GSEB Solutions Class 8 Social Science Chapter 13 Independent India

Gujarat Board GSEB Solutions Class 8 Social Science Chapter 13 Independent India Textbook Exercise Important Questions and Answers, Notes Pdf.

Gujarat Board Textbook Solutions Class 8 Social Science Chapter 13 Independent India

GSEB Class 8 Social Science Independent India Textbook Questions and Answers

Answer the following questions in detail:

Question 1.
Why did the Central Government have to “Reorganize the states”?
OR
Give reason: The Central Government had to “Reorganize the states”.
Answer:
After independence the princely states were merged into the Indian Union. We had adopted the federal system of government. Hence, there arose a question of forming and reorganizing states as the major components of the Union of India. The constitution was implemented on 26th January, 1950. At that time India emerged as a Union with four categories of states, namely, A, B, C and D in India.

The Telugu speaking community of Madras (group – A state) launched a strong protest for their own separate state. The government accepted their demand. So on 1st October, 1953, Andhra Pradesh was formed as a new state on linguistic basis. In December 1953, Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru appointed the ‘States Reorganization Committee’ to reorganize all Indian states. This was headed by Fazal Ali, retired chief justice of the Supreme Court. The bill regarding reorganization of states was implemented from 1st November, 1956.

Question 2.
Why did Maha Gujarat Movement start ?
OR
Give reason: The Maha Gujarat Movement was started.
Answer:
According to the recommendation of the ‘States Reorganization Committee’ the four categories were renounced and fourteen new states and six union territories were formed.

Most of the states (except Bombay and Punjab) were formed on the basis of language. Two major linguistic groups – Marathi and Gujarati – lived in Bombay. There arose strong demands to separate Gujarat and Maharashtra on linguistic basis. On the day when the bilingual recommendation for the state of Bombay was passed in parliament, a group of students of Law College in Ahmedabad organized a meeting and started a series of demonstrations.

Gradually this movement known as the ‘Maha Gujarat Movement’ became more aggressive and violent. It became more widespread across Gujarat with series of protests and demonstrations. The ‘Maha Gujarat Janta Parishad’ was formed under the leadership of Indulal Yagnik in September, 1956, with support from a few political parties. The Parishad demanded a separate Gujarat state. The movement compelled the parliament to divide the bilingual state of Bombay into two separate states – Gujarat and Maharashtra in 1960.

Question 3.
Which areas were under French rule?
Answer:
The following areas of India were under French rule: Pondicherry, Karaikal (Tamil Nadu), Mahe (Kerala), Yanam (Andhra Pradesh) and Chandranagar (West Bengal).

Question 4.
Why did India have to take military action against the Portuguese?
Answer:
Goa and Dadra-Nagar Haveli, Diu and Daman were under Portuguese control in 1950. For the Portuguese Goa was a symbol of prestige so they did not want to cede these colonies to India. All negotiations and Satyagraha failed. So the Indian Government decided to take more radical steps and launched ‘Operation Vijay’ to free Goa.

Question 5.
Which are the current problems faced by India ?
Answer:
Caste discrimination still prevails in many parts. Communal riots are common, many people live below poverty line. Corruption and inflation are increasing. Other problems like unemployment, economic inequality, population explosion, regionalism, illiteracy, etc. also exist in India. These problems have not made India a completely successful democracy.

Match the pairs correctly:

Section ‘A’	Section ‘B’
(1) Chairman of the State Reorganization Committee	(1) Ravishankar Maharaj
(2) ‘Chacha of Janta’	(2) Dr Jivraj Mehta
(3) Gujarat state was inaugurated by	(3) Mehndi Nawaz Jung
(4) The first Chief Minister of Gujarat	(4) Indulal Yagnik
(5) The first Governor of Gujarat	(5) Fazal Ali

Answer:
(1 – 5), (2 – 4), (3 – 1), (4 – 2), (5 – 3).

Activities
* Project: Prepare a pictorial report by collecting information about the present states of India, their capital cities, maps of states, social life and other specialties of those states.
(1) Fill the map by locating the places that were under the French and the Portuguese.
(2) Measure the distance between Goa, Diu and Daman on the map with the help of a scale.
(3) How would it have been if Gujarat continued to remain a part of Bombay state ?
(4) Prepare a list of present states of India and their languages.
(5) The current name of Bombay city is Mumbai. There are other cities in India which had different names earlier. Prepare a list of these cities.
(6) Do you think that Meerabahen (Miss Slade) was right in predicting that science and technology would create problems for the human race ? Discuss on this topic with reference to the adverse effects of industrial pollution and deforestation.

GSEB Class 8 Social Science Independent India Intext Questions and Answers

Question 1.
Why was India forced to carry out military operation against the Portuguese colonies ?
Answer:
India became a sovereign republic nation in 1950. At that time, Goa and Dadra-Nagar Haveli, Diu and Daman were under Portuguese control. Indian Government made a lot of efforts through persuasion and negotiation to merge those areas into India. But, these efforts did not yield any result. The Portuguese considered Goa as the symbol of prestige of their empire. People started Satyagraha on a large scale to merge Goa with Indian Union on 18th June, 1954. The Portuguese Government arrested hundreds of Satyagrahis for unfurling the tricolour flag.

The volunteers captured Dadra- Nagar Haveli on 22nd July, 1954. People started entering Goa, Diu and Daman by starting ‘Goa Freedom Movement’ on 15th August, 1955. Around 200 Satyagrahis died in the clashes with Portuguese authorities. Since India could not succeed by persuasion, negotiation and Satyagraha, the Indian Government started military action called ‘Operation Vijay’ (in 1961) under the leadership of General Chaudhary. The operation lasted for just 12 hours – from midnight of 17th December to noon of 18th December.

GSEB Class 8 Social Science Independent India Additional Important Questions and Answers

Choose the correct alternative from those given below each question:

1.
Question 1.
Which separate state was formed from the state of Madras of group ‘A’ ?
A. Hyderabad
B. Andhra Pradesh
C. Karnataka
D. Mysore
Answer:
B. Andhra Pradesh

Question 2.
When was the state of Andhra Pradesh formed ?
A. On 1st January, 1956
B. On 1st June, 1955
C. On 10th December, 1954
D. On 1st October, 1953
Answer:
D. On 1st October, 1953

Question 3.
Who was the chairman of ‘State Reorganization Committee’ ?
A. Fazal Ali
B. Abul Fazal
C. Hridaynath Kunzaru
D. K. M. Panniker
Answer:
A. Fazal Ali

Question 4.
When was the bill of state reorganization passed ?
A. On 1st January, 1955
B. On 1st November, 1956
C. On 10th November, 1956
D. On 15th August, 1947
Answer:
B. On 1st November, 1956

Question 5.
Into how many states and union territories was India reorganized initially?
A. 14 states and 6 union territories
B. 15 states and 7 union territories
C. 21 states and 5 union territories
D. 27 states and 6 union territories
Answer:
A. 14 states and 6 union territories

Question 6.
On what basis did the State Reorganization Committee form the majority states of India?
A. Religion
B. Caste
C. Border
D. Language
Answer:
D. Language

Question 7.
Who was the leader of the Maha Gujarat Movement ?
A. Ratubhai Adani
B. Indulal Yagnik
C. Morarji Desai
D. Ravishankar Maharaj
Answer:

Question 8.
When was the ‘Maha Gujarat Janta Parishad’ established ?
A. In January, 1955
B. In December, 1954
C. In March, 1957
D. In September, 1956
Answer:
D. In September, 1956

Question 9.
Who became popular as ‘Chacha of Janta’ at the time of the Maha Gujarat Movement?
A. Indulal Yagnik
B. Ratubhai Adani
C. Ravishankar Maharaj
D. Morarji Desai
Answer:
A. Indulal Yagnik

Question 10.
When was the state of Gujarat formed?
A. On 5th November, 1961
B. On 1st May, 1960
C. On 18th July, 1958
D. On 1st January, 1960
Answer:
B. On 1st May, 1960

2.
Question 11.
When did the Indian parliament separate the bilingual state of Bombay?
A. In 1958
B. In 1961
C. In 1960
D. In 1956
Answer:
C. In 1960

Question 12.
Who inaugurated the state of Gujarat?
A. Brahmkumar Bhatt
B. Indulal Yagnik
C. Ravishankar Maharaj
D. Ratubhai Adani
Answer:
C. Ravishankar Maharaj

Question 13.
Who was the first Governor of Gujarat?
A. Mehndi Nawaz Jung
B. Dr Shrimannarayan
C. Shree Nityanand Kanungo
D. K. K. Vishwanathan
Answer:
A. Mehndi Nawaz Jung

Question 14.
Who was the first Chief Minister of Gujarat?
A. Hitendrabhai Desai
B. Balvantrai Mehta
C. Ghanshyambhai Oza
D. Dr Jivraj Mehta
Answer:
D. Dr Jivraj Mehta

Question 15.
When did the French Government give its colonies back to Indian Government?
A. On 26th January, 1950
B. On 1st May, 1950
C. On 31st October, 1950
D. On 31st October, 1954
Answer:
D. On 31st October, 1954

Question 16.
Which city of India did the Portuguese consider as the prestige symbol of their empire ?
A. Diu
B. Goa
C. Daman
D. Pondicherry
Answer:
B. Goa

Question 17.
What decision did Indian Government take to free Goa from Portuguese rule ?
A. To take ‘Police Action’
B. To start ‘Quit India’ movement
C. To start ‘Operation Vijay’
D. To start ‘Search Operation’
Answer:
C. To start ‘Operation Vijay’

Question 18.
On which issue does tension prevail between India and Pakistan ?
A. Sia Chin
B. Kashmir
C. Waters of the Sindhu
D. Ladakh
Answer:
B. Kashmir

Question 19.
During which year did Pakistani soldiers attack Kargil ?
A. In 1999
B. In 1998
C. In 2000
D. In 2001
Answer:
A. In 1999

Question 20.
In which year did India perform atomic tests ?
A. In 2001
B. In 1998
C. In 1992
D. In 1996
Answer:
B. In 1998

Question 21.
Which ideal has been accepted by Indian constitution in the matter of religion ?
A. Secularism
B. Sectarianism
C. Religious groups
D. Religious discrimination
Answer:
A. Secularism

Question 22.
Whose disciple was Meerabahen (Miss Slade) ?
A. Dr Ambedkar’s
B. Mahatma Gandhi’s
C. Khan Abdul Gafarkhan’s
D. Lord Mountbatten’s
Answer:
B. Mahatma Gandhi’s

Fill in the blanks with proper words or numbers in the following statements:

1.
1. Andhra Pradesh state has been formed from ……………… state.
Answer:
Madras

2. ………………. state was formed on 1st October, 1953.
Answer:
Andhra Pradesh

3. The former justice of Supreme Court of India ………………… was appointed as the President of “State Reorganization Committee”.
Answer:
Fazal Ali

4. The ………………… of India passed a bill of state reorganization in November, 1956.
Answer:
parliament

5. …………….. states and …………….. union territories were reorganized in 1956.
Answer:
14, 6

6. Out of 14 states of India most of the states are formed on the basis of ………………… .
Answer:
language

7. ………………… and …………….. were the two linguistics groups included in Bombay.
Answer:
Marathi, Gujarati

8. The students of ………………… of Ahmedabad started spontaneous protests when the bill of dual language state was passed.
Answer:
Law College

9. ‘Maha Gujarat Janta Parishad’ was established under the leadership of …………….. in September, ……………….. .
Answer:
Indulal Yagnik, 1956

10. The Bilingual Bombay state was divided in the year ……………….. .
Answer:
1960

2.

11. Gujarat state was inaugurated by ………………… on 1960.
Answer:
Ravishankar Maharaj, 1st May

12. ………………… was the first Governor of Gujarat.
Answer:
Mehndi Nawaz Jung

13. ………………. was the first Chief Minister of Gujarat.
Answer:
Dr Jivraj Mehta

14. People gave the slogan of ‘ ………………… ’ to the French in Pondicherry in 1948.
Answer:
Quit India

15. French surrendered the regions occupied by them on 31st October, ……………. .
Answer:
1954

16. Indian Government decided to free ……………….. with ‘Operation Vijay’.
Answer:
Goa

17. A lot of tension prevails between India and Pakistan on the issue of ……………….. .
Answer:
Kashmir

18. Pakistani troops attacked ……………….. in 1999.
Answer:
Kargil

19.India performed ………………… tests in 1998.
Answer:
atomic

State whether the following statements are true or false:

1. Indian constitution has accepted the sovereign administrative system for the country.
Answer:
True

2. New Gujarat state was inaugurated by Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru.
Answer:
False

3. Dr. Jivraj Mehta assumed charge as first Governor of Gujarat.
Answer:
False

4. Pondicherry was under Portuguese control.
Answer:
False

5. Portuguese considered Goa as the symbol of prestige of their empire.
Answer:
True

6. Indian Government started ‘Search Operation’ to free Goa.
Answer:
False

7. The relationship between India and Pakistan has become healthy after India got independence.
Answer:
False

8. Both India and Pakistan possess atomic weapons.
Answer:
True

Answer the following questions in one or two sentences:

Question 1.
Why did the question of formation and reorganization of states arise after independence?
Answer:
After independence the princely states were merged into the Indian Union. We had adopted the federal system of government. Hence, there arose a question of forming and reorganizing states as the major components of the Union of India.

Question 2.
How many categories of states were there in India, when constitution was implemented?
Answer:
There were four categories of states namely, A, B, C and D in India when the Constitution was implemented on 26th January, 1950.

Question 3.
When was the state of Andhra Pradesh formed ? How and Why?
Answer:
The Telugu speaking community of Madras (group-A state) launched a strong protest for their own separate state. The government accepted their demand. So on 1st October, 1953, Andhra Pradesh was formed as a new state on linguistic basis.

Question 4.
Under whose chairmanship did the Central Government form ‘The State Reorganization Committee’ ?
Answer:
The Central Government formed ‘The State Reorganization Committee’ under the chairmanship of former justice of Supreme Court of India, Fazal Ali.

Question 5.
When was the bill for state reorganization implemented ?
Answer:
The bill regarding reorganization of states was implemented from 1st November, 1956.

Question 6.
Which linguistic groups were included in the state of Bombay ?
Answer:
Two major linguistic groups – Marathi and Gujarati – lived in Bombay.

Question 7.
Why did the students of Ahmedabad Law College start spontaneous demonstrations ?
Answer:
On the day when the bilingual recommendation for the state of Bombay was passed in parliament, a group of students of Law College in Ahmedabad organized a meeting and started a series of spontaneous demonstrations.

Question 8.
Which leaders guided Maha Gujarat Move¬ment?
Answer:
The Maha Gujarat Movement was guided by leaders like, Indulal Yagnik, Jayanti Dalai, Brahmkumar Bhatt, etc.

Question 9.
Which Parishad was formed for the formation of separate state of Gujarat? When?
Answer:
‘Maha Gujarat Janta Parishad’ was formed under the leadership of Indulal Yagnik in September, 1956, for the formation of a separate Gujarat state from Bombay.

Question 10.
Why did Maha Gujarat Movement start?
Answer:
Maha Gujarat Movement was started to demand a separate Gujarat state from the bilingual state of Bombay.

Question 11.
Which states were formed due to division of the bilingual state of Bombay?
Answer:
Due to division of bilingual state of Bombay, two separate states namely Gujarat and Maharashtra were formed.

Question 12.
When was the new state of Gujarat formed?
Answer:
The new state of Gujarat was formed on 1st May, 1960.

Question 13.
What did Indian Government do to free Goa?
Answer:
The Indian Government decided to take more
radical steps and launched ‘Operation Vijay’ to free Goa. This military operation started at midnight of 17th, 18th December under the leadership of General Chaudhary and was done by noon the next day.

Question 14.
Which regions of Portuguese did the Indian Government capture?
Answer:
Indian Government captured three regions of the Portuguese namely, Goa, Diu and Daman.

Question 15.
Why has there always been cross-border infiltration from Pakistan?
Answer:
The dispute over the marking of boundaries has never been resolved and this has led to constant crossborder infiltration.

Question 16.
How many wars have taken place between India and Pakistan? When?
Answer:
There have been three wars between India and Pakistan – in 1948, 1965 and 1971.

Question 17.
Which agreements have been signed between India and Pakistan?
Answer:
The Tashkent and the Shimla agreements have been signed between India and Pakistan.

Question 18.
Which type of development has been made by India in industrial field due to Five Years Plans ?
Answer:
Due to implementation of Five Years Plans, India has made noteworthy progress in industrial fields like cotton textile industry, sugar industry, cement industry, iron and steel industry, engineering industry, chemical industry, coal industry, electronics, energy, computer, microchips, telecommunication, steel, fertilizers, petrochemicals, etc.

Answer the following questions in detail:

Question 1.
Describe the process of merging of Goa, Diu and Daman with Indian League.
Answer:
Though India became independent in 1947 and a sovereign republic nation in 1950, Goa and Dadra-Nagar Haveli, Diu and Daman were still under Portuguese control in 1950. For the Portuguese Goa was a symbol of prestige so they did not want to cede these colonies to India. On 15th August, 1955, 3000 to 5000 unarmed activists (Satyagrahis) tried to enter Goa, Diu and Daman at six locations and were violently repulsed by Portuguese police officers.

Around 200 Satyagrahis died in the clashes with the authority. All negotiations and Satyagraha failed. So the Indian Government decided to take more radical steps. The Indian Government launched ‘Operation Vijay’ to free Goa. This military operation started at midnight of 17th, 18th December, 1961 under the leadership of General Chaudhary and was done by noon the next day. The Indians won Goa, Diu and Daman and hoisted the national flag.

Write short notes:
Question 1.
Recommendations of State Reorganization Committee
Answer:
The Telugu speaking community of Madras (group -A state) launched a strong protest for their own separate state. The government accepted their demand. So on 1st October, 1953, a Andhra Pradesh was formed as a new state on linguistic basis. In December 1953, Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru appointed the ‘States Reorganization Committee’ to reorganize all Indian states.

This was headed by Fazed Ali, retired chief justice of the Supreme Court. The bill regarding reorganization of states was implemented from 1st November, 1956. According to the recommendation of the ‘States Reorganization Committee’ the four categories were renounced and fourteen new states and six union territories were formed. Most of the states (except Bombay and Punjab) were formed on the basis of language.

Question 2.
Relationship between Indie end Pakistan
Answer:
Relations between India and Pakistan have always been bitter. The dispute over the marking of boundaries has never been resolved and this has led to constant crossborder infiltration. The Kashmir issue has added fuel to this fire and worsened the relations of the two countries. India and Pakistan were at war thrice; in the years 1948, 1965 and 1971. Pakistan was defeated at all three times. Tashkent Agreement and Shimla Agreement were the two post war agreements signed by India and Pakistan. However, Pakistan has not followed the clauses of these agreements. When Pakistani forces entered Kargil in 1999. India had to use her military force. India conducted nuclear tests in 1998 followed by Pakistan. Thus, both countries have nuclear weapons today.

Answer the following questions in short:

Question 1.
Why did the movements start in Gujarat and Maharashtra ?
OR
Give reason: Movements started in Gujarat and Maharashtra.
Answer:
The Central Government formed fourteen new states and six union territories on the basis of the report of State Reorganization Committee. Out of these Bombay and Punjab states were not formed on the basis of language. The bilingual state of Bombay included Marathi and Gujarati language speaking areas. So like other states, aggressive movements had started in Gujarat and Maharashtra to form two separate states of Gujarat and Maharashtra on the basis of language.

Question 2.
What did Meerabahen (Miss Madeleine Slade]. the disciple of Mahatma Gandhi write in 1949 ?
Answer:
Meerabahen (Miss Madeleine Slade), the Madeleine of Gandhiji wrote in 1949, “Science and technology would surely benefit humanity to a great extent, but finally it Will lead to destruction only. We should lead our life in coherence with nature to maintain natural balance, only then can we ensure a longer and healthy survival of the human race.”