Category: CBSE Class 12

Here we are providing Class 12 Hindi Important Extra Questions and Answers Aroh Chapter 18 श्रम-विभाजन और जाति-प्रथा, मेरी कल्पना का आदर्श समाज. Important Questions for Class 12 Hindi are the best resource for students which helps in class 12 board exams.

श्रम-विभाजन और जाति-प्रथा, मेरी कल्पना का आदर्श समाज Class 12 Important Extra Questions Hindi Aroh Chapter 18

प्रश्न 1.
डॉ. आंबेडकर ने जिस आदर्श समाज की संकल्पना की है उस पर लेख लिखिए। (A.I. 2016 Set-III, C.B.S.E. Outside Delhi 2013, Set-I, II, III)
उत्तर
डॉ. आंबेडकर ने एक स्वस्थ आदर्श समाज की संकल्पना की है। इस समाज में स्वतंत्रता, समता और भ्रातृत्व का साम्राज्य होगा। इसमें इतनी गतिशीलता होगी कि कोई भी वांछित परिवर्तन समाज के एक छोर से दूसरे छोर तक संचारित हो सकेगा। समाज के बहुविधि हितों में सबका समान भाग होगा तथा सब उन हितों की रक्षा हेतु सजग रहेंगे। सामाजिक जीवन में अबाध संपर्क के अनेक साधन व अवसर उपलब्ध होंगे। दूध और पानी के मिश्रण की तरह भाईचारा होगा। हर कोई अपने साथियों के प्रति श्रद्धा और सम्मान की भावना रखेगा।

प्रश्न 2.
‘श्रम-विभाजन और जाति-प्रथा’ पाठ के आधार पर मनुष्य की क्षमता किन-किन बातों पर निर्भर रहती है?
उत्तर
‘जाति-भेद-उच्छेद’ पाठ के आधार पर मनुष्य की क्षमता निम्नलिखित बातों के आधार पर निर्भर रहती है
(i) शारीरिक वंश परंपरा के आधार पर।
(ii) सामाजिक उत्तराधिकार अर्थात सामाजिक परंपरा के रूप में माता-पिता की कल्याण कामना, शिक्षा तथा वैज्ञानिक ज्ञानार्जन आदि सभी उपलब्धियाँ जिनके कारण सभ्य समाज, जंगली लोगों की अपेक्षा विशिष्टता प्राप्त करता है।
(iii) मनुष्य के अपने प्रयत्न।

प्रश्न 3.
प्रस्तुत पाठ में लेखक ने समाज की किन-किन समस्याओं की ओर संकेत किया है?
उत्तर
लेखक ने समाज में व्याप्त भुखमरी, बेरोज़गारी, गरीबी, उत्पीड़न, विवशतावश अरुचिपूर्ण कार्य, आर्थिक कमज़ोरी, जाति-प्रथा, श्रम-विभाजन, असमानता, पैतृक पेशे के प्रति चिंता से संबंधित समस्याओं की ओर संकेत किया है।

प्रश्न 4.
पैतृक पेशे से क्या अभिप्राय है? जाति-प्रथा की इसमें क्या भूमिका है?
उत्तर
पैतृक पेशे से तात्पर्य माता-पिता के सामाजिक स्तर के अनुसार मनुष्य को जन्म से ही पेशा या कार्य निर्धारित कर दिया जाता है। यह सब जाति-प्रथा के आधार पर ही निश्चित होता है। जाति-प्रथा पेशे का पूर्व-निर्धारण ही नहीं करती, बल्कि मनुष्य को आजीवन इसी पेशे में बाँध देती है, जिसे मनुष्य चाहकर भी नहीं छोड़ सकता। फिर चाहे यह पेशा अपर्याप्त या अनुपयुक्त ही क्यों न हो। हिंदू धर्म भी जाति-प्रथा को किसी भी मनुष्य को पैतृक पेशे के अलावा कोई भी पेशा चुनने की अनुमति नहीं देती, भले ही मनुष्य उसमें कितना ही कुशल क्यों न हो।

प्रश्न 5.
भारतीय समाज में जातिवाद किस प्रकार फैल रहा है? इसके आधार पर समाज में कौन-सी समस्याएँ पनप रही हैं? टिप्पणी कीजिए।
उत्तर
भारतीय समाज की विडंबना है कि यहाँ जातिवाद के पोषकों की कमी नहीं है। जातिवाद के पोषक इसको फैलाने के लिए अनेक आधारों पर इसका समर्थन करते हैं। वे सभ्य समाज को श्रम-विभाजन को जाति-भेद के द्वारा विभाजित करना चाहते हैं, क्योंकि इनकी दृष्टि में श्रम-विभाजन भी जाति-प्रथा का ही दूसरा रूप है। इसके आधार पर समाज में अनेक समस्याएँ पनप रही हैं
(i) जाति-प्रथा श्रम-विभाजन के आधार पर श्रमिकों को अनेक वर्गों में विभाजित करती है।
(ii) विभाजित वर्गों को एक-दूसरे की अपेक्षा ऊँच-नीच पैदा कर देती है।
(iii) यह मनुष्य के पेशे का पूर्व निर्धारण कर उसे आजीवन उसी पेशे से बाँध देती है जिससे वह नवीन तकनीक के आने पर अपने पेशे में परिवर्तन कर सकता है।
(iv) हिंदू धर्म में जाति-प्रथा किसी भी मनुष्य को पैतृक पेशे के अलावा कोई अन्य पेशा करने की अनुमति नहीं देती।
(v) मनुष्य जाति-प्रथा द्वारा थोपे गए कार्यों को अरुचिपूर्ण तथा विवशतावश करता है।

प्रश्न 6.
लेखक की दृष्टि में आदर्श समाज क्या है?
अथवा
हमें आंबेडकर की कल्पना के आदर्श समाज की आधारभूत बातें संक्षेप में समझाइए। (A.I. C.B.S.E. 2011, Set-II)
अथवा
डॉ. आंबेडकर की कल्पना के आदर्श समाज की तीन विशेषताएँ लिखें। (Delhi 2017, Set-II)
उत्तर
लेखक की दृष्टि में आदर्श समाज वह है
1. जिसमें स्वतंत्रता, समता और भाईचारे का भाव मिले।
2. समाज में परिवर्तन का लाभ सभी को प्राप्त हो।
3. समाज में सभी हितों में सबकी सहभागिता हो।
4. समाज के हित के लिए सभी सजग-सचेत हों।
5. समाज में सभी को संपर्क हेतु समान साधन और अवसर प्राप्त हों।
6. समाज का भाईचारा दूध-पानी के मिश्रण के समान हो।

प्रश्न 7.
लेखक का लोकतंत्र क्या है?
उत्तर
लेखक का लोकतंत्र सामूहिक रीति है। यह समाज के विभिन्न मिले-जुले अनुभवों का आदान-प्रदान है जिसमें सभी के मन में सभी के लिए श्रद्धा और सम्मान का भाव है। यह समाज के निर्माण में पारस्परिक सहयोग है और भेदभाव का पूर्ण रूप से परित्याग है।

प्रश्न 8.
लेखक के विचार से सभ्य समाज में क्या होना चाहिए?
उत्तर
लेखक के अनुसार प्रत्येक मानव को कार्य करने और समान अधिकार प्राप्त करने के बिल्कुल बराबर अवसर प्राप्त होने चाहिए। किसी भी अवस्था में वंश परंपरा और सामाजिक उत्तराधिकार के आधार पर वर्ग और कार्य का निर्धारण नहीं होना चाहिए। जन्म के आधार पर किसी को ऊँचा तो किसी को नीचा नहीं माना जाना चाहिए।

प्रश्न 9.
जात-पात के पक्षधर अपने पक्ष में किन तर्कों का सहारा लेते हैं?
उत्तर
उच्च जातियों के लोग प्राय: जात-पात के भेद का समर्थन करते हुए मानते हैं कि इससे श्रम-विभाजन में सरलता रहती है और समाज में कार्य-कुशलता बढ़ती है।

प्रश्न 10.
जाति-प्रथा के आधार पर किया गया श्रम-विभाजन किन कारणों से अस्वाभाविक माना जाता है?
उत्तर.
1. यह विभाजन मानव की रुचियों और इच्छा पर आधारित नहीं होता।
2. यह जन्म, जाति और परिवार के आधार पर किया जाता है।
3. यह स्वैच्छिक न होकर बंधनपूर्ण रीति से किया जाता है।
4. इसमें उचित क्षमताओं और अवसरों का कोई स्थान नहीं होता।
5. यह ऊँच-नीच और भेदभाव को उत्पन्न करता है जिससे वर्ग विशेष में हीन-भावना उत्पन्न होती है।

प्रश्न 11.
जन्मजात कामधंधों में लोग पूर्ण रूप से कार्यकुशल क्यों नहीं बन बाते?
उत्तर
जन्मजात कामधंधों में कार्यरत लोग निम्नलिखित कारणों से अपने कार्यों में कुशल नहीं हो पाते
1. कार्य में रुचि न होना।
2. थोपे गए काम के प्रति अग्रहण की भावना।
3. जबरदस्ती दिए गए काम के कारण दुर्भावना से ग्रस्तता।
4. काम को टालने की प्रवृत्ति।
5. अपूर्ण ज्ञान और अधूरी शिक्षा।

प्रश्न 12.
आंबेडकर ने लोकतंत्र के लिए क्या आवश्यक माना था?
उत्तर
आंबेडकर ने लोकतंत्र के लिए सबके लिए सम्मान का भाव, एक-दूसरे के प्रति श्रद्धा और विश्वास, भाईचारे की भावना, सबके लिए समान अवसर और सबके साझे अनुभवों का योगदान आवश्यक माना था।

प्रश्न 13.
विश्व के किसी भी समाज में न पाई जाने वाली वह कौन-सी विशेषता है जो भारतीय समाज में पाई जाती है?
उत्तर
भारत की जाति-प्रथा श्रमिकों का अस्वाभाविक विभाजन करने के साथ-साथ विभिन्न वर्गों को एक-दूसरे की अपेक्षा ऊँच-नीच भी निर्धारित कर देती है जो कि विश्व के किसी भी समाज में नहीं है।

प्रश्न 14.
जाति-प्रथा का दूषित सिद्धांत क्या है?
उत्तर
इससे मनुष्य के प्रशिक्षण या उसकी निजी क्षमता पर विचार किए बिना ही गर्भधारण के समय से ही उसका पेशा निर्धारित कर दिया जाता है और इस पेशे से मनुष्य जीवन-भर बँधा रहता है।

प्रश्न 15.
पेशा-परिवर्तन न करने देने से कौन-सी समस्या उत्पन्न होती है?
उत्तर
पेशा-परिवर्तन न करने देने से बेरोजगारी की समस्या उत्पन्न होती है।

प्रश्न 16.
आंबेडकर के ‘दासता’ शब्द से क्या तात्पर्य है?
उत्तर
आंबेडकर ने जाति-प्रथा के आधार पर काम-धंधों को चुनने और उन्हें करने को ‘दासता’ माना है क्योंकि इसमें व्यक्ति को अपनी इच्छा से काम-धंधा चुनने का अवसर प्राप्त नहीं हो पाता। उसे परिवार से प्राप्त परंपरागत कार्य करने के लिए विवश होना पड़ता है जो दासता के समान ही होता है।

प्रश्न 17.
मनुष्यों की क्षमता किन तीन बातों पर निर्भर करती है?
उत्तर
(1) शारीरिक वंश परंपरा
(2) सामाजिक उत्तराधिकार
(3) मनुष्य के अपने प्रयत्न।

महत्वपूर्ण गद्यांशों के अर्थग्रहण संबंधी प्रश्नोत्तर

1.
यह विडंबना की ही बात है, कि इस युग में भी ‘जातिवाद’ के पोषकों की कमी नहीं है। इसके पोषक कई आधारों पर इसका समर्थन करते हैं। समर्थन का एक आधार यह कहा जाता है, कि आधुनिक सभ्य समाज कार्य-कुशलता’ के लिए श्रम-विभाजन को आवश्यक मानता है, और चूँकि जाति-प्रथा भी श्रम विभाजन का ही दूसरा रूप है इसलिए इसमें कोई बुराई नहीं है।

अर्थग्रहण संबंधी प्रश्नोत्तर

प्रश्न
1. लेखक किस विडंबना की बात करता है?
2. वर्तमान युग में भी किनका बोलबाला है?
3. जातिवाद के पोषकों के समर्थन का क्या आधार होता है?
4. जातिवाद के पोषक ‘जाति-प्रथा’ और ‘श्रम विभाजन’ में क्या समानता मानते हैं?
5. इस गद्यांश में लेखक किन लोगों पर व्यंग्य करना चाहते हैं?
उत्तर
1. लेखक वर्तमान युग में भी जातिवाद के पोषकों की कमी नहीं होने की विडंबना की बात करता है।
2. वर्तमान युग में भी जातिवाद के पोषकों का बोलबाला है।
3. जातिवाद के पोषकों के समर्थन का आधार यह होता है कि आधुनिक सभ्य समाज कार्यकुशलता के लिए श्रम विभाजन को आवश्यक मानता है और चूँकि जाति-प्रथा भी श्रम विभाजन का ही दूसरा रूप है, इसलिए इसमें कोई बुराई नहीं है।
4. जातिवाद के पोषक जाति-प्रथा को श्रम विभाजन का ही दूसरा रूप मानते हैं।
5. इस गद्यांश में लेखक वर्तमान युग में जातिवाद के पोषकों पर व्यंग्य करना चाहता है।

2. श्रम-विभाजन, निश्चय ही सभ्य समाज की आवश्यकता है, परंतु किसी भी सभ्य समाज में श्रम विभाजन की व्यवस्था श्रमिकों का विभिन्न वर्गों में अस्वाभाविक विभाजन नहीं करती। भारत की जाति-प्रथा की एक और विशेषता यह है कि यह श्रमिकों का अस्वाभाविक विभाजन ही नहीं करती, बल्कि विभाजित विभिन्न वर्गों को एक-दूसरे की अपेक्षा ऊँच-नीच भी करार देती है, जोकि विश्व के किसी भी समाज में नहीं पाया जाता।

अर्थग्रहण संबंधी प्रश्नोत्तर

प्रश्न
1. प्रस्तुत गद्यांश के लेखक तथा पाठ का नाम बताएँ।
2. भारत की जाति-प्रथा की क्या विशेषता है?
3. विश्व के किसी भी समाज में क्या नहीं पाया जाता?
4. भारतीय जाति-प्रथा समाज के विभिन्न वर्गों को कैसे विभाजित करती है?

उत्तर
1. प्रस्तुत गद्यांश के लेखक बाबा साहिब भीमराव आंबेडकर हैं। इस गद्यांश के पाठ का नाम ‘श्रम विभाजन और जाति-प्रथा’ है।
2. जाति-प्रथा श्रम-विभाजन का ही दूसरा रूप है। यह श्रमिकों का अस्वाभाविक विभाजन ही नहीं करती बल्कि विभाजित विभिन्न वर्गों को एक-दूसरे की अपेक्षा ऊँच-नीच भी मानती है। 3. जाति-प्रथा द्वारा एक तो श्रमिकों का अस्वाभाविक विभाजन तथा इसके साथ-साथ विभिन्न वर्गों को एक-दूसरे की अपेक्षा ऊँच-नीच भी करार देना विश्व के किसी भी समाज में नहीं पाया जाता।
4. भारतीय जाति प्रथा-समाज को विभिन्न वर्गों में विभाजित करके उनमें एक-दूसरे की अपेक्षा ऊँच-नीचत की भावना पैदा करती है।

3. जाति-प्रथा पेशे का दोषपूर्ण पूर्व-निर्धारण ही नहीं करती, बल्कि मनुष्य को जीवन-भर के लिए एक पेशे में बाँध भी देती है। भले ही पेशा अनुपयुक्त या अपर्याप्त होने के कारण वह भूखों मर जाए। आधुनिक युग में यह स्थिति प्रायः आती है, क्योंकि उद्योग-धंधों की प्रक्रिया व तकनीक में निरंतर विकास और कभी-कभी अकस्मात परिवर्तन हो जाता है, जिसके कारण मनुष्य को अपना पेशा बदलने की आवश्यकता पड़ सकती है और यदि प्रतिकूल परिस्थितियों में भी मनुष्य को अपना पेशा बदलने की स्वतंत्रता न हो, तो इसके लिए भूखों मरने के अलावा क्या चारा रह जाता है?

अर्थग्रहण संबंधी प्रश्नोत्तर

प्रश्न
1. जाति-प्रथा किसका पूर्व-निर्धारण करती है और कैसे?
2. जाति-प्रथा के आधार पर पेशे के पूर्व निर्धारण की आधुनिक युग में क्या स्थिति है?
3. जाति-प्रथा के आधार पर पेशे के पूर्व निर्धारण की स्थिति आज के युग में आती है, कैसे?
4. जाति-प्रथा का दूषित सिद्धांत क्या है?
उत्तर
1. जाति-प्रथा पेशे का दोषपूर्ण पूर्व-निर्धारण करती है। इसके साथ-साथ वह मनुष्य को जीवन भर के लिए एक पेशे में बाँध भी देती है, भले ही मनुष्य पेशे के अपर्याप्त होने के कारण भूखा ही मर जाए।
2. जाति-प्रथा के आधार पर पेशे के पूर्व निर्धारण की स्थिति आधुनिक युग में प्रायः आती है। आज विज्ञान की तरक्की होने से उद्योग-धंधों की प्रक्रिया एवं तकनीक से परिवर्तन तथा विकास हो रहा है, जिससे व्यक्ति को अपना पेशा बदलना पड़ सकता है। ऐसी स्थिति में यदि उसे पेशा बदलने की स्वतंत्रता न हो तो वह भूखा ही मरेगा।
3. जाति-प्रथा के आधार पर पेशे के पूर्व-निर्धारण की स्थिति आज आतंकी इसलिए है क्योंकि आज विज्ञान की उन्नति होने से उद्योग-धंधों की प्रक्रिया तथा तकनीक में निरंतर विकास हो रहा है। कभी-कभी तो अकस्मात परिवर्तन भी हो जाता है जिसके कारण मनुष्य को अपना पेशा बदलना पड़ सकता है। लेकिन जाति-प्रथा के पूर्व-निर्धारण में यदि मनुष्य को पेशा बदलने की स्वतंत्रता न हो तो उसे भूखों मरना पड़ सकता है।
4. जाति-प्रथा का दूषित सिद्धांत है-पेशे का पूर्व-निर्धारण, जिसमें मनुष्य की निजी क्षमता तथा कुशलता का विचार किए बिना ही माता-पिता के सामाजिक स्तर के अनुसार गर्भधारण के समय ही उसका पेशा निर्धारित कर दिया जाता है।

4. जाति-प्रथा को यदि श्रम विभाजन मान लिया जाए, तो यह स्वाभाविक विभाजन नहीं है, क्योंकि यह मनुष्य की रुचि पर आधारित नहीं है। कुशल व्यक्ति या सक्षम श्रमिक समाज का निर्माण करने के लिए यह आवश्यक है कि हम व्यक्तियों की क्षमता इस सीमा तक विकसित करें, जिससे वह अपना पेशा या कार्य का चुनाव स्वयं कर सके। इस सिद्धांत के विपरीत जाति-प्रथा का दूषित सिद्धांत यह है कि इससे मनुष्य के प्रशिक्षण अथवा निजी क्षमता का विचार किए बिना दूसरे की दृष्टिकोण जैसे माता-पिता के सामाजिक स्तर के अनुसार, पहले से ही अर्थात गर्भधारण के समय से ही मनुष्य का पेशा निर्धारित कर दिया जाता है।

अर्थग्रहण संबंधी प्रश्नोत्तर

प्रश्न
1. जाति-प्रथा श्रम विभाजन का स्वाभाविक विभाजन क्यों नहीं है?
2. सक्षम-श्रमिक-समाज का निर्माण करने के लिए क्या आवश्यक है?
3. जाति-प्रथा का दूषित सिद्धांत क्या है? स्पष्ट कीजिए।
4. क्या आपके विचार से जाति-प्रथा के आधार पर श्रम विभाजन होना चाहिए ? क्यों?
5. उपर्युक्त गद्यांश के लेखक एवं पाठ का नाम लिखिए।
उत्तर
1. जाति-प्रथा श्रम-विभाजन का स्वाभाविक विभाजन इसलिए नहीं है क्योंकि यह विभाजन मनुष्य की रुचि पर आधारित नहीं है।
2. का निर्माण करने के लिए यह आवश्यक है कि हम व्यक्तियों की क्षमता इस सीमा तक विकसित करें जिससे वह अपना पेशा या कार्य का चुनाव स्वयं कर सके।
3. जाति-प्रथा का दृषित सिद्धांत यह है कि इससे मनुष्य के प्रशिक्षण अथवा उसकी निजी क्षमता का विचार किए बिना माता-पिता के सामाजिक स्तर के अनुसार गर्भ धारण के समय से ही मनुष्य का पेशा निर्धारित कर दिया जाता है।
4. नहीं, हमारे विचार से जाति-प्रथा के आधार पर बम विभाजन नहीं होना चाहिए, क्योंकि इससे मनुष्य की व्यक्तिगत रुचि, क्षमता एवं भावनाओं का ह्रास होता है।
5. उपर्युक्त गद्यांश के लेखक बाबा भीमराव आंबेडकर तथा पाठ का नाम ‘श्रम विभाजन और जाति-प्रथा’ है।

5. किसी भी आदर्श समाज में इतनी गतिशीलता होनी चाहिए जिससे कोई भी वांछित परिवर्तन समाज के एक छोर से दूसरे छोर तक संचारित हो सके। ऐसे समाज के विधि हितों में सबका भाग होना चाहिए तथा सबको उनकी रक्षा के प्रति सजग रहना चाहिए। सामाजिक जीवन में अबाध संपर्क के अनेक साधन व अवसर उपलब्ध रहने चाहिए। तात्पर्य यह कि दूध-पानी के मिश्रण की तरह – भाईचारे का यही वास्तविक रूप है और इसी का दूसरा नाम लोकतंत्र है।

अर्थग्रहण संबंधी प्रश्नोत्तर

प्रश्न
1. गद्यांश के लेखक तथा पाठ का नाम लिखिए।
2. एक आदर्श समाज में कितनी गतिशीलता होनी चाहिए?
3. एक आदर्श समाज में मनुष्य की क्या भूमिका है?
4. लेखक के अनुसार आदर्श समाज में क्या वांछनीय है?
5. लेखक के अनुसार लोकतंत्र क्या है?
उल्लर
1. इस गद्यांश के लेखक बाबा साहिब भीमराव आंबेडकर है तथा इसके पाठ का नाम ‘मेरी कल्पना का आदर्श समाज’ है।
2. एक आदर्श समाज में इतनी गतिशीलता होनी चाहिए कि कोई भी वांछित परिवर्तन समाज के एक छोर से दूसरे छोर तक संचारित हो सके।
3. एक आदर्श समाज के बहुविधि हितों में प्रत्येक मनुष्य का भाग होना चाहिए तथा प्रत्येक मनुष्य को उसकी रक्षा के लिए सजग रहना चाहिए। मनुष्य को समाज के प्रति अपने कर्तव्यों का पालन करना चाहिए।
4. लेखक के अनुसार आदर्श समाज में इतनी गतिशीलता होनी चाहिए जिससे कोई भी वांछित परिवर्तन समाज के एक छोर से दूसरे छोर तक संचारित हो सके। समाज में बहुविधि हितों में सबका भाग होना चाहिए तथा सबको उसकी रक्षा के प्रति सजग रहना चाहिए। सामाजिक जीवन में अबाध संपर्क के अनेक साधन तथा अवसर उपलब्ध रहने चाहिए।
5. लोकतंत्र केवल शासन की एक पद्धति नहीं है बल्कि लोकतंत्र मूलतः सामूहिक जीवनचर्चा की एक रीति तथा समाज के सम्मिलित अनुभवों के आदान-प्रदान का नाम है।

6. ‘समता’ का औचित्य यहीं पर समाप्त नहीं होता। इसका और भी आधार उपलब्ध है। एक राजनीतिज्ञ पुरुष का बहुत बड़ी जनसंख्या से पाला पड़ता है। अपनी जनता से व्यवहार करते समय, राजनीतिज्ञ के पास न तो इतना समय होता है न प्रत्येक के विषय में इतनी जानकारी ही होती है, जिससे वह सबकी अलग-अलग आवश्यकताओं तथा क्षमताओं के आधार पर वांछित अलग-अलग व्यवहार कर सके।

वैसे भी आवश्यकताओं व क्षमताओं के आधार पर भिन्न व्यवहार कितना भी आवश्यक व औचित्यपूर्ण क्यों न हो, ‘मानवता’ के दृष्टिकोण से समाज को दो वर्गों व श्रेणियों में नहीं बाँटा जा सकता। ऐसी स्थिति में राजनीतिज्ञ को अपने व्यवहार में एक व्यवहार्य सिद्धांत की आवश्यकता रहती है और यह व्यवहार्य सिद्धांत यही होता है कि सब मनुष्यों के साथ समान व्यवहार किया जाए। राजनीतिज्ञ यह व्यवहार इसलिए नहीं करता कि सब लोग समान होते हैं, बल्कि इसलिए कि वर्गीकरण एवं श्रेणीकरण संभव नहीं होता है।

इस प्रकार ‘समता’ यद्यपि काल्पनिक जगत की वस्तु है, फिर भी राजनीतिज्ञ को सभी परिस्थितियों को दृष्टि में रखते हुए, उसके लिए यही मार्ग भी रहता है, क्योंकि यही व्यावहारिक भी है और यही उसके व्यवहार की एकमात्र कसौटी भी है। (C.B.S.E. Model Q.Paper 2008)

अर्थग्रहण संबंधी प्रश्नोत्तर

प्रश्न
1. एक राजनीतिज्ञ का किससे पाला पड़ता है?
2. एक राजनीतिज्ञ जनता के प्रत्येक व्यक्ति से अलग-अलग व्यवहार क्यों नहीं कर सकता है?
3. किसके दृष्टिकोण से समाज को दो वर्गों में नहीं बाँटा जा सकता?
4. समता एक राजनीतिज्ञ के लिए क्या है? 5. समता क्या है?
उत्तर
1. एक राजनीतिज्ञ का समाज की बहुत बड़ी जनसंख्या से पाला पड़ता है।
2. एक राजनीतिज्ञ जनता के प्रत्येक व्यक्ति से अलग-अलग व्यवहार इसलिए नहीं कर सकता क्योंकि राजनीतिज्ञ के पास न तो ज्यादा समय
होता है और न ही प्रत्येक व्यक्ति के बारे में कोई अधिक जानकारी होती है।
3. मानवता के दृष्टिकोण से समाज को दो वर्गों में नहीं बाँटा जा सकता।
4. समता एक राजनीतिज्ञ के लिए उत्तम साधन है। यह उसके लिए व्यावहारिक भी है और यही उसके व्यवहार की एकमात्र कसौटी भी है।
5. समता काल्पनिक जगत की वस्तु है।

 

Here we are providing Class 12 Hindi Important Extra Questions and Answers Aroh Chapter 17 शिरीष के फूल. Important Questions for Class 12 Hindi are the best resource for students which helps in class 12 board exams.

शिरीष के फूल Class 12 Important Extra Questions Hindi Aroh Chapter 17

प्रश्न 1.
‘शिरीष के फूल’ निबंध का मूल भाव स्पष्ट कीजिए।
अथवा
शिरीष के फूल निबंध की मूल चेतना को अपने शब्दों में लिखिए।
उत्तर
आचार्य हजारी प्रसाद द्विवेदी द्वारा रचित निबंध शिरीष के फूल’ विपरीत और कठिन परिस्थितियों में भी जीवन की प्रेरणा और मजबूत इच्छा-शक्ति का परिचायक है। मानव को सुख-दुःख, आशा-निराशा, राग-विराग, प्रेम-विरह आदि परिस्थितियों से जूझना पड़ता है। लेकिन सुखपूर्वक वही व्यक्ति जीता है जो इन परिस्थितियों से अनासक्त रहकर संघर्ष करता है, वही शिरीष के फूल की भांति जीवनयापन कर सकता है। जिस मनुष्य में इच्छा-शक्ति कमजोर होती है वह अधिक देर तक नहीं चल सकता। कठोर परिस्थितियाँ उसे अपने अंदर समेट लेती हैं।

जेठ मास की भयंकर गर्मी में भी शिरीष का फूल हरी-भरी पत्तियों से युक्त सघन छाया देता है। चारों ओर अपने सौंदर्य को बिखेरता रहता है। यह कालजयी अवधूत की तरह जीवन की अजेयता का संदेश देकर जीने की प्रेरणा प्रदान करता है। वह बताता है कि कठिन और प्रतिकूल परिस्थितियों में भी अनासक्त भाव से जीवन जीया जा सकता है बशर्ते जीने की इच्छाशक्ति होनी चाहिए। कबीरदास और कालिदास संसार के अवधूत रहे हैं जिन्होंने अपने आप जीने की राह बनाई। शिरीष के फूल की तरह प्रतिकूल परिस्थितियों से संघर्ष करते हुए संसार को जीवन की प्रेरणा प्रदान की।

लेखक कहता है कि शिरीष के फूल जहाँ बहुत कोमल होते हैं वहाँ उसके फल बहुत कठोर होते हैं। वे वसंत आने पर भी नहीं झड़ते बल्कि शाखाओं पर ही वसंती हवा में खड़-खड़ की ध्वनि करते रहते हैं। वे उन बूढ़े नेताओं की याद दिलाते हैं जो अपना पद छोड़ने को तब तक तैयार नहीं होते जब तक नई पीढ़ी के लोग उन्हें धक्का मारकर पीछे नहीं धकेल देते। लेखक ने इसके माध्यम से यह संदेश दिया है कि प्रत्येक मनुष्य को अपनी स्थिति और अवस्था को समझना चाहिए। पुराने पत्ते झड़ जाने पर ही नए पत्तों को जगह मिलती है।

संसार में बुढ़ापा और मृत्यु शाश्वत है। फिर यहाँ टिके रहने की कामना व्यर्थ है। यमराज को कोई धोखा नहीं दे सकता। लेखक ने मनुष्य को शिरीष के फूल के माध्यम से प्रेरणा दी है कि सुख-दुःख में कभी हार नहीं माननी चाहिए। शिरीष जैसे वायुमंडल से ही जीवन-रस प्राप्त करता है उसी प्रकार महात्मा गांधी ने भी अपने वातावरण से जीवन-रस प्राप्त किया था।

जो अनासक्त योगी की तरह कार्य करता है उसे ही जीवन में आगे बढ़ने की क्षमता प्राप्त होती है। कालिदास की सौंदर्य-चेतना, कबीरदास की फक्कड़ अनासक्त मस्ती, सुमित्रानंदन पंत की अनासक्ति और गांधी जी की कोमलता-कठोरता शिरीष के फूल के समान ही है। महान वही बनता है जो प्रतिकूल परिस्थितियों से संघर्ष कर उसे अपने अनुकूल बनाने की शक्ति रखता हो। परिस्थितियों से हार मानने वाला जीवन-राह में ही नष्ट हो जाता है।

प्रश्न 2.
‘शिरीष के फूल’ निबंध की भाषा-शैली को स्पष्ट कीजिए।
उत्तर
शिरीष के फूल हजारी प्रसाद द्विवेदी का प्रसिद्ध ललित निबंध है। यह निबंध भाषा-शैली की दृष्टि से भी अत्यंत उच्च है। द्विवेदी जी ने इस निबंध में खड़ी बोली का सुंदर प्रयोग किया है। यह भाषा अत्यंत सरल, सरस व भावानुकूल है। इनकी भाषा भावों को व्यक्त करने में पूर्ण समर्थ है। इसमें एक ओर जहाँ तत्सम शब्दावली का प्रचुर प्रयोग है वहाँ दूसरी ओर तद्भव, अरबी-फ़ारसी-उर्दू, साधारण बोलचाल की भाषाओं के शब्दों का भी प्रयोग हुआ है। लेखक का वाक्य-विन्यास भावानुकूल एवं विषयानुकूल है। सरल वाक्यों के साथ

गंभीर विषय को स्पष्ट करने हेतु जटिल वाक्यों का भी प्रयोग किया है। मुहावरों और लोकोक्तियों के प्रयोग से इनकी भाषा में रोचकता एवं प्रवाहमयता उत्पन्न हो गई है। इन्होंने हिम्मत करना, दहक उठना, आँख बचाना, दमक उठना, न उधो का लेना न माधो का देना आदि मुहावरे और लोकोक्तियों का सार्थक एवं सटीक प्रयोग किया है। इन्होंने मुख्यतः विवरणात्मक शैली का प्रयोग किया है। इसके साथ विचारात्मक, भावात्मक एवं व्यंग्यात्मक शैलियों का भी समायोजन है। इनकी शैली अत्यंत प्रौढ़ एवं व्यवस्थित है।

प्रश्न 3.
लेखक जहाँ बैठकर लिख रहा था उसके आस-पास का दृश्य कैसा था?
उत्तर
लेखक जहाँ बैठकर लिख रहा था उसके आगे-पीछे, दाएं-बाएँ शिरीष के अनेक बड़े-बड़े पेड़ थे, जो जेठ की जलती दोपहरी में भी फूलों से लदे हुए सुगंध और छाया प्रदान कर रहे थे।

प्रश्न 4.
गर्मियों में फूलने वाले किन पेड़ों की गणना लेखक ने की है?
उत्तर
शिरीष के साथ लेखक ने कर्णिकार (कनेर) और आरम्वध (अमलतास) के पेड़ों की गणना की है। इनमें से कनेर के पेड़ बड़े छायादार होते ही नहीं और अमलतास पंद्रह-बीस दिन के लिए अपने पीले फूलों की शोभा बिखराते है और फिर फूलों से रहित हो जाते हैं। वे तो क्षणजीवी माने जा सकते हैं।

प्रश्न 5.
शिरीष के फलों की क्या विशेषता बताई गई है?
उत्तर
शिरीष के पेड़ों पर फूल वसंत मास में आने शुरू हो जाते हैं और आषाढ़ तक फूले रहते हैं। कभी-कभी तो भादों तक उनकी डालियाँ फूलों से लदी रहती हैं और उनकी मंद-मंद गंध वातावरण को सुवासित बनाए रखती है।

प्रश्न 6.
लेखक ने किसे और क्यों कहा है कि ऐसे दमदारों से तो लंड्रे भले’?
लेखक ने पलाश के पेड़ के लिए कहा है कि वे दस दिन फूलकर फिर खंखड़ के खंखड़ रह जाते हैं-इसका क्या लाभ ?
उत्तर
जिसके पास जो गुण है वे देर तक रहने चाहिए या वे होने ही नहीं चाहिए। कोई दुमदार सुंदर पक्षी पंख प्राप्त कर कुछ दिन अपनी शोभा दिखाता है; नाचता है। आकृष्ट करता है और फिर उसके पंख झड़ जाते हैं, वह पूँछ कटा हो जाता है तो उसका क्या लाभ ? यदि कोई पंखहीन है तो वह ऐसा ही है। कम-से-कम उसे कुरूपता तो नहीं झेलनी पड़ती।

प्रश्न 7.
अन्य वृक्षों की अपेक्षा शिरीष के वृक्षों में कौन-सी विशेषता विद्यमान होती है?
उत्तर
शिरीष के पेड़ वसंत और फागुन के रसीले महीनों में प्रकृति से स्वाभाविक रूप से रस प्राप्त करता है, पर जला-मुलसा देने वाली गरमी में इसकी मजबूती और सहनशक्ति का परिचय मिलता है जब ये सूर्य की प्रचंड गर्मी का सामना करते हुए अलसाती लू में भी लहलहाता रहता है। सबको शीतलता प्रदान करता है। यह विपरीत परिस्थितियों को भी सरलता से खेलने की क्षमता रखता है।

प्रश्न 8.
वात्स्यायन ने कैसे पेड़ों पर झूला लगाने की बात कही है?
उत्तर
वात्स्यायन ने अपनी पुस्तक ‘कामसूत्र’ में कहा है कि घने छायादार वृक्षों पर ही झूले लगाने चाहिए। इस कार्य के लिए बकुल के वृक्ष अधिक उपयोगी रहते हैं।

प्रश्न 9.
पुराने भारत में रईस लोग चारदीवारी के निकट किन छायादार वृक्षों को लगवाया करते थे और क्यों ?
उत्तर
रईस लोग अपने भवनों की चारदीवारी के साथ घने, बड़े और छायादार वृक्ष लगवाया करते थे। शिरीष, अशोक, अरिष्ट, पुन्नाग आदि अपनी घनी छाया और हरेपन में अत्यंत मनोहर प्रतीत होते होंगे, इसी कारण वे इनको प्राथमिकता देते थे।

प्रश्न 10.
लेखक ने मोटे और भारी शरीर वाले राजाओं पर क्या व्यंग्य किया है?
उत्तर
वात्स्यायन ने अपने कामसूत्र में बकुल की मजबूत डालियों पर झूला डालने का परामर्श दिया था। लेखक का मानना है कि शिरीष की डालियाँ चाहे कुछ कमजोर होती हैं पर वे आसानी से झूलने वाली कोमल और नाजुक युवतियों का भार तो संभाल ही सकती हैं। यदि मोटे और भारी शरीर वाले राजाओं को भी झूला झूलना हो तो वे चाहें तो अपने लिए लोहे के पेड़ लगवा लें।

प्रश्न 11.
शिरीष के फूलों की कोमलता के विषय में संस्कृत साहित्य में क्या माना जाता रहा है?
उत्तर
शिरीष के फूलों की कोमलता के विषय में कहा गया है कि ये केवल भंवरों के पैरों का कोमल दबाव ही झेल सकते हैं, पक्षियों का बिल्कुल नहीं।

प्रश्न 12.
लेखक ने शिरीष के पुराने फलों पर क्या टिप्पणी की है?
उत्तर
शिरीष के पुराने फल लंबी-लंबी फलियों में बंद होकर महीनों तक वृक्ष की शाखाओं से लटके रहते हैं। उसके फूल सूख जाते हैं, पत्ते झड़ जाते हैं, पर वे देश के ढीठ नेताओं की तरह अपनी जगह छोड़ने को तैयार ही नहीं होते। जब नए पत्ते, फल-फूल आते हैं तो वे उन्हें धक्का मार कर नीचे फेंकते हैं तभी वो पेड़ का पीछा छोड़ते हैं। यह उनकी बूढ़े नेताओं की तरह कुर्सी पर जमे रहने की बुरी आदत है।

प्रश्न 13.
लेखक देश के राजनेताओं से क्या अपेक्षा रखता है?
उत्तर
लेखक चाहता है कि देश के राजनेता समय पर अपनी गद्दी और राजनीति को छोड़ दें। वे अपने से अगली पीढ़ी को समय से स्थान दें जिससे उन्हें भी अपनी क्षमता और कौशल दिखाने का भरपूर अवसर और समय मिल सके।

प्रश्न 14.
लेखक के अनुसार महाकाल देवता के कोड़ों की मार से कौन बच सकता है?
उत्तर
लेखक के अनुसार जो लोग ऊर्ध्वमुखी होते हैं, ऊपर की ओर बढ़ते हैं वे ही महाकाल देवता के कोड़ों की मार से बच सकते हैं। मानव को अपने जीवन में सही मार्ग पर ही आगे बढ़ना चाहिए। जो मूर्ख यहाँ बने रहना चाहते हैं; कालदेवता से आँख बचाना चाहते हैं वही उनकी मार खाते हैं।

प्रश्न 15.
लेखक ने शिरीष को अद्भुत अवधूत क्यों माना है?
उत्तर
शिरीष ऐसा अद्भुत अवधूत है जो किसी से हार ही नहीं मानता। न ऊधो का लेना, न माधो का देना। जब धरती और आसमान गर्मी से जल रहे होते हैं तब भी शिरीष का वृक्ष न जाने कहाँ से रस खींच कर हरा-भरा लहलहाता रहता है और आठों याम मस्ती में झूमता रहता है।

प्रश्न 16.
कर्णाट-राज की प्रिया विजिका देवी ने गर्वपूर्ण ढंग से क्या कहा था?
उत्तर
कर्णाट-राज की प्रिया विज्जिका देवी ने कहा था कि एक कवि ब्रह्मा थे, दूसरे वाल्मीकि और तीसरे व्यास। एक ने वेदों को प्रदान किया, दूसरे ने रामायण दी और तीसरे ने महाभारत प्रदान की। इनके अतिरिक्त यदि कोई और कवि होने का दावा करता है तो मैं उसके सिर पर अपना बायाँ चरण रखती हूँ।

प्रश्न 17.
राजा दुष्यंत शकुंतला के चित्र को बनाते समय क्या बनाना भूल गए थे?
उत्तर
राजा दुष्यंत शकुंतला के कानों पर शिरीष पुष्प बनाना भूल गए थे जिसके केसर गंडस्थल तक लटके हुए थे। साथ ही वे शरद ऋतु के चंद्र की किरणों के समान कोमल और शुभ्र मृणाल का हार बनाना भी भूल गए थे।

प्रश्न 18.
किसी सामान्य कवि और कालिदास में क्या अंतर था?
उत्तर
सामान्य कवि भावों की गहराई में गए बिना ही छंद, अलंकार, तुक, शब्द, लय आदि में डूबकर रह जाता है, जबकि कालिदास काव्य-रचना करते समय पूरी तरह से अनासक्त रहते थे। वे वास्तव में ही स्थिरप्रज्ञ थे।

प्रश्न 19.
लेखक ने गांधी और शिरीष की आपस में तुलना क्यों की है? (C.B.S.E. Outside Delhi 2013, Set-I, Set-II, Set-III)
उत्तर
शिरीष विपरीत स्थितियों में भी डटकर कष्टों को झेलता है और सभी को छाया और सुगंध प्रदान करता है। प्रचंड लू भी उसका कुछ नहीं बिगाड़ पाती। महात्मा गांधी भी अंग्रेजी शासनकाल की खून-खच्चर भरी राजनीति में अपने प्रेमपूर्ण व्यवहार से अहिंसा और उदारता का पाठ देशवासियों को पढ़ाते रहे जिसके परिणामस्वरूप देश ने स्वतंत्रता प्राप्त की थी। इसी कारण लेखक ने दोनों की तुलना की है।

प्रश्न 20.
लेखक ने कालिदास और कबीर को क्या माना है?
उत्तर
लेखक ने कालिदास को अनासक्त योगी माना है। कबीर को शिरीष की तरह मस्त, बेपरवाह पर सरस और मादक माना है।

प्रश्न 21.
हजारी प्रसाद द्विवेदी के द्वारा नेताओं और कुछ पुराने व्यक्तियों की अधिकार लिप्सा पर किए गए व्यंग्य को स्पष्ट कीजिए।
उत्तर
हजारी प्रसाद द्विवेदी ने नेताओं और कुछ पुराने व्यक्तियों की लिप्सा पर कटु व्यंग्य किया है। उनका कथन है कि जो संसार में आया है उसका जाना निश्चित है। जन्म-मृत्यु जीवन के शाश्वत सत्य हैं। समय परिवर्तनशील है जो सबको मिटा देता है। इस पर भी नेताओं और पुराने व्यक्तियों की अधिकार लिप्सा शांत नहीं होती। न जाने वे अपने अधिकारों पर ही क्यों जमे रहना चाहते हैं। वे समय रहते सावधान क्यों नहीं हो जाते। उन्हें ज्ञात होना चाहिए कि बुढ़ापा और मृत्यु इस संसार के शाश्वत सत्य हैं जो एक दिन सबको आना है। इसलिए नेता और पुराने व्यक्ति भी इस समय से बच नहीं सकते।

महत्वपूर्ण गद्यांशों के अर्थग्रहण संबंधी प्रश्नोत्तर

1. फूल है शिरीष । वसंत के आगमन के साथ लहक उठता है, आषाढ़ तक जो निश्चित रूप से मस्त बना रहता है। मन रम गया तो भरे भादों में भी निर्घात फूलता रहता है। जब उमस से प्राण उबलता रहता है और लू से हृदय सूखता रहता है, एकमात्र शिरीष कालजई अवधूत की भाँति जीवन की अजेयता का मंत्र प्रचार करता रहता है।

अर्थग्रहण संबंधी प्रश्नोत्तर

पर
1. गद्यांश के पाठ तथा लेखक का नाम लिखिए।
2. वह कौन-सा फूल है जो अत्यधिक गर्मी में भी खिला-फूला रहता है।
3. लेखक ने किसको कालजई अवधूत की संज्ञा दी है और क्यों?
4. शिरीष के फूल का परिचय दीजिए।
5. शिरीष का फूल अपने जीवन की अजेयता के मंत्र का प्रचार कैसे करता है?
उत्तर
1. गद्यांश के पाठ का नाम ‘शिरीष के फूल’ तथा लेखक का नाम हजारी प्रसाद द्विवेदी है।
2. वह शिरीष का फूल है जो अत्यधिक गर्मी व लू में भी खिला रहता है।
3. लेखक ने शिरीष के फूल को कालजई अवधूत की संज्ञा दी है क्योंकि यह अकेला फूल ही ऐसा है जो भयंकर गर्मी की तपन में भी खिला रहता है। जिस भयंकर गर्मी में अन्य समस्त फूल सूख जाते हैं उसमें यह शिरीष गर्मी से संघर्ष करता हुआ खिला रहता है।
4. शिरीष का फूल वसंत के आगमन के साथ ही लहक उठता है। यह आषाढ़ तक निश्चित रूप से मस्त बना रहता है और भादों में भी निर्धात फूला रहता है। भयंकर गर्मी जिसमें प्राण उबलने लगते हैं उसमें भी यह खिला रहता है।
5. भादों मास की भयंकर लू तथा उमस से जब प्राण उबलने लगते हैं, हृदय सूख जाता है। इस भयंकर गर्मी में अन्य सभी पेड़-पौधे झुलस उठते हैं लेकिन अकेला शिरीष का फूल ही ऐसा है जो इस लू में भी खिलता रहता है। वह भयंकर लू से संघर्ष करता हुआ निरंतर महकता रहता है। इस प्रकार शिरीष का फूल अपने जीवन की अजेयता के मंत्र का प्रचार करता है।

2. यद्यपि पुराने कवि बकुल के पेड़ में ऐसी दोलाओं को लगा देखना चाहते थे, पर शिरीष भी क्या बुरा है। डाल इसकी अपेक्षाकृत कमज़ोर ज़रूर होती है, पर उसमें झूलने वालियों का वजन भी तो बहुत ज्यादा नहीं होता। कवियों की यही तो बुरी आदत है कि वजन का एकदम ख्याल नहीं करते। मैं तुंदिल नरपतियों की बात नहीं कह रहा हूँ, वे चाहें तो लोहे का पेड़ बनवा लें।

अर्थग्रहण संबंधी प्रश्नोत्तर

प्रश्न
1. पुराने कवि बकुल के पेड़ में कैसी दोलाओं में लगा देखना चाहते थे?
2. लेखक कवियों की कौन-सी बुरी आदत मानता है?
3. लेखक के अनुसार कौन-से लोग लोहे के पेड़ बनवा सकते हैं?
4. लेखक शिरीष की डोल पर किनके झलने की कल्पना करता है?
उन्ता
1. पुराने कवि बकुल की डालियों पर दोलाओं (झूलों) को लगा देखना चाहते थे जिन पर महिलाएं झुलती थीं।
2. लेखक कवियों की यह बुरी आदत मानता है कि वे वजन का एकदम ख्याल नहीं करते थे।
3. लेखक के अनुसार तुंदिल नरपति अर्थात बड़े लोग लोहे के पेड़ बनवा सकते हैं।
4. लेखक शिरीष की डाल पर कोमल शाखाओं रूपी नायिकाओं के झूलने की कल्पना करता है।

3. वसंत के आगमन के समय जब सारी वनस्थली पुष्प-पत्र से मर्मरित होती रहती है, शिरीष के पुराने फल बुरी तरह खड़खड़ाते रहते हैं। मुझे इनको देखकर उन नेताओं की बात याद आती है, जो किसी प्रकार जमाने का रुख नहीं पहचानते और जब तक नई पौध के लोग उन्हें धक्का मारकर निकाल नहीं देते तब तक जमे रहते हैं।

अर्थग्रहण संबंधी प्रश्नोत्तर

प्रश्न
1. वसंत के आगमन पर वनस्पति कैसी होती है?
2. वसंत के आने पर शिरीष पर क्या प्रभाव पड़ता है?
3. शिरीष के पुराने फलों को खड़खड़ाते देखकर लेखक को किनकी याद आती है?
4. इस गद्यांश में लेखक कैसे नेताओं पर व्यंग्य करता है?
5. उपर्युक्त गद्यांश के लेखक का क्या नाम है?
उत्तर
1. वसंत के आगमन पर वनस्थली पुष्प-पत्र से मर्मरित होती रहती है।
2. वसंत के आने पर शिरीष के पुराने फल बुरी तरह खड़खड़ाते रहते हैं।
3. लेखक को शिरीष के पुराने फलों को खड़खड़ाते देखकर उन नेताओं की याद आती है जो किसी प्रकार जमाने का रुख नहीं पहचानते।
4. इस गद्यांश में लेखक उन नेताओं पर व्यंग्य करता हैं जो किसी तरह जमाने का रुख नहीं पहचानते और जब तक नई पौध के लोग उन्हें धक्का मारकर निकाल नहीं देते तब तक जमे रहते हैं।
5. उपर्युक्त गद्यांश के लेखक का नाम आचार्य हजारी प्रसाद द्विवेदी है।

4. मैं सोचता हूँ कि पुराने की यह अधिकार-लिप्सा क्यों नहीं समय रहते सावधान हो जाती? जरा और मृत्यु, ये दोनों ही जगत के अतिपरिचित और अतिप्रामाणिक सत्य हैं। तुलसीदास ने अफसोस के साथ इनकी सच्चाई पर मोहर लगाई थी-‘धरा को प्रमान यही तुलसी जो फरा सो झरा, जो बरा सो बुताना !'(A.I. C.B.S.E. 2014, Set-I, II, III)

अर्थग्रहण संबंधी प्रश्नोत्तर

प्रश्न
1. यहाँ लेखक किससे सावधान हो जाने की बात कहता है?
2. जगत के अतिपरिचित और अतिप्रामाणिक सत्य क्या हैं?
3. तुलसीदास ने अफसोस के साथ किस सच्चाई पर मोहर लगाई थी?
4. पुराने की अधिकार-लिप्सा के माध्यम से लेखक ने किन पर व्यंग्य किया है?
उत्तर
1. यहाँ लेखक उन पुराने नेताओं को सावधान हो जाने की बात कहता है जो किसी प्रकार जमाने का रुख नहीं पहचानते और जब तक नए नेता उन्हें धक्का मारकर निकाल नहीं देते तब तक जमे रहते हैं।
2. जरा और मृत्यु जगत के अतिप्रामाणिक तथा अतिपरिचित सत्य हैं। ये वे सत्य हैं जो अटल हैं जिनसे कोई भी मुख नहीं मोड़ सकता।
3. बुढ़ापा और मृत्यु संसार के अतिप्रामाणिक सत्य हैं। तुलसीदास ने अफसोस के साथ इनकी सच्चाई पर मुहर लगाई थी। उन्होंने कहा था-धरा को प्रमान यही तुलसी जो फरा सो झरा, जो बरा सो बुताया।
4. पुराने की अधिकार-लिप्सा के माध्यम से लेखक ने उन पुराने नेताओं पर व्यंग्य किया है जो ज़माने का रुख नहीं पहचानते। जो सदैव अपनी सत्ता कायम रखना चाहते हैं और जब तक नए नेता उन्हें धक्का मारकर राजनीति से निकाल नहीं देते तब तक वे जमे रहते हैं।

5. अवधूतों के मुंह से ही संसार की सबसे सरस रचनाएँ निकली हैं। कबीर बहुत कुछ इस शिरीष के समान ही थे, मस्त और बेपरवा, पर सरस और मादक। कालिदास भी जरूर अनासक्त योगी रहे होंगे। शिरीष के फूल फक्कड़ाना मस्ती से ही उपज सकते हैं और ‘मेघदूत’ का काव्य उसी प्रकार के अनासक्त अनाविल उन्मुक्त हृदय में उमड़ सकता है। जो कवि अनासक्त नहीं रह सका, जो फक्कड़ नहीं बन सका, जो किए-कराए का लेखा-जोखा मिलाने में उलझ गया, वह भी क्या कवि है?

अर्थग्रहण संबंधी प्रश्नोत्तर

1. यह गद्यांश किस लेखक द्वारा रचित है तथा इसके पाठ का नाम लिखिए।
2. संसार की सबसे सरस रचनाएँ किनके मुख से निकली हैं?
3. लेखक ने शिरीष की तुलना किससे की है? क्यों?
4. लेखक के अनुसार सच्चा कवि कौन है?

1. यह गद्यांश ‘हजारी प्रसाद द्विवेदी’ द्वारा रचित है तथा इसके पाठ का नाम ‘शिरीष के फूल’ है।
2. संसार की सबसे सरस रचनाएँ अवधूतों के मुख से निकली हैं।
3. लेखक ने शिरीष की तुलना कबीरदास जी से की है क्योंकि संत कबीर बहुत कुछ शिरीष के फूल के समान ही थे। वे मस्त और बेपरवाह थे लेकिन इसके साथ-साथ वे सरस एवं मादक भी थे।
4. लेखक के अनुसार सच्चा कवि वह है जो अनासक्त रहे और फक्कड़पन में जीवन व्यतीत करे। जो अनासक्त नहीं रह सकता तथा फक्कड़ नहीं बन सकता, लेखक उसे कवि नहीं मानता।

6. शिरीष वायुमंडल से रस खींचकर इतना कोमल और इतना कठोर है। गांधी भी वायुमंडल से रस खींचकर इतना कोमल और इतना कठोर हो सका था। मैं जब-जब शिरीष की ओर देखता हूँ तब तब हूक उठती है-हाय, वह अवधूत आज कहाँ है ! (C.B.S.E. 2011, Set-1)

अर्थग्रहण संबंधी प्रश्नोत्तर

प्रश्न
1. शिरीष कहाँ से रस खींचता है? वह रस खींचकर कैसा प्रतीत होता है?
2. शिरीष की तुलना किससे की गई है?
3. लेखक किस अवधूत की बात कर रहे हैं?
4. लेखक शिरीष और गांधी जी में क्या समानता देखता है ? स्पष्ट कीजिए।
उन्ना
1. शिरीष वायुमंडल से रस खींचता है। वह वायुमंडल से रस खींचकर कोमल और कठोर प्रतीत होता है।
2. शिरीष की तुलना गांधी जी से की गई है।
3. लेखक सत्य और अहिंसा के पुजारी ‘महात्मा गांधी जी की बात कर रहा है।
4. लेखक मानता है कि शिरीष वायुमंडल से रस खींचकर गांधी जी के समान कोमल और कठोर है। जिस प्रकार गांधी जी अंदर से तो बहुत कोमल थे; किसी के दुख को देखकर तुरंत ही रो पड़ते थे और बाहर से बहुत ज्यादा कठोर थे, ठीक वैसे ही शिरीष भी अंदर से कोमल तथा बाहर से कठोर प्रतीत होता है।

Here we are providing Class 12 Sociology Important Extra Questions and Answers Chapter 2 The Demographic Structure of the Indian Society. Sociology Class 12 Important Questions are the best resource for students which helps in class 12 board exams.

Class 12 Sociology Chapter 2 Important Extra Questions The Demographic Structure of the Indian Society

The Demographic Structure of the Indian Society Important Extra Questions Very Short Answer Type

Question 1.
What is the population structure?
Answer:
By population structure we mean the distribution of the population of the country in different parts, the density of population, birth and death rate, immigration, emigration, education, sex ratio, etc. In population structure, different aspects of population and features of the population are studied.

Question 2.
What is Population Density?
Answer:
The ratio of a number of persons living per unit area or unit volume in a particular region or country is known as population density. It can be known only by the population living per square km of an area.

Question 3.
What is Economic Density?
Answer:
Economic density measures the economic resources of that area or country. It is the ratio of production capacity of all the resources and the number of people living in that particular area.

Question 4.
What is meant by excessive population?
Answer:
When the population of any country exceeds the highest production limit of that country then the population of that country is known as the excessive population.

Question 5.
What is life expectancy?
Answer:
Life expectancy is the other name of average age. The life expectancy of most of the people of living life is known as average age. It can be known on the basis of average.

Question 6.
What is meant by the growth rate of the population?
Answer:
The meaning of the growth rate of population is the increased rate of the population of any area of a country. It includes the difference in death rate and birth rate and the population coming in that area from another area.

Question 7.
What is meant by a population explosion?
Answer:
When the population of any country increases unexpectedly then it is known as the population explosion. When the population increases to a great extent then its results could become destructive. India is also facing this type of problem.

Question 8.
What is Family Planning?
Answer:
The meaning of family planning is to keep the family small in size. The size of the family should remain in control so that the income of the family should be more than expenditure. Giving birth to children according to one’s wish is called family planning.

Question 9.
What is the biological theory of increasing-decreasing population?
Answer:
According to supporters of the biological theory of increasing-decreasing population, fertility rate decreases with the increase in density of population because the power of producing children decreases with conceiving. It reduces the birth rate.

Question 10.
Give two methods of population control given by Malthus.
Answer:

1. the First method of population control given by Malthus was preventive checks like postponing marriage or practising sexual abstinence or celibacy.
2. the Second method was positive checks to population growth in the form of famines and diseases. Lots of people die due to these and thus, the population remains in control.

Question 11.
What do you know about the population theory of Malthus?
Answer:
According to Malthus, agricultural production grows in arithmetic progression (like 2, 4, 8, 10) but population rises in geometric progression (like 2, 4, 8, 16, 32, etc.) It means that a rise in population moves according to an increase in income or living standard.

Question 12.
What do you know about the Demographic Transition theory of population?
Answer:
This theory is based upon the experiences of all societies. It says that as birth rate increases and the death rate decreases, the population increases very quickly. It can be seen in modern societies where the death rate is being controlled but the birth rate is not being controlled as the death rate. It leads to a great increase in population. It is known as the demographic transition theory of population.

Question 13.
How can the birth rate be reduced?
Answer:

1. If everyone will become literate then they will come to know about the merits of less population and demerits of more population. So they will try to keep the population in control.
2. If the minimum age of marriage could be fixed then they will become mature and will come to know about the merits of less population.

Question 14.
Give the main features of the National Population Policy.
Answer:

1. To bring down the death rate to 9 per thousand.
2. To bring down the birth rate to 21 per thousand.
3. To reduce the infant mortality rate to less than 60 per thousand.
4. To bring down the population growth rate to 1.2% per year.

Question 15.
Give the literal meaning of Demography.
Answer:
Demography is the systematic study of the population. Demography is an English word which is made up of two Greek words ‘demos’ and ‘graphy which means the description of people.

Question 16.
When was the first and the last census survey carried out in India?
Answer:
The first census survey in India was carried out in 1872 and then it was carried out in 1881. Then, after every ten years, it is carried out. The last census survey in India was carried out in the year of 2011.

Question 17.
What is a Dependent population?
Answer:
That part of the population that depends upon others for their lives, for food, clothes and to live is known as a dependent population. In India, people of the age group of 0-14 years and 60+ years come in this category.

Question 18.
What are Urbanism and Urbanization?
Answer:
When people of villages go to urban areas and adopt the values, habits, ideals, etc. of cities then it is known as urbanism. Urbanization is a system of values in which relations of the people are full of individualism, formalism, etc.

Question 19.
Give some features of cities.
Answer:

1. Division of labour exists in cities.
2. Formal relations exist in cities.
3. More industries are there in cities.
4. Less dependence on agriculture.

Question 20.
What is Town?
Answer:
The area which is larger than a village but is smaller than the city is known as a town. Generally, that geographical area is known as a town which has a population of more than 5,000, the density of population is 400 persons per sq and more than 75% people are engaged in agricultural works.

Question 21.
What is the modern village?
Answer:
The village where the ideology of the people is affected by science, where scientific methods are used, where the sense of fraternity remains no more, where love, co-operation, values have very less importance and where agriculture is being done for the market is a modern village.

Question 22.
What is Jajmani System? (C.B.S.E. 2011)
Answer:
That system is known as the Jajmani system in which many lower or small castes used to give their services to higher castes and in lieu of which they used to get grains. One who used to take service was known as Jajmani and one who used to give service was known as Kamin.

Question 23.
What is a Joint Family?
Answer:
A family in which members of more than two generations live together is called a Joint Family. They live in the same house and income or expenditure are earned and spent jointly.

Question 24.
What is meant by homogeneity in rural life?
Answer:
When people of the same culture live in the village, their eating habits, ways of living, wearing, etc. are the same then this is known as homogeneity in rural life. People share a common culture in a village.

Question 25.
Give three differences between village and city.
Answer:

1. The population is less in villages and more in cities.
2. Few medical and educational services are available in villages but they are more in cities.
3. Most of the rural people are engaged in agricultural works but most of the urban people are engaged in non-agricultural works.

Question 26.
Why are rural people moving towards urban areas?
Answer:

1. Educational and health services of good quality are not available in villages.
2. Rural people are attracted to urban pomp and show.
3. More opportunities for employment are available in urban areas.

Question 27.
Tell us something about the literacy rate in India.
Answer:
The literacy rate of India in 2011 was 74% out of which 82.1% were males and 65.5% were females. This can be seen in the given table.

Year	Total Population	Males	Females
1951	18.3	27.2	8.9
1961	28.3	40.4	15.4
1971	34.5	46.0	22.0
1981	43.6	56.4	29.8
1991	52.2	64.1	39.3
2001	65.4	75.9	54.2
2011	74	82.1	65.5

Question 28.
What are the major religions of India?
Answer:
Seven main religions exist in India:

(i)            Hinduism	79.5%
(ii)           Islam	13.2%
(iii)          Christianity	2.4%
(iv)         Sikhism	2.1%
(v)          Buddhism	0.8%
(vi)         Jains	0.5%
(vii)        Parsis and other tribal religions	0.5%

The Demographic Structure of the Indian Society Important Extra Questions Short Answer Type

Question 1.
Give the main features of the Indian population.
Answer:
According to census survey 2011, following were the main features of the Indian population:

1. Life expectancy in India was around 33 years in 1951 but in 2011 it has been increased to 66 years.
2. Literacy rate in India in 1991 was 52% but in 2011 it has been increased to 74% out of which 82% are males and 65% are females.
3. Sex ratio in 1951 was 1000: 946 but in 2011 it was 1000:940.
4. The population density in India in 1951 was 117 persons per square km, but in 2011, it became 382 persons per sq. k.m.
5. Urban population is increasing rapidly. Around 17% of people used to have in urban areas in 1951 as compared to 85% in villages. But this ratio has been changed to 32% and 68% respectively, in 2011.

Question 2.
Why is it necessary to reduce the birth rate in India?
Answer:

1. More birth rate can lead to the danger of population explosion.
2. More birth rate can lead to a reduction in per capita income and national income.
3. More birth rate can lead to the problem of the food supply.
4. It will increase the problems of poverty and unemployment.
5. It will lead to the need for more investment.

Question 3.
What are the reasons for a higher birth rate in India?
Answer:

1. People believe that more children will provide more hands in future.
2. Literacy rate in India is very low.
3. Improvement in health care facilities.
4. Lack of awareness regarding birth control measures.
5. Problems of child marriage or marriage at an early age.

Question 4.
Give the main features of the National Population Policy 2000.
Answer:

1. To reduce the infant mortality rate to 30 per 1000.
2. To reduce the maternal mortality rate to 100 per lakh.
3. To encourage the late marriage of girls.
4. Complete registration of birth, death and marriage.
5. To take steps to give compulsory and free education to the children till the age of 14 years.
6. To stop the spread of aids.
7. To encourage family planning programme.

Question 5.
How is population explosion responsible for our lower standard of living?
Answer:
It is right that the population explosion is responsible for our lower standard of living. The population has been increased but per capita income has not been increased rather it has been reduced. If the population increases but national income does not increase, then, the growth rate will come down. Lower per capita income will lead to less consumption which results in a lower standard of living. It also leads to a bad impact on the health and working efficiency of the person.

Question 6.
Why is population control necessary?
Answer:
Population control is necessary because-

1. It leads to an increase in per capita income.
2. It increases the savings and growth of capital formation.
3. It leads to a higher standard of living.
4. We can find the solution to many problems like poverty, unemployment, etc.
5. It reduces the prices of commodities and the problem of food also get solved with this.
6. It can lead to more expenditure on public welfare.

Question 7.
How increasing population could be controlled? Give two ways.
Answer:

1. Agricultural production of the country should be increased and industries should be developed so that the per capita income and national income could be increased. It will lead to a higher standard of living and low birth rate.
2. Education is necessary for a higher standard of living so that people should remain conscious about the merits of less number of children: It will result in a reduction of population growth.

Question 8.
How population affects economic development?
Answer:
If the population will be more then it will have an adverse impact on economic development because if consumption will be more then production and the resources of the country will be depleted very quickly. It will reduce the national income and country will become poor. If the population will be less, then it will have a very good impact on economic development because production will be more than consumption. Resources of the country will remain intact for a longer period of time. Per capita income and national income of the country will increase as well. The living standard will remain high. In this way, less or more population have a great impact on the economic development of the country.

Question 9.
What are the demerits of more population?
Answer:

1. It will lead to an increase in problems like poverty, unemployment, etc.
2. The living standard of the people remains lower.
3. The health of the people deteriorates with this.
4. The problem of food affects the whole country.
5. Economic development, national income and per capita income reduce with this.

Question 10.
What are the merits of less population?
Answer:

1. The living standard of the people remains high.
2. Health condition of the people remains good.
3. Everyone gets employment.
4. Employment leads to a reduction in poverty.
5. Needs of everyone are fulfilled with this.

Question 11.
What is Family Planning?
Answer:
Family planning means to keep the small size of the family so that the income of the family should remain higher than expenditure. If income will be higher than expenditure then it will lead to a higher standard of living.

Question 12.
What is Migration? How many types of migration are there?
Answer:
Migration is an English which is to move towards other places by leaving one’s basic place of living. So, when a person leaves his place of birth and starts living at another place, then it is known as migration. He can come back to his basic place of living. It is of four types. First one is daily migration in which people go to other places for work, education or occupation in the morning and come back to their native place in the evening. The second one is seasonal migration in which people move towards another place in a specific season and come back to their native place at the end of the season.

For example, migration of labour at the time of harvesting of agricultural produce. The third one is occasional migration in which a person has to migrate if any specific circumstance arises due to any disease or any other reasons. Fourth and last one is permanent migration in which a person leaves his native village, city or country and migrates towards other city or country.

Question 13.
What was the population of India in 1951 and 2001?
Answer:
In 1951, the Indian population was 36.11 crore out of which 29.9 crore people lived in rural areas and 6.2 crore people lived in urban areas. In 2001, the Indian population was 102.70 crore out of which 74.2 crores were in rural areas and 28.5 crore people were in urban areas.

Question 14.
Which 22 languages are given in the Constitution of India?
Answer:

1. Manipuri
2. Nepali
3. Sindhi
4. Sanskrit
5. Bangla
6. Telugu
7. Gujarati
8. Kannada
9. Odiya
10. Assamese
11. Urdu
12. Kashmiri
13. Tamil
14. Punjabi
15. Marathi
16. Malayalam
17. Hindi
18. Konkani
19. Dogri
20. Santhali
21. Maithili
22. Bodo.

Question 15.
To which religion do people of India belong?
Answer:
People in India belong to different religions. 79.5% people are Hindus, 13.2% are Muslims, 2.4% are Christians, 2.1% are Sikhs, 0.81% are Buddhists, 0.5% are Jains and 0.5% belong to Parsi and other tribal religions.

Question 16.
Which two checks of population control are given by Malthus?
Answer:
1. Positive Checks: Those checks which are implemented by nature are called positive checks. That’s why the death rate increases. For example, war, epidemic, earthquake, famine, tsunami, flood, etc. These natural checks are very painful but they reduce the population to a great extent. These checks are not permanent.

2. Preventive Checks: These types of checks are the efforts made by humans. These are divided into two parts-morality and prevention through artificial means, sin moral checks, a person uses his mental level to control the population. In artificial means, Malthus tells about those means which are related by humans to control the population. According to Malthus, moral checks are good but artificial checks are against religion.

Question 17.
Tell something about Sex Ratio in IndiJi.
Answer:
Sex ratio is a cause of concern in India which) is reducing day by day. People want to have a male child and that is why they kill girl child even before birth. Thus, the number of females is decreasing. Only two states in India are there where females are more in number than males. Everything will be clear by the given data.

Year	Sex Ratio (in all age groups)
1951	946
1961	941
1971	930
1981	934
1991	927
2001	933
2011	940

Question 18.
Why the programme of Family Planning was not very successful in India?
Answer:

1. People who have religious faith believe in their fate. That is why they hardly care about family planning.
2. People lack the proper means of family control. Whatever means are available with them, they are not properly used as well. That is the reason why this programme hardly became a success.
3. Literacy level in India is quite low due to which they are unable to understand the merits of a small family. They are hardly aware of the fact that more number of children will affect the income of the family.
4. Family planning programme is being run by the government and it always lacks financial resources. The given amount was always not enough for the whole of the country.

Question 19.
Show and explain the distribution of sex ratio in India on the outline political map of India.
Answer:

Source: Census 2011

This map tells us that many states like Kerala, A.P. and others have sex ratio more than 1000: 950 but some states like Punjab and Haryana have around 1000: 880 of sex ratio. The map also shows that great inequality exists in our India regarding sex ratio.

Question 20.
According to Ogburn and Nimkoff, how villages were developed?
Answer:
Ogburn and Nimkoff have divided the development of villages in three parts:
1. According to them, humans lived in jungles in the first stage. They were hunting animals or were collecting things to eat. They used to move to that place where food was available. Development of villages was not possible at this stage.

2. In the second stage, humans started to rear animals instead of killing them. Animals need fodder to eat. That is why people started to settle at those places where it was available. They used to leave the place when fodders depleted. That is the reasons why villages were also not developed at that stage.

3. In the third stage, a man came to know about the growing of plants. When they came to know about the growth of plants then they started to live in one place. Since food was available, they started to live a settled life. In this way, the villages came in front of us.

Question 21.
How can you say that village is a social unit?
Answer:
It is right that a village is a social unit. If we study Indian villages carefully then we would come to know that village is the main base of Indian culture. More than 70% of Indian population lives in villages and they are engaged in agricultural work, yet a number of changes are coming in villages but still, it is active in the form of a unit. Rural society is the main base of the Indian social structure. People of villages live in harmony with each other and celebrate their festivals with each other. They have primary and personal relations. In this way, we can say that village is a social unit.

Question 22.
Why is Urbanization increasing?
Answer:

1. The country is becoming more industrialized.
2. More facilities are there in urban areas.
3. Services like education, medical facilities, etc. are easily available in cities.
4. Employment is easily available in cities.
5. More security is there in cities.

Question 23.
What are the changes coming in the rural community?
Answer:

1. Now more and more people from villages are running towards cities.
2. Now villagers are getting more education.
3. Modern means of agriculture are being used these days.
4. The caste system has lost its importance and the class system is taking its place.
5. Now the social status of a person is determined by his individual traits.
6. Formal relations are increasing instead of informal relations.

Question 24.
Why are the village Panchayats necessary for villages?
Answer:
India is basically an agricultural country where more than 70% population is engaged in agricultural works. Powers are decentralized by the Indian government so that villages could be developed and the administration of villages should run smoothly. Every¬one the orders of Panchs in villages. These days Panchayats even have the right to collect tax and to maintain peace in villages. That is why the village Panchayat is necessary.

Question 25.
Explain regional variations of low child sex ratio in India. (C.B.S.E. 2015)
Answer:
Regional variations of low sex ratio in India:

1. Lowest child sex ratios are found in the most prosperous regions of India.
2. Punjab, Haryana, Chandigarh, etc. are among the richest states in India in terms of per capita income, they also are the states with the lowest child sex ratio.
3. The problem of selective abortions is not due to poverty, dowry or lack of resources but is due to wish to have a male child.
4. Economically prosperous families decide to have fewer children. They may choose the sex of their child.

Question 26.
In what way formal demography is different from social demography? (C.B.S.E. 2015)
Answer:
Formal demography. In formal demography, many aspects are included such as quantitative field, analysis, measurement, statistics, mathematical counting and enumeration.

Social demography.

• Focus on social, economic and political aspects.
• Enquires into causes and consequences of population structures and changes.
• Social processes and structures regulate demographic processes.
• Trace the social resources for population trends.

Question 27.
The family programme suffered during the period of National emergency. Give reasons.
Answer:
Reasons for the setback of the Family planning programme during Emergency-

1. Introduction of a coercive programme of mass sterilization.
2. the Vast number of mostly poor and powerless people were forcibly sterilized.
3. Sterilisation refers to medical procedures like vasectomy for men and tubectomy for women which prevent conception and childbirth.
4. There was massive pressure on lower-level government officials (school teachers or office workers) to bring people for sterilization in the camps; that was organized specially for this purpose.
5. Widespread popular opposition to the programme.

Question 28.
“Literacy as a prerequisite to education is an instrument of empowerment.” Discuss.
Answer:
Literacy as an instrument of empowerment. More literate the population the greater the consciousness of career options as well as participation in the knowledge economy-

1. It can lead to health awareness and fuller participation in the cultural and economic well-being of the community.
2. Literacy varies considerably across gender.
3. It is still very low in social groups.
4. Inequalities in literacy tend to reproduce inequality across generations.
5. Regional variations are still very wide.

The Demographic Structure of the Indian Society Important Extra Questions Easy Answer Type

Question 1.
What is Social Demography? Give its definitions.
Answer:
Demography is an English word which is taken from the Greek language. First of all, this word was used by Gulliard, a French Scholar, in 1885. It is the science which studies and analyse the characteristics of the population. In other words, the study of the human population is known as demography.

Different scholars gave different definitions of demography from their own point of views. That is why it is very difficult to reach a common definition of it. But still, some of these definitions are given ahead:
1. According to Julliard, “Demography is the mathematical knowledge which studies the same features, material, social, intellectual and moral conditions of the population and in its broadest sense it is a natural and social history of the human race.”

2. According to Donald Bogg, “Demography is a mathematical and numerical study of the size of the human population, organization, local distribution and changes which occur in it due to birth and death rate, marriage, migration and fine processes of social mobility.”

3. According to Benjamin, “Demography is the related study of increase, development and mobility of the human population in the form of a universe.”

4. According to Hwipal, “Demography is the numerical study of human life.”

So on the basis of given definitions, we can say that demography is related to human science which deals with the distribution of the population. Qualitative and quantitative aspects of the population are studied in demography. Many elements could be included in it like the size of the human population, the structure of the population, its local distribution, birth rate, death rate, marriage, immigration, emigration, unemployment, mobility, etc. All these things are part of a demographic study. For example, the size of the population will increase with the increase in birth rate and size of the population will reduce with the increase in the death rate. In this way, all those things could be included in demography which affects distribution and density of population.

Question 2.
Explain briefly about the scope of social demography.
Answer:
Scope of Demography. Two points of views are there regarding the scope of social demography i.e. wider point of view and narrow point of view. Vans, Murrey and Spengler are the main exponents of a wider point of view and Burkley, Thompson and Lewis, Howzer and Dunkin are the main exponents of a narrow point of view. Certain differences are there between both points of views. In the first viewpoint, scholars study humans, their families and groups. The second point of view studies systems made by humans, their culture and social system. Usually, the deductive method is used in demography but now researchers have started using the inductive method. Demography can be divided into two parts.

• Formal demographic processes in which the processes of birth, death, marriage, divorces are included.
• Informal demographic processes in which age group, sex ratio, size and composition of the population are included.

Economic and social problems related to population are included in informal demography. These days informal demography has been changed into social demography because now demography is developing gradually into a particular subject. Size, distribution, the composition of the population, socio and economic factors are also included in its scope. Demography also studies socio-economic causes of change.

Bases of social demography are social processes and these bases regulate the social structures. In social processes, social and cultural exchange, values, customs, beliefs, education, familial structure, mobility, class, caste, marriage, occupations, kinships etc. are included. Sociologists who study social demography, he directly or indirectly also studies about the given concepts.

Question 3.
Which subjects are included in the subject matter of social demography?
Answer:

1. Distribution of Population. Distribution of the population in cities and villages, business and geographical distribution are included in it.
2. Size of Population. What is the size of the population, which factors affect the population, birth rate, emigration, immigration, growth rate etc. are included in it?
3. Structure of Population. Many subjects related to population are included in it like age and structure, sex ratio, education, level of health.
4. Changes in Population. Factors that are responsible for bringing change in the size and structure of the population are included.
5. Features of Population. The features of the population and their comparative study are included in it.

From the point of view of the facility of study, the following subjects are also included in it.

1. Biological: In this, birth rate, death rate, growth rate, causes of birth and death rate, sex ratio, age-structure, etc. are included.
2. Social: Marital status, a form of religion, familial structure, education, caste system etc. are included in it.
3. Geographical: Geographical distribution of population and their causes are included in it.
4. Economic: In this, the status of employment and unemployment, living standard, income-level, quality of eatable things and their distribution, mobility of the population, the formation of the division of labour, the ability of population are included in it.

The subject of demography has got more importance since 1954 because its scope is increasing day by day.

Question 4.
Tell us something about the changing demographic position of India.
Answer:
To understand the changing demographic position of India, it is necessary to understand the following factors:
1. Birth and Death Rate. It is necessary to know about birth and death rate if we want to know something about the population of any country. This difference in birth and death rate tells us about an increase or decrease in population.

The birth rate has been reduced after independence but the death rate has also been reduced to a great extent due to better health services. Until 1951, the death rate was more because of which growth of population was very less. But during 1951-1991, the birth rate started reducing very slowly as compared to the death rate. The death rate has come in control. The death rate was 11.4 in 1991 which came down up to 9.0 in 2001 but the birth rate was 27 at the same time. That is why population growth was also higher. The birth rate in 2011 was 20.97% and the death rate was 7.48%.

2. Life Expectancy. Life expectancy is the possibility of a life of persons, in general conditions, who were born in a particular time period. According to the Human Development Report, life expectancy age was 77.7 years in 1997 in developed countries, 64.4 years in developing countries and it was 51.7 years in under-developed countries. Average life expectancy in India in the year 2011 was 66.8 years.

Life expectancy in India during 1911-21 was only 20 years which was increased up to 32 years in 1951. After independence, medical services were improved because of which it was increased to a great extent. It was 62.5 years in 2001.

3. Sex Ratio. Meaning of sex ratio is how many females are there behind 1000 males. In 2001, 49.6 crore females were there for 53.1 crore males. From this, it is clear that females were less than males. During 1901-2000, the general sex ratio has been reduced. Yet, the number of females increased in 1991, 2001 and even in 2011. Kerala is the only state in India where this ratio is in favour of females. Kerala has 1084 females for 1000 males. This ratio is 1000:1031 in Puducherry. In 2011, Haryana’s sex ratio was 877 and Chandigarh’s sex ratio was 818 which is the lowest.

4. Literacy. Literacy is not only a necessary element of demographic structure but it is also a symbol of human development of a country. Literacy rate in India at the beginning of this century was very low and it increased very slowly till 1947. Literacy rate in 1901 was 5.35% out of which 9.83% males and 0.60% females. In 1951, this rate was 27.16% for males and 8.86% for females and the overall rate was 18.33%. During the time period of 1951-2001, this literacy rate was increased from 18.33% to 65.38%. According to the Census Survey of 2001, 75.85% males and 54.16% of females were educated and in 2011, this rate was changed to 82.1% and 65.5% respectively. This difference is decreasing day by day. According to the Census of 2001 and 2011, Kerala and Lakshadweep have the highest rate of literacy.

5. Population Density. Population Density shows the ratio of land and population. Meaning of population density is the number of persons living in one square km. According to the Census of 2011, it was 382 persons per square km. In 2001, it was 324 and in 1991, it was 267. Some states of the country have a higher density of population and some have lower density. West Bengal, in 2011, was the highest among all the states in 1028 and Arunachal Pradesh was the lowest of all at 17. Delhi’s density of population was 11320 and it was 46 in Andaman and Nicobar.

6. Rural and urban population. Knowledge of rural and urban population is necessary to understand the demographic structure of the country. The population of urban areas has increased rapidly during 1901-2011.

Only 10.8% of people were living in cities in 1901. In 1951, 82.7% of people were living in villages and 17.3% in cities. It became 72.2% and 27.5% in 2001 and in 2011, it was 68.84% and 31.16% respectively. From this data, it is clear that people are migrating towards urban areas. In 2001, Goa was the first state where the most numbers of people (49.77%) were living in cities. In Himachal Pradesh, only 9.79% of people were living in urban areas.

7. Age structure. The age structure of the country shows an interesting picture of the population. According to the Census Survey of 1991, 36% population was of children up to the age of 14 years. 57% of people were of the age group of 15-59 years and 7% of people were of the age of 60 years and above. From different censuses, it is clear that age group up to 14 years is decreasing continuously and a population of 60 years and above is increasing. It is because of the increasing age of life expectancy.

8. Religion. Followers of many religions live all over India. In 1961, Hindus were 83.5% but they were reduced to 79.5% in 2011. Hindus are decreasing but Muslims were 10.7% in 1961 and became 13.2% in 2011. So during the time period of 1961-1991, Hindus decreased up to 1% but Muslims increased up to 1%. Christians and Jains also
reduced during this time period but Sikh and Buddhist population has been increasing at the same time.

So, we can see that Indian demography is constantly changing.

Question 5.
Give the main features of National Population Policy-1976 and National Population Policy-2000.
Answer:
India’s population has increased rapidly after 1947 because of the improvement of health services and a reduced rate of death. Yet birth rate was also reduced but not at the same pace as the death rate. That is why the National Population Policy was made which is given below.

National Population Policy 1976. On 25 June 1975, the then Prime Minister declared an emergency in the country that remained till 1977. During an emergency, the National Population Policy was announced.

1. Minimum age of marriage for girls was increased from 15 years to 18 years and it was also increased for boys from 18 years to 21 years.
2. The government especially tried to raise the literacy rate of women.
3. Compensation for sterilization of male and females for family planning was increased.

The government started the process of sterilization with great pace and took advantage of emergency in the country. Hundreds of thousands of people were sterilized even against their wish. Around 8.2 million people were sterilized during this time period which is a record in itself.

National Population Policy 2000:- Government consulted different voluntary organisations, scholars, government machinery and those people who were interested in demography and made National Population Policy 2000 whose main aims are given below:-

1. To bring down infant mortality rate up to 30 per thousand.
2. To bring down the death of pregnant women up to 100 per lakh.
3. To encourage the late marriage of girls.
4. To register all the births, deaths, marriages and pregnancies.
5. To give information, services and consultancy of types of delivery to all the people.
6. To know new ways of prevention of pregnancy and to give this information to the people.
7. To take steps for free and compulsory education for the children up to the age of 14 years.
8. To stop spreading of AIDS.
9. To maintain a balance between family planning and people-centred programmes.

So the main aim of both the policies was to bring down population growth. It has been said that around 25 crore children were stopped to take birth between 1976-2000.

Question 6.
Give the main features of population policy of India.
Answer:
India’s population has crossed the mark of 121 crores. It comes next to China. It has been said that if the Indian population will increase with this rate then it will cross China by the year 2020. Indian Government is very much worried about this aspect.

That is why it has made many population policies from time to time. Main features of all these policies are given below:
1. Reduction of Birth Rate. The death rate, from 1947 till today, has been reduced to a great extent. To stop the growth of population, it is necessary that the birth rate should also be reduced. So many direct and indirect methods are used while keeping in mind this thing. Indirect methods are reducing poverty, the spread of education among females and increasing literacy rate and direct method is family planning. Determination of age of marriage can also lead to the reduction of birth rate.

2. Wider scope. Scope of the subject of population policy is very wide. It includes methods of population control and other programmes like the health of mothers and infants, etc. This programme is developing within the programme of family planning.

3. Voluntary policy. The population policy adopted by the Indian government is a voluntary policy whose main aim is to control the population with the help of masses. People are told about the advantages of the small family under this programme and they are motivated to reduce the birth rate.

4. Different methods. The main aim of these policies is to reduce the birth rate and different methods are used in it. People are being informed about population control in family planning centres so that no problem should come to them while using these methods.

5. Propaganda. Family planning programme was started at a large scale. People are given related things either free of cost or at very less price. With this, this programme is propagated through Doordarshan, T.V., Radio, magazines, newspapers, books, etc. Doctors and nurses are being given special training so that they can inform the people about these programmes.

6. Organisation and Research. Money related to family planning programme is being given by the central government but this programme is implemented by state governments. People are being told about methods to reduce the birth rate and research related to this programme is still going on.

Question 7.
Explain briefly about the achievements of Indian Population Policy.
Answer:
Some of the achievements of Indian population policy are given below:-
1. Decline in Birth Rate. Population after independence has increased rapidly due to the decline in the death rate. The government also tried to reduce the birth rate with the death rate. That is why population policy was prepared. Birth rate, in 1951, was 40 per thousand but it reduced to 19.8 per thousand in 2011. In this way, the decline in birth rate is the main achievement of this programme.

2. Decline in Death Rate. Very fewer health services were available before independence because of foreign rule. After independence, our own government tried to maintain health services because of which death rate was reduced. The death rate, in 1951, was 27.4 per thousand but it came down to 7.8 per thousand in 2011. This rate is less as compared to all the other developing countries.

3. Life Expectancy. Life expectancy was very less before Independence due to non-availability of health services. But after Independence health services were increased and efforts were made to control the population. That is why life expectancy was doubled.

Life expectancy was 32 years in 1951, but it rose sharply and came to 66 years in 2011. One thing should be kept in mind that life expectancy is more among females as compared to males.

4. Sterilization. Sterilization is one of the good, popular and non-dangerous methods of population control. It is just like a small operation with which power of fertility of the person comes to an end. This number was 7153 in 1953 which became 18 lakh in 1967¬68, 80 lakh in 1976-77 and reached up to 6 crores in 1999-2000.

5. Decline in Infant Mortality Rate. The infant mortality rate has been reduced to half from 1947 to today. This rate was 146 in 1956 and it came down to 70 in 2001.

Thus, we can say that the Indian government has started many programmes to control the population and has got some success in it. Yet the birth rate is higher as compared to the death rate but still, the government is trying to reduce the birth rate.

Question 8.
What were the shortcomings of the population policy of India? Also, give some suggestions for better results.
Answer:
1. High Birth Rate. Indian Government has spent billions of rupees in the last 50 years on the programmes of family planning. Even this amount increases in every budget but the birth rate has been reduced only to 19.8 per 1000 from 41 per 1000 in a square km. This rate is 10 per 1000 in developed countries like the U.S.A., Japan, etc.

2. Low Life Expectancy. Life expectancy was 32 years in 1951 in India which was increased to 66 years in 2011 due to health services. This is 68 years in some countries, 78 years in developed countries and 64 in developing countries, which is higher than in India. So, even after the increase in life expectancy, this is less as compared to other countries.

3. High Infant Mortality Rate. The infant mortality rate is very high in India. This rate is 98 in India for the age of below 5 years but the 138 other countries have less infant mortality rate than India. Even some countries have infant mortality rate less than 10.

4. It remained a Government Programme. Family welfare and family planning programmes are completely financed by the central government but they are implemented by state governments. But even after such a long time, these programmes are unable to associate themselves with general masses. As a result of this, people take it as a governmental programme and hardly associate with it.

5. More concentration on expenditure. One of the drawbacks of population policy of India is that the government officials concentrate only on the expenditure of finance which is available for these programmes. They hardly care about the fact on which section this money is being spent and whether this expenditure is necessary or not.

Except this, illiteracy of the people, poverty, hesitation towards these programmes also became one of the reasons for drawbacks of these programmes.

Suggestions For Better Results

The following suggestions could be given to achieve better results in this programme:

1. Youngsters should be motivated for late marriage so that they could be mature enough and should be able to understand the drawbacks of more children.
2. Females should participate in economic activities, except household work, so that
   they could become economically independent and should take their own decisions regarding the size of the family.
3. To achieve 100% literacy rate so that people should be able to understand governmental programmes.
4. This programme should be implemented on those groups or castes which have higher birth rate so that their birth rate could be reduced.
5. Complete registration of marriages, birth and death rate so that government should get complete data.
6. Methods of family planning could be propagated through means of communication so that people could be able to understand them.

Question 9.
Describe Malthus’s theory of population growth and the theory of demographic transition.
Answer:
(A) Malthus’ theory of population growth-One of the most famous theories of demography is related to the English political economist, Thomas Robert Malthus. He was of the view that the human population tends to grow at a much faster rate than the rate at which the human subsistence can grow. Therefore, humanity is condemned to live in poverty forever because the growth of agricultural production will always be overtaken by population growth.

Because population growth is always more than the growth in production of subsistence resources, the only way to increase prosperity is by controlling the growth of population. But humans have very limited methods to voluntarily reduce the growth of population. Malthus was of the view that positive checks to population growth are in the form of famines and diseases. These were inevitable because they were nature’s way of dealing with the imbalance between food supply and increasing population.

According to Malthus, there are two checks of population control:-
1. Positive Checks-Those checks which are implemented by nature are called positive checks. That is why the death rate increases. For example, war, epidemic, earthquake, famine, tsunami, flood etc. These natural checks are very painful but they reduce the population to a great extent. These checks are not permanent.

2. Preventive Checks-These types of checks are the efforts made by humans. There are divided into two parts-morality and prevention through artificial means. In moral checks person uses his mental level to control the population. According to Mathus, moral checks are good but artificial checks are against religion.

(B) Theory of demographic transition-One of the significant theories in demography is the theory of demographic transition. This theory says that population growth is directly related to the overall levels of economic development and generally every society follows a typical pattern of development related to population growth. Three basic phases of population growth are there. The first phase is that of low population growth in an underdeveloped and technologically backward society. Growth rate here is low because the death rate and birth rate both are very high. That is why the difference between both or net growth rate is low.

The third phase is also one of low growth in a developed society where both the birth rate and death rate have been reduced to a great extent and there is very less difference between the two. But there is second or the transitional stage between the two, which is a movement from a backward to an advanced stage. This stage has a feature of very high rates of growth of population.

The transitional phase is related to population explosion because the death rate is brought down very quickly through better nutrition, public health and advanced methods of disease control. But birth rate does not reduce to such an extent and that is the reason why growth rate goes very high. Many countries are struggling to reduce the birth rate in keeping with the falling death rate.

Question 10.
What is the Rural Society? Explain its definitions.
Or
What is meant by Rural Community? What are its definitions?
Answer:
India is a rural country in which most of the population lives in villages. The rural area is that area where technique is scarcely used, importance is given to primary relations, which is small in size and where most of the population depends upon agriculture. Rural culture is very much different from urban culture. Yet the rural and urban cultures are not the same but they both are very much inter-related. It is very much different from urban society due to many factors yet it is a part of the whole society. Many of its factors like economic, geographical, social etc. differentiate it from urban society. Many scholars have tried to define it and its description is given below:-

Definitions
1. According to A.R. Desai, “The village is the unit of rural society. It is the theatre wherein the quantum of rural life unfolds itself and functions.”

2. According to R.N. Mukherji, “A village is that community which is characterized by relative homogeneity, informality, prominence of primary groups, the lesser density of population and agriculture as the main occupation.”

3. According to Peake, “The village community consists of a group of the related or unrelated persons larger than a single or unrelated person larger than a single-family, occupying a large house or a number of dwellings placed close together, sometimes irregularly, sometimes in a street and cultivating, originally in common, a number of arable fields, dividing the available meadowland between them and pasturing their cattle upon the surrounding wasteland, over which the community claims rights as far as the boundaries of adjacent communities.”

Thus, we can say that the rural community is that community which lives at a definite place, is small in size, which have very close primary relations. People know each other with great proximity and their main occupation is either agriculture or other related work.

Question 11.
Explain the different characteristics of Rural Society.
Answer:
1. Agriculture main occupation: The main occupation of rural society is either agriculture or any of the related work because they are very closely related to nature. Because of their close relationship to nature, their views towards life are very much different. Yet, many other occupations, like carpenter, blacksmith, etc. are there in villages but they also make tools related to agriculture.

2. Simple Life. Life of rural people is very simple: People in ancient rural societies used to do a lot of hard work to fulfil their needs and they were very much away from leisures of life due to this hard work. People engaged their children in agricultural works because they were unaware of the merits of education. They have any mental conflicts and problems. They are always ready to help each other in their problems.

3. Scarcity of population and homogeneity: The population of villages is very less as compared to the urban areas. People live in small groups in villages. There are very fewer occupations in rural areas except for agriculture because of which people like to go to cities to earn money and that is the reason why the population in villages is very less. People have close relations with each other and their views are also the same due to the same occupation.

4. Importance of neighbourhood: The neighbourhood is of great importance in rural society. The main occupation of the people is agriculture in which they get enough time at hand. People meet, talk and co-operate with each other. People have very close relations with their neighbours. Neighbours generally are of the same caste because of which their status is also same. People generally respect their neighbours.

5. Control of family: A person is in complete control of the family in rural societies. Generally, patriarchal families are there in the villages and every type of decision of the family is taken by the head of the family. Division of labour in villages is being done on the basis of sex. Males either do farming or move out of the house to earn money and females take care of the house. The joint family system is there in villages and person adopts the traditional occupation of the family. Every member of the family works with others and that is why they have community feeling among them. Family is known as the primary group.

6. Common culture: People of a village are not the outsiders who come to live in the village but are the original inhabitants of that village and that’s why their culture is common. Their culture, rituals, traditions, customs etc. are also common. That’s why they live with each other in a peaceful atmosphere. They have unity among themselves.

Question 12.
What are the changes coming in Rural Society? Explain them.
Or
What are transformations that took place in the rural society in post-Independent India? (C.B.S.E. 2011)
Answer:
1. Decreasing rural-urban differences: There were a number of differences in rural and urban societies during earlier times. But these differences between both societies are decreasing day by day. It is not so because rural people imitate the styles of urban people but it is so because the relations of rural and urban people are increasing due to the open market economy. They are selling their produce in the cities and are adopting new occupations. Their relations with outsiders are increasing and their way of living, eating, wearing, thinking, etc. are changing according to the urban people. Rural people are getting every type of urban facility due to developed means of transport. The lifestyle of urban areas is improving due to the mobility of occupation and rural-urban differences are decreasing.

2. Decreasing difference in the area: The most important change which came in rural society is that the difference between the village and the city is decreasing. Cities are moving towards villages and villages are coming closer to cities. Means of transport, roads, the spread of education and means of communication have brought villages closer to the urban areas. Now rural people are also moving very quickly towards cities. They work in cities and commute daily.

3. Changes in the structure of agriculture and the marketing of agriculture. With the advent of science and technology and with the opening up of agricultural institutions, the structure of agriculture has been completely changed. With the advent of new machines like tractors, thrashers, etc., increased facilities of irrigation, development of irrigation through rivers and drips, the advent of new seeds and with the development of markets, agriculture has reached the market level from subsistence level. Now, agriculture is not being done to fulfil the needs but is being done to earn the profit. Now, the exchange of things with money has taken place of exchange of things. Agricultural produce is 4 times a year. Production has been increased to a great extent. Now, India exports food grains instead of importing them.

4. Decreasing impact of religion: Religion had a great influence on the mindset of rural people in ancient times. Every activity of agriculture was according to religion and it is not seen today. In earlier times, many trees, animals, etc. were considered as sacred but now this influence has been reduced. Religious beliefs, customs of rural people have been completely changed.

5. Change in the rural social structure: Marx was of the view that social change comes with the change in economic structure. With the commercialisation and mechanisation of agriculture, not only people have become economically better but changes are also coming in old relations. Joint families are disintegrating, changes are coming in the division of labour, social values are deteriorating, mental tension is increasing, changes are coming in the status of women, etc. There are many aspects in which we can see many changes. Time of rituals at the time of birth, marriage, death, etc. is decreasing, Jajmani system no more prevails, the effect of social kinship is decreasing, the importance of the primary group is also decreasing.

6. Increasing impact of science: The land was considered as sacred in rural areas. Agriculture was done while keeping in mind the time of sowing. But now old beliefs are no more. Farmer is not a scientist but is using the new scientific methods and no more believes in age-old customs. Earlier, people were afraid of using chemical manures to their land but now they are using more and more fertilizers and machines so that the production could be increased.

Question 13.
What is meant by the Urban Community? What are its definitions? Explain them.
Answer:
Urban areas and people living in urban areas are rapidly increasing. More than 5,000 cities and towns are there in our country. Life of the people of urban areas has been greatly affected due to this increasing population. People of the middle class and higher class have been able to fulfil their needs but it has become very difficult for people of lower classes to fulfil their needs.

In simple words, the city is a formally spread community which is determined on the basis of living standard of the people living in any specific area and on the basis of urban characteristics. Word ‘city* is an English word that has the Latin language ‘civitas’ that means citizenship. In the same way, the English word ‘urban’ which has come out of a Latin word ‘urbs’ which also means city. To understand the exact meaning of the city, it is necessary for us to look at the definitions of this word given by different scholars. These are given below:

Definitions on the basis of population. According to the Census Bureau of America, the city is that place with a population of 25,000 or more. In the same way, Egypt has the limit of 11,000 and France has the limit of 2,000 for any place to be called a city. In India, a community of population more than 5,000 is known as an Urban area where the density of population is 400 or more and where 75% or more than 75% of people are engaged in non-agricultural occupations.

Definitions on the basis of occupations. The area is considered an Urban area where the main occupation of the people is not agriculture.

1. According to Willcox, “The cities included all districts in which the density of population per square mile is more than 1,000 and where there is practically no agriculture.”
2. According to Bergal, “City is an institution whose most of the citizens are engaged in other industries except agriculture.”
3. According to Anand Kumar, “Urban community is a complex community of secondary relation with more population, based primarily on occupational and environmental differences.”
4. According to Lewis Mumford, “City is that centre where more and more power of community and concentration of culture is there.”
5. According to Louis Wirth, “In the city, people with many social differences are living in an area with more concentration of population.”

So on the basis of these definitions, we can say that the urban communities are those which are large in size, where secondary relations are of great importance, where a number of occupations are there and where the features like division of labour, specialisation and social mobility exist.

Question 14.
Explain briefly the various characteristics of urban society.
Answer:
1. Large population: A most important feature of urban society is the large number of people living and more density of population. Meaning of density of population is how many people are living per square kilometre. Cities can be divided into different classes on the basis of more or less population like small cities, medium cities and metropolitan cities. The population of the metropolitan cities like Delhi, Mumbai, Kolkata, etc. is more than one crore but the population of 13 states of India is less than one crore. Industrial houses, educational institutions, business centres and commerce centres are more in cities because of which the density of population is more in cities. Because of more population, many problems arise in cities like poverty, unemployment, crime, starvation, slums, etc.

2. Fewer places of living. Another important feature of cities is the lack of a place of living. It is so because of the more population of cities. It is a very serious problem in large cities. Many poor people are living on roadsides or under the trees or in slums. Middle-class families are living in small houses in cities where there is no place to play for children and where there is no separate room for them to sleep and study.

3. Secondary and formal relations. The most important feature of urban society is a large number of population. People do not have direct or face to face relations due to this large number of population. People in cities have formal relations with each other. A person establishes relations with other persons whenever any need arises.

4. Different occupations. Cities are developed on the basis of different occupations. Many industries, occupations and institutions exist in cities because of which different people are engaged in different types of occupations. Doctors, managers, engineers, specialised labourers, non-specialised labourers, and thousands of occupations exist in urban areas. More population is necessary for the needs of these different occupations.

5. Division in economic classes. Not much importance is given to the caste, religion and occupation of the person in urban areas. But the population in cities is divided into economic classes on an economic basis. Population, in cities, is not divided only in two classes of capitalists and labourers but many other small classes and sub-classes exist in cities on the basis of their economic status. The difference between higher and lower classes also exists.

6. Competition. Every person, in cities, gets enough chances to progress in every sector. We can find literate and able persons, in cities, in large number. That’s why too much competition is there in cities whether it is to get admission in educational institutions, to get a job and to get promotion in the job. Competition has been increased to a great extent.

Question 15.
What are the differences between rural and urban societies? Write in detail.
Answer:
1. Difference between family: Families in rural societies have complete control over the members because of which families are of great importance in villages. Very close relations are there among the members of a rural family. The joint family system exists in rural societies because their main occupation is agriculture and this occupation needs a number of people. All the members of the family have to obey the orders of the head of the family. Families in villages are patriarchal and the life of the person depends upon the thinking and decisions of the whole family.

But urban societies stand in contrast, where the family has very less control on its members: Generally, nuclear families exist in cities and very few joint families are there. Status of women in the urban family is very high as compared to rural areas but formal relations are there among the members of the family. Family, in cities, does not fulfil all the needs of the person but his needs are being fulfilled by many other means Females are working in offices and children are brought up in creches. Functions of urban families are very much opposed to that of rural families.

2. Difference between neighbourhood: Importance of neighbour in urban societies is very less. People in cities belong to different places, religions, castes etc. and hardly know anything about each other. Life of people is very much busy, that’s why they don’t have time to keep any type of relations with their neighbours.

Neighbourhood in rural society is considered as a primary group. Neighbourhood in villages gets enough importance because of the fact that people need each other’s cooperation in their daily fife. People of the village belong to the same caste, religion and economic class because of which they are very much close to each other.

3. Difference in occupation. Many types of occupations exist in urban society. Occupation is not generally forced on a person but is chosen according to the individual’s ability. Division of labour and specialization are in great demand in urban society.

The main occupation of the people of the village is generally agriculture and many other related works. Very limited occupations are there in villages during the last century. Generally, people used to adopt the occupation of agriculture or any other related work.

4. Difference in the density of population. The density of population in urban areas is too much because people come from far off places and start to live here. In metropolitan cities like Mumbai, Kolkata, etc., many people are living only in one room. People are coming out of their villages in search of a job and go to the city.

But the population in villages is very less because of which density of population is also very low. The main occupation of the people is agriculture because of which enough land is required for them.

5. Difference in the status of women. Status of females, in cities, is just like males. Girls are given higher education so that they are able to become economically self-dependent. Female is not restricted only to the four walls of the house but she also has a social status. She is very much independent to take her own decisions. Even males are working under females in some places. Important decisions of the family are being taken with the advice of female. Even family asks for her decision regarding marriage. In this way, her status is higher in urban areas.

But the status of women in rural society is very low. She doesn’t have any type of freedom. She is restricted only to the four walls of the house. Very less education is generally given to her. Her work is restricted only to take care of the children and the family.

Question 16.
Read the passage and answer the following questions:-

Hospital deliveries on the rise, maternal deaths dip New Delhi: Institutional deliveries, where children are delivered at health centres or hospitals have picked up in India over the last five odd years, around 60 lakh infants were born in safe confines of health care centres in 2010-11 as compared to 2005-06.

Experts say one main reason for this spurt is the Janani Suraksha Yojana (JSY), which was launched in April 2005 to reduce India’s shamefully high maternal and infant mortality rates. The JSY promoted institutional delivery among would-be mothers by providing cash assistance.

Emboldened, the Ministry has launched the Janani Shishu Suraksha Karyakaram (JSSK) this year. The initiative entitles all would-be mothers free delivery, free drugs and free diagnostics.

Source: The Times of India, New Delhi, October 18, 2011

(i) What are the entitlements given under the JSSK?
Answer:
The entitlements which are given under the Janani Shishu Suraksha Karyakaram (JSSK) are all the would-be mothers would be given free delivery system, free drugs and free diagnostics.

(ii) What were the possible reasons behind an improvement in low maternal and infant mortality rates during 2005-2011? What were the outcomes? (C.B.S.E. 2012)
Answer:
(a) The major reason behind an improvement in low maternal and infant mortality rates during 2005-2011 is institutional deliveries where children are delivered at health centres or hospitals which were picked up during the last five to six years in India.
(b) The programme of Janani Suraksha Yojana (JSY) which was launched in April 2005 to reduce India’s shameful high maternal and infant mortality rates.
(c) In the year of 2011, Central Govt, launched a new programme called Janani Shishu Suraksha Karyakaram (JSSK). The initiative entitles all the mothers would be given free delivery system, the mother’s free drugs and free diagnostics.

Here we are providing Class 12 Sociology Important Extra Questions and Answers Chapter 1 Structural Change. Sociology Class 12 Important Questions are the best resource for students which helps in class 12 board exams.

Class 12 Sociology Chapter 1 Important Extra Questions Structural Change

Structural Change Important Extra Questions Very Short Answer Type

Question 1.
When did modernisation emerge in India?
Answer:
When the Britishers came to India, modernisation emerged because they started to spread western education and establish new factories here.

Question 2.
Which type of change is brought about with Sanskritisation?
Answer:
Sanskritization brings a change in the structure of the caste system. When people of lower castes try to change their castes and try to imitate the habits of higher castes.

Question 3.
What is Modernisation?
Or
What does the term modernity assume? (C.B.S.E. 2015)
Or
What is the meaning of modernity? (C.B.S.E. 2017 (OD))
Answer:
The process which is based upon the method of change and which gives us the feeling of old or new is known as modernisation.

Question 4.
What is social change?
Answer:
When changes start to come about in the views and ways of working for most of the people of society, then it is known as social change.

Question 5.
Why can’t every type of change be called progress?
Answer:
When change occurs in the desired direction, then it is known as progress. The change which occurs against our wish, that change cannot be called progress. In this way, every change cannot be called progress.

Question 6.
When did the process of urbanisation emerge in India?
Answer:
The process of urbanization emerged in India at a time when the density of population started to increase in urban areas, the means of transport started to develop, the size of cities started to increase and the production started to take place on a large scale.

Question 7.
What is a city?
Answer:
The city is a community of any particular geographical area which has more population, more non-agricultural occupations, impersonal relations, formal relations and where there is the emphasis on secondary groups.

Question 8.
What is urbanisation?
Answer:
Urbanisation is the process in which the situation of villages changes and urban features start to develop in that area. It means that their ways of living start to change into the urban ways of living.

Question 9.
Give three features of urbanisation.
Answer:

1. Relations are formal.
2. The presence of more mobility.
3. Families start to disintegrate in this process.

Question 10.
What is Industrialisation?
Or
What does Industrialisation refer to? (C.B.S.E. 2012)
Answer:
Industrialisation is a process in which products from the house level reaches the level of large scale factories and the production starts to take place on a large scale.

Question 11.
What are the evil consequences of industrialisation?
Answer:

1. Industrialisation causes a lot of pollution.
2. It becomes a cause of the destruction of cottage industries.
3. Wealth concentrates only in a few hands.

Question 12.
What are the reasons for the increasing population in cities?
Answer:
Population in cities is increasing because of a number of factors like availability of facilities, more opportunities of employment, decreasing land for every person, use of technology and immigration of rural people for more opportunities of employment.

Question 13.
What is necessary for modernisation?
Answer:

1. Level of education should be good.
2. Means of transport and communication should be properly developed.
3. More industries should be present as compared to agriculture.
4. Technical manpower should be there.

Question 14.
What is Cultural Change?
Answer:
Changes which take place in our culture, views, religion, institutions, behaviour etc. is known as cultural change. It means that whichever changes take place in our culture are part of cultural change.

Question 15.
What is Structural Change?
Answer:
Changes which occur in our social relations and social institutions are known as structural changes. Changes which occur in a family, marriage, etc. are also a part of structural change.

Question 16.
Write three negative impacts of modernisation.
Answer:

1. Joint families present in the rural areas are disintegrating and nuclear families are emerging due to modernisation.
2. Immorality among people is increasing and people are more and more engaged in immoral activities.
3. The new generation is under the impact of the goods of leisure.

Question 17.
What is meant by Colonialism?
Answer:
At one level, the rule of one country over the other is known as Colonialism. It means the capturing of a weak country by the powerful country, for its benefits, is known as Colonialism.

Question 18.
How did colonial laws favour the owners and managers of the tea industry? (C.B.S.E. 2010)
Answer:
Colonial laws vested more powers with the owners and managers of the tea industry and adopted the harsh measures against the labourers so that the planters could be benefited.

Structural Change Important Extra Questions Very Short Answer Type

Question 1.
What is meant by Social Change?
Answer:
Any type of change which occurs in social relations, social organization, social structure, social actions, social interactions, etc. is known as social change. In short, we can say that the change which takes place in the living style of people is social change. It is always cultural and collective. Whenever a change occurs in the behaviour of people, then we can say that social change is taking place.

Question 2.
How many types of social change are there?
Answer:

1. Change: Difference between the earliest and existing situation is known as change. This change could be good or bad.
2. Evolution: When the change goes through definite stages then it is known as evolution.
3. Progress: Progress is always good for society. When change comes according to our wish and direction then it is called progress.
4. Development: In this type of change, it goes through one stage to another stage. This type of change occurs in the desired direction and is planned towards the objective.
5. Revolution: When change comes very quickly and suddenly then it is known as revolution. Very quick change comes in traditions and politics. It can be violent or non-violent.

Question 3.
Give four features of Modernisation.
Answer:

1. The spread of technology is very wide.
2. Industrial aspect is also included in it. People mostly depend upon industries in this process.
3. The higher literacy rate is present due to this process.
4. Developed means of transport and communication exists in this process.

Question 4.
What are the main features of Urbanisation?
Answer:

1. One of the main features of urbanisation is that the relations in it are temporary and they come to an end.
2. The population is dense. That’s why people live in a large number in small houses.
3. Mobility exists in urbanisation. People can move anywhere freely.
4. Occupations in urbanisation are not related to agriculture. The concentration of people is centred more around non-agricultural occupations.
5. People in urban areas have more capacity for accommodation. People accommodate themselves according to the changed circumstances.

Question 5.
What is the relation between technology and urbanisation?
Answer:
Large scale industries were established due to the advancing technology and the country became industrialised. New cities emerged around those industries. First small settlements cropped up around these industries, then markets and shops were opened to provide the people with essential commodities. Then hotels, schools, colleges, offices, companies, etc. were set up for the people. In this way, gradually cities were developed and urbanisation took place. In this way, we can say that technology plays a great role in the process of urbanisation.

Question 6.
What do you mean by structural change?
Answer:
Social change may be divided into two parts structural and cultural. The process of change related to structural features are social relations, family, kinship, caste, occupational group, etc. If any change takes place in them, then it is known as structural change. We can take the example of agriculture-related occupations. In ancient times, only family members were engaged in agricultural works and they used to carry out agricultural works with traditional methods. But agriculture in modern times is done with electric implements and labourers.

Production is being done for the market. It is known as structural change. Here we can take another example of a joint family. Nowadays, Nuclear families are emerging and the structure and functions of the family have changed. It is known as structural change. Structural change has emerged due to processes like westernisation, modernisation, industrialisation, etc.

Question 7.
Which problems take place due to urbanisation?
Answer:
Slums in urban areas are the centres of criminal activities. More crimes take place in cities due to the increasing population and dearth of occupations. Poverty and unemployment force the person to commit crimes to become rich as soon as possible. To meet the rising expenses, teenagers resort to other means to earn quick money. Smuggling is also present in cities. Problems like smuggling, selling drugs, bank robberies, slums, poverty, crimes, unemployment and immorality are commonly seen in urban areas and all these are because of urbanisation.

Question 8.
What changes have taken place in the process of industrialisation of the country after independence?
Answer:
Few industries were established in India before independence because it was not possible to get proper facilities from a foreign government. Before 1947, only two steel producing units were present in India, but they increased very quickly after independence. The government made five-year plans whose main objective was the industrial development of the country. After 1947, this process assumed a great speed. India made very good progress in the field of the iron industry, tractors, cars, scooters, motorcycles, electronics, fertilisers, chemicals, heavy industries, etc. India is now one of the leading producers of clothes in the world. It also made great progress in the fields of coal, shipping, petroleum products, etc. Foreign investment in the country increased quickly after 1991 and India is now emerging as an industrialised country.

Question 9.
Explain the three different situations of urban impact as given by M.SA. Rao.
Answer:
Three different situations of urban impact as given by M.S.A. Rao.-.

1. The impact of urban influences varies according to the kind of relations a village has with a city or town.
2. There are villages where a sizeable number of people have sought employment in far of cities.
3. Urban influence on the villages situated near an industrial town.
4. The growth of metropolitan cities and their impact on surrounding villages.

Structural Change Important Extra Questions Essay Answer Type

Question 1.
What are the features of Industrialisation? Explain in detail.
Or
What are the prime features of industrial societies today? (C.B.S.E. 2010)
Answer:
There are certain features of industrialisation which are given below:
1. Production through machines: Production, in the process of industrialisation, is being done by the machines and not manually. New machines are being invented in this process and these machines help in increasing production. Production in ancient times was being done manually. That’s why industrialisation was not at its developed stage. But production in this process is being done with new machines and is being done on a large scale.

2. Industrialisation is related to the process of production: The relation of industrialisation is with the process of production because production increases in this process. Production in this process is being done with machines.

3. Traditional power is not used in industrialisation: Traditional power is that power which is based upon human force or animal power. Instead of human or animal power, petrol, diesel, coal, electricity or nuclear power is used in industrialisation because this power gives more force to machines as compared to traditional power. Today’s machines are running with this type of power.

4. Production in industrialisation is done on a large scale: This process helps to increase the production. Production in ancient times was being done manually and that’s why it’s the rate was very low. But it is being done with machines in industrialisation and that’s why it is being done on a large scale. Machines are being used to fulfil the needs of the increasing population so that more and more production should take place.

5. Economic development is there in industrialisation: Economic development is a must in this process. Many industries are established in this which not only fulfils the needs of their own countries but they fulfil the needs of other countries as well. That’s why they earn profit for themselves and money for the country. They also pay taxes to the country, which increases the income of the country. This income is used for the development of the country. People get employment in these industries which uplifts their standard of living. It leads to the economic development of the country.

6. Industrialisation leads to breaking of old traditions: This process helps in disorganization of old traditions. For example, joint families in India disintegrate due to this process and nuclear families emerge. In the same way, many changes are also taking place in institutions like the caste system, marriage, etc. So we can say those old traditions are not prevalent due to this process.

7. New classes came into being due to industrialisation: Many new classes came into being due to this process. Rich class, middle class, poor class, capitalist class, labourer class, etc. are some of the examples of these new classes. Some people earn a lot of money due to this and some become poor. Many classes like Trade Unions emerge which are necessary for our society.

Question 2.
What problems are emerging due to industrialisation? Explain them.
Or
What are the consequences of the process of industrialisation? Explain them in detail.
Answer:
1. Economic problems: Many times, industrialisation leads to an economic problem instead of economic development. Production, in this, is done on a large scale, but many times consumption is constant or reduces due to one or another reason. Production continues at the same pace but less consumption leads to blockage of goods. That’s why many times, industry suffers economic depression.

2. Unemployment: Industrialisation also leads to the increasing problem of unemployment. Production in ancient times was done manually with which everyone was employed. But this process leads to new inventions and the advent of new machines. Owners try to reduce manpower and start to take more work from machines. One machine does the work of 10-20 labourers. The labourers become unemployed. In this way, this process leads to unemployment.

3. Destruction of small scale industries: This process also leads to the destruction of small scale and cottage industries. Production through machines is cheaper and is of good quality. But cottage industries are unable to produce things of good quality because they are made manually. In this way, things produced by industries take the place of things of the cottage industry in the market. It leads to non-consumption of things of cottage industry and economic depression over the cottage industry. In this way, industrialisation leads to the destruction of cottage industries.

4. Disorganization of Joint families: The process of industrialisation becomes one of the reasons for the disorganization of joint families. Industries are being established in cities because of which people from rural areas leave their joint families and move towards the cities. Gradually their family also move towards cities. With this, they form their own nuclear family. In this way, the joint family, which was one of the important features of Indian society, disorganizes and its reason is industrialisation.

5. Weakening of Caste System: If we look at the ancient Indian society then we see that the caste system was very strong, but now it has been weakened to a great extent. The main reason behind its weakness is industrialisation, as one of the features of the caste system that there were restrictions of social interaction between different castes. But these restrictions have been broken by industrialisation. People use to work with each other in factories and hardly care about the fact that with which caste other people belong.

Question 3.
What are the effects of industrialisation on society?
Answer:
The industrialization has some good and bad effects on society which are given below:
1. Division of labour: During ancient times, production was completed only in the family. Everyone was aware of every type of work related to production and they used to produce things while cooperating with each other. But due to industrialisation, production work is done on machines because of which the concept of division of labour came in front of us. Things are produced in stages and every stage has different types of work. Now every one performs different work. For example, one runs machine to make cloth, one does work of colouring and so on. All these works are related to the division of labour and specialisation. In this way, labour has been divided. Everyone does any specific work and specialisation of every work takes place. It is all because of industrialisation.

2. Development of means of transport: Means of transport have also been developed due to industrialisation. We need raw material in factories for production. To bring raw material from far off places, means of transport like trains and trucks were developed. Except these, we need means of transport to take produced things from factories to markets and they were developed very slowly. In this way, the means of transport were developed due to industrialisation.

3. Increase in production of factories: Production from houses has gone in the hands of factories, due to industrialisation, where production takes place with machines. Production with hands takes a lot of time but production with machines takes place very quickly. Yet consumption has also been increased due to growth in population but new inventions also took place with this and production was also increased. In this way, the increase in production also took place due to industrialisation.

4. Increase in the size of cities: Size of the cities were also increased due to industrialisation. Industries have been established in cities because of which rural people migrated to urban areas. It was not possible for them to go back to villages daily and that’s why they have brought their rural family to cities. Increase in population led to the construction of more houses which resulted in an increase in the size of cities. Gradually the concept of urbanization emerged.

5. Capitalism: Capitalism also came into being due to industrialisation. When production was taking place in the houses then there was no need for more capital because production was very less. But industrialisation gave birth to the factory system. A lot of capital is required to make any factory to buy raw material, to sell the finished product in the market, to give salary to labourers and for so many other things. Rich people, with a large amount of money, established large factories and with the help of their capital, started to earn more and more money.

With this many other classes like businessmen, owners, labourers, middlemen, etc. came into being and business increased. They started to send their produce to other countries which resulted in making more money. This wealth has resulted in the occupation of other countries and imperialism came into being. It has led to the exploitation of other countries. In this way, capitalism came into being and many other problems took place.

6. Elimination of cottage industries: Industrialisation led to the elimination of cottage industries from the villages. Production through machines is cheaper and is of good quality. But production in cottage industries is being done with hands which is not as good as the production of machines. In this way, things produced in the factories started to be sold in the market at cheaper rates. Then people stopped buying things of the cottage industry. In this way, the cottage industry faced economic depression and it came to a stage of the lockout. In this way, industrialisation led to the elimination of the cottage industry.

Question 4.
Explain some problems which are being faced by urban people.
Answer:
1. Problem of places of living: One of the major problems of urban areas is the problem of the place of living. Rural people are moving continuously towards urban areas because of which urban population is increasing rapidly. The population is increasing rapidly but places of living remain the same. That’s why either jungle are cleared to make places of living or many people start to five in one single room. Except this new slum areas are emerging and living there is another problem in itself.

2. Health problem: Urban people also have to face a health problem. Pollution due to the emission of smoke from large industries, pollution of vehicles, noise pollution, slums, etc. is some of the reasons which create a lot of health problem. Everyone comes under the trap of diseases. In the same way noise, the problem of sanitation, non-hygienic water, etc. also affects the health of the people. When people move towards cities then their health is in good shape but within a few years, their health also starts to be affected by the polluted environment of urban areas.

3. Growth of population: Urban population keeps on growing which creates a lot of problems for the people. Population increases due to difference of birth and death rate and it also increases due to the emigration of rural people towards the urban areas. It leads to the growth of population at a rapid pace. Growth in population has led to many other problems like the problem of the place of living, lack of civic facilities, etc.

4. Problem of crimes: Crimes prevails more in urban areas than in rural areas. Crimes in rural areas are generally related to small quarrels or are related to land. But they are of different nature in urban areas. Many types of crimes prevail in urban areas like theft, dacoity, rape, murder, white-collar crimes, etc. People have formal relations among them. Even neighbours hardly know anything about their neighbours. That’s why crimes take place quietly. Planned crimes exist in urban areas. In this way, people have to face the problem of crimes in urban areas.

Question 5.
Which features of modernisation can be seen in India? Explain them in detail.
Answer:
1. Industrialisation: There were very few industries before independence in India. But these industries increased very quickly after independence because industries got favourable conditions after 1947. Yet industrialisation is not a feature of modernisation but still, it is necessary for modernisation, because more industries will bring more money, economic development and employment for the people. Today, > the Indian industries are expanding very rapidly. India’s place in the world is 10th from the industrial point of view. In this way, the first necessary condition of modernity is an industry, which is increasing rapidly in our country

2. Secularism: When India was divided into the kingdoms, different kings used to promote one religion and the other religions were generally hated by them. This situation changed after the interference of the British. They hardly gave importance to any religion because their main motive was to earn money. After independence, the Indian government and the Constitution adopted the policy of Secularism so that none of the religions of the country could be given more importance and all the religions of the country should get equal importance. This is one of the conditions of modernity that a country should be secular and this policy has been adopted in India. So we can say that our country fulfils the next condition of modernity i.e. secularism.

3. Urbanisation: Next feature of Modernisation is urbanisation or increasing the Urban area and this thing can be applied in our country. In 1901, 90% of our population was rural but it decreased very rapidly after independence. According to the census of 1991, 25% of people lived in urban areas and according to the census of 2011, 32% of people lived in cities. It means that the rural population is moving very quickly towards urban areas and urban areas are developing rapidly.

4. Education: It has been said that a country is a modem whose literacy rate is 4 higher because education is directly related to modernity. If we look at western countries, they are considered as modern but we should look at their literacy rate as well. Literacy rate of Japan is 100%, the U.K. 99%, Russia 99.2% and the U.S.A. 98%. Except for this, the literacy rate of European countries is also very high because they spend a lot of money on education. These countries spend around 19-20% on the education of their total budget but our country spends only 3-3.5%. But this percentage is increasing slowly gradually.

5. Westernization: If we look carefully, then westernisation is generally considered as modernisation. Britishers ruled over India for around 200 years and they started the process of westernisation. They implemented western education in India, started industries on western lines, started trains and means of communication. They also changed the administrative system and started to run administration on western lines. A revolution came in India in the fields of transport, communication, education, etc. and this revolution is still underway. Our country has also developed a means of transport, communication, education, etc. on western lines. So after looking at this we can say that India is moving towards modernity.

Question 6.
What is meant by social change? Give some of its definitions.
Answer:
The word ‘Change’ is a value-free word. It never tells us about good or bad about any rule. In a general sense, change is that difference which is there in the present state and earlier state of anything. Like anyone has money today but was poor yesterday. His position has been changed due to money. Comparison is necessary for change because if we want to clarify any change then it can be clarified only by comparison. In this way, social change is related to society. When any change comes in the society or social relationship, then it is known as social change.

Definitions
Many sociologists have given the definitions of social change which are given below:
1. According to Gillin and Gillin, “Social change as variations from the modes of life, whether due to alteration in geographical conditions in cultural equipment, the composition of the population or ideologies, and whether brought by diffusion or invention within the group.”

2. According to Kingsley Davis, “By social change, I meant only such alterations as occur in social organization that is structure and function of society.”

So on the basis of a given description, we can say that social change is collective and is also related to cultural change. When any change comes in human behaviour then we can say that social change is underway. In short, we can say that social change is those differences which exist in ways of life of humans. Whatever we are looking in society these days, that is changed from earlier times. For example, the institutions of family and religion in modern times, have been changed as compared to earlier times.

Question 7.
Explain briefly the characteristics of social change.
Answer:
1. Social change is universal: Social change is that change which occurs in every society. No society is completely static because change is a law of nature. It doesn’t matter which society it is, whether it is ancient or modem, it exists in every culture and society. Demographic change in society, change because of inventions, change in values and ideals, etc. always exists in society. It is right that the speed of social change is different in a different society, but change is always universal. Social change is a universal phenomenon which occurs in all societies and in all ages. The time when human society started, changes have taken place and will remain forever. Every stage of a human society gone through changes, yet the speed of change in them might be different. Change is the law of nature and no one can be prevented from this.

2. Definite prediction is not possible in social change: Any type of definite prediction is impossible in social change. It is so because social relationships are not definite. They keep on changing. For example, if we predict that caste system, untouchability or dowry system etc. will come to an end in the coming ages and maybe we’ll not be able to find the complete end of these evils in the society. That’s why if we will predict definitely then it can be proved wrong. We cannot imagine definitely about the behaviour of a person. That’s why a prediction is impossible in social change. Social change is a community change. It doesn’t mean that there is no rule of social change or we cannot imagine about it.

3. Speed of social change is not uniform: Yet social change is universal but its speed is different in different societies. It comes very quickly in some societies and in some societies, its speed is very slow. For example, if we compare ancient and modem societies then we can see that speed of change is very fast in modern societies as compared to ancient societies. Even this speed is very fast in big cities and very slow in smaller cities. The reasons for the difference in speed is that the factors, which bring social change, are different in different societies. We can notice the change by comparing the two societies.

4. Change is the law of nature: Existence of social change is the law of nature. Change comes even against our wish. We cannot control natural forces which often brings change. Man is dynamic by nature. Change in society either comes because of natural forces or because of planned ways of humans to fulfil their needs. We always want new things and try to achieve them. So the dynamic nature of the person is also responsible for social change. For example, if we are forced to eat the same vegetable daily then we will be bored after one or two days. We love to eat new things daily for our taste. In this way, the way in which need arises for anything in that same way change comes in society. In this way, we can see that change is the wish of every person.

Question 8.
What are the social consequenc.es of Industrialisation? Explain in detail.
Answer:
After 1947, the increase in industrialisation has greatly affected the life of Indian people and its description is given below:
1. Change in community feelings: The process of industrialisation has greatly affected both rural and urban communities. But we can see great community feeling in rural areas as compared to urban areas. The urban population has increased due to industrialisation and that’s why the community feeling has loosened its impact in urban areas.

2. Decline in Social Control: As the population increases due to industrialisation then the power of social and caste organisations has declined. Due to the decline of this power of social organisations, community feeling has decreased and social control has also declined.

3. Development of the process of urbanisation: The main reason behind the development of the process of urbanisation is the process of industrialisation. Cities started to develop due to progress in industries. Wherever industries are established, people move to that place, from rural areas, in search of employment and start to live there. Gradually, that area takes the form of a city.

4. Development of means of transport and communication: Means of transport and communication in India were developed rapidly due to the development of large scale industries. Means of transport like rails, buses, roads, means of the naval system were developed and it has become easy for people to conduct business with far off places or to move from one place to another. The mechanisation of industries also increased the production of industries.

5. Decline in the importance of religion: Importance of religion, in the Indian society, also declined due to the process of industrialisation. People go to urban areas from rural areas to find work in industries and start to live in urban areas. Materialism is of great importance in urban areas because of which even rural people start to move away from the impact of religion upon their lives. In this way, the importance of religion has declined.

6. Change in family system: Due to the development of industries and urban areas, rural people started to find employment in urban areas. Even they had to leave their ancestral houses and property to earn bread and butter in urban areas. It has resulted in the disorganization of the joint family in rural areas. Nuclear families have started to take the place of joint families. Functions of the family were taken away by other institutions of society. Head of the family lost its hold and control over the family. Modem families are becoming smaller due to family planning.

7. Division of Labour: In rural cottage industry, all the members of the family did every type of work. But when machines started to produce things, then the whole process of production was divided into small parts. As a result, the division of labour started to develop. One person only performs one small work of the whole process in the process of division of labour. For example, any car is made up of thousands of parts and every part is made by a different person or persons. A person only gets that work in which he is specialized. In this way, the division of labour and specialisation is developed due to the development of industries.

Question 9.
What is Modernisation? Give its definitions.
Answer:
The process of modernisation came with the development of modern societies. The process of modernisation started in India after the advent of the British. It means that when people came in contact with the people of western culture, then many changes took place. Modernisation is the main feature of our modem society.

According to M.N. Srinivas, “Difference exists in the processes of modernisation and westernisation. Concept of westernisation is morally a more neutral concept than the concept of modernisation. We cannot come to know about the good or bad features of any culture in it. But modernisation is not a value-free concept because modernisation is always considered as good and better.” That’s why Srinivas has given more importance to westernisation than modernisation. He has not given the difference in them but according to him, the results of modernisation are always good and better. So from the views of Srinivas, it is clear that the process of modernisation is always progressive. Different sociologists have expressed different views about it which are given below-

1. According to Marrion J. Levy, “My definition of modernisation hinges on the use of inanimate (non-living) tools to multiply the effect of effort. I conceive each of these two elements as the basis of continue. A society will be considered more or less modernise to the extent that its members use inanimate sources of power and or use tools to multiply the effects of these efforts. Neither of these elements is either totally absent from or exclusively present in any society.”

2. According to Weener, “There are many aspects of modernisation-

1. Political Modernisation: In this, important institutions, political parties, parliaments, right to vote, development of secret vote which are capable of reaching any participant decision, etc. are included.
2. Cultural Modernisation: Which produces likeness with ideologies and secularisation.
3. Economic Modernisation: It is different from industrialisation.

3. According to Dr Yogender Singh, “Modernisation includes rational attitude, universalistic viewpoint, sympathy, scientific world view, humanity, technological advancement etc.”
So we can say that the process of modernisation is that process in which change takes place in the old system and new and better system takes place of the old system. This process exists in any society but its degree is different in different societies.

Question 10.
Explain briefly the different characteristics of modernisation.
Answer:
1. It leads to the development of urbanisation and industrialisation. Industrialisation also exists with urbanisation. Wherever big industries were established, cities were also developed there. With this process, the population of villages started to move towards cities. Means of communication and transport brought about many changes in urban society, like changes in institutions like family, religion and caste, etc. This led to a change in urbanisation. That is why we believe that urbanisation and modernisation are interrelated. Wherever cities are developed modernisation exists. Hence, we can see more progress in urban society as-compared to the rural community.

2. This process develops the education: With the process of modernisation, the educational sector developed very quickly. A lot of development has taken place in technical education. In ancient times, only higher castes were given religious education. But with the progress of society, the need was felt of technical institutions and hence technical institutions were opened. Except this, the importance of occupational education was increased because every person started to get work according to his/her ability. The process of specialisation was also increased. A person who receives technical education got a job or function. In this way, the process of modernisation has brought about many changes in the educational sector.

3. It increases international relations: Cooperation is increased in different countries with the process of modernisation. Every country receives security with the advents of U.N.O. To produce a peaceful atmosphere in the world, mutual relations in different countries were necessary. The U.N.O. has tried to protect human rights. It has also given its view to resolving the personal problems of any country. Its main aim is to maintain peace in the world. If a conflict starts between two countries then the U.N.O. tries to resolve their dispute. In this way, the process of modernisation has developed an atmosphere of love and cooperation at the international level,

4. This process develops and increases the process of social differentiation: With the process of modernisation, our society becomes complex and the process of differentiation has increased. With the material development of society, social differentiation has increased. By this process, we have come to know about that process with which the society is divided into different parts. This process never allows the feeling of hardness to come in humans and groups. In this way, when society moves from a simple situation to a complex situation, then differentiation definitely exists in a society. Without this process, we can’t divide the functions in society.

By this, the way in which this process of modernisation develops, similarly every sector of society i.e. religious, economic, educational, etc. starts to develop. That’s why the process of differentiation attains the pace and speed.

5. It increases social mobility: Social mobility is the main feature of modem societies. Specialisation, division of labour in urban societies, differentiation of occupations, business, industries, facilities of means of communication and transport has brought about a great pace in social mobility. Now every person can become successful with his/her ability and brain. Now they can choose an occupation in which they see more profit. People even change their place of residence due to occupation. In this way, with the process of social mobility, new values were developed instead of traditional values.

Question 11.
Explain the impact of Modernisation on Indian society.
Answer:
The process of modernisation has exerted a number of impacts on Indian society after independence and it is as follows:
1. Urbanisation: Indian society is continuously urbanising after independence. Around 11% of the Indian population was urban in 1901. But according to a census of 2011, this urban population has increased up to 32% of the total population. In 1951, only 2844 cities were there in India but in 1991, this number rose to 3696. In this way, 74 cities were there in 1951 whose population was more than one lakh but this number has also risen to more than 300 in 1991. The number of cities with a population of 10 lakh or more has been increased very quickly. In 1901, only one city with 10 lakh population was there but this number became 5 in 1951 and 23 in 1991. So Indian society is urbanising very quickly.

2. Industrialisation: Industries were developed very quickly in India after our independence. The main aim of the second five-year plan was the development of industries. During this period, the Industrial revolution came into our country. Large scale industries were established where things are produced, not only to meet the need of the country but for export as well. After 1991, privatisation, liberalisation and globalisation were specifically encouraged. Rules of capital investment in industries were eased and investors were given enough protection.

3. Westernisation: Process of modernisation is related to the process of westernisation. Westernisation started to affect Indian society after the advent of Britishers and gradually, the process of westernisation was transformed into modernisation. All those elements of the western culture, which were adopted by the Indian people, also transformed into an Indian way.00 On one side, some elements and lifestyles of the British culture attracted many Indians and on another side, many parts of the Indian population were specifically attracted by the different aspects of the British culture. In this way, the transformation of the Indian people towards the process of modernisation is also related to the mobility of westernisation.

4. Technological Development: India is developing very quickly in the field of technology. India itself is making planes, ships, rails, tanks, computers, missiles, atomic bombs, satellites and this is proof of increasing technological development of the country. India has gained the status of a superpower in the field of space technology. Development of information and technology has changed India into a family. We now have mobile phones by which, we can keep in touch with people no matter now for they are. The internet has brought about a revolution in the field of computers. The field of Biotechnology has also developed to a great extent.

5. Democratisation: India is the largest democracy in the world. All Indian citizens are given fundamental rights without any discrimination. All the citizens have the right to choose any of the available occupations, to move in any part of the country, etc. Governments of states are elected after every 5 years. If any government tries to overlook the interests of the people then people generally do not elect that government in the next election.

Independent Judiciary, Independent Press, Comptroller and Auditor General of India and Election Commission has given a very strong foundation to democratic set up of the country. But still, certain problems are there in our country which greatly affect the democratic set up of the country like poverty, unemployment, our leaders, corruption, non-awareness of rights, non-consensus of political parties, etc.

6. Expansion of Education: After independence, lakhs of educational institutions were opened to increase the literacy rate of the country. That’s why India has done a lot of progress in the field of education. Literacy rate of India was 64.84% in 2001 out of which only 53.67% of females were educated and 75.26% males were educated. This literacy rate was 18% in 1951 and in 2001 it was 65%. The Literacy rate in 2011 was 74.04%. 82.14% for males and 65.46% for females. Kerala (93.91%), Mizoram (91.58%), Goa (87.40%), Maharashtra (82.91%) and Himachal Pradesh (83.78%) are the states with high literary rate. Bihar (63.82%) and Jharkhand (67.63%) are the states with low literacy rate. Lakshadweep (92.28%) and Delhi (86.34%) are the Union Territories with a high literacy rate.

Here we are providing Class 12 Economics Important Extra Questions and Answers Chapter 4 Poverty. Economics Class 12 Important Questions are the best resource for students which helps in class 12 board exams.

Class 12 Economics Chapter 4 Important Extra Questions Poverty

Poverty Important Extra Questions Very Short Answer Type

Question 1.
What do you mean by poverty?
Answer:
Poverty is the inability to secure the minimum consumption requirements for life, health and efficiency.

Question 2.
What proportion of the world’s poor live in India?
Answer:
One-fifth of the world’s poor live in India.

Question 3.
How many children under the age of five die annually in India according to UNICEF?
Answer:
About 2.3 million children under the age of five die India per annum according to UNICEF.

Question 4.
Name the two key features of poorest households.
Answer:
The two key features of poorest households are hunger and starvation.

Question 5.
What are the factors responsible alarming malnutrition among the poor?
Answer:
Ill health, disability and serious illness are the factors responsible for alarmingly high malnutrition among the poor.

Question 6.
Define poverty line.
Answer:
Poverty line estimates the minimum level of income that is considered appropriate to secure basic necessities of life.

Question 7.
What was the percentage of population below poverty line in 2011-12 in India?
Answer:
22 percent of India’s population lived below poverty line in 2011 -12.

Question 8.
Name the two types of poverty.
Answer:
The two types are absolute poverty and relative poverty.

Question 9.
Define absolute poverty.
Answer:
Absolute poverty determines the minimum physical quantities of requirement for a subsistence level, with the help of poverty line.

Question 10.
What is relative poverty?
Answer:
Relative poverty refers to lack of resources in relation to different classes regions and countries.

Question 11.
State the minimum calorie requirement (per day) of a person in rural area and a person in urban area
Answer:
The minimum calorie intake (per day) for a rural person is estimated at 2,400 calories while that for a person in urban area is 2,100 for a person.

Question 12.
How is the extent of poverty worked out in India?
Answer:
The extent of poverty in India is worked out with the help of “Head Count Ratio”.

Question 13.
Define Head Count Ratio.
Answer:
Head Count Ratio is the proportion of persons living below the poverty line.

Question 14.
Name some factors, other than income and expenditure, which are associated with poverty.
Answer:
Some factors, other than income and expenditure, which are associated with poverty, include accessibility to basic education, health care, drinking water and sanitation

Question 15.
Name the state in India which had the highest poverty in 2011-2012.
Answer:
In 2011 -2012, Chhattisgarh had the highest poverty in India.

Question 16.
List any two causes of poverty in India.
Answer:
Causes of poverty in India are:
(i) Lack of quality education
(ii) No or limited access to health care
(iii) Unequal distribution of income and wealth

Question 17.
Why are casual labourers among the most vulnerable group in society?
Answer:
Casual labourers are among the most vulnerable in society as they suffer lack of job security, assets, skills, opportunities and have no surplus to sustain them.

Question 18.
Give two examples of self-employment programmes initiated by the government to alleviate poverty.
Answer:
Two self-employment programmes initiated by the government include are Rural Employment Generation Programme (REGP) and Prime Minister’s Rozgar Yojana (PMRY).

Question 19.
Name the three major programmes that aim at improving the food and nutritional status of the poor.
Answer:
Three major programmes that aim at improving the food and nutritional status of the poor are:
(i) Public Distribution System
(ii) Integrated Child Development Scheme
(iii) Mid-day Meal

Poverty Important Extra Questions Short Answer Type

Question 1.
Who are the poor?
Answer:
We can see poor residing in our localities both in rural and urban areas. Some of the most vulnerable groups are urban casual labourers, rural agricultural labourers, scheduled castes and scheduled tribes. These people possess very few assets and live in very miserable conditions. They live in kutcha houses made of baked mud and root grass.

They neither have any land to cultivate nor can they afford even two meals a day. Hence, they are malnourished and physically weak. Moreover, they are deprived of decent economic opportunities, which could raise their standard of living and lifestyle. They are illiterate, jobless as well as voiceless and powerless. Better-off people often exploit them.

Question 2.
What are the problems faced by the poor?
Answer:
Following are the problems faced by the poor:

• They suffer from chronic indebtedness borrow from money lenders who charge high rates of interest, which leads them into poverty.
• They are not able to negotiate with employers for legal wages and are exploited.
• They do not have access to electricity and safe drinking water.
• The primary cooking fuel is firewood and cow dung cake.
• There exists extreme gender inequality in the participation of employment, education and decision-making within the family.
• Women in poor households receive less care on their way to motherhood and hence, their children are less likely to survive or be born healthy.

Question 3.
List the initiatives undertaken in post-independent lndia to work out a mechanism to identify the number of poor.
Answer:
The initiatives undertaken in post-independent India to work out a mechanism to identify the number of poor are:
(i) A Study Group was formed by the Planning Commission in 1962.
(ii) Task Force on Projections of Minimum Needs and Effective Consumption Demand was formed in 1979.
(iii) ‘Expert Groups’ were also constituted for the same purpose in the years 1989 and 2005.

Question 4.
Differentiate between absolute and relative poverty.
Answer:
The table below shows the points of difference between absolute and relative poverty:

Absolute Poverty	Relative Poverty
1. It takes into account the minimum physical quantities of national requirement for a subsistence level.	It takes into account relative levels of income of the population.
2. Poverty is measured in monetary terms.	Poverty is measured with respect to various classes, regions and countries.
3. It shows only the number of poor in the country determined on the basis of defined poverty line.	It shows the extent of inequality and proportion of people living below the poverty line.

Question 5.
Why is the calorie requirements in rural areas are considered to be higher than urban areas?
Answer:
The consumption levels in the rural and urban areas are quite different. The calorie intake differs depending upon the age group, eating habits, type of work, climate and consumption level.

The accepted average calorie requirement in India is 2400 calories per person per day in rural areas and 2100 calories per person per day in urban areas. The calorie requirements in rural areas are considered to be higher than urban areas because people living in rural areas engage themselves in more physical work.

Question 6.
Explain how poverty is categorised, with the help of a diagram.
Answer:
Poverty can be categorised as:
(i) Chronic Poor: This group includes those people who are always poor and those who are usually poor but who may sometimes have relatively more money.

(ii) Transient Poor: It covers churning poor and occasionally poor people. Churning poor are those people who move in and out of poverty regularly. Occasionally poor are those people who are rich most of the time but may sometimes suffer bad luck are said to be occasionally poor.

(iii) Non-poor: Non-poor are those who are never poor.

Question 7.
Write a short note on the changes in the trends of poverty ratio and the number of poor during 1973-2012.
Answer:
During 1973 -74 and 2011 -12, the poverty ratio has declined continuously for Doth urban and rural areas. There has also been a decline in the absolute number of poor. However, the ratio is declining much slower than the absolute number of poor in the country. While the gap between the absolute number of poor in rural and urban areas got reduced, the gap between rural and urban poverty ratio has remained the same until 1999-2000. The gap between ratios has in fact widened in 2004- 10.

Question 8.
Give a brief description of inter-state disparity in terms of poverty in India.
Answer:
The proportion of poor people is not the same in every state. The state level poverty has witnessed a significant decline compared to the levels of early seventies. However, the rate of success of reducing poverty varies from state to state. According to recent estimates, many states and union territories have poverty ratio less than the national average. On the other hand, poverty is still a serious issue in Odisha, Bihar, Madhya, Pradesh and Uttar Pradesh.

Question 9.
What impact did the British rule had on the Indian economy?
Answer:
The British rule had a substantial negative impact on the Indian economy and standard of living of the people.

• There was a sharp increase rural tax, which made merchants and moneylenders exploit the borrowers.
• India began to export food grains under the British, which lead to death of 26 million people in famines between 1875 and 1900.
• The British rule impoverished millions of people in India.

Question 10.
What makes farmers commit suicide?
Answer:
Landless farmers are poor and they do not have sufficient money to buy modern equipment for producing crops. In order to adopt developed techniques of production in agriculture, they take loans from moneylenders, who charge them very high rate of interest.

However, if the crop fails due to drought or other natural calamities, it causes distress among the farmers. They commit suicide due to their inability to repay the loans that they have taken for cultivation.

Question 11.
Discuss the objective of growth-oriented approach of poverty alleviation.
Answer:
The growth-oriented approach is based on the idea that the effects of economic growth, rapid increase in national income and per capita income would automatically spread to all sections of society which will improve the condition of poor sections of the country. Major focus on ‘trickle down’ process was laid down in the 1950s and early 1960s by the planning process.

It was believed that rapid industrial development and agricultural transformation through ‘green revolution’ in selected regions of the country would benefit the underdeveloped regions of the country and more backward sections of the society as well.

Question 12.
Write a short note on MNREGA.
Answer:
Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MNREGA) is an important step towards the realisation of the right to work. Under MNREGA, all those who are able to, and are in need of work at minimum wages, are guaranteed 100 days of employment in a year by the government

If the government fails in its duty to provide employment, it will give unemployment allowances to the people. Moreover, the programme is expected to enhance people’s livelihoods on a sustained basis, by developing the economic and social infrastructure in rural areas. In 2012-13, 4.4 crore households have been provided employment under MNREGA.

Question 13.
Which approach has been adopted to improve the standard of living of the poor?
Answer:
The government adopted an approach to address poverty by providing minimum basic amenities to the people. The objective was to improve the people’s standard of living through public expenditure on social consumption needs such as provision of food grains at subsidised rates, education, health, water supply and sanitation.

This approach also included programmes which are expected to create employment opportunities and bring about improvements in health and education.

Question 14.
“Without the active participation of the poor, successful implementation of any programme is not possible.” Elaborate.
Answer:
The poor can contribute significantly towards the eradication of poverty and hence, growth by their active involvement in the growth process. This is possible through a process of social mobilisation of poor people, encouraging them to participate and get them empowered. These steps will also help create employment opportunities thereby increasing the levels of income, development of skill, health and literacy.

Poverty Important Extra Questions Long Answer Type

Question 1.
Discuss per capita expenditure method of determining poverty line? What are its limitations?
Answer:
Per capita expenditure method determines poverty by the monetary value of the minimum calorie intake. The minimum calorie intake was estimated at 2,400 calories for a rural person and 2,100 for a person in the urban area.
On the basis of this, the poverty line was defined worth ₹ 816 as consumption per person a month for rural areas and ₹ 1,000 for urban areas for the year 201 1-12. Limitations of Per Capita Expenditure Method of Determining Poverty Line

(i) It groups all the poor together, without differentiating between the very poor and the other types of poor.

(ii) It takes into account only expenditure on food and a few select items. With this mechanism, it becomes difficult to identify who among the poor need the most help.

(iii) Various factors such as accessibility to basic education, health care, drinking water and sanitation are ignored while developing poverty line.

(iv) Social factors such as illiteracy, ill health, lack of access to resources, discrimination or lack of civil and political freedoms trigger and perpetuate poverty. These are also not taken into consideration while determining poverty line.

Question 2.
Critically examine the trends in rural urban poverty on the basis of the table and diagram given below

	1973-74	1977-78	1983	1987-88	1993-94	1999-2000	2004-05	2011-12
Rural (%)	56.4	53.1	45.7	39.1	37.3	27.1	41.8	25.7
Urban (%)	49.0	45.2	40.8	38.2	32.4	23.6	25.7	13.7
Average (%)	54.9	51,3	44.5	38.9	36.0	26.1	37.2	21.9

Answer:
The table shows that in 1972-73, 55% of total population was below poverty line out of which the percentages of rural and urban poverty were 56% and 49% respectively. In 1999-2000, percentage of poverty of the total population was 26.1 % out of which 27.1 % of rural population and 23.6% of urban population were below poverty line.

While in 2011 -12, the percentage of poverty was 21.9% out of which 25.7% of the rural population and 13.7% of the urban population were below poverty line. According to the diagram, there has been a continuous decline in poverty ratio both in rural and urban areas after 1990s. It can be seen that the gap between absolute number of poor in rural and urban areas did not narrow down until the early 1990s.

Question 3.
What are the causes of poverty in India?
Answer:
The main causes of poverty in India are the following:
Underdeveloped Nature of the Economy: Indian economy is an underdeveloped economy. Its per capita income is low. Thus, its underdeveloped nature is closely associated with poverty, Rapid Growth of Population; Rapid growth of population in already overpopulated countries I like India is one of the main causes of poverty. With the increase in population, the national income increases, however, the per capita income remains more or less the same.

Unstable and Casual Nature of Employment’ The poor people lack basic literacy and skills. : As a result, they have very limited economic opportunities and face unstable employment.

A large number of rural poor migrate to urban areas in search of employment and livelihood. The industries in cities, however, are not able to absorb all these people. The urban poor are either I unemployed or intermittently employed as casual labourers.

(iv) Predominance of Agriculture: Agriculture is the principal means of livelihood and land is the primary assets of rural people. Productivity of land is an important determinant of material well being. But the productivity of land in India is very low and thus, people remain struck in poverty.

(v) Failure of Land Reforms: Since independence, the government attempted to take lands from those who are having large amounts of land and allot to those who do not have any land but work on lands as wage labourers. This policy of land reforms was successful only to a limited extent.

This has left the large section of agricultural workers, scheduled castes and scheduled tribes as wage labourers. As a result, this group of population remained unable to possess assets or skill and remained struck in poverty.

(vi) indebtedness of the Farmers: Due to the adoption of developed techniques of production in agriculture, farmers had taken loans. In recent times, many farmers committed suicide due to their inability to pay back the loans. This indebtedness makes the people unable to raise their income and thus, remain struck in poverty.

(vii) Increase in Prices: The continuous and steep price rise adds to the miseries of poor. Although, it benefits a few people in the society (businessmen), the persons in lower income group find it difficult to meet even their minimum needs.

(viii) Unequal Distribution of Income and Wealth: Unequal distribution of income and wealth has also led to persistence of poverty in India. This has generated two distinct groups of ‘have and have not’ in society. One group comprises those who possess the means of production and earn their income while the other group consists of those who rely on their labour power for subsistence. The gap between these groups has widened over the years thereby worsening the position of the poor.

Question 4.
Suggest measures to remove poverty in India.
Answer:
The problem of poverty is a big danger to the unity of India. Although the government has adopted many programmes, covering different aspects together, following measures can also be undertaken to remove poverty:

(i) Population Control: Growing population is a major cause of poverty in India. Hence, it is necessary to control it. Family planning programme should be implemented effectively.

(ii) Creation of More Employment Opportunities: Though it has been stated in our Constitution that the government would provide employment opportunities to all, but unemployment is still a big problem in India. It is also responsible for poverty. Hence, it is essential to promote employment through intensive skill development technology.

(iii) Increase in Production: Industrial and agricultural production should be increased to remove poverty. Present capacity should be utilised fully and new techniques should be adopted. Proper coordination should be there between large scale and small scale industries. Superior seeds, manures, fertilisers and modern methods of production should be adopted for agricultural development. Necessary irrigation facilities should be made.

(iv) Check on Price Rise: Price rise is also responsible for poverty in India. It decidedly goes against the interests of the poor. Thus, price rise must be checked through proper fiscal and monetary policies and other measures.

(v) More Emphasis on Small, Rural and Cottage Industries: Small scale and cottage industries have not developed fully in India, The government should adopt effective methods to expand small and cottage industries, which will increase the self-employment opportunities for the poor.

(vi) Stepping-up Capital Formation: Low rate of capital formation is a major hindrance in the way of fast economic development. Capital formation rate, therefore, must be increased. As it basically depends on the saving rate, every possible effort should be made to increase savings and their mobilisation.

(vii) Equal Distribution of Income and Wealth: One cause of inequitable distribution of income and wealth is that economic and employment opportunities are not equal for all. This inequality should be reduced. The poor should be given priority in employment opportunities. Tax system should be developed in such a way that income and wealth does not get concentrated in a few hands.

(viii) Effective Implementation of Programmes Designed to Attack Poverty: Undoubtedly, the government has implemented many programmes to attack poverty. It is unfortunate that these programmes have not been proved helpful to the poor because of ineffective implementation. Many social and political factors are responsible for it. Therefore, effective implementation of these programmes is necessary if poverty is to be reduced.

Question 5.
Explain the self-employment and wage generation approach of the government for poverty alleviation.
Answer:
Government’s approach of self-employment and wage generation was initiated from Third Five Year Plan (1961 -66) and has been enlarged successfully since then. The following programmes have been initiated by the government from time to time under this approach:

(i) Food for work Programme (FWP): FWP was launched in the 1970s for the upliftment of the poor. Under this programme, foodgrains are distributed against the wage work.

(ii) Prime Minister’s RozgarYojana (PMRY): This programme has been implemented by the Khadi and Village Industries Commission, which aims at creating self-employment opportunities in rural areas and small towns. One can get financial assistance with bank loans to set up small enterprises under this programme.

Under PMRY, the educated unemployed from low-income families in both rural and urban areas can get financial help to set up any type of industry which generates employment.

(iii) Swarna Jayanti Shahari RozgarYojana (SJSRY): It aims at creating employment opportunities, both self-employment and wage employment in urban areas. Individuals were given financial assistance under self-employment programmes.

(iv) Swarnajayanthi Gram SwarozgarYojana: Sawarnajayanthi Gram Swarozgar Yojana was launched in April 1999 and is the only self-employment programme currently being implemented. It aims at promoting micro enterprises and to bring the assisted poor families (Swarozgaris) above the poverty line by organising them into Self-Help Groups through the process of social mobilisation, training and capacity building and provision of income generating assets through a mix of Bank Credit and Government subsidy.

(v) Sampoorna Grameen RozgarYojana (SGRY): SGRY was launched in September 2001. The schemes of Jawahar Gram Samridhi Yojana and Employment Assurance Scheme have been fully integrated with SGRY.

The objective of the scheme is to provide additional wage employment along with food security, creation of durable community, social and economic assets and infrastructure development in the rural areas. The scheme envisages generation of 100 man days of employment in a year.

(vi) National Food for Work Programme (NFWP): National Food for Work Programme was launched on November 14, 2004 in 150 most backward districts of the India. It is implemented as a 100 per cent centrally sponsored scheme and the foodgrains are provided to States free of cost. The objective of the programme was to intensify the generation of supplementary wage employment.

Question 6.
Discuss the various programmes introduced under the government’s minimum basic needs providing approach for poverty alleviation.
Answer:
Programmes under minimum basic needs providing approach are expected to supplement the consumption of the poor, improve health and education and create employment opportunities. Government has adopted the following programmes under this approach:

(i) Pradhan Mantri Gram SadakYojana (PMGSY): This programme aims at building all-weather roads by 2007 in all villages having population of 500 persons.

(ii) Pradhan Mantri GramodayaYojana (PMGY): PMGY was launched in 2000-01 in all the states and union territories in order to achieve the objective of sustainable human development at the village level. The PMGY envisages allocation of Additional Central Assistance to the States and Union Territories for selected basic minimum services in order to focus on certain priority areas of the government.

Initially, PMGY had five components viz. primary health, primary education, rural shelter, rural drinking water and nutrition. Rural electrification has been added as an additional component from 2001 -02.

(iii) Valmiki Ambedkar AwasYojana (Vambay): This programme was launched in December 2001 to facilitate the construction and up-gradation of dwelling units for the slum dwellers. It also aims to provide a healthy and enabling urban environment through community toilets under ‘Nirmal Bharat Abhiyan’ a component of the scheme.

(iv) National Social Assistance Programme (Nsap): The government initiated National Social Assistance Programme under which, homeless elderly people are given pension to sustain themselves. The programme also covers poor and destitute women.

Poverty Important Extra Questions HOTS

Question 1.
Discuss the impact of globalisation on small land owning farmers.
Answer:
Globalisation related shocks and lack of perceived income earning opportunities are descending many small land owning farmers into poverty. If the households are able to sell assets, or borrow, or generate income from alternative employment opportunities, the impact of globalisation shocks may
be transient However, if the household does not have any assets to sell or have no access to credit, the shocks may push households below the poverty line. The distressed households.usually find suicides as a solution to such crisis.

Question 2.
In India a majority of population is lying below poverty line due to inequality of income and wealth. What can government do to solve this problem?
Answer:
The government can solve the problem of inequality of income and wealth through progressive taxation. Under progressive taxation, burden of the tax falls more on the rich and less on the poor. The rate of tax increases as the income increases. Thus, progressive tax is equitable.

Here we are providing Class 12 Economics Important Extra Questions and Answers Chapter 3 Liberalisation, Privatisation and Globalisation: An Appraisal. Economics Class 12 Important Questions are the best resource for students which helps in class 12 board exams.

Class 12 Economics Chapter 3 Important Extra Questions Liberalisation, Privatisation and Globalisation: An Appraisal

Liberalisation, Privatisation and Globalisation: An Appraisal Important Extra Questions Very Short Answer Type

Question 1.
When were economic reforms introduced in India?
Answer:
Economic reforms were introduced in India in 1991. Economic reforms refer to all those measures that aim at rendering the economy more efficient, competitive and developed.

Question 2.
List any two reasons which led to economic reforms in India.
Answer:
The reasons which led to economic reforms in India include:
(i) Unfavourable Balance of Payment
(ii) Inflation
(iii) Falling foreign exchange reserves

Question 3.
What are the three broad components of New Economic Policy, 1991?
Answer:
The three broad components of New Economic Policy are:
(i) Liberalisation
(ii) Privatisation
(iii) Globalisation

Question 4.
Define liberalisation.
Answer:
Liberalisation means liberating the trade and industry of an economy from unnecessary restrictions and making the industries more competitive.

Question 5.
State any two reforms introduced under liberalisation.
Answer:
The reforms introduced under liberalisation include:
(i) Deregulation of industrial sector
(ii) Trade and investment policy reforms
(iii) Tax reforms

Question 6.
What is fiscal policy?
Answer:
It refers to the revenue and expenditure policy of the government to achieve balanced development in the economy.

Question 7.
Define direct tax. Give two examples.
Answer:
Direct taxes are those taxes levied immediately on the property and income of persons, and are paid directly by the consumers to the state. For example, income tax, property tax.

Question 8.
Define indirect tax. Give two examples.
Answer:
Indirect tax is a tax collected by an intermediary (seller) from the person who bears tne ultimate economic burden of the tax (buyer). For example, excise duty, sales tax.

Question 9.
What was the consequence of devaluation of rupee?
Answer:
Devaluation of rupee led to huge inflow of foreign exchange in India.

Question 10.
List the aims of trade policy reforms.
Answer:
The aims of trade policy reforms were:
(i) Removal of quantitative restrictions
(ii) Reduction in tariff rates
(iii) Removal of import licensing

Question 11.
For what categories of products was industrial licensing not abolished?
Answer:
Industrial licensing was not abolished for product categories such as alcohol, cigarettes, hazardous chemicals, industrial explosives, electronics, aerospace and drugs and pharmaceuticals.

Question 12.
Define privatisation.
Answer:
Privatisation means the induction of private management and control in the public sector enterprises.

Question 13.
What is disinvestment?
Answer:
Disinvestment involves selling a part of the Public Sector Undertaking’s equity to the public to promote privatisation.

Question 14.
State the purpose for undertaking disinvestment.
Answer:
Disinvestment was undertaken:
(i) to maintain fiscal discipline; and
(ii) to facilitate modernisation.

Question 15.
Define globalisation.
Answer:
Globalisation means unification or integration of the domestic economy with the world economy.

Question 16.
What is outsourcing?
Answer:
It is the practice of hiring external sources, mostly from other countries, for regular services.

Question 17.
List a few services which are being outsourced by companies in developed countries to India.
Answer:
A few services which are being outsourced by companies in developed countries to India are:
(i) Record keeping
(ii) Accountancy
(iii) Banking services
(iv) Music recording
(v) Film editing
(vi) Clinical advice

Question 18.
How are WTO and GATT related?
Answer:
GATT was established in 1948. WTO was founded in 1995 as the successor organisation to GATT.

Question 19.
Where is the headquarters of WTO?
Answer:
The headquarters of WTO is in Geneva.

Question 20.
What has been the impact of economic reforms on GDP?
Answer:
The overall GDP growth has increased as a result of economic reforms.

Question 21.
List the areas which were ignored during the reform period.
Answer:
The sectors which were ignored during the reform period are:.
(i) Agriculture
(ii) Industry
(iii) Employment
(iv) Infrastructure
(v) Fiscal management

Question 22.
Name the sector that benefited the most with the introduction of economic reforms in India.
Answer:
Service (tertiary) sector benefitted the most with the introduction of economic reforms in India

Question 23.
Define GST.
Answer:
GST (Goods and Services Tax) is an indirect tax for the whole nation, which will make India one unified common market.

Question 24.
Why is GST implemented?
Answer:
(i) GST will create a simpler tax system.
(ii) It increases overall transparency and compliance.

Question 25.
When was GST implemented in India?
Answer:
1st July 2017

Question 26.
Who is the head of the GST Council?
Answer:
Finance Minister

Question 27.
Which constitutional amendment is done to pass the GST bill?
Answer:
101 st

Question 28.
What type of goods are not covered under the GST bill?
Answer:
(i) Cooking gas
(ii) Liquor
(iii) Petrol

Question 29.
List the main categories of GST.
Answer:
(i) CGST
(ii) SGST
(iii) I GST

Question 30.
What is demonetisation?
Answer:
Demonetisation is the act of stripping a currency unit of its status as legal tender.

Question 31.
When did demonetisation take place in India?
Answer:
8th November, 2016

Question 32.
What was main motive behind demonetisation?
Answer:
To curb black money, terror funding and to stop the use of fake currency available in the market

Question 33.
When did demonetisation take place in India for the first time in history?
Answer:
In 1946

Question 34.
Which currency notes were affected due to demonetisation in November 2016?
Answer:
₹ 500 & ₹ 1,000 notes
(Liberalisation, Privatisation and Globalisation: An Appraisal)

Question 35.
Which currency notes were newly implemented after demonetisation in November 2016?
Answer:
X 200 & X 2,000 notes

Question 36.
What was the last date of tendering old currency?
Answer:
30th December, 2016

Question 37.
State one positive effect of demonetisation in India?
Answer:
Over fake currency

Liberalisation, Privatisation and Globalisation: An Appraisal Important Extra Questions Short Answer Type

Question 1.
Explain the occurrence of events which led to introduction of economic reforms in India.
Answer:
The inefficient management of the Indian economy led to huge amount of borrowings from national and international financial institutions. As a result, India met with an economic crisis in 1991 due to its failure to repay its borrowings from abroad. Crisis led to rise in prices of essential goods. In order to overcome the crisis, India approached IMF and World Bank for loan. The IMF and World Bank announced New Economic Policy as a condition to support Indian economy. Thus, India needed to introduce economic reforms:

• To maintain sufficient foreign exchange reserves
• To keep inflation under control
• To improve economic efficiency
• To remove rigidities in various areas
• To increase international competitiveness

Question 2.
Discuss the nature of government’s revenue and expenditure prior to economic reforms in India.
Answer:
The government was not able to generate sufficient revenue from taxation. Lack of revenue was accompanied by problems such as unemployment, poverty and population explosion. The income from PSUs was also not very high to meet the growing expenditure. On the other hand, the government was spending a large share of its insufficient income on areas which did not provide immediate returns.

Moreover, the foreign exchange borrowed from other countries and international financial institutions was spent on meeting consumption needs. The government neither made an attempt to reduce such reckless spending nor did it pay sufficient attention to increase its exports to meet growing imports’ expenditure.

Question 3.
Write a short note on New Economic Policy, India.
Answer:
The IMF and World Bank announced New Economic Policy as a condition to support Indian economy to overcome crisis. The NEP consisted of wide range of economic reforms. The core policies were intended to create a more competitive environment in the economy and remove the barriers to entry and growth of firms.

This set of policies can broadly be classified into two groups:

(i) Stabilisation Measures: These are short-term measures aimed to correct the weaknesses developed in the balance of payments and to bring inflation under control.

(ii) Structural Reform Measures: These are long-term measures initiated to improve economic efficiency and increase its international competitiveness by eliminating the rigidities in various segments of the Indian economy.

Question 4.
Explain the significance of liberalisation as an element of new economic reforms.
Answer:
Liberalisation means liberating the trade and industry of an economy from unnecessary restrictions and making the industries more competitive. It implies making the economy free from direct or physical controls imposed by the government. Partial liberalisation was started in India’s economy in the decade of eighties.

However, the New Economic Policy initiated in 1991 is more comprehensive and focused on reducing the controls by introducing liberal changes in both the external as well as domestic economy. Liberalisation process is based on the assumption that market forces could guide the economy in a more effective way than the government control.

Question 5.
State the salient features of trade policy reforms.
Answer:
The features of trade policy reforms are:

• There was moderation/reduction in import duty to enhance competitiveness in the domestic market.
• Import quotas had been completely abolished.
• Policy of import licensing had almost been scrapped.
• Export duty had been withdrawn to enhance competitiveness of Indian goods in the international market.

Question 6.
How were the Indian industries regulated prior to reforms?
Ans.
The Indian industries were regulated in the following ways prior to reforms:
(i) Obtaining industrial license from government officials was mandatcy for every entrepreneur to start a firm, close a firm or to decide the quantity of goods that could be produced.
(ii) Private sector was not allowed in many industrial categories.
(iii) Production o.f some goods was reserved for only in small scale industries.
(iv) Government controlled prices determination and distribution of selected industrial products.

Question 7.
Discuss the need for privatisation.What are the ways in which PSUs can be privatised?
Answer:
Privatisation means the induction of private management and control in the public sector enterprises. With a view to improve the performance of the public sector enterprises, the wave of privatisation has spread all over the world. Need for privatisation was felt mainly because of the inefficiency of the public sector enterprises. Thus, the private sector was given a larger space to operate in the areas reserved exclusively for the public sector.

Privatisation can be done by two ways:
(i) By withdrawal governmental control from the management and ownership of public sector companies; and
(ii) By outright sale of public sector companies.

Question 8.
How can the government improve efficiency of PSUs? Explain giving examples.
Answer:
The government has made attempts to improve the efficiency of PSUs by giving them autonomy in taking managerial decisions. For example, to improve efficiency, promote professionalism and enable them to compete more effectively in the liberalised global environment, the government chose nine PSUs and declared them as Navaratnas.

The first set of navaratna companies is as under.

• BPCL
• HPCL
• IOCL (Indian Oil Corporation Ltd.)
• ONGC
• SAIL
• IPCL
• BHEL
• NTPC
• BSNL

Question 9.
Explain the significance of globalisation in the light of today’s modern world.
Answer:
Integration and unification of domestic economy with the world economy is known as globalisation. Globalisation is the outcome of liberalisation and privatisation. Due to the globalisation process, the unrestricted flow of goods and services, technology, capital and expertise was enabled among different countries of the world.

It helps in fostering healthy foreign competition among nations. As a result of globalisation process, the government of India has decided to increase the share of foreign investment up to 51% in Indian companies and provided automatic sanction to collaborations and foreign investors for this much of investment.

State the objective of WTO.
The WTO has the following objectives:

• To develop the multilateral trading system encompassing the GATT, the results of the Uruguay Round and all the agreements concluded under the GATT
• To raise standard of living, real income, employment through expansion of trade
• To promote optimum utilisation of the world’s resources
• To secure the share of developing countries in the growth of international trade
• To eliminate discriminatory treatment in international trade
• To ensure linkage among different trade policies, environmental policies and sustainable development

Question 10.
How important is the role of outsourcing in globalisation process?
Answer:
Outsourcing is the practice of hiring external sources, mostly from other countries, for regular senvices such as legal advice, advertisements, security, computer services, etc. With the adoption of globalisation, outsourcing has been intensified by the growth of fast modes of communication.

Many companies of developed nations are outsourcing a variety of services such as voice-based business processes, which are known as BPO or call centres, banking services, film editing, clinical advice, teaching, record keeping, accountancy, music recording, book transcription, etc. to India. Most of the multinational corporations and even small companies are outsourcing their services to India at a cheaper cost with reasonable degree of skill and accuracy.

Question 11.
Why do global countries prefer to outsource resources and services?
Answer:
At present, many global countries prefer to outsource resources and services because:
(i) Outsourcing increases efficiency.
(ii) It releases capital expenditure, which can be used for other productive activities.
(iii) It enables countries to focus on their primary activities.

Question 12.
Discuss the role of India as WTO member.
Answer:
Being a founder member of WTO, India has been in the forefront offraming fair global rules, regulations and safeguards and advocating the interests of the developing world. India has kept its commitments towards liberalisation of trade by removing quantitative restrictions on imports and reducing tariff rates.

Question 13.
Evaluate the process of disinvestment in PSUs undertaken during reforms.
Answer:
During reforms, PSUs had been undervalued and sold to the private sector. This resulted in a huge loss to the government. The government used the proceeds from disinvestment to offset the budget deficits rather than using it for the development of PSUs and country’s social infrastructure.

Question 14.
Discuss the impact of economic reforms on fiscal management.
Answer:
The following points explain the impact of economic reforms on fiscal management:
(i) Tax revenue did not increase.
(ii) Tariff revenue and custom duties were reduced.
(iii) Tax invectives were offered to foreign investors, which reduced the scope for raising tax revenues.

Question 15.
What is Goods and Services Tax (GST)?
Answer:
GST is a destination based tax on consumption of goods and services. It is proposed to be levied at all stages right from manufacture upto final consumption with credit of taxes paid at previous stages available as set-off. In a nutshell, only value addition will be taxed and burden of tax is to be borne by the final consumer. GST is one indirect tax for the whole nation, which will make India one unified common market.

Question 16.
What type of GST is prepared to be implemented?
Answer:
A dual GST system has been prepared with center and state simultaneously levying it on a common tax base. The GST to be levied by the center on intra-state supply of goods and/or services would be called the Central GST (CGST) and that to be levied by the states would be called the State GST (SGST). Similarly, Integrated GST (IGST) will be levied and administered by center on every inter-state supply of goods and services.

Question 17.
Why is dual GST required?
Answer:
India is a federal country where both the center and the states have been assigned the powers to levy and collect taxes through appropriate legislation. Both the levels of government have distinct responsibilities to perform according to the division of powers prescribed in the Constitution for which they need to raise resources. A dual GST will, therefore, be in keeping with the constitutional requirement of fiscal federation.

Question 18.
What is IGST?
Answer:
Under the GST regime, an Integrated GST (IGST) would be levied and collected by the center on inter-state supply of goods and services. Under article 269A of the Constitution, the GST on supplies in the course of inter-state trade or commerce shall be levied and collected by the government of India and such tax shall be apportioned between the union and the states in the manner as may be provided by the Parliament by law on the recommendations of the Goods and Services Tax Council.

Question 19.
What are the components of GST?
Answer:
There are three taxes applicable under this system – CGST, SGST and IGST.
(i) CGST: It is collected by the central government on an intra-state sale. For example: transactions happening within Maharashtra

(ii) SGST: It is collected by the state governments on an intra-state sale. For example: transactions happening within Maharashtra

(iii) IGST: It is collected by the central government on an inter-state sale. For example: transactions happening between Maharashtra and Tamil Nadu

Question 20.
How is GST calculated?
Answer:
With the unified system of taxation, it is now possible for taxpayers to know the tax levied at different points for various goods and services under the GST regime. For the calculation of GST, the taxpayer should know the GST rate applicable to various categories. The different slabs for are 5%, 12%, 18% and 28%.GST calculation can be explained by simple illustration:
If a good or service is sold at ₹ 1,000 and the GST rate applicable is 18%, then the net price calculated will be:
= 1,000 + \(\left(1,000 \times \frac{18}{100}\right)\)
= 1,000 + 180 = ₹ 1, 180

Question 21.
What do you understand by the term demonetisation?
Answer:
Demonetisation is the act of stripping a currency unit of its status as legal tender. In other words, to withdraw (money or the like) from use. It occurs whenever there is a change of national currency. The current form or forms of money is pulled from circulation and retired often to be replaced with new notes or coins.

Sometimes a country completely replaces the old currency with new currency. India demonetized its ₹ 500 and ₹ 1,000 rupee notes on November 8, 2016. This action affected 86% of all cash in circulation.

Liberalisation, Privatisation and Globalisation: An Appraisal Important Extra Questions Long Answer Type

Question 1.
What was the need for economic reforms in India? Explain.
Answer:
At the time of independence, building a large public sector was almost unavoidable. The capabilities of India’s private sector could not be visualised at that time to make very large investments in the areas like infrastructure. However, by late 1980s the situation had completely changed. By that time, India had developed a strong private sector. Therefore, the argument of a large public sector was no longer valid. Need for economic reforms or New Economic Policy was observed mainly due to following reasons:

(i) Increase in Fiscal Deficit: By 1991, government expenditures began to exceed its revenue by such large margins, which became unsustainable. Fiscal deficit was increasing year after year due to increase in its non-developmental expenditure. Fiscal deficit was 5.4 percent of GDP in 1981 -82, which increased to 8.4 percent of GDP in 1990-91.

Interest payments on public debt were amounted to I0 percent of total government expenditure in 1980-81 which increased to 36.4 percent in 1991. Thus, government was fast heading for debt trap. India had lost the faith of international institutions like World Bank and IMF. Hence, it was necessary to begin new economic reforms in the country.

(ii) Adverse Balance of Payments: Balance of payments is an account of all the payments and receipts of one country with other countries. Imports grew at a very high rate unable to match growth in exports. Thus, India faced adverse balance of payment. The country needed foreign exchange to pay for the import of goods and services. The deficit in the balance of payment on current was ₹ 2,214 crore in 1980-81 which rose to ₹ 17,367 crore in 1990-91. Therefore, it was necessary to adopt New Economic Policy to correct the deficit in the Balance of Payment.

(iii) Gulf Crisis: Prices of petroleum increased in 1990-91 due to Iraq War. This Gulf crisis further worsened the balance of payment position of India.

(iv) Rise in Prices: During 1990-91, the level of inflation in the country reached to double digit. As a result, foreign investors had lost their confidence in Indian economy and national capital resources were flying out of the country. Cost of production had taken an upward jump due to high rate of inflation.

(v) Poor Performance of the Public Sector Undertaking: After 1980, most of the public sector undertakings had suffered huge losses. As a result, PSUs have become a liability to the nation. It became inevitable for the government to adopt New Economic Policy.

(vi) Fall in Foreign Exchange Reserves: During 1990-91, foreign exchange reserves declined to a level that was not adequate for imports worth more than two weeks; exports declined and industrial output of the country was crippled.

India had to approach the World Bank and IMF to provide huge loans of $7 billion to bail India out of the crisis. The IMF and World Bank announced New Economic Policy as a condition to support Indian economy to overcome crisis.

Question 2.
Explain the measures taken in various sectors for liberalisation of the economy.
Answer:
The following measures had been taken for liberalisation of Indian economy under New Economic Policy:
I. Industrial Sector Reforms
(i) The number of industries reserved for the public sector was reduced from 17 to 4 and in the areas reserved for public sector; private sector’s participation was to be allowed.

(ii) Monopolies and Restrictive Trade Practices (MRTP) Act was liberalised. According to the provision of MRTP Act, all those firms having assets worth more than 100 crore were used to be declared as MRTP firms and were subjected to many restrictions. Now, the concept of MRTP has been abolished. These firms are now free to expand themselves.

(iii) Under the policy of liberalisation, industries are now free for expansion and production. Producers are now free to produce anything on the basis of demand in the market. Licensing was abolished and as a result, firms are free to expand their production capacity.

(iv) Investment limit of the small scale industries has been raised to ₹ one crore to enable them for modernisation.

(v) Automatic approval was granted for Foreign Direct Investment up to 51 percent in a wide range of industries.

(vi) Under liberalisation, Indian industries were allowed to buy machinery and raw material from abroad. Government has also allowed the industries to import technology for their modernisation from abroad.

II. Financial Sector Reforms

• (i) RBI’s role had been changed from controller to facilitator in India to allow the financial sector to take decisions on various matters without consulting the RBI.
• (ii) The limit for foreign investment in banks was raised to around 50 percent.
• (iii) Foreign Institutional Investors such as merchant bankers, mutual funds and pension funds are now allowed to invest in Indian financial markets.

III. Foreign Exchange Reforms

• The rupee was devalued against foreign currencies to attract huge inflow of foreign exchange.
• The government adopted free market mechanism for the determination of rupee value in the foreign exchange market.

IV. Trade Policy Reforms

• There was moderation/reduction in import duty to enhance competitiveness in the domestic market.
• Import quotas had been completely abolished.
• Policy of import licensing had almost been scrapped.
• Export duty had been withdrawn to enhance competitiveness of Indian goods in the international market.

Question 3.
What were the measures taken under economic reforms to promote privatisation? Explain.
Answer:
The following measures were taken to promote privatisation under New Economic Policy:
(i) Contraction of Public Sector: Earlier for the economic development of India, great importance was given to public sector. However, most of the objectives of economic development have remained unfulfilled.

As a result, policy of contraction of public sector was adopted under economic reforms. Number of industries reserved exclusively for public sector was reduced from 17 to 8 and further to 2, viz. atomic energy and railways transport. All other industries form the part of private sector.

(ii) Disinvestments: In the liberalisation process, the part of the equity of inefficient public sector undertakings was sold to the private sector (public). This is also known as disinvestments. The purpose of disinvestments was mainly to improve financial position and facilitate modernisation.

It was thought that disinvestments could provide strong impetus to the inflow of Foreign Direct Investment. It should be remembered that all of our PSUs are not inefficient. Our Nine PSUs, which are known as ‘Navaratnas’ of Indian Economy are still playing a leading role in the world market.

Question 4.
Discuss the various strategies which laid the foundation stone for the process of globalisation in India.
Answer:
The various strategies which laid the foundation stone for the process of globalisation in India are discussed below:

(i) Foreign Exchange Reforms: In 1991, rupee had to be devalued against foreign currencies in order to correct the widening deficit in the balance of trade. That was the first and most important reform in the external sector which was made in the foreign exchange market. At present, the value of rupee is determined by market on the basis of demand and supply of exports and imports and by FDI or Fils.

(ii) Trade and Investment Policy Reforms: Since 1991, the door for foreign investment and technology transfer are opened. Foreign Exchange Regulation Act (FERA), which intended to control the inflow and outflow of foreign exchange, was replaced by a more liberal Foreign Exchange Management Act (FEMA).

Quantitative restrictions on imports of agricultural products and manufactured consumer goods were also fully removed from April, 2001. Since 1991, tariff rules are reduced and the licensing procedures for imports are removed.

(iii) Reduction in Tariff: In order to encourage competitiveness, tariff barriers have been withdrawn on most goods traded between India and rest of the world.

Question 5.
What are the merits and demerits globalisation?
Answer:
Merits of Globalisation
(i) Globalisation provides exposure to international economies and helps availing advanced technology and inputs from across the globe. This improves quantity as well as quality of production.

(ii) It helps in improving efficiency of allocation of resources due to more competitive environment.

(iii) It encourages healthy competition among nations, which helps in improving the quality of goods and services at a competitive price.

(iv) India’s share in the world trade has increased from 0.5 per cent in 1990-91 to 1.1 percent in 2005.

Demerits of Globalisation
(i) Many industries (especially small units) may not be able to compete at par with big MNCs. As a result, they might be forced to merge with global enterprises or face a closure.

(ii) Large scale establishment of MNCs in the developing countries like India might result in monopolies.

(iii) Globalisation may lead to income inequalities within the country as it will benefit only those who possess latest skills and technology.

Question 6.
Discuss the benefits of WTO to India.
Answer:
The following are the important benefits emerging from the WTO agreement:
(i) Due to reductions in tariff and non-tariff barriers, there will be development oftrading environment leading to dynamism.

(ii) Countries like India will be helped in their liberal economic policies due to increase in market access opportunities under the WTO.

(iii) It is estimated that world income from trade liberalisation could increase from $ II0 billion to $5 10 billion annually.

(iv) The WTO will strengthen the trade relations among member countries. It will lead to a new trade order.

(v) India will gain in the long run due to low duties on raw-material, components and capital goods.

(vi) The TRIPs are not going to harm India and other developing countries because of providing safeguards.

(vii) India, being a founder member country, has already started to assert itself in the meeting of the WTO council.

(viii) The WTO agreement will emphasise linkages between trade policies, environmental policies and sustainable development.

Question 7.
Discuss the positive impacts of New Economic Policy.
Answer:
The positive impacts of New Economic Policy are discussed below:
(i) Increase in the Rate of Economic Growth: The annual growth rate of GDP in 1991 -92 was slightly more than I percent, which rose to 7.6 percent in 2004-05. With the adoption of New Economic Policy, there has been increase in the rate of economic growth.

The rate of growth of per capita income in 1991-92 was 1.5 percent, which rose to 6.1 percent in 2004-05. However, in comparison to the growth rate of many other Asian or world countries, India’s performance has been rather dismal.

(ii) Increase in the Competitiveness of Industrial Sector: Indian industrial sector stood nowhere in the international world. After adoption of New Economic Policy, efforts were taken to stimulate the industrial activity so that it becomes competitive and profitable.

(iii) Control on Prices: With the adoption of New Economic Policy, annual rate of inflation has been reduced from 17 percent in 1991 to below 5 percent in 2005-06.

(iv) Fall in the Fiscal Deficit: Fiscal deficit as a percentage of GDP has fallen from 8.5 percent in 1990-91 to 4.3 percent in 2005 – 06.

(v) Reduction in Poverty and Inequality: Poverty and inequalities in the distribution of wealth: have not been reduced in India during the planning era. However, after the New Economic Policy regime, people are getting more opportunities of self-employment, which are expected to reduce these problems. Population below: poverty line was 36 percent in 1993-94, which reduced to 26.1 percent in 1999-2000. Twelfth plan projection is to reduce poverty below 10 percent.

(vi) Increase in the Efficiency: New Economic Policy is adding to the efficiency of the Indian economy in many ways viz., scientific management, improvement in technology, closure of inefficient units, freedom from controls and restrictions, competition and co-operation, etc.

(vii) Decline in Deficit of Balance of Payment: Current account deficit of balance of payment has been declined from 3.2 percent of GDP in 1990-91 to 1.8 percent in 2005-06. Thus, New Economic Policy has raised the global confidence in the Indian economy.

(viii) Increase in Investment: After adoption of New Economic Policy, the international copfidence on the economy has been restored. Foreign investors are now showing active interest : in investment in many sectors.

Question 8.
Explain the advantages of GST in India.
Answer:
Following are the advantages of GST in India:
(i) Mitigation of Cascading Effect: Under the GST administration, the final tax would be paid by the consumer for the goods and services purchased. However, there would be an unified tax credit structure in place to ensure that there is no slumping of taxes.

(ii) Evolution of Multiple Layers of Taxation: One of the advantages of GST is that it integrated different tax levied such as central excise, service tax, luxury tax, special additional duty of customs, etc. into one consolidated tax.

(iii) Enhanced Productivity of Logistics: The restriction on inter-state movement of goods has reduced earlier. Logistic companies had to maintain multiple warehouses across the country to avoid state entry tax on inter-state movements.

(iv) Reduction of Litigation: GST aids in reducing litigation as it establishes clarity towards the jurisdiction of taxation between the central and state governments

Question 9.
Explain the disadvantages of GST.
Answer:
Following are the disadvantages of GST:
(i) Negative Impact on Estate Market: Some economists say that GST in India would negatively impact the real estate market. It would add up 8% cost of new homes.

(ii) No Reduction in the Number of Tax Layers: Some experts say that CGST and SGST are nothing but new names for central excise/service tax, VAT and CST.

(iii) Expensive: Some retail products currently have only 4% tax on them. After GST, garments and clothes could become more expensive.

(iv) Bad Effects upon Industrial Sector: The aviation industry would be affected. Service taxes on airfares currently range from 6 to 9%. With GST, this rate will surpass 15% and effectively double the tax rate.

Question 10.
State the impacts of GST in India.
Answer:
The GST is one of the biggest tax reforms in India especially in the indirect tax structure after the independence of India. It was first implemented on 1st July 2017. Since then SMEs have sought clarity concerning the changed GST which the new four-tiered tax structure will bring into the taxation system.

Through the GSTN educational series, the government attempted to offer clarity on GST and the tremendous impact it will have on the Indian business owners as a whole. GST has far reaching implications for the concept of “One Nation – One Tax” legislation on SMEs is in India. The government has introduced the revised rates of indirect taxes for every good and service and specified all details along with the modifications for transactions.

Question 11.
What principles were adopted for subsuming all taxes under GST?
Answer:
The various central and local levies were examined to identify their possibility of being subsumed under GST. While identifying, the following principles were kept in mind:
(i) Taxes or levies to be subsumed should be primarily in the nature of indirect taxes, either on the supply of goods or on the supply of services.

(ii) Taxes or levies to be subsumed should be part of the transaction chain which commences with import or manufacture or production of goods or services.

(iii) This action should result in free flow of tax credit in intra and inter-state levies. The taxes, levies and fees that are not specifically related to supply of goods and services should not be subsumed under GST.

(iv) Revenue fairness for both the union and the states individually would need to be attempted.

Question 12.
What are the advantages of demonetisation in India?
Answer:
(i) Trace Black Money: A major achievement of demonetisation has been that it has helped the government in tracking black money. The government claimed that large sums of black money were kept hidden by tax evaders and demonetisation has helped it uncover the huge amount of accounted cash.

According to estimates made by RBI, during the demonetisation drive people had deposited more than rupees three lakh crores worth of black money in the bank accounts.

(ii) Increase in Tax Revenue: Another expected benefit was that due to people disclosing their income by depositing money in their bank accounts, government will get a good amount of tax revenue which can be used by providing good infrastructure, hospitals, national institutes, roads and many facilities for poor and needy sections of society.

(iii) Cashless Economy: Another major objective of the government achieved through demonetisation was to push the Indian economy towards becoming cashless. The government succeeded in encouraging people to use digital means for making transactions.

(iv) Increase the Number of Taxpayers: Economy has witnessed close to 20% decline in currency in circulation, number of taxpayers has considerably increased and a large number of shell companies have been identified.

Question 13.
What are the disadvantages of demonetisation in India?
Answer:
(i) Inadequate Supply of New Notes: The biggest disadvantage of demonetisation has been the chaos and frenzy it created among common people initially. Everyone was rushing to get rid of demonetised notes while inadequate supply of new notes affected the day to day budgets of citizens,

(ii) Destruction of Old Currency: Another disadvantage is that destruction of old currency units and printing of new currency units involve costs, which has to be borne by the government; and if the costs are higher than benefits, there is no use of demonetisation.

(iii) Failure to Recover Enough Black Money: Another problem is that this move was targeted towards black money but many who had not kept cash as their black money and used that money in other asset classes like real estate, gold and so on were not affected by demonetisation.

Liberalisation, Privatisation and Globalisation: An Appraisal Important Extra Questions HOTS

Question 1.
Is disinvestment really good for India?
Answer:
In the liberalisation process, the part of the equity of inefficient public sector undertakings was sold to the private sector (public). This is known as disinvestments. The purpose of disinvestments was mainly to improve financial position and facilitate modernisation. It was thought that disinvestments could provide strong impetus to the inflow of Foreign Direct Investment. Therefore, disinvestment has been a crucial step against inefficiency of PSUs.

Question 2.
India has reduced import restrictions several times in the 2000s, still it is evaluated as more restrictive than similar developing economies by the WTO in 2008. What can be the reason for this?
Answer:
Despite reducing import restrictions several times in the 2000s, India was evaluated as more restrictive than similar developing economies by the WTO. The possible reason can be electricity shortage and inadequate transportation infrastructure, which act as significant constraints on trade.

Here we are providing Class 12 Hindi Important Extra Questions and Answers Aroh Chapter 7 बादल राग. Important Questions for Class 12 Hindi are the best resource for students which helps in class 12 board exams.

बादल राग Class 12 Important Extra Questions Hindi Aroh Chapter 7

प्रश्न 1.
विप्लव के बादल का आह्वान क्यों किया गया है? (C.B.S.E. Outside Delhi 2013, Set-III)
अथवा
बादल राजा’ शीर्षक की सार्थकता को संदिग्ध कीजिए। (C.B.S.E. Sample Paper)
अथवा
बादल के विप्लवकारी स्वरूप का चित्रण कीजिए। (A.I.C.B.S.E. Set-I)
उत्तर
निराला ने बादल को क्रांति का प्रतीक माना है। उन्होंने माना है कि समाज में निम्न वर्ग या सर्वहारा वर्ग सदियों से धनी वर्ग के शोषकों के शोषण का शिकार होता आ रहा है। ये धनी वर्ग के लोग सदा से निम्न वर्ग के धन को हड़प कर अपने खज़ाने भर रहे हैं।

बार-बार शोषण करने तथा खज़ाने भरने पर भी इनको संतोष नहीं है। इन्होंने किसानों के जीवन रूपी रक्त सार को पूर्णतः चूस लिया है। इनके शोषण के कारण अब किसानों का शरीर हाड़-मात्र शेष रह गया है। समाज में निम्न वर्ग दीन-हीन अवस्था में करुणापूर्ण जीवनयापन कर रहा है लेकिन पूँजीपति इनके धन पर ऐशो-आराम का जीवन भोग रहे हैं।

कवि के मन में पूँजीपतियों के प्रति घृणा और गहन आक्रोश है तथा सर्वहारा वर्ग के प्रति विशेष सहानुभूति है। कवि पृथ्वी से पूँजीपतियों का साम्राज्य मिटा देना चाहता है ताकि जनसामान्य भी सुखद जीवन जी सके। निराला ने इस कार्य की पूर्ति हेतु बालों को क्रांति का प्रतीक माना है। इसलिए समाज से पूँजीपति वर्ग के शोषण को मिटाने के लिए कवि विप्लव के बादल का आहवान करता है।

प्रश्न 2.
काव्य-सौंदर्य स्पष्ट कीजिए
बार-बार गर्जन
वर्षण है मूसलधार
हृदय थाम लेता संसार,
सुन-सुन घोर वज्र हुंकार।
उत्तर
(i) प्रस्तुत काव्यांश ‘आरोह भाग-2’ में संकलित तथा निराला द्वारा रचित कविता ‘बादल राग’ से अवतरित है। इसमें कवि ने बादल को क्रांति का प्रतीक माना है। कवि का कथन है कि बादल की क्रांतिपूर्ण गर्जना को सुनकर संसार भयभीत हो उठता है।
(ii) इस काव्यांश में कवि ने ओजपूर्ण भाषा का प्रयोग किया है।
(iii) खड़ी भाषा के साथ संस्कृत के तत्सम और तद्भव शब्दों का प्रयोग है।
(iv) मुक्तक छंद का प्रयोग है।
(v) प्रतीकात्मक शैली का भावपूर्ण प्रयोग हुआ है।
(vi) ‘बार-बार’, ‘सुन-सुन’ में शब्दावृत्ति होने से पुनरुक्ति प्रकाश की छटा शोभनीय है।
(vii) पदमैत्री, रूपक अलंकार की शोभा है।
(viii) कथन में प्रवाहमयता एवं ध्वन्यात्मकता का समायोजन है।
(ix) ओजगुण है।
(x) वीर रस का प्रयोग है।
(xi) ‘हृदय थाम लेना’ मुहावरे का सटीक एवं सार्थक प्रयोग है।
(xii) बिंब-योजना अत्यंत सार्थक एवं भावपूर्ण है।

प्रश्न 3.
निम्नलिखित काव्यांश का काव्य-सौंदर्य स्पष्ट कीजिए-
हँसते हैं छोटे पौधे लघुभार- हाथ हिलाते,
शस्य अपार, तुझे बुलाते
हिल-हिल, विप्लव रव से छोटे ही हैं शोभा पाते।
खिल-खिल,
उत्तर
(i) प्रस्तुत काव्यांश निराला द्वारा रचित ‘आरोह भाग-2’ में संकलित ‘बादल राग’ कविता से अवतरित है।
(ii) इस काव्यांश में कवि ने पौधों का मानवीकरण किया है।
(iii) कवि ने छोटे पौधों पर चेतना का आरोप किया है।
(iv) खड़ी बोली भाषा का प्रयोग है जिसमें तत्सम, तद्भव शब्दों का प्रयोग है।
(v) प्रतीकात्मक शैली का प्रयोग है। यहाँ छोटे पौधे निम्न वर्ग के जनसामान्य का प्रतीक हैं। बादल क्रांति का प्रतीक है।
(vi) ‘हिल-हिल’, ‘खिल-खिल’ में पुनरावृत्ति होने से पुनरुक्ति प्रकाश अलंकार की शोभा है।
(vii) मुक्तक छंद का प्रयोग है।
(viii) लाक्षणिकता एवं छंदात्मकता के कारण सौंदर्य की अभिवृद्धि हुई है।
(ix) बिंब-योजना भावपूर्ण है।

प्रश्न 4.
तिरती है समीर-सागर अस्थिर सुख पर दुख की छाया।”-काव्यांश का भाव-सौंदर्य एवं काव्य-सौंदर्य स्पष्ट कीजिए। भाव-सौंदर्य-प्रस्तुत काव्यांश ‘आरोह भाग-2’ में संकलित कवि निराला द्वारा रचित कविता ‘बादल राग’ से अवतरित है। इसमें कवि ने बादल को क्रांति का प्रतीक मानकर उसका आह्वान किया है। यहाँ कवि का जीवन-दर्शन भी अभिव्यक्त हुआ है। कवि का कथन है कि हे क्रांति के दूत बादल! तेरी छाया वायु रूपी सागर पर उसी प्रकार तैरती रहती है जिस प्रकार चंचल और कभी स्थिर न रहनेवाले सुखों पर दुखों की छाया मँडराती रहती है। अर्थात मानव-जीवन में सुख-दुख आते-जाते रहते हैं।
काव्य-सौंदर्य
(i) इस काव्यांश में निराला जी ने बादलों का क्रांति के दूत के रूप में आह्वान किया है।
(ii) भाषा सरल, सरस और खड़ी बोली है।
(iii) संस्कृत के तत्सम और तद्भव शब्दों का प्रयोग है।
(iv) प्रतीकात्मक शैली का प्रयोग है। अस्थिर सुख जीवन की परिवर्तनशीलता का प्रतीक है। बादल क्रांति का प्रतीक है।
(v) ओजगुण तथा मुक्तक छंद है।

प्रश्न 5.
‘यह तेरी रण-तरी, भरी आकांक्षाओं से’ का क्या आशय है?
उत्तर
इस पंक्ति के माध्यम से कवि क्रांति के दूत बादल को संबोधित करते हुए कहता है कि जिस प्रकार युद्ध रूपी नौका युद्ध की सामग्री से भरी होती है उसी प्रकार से तुम्हारे अंदर जनसामान्य की अनेक कामनाएँ भरी हुई हैं जिन्हें तुम्हें वर्षा के माध्यम से पूरा करना है।

प्रश्न 6.
सुप्त अंकुर किसकी ओर ताक रहे हैं? वे किसलिए ऐसा कर रहे हैं?
उत्तर
धरती माँ की उपजाऊ मिट्टी में सोए हुए अंकुर निरंतर बादलों की ओर ताक रहे हैं। उन्हें पूरी आशा है कि बादलों के बरसने से मिट्टी नम हो जाएगी और उन्हें अंकुरित होने के लिए अनुकूल परिस्थितियाँ मिलेंगी; वे पनपेंगे; बड़े होंगे और उन्हें भी अपना रूप-गुण दिखाने का अवसर प्राप्त होगा। प्रतीकात्मकता से निम्न और समाज के द्वारा तुच्छ समझे जानेवाले लोग सुख-समृद्धि प्राप्त कर तरक्की की राह पर आगे बढ़ेंगे। समाज में आनेवाली क्रांति के कारण उन्हें भी अपना अस्तित्व प्रकट करने का अवसर
प्राप्त होगा, वे भी अपना उत्थान कर पाएंगे।

प्रश्न 7.
निराला जी ने ‘क्षत-विक्षत हत अचल शरीर’ के माध्यम से किनकी ओर संकेत किया है और क्यों?
उत्तर
निराला जी ने ‘क्षत-विक्षत हत अचल शरीर’ के माध्यम से समाज के समृद्ध और उच्च वर्ग की ओर संकेत किया है क्योंकि यही वर्ग शोषक बन निर्धन और कमजोर वर्ग का शोषण करता है; उनके अधिकारों को छीन स्वयं संपन्न बनता है। जब भी क्रांति आती है; तब समृद्ध और उच्च वर्ग ही क्रांति का शिकार बनता है। कवि उन्हें क्षत-विक्षत दिखाकर प्रकट करता है कि उनकी धन-दौलत, सुख-संपत्ति और शोषण से प्राप्त की गई सभी खुशियाँ क्रांति आने पर वापिस छीन ली जाएंगी। जन-क्रांति की गाज उन्हीं पर गिरेगी।

प्रश्न 8.
‘हँसते हैं छोटे पौधे लघुभार’ के माध्यम से कवि ने किनकी ओर संकेत किया है और क्यों?
उत्तर
कवि ने ‘छोटे पौधे’ के माध्यम से पिछड़े वर्गों और शोषितों की ओर संकेत किया है जो संपन्न वर्ग के शोषण के कारण दीन-हीन दशा प्राप्त कर किसी प्रकार जीवन जी रहे हैं। वे क्रांति रूपी बादलों के आगमन पर प्रसन्न हैं कि क्रांति के बाद शोषक वर्ग मिट जाएगा और शोषित वर्ग का फूलने-पनपने का उचित अवसर प्राप्त हो जाएगा।

प्रश्न 9.
शोषक वर्ग सब प्रकार से सुरक्षित और संपन्न होते हुए भी क्रांति के नाम से क्यों भयभीत होता है ? स्पष्ट कीजिए।
उत्तर
शोषक वर्ग धन और शक्ति के कारण समाज में सबसे अधिक संपन्न और सुरक्षित होता है पर वह मन-ही-मन जानता है कि उसी ने निम्न और मध्यम वर्ग का शोषण किया है। यदि कभी भी जन-क्रांति हुई तो उसकी जान पर बन आएगी; वह उनसे नहीं बच पाएगा जिन्हें उसने शोषण का शिकार बनाया था। उसकी सारी सुख-संपत्ति लूट ली जाएगी। उसकी शान-शौकत मिट्टी में मिला दी जाएगी इसलिए वह क्रांति के नाम से भी कांपता है।

प्रश्न 10.
विप्लवी बादल की युद्ध-नौका की विशेषताएँ कौन-कौन सी हैं? की उत्तर विप्लकी बादल की युद्ध नौका की निम्नलिखित विशेषताएँ
उत्तर
(i) विप्लवी बादल की युद्ध-नौका सदा अस्थिर सुख पर दुख की छाया बनकर मैंडराती रहती है।
(ii) वह दीन-हीन और असहाय समाज को क्रूर विनाश के लिए सदा तैयार करती है और क्रांति के लिए प्रेरित करती है।
(ii) वह अपनी गर्जना से विश्राम कर रहे क्रांतिवीरों को जागने की प्रेरणा देती है।
(iv) विनाश और विध्वंस के लिए वह सदा तैयार रहती है।
(v) वह दीन-हीन-असहायों को क्रांति में भाग लेने के लिए जागृत करती है। (CAD)

प्रश्न 11.
कषि ने किसान की दशा का चित्रण कैसा किया है?
उत्तर
कवि ने किसान की दयनीय और शोचनीय दशा का चित्रण किया है जो पंजीपतियों के शोषण का शिकार बना रहा है। ‘जीर्ण बाह है शीर्ण शरीर’ कहकर उसकी शारीरिक स्थिति को प्रकट करते हुए मानता है कि उसके पास न तो खाने को पूरी रोटी है और न शरीर को ढकने के लिए वस्त्र। उसकी कमजोर शक्तिहीन भुजाएँ कर्मठता से दूर हटकर निकम्मेपन की ओर बढ़ती जा रही हैं। वह इस जीवन से हताश-निराश है।

प्रश्न 12.
‘बादल राग’ के आधार पर विप्लव के बादलों की घोर गर्जना से धनी और पूँजीपति वर्ग पर क्या प्रभाव पड़ता है?
उत्तर
विप्लव के बादलों की घोर गर्जना सुनकर धनी और पूँजीपति वर्ग क्रांति के डर से काँप उठता है। उसे गरीबों के साथ किए गए अपने व्यवहार की याद आ जाती है। उसे अपने पाप डराने लगते है। उसे अब लुट जाने और मारे जाने का भय सताने लगता है। वह अपनी अति सुंदर पत्नी की निकटता पाकर भी भय से काँपता रहता है। उसे प्रतीत होता है कि अब उसे कोई नहीं बचा सकता।

प्रश्न 13.
‘बादल राग’ कविता के माध्यम से कवि के दृष्टिकोण में कौन-सा मूल बदलाव दिखाई दिया है?
उत्तर
निराला जी छायावादी कवि थे। उसकी कविता में प्रेम, सौंदर्य, कल्पना, रहस्यवाद, प्रकृति-चित्रण आदि भावों की प्रधानता दिखाई देती थी पर ‘बादल राग’ में उनका प्रगतिवादी पक्ष दिखाई देता है जिसमें कवि ने दीन-हीन निरीह लोगों का सजीव चित्रण करते हुए पूँजीपतियों के विनाश की कामना की है। वह समाज में परिवर्तन लाना चाहता है। वे पूंजीपतियों को क्रांति से मिटा कर दीन-हीनों के सुखों की कामना करते हैं।

प्रश्न 14.
निराला जी ने अमीरों-पंजीपतियों की अट्टालिकाओं को आतंक भवन क्यों कहा है?
उत्तर
अमीर-पूँजीपति गरीबों, किसानों और श्रमिकों पर अत्याचार कर उनके खून-पसीने की कमाई से अपनी तिजोरियाँ भरते हैं, ऊँचे-ऊँचे महलों-अट्टालिकाओं में शान-शौकत से रहते हैं। वे स्वयं तो सुखपूर्वक जीवन व्यतीत करते हैं पर अपने क्रूरतापूर्ण

व्यवहार से दीन-दुखियों पर आतंक की भाँति छाए रहते हैं। उनके परिश्रम से अपने घर को भरते हैं। संपन्नता भरे जीवन को जीते : हुए भी वे मन-ही-मन जन-क्रांति से डरते रहते हैं क्योंकि वे जानते हैं कि उन्होंने शोषण किया है। उन्हें भय है कि जब क्रांति आएगी तो उन्हें लूट लिया जाएगा, मार दिया जाएगा, उनके ऊँचे-शानदार भवन नष्ट कर दिए जाएंगे। इसलिए कवि ने उनकी अट्टालिकाओं को आतंक-भवन कहा है।

प्रश्न 15.
निराला की सहानुभूति किस वर्ग के प्रति है?
उत्तर
निराला जी की सहानुभूति पूर्ण रूप से पूँजीपति वर्ग के विरोध में गरीब, शोषित और कृषक वर्ग के प्रति है। अमीरों ने ही दीन-हीन वर्ग के शोषण में अपार सुख-समृद्धियों की प्राप्ति की है, अपने ऊँचे-ऊँचे महल खड़े किए हैं। वे चाहते हैं कि शोषित वर्ग एक साथ मिलकर पूँजीपतियों के विरुद्ध विरोध की लहर उत्पन्न करें, क्रांति की मशाल जलाएँ और पूँजीपतियों को समूल नष्ट कर दें।

प्रश्न 16.
‘बादल राग’ के आधार पर धनी शोषकों की जीवन-शैली पर टिप्पणी कीजिए। वे क्यों त्रस्त हैं? (Delhi C.B.S.E. 2016)
उत्तर
‘बादल राग’ कविता में कवि ने धनी एवं पूँजीपति वर्ग के शोषण एवं अत्याचार के शिकार निम्न एवं सर्वहारा वर्ग के जीवन की दयनीय दशा का मार्मिक अंकन किया है। धनी वर्ग का जीवन ऐश्वर्य से परिपूर्ण है किंतु निम्न वर्ग उनके शोषण से दुखी है। निम्न वर्ग ने उनके शोषण से मुक्ति पाने के लिए क्रांति ला दी है। इसीलिए धनी वर्ग त्रस्त हैं।

प्रश्न 17.
बादलों के आगमन से प्रकृति में होने वाले किन-किन परिवर्तनों को ‘बादल राग’ कविता रेखांकित करती हैं? (C.B.S.E. 2018)
उत्तर
जब आकाश में बादलों का आगमन होता है तब बादल गर्जने लगते हैं। उनकी गर्जने की आवाज़ दूर-दूर तक सुनाई देती है। बादलों में बिजली कोंधने लगती है और मूसलाधार वर्षा आरंभ हो जाती है। पानी मिल जाने के कारण बीजों का अंकुरण हो जाता है। जब वे बड़े होते हैं तो छोटे-छोटे पौधे हवा के चलने से अपने हाथ हिला-हिलाकर अपनी प्रसन्नता व्यक्त करते हैं। कमल के फूल से जल की बूंदें टपकने लगती हैं। धरती का कीचड़ जल के बहाव के कारण साफ हो जाता है।

सप्रसंग व्याख्या, अर्थग्रहण एवं सौंदर्य-सराहना संबंधी प्रश्नोत्तर

1. तिरती है समीर-सागर पर
अस्थिर सुख पर दुख की छाया
जग के दग्ध हृदय पर
निर्दय विप्लव की प्लावित माया
यह तेरी रण-तरी
भरी आकांक्षाओं से,
घन, भेरी-गर्जन से सजग सुप्त अंकुर
उर में पृथ्वी के, आशाओं से
नवजीवन की, ऊँचा कर सिर,
ताक रहे हैं, ऐ विप्लव के बादल! (C.B.S.E. A.I.C.B.S.E. 2009, 2010 Set-1, 2012, Set-I, C.B.S.E. Delhi 2017 Set-I, II, III)

शब्दार्थ : तिरती हैं-तैरती है। समीर-सागर-वायु रूपी सागर। जग-संसार। विप्लव-क्रांति । रण-तरी-युद्ध रूपी नौका। भेरी-गर्जन-नगाड़े की आवाज। सुप्त-सोए हुए। उर-छाती, गर्भ, हृदय, वक्षस्थल। अस्थिर-चंचल, जो स्थिर न हो। दग्ध-जले हुए, तप्त, दुखी, पीड़ित। प्लावित-भरी हुई, परिपूर्ण, फैली हुई। घन-बादल, अत्यधिक। सजग-सावधान, सचेत। अंकुर-कोंपल, बीज से पौधा निकलने की प्रारंभिक अवस्था। ताक रहे हैं-देख रहे हैं।

प्रसंग : प्रस्तुत काव्यांश हमारी पाठ्य-पुस्तक ‘आरोह भाग-2’ में संकलित ‘बादल राग’ नामक कविता से अवतरित किया गया है। जिसके रचयिता सूर्यकांत त्रिपाठी निराला जी हैं। ये छायावाद के प्रमुख स्तंभ और साम्यवादी चेतना से प्रेरित कवि माने जाते हैं। इस काव्यांश में कवि ने बादल को विप्लव और क्रांति का प्रतीक मानकर उसका आह्वान किया है। बादल क्रांति के रूप में धरती से शोषण समाप्त कर शोषित वर्ग के जनसामान्य को नवजीवन प्रदान करने का प्रयास करते हैं।

व्याख्या : कवि बादल का क्रांति के रूप में आहवान करते हुए कहता है कि हे क्रांति के दूत बादल, जिस प्रकार वायु सागर पर तैरती रहती है। मानवीय जीवन में अस्थिर सुखों पर दुखों की छाया मँडराती रहती है। ठीक उसी प्रकार संसार के दग्ध हृदय पर तेरी कठोर क्रांति रूपी माया छाई हुई है अर्थात मानव-जीवन में सुख अस्थायी है। हवा के समान सुख चंचल और अस्थिर है।

जीवन में सुखों पर सदैव दुख रूपी बादल मँडराते रहते हैं। मानव-जीवन में सुख-दुख की छाया का आवागमन चलता रहता है। वे कभी भी स्थिर नहीं रहते। संसार के दुख से दुखी और जले हुए हृदय पर कठोर क्रांति का मायावी विस्तार फैला हुआ है। जैसे क्रांति संसार के शोषण और दुखों को समाप्त कर सुख और अमन के वातावरण की सृष्टि कर देती है। उसी प्रकार क्रांति का प्रतीक बादल गरमियों की प्रचंड गरमी से परेशान और दुखी संसार को नवीन सुख और आनंद का संदेश देने आता है।

कवि कहता है कि हे क्रांति के दूत बादल, जैसे युद्ध की नौका अनेक हथियारों और युद्ध-सामग्री से भरी हुई होती है उसी तरह तुझमें भी जनसामान्य की इच्छाएँ भरी हुई हैं। शोषित वर्ग के सामान्य लोग अपने मन में अनेक इच्छाएँ लेकर तुम्हारी क्रांति के आने की प्रतीक्षा कर रहे हैं। जिस प्रकार युद्ध-भूमि में युद्ध के नगाड़ों की ओजपूर्ण आवाज़ को सुनकर सोए हुए सैनिक जागृत हो जाते हैं और युद्ध लड़ने के लिए तैनात हो जाते हैं उसी प्रकार हे क्रांति-दूत बादल! तेरी अत्यधिक घनघोर गर्जना को सुनकर पृथ्वी के वक्षस्थल पर सोए हुए अंकुर सजग हो उठते हैं।

वे नवजीवन की आशाएँ लेकर अपना सिर ऊँचा करके तेरी ओर सहायता की उम्मीद नज़रों से बार-बार देख रहे हैं। . भाव यह है कि जिस प्रकार पृथ्वी की सतह पर छिपे अंकुरों की आशा होती है कि बादलों से वर्षा होगी और वे उसके पानी का पान करके खिलकर, बढ़कर हरे-भरे होकर लहलहा उठेंगे उसी प्रकार क्रांति के प्रतीक बादल से शोषित वर्ग में भी ऐसे ही नवजीवन की आशा का संचार होने लगता है। उन्हें विश्वास हो जाता है कि क्रांति आने से सदियों से पीड़ित, दलित जीवन स्वतंत्र हो जाएगा। वे भी समाज में सुखपूर्वक जीवन जी सकेंगे तथा अपने जीवन को प्रगति-पथ की ओर अग्रसर करेंगे।

अर्थग्रहण एवं सौंदर्य-सराहना संबंधी प्रश्नोत्तर

प्रश्न
1. इस काव्यांश में कवि किसका और किस रूप में आह्वान करता है?
2. बादलों की छाया समीर-सागर पर किस प्रकार तैरती है?
3. ‘यह तेरी रण-तरी, भरी आकांक्षाओं से’ पंक्ति में निहित भाव स्पष्ट कीजिए।
4. पृथ्वी में सोए हुए अंकुर क्या सुनकर जागते हैं और वे किसके समान जागते हैं?
5. काव्यांश का काव्य-सौंदर्य स्पष्ट कीजिए।
उत्तर
1. इस काव्यांश में कवि बादलों का क्रांति-दूत के रूप में आह्वान करता है।
2. बादलों की छाया समीर-सागर पर उसी प्रकार तैरती है जिस प्रकार मनुष्य के अस्थिर सुखों पर दुखों की छाया मँडराती रहती है।
3. इस पंक्ति का भाव यह है कि हे क्रांति के दूत बादल, जिस प्रकार युद्ध रूपी नौका युद्ध की सामग्री से भरी होती है उसी प्रकार तेरे अंदर भी जनसामान्य की असंख्य इच्छाएँ भरी हुई हैं। अर्थात यह निर्धन वर्ग तुझसे अपनी इच्छाओं की पूर्ति का आह्वान करता
4. पृथ्वी में सोए हुए अंकुर क्रांति के दूत बादलों के स्वर को सुनकर उसी प्रकार जाग जाते है जिस प्रकार युद्धभूमि में सोए हुए सैनिक नगाड़ों की आवाज सुनकर जागृत हो जाते हैं।
5. काव्य-सौंदर्य

• निराला की प्रगतिवादी चेतना का चित्रण है।
• कवि ने पूँजीपति वर्ग के प्रति घृणा तथा निम्न वर्ग के प्रति सहानुभूति व्यक्त की है।
• भाषा ओजगुण संपन्न है। खड़ी बोली भाषा में संस्कृत की तत्सम शब्दावली का प्रचुर प्रयोग है।
• प्रतीकात्मक शैली का प्रयोग है। यहाँ बादल क्रांति और सुप्त अंकुर शोषित वर्ग के प्रतीक हैं।
• ध्वन्यात्मकता इसकी प्रमुख विशेषता है।
• मुक्तक छंद का प्रयोग हुआ है।
• अनुप्रास, श्लेष, रूपक, मानवीकरण, पुनरुक्ति प्रकाश, पदमैत्री, स्वरमैत्री अलंकारों की छटा दर्शनीय है।
• ओजगुण विद्यमान है।
• वीर रस का प्रयोग है।

2. फिर फिर
बार-बार गर्जन
वर्षण है मूसलधार
हृदय थाम लेता संसार,
सुन-सुन घोर वज-हुंकार।
अशनि-पात से शयित उन्नत शत-शत वीर,
क्षत-विक्षत हत अचल-शरीर,
गगन-स्पर्शी स्पर्धा धीर।
हँसते हैं छोटे पौधे लघुभार
शस्य अपार,
हिल-हिल
खिल-खिल
हाथ हिलाते,
तुझे बुलाते,
विप्लव-रव से छोटे ही हैं शोभा पाते। (C.B.S.E. 2010, Set-III)

शब्दार्थ : गर्जन-गरजना, बादलों की आवाज। मूसलाधार-ऐसी वर्षा जो मूसलके समान मोटी धारा में हो। अशनि-बिजली। शयित-सुलाया हुआ, गिराया हुआ, पड़ा हुआ। हत-मरना। गगन स्पी-आकाश को छूनेवाला। धीर-धैर्यवान । शोर-आवाज़। विप्लव-रव-क्रांति के शब्द, गर्जन या आवाजावर्षण-वर्षा, बरसना। वन हुँकार-वज्र रूपी घनघोर आवाज या गर्जना। पात-गिरना। क्षत-विक्षत-घायल। अचल-पर्वत, अडिग। स्प र्धा-प्रतियोगिता, होड़। रव-शब्द, स्वर। शस्य-हरियाली, हरा-भरापन, अनाज।

प्रसंग : प्रस्तुत काव्यांश हिंदी की पाठ्य-पुस्तक ‘आरोह भाग-2’ में संकलित तथा सूर्यकांत त्रिपाठी निराला द्वारा रचित ‘बादल राग’ शीर्षक कविता से अवतरित किया गया है। इसमें कवि ने क्रांति-दूत के रूप में बादल का मानवीकरण किया है। क्रांति का प्रतीक बादल शोषक वर्ग का समूल नाश कर देना चाहता है। पूँजीपति बादल की गर्जना सुनकर भयभीत हो उठते हैं लेकिन शोषित वर्ग खुशी से झूम उठता है।

व्याख्या : कवि बादल को संबोधन कर कहता है कि हे क्रांति के दूत बादल! तुम बार-बार तेज गर्जना करते हो और मूसलधार अर्थात घनघोर वर्षा भी करते हो। सारी धरती पर पानी ही पानी हो जाता है। तुम्हारी वज्र रूपी कठोर गर्जना को सुन-सुनकर संपूर्ण संसार अपना हृदय थाम लेता है और भयभीत हो उठता है। तुम्हारी बिजली के गिरने से उन्नति के शिखर पर चढ़े हुए सैकड़ों-हजारों वीर पुरुष पृथ्वी पर गिर जाते हैं। पर्वत के समान विशालकाय व अडिग, धैर्यवान लोग भी जिनमें आकाश को छूने की निरंतर होड़ लगी है।

तुम्हारी गर्जना सुनकर या तो घायल हो जाते हैं या फिर मर जाते हैं। कवि का मत है कि हे क्रांति के दूत बादल, तुम्हारी क्रांतिपूर्ण वज्ररूपी गर्जना को सुनकर ये विशालकाय, धैर्यवान अर्थात शोषक वर्ग के लोग जो अत्यंत धैर्य के साथ निरंतर ऊँचे ही ऊँचे जाना चाहते हैं घायल होकर नष्ट हो जाते हैं। कवि कहता है कि हे क्रांति के बादल, तुम्हारी वज्र रूपी घनघोर गर्जना का प्रतिकूल प्रभाव केवल पूँजीपति वर्ग के शोषकों पर होने से वे भयभीत हो उठते हैं, अपना धैर्य खो देते हैं लेकिन इस क्रांति से ये निम्न वर्ग के शोषित लोग तनिक भी भयभीत नहीं होते।

ये शोषित समाज के लोग तो तुम्हारी घनघोर गर्जना को सुन-सुनकर हँसते रहते हैं। आनंदमग्न हो उठते हैं। जब तुम भयंकर गर्जना करके बरसते हो तो बड़े-बड़े वृक्ष धरती पर आ जाते हैं। लेकिन छोटे-से भार को धारण किए हुए छोटे-छोटे पौधे खिल उठते हैं। वे अपार हरियाली से युक्त होकर प्रसन्नता से हिल-हिलकर खिलखिलाते हुए हाथ हिलाकर तुझे बुलाते रहते हैं। कवि का अभिप्राय यह है कि निम्न वर्ग सदा क्रांति से आनंदित हो उठता है। उसे क्रांति के स्वरों से डर नहीं लगता। फिर क्रांति की गर्जना से छोटे ही अर्थात जनसामान्य वर्ग के गरीब लोग ही शोभा प्राप्त करते हैं। क्रांति का सबसे अधिक लाभ निम्न वर्ग के शोषितों को ही प्राप्त होता है।

अर्थग्रहण एवं सौंदर्य-सराहना संबंधी प्रश्नोत्तर

प्रश्न
1. संसार भयभीत क्यों हो जाता है?
2. क्रांति की बिजली गिरने से क्या प्रभाव पड़ता है?
3. क्रांति आने पर कौन-कौन हँसते हैं और क्यों?
4. ‘विप्लव-रव से छोटे ही हैं शोभा पाते’ पंक्ति में निहित भाव स्पष्ट कीजिए।
5. उपर्युक्त काव्यांश का काव्य-सौंदर्य स्पष्ट कीजिए।
उत्तर
1. क्रांति रूपी बादलों की वज्ररूपी हुँकार को सुनकर संसार भयभीत हो जाता है।
2. क्रांति की बिजली गिरने से ऊँचाई पर चढ़े हुए सैकड़ों-हजारों उच्च वर्ग के विशालकाय अडिग लोग धरती पर गिरकर घायल हो जाते हैं।
3. क्रांति आने पर छोटे पौधे अर्थात निर्धन वर्ग के लोग हँसते हैं, क्योंकि इनपर क्रांति का कोई प्रतिकूल प्रभाव नहीं पड़ता। निम्नवर्ग क्रांति
से सदा आनंदित होता है।
4. इस पंक्ति का भाव यह है कि क्रांति के शब्दों से निम्न वर्ग के लोग ही शोभा प्राप्त करते हैं। अर्थात क्रांति आने पर निम्न वर्ग को ही लाभांश मिलता है जिससे उसके जीवन में सुख-समृद्धि एवं खुशी का संचार हो जाता है।
5. काव्य-सौंदर्य

• कवि ने बादल को क्रांति और विद्रोह का प्रतीक मानकर इसका आह्वान किया है।
• क्रांति का सदा अधिक लाभांश निम्न वर्ग को ही होता है।
• ओजपूर्ण भाषा का प्रयोग है। संस्कृत की तत्सम शब्दावली का प्रचुर प्रयोग है।
• प्रतीकात्मक शैली का भावपूर्ण प्रयोग है।
• अनुप्रास, पुनरुक्ति प्रकाश, रूपक, पदमैत्री, स्वरमैत्री, मानवीकरण, निदर्शना आदि अलंकारों का सुंदर एवं स्वाभाविक प्रयोग है।
• ‘हृदय थाम लेना’ मुहावरे का सटीक एवं सार्थक प्रयोग है।
•  लक्षणा शब्द-शक्ति है।
• ओजगुण विद्यमान है।
• वीर रस प्रधान है।

3. अट्टालिका नहीं हैरे
आतंक-भवन
सदा पंक पर ही होता
जल-विप्लव-प्लावन,
क्षुद्र प्रफुल्ल जलज से
सदा छलकता नीर,
रोग-शोक में भी हँसता है
शैशव का सुकुमार शरीर। (C.B.S.E.Delhi 2008,C.B.S.E. Outside Delhi 2013, Set-12014 Set-I, II, III)

शब्दार्थ : अट्टालिका-विशाल भवन, अटारी, महल। आतंक-भवन-भय का घर या महल। विप्लव-क्रांति। क्षुद्र-तुच्छ, छोटा, निम्न। जलज-कमल। शैशव-बचपन। पंक-कीचड़। प्लावन-बाढ़। प्रफुल्ल-खिला हुआ। नीर-पानी, जल। सुकुमार-अत्यंत कोमल। शोक-दुख, खेद।

प्रसंग : प्रस्तुत पद्यांश हिंदी की पाठ्य पुस्तक ‘आरोह भाग-2’ में संकलित तथा कवि सूर्यकांत त्रिपाठी निराला द्वारा रचित ‘बादल राग’ नामक कविता से अवतरित किया गया है। इसमें कवि ने बादल को क्रांति का प्रतीक मानकर उसका आह्वान किया है। उन्होंने बताया है कि क्रांति का प्रभाव सदा शोषक या पूँजीपति वर्ग पर होता है। क्रांति ही शोषक-शोषित के भेदभाव को मिटा सकती है।

व्याख्या : कवि क्रांति के बादल का आह्वान करते हुए कहता है कि हे क्रांति के दूत बादल ! पूँजीपति या शोषक वर्ग के ये ऊँचे-ऊँचे विशाल भवन तेरी क्रांति से ऐशो-आराम या राग-रंग के महल नहीं रह गए हैं बल्कि ये तो आतंक और भय के स्थान बन गए हैं।

तुम्हारी क्रांतिपूर्ण गर्जना को सुनकर सुविधा-भोगी वर्ग के लोग अपने विशाल महलों में भी भयभीत हो रहे हैं। अब इन्हें राग-रंग कुछ भी अच्छा नहीं लगता। इन्हें अब यह डर रहता है कि क्रांति की प्रलयकारी गर्जना न जाने कब इन्हें मिटा दे। जिस प्रकार बाढ़ का विनाशकारी प्रभाव सदैव कीचड़ पर होता है उसी प्रकार क्रांति का विनाशकारी प्रभाव भी बराई रूपी कीचड़ अर्थात पंजीपति वर्ग के शोषकों पर ही होता है। बाढ़ में खिले हुए कमल के छोटे फूल से पानी सदा छलकता रहता है।

उस पर कोई बुरा प्रभाव नहीं होता न ही वह बाढ़ से विचलित होता है। रोग और दुःखों में भी बच्चे का सुकोमल शरीर सदा हँसता-मुसकराता रहता है। ठीक ऐसे ही विनाशकारी क्रांति आ जाने पर सर्वहारा वर्ग के लोग भी हँसते-मुसकराते रहते हैं। क्रांति का उनके जीवन पर कोई विनाशकारी प्रभाव नहीं होता। क्रांति से पूँजीपति शोषक ही भयभीत होते हैं। क्योंकि उन्हें सदैव अपने साम्राज्य के नष्ट होने का खतरा बना रहता है। सर्वहारा या शोषित वर्ग उससे तनिक भी भयभीत नहीं होते। वे तो आनंदित होते हैं।

अर्थग्रहण एवं सौंदर्य-सराहना संबंधी प्रश्नोत्तर

प्रश्न
1. क्रांति का प्रभाव सदा कहाँ होता है?
2. जल सदैव किससे छलकता है?
3. शैशव का सुकुमार शरीर किसमें हँसता रहता है?
4. क्रांति आने पर ऊँचे-ऊँचे भवन क्या बन गए हैं?
5. इस काव्यांश का काव्य-सौंदर्य स्पष्ट कीजिए।
उत्तर
1. क्रांति का प्रभाव सदा समाज की बुराई पर ही होता है।
2. जल सदैव खिले हुए छोटे से कमल से छलकता है।
3. शैशव का सुकुमार शरीर रोग-शोक में भी हँसता रहता है।
4. क्रांति आने पर ऊँचे-ऊँचे भवन आतंक का घर बन गए हैं।
5. काव्य-सौंदर्य

• कवि को सर्वहारा वर्ग के प्रति विशेष सहानुभूति एवं शोषक वर्ग के प्रति घृणा व्यक्त हुई है।
• भाषा खड़ी बोली है जिसमें तत्सम शब्दावली का प्रचुर प्रयोग है।
• प्रतीकात्मक शैली का भावपूर्ण प्रयोग हुआ है।
• मुक्तक छंद है।
• अनुप्रास, पदमैत्री अलंकारों की शोभा है।
• लाक्षणिक प्रयोग सुंदर एवं सार्थक है।
• बिंब-योजना अत्यंत सुंदर है।
• अनुप्रास, पदमैत्री, रूपक, मानवीकरण अलंकार की छटा शोभनीय है।

4. रुद्ध कोष है, क्षुब्ध तोष
अंगना-अंग से लिपटे भी
आतंक अंक पर काँप रहे हैं।
धनी, वज्र-गर्जन से बादल!
त्रस्त नयन-मुख ढाँप रहे हैं।
जीर्ण बाहु, है शीर्ण शरीर,
तुझे बुलाता कृषक अधीर,
ए विप्लव के वीर!
चूस लिया है उसका सार,
हाड़-मात्र ही है आधार,
ऐ जीवन के पारावार ! (C.B.S.E. Delhi 2009, 2010, Set-I, 2011, Set-I)

शब्दार्थ : रुद्ध-रुका हुआ, भरा हुआ। क्षुब्ध-बेचैन । अंगना-सुंदर अंगों वाली स्त्री। अंक-गोद। जीर्ण-जर्जर, शिथिल । अधीर-व्याकुल। कोष-खज़ाना। तोष-संतोष। आतंक-भय, डर। त्रस्त-डरे हुए, सहमे हुए। शीर्ण-अशक्त, शक्तिहीन, निर्बल। पारावार-सागर और जीवन प्रदान करनेवाले।

प्रसंग : प्रस्तुत काव्यांश हिंदी की पाठ्य-पुस्तक ‘आरोह भाग-2’ में संकलित कवि ‘निराला’ द्वारा रचित ‘बादल राग’ नामक कविता से अवतरित किया गया है। इसमें कवि ने शोषक वर्ग द्वारा शोषित वर्ग पर हुए शोषण का चित्रण करते हुए क्रांति के दूत बादल का शोषित वर्ग की सहायता के रूप में आह्वान किया है। कवि क्रांति के प्रतीक बादल को संबोधित करते हुए कहते हैं कि हे क्रांति के दूत बादल! पूँजीपति एवं शोषक वर्ग ने निम्न एवं निर्धन लोगों का शोषण कर करके अपने खजाने भर लिए हैं। उन्होंने गरीबों के धन एवं उनकी संपदा पर अपना अधिकार कर लिया है। लेकिन अभी भी धन इकट्ठा करने की उनकी इच्छा समाप्त नहीं हुई। खज़ाने भरे होने पर भी इन धनी लोगों को संतोष नहीं है अर्थात इनकी इच्छाएँ दिन-प्रतिदिन बढ़ती ही जा रही हैं। इसपर निम्न वर्ग क्रांति कर उठा है।

कवि कहता है कि हे क्रांति के दूत बादल! तेरी क्रांति की वज्ररूपी घनघोर गर्जना को सुनकर ये पूँजीपति वर्ग के लोग अपनी प्रेमिकाओं के अंगों से लिपटे रहने पर भी भय से काँप रहे हैं। निर्धन वर्ग की क्रांति के विद्रोह को देखकर अब धनिक लोग इतने भयभीत हो गए हैं कि उन्हें अपनी प्रेमिकाओं की गोद में भी भय लगता है। इस प्रकार ये शोषक वर्ग के लोग बादलों की वज्र रूपी हुंकार को सुनकर तथा उससे डरकर अपनी आँखें और मुँह ढक रहे हैं।

व्याख्या : वे अपने को कहीं छुपाने का प्रयास कर रहे हैं। कवि कहता है कि हे क्रांति के वीर बादल! ये शक्तिहीन और व्याकुलं किसान तेरा आह्वान कर रहा है अर्थात तुझे सहायता हेतु पुकार रहा है। जिसकी भुजाएँ पूँजीपति वर्ग के शोषण के कारण जर्जर हो चुकी हैं और उसका सारा खून पूँजीपतियों ने चूस लिया है। इसलिए अब उसका शरीर निर्बल हो गया है। पूँजीपति वर्ग के लोगों ने इस किसान का समस्त जीवन का रक्तरूपी सार चूस लिया है और वह अब ढाँचा मात्रा शेष रह गया है। कवि कहता है कि हे जीवन के पारावार ! तुम इन्हें नवजीवन प्रदान करनेवाले हो। अर्थात तुम्हीं इन्हें शोषक वर्ग के अत्याचार से मुक्त करके नया जीवन दे सकते हो।

अर्थग्रहण एवं सौंदर्य-सराहना संबंधी प्रश्नोत्तर

प्रश्न
1. धनी वर्ग के लोग क्यों काँप रहे हैं?
2. धनी वर्ग के लोगडर कर क्या कर रहे हैं?
3. विप्लव का वीर कौन है? उसे कौन बुलाता है?
4. “चूस लिया है उसका सार, हाड़-मात्र ही है आधार” इस पंक्ति का भाव स्पष्ट कीजिए।
5. उपर्युक्त काव्यांशों के कवि तथा कविता का नाम लिखिए।
6. काव्य-सौंदर्य स्पष्ट कीजिए।
उत्ता
1. धनी वर्ग के लोग निर्धन वर्ग की क्रांति एवं विद्रोह के डर से काँप रहे हैं।
2. धनी वर्ग के लोग डरकर अपनी आँखें और मुख ढक रहे हैं।
3. विप्लव का वीर बादल है। उसे व्याकुल कृषक बुलाता है।
4. इस पंक्ति का भाव यह है कि अमीर वर्ग ने निर्धन किसानों एवं मजदूरों का संपूर्ण धन हड़प कर लिया है। उन्होंने उनका खून चूस लिया है अब उनका शरीर हाड़-मात्र ही रह गया है।
5. उपर्युक्त काव्यांश के कवि का नाम सूर्यकांत त्रिपाठी निराला है तथा कविता का नाम ‘बादल राग’ है।
6. काव्य-सौंदर्य

• कवि ने कृषक वर्ग के प्रति सहानुभूति व करुणा तथा शोषक वर्ग के प्रति गहन आक्रोश व्यक्त किया है।
• कवि की विद्रोह भावना अभिव्यक्त हुई है।
• भाषा सरल, सरस और प्रवाहपूर्ण है। तत्सम शब्दावली का प्रचुरता से प्रयोग है।
• अनुप्रास, रूपक, श्लेष, पदमैत्री, स्वरमैत्री अलंकारों की छटा शोभनीय है।
• चित्रात्मक तथा प्रतीकात्मक शैली का प्रयोग है।
• मुक्तक छंद है।
• भारतीय किसान की करुणावस्था का चित्रण हुआ है।
• भयानक तथा करुण रस का अंकन हुआ है।
• बिंब-योजना सार्थक एवं सटीक है।

Here we are providing Class 12 Sociology Important Extra Questions and Answers Chapter 7 Suggestions for Project Work. Sociology Class 12 Important Questions are the best resource for students which helps in class 12 board exams.

Class 12 Sociology Chapter 7 Important Extra Questions Suggestions for Project Work

Suggestions for Project Work Important Extra Questions Very Short Answer Type

Question 1.
Which method is generally used for project work?
Answer:
The social survey method is generally used for project work.

Question 2.
Who propounded the project work method?
Answer:
W.H. Kilpatric is known as the propounder of the project work method.

Question 3.
What is meant by project work?
Answer:
Project work is the method of getting new experience and knowledge and is related to planning and system.

Question 4.
What is the main objective of project work?
Answer:
The main aim of project work is to obtain knowledge.

Question 5.
Who prepares reports in the project work method?
Answer:
Students prepare the report in the project work method.

Question 6.
How many levels of project work are there?
Answer:
There are four levels of project work method.

Question 7.
What is the first level of project work?
Answer:
The first level of project work is the arrangement of project work.

Question 8.
What is the last level of project work?
Answer:
The last level of project work is to publish the facts and prepare the report.

Question 9.
What is Planning?
Answer:
When an individual arranges his resources for the purpose of achieving his objective it is known as planning.

Question 10.
How many types of planning are there?
Answer:
There are two types of planning-Social planning and economic planning.

Suggestions for Project Work Important Extra Questions Short Answer Type

Question 1.
Write any four objectives of the project work method.
Answer:

1. To provide an opportunity to students for their development.
2. To give practical knowledge to students.
3. To give knowledge to students about problems of society and mentality of the people.
4. To help the students in establishing a relationship with the society and its members.

Question 2.
How many stages of the project work method are there?
Answer:
There are four stages of the project work method and these are:

1. Planning of project work
2. Collection of data or facts
3. Analysis and interpretation of facts
4. Presentation of data.

Question 3.
Which things should be kept in mind while preparing a report of the project work method?
Answer:

1. The language of writing the report should be simple so that it is understandable to everyone.
2. Facts should be produced systematically and clarity of thoughts should be there.
3. A clear and simple definition of technical terms should be given.
4. Facts should not be written repeatedly.
5. Necessary headings, sub-headings, etc., should also be given.

Question 4.
Write any four merits of the project work method.
Answer:

1. This method helps the students to develop themself.
2. All activists or students get equal opportunities for development.
3. Social feelings develop among the students through this method.
4. Social contact of activists increases with this method.
5. Conclusions taken out of this method are real.

Question 5.
What are the demerits of this method?
Answer:

1. A large amount of money is required for this method as it is a very expensive method.
2. It is very difficult to find proper project work.
3. A systematic study is not possible in this method.
4. A lot of time is required in this method.
5. This method is not according to the location of schools.

Question 6.
What is Observation?
Answer:
The term ‘Observation’ means knowing about mutual causal effects to minutely observe the naturally occurring phenomena. According to P.V. Young, “Observation is the objective study with eyes which can be used as a method of minute study of different units of making collective behavior and complex social institutions and also a data collector,”

Question 7.
What is the social survey method?
Answer:
The social survey method is considered as one of the special methods in social research. The survey is a research method in which the researcher himself goes to the place of the event and scientifically observes any specific event and does research about that event. The researcher in this event comes in direct contact with the event and more objectivity comes to his conclusions.

Question 8.
What is an Interview method?
Answer:
An interview means an effective and formal conversation with that individual who is directly related to any particular event. This conversation takes place for any particular objective but it is pre-determined and is limited to a definite area. A conversation takes place in a good atmosphere in which the respondent openly speaks about the event.

Suggestions for Project Work Important Extra Questions Essay Answer Type

Question 1.
What is meant by the project work method? Explain it with definitions.
Answer:
A number of methods are used in researches, being done in Sociology, for the collection of data, and many conclusions are drawn on the basis of those facts. This is why the method of project work is very important in the field of Sociology. Under the method of project work, the researcher himself goes to the field to know about the nature of any social problem. He collects the data in a scientific way: After the collection of data, it is observed, classified, and checked so that conclusions could be drawn out of it.

That is why work is done according to the social survey method which is one of the most important methods of study in social sciences. Social problems are studied on a scientific basis in this method. Useful and practical knowledge is obtained through the project work. The most important objective of this method is that the data collected by this method is useful for other methods as well.

W.H. Kilpatric is known as the founder of this method. A project is also known as the plan which is a method of obtaining new knowledge and experience in actual social circumstances. Its main objective is to get knowledge on a practical level. It is made up of two words ‘Project and ‘work’. Project means to plan and work means system or method. In this way, the literal meaning of project work is the system of the plan.

According to Prof. Stevenson, “A project is a problematic act carried to completion in its natural setting.”

According to Ballard, “A project is a bit of real-life that has been imported into school. ”

So the given description clarifies that project work is a method of getting knowledge in which an individual gets practical knowledge and experience. The researcher, in this, picks up any social problem and does a social survey on it. During the survey, data is collected and conclusions are drawn on the basis of that collected data. In the end, activists prepare the report under the directions of the researcher itself. In this, students or researchers themselves move in the field, collect data with which they get practical knowledge about the social circumstances. From this, he gets complete information about that problem.

Question 2.
How many stages of project work are there? Explain them briefly.
Answer:
The first work of starting any work is to make plans related to that work because if we start working without any plan then a lot of hard work is necessary which requires more time and money. Making plans helps in the saving of time, money, and labor. The whole of the process of project work goes through the following four stages: ‘
A. Planning of project work
B. Collection of data
C. Analysis and interpretation of data
D. Presentation of data.

A detailed explanation is given below:

A. Planning of Project Work. There are certain stages of planning of project work and these are:
1. Selection of Problem. The first stage of starting any project involves the selection of problems. It means which problems would be studied and what type of data would be collected. The following things should be kept in mind while selecting the problem.
(a) That problem should be selected in which the researcher himself is interested and would be able to do more hard work.
(b) Researcher should have some knowledge about the problem and other related aspects so that the work could be done properly.
(c) Objective should be kept in mind while selecting the problem.
(d) Selection of the topic should be done while keeping in mind the limits of resources.

2. Determination of Objective. The second stage of planning is the setting up of objectives. If the objective has been set then we can think about the methods to be used for collection. The design of the survey could be made very easily once the objectives are set down.

3. Organisation of Survey. After the setting up of the problem and objective, there is a need to make a proper organization for that work. One survey committee is being made for an organization in which the director and the main observer of the survey are there. It helps in the achievement of objectives and uniformity comes in the survey.

4. Delimitation of the Field of Study. If the researcher wants to bring objectivity in his study then it is a must for him not to collect all the available data but only collect that data that is necessary for his study. That is why he needs to delimitate his field of study.

5. Preliminary Preparations. A researcher needs to do some preliminary preparations for his study like to get knowledge about related subjects of the survey, meeting the experts, thinking about obstacles which would come in the study, informal conversation with people, etc.

6. Selection of Sample. The study could be affected if the selected units of a sample could be right or wrong. The selection of a proper sample depends on the intelligence of the researcher. Failure of the survey depends upon the selection of sample because the selection of sample leads to limiting the field of survey and saving of money, time, and labor. Researchers then can concentrate on other things.

7. Preparation of Budget. The next stage is of preparation of the budget which is very much necessary for the survey. If we want to run the survey in an efficient way then a balanced budget is required. Budget is made while keeping in mind the survey and resources unless the survey could be stopped halfway.

8. Preparation of Time Schedule. Setting up of time schedule is necessary for a survey because taking up more time can spoil the utility of the survey. Time schedule depends upon the nature and objective of the survey and the activists engaged in survey work.

9. Selection of Methods of Study. Methods of study, in project work, are always selected while keeping in mind time, resources, nature of the survey, activists, etc. Different methods are used for different types of problems. Two methods can also be used for one survey but these should be selected in advance.

10. Preparation of Study Tools. The tools used in the survey work play a major role in its success or failure. Tools like Questionnaire, Interview, Schedule, Observation, etc., should be carefully prepared unless the survey would become a failure. So the preparation of tools should be done for the success of the survey.

11. Selection and Training of Field Workers. The selection of activists, working in the field, and their training may also affect the survey. Selection of honest and loyal activists with the preparation of study tools should also be done. They should be trained to bring objectivity and uniformity in the study.

12. Pre-testing and Pilot Study. It is also necessary for the survey. Pre-testing can tell us about the utility of the tools. The pilot study states the obstacles that may come in the survey. In this way pre-testing and pilot study can tell us about the shortcomings of the study and these can be sorted out.

13. Preparing Community for Project. It is necessary to prepare a proper atmosphere before starting the survey so that people could be prepared for giving co-operation to the activists of the survey. Newspapers, radio, means of propaganda could also be used for this.

B. Collection of Data. Collection of data is being done in the field and the need to establish personal contacts with the people emerges so that they could be asked questions to collect data. This is a process of great care and the following steps are required to accomplish this:

1. First of all, it is necessary to establish contact with the respondents whose names came in the sample.
2. Then the information is collected through respondents by asking questions.
3. Observation of activists, engaged in project work, is necessary so that they would be able to do their work with great loyalty and honesty.

C. Analysis and Interpretation of Data. The next level, after the collection of data, is the analysis and interpretation of data. This stage has the following three steps:
1. Weighting the Data. Some criteria are always kept in every survey on the basis of which the collected data is analyzed. With this, we can come to know about the utility and non-utility of the data.

2. Editing. The next step is the editing of the collected data. First of all, it is checked whether the information from all sources has been received or not. Then answers are verified whether any unfilled answer is there or not. With this, unnecessary facts are removed and the same type of facts are given a code number. For coding, numbers can also be used.

3. Classification and Tabulation. After facts are edited, the next step is to classify them under different groups on the basis of similarities and differences. This classification brings data into a brief form. The next step after classification is the writing of data into different tables which is known as Tabulation. Classification and Tabulation are of great importance in project work because with this we identify the facts very easily.

D. Presentation of Data. Data is presented in two ways.
1. Diagrammatic Representation. Diagrams are used for the easy representation of data which is being represented with the help of diagrams. Important facts can easily be represented with the help of diagrams.

2. Preparation and Publication of Report. The last stage of the project report, after the complete process, is the preparation and publication of the report. Simple language should be used while preparing a report so that everyone is able to understand it. Facts should be practically presented. Technical terms should be clearly defined and facts should not be repeated. Required headings and sub-headings should also be given and wherever required, notes should be made. Diagrams and tables should also be used to make the data easily understandable. After this, the report is published and presented.

In this way whole of the process of the project, the report goes through various stages.

Question 3.
Describe merits and demerits of Project work.
Answer:
Merits of Project Work

Certain merits of project work are there which is why it has an important place in the study of society. It has the following merits:
1. Opportunity for self-development. Project work is one of the important means of self-development for activists and students. Students in this, think themselves, work and if required take direction from the researcher. In this way project work plays a very important role in increasing self-confidence among the students.

2. Development of social feeling. Any project work cannot be completed with one or two persons but is completed with the cooperation of many individuals. Social feeling develops through project work and when individuals work with each other, community feeling also develops among them.

3. Equal opportunity of development. All the activists are given equal opportunity while working for the project work. No discrimination takes place in this work. That is why everyone gets an equal opportunity of development.

4. Practical knowledge. All the activists of project work get practical knowledge from the project work. In this, different problems are taken and plans are made. Then these problems are studied. Data is collected in the field because of which we get every type of practical knowledge.

5. Psychological satisfaction. Individual gets psychological satisfaction after completing this work. A person gets knowledge with an open heart through this.

Demerits of Project Work

1. More expensive. A plan is made in project work and activists work according to that plan. But a number of activists are required to complete this work. Because of more activists, their expenses, etc., require a lot of money and it is one of its major demerits.
2. Difficulty in finding the right project work. First of all, there is the need to find the right project work which is very difficult. If one is unable to find proper project work then this type of study is not useful.
3. Absence of sequel study. To do this type of work, a sequel study of the related problems is necessary which hardly takes place in this. It is also a demerit of this type of study.

Question 4.
Prepare an interview scheduled to be used in project work.
Answer:
In project work, the researcher or activist collects data with the help of a schedule and this schedule is made under the guidance of experts. Here we are giving a model of that schedule which was being used in a village of Himachal Pradesh to know about the status of women in Panchayats.

Here we are providing Class 12 Sociology Important Extra Questions and Answers Chapter 8 Social Movements. Sociology Class 12 Important Questions are the best resource for students which helps in class 12 board exams.

Class 12 Sociology Chapter 8 Important Extra Questions Social Movements

Social Movements Important Extra Questions Very Short Answer Type

Question 1.
What is a socio-reform movement?
Answer:
A movement that started to remove the existing social evils and ills of the society is known as socio-reform movements.

Question 2.
What is the main aim of the socio-reform movement?
Answer:
The main aim of the socio-reform movement is to remove the existing social evils from society and to make social life progressive.

Question 3.
Why were tribal movements started in India?
Answer:
Tribal movements were started to save the tribal cultures so that they could not be mixed with the cultures of other societies.

Question 4.
What is Social Reform?
Answer:
When people of the society start a movement against the existing evils of the society and tries to remove those evils then it is known as social reform.

Question 5.
Why is mobility present in social reform?
Answer:
Mobility is present in social reform because the social reforms are not the same in all ages and all societies. That’s why it is mobile.

Question 6.
What is social welfare?
Answer:
All those organized social efforts are included in social welfare with the help of which, all the members of the society receive facilities to develop themselves in a proper way. Lower and backward classes especially care in the works of social welfare so that all-round development and welfare of the whole society could take place.

Question 7.
What are the two objectives of social welfare?
Answer:

1. the First objective of social welfare is that the needs of members of the society could be fulfilled.
2. To establish those social relations with which people should be able to develop their abilities.

Question 8.
What is the difference between social welfare and social reform?
Answer:
In social welfare, the work is done for the all-around development of the lower classes and backward classes but in social reform, efforts are made to change the society by removing social evils from the society.

Question 9.
What is a Political Movement?
Answer:
The movement which aimed at achieving a political objective is called a political movement. For example, the freedom movement of India.

Question 10.
What is Cultural Movement?
Answer:
The movement which aims at the protection of its own culture is called a cultural movement. For example, tribal movement.

Question 11.
Why were caste-based movements started before independence?
Answer:

1. Before independence, caste-based movements were started to oppose the supremacy of Brahmins over the other castes.
2. To uplift the social status of our own caste in a caste hierarchy.

Question 12.
Why are reform movements known as social movements?
Answer:
The main objective of reform movements was to remove social and religious evils from society and that’s why they are known as social movements.

Question 13.
What is meant by Resource Mobilisation?
Answer:
Resource mobilization is a method in which any social movement gets strength
by its political influence, wealth, reach of media, and cooperation of the people.

Question 14.
What is meant by Redemptive Social Movement?
Answer:
A redemptive social movement is a movement that aims to bring about a change in the personal consciousness and actions of its individual members. For example, Narayana Guru led the people of the Ezhava community in Kerala to change their social practices.

Question 15.
What is meant by the Reformist Social Movement? (C.B.S.E. 2010)
Answer:
A reformist social movement is a movement that wanted to change the existing social and political systems through gradual and incremental steps. For example, the 1960’s movement for the reorganization of the Indian states on a linguistic basis and the recently launched Right to information campaigns.

Question 16.
What is meant by Revolutionary Social Movement? (C.B.S.E. 2010)
Answer:
This is a type of social movement which attempts to radically transform social relations, generally by capturing state power. For example, the French revolution in 1789 and the Russian revolution of 1917.

Question 17.
What is the theory of relative deprivation of social movement?
Answer:
According to the theory of relative deprivation, social conflict arises when a social group feels that its condition is worse than that of the others around it. Such conflict is likely to result in a successful collective protest.

Question 18.
Why were Ecological movements started?
Answer:
More stress is being laid on the development in the modem age because of which there was an unchecked use of natural resources. It was a matter of concern and that’s why ecological movements were started.

Question 19.
Why were peasant movements started before independence?
Answer:
The nature of every peasant movement was different which was started before independence, but their main demand was the removal of economic exploitation of farmers by the moneylenders.

Question 20.
Why were worker’s movements started during colonial rule?
Answer:
Labour, during the early age of colonial rule, was very less because the colonial government hardly made any laws regarding the wages and working conditions of laborers. That’s why the worker’s movement was started to save laborers from exploitation from their owners.

Question 21.
What does the theory of resource mobilization tell us about social movements? (C B.S.E. 2010)
Answer:
This theory was given by McCarthy and Zald. They argued that a social movement’s success depends on its ability to mobilize resources or means of different types. If a movement can muster resources and can use them within the available political structure, it is more likely to be effective.

Question 22.
Name any two women’s organizations of the early 20th century. (C.B.S.E. 2010)
Answer:

1. The Women’s India Association (WIA)-1917
2. All India Women’s Conference (AIWC)-1926

Question 23.
Explain the theory of relative deprivation. (C B.S.E. 2012)
Answer:
According to this theory, social conflict arises when a social group feels that it is worse off than others around it. Such conflict is likely to result in a successful and collective protest. This theory emphasizes the roles of psychological factors like resentment and rage in inciting social movements.

Question 24.
What are distinctive modes of protest? (C.B.S.E. 2013)
Or
What are distinct modes of protest? (C.B.S.E. 2017 (D))
Answer:
Candle and torchlight processions, use of black cloth, street theatres, songs, poetry, and Gandhian ways like ahimsa picketing, use of Charkha and Satyagraha are few modes of protest.

Question 25.
What were the main concerns of social reformers in the 19th century? (C.B.S.E. 2013, 2017 (D))
Answer:

• The Muslim social reformers discussed a great deal about the meaning of purdah and polygamy.
• The injustice suffered by the fourth caste and the issue of gender oppression.

Question 26.
Distinguish between social change and social movement. (C.B.S.E. 2015)
Answer:
Social movements are directed towards specific goals and these movements involve long and continuous social efforts and activities of the people.

Social change is a continuous and ongoing process that is sum total of countless individuals and collective action gathered across time and space.

Question 27.
In what ways do reformist and redemptive movements differ? (C.B.S.E. 2015)
Answer:
The reformist movement wants to change the existing social and political arrangement through gradual incremental steps such as the RTI campaign. Redemptive movement brings about a change in the personal consciousness and action of its individual members.

Question 28.
What are counter-movements? (C.B.S.E. 2017 (D))
Answer:
Counter Movements – Counter movements arise in defense of the status – quo when a social movement seeks to bring in a social change.
Example-
The role of Dharma sabha as a counter to Raja Ram Mohan Roy’s campaign against Sati.

Social Movements Important Extra Questions Short Answer Type

Question 1.
Which changes could be brought with the help of socio-reform move¬ments?
Answer:
India is a welfare state in which everyone gets equal opportunities. The main objective of the welfare state is to make the life of the people happy. But this is possible if all the existing beliefs and evils of society are removed. Only socio-reform movements can remove them. But nothing can be obtained only by making law. For this, reform is necessary for society. For example, laws are present for child marriage, dowry system, child labor, etc., but these things are common in our country. All these things are obstacles to our country’s growth. If we want to develop our society then socio reform movements are necessary. That’s why socio reform movements are necessary to bring changes in our society.

Question 2.
Give four features of social movements.
Answer:

1. Social movements are always anti-social.
2. Social movements are always planned and deliberate efforts.
3. Their main objective is to bring about reforms in society.
4. Collective efforts are required because one person cannot bring changes in society.

Question 3.
What is the nature of social movements?
Answer:

1. Social movements are not institutions because institutions are permanent and traditional and are considered as a necessary aspect of the culture. These movements come to an end after the achievement of their objective.
2. Social movements are not associations, because associations have their own constitutions. This movement is generally informal, unorganized, and is against traditions.
3. Social movements are neither pressure nor sectional group because these movements demand changes in social norms.

Question 4.
Why were socio-reform movements started in India?
Answer:
Socio reform movements were started in India due to the following reasons:-

1. Social evils of Indian society were attached to religion.
2. Society was divided on the basis of caste and caste was made on the basis of religion. Breaking caste rules was considered a sin.
3. The status of women was very low because of which they had no importance in society.
4. The Indian society was full of illiterate people.
5. Many social evils were present in the Indian society like caste system, Sati system, child marriage, child infanticide, restriction on widow remarriage, etc.

That’s why social reformers decided to bring reforms in the society and social reform movements were started in India.

Question 5.
Why were tribal movements started?
Or
Write a note on tribal movement with special reference to Jharkhand. (C.B.S.E. 2012)
Answer:
Hundreds of tribes live all over India. They have their own specific living style. They also have very limited needs. They are very conscious about maintaining their culture and tribal identity. If the tribal people observe that their culture is being interfered with or their demands are overlooked or if there is any danger in maintaining their tribal identity, then they generally take the path of movement. Except this, the tribal people also go for movement for a definite type of change due to the impact of the other communities, religions, and classes. For example, the tribal movement was started on the issue of the creation of a separate state of Jharkhand for the tribals. Birsa Munda of the Munda tribe started a movement against Christianity. Birsa was known as the Birsa God in his Munda tribe. Just because of his efforts, converted Christians of the Munda tribe came back into the Hindu religion and started to perform Hindu practices and customs.

Question 6.
What were the main features of social movements that started before independence?
Answer:

1. the Main feature of social movements started before independence was to re¬establish Hinduism rationally because it took severe blows from Muslim rulers and Britishers.
2. To uplift women, Harijans and exploited classes so that they could also live a better life like other classes.
3. These movements wanted to remove the traditional ideology and wanted to establish a new system.
4. These movements wanted to break the chains of the caste system and establish the feeling of equality and brotherhood among the people.
5. These movements wanted to develop feelings of sympathy, tolerance, brotherhood, etc. among the Indian masses.

Question 7.
What are the features of Revolutionary movements?
Answer:

1. Revolutionary movements wanted to establish a new system by removing the existing system.
2. Violent and suppressive measures are used in revolutionary movements.
3. Revolutionary movements are initiated at a time when there is a need to remove social evils.
4. Revolutionary movement always aimed at ending the rule of the autocratic ruler.

Question 8.
What are the features of Reformist movements?
Answer:

1. The reformist movement wanted to bring reforms to the old social system.
2. The speed of the reformist movement is always slow.
3. Peaceful methods are used in reformist movements and they are initiated for peaceful changes in society.
4. They generally exist in democratic countries.

Question 9.
Distinguish between New social movement and the Old social movement.
Or
In what way the new social movements are different from the old social movements. (C.B.S.E. 2017 (D))
Answer:

1. The old social movements functioned within the frame of political parties but the new social movements were not aimed at changing the distribution of power in the society as they were about the quality of life issues like having a clean environment.
2. Old social movements wanted to remove evils from society and wanted to remove exploitation, but new social movements were started with an aspiration of better living standards.
3. In the old social movements, the role of political parties was central but modem movements are left away by the formal political systems and they put pressure on the state from the outside.

Question 10.
Explain something about the Chipko Movement.
Answer:
Chipko movement started in the hilly areas of Uttrakhand (U.P. at that time) in 1070. Forests in those areas were the means of livelihood for people living there. People used to collect things from forests to live their lives. The Government gave these forests to private contractors to earn revenue. When the people went to the forests to collect wood and other things they were stopped by contractors as they also wanted to earn money from these forests. People of many villages stood against this and collectively started to struggle against this. When the contractors came to cut down the trees, villagers stepped forward to hug the trees to prevent them from being felled. Women and children actively participated in it. Prominent Environmentalist Sundra Lai Bahuguna also joined the struggle. As people used to hug the trees, this movement came to be known as the Chipko movement. In the end, the movement was successful and the government banned the cutting of forests of the Himalayan region for 15 years.

Question 11.
What were the issues against which the leaders of the Jharkhand movement were agitating? (C.B.S.E. 2010)
Or
Mention the issues which agitated the Jharkhand leaders. (C.B.S.E. 2017 (O.D.))
Answer:
The issues against which the leaders of the Jharkhand movement agitating were:

1. Acquisition of land for large irrigation projects and firing ranges,
2. Survey and settlement operations, which were held up, camps closed down, etc.,
3. Collection of loans, rent, and cooperative dues, which were resisted,
4. Nationalization of forest produce which they boycotted.

Question 12.
Bring out the differences between social change and social movement. (C.B.S.E. 2017 (OD))
Answer:
Difference between social change and social movements-

1. Social change is continuous and ongoing.
2. Sum total of countless individual and collective actions gathered across time and space.
3. Social movements are directed towards some specific goals.
4. Involves long and continuous social effort and action by people.

Question 13.
State the features of new farmer’s movements. (C.B.S.E. 2017 (OD))
Answer:
Features of New farmer’s movements

1. Movements were regionally organized
2. Involved farmer rather than peasants
3. Not involved with any party
4. The basic ideology of the movements was strongly “anti-state and anti-urban”
5. Demands were “price and related ‘issues”
6. Novel methods of agitation were used e.g., road and railway blocks, refusing entry of politicians/bureaucrats, etc.

Social Movements Important Extra Questions Essay Answer Type

Question 1.
What is meant by Social Movement? Explain its different types.
Answer:
When people of any society are dissatisfied with the prevailing social circumstances of society and they want to bring about change in it, then social movement comes into being. Social movement always starts with an ideology. Sometimes social movement develops to oppose any change. Earlier, sociologists used to think that social change is an effort to bring change but modern sociologists think that movement either brings social change or stops any change. Different thinkers gave their views about social movement and these are given below:

According to Merril and Eldridge, “Social movement is more or less a conscious effort for change in the society.” According to Hurston and Hunt, “Social movement is the collective effort for bringing change or opposing in the society or in its members.”

According to Herbert Blunder, “Social movement can be called as the collective effort to establish a new system of life.”

So on the basis of these views of different scholars, we can say that social movement is the collective behavior of the members of society, whose aim is to either change the prevailing culture and social structure or to oppose that change. So social movement can be understood in the form of the effort of social action and collective effort.

Types of Social Movements: Hurton and Hunt were of the view that the classification of social movement is not easy work. It is seen because of the different nature of different movements. Different scholars gave different classifications and the main types of social movements are given ahead:
1. Special Social Movements: Objectives of special social movements are pre¬determined and are pre-organized. These movements are controlled by experienced leaders. Revolutionary and Reformist movement come under this category.

2. General Social Movements: General Social movements are related to the prevailing cultural values of the society. This type of movement develops due to those slow changes which are included in cultural values. It is also because the changed values, ideas, and beliefs are not clear when they are in their earliest stage. Feminist movements and scheduled caste movements come under this category.

3. Expressive Movements: The main objective of expressive social movement is to express collective disagreement on any subject. Herbert Blumer had divided these types of movements into two parts and these are religious movements and linguistic movements. ‘

4. Resistance Movements: Resistance movements are exactly opposite to revolutionary movements. The main objective of the resistance movement is to stop or remove change but the main aim of the revolutionary movement is to bring change. Many types of resistance movements took place in India during the 20th century.

5. Utopian Movements: Those movements come under utopian movements that were started by great scholars or thinkers to make an imaginative and ideal society. The Socialist movement of Karl Marx and the Bhoodaan movement of Vinoba Bhave come under this category.

6. Migratory Movements: Migratory movements occur due to war, flood, famine, or any disease. People migrate from one place to another under this type of movement. When people of one area or country collectively decide to live in another country then this type of movement takes place.

7. Revolutionary Movements: The main objective of the revolutionary movement is to overthrow the existing system out of power and to establish a new system. These are of two types-violent and non-violent. These movements start due to dissatisfaction, which prevails in society. The main feature of revolutionary movements is their pace and violence. But many times non-violence is also present.

8. Reformative Movements: The main objective of reformative movements is to bring reforms in the society by removing evils from the existing social system. Brahmo Samaj, Arya Samaj, Ramakrishna Mission, and Prarthna Samaj come under this category. They can develop only in a democratic set up because the government, in democracy, itself is interested in bringing reforms in the society.

Question 2.
What were the conducive conditions in India to start Social reform movements?
Answer:
1. Western Education: When the Britishers started to rule over India, then they started to spread western education. When Indians came in contact with western education, they came to know about science and reasoning. They came to know that the prevailing customs of Indian society were useless and baseless. That’s why enlightened Indians started social movements.

2. Development of means of transport: Britishers developed means of transport for their own convenience but Indians took maximum advantage of these means. With the advent of means of transport, Indians came in contact with each other. Enlightened and educated Indians reached different parts of the country and explained to the people that the prevailing customs are useless for them. People . were already fed up with these customs. They gave a good response to these requests and conditions became conducive with the development of means of transport.

3. Advent of Indian Press: Press started in India after the advent of the British organizers of movements started to publish small newspapers and magazines so that Indians could read them and should understand that these evils are very harmful to the society. It is necessary for them to overthrow these evils from society. In this way, Indians came to know that it is necessary for them to remove these social evils.

4. Increasing impact of Missionaries: When the Britishers came to India Christian missionaries also came with them. They were given help by the Britishers. The function of these missionaries was to propagate Christianity but their way of propagating was somewhat different. First of all, they worked for social welfare. They solved the problems of the people and then used them to propagate their religion. Gradually, people started to adopt Christianity. When Indian social reformers came to know about this thing, they also started reform movements in India. In this way, these movements were started due to the impact of Christian missionaries.

5. Evils of Indian Society: Most of the social reform movements were started to remove the social evils of the society. Sati Pratha, child marriage, restriction on widow remarriage, dowry system, untouchability, etc. are examples of some of the social evils of Indian society. People were fed up with social evils. When these movements started the movement was welcomed with open hands. That’s why these movements got what conducive environment and social reform movements became successful.

Question 3.
What changes in Indian society due to social movements? Explain them.
Answer:
1. End of Sati Pratha Place: Sati System prevailed in Indian society from the very beginning. Widows had to die with the death of her husband. She had to sit alive on the funeral pyre of her husband. This inhuman custom was started by higher castes. Due to social movements, the British government started to oppose this system and it passed a law called ‘Sati Prohibition Act’ in 1829. This law declared Sati Pratha as illegal. In this way, the custom of ancient times came to an end. All this happened due to social movements.

2. End of Child Marriage: Child marriages were prevailing in Indian society. Due to child marriage, parents used to marry their children at the age of 4-5 years. It hardly mattered to them whether the child even knew the meaning of marriage or not. The British government fixed the minimum age of child marriage due to social movements. British Government made a law in 1860 and fixed a minimum age of 10 years for marriage.

3. Widow Remarriage: Widows in our society were not allowed to remarry and this custom was going on from the very beginning. They were not allowed to take part in family functions. They had no right to live a happy life. Due to the efforts of Ishwar Chandra Vidyasagar, the British Government passed an act in 1856 called the ‘Widow Remarriage Act, 1856’ with which widows got permission to remarry. In this way, they got the legal right to remarry and to live a happy life.

4. End of Purdah System: Purdah system prevailed among Muslims. Females always had to live behind purdahs. They were not allowed anywhere. Gradually, this system spread all over the country. Social reformers raised their voice against the purdah system. Even Sir Syed Ahmed Khan also raised his voice against this system. In this way, this system started to decrease and with the passage of time, it came to an end.

5. Change in Customs of Dowry System: Dowry is that which is given by the father of the bride at the time of her marriage according to his wish. But many problems also cropped up along with it. Parents of the bridegrooms started to demand dowry because of which parents of the girls had to face a number of problems. Many movements were started against this. That’s why the British government and later on in 1961, the Indian Government declared it illegal.

6. End of Untouchability: The custom of untouchability was prevalent in Indian society from the ages. In this, lower castes were not allowed to touch the people of higher castes. So the voice was raised in social movements against untouchability. That’s why an atmosphere was created for declaring it illegal. After independence, the Indian government passed an act with which it was declared illegal.

7. Intercaste marriages: Intercaste marriages were not allowed in Indian society. But inter-caste marriages were encouraged by these social movements and they also received legal permission after independence.

8. Caste System: The caste system was one of the important bases of Indian society. But the caste system was weakened by these movements. Almost all the movements raised their voices against the caste system. Gradually, the caste system lost its importance and it is now on the verge of its end.

9. Women Education: Almost all the social movements agreed on one thing and that was women’s education. The status of women was very low in our society. They had no rights. All the social movements worked for women’s education with which women’s education got encouragement. That’s why now she is standing side by side with her husband.

So we can say that social movements were started in the 19th century in India and many changes came in the Indian society due to these movements.

Question 4.
Explain the peasant movements that started in India.
Answer:
Peasant movements are associated with the relations between farmers and agricultural activities. When there is a lack of coordination between agricultural workers and landowners, then workers take the path of movement and peasant movement starts to take place. Actually, these movements start because of the exploitation of farmers. Its main base is class struggle and it is different from worker’s movement. The important base of these movements is the agricultural system. A different type of structure has been developed among the agricultural classes due to agriculture relations and the diversity of land systems. This structure is different in different areas. Agricultural classes of India can be divided into three parts-

1. Owner
2. Farmer
3. Laborer.

The owner is also known as a landowner. This class is the owner of the whole land on which agricultural work takes place. Farmers come after landowners. Small marginal farmers are the owners of small pieces of land. They used to till their land themselves. The third class is of laborers who earned money by working in the agricultural field. They are generally landless and very poor.

Peasant movements started because of different causes. As the earning of agricultural laborers is affected by industrialization, they opposed it with a movement. Except this, there are certainly other reasons for initiating peasant movements, like the demand for more value of their produces, their exploitation by the officials, bonded laborers, opposition of reducing farming subsidies, etc.

Beginning of Peasant Movement: These movements started in the 19th century when the British government associated itself with the agricultural system. The Santhal revolt took place in the 19th century against the British. In 1875, riots of money lenders, Awadh revolt, and farmer’s opposition of money lenders in Punjab took the form of the peasant movement. Gandhiji adopted the way of nonviolence for farmers and workers in 1917-18. Farmer’s organization and peasant labor unions were formed in 1923.

Farmer’s association was developed in Uttar Pradesh, Bengal, and Punjab. The struggle between farmers and laborers started in Gujarat during 1928-29 and 1930-31. The first struggle was started under Sardar Patel and the government was forced to accept their demands. Many movements started from 1937 till 1946 against zamindars, landlords, and landowners. Peasant movements of Mysore and Travnkor were started against kings and local landlords. In the same way, the movements of Odisha, Udaipur, Gwalior, and Jaipur were important in the history of the Indian Peasant Movement.

Even after independence, there was no reduction in the problems of peasants and agricultural laborers and that’s why the number of farmer movements increased all over the country. The main objective of all these movements was the protection of the interests of farmers. These movements also aimed at removing farmer’s exploitation and providing socio-economic justice to the farmers.

Here we are providing Class 12 Sociology Important Extra Questions and Answers Chapter 6 The Challenges of Cultural Diversity. Sociology Class 12 Important Questions are the best resource for students which helps in class 12 board exams.

Class 12 Sociology Chapter 6 Important Extra Questions The Challenges of Cultural Diversity

The Challenges of Cultural Diversity Important Extra Questions Very Short Answer Type

Question 1.
Which major religious communities exist in India?
Answer:
Mainly seven religious communities exist in India and these are Hindus (82%), Muslims (11.6%), Christians (2.3%), Sikhs (2%), Buddhists (0.8%), Jains (0.4%), Parsis, and other tribal sects (0.4%).

Question 2.
Which major languages are spoken in India?
Answer:
Mainly 22 languages are spoken in India and these are Hindi, Punjabi, Marathi, Konkani, Tamil, Telugu, Kannada, Kashmiri, Malayalam, Sanskrit, Gujarati, Bengali, Oriya, Urdu, Sindhi, Nepali, Manipuri, Assamese, Dogri, Santhali, Maithili, Bodo.

Question 3.
What do you mean by unity in diversity?
Answer:
The meaning of unity in diversity is that all the people live with each other in peace and harmony even if they have many differences among them. Many religions, cultures, races, etc., exist in our country but they live amicably with each other. This unity in diversity cannot be seen anywhere else but in India.

Question 4.
Why is India known as a Museum of many races?
Answer:
India is known as a house or museum of many races because many races live over here. Initially, Dravid people used to live over here. Then Arya people came over here. Later on, many other races entered India either by migration or invasion and settled. Slowly, all these races became a part of its society. In this way, it has been correctly said that India is a museum of races.

Question 5.
How regional diversity saves the ancient culture?
Answer:
It is right that regional diversity saves the ancient culture. If the culture of the whole country becomes the same then the importance of different cultures will remain no more. Different regions have different ways of living, wearing and eating habits and just by looking at this, we can say that a person lives in that particular area. In this way, culture remains protected through regional diversity.

Question 6.
What is Regionalism?
Or
Explain regionalism in the Indian context. (C.B.S.E. 2010)
Answer:
Giving preference to one’s own region and neglecting all other regions for the purpose of decision-making, availing benefits of utilizing natural and economic resources is known as regionalism. Giving encouragement to one’s region is also a form of regionalism. People of other regions are considered foreigners. For example, migrants of one state are differentiated from other states.

Question 7.
How can regionalism be removed?
Answer:
Regionalism can be removed with the help of certain steps like by making appropriate laws, by developing means of transport and communication, by encouraging tourism, by developing the common language of the country, by making programs of national unity, etc.

Question 8.
How regionalism becomes an obstacle in the way of national unity?
Answer:
In regionalism, one’s region is being given priority and another region is known as a foreign region. People of other regions are differentiated against. In this way, the feeling of equality and fraternity comes to an end and a sense of superiority of one’s region over other regions generates which is a very big obstacle in the way of national unity.

Question 9.
How unity of the country can be maintained?
Answer:
One of the methods of maintaining unity in the country is to adopt a sense of nationalism instead of a sense of regionalism. If we will try to protect the interests of our region then the unity of the country would come into danger. But if we will take care of the country’s interests by sacrificing our interests then the unity of the country can be maintained.

Question 10.
Mention the geographical diversity of India.
Answer:
India is geographically a diverse country. There are high mountain ranges in the north, the fertile northern plains lie below them. The Thar desert is situated on its west. The peninsula plateau region is located in the central region which is bordered by coastal plains on its two sides. The island groups of Andaman, Nicobar, and Lakshadweep lie in the south.

Question 11.
Which type of diversity exists in India in relation to eating habits?
Answer:
Diversity in eating habits also exists in India. People of North India like to eat vegetables and pulses with chapati. But South Indian people like to use rice more in their meals. People of coastal areas like eating rice with fish. Every region has its own eating habits and delicacies.

Question 12.
What is the importance of language in National Unity?
Answer:
Language plays a very important role in maintaining national unity. A common medium of communication encourages interaction among the masses. Through a common language, people of different regions can share their views henceforth removing regionalism.

Question 13.
How is national unification possible?
Answer:
For national unification, it is necessary that people concentrate on national interests instead of their personal interests. If all the people, political parties, castes, religions, institutions start to work for national interest instead of achieving their personal goals then national unification can be attained. Our politicians should think about national problems instead of promoting regionalism for votes.

Question 14.
What are the evil consequences of religious diversity?
Answer:

1. Religious Fundamentalism
2. Social imbalance and disorganization
3. Conversion from one religion to another
4. Encouragement to violence
5. Conflicts between different religious communities.

Question 15.
Which are the major obstacles in the way of national unification?
Answer:
Casteism, linguism, regionalism, communalism, terrorism, communal riots, strikes, etc., are some of the major obstacles in the way of National unification.

Question 16.
In which areas, a unity exists in India?
Answer:

1. Cultural unity
2. Religious unity
3. Geographical unity
4. Linguistic unity
5. Social unity.

Question 17.
What do you mean by Communalism?
Answer:
Communalism is nothing but an ideology that tries to encourage religious ideas of one religion among the people and rejects or undermines the ideas of other religious groups.

Question 18.
Why did constitution-makers want to make India a secular state?
Answer:
The framers of the Constitution wanted to make India a secular state because they were afraid of communalism. A number of religions exist in India and they did not want to give preference to any specific religion over others. They wanted to give equal importance to all religions for preventing any communal riots in the society.

Question 19.
What is meant by the caste system?
Answer:
The caste system was a system of division of the society into a hierarchy on the basis of which birth, occupation, eating habits, etc., were provided. Four major castes existed within the caste system which was unchangeable.

Question 20.
What is meant by casteism?
Answer:
When politicians try to take advantage of caste consciousness for electoral gains then this process is known as casteism. Leaders of particular castes always try to arouse caste-related consciousness among the people to gather their votes. This is known as casteism.

Question 21.
Write two effects of casteism on our society.
Answer:

1. Encouraging casteism is the major obstacle in the development of a secular society.
2. National unity is weakened due to casteism because it arouses caste consciousness among the mass.

Question 22.
How caste system could be removed from society?
Answer:

1. Caste related laws should properly be implemented.
2. Politicians should stop making use of casteism for their benefit.
3. Strict actions must be taken against those who promote casteism.
4. Inter-caste marriages should be encouraged.

Question 23.
What is meant by Ascriptive identity?
Or
What are two features of Ascriptive identity? (C.B.S.E. 2010)
Or
Highlight the features of ascriptive identity. (C.B.S.E. 2011)
Answer:
The identity which a person gets by birth and can not be obtained through his ability is known as ascriptive identity. Such type of identity is obtained by an individual through his family, caste, or community.

Question 24.
What is a Nation? Give its definition.
Answer:
A Nation is a type of large-scale community. It is a community of communities. Members of a nation share the desire to be a part of the same political collectivity. According to Max Weber,” A state is a body that successfully claims a monopoly of legitimate force in a particular territory.”

Question 25.
What is a privileged minority?
Or
Who are the privileged minorities? (C.B.S.E. 2015)
Answer:
The privileged minority is that minority for whom any provisions have been made. When any particular qualification is attached to a specific minority group then that group is known as a privileged minority.

Question 26.
What is the Sociological meaning of Minority?
Answer:
The Sociological meaning of minority is that the members of the minority form a collectivity. It means that they have a strong sense of group solidarity, a feeling of togetherness, and belongingness. This is linked to disadvantage because the experience of being subjected to prejudice and discrimination generally heightens the feeling of intra¬group loyalty and interests.

Question 27.
What rights does the Right to Information Act give to the citizens? (C.B.S.E. 2010)
Answer:
Following are the rights given to the citizens under the Right to Information Act:

1. To request any information (as defined).
2. To take copies of documents.
3. To inspect documents, works, and records.
4. To take certified samples of materials of work.

Question 28.
State any two constitutional provisions meant to protect minority rights? (C.B.S.E. 2015)
Answer:

1. According to Article 29, any section of the citizens of India having a distinct language, script, or culture of its own shall have the right to conserve the same.
2. Article 30 says that all minorities, whether based on religion or language, shall have the right to establish and administer educational institutions of their choice.

Question 29.
How are the privileged minorities politically vulnerable? (C.B.S.E. 2017 (OD))
Answer:
Privileged Minority are vulnerable:

1. As there is a demographic dominance of the majority.
2. Face the risk that the majority community will capture political power through elections.
3. The dominant majority uses the state machinery to suppress the religious or cultural institutions of the minorities; forcing them to abandon their distinctive identity.

The Challenges of Cultural Diversity Important Extra Questions Very Short Answer Type

Question 1.
Which types of diversities are there in India?
Answer:

1. Diversity of eating habits. North Indian people use more vegetables, pulses, and wheat but South Indian people largely eat rice. People of coastal areas eat more rice and fish than other products.
2. Social diversity. People of every area have different types of folkways, mores, customs, ways of living, religious rituals. People worship different gods as well.
3. Diversity of physical features. People of plains are long, wide as well as of bright color. People of mountainous regions are not very long but are of broad shoulders. South Indian people have dark-colored skin.
4. Diversity of population. The population is also diverse in India. Many states like Punjab and Haryana are densely populated but many states like Meghalaya have less population.

Question 2.
How religion reduces the sense of unity?
Answer:
We look at religion as means of social control but its practical form is very
much different. These days, religion is used for political purposes. Religion is used to reduce the sense of unity in many ways like:

1. Many religious organizations try to propagate their own religion with which sense of superiority of their religion comes in them which reduces the sense of unity.
2. Educational institutions of any particular religion propagate their own religion and never allow other religions to come forward.
3. Politicians use religion to get the votes of the people and followers of different religions to contradict each other.

Question 3.
Tell something about the cultural diversity of India.
Or
What is meant by cultural diversity? (C.B.S.E. 2010)
Answer:
People of different castes and religions live in India due to which their language, ways of living, eating and wearing habits, traditions, customs, etc., are different. Their marriage rituals, lifestyles are also different. Every religion has its own religious texts and everyone pays homage to them. The dance of every state is different. We can see diversity in drawing, painting, etc., of different states. Every caste and religion has its own festivals. Businessmen, artists, story writers also have contributed to cultural diversity. In this way, even after having different cultural regions and communities, unity still exists in India.

Question 4.
What is meant by Ashrama system regions and communities?
Answer:
Ashrama system was one of the bases of the Hindu Social System. According to this system, a person’s whole life is divided into four equal parts which are known as four ashramas. These ashramas are:

1. Brahmacharya Ashrama. The first ashrama is known as Brahmacharya ashrama and the first 25 years of one’s life belong to this ashrama. A person in this stage receives education at the house of the Guru and the Guru prepares him for the next stages of life.
2. Grihastha Ashrama. After getting an education, a person enters into the Grihastha ashrama which goes up to 50 years of age. In this stage, the person marries, produces children, earns money, and serves the people. He fulfills all his wishes in this ashrama.
3. Vana Prastha Ashrama. The third ashrama starts at the age of 50 and goes up to 75 years of age. He renounces every worldly pleasure and meditates in the forest for salvation. Here he tries to concentrate on achieving salvation.
4. Sanyasa Ashrama. This ashrama starts from 75 years and goes until death. Man sacrifices everything in this and concentrates on god. He lives in the forest to achieve salvation.

Question 5.
What do you mean by communal politics?
Answer:
Communal politics refers to the use of religion in politics in which it is propagated that one’s religion is superior to other religions. The political leaders try to misinterpret the basic ethics of the religion such as unity, brotherhood, communal harmony, and omnipotence of God. Communal politics has only one base that community can be formed only on the basis of religion. It states that people of one religion are of the same community and their views, ideas, etc., are also the same. This communal politics also states that followers of different religions cannot make one community. In its ugliest sense, communal politics states that people of different religions are not equal and cannot live together in one particular area.

Question 6.
‘Idea of communalism is very dangerous.’ Comment.
Answer:
The basic notion behind communalism is the promotion of one particular religion at the cost of other religions. This is an ideology pertaining that the followers of one religion belong to one community and people of different religions cannot form a single community. In a country like India, where a number of religions exist, the idea of communalism is very dangerous because:

1. Political leaders use religion to win over a maximum number of voters which can lead to the social division of the society on religious lines.
2. In communalism, demands of one religion are totally opposite to the demands of other religions which creates tension and distrust among followers of different religions.
3. Communalism propagates the superiority of one religion over others and this leads to communal tension.

Question 7.
How caste plays an important role in politics?
Answer:
In a country like India, where caste is deeply rooted in society, the caste system is a very important factor in winning over the elections. People of different castes sire also involved in politics due to which caste plays a dominant role in politics. The importance of caste in politics is given below:

1. Political leaders contest the elections and try to win over the loyalty of their cast members to win the elections.
2. Different castes come closer to each other to make a pool so that they can demand more facilities for them from the political leaders.
3. Many a time, political leaders belonging to one caste propagate views and opinions against other castes which often leads to caste conflicts and even riots.

Question 8.
What are the demerits of using caste in politics?
Answer:
The caste system is very much of advantage to those who use it to gain political momentum, but in general, it has a number of negative impacts or demerits which are given below:

1. If the caste system is used in politics then political parties could be divided into different castes which may lead to conflict in different castes.
2. Division of political parties on the basis of different castes often leads to caste conflict.
3. Different caste leaders propagate against other castes which results in tension between different castes. It diverts our attention from other important issues like poverty, unemployment, education, etc.

Question 9.
What do you mean by casteism? What are its consequences?
Answer:
The term ‘caste’ is used for different games of society. A caste is an endogamous group that keeps certain restrictions on its members. In this sense, casteism states that every caste group is a different community from the other group. That is why different caste groups are different from each other and their interests are also different. Society was divided into distinct homogeneous groups in the caste system. Therefore, casteism is an ideology that says that one’s caste is superior to other castes and that it should have supremacy over the other castes. Its consequence comes in the form of social division. Society is divided into different parts and leads to tensions and conflicts.

Question 10.
What is Regionalism? How can this problem be overcome?
Answer:
Regionalism is an ideology in which citizens of one particular region start to believe that their region is being neglected by the central authorities and that it should be developed. That is why they start to agitate against this discrimination. The creation of Jharkhand and Uttarakhand was a result of regionalism. This is a serious problem and a danger to national unity. To overcome this, balanced regional growth is necessary. The government should take care of all the regions while making plans for the country. Local resources of the region should be used for its development and all the regions should be given enough powers in the decision-making process.

Question 11.
State the main features of the caste system.
Answer:

1. Membership of caste is based upon birth.
2. A caste is an endogamous group.
3. There are certain restrictions on the caste system regarding social intercourse.
4. Restrictions are there on the caste system regarding lifestyle.
5. The occupation of a person is hereditary in the caste system. It means that no one can adopt any occupation of his choice.
6. Society is divided into different segments. There is a definite hierarchy in the caste system.

Question 12.
Explain the relation of consciousness with caste.
Answer:
Consciousness towards caste is very less in the caste system. This consciousness exists in the class system. The social status of every individual is determined by his caste which he gets by birth. People belonging to higher castes receive recognition and respect from society whereas the lower caste people are usually neglected and exploited. Due to this, there is consciousness in caste.

Question 13.
Caste is a hindrance to Social Unity. How?
Answer:
It is correct that caste is a hindrance to social unity. It is so because society has been divided into many segments. There are many restrictions in keeping mutual relations among different castes. That is why there was no sense of love and sympathy among people of different castes. People of one caste only think about the welfare of their community. People of lower castes are exploited by the people of higher castes because of which hatred and a sense of casteism develop in the society. Therefore, we can say that caste is a hindrance to social unity.

Question 14.
How Regionalism could be reduced?
Answer:

1. The government should give equal grants to all the regions, states, and adequate help according to the demands of that region.
2. The government should not give preference to any particular region over the other regions to prevent the sense of inferiority among the people of other regions.
3. The literacy rate of the country should be increased and people should be motivated to get higher education so that the educated people put the country before the region.
4. People of the country should be provided with more and more opportunities for employment so that people hardly care about regionalism.

Question 15.
Give three features of ascribed identity and community feeling.
Answer:

1. People are very much associated with ascribed identities and community feelings. It provides reality to the world and gives us a sense of identity.
2. Ascribed identity and community feelings are universal. Every individual has a motherland, mother tongue, a family, and loyalty as well.
3. All of us are equally loyal towards our ascribed identities. Yet there are certain differences among ascribed identities of every individual and a sense of loyalty remains there in everyone.

Question 16.
‘India is a secular state.’How?
Answer:
It is true that India is a secular state. It has been declared in the Constitution that India will be a secular state but religion, language, and other factors are not completely discarded from all the public sectors. Actually, these groups are individually sanctioned. From the aspect of international criteria, minority religions are given strong constitutional protections. Constitution has given fundamental rights to everyone (including minorities) to protect and propagate their culture. Everyone is free to adopt any religion of their choice. It has been written in the Constitution that no discrimination shall be made on the basis of any religion. State and government will not have their own religion. In this way, we can say that India is a secular country.

Question 17.
How can secularism be understood in its two forms? (C.B.S.E. 2017 (OD))
Answer:
Secularism in the Indian context:
(a) India is a State recognizing all religions to be equal.

• It does not favor any one particular religion over the others;
• Opposite of religious chauvinism
• Implies equal respect for all religions

For example – India as a secular State declares public holidays to mark the festivals of all religions.

(b) Secularism in the western context:

• The State has a particular religion
• It refers to the separation of Church and the State
• It means the distancing of religion and political authority.

Question 18.
Explain the politics of assimilation and integration used to establish a national identity. (C.B.S.E. 2017 (D))
Answer:
Assimilationist and integrationist strategies try to establish singular national identities through various interventions like:

1. Centralizing all powers to forums where the dominant group constitutes a majority and eliminating the autonomy of local or minority groups.
2. Imposing a unified legal and judicial system based on the dominant group’s traditions and abolishing alternative systems used by other groups.
3. Adopting the dominant group’s language as the only official national language and making its use mandatory in all public institutions.
4. Promotions of the dominant group’s language and culture through national institutions including state-controlled media and educational institutions.
5. Adoption of state symbols celebrating the dominant group’s history, heroes, and culture reflected in such things as choice of national holidays or naming of streets, etc.
6. Seizure of lands forests and fisheries from minority groups and indigenous people and declaring them national resources.

The Challenges of Cultural Diversity Important Extra Questions Very Short Answer Type

Question 1.
Which elements of Unity were there in ancient India?
Answer:
1. Rural Society. Ancient India was based upon rural society. The lifestyle of the people was also rural. The main occupation of the people was agriculture. Most of the people were engaged in agriculture or in occupations related to agriculture. Jajmani system was in existence. Washermen, cobblers, ironmen provided their services to the people. They were known as Kamins. Big landlords used to give a share to them from their produce. This Jajmani system was prevalent since the ages. This established unity in the rural society.

2. Institutions. Mobility was present in many traditional and cultural institutions of the society. Gurukuls of education as well as many other institutions became the basis of unity in India. These institutions were one of the reasons for unity in ancient India.

3. Language. Brahmi script is known as the mother of all the languages. All of our ancient religious scriptures like Vedas, Puranas, etc., are written in the Sanskrit language. The Sanskrit language is seen with great respect in the whole of India. It is also known as the language of gods because it has been said that different gods used to use this language.

4. Ashrama System. One of the main bases of unity in the Indian Society was some of its institutions like the Ashrama System. Four Ashramas are arranged for our life like Brahmacharya Ashram, Grihastha, Vana Prastha, and Sanyasa Ashrama. This system prevailed all over India because the ultimate aim of every person is to get salvation. That is why everyone used to obey this system.

5. Purusharthas. There are four main aims of life which were known as Purusharthas. These are Dharma, Artha, Kama, and Moksha. During earlier times, only Brahmins were there. But later on, other varnas like Kshatriyas, Vaishyas, and Shudras came into existence. The most aim of their life was to get salvation. That is why everyone had to spend his life according to these Purusharthas. Everyone had to spend their lives by following the Dharma (duties), earning Artha (money), to continue their lineage (Kama), and ultimately to attain moksha (salvation). Everyone used to obey them. In this way, it was one of the elements of Indian unity.

6. Karmas or One’s Actions. The meaning of Karmas is the work or one’s actions. Karma is of great importance in Indian culture. The next life of the person depends upon one’s Karma of his previous life. If Karma is good then the next birth of that person will be at a good place and vice versa. It is also possible that the good deeds of the person may lead him to salvation from the cycle of birth and death. Karma was also one of the elements of unity in Indian society.

Question 2.
Explain the reasons for Unity in Diversity in Indian Society.
Answer:
1. Geographical Factors. India is a country full of diversities from the geographical point of view. The world’s highest mountain, Himalayas is in Northern India. Rivers like Sindhu, Ganga, Yamuna, and Brahmaputra form the largest plain of India. India has certain places where a lot of rainfalls and has the driest area as well i.e., Thar desert. It has both fertile as well as barren land. Some of its areas are covered with ice throughout the year whereas others are deserts. It has many densely populated states like Uttar Pradesh and has certain places, like Sikkim, where there is very less density of population.

2. Social Factors. In social diversity, we can see different forms of marriage, which is one of the basic institutions of society. Some castes have the custom of fraternal polyandry and some groups like Muslims have the custom of polygamy. Joint family and Nuclear family express social diversity. People, in urban areas hardly know their neighbors even if they lived in one place for years but people in rural areas know everything about everyone in their society.

3. Religious Factors. People following different religions such as Hinduism, Islam, Buddhism, Jainism, Sikhism, etc., have been living in India since the ages. After the decline of the Mughal Empire, the British came to India and from then onwards Christianity also became an indispensable part of Indian society. There are 3000 castes in Hindus and 94 castes in Muslims. In the same way, Christians are divided into Protestants and Catholics, Buddhists in Hinayana and Mahayana and Jains are divided into Digambars and Shwetambars.

But many times religious riots occur in different parts of the country like at Godhra in Gujarat in 2002. But internal unity still prevails even in the presence of religious diversity. Hinduism, Buddhism, Jainism, Islam, Christianity, Zoroastrianism, and Sikhism are different religions propagated in India. They follow their respective beliefs, values, and ideals to establish harmony among all religions. The Indians celebrate their festivals like Hob, Diwali, Dussehra, Eid, Gurupurab, Christmas, Good Friday, etc.

4. Caste Factors. Generally, the followers of all religions are divided into many castes and subcastes. Four varnas, which were started in the Vedic age on the basis of action and trait, were changed into thousands of castes due to intra-varna marriage. Three thousand castes exist in today’s India. Every caste has its own beliefs, values, etc. After independence, the Government of India has classified these caste groups into four categories i.e., scheduled castes, scheduled tribes, other backward classes, and general category. Caste stratification has been reduced due to reservation for backward and lower classes. Caste restrictions have been reduced to a great extent because of education, common means of transport, common workplace, etc.

5. Linguistic Factors. India is a multilingual society where 22 languages were sanctioned by the Indian Constitution. Hindi became the national language and English was sanctioned as the official language. Indian society has been divided on the linguistic basis to such an extent that in 1953 Andhra Pradesh state was formed by separating it from Tamil Nadu due to the Telugu language. In the same way, Punjab and Haryana were also formed. South Indian people are unable to adopt the Hindi language. In spite of this, linguistic unity still exists in India even in the presence of diversity. Most of the Indians speak, understand, write and read the Hindi language. South Indian people generally use the Dravidian language and North Indian people use the Indo-Aryan language. The spread of education has made it possible that all the Indians communicate with each other either in Hindi or English language.

Question 3.
What are the factors of religious diversity in India? Explain.
Answer:
Diversity in religion is of two types:

1. Intra-religious diversity
2. Inter-religious diversity.

1. Intra-Religious Diversity. Many reasons for diversity are there in different religions (Hinduism, Islam, Christianity, Sikhism, Jainism, and Buddhism) of India. People of Arya Samaj, Brahmo Samaj, Shaiv, Shakti, Vaishnav, Vaam-party, followers of Krishna and Hanuman, worshippers of trees, plants, animals, etc., are there in the Hindu religion.

People of higher castes of the Hindu religion are known as sacred people and people of lower castes are known as non-sacred. People of lower castes are restricted to perform religious functions.
Shiyas and Sunnis in Islam and Protestant and Catholic groups exist among Christian. In the same way, Namdharis, Akalis, Nirankaris, etc., exist in the Sikh religion. Hinayana and Mahayana of Buddhism and Shwetambar and Digambar are the main groups of Jainism.

2. Inter-Religious Diversity. Followers of Hinduism, Islam, Christianity, Sikhism, Buddhism, Jainism, and Parsi religions live in India. This unity in diversity in these religions is based on the following factors:

1. Different gods. Every religion has its own god, for example, Hindus have Brahma, Vishnu, Shiva, etc., Muslims have Prophet Muhammad, Christians have Jesus Christ, Ten Gurus among Sikhs, Mahatma Buddha of Buddhism, Parsis have Zoroaster, and so on. So all the religions have different Gods. ‘

2. Religious books. Different religions have different religious books. For example, Vedas, Puranas, Upnishads, Ramayan, Mahabharat, Geeta are religious books of Hindus. Christians have Bible, Muslims have Quran, Shri Guru Granth Sahib of Sikhs and Zend Avesta is the religious book of Parsis.

3. Monotheism and Polytheism. On the basis of the numbers of gods Hindus worship Brahma, Vishnu, Shiva, Rama, Krishan, Shakti, etc., Sikhs worship ten Gurus. But Christians, Muslims, and Parsis believe in one God. People following Buddhism never comment on the existence of God but followers of Jainism do not believe in the existence of God.

4. Idol Worship. Hindus have given a definite form to all of their gods on the basis of idol worship but Sikhs and Muslims strongly oppose idol worship.

5. Diversity in Religious Beliefs. Hindus believe in reincarnation, Karma and rebirth theory, spiritualism, sins, and fulfillment of religious sacraments. But Muslims hardly believe in reincarnation. In the same way, Sikhs also oppose religious sacraments.

Buddhist believe in reincarnation but Jains hardly believe in the existence of God. They say that the human body should be given hard suffering.

6. Mutually Opposing. Some of the elements of Indian religions oppose other religions or, are opposite to each other’s beliefs, According to Hindu religious beliefs, Brahmins are at the highest strata in all the castes. Hindus worship animals and give water to the sun, worships idols, and believe in reincarnation. Muslims and Christians oppose idol worship. Buddhists, Sikhs, and Jains are against the highest status of Brahmins and they even oppose Hindu religious sacraments.

So from here, it is clear that there are a number of disagreements in different religions about their beliefs. One believes in one thing and other beliefs in the other thing.

Question 4.
Why diversity exists in India due to linguistic factors?
Answer:
Language is the best method to keep one’s side or to say anything. It was the first cultural invention and is the main carrier of culture. Language is a means to exchange ideas but it is a very complex system. French and American linguists say that around 2,796 languages are spoken in the world out of which 1,200 languages are spoken by American and Indian tribal people.

The Mandarin language is the first language in respect of speaking. The second most spoken language is English and the third is Hindi. People speak different languages at national, regional, and local levels in India. Around 1,652 languages are spoken in India. Only 22 languages are sanctioned by the Constitution out of all these languages. Out of a total of 826 languages of India, 723 are of Indian origin and 103 are of foreign origin.

Languages Recognised by the Constitution. A list of languages is being given in the 8th schedule of the Indian Constitution. First of all, 14 languages were recognized but after the amendment of the Constitution in 1992, they became 18 in number. Hindi language in Devanagiri script was adopted as the official language on 14 Sept. 1949. Four more languages were recognized in 2003 by making an amendment in the 8th schedule.

Non-constitutionally recognized Major languages. Apart from the recognized languages, thirteen more languages are spoken by more than 5 lakh people. Out of these, the Pahari language of Himachal Pradesh is more important. 673 other Indian languages and 103 non-Indian languages are spoken by a comparatively less few people.

Indian Language Families. All the languages of India can be divided mainly into six language families and these are:

1. Negroid
2. Austria
3. Sino-Tibetan
4. Dravidian
5. Indo-Aryan
6. Other language families

Two main language families are there in India which are given below:
1. Indo-Aryan Language Family. Indo-Aryan languages came to India after the advent of Aryan. It is that language family that has covered the three-fourth part of India. The main languages of this group are Hindi, Punjabi, Bengali, Gujarati, Marathi, Assamese, Oriya, Urdu, Sanskrit, Kashmiri, Sindhi, Pahari, Rajasthani, and Bhojpuri. From this, it is clear that out of 22 recognized languages, except for the 4 languages of the south, all are related to the Indo-Aryan language family.

2. Dravid Language Family. Tamil, Telugu, Kannada, and Malayalam are the main Dravid languages.
Position of Major Languages in India. Hindi is the language that is spoken by most of the people in India. It is spoken by around 30% of the people. Then comes Telugu, Bangla, and Marathi. Bhojpuri and Rajasthani are the languages that are spoken by more than 30 million people but are not recognized by our Constitution.

Position of different languages in the Indian States. Hindi is the official language of six states i.e. Himachal Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh, Haryana, Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, and Delhi. Except for Hindi, other states have official languages whose description is given below in the table:

Sr. No.  State	Official Language
1. Assam	Assamese
2. West Bengal	Bengali
3. Gujarat	Gujarati
4. Maharashtra	Marathi
5. Odisha	Oriya
6. Punjab	Punjabi
7. Jammu and Kashmir	Urdu
8. Tamilnadu	Tamil
9. Andhra Pradesh	Telugu
10. Karnataka	Kannada
11. Kerala	Malayalam

 

Except this, 57% people of Assam speak Assamese, 65% people of Karnataka speak Kannada, 55% people of Jammu and Kashmir speak Kashmiri but its official language is Urdu. English language is the link language but is not an official language. It is not recognized even by the Constitution. ‘

Question 5.
What is the meaning of Secularisation? Explain its different elements.
Answer:
Srinivas defined the term Secularisation in the following way: “The term secularisation implies that what was previously regarded as religious is now ceasing to be such, and it also implies a process of differentiation which results in the various aspects of society, economic, political, legal and moral becoming increasingly discrete in relation to each other.”

Essential Elements of Secularisation

M.N. Srinivas has given three essential elements of secularisation which are given below:
1. Lack of religiousness. The first and the important element of secularisation is the decline in the importance of religion. An increase in secularisation will automatically bring changes in religious beliefs. People started to feel that those religious beliefs or traditions which he believes are unable to fulfill any one of his needs. People started to create an atmosphere of pomp and show while performing religious activities. These days every person keeps a wish that while performing religious activities he/she should give a feast to others to keep them happy. Now humans do not have any internal religious feelings. Even then they are going to religious places only to enjoy the holidays. In this way, religious views started to decline. Now, every person wants to take advantage of every religious activity.

2. Rationality. Through rationality, humans started to examine every type of superstitions, beliefs, etc., on the basis of rationality. According to Srinivas, “In rationality, with other things traditional beliefs and views were changed into modern knowledge.” “In this way, rationality was increased in humans with the development of modern ideals and values.”

3. Process of differentiation. The process of differentiation is also related to the process of secularisation. Every sector of society i.e. social, moral, political, etc., are different from each other. Occupation to the person, in modern society, is not given on the basis of religion but is given on the basis of his ability. Now all the persons are treated equally in front of the law. The impact of religion has decreased in every sector of society. People started to get everything on the basis of their ability, not on the basis of religion.

Question 6.
Which factors greatly affected the process of secularisation?
Answer:
1. Modern Education. Now, anyone can take admission in any educational institution. Through educational institutions, every person gets the chance to achieve social status in society.

With modem education, traditional ideas started to decline. That is why people started to accept new values of society. Rationalism started to develop in society. Now modem education is given to both boys and girls collectively. In earlier times, females were confined to the four walls of the house and had to spend the whole of their life in the house. But with modem education, females have started to get an education and started to get jobs in every sphere. In this way, the discrimination of untouchability came to an end because everyone has started to receive an education.

2. Development in the means of transportation and communication. The British government started to develop means of transport and communication to develop mutual contacts in Indian states. With this development, people started to come in contact with each other. People of higher and lower castes started to travel with each other in buses and rails with which a feeling of sacred-non-sacredness and untouchability has started to decline. With the coming of means of communication and transport mobility in people, it has become easy for everyone to move from one place to another. They come out of their houses for work. With this, the control of the family declined. Humans are getting the social status of their own.

3. Westernisation. With the advent of the British in India, Indian people started to come in contact with a western culture which has encouraged the values like materialism, individualism, etc., Restrictions of the caste system have started to decline. The supremacy of Brahmins declined because the British started treating everyone on equal terms.

Western culture had developed the process of secularisation. In this way, the process of secularism was greatly affected by the factor of westernization.

4. Urbanisation and Industrialisation. The process of secularisation is also greatly affected by the process of urbanization and industrialization. People had to come out of their houses in search of jobs. Domestic production came to an end. The population of cities started to increase. People of every caste started to live in cities and work together in factories. In this way, at this type of place, it was very difficult to go according to the rules of the caste system. Occupation in cities is given not on the basis of caste but on the basis of ability.

5. Governmental Efforts. The Indian Constitution was implemented after Independence. The Indian government made a new legal system. The Constitution tried to remove the discriminations on the basis of religion, color, caste, creed, etc. New laws have been implemented, some of which are as follows:

1. Special Marriage Act—1954
2. Hindu Marriage and Divorce Act—1955
3. Hindu Succession Act—1956
4. Dowry Prohibition Act—1961
5. Widow Remarriage Act—1856.

In this way, many laws were passed to remove the social problems of society. Inter¬caste marriages were given sanctions. Now everyone is treated as equal in front of the law. In this way, the process of secularisation was encouraged by the policies of secularism.

Question 7.
What was the impact of casteism on Indian society? How casteism can be removed from society?
Answer:
Impact of casteism on Indian society:

1. Due to casteism, Indian society was divided into thousands of different castes and sub-castes who had their own different norms and values.
2. Stability has come in Indian society due to casteism and society remains integrated even after several attacks from foreign invaders.
3. Indian society was attacked several times by many invaders during the medieval age. Due to casteism, Indian society and culture not only remained secured but they assimilated foreign cultures in themselves.
4. The caste system imposed several restrictions on all the castes to save itself from outsider’s impact so that the society could be saved from the impact of their cultures.
5. During the modern age, casteism has encouraged hatred ness among various castes. Lower castes are given a number of facilities because of which jealousy comes in higher castes for lower castes.
6. Lower castes are given reservation facilities in every field because of casteism and it has raised their standard of living.
7. Leaders of different castes arose caste sentiments just for their leadership and to get votes. This has increased tension among various castes.

Ways to Remove Casteism from the Society:

1. All political parties should stop using casteism during elections to avert tension between various castes.
2. People should get a better education to elect the best leaders who could do something for their welfare and who care about the development of the country.
3. Laws should be properly implemented so that strict punishment could be given to those who encourage casteism.
4. The government should stop caste-based financial aid.
5. The public can also play a major part in it. They themselves can boycott those types of leaders who use casteism for their benefit.

Here we are providing Class 12 Sociology Important Extra Questions and Answers Chapter 1 Introducing Indian Society. Sociology Class 12 Important Questions are the best resource for students which helps in class 12 board exams.

Class 12 Sociology Chapter 1 Important Extra Questions Introducing Indian Society

Introducing Indian Society Important Extra Questions Very Short Answer Type

Question 1.
What is meant by Colonialism? (C.B.S.E. 2012)
Answer:
The policy or practice of colonization started during the Industrial Revolution when the western countries extended control over the Asian and African countries to fetch cheaper raw materials for their industries. They tried to acquire full or partial control over their resources by exploiting them economically and politically.

Question 2.
Which countries established their colonies in Asia and Africa?
Answer:
Colonialism took place between the 18th and 20th centuries. The major colonial powers that established their colonies in Asia and Africa were European Countries, including England, France, Portugal, Spain, Germany, Italy, Belgium, etc. Later on, Russia, U.S.A., and Japan also joined the race.

Question 3.
How did nationalism emerge in India?
Answer:
The British established their rule in India and they started giving western education to Indians. It led to the emergence of nationalism in India in the latter part of the 19th century.

Question 4.
What is meant by communalism?
Answer:
Communalism is an ideology that tries to propagate religious views of one religion among the masses. It is the animosity of one religious group towards another.

Question 5.
What is meant by the term Ethnic group?
Answer:
An ethnic group is that group of any country or race whose cultural ideals are the same. People of one ethnic group believe that all of them belong to the common ancestors and their physical traits are also the same. Members of a group are identified with each other through many other traits like linguistic, cultural, religious, etc.

Question 6.
What is meant by Community?
Answer:
In simple words, when some people live jointly for a particular purpose then it is called community. It cannot be established with conscious efforts. It also does not take birth but develops automatically. When people live in an area and do social processes then automatically a community develops.

Question 7.
What is meant by Social class?
Answer:
Social class is a group of people who have a specific social status at a particular time. That is why they have some special power, rights, and duties. The ability of an individual is important in the class system. The bases of the class are different from each other and many classes exist in Indian Society.

Question 8.
What changed Indian society?
Answer:
The British, for the first time, unified the whole of the country and brought in the forces of modernization and capitalist economic change. It changed Indian society. The colonial rule led to the emergence of nationalism in India.

Introducing Indian Society Important Extra Questions Short Answer Type

Question 1.
What is meant by Class System?
Answer:
It is a social system in which the status of an individual is determined by the family in which he/she is born. The members of a class have some responsibilities, rights and powers. Class consciousness is the necessity of class. The person in class considers others as superior or inferior to him. People in this system keep close relations with members of their own class. They keep limited relations with members of other classes. The class system is an open system in which a person can change his class with his ability.

Question 2.
How many types of classes can we see in urban areas?
Answer:

1. Upper Class:-It is that class which is rich and most powerful. Political leaders, industrialists, IAS officers come in this category. They have more wealth and authority because of official power.
2. Middle Class:-Doctors, Engineers, Teachers, White collar people and small businessmen come in this category. The upper class uses this class to retain its domination over the lower class.
3. Lower Class:-Those people come in this class who sell their labour to earn their livelihood. For example, labourers. They have no means of production and they work for the other two classes.

Question 3.
Which types of classes exist in villages?
Answer:
Three types of classes exist in villages:
1. Landlord or Moneylender class:-The upper class which exists in villages belongs to landlords and moneylenders. Landlords have great wealth and land with which they can buy every type of pleasure. A moneylender is a person who gives loan on interest. They both control the social system and politics of the village. It is small but is very powerful.

2. Farmer Class:-Second class of villages is farmer class. Members of this class have small holdings of land. Their standard of living is of medium level.

3. Labour Class:-It is that class which has no land at all in its hand. They have only their labour to sell. They either work on the fields of the landlord or on farmer’s land. They are more in number but their income and standard of living are very low.

Question 4.
What is Class Struggle?
Answer:
The concept of class struggle was given by Karl Marx. According to him, two classes exist in society related to the system of production. One is the owner of means of production and other is the one who produces things. Labour class sells its labour to earn money. First-class is rich and the second class is poor. According to Marx, first-class exploits the other class and becomes richer but labourer class becomes poorer. A time comes when labourer is even alienated with his tools. Then, the struggle starts between capitalist and labour class. This struggle increases with the passage of time and after some time capitalists will be thrown out of power. It is known as the class struggle.

Question 5.
Why did the process of emergence of nationalism in colonies is related with the Anti-colonial movement?
Answer:
The process of emergence of nationalism in colonies is- definitely related with the Anti-colonial movement. People came to identify their unity during their struggle against colonial rulers. All of them were equally exploited and suppressed by colonial rulers. This common experience of suppression tied them in a chain of unity. They came to know that foreign rulers could be thrown out of the country only with the unified strength. This sense of unified strength helped in the emergence of nationalism.

Introducing Indian Society Important Extra Questions Easy Answer Type

Question 1.
Explain the main features of the Urban Society.
Answer:
1. Large population. A most important feature of urban society is the large number of people living there and more density of population. Meaning of density of population is how many people are living in one square kilometre. Cities can be divided into different classes oh the basis of more or less population like small cities, medium cities and metropolitan cities. The population of the metropolitan cities like Delhi, Mumbai, Kolkata, etc. is more than one crore but the population of about 13 states of India is less than one crore.

2. Less living space. Another important feature of urban society is the lack of a place of living. It is so because of the large population in cities. It is a very serious problem in most of the urban societies. Many poor people are living on roadsides or under the trees or in slums. Middle-class families are living in small houses in cities where there is no place to play for children and no separate room for children to sleep and study.

3. Different Occupations. Cities are developed on the basis of different occupations. Many industries, occupations and institutions can be found in cities because of which different people are engaged in different types of occupations. Doctors, Managers, Engineers, specialised labourers, non-specialised labourers etc. thousands of occupations are found in urban areas.

4. Division in Economic Classes. Not much importance is given to caste, region and occupation of the person in urban areas. But the population in cities is divided into economic classes on an economic basis. Population, in cities, is not divided only in two classes of capitalists and labourers but many other small classes and sub-classes exist in cities on the basis of their economic status. The difference between higher and lower classes can also be seen in cities.

5. Competition. Everyone in cities gets enough chances to progress in every sector. We can find literate and able persons in large number. That is why competition is there in cities to get admission in educational institutions, to get jobs and to get promotions in the job. Competition has increased to a great extent due to industrialisation.

Question 2.
Describe in detail the main features of rural society.
Answer:
1. Agriculture, the main occupation. The main occupation of rural society is either agriculture or any of the related work. Because they are closely related to nature, that is why their views towards life are very much different. Yet, many other people, like carpenter, blacksmith, etc. are there in villages but they also make tools related to agriculture.

2. Simple Life. Life in rural society is very simple. People here do a lot of hard work to fulfil their needs and they do not know about the luxuries of fife. People also like to engage their children in agricultural works because most of them cannot afford education. They are always ready to help each other.

3. Scarcity of population and homogeneity. Population in villages is quite less as compared to urban areas. People live in small groups and away from each other and these groups are known as villages. There are very fewer occupations in rural areas except for agriculture because of which people like to go to cities to earn money and that’s why the population in villages is very less. People have close relations with each other and their views are also common.

4. Importance of neighbourhood. The neighbourhood is of great importance in rural society. The main occupation of the people is agriculture and they get enough time at hand. They get time to meet, talk and co-operate with one another. People have very close relations with their neighbours. Neighbours generally are of the same caste because of which their status is also same. People, generally, like to give respect to their neighbour. Neighbours are the first person to ask for help. That is why the neighbourhood is of great importance in rural society.

5. Male-dominated Society. Generally, villages have patriarchal families where the head of the family is the eldest male member of the house. All the males of the house take care of the earnings of the family while the females do all the household chores. Joint families are common in villages and the major occupation of every family is agriculture or any other related activity. They all live interdependently.

6. Common culture. People in villages share a common background. Their culture, rituals, traditions, customs etc. are also common. That is why they five with each other in a peaceful atmosphere. They are united with common bonds.

Question 3.
What is the Class? Give its definitions.
Answer:
The base of social stratification is class. Status of a person in a class depends upon his role. Position of all the persons is not the same in all societies. Some type of inequality is always there in society and because of this inequality, classes come into being. Majorly because of westernisation, industrialisation, educational system, modernisation, etc. classes came into being in India. Stratification in western societies is also based upon the class system.

MEANING AND DEFINITIONS OF CLASS

Every society is divided into classes and every class is having different status in society. On the basis of class, a person’s status is high or low. In this way when different persons achieve special social status in society, then it is known as the class system. Every class is economically different from the other. Different sociologists have given different views about the class system which are given below:
1. According to Maclver, “A social class is a portion of community marked off from the rest by social status.”

2. According to Morris Ginsberg, “A class is a group of individuals who, through common descent, the similarity of occupation, wealth and education, have come to have a similar mode of life, a similar stock of ideas, feelings, attitudes and forms of behaviour and who on any or all of these grounds, meet the another on equal terms and regard themselves, although with varying degrees of explicitness as belonging to one group.”

3. According to Gisbert, “A social class is a category or the group of persons having a definite status in a society which permanently determines their relationships to other groups.”

4. According to Ogburn and Nimkoff, “The fundamental attribute of social class is thus its local position of relative superiority or inferiority to other social classes.”

On the basis of given definitions, we can say that social class is a class of many persons who have one specific status in a specific time. That is why they have some special power, rights and duties. The ability of an individual is important in the class system. That is the reason why every person wants to achieve a higher status in society with hard work. Every society is divided into many classes. Status of a person is not definite in the class system. That is why there is an open stratification. A person determines his class status. It is not based on birth.

Question 4.
What are the different characteristics of the class system?
Answer:
1. Feeling of Superiority and Inferiority: Relations of inferior and superior exist in the class system. For example, people of the higher class think themselves as different and superior to the lower class. Rich people fall in a higher class and poor people comes under lower class.

2. Social Mobility: Class system is not definite for any person. It keeps on changing. Man can achieve higher status with hard work and can go to a lower status by wrong deeds. Every person wants to uplift his prestige in society. So in this way social mobility is there in the class system. For example, if a person, who is working as a clerk in an office, do a lot of hard work and passes the I.A.S. exam then his status and position will be completely changed. It means that the class system has social mobility in which a person can move from one place to another with his hard work and ability.

3. Openness: Openness exists in a class system because in this every person is free to do anything. He is free to adopt any occupation. Anyone can become a member of any class on the basis of his ability. A person from the lower class can go to a higher class with his hard work. In this, there is no value of birth of the person. Status of a person depends upon his ability. A boy from a rich family can become rich only if he has the property. If this property goes away then he would become poor. This class system gives the opportunity to everyone to move upward. In this way, openness exists in the class system.

4. Limited Social Relations: Social relations of a person are the limited in-class system. Persons of every class establish relations with the people of their own class. Every class wants to establish contacts with persons of their own class. They socialize among themselves.

5. Development of Sub-classes: We can divide the class system into three parts from an economic point of view and these are:

1. Upper Class
2. Middle Class
3. Lower Class.

These classes are again divided into sub-classes. For example, we can see the difference between rich people. Someone is a billionaire and somebody else is a millionaire. In the same way, we can see sub-classes in the middle class and lower class.

6. Different Bases: Classes are made on different bases. According to Karl Marx, the main base of the class system is economic. According to him, there are two classes in society. One is the capitalist class and another is the labour class. According to Ogburn and Nimkoff, Maclver and Gilberg social base is important for the class. Ginsberg and Lapierre have accepted cultural base as the main base of the class system.

In this way, we can say that there is not a single base of the class system but there are many bases of the class system.

Question 5.
What is meant by Colonialism? How did nationalism emerge during the colonial rule?
Answer:
The process of colonialism started during the Industrial Revolution when an excess of wealth and things produced were available with the western countries. The process of winning over the Asian and African countries by the western countries and establishing their rule in those countries is known as colonialism. The age of colonialism started in the 18th century and went over to the middle of the 20th century. Major imperialist countries were England, France, Portugal, Spain, Germany, Italy etc. Later on, countries like Russia, America and Japan also joined the race.

Reasons for the advent of Nationalism in India: Following were the reasons for the emergence of nationalism in India:-
1. Political Unification of the Country-The first and most important factor was British imperialism. The British imperialism brought all the Indian states together and united them into one. This gave political unity to India with one set of administration and law. The anti-imperialist feelings of the people throughout the country created a common national outlook.

2. Economic Exploitation of the People-The East India Company and even under the Crown, the foreign government followed a policy of economic exploitation in India. Indian wealth was drained to England that led to economic exploitation. The result was unemployment, poverty and famines all around. The peasants were under the new land tenure system. Such a horrible state of affairs created economic discontentment and prompted the people to oppose the British.

3. Western Education and Thought-The British conquest brought the Indians to very close contact with the Europeans. In the 19th century, national movements were going on in European countries. It had its impact upon the Indians too. The Indians got a Western education and studied Western literature. The Western ideas of equality, liberty and brotherhood had their influence in India too. It enabled the Indians to study the evil effects of imperialism and exploitation by an imperialist power. This went a long way to awaken the people of India.

4. Press-Press is a powerful medium for the growth of consciousness and for mass awakening. Both the Indian and the English press did a lot to infuse nationalism among the people. Newspapers like Kesari, Bombay Samachar, Hindu and Amrita Bazar Patrika played an appreciable part in this direction.

5. Contribution of Literature-The Indians came in contact with the Western literature. They studied the writings of great Western thinkers and revolutionaries like Burke, Mill, Milton, Rousseau, Montesquieu, Voltaire, etc. Many poets and writers in India too tried their best to infuse national feelings and awakening among the people. ‘Anand Math’ written by Bankim Chandra Chatterjee brought a new awakening among the people.