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Class 12 Sociology Quick Revision notes Chapter 10 Change and Development in Rural Society

Facts That Matter
Indian society is primarily a rural society

• The majority of India’s people live in rural areas, approx. 67 per cent.
• They make their living from agriculture or related occupations. This means that agricultural land is the most important productive resource for a great many Indians.
• Land is also the most important form of property. But land is not just a ‘means of production’ nor just a ‘form of property’.
• Nor is agriculture just a form of livelihood. It is also a way of life. Many of our cultural practices and patterns can be traced to our agrarian backgrounds.
• For example, most of the New Year festivals in different regions of India – such as Pongal in Tamil Nadu, Bihu in Assam, Baisakhi in Punjab and Ugadi in Karnataka to name just a few – actually celebrate the main harvest season and herald the beginning of a new agricultural season.

Agriculture and Culture

• There is a close connection between agriculture and culture.
• The nature and practice of agriculture varies greatly across the different regions of the country. These variations are reflected in the different regional cultures.
• One can say that both the culture and social structure in rural India are closely bound up with agricultural and the agrarian way of life.

Rural life

• Agriculture is the single most important source of livelihood for the majority of the rural population. But the rural is not just agriculture.
• Many activities that support agriculture and village life are also sources of livelihood for people in rural India. For example, a large number of artisans such as potters, carpenters, weavers, iron smiths, and goldsmiths are found in rural areas.
• Rural life also supported many other specialists and crafts persons as story-tellers, astrologers, priests, water-distributors, and oil-pressers.
• The diversity of occupations in rural India was reflected in the caste system, which in most regions included specialist and ‘service’ castes such as Washermen, Potters, and Goldsmiths.
• Some of these traditional occupations have declined. But increasing interconnection of the rural and urban economies have led to many diverse occupations.
• Many people living in rural areas are employed in, or have livelihoods based in, rural non-farm activities. For instance, there are rural residents employed in government services such as the Postal and Education Departments, factory workers, or in the army, who earn their living through non-agricultural activities.

Agrarian Structure

• Depends upon the land holdings amount of land a person holds.
• There is unequal distribution of land some people have lots of land and some people don’t have any.
• The agriculture structure is how the land holdings have been distributed among people.
  Types of Landholdings:
  1. Large Landers: Own large amount of land, earlier known as zamindars.
  2. Medium landowners Small landowners: Have small amount of land and can make a profit.
  3. Marginal landowners: These along with small family grow just enough for consumption of their family and do not have enough land to get surplus to sell in the market.
  4. Landless landowners: Have no land of their own, work for others.
  5. Tenants: Take land on rent and give the landowner a share of the profit.
  Positions of women

• Woman’s position is low, they can’t own land.
• Women are usually excluded from ownership of land, because of the prevailing patrilineal kinship system and mode of inheritance.
• They have equal property rights as the son but they are woman or they are scared to voice their oppose.

Class and Caste Structure in Rural Areas
Interrelated

• Upper caste were considered to be upper class. But the issue in rural areas is complex
• Brahm.ins are the top most caste but not necessarily the wealthiest. The kshatriyas are upper caste as well as upper class.

Dominant Caste

• After independence, land reforms introduced land ceiling. It set a limit of land holding by each individual.
• Large land owners sold away their land to medium land owners as they moved to urban areas to set up factories.

Proprietary Caste

• Upper caste, rich people, large and mediums land owners controlled the resources and labour force in that particular areas.
• Begar-bonded Labourers: were illiterate and did not know how to do any skilled work.

Zamindari System

• Zarnindars collected the kind- rice, wheat, sugar etc. as tax from the farmers of the village
• For maximum exploitation of farmers, zarnindars collected extra taxes.

Royal/Raiyat/Ryatwari System

• One member of the family (joint family) was selected to collect the tax from the family and give it to the British.
• There was some exploitation, but very less-It was very successful in some areas.

Mahalwari System

• Headman of the village collected the tax – It was much better than zamindari system.
• There were three problems the Ministers often faced:
  1. Poverty
  2. Imported grains
  3. Less productivity
  Poverty and less productivity was during colonial period and imported grains was after independence. They came up with land reforms to solve these problems as well as to ensure social justice.
• After independence the gap between the rich and poor was very large.

Abolition of Zamindari System/intermediary System

• The exploitation of farmers by zarnindars led to a lot of problems.
• The first land reform introduced was that the farmers would directly pay their tax to the government.

Land ceilings (productive land law ceiling, unproductive-high)

• A limit as to how much land a person could own.
• If a farmer had 300 areas of land, 80 acres were given to the small, marginal farmers as 220 was the limit.
• The government imposed upper limit on the amount of land a person can own.
• Ceiling varied region to region depending upon how fertile the land is.
• In a productive area there was low ceiling limit, more land was taken from farmers.
• It was a big task for the government to visit each region and judge the ceiling according to facility level.
• In some areas it was successful, but not so in some areas due to Benami transfer the landlord wanted land to himself, thus he would put the land in the name of the women, accountant, distant relative only on paper it was so, but actually he owned the land.

Tenancy Reforms

• Tenants are those who take land on rent.
• If the land has good productivity, the landlord wanted the land back.
• Government made lives of tenants secure by
  (i) Security for tenants: For certain period, owner cannot take the land back, before period.
  (ii) Regulation of rent: A certain amount of the profit was to be given to the landlord either he would pay or in the beginning he would not agree to paying money.
• Even if he made a loss and said he would give it to the landlord he would have to pay.
• One of the policies was that if the tenant showing production over a period of time and was regular in giving a part of his profit, he would buy the land.
• If he was unable to pay, at times the landlord could take away the land from the peasant.

Consideration of Land Holdings

• The whole rural area was divided into sectors and each sector had various facilities provided by the government.
• A person from another sector could not use the facilities of another sector. They have to use the facilities of their sectors.

Land Records

• During the colonial rule, there were barely any records.
• Later they were registered, maintained and was computerized.

Green Revolution

• Green revolution was a revolution started in 1960’s and 70’s had a drastic change in the productivity.
• Introduced in those areas where there was a possibility of a water source and fertile land.

Social Consequence of Green Revolution
Advantages:
– First time India started exporting grains (rice and wheat), surplus.
– It was a great achievement for government but also for Indian scientists who created seeds.
– Employment opportunities increased, demand for agricultural labour went up.
Disadvantage:
Increased inequality in rural areas
– Only rich landlords who could afford the HYV seeds could make profits.
– Lower class (agri- subsistence) did not have resources to produce surplus to sell in market for profit.
– Land taken away from tenants by landowners as they wanted to make extra profit rather than paying them. This was the displacements of tenants.
Displacement of service class

• All work which used to be done by manual labour was replaced by machines (harvestees etc.)

Rich became richer and poor became poorer

• Payment was shifted from land to cash.
• Instead of increase in wages, they decreased as there was so much demand for agricultural labour.

Green Revolution in Arid Areas

• The crops shifted to multi crop from new crop. So that the profit was more (irrigation, HYV seeds).
• If the crop failed the farmer had nothing to fall back on in case of crop failure.
• Everything grown for commercial purposes.
• Increased insecurity of the farmer.
• It is divided into Andhra and Telengana. Andhra has two rivers – Krishna and Godavari Land is fertile. Landlords in Andhra Pradesh are prosperous.
• Hyderabad, the capital of Andhra Pradesh is in the center of Telengana and all development is done there only. Farmers of Andhra have sold their products in Hyderabad.
• Different regions have regional inequalities like UP and Haryana.

Diversification

• There is a new class of people that has caused up entire pressure.
• Group of landowners who invest agricultural money into small factories, invest in machines.
• They started: sending their children to school in urban areas, providing education.
• The hybrid seeds, pesticides have an effect on ecology.
• Fertility of soil is decreasing.
• Farmers prefer organic farming or natural products.

Transformation of Rural Society
Several profound transformations in the nature of social relations in rural areas took place in the post-Independence period, especially in those regions that underwent the Green Revolution. These included:

• an increase in the use of agricultural labour as cultivation became more intensive;
• a shift from payment in kind (grain) to payment in cash;
• a loosening of traditional bonds or hereditary relationships between farmers or landowners and agricultural workers (known as bonded labour);
• and the rise of a class of ‘free’ wage labourers’.

The change in the nature of the relationship between landlords (who usually belonged to the dominant castes) and agricultural workers (usually low caste), was described by the sociologist Jan Breman as a shift from ‘patronage to exploitation’ Such changes took place in many areas where agriculture was becoming more commercialised, that is, where crops were being grown primarily for sale in the market.
Commercialisation of agriculture

• The transformation in labour relations is regarded by some scholars as indicative of a transition to capitalist agriculture.
• Because the capitalist mode of production is based on the separation of the workers from the means of production (in this case, land), and the use of ‘free’ wage labour.
• In general, it is true that farmers in the more developed regions were becoming more oriented to the market. As cultivation became more commercialised these rural areas were also becoming integrated into the wider economy.
• This process increased the flow of money into villages and expanding opportunities for business and employment.
• But we should remember that this process of transformation in the rural economy in fact began during the colonial period. In many regions in the 19th century large tracts of land in Maharashtra were given over to cotton cultivation, and cotton farmers became directly linked to the world market.
• However, the pace and spread of change rapidly increased after Independence, as the government promoted modern methods of cultivation and attempted to modernise the rural economy through other strategies.
• The state invested in the development of rural infrastructure, such as irrigation facilities, roads, and electricity, and on the provision of agricultural inputs, including credit through banks and cooperatives.
• The overall outcome of these efforts at ‘rural development’ was not only to transform the rural economy and agriculture, but also the agrarian structure and rural society itself.

Alteration of rural social structure
Areas with rapid agricultural development

• One way in which rural social structure was altered by agricultural development in the 1960s and 1970s was through the enrichment of the medium and large farmers who adopted the new technologies.
• In several agriculturally rich regions, such as coastal Andhra Pradesh, western Uttar Pradesh, and central Gujarat, well-to-do farmers belonging to the dominant castes began to invest their profits from agriculture in other types of business ventures.
• There was rise of new entrepreneurial groups that moved out of rural areas and into the growing towns of these developing regions, giving rise to new regional elites that became economically as well as politically dominant.
• The spread of higher education, especially private professional colleges, in rural and semi-urban areas, allowed the new rural elites to educate their children – many of whom then joined professional or white collar occupations or started businesses.
• Thus, in areas of rapid agricultural development there has been a consolidation of the old landed or cultivating groups, who have transformed themselves into a dynamic entrepreneurial, rural-urban dominant class.

Areas like Easter UP and Bihar

• The lack of effective land reforms, political mobilisation, and redistributive measures has meant that there have been relatively few changes in the agrarian structure and hence in the life conditions of most people.

Kerela

• Have undergone a different process of development, in which political mobilisation, redistributive measures, and linkages to an external economy (primarily the Gulf countries) have brought about a substantial transformation of the rural countryside.
• Far from the rural being primarily agrarian, the rural in Kerala is a mixed economy that integrates some agriculture with a wide network of retail sales and services, and where a large number of families are dependent on remittances from abroad.

Circulation of labour

• The commercialisation of agriculture has let to the growth of migrant agricultural labour.
• The ‘traditional’ bonds of patronage between labourers or tenants and landlords broke down, and the seasonal demand for agricultural labour increased.
• In prosperous Green Revolution regions such as the Punjab, a pattern of seasonal migration emerged in which thousands of workers circulate between their home villages and more prosperous areas where there is more demand for labour and higher wages.
• Labourers migrate also due to the increasing inequalities in rural areas from the mid-1990s, which have forced many households to combine multiple occupations to sustain themselves.
• As a livelihood strategy, men migrate out periodically in search of work and better wages, while women and children are often left behind in their villages with elderly grandparents.
• Migrant workers come mainly from drought-prone and less productive regions, and they go to work for part of the year on farms in the Punjab and Haryana, or on brick kilns in U.P., or construction sites in cities such as New Delhi or Bangalore.
• These migrant workers have been termed ‘footloose labour’ by Jan Breman, but this does not imply freedom.
• On the contrary, landless workers do not have many rights, for instance, they are usually not paid the minimum wage. It should be noted here that wealthy farmers often prefer to employ migrant workers as can be paid lower wages.

Impact of lager scale circulation of labour

• Cultivation has become primarily a female task.
• Women are also emerging as the main source of agricultural labour, leading to the ‘feminisation of agricultural labour force.’
• The insecurity of women is greater because they earn lower wages than men for similar work. Until recently, women were hardly visible in official statistics as earners and workers.
• While women toil on the land as landless labourers and as cultivators, the prevailing patrilineal kinship system, and other cultural practices that privilege male rights, largely exclude women from land ownership.

Globalisation, Liberalisation & Rural Society

• In late 80′ s and 90′ s globalisation came to India.
• This led to competition among farmers.
• The organisation in charge for rules and regulations was the WTO, which led rules regarding prices, wages, taxes, aspects of trading, reduction of barriers.
• Indian trades are facing competition. Fruits, vegetables, clothes whole structure of rural area changed.
• Anew concept was introduced in rural areas known as ‘contract farming’

Contract Farming

• The MNC’s go to different villages and tell the farmers about their requirements.
• Some products which are popular such as potatoes, tomatoes, flowers, etc.
• The MNC’s gave the Indian farmers seeds, fertilizers and the know how as to how they were to be used.
• These products were only produced for the MNC’s either sold, made into sauces, jams, carved food (by being processed).
• The farmer is assured of an income and a profit.
• Very popular in some states (Punjab) and the land is fertile.

Disadvantages:
1. Farmers are growing the items, wanted by that MNC and if there is a crop failure there the farmer has nothing to fall back on.
2. Insecurity among the farmers.
3. Product will not be bought by MNC if product is not up to the mark. Only if it is up to the mark it is good.
4. There is insecurity as there is total dependence on the MNC.
5. We are moving away from production of grains, rice to producing tomatoes, potatoes.

• Once you grow tomatoes etc you cannot go back to producing grains.
• The knowledge that the traditional farmers have is of no use, as the know how about growing there crops is given by the MNC’S.
• Ecologically the soil gets eroded not very feasible and people are switching to organic farming.

MNC’S as agents:
1. Now MNC’s are providing seeds, fertilizers to the farmers.
Seeds etc are expensive but farmers have to buy them for contract farming.
2. Though the profits are high, the insecurities all is also high.
In case there is a crop failure, they do not have the government to fall back upon.
3. The government cannot give loans at low interest rates as the MNC’s are induced and they take charge.
Farmers’ Suicide-Small and Marginal Reasons:
1. The Green Revolution belt, small and marginal farmers wanted to increase productivity by increasing the use of advanced technology including tillers, tractors.
2. Unfortunately there may be a setback due to many reasons which can lead to farmer suicide.
Factors:
1. Withdrawal of subsidies and support price by government from farmers.
2. Now they have to borrow from other sources leading to debt traps. When they are unable to pay the money, at times they commit suicide.
3. Crop failure-Natural or manual failure, drought, heavy rain, pests, insecticides, etc.
4. Totally dependent on the market – when there is a crop failure, they have nothing to fall back on insecurity.
5. Besides production costs, there are other expenditures to be incurred. Education, dowry, medial care etc

The Story Indian Democracy Notes

Facts that Matter

• Democracy is a government of the people, by the people, and for the people.
• Democracies fall into two basic categories, direct and representative.

Direct democracy

• All citizens, without the intermediary of elected or appointed officials, can participate in making public decisions.
• Such a system is clearly only practical with relatively small numbers of people – in a community organisation or tribal council, for example, the local unit of a trade union, where members can meet in a single room to discuss issues and arrive at decisions by consensus or majority vote.

Representative democracy

• Citizens elect officials to make political decisions, formulate laws, and administer programmes for the public good.
• Every citizen has the important right to vote her/his representative. People elect their representatives to all levels from Panchayats, Municipal Boards, State Assemblies and Parliament.
• Participatory democracy is a system of democracy in which the members of a group or community participate collectively in the taking of major decisions.
• Decentralised governance/democratic decentralisation system of governance:
  Where power is divided among levels and each level has its own powers and authority (duties, responsibilities) e.g Panchayati Raj.

Core Values of Democracy

• Democracy is not a modem term, it has been there for a long long ago.
• Example of democratic behaviour has been shown in traditional plays and stories and in the epics, folklores.
• It is a combination of modem and traditional ideas. Modem ideas taken from the colonial rule and traditional ideas taken from folklores and epics.
• Western ideas-» Taken from books and other country’s example.
• Indian National Congress-e-Most powerful party had sessions in various places. Karachi Session 1931 was crucial because the concept of Pooma Swaraj came into being.
• Also known as Karachi Resolution in which ideas were put together and later put into the constitution, fundamental rights were taken from these ideas.
  156

Fundamental Rights
1. All religions are equal: Everyone has the right to choose his/her religion.
2. Everyone should be free to elect, and vote for his/her representatives. Women can also work and can exercise their rights.
3. Right to Freedoms- Justice to all.

Constitutent Assembly and Drafting of Constitution
• Constitutent Assembly formed to draft constitution, had members from all walks of life.
• 1945-46 Constituent Assembly was formed, people from all sections, religions, castes, language, element group, region were part of it.
• B R Ambedkar was the head of assembly.
• There were a lot of debates on various issues e.g. When Panchayati Raj was suggested BR Ambedkar was against it because there would be more divisions among castes.
• But Panchayati Raj was formed in 1992.

Constitution and social change

• The multi-religious and multicultural composition of the population with distinct streams of tribal culture is one aspect of the plurality. Many divides classify the Indian people.
• The impact that culture, religion, and caste have on the urban–rural divide, rich-poor divide and the literate-illiterate divide is varied. Deeply stratified by caste and poverty, there are groupings and sub-groupings among the rural poor.
• The urban working class comprises a very wide range. Then, there is the well-organised domestic business class as also the professional and commercial class. The urban professional class is highly vocal.
• Competing interests operate on the Indian social scene and clamour for control of the State’s resources.

Basic objectives laid down by the Constitution

• Empowerment of the poor and marginalised, poverty alleviation, ending of caste and positive steps to treat all groups equally.

Competing interest

• Competing interests do not always reflect a clear class divide.
• Take the issue of the close down of a factory because it emits toxic waste and affects the health of those around. This is a matter of life, which the Constitution protects.
• The flipside is that the closure will render people jobless. Livelihood again, is a matter of life that the Constitution protects.
• It is interesting that at the time of drawing up the Constitution, the Constituent Assembly was fully aware of this complexity and plurality but was intent on securing social justice as a guarantee.

Law and justice

• The essence of law is its force. Law is law because it carries the means to coerce or force obedience. The power of the state is behind it.
• The essence of justice is fairness. Any system of laws functions through a hierarchy of authorities.
• The basic norm from which all other rules and authorities flow is called the Constitution. It is the document that constitutes a nation’s tenets.
• The Indian Constitution is India’s basic norm. All other laws are made as per the procedures the Constitution prescribes. These laws are made and implemented by the authorities specified by the Constitution.
• A hierarchy of courts (which too are authorities created by the Constitution) interpret the laws when there is a dispute. The Supreme Court is the highest court and the ultimate interpreter of the Constitution.
• The Supreme Court has enhanced the substance of Fundamental Rights in the Constitution in many important ways.

The Constitution and social justice

• The Constitution is not just a ready reference of do’s and don’ts for social justice. It has the potential for the meaning of social justice to be extended.
• Social movements have also aided the Courts and authorities to interpret the contents of rights and principles in keeping with the contemporary understanding on social justice.
• Law and Courts are sites where competing views are debated. The Constitution remains a means to channelise and civilise political power towards social welfare.
• The Constitution has the capacity to help people because it is based on basic norms of social justice. For instance, the Directive Principle on village panchayats was moved as an amendment in the Constituent assembly by K. Santhanam.
• After forty odd years it became a Constitutional imperative after the 73rd Amendment in 1992.

Panchayati Raj

• Panchayati Raj translates literally to ‘Governance by five individuals’.
• The idea is to ensure at the village or grass root level a functioning and vibrant democracy.
• While the idea of grassroot democracy is not an alien import to our country, in a society where there are sharp inequalities democratic participation is hindered on grounds of gender, caste and class.
• Traditionally there have been caste panchayats in villages. But they have usually represented dominant groups.
• They often held conservative views and often have, and continue to take decisions that go against both democratic norms and procedures.

Panchyati Raj Institution

• The structure of the three tier system of Panchyati Raj Institution is like a pyramid. At the base of the structure stands the unit of democracy or Gram Sabha followed by the Panchayat Samiti or Gram Panchayat and then the Zila Parishad.
• This consists of the entire body of citizens in a village or grama. It is this general body that elects the local government and charges it with specific responsibilities.
• The Gram Sabhas ideally ought to provide an open forum for discussions and village-level development activities and play a crucial role in ensuring inclusion of the weaker sections in the decision-making processes.
• The 73rd Amendment provided a three-tier system of Panchayati Raj for all states having a population of over twenty lakhs. It became mandatory that election to these bodies be conducted every five years.
• It provided reservation of seats for the Scheduled Castes, Scheduled Tribes and thirty three percent seats for women.
• It constituted District Planning Committee to prepare drafts and develop plans for the district as a whole.

The 73rd and 74th amendments

• Ensured the reservation of one third of the total seats for women in all elected offices of local bodies in both the rural and urban areas. Out of this, 17 per cent seats are reserved for women belonging to the scheduled castes and tribes.
• This amendment is significant as for the first time it brought women into elected bodies which also bestowed on them decision making powers. One third of the seats in local bodies, gram panchayats, village panchayats, municipalities, city corporations and district boards are reserved for women.
• The 1993-94 elections, soon after the 73rd amendment brought in 800,000 women into the political processes in a single election. That was a big step indeed in enfranchising women.
• A constitutional amendment prescribed a three-tier system of local self-governance for the entire country, effective since 1992-93.

Power and responsibilities of Panchyats

• According to the Constitution, Panchayats should be given powers and authority to function as institutions of self-government. It, thus, requires all state governments to revitalise local representative institutions.
• The following powers and responsibility were delegated to the Panchayats:
  • to prepare plans and schemes for economic development
  • to promote schemes that will enhance social justice
  • to levy, collect and appropriate taxes, duties, tolls and fees
  • help in the devolution of governmental responsibilities, especially that of finances to local authorities

Social welfare responsibilities

• The maintenance of burning and burial grounds
• Recording statistics of births and deaths, establishment of child welfare and maternity centres
• Control of cattle pounds
• Propagation of family planning
• Promotion of agricultural activities.

Development activities

• The construction of roads, public buildings, wells, tanks and schools.
• They also promote small cottage industries and take care of minor irrigation works.
• Many government schemes like the Integrated Rural Development Programme (IRDP) and Integrated Child Development Scheme (ICDS) are monitored by members of the panchayat.

Income of the Panchayats

• The main income of the Panchayats is from tax levied on property, profession, animals, vehicles, cess on land revenue and rentals.
• The resources are further increased by the grants received through the Zilla Panchayat.
• It is also considered compulsory for Panchayat offices to put up boards outside their offices, listing the break up of funds received, and utilisation of the financial aid received.
• This exercise was taken up to ensure that people at the grassroot level should have the ‘right to information’ – opening all functioning to the public eye.
• People had the right to scrutinise allocation of money. And ask reasons for decisions that were taken for the welfare and development activities of the village.

Nyaya Panchayats

• Nyaya Panchayats have been constituted in some states.
• They possess the authority to hear some petty, civil and criminal cases.
• They can impose fines but cannot award a sentence.
• These village courts have often been successful in bringing about an agreement amongst contending parties. They have been particularly effective in punishing men who harass women for dowry and perpetrate violence against them.

Van Panchayats

• Van-panchayats were set up by women in Uttarakhand in order to stop the problem of deforestation that is a big problem in the mountainous regions.
• Members of the van-panchayats develop nurseries and nurture tree saplings for planting on the hill slopes.
• Members also police nearby forests to keep an eye on illegal felling of trees.
• The Chipko movement – where women hugged trees to prevent them from being cut had its beginnings in this area.

Panchayati Raj training for illiterate women

• The story of two villages, Sukhipur and Dhukipur are unravelled through a cloth ‘phad’ or a scroll (a traditional folk medium of story telling).
• Village Dhukipur (sad village) has a corrupt Pradhan (Bimla), who has spent the money received from the panchayat for building a school, on constructing a house for herself and her family. The rest of the village are sad and poor.
• On the other hand Sukhipur (happy village) has a content populace as the Pradhan (Najma) has invested rural reconstruction money in developing good infrastructure for her village. Here the primary health centre is functioning, it has a ‘pucca’ building and also has a good road so that buses can reach the village.
• Pictorial pictures on the ‘phad’, accompanied with folk music were useful tools to convey the message for able governance and participation.
• This innovative method of story telling was very affective in bringing awareness to unlettered women. Most importantly the campaign conveyed the message, that it was not enough to merely vote, or to stand for election, or to win. But important to know why one is voting for a particular person, what are the traits to look for, and what does he or she stand for.
• The value for integrity is also emphasised through the story and song media of the ‘phad’.

Tradition of grassroot democratic functioning in tribal areas

• Tribal areas like Kahsis, Jaintias and Garos in Meghalaya have their own traditional political institutions that have existed for hundreds of years.
• These political institutions were fairly well-developed and functioned at various tiers, such as the village level, clan level and state level. For instance, in the traditional political system of the Khasis each clan had its own council known as the ‘Durbar Kur’ which was presided over by the clan headman.
• Though there is a long tradition of grassroot political institutions in Meghalaya, a large chunk of tribal areas lie outside the provisions of the 73rd Amendment. This may be because the concerned policy makers did not wish to interfere with the traditional tribal institutions.
• However, as sociologist Tiplut Nongbri remarks that tribal institutions in themselves need not necessarily be democratic in its structure and functioning. The strong egalitarian ethos characterises tribal societies and thus the element of stratification is not altogether absent.
• Tribal political institutions are not only marked by open intolerance to women but the process of social change has also introduced sharp distortions in the system, making it difficult to identify which is traditional and which is not.

Inequality in democracy

• Democratisation is not easy in a society that has had a long history of inequality based on caste, community and gender.
• Given this unequal and undemocratic social structure, it is not surprising that in many cases, certain members belonging to particular groups, communities, castes of the village are not included or informed about meetings and activities of the village.
• The Gram Sabha members are often controlled by a small coterie of rich landlords usually hailing from the upper castes or landed peasantry.
• They make decisions on development activities, allocate funds, leaving the silent majority as mere onlookers.

Political parties

• A political party may be defined as an organisation oriented towards achieving legitimate control of government through an electoral process.
• Political Party is an organisation established with the aim of achieving governmental power and using that power to pursue a specific programme.
• Political parties are based on certain understanding of society and how it ought to be. In a democratic form of government political parties are key actors.
• In a democratic system the interests of different groups are also represented by political parties, who take up their case.

Pressure groups

• Different interest groups work towards influencing political parties to take up their case.
• When certain groups feel that their interests are not being taken up, they may move to form an alternative party.
• Or they form pressure groups who lobby with the government

Class 12 Sociology Quick Revision notes Chapter 8 Cultural Change

Facts that Matterange

• Cultural change refers to the change in customs, traditions, beliefs, lifestyle, behaviour etc. (We got inspired by the British clothes, etc).
• Impact of British on our culture, values, norms, basically any impact or change on the cultural side.
• Change in aspects of daily life.

Social Reformers

• During British rule, social reformers wanted to change the social system, in India.
• Changing life of women and Dalits, ridding of social evils, ensuring education for women etc.
  1. Raja Ram Mohun Roy-started Brahrno Samaj and abolished Sati Pratha.
  2. Dayanand Saraswati started Arya Samaj.
• Social reformers came during British rule and not Mughal rule because the British tried to change/shape the social system.

Modern Communication and Transport

• British brought in railways and postal system, also they made improvement in the roads.
• Postal system and railways benefit both, because the British used this to transport goods and facilitate easy movement and the Indians benefited from this as through easy transport, they could facilitate, the freedom struggle.
• Though easy travel one would move from one place to another and one would also know what was happening all over the country.

New Organisation

• Social reformers would hold debates and talk about important issues.
• Associations were set up all over the nation.
• Social reformers set up their own association in their respective states, e.g., Raja Ram Mohun Roy’s Brahmo Sarna] in West Bengal.
• Reformers would write in journals and newspapers.
• Reformers were well educated.

New Ideas

• When Colonial rule started we were influenced in all aspects of life.
• This changed the relationships between mothers and daughters because liberalism and freedom of thought came into being. This changed the outlook of life, relationships.
• Furniture and interior design of their houses changed with the use of sofa and dining set – and crockery.
• Social reformers debated whether women should be educated, this led to formation of associations writing in journalism, newspapers etc. e.g. Jyotiba Phule.
• there was a difference in interpretation, growth of ideas and gave them a better outlook of life.
• Ranade and Ishwar Chandra Vidayasagar focused on widow remarriage, but they had different approaches to it.
• Ranade – widow remarriage, we must treat the differences accepted to Vedas. Ishwar asked men to obey them).
• Many social reformers believed on similar issues and aspects of life but they had different approaches to it.

Major Cultural Changes In India
I. Sanskritisation

• Coined by M.N. Srinivas.
• The process by which a ‘low’ caste or tribe or other group takes over the customs, ritual, beliefs, ideology and style of life of a high and, in particular, a ‘twice-born (dwija) caste’.

Impact of sanskritisation
The impact of Sanskritisation is many-sided. Its influence can be seen in language, literature, ideology, music, dance, drama, style of life and ritual.
It is primarily a process that takes place within the Hindu space though Srinivas argued that it was visible even in sects and religious groups outside Hinduism. Studies of different areas, however, show that it operated differently in different parts of the country.
In those areas where a highly Sanskritised caste was dominant, the culture of the entire region underwent a certain amount of Sanskritisation.
In regions where the non-Sanskritic castes were dominant, it was their influence that was stronger. This can be termed the process of ‘de-Sanskritisation’.
There were other regional variations too. In Punjab culturally Sanskritic influence was never very strong. For many centuries until the third quarter of the 19th century the Persian influence was the dominant one.
Sanskritiastion and groups social position
Srinivas argued that, “the Sanskritisation of a group has usually the effect of improving its position in the local caste hierarchy.
It normally presupposes either an improvement in the economic or political position of the group concerned or a higher group self-consciousness resulting from its contact with a source of the ‘Great Tradition’ of Hinduism such as a pilgrim centre or a monastery or a proselytising sect.”
But in a highly unequal society such as India there were and still are obstacles to any easy taking over of the customs of the higher castes by the lower.
Indeed, traditionally, the dominant caste punished those low castes, which were audacious enough to attempt it. The story below captures the problem.”
Criticism
Sanskritisation as a concept has been criticised at different levels.

1. One, it has been criticised for exaggerating social mobility or the scope of ‘lower castes’ to move up the social ladder. For it leads to no structural change but only positional change of some individuals.
2. it has been pointed out that the ideology of sanskritisation accepts the ways of the ‘upper caste’ as superior and that of the ‘lower caste’ as inferior. Therefore, the desire to imitate the ‘upper caste’ is seen as natural and desirable.
3. ‘Sanskritisation’ seems to justify a model that rests on inequality and exclusion. It appears to suggest that to believe in pollution and purity of groups of people is justifiable or all right.
4. Since sanskritisation results in the adoption of upper caste rites and rituals it leads to practices of secluding girls and women, adopting dowry practices instead of bride-price and practising caste discrimination against other groups, etc.
5. The effect of such a trend is that the key characteristics of dalit culture and society are eroded. For example the very worth of labour which ‘lower castes’ do is degraded and rendered ‘shameful’.

II. Westernisation
M.N. Srinivas defines westernisation as “the changes brought about in Indian society and culture as a result of over 150 years of British rule, the term subsuming changes occurring at different levels…technology, institutions, ideology and values.
Different kinds of westernisation

• One kind refers to the emergence of a westernised sub-cultural pattern through a minority section of Indians who first came in contact with Western culture.
• This included the sub culture of Indian intellectuals who not only adopted many cognitive patterns, or ways of thinking, and styles of life, but supported its expansion. Many of the early 19th century reformers were of this kind.
• There were, therefore, small sections of people who adopted western life styles or were affected by western ways of thinking.
• There has been also the general spread of Western cultural traits, such as the use of new technology, dress, food, and changes in the habits and styles of people in general.
• Across the country a very wide section of middle class homes have a television set, a fridge, some kind of sofa set, a dining table and chair in the living room.
• Westernisation does involve the imitation of external forms of culture. It does not necessarily mean that people adopt modern values of democracy and equality.

Westernisation in the contemporary context
Conflicts between generations are seen as cultural conflicts resulting from westernisation.
Western Way of Thinking

• Freedom of thought: Social informers tried to uplift status of dalit, women.
• Liberty: Individualism became Important.
• Besides change in behaviour patterns and customs etc, there was a change in art and architecture.
  e.g., Raja Ravi Varma-first to paint a nuclear family. Earlier they would paint only joint families.
• Architecture-parliament buildings, houses, railway stations.

Two ways of thought
1. Western thinkers started thinking like them e.g. the way they treated women.
2. Western practices were influenced by their beliefs, food, customs, way of speaking, etc
General Conflicts between generations were always prevalent in society.
II. Modernisation
Modems thinking and ideas influence. Change in mind sets, life changes for better features:
1. Due to globalization and broader outlook, universal/cosmopolitan attitudes are replacing local ones.
2. Science and technology has replaced non-rational, emotional thinking, anything connected to religion.
3. Workplace and family were mixed together, but now work and personal life are separate. (Before entire family would work together)
4. Individual is given more importance than group. Now individuals don’t want any institution and want freedom of thought, ideas etc. Nuclear family is more important and preferable than joint.
5. Achieved/Acquired status is more important than ascribed status.
6. When people pick up work and communicate with people, they associate with those who are, associated with their achieved status (colleagues, boss etc) than with those from ascribed status.
7. Attitude,e of people towards the human environment and natural environment has, changed for the better as the circumstances have changed. We don’t associate nature with religion. We are actually concurred with the environment.
Modernisation and Secularisation

• Our attitude towards religion has changed with modernisation. One does not attribute everything to religion.
• Modernity and Secularism (tradition) are the two sides of a coin. They go hand in hand.
• If we don’t keep up all traditions we can’t be part of the global village and if we don’t modernise them we can’t develop and grow.
• With modem ideas and thinking, the religious aspects are not given the same importance.
• Due to Sanskritisation, the tribes feel that their culture is being eroded and in order to prevent that from happening, they have community celebrations.
• To retain and maintain their identity they try to show the others not to forget it and show unity.
• The local calendar has been replaced by the English calendar. Now we are part of the global village and we have sedateness.
• Ceremonies, rituals etc have changed. Now it is community over private.
• “Village display of wealth” now that is a want for materialistic goods and so traditions have changed from what they used to be.
• It is now a status symbol and celebrations are more elaborate.
• Coming in of modern thinking and ideas by (British, modern inform movements started coming up.
• Instead of the old ideas (child marriage etc). We now have new ideas (education of girl child, etc). Now it is more towards improving status of women and dalits and not only the traditional practices.
• Now rituals and customs are less important and materialistic things are more important (celebrities dance, sing, designer clothes, catering etc).
• We take it for granted that as we are modernising we are becoming more secular.
• Religion can usually disappear from one lives. As we are becoming more modem, we assume that the importance of religion will deteriorate. This is not true as practising dowry, honour killings still exist.

Rituals-Secular Dimension is different from Secular Goal

• Today ceremonies, celebrations are given more importance than the actual rituals.
• Materialistic goods.are more important.
• Marriage ceremonies, the actual rituals are not given importance.
• Secular dimension-when you don’t give importance to religion, but while doing religious practice people get to show off opportunity to socialise, communicate etc and show off.
• Secular goal social-economic aspects are given more importance than rituals (when dancing, food etc is more important)
• Now what matters most is what happened in the wedding and not the rituals.

Secularisation of Caste

• Once upon a time caste was referred to with pollution purity and the practices were important.
• Now politicians use caste for vote banks.
• Power and Authority are important for politicians and they use religion, region, caste, language, etc to get these.
• They make full use of the law for religion and caste to Indians.
• Caste system is the weakness of the Indian society.
• Caste identities have political backing .

Class 12 Sociology Quick Revision notes Chapter 7 Structural Change

Facts That Matter
Colonial experience for comprehending modern India

• The colonial rule has had a tremendous impact on Indian society in all aspects-railways, industries, postal system (social, cultural, economic, political).
• Understanding of colonial experience while comprehending modern India is of significant importance as many modern ideas and institutions reached India through colonialism.
• It is also because such an exposure to modern ideas was contradictory or paradoxical. For example, Indians in the colonial period read about western liberalism and freedom.
• Yet they lived under a western, colonial rule that denied Indians liberty and freedom. It is contradiction of this kind that shaped many of the structural and cultural change in modern India.

Colonialism

• Colonialism simply means the establishment of rule by one country over another. In the modern period western colonialism has had the greatest impact.
• India’s past has been marked by the entry of numerous groups of people at different times who have established their rule over different parts of what constitutes modern India today.
• The impact of colonial rule is distinguishable from all other earlier rules because the changes it brought in were far-reaching and deep.
• History is full of examples of the annexation of foreign territory and the domination of weaker by stronger powers. Nevertheless, there is a vital difference between the empire building of pre-capitalist times and that of capitalist times.
• Apart from outright pillage, the pre-capitalist conquerors benefited from their domination by exacting a continuous flow of tribute.
• On the whole they did not interfere with the economic base. They simply took the tribute that was skimmed off the economic surplus that was produced traditionally in the subjugated areas.

Use of English
The use of English language as an outcome of changes due to colonialism has many sided impact and yet paradoxical. English is not only widely used in India but we now have an impressive body of literary writings by Indians in English. This knowledge of English has given Indians an edge in the global market.
However, English still continues to be a mark of privilege and not knowing English is considered a disadvantage in the job market. On the other hand, those who were traditionally deprived access to formal education such as the Dalits, knowledge of English may open doors of opportunities that were formally closed.
Colonialism led to considerable movement of people. It led to movement of people from one part to another within India. For instance people from present day Jharkhand moved to Assam to work on the tea plantations.
A newly emerging middle class particularly from the British Presidency regions of Bengal and Madras moved as government employees and professionals like doctors and lawyers moved to different parts of the country.
People were carted in ships from India to work on other colonised lands in distant Asia, Africa and Americas. Many died on their way. Most could never return. Today many of their descendants are known as people of Indian origin.
Capitalism

• Capitalism is an economic system in which the means of production are privately owned and organised to accumulate profits within a market system.
• Capitalism in the west emerged out of a complex process of European exploration of the rest of the world, its plunder of wealth and resources, an unprecedented growth of science and technology, it’s harnessing to industries and agriculture.
• Capitalism has global nature with its dynamism, its potential to grow, expand, innovate and use technology and labour in a way that best assured to ensure greatest profit.
• Western colonialism was inextricably connected to the growth of western capitalism that became the dominant economic system.

Nation State as dominant political form

• Territory, population, administration, sovereignty. Educated Indians wanted sovereignty (governing their own country), taking own decisions.
• Industrialisation requires setting of factories and employing labour.
• Manchester: Industrial city in England. Cotton from India was sent to Manchester, processed into silk made cloth and sold in India for cheaper prices.
• Along with Surat and Masulipatnam, Dhaka and Thanjavur were ruled by kings and they too lost their courts.
• Artisans, painters, dancers, singers lost their importance. (working class) had to look for alternative jobs.
• Where there were industries, population increased and people from rural areas migrated to urban areas.
• They realised that life in urban areas and factories was tougher (social and economic reasons).
• All castes were the same, felt their culture was getting encoded.
• Madras (coffee, indigo, spices)
• Bombay (cotton) first established as price capital counter for trading.
• Calcutta (jute)

Role of cities

• Cities had a key role in the economic system of empires. Coastal cities like Mumbai, Kolkata and Chennai were favoured as from here primary goods could be easily exported and manufactured goods could be cheaply imported.
• Colonial cities were the prime link between the economic or core centres in Britain and periphery or margins in colonised India.
• Cities were the concrete expression of global capitalism. For example, Bombay during British India was planned and re-developed so that by 1900 over three-quarters of India’s raw cotton were shipped through the city.
• Urbanisation in the colonial period led to decline of some earlier urban centres and the emergence of new colonial cities. Kolkata was one of the first of such cities.
• Cities were also important as a trading post, for defensive purposes and for military engagements

Urbanisation and Industrialization
Tea Plantations

• Tea grows in hilly areas and requires rain, hence, Assam was ideal for tea plantation.
• Disadvantage of Assam ~ low population, therefore people had to be moved from Bihar, Maharastra, Rajasthan and Madhya Pradesh.

Life of Labourers

• Harsh weather conditions caused diseases.
• Moved away from hence culture shock (adjustment).
• Living and working conditions were poor.

Low wages
Penal laws made by the British to punish the offender or workers if they did not report on time, try to run away or went against them.

• But their laws were in favour of the plantation owners.
• Industry was privately and publicly owned.
• Either plantation owners or planters and management was done by employing managers.
• Had a luxurious life and large bungalows with gardens which were maintained by the labourers.
• Industrialisation and urbanisation in independent India.
• Nehru and ministers felt a ‘drain of wealth’ as Britishers left us in a difficult position.
• Had to recognise the economy and led to develop industries.
• Nehru called ‘dams’ the temples of modem India as they provide employment, control floods and hydro electricity.

Urban-Rural Areas Impact
People move from rural to urban areas in search of jobs, better standard of living, sense of anonymity.
1. Migration
– Social reason sense of anonymity, ability to choose one’s own job.
– Economic reason, better job opportunities, standard of living.

2. Classes between immigrants and residents; where immigrants move to urban areas, the residents resist this because they feel that they have to show housing facilities, job opportunities.

3. Metropolis: city + suburbs, suburbs because part of city e.g. Chennai, Bangalore, Suburb areas had to reach because they were far away.

4.Megapolis: Suburbs of city because part of the city and also belong to other states e.g., NCR-Delhi, Gurgaon, Faridabad, Ghaziabad, Noida, Bombay, Calcutta Megapolis > Metropolis .

Class 12 Sociology Quick Revision notes Chapter 6 The Challenges of Cultural Diversity

Facts That Matter

• The term ‘diversity’ emphasises differences rather than inequalities. When we say that India is a nation of great cultural diversity, we mean that there are many different types of social groups and communities living here.
• These are communities defined by cultural markers such as language, religion, sect, race or caste.
• When these diverse communities are also part of a larger entity like a nation, then difficulties may be created by competition or conflict between them.

Cultural diversity presents tough challenges

• The difficulties arise from the fact that cultural identities are very powerful – they can arouse intense passions and are often able to moblise large numbers of people.
• Sometimes cultural differences are accompanied by economic and social inequalities, and this further complicates things.
• Measures to address the inequalities or injustices suffered by one community can provoke opposition from other communities.
• The situation is made worse when scarce resources – like river waters, jobs or government funds – have to be shared.

Community Identity

• A group of people who are together due to infrastructure, resources, facilities.
• Most of the time community identity is ascribed status and you learn to love them.
• It can also be achieved but it is very individualistic.
• Community identity is universal as it is present everywhere (every religion, country) in terms of mother tongue or culture, values, beliefs, etc.
• When two countries or groups are in conflict with each other, very rarely does one country or group accept they are wrong. Even though either both are wrong or one is wrong.

Nations

• A nation is a sort of large-scale community – it is a community of communities.
• Members of a nation share the desire to be part of the same political collectivity. This desire for political unity usually expresses itself as the aspiration to form a state.

State

• In its most general sense, the term state refers to an abstract entity consisting of a set of political-legal institutions claiming control over a particular geographical territory and the people living in it.
• In Max Weber’s well-known definition, a state is a “body that successfully claims a monopoly of legitimate force in a particular territory.

Nation

• A nation is a peculiar sort of community that is easy to describe but hard to define. It is hard to come up with any defining features, any characteristics that a nation must possess.
• Many nations are founded on the basis of common cultural, historical and political institutions like a shared religion, language, ethnicity, history or regional culture.
• There are many nations that do not share a single common language, religion, ethnicity and so on.
• On the other hand, there are many languages, religions or ethnicities that are shared across nations.

Nation, Multiple States

• In todays world we believe in one nation one state.
• USSR-Union of Soviet Socialist Republic. It was a nation state but had many countries which had their own culture and state nation since the government in counted, the people were not able to voice their opinions. Broke up in 1991.
• Duel Citizenship of Israeli’s in USA. US has given citizenship to these Jews only in the US (only if born and brought up). No person except them can get duel citizenship.

Policies to accommodate cultural diversity
1. Policy of Assimilation
Where everybody decides to follow one norm, one belief and one culture and common value.
The whole country follows the majority as they are more powerful.
This is for convenience sake and unity of the country.
e.g., in India Hindus are majority and there are so many festivals as compared to the festivals of the Christians, Parsis, etc.
2. Policy of Integration
-All people follow national culture or pattern in public life and keep all non-material cultures in private life.
e.g., Jana gana mana is national but Vande Mataram would be non-national.
-Because community identities can act as a basis for nation formation, the already existing states view them as dangerous rivals e.g., Khalistan Sikh community wanted a separate nation.
-Therefore, states tend to favour a single homogenous national identity in order to have unity and togetherness.
-But this does not mean we should suppress the identity of the minority as it can lead to revolts and there will be no unity.
-By suppressing the non-national culture of minorities or smaller sections, it can lead to problems and instead of unity the country will divide.
-Thus the government allows people to maintain cultural differences in order to have peace and harmony in the country.
Indian nation-state

• The Indian nation-state is socially and culturally one of the most diverse countries of the world.
• The population speak about 1,632 different languages and dialects. As many as eighteen of these languages have been officially recognised and placed under the 8th Schedule of the Constitution, thus guaranteeing their legal status.
• In terms of religion, about 80.5% of the population are Hindus, who in turn are regionally specific, plural in beliefs and practices, and divided by castes and languages.
• About 13.4% of the population are Muslims, which makes India the world’s third largest Muslim country after Indonesia and Pakistan.
• The other major religious communities are Christians (2.3%), Sikhs (1.9%), Buddhists (0.8%) and Jains (0.4%). Because of India’s huge population, these small percentages can also add up to large absolute numbers.

India’s case (Nation-state and relationship with community identity)

• The Indian case fits neither the assimilationist nor the integrationist model.
• From its very beginning the independent Indian state has ruled out an assimilationist model. However, the demand for such a model has been expressed by some sections of the dominant Hindu community.
• Although ‘national integration’ is a constant theme in state policy, India has not been ‘integrationist’.
• The Constitution declares the state to be a secular state, but religion, language and other such factors are not banished from the public sphere. In fact these communities have been explicitly recognised by the state.
• By international standards, very strong constitutional protection is offered to minority religions. In general, India’s problems have been more in the sphere of implementation and practice rather than laws or principles.
• On the whole, India can be considered a good example of a ‘state-nation’ though it is not entirely free from the problems common to nation-states.

Regionalism

• Regionalism is connected with the diverse culture, languages, regions, castes, tribes present in our county.
• Language helped in strengthening of India’s Unity.
• After independence we decided to follow the same pattern of the British, leading presidencies.
• Bombay, Madras and Calcutta, Princely states people in Madras spoke Malayalam, Tamil, Telugu, Kannada (different languages under one state).
• The country was divided on the basis of language under Nehru (he was apprehensive earlier, but after thought the decision was good) because of Vallabhai Patel (Horne Minister).
• Language is a binding force, would bring about efficient communication, unity, state boards (educational purposes), could spread love for language
• When the Madras state was formed, Telugu people were unhappy as Tamilians were given more important posts and were dominant.
• Thus they rebelled for separate state. Potti Sirrimallu wanted a separate state (went on hunger strike) for Tel speaking people. After his death, protest continued and the government gave them Andhra Pradesh in 1956.The Telegu people had an option whether to stay in the Madras state or shift to Andhra Pradesh.

ISSUES
Majority and Minority

• Majority and minority in sociology is connected with religion.
• Minority in any religion are those who are numerically weaker as compared to majorities.
• In India, Hindus are majority class (81 %)

1. Inclusive Nationalism
– When all religions work together for one cause benefit of the country, to create unity in diversity.
– It recognises fanality and diversity but in spite of this we come together.
– We try to do away with discrimination and create a democratic set up.
2. Exclusive Nationalism
– When each religion does what in their point of view will benefit the country.
– The best way for the country to be progressive is by including inclusive
reasoning in the constitution where all sections of society (including minority) are taken care of.
– The Constituent Assembly tried to include social, political and economic justice when the constitution was drafted.
Features of Minority
1. They are numerically weaker and their needs are not taken care of.
2. They do not have a say in many matters.
3. They have low/less opportunities in comparison to the majority.
4. Minorities are often discriminated against.
5. There is a fear of insecurity and they feel that they are at a disadvantage as they are a smaller group.
6. All minorities have a sense of collective belonging, togetherness and they are always together and protect their rights.
7. They have a sense of loyalty towards their nation.
– Jains, Parsis are communities who are economically strong (businessmen) but they are culturally and socially weak. e.g. Bohras, Vohras,
– Hindu’s are given many holidays but for the festivals of Parsis and Jains there are no holidays.
Minorities and Policies

• In elections it is very easy for the political parties to convert the numerical majority into political power.
• Minorities are at risk and are variable.
• Thus a ‘minority block’ takes place.
• At times, they have to give up their identity to save their position.
• All religions have the freedom to practice, preach and profess their religion.
• Article 29 and 30 are for the protection of the minorities.

Provisions of Article 30
(a) Any religious community can start an educational institution.
(b) All facilities that are given to other majorities should also be given to the minorities. – No religion should be imposed on a person because it will affect national unity.
– We believe in unity in diversity.
– Every country has minorities, in Europe Christians are majority class whereas Hindus, Sikhs and Jews are minorities.
Communalism

• Extreme love for your religion, you consider every religion as inferior and subordinate.
• The western meaning of communalism is to do with community which is a group of people doing something in common.
• Communalism is more to do with politics than religion in India because politicians use vote banks in the name of religion. They give seats for religion.
• India is diverse because, whenever there are more people and diversity there is more an issue of communalism.
• Communalism i.e. aggressive political ideology linked with religion. Love for your religion but in a negative way.
• A communalist develops aggressive political identity which condenses every other religion and leads to communal riots.

Reason for Communal riots are
(1) Political instigation
(2) One community wants revenge on a community or average another community in the past.
(3) To regain lost pride or protect their community.
(4) During riots violence, loss of lives, destruction of poverty and assault, looting, rape take place all around.
Whenever there is a communal riot the government in power must take responsibility and should protect the victims.
Secularism

• Indian Meaning: All religions should have and be given equal importance and every individual is allowed to freely practice, preach, profess any religion of their choice.
• Western Meaning: Earlier the state was controlled by the church. The word ‘secular’ is used when the state is separate from the church. The church is not allowed to interfere in matters of the state.
• Though secularisation evolved religion is restricted to private domain and not public.
• Secularisation came into being through modernity.
• When you consider various view points, related to rationality where you don’t attribute everything to religion allow service to play a role, broadening of mindsets.
• The Indian meaning is a combination of both and opposite of communal because we allow all religions to exist equally.
• One kind of difficulty that exists in our country is the western meaning and Indian meaning of secularism.
• Majority questions the government that giving reservations is unfair.
• Minority demands reservation because they will get out shadowed by majority.
• Other difficulty is that government tries to protect the minority but it is the majority values, festivals, etc. are being followed.
• These controversies are further being aggravated by the interference of political parties.
• In spite of all these problems we are still a secular nation.
• We take care of the minority without upsetting the majority at the same time maintaining peace, tolerance and harmony among communities.
• When we got Independence Nehru said that we are a democratic, secular and sovereign country.

State and Civil Societies
Democracy: Form of government where people have a say and have the right to vote for their leader (Political party) and can use their fundamental rights.
Authoritative: Form of government where people cannot question the government or hold them accountable, all civil rights are curtailed.
The institutions are unable to respond to the needs of the people under authoritative government (banks).
Civil Society: Non State, voluntary, private domain, not commercialised, profit is not important. It is an organization which is not commercialised or profit oriented and outside private domain.
Civil societies are those societies/organizations that fight for the rights of people, specially the suppressed classes.
Civil societies keep a watch on the government actions and fight for injustice e.g. Political parties, mass media, NGO’s newspaper, women associations.
Emergency 1975-77

• Mass sterilization campaigns were held where indiscriminately people were sterilised.
• Tubectomy (women}, vasectomy (men) were done forcibly
• Civil rights were curtailed
• People were put in Jail without a trial
• Civil rights were suspended
• Lower cadre of people who carried out the actions and people were put in jail who spoke against like emergency.
• Many political leaders like Jayaprakash Narayan were put in Jail.
• Indira Gandhi lost election after this.
• After emergency there was uproar in the nation and importance of civil societies went up. Tribals
• Healthcare and displacement

Civil Societies work to
1. Keep a watch on government and to see if they are using funds fairly.
2. To see that laws are being implemented.
3. If government is functioning properly. e.g. Right to Information Act
Right to Information Act 2005
When government funds were allotted to villages for construction of roads, building of schools, etc.
– They took it up with the government and looked into it.
– According to this act any person can demand to the government allocation of funds, tax and copy the funds document.
– It is the right of people to demand from the government. The funds have been allocated for different projects.
– This was to do with the government only not with the private sector, people have rights to question the government.

Class 12 Sociology Quick Revision notes Chapter 5 Pattern of Social Inequality and Exclusion

Facts That Matter
Social inequality

• Social inequality and exclusion are facts of life.
• The everydayness of social inequality and exclusion often make them appear inevitable, almost natural.
• We often think of them as being ‘deserved’ or ‘justified’ in some sense.
• Life chances and opportunities are not equally available to everyone. They are less for the suppressed castes.
• Patterns of unequal access to social resources are commonly called social inequality.
• Some social inequality reflects innate differences between individuals for example, their varying abilities and efforts.

Social inequality is social because:

• They are not about individuals but about groups.
• Second, they are social in the sense that they are not economic, although there is usually a strong link between social and economic inequality.
• Third, they are systematic and structured – there is a definite pattern to social inequalities.

Social resources

• In every society, some people have a greater share of valued resources – money, property, education, health, and power – than others.
• These social resources can be divided into three forms of capital
• Economic capital in the form of material assets and income
• Cultural capital such as educational qualifications and status.
• Social capital in the form of networks of contacts and social associations.
• Often, these three forms of capital overlap and one can be converted into the other. For example, a person from a well-off family (economic capital) can afford expensive higher education, and so can acquire cultural or educational capital. Someone with influential relatives and friends (social capital) may – through access to good advice, recommendations or information – manage to get a well-paid job.

Social stratification

• Sociologists use the term social stratification to refer to a system by which categories of people in a society are ranked in a hierarchy.
• This hierarchy shapes people’s identity and experiences, their relations with others, as well as their access to resources and opportunities.

Three Key principles to explain social stratification

1. Social stratification is a characteristic of society, not simply a function of individual differences. Social stratification is a society-wide system that unequally distributes social resources among categories of people.
2. Social stratification persists over generations. It is closely linked to the family and to the inheritance of social resources from one generation to the next. A person’s social position is ascribed. The ascribed aspect of social inequality is reinforced by the practice of endogamy. That is, marriage is usually restricted to members of the same caste, ruling out the potential for blurring caste lines through inter-marriage.
3. Social stratification is supported by patterns of belief, or ideology. No system of social stratification is likely to persist over generations unless it is widely viewed as being either fair or inevitable. The caste system, for example, is justified in terms of the opposition of purity and pollution, with the Brahmins designated as the most superior and Dalits as the most inferior by virtue of their birth and occupation.

People face discrimination because:

• Due to their gender, religion, ethnicity, language, caste and disability.

Prejudices

• Pre conceived notion/pre judgment
• Mostly negative
• An opinion formed in advance of any familiarity with the subject, before considering any available evidence
• Often based on hearsay rather than on direct evidence, and are resistant to change even in the face of new information.

Stereotypes

• Grounded on prejudices
• Fixed and inflexible characterisation of people
• Often applied to ethnic and racial groups and to women.
• A whole group is considered homogeneous e.g. Rajputs are supposed to be courageous, girls are emotional, boys don’t cry.

Discrimination

• The way you treat people differently in reality
• Disqualify members of on group from opportunities open to others, as when a person is refused a job because of their gender or religion.
• Can be very hard to prove because it may not be open or explicitly stated.

Social Exclusion
• You are isolating them and exclude them from your group.
• When the people who are excluded are not given the opportunities which are given to others; (except their basic food, clothes and shelter) like medical, educational and naturalistic comforts.
• It is not accidental, it is systematic.
• It is openly done.
• It is involuntary, the ones who are excluded don’t want to be excluded but we exclude them.
• After centuries, some people who are excluded lean either to ignore or they protest.
• Dalits came up with 2 things.
• They started making their own associations.
• They converted their religion (Muslims and Christians i.e., Islamisation)
• People excluded once the years are still excluded but the issues are changing.
• To bring about change, the mindset of the people has to change.
Caste System as a Discriminatory System
Correlation between Social Status and Economic Status
• There is a very close relation between class and caste.
• The members of the upper caste have better life chances and opportunities to use the resources.
• Now it is changing, people from Shudra community are occupying higher positions and vice versa e.g. K.R. Narayanan-Ex-President who was from a Dalit community. Mira Kumar-Ex-Speaker of the Parliament.
• But it is at a micro level in urban areas where Brahmins are peons, clerks while Dalits are doctors and are educated.
• The mindset of the people has not changed, so it is not prevalent at the micro level.

(a) Exclusion: The untouchables went through the worst type of exclusion. They were not given opportunities like others and were excluded from the smallest things and they
were excluded from everything.
e.g. They weren’t allowed to take water from the wells, pumps or lakes that the Brahmins used. They weren’t allowed to take part in festivals rituals and ceremonies that other would participate in. They had to have a bath with the buffaloes and cows.
(b) Exploitation: They were given very low salaries and low grade jobs (washing the bathroom, wetting the roads, cremations).
They were given jobs which no one wanted to do and were not paid. They were treated in an inhuman manners and were taken advantage of.
(c) Humiliation: They were not allowed to wear bright clothes full of colour, could not use the same roads, which Brahmins use, had to walk with their heads bowed down while a Brahmin walked by, couldn’t ‘walk with their chappals in front of Brahmins so they
would hold it in their hands.
They would clean up dead bodies and the cremation and were only included to play the
drums from a far off distance.
(d) Subordination: They were below the upper caste and the Brahmins were suppressed.
Provisions by the Government for SC and ST
Reservation

• Laws, Policies, Amendments, Welfare programmes.
• They are meant for those who are socially and economically backward as they don’t have life chances and opportunities which they should have.
• The government reserves seats for the SC’s and ST’s and no one else can take those seats from the upper caste.
• They are reserved in educational institutions, jobs, parliament. They have a lot of provisions like age relaxation and low marks for selection.
Laws
• You have to follow the laws.
• It is a legal framework, not like norms.
• Brahmins were the only educated people and the British needed the Brahmins support.
• Laws were made about caste but implementation was poor.
1. Caste disability Removal Act-1850: Introduced because they wanted the lower caste to get into educational institution so that they could study and educate themselves.
2. Abolition of Untouchability-Article 17: If practiced, punishable by law.
3. Prevention of Atrocities Act-1889: The acts, the Brahmins carried out on the lower castes e.g. beating them, not letting them wear bright colours, washing streets, etc.
4. Constitutional Amendment Act-2005: The 93rd amendment. It is to do with education and no one can be devoid of education.
They are still socially, economically and culturally backward.
There are social organisation, associations and political parties and social movements fighting for these classes.
1. Satyashodhak Samaj (Truth Seekers Society) mainly for Dalits and women by Jyotiba Phule.
2. Brahma Samaj]- Raja Rammohun Roy
3. Arya Samaj-Dayanand Saraswati
4. Dalit Sangharsh Samiti
5. Bahujan Samaj Party
6. BSP-Kanchuians
7. Dalit Panther Movement in 1970’s
Other Backward Classes (OBCs)
• Those groups of the forward caste who are economically backward.
• These people are very poor and are treated like the Dalits but there is no untouchability.
• Reservations are provided to them since they are illiterate, uneducated and are given the same jobs as the Dalits.
Kaka Kelelkar Commission
• Set up to go to different villages to decide which caste/subcaste should be given the status of OBC.
Mandal Commission
• Large issue in late 80’s and 90’s.
• V.P. Singh gave reservation in some states but not in other states.
• This led to protests by other people.
Politics of OBC
• Politicians promise reservation for the OBC’s only to expand their vote bank.
• Those OBC’s that are better off than the other OBC’s are upper OBC’s.
• The lowest category is equal to the Dalits.
Adivasi Struggle
[anjati’s (first inhabitants), Vanjati’s (forest dwellers), Adivasi’s, Girijans.
• They like to be alone/isolated and their occupations well connected to the forest.
• They were hunter gatherers, honey collectors, shifting cultivators)
During colonial rule
• Maximum exploitation of forest dwellers.
• Forests were cleared for collecting timber, setting up of roads, railway tracks.
• The tribals who were dependent on the forest lost their livelihood.
• Some of them became thieves and stole timber and poached animals.
• Others went to nearby cities and towns and became labourers working for wages.
• Thus the tribals revolted and protested which led the British to reserve areas known as exclusive areas/partially exclusive areas.
• The non-tribals were not allowed to enter the area, but this was not implemented properly since the weaker sections were sidelined.
After independence
• Development continued to take place so the tribals suffered (roads, railways, tracks had to be made and timber had to be used)
• Hydroelectric projects (dams), using, recreational purposes and the culture of the tribals gets clouded.
• This displaced the tribals and their livelihood was taken away.
• The tribals began revolts, rebellions, protests due to exploitation and discrimination.
• The Adivasi/tribal movement came across and three states were formed Jharkand, Uttarakhand, Chhattisgarh.
Women structure for equality and rights
• Women are considered to be physically and biologically weaker but they are not socially or economically weak.
• This is due to the patriarchal society and mindset of the people.
Social reformers
• The male reformers wanted to make changes in the society for women and Dalits.
– Raja Rammohun Roy
In 1829 he caused the abolition of Sati Pratha under the Governor General William Bentick. Later he started Brahmo Samaj for the upliftment of the status of women by giving the girl child education.
He wanted child marriage to end and wanted to encourage widow remarriage.
– Dayanand Saraswati
He started the Arya Samaj to educate the girl child. Upliftment of women both socially and economically. Abolishment of child marriage encouraged widow remarriage.
He was against the study of western education and he wanted women to study the Vedas and learn about housekeeping as they would ultimately become home workers. This social work was done by the Arya Samaj.
– M.G. Ranade
He was a Hindu Brahmin and was shocked by the way women were treated. He wrote two books and appealed to the people by saying that even in the Vedas it was not mentioned to treat them badly or they shouldn’t get married again.
– Jyotiba Phule
He was a Dalit and started the association called Satyashodhak Samaj (truth seeking society) Focused on status of Dalits and women and was the first Indian to start a college for women in Puri.
– Syed Ahmed Khan
He was a well educated Muslim and he wanted the Muslim women to be educated as they were suppressed, due to the Purdah System but they should learn about housekeeping as they will become house workers.
– Ishwar Chandra Vidya Sagar
He concentrated on widow remarriage. He opposed the way widows were treated.
He encouraged men to marry the widows and arranged community marriages. He did this to give respect to the women.
Women Reformers
1. Tarabai Shinde
– Wrote a book called ‘Stree Purush Tulana’ in 1882 which spoke about how men
treated women.
– She was suppressed, women race were given a very low status.
– Women were ill-treated like slaves.
– There was prevalence of polygamy, so men would marry women.
– She felt that women were degraded and so she wrote the book to spread
awareness about the importance of women.
2. Begum Rokeya Sakhawat Hossain
– Wrote an interesting short story, ‘Sultana’s Dream’ in 1915, where there was role reversal (men and women), magical world (satire).
– The man usually worked, stayed there and cooked and did all the household work and women would work, jobs, go in rockets.
– In reality it was very rural for a man to do household work.
– Men should help women and lead them go out sometimes.
Provisions for women/position/ status of women
• During the 19th century, there were very few associations which fought for women.
• After independence many women associations came up for the upliftment of women.
Karachi Session of 1931
Few provisions were suggested and later included in the constitution.
1. Everyone is equal in the eyes of law, irrespective of their religion, caste, language and sex they belong to.
2. Women should be allowed to hold positions in society in government jobs, not taking in account their caste, language.
3. Universal Adult Franchise should be allowed to vote irrespective of their caste, religion, etc.
4. All women have a right to vote, right to stand for any office or to take up any job.
Differently-Abled
• The Disabled, who are physically and mentally challenged.

Terms used then	Terms used now
(1) Handicapped(2) Crippled  (3) Blind (4) Deaf (5) Dumb	(1) Mentally/Physically challenged/ disabled(2) Physically challenged  (3) Visually impaired (4) Hearing impaired (5) Speech impaired

• These terms have changed as these terms are very derogatory and should not be used.
• They are not only physically and mentally challenged but they are socially discriminated and not integrated into society like the mainstream.
• These terms are used loosely and are considered as insults.
Features
1. It is biologically given/genetic.
2. Can be due to accidents (physically impaired).
3. The blame goes to Karma/fate.
4. They are considered to be victims of fate and are fiercely independent.
5. Everything that they do is attributed to their disability. People show sympathy and pity, but they don’t want it.
6. Disability is linked with their self-perception (fiercely independent) whether they have a poor perception of themselves.
7. We feel that the disabled people are in need of help.
– In the past, in the mythological movies, the negative character is a differently abled person.
– The differently abled are discriminated but society does not accept them.
Differently-Abled and Poverty
• They do not have the life chances, opportunities that the others have.
• They are not educated, cannot get jobs and this leads to poverty.
• If they are not accepted by their family, it leads to begging.
• Due to poor conditions, unsanitary conditions, improper health and education, mother has too many children, no polio drops lead to disabilities (inadequate immunization, one crowded housing)
• According to the 2001 census, 2.19 crore people in India are physically challenged.
• The differently-abled began protesting and forming associations and laws by the government.
1. Nowadays in the malls and airports, there are bathroom for them.
2. There are separate educational facilities () but they want to be integrated with the mainstream.
3. Provisions are being made in schools, courts, malls, airport, like parking, ramps, lifts, buses-but it is not enough.
4. Most of the hospitals don’t have ramps.
• The awareness is increasing but the number of disabled are also increasing .

The Market as a Social Institution – Notes for Class 12 Sociology

• Market is a place of interaction between the buyers and sellers, producers and consumers in respect to goods and services.
Social Aspect of Market
• Interchange and interaction among people.
• It is a place where there is exchange of information and building of relationship.
Economic Perspective
• Distribution, production, consumption of goods and services, as well as investments.
Adam Smith
1. Self-interest
— Every individual is interested/works for his own self-interest.
— When every individual thinks in this way, it contributes to the profit and growth of the country.
2. Invisible Hand
— The government hand is less, we have more hand (role over the economy)
— The individuals decide the supply and demand economy.
— Laissez Faire leave us alone let it be’ the government should not interfere in the private sector.
Sociological Perspective
• Social and cultural aspect of the market (a lot of social activity takes place in the market).
• It is controlled by social groups, caste and class.
Market
(1) Weekly Market (2) Traditional Communities
e.g. Dhorai village in Bastar district, Chhattisgarh, the tribal and non-tribals come from nearby villages and towns to buy and sell items (food, honey, salt, baskets, tools, beads, jewellery)
— Besides buyers and sellers, there are entertainers (performers, magicians, games, rides etc.).
— Moneylenders also come.
— This kind of market is typical of villages, cities and towns.
— In tribal and hilly areas, weekly market is a huge occasion for them to interact with their friends and kins (Social meeting place).
— There is economic as well as social interaction.
Changes in the tribal market
• In the colonial period many developments took place.
• Forests were cleared for laying down of roads, railways and industries.
• They were displaced and were not given alternative homes, their occupation had to change.
• Non-tribals (dzlws)-moneylenders and traders exploited them.
• The local economy integrated regional market integrated national market.
• The British took tribal products and sold them in cities.
• Tribals were isolated and hence exploited.
Seating arrangement in the weekly arrangement
• Given by anthropologist Alfred Gell the centre portion is occupied by the non-tribals.
• Rich dikus selling semi precious stones to tribals but non-middle class, Second level- middles class, Periphery tribals and lower castes.
Even the interaction between tribals and non-tribals traders are different:
• Tribals and non tribals purely business their position in society is different so they have nothing in common except the market.
Exchange of items
• Tribals are not only sellers but buyers as well.
• Common items are not available on every day basis.
• They wait for the weekly market to buy goods.
Caste Based markets
Precolonial Period
1. Market system was quite well developed.
2. Non-market exchange money is not directly involved and barter system (exchange of goods) was in practice.
Jajmani system
• A very solid system based on heredity.
Jajmans-landlords.
Prajans-service class (goldsmith, barber, tailors).
• Jajmans paid them in kind or cash.
• The son of Prajans would serve the son of the Jajman.
• Bartar system was well developed and efficient and slow.
• Pre colonial spices, cotton (handloom), jute (exported to other countries)
• India had its own manufacturing units, very good trading networks and an extensive banking system (very different from own banking system today)
Colonial period
• Nakarattars (now called chettiars) from Tamil Nadu provide an interesting illustration of how these indigenous trading networks were organised and worked in colonial period.
• Hundi-Credit note which is given to a person from a reliable source (of three communities)
1. Trust within the kins
2. Strengthen their community, the person is given money, starts their business and repays the money
3. Caste to become well known
• Nakarattars also went to Sri Lanka and the North-East countries.

Social Organisation of market Traditional Business communities
• Vaishyas were the merchants, traders and the businessmen.
• When the British came, industries were set up and it led to ‘industrialisation’
• The British didn’t allow Indians to be the heads of the industries, but they let the merchants help them.
• After independence, the merchants took over since they were trained by the British (For example, Parsis, Bohras, Jains, Sindhis)
• The Marwaris in North areas, could be very rich or middle class or local traders.
• Everything is a business, they live very meagrely and put the rest into the business.
• Birlas, Bajaj, Dalmia
• Different communities monopolize business like salt, since they wanted only their community to prosper and to be known for a particular ownership e.g. there was more trust involved and it was heredity e.g. screwala (business of screws)
Colonialism and the Emergence of New Markets
1. Jute, Cotton, silk and spices were available before the colonial period.
— British took cotton from India, sent it to Manchester where the finished product was sent back to India.
— People began buying this cloth since it was cheaper and so the handloom industry in India collapsed.
— The machines were more productive than the manual labour.
2. India was only a manufacturer earlier, but later it became a supplier of raw material.
— Also they became consumers since goods came from Britain too.
— During colonialisation, the Marwaris utilized the opportunities to train themselves and after independence they took our livelihood since they knew the tricks and trade.
— During colonial rule, they acted as bankers for the Britishers with finances.
— Even today they own various business since it is hereditary (father to son).
Understanding Capitalism as a social system
• Given by Karl Marx ‘the haves’ i.e. the industrialists, businessmen and the “havenots’ i.e. the labourers, workers formed the social system in market.
• He was against a capitalistic society, the “haves’ have everything in society.
• It is the “havenots’ who work for the “haves’ and are paid wages.
• He felt that the labourers were commodities (could pay for them).
• Market is not only the exchange of services which is important, but because of the inter-relationship among the people which is more important.
• According to Karl Marx, the labourers are not paid as much as they should be paid.
• There is a simple value (Profit) which is the extra value in terms of the wages paid to the labourers in proportion to the work.
Commodification
• Any item which did not have monetary value before and is being sold e.g. organs, water, finishing school, wedding planner, agents.
Globalisation
• Interlinking local economy with global economy.
• Local —» regional —» National -» global.
• Been existing since pre-colonial times but it was very limited (trade with very few countries).
• Now the amount of trade has increased to other countries and making it a global village.
• Started in 1980’s but in 1991, India began interlinking economically with the global market through the policy of liberalisation (eco aspect of globalisation).
• Globalisation comes from all aspects (economic, social, Political, cultural, ecological, technological).
• Liberalisation is when trade barriers, tariff (tax or imports) were reduced.
• Movement of capital, people, services.
• Privatisation of PSU’s
1. Call centres-Providing services to different companies all over the world due to cheap labour and infrastructure is available (India).
2. BPO-Business Process Outsourcing.
3. Outsourcing.
• When you outsource your work to another company where infrastructure, labourer is available for being a support system.
• Other aspects of a company drat are important (security, aesthetic, housekeeping) to reduce the problem of formation of trade unions and avoid headaches.
– Production, distribution, sales, marketing of various products.
– Beneficial for both, company gets work done and the people become well known
and then attain jobs from other greater companies.
• Nasdaq is the stock exchange in Wall Street, New York
• Virtual market
• You can buy/sell stocks using the internet.
• No use of paper currency.
• Also called electronic economy.
• Satyam was the first Indian company to register with Nasdaq.
• New, York, London, Tokyo are the financial capitals.
• Pushkar Fair is the biggest casual market in India.
• Buffalo, cow, cattle are sold and bought near Ajmer, Rajasthan.
• Pushkar lake-auspicious and considered sacred, during the Karthik Purnima month of the Hindu calendar; a dip in the lake for washing away of heads and fulfilment of wishes.
• Many international tourists visit the place.
• Has a symbolic value (exchange and intermingling of culture around the world).
Liberalisation (Marketisation in free market)
• Reduction of trade barriers, tariffs.
• Movement of people, capital, services from one place to another (technology, goods).
• Economic aspect of globalisation.
• Privatisation of the PSU’s (Laissez Faire).
• Marketisation shows low produces and consumers (derived and supply) control the market forces.
• Markets are controlling the social, economic and political problems of the country.
• Making it more globalised.
• The member of disadvantages are more than the advantages but globalisation is here to stay for the development of the country.
• More efficiency, more competition helps to reach maximum potential and improve quality.
• Some industries get benefit from this (fruits, automobiles).
• Support price and subsidies should not be given.
Disadvantages of Liberalisation
1. There are some sectors which have (IT, seafood, fruits) increased in exports.
Electronic goods and automobiles have come down since foreign goods are of better quality.
2. In rural areas one family faces a lot of competition from the foreign families.
-» Variety of fruits, support price, subsidies
Advantages of liberalisation
1. Commodities which were not available to us earlier are available now.
2. Privatisation-better efficiency and quality, due to competition.
3. Foreign investment and foreign exchange coming into the country, therefore, there is prosperity, growth-and development.
4. Increased employment for skilled labourers.
• Support Price: The government gives to the families at a certain price which is much less than the normal price.
• Subsidies: When the government reduces the price and gives it to people at a low price e.g. Kerosene oil, rice, water, electricity.
-> The deficit or difference in the price is paid by the government.
In rural society, support price means the government fixes a particular rate by which they buy the products from the farmers e.g. if 1 kg wheat is for Rs. 40 and it goes up to Rs.70, the government will still buy it for Rs. 40.
—> Liberalisation says subsidies and support price should not be given by the government. Especially hybrid seeds, fertilizers and insecticides.
Why?
—> Unemployment has gone up for the unskilled labourers, increases in the unorganized sector in India 70% are in the unorganized sector.

Words That Matter:
1. Capital: An accumulated fund of invertible resources capital such as to grow, to add to itself this in the process of accumulation.
2. Capitalism: A system of commodity production, or production for the market, through the use of wage labour.
3. Class: An economic grouping based on common or similar position in the social relation of production, levels of income and wealth, lifestyle and political preferences.
4. Commodification: The transformation of a non-commodity (i.e., something that is not bought and sold for money in a market) into a commodity.
5. Commodity: A good or service that may be bought or sold in the market.
6. Commodity fetishism: A condition under which social relation become expressed as relations being things.
7. Consumption: Final use of goods and services by people who have purchased them (consumers).
8. Economic anthropology: A subfield of socio-cultural anthropology that studies the entire range of economics and cultures found in the prehistoric, historic and ethnographic records, especially non-market economic systems.
9. Globalisation: A complex process of economic, social, technological, cultural and political changes that have increased the interdependence, integration and interaction among people and economic actors (companies) in desperate locations.
10. Jajmani System: Non-market exchange of produce, goods and services within the (North) Indian village without the use of money, based on the caste system and customary practices.
11. Labour power: Capacity for labour; the mental and physical capabilities of human beings that are used in the process of production. (As different from labour, which is work performed).
12. Laissez Faire: An economic philosophy that advocates free market system and minimal government intervention in economic matters.
13. Liberalisation: The process whereby state controls over economic activity are relaxed
and left to the market forces to decide the general process of making laws more liberal or permissive.
14. Marketisation: The use of market based solution to solve social, political or economic problems.
15. Market: A situation where through the medium of money transactions of buying and selling of things are decided between the buyers and sellers.
16. Stock Market: A market for stocks or shares in companies. It is the place or mechanism for buying and selling of such shares.
17. Surplus values: Increase in the value of investment or return of capital.
18. Virtual market: A market that exists electronically and conducts transactions via computers Telecommunication media. It is also known as paperless market.

Social Institutions: Continuity and Change class 12 Notes Sociology

Facts that Matter

I. Caste
The term is derived from the Portuguese word ‘casta’ which means pure breed. In other words it also means a group/community of people. The word refers to a broad institutional arrangement that in Indian languages (beginning with the ancient Sanskrit) is referred to by two distinct terms, varna and jati.

	Caste		Varna
(1)	Closed system	(1)	Open system
(2)	Post vedic period	(2)	Vedic Period
(3)	3000 castes and sub castes	(3)	Four Varnas
(4)	No social mobility	(4)	Social mobility present
(5)	Very rigid	(5)	Not rigid

Varna, literally ‘colour’, is the name given to a four-fold division of society into brahmana, kshatriya, vaishya and shudra, though this excludes a significant section of the population composed of the ‘outcastes’, foreigners, slaves, conquered peoples and others, sometimes referred to as the panchamas or fifth category.

Jati is a generic term referring to species or kinds of anything, ranging from inanimate objects to plants, animals and human beings. Jati is the word most commonly used to refer to the institution of caste in Indian languages, though it is interesting to note that, increasingly, Indian language speakers are beginning to use the English word ‘caste’.

Features

1. Ascribed status: determined by birth, you are born into your status, no choice, permanent.
2. Hierarchical of rank and status

3. Strict rules about marriage: Membership in a caste involves strict rules about marriage. Caste groups are “endogamous”, i.e. marriage is restricted to members of the group.

4. Rules about food and food-sharing: What kinds of food may or may not be eaten is prescribed and who one may share food with is also specified.”

5. Segmental organisation: Castes also involve sub-divisions within themselves, i.e., castes almost always have sub-castes and sometimes sub-castes may also have sub-sub-castes. This is referred to as a segmental organisation.

6. Occupation: Brahmins were meant to be priests, teacher, kshatriyas were meant to be warriors, vaishyas were meant to be businessmen or traders, shudras were meant to serve the rest and do all the dirty work. There was no mobility in terms of occupation.

Principles of Caste
1. Differentiation and Separation: Separation in each caste is distinct by itself and has its
own rules and regulations:
• Ascribed status
• Occupation
• Concept of communality
• Endogamous marriage
• Concept of pollution and purity
2. Wholism and Hierarchy: Each caste is dependent on the other caste system rather than egalitarian system. Each caste has its place in the hierarchical system.
• Each caste also has its own occupation, but there was no social mobility.
• Hierarchical system
• Concept of pollution and purity
• Segmental division

Caste and Colonialism
• When the British came to India, they were shocked by two things:
(i) Untouchability (ii) The number of sub-castes
• They decided to take some initiatives:
(i) Census: To make sure of number and sizes of the castes and sub-castes.
(ii) They wanted to know the values, beliefs, customs, etc of different sections of society. (iii) Land settlements
• There were three types:
(i) Zamindari: The zamindars/landlords were appointed to collect tax on behalf of the British. However they exploited the farmers and collected more tax than required.

(ii) Ryatwari: They saw that there was a lot of exploitation in the zamindari system.
The head of the family collected revenue from the members, this ensures much less exploitation from the zamindari system.
(iii) Mahalwari: Each village was appointed a head who collected taxes from the villagers and this also ensured much less exploitation than the zamindari system.
• Government of India Act of 1935: They used the term ‘Scheduled caste’ and ‘Scheduled Tribes’ and they felt that these people should be looked after.

Caste System and Freedom Struggle
• Everyone came together, including the lower caste people (untouchables)

• Names used for the lower caste: Shudras ~untouchables~ harijans -e schedule castes Harijan.
• Many people fought for the upliftment of the Harijan and made it part of the national movement.
e.g. Mahatma Gandhi (Brahmin), BR Ambedkar (Dalit), and Jyotiba Phule (Dalit)

Gandhi’s views
• Harijans should not be ill-treated which includes removal of untouchability and other
social evils.
• Upliftment of Harijans was required.
• Even when Harijans are uplifted, the rights and superiority of the Brahmins will remain.
• They should be included in the national movement.

Caste in Contemporary India
• Abolition of untouchability: The implementation of Article 17 was difficult initially because of upper caste people protest.
• Constitution: People should be given jobs without considering castes etc, it should be based on achievements. Now there are reservation for SCs and STs therefore successful SCs and STs become a part of the mainstream leading to the upliftment of the SCs and STs.
• In urban areas, industries were encouraged and job opportunities were given to people irrespective of their caste and based on their skill and qualification.
• However, till today in small areas etc, people still offer jobs based on ones caste e.g. in BSP of Ms Mayawati there are 80% dalits.
• Two aspects where caste is still important
Marriage– rural areas – honour killings for inter-caste marriage, urban areas – inter caste marriages now accepted.
Politics-reservation in educational systems, parties etc. It is also called politicisation of caste.
Sanskritisation
When the lower caste tries to copy/imitate, model of the upper caste, without changing their caste.
Advantage
• Better standard of living.
• Improve social status of everyone.
• The gap between upper caste and lower caste is reduced.
Disadvantage
• Their culture gets eroded.
• They automatically become inferior because they copy them.
• Copy practices such as dowry which declines the position of women.
• It is a positional change, not a structural change.
• People look down to people of their own caste of copying others.
How do they copy?
• Tribals give up eating non-veg and give up drinking alcohol. They thought by giving up their practices, people would consider them of a higher caste/status/ position.

Dominant Caste
• After independence there was the zamindari system where the zamindar’s land was
sold off to marginal, small and/or landless farmers due to the Land Ceiling Act.
• The zamindars thus sold off their land to work in the industries.
• Thus the middle/medium landowners acquired the land.
• So they had social, political and economic power.
• These people comprised of the dominant caste.
• Even some shudras got land.
For example-
Yadavas – Bihar
Jats – Haryana, Punjab
Reddys and Khammans Arunachal Pradesh

Upper Caste
• Caste is invisible.
• Achieved status is given more importance than the ascribed status.
• Life chances are better.
• Education also plays a very important role.
• Had resources available (technological and educational).
• Qualifications will be considered.
Lower Caste
• Caste is visible.
• For education there is reservations and it leads to upliftment of the castes.
• In rural areas especially in occupation more importance is given to ascribed status.
• The lower castes take advantages of reservations using caste to push themselves forward.
• They did not have life clauses before but now they use their caste to power themselves.

Tribal Community
• The total population of tribes in India is 8.2%.
• They are also called Janjatis, Adivasis (first inhabitants of our planet), vanjatis and Harijans.
• Have hierarchy but have an egalitarian society.
• Share same name, language, area, occupation, culture e.g. Gonds, Santhals, Gujjars.
• Isolated community are trying to get them into mainstream.

Classification of Tribal Societies In terms of positive characteristics, tribes have been classified according to their ‘permanent’ and ‘acquired’ traits.

Permanent Traits include region, language, physical characteristics and ecological habitat.

In terms of population

1. The tribal population of India is widely dispersed, but there are also concentrations in certain regions.
2. 85% in ‘middle India’, from Gujarat and Rajasthan in the west to West Bengal and Orissa in the east, with Madhya Pradesh, Jharkhand, Chattisgarh and parts of Maharashtra and Andhra Pradesh forming the heart of this region.
3. Over 11% is in the North Eastern states
4. 3% living in the rest of India. I
5. The North Eastern states have the highest concentrations, with all states except Assam having concentrations of more than 30%
6. States like Arunachal Pradesh, Meghalaya, Mizoram and Nagaland has more than 60% and upto 95% of tribal population.
7. In the rest of the country, however, the tribal population is very small, being less than 12% in all states except Orissa and Madhya Pradesh.
8. The ecological habitats covered includes hills, forests, rural plains and urban industrial areas.”

In terms of language

1. Categorised into four categories.
2. Two of them, Indo-Aryan and Dravidian, are shared by the rest of the Indian population as well, and tribes account for only about 1% of the former and about 3% of the latter.
3. The other two language groups, the Austric and Tibeto-Burman, are primarily spoken by tribals, who account for all of the first and over 80% of the second group.

In terms of physical-racial terms

1. Classified under the Negrito, Australoid, Mongoloid, Dravidian and Aryan categories.
2. The last two are shared with the rest of the population of India.

In terms of size

1. Vary a great deal, ranging from about seven million to some Andamanese islanders who may number less than a hundred persons.
2. The biggest tribes are the Gonds, Bhils, Santhals, Oraons, Minas, Bodos and Mundas, all of whom are at least a million strong.
3. The total population of tribes amounts to about 8.2% of the population of India, or about 84 million persons according to the 2001 Census.

Acquired Traits

1. Classifications based on acquired traits use two main criteria – mode of livelihood, and extent of incorporation into Hindu society – or a combination of the two.
2. On the basis of livelihood, tribes can be categorised into fishermen, food gatherers and hunters, shifting cultivators, peasants and plantation and industrial workers.
3. The dominant classification both in academic sociology as well as in politics and public affairs is the degree of assimilation into Hindu society.
4. Assimilation can be seen either from the point of view of the tribes, or (as has been most often the case) from the point of view of the dominant Hindu mainstream.
5. From the tribe’s point of view, apart from the extent of assimilation, attitude towards Hindu society is also a major criterion, with differentiation between tribes that are positively inclined towards Hinduism and those who resist or oppose it.
6. From the mainstream point of view, tribes may be viewed in terms of the status accorded to them in Hindu society, ranging from the high status given to some, to the generally low status accorded to most.

Integration towards the mainstream.
• Tribal point of view
~ They want to be part of non-tribals due to reservations, better opportunities so that their status gets uplifted.

They didn’t want to be Part of non tribals because they didn’t want to lose their identity and wanted to be isolated didn’t want to lose their culture.

Tribal elite-upliftment of status, educated gained a position and are treated very well.
Others who are not as high casual laboures are treated badly.
Give respect to skilled and don’t respect the unskilled.

	Caste		Tribes
(1)	All India character	(1)	Different tribes in different geographical
(2)	Do not have a particular name	(2)	Have their own nature
(3)	Don’t have their own religion	(3)	Have their own religion totemism,
(4)	Hierarchical Society	(4)	Egalitarian society
(5)	Occupation based on ascribed Status	(5)	Occupation based on geographical

Criticism:
The definition of tribals is criticized, since they should not be isolated.
• They are part of our country and should be mixed with the large population.
• Castes are doing tribal occupation and tribals are doing caste occupation.
• We have Hindus who are fishermen.
Tribals-Not Always in Isolation
They were not always isolated, but when the British came, they exploited tribals.
• The tribals came up with a name ‘tribalism’.
• They have been part of many kingdoms like the Gonds and they had a very important role in Madhya Pradesh.
• In Rajasthan, many tribals were a part of the Rajput and they were a part of military set up.
• They were traders in salt.
• During British rule, they lost their status and became casual labours in plantations and people exploited them.
• Tribalism is when the tribal are by themselves live in isolation to say that they are different from the non-tribal.

Mainstream Attitudes Towards Tribes

Socio-Economic and Political
• Forests were cleared to build roads, life of tribals changed drastically (went through the forests).
• Money lenders gave money to tribal and charged huge rates of interest.

During this period mining was introduced.

British started reserving forests for themselves when tibals protested. Exclusive reserved areas or partially reserved areas of tribals land for tribals to use.

Sociologists had two views:

1. Isolationists: Let the tribals have their privacy, but they should not be exploited by moneylenders.
2. Integrationalists: They are a part of society, integrate them and treat them as lower classes castes and give them the facilities.

Constituent Assembly
• Group of people who came together to formulate the constitution.
• It took 2 years and 11 months.
• People came from all areas and sections of society.
• A lot of case was taken about the lower caste and tribals.
• There were special plans, ‘Tribal Plans’ that spoke about giving them reservations.
• They were included in the 5 years plans.
• Integrate them through reservations and uplift their status.

National Development Vs Tribal Development
1. Building up of hydroelectric projects by cutting the forests.
• It prevents floods, generates electricity and irrigation facilities.
• Taking away land and occupation from natural habitat.
• No rehabilitation for occupation.
For example:
(i) Sardar Sarovar Dam on river Narmada (ii) Pollavaram Dam on river Godavari
2. Forests are rich in mineral resources and mining projects take place. This displaces tribals.
3. Non tribals who come in for setting up resorts, hotels for recreation disrupt life of tribals.
4. So many people come in the tribal culture get coded and diluted.
e.g. North Eastern states, Jharkhand are most affected.

Tribal Identity Today
The life of the tribals has changed tremendously because of their incorporation into mainstream. It has had an impact on all four areas social, cultural, political and economic. A lot of tribal revolts and movements have taken place in rebellion.
1. This has resulted in a few changes
• Jharkhand from Bihar founded in 2000 and managed
• Uttrakhand from UP by the tribals. (occupied all
• Chhattisgarh from MP important government post)
2. In some states in North East in Manipur and Nagaland are declared as disturbed areas.
• The main power is present with the non-tribals, thus they have violent revolts.
• The civil rights have been curtailed and tribals do not enjoy same freedom as rest of the country do not have same rights.
• The political situation of the newly formed states is still not in the control of the tribals.

• This is because the non tribals are more politically powerful, knowledgeable and still in control.

• The tribals do not have any political experience. ‘
• Actual decisions are taken by the non-tribals, central government.
3. A new educated middle class of tribals has emerged today.
• Because of reservation, they have been educated.
• The job opportunities have increased, improved standard of living, status improved.
• This tribal elite influenced the lower class tribals to educate themselves.
• They are creating awareness among the tribal community, occupying jobs.
• Assertion of tribal identity is on the rise. Because the tribals are being educated they want to be part of the development taking place in their areas.
• They want control over all aspects of life (social, economic, political and cultural).
At the same time, they want to maintain their tribal identity, their culture.
• They want to develop a ‘tribal consciousness’.

Family and Kinship

Family
• A group of people who are related to each other either legally (by marriage) or biologically (by blood).
• A unit of people living together as sanctioned by society.
Bond of togetherness, security and a sense of sacrifice, belongingness. It is a universal and permanent relationship.
Kinship
A person related to the other biologically or legally. – Biologically (blood)-consanguineous e.g. parents.
– Legally (marriage)-allinal e.g. spouse in laws
Classification of Family
• Size
1. Nuclear – small family (Parents and children)
2. Joint – 2 or 3 generations live together
3. Extended – 2 or more siblings live together with their families.
• Residence
1. Patrilocal – after marriage girl goes to boys house.
2. Matrilocal – after marriage boy goes to girls house.
3. Neolocal – couple sets up their own house.

• Descent
1. Patrilineal
– Males surname is adopted.
– Lineage is traced through the father.
– Property is inherited by the males.
2. Matrilineal
– Mother’s surname is used.
– Lineage is traced through the mother.
– Property is inherited by the females.
3. Bilinear
– Property is shared.
– Movable property goes to girl (the jewellery and money).
– Immovable property goes to the boy (land, house).
The Diverse Forms of the Family
1. Patriarchal
Power and authority is with the male who makes all the important decisions.
2. Matriarchal
Power and authority is given to the female of the house.
Matrilineal and Matriarchal Society is found in Meghalaya-Khasi, Jaintia, Garo tribes
Kerala – Nayyar family
• Property goes from mother to daughter inheritance (mother to daughter) control (uncle to nephew)

Matriarchy – unlike patriarchy – has been a theoretical rather than an empirical concept. There is no historical or anthropological evidence of matriarchy – i.e., societies where women exercise dominance. However, there do exist matrilineal societies, i.e., societies where women inherit property from their mothers but do not exercise control over it, nor are they the decision makers in public affairs.

Contradictions in matrilineal systems

1. Arises from the separation of the line of descent and inheritance on the one hand and the structure of authority and control on the other.
2. The former, which links the mother to the daughter, comes in conflict with the latter, which links the mother’s brother to the sister’s son.
3. A woman inherits property from her mother and passes it on to her daughter, while a man controls his sister’s property and passes on control to his sister’s son.
4. Thus, inheritance passes from mother to daughter whereas control passes from (maternal) uncle to nephew.

Intense role conflcit in the Khasi matriliny system

1. Generates intense role conflict for men. They are torn between their responsibilities to their natal house on the one hand, and to their wife and children on the other.
2. The strain generated by such role conflict affects Khasi women more intensely. A woman can never be fully assured that her husband does not find his sister’s house a more congenial place than her own.
3. Similarly a sister will be apprehensive about her brother’s commitment to her welfare because the wife with whom he lives can always pull him away from his responsibilities to his natal house.
4. The women are more adversely affected than men by the role conflict generated in the Khasi matrilineal system not only because men wield power and women are deprived of it, but also because the system is more lenient to men when there is a transgression of rules.
5. Women possess only token authority in Khasi society; it is men who are the defacto power holders. The system is indeed weighted in favour of male matri-kin rather than male patri-kin.
6. In other words, despite matriliny, men are the power holders in Khasi society; the only difference is that a man’s relatives on his mother’s side matter more than his relatives on his father’s side.

Class 12 Sociology Quick Revision notes Chapter 2 Demographic Structure and Indian Society

Facts that Matter

• Demography is the systematic study of the population of a country, area, community, etc. The term is of Greek origin and is composed of the two words, demos (people) and graphein (describe).
• Demography studies the trends and processes associated with population including – changes in population size; patterns of births, deaths, and migration; and the structure and composition of the population, such as the relative proportions of women, men and different age groups.
• There are two types of demography:
  1. Formal Demography: statistical analysis of population i.e., total population, number of males, number of females, number of youth, working population, rural urban (quantitative data)
  2. Social Demography: birth rate, death rate and migration that happens in a particular society.
• All demographic studies are based on processes of counting or enumeration – such as the census or the survey – which involve the systematic collection of data on the people residing within a specified territory
• Demography is a field that is of special importance to sociology:
  1. The emergence of sociology and its successful establishment as an academic discipline owed a lot to demography.
  2. Two different processes happened to take place at roughly the same time in Europe during the latter half of the eighteenth century – the formation of nation-states as the principal form of political organisation, and the beginnings of the modern science of statistics.
  3. The modern state had begun to expand its role and functions. It had, for instance, begun to take an active interest in the development of early forms of public health management, policing and maintenance of law and order, economic policies relating to agriculture and industry, taxation and revenue generation and the governance of cities
• Demographic data are important for the planning and implementation of state policies, specially those for economic development and general public welfare.
• Social statistics, when they first emerged, also provided a strong justification for the new discipline of sociology. Aggregate statistics – or the numerical characteristics that refer to a large collectivity consisting of millions of people – offer a concrete and strong argument for the existence of social phenomena.
• Distinction between formal demography and a broader field of population studies (social demography)
  • Formal demography is primarily concerned with the measurement and analysis of the components of population change. Its focus is on quantitative analysis for which it has a highly developed mathematical methodology suitable for forecasting population growth and changes in the composition of population.
  • Population studies or social demography, on the other hand, enquires into the wider causes and consequences of population structures and change. Social demographers believe that social processes and structures regulate demographic processes; like sociologists, they seek to trace the social reasons that account for population trends.
• The Malthusian Theories of Population Growth
  • Malthusian Theory was propounded by Sir Thomas Robert Malthus.
  • He argued that human populations tend to grow at a much faster rate than the rate at which the means of human subsistence (specially food, but also clothing and other agriculture-based products) can grow. Therefore humanity is condemned to live in poverty forever.
  • While population rises in geometric progression (i.e., like 2, 4, 8, 16, 32 etc.), agricultural production can only grow in arithmetic progression (i.e., like 2, 4, 6, 8, 10 etc.).
  • The only way to increase prosperity is by controlling the growth of population. He identified two ways of controlling population growth, positive check and preventive check. Positive check: Natural disasters cause many people die and the population is naturally controlled. If one doesn’t take care of themselves nature will take care of them e.g. earthquakes, tsunami. Preventive check: Man made e.g. late marriage, celibacy, contraceptives etc.
• Criticism of Malthusian Theory
  • Malthu’s theory was challenged by theorists who claimed that economic growth could outstrip population growth.
  • The most effective refutation of his theory was provided by the historical experience of European countries.
  • The pattern of population growth began to change in the latter half of nineteenth century, and by the end of the first quarter of the twentieth century these changes were quite dramatic.
  • Birth rates had declined, and outbreaks of epidemic diseases were being controlled.
  • Malthus’s predictions were proved false because both food production and standards of living continued to rise despite the rapid growth of population.
  • Malthus was also criticised by liberal and Marxist scholars for asserting that poverty was caused by population growth.
  • The critics argued that problems like poverty and starvation were caused by the unequal distribution of economic resources rather than by population growth.
  • An unjust social system allowed a wealthy and privileged minority to live in luxury while the vast majority of the people were forced to live in poverty.
• Theory of Demographic Transition
  • Population growth is linked to overall levels of economic development and that every society follows a typical pattern of development-related population growth.
  • There are three basic phases of population growth-
    1. Primitive Stage-underdeveloped countries (Africa).
    2. Second Stage-developing countries (India, Pakistan) stage of transition-» countries are moving from underdeveloped to developed.
    3. Third Stage-Developed countries (USA, UK).Underdeveloped Countries (stage 1)
    • Birth rate is high since people are unaware of the advantages of having small families, they are not educated.
    • Death rate is also high since health and medical facilities are not available. Therefore population is low.Developing Countries (stage 2)
    • Birth rate is high as we live in a patriarchal society where men decide how many children must be born and male child is preferred.
    • Illiteracy and people are ignorant.
    • Death rate is also low since health and medical facilities are available. Therefore population is high and results in population explosion.
    • Demographic Dividend when the working population increases more than the non working population.
    Developed Countries (stage 3)
    • Birth rate is low, people are educated and aware and use contraceptives, birth control is popularised.
    • Death rate is also low because of availability of health and medical facilities. Therefore population is low.
    Population Explosion: When the birth rate of a country is high and the death rate is low because of availability of health and medical facilities.
    Therefore population is exploding, increasing.
• Common Concepts of Population

1. Birth Rate: Number of live births per thousand population.
2. Death Rate: Number of deaths per thousand population. Also called mortality rate.
3. Rate of natural increase: Difference between birth rate and death rate in an area.
4. Replacement Level: Present generation replaces the previous/older generation.
5. Zero level: Replacement is same. Same number of people replace same number of older generation called stabilised level (parents replaced by 2 children).
6. Negative level: Number of people replacing older generation are less (parents replaced by child).
7. Population explosion: Number of people replacing the older generation is more. Working population is more than the dependent population.
8. Fertility Rate: Number of live births between the age of 15-49 yrs per thousand women.
9. Total Fertility Rate: Number of women who give birth to children in a particular area at a particular age (15-49 yrs)
10. Infant Mortality Rate: Number of infants who have died below the age of 1 per thousand live births.
11. Maternal Mortality Rate: Number of women who die during child birth per thousand population.
12. Life expectancy Rate: Number of years that one is expected to live as determined by statistics may be individually qualified by the person’s condition, race, sex, age or other demographic factors.
13. Sex Ratio: Number of females per thousands males.
14. Age structure: The structure of the population in terms of age (in India 0-15 = youth, 15-65 = Working population, above 64 years = dependent population)
15. Dependency Ratio: The number of people who are not working and are dependent on the working population. Ratio of the dependent population to the working population is higher.
16. Demographic Dividend: When the working population in a country is more than the dependent/non working population. Positive: Economic growth for the country although it is a temporary phase.

Size and Growth of India’s Population
• Today the population of India is very high but it has not always been high. Growth has been up and down.
Causes:
(a) Epidemics
(b) Natural Disasters/Famine
• Epidemics: Disease which is widespread and affects lakhs of people in a large area.
For example, during the World War there spread the Spanish influenza. It affects the throat and cavity and you choke and die. It is believed to have killed more people than any war.
• It spreads very fast and is contagious because: (i) Sanitation conditions were very bad.
(ii) Medical facilities were low.
(iii) Soldiers moved from place to place and spread it, (iv) Chemical explosion/fumes in the air.
• They are less common now because (a) Better medical facilities.
(b) There are vaccinations.
(c) Sanitary conditions have been improved. (d) Awareness of people have increased.
• In India we still have some epidemics like swine flu, chickenguniya, plague, malaria etc.
• Famine: There is scarcity of food, shortage of food supply and production.
It is of two types
1. Natural: excessive rainfall, no rainfall, drought.
2. Manmade: excessive use of pesticides and fertilizers, lack of transport and communication facilities, distribution of grain by government is not sufficient and proper preventive method should be taken.
• Dr. Amartya Sen, “It is not necessary that famine is due to lack of food grain but it could be due to lack of efficient distribution, failure of entitlements and inability of people to buy or otherwise obtain food.”
It can be controlled by
(i) Efficient distribution of food grains by improving transportation and community.
(ii) Green Revolution has increased the supply of food grains despite varying amounts of rainfall.
(iii) Medical facilities- If an area is experiencing famine, the government takes caution/ measures to see that the people are given help.
• NREGA-National Rural Employment Guarantee Act: Takes care to see that everyone is employed so that if there is a famine they can move somewhere else and buy food.
Total Fertility Rate
– When the birth rate is high and death rate is low it results in population explosion.
– In a country birth rate is still high because of :
(i) Mindset of people (ii) Desire for male child (iii) Patrilineal society
Replacement Level
• Kerala and Tamil Nadu: Zero/stabilised level due to literacy.
• Uttar Pradesh: Very high replacement level (4:1); it can be good increase in youth population.
Low Fertility Rate
• Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, Himachal Pradesh, West Bengal, Kerala, Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh (Mostly northern states due to desire for male child).
Age Structure of Indian Population
• 0-15 years – Youth Population
• 15-64 years – Working Population
• Above 64 years – Old/Retired Population
• Demographic Dividend: Working population is higher than the non-working population.
• Kerala: Good age structure ~ increase in working population, the literacy rate is very high, so they are educated about economic growth.
• Uttar Pradesh: Increase in working population because of large working youth population, decreasing aged population.
• Demographic Dividend can be maintained by better education, awareness etc.
Advantage-current working population is large and it has a relatively small aged population to support.
The Declining Sex Ratio in India
• Number of females per thousand males of a population.
• Child sex ratio-Number of girls per thousand boys.
• Sex ratio has always been a concern in India.
Reasons for declining sex ratio: (i) Mindset of the people
(i) Neglect of girl child
(ii) Female foeticide/infanticide
(iii) Maternal mortality rates-women die during child birth.
• The child sex ratio is still very scary as there is a drastic fall.
• Prosperous states such as Punjab and Haryana have maximum female infanticide and down with burning because
Dowry is very high and parents want to save money.
People want only 2 or 3 boys, therefore when they get a girl, they kill it and have a
boy.
• Sonography: to know the sex of the child.
• The Pre Natal Diagnostic Technique Act/Regulation and Prevention of Misuse Act which came up in 1996 and was later enforced in 2003.
• This does not allow the sex of the child to be known.
Literacy
• Literacy is the ability to read or write.
• Education is a combination of formal and informal education.
• Kerala has the maximum literacy rate whereas Rajasthan and Northern states have low literacy rate.
• There are three categories:
(i) Gender: more males are literate to females but it is becoming higher.
(ii) Social Group: higher income families have more literacy level than those with lower income families. Government is trying to bridge the gap through reservation for SC’s and ST’s.
(iii) Regions: Kerala has high literacy level as compared to Rajasthan, Bihar which have low literacy level.
Rural-Urban Differences
• There is migration from rural areas to urban areas as there are better job opportunities etc.
• 68.8% of our population still lives in rural areas.
• Though agriculture is the main activity in rural areas, there are many non agricultural activities, such as post office, teaching, small businesses, transport and communication.
• Reasons for migration from rural to urban areas:
Mass media is responsible for making the rural area aware of the urban area and one of the causes of migration from rural to urban.
Many resources of the rural areas is being taken away. Such as rivers drying up, I
land due to construction is making them move to urban areas. ‘
In urban areas there is anonymity and no one cares about caste etc.
People who are not educated can pick up any job they like in urban areas.
• Metropolis: City with infrastructure and the suburbs are different.
• Megapolis: City with infrastructure and the suburbs are included, for example, NCR.
Population Policy of India
• In 1952 the National Family Planning Programme (NFPP) was introduced.
• It tried to influence the rate and pattern of population in socially desirable direction.
• Its objectives were:
Population should be controlled and awareness should be spread in a way which is socially desirable.
Control the birth/reduce birth rate through birth control methods.
• During emergency by Indira Gandhi (1975-76) All fundamental rights are taken away. Press was censored.
Anybody could be put in jail without a trial.
Mass sterilization programme was introduced by Sanjay Gandhi, the younger son of the then prime minister of India Mrs. Indira Gandhi to control population.
In this tubectomy was performed for women and vasectomy for men was conducted in a very haphazard manner.
All government teachers, doctors were under a lot of stress due to the mass sterilization camp.
It was renewed as National Family Welfare Programme (NFWP).
In this people could only be sterilized if the people agree to do it and their signature was needed

Class 12 Sociology Quick Revision notes Chapter 1 Introducing Indian Society

Facts that Matter

• Prior knowledge or familiarity with society is both an advantage and a disadvantage for sociology, the discipline that studies society. The advantage is that students are generally not afraid of Sociology-they feel that it can’t be a very hard subject to learn.
• The disadvantage is that this prior knowledge can be a problem. In order to learn Sociology, we need to “unlearn” what we already know about society.
• Sociology offers to teach us how to see the world from many vantage points – not just our own, but also that of others unlike ourselves.
• Understanding Indian society and its structure provides a sort of social map on which you could locate yourself, like with a geographical map, locating oneself on a social map.
• Sociology can do more than simply help to locate you or others in this simple sense of describing the places of different social groups.
• Sociology can help to map the links and connections between “personal troubles” and “social issues”. By personal troubles Mills means the kinds of individual worries, problems or concerns that everyone has.
• The “generation gap” or friction between older and younger generations is a social phenomenon, common to many societies and many time periods. Unemployment or the effects of a changing occupational structure is also a societal issue, that concerns millions of different kinds of people.
• A sociological perspective teaches you how to draw social maps.
• The economic, political and administrative unification of India under colonial rule was achieved at great expense. Colonial exploitation and domination scared Indian society in many ways. But paradoxically, colonialism also gave birth to its own enemy¬nationalism.
• Historically, an Indian nationalism took shape under British colonialism. The shared experience of colonial domination helped unify and energise different sections of the community.
• Colonialism created new classes and communities which came to play significant roles in subsequent history.
• Indian society is a pluralistic society. Full of diversities of language, region, religion, caste and customs, Indian society is moving towards the modernization.
• The main values of Indian modernization model are-Socialism, Imperialism, Nationalism, Secularism, Industrialism, Democracy, Individual Freedom and Fundamental Rights.
• The establishment of democracy in India that rests on the principles of equality, freedom and universal franchise, changed the traditional structure of Indian society.
• A new awareness had emerged during the colonial period itself. During this period while all Indians came together for a common cause, various social, economic, political and administrative changes took place as a result of modernization and capitalistic forces.
• Various processes of change got activated during the British period. Some of these processes were completely external while some were internal. The external processes include Westernization, Modernization, Secularization, Industrialization and others; while Sanskritization and Urbanization were internal processes. The inception of modernization and westernization is the consequence of our contact with Britain.
• Mechanical techniques in production, market system in trade, development of means of transport and communication, concept of civil service based on bureaucracy, formal and written law, modem military organization and trained separate legal system and modem formal education system were important steps that prepared the background for modernization.
• British colonialists were taking steps to protect their own interests.
• Tradition and modernity in the Indian society caused various problems for Indian sociefy.
• Raja Ram Mohan Roy, Ishwar Chandra Vidyasagar, Keshav Chandra Sen, Dayanand Saraswati, Ranade, Tilak and Gandhi are some of the prominent names associated with the reform movement to eradicate social evils like Sati System, Restrictions of Widow Remarriage, and Untouchability.
• Since sociology in India had not developed systematically at that time, they portrayed the Indian villages from the British point of view of British policies.
• Villages are the pillars of Indian society and Indian culture. For the same reason even the East India Company had considered the study of Indian villages.
• The first study of Indian society was presented by B H Baden Powell in 1892 in his book.
• The Indian Village Community. After World War I, the poverty in Indian villages and the Indian national movement for freedom also attracted the attention of many scholars towards the villages.
• Sir Charles Metcalfe, Sir George Woodward, Baden Powell and Francis Buchanan prepared a detailed report after conducting a study and survey of various villages and cities of Madras, Mysore, Bihar etc. on behalf of the East India Company. Subsequently, Herbert Risley, D Abbatson, C B Lucas, W George Briggs and William Crook tried to understand the Indian rural problems.
• The middle class emerged after receiving western education and the same middle class challenged the colonial rule.
• Various social and cultural communities were organized at the regional and national levels that tried to save the Indian culture and traditions. Because of colonialism new classes and communities emerged that played an important role in history later on. The urban middle class sounded the bugle of nationalism and initiated the movement of India’s freedom.
• Sociology teaches self reflexivity viz. an ability to reflect upon yourself to tum-back or do introspection. It should be quick to criticize and slow to praise oneself.
• A comparable social map understood through introspection tells one’s location in the society.
• Sociology tells kinds of groups or groping existed in the society in its wider import i.e. nation, relationships to each-other and its meaning in terms of one’s own life.
• Sociology helps in mapping the links and connections between personal troubles and social issues. Personal troubles consist of individual worries, problems or concerns while social issues consist generation gap, unemployment. Communalism, casteism, gender inequalities etc.