CBSE Class 10 Democratic Politics Federalism Worksheet Set B

Democratic Politics

CBSE Class 10 Democratic Politics Chapter 2 Federalism Very Short Type Questions

Question. What is the system of Panchayati Raj.
Answer. The Village, Block and District level.

Question. List the two countries which does not federalism?
Answer. China and Sri Lanka.

Question. How many languages are mentioned in the eighth schedule of the Indian constitution?
Answer.22 Languages.

Question. How many scheduled languages are recognized by the constitution?
Answer. Besides Hindi, there are 21 scheduled languages.

Question. What is the government at Block level called?
Answer. Panchayat Samiti

Question. Which local govt works at district level?
Answer. Zila Parishad

Question. By what name local govt. at urban area called?
Answer. Municipality and Municipal corporation

Question. Who is the chairperson of Municipal Corporation?
Answer. Mayor

Question. Which third tier was added later on the system of Indian Government?
Answer. Panchayats and Municipalities.

Question. Which subjects are included in the union list?
Answer. Defence, foreign affairs, banking, communication and currency.

Question. Why are these subjects included in the union list?
Answer. We need a uniform policy on these matters throughout the country.

Question. Which subjects are included in the state list?
Answer. Police, trade, commerce, agriculture and irrigation, subjects to local importance.

Question. Give the subjects of Concurrent List.
Answer. This includes subjects of common interest to both the union government as well as the state government, such as education, forests, trade unions.

Question. What are residuary Subjects?
Answer. Subjects which do not fall into any of the three lists like computer software and its related issues.

Question. What are ‘Union Territories’?
Answer. These areas are too small to become an independent state but they could not be merged with any of the existing states. These areas are called Union Territories.

Question. What is the basic idea behind decentralisation?
Answer. There are a large number of problems and issues which are best settled at the local level.

CBSE Class 10 Democratic Politics Chapter 2 Federalism Short Answers Questions

Question. What is the real reason for the successes of federalism in India?
Answer.
1) The constitutional provisions are laid out very clearly
2) The nature of democratic politics has ensure its success
3) There is respect for diversity

Question. How was Belgian government shifted from a unitary to federal form of government?
Answer. (i) One of the key changes made in the constitution of Belgium was to reduce the powers of Central government and to give these powers to the regional governments.
(ii) The regional governments were given constitutional powers that were no longer dependent on the Central Government.
(iii) Thus, Belgium shifted from a unitary to federal form of government.

Question. Which two aspects are crucial for the practice of Federalism?
Answer. (i) Government at different levels should agree to some rules of power sharing.
(ii) They should also trust that each would abide by its part of the agreement.

Question. How is Gram Panchayat formed?
Answer. Each village in some states, has a Gram Panchayat. This is a council consisting of several ward members, often called Panch, and a president or Sarpanch. They are directly elected by all the adult population living in that ward or village.

Question. How are members of Zila Parishad elected?
Answer. Members of the Zila Parishad are elected on the basis of adult franchise from the district for a term of five years. It is headed by a president and a Vice-President. Zila parishad has minimum of 50 and maximum of 75 members. There are seats reserved for SC/STs backward classes and women. These councillors chosen by direct election from electoral division in the district.

Question. what are the objectives of the federal system?
Answer. Federal system has dual objectives to safeguard and promote unity of the country and accommodate regional diversity. It is based on mutual trust and agreement to live together.

Question. What happened to the centre state relations when different parties ruled at the centre and state
levels till 1990?
Answer. When different parties ruled at the centre and state levels the parties at the centre tried to undermine the power of states. The central government misused the constitution often to dismiss the state governments that were controlled by other parties. This is against the spirit of federalism.

Question. When was the major step towards decentralisation taken in our country?
Answer. 1992, The Constitution was amended to make the third tier of democracy.

Question. What is Panchayati Raj?
Answer. Rural local government is popularly known as Panchayati Raj.

CBSE Class 10 Democratic Politics Chapter 2 Federalism Long Answers Questions

Question. What are the objectives of federalism? What are the two aspects that are crucial in the practice of federalism?
Answer.
i. To safeguard and promote unity of the country, while at the same time accommodate regional diversity, are the objectives of federalism.
ii. The two aspects that are crucial in the practice of federalism are:
(A) Governments at different levels should agree to some rules of power sharing.
(B) They should also trust that each would abide by its part of the agreement. An ideal federal system has both aspects : mutual trust and agreement to live together.

Question. What are the two kinds of routes through which federations have been formed?
Or What are the two types of federations?
Answer.
i. Coming together’ federations: The first route involves independent States coming together on their own to form a bigger unit, so that by pooling sovereignty and retaining identity they can increase their security. This type of ‘coming together’ federations include the USA, Switzerland and Australia. In this first category of federations, all the constituent States usually have equal power and are strong in comparison with the federal government.
ii. Holding together’ federations: The second route is where a large country decides to divide its power between the constituent states and the national government. India, Spain and Belgium are examples of this kind of ‘holding together’ federations. In this second category, the central government tends to be more powerful in comparison with the States. Very often different constituent units of the federation have unequal powers. Some units are granted special powers.

Question. Distinguish between federal and unitary governments.
Answer.
i. Under the unitary system, either there is only one level of government or the sub-units are subordinate to the central government. The central government can pass on orders to the provincial or the local government.
ii. But in a federal system, the central government cannot order the state government to do something. State government has powers of its own for which it is not answerable to the central government. Both these governments are separately answerable to the people.

Question. What are the key features of federalism?
Answer.
i. There are two or more levels (or tiers) of government.
ii. Different tiers of government govern the same citizens, but each tier has its own jurisdiction in specific matters of legislation, taxation and administration.
iii. The jurisdictions of the respective levels or tiers of government are specified in the constitution.So the existence and authority of each tier of government is constitutionally guaranteed.
iv. The fundamental provisions of the constitution cannot be unilaterally changed by one level of government. Such changes require the consent of both the levels of government.
v. Courts have the power to interpret the constitution and the powers of different levels of government. The highest court acts as an umpire if disputes arise between different levels of government in the exercise of their respective powers.
vi. Sources of revenue for each level of government are clearly specified to ensure its financial autonomy.

Question. Describe the three fold distribution of legislative powers between the Union Government and State
Government.
Or How is the power sharing arrangement done in India?
Answer.
i. The Constitution originally provided for a two-tier system of government, the Union Government (or what we call the Central Government) and the State governments.
ii. Later, a third tier of federalism was added in the form of Panchayats and Municipalities. As in any federation, these different tiers enjoy separate jurisdiction. The Constitution clearly provided a threefold distribution of legislative powers between the Union Government and the State Governments. Thus, it contains three lists.
iii. Union List includes subjects of national importance such as defence of the country, foreign affairs, banking, communications and currency. They are included in this list because we need a uniform policy on these matters throughout the country. The Union Government alone can make laws relating to the subjects mentioned in the Union List.
iv. State List contains subjects of State and local importance such as police, trade, commerce, agriculture and irrigation. The State Governments alone can make laws relating to the subjects mentioned in the State List.
v. Concurrent List includes subjects of common interest to both the Union Government as well as the State Governments, such as education, forest, trade unions, marriage, adoption and succession. Both the Union as well as the State Governments can make laws on the subjects mentioned in this list. If their laws conflict with each other, the law made by the Union Government will prevail.

Question. How is federalism practiced in India?
Or Explain any three practices that have strengthen federalism in India.
Answer.
i. By organizing Linguistic States: The creation of Linguistic States was the first and a major test for democratic politics in our country. This was done to ensure that people who spoke the same language lived in the same State. Some States were created not on the basis of language but to recognize differences based on culture, ethnicity or geography. It has actually made the country, more united. It has also made administration easier.
ii. By developing a language policy: A second test for Indian federation is the language policy. Our Constitution did not give the status of national language to any one language. Hindi was identified as the official language. But Hindi is the mother tongue of only about 40 per cent of IndiAnswer. Therefore, there were many safeguards to protect other languages. Besides Hindi, there are 21 other languages recognized as Scheduled Languages by the Constitution. States too have their own official languages.
iii. By re-structuring the Centre-State relations: Restructuring the Centre-State relations is one more way in which federalism has been strengthened in practice. The constitutional arrangements for sharing power work in reality depends to a large extent on how the ruling parties and leaders follow these arrangements. Rise of a number of regional parties and establishment of coalition governments led to a new culture of power sharing and respect for the autonomy of the state governments.

Question. How is Panchayati Raj constituted?
Answer.
i. It is a three tier system of administration. At the lower level, it is the Village Panchayat. Each village, or a group of villages in some States, has a Gram Panchayat. This is a council consisting of several ward members, often called panch, and a president or sarpanch. They are directly elected by all the adult population living in that ward or village.
ii. Block Samiti or Panchayat Samiti: A few gram panchayats are grouped together to form what is usually called a Panchayat Samiti or block or mandal. The members of this representative body are elected by all the panchyat members in that area.
iii. Zilla Parishad: All the Panchayat Samitis or Mandals in a district together constitute the Zilla (district) Parishad. Most members of the Zilla Parishad are elected. Members of the Lok Sabha and MLAs of that district and some other officials of other district level bodies are also its members. Zilla parishad chairperson is the political head of the Zilla Parishad.
iv. Similarly, local government bodies exist for urban areas as well. Municipalities are set up in towns. Big cities are constituted into municipal corporations. Both municipalities and municipal corporations are controlled by elected bodies consisting of people’s representatives. Municipal chairperson is the political head of the municipality. In a Municipal Corporation such an officer is called the mayor.

Question. Describe any four measures taken to decentralize power in India.
Answer.
i. The Constitution originally provided for a two-tier system of government, the Union Government
(or the Central Government) and the State governments. Later, a third tier of federalism was added in the form of Panchayats and Municipalities. As in any federation, these different tiers enjoy separate jurisdiction.
ii. Seats are reserved in the elected bodies and the executive heads of these institutions for the Scheduled Castes, Scheduled Tribes and Other Backward Classes.
iii. At least one-third of all positions in the local government bodies are reserved for women.
iv. An independent institution called the State Election Commission has been created in each State to conduct panchayat and municipal elections.
v. The State governments are required to share some powers and revenue with local government bodies. The nature of sharing varies from State to State.

→ Questions and Answers 

Question. What do you understand by Federalism?
Answer.
1. Federalism is a system of government in which the power is divided between a central authority and various constituent units of the country such as states and local governments.
2. Usually, a federation has two levels of government. One is the government for the entire country that is usually responsible for a few subjects of common national interest.
3. The others are governments at the level of provinces or states that look after much of the day-to-day administration of their state.
4. Both these levels of governments enjoy their power independent of the other.
5. Several countries have a third level of government commonly known as Local Governments. Eg. Municipalities and Panchayats in India.

Question. What fundamental change was brought about in the Belgian system of governance in 1993? Contrast it with that of Sri Lanka.
Answer.
1. Before 1993, in Belgium, the powers of the regional governments could be withdrawn by the central government.
2. The change that took place in 1993 was that the regional governments were given constitutional powers that were no longer dependent on the central government. Thus after this change, Belgium shifted from a unitary government to a federal government.
3. On the other hand, Sri Lanka continues to be for all purposes a unitary system of government where the National government has all the powers.

Question. How do you differentiate federalism from a Unitary form of government?
Answer.
1. Federalism is a system of government in which power is divided between the central authority and various constituent units of the country. Federation may have government for the entire nation and government at the levels of provinces or states.
2. Both these levels of the government enjoy their power independent of the others. Powers of each level is specified in the Constitution.
3. A unitary government has one level of government or the sub- units are subordinate to the central government.
4. The central government can pass orders to the provincial or the local government.

Question. Give the dual objectives of the federal system. Explain.
Answer. 
1. To safe guard and promote unity of the country.
2. To accommodate regional diversity.

Question. What are the two types of federations
OR
Differentiate between „coming together‟ and „holding together‟ federalism.
Answer. 
1. Coming Together Federations: Independent States coming together on their own to form a bigger unit, so that by pooling sovereignty and retaining identity they can increase their security. This type of ‘coming together‟ federations includes the US, Switzerland and Australia. In this first category of federations, all the constituent States usually have equal power and are strong vis-à-vis the federal government.
2. Holding Together Federations: A large country decides to divide its power between the constituent States and the national government. India, Spain and Belgium are examples of this kind of „holding together‟ federations. In this category, the central government tends to be more powerful vis-à-vis the States. Very often different constituent units of the federation have unequal powers. Some units are granted special powers.

Question. Evaluate the main features of India which make it a federal country. 
OR
The Constitution of India declared India as a Union of states…..the Indian Union is based on the principles of federalism‟. Justify the statement.
Answer. The following features make India a federal state.
1. India has a three tier system of government: The Central, the state and the Local Self Government.
2. There is a clear division of legislative powers in the constitution among these levels of Government such as the Union list, the State list and the Concurrent list.
3. The Union Parliament cannot make changes in the basic structure of the constitution. Any amendment needs two third majority in the Parliament and also must be ratified by at least half of the states.
4. Judiciary plays an important role in overseeing the implementation of constitutional provisions and procedures. In case of any dispute about the division of power between the central government and the state governments, the High Courts and the Supreme Court make a decision.
5. Both the levels of government have the power to raise resources by levying taxes In order to carry on various responsibilities.

Question. What do you understand by „residuary‟ power?
Answer.
1. Subjects that do not fall in Union list, state list and the concurrent list are residuary subjects.
2. According to our constitution, the Union Government has the power to legislate on these residuary subjects.
3. They have come up in the recent years like Computer software/ IT. Eg. IT Act 2000.

Question. Point out the special powers enjoyed by the state of Jammu & Kashmir.
OR
All States in the Indian Union do not have identical powers. Some States enjoy a special status‟. Explain the statement with example.
Answer.
1. Jammu and Kashmir has its own Constitution.
2. Many provisions of the Indian Constitution are not applicable to this State without the approval of the State Assembly.
3. Indians who are not permanent residents of this State cannot buy land or house here.

Question. Which are the units of Indian Union that enjoy very little power? Why? 
Or
Point out the limitations of Indian Federalism .
Answer.
1. The Union Territories do not have the powers of the state. The Central government has special power in running these territories.
2. These are areas which are too small to become an independent state but which could not be merged with any of the existing states.
3. These are areas like Chandigarh, Lakshadweep or Capital City of Delhi, etc.

Question. Why is it very difficult to make changes to the power sharing arrangement between the Union Government and State Governments?
Answer.
1. It is not easy to make changes to power sharing arrangement IN Indian Constitution. The Union Parliament cannot on its own change this arrangement.
2. Any change to it has to be first passed by both the Houses of Parliament with at least two-third majority.
3. Then it has to be ratified by the legislatures of at least half of the total States.

Question. What are the major tests faced by Indian democratic politics?
OR
The real success of federalism in India can be attributed to the nature of democratic politics in our country‟. Explain.
Answer. Explain each point.

1. Linguistic States: The creation of the linguistic states was the first and a major test for the democratic politics in our country. The central Government resisted this idea for some time but the experience has actually made the country more united.

2. Language Policy: A second test for the Indian federation is the language policy. Our constitution did not give status of national language to any one language. 22 languages motioned in the constitution have the national language status. Hindi is used as the official language of central government.

3. Centre -State Relations: restructuring the Centre-State relations is one more way in which federalism has been strengthened in India. After 1990, the single party rule in central government came to an end and state parties became significant. This led to a new culture of power sharing and respect for autonomy of state governments.

Question. The creation of the linguistic states was the first and major test for democratic politics in our country‟. Explain the statement.
OR
Why did some national leaders fear when the demand for the formation of states on language was raised?
Answer. Formation of Linguistic states.
1. After 1947, the boundaries of several old States of India were changed in order to create new States. This was done to ensure that people who spoke the same language lived in the same State.
2. Some States were created not on the basis of language but to recognize differences based on culture, ethnicity or geography. These include States like Nagaland, Uttarakhand and Jharkhand.
3. When the demand for the states on the basis of language was raised, some national leaders feared that it would lead to the disintegration of the country
4. The central government resisted the idea of linguistic states for some time.
5. But the creation of linguistic states has actually made the country more united and it also made the administration easier.

Question. Describe the language policy adopted in Indian Constitution. 
OR
What is the language policy followed by the government of India?
OR
A second test for Indian federation is the language policy‟. Explain the statement.
Answer.
1. Our Constitution did not give the status of „national language‟ to any one language. Hindi was identified as the official language.
2. Promotion of Hindi continuous to be the official policy of the Government of India. Therefore, there were many safeguards to protect other languages.
3. Besides Hindi, there are 21 other languages recognized as Scheduled Languages by the Constitution.
4. A candidate in an examination conducted for the Central government may opt any of these 22 languages to write the examination.
5. States too have their own official languages. Much of the government work takes place in the official language of the concerned State.

Question. Point out the precautions adopted by the leaders of our country in spreading the use of Hindi.
OR
Unlike Sri Lanka, the leaders of our country adopted a very cautious attitude in spreading the use of Hindi. Comment.
OR
Why is the government not compelling states to adopt Hindi as their official language?
Answer. 
1. Hindi and English were recognized by the Constitution as the official languages of the Central Government.
2. According to the Constitution, the use of English for official purposes was to stop in 1965. However, many non- Hindi speaking states demanded that the use of English to continue.
3. So the Central Government responded by agreeing to continue the use of English along with Hindi for official purposes.
4. The promotion of Hindi continues to be the official policy of the Government of India. Promotion does not mean that the Central Government can impose Hindi on States where people speak a different language.
5. The flexibility shown by Indian political leaders helped our country avoid the kind of situation that Sri Lanka finds itself in.

Question. How has restructuring of the center state relations strengthened federalism in India?
OR
Federal power sharing is more effective today than it was in the early years after the Constitution came into force‟. Explain the statement with reference to Centre-State relations.
OR
How has the emergence of regional parties and coalition government changed the centre-state relations?
OR
Describe the centre-state relations in Indian Federalism. 
Answer.
1. For a long time, the same party ruled both at the Centre and in most of the States. In those days, the Central Government would often misuse the Constitution to dismiss the State governments that were controlled by rival parties. This undermined the spirit of federalism.
2. All this changed significantly after 1990. This period saw the rise of regional political parties in many States of the country. This was also the beginning of the era ofCOALITION GOVERNMENTS at the Centre.
3. Since no single party got a clear majority in the LokSabha, the major national parties had to enter into an alliance with many parties including several regional parties to form a government at the Centre .
4. It led to a new culture of power sharing and respect for the autonomy of State Governments.
5. This trend was supported by a major judgment of the Supreme Court that made it difficult for the Central Government to dismiss state governments in an arbitrary manner. (S. R. Bommai v. Union of India ([1994]) was a landmark judgment of the Supreme Court of India, where the Court discussed at length provisions of Article 356 of the Constitution of India and related issues.

Question. What do you mean by decentralization of power? Examine the basic ideas existing behind the decentralization of power in India.
Answer. 
1. When power is taken away from Central and State governments and given to State/ local government, it is called decentralisation.
2. The basic idea behind decentralisation is that there are a large number of problems and issues which are best settled at the local level.
3. Besides, at the local level it is possible for the people to directly participate in decision making. This helps to inculcate a habit of democratic participation which is the best way to realize the principle of democracy.
4. More over a vast country like India cannot be run only through these two-tiers.Many States in India are as large as independent countries of Europe.
5. Many of these states are internally diverse. There is thus, Federal power sharing in India needs another tier of government, below that of the State governments -that is Local Governments.

Question. How is a Gram Panchayat (Rural Local Government) constituted?
Answer.
1. Each village, or a group of villages in some States, has a „Gram Panchayat.
This is a council consisting of several ward members, often called Panch, and a President or Sarpanch.
2. It is the decision making body for the entire village. They are elected by all the adult population living in that ward of the village.
3. The Panchayat works under the overall supervision of the „Gram Sabha‟. All the voters in the village are its members. It has to meet at least twice or thrice in a year to approve the annual budget of the gram Panchayat and to review the performance of the gram Panchayat.

Question. Describe the structure and functioning of the Rural local government at the district level.
OR
Analyze the Panchayathi Raj system existing in rural areas.
Answer. (Gram Panchayats - Block Panchayats- District Panchayats)
1. At the bottom level the district is divided into several Gram Panchayats.
2. At second level, a few gram panchayats are grouped together to form what is usually called a Block Panchayat or Mandal .
3. At the third level, all the panchayatsamitis or mandals in a district together constitute the Zilla (District Panchayat )Parishad.
4. Most members of the ZillaParishad are elected by the voters of the district.ZillaParishad chairperson is the political head of the ZillaParishad.
5. Members of the LokSabha and MLAs of that district are also its members.

Question. Describe the functioning of local government bodies existing in the urban areas.
Answer. 
1. There are two types local governments exist in India in urban areas. They are Municipalities and Municipal Corporations. Municipalities are set up in towns and big cities are constituted into municipal corporations.
2. Both municipalities and municipal corporations are controlled by elected bodies consisting of people‟s representatives.
3. Municipal chairperson is the political head of the municipality. In a municipal corporation such an officer is called the mayor.

Question. Analyse the positive and negative effects of the introduction of the local government system in India. 
OR
‘We are thus still a long way from 7realizing the ideal of self-government‟. Explain the statement.
OR
Critically evaluate the functioning of the local self -government in India.
Answer.
1. The new system of local government is the largest experiment in democracy conducted anywhere in the world. There are now about 36 lakh elected representatives in the Panchayats and Municipalities all over the country.
2. Constitutional status for local government has helped to deepen democracy in our country.
3. It has also increased women‟s representation and voice in our democracy.
4. Gram Sabhas are not held regularly.
5. Most state governments have not transferred significant powers to the local governments nor have they given adequate resources.

Question. State any three differences between the local governments existed in India before and after the Constitutional amendment in 1992.
Answer.
Before 1992 :
1. Panchayats in villages and Municipalities in urban areas were set up even before 1992 but were directly under the control of the state governments.
2. Elections to these local governments were not held regularly.
3. Local governments did not have any powers or resources of their own.
After Constitutional amendment in 1992
1. Local bodies enjoy powers given by the Constitution that is independent from that of state governments.
2. It is constitutionally mandatory to hold elections to local bodies in every five years. An independent state election commission has been set up for this.
3. The state governments are required to share powers and revenue with local bodies.