Class 6 Social Science Chapter 10 Notes Grassroots Democracy Part 1: Governance
→ Governance: Managing and organising society with rules.
→ Government: The system that makes and enforces laws.
→ Laws: Rules set to maintain order and justice.
→ Legislature: Makes and amend laws.
→ Executive: Enforces laws and manages resources.
→ Judiciary: Interprets laws and ensures fairness.
→ Separation of Powers: Distinct branches of government with checks and balances.
→ Democracy: Power lies with the people, who elect leaders.
→ Representatives: Elected officials who make decisions on behalf of people.
→ Representative Democracy: Citizens elect; leaders to make decisions.
→ Direct Democracy: Citizens vote directly on laws.
→ Grassroots Democracy: Citizens participate in decision-making at local level.
Learning Objectives
- Why do we need rules?
- Roles of three organs of government
- Different levels of government
- What is Democracy?
- Grassroot Democracy
Introduction
People have always lived together in communities, and when many people live close to each other, there can be disagreements and confusion. To keep everything running smoothly and to ensure everyone gets along, we need rules.
Example 1.
You follow rules at home, like tidying up your room or finishing your homework. At school, there are rules for both students and teachers. Even when you get older and take exams, there are rules to follow. Drivers must stick to traffic rules to keep the roads safe, and people at work must follow rules set by their employers, while employers must also keep their promises to their workers.
If people do not follow these rules, society would fall apart and wouldn’t work properly. The process of making decisions, organising society with different rules, and ensuring everyone follows them is called governance. The group of people or system that makes these rules and ensures they are followed is known as the government. Important rules are called laws.
Remember, rules and laws are not set in stone. Just as you might talk to your parents about changing a rule at home, students might ask their school to change a rule, and citizens can also have a say in the laws of their country.
Three Organs of Government
Governments around the world have three important parts, called organs, that work together to ensure a country runs effectively and fairly. These three organs are the Legislature, the Executive, and the Judiciary. Each of these has a unique role, but they must work in harmony to maintain order and justice in society.
Example 2
Digital technology has greatly changed how societies operate. For instance, about 30 years ago in India, sending money to someone far away meant standing in : line at the Post Office for a money order or at the bank for a demand draft. Nowadays, digital methods let us send money instantly, and you might not even know: what a money order is.
However, this digital shift has also led to new problems. Criminals now use technology to steal money without leaving their computers, a crime known as cyber crime. To combat this, governments have introduced new: laws, and those caught committing these crimes are often fined and jailed. This situation highlights how the three branches of government work together:
Legislature
This branch makes and updates laws. It is made up of elected representatives who debate and decide on new rules.
Executive
This branch puts laws into action. It includes leaders like the president or prime minister and agencies like the cyber police that enforce the rules.
Judiciary
This branch interprets laws and decides if someone has broken them. It also reviews if haws and decisions are fair.
Separation of Powers
In a well-functioning government, the three branches must remain separate yet interact and collaborate. The separation, known as the ‘separation of powers,’ ensures checks and balances, allowing each branch to monitor and correct the others if one oversteps its role.
Three Levels of Government
A government operates at different levels: local, state, and central. Each level takes care of specific issues.
Example 3
If a light bulb in your house isn’t working, you would first check it yourself (local level). If that doesn’t solve the problem, you might call an electrician (state level). If the issue is larger, like a neighbourhood power outage, you might need to contact the electricity board (national level). Similarly, in India, governance operates at three levels: local, State, and Central or Union.
Local governments handle smaller, local issues, state governments manage larger problems within the State, and the Central Government steps in for very big issues affecting the whole country. These levels work together to keep things running smoothly.
Example 4
For minor floods, local authorities handle the situation.
For more extensive flooding affecting multiple towns, the State Government steps in with rescue efforts. In severe cases impacting large areas, the Central Government provides additional support, including relief supplies and military aid.
Democracy
Democracy is a system of government where the power lies with the people. The word ‘democracy’ comes from two Greek words: ‘desmos,’ meaning ‘people,’ and ‘kratos,’ meaning ‘rule’ or ‘power.’ In a democracy, people have the right to choose their leaders who make decisions on their behalf. This is important because it’s not practical for everyone to participate directly in every decision, especially in a large country.
Example 5
For example, in your class, if there’s a need to talk to the principal about something important, like a field trip or a classroom issue, the whole class doesn’t go to the principal. Instead, you might choose a class representative who speaks for everyone. Similarly, in a democracy like India, citizens elect representatives during elections.
At the state level, these representatives are called Members of Legislative Assembly (MLAs), and at the national level, they are called Members of Parliament (MPs). These representatives discuss laws, problems, and solutions in assemblies and try to reach agreements through dialogue and debate.
India, like many modern countries, is a representative democracy. This means that citizens elect leaders to make decisions on their behalf. India is also the world’s largest democracy, with around 970 million voters in 2024. Every Indian citizen who is 18 years or older has the right to vote in these elections.
Example 6
For example, imagine your class is deciding between two picnic spots, A and B. After discussing the pros and cons, it’s still hard to choose. So, your teacher suggests voting. Students raise their hands for their preferred spot, and the one with the most votes wins.
This process, called voting, it is an example of direct democracy, where everyone’s opinion is taken into account. Grassroots democracy involves ordinary citizens participating in decisions that affect them. We will explore more about how Indian democracy works in next chapters and in future grades.