Why is federalism required in India?

Answer 1

Federalism is universally acknowledged as having many virtues.

Federal governance promotes efficiency, both economic and political.

A well designed, and more important, well functioning system of

federal governance, by virtue of its manifold benefits, plays a key role in promoting the stability and prosperity of nations as the heights attained in development by the leading federations of the world - USA, Canada, Australia and Switzerland - demonstrate.

Federalism in India as everywhere else, has to face the awesome challenges of the new millennium. That underlines the fact that no federal system can suit all countries for all times. Maintaining an appropriate balance in the relationship between the center and the constituent units in a federation is as Buchanan said in the recent debate with Musgrave, akin to keeping a satellite in place, with centrifugal and centripetal forces keeping each other in check (Buchanan, 1999).

The federalism always remains a 'work-in progress' or as Iqbal Narain put it 'constantly in the making' (Copland and Rickard, 1999). The federal structure needs perpetually to be altered and mended to cope with changing environment and emerging challenges.

Answer 2

Federalism is universally acknowledged as having many virtues. Federal governance promotes efficiency, both economic and political. A well designed, and more importantly, well functioning system of federal governance, by virtue of its manifold benefits, plays a key role in promoting the stability and prosperity of nations as the heights attained in development by the leading federations of the world - USA, Canada, Australia and Switzerland - demonstrate.

Federalism in India as everywhere else, has to face the awesome challenges of the new millennium. That underlines the fact that no federal system can suit all countries for all times. Maintaining an appropriate balance in the relationship between the center and the constituent units in a federation is as Buchanan said in the recent debate with Musgrave, akin to keeping a satellite in place, with centrifugal and centripetal forces keeping each other in check (Buchanan, 1999).

Federalism always remains a 'work-in progress' or as Iqbal Narain put it 'constantly in the making' (Copland and Rickard, 1999). The federal structure needs perpetually to be altered and mended to cope with changing environment and emerging challenges.