NCERT Solutions for Class 8

Social Science (Civics)

Chapter- 1 The Indian Constitution

1. Why does a democratic country need a Constitution?

Ans: A democratic country needs a Constitution for the following reasons:
● A constitution serves as the set of rules using which the government
runs.
● It also defines the nature of the political system.
● It provides the guidelines for the government of a country.
● The ideals of the society in the country are provided
● It lays down the ideals that form the basis of the kind of country that its
citizens aspire to live in.
● It protects the rights of lesser privileged citizens in the state.
● It also checks the power abuse by the political rulers.

2. Look at the wordings of the two documents given below. The first
column is from the 1990 Nepal Constitution. The second column is
from the more recent interim Constitution of Nepal.
1990 Constitution of Nepal 2007 Interim Constitution
Part 7: Executive Part 5: Executive
Article 35: Executive Power: The Article 37: Executive Power: The
executive power of the Kingdom executive power of Nepal shall,
of Nepal shall be exercised pursuant to this Constitution and
exclusively by His Majesty. other laws, be vested in the
Council of Ministers. The
executive functions of Nepal shall
be taken in the name of the Prime
Minister.
What is the difference in who exercises 'Executive Power' in the above
two Constitutions of Nepal? Keeping this in mind, why do you think
Nepal needs a new Constitution today?
Ans: The difference between who exercises the executive power is that earlier
the power was vested in the hands of the King of Nepal whereas now the
power is vested in the hands of the Council of Ministers of Nepal, headed by
the Prime Minister of Nepal.
Since Nepal is no longer a monarchy, it needs a new constitution which
reflects the democratic ideals of the Nepalese society as the people had sought
a revolution for the same.

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3. What would happen if there were no restrictions on the power of
elected representatives?
Ans: If there are no restrictions on the power of the elected representatives,
they would abuse the power to cause injustice to the people leading to the
collapse of the democratic ideals of the society.

4. In each of the following situations, identify the minority. Write one

reason why you think it is important to respect the views of the
minority in each of these situations.
a. In a school with 30 teachers, 20 of them are male.
Ans: Female and transgender teachers are in minority, so their views must
be respected to keep the smooth flow of teaching process.

b. In a city, 5 percent of the population are Buddhists.

Ans: Buddhists are in minority so their views must be respected so that
they can practice their religion without any hesitation.

c. In a factory mess for all employees, 80 percent are vegetarians.

Ans: The non-vegetarians are in minority so their views towards food are
to be respected and as long as they do not create hindrance towards the
functioning of the mess, they should be allowed to eat whatever is good for
them.

d. In a class of 50 students, 40 belong to more well-off families.

Ans: the students who are not from well-off families are in the minority.
So, their views must be respected so that they also grow in knowledge at
school.

5. The column on the left lists some of the key features of the Indian
Constitution. In the other column write two sentences, in your own
words, on why you think this feature is important:

Key Feature Significance

Federalism
Separation of Powers
Fundamental Rights
Parliamentary Form of
Government

Ans:

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 Key Feature Significance
Federalism It provides national unity. It also
enhances the decision-making
process.
Separation of Powers The power is not concentrated in
the hands of a few. It also provides
for checks on abuse of power.
Fundamental Rights They protect the citizens from abuse
of power by the state. They also
force the government to work for
the people.
Parliamentary Form of It provides for a decentralised
Government power system. It also leads to better
coordination between the legislature
and executive.

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