Class 10 Social Science — Chapter 1: Power-sharing

What you'll learn

• ▸Ethnic Composition and Tensions in Belgium
• ▸Ethnic Composition and Conflict in Sri Lanka
• ▸Majoritarianism in Sri Lanka
• ▸The Belgian Model of Accommodation
• ▸Prudential Reasons for Power-Sharing
• ▸Moral Reasons for Power-Sharing
• ▸Forms of Power-Sharing

Chapter Summary

--- PAGE 1 --- Power-sharing Overview With this chapter, we resume the tour of democracy that we started last year. We noted last year that in a democracy all power does not rest with any one organ of the government. An intelligent sharing of power among legislature, executive and judiciary is very important to the design of a democracy. In this and the next two chapters, we carry this idea of power-sharing forward. We start with two stories from Belgium and Sri Lanka. Both these stories are about how democracies handle demands for power-sharing. The stories yield some general conclusions about the need for power-sharing in democracy. This allows us to discuss various forms of power-sharing that will be taken up in the following two chapters. not to be republished Chapter I Power-sharing 1 Reprint 2025-26 --- PAGE 2 --- Belgium and Sri Lanka Belgium is a small country in Europe, smaller in area than the state of Haryana. It has borders with France, the Netherlands, Germany and Lu…

Practice Questions from this Chapter

Tap "Get Solution" on any question to ask our AI tutor.

1. Explain types of power-sharing. Get Solution →
2. Compare Belgium's governance model. Get Solution →
3. Define majoritarianism simply. Get Solution →
4. What percentage of Belgium's total population lives in the Flemish region and speaks the Dutch language? Get Solution →
5. In what year did Sri Lanka emerge as an independent country? Get Solution →
6. Which language was recognized as the only official language of Sri Lanka by an Act passed in 1956? Get Solution →
7. In the capital city of Belgium, Brussels, what percentage of the population speaks French? Get Solution →
8. What is the term for a social division based on shared culture, where people believe in their common descent? Get Solution →

Did you know?

• 💡 Belgium has three official languages: Dutch, French, and German.
• 💡 Switzerland's government shares power among seven different council members.
• 💡 Papua New Guinea boasts over 800 indigenous languages, the most globally.
• 💡 The ancient Roman Republic used a system of two consuls to share executive power.
• 💡 The European Union's main administrative center is located in Brussels, Belgium.

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