Federalism Class 10 Notes | Summary, Key Concepts & PDF for CBSE SST

Federalism is an important chapter in Class 10 Political Science that explains how power is shared between different levels of government. In this chapter, students learn about the features of federalism, its implementation in India, and real-life examples. Understanding this chapter is crucial for scoring well in Social Science exams.

Also See: Top 37 Most Important MCQs on Federalism– Class 10 Political Science | CBSE

Definition of Federalism: Federalism is a system of government in which the power is divided between a central authority and various constituent units of the country.

Federation: A country following federalism, where power is shared between a central authority and constituent units.

Unitary Government: A country where central government is more powerful and other constituent units are subordinate to the central government.

Difference between federation and unitary government

UNITARY GOVERNMENT	FEDERATION
Central government holds all the power	Power is divided between central and state/provincial governments
Constituent units are subordinate to the centre	Constituent units are not subordinate to the centre
The central government makes laws for the entire country	Both central and state governments can make laws on subjects assigned to them
The central government can alter or abolish local governments	The division of power is protected by the Constitution

Features of Federalism

• There are two or more levels (or tiers) of government.
• Different tiers of government govern the same citizens, but each tier has its own jurisdiction* in specific matters of legislation, taxation and administration.
• The jurisdictions of the respective levels or tiers of government are specified in the constitution. So, the existence and authority of each tier of government is constitutionally guaranteed.
• The fundamental provisions of the constitution cannot be unilaterally changed by one level of government. Such changes require the consent of both the levels of government.
• Courts have the power to interpret the constitution and the powers of different levels of government.
• The highest court of the country resolve the disputes arise between different levels of government in the exercise of their respective powers.
• Sources of revenue for each level of government are clearly specified to ensure its financial autonomy.

Dual objectives of Federalism

• To safeguard and promote unity of the country,
• To accommodate with the regional diversity.

Two aspects of Ideal federalism

• Mutual trust
• Agreement to live together

Two types of federations

• Coming together
• Holding Together

Difference between them

Coming Together	Holding Together
Independent states come together to form a bigger country.	When one large country decides to divide its power between central and state governments.
All states share equal power with the central government.	The center usually has more power than the states.
Aim is to become stronger together	Aim is to accommodate diversity and maintain unity in a large country
E.g. USA, Switzerland, Australia	E.g. India, Belgium, Spain

What Makes India a Federal Country?

1. India has a three tier government system(Central, State and Local government). (point no. 1 in features of federalism)

2. The constitution of India provides a three-fold distribution of legislative power between the Union and State Government(Point 2 in the features of federalism). These three lists are:

Union List

• It includes subjects of national importance.
• Defense of the country, foreign affairs, banking, communications and currency.
• The Union Government alone can make laws relating to the subjects mentioned.
• Extra: THERE ARE 100 SUBJECTS IN THIS LIST (ORIGINALLY 97)

State List

• It contains subjects of State and local importance.
• Police, trade, commerce, agriculture and irrigation.
• The State Governments alone can make laws relating to the subjects mentioned in the State.
• Extra: THERE ARE 61 SUBJECTS IN THIS LIST (ORIGINALLY 66)

Concurrent List

• It includes subjects of common interest to both the Union Government as well as the State Governments
• Education, forest, trade unions, marriage, adoption and succession.
• Both the Union as well as the State Governments can make laws on the subjects mentioned in this list.
• If their laws conflict with each other, the law made by the Union Government will prevail.
• Extra: THERE ARE 52 SUBJECTS IN THIS LIST (ORIGINALLY 47)

Residuary Subjects

• Residuary subjects are those not listed in the Union, State, or Concurrent lists of the Indian Constitution, and the Parliament has the power to legislate on them. 
• These are essentially subjects that emerged after the Constitution was created, like computer software or space technology. 

3. Sharing of power between the Union Government and the State Governments is basic to the structure of the Constitution. The Parliament or the Union government cannot bring changes to this system unilaterally. It needs a two-thirds majority in the both houses. (Point 4 in the features of Federalism)

4. In case of any disputes Supreme Court, which is the highest court in the country resolves the disputes arisen related to the exercise of power among different levels of government. (Point 6 in the features of federalism)

5. We know that ‘holding together’ federations do not give equal power to its constituent units.

Some States enjoy a special status. States such as Assam, Nagaland, Arunachal Pradesh and Mizoram enjoy special powers under certain provisions of the Constitution of India due to their peculiar social and historical circumstances (Dual objectives of Federalism, accommodating with the regional diversity).

The Union and State Governments have the power to raise resources by levying taxes in order to carry on the government and the responsibilities assigned to each of them. (Point number 7)

Also See: Top 37 Most Important MCQs on Federalism– Class 10 Political Science | CBSE

How is Federalism is practiced?

Following democratic policies were adopted by the government of India which made our country a successful federation:

1. Linguistic States

• In 1947, the boundaries of several old States of India were changed in order to create new States.
• This was done to ensure that people who spoke the same language lived in the same State.
• Some States were created not on the basis of language but to recognise differences based on culture, ethnicity or geography. These include States like Nagaland, Uttarakhand and Jharkhand.

BENEFIT FROM THIS DECISION

• The formation of linguistic States made the country more united.
• It has also made administration easier.

2. Language Policy

• India did not declare any one language as the national language.
• Hindi was made the official language, but since it's the mother tongue of only about 40% of Indians, the Constitution provided safeguards for other languages.
• There are 22 scheduled languages, and candidates for central government jobs can take exams in any of them. States also use their own official languages for government work.

Unlike Sri Lanka, India adopted a flexible and cautious approach. Though the Constitution planned to phase out English in 1965, strong opposition—especially from Tamil Nadu—led to its continued use alongside Hindi. This flexibility helped maintain unity in a diverse country and avoid conflicts over language.

3. Centre-State Relations

• Initially, when the same political party ruled both the Centre and most States, States didn’t fully use their powers as independent federal units.
• When opposition parties came to power in some States, the Centre often tried to weaken them by misusing constitutional provisions — even dismissing State governments unfairly.
• A major shift happened after 1990 with the rise of regional parties and the beginning of coalition governments at the Centre.
• Since no single party could secure a majority in Lok Sabha, national parties had to work in alliances, giving more space and respect to regional parties.
• This fostered a culture of genuine power-sharing and boosted State autonomy.
• A landmark Supreme Court judgment also made it harder for the Centre to arbitrarily dismiss State governments.
• Conclusion: As a result, India’s federal structure today functions more effectively than in the early years after Independence.

Decentralisation in India

Decentralisation: When the concentrated power of the union government is distributed among different levels of government.

Importance of decentralisation

• It reduces the burden of Union government.
• It increases the participation of people in decision making.
• It helps in addressing the local problems more effectively.
• Allows for a more balanced approach for the allocation of resources based on regional priorities.

By 73rd and 74th amendment to the constitution in 1992, following steps were taken to share more power with the local governments:

Also See: Top 37 Most Important MCQs on Federalism– Class 10 Political Science | CBSE

• It is constitutionally mandatory to hold regular elections to local government bodies.
• Seats are reserved in the elected bodies and the executive heads of these institutions for the Scheduled Castes, Scheduled Tribes and Other Backward Classes.
• At least one-third of all positions are reserved for women.
• An independent institution called the State Election Commission has been created in each State to conduct panchayat and municipal elections.
• The State governments are required to share some powers and revenue with local government bodies.

Rural local government or the Panchayati Raj System.

Urban local government

• Municipalities are set up in towns.
• Big cities are constituted into municipal corporations.
• Both municipalities and municipal corporations are controlled by elected bodies consisting of people’s representatives.
• Municipal chairperson is the political head of the municipality.
• Mayor is the political head of the Municipal Corporation.

Challenges to local governments

Also See: Top 37 Most Important MCQs on Federalism– Class 10 Political Science | CBSE

• Elections are held regularly and enthusiastically, gram sabhas are not held regularly.
• Most state governments have not transferred significant powers to the local governments. Nor have they given adequate resources.

FACT: There are now about 36 lakh elected representatives in the panchayats and municipalities etc., all over the country.