TRIBES, NOMADS AND SETTLED COMMUNITIES

4. What kinds of exchanges took place between nomadic pastoralists and

settled agriculturists?

Answer: Nomadic pastoralists moved over long distances with their animals and
lived on milk and other pastoral products. They exchanged wool, ghee, etc., with
settled agriculturists for grain, cloth, utensils and other products.

5. How was the administration of the Ahom state organised?

Answer:

1. The Ahom state depended upon forced labour.

 The forced workers were called paiks.

2. A census of the population was taken.
 Each village had to send a number of paiks by rotation.
 People from heavily populated areas were shifted to less populated
places. — Ahom clans were thus broken up.
3. By the first half of the seventeenth century, the administration became quite
centralised.

6. What changes took place in varna-based society?

Answer:

Considerable changes took place in varna-based society.

Varna-based society and tribal people constantly interacted with each other. People
adapt and change, and many different tribes took up diverse livelihoods. Over a
period of time, many of them merged with the caste-based society.

Others rejected both the caste system and orthodox Hinduism. Some tribes
established extensive states with well-organised systems of administration and
became politically powerful. As a result, this brought them into conflict with larger
and more complex kingdoms and empires.

7. How did tribal societies change after being organised into a state?
Answer: With the support of the Brahmanas, many tribes became part of the caste
system. But only the leading tribal families were allowed to join the ruling class.

A large majority joined the lower jatis of caste society.

Some of the tribes, such as the Ahoms, worshipped their own tribal gods.

Hinduism became the predominant religion.

Their administrative system began to be centralised.

Tribal kings or rajas began to grant land to Brahmanas, poets and

scholars.

8. Were the Banjaras important for the economy?

Answer: The Banjaras were the most important trader nomads. The caravan of the
banjaras was called tanda. Sultan Alauddin Khalji used the Banjaras to transport
grain to the city markets. They carried grain on their bullocks from different areas
and sold it in towns. They transported food grain for the Mughal army during military
campaigns. They bought grains where it was cheaply available and carried them to
the market.

9. In what ways was the history of the Gonds different from that of the Ahoms?
Were there any similarities?

The Gonds was different from that of the Ahoms in the following ways:

1. Gonds lived in Gondwana while Ahoms lived in Brahmaputra valley.

2. Gonds practiced shifting cultivation while Ahoms did not practice shifting
cultivation.
3. Gond kingdoms were large, Ahom kingdom was small.
4. Gond kingdoms were divided into garhs, Ahoms built a large state.
5. Gonds did not use fire-arms, Ahoms used fire-arms for the first time in the
history of the subcontinent.

The similarity is that both were tribes:

1. The Mughals tried to control the lands of both at different point of time.
2. There were changes in society of both due to the diversification of occupations.
 18th centuary Political Formations
4. What were the offices held by Sa’adat Khan?
Answer:
Offices held by Sa’adat Khan.

 Subadari
 Faujdari
 Diwani

He was responsible for managing political, military and financial affairs.

5. Why did the Nawab of Awadh and Bengal try to do away with the jagirdari
system?
Answer:
Nawabs of Awadh and Bengal tried to do away with the jagirdari system because:

1. They were suspicious of this system that they inherited.

2. Their methods of tax collection were different, they hired “revenue farmers to
collect the taxes”.
3. They used practice of Ijaradari rather than jagirdari.
4. They wanted to expand and receive land as security against loans.
5. They knew the loopholes of the system and that how jagirdars become
powerful if not checked in time.

6. How were the Sikhs organised in the eighteenth century?

Answer:

During the 17th century the Sikhs got organised into a political community. This led
to the regional state-building in Punjab.

Guru Gobind Singh fought many battles against the Rajputs as well as Mughal
rulers, both before and after the institution of the Khalsa in 1699.

After the death of Guru Gobind Singh in 1708, the Khalsa revolted against the
Mughal authority under the leadership of Banda Bahadur and declared their
sovereign rule.

Banda Bahadur was captured in 1715 and executed in 1716.

In the 18th century, the Sikhs organised themselves into a number of bands called
jathas.

7. Why did the Marathas want to expand beyond the Deccan?

Answer:
Marathas wanted to expand beyond the Deccan because of the following reasons:

 They wanted to clip away the authority of the Mughal Empire.

 Maratha king to be recognised as the overlord of the entire Deccan peninsula.
 To possess the right to collect Chauth and sardeshmukhi in the entire region.

8. What were the policies adopted by Asaf Jah to Strengthen his position?
Answer:
After being the actual ruler of the Deccan, Asaf Jah began to adopt some policies in
order to strengthen his position :

 He brought skilled soldiers and administrators from northern India who

welcomed the new opportunities in the south.
 He appointed mansabdars and granted jagirs.
 He ruled independently without Mughal interference. The Mughal emperor
merely confirmed the decisions already taken by Asaf Jah.

Devotional Paths to Divine

3. Describe the beliefs and practices of the Nathpanthis, Siddhas, and Yogis.
Answer:
Beliefs and Practices of the Nathpanthis, Siddhas, and Yogis

1. Criticism of ritual and other aspects of conventional religion.

2. Renunciation of the world.
3. Path of salvation in meditation on the formless.
4. Ultimate reality and realisation of oneness.
5. Intense training of mind and body through practices like yogasanas, breathing
exercises, and meditation.

4. What were the major ideas expressed by Kabir? How did he express these?
Answer:
Major ideas expressed by Kabir and his way of expressing them:

 Rejection of orthodox religion and religious traditions.

 Religion was is accessible to all.
 Criticism of all external worship of Brahmanical Hinduism and Islam
 No caste system.
  Belief in formless God.
 Bhakti and devotion is the only path of salvation.
 He expressed his ideas through couplets.

5. What were the major beliefs and practices of the Sufis?

Answer:

 Sufis were Muslim mystics. They rejected outward religiosity and gave
emphasis on love and devotion to God. They inspired people to be
compassionate towards all fellow human beings.
 They rejected idol worship and considerably simplified rituals of worship into
collective prayers.
 They believed that the heart can be trained to look at the world in a different
way.
 They developed elaborate methods of training using zikr, meaning chanting of
a name or sacred formula, contemplation, sama Le. singing, raqs, Le. dancing,
discussion of parables, breath control etc. under the guidance of a master
called pir.

7. What were the major teachings of Baba Guru Nanak?

Answer:
Msyor Teachings of Baba Guru Nanak

1. Worship of one God.

2. Irrelevance of caste, creed, and gender for attaining liberation.
3. The pursuit of active life with a strong sense of social commitment.
4. Nam, the dam, is the major essence of his teachings.
5. Nam-japna, kirt-kama, and vand Chakhna basis of right belief, and worship,
honest living and helping others.
6. The idea of equality.

8. For either the Virashaivas or the saints of Maharashtra, discuss their

attitude towards caste.
Answer: Attitude of the Virashaivas towards caste :
They believed in the equality of all human beings. They were against Brahmanical
ideas about caste and the treatment of women. They wished for a society where
people of all backgrounds could live in harmony without any feelings of high and low,
rich and poor.

9. Why do you think ordinary people preserved the memory of Mirabai?

Answer: Mirabai was a Rajput princess married into the royal family of Mewar. But
she had no interest in the worldly affair. She was an ardent devotee of Krishna and
wanted to devote her time to the worship of her lord. She had no belief in princely
status and other norms of high-class society. Her devotion to her deity was supreme.
Hence, she left the royal palace and began to lend. Simple life with ordinary people.
 SPL: Understanding Media

1. In what ways does media play an important role in a democracy?

Answer: Media play an important role in democracy in the following ways:

1. They make the masses know about certain issues/problems.

2. They propagate the policies and programmes of the government.
3. They also criticise the unpopular policies and programmes of the government.
4. They help in forming the opinion of the masses.
5. They also report various crimes and mishappenings, accidents, etc.
6. The media also announce the opinions of the public about certain
issues/problems etc.

3. You have read about the ways in which the media ‘sets the agenda’. What
kind of effect does this have in a democracy? Provide two examples to
support your point of view.
Answer:
Media “setting an agenda” has an impact on democracy.

1. By focusing on a particular issue the media influences our thoughts and

feelings.
2. It brings the core issues to light and sometimes even helps get justice for
people.
3. By setting an agenda, media creates awareness about certain wrongs or the
illegal activities happening in the society and makes the government take
action.
4. Sometimes due to government pressure or due to the influence of big business
houses, the balanced may not come out.
5. For example: During and after the Commonwealth games media focused on
the corruption in giving out the projects, more recently the “Coalgate” issue.
6. Bring to light the amount of money secretly stashed in Swiss banks.

2. What does the word ‘media’ mean?

Answer: Radio, television, newspapers, the Internet, and several other forms of
communication are collectively known as media.

3. Mention any one positive aspect of television.

Answer: Television has enabled us to think of ourselves as members of a larger
global world.
4. Mention one way in which the mass media earns money.
Answer: The mass media earns money by advertising different things like cars,
clothes, tea, etc.

5.Why are some advertisements shown repeatedly on the television screen?

[V. Imp.]
Answer: Same advertisements are shown repeatedly on the television screen just to
make people’s minds to go out and buy what is advertised.

6. What are the various ways through which people express their
dissatisfaction to any of the government’s decision which does not go in their
favour?
Answer: They do so by writing letters to the concerned minister, organising a public
protest, starting a signature campaign and asking the government to rethink its
programme, etc.

7. What do you mean by a balanced report? [V. Imp.]

Answer: A balanced report is one that discusses all points of view of a particular
story and then leaves it to the readers to make up their minds.

8. Why is it necessary for the media to be independent?

Answer: Only then media can write a balanced report.

9. Why does media sometimes focus on a particular aspect of a story?

Answer: It is because the media believes that this will make the story interesting.

2. Most television channels and newspapers are part of big business houses.
Why? [V. Imp.]
Answer: The technologies that mass media use keep changing and so a lot of
money is spent on getting the latest technology. The TV studio in which the
newsreader sits has lights, cameras, sound recorders, transmission satellites etc. All
of these cost a lot of money.

One thing more, it is not only the newsreader who needs to be paid but also a
number of other people who help put the broadcast together. Due to these costs,
mass media needs a great deal of money to do its various works. As a result, most
television channels and newspapers are part of big business houses.

3. What do you mean by an independent media? Why is it important for the

media to be independent? [V. Imp.]
Answer: An independent media means that no one should control and influence its
coverage of news. No one should tell the media what can be included and what
should not be included in a news story. It means that the media should not be under
any one’s pressure. It will be totally independent. An independent media is very
important because it is on the basis of the information that the media provides that
we take action as citizens. Hence, it essential that this information is reliable. It
should be biased at all.
 Markets around us

1. In what ways is a hawker different from a shop owner?

Answer: A hawker provides door to door service. He sells his goods by calling out
the names of his items. He generally owns a the which we may call a movable shop
and keeps in it different items of our everyday use. He sells his goods at a minimum
profit.
A shop owner runs his shop at one fixed place. Whenever we need anything we go
there and purchase it. Here, we get things at a somewhat costlier rate.

2.Explain how a chain of markets is formed. What purpose does it serve?

Answer: Goods are produced in factories, Goods are also produced in farms and in homes.
But we are not required to go to factories or farms to buy goods of our need, because the
producers are not interested in selling us small quantities. The wholesale traders do this job.
They are the people who come in between the producer and the final consumer. They first
buy goods in bulk. Then they sell these goods to the retailers, who finally sell this to the
consumers.
From the above instance we come to the conclusion that from factories to final consumers a
chain is formed, which we may call a chain of markets. We can better understand it through
the flow chart given below:

It serves a great purpose. It maintains the flow of money. It makes easy availability of
various items of our daily use. It also promotes coordination in society.

4. ‘All persons have equal rights to visit any shop in a marketplace.’ Do you
think this is true of shops with expensive products? Explain with examples.
Answer: It is true that all persons have equal rights to visit any shop in the
marketplace. But this is not true of shops with expensive products. It is because of
the following:

1. People with high incomes can buy expensive products. Hence, these people
go to the shops with expensive products and not the poor or people with low
income.
2. The low-income group people visit the shops or weekly markets to buy goods
as these goods are available at cheaper rates.

Examples:
People with high income buy green vegetables from multiplexes or malls while poor
people purchase green vegetables from small vegetable sellers or from hawkers.
5. ‘Buying and selling can take place without going to a marketplace’. Explain
this statement with the help of examples.
Answer:
It is correct that buying and selling can take place without going to a market place. It
is done in the following manner.
Examples:

 We can order goods that we need over the telephone and get their delivery.
 Over the internet, we can visit the concerned website and order the products.
 We can pay through internet banking or on the delivery of goods.


1. Why is a weekly market called so?

Answer: A weekly market is called so because it is held a specific day of the
week.

2. Why is there a competition among the shops in the weekly market? [V. Imp.]
Answer: In the weekly market there are many shops that sell the same goods. This
creates competition among them.

3. Who is Scunner? What does he do?

Answer: Sameer is a small trader in the weekly market. He buys clothes from a
large trader and sells them in six different markets in a week.

4. Give some examples of roadside stalls.

Answer: Vegetable hawker, fruit vendor, mechanic.

5. How are shops in the neighbourhood useful?

Answer: These types of shops are close to our home and we can go there any time.
As the buyer and seller know each other these shops also provide goods on credit.

6. Where are the goods produced?

Answer: Goods are produced in factories, on farms, and in homes.

7. Why do we not buy directly from the producer? [V. Imp.]

Answer: It is because the producer is not interested in selling goods in small
quantities. 9*

8. Who is a retailer? [Imp.]

Answer: A retailer is a small trader who buys goods from the wholesale trader and
sells this to the consumer.