Introduction:
Social changes are the changes which affect the society and the individuals who are part of the society.
Social changes are essential owing to the changing times and situations. Globalization has increasingly impacted the social structure which previously existed and has brought about dramatic changes in it.
Change in Family Structure:
The modern social forces have lead to some major changes in the family structure in the country. In India, a joint family system is prevalent wherein the head of the family exercises absolute authority over all the other members of the family. The head of the family distributes the work amongst the members. It was an authoritarian family rule in which the concept of individualism was absent. The family structure is however undergoing sea change in the modern times.
The joint family system is disintegrating and the concept of an urban family is on the rise. Authority in the family and the family ties are gradually weakening. These changes are giving way to a nuclear family which is a disintegrated portion of a joint family with a few members living together.
Change in Caste System:
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Considerable impact of forces of globalization is evident in the caste system of the country. Newer and modern methods of communication, development of a competitive economy and growth of modern western education have made the traditional concept of caste system obsolete. Certain castes have become upper classes of the society while the others have lost their previous status in the transformation of caste system. There is a tendency of modernizing life style amongst the higher classes, whereas in the lower classes, the trend of sanskritization.
Change in Social Stratification:
The traditional concept of stratification of Indian society gave importance to collectivism rather than individual achievements and was also based on the caste system. In the present day, the birth of an individual does not play a role when it comes to his job allocation. Achievements of the individuals are being given more importance these days. There is a change from feudal society to capitalist society. Stratification based on caste system is now replaced by stratification based on class system.
Change in Mobility
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The Indian caste system always prevented the mobility of the people from one occupation to another occupation. The coming up of the new class system has marked the increase in social mobility. The increase in social mobility has also led to the increase in social changes.
Conclusion:
Thus, there have been many social changes in modern India which have brought about positive developments in the structure of the society. These positive developments have minimized the tension which existed because of the traditional societal structure in the country.