Q17 of 29 Page 1

Read the following passage and answer the following questions-

The Central Asian countries wanted to take advantage of their geographical location and continue their close ties with Russia and also to establish ties with the West, the US, China and others. Thus, the international system saw many new players emerge, each with its own identity, interests, and economic and political difficulties. It is to these issues that we now turn.


a) Why did the Central Asian countries want to maintain ties with both Russia and the West?


b) Name the new players that emerged in the international system after the disintegration of USSR


c) Mention any two profound consequences of it on world politics.

a) Central Asian countries owing to their advantageous geographical location want to maintain ties with both Russia and the West in order to maintain their sovereignty and gain maximum economic benefits possible in such a situation.


b) A loose confederation of 15 republics with Russia as the leader formed the erstwhile Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR). With a strong control over global politics from 1922 to 199, USSR was a strong bloc. But it disintegrated into smaller units because of reasons like economic weakness, political un-accountability, the rise of nationalism and political support for reforms that enabled the common people to compete with the western world. The disintegration led to the emergence of new countries like Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, Russia, Turkmenistan, Ukraine, Kyrgyzstan, Georgia and Uzbekistan.


c) The disintegration of USSR not only led to total upheaval in the internal politics of the newly emerged countries but also led to several profound consequences on world politics. It marked the fall of the second world and led to the end of the Cold War which in turn marked the end of the Arms Race. Owing to an end in ideological confrontations, power relations changed. Capitalist ideology emerged as the front runner and several institutions like IMF, World Bank changed the power equations in world politics. The United States became the sole super power and several Baltic countries aligned with NATO to change the world political scenario.


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Examine the major outcomes of the Green Revolution.

 16

How did the factional rivalry between the Syndicate and Indira Gandhi result in the split of Congress in 1969.

 18

Read the following passage and answer the following questions:

There has been an attempt in India to develop its economy in a way that the vast mass of citizens are lifted out of poverty and misery and huge economic inequalities are not allowed to exist. The attempt has not quite succeeded; we are still a very poor and unequal country. Yet democratic politics allows spaces for articulating the voice of the poor and the deprived citizens. There is a pressure on the democratically elected governments to combine economic growth with human development. Thus, democracy is not just a political ideal; a democratic government is also a way to provide greater security


a) Mention the major security threats to India.


b) Highlight the broad components of security strategy of democratic India.

 19

Read the following passage and answer the following questions:

India wanted to generate atomic energy for peaceful purposes. Nehru was against nuclear weapons. So he pleaded with the superpowers for comprehensive nuclear disarmament. However, the nuclear arsenal kept rising. When Communist China conducted nuclear tests in October 1964, the five nuclear weapon powers, the USSR. USA, UK, France and China ( Taiwan represented china) impose the Nuclear Non-proliferation Treaty (NPT) of 1968 on the rest of the world. India always considered the NPT as discriminatory and had refused to sign it. When India conducted its first nuclear test, it was termed as peaceful explosion. India argued that it was committed to the policy of using nuclear power only for peaceful purposes.


a) What was the plea of Nehru with regard to nuclear energy?


b) When did India conduct s its first nuclear test and why?


c) Why India always considered the NPT as discriminatory and had refused to sign it?