NCERT Solutions Class 8 Social Science Chapter 1 The Indian Constitution

NCERT Solutions for Class 8 Social Science Civics for Chapter 1 The Indian Constitution

1. Why  does a democratic country need  a Constitution?

Answer:

A democratic country  needs a Constitution because:

1. It lays out the  important guidelines that  govern decision  making  within  the various  societies  of the country.
2. It lays down the ideals that  form  the  basis of the  kind of country that  its citizens  aspire  to live  in.
3. It serves as a set of rules and principles which  forms the basis by which a country  has to be governed.
4. It provides rules to safeguard the  interests of minorities and prevent any kind  of domination by the majority section  of the  society.
5. It lays down rules  that  guard  against  the misuse  of power  by any politician leader.
6. It also provides rights to its citizens  and protects their freedom.

2. Look at the  wordings of the two documents given below. The first  column  is from  the  1990  NepaI Constitution. The second column  is from  the more  recent interim Constitution of Nepal.

1990  Constitution of Nepal - Part 7:  Executive - Article  35:  Executive  Power: The executive power  of the Kingdom  of Nepal shall be vested  in His Majesty  and the Council  of Ministers.

2007 Interim Constitution - Part 5: Executive - Article  37: Executive Power:  the executive power of Nepal shall be vested  in the counciI of Ministers.

What is the  difference in who  exercises 'Executive Power' in the  above two  Constitutions of Nepal? Keeping this  in mind, why  do you think Nepal needs a new  Constitution today?

Answer

The difference in who exercises  "Executive Power" in the two  given  Constitutions of Nepal is that  in the 1990

Constitution, this power  was vested  in the  King and his Council of Ministers, while in the  2007 Interim Constitution of Nepal, "Executive Power" changed  hands to being vested  only  in the Council of Ministers, thereby making  Nepal a democracy from  being a monarchy. NepaI needs a new Constitution today  because it is no longer  a monarchy. The older Constitution vested  power in the King, but when the country is now a democracy, a new Constitution is needed  to reflect  the "democratic" ideals of Nepal.

3. What would  happen  if there  were no restrictions on the power  of elected  representatives?

Answer

If there  are no restrictions on the power  of the elected representatives, the  leaders might misuse  the powers given  to them. The Constitution provides safeguards against  this  misuse  of power  by our political leaders.

4. In each of the following situations, identify the minority. Write  one reason  why you think it is important to respect  the views of the minority in each of these situations.

(a) In a school  with  30 teachers, 20 of them  are male.

(b) In a city, 5 per cent of the population is Buddhists.

(c) In a factory mess for all employees, 80 per cent are vegetarians.

(d) In a class of 50 students, 40 belong  to more  well-off families.

Answer

(a) Female teachers  are in minority. The female  teachers must  be allowed  space to voice their  opinion  so that  their efforts at teaching  are not hindered by their  minority status.

(b) Buddhists are in minority. Every individual has the right  to follow  the religion of his/her choice.  People of other  faith  must  respect  the  religion  other  than  their own.

(c) Non-vegetarians are in minority. Food is a personal choice so he/she  should  have the freedom  to eat what he/she  wants.

(d)  Under privileged are in minority. Citizens  cannot  be discriminated on the basis of their  birth  so their  views have to be respected.

5. The column  on the left  lists some of the key features of the Indian Constitution. In the other  column, write  two sentences, in your  own words, on why you think this feature is important:

Key Feature                                 Significance

Federalism

Separation of Powers

Fundamental Rights

Parliamentary Form of Government

Answer

Key features

1. Federalism: It ensures  national  unity  and at the  same time  allows  individual progress. A federal  government allows  the Centre  to hold supreme  power  but its Constituent States  have some power  as well.

2. Separation of Powers: This serves two  purposes: firstly, tyrannical use of power  is avoided  since it does not vest power  in any single authority. Secondly, the three  organs  of power  also work  as a check on each other, thereby maintaining a good balance.

3. Fundamental Rights:  These are important because they  conform  to a humane  society.  They also protect citizens  against  arbitrary and absolute  use of power  by the State.

4. Parliamentary Form of Government: It upholds universal adult  franchise. This entails  the fact that  the people of a country  play a direct  role in electing  their representatives to run the  state  as well as the nation.