Hello Aspirant,

I hope you are doing well.

When the Indian independence movement ended the British Raj on August 15, 1947, Indian leaders faced the prospect of inheriting a country divided between medieval-era kingdoms and colonial-era provinces. As the new Minister of Home Affairs, Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel, then India's most respected and important freedom fighter, was responsible for using political negotiations backed by the option (and use) of military force to ensure the primacy of the Central government and the Constitution then being drafted.

India's constitution designated the country as a Union of States, indicating that it operates under a federal system with a strong central authority. The Indian government recaptured the holdings of the French Empire and Portugal over the next two decades after independence. However, as popular movements for the recognition of regional languages and attention to regional issues grew, the trend shifted. The lack of attention and respect for regional issues culminated in cultural alienation and violent separatism as a result of the backlash against centralization. To relieve tensions on the Indian state, the central government strove to strike a balance between the use of force against separatist fanatics and the creation of new states. As the nature of the federation changes, the map has been revised. The Republic of India now consists of 28 states and eight territories.

I hope this helps.

Good Luck