I. India And the Contemporary World – I (History)

Sub Unit 1.1: Events and Processes: In this unit, the focus is on three events and processes that have shaped the identity of the modern world. Each represents a different form of politics and a specific combination of forces. One event is linked to the growth of liberalism and democracy, one with socialism, and one with a negation of both democracy and socialism.

• The French Revolution
  • The Ancient Regime and its Crises
  • The Social Forces that led to the Revolution
  • The Different Revolutionary Groups and Ideas of the Time
  • The Legacy
• Socialism in Europe and the Russian Revolution
  • The Crises of Tzarism.
  • The Nature of Social Movements between 1905 and 1917.
  • The First World War and Foundation of Soviet State.
  • The Legacy.

• Nazism and the Rise of Hitler
  • The Growth of Social Democracy
  • The Crises in Germany.
  • The Basis of Hitler’s Rise to Power.
  • The Ideology of Nazism.
  • The Impact of Nazism.

Sub-Unit 1.2: Livelihoods, Economies, and Societies: The themes in this section will focus on how different social groups grapple with the changes in the contemporary world and how these changes affect their Lives.

• Forest Society and Colonialism
  • The Relationship between Forests and Livelihoods
  • Changes in Forest Societies under Colonialism
• Pastoralists in the Modern World
  • Pastoralism as a Way of Life
  • Different Forms of Pastoralism
  • What Happens to Pastoralism under Colonialism and Modern States

• Peasants and Farmers
  • Histories of the Emergence of Different Forms of Farming and Peasant Societies
  • Changes in Rural Economies in the Modern World

II. Contemporary India – I (Geography)

• India
  • Size
  • Location
• Physical Features of India 
  • Relief
  • Structure
  • Major Physiographic Unit
• Drainage
  • Major Rivers and Tributaries
  • Lakes and Seas
  • the Role of Rivers in the Economy
  • Pollution of Rivers
  • Measures to Control River Pollution
• Climate
  • Factors Influencing the Climate
  • Monsoon- its Characteristics
  • Rainfall
  • Temperature Distribution; Seasons; Climate and Human Life
• Natural Vegetation and Wild Life
  • Vegetation Types
  • Distribution as well as Altitudinal Variation
  • Need for Conservation and Various Measures
  • Major Species
  • their Distribution
  • Need for Conservation and Various Measures
• Population
  • Size
  • Distribution
  • Age-Sex Composition
  • Population Change – Migration as a Determinant of Population Change
  • Literacy
  • Health
  • Occupational Structure and National Population Policy: Adolescents as Under-Served Population Group with Special Needs.

III. Democratic Politics (Political Science)

• What is Democracy? Why Democracy?
  • What are the different ways of defining democracy
  • Why has democracy become the most prevalent form of government in our times
  • What are the alternatives to democracy
  • Is democracy superior to its available alternatives
  • Must every democracy have the same institutions and values
• Constitutional Design
  • How and why did India become a democracy
  • How was the Indian constitution framed
  • What are the salient features of the Constitution
  • How is democracy being constantly designed and redesigned in India

• Electoral Politics
  • Why and how do we elect representatives
  • Why do we have a system of competition among political parties
  • How has the citizen’s participation in electoral politics changed
  • What are the ways to ensure free and fair elections
• Working of Institutions
  • How is the country governed
  • What does Parliament do in our democracy
  • What is the role of the President of India, the Prime Minister and the Council of Ministers
  • How do these relate to one another

• Democratic Rights
  • Why do we need rights in a constitution
  • What are the Fundamental Rights enjoyed by the citizen under the Indian constitution
  • How does the judiciary protect the Fundamental Rights of the citizen
  • How is the independence of the judiciary ensured

IV. Economics

• The Story of Village Palampur
  • Economic transactions of Palampore and its interaction with the rest of the world through which the concept of production (including three factors of production (land, labor, and capital) can be introduced.
• People as Resource
  • Introduction of how people become a resource I asset
  • Economic activities are done by men and women
  • Unpaid work was done by women
  • Quality of human resource; the role of health and education
  • Unemployment as a form of non-utilization of human resource
  • Sociopolitical implication in the simple form.

• Poverty as a Challenge
  • Who is poor (through two case studies: one rural, one urban)
  • Indicators
  • Absolute poverty (not as a concept but through a few simple examples)-why people are poor
  • Unequal distribution of resources
  • Comparison between countries
  • Steps taken by the government for poverty alleviation.
• Food Security in India
  • Source of Food grains
  • Variety across the nation
  • Famines in the past
  • The need for self-sufficiency
  • Role of government in food security
  • Procurement of food grains
  • Overflowing of granaries and people without food
  • Public distribution system, role of cooperatives in food security (food grains, milk and vegetables ration shops, cooperative shops, two-three examples as case studies)