helping to formalize Indian businesses.
• Direct Benefit Transfer: 30.3 crore beneficiaries of Jan Dhan accounts as of September 2017
• eGovernance: The Government eMarket place has introduced transparency in procurement.
• Terrorism Free India:
• Through Umbrella scheme of “Modernization of Police Forces”; 2/5th funding is dedicated to LWE, J&K & North East
• Leveraging development & soft power at the global & regional levels to isolate Pakistan.
• Dedicated program on 100 backward districts will boost internal & cross­border security
• Measures undertaken, including on foreign soil, to contain militancy & dampen capabilities
• Casteism Free India:
• Through schemes like Pradhan Mantri Adarsh Gram Yojana (PMAGY), National SC/ST Hub, Upgradation of Merit of SC Students
• Communalism Free India:
• Through schemes like Nai Manzil, Nai Roshni, Stand­Up India, Begum Hazrat Mahal Scholarship, Seekho aur Kamao, Padho Pardes, Progress Panchayat, Hunar Haat.