Federalism

Federalism is a system of government in which power is divided between a central authority and its various constituent units. In this chapter you will learn the key features of federalism: there are two or more levels of government, each with its own jurisdiction guaranteed by the constitution; fundamental provisions cannot be changed by one level alone; courts act as umpires in disputes; and each level has specified sources of revenue. You will see that federations are formed in two ways: 'coming together' federations like the USA, Switzerland and Australia, and 'holding together' federations like India, Spain and Belgium. You will study how the Indian Constitution divides powers through the Union List, the State List and the Concurrent List, with residuary subjects left to the Union, and how Union Territories are governed. You will learn how federalism has been strengthened in practice by linguistic states, a flexible language policy and changes in Centre-State relations. Finally, you will study decentralisation and the 1992 constitutional amendments that created a third tier of local government through panchayats and municipalities.

Detailed Worksheet: Federalism Section A - Definitions (10 marks) 1. What is federalism? How does it differ from a unitary system of government? (2 marks) 2. Distinguish between 'coming together' and 'holding together' federations, giving one example of each. (2 marks) 3. Name the three lists that divide powers between the Union and the State governments. Give one subject from each. (2 marks) 4. What are residuary subjects? Who makes laws on them in India? Give one example. (2 marks) 5. What is decentralisation? Name the bodies of rural and urban local government. (2 marks) Section B - Calculations and Applications (15 marks) 6. A gram panchayat has 15 seats. Under the 1992 constitutional amendments, at least one-third of seats are reserved for women. Calculate the minimum number of seats reserved for women. If a zila parishad has 36 seats, how many must at least be reserved for women? (3 marks) 7. Classify the following subjects into the Union, State and Concurrent Lists: defence, police, education, banking, agriculture, marriage, foreign affairs, trade unions and irrigation. (3 marks) 8. In a state, total revenue in a year was Rs 2,00,000 crore, of which Rs 80,000 crore came from the state's share in central taxes and grants. Calculate the percentage of revenue received from the Union. What does this show about Centre-State financial relations? (3 marks) 9. Arrange in chronological order: the 73rd and 74th Constitutional Amendments; the creation of Chhattisgarh, Uttarakhand and Jharkhand; the reorganisation of states on a linguistic basis; the adoption of the Indian Constitution. Give the years. (3 marks) 10. The Eighth Schedule of the Constitution lists 22 languages. If the Constitution originally listed 14 languages, how many have been added since? Why did India not give the status of national language to any one language? (3 marks) Section C - Diagrams (10 marks) 11. Draw a flowchart showing the three-tier structure of government in India: Union, State and Local, with the rural (gram panchayat, panchayat samiti, zila parishad) and urban (municipality, municipal corporation) bodies. (4 marks) 12. On an outline political map of India, mark and label any three states created in 2000 and any two Union Territories. (3 marks) 13. Draw a chart comparing the Union List, State List and Concurrent List with three subjects in each and the authority that makes laws on them. (3 marks) Section D - Analysis and Higher-order Thinking (15 marks) 14. 'The real success of federalism in India can be attributed to the nature of democratic politics in our country.' Explain this statement with reference to linguistic states, language policy and Centre-State relations. (5 marks) 15. Explain why the creation of linguistic states was feared to lead to the disintegration of India, and why this fear proved wrong. What lessons does India's language policy offer for countries like Sri Lanka? (5 marks) 16. Examine the strengths and weaknesses of local self-government in India after 1992. Why do many gram sabhas meet irregularly, and why do local bodies lack resources? Suggest measures to make decentralisation more effective. (5 marks) Instructions: Time allowed 2 hours. Attempt all sections. Answer in your own words with examples from India. Mark maps neatly and give each chart a title.