Forms Of Government
Class 9 | Social Science — Civics | Unit 4
Class 9 Unit 4 Civics
UNIT 4 Forms of Government
Learning Objectives
To know about the type of constitution
To understand the forms of government
To learn the merits and demerits of the different forms of government
To understand the differences between the Unitary and Federal, Presidential and Parliamentary forms of governments
Introduction
Government is the main agency of the state. It comprises of several members belonging to political and administrative wings. It serves as the instrument for delegation and execution of the state policies for the welfare of the people. It formulates expresses and realises the will of the state. It exercises certain legislative, executive and judicial powers based on the constitution and the laws. There are three organs in government, namely – Legislature, Executive and Judiciary. These organs carry out the activities of the state. Governments are classified into unitary, federal, parliamentary and presidential forms.
4.1 Meaning
'Government' refers to the executive functions of the state. It denotes a body having authority to make and enforce laws applicable to the civil, corporate, religious, academic or other groups.
TYPES OF CONSTITUTION
Do You Know?
Which is the oldest form of government?
Monarchy is the oldest form of government in the United Kingdom. In a monarchy, a king or queen is Head of State. The British monarchy is known as a constitutional monarchy. This means, while The Sovereign is Head of State, the ability to make and pass legislation resides with an elected Parliament.
4.2.1: Unitary Form of Government
A unitary system of government or unitary state, is a sovereign state governed as a single entity. The central government is supreme and the administrative divisions exercise only powers that the central government has delegated to them. England, France, Japan and Sri Lanka are examples of Unitary Form of governments.
Do You Know?
The term Government is derived from Old French 'governor', derived from Latin 'gubernare' to direct, rule, guide, govern
In a Unitary form of government, all the authority and power is vested in a single centre, whereas in a federal form of government authority and power is distributed between centre and the constituent units. Even in a Unitary form of Government, there might be a lot of decentralisation of authority, but we cannot claim it as a federal system.
Merits of unitary form of government
Suitable for small countries.
There is no conflict of authority and responsibility.
A unitary government will make prompt decisions and take speedy action.
A unitary government is less expensive.
Amendments to the constitution are easy.
There is unity, uniformity of law, policy and administration.
De-merits of unitary form of government
It is not suitable for big countries.
The central government will have to tackle so many complex problems that lead to administrative delay
The central government will not concentrate on local problems, local interest and initiative.
The concentration of powers may pave way for the despotism of the central government.
Unitary features of the Indian constitution
Strong Centre
Central Government's control over state territory
Single Constitution
Flexibility of the Constitution
Unequal representation of states
Emergency Provisions
Single Citizenship
Single Integrated Judiciary
All India Services
Appointment of Governor by the central government
4.2.2 Federal form of government
The classification of governments into unitary and federal is based on the nature of relations between the national and the regional governments. A federal government is one in which powers are divided between the national government and the regional governments by the Constitution itself and both operate in their respective jurisdictions independently. U.S.A, Switzerland, Australia, Canada, Russia, Brazil, Argentina have federal form of governments. In a federal model, the national government is known as the Federal government or the Central government or the Union government and the regional government is known as the state government or the provincial government.
Merits of federal form of government
Reconciliation of local autonomy with national unity
Division of power between centre and states leads to administrative efficiency
It gives rise to big states
Distribution of powers check the despotism of central government
More suitable for bigger countries
It is good for economic and cultural progress
De-merits of federal form of government
Federal government is weaker when compared to the unitary government.
Federal government is more expensive
Provincial tendencies are very common
Lack of uniformity in Administration
Threat to national unity
Distribution of powers between centre and states lead to conflicts
Double Citizenship
Rigid constitution cannot be a mended easily for changing needs
The state governments sometimes place hindrances in the foreign policy
Federal features of the Indian constitution
Dual Government
Written Constitution
Division of Powers
Supremacy of the Constitution
The Constitution is the supreme law of the land. The laws enacted by the Centre and the states must confirm to its provisions.
Rigid Constitution
Independent Judiciary
Bicameralism
Difference between Unitary form and Federal form of Government
| Unitary Form of Government | Federal Form of Government |
|---|
| Only one Level of Government or Sub units | Two Levels of Government |
| Mostly Single Citizenship | Dual Citizenship |
| Sub Units cannot operate independently | Federal Units are answerable to Central Government |
| No Division of Power | Division of Power |
| Centralisation of power | Decentralisation of power |
4.2.3: Parliamentary form of government
Modern democratic governments are classified into parliamentary and presidential on the basis of the nature of relations between the executive and the legislative organs of the government. The parliamentary system of government is the one in which the executive is responsible to the legislature for its policies and acts. The parliamentary government is also known as cabinet government or responsible government or Westminster model of government and is prevalent in Britain, Japan, Canada and India among others.
| Country | Name of Parliament |
|---|
| Israel | Knesset |
| Germany | Bundestag |
| Denmark | Folketing |
| Norway | Storting |
| U.S.A | Congress |
| Japan | Diet |
| Britain | Parliament |
Features of parliamentary form of government
Nominal and Real Executives
Majority Party Rule
Collective Responsibility
Dual Membership
Leadership of the Prime Minister
Merits of the parliamentary form of government
Harmony between Legislature and Executive
Responsible Government
Prevents Dictatorship
Wide Representation
Demerits of the parliamentary form of government
Unstable Government
No Continuity of Policies
Dictatorship of the Cabinet
Against Separation of Powers
4.2.4 The presidential form of government
The Presidential Form of Government is also known as non-parliamentary or fixed executive system of government basically built on the principle of separation of power and is prevalent in the USA, Brazil, Russia and Sri Lanka among others.
Features of presidential form of government
The President as the head of State, he occupies a ceremonial position.
The President is elected by an electoral college for a fixed tenure of four years.
The President governs with the help of a cabinet or a smaller body called 'Kitchen Cabinet'.
The legislative, executive and judicial powers of the government are separated and vested in three independent organs of the government.
Merits of the presidential system of government
Democratic
Effective Control by the President
Facilitate decision-making
State government
Demerits of the presidential system of government
Can degenerate into Dictatorship
Strain relationship between executive and legislature
Lack of Harmony between the Legislature and Executive
Difference between the Parliamentary Form of Government and Presidential Form of Government
| Presidential Form of Government | Parliamentary Form of Government |
|---|
| President is directly elected by the People | Prime Minister is from the majority party |
| President is Supreme | Central Legislature is supreme |
| Separation of Powers | Absence of Separation Powers |
| Centralisation Independent branches | Independent branches with Overlapping functions |
President - Head of the State
President - Head of the Government | President - Head of the State
Prime Minister - Head of the Government |
| Individual Leadership | Collective leadership |
| President is not accountable to Congress | Collective and Individual Responsibility |
The relationship between the Centre and the State in India
India is a union of States where the power is shared between the centre and the states, as per the procedures mentioned in the Constitution of India. Though the powers are shared between the Central and State Governments, the final decision is by the Central government in all matters. The relationship between the centre and the states are
1. Legislative relations (Articles 245-255)
2. Administrative relations (Articles 256-263)
3. Financial relations(Articles 268-293)
Both the Central and State governments have the power to make laws, but the matters differ. The centre can make laws applicable to the whole nation on certain matters called as the union list. The States have the powers to make laws in some matters only, applicable to their own state, called as the State list. The concurrent list includes the subjects on which both Central and State government has the power to make laws.
Union List:
Union list has 100 subjects. These include Foreign affairs, Defence, Armed forces, Posts and Telegraphs, inter-state trade and commerce and so on.
State List:
The state list consists of 61 subjects, which include Public order in the state, police, prisons, Local Governments, agriculture and so on.
Concurrent List:
The Concurrent list has 52 subjects which include Criminal and Civil procedures, marriage and divorce, economic and special planning, newspapers, books and printing presses, population control and so on.
Do You Know?
Gross National Happiness (GNH): Gross National Happiness is a developing philosophy as well as an 'index' which is used to measure the collective happiness in any specific nation.The concept was first mentioned in the constitution of Bhutan, which was enacted on 18 July 2008. The term 'Gross National Happiness' was coined by the fourth king of Bhutan, Jigme Singye Wangchuck, in the 1970s. The GNH's central tenets are: "Sustainable and equitable socio-economic development; environmental conservation; preservation and promotion of culture; and good governance". GNH is distinguishable by valuing collective happiness as the goal of governance and by emphasising harmony with nature and traditional values.
Recap
Government refers to the executive function of the state.
Legislature, Executive, Judiciary are the three organs of government.
The four important forms of Governments are Unitary, Federal, Parliamentary and Presidential forms.
India practises a Parliamentary form of Government.
Governance is the process of decision making and the process by which they are implemented.
Exercise
Exercise 1. Fill in the blanks
1. , are a few examples for unitary form of government.
2. The Parliamentary government is also known as .
3. In the parliamentary form of government is the leader of the majority party.
Exercise 2. Fill in the blanks
| Country | Name of the Parliament |
|---|
| 1. USA | |
| 2. Norway | |
| 3. | Folketing |
Exercise 3. Distinguish Between
1. Unitary and federal forms of government.
2. Parliamentary and presidential forms of government.
Exercise 4. Give short note on
1. Unitary form of government
Exercise 5. Answer the following
1. List out the types of constitution.
2. What are the merits of a federal government?
3. Write down the differences between unitary form of government and federal form of government.
Exercise 6. Answer in detail
1. Write about the merits of unitary form of government.
2. Write about the presidential form of government and what is the difference between presidential and parliamentary forms of government.
REFERENCE BOOKS
1. Vijayaragavan, Political Thought, New Delhi,STERLING PUBLICATIONS
2. D.D.Basu, Introduction to the Constitution of Indian, New Delhi, LEXISNEXIS
3. R.C.Agarwal, Political Theory, New Delhi, S.CHAND
4. The Oxford Hand Book of 'The Indian Constitution'
5. Anup Chand Kapur, Principles of Political Science, New Delhi, S.CHAND
Book-back Exercises — Questions & Answers
Answers generated strictly from the Samacheer Kalvi textbook content. Attempt each question first, then click "Show Answer" to check.
1. Fill in the blanks
1. _____, _____ are a few examples for unitary form of government.
Answer: England, France
2. The Parliamentary government is also known as _____.
Answer: cabinet government or responsible government or Westminster model of government
3. In the parliamentary form of government _____ is the leader of the majority party.
Answer: Prime Minister
(2). Fill in the blanks
Country Name of the Parliament
1. USA _____
2. Norway _____
3. _____ Folketing
Answers:
1. USA Congress
2. Norway Storting
3. Denmark Folketing
(3). Distinguish Between
1. Unitary and federal forms of government.
Answer: In Unitary form only one level of government exists with centralisation of power, while Federal form has two levels of government with division of power. Unitary form has single citizenship but federal form has dual citizenship.
2. Parliamentary and presidential forms of government.
Answer: In Parliamentary form the Prime Minister is from the majority party and legislature is supreme, while in Presidential form the President is directly elected by people and is supreme. Parliamentary has absence of separation of powers while Presidential has separation of powers.
(4). Give short note on
1. Unitary form of government
Answer: A unitary system of government is a sovereign state governed as a single entity. The central government is supreme and administrative divisions exercise only powers delegated by the central government. All authority and power is vested in a single centre.
(5). Answer the following
1. List out the types of constitution.
Answer: Refer to the chapter text for this answer.
2. What are the merits of a federal government?
Answer: The merits of federal government are reconciliation of local autonomy with national unity, division of power leads to administrative efficiency, it gives rise to big states, distribution of powers check the despotism of central government, more suitable for bigger countries, and good for economic and cultural progress.
3. Write down the differences between unitary form of government and federal form of government.
Answer: Unitary form has only one level of government while Federal has two levels. Unitary has single citizenship while Federal has dual citizenship. In Unitary sub units cannot operate independently while in Federal they can. Unitary has no division of power while Federal has division of power. Unitary has centralisation of power while Federal has decentralisation of power.
(6). Answer in detail
1. Write about the merits of unitary form of government.
Answer: The merits of unitary form of government are that it is suitable for small countries. There is no conflict of authority and responsibility. A unitary government will make prompt decisions and take speedy action. A unitary government is less expensive. Amendments to the constitution are easy. There is unity, uniformity of law, policy and administration.
2. Write about the presidential form of government and what is the difference between presidential and parliamentary forms of government.
Answer: The Presidential form is also known as non-parliamentary or fixed executive system basically built on the principle of separation of power. The President is head of State occupying a ceremonial position, elected by electoral college for fixed tenure of four years. The differences are: in Presidential form the President is directly elected while in Parliamentary the Prime Minister is from majority party. Presidential has separation of powers while Parliamentary has absence of separation of powers. In Presidential the President is supreme while in Parliamentary the Central Legislature is supreme.
📝 Summary
- Government is the main agency of the state that formulates, expresses and realises the will of the state through three organs: Legislature, Executive and Judiciary, exercising legislative, executive and judicial powers based on constitution and laws.
- A unitary form of government is a sovereign state governed as a single entity where the central government is supreme and administrative divisions exercise only powers delegated to them, with examples including England, France, Japan and Sri Lanka.
- Merits of unitary government include suitability for small countries, no conflict of authority, prompt decision-making, cost-effectiveness, easy constitutional amendments, and unity in law and administration.
- Demerits of unitary government include unsuitability for big countries, administrative delays due to complex problems, neglect of local issues, and potential for central government despotism due to concentration of powers.
- Federal form of government divides powers between national and regional governments through the Constitution, with both operating independently in their respective jurisdictions, as seen in countries like USA, Switzerland, Australia, Canada, Russia, Brazil and Argentina.