FEDERALISM IN INDIA (MCQ)

1. Which among the following are examples of ‘Coming together federations?

(a) India, Spain and Belgium
(b) India, USA and Spain
(c) USA, Switzerland and Australia
(d) Belgium and Sri Lanka

2.The Union List includes subjects such as:

(a) Education, forests, trade unions, marriages, adoption and succession.
(b) Police, trade, commerce, agriculture and irrigation.
(c) Residuary subjects like computer software.
(d) Defence, foreign affairs, banking, currency, communications.

3. The system of Panchayati Raj involves:

(a) Village, State and Union levels
(b) Village, District and State levels
(c) Village and State levels
(d) Village, Block and District levels

4. Here are three reactions to the language policy followed in India. Which of the following holds true in the
case of India?
(a) The policy of accommodation has strengthened national unity.
(b) Language based states have divided us by making everyone conscious of their language.
(c) The language policy has only helped to consolidate the dominance of English over all other languages.

5. Consider the following statements on the practice of federalism in India. Identify those which hold true
for decentralisation after 1992.
A. Local governments did not have any power or resources of their own.
B. It became constitutionally mandatory to hold regular elections to local government bodies.
C. The state governments are required to share some powers and revenue with local government bodies.
D. No seats are reserved in the elected bodies for scheduled castes, scheduled tribes and other backward
classes.
(a) B and C (b) A and C (c) A and D (d) B and D

6. In a ‘Holding together federation’:

A. A large country divides its power between constituent states and the national government.
B. The Central government tends to be more powerful vis-a-vis the States.
C. All the constituent states usually have equal powers.
D. Constituent states have unequal powers.
Which of the above statements are correct?
(a) A, B, C and D (b) A and D (c) B and C (d) A, B and D

7. Which among the following is an example of the unitary system of government?

a) Belgium b) Sri Lanka c) Both Sri Lanka and Belgium d) None of the above

8) Which of the following statements are true about the federalism system of government?

a) Federalism is a system of government in which the power is divided between a central authority and
various constituent units of the country.
b) In federalism, there is usually more than one level of government for the entire country.

c) In federalism, there will be a government at the level of provinces or states that look after much of the
day-to-day administering of their state.

d) All of the above.

9) How many of the world’s 193 countries have federal political systems?

a) 25 b) 100 c) 145 d) 70

10) ______ made the shift from a unitary to a federal system of government.

a) Sri Lanka b) Belgium c) Both Belgium and Sri Lanka d) None of the above

11) Which of the following does not have a federal system of government?

a) India b) USA c) Russia d) None of the above

12) Which of the following does not have a federal political system?

a) China b) New Zealand c) Japan d) All of the above

13) Which of the following statements is true about the unitary system of government?

a) Under the unitary system, either there is only one level of government, or the sub-units are subordinate to
the central government.

b) The central government can pass on orders to the provincial or local government.

c) State government has powers of its own for which it is not answerable to the central government.
d) All of the above.

14) As per the census, India has _____ major languages.

a) 22 b) 131 c) 121 d) 161

15) The federal system of government has dual objectives to safeguard and promote the unity of the country
while at the same time accommodating regional diversity.

a) True b) False

16) Which of the following is an example of ‘holding together’ federations?

a) India b) USA c) Switzerland d) None of the above.

17) Which of the following are included in the Union List?

a) Banking b) Foreign Affairs c) Defence of the country d) All of the above

18) Which of the following subjects are included in the State List?

a) Agriculture b) Irrigation c) Police d) All of the above

19) If there is a conflict in the laws made for the subjects in the Concurrent List, then the decision made by
_______ will prevail.

a) State Government b) Union Government c) President d) All of the above

20) Who has the power to make laws on the ‘residuary’ subjects?

a) Union Government b) State Government c) Supreme Court d) None of the above

21) Which of the following states in India enjoys a special status?

a) Arunachal Pradesh b) Mizoram c) Nagaland d) All of the above

17) Due to their peculiar social and historical circumstances, the Constitution of India gives special status to
some Indian states. These provisions are given in ________.

a) Article 371 b) Article 271 c) Article 172 d) Article 152

22.) Some states were created not on the basis of language but to recognise differences based on culture,
ethnicity or geography. Examples of such states are__________.

a) Jharkhand b) Uttarakhand c) Nagaland d) All of the above

23.) Besides Hindi, there are ______ other languages recognised as Scheduled Languages by the
Constitution.

a) 21 b) 24 c) 12 d) 31

Directions: - In the following questions, the Assertions (A) and Reason(s) (R) have been put forward.
Read both statements carefully and choose the correct answer from the below:
 (A) If both Assertion (A) and Reason (R) are true and Reason (R) is the correct explanation of
Assertion (A).
 (B) If both Assertion (A) and Reason (R) are true but Reason (R) is not the correct explanation
of Assertion (A).
 (C) Assertion (A) is true but Reason (R) is false.
 (D) Both Assertion (A) and Reason (R) are false.

24. Assertion (A): Hindi is identified as the only official language of India.
Reason (R): It helped in creating supremacy of Hindi speaking people over others.
25. Assertion (A): A major step towards decentralization was taken in 1992.
Reason (R): The constitution was amended to make the third tier of democracy more powerful and
effective
26.Assertion (A): Third-tier of government is local government.
Reason (R): It made democracy weak.
27. Assertion (A): When power is taken away from central and state governments and given to local
governments it is called decentralisation.
Reason (R): At least one third of all positions are reserved for women in local government bodies
28.Assertion (A): Zilla Parishad Chairperson is the political head of the zilla parishad.
Reason (R): Mayor is the head of municipalities.
29. Assertion (A): Besides Hindi there are 21 other languages recognized as scheduled languages by
the constitution.
Reason (R): Restructuring the centre state relations is one more way in which federalism has been
strengthened in practice.
30.Assertion (A): Coalition government is formed during dearth of coal in the country.
Reason (R): It helps in overcoming coal crisis.
31. Assertion (A): Belgium shifted from a federal form of government to a unitary government.
Reason (R): Usually, a federation has two levels of government
32. Assertion (A): Belgium and Spain have ‘holding together’ federation.
Reason (R): A big country divides power between constituent states and national government.
33. Assertion (A): A major step towards decentralization was taken in 1992.
Reason (R): The constitution was amended to make the third tier of democracy more powerful and
effective.