Previous Year Questions: Power-sharing - Notes | Study Social Studies (SST) Class 10 - Class 10

Short Answer Type Questions

Q.1. The community government in Belgium is a good example of which form of power-sharing?    [CBSE 2016-17] 
Ans. Power-sharing among governments at different levels.

Q.2. Which is the third unique form of government practiced in Belgium?
                                                       OR
Apart from the central and the state government, what is the other form of government in Belgium?
Ans. Apart from central and the state government, there is a third kind of government viz community government elected by people belonging to one language community - Dutch, French, and German-speaking - no matter where they live.
Q.3. Which type of powers does the communist government of Belgium enjoy?    [CBSE 2016-17]
Ans. The community government has the power regarding cultural, educational, and language-related issues.

Q.4. Which system of power-sharing is called checks and balances?
Ans. The horizontal distribution of power-sharing arrangements is known as the system of checks and balances.

Long Answer Type Questions

Q.1. When did Sri Lanka become independent? How did the Sinhala community seek to secure dominance over government and why? What were its effects? [CBSE 2016-17]
Ans. 
(1) Sri Lanka became independent in 1948.
(2) The Sinhala community by virtue of their majority sought to secure dominance over the government by adopting following measures:

• In 1956, an Act was passed to recognize Sinhala as the only official language thus disregarding Tamil.
• The governments followed preferential policies that favored Sinhala applicants for university positions and government jobs.
• A new constitution stipulated that the state shall protect and foster Buddhism.

Q.2. Power-sharing is the very spirit of democracy. [CBSE 2016-17]
Ans. 
(1) Prudential reason: It helps to reduce the possibility of conflict between social groups. It brings out better outcomes,
Example: In India seats in the Parliament and assemblies have been reserved for weaker sections.
(2) Moral reason:

• It is the spirit of democracy.
• All people should be consulted in a democracy.
• In India people elect their representatives after every five years or earlier.

Q.3. Differentiate between horizontal and vertical division of powers. [CBSE 2011]
Ans. 
Horizontal division of powers:

• In this division power is shared among different organs of the government, such as the legislature, executive and the judiciary.
• The different organs of the government exercise different powers. It is a separation of powers among the different organs.
• It contains a system of checks and balances to check the unlimited powers of the different organs.

Vertical division of powers:

• In this division power is shared among government at different levels like the Union, State and the local bodies.
• The Constitution clearly lays down the power of different levels of government.
• There is no system of checks and balances because powers are clearly divided among higher and lower levels.

Q.4. Which are the different forms of power-sharing in modern democracies?    [CBSE 2016]
Ans. 
(1) Power-sharing among different organs of government such as the legislature, executive, and judiciary.

• It is called horizontal distribution of power.
• None of the organs have unlimited power.
• Different organs are placed at the same level.
• This results in the balance of power.
• Example: USA and India. 

(2) Power-sharing among governments at different levels i.e, national, state, and local levels.

• Powers are divided under the Constitution.
• Example: India and USA.
•  It is a vertical division of power.

(3)  Power-sharing among different social groups such as religious and linguistic groups.
Example: community government in Belgium.

(4) Power-sharing among political parties, pressure groups, etc.
Political parties with different ideologies may come together and form a coalition government as has happened in India.