FEDERALISM

1. What are the differences between a federal form of government and a unitary government?
Federal government Unitary government
Only one level of govt. If there are subunits, they
Two or more levels of government.
are subordinate to the central government.
The central govt. cannot pass an order to the state The central govt. can pass an order to the state
govt. to do something. govt.
State govt. has its own powers & separately
The central govt. has all the powers.
answerable to people.

2. Describe any five features of federalism.

i. There are two or more sets of government – national, state & Local.
ii. Each govt. has its own jurisdiction in matters of legislation, taxation, and administration.
iii. Fundamental provisions of the constitution cannot be changed by govt. at one level.
iv. The judiciary prevents conflicts between the center and states in the exercise of their powers.
v. Sources of revenue for each level govt. are constitutionally guaranteed.
3. Distinguish between the ‘Coming together’ and ‘Holding together’ type of federation.
OR
Explain two kinds of routes through which federations have been formed.

Coming together federation Holding together federation

Independent states voluntarily form a bigger unit A large country decides to divide its power among
to enhance their security. the central govt. & states
The states and the center have equal power. The central govt. is more powerful than the states
Eg: USA, Australia, Switzerland Eg: India, Spain, and Belgium.

4. Explain the three-fold distribution of legislative power between the Union and the State governments.
OR
How can you say that different tiers of government in India enjoy separate jurisdictions?

The Constitution of India provided a 3-fold distribution of legislative powers between the Union
and the State Govts.
Union list:
 It includes subjects of National importance such as defense, banking, communications, etc.
 The Central govt. alone can make laws on these subjects.
State list:
 It includes the subjects of state and local importance such as police, trade, agriculture, etc.
 The state govt. alone can make laws on these subjects.
Concurrent list:
 It includes subjects of common interest to both union and state govt. such as education, forest, trade
union, etc.
 Both levels of govt. can make laws on these subjects.
  If their laws conflict with each other, the law made by the central govt. will prevail.
5. Why is it very difficult to change the power-sharing arrangement between the union and the state
governments?
 The Parliament cannot on its own change the power-sharing arrangements.
 Any change to it has to be first passed by both Houses of Parliament with at least a 2/3 majority.
 Then it must be ratified by the legislatures of at least half of the states.
6. Describe in brief the language policy of India.
 The Constitution did not give national language status to any one language.
 Hindi was identified as the official language.
 Besides Hindi, there are 21 other languages recognised as Scheduled Languages by the Constitution.
 State govt. have their own official languages.
 Central govt. does not impose Hindi on states where people speak a different language.
7. What is decentralisation? Explain any five advantages of decentralization.
OR
Describe any five features of the third tier of the government.
 When power is taken away from Central and State governments and given to local government, it is
called decentralization.
Features / Advantages:
 A large number of problems are best settled at the local level.
 People have better knowledge of problems in their locality.
 They also have better ideas on where to spend money and how to manage things more efficiently.
 It helps people to directly participate in decision-making.
 It helps to inculcate a habit of democratic participation.

8. State three differences between the local government before and after the Constitutional amendment
1992.
Before:
 Elections to local bodies were not held regularly.
 Local govt. did not have any powers or resources of their own.
 Seats were not reserved for women.
After:
 It is mandatory to hold regular elections for local govt.
 The State Governments are required to share some powers and revenue with Local Government
bodies.
 1/3 of all positions are reserved for women.
9. Which five provisions of the constitutional amendment of 1992 strengthened the third tier of
democracy in India? Explain

 Now it is constitutionally mandated to hold regular elections for Local Government bodies.
 Seats are reserved in elected bodies for scheduled castes, scheduled tribes, and other backward
classes (OBCs).
 At least one-third of all positions and seats are reserved for women.
 An independent institution called the State Election Commission was created to conduct Panchayat
and Municipal elections.
  The State Governments are required to share some powers and revenue with Local Government
bodies.

10. Explain the structure of the new Panchayati Raj institutions, in urban areas.

 Municipalities are set up in towns.

 Big cities are constituted into Municipal Corporations.
 Both are controlled by elected bodies consisting of people’s representatives.
 Municipal chairperson is the political head of the Municipality.
 The head of the Municipal Corporation is an officer called the Mayor.

11. The creation of linguistic states was the first and the major test of democratic politics in our
country. Justify the statement.
 After 1947, the boundaries of several old states of India were proposed to be changed to
ensure that people who spoke the same language lived in the same state
 Some states like Nagaland were not created based on language but because of their
distinct culture, ethnicity, and geography.
 When the demand for the formation of linguistic states rose, some leaders feared that it
would again lead to disintegration.
 This idea was thus resisted for some time fearing any further tension or conflict within the
country.
 But when the actual creation of states was done based on language, it so proved that
the country was more united.
 Thus, framing the language policy was the test for the Indian Federation. It inspired the
confidence in different language-speaking people that no language will be imposed on
them. In a way, Language policy has strengthened the unity and integrity of India
12. The judiciary plays an important role in Indian federalism.’ Justify the statement.
OR
In what ways is the judiciary important for Indian federalism?
 The judiciary with the supreme court at the apex is the sole interpreter of the Indian Constitution.
 It plays a pivotal role in the implementation of constitutional provisions and procedures.
 The judiciary administers both the union and state laws that apply to the cases
coming up for adjudication.
 The disputes about the division of powers are settled by the Judiciary.
 Hence, the judiciary is
considered the guardian of Indian federalism.
13. Mention any four difficulties of the local government in India.
 Most states have not transferred significant powers to the local governments.
 There is a shortage of resources.
 Elections are not held regularly.
 The Gram Sabhas are not held regularly.
14. What are the advantages of local governments?
 Constitutional status for local government has helped to deepen democracy in our country.
 It has also increased women’s representation and voice in our democracy.
 This allows people to directly participate in decision-making.
 Local people have better ideas and knowledge about local problems.
15. Which is the highest tier of the Panchayati Raj? Explain its composition.
 The highest institution of the Panchayati Raj in rural areas is the Zila Parishad.
 The Zila Parishad coordinates the activities of all the Block Samitis in the whole district.
 Most members of the Zila Parishad are elected.
  Members of the Lok Sabha and the MLAs of that district along with some other officials of other
district-level bodies are also its members.
 The Zila Parishad’s Chairperson is the political head of the Zila Parishad.
16. How can the fundamental provisions of the Indian constitution be changed?
 The fundamental provisions of the Indian constitution can be changed in a bilateral way wherein
the consent of both levels of government is required.
17. ‘The federal system has dual objective’. Mention the dual objectives.
 To safeguard and promote the unity of the country, while at the same time accommodate regional
diversity.
18. ‘There are two kinds of routes through which federations have been formed.’ Name the two routes by
giving one example of each.
(i) Coming together federations – USA
(ii) Holding together federations – India.
19. Which law will remain prevalent if there is any conflict over a subject mentioned in the Concurrent
list?
 The law passed by the Union Government will prevail.
20. Which two languages have been identified as the official languages?
 English and Hindi.

21. Which subjects are not included in the state list?

(a) Law and order
(b) National Defense
(c) Education
(d) Agriculture

22. The System of Panchayati Raj involves

(a) The village, block, and district levels

(b) The village, and state levels
(c) The village district and state levels
(d) The village, state, and Union levels

23. In case of a clash between the laws made by the center and a state on a subject in the concurrent list:
(a) the state law prevails.
(b) the central law prevails.
(c) both laws prevail within their respective jurisdictions.
(d) the Supreme Court has to intervene to decide.

24. Which of the following governments has two or more levels?

(a) Community Government
(b) Coalition Government
(c) Federal Government
(d) Unitary Government

25 Which of the following countries is an example of a “coming together federation”?

(a) U.S. A
(b) India
(c) Spain
(d) Belgium
26. Consider the following statements on the practice of federalism in India. Identify those that hold for
decentralization after 1992.
A. Local governments did not have any power or resources of their own.
B. It became constitutionally mandatory to hold regular elections for local government bodies.
C. The state governments are required to share some powers and revenue with local government bodies.
D. No seats are reserved in the elected bodies for scheduled castes, scheduled tribes, and other backward
classes.
(a) B and C
(b) A and C
(c) A and D
(d) B and D

27. In a ‘Holding together federation’:

A. A large country divides its power between constituent states and the national government.
B. The Central government tends to be more powerful vis-a-vis the States.
C. All the constituent states usually have equal powers.
D. Constituent states have unequal powers.
Which of the above statements is correct?
(a) A, B, C, and D
(b) A and D
(c) B and C
(d) A, B, and D

28. The highest institution of Panchayati Raj in rural areas is _____________.

Zila Parishad
29. The chairperson of the municipal corporation is known as the _____________
Mayor
30. Banking and Defence are the subjects of _____________
Union list
31. The system of government in which there is only one level of government is known as _____________
Unitary Government
32. In 1947 the boundaries of several old states were changed on the basis of _____________
Language
33. Define ‘jurisdiction’.
It is an area of functioning over which someone has the legal authority to perform.
34. What are the two main objectives of a federal system?
To safeguard and promote the unity of the country
To accommodate regional diversity
35. What does the third tier of federalism include?
It includes local body governments like Panchayats at village levels and Municipalities in towns and cities.
36. Why have subjects like defense, foreign affairs, banking, etc. been included in the Union List?
These subjects are of national importance and require a uniform policy for execution.
37. Define Concurrent List.
It includes subjects of common interest to both the union government as well as the state government,
such as education, forest, trade unions, etc. Both the union and as well as the state governments can
make
Laws on these subjects.
38. What are Residuary Powers?
Residuary powers mean that the Parliament has the right to make laws with respect to the matters that are
not mentioned in any of the lists Union List, State List, and Concurrent List.
39. What is the role of the judiciary in a federal government?
The judiciary plays an important role in overseeing the implementation of constitutional provisions and
procedures.
40. What is a coalition government?
A government by the coming together of two or more political parties is called a coalition government.
41. What was the basic idea behind decentralisation?
Problems and issues can be best settled at the local level as people know better about their problems and
can manage them at their initial levels.
42. For whom, are seats reserved in the local government bodies?
Seats are reserved for the Scheduled Castes, Scheduled Tribes, and Other Backward Classes. One-third of all
our positions are reserved for women.
43. Who are the political heads of the municipality and gram panchayat?
Municipal Chairperson and Sarpanch are the political heads of the municipality and gram panchayat
respectively
44. Name the lowest level of government in rural areas.
Gram Panchayat is the lowest level of Government in rural areas.
45. What constitutes the Zila Parishad?
All panchayat samities and mandals in a district together constitute the zila parishad

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