Social Science

Federalism

1. The Parliament cannot on its own change the sharing of power between the Union Government and the
State government's arrangement because:
a. this arrangement is basic to the structure of the Constitution
b. only the President is entitled with such powers
c. the states do not agree for the same
d. there is no provision in the constitution to do so
2. list contains subjects of local importance.
a. Union
b. State
c. Concurrent
d. Residuary
3. Subjects such as police, trade, commerce, agriculture, and irrigation are included in which of the
following list?
a. State
b. Residuary
c. Concurrent
d. Union
4. The exact balance of power between the central and the state government varies from one federation to
another. This balance depends mainly on the context in which the federation was formed.
a. economical
b. political
c. historical
d. social
5. The Constitution declared India as a of States.
a. federation
b. union
c. community
d. departments
6. The Constitution clearly provided a threefold distribution of powers between the Union
Government and the State Governments.
a. judiciary
b. defensive
c. legislative
d. executive
7. Panchayats in and municipalities in were set up in all the States.
a. districts, villages
b. villages, urban areas
c. villages, rural areas
d. urban areas, cities
8. As in any federation, the different tiers enjoy jurisdiction.
a. separate

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 b. same
c. dependent
d. independent
9. Choose the right statement as to when the major national parties had to enter into an alliance with
many parties including several regional parties to form a government at the Centre?
a. no party is allowed without having a coalition.
b. when there no single party get a clear majority in the Rajya Sabha.
c. None of these
d. when there no single party get a clear majority in the Lok Sabha.
10. For all practical purposes, Sri Lanka continues to be a system where the national government
has all the powers.
a. Secular
b. Federal
c. Monarchical
d. Unitary
11. Why Union List includes subjects of national importance such as the defense of the country, foreign
affairs, banking, communications, and currency?
a. Because we need a uniform policy on these matters throughout the country
b. Because the state feels over-burdened to handle them
c. Because the government in the states is not capable
d. Because these matters are of no importance to the state

For question numbers 12-16, two statements are given- one labeled Assertion (A) and the other labeled
Reason (R). Select the correct answer to these questions from the codes (a), (b), (c) and (d) as given
below:

a. Both A and R are true and R is the correct explanation of A.

b. Both A and R are true but R is not the correct explanation of A.
c. A is true but R is false.
d. A is false but R is true.

12. Assertion (A): 21 other languages besides Hindi, are recognized as Scheduled Languages by the
Constitution.
Reason (R): Hindi was identified as the official language. But only about 40 percent of Indians have Hindi
as their mother tongue.
13. Assertion (A): Third-tier of government is local government.
Reason (R): It made democracy weak.
14. Assertion (A): Zila Parishad chairperson is the political head of the Zila Parishad.
Reason (R): Mayor is the head of municipalities.
15. Assertion (A): In India, the nature of democratic politics is very important for the federation.
Reason (R): The federal experiment has succeeded in India because of the constitutional provisions.
16. Assertion (A): Governments at different levels should agree to some rules of power-sharing.
Reason (R): Mutual trust and agreement to live together is required for a federal system.

Answer questions 17-20 based on the following case study:

Read the source given below and answer the questions that follow:

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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 percent of Indians. Therefore, there were
many safeguards to protect other languages. Besides Hindi, there are 21 other languages recognized as
Scheduled Languages by the Constitution. A candidate in an examination conducted for the Central
Government positions may opt to take the examination in any of these languages. States to have their own
official languages. Much of the government work takes place in the official language of the concerned State.
Unlike Sri Lanka, the leaders of our country adopted a very cautious attitude in spreading the use of Hindi.
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 continue. In Tamil Nadu, this movement took a violent
form. The Central Government responded by agreeing to continue the use of English along with Hindi for
official purposes. Many critics think that this solution favored the English-speaking elite. 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. The flexibility shown by
Indian political leaders helped our country avoid the kind of situation that Sri Lanka finds itself in.
Answer the following MCQs by choosing the most appropriate option:

17. Here are the statements regarding the language policy followed in India. Which of the following holds true
in the case of India?
a. The policy of accommodation has strengthened national unity.
b. The language-based States have divided us by making everyone conscious of their language.
c. The language policy has only helped to consolidate the dominance of English over all other languages.
d. Indian Constitution gives the status of national language to any one language.
18. Which language is recognized as the national language by the Constitution of India?
a. Hindi
b. English
c. Tamil
d. None of these
19. A second test for Indian federation is the .
a. Linguistic States
b. Language policy
c. Centre-State relations
d. Both b and c
20. "Official Language Act provides that English would remain the official language of the country so long as
non-Hindi speaking States desire." Identify the benefit of adopting such a cautious approach?
a. Strengthened the spirit of federalism
b. Helped in avoiding confrontation with non-Hindi speaking southern states
c. Both a and b
d. None of these

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