1.

Compare the different ways in which the Belgians and

the Sri Lankans have dealt with the problem of cultural
diversity.
Both Belgium and Sri Lanka are democracies, yet
they have dealt with the problem of cultural
diversity very differently.
Belgium:
1. Leaders realized that respecting the feelings and
interests of different communities is important for the
country's unity. The constitution prescribes that the
number of Dutch—and French-speaking people in the
central government shall be equal.
2. Both Dutch and French communities share power on an
equal basis at the center. Along with the State
Government, both communities have a third kind of
government called ‘community government’ that
decides on cultural, education, and language-related
issues.
3. Between 1970 and 1993, the constitution was
amended four times to enable all linguistic groups to
live together within the same country.
Sri Lanka:
1. In Sri Lanka, there are two major communities, the
Sinhalese speaking (74%) and Tamil speaking (18%).
The majority community, the Sinhalese have forced
their dominance over Tamils, refusing to share power.
2. Both communities have lived in tension as the
Sinhalese have denied political, educational religious,
 employment, and economic rights to the Tamils leading
to the Civil War.
3. In 1956, the Government passed an Act to recognize
Sinhala as the only official language, thus disregarding
Tamil.
2. Women's empowerment has greatly improved their
status in society over the years. Give any three
examples to prove the statement

Education and Literacy: In many countries, including

India, there has been a significant increase in the
number of girls enrolling in schools. Government
initiatives like Beti Bachao Beti Padhao promote female
education, leading to higher literacy rates among
women. Educated women are more likely to pursue
careers, become financially independent, and
contribute to their families and communities.

Political Participation: Women's representation in

politics has improved over the years. For instance, in
India, the 73rd and 74th Constitutional Amendments
reserve seats for women in local governance
(Panchayati Raj institutions). This has empowered
women to take on leadership roles and influence
decision-making at the grassroots level, ensuring their
voices are heard in policy matters.

Legal Rights and Protections: There have been

significant advancements in legal rights for women.
Laws against domestic violence, sexual harassment,
and discrimination in the workplace have been enacted
 in many places. For example, the Protection of Women
from Domestic Violence Act (2005) in India provides
legal recourse for women facing abuse, empowering
them to seek justice and safety.

3. State how caste inequalities are continuing in India.

Caste inequalities are still present in India-
(i) Even now most people marry within their own caste.
(ii) Untouchability has not ended completely despite
constitutional prohibition.
(iii) There is a large presence of upper caste among the
urban middle classes in our country.
(iv) Caste continues to be linked to economic status as is
evident from the National Sample Survey.
The average economic status of caste groups still follows
the old hierarch upper castes are best off, the Dalits and
Adivasis are worst off, and the backward classes are in
between. Although every caste has some poor members
the proportion of those living in extreme poverty is higher
for the lowest castes and much lower for the upper
castes. Similarly, every caste has some rich members.
the upper castes are heavily overrepresented among the
rich while the lower castes are underrepresented. The SC.
ST and OBC, together account for about two-thirds of
India’s population.
4. How does religion influence the political setup in our
country? Explain.
A communal mind often leads to a quest for political
dominance of one’s own religious community. For those
belonging to the majority community, this takes the form
of majoritarian dominance.
Political mobilization on religious lines is another frequent
form of communalism. This involves the use of sacred
symbols, religious leaders, emotional appeal, and plain
fear in order to bring the followers of one religion
together in the political arena.
Sometimes communication takes its most ugly form of
communal violence, riots, and massacres. India and
Pakistan suffered some of the worst communal riots at
the time of the partition.

5. How did federalism lead to the reservation of seats for

different caste groups?

a) Federalism means sharing power among the central

and non-central authorities. it seeks to give equal
representation to all the constituent units.
b) Even in the constituent units or in states, there is
diversity in the population with respect to language,
religion, caste, and culture.
c) To give equal opportunity and voice to various social
groups, there is a reservation for some categories like
SCs, STs, OBCs, and women in some areas.
d) This reservation aims to give power to the socially
weaker sections of the society to give them an equal
chance and representation in the political system.
6. Political parties are a necessary condition for a
democracy.' Analyze the statement with relevant
points.
Political parties are the necessary conditions for a
democracy:
i Without political party’s democracies cannot exist.
ii If we do not have political parties—in such a situation
every candidate in elections will be independent.
iii No one will be able to make any promises to the
people about any major policy changes.
iv The government may be formed but its utility will
remain uncertain.
v Elected representatives will be accountable to their
constituencies for what they do in their localities.
vi But no one will be responsible for a law the country
will run.
vii The role of an opposition party in a democracy
necessitates the existence of political parties.
viii As societies become large and complex they also
need some agencies to gather different views on
various issues and to present these to the government
that is why political parties are needed. The problem of
bad politics can be solved by more and more better
politics.

7. How did the Salt March become an effective tool of

resistance against colonialism? Explain

Salt March became an effective tool of resistance

against colonialism because:i Mahatma Gandhi found in
salt a powerful symbolic Gandhiji sent a letter to
 Viceroy Irwin stating eleven demands. The most stirring
of all was the demand to abolish the salt tax.
iii Salt was the most essential item of foods and was
consumed by rich and poor alike.
iv Irwin was unwilling to negotiate so Gandhiji started
Salt march with 78 volunteers. On 6th April he reached
Dandi violated law and made salt.This March developed
the feeling of nationalism people in different parts of
the country broke the salt law and manufactured salt
and demonstrated in front of government salt factories.

8. Who hosted the 'Vienna Congress' in 1815? Analyse the

main changes brought by the 'Vienna Treaty.'

The Congress of Vienna was held in 1815. It was

chaired by Austrian statesman Klemens von Metternich.
It was held to draw up a new settlement for Europe
amongst the European powers which were driven by
the ideology of Conservatives whose main aim was to
establish monarchial regimes in Europe. The following
changes were made : i The Bourbon Dynasty was
restored to power.
ii France had to part with most of its territories which
were annexed by Napoleon.
iii A large number of States were set up on the
boundaries of France to prevent its further expansion.
iv The kingdom of Netherland was set up in North.
v Russia was given important territories on its Western
Frontiers.
vi Austria was given control of Northern Italy.
 viiGerman Confederation of 39 States remained
intact. viii Russia was given part of Saxony. ix Russia
was given part of Poland.

9. Explain any three beliefs of conservatism that emerged

after 1815.

CONSERVATIVES believed that established traditional

institutions of state and
society like the monarchy, the church, social
hierarchies, property and the family should be
preserved.
Most conservatives did not propose a return to the
society of pre-revolutionary days. They realised from
the changes initiated by Napoleon.
A modem army, efficient bureaucracy, a dynamic
economy, the evolution of feudalism and serfdom could
strengthen autocratic monarchies in Europe.
In 1815, the conservative regimes in Europe were
autocratic. They did not tolerate criticism, dissent and
tried to curb activities that questioned legitimacy of
autocratic governments.

10. Why did Mahatma Gandhi decide to withdraw the

Non-Cooperation Movement in February 1922? Explain.

MAHATMA Gandhi decided to withdraw the Non-

Cooperation Movement, as he felt that the movement
was turning violent in many places.
Satyagrahis needed to be properly trained before they
would be ready for mass struggle.
 Within the Congress, some leaders were by now tried of
mass struggle and wanted to participate in elections to
the provincial councils.
They felt that it was important to oppose British
policies within the councils.
Younger leaders pressed for more radical mass
agitation and for full independence.

11. How did the First World War create a new economic
situation in India? Explain.

i The First World War created a new economic and

political situation in India. It led to huge increase in
defence expenditure which was Financed by war loans
and increasing taxes custom duties were raised and
income tax was introduced.
ii Prices increased doubling between 1913-18. This hit
the common people.
iii Villagers were asked to supply soldiers and through
forced recruitment in rural areas.
iv During 1918-19 crops failed in many parts of India
which created shortage of food.
v Spread of influenza epidemic caused death of 12 to
13 million people in India.

12. What are the Non-Cooperation Movement's 3 root

causes.

The three causes that led to the Non-Cooperation

Movement were:
 1. The Rowlatt Act — After the First World War, the
British government passed the Rowlatt Act
authorizing the arrest and imprisonment of anyone
without trial. It also banned Indians from keeping any
type of weapon. Gandhiji appealed to the Viceroy but
his appeal was ignored. This shocked the Indians who
were expecting self-governance.
2. Jallianwala Bagh Tragedy — On April 13, 1919,
General Dyer ordered his troops to open fire without
warning on the unarmed crowd gathered at
Jallianwala Bagh protesting peacefully against the
arrest of their leaders. About one thousand innocent
people were killed and several thousand wounded in
the firing.
3. The Khilafat Movement — The Sultan of Turkey was
deprived of all authority after Turkey's defeat in the
First World War. He was the Caliph and the religious
head of a large section of Muslims. To restore his
position, the Khilafat Movement began under the
leadership of the Ali Brothers — Mohammad Ali and
Shaukat Ali, Maulana Azad, Hakim Ajmal Khan and
Hasrat Mohani.

13. How was the history of nationalism of Britain, unlike

the rest of Europe?

 Britain, before the 18th century, was not a nation-

state. The primary identity was still in conflict as the
British were still divided as a nation of the English,
Scots, Welsh, and Irish.
  However, with the growth of the power of the
English, they consequently came to dominate the
other nations and islands.
 This situation came to a head when in 1688, England
established itself as a nation-state and the English
parliament seized power from the monarchy.
 In 1707, the United Kingdom was formed with the Act
of Union between England and Scotland.
 England started dominating Scotland and Ireland in
all socio-political and cultural spheres. This was
evinced by the fact that the British parliament was
dominated by English members.
 Ireland was taken by the British after a failed
revolution led by Wolfe Tone and his United Irishmen
in 1798. With this, a new ‘British Nation’ was finally
formed.

14. Describe the process of Unification of Italy.

In the 1830s, Mazzini made efforts to unite Italy by
forming a secret society called Young Italy which failed.
The mantle now fell on Sardinia-Piedmont under king
Victor Emmanuel II to unify the Italian states through
war. Chief Minister Cavour, through a tactful diplomatic
alliance with France, succeeded in defeating the
Austrian forces in 1859.
Also, many armed volunteers under Giuseppe Garibaldi
joined them. In 1860, with the support of the local
peasants, they drove out the Spanish from Southern
Italy. In 1861 Victor Emmanuel II was proclaimed king
of united Italy.