CLASS X

POLITICAL SCIENCE
CHAPTER 2- FEDERALISM

FEDERALISM
1. What is federalism? How is the power divided in a federal system of government? (3)
Federalism is a system of government in which the power is divided between a central authority and
various constituent units of the country. Usually, a federation has two levels of government.
(i) One is the government for the entire country that is usually responsible for a few subjects of
common national interest.
(ii) The others are governments at the level of provinces or states that look after much of the day-to-
day administering of their state.
(iii) Both these levels of governments enjoy their power independent of the other.

2. Distinguish between a federal system of government and a unitary system of government. (3)
S. Federal System of Government Unitary System of Government
No.
1 Federalism is a system of government in Under the unitary system, either there is only
which the power is divided between a one level of government or the sub-units are
central authority and various constituent subordinate to the central government.
units of the country.
2 But in a federal system, the central The central government
government cannot order the state can pass on orders to the provincial or
government to do something. the local government

3 Sri Lanka, France etc. India, Belgium, USA etc.

3. Mention the key features of federalism. (5)

(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 jurisdictionin
specific matters of legislation, taxation and administration.
(iii) The jurisdictions of the respective levels or tiers of government are specified in the constitution.
(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.
(vii) The federal system thus has dual objectives: to safeguard and promote unity of the country, while
at the same time accommodate regional diversity.

4. Distinguish between coming together federation and holding together federation. (3)
S. Coming Together Federation Holding Together Federation
No.
1 Independent States come together on their A large country decides to divide its power
own to form a bigger unit. between the constituent States and the national
government.
 2 All the constituent States usually have The central government tends to be more
equal power and are strong as the federal powerful. States may have unequal powers.
government.

3 USA, Switzerland and Australia. India, Spain and Belgium.

FEDERALISM IN INDIA
5. Describe the three fold distribution of legislative powers between the union government and the
state government in India.
OR
What is the power sharing arrangement in our country? (3)
The Constitution clearly provided a three-fold distribution of legislative powers between the Union
Government and the State Governments. Thus, it contains three lists:
(i) Union List includes subjects of national importance such as defence of the country, foreign
affairs, banking, communications and currency. The Union Government alone can make laws
relating to the subjects mentioned in the Union List.
(ii) 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.
(i) 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.

6. What makes India a federal country? (5)

(i) The Constitution originally provided for a two-tier system of government, the Union Government
and the State governments. Later, a third tier of federalism was added in the form of Panchayats and
Municipalities.
(ii) Different tiers of government govern the same citizens, but each tier has its own jurisdictionin
specific matters of legislation, taxation and administration.
(iii) The jurisdictions of the respective levels or tiers of government are specified in the constitution in
the form of Union List, State List and Concurrent List.
(iv) The Parliament cannot on its own change this arrangement. Any change to it has to be first passed by
both the Houses of Parliament with at least two-thirds majority. Then it has to be ratified by the
legislatures of at least half of the total States.
(v) The judiciary plays an important role in overseeing the implementation of constitutional provisions
and procedures. In case of any dispute about the division of powers, the High Courts and the
Supreme Court make a decision.
(vi) The Union and State governments have the power to raise resources by levying taxes in order to
carry on the government and the responsibilities assigned to each of them.

7. Why did the makers of our Constitution declare India to be a 'Union of State's? Why were some
sub-political units of India given a special status?
OR
“Holding together federations” do not give e equal power to its constituent units. Explain this
statement with help of examples in context to India.

India became a union of states because it consisted of both British ruled territories as well as many
princely states some sub-political units of India have a special status.
 a. All the states in the Union of India do not have identical powers.
b. French and Portuguese ruled territories were given a special status of union territory.
c. Jammu and Kashmir joined India on a special condition and enjoys special status and has its
own constitution.
d. Some units for too small to become independent States they were made union territories.
e. States in the north east have been given a special status as they have a large tribal population
with a distinct history and culture
FEDERALISM IN PRACTICE
8. How did the constitution of India resolve the language problem?
a. Our Constitution did not give the status of national language to any one language.
b. Hindi was identified as the official language. But Hindi is the mother tongue of only about 40 per
cent of Indians.
c. There were many safeguards to protect other languages. Besides Hindi, there are 21 other languages
recognised as Scheduled Languages by the Constitution.
d. States have their own official languages. Much of the government work takes place in the official
language of the concerned State.
e. The Central Government agreed to continue the use of English along with Hindi for official
purposes.

9. What challenges did centre-state relations in India face before the 1990’s? Why is power sharing
between centre and state more effective today?
OR
How have the centre-state relations been restructured to strengthen federalism?
Challenges before 1990
(i) Political scene was dominated by one party both at the Centre and in the States.
(ii) As and when the ruling party at the state level was different the parties that ruled at the Centre
tried to undermine the power of the States.
(iii) The Central Government would often misuse the constitution to dismiss the State Government
those were controlled by rival parties.
After 1990:
(i) Now the Centre and majority of State Governments belong to different political parties in
coalition.
(ii) A number of regional parties have become powerful and play a crucial role at the Centre and
States.
(iii) The era of “coalition” government at the Centre has inculcated respect for federal autonomy.
10. Why has federalism succeeded in India? Which were the policies adopted by India that ensured
this success? Explain.
Federalism has succeeded in India due to the nature of democratic policies in our country.
The policies adopted by India to ensure this success:
(i) Linguistic States: After independence, the boundaries of several old states were changed in order
to create new states. The creation of linguistic states was the first and a major test for democratic
politics in our country.
(ii) Language Policy: The second test for the Indian federation is the language policy. The Indian
constitution did not give the status of national language to any one of the language.
 (iii)Centre-State Relations: Restructuring the centre-state relations is one more way in which
federalism has been strengthened in practice.
(iv) Decentralisation of Power: Power in India has been decentralised to the local government. The
local government includes Panchayats in villages and municipalities in urban areas.

DECENTRALISATION IN INDIA
11. State any three differences between the local government before and after the constitutional
Amendment in 1992. (3)
Local Government before 1992
(i) It was directly under the control of the state Government.
(ii) Elections were not held regularly.
(iii) Elections were controlled by the State Governments.
Local Government after 1992
(i) Local Governments have got some powers of their own.
(ii) Elections are held regularly.
(iii) An independent state election commission is responsible to conduct the elections.
12. Which five provisions of the Constitutional Amendment of 1992 strengthen the third tier of
democracy in India? Explain.
Provisions of the Constitutional Amendment of 1992 are:
(a) Now it is mandatory to hold regular elections to local government bodies.
(b) Seats are reserved in the elected bodies and the executive heads of these institutions for SCs, STs
and OBCs.
(c) At least one-third of all positions are reserved for women.
(d) An independent institution called State Election Commission has been created in each state to
conduct panchayat and municipal elections.
(e) The state governments are required to share some powers and revenue with local government bodies.
13. Analyse the advantages and need of decentralization (local government).
(i) Large number of problems and issues can be best settled at local level. People have better
knowledge of problems in their localities.
(ii) They know better on where to spend money and how to manage things efficiently.
(iii) People at the local level will participate directly in decision making.
(iv) It helps to inculcate the habit of democratic participation.
(v) Local government is the best way to realize one important principle of democracy, namely local
self government.

14. Explain the structure of Rural local government in India. (3)

(i) ZilaParishad: All the mandals in a district together constitute the ZilaParishad. Most of the
members are elected and headed by a chairperson.
(ii) Panchayat Samiti or Mandal or Block: The members of this body are elected by the entire
panchayat members in that area. A few Gram Panchayats are grouped together to form this
government body.
(iii) Gram Panchayat: A council consisting of several ward members often called Panch. The
president is called sarpanch. It is the decision-making body for the entire village.
15. What is a Gram Sabha? Describe any four functions of a Gram Sabha. (3)
Gram Sabha: A body comprising of all adult members of a village or a group of villages.
Functions of Gram Sabha:
(i) It elects the members of the Gram Panchayat.
(ii) The Gram Sabha supervises the work of the village panchayat.
(iii) It approves the annual budget of the panchayat.
(iv) It reviews the performance of the Gram Panchayat.