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South Asian States Reorganized: A Quick Overview

- Chirag Gupta

With many state and provincial governments worried about federal encroachments on their freedoms, and with the federal government upset with the slowed efforts of transparency and anti-corruption due to the complicated state structure, both came to an agreement to re-organize and revamp the South Asian States. The myriad states and provinces of the USA are to be consolidated into several larger states. It is hoped that these larger states are less susceptible to national strong-arming in terms of withholding grants etc., resulting in more autonomy for the states. The federal government, in turn, is able to provide much better oversight over the operations of the state governments due to their limited amount. This is projected to have a positive effect on the ongoing fight against corruption in South Asia, a task mainly underdoing on a federal level.

These states have already begun using their increased leverage and undergoing their own economic priorities based on their pre-existing geography and current ruling parties.

This map shows the agreed upon reformed states:

Frontier (Orange)

This state is perhaps the most militaristic. Ruled by a coalition of local Gurkha veterans interest groups and East Indian minority interest groups concerned with spillovers of violence in Myanmar, the ruling government has begun taking steps to militarize the Frontier society. Recent initiatives have been civil readiness campaigns concerning the possibility of invasion, propaganda campaigns to emphasize aggression against the Hun, and military youth camps for survival and basic arms training in the Himalayan Mountains and the Myanmar jungle hills respectively. While these haven't had real effects yet in terms of military service numbers, it paves the way for future advances through popular opinion.

Bhutan (Green) and Bangladesh (Red)

These states have perhaps retained the most cultural and political autonomy from the broader USA. Bhutan has even kept Emperor Wangchuck as a hereditary governor-like figure, since under this autonomy, the USA doesn't quite care how the state governments are selected as long as they aren't deeply unpopular and imcompetant. Bangladesh, while yielding in terms of economic and corruption laws due to the deep economic ties developing between it and India, has kept the vast majority of its civil and cultural institutions, save the corrupt political parties. The federal government has clearly taken China's lessons in Myanmar to heart, and aimed to create an arrangement that would have satisfied the rebels completely in terms of self-sufficiency (though of course, simply not militarily occupying these states might have been enough in Myanmar).

Capitol (Light Blue)

A combination of the new capital in Patna, proximity to Bengali cultural exchange, and the existence of Calcutta (India's cultural capital) has lead Capitol (originally named the Capital region but quickly mis-spelled as Capitol) to become the most metropolitan and culturally active out of the various states, as well as the most technologically active. The state government has prioritized advocating for easier immigration into the USA, funding arts and sciences programs, developing its university systems, and wooing international tech companies.

Chola (Dark Blue)

Named after the Chola Empire, a maritime state that ruled over both Sri Lanka and Southern Indian territories, this state has tended to reap the same geographical benefits that the Chola Empire once did, being positioned optimally for trade with the outside world. It is said that most imports into the USA at least pass through Chola, a trend that is only continuing to get better. State policies in Chola center around developing both maritime infrastructure in terms of ports, and land infrastructure to connect itself to every other state eventually (railways for instance).

Chalukya (Purple)

Named after yet another historical entity, Chalukya recalls the name of the Chalukyan Dynasty, a state that was known for the extensive development of temples throughout the region and a new era of South Indian architecture. However, given the pressures of the modern age, the state administration has decided to invest heavily in modern 21st century temples: sweatshops. A combination of high population density and the pre-existing dominance of the state of Maharashtra in manufacturing output has nudged Chalukya into becoming the workshop of South Asia, hosting specialized factories that produce anything from Arjun Main Battle Tanks to Among Us plushies.

Centre (Yellow)

Despite being given a cool historical name, most people simply call this region Centre, given its geographical position. It seems like Perfidious Albion has struck again, as the Indians decided to use the British spelling instead of the spelling of the civilized world. This government continues the existing trend of the region as the general breadbasket of the region. One notable project is the heavily-funded initiative to secure the water supplies in the region and reduce dependence on polluted Himalayan waters, instead seeking to optimize local rain water and maybe draw water from the west. However, manufacturing and technology presences in metropolitan areas have been broken off and allowed to do their own thing even in Farmville.

The Skeld (Green)

Named the Skeld in a contentious internet referendum after a coalition of zoomers (for obvious reasons) and jingoistic boomers (who believed the Norse translation of a "shield" against Mughalistani threats) carried the name to victory, the Skeld blends the elite militarism of Frontier with its own, almost esoteric, form of fanaticism fueled by hysteria against what is perceived as an immanent Mughal-Sino invasion straight through this homeland (commonly referred to as the "Great Trial"). Of course, this sentiment is not universal, but currently drives policy in the region, especially after incidents such as where the Chinese government developed a modern day dreadnought with only one plausible explanation. It also doesn't help that this state contains Kashmir, and has been ranked "most likely to get invaded" by Vice India for two years straight. The government has made preliminary inquiries towards the possibility of maintaining its own S-300 systems (denied), and has encouraged all citizens to dig trenches in their backyards as a propaganda exercise.