
==== Front
J Family Med Prim Care
J Family Med Prim Care
JFMPC
J Family Med Prim Care
Journal of Family Medicine and Primary Care
2249-4863
2278-7135
Wolters Kluwer - Medknow India

JFMPC-13-3471
10.4103/jfmpc.jfmpc_398_24
Letter to Editor
1947 Partition of India and its lessons
Gupta Harish
Department of Medicine, King George’s Medical University, Shahmina Road, Chowk, Lucknow, Uttar Pradesh, India
Address for correspondence: Dr. Harish Gupta, Department of Medicine, King George’s Medical University, Shahmina Road, Chowk, Lucknow, Uttar Pradesh - 226 003, India. E-mail: harishgupta@kgmcindia.edu
8 2024
26 7 2024
13 8 34713472
10 3 2024
12 3 2024
15 3 2024
Copyright: © 2024 Journal of Family Medicine and Primary Care
2024
https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/4.0/ This is an open access journal, and articles are distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 License, which allows others to remix, tweak, and build upon the work non-commercially, as long as appropriate credit is given and the new creations are licensed under the identical terms.
==== Body
pmc‘Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion’ are essential principles that aim to promote fairness, equal opportunities, and respect for all individuals, regardless of their background or identity, perspectives and experiences. These principles are about creating a more just and inclusive society. Let’s work together to make sure everyone is treated with equality and dignity – Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, Director General of World Health Organization, December 17, 2023.[1]

Dear Editor,

Tanveer at Ministry of Minority Affairs, Government of India and colleagues got their systematic review article published in the February 2024 issue of the journal having the title, ‘Catastrophic impact of 1947 partition of India on people’s health’. The investigators searched relevant articles, went through their contents, classified them accordingly, tabulated them for ease of learning and then prepared the write-up by enumerating different events having an impact on the status of health care of the people in that era. Such articles provide us with a refreshing insight into the events of historical significance which affect generations to come. In this cruel, unequal and unjust world where some lives are valued more than others, the authors’ efforts will give solace to those unsung and unheard voices which have remained marginalized till now.

By bringing common people and their plight at the centre stage of the arena, the authors provide us with a direction which has remained unmarked and undistinguished for 76 years. We need to have a better grasp of our shared history to know what went wrong, and that insight may help us to navigate the present in a better way. Kudos to the authors for penning down such a beautiful and marvellous piece for our awakening.[2]

Nevertheless, there are certain points therein which need a different interpretation, ought to take into account certain missing points and demand a different approach than suggested by the authors and I’d mention it pointwise with reasoning. In several places, the authors specify that there was a regression in demographic indicators of vital significance (e.g., mortality rates in certain age groups) and a reduction in life expectancy due to the partition and cross-border migration. But there were large-scale communal riots too alongside political bickering then. Hence social unrest should be charged with more burden than drawing (or redrawing) lines on the map for deterioration in quality of lives with a fall in living standards, according to this school of thought.

Under a header of Impact on the economy, the authors state, ‘Significantly, India’s share in the global economy was about 24.5% before the British rule in the 1700s, but by the 1950, after the exit of the British, it had plummeted to only 4.17%’. But there are two points needing consideration here in this context. Before independence (1947) when the British arrived and before that, for most of human history India and China have been the nations with the largest share of population. Here is an account of the last two centuries.[3] Hence in the pre-Industrial Revolution era, they contributed to the maximum world GDP by simple arithmetic. The more people are there at an agricultural farm or rearing animals, the higher will be its produce (in a linear correlation) and the higher will be its absolute market value. The scenario changed with the arrival of Industrial Revolution in the later part of eighteenth century. Here is a reference from Encyclopedia Britannica[4] which the authors quote in their review elsewhere.

After independence (1947), GDP continued to fall or hovered around the baseline for several decades and started to lift shortly before the turn of the century. The second chart (among 20) of this article with the caption ‘Over 10 times growth in GDP in last 20 years’ provides the information in a simple way.[5] While the British plundered, looted and snatched away our wealth so much so that ‘dacoity’ and ‘thuggery’ words slipped into the Oxford Dictionary, we’d be mindful that since independence we’ve been owners of our destiny.[6] Hence a fair and non-partisan appraisal of what went wrong (and right) should be made when analysing Indian history.

Under a header of Impact on health, the authors write, ‘we can conjecture that had there been no partition, the declining trend of infant and under five mortality would have been continued’. But we need to realise that several events were running then together. The Great Famine of Bengal in 1943,[7] Pakistan’s invasion of Kashmir shortly after independence,[8] artificial fixation of exchange rate resulting in depletion of foreign reserves[9]; all were going simultaneously after World War 2. Every big action has had an impact on the health care sector which is in addition to neglect of education here.[10] Hence how do the authors pinpoint an observation (of declining health indicators of a particular period) with a single event of partition and accompanying riots, I wonder.

Our forefathers and freedom fighters sowed seeds of aspiration and we are reaping what we invested for then. This grey/not-so-rosy picture of today should make us analyse in black and white what went wrong (and right) and then we may get an outline of the way ahead. Appreciation of facts requires their independent realisation bereft of emotions and attachments. In the melee of hurried exodus of the British from India shortly after Royal Indian Navy mutiny, various incidents and occurrences shaped our past and are affecting our present in some way. Nevertheless, this history should inform us that social cohesion, equality and justice with fundamental principles (preamble) of Constitution show us where we need to go. The document arose as a result of the collective wisdom of the experts debating in the Central Hall of Parliament for less than 3 years.

Rising tensions on religious lines, fault lines on caste and creed, centre–state conflict, infusion of black money in elections, misinformation/disinformation campaign on social media and potential of artificial intelligence should warn us that 76 years down the line; still our common enemies are illiteracy/divisive forces in society/self-centeredness/bigotry on parochial issues and we’d rise to the occasion so as not to repeat mistakes of the past. Unity makes the foundation of a strong economy and it is the responsibility of the youth not to listen to those giving calls to tear us asunder to win elections and fulfil their narrow interests. Divide and rule was the stated policy of the British. In this era, we’d show the door to powers who adopt and practice the same theme.

Financial support and sponsorship

Nil.

Conflicts of interest

There are no conflicts of interest.
==== Refs
1 Dr Tedros, on X (formerly Twitter) Available from: https://x.com/DrTedros/status/1736133101305139505?s=20
2 Tanveer T Mathur N Sarwal R Catastrophic impact of 1947 partition of India on people's health J Family Med Prim Care 2024 13 401 8 38605803
3 Ghosh I. This is how the population of India and China have changed since 1800 World Economic Forum, Nov 24, 2020 Available from: https://www.weforum.org/agenda/2020/11/population-race-china-india/ [Last accessed on 2024 Mar 10]
4 Encyclopedia Britannica. Industrial Revolution. [Last updated 2024 Feb 08] Available from: https://www.britannica.com/event/Industrial-Revolution/The-first-Industrial-Revolution [Last accessed on 2024 Mar 10]
5 In 20 charts India's journey since independence. Times of India, Aug 15 2022 Available from: https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/in-charts-indias-journey-since-independence/articleshow/93573389.cms [Last accessed on 2024 Mar 10]
6 World history by per capita GDP. Mint, Aug 25 2010 Available from: https://www.livemint.com/Opinion/Nb7KkZ3yOVSNW3vHf9K1oM/World-history-by-per-capita-GDP.html [Last accessed on 2024 Mar 10]
7 Bengal Famine of 1943. Encyclopedia Britannica Last updated Feb 14 2024 Available from: https://www.britannica.com/topic/Bengal-famine-of-1943 [Last accessed on 2024 Mar 10]
8 Ministry of Culture. A National Symposium and Exhibition on “Memories of 22 October 1947” to be organised at Srinagar by National Museum Institute of History of Art, Conservation and Museology Press Information Bureau. [Posted on 2020 Oct 21] Available from: https://pib.gov.in/PressReleseDetailm.aspx?PRID=1666325 [Last accessed on 2024 Mar 10]
9 Reserve Bank of India. Exchange Rate 1945-1971 Available from: https://www.rbi.org.in/commonperson/english/scripts/FAQs.aspx?Id=1877 [Last accessed on 2024 Mar 10]
10 Kundu T What India can learn from China's rise in higher education Mint, Aug 06, 2018 Available from: https://www.livemint.com/Education/GP0k0R7jySJvdUQcoyxMAN/What-India-can-learn-from-Chinas-rise-in-higher-education.html [Last accessed on 2024 Mar 10]
