How is Federation Practised ?

Construction provisions are necessary for the success of federalism, but these are not sufficient. The real success of federalism in India can be attributed to democratic politics in our country. To follow the true spirit of federalism, respect for diversity, and desire for living together should become a shared ideal dream in our country. 

Linguistic States

The creation of linguistic states was the first and a major test for democratic politics in our country. After Independence (1947), several old states' boundaries were changed to create new states. This was only done to ensure that the people who spoke the same language lived in the same state.

Some states were not created based on language but to recognize differences based on culture, ethnicity, and geography. These include states like Nagaland, Uttarakhand, and Jharkhand. Some national leaders resisted the demand for new states based on language, as they thought this would lead to the country's disintegration. But later, this fear proved wrong, and the formation of linguistic states actually made the country more united and administration become easier.

Language Policy

A second test for the Indian federation is the language policy. The Indian Constitution did not give the status of the national language to any of the official languages. 

Though Hindi was identified as the official language, which is the mother tongue of 40 percent of India.

 The Central Government has not imposed Hindi on states in which people speak a different language. Besides Hindi, there are languages recognized as Scheduled Language by the Indian Constitution.

States, too, have their own languages. For a Central Government job, the candidate may take the examination in any of these languages. The maximum work of the government takes place in the official language of the concerned states. 

States have their own official language, but English as an official language was stopped in 1965.

So, Central Government withdraws the proposal, and English along with Hindi continue for official purposes.

Linguistic Diversity of India

Census of India, 2001 recorded more than 1500 distinct languages which people mentioned as their mother tongues. These languages were groped together under some major languages .e.g. languages like Bhojpuri, Magadhi, Bundelkhand, Chattisgarhi, Rajasthani, Bhili, and many others. Were grouped together under ‘ Hindi.’ Even after this grouping, the Census found 114 major languages. These 22 languages are now included in the English Schedule of the Indian Constitution and are therefore called ‘ Scheduled Languages.’ Others are called ‘Non-Scheduled Languages.’

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Linguistic_diversity_index

Centre-State Relation

Restructuring the center-state relation is one more way in which the federation has been strengthened in practice. Though the Indian Constitution has demarcated the Union and State Governments' powers, the Union government still can influence the state in many ways. In the past, Central Government misused the Constitution to dismiss the State Governments that were ruled by rival parties. 

This undermined the spirit of federalism. The Indian scenario has changed after 1990. This was the beginning of the era of the Coalition Government as the center.

Scheduled Language of India