Tamil Nadu SSLC Social Science cheat sheet

Indian Constitution: adopted by the Constituent Assembly on 26 November 1949 and came into force on 26 January 1950; Dr B. R. Ambedkar chaired the Drafting Committee.

Fundamental Rights are in Part III (Articles 12–35); Directive Principles of State Policy are in Part IV (Articles 36–51); Fundamental Duties were added by the 42nd Amendment (1976) on the Swaran Singh Committee's recommendation.

The Preamble declares India a Sovereign, Socialist, Secular, Democratic Republic; the words 'Socialist' and 'Secular' were inserted by the 42nd Amendment Act, 1976.

Three lists under the Seventh Schedule: Union List (97 subjects), State List (66 subjects), Concurrent List (47 subjects); residuary powers rest with Parliament.

National emergency is proclaimed under Article 352, President's rule in a state under Article 356, and financial emergency under Article 360.

Latitude lines run east–west and measure distance north or south of the equator; longitude lines run north–south and measure distance east or west of the Prime Meridian at Greenwich.

1° of latitude equals about 111 km on the ground; the Earth rotates 15° of longitude per hour, giving the basis for standard time.

Indian Standard Time is based on the 82°30'E longitude passing through Mirzapur, and is 5 hours 30 minutes ahead of Greenwich Mean Time.

Harappan sites: Harappa on the Ravi, Mohenjo-daro on the Indus, Lothal (dockyard) in Gujarat, Kalibangan in Rajasthan, Dholavira in Kutch; the script remains undeciphered.

Ashoka's edicts use Prakrit in Brahmi script; the Kalinga war (c. 261 BCE) led him to embrace Buddhism and the policy of Dhamma.

The Cholas: Rajaraja I built the Brihadeeswarar temple at Thanjavur; Rajendra I's naval expedition reached Srivijaya, and the Chola inscriptions are a key source for Tamil Nadu history.

The Indian National Congress was founded in 1885 with W. C. Bonnerjee as first president; the Jallianwala Bagh massacre occurred on 13 April 1919.

The Dandi March (Salt Satyagraha) began on 12 March 1930; the Quit India Movement was launched on 8 August 1942 in Bombay.

Sectors of the economy: primary (agriculture, mining), secondary (manufacturing), tertiary (services); GDP is the money value of all final goods and services produced in a year.

National income measures: GNP = GDP + net factor income from abroad; per capita income = national income divided by population.

Tamil Nadu's major crops include paddy, sugarcane, cotton and groundnut; the northeast monsoon (October–December) supplies most of the state's rainfall.

The Western Ghats run along Tamil Nadu's western border; Anaimudi (2,695 m) in Kerala is the highest peak in the Western Ghats and south India.

Tamil Nadu's rivers are mostly east-flowing: the Cauvery, Vaigai, Thamirabarani and Palar; the Cauvery delta is the state's rice bowl.

Monsoon types affecting India: southwest monsoon (June–September, about 75% of rainfall) and northeast monsoon (October–December, main rainy season for Tamil Nadu).

Soil types: alluvial (river deltas, most fertile), black or regur (cotton-growing, moisture-retentive), red (iron-rich, less fertile), laterite (heavy rainfall areas).

Earthquake focus is the point of origin inside the Earth; the epicentre is the point on the surface directly above it - seismic waves spread outward from the focus.

Cyclone-prone Bay of Bengal coast requires early warning, cyclone shelters and mangrove belts; Tamil Nadu's coast is exposed to cyclones from October to December.

Map scale: a representative fraction such as 1:50,000 means 1 cm on the map equals 50,000 cm (0.5 km) on the ground.

Contour lines join points of equal height; closely spaced contours indicate a steep slope, widely spaced contours a gentle slope.

Part I objective questions carry 1 mark each; Part II short answers 2 marks; Part III answers 5 marks; Part IV detailed answers 8 marks; map question is marked for correct location and labelling.

A 2-mark answer needs a direct definition or fact in one or two sentences; a 5-mark answer needs a heading plus three or four supporting points.

For 8-mark answers, state the point, then explain with a cause–effect link and one concrete example or date; structure earns marks even when wording is simple.

Dates must be written correctly: 1857 Revolt, 1885 INC founding, 1919 Jallianwala Bagh, 1930 Dandi March, 1942 Quit India, 1947 Independence, 1950 Constitution in force.

In map work, mark rivers with a line and name, cities with a dot, and mountain ranges with a chain of small triangles; always write the label beside the symbol.

Diagram questions (water cycle, rock cycle, constitution organs) earn marks for correct labels, not artistic quality; label every arrow.

Distinguish 'state' from 'explain' in the question: 'state' needs a list, 'explain' needs reasoning; answering the wrong command verb loses marks.

Time allocation: roughly 10 minutes for Part I objective items, leaving about two hours for the written sections and the map question.