If you look to Part I of the Schedule, you will find the States that are enumerated there are the Governors’ provinces of Madras, Bombay, West Bengal, United Provinces, Bihar, Central Provinces, Assam and Orissa, if you look to Part II you will find Delhi, Ajmer-Merwara, including PanthPiploda and Coorg. I seriously ask, are you going to describe the City of Delhi as a State? Are you going to describe Coorg as a State? Are you going to describe PanthPiploda as a State? Are you going to describe Ajmer-Merwara as a State? If you do it, it will be simply ridiculous. Therefore in the absence of any other suitable expression I do feel that the term ‘Pradesh’ which is of Sanskrit origin and which means a country of big area – would be quite suitable. There will be no harm if, in the first schedule, in the description, the words ‘Pradesh’ I know it is an English translation. There is some force in what my honourable friend said that in the English draft itself you should not introduce Sanskrit words. But my friend coming from Mysore should be the last person to describe his own territory as an Independent State. Does it require any argument? Has he not so far pleaded that these States should have no sovereign existence and that they should be merged with the Union? Therefore there ought to be no sanctity about the word ‘State’. I am perfectly prepared if the Draftsmen or anybody in this House could find an expression which would denote and connote what we want. We have always pleaded for a strong Centre. In the Draft we have a federal structure but the Drafting Committee has rightly imported to it a unitary bias. We appreciate it. If we are to give effect to that view we have got to find out an expression which will thoroughly embody the concept which we have in view. From this point of view I am convinced that nothing would be lost if we describe the States as Pradesh. In that case all categories of States, Governors’ provinces, Chief Commissioners’ provinces and what have hitherto been called Native States could all be included under ‘Pradesh’ and ‘Pradesh’ could be enumerated in the First Schedule I support the amendment to substitute ‘Pradesh’ in place of ‘State’.
