India After Independence Class 8 Notes CBSE History Chapter 10 (Free PDF Download)

India after independence and to do that, it looks back to an era of enormous socio- political turmoil. India has experienced many bloodshed and loss of lives, regardless of age, only to get rid of about 200 years of slavery. So what did happen after the long-awaited independence? This chapter is about this. Since independence is not an easy thing to achieve. It brings many challenges.

The Nation: New and Divided

• The division and formation of Pakistan has led to the migration of approximately 8 million refugees, who have nowhere to live, no food, and no way to make a living. 

• There were about 500 princes headed by Nawab or the Maharaja that needed to be persuaded. 

• The development of the political system is the need of the times to meet the needs of the people.

• Among the 345 million residents, discrimination between upper and lower castes was very prominent. 

• Discrimination based on religion, language, eating habits, etc. still exists. 

• Unifying all these people under one country was a difficult task. 

• The development of rural areas and an agriculture-based economy was another issue that needs to be solved urgently. Poverty not only existed in villages, but was also in cities. Many workers live in slums and have no access to health care, education, etc. 

• The solution is to increase agricultural productivity, create employment opportunities, and promote employment so that the unit and development attach equal importance. 

• Economic development was needed to achieve equitable population and distribution, otherwise, it may result in further discrimination. 

Birth of the Constitution

• The Constitution of India was formulated in 34 years after much discussion and cooperation between political parties and was finally approved on January 26, 1950. The Constitution of India has some outstanding features, which are adapted from the constitutions of other countries in the world. 

• Under the Constitution, any Indian who is 21 years of age or older can participate in state and national elections. 

• The Constitution guarantees that the law is the same for all people in all countries, regardless of their caste, religion, belief, etc. 

• "The poorest and most disadvantaged Indians" deserve special privileges. 

•  Untouchables are abolished and a series of new proposals are offered to people belonging to lower castes. They are allowed into temples that have long been reserved for high-caste Hindus, seats reserved for low-caste people in the legislature, etc. 

• This reservation also applies to "adivasis" or predetermined tribes and castes. The constitution promises that everyone, including the untouchables (or they are called harijans), have access to education and health services. 

• There are many differences of opinion about the power of the central government and the development of the country. Some people advocate a "strong center", while others advocate autonomy and freedom for the provinces. The Constituent Assembly considered all opinions and proposed some solutions. 

• The Constitution proposes three thematic lists, the Union List is the first of them. Tax, defense and foreign affairs are listed here as exclusive core responsibilities. 

• The list of countries followed closely, mainly responsible for health and education. 

• The concurrent list is the last list that requires the center and states to participate in agriculture, forestry, and other fields. 

• Although there are many contributors to the formulation of the Constitution, the contribution of Dr. BR Ambedkar cannot be ignored. He is the chairman of the drafting committee and is responsible for overseeing the comprehensive formulation of the constitution. 

• The concept of "one person, one vote, one value" has become obvious and exists in the political structure of India.
  
  

State Formation

• The Indian National Assembly pledged to develop the states according to the language background. However, religious divisions have led to riots between Hindus and Muslims, so ministers such as Jawaharlal Nehru and Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel opposed the developing provinces supported by language groups. 

• But many parts of the country opposed this decision, especially during the Madras presidency, because the people there wanted to establish a separate Andhra Pradesh for Telugu speakers. 

• Potti Sriramulu, a Gandhi veteran, started fasting in Andhra Pradesh and died after fasting for 58 days. Finally, Andhra Pradesh was born as a state of India on October 1, 1953. 

• But this has actually led to more similar demands from other provinces and language communities. In order to solve this problem, a national reorganization committee was established. They proposed an idea to develop Bengali, Tamil, Malayalam, Telugu, Assamese, Oriya, and Ka Different provinces in Nada, and re-delineated borders.

Development Plan

• The Planning Committee was established in 1950. Its main responsibility is to formulate policies that are conducive to economic development in accordance with the "mixed economy" model. The private and public sectors work together in this regard, thereby increasing productivity and creating more jobs. 

• The Planning Commission formulated a five-year plan. The first five-year plan was extended between 1951 and 1956 with a budget of Rs. 20.69 billion rupees. The plan mainly focuses on agriculture, energy, irrigation, transportation and communications, social services, industry, and rehabilitation of land-lost farmers. 2.1% is the target growth rate, reaching 3.6%. 

• The Twelfth Five-Year Plan (1956-1961) deals primarily with rapid industrialization. rupee. With an investment of 48 billion yuan, other fields such as electricity and water conservation, transportation and communications have also received attention. 

• The third five-year plan (1961-1966) was mainly affected by the Sino-Indian war in 1962, the war against Palestine in 196566 and the drought of 1965. Therefore, achieving the target growth rate is a tragic failure . 

• The Fourth Five-Year Plan (1969-1974) followed the planned vacations during Indira Gandhi's tenure as Prime Minister. The two most famous events during this period were the Green Revolution and the (clandestine) Smiling Buddha Nuclear Test. 

• The "Five Year Plan" (1974-1978) pays more attention to justice, poverty alleviation and employment. During this period, India's National Highway System and Minimum Demand Plan were introduced. 

• From then until 1980, the rolling plan continued and the two sixth year plans were rejected by the Janata Party and the Indian National Assembly, respectively. 

• Plan 6 (1980-1985) has to do with economic liberalization. The National Agricultural and Rural Development Bank (NABARD) was established, and family planning became more and more important. It was during this five-year plan period that the target growth rate was exceeded.
  
  

After Independence: India Today 

• As in 2020, India celebrates the 73rd anniversary of its independence from British slavery. Maintaining unity in diversity and becoming the world’s largest democracy are two things that indigenous peoples are proud of. 

• So far, India has held 17 general elections. 

• The country has a free press and an independent judiciary. 

• Although languages, beliefs, religions and cultures are different, although many people are skeptical, this country remains united. 

• The problem of the untouchables has not been completely eradicated. 

• Discrimination between rich and poor is on the rise. 

• Although the Constitution emphasizes equality, it seems to be less and less in reality.
  
  

Class 8 Social Science - History Chapter 10 India After Independence Notes

A New and Divided Nation 

India gained independence in August, in the year 1947. Due to the unfortunate partition of the country, over 8 million refugees migrated to the country from Pakistan. A nawab or maharaja ruled every princely state. Each of these nawabs further had to be influenced to go to a new nation. The population of India, in the year 1946, was overabundant. The country was, moreover, categorized based on high castes- low castes, the majority of the Hindu community, and other Indians that practised distinguishing faiths. 

The Indian citizens were vast and came with distinctive cultures. They spoke distinguishing languages and even wore varied clothes based on their culture. In this section of the class 8 history chapter 10 notes, the students will learn more about the cultures of Indians, the food they ate, the professions they practised, and so on.

A Constitution is Written 

Between December and November of 1949, there were over three hundred Indians that conducted various meetings to discuss the political aspects of the country. The Constituent Assembly meetings took place in New Delhi. All the discussions further played an influential role in the decision-making of Indian’s political future. 

One of the prime features of the constitution includes the adoption of the universal adult franchise. This subtopic of the chapter deals with everything that was included in the making of the constitution. It gives students details into the age groups that were allowed to vote for state and national elections. It also suggests different features or the constitution and how these features came into play for shaping the future of the country.

How Were States to be Formed? 

In the early 1920s, Indian National Congress gave an oath to the Indians that after independence, every significant linguistic community would comprise its province. India was categorized on the very basis of religion. The Prime minister of India, Jawaharlal Nehru, along with the Deputy Prime Minister, Vallabhbhai Patel, however, did not support the creation of these linguistic states. 

Individuals with different mother tongues demanded their states. The most effective protests of the Telugu-speaking districts came into the limelight and protested on several occasions. This section of the chapter tells students about how the formation of different states took place in India.

Planning for Development 

As the topic name suggests, this section of the chapter ‘India after independence’ deals with the structuring and strategy planning for the development of the country. In 1950, the government appointed a planning commission for conceptualizing and implementing relevant policies for the economic betterment of the country. 

A mixed economy model came into play wherein the stage and private sectors would be responsible for boosting production and even offering jobs. The planning commission also worked towards structuring and defining different industries and their initiation. This topic of the chapter gives students highlights into the second five-year plan that was introduced in 1956. It further states how this plan essentially focused on boosting and advancing different industries like steel, and even the construction of huge dams.

The Nation, Sixty Years On 

At the end of this chapter, you’ll learn about the importance of 15 August 2007. In the year 2007, India had been free from British rule for over 60 years. Thus, this date marks the celebration of India after 60 whole years of independence. India remains democratic and united. Several foreign observers believed that India wasn’t capable of surviving as a country. They also thought that the country would break down into a wide range of parts where every region formed a nation for itself. 

However, India carries pride in remaining a democratic and secular country. Despite different constitutional securities, the Dalits are victims of discrimination and violence in distinguishing parts of India. Furthermore, India has encountered a wide range of clashes amid varied religious communities despite practising secular ideals. Throughout these years of independence, the beef between the poor and the rich has also developed. Many parts of India have economically developed while many haven’t. This section of the chapter concludes the aftermath of India after independence. It talks about the constitution and how India has developed majorly despite having still facing prime concerns.