Chapter 1 Introduction continues...

The geographical span of India as in 1947 has in fact marginally increased with the merger of Sikkim in 1974. China and Pakistan have illegally occupied significant areas of Kashmir, Ladakh, and nibbled away in Arunachal.

It is the thesis of this study that to deter terror, India as a nation must first foster a concept of identity. A strategy to deter terror then can be formulated. From a study of nations that have remain united, and contrasted with those which have disintegrated, it seems that the crucial elements for national integrity is the concept of “who we are” that the people within a geo-political boundary accept. This concept, however, has to be nurtured, renewed, continually enriched, and given substance. Such a concept, however, cannot be forced down the throats of a people. At the same time, the concept cannot be amorphous, meaning all things to all people, and without a time-frame for its acceptance by the people constituting a nation.
Dr. Samuel Huntington, a Harvard professor, has recently published1 a study (titled: Who Are We?), about the concept of the US as a nation and its viability. He argues that the US as a nationisrootedinthe“Americanidentity”whichisconstituted in two dimensions: salience and substance. Silence is the importance of one's national identity over other sub-national identities (of language, region, profession, etc.), which substance is what one thinks he or she has in common and that which distinguishes this commonality from other peoples. H suggests that a people with both, a definite salience and rich substance, will remain a nation, while others will not.
American identity is also sustained by the substance rooted in what in popular parlance is called the “American way” Paraphrasing Dr. Huntington, the “American way” may be identified as: (i) Anglo-Protestant work ethic (such as sticking to contracts, punctuality, verbal promise as bond, honoring IOUs, etc.); (ii) Christianity – religious belief in God, in good being rewarded, and evil being punished by Him; (iii) English language; (iv) rule of law and equality before it; and (v) individualism and the pursuit of happiness.

To be continued...