Indian Polity, a critical component of the General Knowledge paper for the CDS (Combined Defence Services) 2 2025 examination, requires aspirants to understand fundamental concepts of governance. This includes different types of government systems and forms of constitution, which provide the framework for how a country is run.
1. Types of Government Systems:
- Democracy: Rule by the people.
- Direct Democracy: Citizens directly participate in decision-making (e.g., ancient Athens, referendums in some countries).
- Representative Democracy: Citizens elect representatives to make decisions on their behalf (e.g., India, USA, UK).
- Parliamentary System (e.g., India, UK): Executive (Prime Minister & Council of Ministers) is part of and responsible to the Legislature (Parliament). Head of State (President/Monarch) is largely ceremonial.
- Presidential System (e.g., USA): Executive (President) is separate from and not responsible to the Legislature. President is both Head of State and Head of Government.
- Monarchy: Rule by a single person (monarch), usually hereditary.
- Absolute Monarchy: Monarch has absolute power (e.g., Saudi Arabia).
- Constitutional Monarchy: Monarch’s powers are limited by a constitution (e.g., UK, Japan).
- Republic: A state in which the head of state is not a monarch but usually an elected president (e.g., India, USA).
- Aristocracy: Rule by a small, privileged class or nobility.
- Oligarchy: Rule by a small group of powerful individuals.
- Theocracy: Rule by religious authorities.
- Autocracy/Dictatorship: Rule by a single individual with absolute power (e.g., North Korea).
- Totalitarianism: A system where the state has total control over all aspects of public and private life.
- Communism: A political and economic ideology where the state owns the means of production, often leading to a single-party rule.
2. Forms of Constitution:
- Written vs. Unwritten Constitution:
- Written: Codified in a single document or a set of documents (e.g., India, USA). Most countries have written constitutions.
- Unwritten: Consists of a collection of laws, customs, conventions, and precedents (e.g., UK). While not in a single document, these are still legally binding.
- Rigid vs. Flexible Constitution:
- Rigid: Requires a special procedure for amendment, often more difficult to change (e.g., USA, partly India).
- Flexible: Can be amended by ordinary legislative process, making it easier to change (e.g., UK).
- Unitary vs. Federal Constitution:
- Unitary: All powers are concentrated in the central government (e.g., UK, France). Local governments derive power from the center.
- Federal: Powers are divided between a central government and regional/state governments by the constitution (e.g., USA, India – quasi-federal). Both levels of government are supreme in their own spheres.
India’s System:
- Democracy: Representative, Parliamentary Democracy.
- Republic: Head of State is an elected President.
- Written and Partly Rigid, Partly Flexible Constitution: Written, but has both easy and difficult amendment procedures.
- Quasi-Federal: Federal in form but unitary in spirit, with a strong central government.
Preparation Tips:
- Understand Key Differences: Clearly differentiate between systems like parliamentary vs. presidential, unitary vs. federal.
- Know India’s Specifics: Understand why India adopted its particular form of government and constitution.
- Relate to Current Affairs: Consider how these forms of government are debated or challenged in contemporary global politics.
By grasping these fundamental concepts, you’ll be better equipped to answer questions on the structure and functioning of the government and constitution in the CDS 2 2025 GK paper.
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