CLASS 10 NOTES

POLITICAL SCIENCE

Fedralism
PRASHANT KIRAD
 PRASHANT KIRAD

Fedralism

Introduction

It is a type of government in which the power is divided

between a central authority and various other constituents of
the country.

Central

Power
State

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Local
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Dual objectives of Federalism
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to safeguard and promote unity of the country.

at the same time accomodate regional diversity

E.M.
A
ex am me i ay eg a
Features of Federalism

There are two or more levels of government.

They operate independently in their respective areas but are bound by

the constitution and the overall governance structure. However, they
have some degree of autonomy within their spheres of authority.

The constitution serves as the supreme law of the land, and both the
central and regional governments must operate within the boundaries
set by the constitution.
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While each level of government operates independently in its sphere,

there is often a degree of interdependence and cooperation between
them. They may share responsibilities in certain policy areas or
collaborate on issues of national importance.

Federal systems often incorporate checks and balances to prevent the

abuse of power by any one level of government.

The fundamental provisions of the constitution can’t be changed

unilaterally by one level of government.

E.M.A
Types of Federations

Federations

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Coming Together Federation
UB Holding Together Federation

P H
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Coming Together Federation
Independent states coming together on their own to form a bigger unit.

States have equal power and are equally strong.

Emphasizes preservation of distinct identities and cultures.

USA, Switzerland and Australia

Holding Together Federation

Large country decides to divide its power between central government
and the constituent states.

Emphasizes unity of the whole nation

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Constituent units have unequal power. Some units are granted speical
powers.

India, Spain and Belgium.

India as a Federal Country

Federation in India

India is based on the principles of federalism and is declared as a union

of states by constitution.

Three tiers of government : Central, State and Local.

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&
Each tier of government has its own juridiction specified in the
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B
constitution of our country.

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Hby Constitution
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Powers Division in India

Union List

It includes subjects that are solely under the control and legislative
authority of the central government.
These subjects are of national importance and relevance.

Such as defense, foreign affairs, banking, currency, interstate trade and

commerce, taxation, railways, and atomic energy, among others.

State List

Comprises subjects on which only the state legislatures have the power
to make laws
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State governments have the power to legislate, enact laws, and

implement policies on matters included in the State List.

Such as police, public health, agriculture, local government, public

order, land, trade within the state, etc.

Concurrent List

It comprises subjects on which both levels of government have the

authority to enact laws
Both the central and regional governments can pass laws on matters
listed in the concurrent list. However, in the case of a conflict between
a central law and a regional law on a concurrent subject, the central law
usually prevails.

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They often include areas like education, forests, trade unions,
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marriage, adoption, succession, bankruptcy, and so on.

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U B
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Residuary List
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Xthat are not explicitly assigned to either level of
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It consists of powers
government in the constitution.
These powers are retained by the central (federal) government by
default.
Matters in the residuary list can include issues related to national
importance, inter-state commerce, international relations, etc.

More About India as a Federal country

Indian states have unequal power among themselves. Some states are
given special powers and thus Indian is a holding together federation.

India has union territories that don’t have powers equal to the states.
Central government plays a major role in running union territories.
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Judiciary takes decision in case of any dispute between any forms of

government.

The basic structure of power sharing is mentioned in the constitution.

If any change has to be made regarding this, it has to be passed by 2/3
majority in both houses of parliament and more than half of the state
legislative assemblies in the country.

E.M.A
Practice of Federalism in India
The success of the federalism depends on the nature of the democratic
politics.

When India got independence, there was a feared among the leaders
that the creation of linguistic states might led to disintegration of the

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country. But in reality, it has forged the unity of the country and made
our administration easier.
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Language Policy
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We don’t have anyE
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national language but Hindi is identified as our
official language.

Besides Hindi, 21 other languages were recognised as Schedule

Languages.

It is taken care especially that there will be no conflict on the grounds

of language, as we saw in Sri Lanka.

Center - State Relations

The powers of both the Center and State has been stated clearly to
avoid any tensions between the two levels of government.

The parties can form a coalition government and come into power. It is
especially taken care of that one party doesn’t dominate the other
parties.
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The powers of the Central government are checked by the constitution,

that has increased the autonomy of the states.

Decentralisation in India E.M .A

Steps taken towards decentralization in 1992

It was made mandatory to hold elections regularly.

It mandated reservations for marginalized groups, including Scheduled

Castes, Scheduled Tribes, and women.

State governments now have to share their powers and revenue with
local government bodies.
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Each state should have an independent state Election Commission to
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conduct panchayat and municipal elections.

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Rural and Urban Local
X P Government
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Big Cities Municipal Corporations Head is called Mayor

Towns Municipalities Head is called Municipal chairperson

Village Gram Panchayat Head is called Sarpanch

In villages, people elect a body called gram sabha which approves

annual budget for gram panchayat and review the performance of
gram panchayat.

Groups of gram panchayats form Panchayat Samiti (Block / Mandal)

Groups of panchayat samiti form Zila parishad

Head is called Zila Parishad chairperson

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Top 7 previous year questions

Short questions

1. Describe any three features of 'unitary government'.

Features of unitary government are discussed below
(i) In unitary system, all powers are centralised in the hands of the
central government and only centre is the reservoir of all state powers.
(ii) Another feature of unitary form of government is that laws of
unitary system, unlike federation, are uniform because laws are made
only by a single central government for the whole state.

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(iii) One of the important feature of this system is that it may become
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exercise of these unlimited powers.
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despotic when the rulers are not faithful as there is no check upon the

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onPthese subjects?
2. Name any two subjects that are included in concurrent list.
How are laws madeX
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Two subjects included in Concurrent list are education and forest. The
laws on these subjects can be made by both the union government i.e.
government at the center and the state governments. Subjects on the
Concurrent list are of common interest to both (union and state) so
anyone can make laws on it.
If in case, the laws conflict with each other, then in that case the law
made by union government will prevail. Other subjects included in the
Concurrent list are trade unions, marriage, adoption, succession
etc.

3. Evaluate strengths and limitations of local self government in

a democracy.
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Local self-government have made a significant impact on Indian

democracy by its achievements which are
(i) The constitutional status for local government has helped to deepen
democracy in our country.
(ii) Local government has increased women's representation and voice
in our democracy.

At the same time, the local self-government are facing many difficulties.
These are
(i) While elections are held regularly, Gram Sabhas are not held regularly
to review the performance of the Gram Panchayat.
(ii) Most State Governments have not transferred significant powers and
adequate resources to the local governments.

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4. In Panchayati Raj System, one-third of the seats have been

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reserved for women. Do you feel that the same should be done
B
for State Legislature and the Parliament? Support your answer
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with arguments.
P H
E X one-third of the seats are reserved for the
In Panchayati Raj System,
women. This reservation should also be done for State Legislature and
Parliament. But, the Women Reservation Bill is a pending bill in India
which proposes to amend the Constitution of India to reserve 33 per
cent of all seats in the Lok Sabha and in all State Legislative Assembly
for women.

This bill should be passed for the following

(i) To increase women participation in politics and society.
(ii) To increase opportunity and respect in all for women.

5. Which is the highest tier of the Panchyati Raj? Explain its

composition.
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The highest tier of the Panchayati Raj System in rural areas is the Zilla
Parishad. The Zilla Parishad coordinates the activities of all the Block
Samitis in the whole district.
The composition of Zilla Parishad is
(i) All the Panchayat Samitis or Mandals in a district together constitute
the Zilla Parishad.
(ii) Members of the Lok Sabha and MLAs of the district and some other
officials of other district level bodies are also its members.
(iii) Zilla Parishad Chairperson is the political head of the Zilla Parishad.

Long questions

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6. How are the legislative powers distributed between the Union
&
Government and the State Government by the Constitution?
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Explain with example.
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The division of power betweenH
P of legislative powers between the Union
the Central and State Governments is

Government and theE

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done in a three fold distribution
State Government. There are three lists i.e. Union
list, State list and Concurrent list.

(i) Union List: It includes subjects of national importance, e.g. defence of

the country, foreign affairs, banking, communication and currency. The
Central Government alone can make decisions on these matters. The
aim of including these matters in Union List is to ensure uniformity in
the policy of these areas throughout the country.
(ii) State List: It includes subjects of state and local importance such as
police, trade, commerce, agriculture and irrigation. The State
Government alone can make laws and decisions on these areas.
(iii) Concurrent List: It includes those subjects which are of common
interest to both the Central as well as State Governments. It includes
matters like education, forests, marriage and trade unions. Both the
State and Central Government can make decision on these matters.
 PRASHANT KIRAD

7. "The creation of a linguistic state was the first and major test
for democratic politics in our country." Justify the statement.

The creation of a linguistic state was the first and major test for
democratic politics in our country. This can be justified in the following
ways
(i) In 1947, the boundaries of several old states were changed in order to
create new states. It was done according to the language that people
speak. But many national leaders feared that the formation of state
according to language would lead to the disintegration of the country.
(ii) In our country, some states were created not on the basis of language
but on the basis of culture, ethnicity and geography. These include
Nagaland, Uttarakhand and Jharkhand.

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(iii) Linguistic states has made the country more united. It has helped to
maintain our federal structure.
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(iv) Linguistic states made administration easier for the local people.

UB
People feel comfortable to work in their mother tongue. It fulfils their

PH
expectations from democracy.

EX