NCERT Solutions for Class 12 Political science (Politics in India since Independence) Chapter 1 Challenges of Nation Building

NCERT
SOLUTIONS
CLASS - 12th

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Class : 12th

Subject : Political science

Chapter : 1

Chapter Name : Challenges of nation building

Q1 Which among the following statements about the partition is incorrect?

(a) Partition of India was the outcome of the two-nation theory.

(b) Punjab and Bengal were the two provinces divided on the basis of religion.

(c) East Pakistan and West Pakistan were not contiguous.

(d) The scheme of partition included a plan for transfer of population across the border.

Answer. (d) The scheme of partition included a plan for transfer of population of across the
border.

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Q2 Match the principles with instances:

(a) Mapping of boundaries on religious ground

(b) Mapping of boundaries on grounds of different languages

(c) Demarcating boundaries within a country by geographical zones

(d) Demarcating boundaries within a country on administrative and political grounds

(i) Pakistan and Bangladesh

(ii) India and Pakistan

(iii) Jharkhand and chattisgarh

(iv) Himachal pradesh and Uttarakhand

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Answer.

a.Mapping of boundaries on religious ground ii. India and Pakistan

b.Mapping of boundaries on grounds of iv. Himachal Pradesh and Uttarakhand
different languages

c.Demarcating boundaries within a country by i. Pakistan and Bangladesh
geographical zones

d. Demarcating boundaries within a country iii. Jharkhand and Chattisgarh
on administrative and political grounds

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Q3 Take a current political map of India (showing outlines of states) and mark the location of the
following Princely States, the following Princely States,

(a) Junagadh (b) Manipur (c) Mysore (d) Gwalior.

Answer. Following places are mentioned in this map.

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Q4 Here are two opinions:

Bismay: “The merger with the Indian State was an extension of democracy to the people of the
Princely States.”

Inderpreet: “I am not so sure, there was force being used. Democracy comes by creating
consensus. ” What is your opinion in the light of accession of Princely States and the responses
of the people in these parts?

Answer. The Princely States were merged with the Indian union because the autonomy of
princely states in Indian territory could have led to disintegration of India and it would have given
rise to regional dividing aspirations. If the Princely States were not merged the idea of Unity,
democracy and the motive of independence altogether, would have vanished. The people of the
Princely States sometimes felt that their wishes were not expressed in the nation building
process as the rulers of the Princely States were not willing to give the democratic rights to the
people.

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Q5 Read the following very different statements made in August 1947: “Today you have worn
on your heads a crown of thorns. The seat of power is a nasty thing. You have to remain ever
wakeful on that seat… you have to he more humble and forbearing…now there will be no end to
your being tested. ” -M.K, Gandhi

“India will awake to a life of freedom…. we step out from the old to the new…. The achievement
we end, today a period of ill fortune and India discovers herself again. The achievement we
celebrate today is but a step, an opening of opportunity …”, -Jawaharlal Nehru

Spell out the agenda of nation building that flows from these two statements. Which one
appeals more to you and why?

Answer. Both the statements spell about the idea of freedom and independence that India was
longing for.

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The first statement reflects a sense of rejoice with a warning of being tested at each and every
step. Whereas, the second statement reflects the idea of freedom, achievement and
opportunities.

The second seems to be more appealing as it reflects the sense of freedom and celebrations for
achievement and seems to be way more positive. This statement motivates the countrymen to
utilise the opportunity for the betterment in their lives.

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Q6 What are the reasons being used by Nehru for keeping India secular? Do you think these
reasons were only ethical and sentimental? Or were there some prudential reasons as well?

Answer. Nehru’s idea of secularism for India was a long term decision rather than an instinct
decision based on communal differences in nation. India was a nation with different ethnic and
religious background that is why Nehru decided India’s future as a secular nation. Muslim
league was formed to protect the interests of muslims in colonial India. It demanded separate
Muslim nation. Similarly, there were organizations, which were trying to organize the Hindus in
order to turn India into a Hindu nation.

These reasons are not only ethical and sentimental but were logical, prudential and valid for the
newly independent India because secularism would lead to unity in the nation, which India was
longing for. Nehru and several other leaders believed that India must treat people of all religions
equally and that India should not be a country that gave superior status to people of one faith
and inferior to others. All citizens should be equal irrespective of their religious beliefs.
Therefore, the ideal of secular nation was adopted.

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Q7 Bring out two major differences between the challenges of nation building for eastern and
western regions of the country at the time of Independence.

Answer. The major differences between eastern (Bengal) and Western (Punjab) regions is that
these regions were the muslim majority provinces to be joined. Hence, it was decided that
Pakistan will comprise two territories that were West and East Pakistan. Now we saw there was
a problem of minorities on both sides of the border. Lakhs of Hindus and Sikhs in areas of
Pakistan and Muslims on the Indian side of Punjab and Bengal found themselves trapped with

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no option except to leave their homes. The huge migration from these two regions led to huge
destruction in the livelihood of people. There were huge massacre, murder and rape on both the
sides which were the results of communal conflicts between Hindus and Muslims.

In the eastern region like Manipur there were shared differences over the question of merger of
Manipur with India. Congress wanted the merger, other political parties were opposed to this.
The government of India succeeded in pressurizing the maharaja to sign a Merger Agreement in
September 1949 without consulting the popularly elected legislative assembly of Manipur. This
caused a lot of anger and opposition in Manipur and dissatisfaction among the members of the
newly elected Legislative assembly.

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Q8 What was the task of the States Reorganisation Commission? What was its most salient
recommendation?

Answer. The task of the States Reorganisation Commission was to look up into the matter of
redrawing the boundaries of the States.

The most salient recommendation of the States Reorganisation Commission was to draw the
boundaries of the states on the basis of linguistic grounds and that the boundaries of the states
should represent the boundaries of different languages.

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Q9 It is said that the nation is to a large extent an “imagined community” held together by
common beliefs, history, political aspirations and imaginations. Identify the features that make
India a nation.

Answer. Following are the features that makes India a nation :

(a)The acceptance of the principle of linguistic states did not mean, that all states immediately
became linguistic states, we can see the example of ‘bilingual’ Bombay state, consisting of
Gujarati and Marathi speaking people. So this clearly indicates that it was held on a common
belief of oneness and linguistic differences seemed nothing.

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(b) A nation is held together by different beliefs, different history and different culture of people
is totally representation of India. India which consists of many different religions, different
cultural backgrounds, different languages, different races and ethnicity shows how there is a
unity in diversity. It is the choice in favour of recognising and accepting of differences which are
present in a single nation. Benedict Anderson in his book “imagined community” talks about how
the nation is an idea emerged from imagined community within a particular territorial boundary.

(c) Indian constitution talks about India as a secular, sovereign, republican democracy. Every
citizen of India will have equal rights, freedom, opportunity. There will be no discrimantion on the
basis of race, caste, religion, sex. Equality and freedom ensures a functioning of a nation in
today’s world.

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Q10 Read the following passage and answer the questions below: “In the history of
nation-building only the Soviet experiment bears comparison with the Indian. There too, a sense
of unity had to be forged between many diverse ethnic groups, religious, linguistic communities
and social classes. The scale-geographic as well as demographic was comparably massive.
The raw material the state had to work with was equally unpropitious: a people divided by faith
and driven by debt and disease.” —Ramachandra Guha

(a) List the commonalities that the author mentions between India and Soviet Union and give
one example for each of these from India. one example for each of these from India.

(b) The author does not talk about dissimilarities between the two experiments. Can you
mention two dissimilarities?

(c) In retrospect which of these two experiments worked better and why?

Answer. (a) Both the nations shaped the nation on linguistic basis. In both the nations, States
were divided on the grounds of geographical boundaries and strength of population.

(b) The Soviet Union was geographically divided into 15 independent republics/countries,which
never happened to India.

India continued to be a united country, even with such a diverse cultural and religious
backgrounds of people, speaking a variety of different languages.

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