NCERT Solutions for Class 9 Civics Chapter 1 – What is Democracy? Why Democracy?

Indian democracy has grown over the centuries. Various events in the past have governed this growth and expansion. NCERT Solutions for Class 9 Civics Chapter 1 contains the answers that explains the development of democracy across the world.

NCERT Class 9 Civics Chapter 1 gives us broad information about democracy, its features and objectives. You can visit the Extramarks website to access NCERT Solutions Class 9 Social Science Civics Chapter 1 related notes and solutions.

Our study material comprises detailed concept-oriented notes, noteworthy learning points, straightforward definitions and step by step guides for young learners to understand the theory easily. To ace Civics Chapter 1, you can refer to NCERT Solutions for Class 9 Civics Chapter 1.

Key Points Covered In Class 9 Civics Chapter 1 

Key topics covered in NCERT Solutions for Class 9 Civics Chapter 1.

  • 1.1 Introduction to democracy
  • 1.2 Salient features of democracy
  • 1.3 Why democracy
  • 1.4 Meaning of democracy in broader terms.

Introduction To Democracy

There are two forms of Government, a democratic form of Government and a non-democratic government. Among the prevailing forms of Government, democracy is the most established one. Democracy, as it goes by the definition, is a type of Government in which people themselves elect their rulers. To put it simply, a kind of Government that the people choose. This is seen as a common factor in all democracies.

For better understanding, let us take the example of the army rulers of Myanmar, who were not elected by the public. Those who elected the army took over the rule of the country. There was no sign of people’s participation. This is similar to dictators Like Pinochet(Chile) and the Royal Kings of Saudi Arabia, who were again not elected by the public 

Consequently, there is a need to differentiate between a government that pretends to be a democracy and a government that is a democracy.

Some famous quotations and useful thoughts put forth by renowned thinkers on democracy are cited in the NCERT Solutions for Class 9 Civics Chapter 1.

  • James Russell Lowell states that democracy gives every man the right to be his oppressor.
  • Alan Coren – Democracy consists of choosing your dictators after they’ve told you what you think it is you want to hear.
  • ‘Man’s desire for justice makes democracy possible, but man’s disposition to injustice makes democracy necessary’, quoted by Reinhold Niebuhr.
  • George Bernard Shaw expressed in his own words, ‘democracy is a device that ensures we shall be governed no better than we deserve.”
  • Al Smith stated, ‘All the ills of democracy can be cured by more democracy.’

Salient Features Of Democracy

As mentioned in NCERT Solutions for Class 9 Civics Chapter 1, democracy is a type of Government in which people elect the rulers. Here are some important features that distinguish a democratic form of Government.

  • People elect the rulers and take all the major decisions.
  • The election should be fair and just and provide an opportunity for the people to remove and replace the current rulers.
  • Every person or citizen deserves the choice and opportunity to elect their ruler equally.
  • A democratic form of Government leads the people by rules and regulations limited by the constitution and citizens’ rights.

Why Democracy?

Arguments against democracy continue to prevail. Some statements state that people can make mistakes in decisions, and therefore democracy may not be the ideal form of Government. However, democracy has proved to be advantageous over other forms of Government. Here are the summarised points in NCERT Solutions for Class 9 Civics Chapter 1.

  •  A crucial aspect of a democratic government is looking into the needs of the people. Compared to other forms of Government, democracy is better at responding to people’s needs. It takes people’s wishes into consideration. If the people don’t wish for the ruler to act accordingly, the ruler will not. A democracy requires that the ruler keeps the needs of the people in mind.
  • Another essential aspect of democracy, as stated in NCERT Solutions for Class 9 Civics Chapter 1, is that the decisions and consultations of democracy do not involve a single person but many persons who involve themselves in discussions and meetings to cater to the people. When many people come forward to put their heads together over big and important decisions, it lowers the chances of careless, inconvenient or rash decisions. A democratic government is a form of a more accountable government. Thus, we say that democracy is known to improve the quality of decision making.
  • Thirdly democracy puts up a method to deal with differences and conflicts. For instance, in Indian society, there are people with different interests and opinions. We belong to different cultures and castes, speak more than one language and practice different religions. However, contrasting preferences and differences can generally lead to conflict. 

Can this be resolved? We think of fixing this with the help of a ruthless power that will dictate its terms and conditions. Nonetheless, democracy only provides peaceful solutions to the problems of social diversity.

  • Moreover, democracy improves the dignity of the citizens by improving the quality of the Government and social life. As discussed in NCERT Solutions for Class 9 Civics Chapter 1, Democracy caters to the needs of the people. Hence, democracy is based on political equality. This recognises that the poor and the least educated have the same status as the rich, and the educated people are not subject to a ruler.
  • Democracy is superior to other forms of Government since it allows correction of its own mistakes. Mistakes are inevitable in all walks of life and can be made even by democracy. No form of Government can guarantee that it cannot make mistakes. The advantage here is that democracy can never hide its mistakes from the people. It is open to corrections. Democracy can organise Discussions to work on these mistakes. These discussions are not possible with a non-democratic government. 
  • People as well can make mistakes in electing their ruler. Democracy can also lead to frequent changes in leadership. However, keeping in mind the advantages of democracy, we can sum up that democracy takes the people’s responsibility, formulates quality decision-making, and strives toward a better future. A good democracy also allows corrections of mistakes by offering more dignity to the citizens. Thus, democracy is considered the best form of Government.

Democracy in broad terms

To understand democracy in broader terms, NCERT Solutions for Class 9 Civics Chapter 1 is a great aid. The meaning of democracy is described in detail and we can understand the minimal features that democracy must have. For more important notes, continue reading NCERT  Solutions for Class 9 Science Civics Chapter 1.

Democracy in our Times is a representative form of democracy. To understand this term better, all the people do not rule in a country of numerous people. Moreover, even the majority which elects the Government is elected by their representatives. It is necessary for two reasons. 

  • Democracy today is a collective decision involving many people, which makes it physically impossible for a large group of people to sit together and come to a decision.
  • Even if the citizens agree to come together to decide, they would face limited time or lack the skills and desire to partake in all decisions.

These features distinguish a democracy from a non-democracy but restrict us from understanding the importance of good democracy. 

To conclude, no democracy is ideal. In every democracy, making  a democratic decision requires a constant effort that strengthens decision making. 

In a democratic country citizens can make a big difference by choosing their own representatives. The country’s fate does not just depend on the rulers but mainly on its citizens. The above aspect is a distinguishable feature of democracy. We now know that democracy is different from other governments like a dictatorship, monarchy or Royal rule. A democracy depends on the political participation of all the citizens.

NCERT Solutions for Class 9 Civics Chapter 1 Exercise & Solution

For a step by step guide on the democracy chapter, you can visit the Extramarks website and refer to our NCERT Solutions Class 9 Civics Chapter 1. It consists of essential concepts such as the need for democracy, the difference between a non-democratic government and a democratic government and how democracy works in India. Students are advised to revise the complete chapter to score good marks. 

NCERT Solutions provide detailed and authentic answers to all the textbook questions. Through those, the students can understand, remember and retain answers to NCERT questions and thus, perform well in exams.

The NCERT Solutions for Class 9 Civics Chapter 1 exercise questions and answer solutions are prepared by qualified professionals. You can refer to the exercises and solutions for Class 9 Civics Chapter 1 via the below link

In addition, students can also explore NCERT Solutions for other classes below.

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By referring to Extramarks NCERT Solutions Class 9 Civics Chapter 1, students can easily understand the elements of the Chapter – What is Democracy? Why Democracy?

Key Features of NCERT Solutions for Class 9 Civics Chapter 1

NCERT Solutions Class 9 Civics Chapter 1 provides an in-depth understanding of the chapter topics. Some of the primary reasons for choosing Extramarks NCERT Solutions include:

  • Extramarks NCERT Solutions are prepared by subject matter experts having decades of teaching experience.
  • NCERT Solutions for Class 9 Civics Chapter 1 presents unique concepts in the preparation of careers such as civil services, law, journalism, marketing, research and so on.
  • All Extramarks NCERT Solutions are prepared, keeping in mind the guidelines laid by CBSE. So this allows students to prepare as per the NCERT syllabus.

Q.1 Here is some information about four countries. Based on this information, how would you classify each of these countries? Write ‘democratic’, ‘undemocratic’ or ‘not sure’ against each of these.

  1. Country A: People who do not accept the country’s official religion do not have a right to vote
  2. Country B: The same party has been winning elections for the last twenty years
  3. Country C: Ruling party has lost in the last three elections
  4. Country D: There is no independent election commission

Ans-

  1. Undemocratic
  2. Not sure
  3. Democratic
  4. Undemocratic

Q.2 Here is some information about four countries. Based on this information, how would you classify each of these countries? Write ‘democratic’, ‘undemocratic’ or ‘not sure’ against each of these.

  1. Country P: The parliament cannot pass a law about the army without the consent of the Chief of Army.
  2. Country Q: The parliament cannot pass a law reducing the powers
    of the judiciary.
  3. Country R: The country’s leaders cannot sign any treaty with another country without taking permission from its neighbouring country.
  4. Country S: All the major economic decisions about the country are taken by officials of the central bank which the ministers cannot change.

Ans-

a. Undemocratic

b. Democratic

c. Undemocratic

d. Undemocratic

Q.3 Which of these is not a good argument in favour of democracy? Why?

  1. People feel free and equal in a democracy.
  2. Democracies resolve conflict in a better way than others.
  3. Democratic government is more accountable to the people.
  4. Democracies are more prosperous than others

Ans-

d. Democracies are more prosperous than others

Reason: Democracies are not necessarily more prosperous than others. Non-democratic countries like China (single-party system) and Saudi Arabia (monarchy) are more prosperous than democratic countries like Bangladesh and India.

Q.4 Each of these statements contains a democratic and an undemocratic element. Write out the two separately for each statement.

  1. A minister said that some laws have to be passed by the parliament in order to conform to the regulations decided by the World Trade Organisation.
  2. The Election Commission ordered re-polling in a constituency where large scale rigging was reported.
  3. Women’s representation in the parliament has never reached 10 per cent. This led women’s organisations to demand one-third seats for women.

Ans-

a. Democratic element – A minister said that some laws have to be passed by the parliament
Undemocratic element – In order to conform to the regulations decided by the World Trade Organization.
b. Democratic element – The Election Commission ordered re-polling in a constituency
Undemocratic element – Where large scale rigging was reported.
c. Undemocratic element – Women’s representation in the parliament has never reached 10 per cent.
Democratic element – This led women’s organizations to demand one-third seats for women.

Q.5 Which of these is not a valid reason for arguing that there is a lesser possibility of famine in a democratic country?

  1. Opposition parties can draw attention to hunger and starvation.
  2. Free press can report suffering from famine in different parts of the country.
  3. Government fears its defeat in the next elections.
  4. People are free to believe in and practice any religion.

Ans-

d. People are free to believe and practice any religion

Reason: Freedom of religion is not connected to the issue of famine in any way.

There are 40 villages in a district where the government has made no provision for drinking water. These villagers met and considered many methods of forcing the government to respond to their need.

Q.6 Which of these is not a democratic method?

  1. Filing a case in the courts claiming that water is part of right to life.
  2. Boycotting the next elections to give a message to all parties.
  3. Organizing public meetings against government’s policies.
  4. Paying money to government officials to get water.

Ans-

d. Paying money to government officials to get water.

Paying money to officials is not a democratic method.

Q.7 Write a response to the following arguments against democracy:

  1. Army is the most disciplined and corruption-free organization in the country. Therefore army should rule the country.
  2. Rule of the majority means the rule of ignorant people. What we need is the rule of the wise, even if they are in small numbers.
  3. If we want religious leaders to guide us in spiritual matters, why not invite them to guide us in politics as well. The country should be ruled by religious leaders.

Ans-

a. Under military rule, people will lose basic freedoms like freedom of speech, freedom to form associations or organize protests.

b. It’s true that wise people should rule, but at the same time views and aspirations of the majority cannot be suppressed. Therefore, people from every section of the society should be represented in the government.

c. If religious leaders are invited to rule, there would be serious conflicts. People will lose their freedom of religion. Therefore, religion must be separated from politics.

Q.8 Are the following statements in keeping with democracy as a value? Why?

  1. Father to daughter: I don’t want to hear your opinion about your marriage. In our family, children marry where the parents tell them to.
  2. Teacher to student: Don’t disturb my concentration by asking me questions in the classroom.
  3. Employee to the officer: Our working hours must be reduced according to the law.

Ans-

a. The father’s behaviour is against democratic values. Every adult has the right to choose his/her life partner. Here, the father has no right to impose his choice on his daughter.

b. The teacher’s behaviour is against democratic norms. It is the right of the student to ask questions. Here, the student is being denied his/her democratic right.

c. The demand of the employee is democratic. Here, the employee wants the law of country to be followed. Following this law will benefit all the employees.

Q.9 Consider the following facts about a country and decide if you would call it a democracy. Give reasons to support your decision.

  1. All the citizens of the country have a right to vote. Elections are held regularly.
  2. The country took loan from international agencies. One of the conditions for giving loan was that the government would reduce its expenses on education and health.
  3. People speak more than seven languages but education is available only in one language, the language spoken by 52 percent people of that country.
  4. Several organisations have given a call for peaceful demonstrations and nationwide strikes in the country to oppose these policies. Government has arrested these leaders.
  5. The government owns the radio and television in the country. All the newspapers have to get permission from the government to publish any news about government’s policies and protests.

Ans-

Though every citizen has the right to vote, but this country cannot be called a democracy for the following reasons –

  • The government is not concerned about the basic needs of the people like education and health. It accepted a loan on the condition of reducing expenses on such basic needs.
  • Education is available only in the language of the majority. Though other languages are also spoken, but they do not get recognition. This means other linguistic groups face marginalization and discrimination.
  • People are not allowed to hold peaceful demonstrations or oppose government policies. Leaders who dare to oppose the government are arrested.
  • There is no freedom of speech or expression. The radio and television are controlled by the government. Even the newspapers are required to take permission from the government before publishing any article regarding government policies.

In 2004, a report published in USA pointed to the increasing inequalities in that country. Inequalities in income reflected in the participation of people in democracy. It also shaped their abilities to influence the decisions taken by the government. The report highlighted that:

  • If an average Black family earns $100, then the income of average White family is $162. A White family has twelve times more wealth than the average Black family.
  • In a President’s election, nearly 9 out of 10 individuals in families with income over $75,000 have voted. These people are the top 20% of the population in terms of their income. On the other hand, only 5 people out of 10 from families with income less than $15,000 have voted. They are the bottom 20% of the population in terms of their income.
  • About 95% contribution to the political parties comes from the rich. This gives them opportunity to express their opinions and concerns, which is not available to most citizens.
  • As poor sections participate less in politics, the government does not listen to their concerns – coming out of poverty, getting job, education, health care and housing for them. Politicians hear most regularly about the concerns of business persons and the rich.

Q.10 Write an essay on ‘Democracy and Poverty’ using the information given in this report but using examples from India.

Ans-

DEMOCRACY AND POVERTY

It is an established fact that the rich and influential form the bulk of voters in democracies around the world. However, India’s case is unique. India is the only country where the majority of voters are from the poorer sections of the society. But even as the poverty stricken masses form the majority of the electorate in India, the irony is that poverty continues to be an issue in the country.

In USA, it can be easily understood why the Blacks continue to be marginalized. The income of an average Black family is quite low as compared to an average White family. Studies have shown that an average White family earns 12 times more than an average Black family. Since voters in USA are mostly from the rich class, it can be understood that most voters are White. The governments that come to power tend to address the problems of their potential voters and work for their benefit. This may be a reason why Blacks continue to live in poverty in the USA.

Now the question arises, why do poorer sections of the society in India don’t experience any improvement in their condition even though they form the majority of voters? To answer this question, I would like to draw your attention towards a similarity between Indian and American politics. Both in India and the USA, political parties receive most of their funds from the rich business class and the industrialists. It is quite obvious that any political party that comes to power will be influenced by these business groups. Therefore, governments tend to make policies that are beneficial for the rich business class. As a result, in a country like India, where the poor people enthusiastically queue up at the polling booths hardly see any change in their condition.

So, we can conclude that the fruits of democracy are yet to be truly realized. It is only the rich minority that is reaping most of the benefits from democracy. In an ideal democracy, the benefits should reach to the rich and poor alike. The issues of the citizens should be addressed and their conditions should improve.

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FAQs (Frequently Asked Questions)

NCERT Solutions for Class 9 Civics Chapter 1 covers below the key areas:

  • Definition of democracy
  • Free and fair electoral competition
  • One person, one vote, one value
  • Features of democracy
  • Debating merits of democracy
  • Arguments against and for democracy

Students should start preparation with school NCERT textbooks. They should be attentive in school and study as guided by teachers. They are advised to revise the theory on a regular basis. Along with the textbook, students should include NCERT Solutions for Class 9 Civics Chapter 1 in their study plan to get an in-depth understanding of all concepts covered in this chapter. These Extramarks NCERT Solutions are prepared by subject teachers with decades of experience. Using these solutions, students can score good marks in the CBSE exams.

No. Class 9 Civics is considered to be a relatively easy subject as compared to Maths and Science. If students regularly study from NCERT Solutions for Class 9 Civics Chapter 1, they would develop a good understanding of this chapter. The solutions are designed to provide a core understanding of the  chapters for students to get good grades.