In this Page we have given West Bengal Class 8 English Medium History Solution Chapter 9 Constitution of India: Democratic Structure and Citizen’s Rights Question and Answer for our Students of West bengal Class 8 English Medium. Hope this following Question Answer will help our Students.
l) Find the odd one out:
a) secular, sovereign, capitalistic, democratic
Ans: capitalistic
b) President, Vice-President, Prime Minister, Governor
Ans: Governor
c) Municipality,Lok Sabha, Rajya Sabha, Bidhan Sabha
Ans: Municipality
d) Dr. Rajendra Prasad, Dr. Sarvapalli Radhakrishnan, Jawaharlal Nehru,B.R. Ambedkar.
Ans:
e) Chipko movement, Appiko movement, Tebhaga movement, Save Narmadamovement.
Ans: Tebhaga movement
2) Identify which of the following statements are right or wrong :
a) The constitution is a collection of laws of the judiciary. Ans: right
b) The chief architect of the Indian Constitution is B.R. Ambedkar. Ans: right
c) The President is the actual administrator of India. Ans: right
d) The Chief Minister presides over the Rajya Sabha.
Ans: wrong
e) West Bengal has a three tier Panchayat system. Ans: right
f) Write a short note on the agricultural products in Singur. Ans: right
3) Answer briefly (30-40 words):
a) Why was a need felt for drawing up the constitution of India at the time ofachieving freedom?
Ans: India emerged as an independent state. Hence,on the onehand therewas theoverwhelming joy of freedom, but on the other hand thepain ofpartition was agonizing. As a new born state, India had to face many challenges.During such troubledtimes theconstitution of India was framed to properly govern the country.
b) Explain the significance of the word “democratic” in the constitution of India
Ans: The word ‘democratic’ denotes, in a wider sense,the establishment of social, economic,political equality. However,theIndianconstitution envisagesuniversal adult franchise. It confers the power of vote to every adult citizen to send elected representativesto theUnion and State legislaturesaswell asvarious local self-governing institutions.
c) Why is India called a secular state?
Ans: The term ‘secular’is intended to emphasize that Indiahasno statereligion.The statewillneither encouragenor oppose any particular religion.Every citizen is freeto practice any religion or belief.
d) What initiatives were taken up by Mahatma Gandhi to establish the rights ofthe Dalits?
Ans: In 1920, Gandhi took a resolution on Non-Cooperation, he emphasized the eradication of untouchability as an essential condition for achieving rights of the Dalits. Howevercontinuing Gandhi’s programme of removal of untouchability. In fact, after the Non-Cooperation Movement, nobody evinced any interest in Gandhi mainly developed the movement on the basis of the rights of Haijans to enter the Hindu temples. Though this movement largely secured the religious right of the Harijans, they remained deprived of their economic and political rights.
e) What fundamental rights have been mentioned in the constitution of India?
Ans: Right to equality, Right to freedom, Right against exploitation, Right to freedom of religion, Cultural and Educational rights, Right to Constitutional remedies.
4) Write in your own words (120 -160 words) :
a) Explain the Preamble to the constitution of India. How do you think the word “Republic” mentioned in the Preamble has been actually realised?
Ans: Preamble of the Indian constitution The Indian constitution has a Preamble. The ideal and objectives of the constitution are declared in the Preamble. It is called the ‘soul’ ‘conscience’ of the constitution. Initially, the Preamble described the state as a “sovereign, democratic republic”. In 1976 the forty-second amendment changed this to read as “sovereign socialist secular- democratic republic”. Each of these words has great significance. The word ‘sovereignty’ implies that India is the supreme and absolute authority in determining her internal and external policies. India is not legally bound to abide by any order, request or directive of any foreignstate or agency.
The word ‘republic’ signifies that in the governance of India there is no place for a hereditary monarch. The President of India is the head of the state. He too is indirectly elected by the people of India. According to the constitution, the people of India are the source and custodian of the constitution of India. Hence the word ‘republic’ has been included in the constitution.
b) Discuss the activities of the Prime Minister of India and the Chief Minister of a state, What are their respective roles in the governance of the country andthe state?
Ans: The Prime Minister holds the most important post in the parliamentary democratic system of India. He is the head of the central government. Although the President is the constitutional head of the state, theexecutive head is the Prime Minister.After the Lok Sabha election the leader of the majority party is appointed as the Prime Minister of India. If any party is unable to win absolute majority of seats, then the President, after due consideration, can appoint any person from the Lok Sabha as Prime Minister. In that case, the appointed person has to win the confidence of the majority of members within a specified period.The Prime Minister can himself keep the charge of several portfolios.
The Governor of a State appoints the Chief Minister of that state. The head of the State government is the Chief Minister. The constitution of India provides a Council of Ministers to aid and advise the Governor. The Chief Minister is the head of the Council of Ministers.After the election of the Legislative Assembly, the Governor appoints the leader of the party in majority as the Chief Minister. He also appoints the Council of Ministers on the advice of the Chief Minister. The Chief Minister and the Council of Ministers are collectively responsible to the Legislative Assembly for their functioning. The first Chief Minister of West Bengal was Sri Prafulla Ghosh.
c) How is the idea of democracy emphasized through local self-government in West Bengal? Discuss with reference to your local experience.
Ans: One of the main features of India’s democratic system of government is governance at the local or regional level. This ensures direct participation of the common people in the local administration. They can themselves govern the rural or urban administrative bodies. The direct involvement of local people in the local self-government institutions helps to develop administrative experience and civic conscience. As a result, the democratic system of governance becomes effective.
I am from a village near ‘Mushirdabad’ and in my opinion, the local self-government of West Bengal functions in rural and municipal areas. The rural self-government in our village is known as Panchayat system. The Panchayat system in our village has three tiers. The lowest of the tiers is the Gram Panchayat. Just above it is the Panchayat Samiti and the top tier is the Zilla Parishad. Whenever there is any theft or kidnapping, the panchayat system works on it, and as soon as the suspect or suspects are caught, local methods are used by the Panchayat Samiti to solve the matter, and punish the criminal. These rules and regulations are collectively made by the memebers of the village, and this is how democracy is maintained in our village.
d) How does the Indian constitution secure the right of women? How important do you think economic independence is for the social empowerment of women?
Ans: The Indian constitution lays stress on the equality of men and women.Yet, society does not look at man and woman equally. In ourdaily life,women often fall prey to exploitation. Since birth, the girl child becomes a victim of apathy and neglect. At the time of her marriage she becomes a victim of the dowry system. Besides, the heinous practice of girl-trafficking keeps happening.Various schemes have been taken up to check such inhuman incident. A number of laws have been legislated to secure the rights of women. These laws are included in the constitution. Again, the spread of women’s education has been given importance. Women are given equal opportunities and facilities like men in the field of education. Through these endeavours, the social empowerment of women has been initiated. In 2005 the constitution validated equal rights of women to land and property as enjoyed by men.
Economic independence is very important for the woman, because society has a norm of seeing woman as an object who is not capable for having their own life and has to serve their husband till the end of their lives and going through everything till the end of her life. Economic independence helps every woman to be respected and gaining economic resources. Women can then find jobs of their qualification and gets access to their independent life.
e) What role has been played by the Indian constitution for the development of Scheduled Castes, Scheduled Tribes and Backward classes?
Ans: The Indian constitution there is no definition of the Scheduled Caste and Scheduled Tribe after consulting with the States. The list may be amended by the Parliament. So, in this way a list of Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes was prepared and a notification was issued on behalf of the President. An Act also came into effect accordingly. The Other backward Classes (OBC) also found a place in that list. Some rights were also reserved for them. The Anglo-Indiancommunity was also included in this list.
Again, the constitution has not given any clear definition about Other Backward Classes and Tribes. The government subsequently fixed somecriteria for backward classes. They are:
i) Those placed in the lower level of the society as per the tenets of theHindu society.
ii) Those who are mostly beyond the periphery of education.
iii) Those who are mostly beyond the periphery of education.
iv) Those who are poorly represented in government service.
v) Those who are least significantly involved in commerce and business.
According to the constitution, the government is responsible for securing the individual and collective rights of the minority. The constitution has given the right to the minorities for religious freedom.
The citizens of India are given the right to safeguard their language, alphabet and culture. The state or the government cannot impose the culture of the majority or local culture upon the culture of the minorities. In fact, the government cannot implement any law in this matter. Besides, the Indian constitution provides protection of the rights of the minorities on the basis of language. The constitution also provides arrangement for education to the minorities, on the basis of language, from the primary level in their own mother tongue. All citizens, irrespective of religion, caste and community, are entitled to get facilities in government and government-aided educational institutions. Removal of all kinds of inequalities has been emphasized in matters related to government grants and government service. Various measures have been undertaken for comprehensive development of citizens belonging to Scheduled Caste and Scheduled Tribe and other backward classes.
5) Imagine and write (in 200 words):
a) Suppose the local residents of your area have elected you as their representative to your Gram Panchayat or Muncipality. What steps would you take development of your area?
Ans: As the representative of the Gram Panchayat, I would start by building schools for educational purposes, roads for better transportation services, hospitals for treatment of diseases. The betterment of the people of the village would be the primary motto in this position. Education of the children is very important as it enables them to be financially independent in future and have control over their own lives. Roads are necessary for travelling from one place to another in a convenient and fast manner. Absence of roads, leads to problems in travelling, and that issue needs to be solved. And, hospitals are required for saving lives of the people. Every year, hundreds of villagers die due to unavailability of proper treatment, and if the same number of people keep on dying every day, then in the span of 14 years there wouldn’t be anyone left in the village.
b) Suppose you are a teacher. What programme would you take up along with the students of your school to carry out together the fundamental duties mentioned in the constitution? Prepare a draft of the programme.
Ans: The theme of the programme would be ‘Saving India’
Story – The Britishers have been ruling over India for 190 years, but now the Indians are ready to fight back against the cruel rule of the British and take back their freedom over India.
Setting – The Hall of the school will be arranged as The Taj Mahal.
Characters – 15 boys dressed as britishers, 20 boys and 5 girls dressed as Indians of all religions.
Plot – A fight will take place with safe paper made weapons like swords, and knives between the British and India.
Fundamental rights showcased –
- Abide by the constitution, respect its ideals and various constitutional institutions, the national flag and national anthem
- Cherish and follow the noble ideals of our national struggle for freedom
- Uphold and protect the sovereignty, unity and integrity of India
- Defend the country and render national service when called upon to do so
- Promote harmony and the spirit of common brotherhood amongst all people of India transcending religious, linguistic and regional or class diversities and to renounce practices derogatory to the dignity of women
- value and preserve the rich heritage of our composite culture
Also See: Previous Chapter Free Communalism to the Partition Solution