Q17 of 42 Page 1

Read the passage given below carefully and answer the following questions :

It meant the end of Cold War confrontations. The ideological dispute over whether the socialist system would beat the capitalist system was not an issue any more. Since this dispute had engaged the military of the two blocs, had triggered a massive arms race and accumulation of nuclear weapons ........, the end of confrontation demanded an end to this arms race and a possible new peace.


(i) Name the two alliances that were in confrontation during the Cold War.


(ii) Why did the arms race lead to a demand for peace ? Explain.


(iii) Why was accumulation of nuclear weapons considered as a great danger to the global environment ?


OR


Read the passage given below carefully and answer the following questions :


Non-alignment is also not neutrality. Neutrality refers principally to a policy of staying out of war. States practising neutrality are not required to help end a war. They do not get involved in wars and do not take any position on the appropriateness or morality of a war. Non-aligned states, including India, were actually involved in wars for various reasons.


(i) Define Non-alignment.


(ii) Differentiate between non-alignment and neutrality.


(iii) Inspite of being non-aligned states, why were some states involved in war ? Give any one reason.


(i) Two alliances in a confrontation during the Cold War were Eastern Alliance (led by USSR) and Western Alliance (led by the USA)


(ii) Arms race lead to the demand for peace because both the superpowers accumulated the weapons and arms in such a huge number that their use might have led to the destruction of all the countries in the world. It might have also paved the way for WWIII, which would have cost more lives.


(iii) Accumulation of nuclear weapons considered a great threat to the environment because the radioactivity of the materials used might cause long term impact. Not only nuclear weapons are the weapons of mass destruction but they are also capable of causing harm to the generations to come.
OR
(i)


Non-alignment refers to the position where a State is not bound to align rigidly with any of the allies or conflicting nations. It has the right to support any of the countries as and when needed and not participate in any war.
(ii)


Non-alignment and neutrality are two different conditions.
The major difference between non-alignment and neutrality is that:
Nations following the policy of Non-alignment does not necessarily need to form allies with any party in a conflict. But this nation will be capable of supporting the cause, morality or principles according to the need of the hour. It can also act as an arbitrator.


The nations following Neutrality does not have a say or cannot form allies even if needed because the policy strictly restricts any type of involvement in the war.
(iii) In spite of being Non-alignated states, some states are involved in the war because it affects their political agenda and socio-economic conditions which they try to make favourable.


More from this chapter

All 42 →
15

State any four events that are responsible for the strained relations between India and China.

16

Describe any four types of excesses made during the Emergency imposed in 1975.

OR


Mention any four outcomes of the fourth general elections held in India in 1967.


18

Read the passage given below carefully and answer the following questions :

The Indian security strategy is geared towards meeting security challenges within the country. Several militant groups, from time to time, have sought to break away from India. India has tried to preserve national unity by adopting a democratic political system.


(i) The militants of which two areas have sought to break away from India ?


(ii) In your opinion, how far is the demand of the militant groups to break away from India justified ? Explain.


(iii) In which two ways does the democratic political system help to bring unity in diversity in India ?


19

Read the passage given below carefully and answer the following questions :

Things changed after independence and partition. Our leaders felt that carving out states on the basis of language might lead to disruption and disintegration. It was also felt that this would draw attention away from other social and economic challenges that the country faced. Therefore, the central leadership decided to postpone matters.......


(i) Highlight any one major change that took place in India due to independence and partition.


(ii) Mention two more reasons other than the ones mentioned in the passage, which were responsible for the postponement of carving out states.


(iii) Why was this postponement challenged by some local people and where ? Give any one example.


OR


Read the passage given below carefully and answer the following questions :


Most parts of the country voted in January 1952. It took six months for the campaigning, polling and counting to be completed. Elections were competitive — there were on an average more than four candidates for each seat. The level of participation was encouraging — more than half the eligible voters turned out to vote on the day of elections. When the results were declared, these were accepted as fair even by the losers. This experiment of Universal Adult Franchise proved the critics wrong.


(i) What is meant by Universal Adult Franchise ?


(ii) Explain any two reasons due to which it took about six months to complete the first general elections in 1952.


(iii) How did the elections held in 1952 in India prove that democracy could be practised anywhere in the world ?