Kerala Plus Two Political Science SAY Question Paper 2013
Question 1.
The names of certain countries are given below, pick up ASEAN countries among them and complete the table. (2)
- China
- Philippines
- Indonesia
- Singapore
- Pakistan
- Bangladesh
- Malaysia
- Sri Lanka
Answer:
Philippines, Indonesia, Singapore and Malaysia
Question 2.
“The split in the communist party of India can be traced back to the ideological rift between two countries”. Do you agree with the statement? Identify those countries and substantiate your argument.(3)
Answer:
In 1964 the Communist Party of India split as CPI and CPI(M). CPI was Pro-Russia and pro-Congress but CPI(M) was pro-China and anti-Congress.
Question 3.
Right to Information Act is considered as one of the greatest contributions of popular movements in India. Is it a pre-requisite to the success of democracy? How? You can use the following hint while answering the question.
i. Avoids corruption (3)
Answer:
Right to Information is an important landmark in Indian democracy. This Act plays a big role in making the administration transparent to a large extent. It helps in eradicating corruption in the government. It allows individuals to get information regarding various administrative matters. It removes the secrecy maintained by the earlier Administrations. It is a check against corruption. But this Act alone is not enough to remove large-scale corruption in the society.
Question 4.
In a classroom debate Nandana advanced the following argument. (6)
“The political conditions of India during 1975 forced Indira Gandhi to declare national emergency”. State your opinion on the above observation and find out whether the emergency declaration created a crisis in the democratic order.
Answer:
On 25 June 1975, the President, on the advice of Prime Minister Indira Gandhi, declared Emergency in India. It affected the working of the political parties in many ways. They are as follows:
a. Many of the opposition leaders were arrested and kept in jail. This adversely affected the functioning of the parties. The controls imposed on the media also affected their working. As a result the public opinion was turned against Congress. Jay Prakash Narayan became the symbol of democracy.
b. The Emergency and things that were done to implement it made the opposition leaders feel that the autocratic rule of Indira Gandhi would make them disappear one by one. Because of that the leaders of different parties kept in touch with one another and were ready to form a new political party. The result was Janta Party.
c. With the formation of the new party, it was strongly believed that the anti-Congress votes won’t get divided. The 1977 election was a referendum on the Emergency. Congress was badly defeated.
Question 5.
India’s Nuclear Policy aims at global disarmament. Do you think that the recent Indo-US nuclear deal is a deviation from these policies. Give your reasons. (3)
Answer:
Non-Aligned policy is a specialty of India. India takes a neutral stand when there are problems between power blocs. But the Indo-American Nuclear Deal can be seen as a change from this neutral policy. It is considered a pro-American leaning on the part of India.
Question 6.
India and China had very good neighbourly ties with each other during post-independence, based mainly on the principles of Panchasheel. But on the Tibetan issue the friends fell out nd China invaded India. Do you think the invasion a failure of the Panchasheel diplomacy? How do you look at the issue in the context of the present relations between India and China. (4)
Answer:
Indo-China Relations: In the beginning India and China had cordial relations. It has a historical and cultural background. Nehru played a crucial role in making the relations better. India was the first country to recognize China after the Revolution. Nehru tried to help China in international matters. Because of these good relations, on the India-China border there were only paramilitary forces.
The Panchsheel Agreement as a big landmark out India-China relations. It was signed on April 29 by the PMs of both countries, Nehru of India and Chou- en-Lai of China. Nehru visited China and Chou-en- Lai visited India getting the love and respect of people. Nehru had an open-hearted approach to China. But people like Patel thought China was not a country to be believed. Nehru never expected any attack from China. But in 1962, China did attack India.
Two things spoiled the relations between India and China. One was the Tibetan Issue and the other was border disputes. Even in the 1950s when they were friends, India and China had border disputes. China was not ready to accept our suggestions regarding the border. China claimed Ladakh in Kashmir and some areas of Arunachal Pradesh to be theirs. During the period of 1957-59, they also took Aksai Chin sector and built the Karakoram Highway. The second issue was Tibet. In 1950, China annexed Tibet. It was a breach of faith. In the beginning India kept quiet. But the Chinese started imposing their culture
on the Tibetans. In 1959, the Tibetan Spiritual leader, Dalai Lama, sought refuge in India. China then accused India saying that India was acting against the interest of China. In October 1962 China infiltrated into Indian territories which it claimed to be hers. The first attack lasted a week. Chinese army occupied some place in Arunachal Pradesh. The next attack came a month later. But the Indian army stopped the Chinese in the western part of Ladakh. China declared a unilateral ceasefire and retreated from the places it had taken.
As a result of the war, Nehru’s close friend and the then defence minister V.K. Krishna Menon had o resign. Nehru was criticised for blinding believing China for his lack of military preparation to prevent the attack. A no-confrdence motion was brought against his government. In Lok Sabha there were a lot of discussions. In many bye-elections Congress lost. The Opposition was also affected by the war. In 1964 Communist Part was divided into two – Pro- Chinese and Pro-Russia. One was CPI (M) and the otherwasCPI.
The War awakened the nation. The North Eastern region was backward. The Chinese war prompted the nation to keep its unity and to embark upon developmental projects. Now the relations are a bit better. But China’s closeness to Pakistan and help it gives to Pakistan make us unhappy.
Question 7.
Observe the following conversation : (6)
Vrinda: Owing to globalisation, the world today is a globalised village, Nationalism has given way to internationalism.
Renjitha: I agree with you, but I feel that at a deeper level globalisation is a new form of colonialism. It is creating harmful effects on all levels of existence.
Elsa: I feel that globalisation has been affecting the developing countries most adversely.
Based on the above given pieces of conversation, formulate your views on globalisation.
Answer:
The concept of globalization is the exchange of ideas, materials and human resources. Now this exchange is possible among nations without much control. Looked at this way, it assumes different levels of political, economic and cultural meanings. In his sense it has merits and demerits. Some societies may be affected only very little, but some may be affected much more.
Let us see how it works:
Political results: Politically speaking, the authority of the government gets weaker. It will have to reduce its welfare schemes. Instead of social welfare, the stress is on the market. With the coming MNCs (Multi National Corporations), it becomes difficult for the governments to take independent decisions. According to the advocates of globalization, no political power of the government is lost. The essential things will remain under the authority of the government. Since technology has advanced so much, governments can do a lot. Technology helps governments to know the details of their citizens and make the administration efficient.
Economic Results:
Globalization has influenced the economic sphere greatly. World Bank, IMF, WTO
etc. play big roies. All these are controlled mainly by America and its allies. The world economy itself has come undertheir influence. In this, are-thinking is necessary. It is high time that we found out who the beneficiaries of globalization are.
As a result of globalization, import controls are reduced or removed. The developed nations can now invest their capital in the developing nations, investing in the developing nations is more profitable.
Technologies develop without any limits of borders. But regarding the movement of people, the developed nations have made certain rules. Their countries are kept safe from foreign workers through the policy of Visa. Because of the visa rules, the jobs of their citizens are not taken away by emigrants. There are arguments in favour and against economic globalization.
Although the policy is the same, different places get different results. Those who think of social justice can look at the limitations on government only as a demerit of globalization. Those who are economically backward need some special security not to suffer from the dements of globalization. Some people believe that globalization makes the poor people poorer and so it must be stopped. But globalization brings about huge economic growth and the social welfare of many. Large scale commerce makes the economy better. It is not easy to prevent globalization in the forward march of history.
Question 8.
No change in India’s stand on climate change” says Prime Minister Man Mohan Singh . In the context of the Prime Minister’s reference, identify India’s stand on environmental security. (3)
Answer:
For the protection of environment India has taken the following steps:
- According to the auto fuel policy of India, only purified fuel is used for vehicles.
- The Energy Act passed in 2001, aims at the appropriate use of energy.
- The 2003 Electricity Act requires the use of renewable energy sources.
- In 2011-12, the Bio-diesel Mission acquired 11 million hectors of land for the production of biodiesel. Recently schemes have been worked out for the import of natural gas. It has been decided to use the latest technology for purifying coal. Thus India is doing a lot for environmental protection.
Question 9.
You may be familar with the term Syndicate’which was related to the congress party during the 60s, Analyse the role player by the Syndicate in relation to Congress party.(4)
Answer:
The biggest challenge Indira Gandhi had to face after the 1967 election was not from the Opposition but from her own party. She had to a face a powerful Syndicate in the party itself working against her. But soon she was able to take control and took strong measures. She did certain things showing her leaning towards the Left. In 1967, she formed a 10- point action plan.
Banks were controlled, insurance was nationalized, and ceiling was set for urban property. She also carried out public distribution of food grains, land reforms, village housing schemes. Although the Syndicate agreed to these changes, it was not happy. When Dr. Zakir Hussain died in 1969, there was election for the President. During this election the difference between Indira Gandhi and the Syndicate came in the open.
Question 10.
‘The Green Revolution delivered only a moderate agricultural growth; but increased polarisation between classes and regions’. In the light of the above statement mention two negative and positive consequences of Green Revolution, (4)
Answer:
Green Revolution is the name given to the policies of the government which aimed at maximum production in the minimum period in the agricultural sector. In the 1960s, the agricultural sector was in a very bad shape. Between 1965 and 67 there were huge droughts in many parts of India. This reduced food production and in many areas there was famine¬like condition.
To overcome this crisis, India was forced to seek assistance from countries like America. Following the American policies, we too started some new economic policies. The government wanted self-sufficiency in food and therefore a new agricultural policy was implemented. This policy included farming all lands where irrigation was available, using high yield varieties of seeds and fertilizing the land. Subsidies were given for irrigation and insecticides. It was also decided that the government would purchase the produce at a minimum price. All these changes together paved the way for what is known as the Green Revolution.
The Green Revolution brought some positive changes in agricultural growth. Food stuff was easily available. Of course, it was the rich merchants and large farm- owners that were the prime beneficiaries. There was a polarization of the rich and poor. This helped the Left Parties to bring together the poor farmers and the masses. As a result, there arose a powerful Left-leaning lobby of middle class farmers.
Question 11.
Match the following : (5)
Answer:
Agra Summit – 2001 – Vajpai, Musharaf
Tashkent agreement -1996- Sastri, Ayub Khan
Stand Still Agreement – 1947 – India Government, Hyderabad Nizam
Simla Agreement – 1972 – Indira Gandhi, Zulfikar Ali Bhutto
Panchsheel principles-1954-Nehru, Chou-en-Lai
Question 12.
Name the two leaders who were known for the following two slogans.
a) jai Jawan Jai Kisan
b) Garibi Hatao (1)
Answer:
a. Lal Bahadur Satri
b. Indira Gandhi
Question 13.
The role of Non-party movements in India is significant in making our democracy more vibrant. Identify any one of such movement and analyse its importance.(3)
Answer:
Chipko Movement is considered as one of the first environmental movement in the country. This was a Movement that became famous the world over. It was started in 1973 in two or three villages of Uttarakhand. The Forest Department prevented the villagers from cutting down a certain kind of trees with which they made their working implements. But the same Forest Department gave permission to a Sports Equipment Manufacturing Company to cut down such trees for commercial purposes. This provoked the villagers. When the workers came to cut the trees, the villagers stood near the trees embracing them. (Chipko means embrace).
This protest spread to many parts of Uttarakhand. The people raised their voice against the exploitation of nature. They asked the government not to let outsiders come and exploit their resources. They wanted the power to manage them to be given to the local people. They also asked for.permission to start small scale industries, protecting Nature and the Environment. They also demanded minimum wages for the forest workers who had no land of their own.
As a result of this Movement, the government issued an order prohibiting the cutting down of trees in the Himalayan side for 15 years. The role of women was great in this Movement. They also fought against social evils like drinking alcohol. With Chipko Movement, people realized that solutions to popular problems could be found through non-political movements.
Question 14.
LTTE, the Tamil Militant outfit has been destroyed by the Sri Lankan army. Identify any two causes LTTE has been fighting for. (2)
Answer:
The civil war that was going on in Sri Lanka ended with the killing of Veluppilla Prabhakaran and some other LTTE leaders. All this time democracy was functioning there. After independence, it was the Sinhala community that had the upper hand in Sri Lanka. They were not sympathetic towards the Tamils who actually migrated from India long ago. The Sinhala nationalists were against giving any concessions to the Tamils there.
In their view Sri Lanka is the motherland only for them. It was this enmity that forced the Tamils to rise in revolt against the Sinhalese, The Tamils organised the LTTE (Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eazham). From 1983, the LTTE began armed struggle against the Sinhalese. This racial problem became a headache to India as well. The Tamil people of India exerted great pressure on the Central Government to help the Tamils in Sri Lanka.
In 1987 India signed an agreement with Sri Lanka. According to that there should be cordial relations between the Tamils and the Sri Lankan government. But the Indian government had to fight against LTTE. Sri Lanka thought India was interfering in its internal affairs. In 1989, the Indian Peace Keeping Force had to come back to India without -achieving any result. Sri Lankan problem became very violent. Scandinavian countries like Nonway and Iceland tried to bring peace, but they failed. In Lankan army attacked the LTTE army and killed Veluppilla Prabhakaran and his associates.
Question 15.
As per Article 370 the state of Jammu and Kashmir enjoys special status. Other states are against this special consideration, while Kashmir is says that they are not getting enough recognition. Kashmir problem still remains as a headache to the central government. Identify the various problems on the issue of Kashmir Do you think that the arguments of Kashmiris are justifiable? Substantiate your arguments. (6)
Answer:
When India got independence, Jammu-Kashmirwas a Princely State. Initially, the King Raja Hari Singh refused to join either India or Pakistan as he wanted to remain independent. The Pakistani leaders believed that since Jammu-Kashmir had a lot of Muslims, it would join Pakistan. The people there were known as Kashmiris. Under the leadership of Sheikh Abdulla there was an agitation to remove the King from power. But he also did not want to join Pakistan.
National Conference was a secular organization. It was also pro-Congress. In October 1947 Pakistan encouraged some tribal groups to capture Pakistan. Then the King sought assistance from India.
The King signed the “Instrument of Accession” and so the Indian army helped the Jammu-Kashmir King. There was also a condition that when things become normal there would be a referendum. For the welfare of the people Sheikh Abdulla became the Prime Minister. India granted J&K autonomy.
External and Internal Squabbles: Because of external and internal problems, J&K is always in the midst of crises. On one side there is Pakistan claiming the Kashmir Valley. After the 1947 War, a part of Kashmir came under Pakistani control. India calls it illegal occupation. Pakistan Calls this area Azad Kashmir. Internally also the Kashmir problems is a headache for the Centre. According to Article 37Q, Kashmir is given greater autonomy than other States. This Article is applicable only to Jammu and Kashmir. The special concession causes problems. Many believe that this autonomy given to Kashmir will adversely affect the unity and indivisibility of the country. They feel that Article 370 should be removed. But the Kashmiris feel that the autonomy they got by Article 370 is not enough. Some Kashmiris put forward 3 complaints.
- No referendum has taken place so far.
- The status promised by Article 370 is only on paper, not in practice. They need more autonomy.
- They also say that the kind of democracy implemented in other States of India is not found in J&K.
Politics since 1948:
After Sheikh Abdulla became the Prime Minister of Kashmir, many land reforms and other welfare measures were taken to help the masses. But there was a difference of opinion between him and the Central Government. He wanted Kashmir to be completely free. So the Central Government dismissed him and kept him in jail forsome time. His successors did not get popular support but they administered the region with Central support. The Kashmiris slowly started believing in democracy. According to the agreement between India Gandhi and Sheikh Abd,ullah, in 1974, he became the Prime Minister. He died in 1982.
Resistance And Later:
In the 1987 election the National Conference won with a huge majority. Farukh Abdulla became the Chief Minister. Many believed that he did some manipulations in the election. From 1980, there have been protests against weak governments there. Some people believed that it was the Centre which made this huge majority possible. It led to the Kashmiri crisis. There was resistance. In 1989, there was an armed struggle for making Kashmir independent.
The insurgents were assisted by Pakistan. For many years, J&K was under Presidential rule. Even as there was strong military presence there, from 1990 there have been frequent clashes between the army and the people who resisted Indian rule. Farooq Abdulla’s government also demanded greater autonomy. In 2002, there was another election. Instead of the National Conference, a PDP Coalition Government came to power.
Secession Movement And After:
The secessionist movement (1969) appeared in many shapes and it took different stances.
- Independent Kashmir without joining either India or Pakistan.
- A group demanding merger with Pakistan.
- A group demanding greater autonomy.
The demand for greater autonomy attracted the people of Jammu and Ladakh in different ways. Often there were complaints against neglect and backwardness. The Central Government discussed the issue with different groups. The secessionists now say that even as they stay with India, they should be given more autonomy.
Question 16.
“The United Nations was not created to take humanity to heaven, but to save it from hell”. Dag Hammarsk Jold, The UN’s second secretary general. Based on the above quotation, Analyse the importance of UN as an indispensable world organisaton. (5)
Answer:
After WWII, the necessity for an international organization was recognized. Its purpose was to prevent wars, to settle international disputes amicably, and to bring about cooperation among nations. Therefore the UN can assist in times of war as well as peace. By improving the standard of living it can assist nations.
There are disputes and differences of opinion among nations. War is not the solution to all problems. There are problems like controlling and eradicating diseases or global warming. Although each nation can find solutions to such problems, a collective action would produce much better results. But often nations are not willing to work together.
Question 17.
In the midst of severe competition and conflicts, after the 2004 Lok Sabha elections, a consensus appears to have emerged among most of the parties. State the main ideas included in the consensus.You can use the following hints.
- New economic policies
- Political and social claims of backward castes.
Answer:
After 2004, we saw a situation where no party had majority and therefore many parties joined together on the basis of some common policies. There was some kind of political consensus in pursuing the new economic policies. Along with that the social demands of the backward classes also came up for serious consideration
Question 18.
Study the conversation given below:
Anagha : The contemporary US Power lies in the superiority of its military power.
Ronie : We can regard World Bank, International Monetary Fund and World Trade Organisation as the products of American hegemony.
Rani: It would be a mistake to see US hegemony in purely military and economic terms without considering the cultural dimension of US hegemony. Based on these dialogues prepare a detailed note on US hegemony. Find out two major constraints on American hegemony. (5)
Answer:
World nations try to gain and maintain dominance over others by using military, economic and cultural power. During the Cold War the fight was between the Soviet Union and America. With the disintegration of the Soviet, Union America remains the only Superpower. Dominance or hegemony is attained through three things:
a. Hard Power
b. Structural Power
c. Soft Power
Hard Power:
This includes military power and the relations between nations. Today America is in the forefront of military power. There is nobody to challenge its military might. It has the capacity to reach any corner of the world any moment. They spend a major part of their budget to maintain this position. They spend huge sums of money for research and technological developments. It is technology that keeps America in the forefront. With their military might they are even ready to police the world, and punish the culprits.
Structural Power:
This dominance is based on the economic structure. The global economic system relies on America. If America helps the global economic system, it is mainly for their benefits and profits. But America does a lot of good things for the world. For example, communication channels through the oceans. Merchant ships travel through sea routes and America has much authority on the water transport system. It is the American navy that keeps the sea-routes safe for ships.
The next is the Internet. In fact it was an American military project. It was started in 1950. Today the global network functions using satellites. Most of them belong to America. 28% of the world economy is controlled by America. 15% of the international trade is also done by them. In any economic sector, at least one of out of three biggest companies will be American. The world economic structure follows the Breton Woods style of America. The World Bank, I.M.F. and World Trade Organization etc. are examples of American supremacy in world business and finance.Now comes another example the MBA degree. It was America that made this course and the degree
Question 19.
After the collapse of Soviet Union the market capitalist forces of the west adopted a new strategy towards East-European countries through World Bank and IMF, Identify this strategy and prepare a brief note on it.(4)
Answer:
The failure of the Soviet Union made many of its constituent countries abandon Communism and follow democratic ways. Russia, Asian countries, Easer European countries etc were attracted towards organizations like the World Bank and IMF.
- The main purpose was to make communist countries follow the capitalist model.
- Private capital would be very important.
- Cooperative farming will give way to private farming.
- Foreign investment, open market system and currency exchange would be possible.
- The countries of the erstwhile Soviet Union will have the facility to have contact with Western countries and trade with them.
- Using all these, the Western countries made the member countries of the erstwhile Soviet Union come closer to them.
Results:
- Many big industries under government control collapsed.
- 90% industries were sold to individuals or private companies.
- The Russian Currency Rouble was devalued.
- Because of inflation people lost the value of their savings.
- In Cooperative farming, people had food security. But now it was not there. Russia had to import food grains.
- In Russia, the GDP in 1999 was less than that of 1989.
- The social welfare schemes were abandoned.
- As subsidies were withdrawn, many people experienced poverty.
- Educational and intellectual human resources were scattered and many people emigrated.
- Privatization made economic inequality among people.
Question 20.
Find odd man out:
a) Parvez Mush raff
b) E.M. Ershad
c) Zia-ul-Haq
d) Ayub-Khan (1)
Answer:
a) E:M. Ershad
Question 21.
Arrange the following in chronological order. (2)
a) Establishment of OEEC (Organisation for European Economic Co-operation)
b) Establishment of EU (European Union)
c) Formation of ASEAN (Associaton for South East Asian Nations.
d) Formation of NATO (North Atlantic Treaty Organisation)
Answer:
a) OEEC 1948
b) EU 1993
c) ASEAN 1967
d) NATO 1949
Question 22.
A discussion on “goals of I and II five year plans” has taken place in the class. The student omitted the following points in his discussion note.
i. Focused on land reforms
ii. Targeted socialistic pattern of society
Consider the above given hints and complete the discussion note.
Answer:
The 1st FYP gave importance to the agricultural sector. But the 2nd one stressed industrial development. This raised a question: for a country like India which is more important – agriculture or industry?
Those who supported the agricultural sector said that the 2nd FYP had no definite plan about the agricultural sector and industries might make things more difficult for the villagers. J.C. Kumarappa, a Gandhian economist, prepared a plan about industrialization. Mr. Choudhary Charan Singh wanted greater stress to be given to the agricultural sector. He said that industrialization brings progress only to business and cities by preventing farmers and villagers from making progress.
Supporters of industrialization had a different view. They claimed that only through industries and greater production the eradication of poverty would be possible. They also claimed that there was a definite agricultural policy for the development of food crops. Through land reforms, poor villagers got land. Funds were made available for social welfare and irrigation. But these policies could not be carried out as planned. The main reason was the objection from big landowners who had political and social power. They felt that even if more money is spent on agriculture, it would not improve the lot of the villagers.