Give any two characteristics of democracy.
The following characteristics of democracy are:
• Democracy means the rule of people. It means a representative is directly or indirectly elected by people rules the democratic country.
• Each adult whose age is above 18 years ago irrespective of caste, religion, gender or any other discrimination cast one vote which has equal value.
• The elections should be held regularly (i.e. after a fixed period of time), freely and fairly.
• All the political parties and citizens have freedom of speech and expression.
• A representative of the country which is elected by people should take a decision within the limit of constitutional laws and citizens’ right (i.e. rule of law).
What is the meaning of transparency?
Literal meaning of transparency in a democracy is disclosure. When any decision made or meetings held by the government is open to discussion for citizens of the country, and when any budget approved by the government is open to examination, to check whether it is beneficial for their country or not, it is termed as transparency.
Name the factors on which economic growth of democracy depends.
Economic growth is termed as an increase in market value of goods and services produced per capita by the economy over a period of time. Democracy is very much responsible and important for the development of a nation, but it does not guarantee that. It depends on the following factors:
• Education: To increase economic growth, the population of the country must be educated as increased skills by the education will produce more goods and services, resulting in an increase in economic growth.
• Health facilities: There should be adequate health facilities to ensure the good health of the population of the country to increase economic growth.
• Political will or economic priorities: Government should have the desire to spend money on the education and health facilities of the citizens and make policies accordingly.
• Non- discrimination: There should not be any discrimination based on religion, caste, gender etc. and everybody should be provided equal opportunity based on their skills.
• Other factors can be the global situation, cooperation from other countries etc.
What are the inequalities of a democratic system?
Absence of equal opportunities, equal treatment and equal status at any level, social, economic or political is known as inequality. Democracy is very much responsible and important for the development of a nation, but it does not guarantee that. In actual life, democracy is not able to reduce economic inequality or poverty in the democratic country. A small number of rich people have a large proportion of the country’s wealth. On the other hand, the income of a large number of poor people keeps on declining. It is becoming difficult for them to meet their daily needs like food, cloth etc. Despite the fact that poor people hold a large number of votes, they are not addressed by the government as they should be. Lack of proper implementation of policies made by the government to combat poverty is the major reason for the higher economic inequalities.
Which form of governments has the ability to handle social difference, division, and conflicts?
In a democratic government, we can handle social difference, division, and conflicts. Social differences are the situations where people are discriminated based on the social, economic, and racial inequality whereas Socialdivision means the division of society on the basis of social differences like language, region, caste, colour, race, and sex. Conflicts are the difference in the opinion and thoughts among the people of the different region, caste, colour, race etc. These problems can be handled by democratic government and society because, in democracy, we all have equal citizens’ right which do not allow any type of discrimination and also the government is accountable for all these conflicts and differences.
What does ‘Dignity’ signify?
The literal meaning of ‘Dignity’ is respect. Dignity in democracy signifies that every individual should be treated with respect and he should treat others with respect too. It should be maintained by every citizen.
How can democracy adjust the equal treatment of women?
Democracy provides right to equality, equality before the law, equal opportunities for work and prohibition of discrimination on the grounds of religion, race, caste, gender or place of birth. In this way, it can adjust the equal treatment of women.
What do democracies ensure regarding decision-making?
Democracies ensure the right of the citizen to choose the representative of the country directly or indirectly who will take all the decisions and have control over that. Democracies also ensure the process of transparency in decision making. Any individual can question the decisions made by a ruler or government and check whether it is beneficial for the country or not.
In which manner democracies ensure decision-making?
Democracies ensure the right of the citizen to choose their representative of the country directly or indirectly who will take all the decisions and have control over that. Democracies also ensure the process of transparency in decision making. Any individual can question the decisions made by a ruler or government and check whether it is beneficial for the country or not.
‘’Within democracies, varying rate of economic growth is usually found?
Economic growth is termed as an increase in market value of goods and services produced per capita by the economy over a period of time. It depends on the following factors:
• Education: To increase economic growth, the population of the country must be educated as increased skills by the education will produce more goods and services, resulting in an increase in economic growth.
• Health facilities: There should be adequate health facilities to ensure the good health of the population of the country to increase economic growth.
• Political will or economic priorities: Government should have the desire to spend money on the education and health facilities of the citizens and make policies accordingly.
• Non- discrimination: There should not be any discrimination based on religion, caste, gender etc. and everybody should be provided equal opportunity based on their skills.
• Other factors can be the global situation, cooperation from other countries etc.
What are the features that are common to most of the democracies?
The following features of democracy are:
• Democracy means the rule of people. It means a representative is directly or indirectly elected by people rules the democratic country.
• Each adult whose age is above 18 years ago irrespective of caste, religion, gender or any other discrimination cast one vote which has equal value.
• The election should be held regularly (i.e. after a fixed period of time), freely and fairly.
• All the political parties have freedom of speech and expression.
• A representative of the country which is elected by people should take a decision within the limit of constitutional laws and citizens’ right (i.e. the rule of law).
Define a responsive government?
Democracies ensure the right of the citizen to choose their representative of the country directly or indirectly who will take all the decisions and have control over that. Democracies also ensure the process of transparency in decision making. Any individual can question the decisions made by a ruler or government and check whether it is beneficial for the country or not. The democratic government is a responsive government as it is responsive to the needs of the needs and expectations of the citizens. It is the most basic outcome of democracy.
What do you mean by accountable government?
Democracies ensure the right of the citizen to choose their representative of the country directly or indirectly who will take all the decisions and have control over that. Democracies also ensure the process of transparency in decision making. Any individual can question the decisions made by a ruler or government and check whether it is beneficial for the country or not. The democratic government is an accountable government as it is accountable to the citizens for every decision made by them which can affect the interest of the people. It is the most basic outcome of democracy.
How can democracy adjust the dignity of women?
The literal meaning of ‘Dignity’ is respect. Dignity in democracy signifies that every individual should be treated with respect and he should treat others with respect too. It should be maintained by every citizen. Democracy provides right to equality, equality before the law, equal opportunities of work and prohibition of discrimination on the grounds of religion, race, caste, gender or place of birth. In this way, it can adjust the dignity of women.
Can democracy reduce poverty?
In actual life, democracy is not able to reduce economic inequality or poverty in the democratic country. A small number of rich people have a large proportion of the country’s wealth. On the other hand, the income of a large number of poor people keeps on declining. It is becoming difficult for them to meet their daily needs like food, cloth etc. Despite the fact that poor people hold a large number of votes, they are not addressed by the government as they should be. Lack of proper implementation of policies made by the government to combat poverty is the major reason for the higher economic inequalities.
Why are democracies unable to reduce economic inequalities?
In actual life, democracy is not able to reduce economic inequality or poverty in the true sense. A small number of rich people have a large proportion of the country’s wealth. On the other hand, the income of a large number of poor people keeps on declining. It is becoming difficult for them to meet their daily needs like food, cloth etc. Despite the fact that poor people hold a large number of votes, they are not addressed by the government as they should be. Lack of proper implementation of policies made by the government to combat poverty is the major reason for the higher economic inequalities.
Explain the relationship between democracy and development.
Democracy is very much responsible and important for the development of a nation but it does not guarantee that. Democracy provides right to equality, equality before law, equal opportunities of work and prohibition of discrimination on grounds of religion, race, caste, gender or place of birth to every citizen or individual. The development of the country depends upon other factors too:
• Education: To increase economic growth, the population of the country must be educated as increased skills by the education will produce more goods and services, resulting in an increase in economic growth.
• Health facilities: There should be adequate health facilities to ensure the good health of the population of the country to increase economic growth.
• Political will or economic priorities: Government should have the desire to spend money on the education and health facilities of the citizens and make policies accordingly.
• Non- discrimination: There should not be any discrimination based on religion, caste, gender etc. and everybody should be provided equal opportunity based on their skills.
• Other factors can be the global situation, cooperation from other countries etc.
How can we measure democracy on the basis of its expected outcome?
Democracy is a form of government which provides right to equality, equality before the law, equal opportunities of work and prohibition of discrimination on the grounds of religion, race, caste, gender or place of birth to every citizen or individual. We can measure democracy on the following basis:
• A democratic government should be the responsive, accountable and legitimate government. It should be responsive to the needs of the needs and expectations of the citizens. It should also be accountable to all the citizens for every decision made by them which can affect the interest of the people.
• Democracy should be responsible for the economic development of the nation.
• It should reduce economic inequality and poverty.
• It should maintain dignity and freedom of all the citizens.
• A democratic government should try to accommodate the social differences and conflicts as they can never be suppressed completely.
What is the issue in which democracies have failed?
Democracy is a form of government which provides right to equality, equality before the law, equal opportunities of work and prohibition of discrimination on the grounds of religion, race, caste, gender or place of birth to every citizen or individual. The representative of the democratic government is directly or indirectly elected by the people of the country. It should address the following issues, but it is failed in doing so:
• Reducing economic inequality and poverty: In actual life, democracy is not able to reduce economic inequality or poverty in a democratic country. A small number of rich people have a large proportion of the country’s wealth. On the other hand, the income of a large number of poor people keeps on declining. It is becoming difficult for them to meet their daily needs like food, cloth etc.
• Economic growth: Democracy is very much responsible and important for the development of a nation, but it does not guarantee that.
Examine the political outcome of democracy?
The following points explain the political outcome of democracy:
• Democratic government is a responsive and legitimate government.
• Democratic government is collectively responsible and accountable to the citizens of the country.
• Democratic government promote free and fair elections.
• Democracy also promotes decision making in the processes and mechanisms of governance.
• It generates its own political support for itself.
What are the features of a good democracy?
The following features of democracy are:
• Democracy means the rule of people. It means a representative is directly or indirectly elected by people rules the democratic country.
• Each adult whose age is above 18 years ago irrespective of caste, religion, gender or any other discrimination cast one vote which has equal value.
• The election should be held regularly (i.e. after a fixed period of time), freely and fairly.
• All the political parties have freedom of speech and expression.
• A representative of the country which is elected by people should take a decision within the limit of constitutional laws and citizens’ right (i.e. the rule of law).
• In Democracy, the government is collectively responsible to the citizens of the country.
• Democratic government is a responsive, accountable and legitimate government.
‘’Democracies are not free from evils’’. Explain.
Yes democracies are not free from evils. It can be explained by these points:
• Elections are conducted in free and fairly in a democratic country at regular intervals of time, but political rights sometimes use illegal ways for winning the election. For example vote for note.
• There is a lot of corruption involved in every department of a democratic country.
• In a democratic country, there is a long delay in decision making.
• Hereditary succession of the leaders of the parties irrespective of their skills is also an evil for the development of the country.
• Sometimes the interest of large number people gets ignored due to some other benefits of the representatives.
Write social dimensions of democracy.
The following points explain the social dimension of democracy:
• Only Democratic government is a form of government which provides accommodation to social differences and conflicts by making everybody learn how to respect every individual’s opinion as differences can never be suppressed completely.
• It ensures the dignity and freedom of every citizen irrespective of their caste, religion, gender, language or any other discrimination.
• It strengthens the claims of the disadvantaged and discriminated castes of the society.
• Public expression of satisfaction or dissatisfaction with democracy in one of the most important outcomes of democracy.
The actual performance of democracy shows a mixed result. Comment.
Yes, it is true that the actual performance of democracy shows a mixed result. It has been successful in addressing some of the issues while failed in some other issues.
It has been successful in overcoming these problems to some extent:
• It has ensured the dignity and freedom of every citizen of country irrespective of their caste, religion, gender, language or any other discrimination. It provides right to equality, equality before law, equal opportunities of work and prohibition of discrimination.
• Only Democratic government is a form of government which provides accommodation to social differences and conflicts by making everybody learn how to respect every individual’s opinion as differences can never be suppressed completely.
• It ensures accountability and responsibility towards the interest of citizens of the country
It has failed in addressing these problems:
• Reducing economic inequality and poverty: In actual life, democracy is not able to reduce economic inequality or poverty in a democratic country. A small number of rich people have a large proportion of the country’s wealth. On the other hand, the income of a large number of poor people keeps on declining. It is becoming difficult for them to meet their daily needs like food, cloth etc.
• Economic growth: Democracy is very much responsible and important for the development of a nation, but it does not guarantee that.
How do democratic governments ensure transparency? Explain any three points.
Literal meaning of transparency in a democracy is disclosure. The following points discuss transparency in democratic government.
• Democratic government ensures transparency in the process of decision making.
• Right to Information Act enables every citizen of the country to have the right to information about the structure of the government and every policy and rule made by them.
• When any decision made or meetings held by the government is open to discussion for citizens of the country, and when any budget approved by the government is open to examination, to check whether it is beneficial for their country or not, it is termed as transparency.
Explain how democracies lead to peaceful and harmonious life among citizens.
Yes it is true that democracies lead to peaceful and harmonious life among citizens. It can be explained by the following points:
• Only Democratic government is a form of government which provides accommodation to social differences and conflicts by making everybody learn how to respect every individual’s opinion as differences can never be suppressed completely.
• Democracy ensures inclusion of every group including minorities and its interests in the decision making.
• It reduces the probability of violence due to social differences and conflicts between different kinds of people.
• It provides right to equality, equality before law, equal opportunities of work and prohibition of discrimination on grounds of religion, race, caste, gender or place of birth to every citizen or individual.
• It also ensures various other fundamental rights of the citizen.
What are the factors which are responsible for the economic development of the country?
Economic growth is termed as an increase in market value of goods and services produced per capita by the economy over a period of time. Democracy is very much responsible and important for the development of a nation but it does not guarantee that. It depends on the following factors:
• Education: To increase economic growth, the population of the country must be educated as increased skills by the education will produce more goods and services, resulting in an increase in economic growth.
• Health facilities: There should be adequate health facilities to ensure the good health of the population of the country to increase economic growth.
• Political will or economic priorities: Government should have the desire to spend money on the education and health facilities of the citizens and make policies accordingly.
• Non- discrimination: There should not be any discrimination based on religion, caste, gender etc. and everybody should be provided equal opportunity based on their skills.
• Other factors can be the global situation, cooperation from other countries etc.
What sustains democracy in India?
India is a democratic country. It is sustained by:
• Constitution: It ensures the fundamental rights of every citizen of the country and defines the responsibility of the government. It makes the government accountable to citizens.
• Supreme Court: It is one of the pillars of the country. It ensures the validity of the constitution and acts as a guardian of the constitution.
• Press and electronic media: It helps in ensuring accountability by making people aware of the policies made by the government and any wrong deeds done by then.
• Election Commission: It ensures that elections should be held freely and fairly and at regular intervals of time.
• Parliament and State legislature: The ministers of the cabinet are collectively responsible to the parliament which in turn ensures accountability to the citizens.
What are the ways in which people can participate in democracy?
Democracy is a form of government which provides right to equality, equality before the law, equal opportunities of work and prohibition of discrimination on the grounds of religion, race, caste, gender or place of birth to every citizen or individual. The representative of the democratic government is directly or indirectly elected by the people of the country. In the following ways people can participate in democracy:
• By accessing any information regarding government policies and decisions in newspapers, magazines and examining its outcome.
• By using his power of electing any representative who is beneficial for the country and vote for him.
• By participating in public political debates which can influence a large number of people in the right direction.
• By challenging any wrong decision of the government in the courts and asking for remedy by the judiciary.
• By exercising his fundamental rights and right to information to check the rules made by the government.
‘Democracies accommodate social diversities” Support the statement with examples.
Democracies have certain methods to accommodate social divisions. This helps in maintaining unity and eliminating social tensions. Democracy does not mean rule by majoritarian. They have to accommodate the interests of minority to remain a democracy. India is one example of a democracy which accommodates people of different religion, castes, language, backgrounds, etc. It is a fundamental right of the people to preserve their culture and practices associated with it.
‘’ The democracy has been evolved through struggles and movements all over the world. ‘’ Support the statements with examples.
Yes indeed democracy has been evolved through struggles and movements all over the world. It is possible that some demand can be accepted by the government easily but there some of the demands of the interest of the people which give rise to conflicts between government and people. This is more significant when the country is moving towards the democratic form of government or when democracy is expanding. Some of the examples are the struggle in Nepal was to establish the democracy but the movement in Bolivia involved claim on democratic government. In both the movements, mass mobilization was involved and political conflict was the reason.