Government

Every country needs a body that makes decisions and gets things done for its people. This body is the government. It builds roads and schools, runs hospitals, protects the borders, keeps peace with other countries, and helps people during floods, droughts and earthquakes. In this chapter you will learn that the government works at three levels: the local level for a village, town or city, the state level for a whole state, and the national level for the entire country. Governments make laws that everyone must follow, and citizens can go to court if they feel a law is not being followed or is unfair. The chapter compares types of government. In a monarchy, the king or queen has the power to decide and need not explain decisions to anyone. In a democracy, people give the government its power through elections and the government must explain its actions to them. You will learn about representative democracy, universal adult franchise, the struggle of women and poor people for the right to vote, and why elections are held regularly.

Detailed Worksheet: Government Section A - Definitions (10 marks) 1. What is a government? Name two of its functions. (2 marks) 2. Name the three levels of government in India and give one example of the work done at each level. (2 marks) 3. What is a democracy? How is it different from a monarchy? (2 marks) 4. What is universal adult franchise? At what age can citizens vote in India? (2 marks) 5. What is representative democracy? Why do we need representatives? (2 marks) Section B - Calculations and Applications (15 marks) 6. In an election in a constituency, Candidate P got 42,500 votes, Candidate Q got 38,200 votes and Candidate R got 19,300 votes. (i) Find the total votes cast. (ii) Who won and by what margin? (iii) What percentage of votes did the winner get? (3 marks) 7. A town has 2,00,000 eligible voters. In the last election, 1,30,000 people voted. (i) Find the voter turnout percentage. (ii) How many eligible voters did not vote? (iii) Suggest two reasons why some people do not vote. (3 marks) 8. Match each task with the level of government most likely to handle it: (i) repairing a village drain (ii) running the Indian Army (iii) building a state highway (iv) printing currency (v) running a district hospital (vi) cleaning city streets. (3 marks) 9. Arrange in chronological order: women get the right to vote in India with the Constitution, the suffragette movement in Britain and the USA, the first general elections in independent India, women get the right to vote in the USA (1920). (3 marks) 10. Lok Sabha elections are held every 5 years. If general elections were held in 2019 and 2024, (i) in which year are the next due? (ii) how many general elections will be held between 2024 and 2049, counting both years? (iii) Why are regular elections important? (3 marks) Section C - Diagrams (10 marks) 11. Draw a flowchart showing the three levels of government in India: national, state and local, with one example of a body or official at each level. (4 marks) 12. Draw a labelled sketch of a voter casting a vote in a polling booth, showing the electronic voting machine, the inked finger and the polling officer. (3 marks) 13. Draw a simple bar graph from the following voter turnout data in four villages: Village A 65 percent, Village B 72 percent, Village C 58 percent, Village D 80 percent. (3 marks) Section D - Analysis and Higher-order Thinking (15 marks) 14. Imagine a country without a government. (i) What problems might arise in maintaining peace? (ii) Who would build roads and schools? (iii) How would disputes be settled? (iv) Why do people agree to follow laws made by a government? (5 marks) 15. In the past, women and poor people were not allowed to vote in many countries. (i) Who were the suffragettes? (ii) Why did they protest? (iii) Why did the makers of India's Constitution give every adult the right to vote from the start? (iv) How does this make India's democracy stronger? (5 marks) 16. A government plans to build a dam that will provide water to many cities but will flood several villages. (i) Whose opinions should the government consider? (ii) How can people in a democracy express their views? (iii) What can people do if they feel a law is unfair? (iv) How would this be different in a monarchy? (5 marks) Instructions: Time allowed 2 hours. Attempt all sections. Show the working for all calculations and draw diagrams neatly.