Question

Describe any four circumstances that led to protests against the Congress Government during 1974-1975.

Answer 1

Several things led to protests against the Congress Government from 1974 to 1975:

1. Economic Strain: India's economy was put under a lot of stress by the Bangladesh crisis and the war that followed with Pakistan. High inflation was caused by the US government cutting aid and oil prices going through the roof on the international market. This made things very hard for the people.
2. Unemployment: High jobless rates, especially in rural areas, were caused by the fact that industrial growth stayed slow. In order to cut costs, the government frozen the pay of its workers, which made those workers unhappy.
3. Agricultural Decline: Poor monsoons in 1972 and 1973 led to a sharp drop in agricultural production. Food grain output dropped by 8%, making economic problems and food shortages worse.
4. Social Unrest: A lot of people protested because they were unhappy with the way things were going economically. Unrest among students, which had been going on since the late 1960s, got worse, and Marxist groups, especially strong in West Bengal, started acting like insurgents to destroy the capitalist order. This made the political situation even less stable.