2. Federalism Political Science | Class X | Explanation with Notes and Assignment 1

3. Topics Meaning and definition of Federalism Unitary and Federal Form of Government

4. Learning Objectives |Outcomes Define Federalism. Differentiate between Unitary and Federal form of Government

5. Meaning and definition of Federalism  Federalism is a principle under which power is shared among the different levels of the government.  It is a system of government in which power is divided between a central authority and various constituent units of the country.  Usually, a federation has two levels of government.  One is the government for the entire country that is usually responsible for a few subjects of common national interest.  The others are governments at the level of provinces or states that look after much of the day-to-day administering of their state.  Both these levels of governments enjoy their power independent of the other.

6. Objectives of Federalism It ensures unity and integrity of a nation. It accommodates regional diversity

7. FEDERAL COUNTRIES

8. Extent of Federalism  Though only 25 of the world’s 193 countries have federal political systems, their citizens make up 40 per cent of the world’s population. Most of the large countries of the world are federations. Can you notice an exception to this rule in this map?  Of the eight largest countries in the world by area, seven— Russia, Canada, the United States, Brazil, Australia, India, and Argentina—are organized on a federal basis. (China, the third largest, is a unitary state.) Federal countries also include Austria, Belgium, Ethiopia, Germany, Malaysia, Mexico, Ni geria, Pakistan, Switzerland, the United Arab Emirates, and Venezuela, among others.CanadaBrazilAustraliaIndiaAustriaBelgiumEthiopiaGermanyMalaysiaMexicoNi geriaPakistanUnited Arab EmiratesVenezuela Reference:britannica.com

9.  Because even though it is a small country, it has diverse population made up of multilingual groups. These linguistic groups have their own intersects which might lead to social conflict. So, to avoid any possible social conflict and political instability, Belgium adopted federal system of power sharing.

10. Unitary Vs Federal Government  In a federal form of government, the central government shares its powers with the various constituent units of the country. For example, in India, power is divided between the government at the Centre and the various State governments. In a unitary form of government, all the power is exercised by only one government. For example, in Sri Lanka, the national government has all the powers.  In this sense, federations are contrasted with unitary governments.  Under the unitary system, either there is only one level of government or the sub-units are subordinate to the central government.  The central government can pass on orders to the provincial or the local government. But in a federal system, the central government cannot order the state government to do something.  State government has powers of its own for which it is not answerable to the central government. Both these governments are separately answerable to the people.

11. Assignment 1. What is Federalism? Enumerate the objectives of Federalism. 2. Differentiate between Unitary and Federal form of Government.