Federalism

If you were participating in this conversation, what would be your response to each of these? Which of these reflect a wrong understanding of what federalism is? What makes India a federal country?

Suppose the Government of Rajasthan was opposed to the Central Government's nuclear policy, could it prevent the Government of India from conducting the nuclear tests?

Suppose the Government of Sikkim plans to introduce new textbooks in its schools. But the Union Government does not like the style and content of the new textbooks. In that case, does the state government need to take permission from the Union Government before these textbooks can be launched?

Suppose the Chief Ministers of Andhra Pradesh, Chhattisgarh and Orissa have different policies on how their state police should respond to the naxalites. Can the Prime Minister of India intervene and pass an order that all the Chief Ministers will have to obey?

Has your village/town/city remained under the same State since Independence? If not, what was the name of the earlier State?

Can you identify names of three States in 1947 that have been changed later?

Identify any three States which have been carved out of bigger States.

Are you suggesting that regionalism is good for our democracy? Are you serious?

Make a bar or pie chart on the basis of this information.

Take the example of your own state or any other state that was affected by linguistic reorganisation. Write a short note for or against the argument given by the author here on the basis of that example.

Find out about the local government in the village or town you live in.

If you live in a village, find out the names of the following: your panch or ward member, your sarpanch, your panchayat samiti, the chairperson of your zilla parishad. Also find out when did the last meeting of the gram sabha take place and how many people took part in that.

If you live in urban areas, find out the name of your municipal councillor, and the municipal chairperson or mayor. Also find out about the budget of your municipal corporation, municipality and the major items on which money was spent.

Point out one feature in the practice of federalism in India that is similar to and one feature that is different from that of Belgium.

What is the main difference between a federal form of government and a unitary one? Explain with an example.

State any two differences between the local government before and after the Constitutional amendment in 1992.

Since the United States is a _____ type of federation, all the constituent States have equal powers and States are _____ vis-à-vis the federal government. But India is a _____ type of federation and some States have more power than others. In India, the _____ government has more powers.

Here are three reactions to the language policy followed in India. Give an argument and an example to support any of these positions.

The distinguishing feature of a federal government is:

Examine the following pairs that give the level of government in India and the powers of the government at that level to make laws on the subjects mentioned against each. Which of the following pairs is not correctly matched?