Maharashtra State Board Class 12 Political Science Solutions Chapter 3 Key Concepts and Issues Since 1991: Humanitarian Issues
1. (A) Complete the following statements by selecting the appropriate option.
Q 1 The Rio de Janeiro Earth Summit (1992) focused on
- Environment and development
- Nuclear non-proliferation
- International trade
- Gender issues
SOLUTION:
Environment and development
Q:2. Today the Indian approach to gender issues focuses on
(a) Education
(b) Welfare
(c) Development
(d) Empowerment
Solutions:
(d) Empowerment
Q:3. The first UN Conference on Human Environment was held in 1972 in
(a) Johannesburg
(b) Stockholm
(c) Rio
(d) New Delhi
Solutions:
(b) Stockholm
(B) Identify the incorrect pair in every set and correct it.
Q:1.
(a) JGSY – Infrastructure development in rural areas
(b) PMKVY – Skill training to youth
(c) MGNREGA – Housing for everyone
Solutions:
(c) MGNREGA – assured employment every year for every rural household
Q:2.
(a) National Commission for Women – 1992
(b) Planning Commission – 2015
(c) Rio+20 summit – 2012
Solutions:
(b) Planning Commission – 1950
(C) Find the odd word in the given set.
Q:1. National policy for empowerment of women, protection of women from domestic violence act, Muslim women (protection and right on marriage) Act, the secual harassment at workplace (prohibition prevention and readressal) Act.
Q:2.Climate change, waste management, water scarity, deforestation.
2. State whether the following statements are true or false with reason.
Q:1.Planning Commission was created to promote agriculture in India.
Solutions:
This statement is False.
- The Planning Commission was set up in 1950 to formulate a plan for the effective and balanced utilisation of the country’s resources.
- It’s function was to prepare Five Year Plans to tackle poverty, employment and promote the Welfare State. The Green Revolution was introduced to promote agriculture in India.
Q:2.National Commission for Women was set up to protect rights for women in India.
Solutions:
This statement is True.
- National Commission for Women was set up to facilitate the redressal of grievances of women.
- It aimed to safeguard the rights and legal entitlements of women and accelerate their socio¬economic development.
- Maharashtra Board Class 12 Political Science Solutions Chapter 3 Key Concepts and Issues Since 1991: Humanitarian Issues
3. Explain the correlation between the following.
Q:1. Women Empowerment and Sustainable Development.
Solutions:
- Empowerment is a process by which any category of oppressed persons gain control over their own lives by developing self esteem and courage to fight against injustice. Sustainable development refers to development using resources in a way that allows for them to renew or to continue to exist for other e.g., recycling materials. This seems almost impossible without gender equality and women’s empowerment. Women are empowered when they are able to access opportunities without restrictions such as in education, career, etc.
- Women’s economic empowerment refers to the ability of women to enjoy their right to control and benefit from resources, income etc as well as the ability to improve their economic status and well-being. Political empowerment includes affirmative action policies to increase participation of women in parliamentary / government positions and policymaking. Thus, women’s empowerment is a key factor for sustainable economic growth, social development and environmental sustainability.
Q:2.Poverty and Development
Solutions:
- Poverty refers to deprivation of the basic necessities such as food, clothing, health services, education, etc., that determine quality of life. In economic terms, it is expressed as the poverty line. Development means some measurable improvement in some particular area. Alleviation or even eradication of poverty is the most important aim of developmental work.
- Poverty is related to other problems of underdevelopment such as unemployment and inequalities. It hinders economic development as well as leads to issues of health, sanitation and disease, housing, crime, etc. Poverty alleviation i.e., set of economic and humanitarian measures, such as good governance, economic growth, government support in health education etc., are important for development.
- Maharashtra Board Class 12 Political Science Solutions Chapter 3 Key Concepts and Issues Since 1991: Humanitarian Issues
4. Answer the following questions in 80 to 100 words.
Q:1.Explain the traditional and non-traditional perception of poverty.
Q:2.From 1960’s to 21 century what efforts has India taken to achieve development?
5. Answer the following Q:with reference to the given points.
Q:1.Explain condition of women in India.
(a) Economic inequality
(b) Trafficking and exploitation
(c) Literacy rate
(d) Political representation
Solutions:
All over the world, women have to face serious problems such as discrimination and violence, under-representation in economic and political decision-making, inequalities in education, health care, landholdings and workplaces and even in human rights.
Some of the important gender issues:
(a) Economic inequality – Participation of women in the labour market is about 28% only.
There is also income inequality due to wide gender wage gaps as well as inequality of opportunities to women e.g., unequal access to education and finance. In many countries, women are either not encouraged to work or employed in the informal sector. Women continue to be underrepresented in high-level, highly paid positions and experience gender discrimination and sexual harassment in the workplace. Women experience high levels of poverty, unemployment and other economic hardships.
(b) Trafficking and exploitation – Women are often exploited and denied basic rights. They are trafficked for purpose of sexual and economic exploitation particularly prostitution, ‘sold’ as brides, subjected to sexual crimes, forced labour, street begging, etc. Trafficking in women means that they are deceived or forced/sold, physically confined, abused with no access to protection or health care.
(c) Literacy rate – low literacy among women is acute in India. As per 2011 census report, female literacy rate is only 65.46% while for males it is 82.14%. The reasons for the low female literacy are-
traditional patriarchal notions that do not consider female education as economically advantageous
Schools in rural areas are not easily accessible and travel may not safe or easy.
Benefits of schemes like R.T.E have not reached many rural females.
Social evils like child marriage, female foeticide, dowry, etc.
(d) Political Representation – Poor political representation of women is a significant gender concern in India. The First Lok Sabha had only 24 women of total 489 members i.e., 5% and the 17th Lok Sabha (2019) has 78 women (14%). This is the highest representation of women in Lok Sabha till date. The Women’s Reservation Bill which proposes to reserve 33% of all seats in Lok Sabha and in State Assemblies for women is pending in the Lok Sabha. However, there exists 33% reservation for women in rural and urban local bodies.
Activity
Q:1.Find out information on international agreements on environmental balance. (Text Book Page No. 34)
Solutions:
1. Stockholm conference (Declaration of UN Conference on Human Environment, 1972) led to a 109 point Environmental Action Plan and establishment of the UN Environmental programme (UNEP).
2. Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Flora and Faura (CITES) (1973) – grouped almost 30,000 plant and animal species into three levels of protection depending on the degree of regulation required.
3. Montreal Protocol (1987) – For protection of the ozone layer. It phases out production and use of ozone depleting chemicals.
4. Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) (1992) – The aim was to promote conservation and sustainable use of biodiversity.
5. Kyoto Protocol (1997) – It supplements the 1992 UN Framework Convention on Climate change (UNFCCC) to limit six greenhouse gas emissions. It involved 37 countries and the UN.
6. Paris Agreement (2016) – It is an agreement within the UNFCCC, dealing with greenhouse gas emissions and strengthening global response to the threat of climate change.
Maharashtra Board Class 12 Political Science Solutions Chapter 3 Key Concepts and Issues Since 1991: Humanitarian Issues
Q:2.Find out percentage of handicapped voters in 17th Lok Sabha suggest measures to increase their percentage.
Class 12 Political Science Chapter 3 Key Concepts and Issues Since 1991: Humanitarian Issues Intext Questions and Answers
ACTIVITY (Text Book Page No.26)
Q:1.What are the different initiatives taken by the Indian Government to protect the environment?
Solutions:
1. Swachh Bharat Abhiyan was launched on October 2, 2014 to achieve the mission of a clean India in both rural and urban areas. It was implemented by the Ministry of Drinking water and sanitation and the Ministry of Urban Development respectively. Swachh Bharat Mission (Gramin) aims to make India Open Defecation Free (ODF) For Urban Areas, it includes elimination of ODF, eradication of manual scavenging and proper solid waste management.
2. Namami Gange Programme (Clean Ganga Project) is implemented by the National Mission for Clean Ganga to conserve and rejuvenate the river Ganga. The centre allocated a total of Rs 20000 crore for the project. The key achievements include sewerage treatment capacity, river front development and surface cleaning of the river.
3. Green Skill Development Programme was launched in June 2017 by the MoEF and CC. It refers to skills that contribute to preserve and restore the environment, thus enabling youth to be employed or self-employment. Green skills include Pollution Monitoring, Waste Management, Forest and Wildlife Management, etc.
4. Constitutional Provisions – Article 48 (DPSP) says the State shall endeavour to protect and improve the environment. Article 51-A States that it shall be the duty of every citizen of India to protect and improve the natural environment.
5. Legislation – (i) Indian Wild Life Protection Act (1972) Forest Conservation Act (1980) and Environment (Protection) Act (1986)
(ii) National Environmental Policy (2006) Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate change (MoEF and CC) along with Pollution Control Boards administer and enforce environmental laws. There is also the National Green Tribunal.
Q:2.Salient Features of National Policy for Women (2016). (Text Book Page No.33)
Solutions:
National Policy for Women was unveiled by Union WCD Minister, Smt Maneka Gandhi on 17th May 2016. It will replace National Policy for Empowerment of Women (2001). It shifts the focus from entitlements to rights and from mere empowerment to creating an enabling environment for women. It seeks to create conducive socio-cultural, economic and political environment to enable women to enjoy fundamental rights and realize their full potential. It’s priority areas include health, food security and nutrition, education, involving women in governance and decision making, encouraging entrepreneurship, facilitating women in the workplace and dealing with violence against women.
Q:3.Find out information on international agreements on environmental balance. (Text Book Page No. 34)
Solutions:
1. Stockholm conference (Declaration of UN Conference on Human Environment, 1972) led to a 109 point Environmental Action Plan and establishment of the UN Environmental programme (UNEP).
2. Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Flora and Faura (CITES) (1973) – grouped almost 30,000 plant and animal species into three levels of protection depending on the degree of regulation required.
3. Montreal Protocol (1987) – For the protection of the ozone layer. It phases out production and use of ozone-depleting chemicals.
4. Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) (1992) – The aim was to promote conservation and sustainable use of biodiversity.
5. Kyoto Protocol (1997) – It supplements the 1992 UN Framework Convention on Climate change (UNFCCC) to limit six greenhouse gas emissions. It involved 37 countries and the UN.
6. Paris Agreement (2016) – It is an agreement within the UNFCCC, dealing with greenhouse gas emissions and strengthening the global response to the threat of climate change.
Key Concepts and Issues Since 1991: Humanitarian Issues Exercise | Chapter 3 Class 12 Political Science Solution
In the first two chapters we have studied
the changes that have taken place in the
world since 1991. We saw how the process
of globalisation has brought in concepts like
participatory state, awareness of human
rights, increasing importance of non-state
actors, etc. Today, humanitarian issues like
environment, perspectives about poverty and
development policies and approaches towards
gender have become important. This chapter
looks at these issues and tries to understand
how India has dealt with them.
Environment and Sustainability
What is the environment? It is everything
that makes up our surroundings, the air we
breathe, the water that covers most of the
earth's surface, the plants and animals around
us, and much more. It is the conditions in
which a person, animal, or plant lives. The
natural environment consists of all living and
non-living things occurring naturally. It
would include soil, rocks, atmosphere, air,
water, and climate, etc. There is also the
built environment. This refers to such areas
where man has transformed landscapes such
as urban settings and agricultural land
conversion. The natural environment is
modified into a human environment.
The relationship between economic
development and environmental degradation
was first placed on the international agenda
in 1972, at the United Nations (UN)
Conference on the Human Environment, held
in Stockholm. The main purpose of the
conference was to encourage and provide
guidelines for the protection and improvement
of human environment. In 1983 the UN set
up the World Commission on Environment
and Development (Brundtland Commission).
The Report of the Commission (1987) put
forward the concept of sustainable development as an alternative approach to
one based on economic growth.
The UN General Assembly called for the
UN Conference on Environment and
Development (UNCED) as a follow up to the
report of the Brundtland Commission. The
goal of the summit was to understand the
concept of development that would support
socio-economic development and prevent the
continued deterioration of the environment. It
also aimed at creating a partnership between
the developing and the more industrialised
countries to ensure a healthy future for the
planet. This summit was held at Rio in 1992.
The Rio de Janeiro Earth Summit (1992)
also called the Rio Summit, the Rio
Conference, or the Earth Summit sought to
create international cooperation on
development issues. It tried to raise public
awareness on the need to integrate environment
and development. In 2002 the Earth Summit
was held in Johannesburg with the goal of
again bringing together leaders from
government, business and NGOs. Sustainable
Development was recognised as the most
important goal for institutions at the national,
regional and international levels. In 2012, the
United Nations Conference on Sustainable
Development was again held in Rio, and is
also commonly called Rio+20 or Rio Earth
Summit 2012.
The goal of environmental sustainability
is to conserve natural resources and to
develop alternate sources of power while
reducing pollution and harm to the
environment. Environmental sustainability is
defined as responsible interaction with the
environment to avoid depletion or degradation
of natural resources and allow for long-term
environmental quality. The practice of
environmental sustainability helps to ensure
that the needs of today's population are met
without jeopardizing the ability of future
generations to meet their needs.
Some of the important environmental concerns are as follows:
Climate Change : Greenhouse gas
emissions are the main cause of climate
change. This has resulted in extreme weather
events such as droughts, wildfires, heat waves
and flooding.
Pollution : Air pollution and climate
change are closely linked. Greenhouse gas
emissions that are warming the planet are
also creating smoggy conditions in major
cities that endanger public health.
Deforestation : Forests are important as
they absorb CO2 that would otherwise escape
into the atmosphere and worsen global
warming. Cutting down trees also threatens
animals and humans who rely on healthy
forests to sustain themselves.
Water Scarcity : As the population
increases and climate change causes more
droughts, water scarcity is becoming more of
an issue. Access to clean, safe drinking water
is an important problem faced by the
population today
Loss of Biodiversity : Loss of biodiversity
threatens food security and population health.
Climate change is also a major contributor to
biodiversity.
The Ministry of Environment, Forest
and Climate Change is the nodal agency in
the administrative structure of the Central
Government for the planning, promotion, coordination and overseeing the implementation
of India’s environmental and forestry policies
and programmes. The primary concerns of the
Ministry are implementation of policies and
programmes relating to conservation of the
country’s natural resources including its lakes
and rivers, its biodiversity, forests and wildlife,
ensuring the welfare of animals, and the
prevention and abatement of pollution. While
implementing these policies and programmes,
the Ministry is guided by the principle of
sustainable development and enhancement of
human well-being.
Poverty and Development
What is poverty? How is it related to
Development? What are the various
perspectives and approaches that would help
us to understand the relationship between the
two? These are some of the issues that this
section deals with.
The traditional perception of poverty
would focus on the lack of food, water,
shelter, clothing, sanitation, etc. There is also
a monetary based consideration of what is
poverty.
Poverty is therefore a state of an
individual, family or society where people
are unable to provide for their basic necessities
of life. It focuses on the earnings of an
individual that would help him to live a
relatively comfortable life. These are material aspects of life. A State is expected to ensure
that the people are provided for the necessary
material goods for their survival.
There is an alternate view of poverty.
This focuses on both the material and nonmaterial aspects of life.
Here the focus is on
human wellbeing through sustainable societies
in social, economic and political terms. Here
the emphasis is on values, community ties
and availability of common resources. Such
a view would focus on participatory nature
of decision making, ensuring that the
marginalised community is able to participate
in public policy and promote economic and
political decentralisation.
The approach to the concept of
development is usually looked at through a
set of social and political values. The purpose
of development is to ensure welfare of the
people. For example, development can be
associated with economic growth. One
perspective about economic growth can focus
on the predominant role of the State in
promoting economic growth. Another view
can focus on the role of the free market
economy in promoting development. The
former would be classified as ‘socialist’ while
the latter as ‘capitalist’. Both these are
traditional approaches to development.
The alternate, non-traditional view about
development focuses on both material and
non-material aspects of poverty.
It stresses on
political participation from the grassroot level,
ensuring that all sections of the community
are represented in the decision-making process.
It seeks to balance human activity with
nature, thus promoting the concept of
sustainable development.
The approaches to development until the
1990s were mainly traditional in nature. Their
main concern was tackling material aspects
of poverty.
Thus, the role of the State was
targeted to increasing economic prosperity
through industrialisation or focus on agriculture
so as to generate employment opportunities
and increase the per capita income of the
people. It is only in the 1990s that the
alternative view of development has become
acceptable. Consequently, the focus to day is
development based on equity, participation,
empowerment, sustainability, etc.
The Economic and Social Council
(ECOSOC) of the United Nations considers
poverty as a denial of choices and opportunities
and a violation of human dignity. It means
lack of basic capacity to participate effectively
in society, not having enough to feed and
clothe a family, not having a school or a
clinic to go to, not having the land on which
to grow one's food or a job to earn one's
living, nor having access to credit. It also
means insecurity, powerlessness and exclusion
of individuals, households and communities.
It means susceptibility to violence and it often
implies living on marginal and fragile
environments, not having access to clean
water and sanitation. The ECOSOC also
argues that poverty needs to be addressed
through the full involvement of governments
and all other development actors in society.
This has to be done as per national and local
circumstances based on the actual assessments
of the needs of the poor. Democratisation and
enhanced protection of human rights as key
components of good governance are necessary
to eradicate poverty
Poverty and Development in India
Indian national policy has always
associated political freedom with economic
freedom. It meant the freedom to follow our
own policies without compromise on national
sovereignty.
Indian vision of the process of
development in India had three aspects:
(i) Modernisation of the Economy :
Modernisation of Indian economy
meant industrialisation.
Industrialisation would provide
employment and increase productivity.
The stress was on large scale
industrialisation and factory production
rather than small scale industries. This
would provide employment to the
growing labour force. During the
Nehru years the focus was on
industrialisation and not on agriculture production. Land reform and irrigation
were looked at as the means to
achieve agricultural growth.
(ii) Self-reliance : Self-reliance was
associated with India’s freedom
movement. One of the aspects of selfreliance was ‘import substitution’
strategy. The focus was to develop
indigenous industry. India did take
foreign aid from other countries, but
the aid was utilised mainly in the
public sector industry
(iii) Socialist pattern of society with
equity and social justice : India
adopted the approach of Planning for
development. The Planning Commission
was created that was expected to
prepare Five Year Plans for the
development of the country. Importance
was given to the Public Sector industry
and not the Private Sector. The Indian
concept of socialism was based on the
promotion of the welfare state and
employment generation. This was the
approach to tackle the problem of
poverty in India.
Some changes did take place in the
1960s and 1970s. The 1960s saw a focus on
agriculture. This was the period of the Green
Revolution in India.
India faced an economic crisis in the
late 1980s. Indian public sector was not
performing well. The various public
expenditure programmes for social welfare
and removal of poverty were becoming
wasteful. The Panchayati Raj Amendments to
the Indian Constitution tried to bring in
decentralisation of decision-making. But they
were not very successful. India was forced
to take loan from the International Monetary
Fund to overcome the financial problems.
India has always recognised the link
between economic growth and the quality of
life of the people. It also recognises the need
to combine economic growth with the
objective social justice. ‘Growth with Social
Justice and Equity’ has been India’s policy
towards poverty and development. The Indian
government initiated several programmes that
sought to help the poor and promote holistic
development
These reforms also changed the role
played by the State. Now the development
strategy was to encourage the private sector to
increase production, create jobs and raise
income levels in society. India has a strong and
vibrant private sector, including large, middle
sized and small enterprises. Encouragement of
the private sector does not mean that the State
has no role to play in development.
Today, the
State, along with the civil society (NGOs and
Voluntary Organisations) continues to play an
important role in the area of social development,
especially in rural areas. This includes providing
basic services such as health care, education,
safe drinking water etc. to the majority of the
population, especially in rural areas.
The estimates from the 2018 Global
Multidimensional Poverty Index (MPI)
released today by the United Nations
Development Programme (UNDP) and the
Oxford Poverty and Human Development
Initiative (OPHI) indicate that despite difficulties and prevalent gaps, India has
made decent progress in reducing
multidimensional poverty. According to the
report, the incidence of multidimensional
poverty has almost halved between 2005-06
and 2015-16, climbing down to 27.5 percent
from 54.7 percent. However, pockets of
poverty are found across India, but
multidimensional poverty is particularly acute.
Poverty and Women
There are interlinkages among various
issues and concerns. One of the most
important linkage is between poverty,
underdevelopment and women. Majority of
women in different parts of the world are
poor owing to cultural norms and values,
gendered division of assets and property, and
unequal power equations between men and
women. Women and girls bear an unequal
burden of unpaid domestic responsibilities
and are overrepresented in informal jobs.
The world witnessed rise of feminist
movements in early 19th century. Since then,
social, political and economic rights of
women were constantly asserted. They
broadly talked about gender equality- equal
rights, social equality, political equality,
gender justice etc. Later in the 1970s,
women empowerment came to be accepted
as an important concept and philosophy.
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Maharashtra State Board 12th Std Political Science Textbook Solutions Digest
| Chapter No | Chapter Name |
| Chapter 1 | The World Since 1991 |
| Chapter 2 | Key Concepts and Issues Since 1991: Globalisation |
| Chapter 3 | Key Concepts and Issues Since 1991: Humanitarian Issues |
| Chapter 4 | Contemporary India: Challenges to Peace, Stability and National Integration |
| Chapter 5 | Contemporary India: Good Governance |
| Chapter 6 | India and the World |