Name three problems that the newly independent nation of India faced?
What was the role of the Planning Commission?
Fill in the blanks:
a) Subjects that were placed on the Union List were ____, ______and ______.
b) Subjects on the Concurrent List were ____ and ____.
c) Economic Planning by which both the state and private sector played a role in development was called a ____model.
d) The death of ______sparked off such violent protest that the government was forced to give into the demand for the linguistic state of Andhra.
a. taxes, defense, foreign affairs.
b. forests, agriculture.
c. mixed economy.
d. Potti Sriramulu.
State whether true or false:
a. At independence the majority of Indians lived in villages.
b. The constituent Assembly was made up of members of the Congress Party.
c. In the first national election, only men were allowed to vote.
d. The Second Five Years Plan focused on the development of heavy industry.
(a) True - At independence the majority of Indians lived in villages and farming was the main occupation of the native Indians
(b) False- The Constituent Assembly, consisting of indirectly elected representatives, including the now-separate countries of Pakistan and Bangladesh. It existed for almost three years, the first parliament of India after independence in 1947.
(c) False - Indian National Congress was supportive of universal adult franchise, and thus all adult women received voting rights with Independence.
(d) True - The Second Plan was particularly in the development of the public sector and "rapid Industrialization".
What did Dr. Ambedkar mean when “he said that in politics we will have equality, and in social and economic life we will have inequality”?
After Independence, why was there a reluctance to divide the country on linguistic lines?
The partition of the country along communal lines changed the mindset of the nationalist leaders. They wanted to prevent further divisions in the country on sectarian lines.
The main reasons were:
a. India had been divided on the basis of religion. Despite the wishes and efforts of Mahatma Gandhi, freedom had to come not to one nation but to two. More than one million people had been killed in riots between Hindus and Muslims. And the country could not afford further divisions on the basis of language.
b. Both Prime Minister Nehru and Deputy Prime Minister Vallabh Bhai Patel were against the creation of linguistic states. They believed that it was time to keep India strong and united.
Give one reason why English continued to be used in India after independence.
Some leaders believed that English should be done away with and Hindi should be promoted as the national language. But this idea was opposed by the leaders from non-Hindi areas. They did not want an imposition on Hindi on the people of those areas.
So, English continued to be used in India after independence because:
a. Though Hindi was chosen as the national language the use of Hindi was not accepted by the other regions especially the south.
b. The leaders felt the need for a common language that would link people of different regions.
How was the economic development of India visualized in the early decades after Independence?
Removing poverty and building a modern technical and industrial base were important objectives for the new nation. The Planning Commission was set up in 1950 to plan and execute policies for economic development.
a. In 1950, the government set up a Planning Commission to help design and execute suitable policies for economic development.
b. The First Five Year Plan (1951-1956) was on agricultural development.
c. The Second First Five Year Plan was formulated in 1956. This focused strongly on the development of heavy industries such as iron and steel and on the building of large dams.
d. After independence, a number of steps were taken by the government to make the balanced growth of all regions of country.
e. The development of regions or states has not been same due to multiple kinds of variations and diversities, ethnic divisions, social customs, cultural patterns and religions.
Who was Mira Bhen?
Mira behn was an English women and her original name was Madelene Slade. It was Gandhi ji who gave her the name Mira, for her spirit of devotion. She was deeply impressed by the teachings, ideals, philosophy and ways of working of Gandhi ji.
Mira Bhen worked against caste discrimination, untouchability, in favour of human equality and rights. She emphasized the development of agriculture, cottage industries and education.
Mira Bhen emphasized on studying nature’s balance and developed our lives within her laws, as if we are to survive as a physically healthy and morally decent species.
Indian government awarded her with the Padma vibhushan in recognition of her service to the cause of India’s freedom.
Find out more about the language divisions in Pakistan that led to the creation of new nation of Bangladesh. How did Bangladesh achieve independence from Pakistan?
a. There are many languages spoken and used in Pakistan Urdu, Persian, Punjabi, Bangla, Pashto, English, Sindhi etc., are main among them.
b. After Partition of India on 14thAugust, 1947, there were two main geographical divisions of Pakistan –West Pakistan (today’s Pakistan) and East Pakistan (today’s Bangladesh).
c. Bangladesh (East Pakistan) broke up from Pakistan and emerged as independent Bangladesh in 1971 after a bloody war. India helped the people of Bangladesh to achieve their freedom.