Social and Political Life (Class VI-VII): Diversity, Local Government, Livelihoods, Equality, Gender, Media and Markets

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Diversity and discrimination

India's diversity of languages, religions, food, dress and work grows out of different geographical settings and histories; the class VI book compares Ladakh, a cold desert where people rear goats for pashmina wool, with Kerala, where the spice trade brought Jewish and Arab traders and, later, the Portuguese under Vasco da Gama, and where Chinese fishing nets called cheena-vala are still used. NCERT credits Jawaharlal Nehru with coining the phrase unity in diversity and quotes his book The Discovery of India on the nature of Indian unity. A prejudice is judging others negatively or as inferior; a stereotype fixes one image on a whole group, as in the idea that girls are not good at science; and discrimination is acting on prejudice, for example refusing to rent a house to someone because of religion. The Constitution forbids discrimination on grounds of religion, race, caste, sex or place of birth (Article 15) and abolishes untouchability (Article 17).

Government and democracy

A government makes and enforces decisions at three levels: local, state and national. In a monarchy the ruler decides and need not explain; in a democracy people give power to the government through elections and can question it. Under universal adult franchise every citizen aged 18 and above may vote, whatever their wealth, caste, religion, education or gender. Key elements of democracy are participation (through elections, protests, petitions and the media), the peaceful resolution of conflict, and equality and justice. Women in many countries had to struggle for the vote, as the suffrage movement did in Britain and the United States.

Panchayati Raj and administration

The Gram Sabha is a meeting of all adults living in the area of a panchayat whose names are on the voters' list; it approves plans and keeps the Gram Panchayat answerable. The Gram Panchayat has elected ward members (panch) and a president (sarpanch), and a secretary, appointed by the government and not elected, who calls meetings and keeps records. Panchayati Raj has three levels: the Gram Panchayat (village), the Panchayat Samiti or Janpad Panchayat (block) and the Zila Parishad (district). The 73rd Amendment of 1992 reserved one-third of seats for women and listed 29 subjects in the Eleventh Schedule; the 74th Amendment covers municipalities, with 18 subjects in the Twelfth Schedule. The patwari measures land and keeps land records, the tehsildar hears disputes, and the police record complaints in a First Information Report (FIR). The Hindu Succession Amendment Act 2005 gave daughters an equal share in family agricultural land. In cities, ward councillors are elected, while the Municipal Commissioner is appointed.

Livelihoods and equality

Most rural families depend on farming as small farmers or landless labourers, often in debt, and many city workers are self-employed, like street vendors, or casual workers without security, while permanent workers get a regular salary, medical facilities and paid leave. Every vote has equal value, but inequality continues, as Omprakash Valmiki's autobiography Joothan shows for caste. The Midday Meal scheme, first introduced in Tamil Nadu, spread after the Supreme Court in 2001 asked all state governments to begin it within six months; it raised enrolment and made children of all castes eat together. In the United States, Rosa Parks's refusal in 1955 to give up her bus seat to a white man is seen as the start of the civil rights movement.

The state government and health

Each state is divided into constituencies, each electing a Member of the Legislative Assembly (MLA), and the party that wins more than half the seats forms the government; in NCERT's example of Himachal Pradesh, whose Assembly had 68 seats when the book was written, that meant at least 35 seats. The Chief Minister and ministers head departments and answer to the Assembly, and the Governor is appointed by the Central Government (formally, by the President). On health, the books contrast costly private care with public services meant for all; in Hakim Sheikh's case the Supreme Court held that the failure of government hospitals to give timely treatment violated the right to life under Article 21, and in 1996 Kerala gave 40 per cent of its state budget to panchayats to plan for local needs.

Gender, media and markets

Margaret Mead's study of the Samoan Islands in the 1920s showed that children grow up very differently in different societies, so the roles of boys and girls are made by society, not fixed by nature. Housework and care work, done mostly by women, are unpaid and undervalued, and working women carry a double burden. Rashsundari Devi, born in 1800, wrote Amar Jiban, the first known autobiography by an Indian woman. The women's movement works by campaigning, raising awareness, protesting and showing solidarity, which led to the Protection of Women from Domestic Violence Act 2005 and the Supreme Court's 1997 guidelines against sexual harassment at the workplace. Mass media need money and technology, so business and government can influence them; a balanced report gives all points of view. Goods reach us through a chain of markets, from producers to wholesalers and retailers; the story of a shirt, from cotton grown by Swapna in Kurnool through the Erode cloth market to buyers in the United States, shows that those with money and power gain the most.

Key facts

Prejudice = judging others negatively; stereotype = one fixed image of a whole group; discrimination = acting on prejudice; Article 15 forbids discrimination, Article 17 abolishes untouchability.
Universal adult franchise: every citizen aged 18 and above votes; the key elements of democracy are participation, peaceful resolution of conflict, and equality and justice.
Gram Sabha = all adult voters of the panchayat area; sarpanch and panch are elected; the panchayat secretary is appointed by the government, not elected.
Three tiers: Gram Panchayat (village), Panchayat Samiti or Janpad Panchayat (block), Zila Parishad (district); 73rd Amendment 1992, one-third seats for women, 29 subjects.
Patwari measures land and keeps land records; tehsildar hears disputes; the Hindu Succession Amendment Act 2005 gave daughters equal rights in agricultural land.
Midday Meal: first introduced in Tamil Nadu; in 2001 the Supreme Court told all state governments to begin it within six months.
State government: MLAs from constituencies, majority party forms the government, Chief Minister heads it, Governor appointed by the Centre; NCERT's example: Himachal Pradesh, 68 seats when the book was written, 35 for a majority.
Women's movement methods: campaigning, raising awareness, protesting, showing solidarity; Rashsundari Devi's Amar Jiban; Rokeya Sakhawat Hossain's Sultana's Dream (1905).
Chain of markets: producer, wholesaler, retailer; weekly haats, neighbourhood shops, malls; 'A Shirt in the Market' (Kurnool to Erode to the USA) shows unequal gains.
In class: hold a mock Gram Sabha in which students play the sarpanch, the secretary, women members and villagers and decide how to spend funds on drinking water.

Quick revision

Diversity, prejudice, stereotype, discrimination; Articles 15 and 17; universal adult franchise at 18; Gram Sabha, Gram Panchayat, Panchayat Samiti, Zila Parishad; 73rd and 74th Amendments; patwari, tehsildar, FIR; Midday Meal (Tamil Nadu, 2001 order); MLA, Chief Minister, Governor; Margaret Mead, double burden, Rashsundari Devi; balanced media; chain of markets.

Practise this topic

All 10 lessons on Social Studies and its Pedagogy (Paper II)