TEXT QUESTIONS :
1. Name three problems that newly independent nation of India faced .
Ans:
i) 8 million refugees had come into the country from Pakistan .
ii) There was the problem of the princely states, almost 500 of them, each ruled by a Maharaja or a nawab had to be persuaded to join the new nation .
iii) There was a problem between high castes and low castes and of the millions of people .
2. What was the role of the Planning Commission ?
Ans: Lifting India and Indians out of poverty and building a modern technical and industrial base were the major objectives of the new nation .
3. Fill in the blanks :
(a) Subjects that were placed on the union list were ______, _______ and ______ .
(b) Subjects on the concurrent list were ____________ and ___________ .
(c) Economic planning by which both the state and the private sector played a role in development was called a _____________ model .
(d) The death of ___________ sparked off such violent protests that the government was forced to give in to the demand for the linguistic state of Andhra .
Ans:
(a) Taxes , defence, foreign affairs (b) Forest and agriculture
(c) Mixed economy (d) Potti Sriramulu .
4. State whether true or false :
(a) At independence, the majority of Indians lived in villages .
(b) The constituent Assembly was made up of members of the congress party .
(c) In the first national election, only men were allowed to vote .
(d) The second five year plan focused on the development of heavy industry .
Ans: (a) True (b) False (c) False (d) True .
5. What did Dr. Ambedkar mean when he said that “In politics we will have equality, and in social and economic life we will have inequality” ?
Ans: Dr. Ambedkar pointed out that political democracy had to be accompanied by economic and social democracy. Giving the right to vote would not automatically lead to the removal of the inequalities between the rich and the poor or between upper and lower castes. He said that in politics they would have equality and in social and economic life, they would have inequality .
6. After Independence, why was there a reluctance to divide the country on linguistic lines ?
Ans: The Indian national congress, back in 1920 had promised that once the country won independence, each major linguistic group would have its own province. But, after independence Congress did not take any steps to honour the promise.
The Kannada speakers, Malayalam speakers, and Marathi speakers, had looked forward to having their own state. India had already been divided on the basis of religion which had led to much bloodshed in the riots between Hindus and Muslims .
7. Give one reason why English continued to be used in India after independence .
Ans: Many members in the constituent Assembly believed that English language should leave India with the British rulers. Its place should be taken by Hindi. However the people of the South threatened to separate from India if Hindi was imposed on them. A compromise was finally arrived at, that English would be used in the courts, the services, and communications between one state and another .
8. How was the economic development of India visualised in the early decades after independence ?
Ans: Lifting India and Indians out of poverty and building a modern technical and industrial base were the major objectives of the new nation. In 1950, the government set up a planning commission to help design and execute suitable policies for economic development. There was a broad agreement on having a “mixed economy”. The state and private sector would play important and complementary roles in increasing production and generating jobs .
9. Who was Mira Behn ? Find out more about her life and her ideas .
Ans: Mira Behn was the follower of Gandhiji. She believed that science and machinery would create problems for human beings. She believed that mankind would benefit from science and machinery for a time but ultimately it would lead to desolation. She also believed that to study nature’s balance and develop our lives .
10. Find out more about the language divisions in Pakistan that led to the creation of the new nation of Bangladesh. How did Bangladesh achieve independence from Pakistan ?
Ans: When the State, of Pakistan was formed in 1947 it had two wings, one to the West of India and the other to the East. The two regions were split along cultural, geographical and linguistic lines. In 1948, the government of Pakistan ordained Urdu as sole national language which sparked extensive protests among the Bengali-speaking majority of East Pakistan.
The Bengali Language Movement of 1952 was the first sign of friction between the two wings of Pakistan. This movement was a political effort in then East Pakistan, which advocated the recognition of the Bengali language as an official language of Pakistan Bangladesh (East Pakistan) was a part of Pakistan before it came into existence.
The culture was entirely different form that of the West Pakistan. Due to major differences, it broke up from Pakistan and emerged as independent Bangladesh in 1971 after a bloody war. Apart from linguistic discrimination, political and economic neglect led to popular agitations against West Pakistan.
This led to the war of independence in 1971. With the help of Indian troops in the last few weeks of the war. East Pakistan defeated West Pakistan on December 16, 1971. This resulted in the establishment of Bangladesh. In February 1974, Pakistan also agreed to recognise the independent State of Bangladesh .
You are witness to an argument between an Adivasi and a person who is opposed to the reservation of seats and jobs. What might be the arguments you heard each of them put forward ? Act out the conservation .
Ans: It’s actually very simple to understand, that when will the reservation system come to an end in India .
Unfortunately, I have to say, that such question’s arises in the minds of people, only because of some kind of discrimination, some kind of division, some kind of caste mentality .
If people can ask these questions, without any discrimination, division, or caste mentality, then people can very clearly understand that why there is a reservation, and when it will come to an end. There will not be any difficulty understanding such questions, if people will overcome their casteist mentality, discriminative and arguementative attitude.
The question can only originate from casteist mind, and no one else. It is not something strange, that some people in so called upper caste also defends reservation, even without any economic background to it, and these people actually overcame their (their father-forefather) discriminative, and casteist mentality, which is why it is very simple for them to understand that when will the reservation system come to an end.
See, reservation system is only because of discrimination, and casteist mentality of people. It is not actually about upliftment, though it is considered and claimed to be. The people in society, due to their powerful status, try to push and pull the discriminated so called lower caste person from getting better in their economic, education and intellectual status, which is why reservation is given .
So until there will be a people who discriminate against others, try to suppress other people’s overall development based on caste, and try to keep people away from certain kind of field, like say politics, top level cabinet positions, media, science, corporates, arts, sports etc ., there will be reservations.
So these examples are example for you that why there is a reservation.
It is because there are a discriminating people, and they have enough power to discriminate based on caste, and keep undesired caste away from the field, which is why reservation is given .
It is not about upliftment (even though it is working as such), but reservation is for counter-measures against the powerful people who can easily discriminate and can suppress the development of people along with the country, for nothing but only for their caste. The politics, ministerial positions, media, arts, sports in India stands as a clear testimony for that, and people to understand, why there is a reservation, and where it will and should come to an end .
The clear answer is that, when people will behave indiscriminately regarding any rigid system like caste system, all the way, including marriages, including whom to give jobs, rent home, befriend with, conspire (because of powerful status) against the poor’s and discriminated people, people will not really feel the equality and unity/oneness of the society/nationality.
If people think that at least discrimination in marriage relationship needed to be allowed, on caste basis, then they need not to talk against reservation, as it is above their head to understand why actually society needs reservation .
The final answer is that reservation will end(automatically) when people of all kind economic status (regardless of caste) will feel almost equal, perfect equality and justice, in every way, and almost feel everyone to be their own people, in every way, then all people regardless of caste, will feel that reservation for some people is an injustice, or kind of foolish, and there is no need of it, where people just living like one people .