Society is a web of relationships. It consists of people in general living together in communities. The word social is connected with society and the way it is organised. It is also connected with activities in which people meet each other for pleasure. For social harmony we need social conscience which means people should be aware of the problems that affect a lot of people in the society. India is a land of unique blend of diverse religions, cultures and racial groups. The population of India is also racially diverse. Our social problems have their roots in the diversity of all social factors like culture, caste, region, language and religion. We get attached to the society by these factors. We have sentimental attachment to each of these factors.They bind us together by all such activities as we need for community life and living. But the problems arise when these attachments grow to an extreme level to breed intolerance for other religions or languagrs. We know that communalism breeds cotempt. It is the degenerated manifestation of religion. In the present democratic set up, all political parties try to win over the sympathies of communal forces to use them as their vote bank.The innocent voters fall a prey to their manoeuvering. Tolerance at one time was the most characteristic feature of Indian society. Inspite of striking diversities between various communities and groups, they lived with peace.Hospitality has been the typical feature of Indian society but the growing intolerance of divergent views generated hostility among them. There are certain factors which need to be analysed properly.The most discriminating factor in the Indian society is the caste system. It was evolved and practised by our ancestors almost from the beginning of early civilisation. It forms the basic foundation of India“s social structure. A person inherits the caste, the day he is born. Racial discrimination has damaged communal harmony to a great extent.It is one of the major social problems in India. Social reformers gave due consideration to ameliorate the plight of the down trodden people.Our constitution ensures social justice to the deprived section of society. Iy guarantees right to equality and prohibits discriminations among citizens on ground only of religion, race caste, sex or place of birth. Verna system is deep rooted in the Indian society.Its abolition is not an easy task. Even Ganghi ji did not cosider abolition of verna system essential for the transformation of society. Reservation and other measures were adopted to strengthen them. But it too does not seem to improve their condition. Even after 74 years of India“s independence not much improvement is visible. Only those who were already well -to-do,are still getting the benefit.Why not to reconsider it and change it to meet the requirements of the needy ones? Caste system is the root cause of poverty in India. Untouchability and caste conflicts are the other caste based problems. There is great hue and cry among other deprived sections of society to claim their right to equality. Govt. is providing subsidies in the public distribution system to those who are below poverty line.The system of subsidy does not seem to be fruitful. Subsidy has made people useless and unserviceable. Can“t this system be stopped and money saved be utilised to provide employment to those people? But government is afraid of losing the vote bank. Communalism is another problem gnawing at the roots of Indian society and disturbing communal harmony. Common people of all religions want peace and harmony but some religious fanatics create disharmony which results in communal riots. It so happens in different parts of the country. India is a large country and there is need of communal harmony. In such a vast country unity in diversity is the need of the hour. A country“s cultural heritage lies in its whole system of social life. It is in the festivals, dress, food habits, folk arts and classical arts. These are the healthy signs of India“s diversity. But spreading hatred, inter state border and river disputes are the manifestation of regionalism. All these things weakens a nation. We should not only preach equality but also practise it. The constitution guarantees right against exploitation. But we still find children below 14 years of age employed at some households and hotels. Mere putting a ban on human trafficking is not the solution of the problem. Those children should be educated and made capable of earning their livelihood. Govt. should plan and think to ameliorate their condition.

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T R Sharma

Chief Editor

Him Academy, Hamirpur ( H P )