Following are Power Sharing Notes for Class 10 Social Science. These revision notes have been prepared by expert teachers of Class 10 Social Science as per the latest NCERT, CBSE, KVS books released for the current academic year. Students should go through Chapter 1 Power Sharing concepts and notes as these will help you to revise all important topics and help you to score more marks. We have provided Class 10 Social Science notes for all chapters in your book. You can access it all free and download Pdf.

Chapter 1 Power Sharing Notes Class 10 Social Science

Belgium and Srilanka:- The ethnic composition

Majoritarianism in SriLanka

Accommodation in Belgium

Forms of Power Sharing

Very short Answer type Questions :

Question. How many amendments have been made in the constitution of Belgium between 1970 and 1993?
Answer. Four

Question. Which type of government has been adopted in Srilanka to maintain the dominance of Sinhala community?
Answer. Majoritarianism

Question. Which two main languages are spoken in Belgium?
Answer. Dutch and French

Question. Which major social group constituted the largest share in population of Srilanka?
Answer. Sinhala

Question. Name any two countries with which Belgium share borders.
Answer. France and Luxem

Question. Which govt. in Belgium deals with issues related to Education and culture?
Answer. Community govt.

Question. Which religion is followed by majority of Sinhala speaking people?
Answer. Buddhism

Question. Which language is spoken by 80 of people in Brussels?
Answer. French

Question. Give an example of power shared among different social groups?
Answer. The community govt. of Belgium

Question. Which language is mainly spoken in Flemish region of Belgium?
Answer. Dutch

Question. Which community in Belgium is relatively rich and powerful?
Answer. French Speaking

Question. Which is the official religion of Srilanka ?
Answer. Buddism

Question. What is the main reason for the killing of thousand of Srilanka people and loss of their livehoods ?
Answer. Civil war

Question. Where is the headquarter of Europeon union?
Answer. Brussels

Question. Which language is spoken by the people of wallonia region of Belgium?
Answer. French

Short / Long Answer type Questions :

Question. What do we learn from the two stories of Belgium and Srilanka?
Answer. We learnt following things from the example of Belgium and Srilanka:-
(i) In Belgium the leaders realised that the unity of the country is possible only by respecting the interests of different communities and religious.
(ii) Such a realisation resulted in mutually acceptable arrangements for sharing power. It helped to avoid civic strife between two communities and a possible division of the country.
(iii) Srilankan example shows us that if a majority community wants to force it dominance over others and refused to share power, it can undermine the unity of the country.

Question. Why is power sharing desirable? Explain a three forms of powers sharing in modern democracies with example.
Answer. To reduce the possibility of conflicts between different social groups and ensure political stability power sharing is desirable.
Different forms of power sharing are as under.
* Horizontal distribution of power is shared among different organs of government such as Executive, Legislature and Judiciary.
* Vertical distribution of power.
Power can be shared among governments at different levels such as central Govt; state Govt. and Local Govt.
* Power may also be shared among different social groups.
Ex. Religious and linguistic groups, community government in Belgium etc.
* Power sharing arrangements can also be seen in the way political parties, pressure groups and movements control or influence those in power.

Question. How do pressure groups and interest groups share power in democracy?
Answer. Pressure groups and interest groups share power with the government indirectly.
(i) Interest groups such as those of traders businessman industrialists farmers and industrial workers have a direct share in government power through participation in government committees.
(ii) They also bring influence on the decision making process of the govt.

Question. Write down the basic principles of power- sharing.
Answer. The basic principles of power sharing are :
(i) Government of different political parties i.e.a coalition Government.
(ii) Protection of minority rights.
(iii) Decentralisation of power.
(iv) To avoid conflicts

Question. What do you mean by system of the ‘Checks and balances’ in a democracy?
Answer. In democratic countries power is shared among different organs of the govt. such as legislature executive and judiciary.
i. These organs are placed at the same level to exercise different powers.
ii. None of the organs can exercise unlimited power. Each organ check the others. This results in a balance of power among various institutions for example. Even though ministers exercise power they are responsible to the parliament or state assemblies similarly.
iii. Judges are appointed by the executive they can check the functioning of executive and legislature. This arrangement is called system of checks and balances.

Question. Why was the minority French speaking community relatively rich and powerful?
Answer. In Brussels, the capital of Belgium, the French speaking people are in majority . The power has been into the hands of French people for a longer period and benefitted them for economic development and education. The French speaking population was better read, more qualified and had access to more resources than the native Dutch Population. The French were part of an aristocracy of trades man and thus were financially strong.