UPMSP High School Social Science key terms

A method of non-violent resistance developed by Mahatma Gandhi, based on truth and moral pressure. It uses peaceful protest, strikes, and civil disobedience to make an opponent change unjust behaviour.

A nationwide protest launched by Gandhi in 1920 that urged Indians to boycott British schools, courts, titles, and goods. It was suspended in 1922 after the Chauri Chaura violence.

The campaign begun by Gandhi in 1930 with the Dandi March, in which people deliberately broke unjust colonial laws. It demanded complete independence and spread mass defiance across India.

Gandhi's 1930 walk of about 240 miles from Sabarmati Ashram to Dandi on the Gujarat coast, where he made salt from seawater to defy the British salt monopoly.

The British colonial rule that made salt production and sale a government monopoly and taxed it. Breaking it in 1930 became a powerful symbol of Indian resistance to colonial control.

An agitation by Indian Muslims in 1919-1922 to protect the Ottoman Caliph's position after the First World War. Gandhi supported it, and it joined hands with the Non-Cooperation Movement.

A village in the United Provinces where a crowd burned a police station in February 1922, killing policemen. Gandhi then called off the Non-Cooperation Movement, insisting on non-violence.

Gandhi's first major Indian campaign, in 1917 in Bihar, on behalf of indigo peasants forced to grow crops on unfair terms by European planters. It won official inquiry into their grievances.

A British commission sent to India in 1928 to review constitutional progress. It had no Indian members, so it was boycotted widely and met with protests and the slogan 'Simon Go Back'.

A British law that introduced provincial autonomy and separated Burma from India. It provided for a federation that never came into being and became a basis for independent India's constitution.

The 1942 mass movement launched after Gandhi's call for the British to leave India. Leaders were jailed, and protests spread widely, showing that colonial rule could not continue long.

A political organisation founded in 1885 that became the main vehicle of the Indian freedom struggle. It led constitutional agitation and mass movements and formed India's first government.

The two main groups within the early Congress. Moderates relied on petitions and gradual reform, while Extremists such as Tilak demanded stronger pressure and swadeshi after the 1905 partition of Bengal.

The principle of using goods and services produced in one's own country, especially to boycott foreign cloth. It became an economic weapon of the freedom movement and promoted Indian industry.

The organised refusal to buy, use, or deal with goods, institutions, or people as a form of protest. In India it targeted British cloth, schools, courts, and titles during mass movements.

The body elected in 1946 to frame India's constitution. It debated for nearly three years and adopted the Constitution on 26 November 1949, with Dr B. R. Ambedkar as drafting committee chair.

The opening statement of the Indian Constitution that declares the source of authority as the people and lists the goals of justice, liberty, equality, and fraternity.

The words describing India's constitutional character in the Preamble. They mean independent, committed to social justice, neutral among religions, ruled by elected representatives, and headed by an elected president.

Basic rights guaranteed to people by Part III of the Constitution, such as equality, freedom of speech, and life. They can be enforced in court, and some can be limited by reasonable restrictions.

Guidelines in Part IV of the Constitution that direct governments to promote welfare, reduce inequality, and protect weaker sections. They are not enforceable in courts but are fundamental to governance.

A formal order issued by a court requiring a person or authority to act or stop acting in a certain way. Habeas corpus and mandamus are examples used to protect fundamental rights.

A system of government in which power is divided between a central authority and constituent units, each supreme in its own sphere. India's Constitution distributes powers between the Union and states.

The constitutional list dividing subjects between the Union, the states, and both together. It contains the Union, State, and Concurrent Lists, and is central to understanding Indian federal power-sharing.

India's system of local self-government in rural areas, with elected bodies at village, block, and district levels. The 73rd Amendment made it a constitutional requirement with reserved seats.

The transfer of power and decision-making from higher levels of government to local bodies. It aims to bring administration closer to people and increase participation in planning and development.

An independent constitutional body that conducts elections to Parliament, state legislatures, and the offices of President and Vice-President. It supervises voter rolls, schedules polls, and enforces the model code of conduct.

The right of all adult citizens to vote regardless of sex, caste, religion, or wealth. India adopted it from the first general election in 1951-52, with the voting age later lowered to eighteen.

The principle that the state treats all religions equally, does not establish an official religion, and protects freedom of religion. India's version allows the state to intervene to reform social abuses.

A seasonal reversal of wind direction that brings heavy rain to India, mostly from June to September. The southwest monsoon waters most of the country's crops and shapes its agriculture.

The uneven distribution of rainfall over time and space, causing floods in some areas and drought in others. It makes Indian agriculture risky and encourages irrigation and water storage.

A prolonged shortage of water caused by deficient rainfall or poor water management. It damages crops, lowers groundwater, and can trigger migration and rural distress.

The artificial supply of water to farmland through canals, wells, tanks, or sprinklers. It reduces dependence on monsoon rain and helps grow more than one crop a year.

A crop sown with the arrival of the monsoon and harvested in autumn, such as rice, maize, and cotton. These crops need warm weather and abundant water.

A crop sown after the monsoon in winter and harvested in spring, such as wheat, gram, and mustard. These crops need a cool growing season and less water.

Fertile soil deposited by rivers, rich in potash and lime, found in the northern plains and river deltas. It supports intensive farming and is among India's most productive soils.

A leached, reddish soil formed in areas of heavy rainfall and high temperature, poor in nitrogen and humus. It is used for tea, coffee, and cashew after adding manure.

Forest found in areas with moderate rainfall where trees shed leaves in the dry season. Species such as sal, teak, and bamboo provide timber and are typical of central India.

The variety of plants, animals, and micro-organisms in a place or on Earth. It keeps ecosystems stable and is threatened by deforestation, pollution, and habitat loss.

Development that meets present needs without destroying the ability of future generations to meet theirs. It balances economic growth with protection of resources and the environment.

The using up of natural resources faster than they can be replaced or renewed. It results from overuse, waste, and population pressure and threatens long-term development.

The growing integration of economies and societies through trade, investment, technology, and migration. It brings new markets and ideas but can also increase inequality and cultural homogenisation.

The removal or reduction of government controls and restrictions on economic activity. India adopted major liberalisation in 1991, opening markets to private and foreign investment.

The transfer of ownership or management of public-sector enterprises to private individuals or companies. It is argued to improve efficiency but can reduce state control over essential services.

The part of the economy owned and run by government, including railways, defence, and many banks. It aims at public welfare and provides services that private firms may avoid.

The total money value of all final goods and services produced within a country in a year. It is the main measure of the size of an economy but ignores welfare and inequality.

The average income of a person, found by dividing a country's total income by its population. It is used to compare living standards but hides wide differences between rich and poor.

A measure combining life expectancy, education, and income to rank countries by well-being. It shows that income alone does not capture the quality of people's lives.

A level of income or consumption used to count people as poor. In India it is based on calorie requirements and is used to design welfare schemes and measure progress.

The condition in which all people have reliable access to enough safe and nutritious food. It depends on production, storage, public distribution, and purchasing power.

A government network of fair-price shops that supplies subsidised grain and other essentials to poor households. It is a key tool of food security in India.

The situation in which people who are able and willing to work cannot find jobs. It wastes human effort, lowers income, and is measured through employment surveys.

A situation in which workers are employed but their skills or working time are not fully used, or they earn too little. It is common in Indian agriculture and informal work.

Anything generally accepted as a medium of exchange, a store of value, and a unit of account. Modern money includes currency notes, coins, and bank deposits.

A financial institution that accepts deposits and lends money, earning interest on loans. Banks keep only a part of deposits as reserves and create credit through lending.

A sustained rise in the general price level, which reduces the purchasing power of money. It hurts people on fixed incomes and is controlled mainly through monetary policy.