CBSE

Class VIII Social Science

Time: 2½ hours Total Marks: 75

General Instructions:
(i) All questions are compulsory.
(ii) Marks for each question are indicated against the question.
(iii) In each section, questions from serial number 1 to 5 are multiple choice
questions (MCQs) of 1 mark each. Every MCQ is provided with four alternatives.
Write the correct alternative in your answer book.
(iv) Questions from serial number 6 to 10 are 2 mark questions.
(v) Questions from serial number 10 to 12 are 5 mark questions.

SECTION A
History

Question 1 – In which three periods did James Mill divide Indian history? [1]

a) ‘Hindu’, ‘Muslim’ and ‘British’

b) ‘Ancient’, ‘Medieval’ and ‘Modern’
c) ‘Pre-historic’, ‘Ancient’ and ‘Modern’
d) None of the above

Question 2 –When did the Company government introduce Permanent Settlement Act in
India? [1]

a) 1791
b) 1792
c) 1793
d) 1794

Question 3 – What were outsiders called in Chottanagpur, Jharkhand? [1]

a) Dikus
b) Santhals
c) Banjaras
d) Paavana
Question 4 – In which year did Delhi become the capital of British India? [1]

a) 1921
b) 1911
c) 1925
d) 1929

Question 5 – When was the state of Awadh annexed by the Company government? [1]

a) 1801
b) 1824
c) 1856
d) 1857

Question 6 – Who was the first Governor-General of India and who was the last Viceroy of
India? [2]

Question 7 – By which name were the traders of the East India Company known in India?
[2]

Question 8 – Explain the implications of the appointment of the Company as the Diwan of
Bengal. [2]

Question 9 – Which tribals from central India saw themselves as ‘the people of the forest’
and found it below their dignity to work as labourers for others? [2]

Question 10 – Explain what are dargahs, khanqahs and idgahhs. [2]

Question 11 – Explain the reasons behind the dissatisfaction of the Company sepoys with
the Company administration. [5]

Question 12 – Explain how the Bengal economy landed up in a crisis under the Diwani of
the Company.
 SECTION B
Civics

Question 1 – In which year did the Indian National Congress make a demand for a
Constituent Assembly? [1]

a) 1958
b) 1947
c) 1938
d) 1934

Question 2 – The Right to Equality bans the practice of which of the following practices?[1]

a) Untouchability
b) Sati
c) Reservation
d) Child marriage

Question 3 – The Head of State in the Parliamentary System of government is called [1]

a) President
b) Prime Minister
c) Chief Minister
d) Governor

Question 4 – The law cannot discriminate between persons based on their [1]

a) Religion
b) Caste
c) Gender
d) All of these

Question 5 – When was the Supreme Court of India established? [1]

a) 15 August 1947
b) 26 January 1950
c) 15 August 1950
d) 26 January 1947

Question 6 – What do we mean by the term Constitution? [2]

Question 7 – What do we mean by ‘Separation of powers’? [2]

Question 8 – Explain the concept of the ‘Rule of Law’. [2]

Question 9 – State any five functions of the Parliament. [2]

Question 10 – Why is it important that government schools do not promote any one
religion? [2]

Question 11 – Elaborate on the movement for democracy in Nepal. [5]

Question 12 – Explain the importance of the judiciary in a State. [5]

SECTION C
Geography

Question 1 - Which of the following components is the most essential component for
developing resources? [1]

a) Nature
b) Human
c) Technology
d) None of the above

Question 2 – What does sustainable development mean? [1]

a) Carefully utilising resources.

b) Meeting the requirement of the present.
c) Taking care of future generations.
d) All the above.

Question 3 - What is the percentage of forest area in India? [1]

a) 22%
b) 33%
c) 23%
d) 21%

Question 4 - Which of the following countries has the highest percentage of forest land?[1]

a) UK
b) USA
c) Japan
d) Russia
Question 5 - Which country is the largest producer of bauxite in the world? [1]

a) China
b) Australia
c) Brazil
d) India

Question 6 - What is a resource? What makes a substance a resource? [2]

Question 7 - What is a patent? [2]

Question 8 - What is the difference between private land and community land? What are
community lands also known as? [2]

Question 9 - What are the reasons for uneven distribution of population in different parts
of the world? [2]

Question 10 – Name the leading producers of coal in the world. [2]

Question 11 – 'Energy saved is energy generated'. Elaborate on the statement. [5]

Question 12 – Classify the resources based on their development and use. [5]
 CBSE
Class VIII Social Science
Solution

Time: 2½ hours Total Marks: 75

SECTION A
History

Answers

1. A
2. C
3. A
4. B
5. C

Answer 6 – Warren Hastings was the first Governor-General and Lord Mountbatten was
the last Viceroy of India.

Answer 7 - The traders of the East India Company were known as the ‘factors’ in India.

Answer 8 – The Mughal Emperor appointed the East India Company as the Diwan of
Bengal on 12 August 1765. As the Diwan of the region, the Company became the chief
financial administrator of Bengal. It was given the responsibility to administer the land
under its control and organise its revenue resources. This was to be done with a specific
emphasis on yielding enough revenues to meet Company expenses. The Company also had
to make sure that it could buy the goods that it needed and sell what it wanted.

Answer 9 – The Baigas from central India saw themselves as ‘the people of the forest’ and
found it below their dignity to work as labourers for others.

Answer 10 - A dargah is the tomb of a Sufi saint. A khanqah is a Sufi lodge that may be used
as a rest house for travelers and as a place where people come to discuss spiritual matters,
get saints’ blessings and hear Sufi music. Idgah was an open prayer place for Muslims
primarily built for Eid prayers.
Answer 11 - Following are the reasons why the Indian sepoys were dissatisfied with the
Company administration:

i) The sepoys were dissatisfied with their pay, allowances and service conditions.
ii) Some of the new rules, it was felt, violated their religious beliefs and norms. In 1824,
Indian sepoys were ordered to travel to Burma by sea and fight for the Company.
The sepoys refused as it was considered blasphemous to cross the sea. Even though
they offered to travel the distance by land route instead, they were severely
punished. Since this issue kept festering for a long time, the Company was
compelled to pass a law that required sepoys to commit to traveling overseas if
necessary.
iii) Many of the sepoys came from the peasant families of the Indian heartland. As a
result, the anger and discontent of the peasantry was quickly reflected among them
and hence led to dissatisfaction with the Company administration.

Answer 12 - Under the Diwani of the Company, artisans began deserting villages since they
were forced to sell their goods at abysmally low prices. In addition, the peasants were
unable to pay the dues that were being demanded by the Company administration
obsessed with increasing its own income. Gradually, artisanal production reduced
significantly and agricultural cultivation began to show signs of a collapse. In the year 1770,
Bengal suffered a terrible famine that killed 10 million people and wiped out about one-
third of the region’s population. This further increased the pressure on the Bengal economy
which was already reeling under the inefficient rule of the Company.

SECTION B
Civics
Answers

1. D
2. A
3. A
4. D
5. B

Answer 6 – The Constitution is an important document which lays down principles of the
country. It is the written law of the land by which the country is governed. It is also
regarded as the ‘fundamental law’ of the country.
Answer 7 – ‘Separation of powers’ is also known as ‘trias politica’. This term was coined by
Charles-Louis de Secondat, baron de La Brède et de Montesquieu, an 18th century French
social and political philosopher. The term refers to the division of government
responsibilities into distinct branches to limit any one branch from exercising the core
functions of another. The intent is to prevent the concentration of power and provide for
checks and balances. The normal division of branches is into a legislature, an executive and
a judiciary.

Answer 8 – The rule of law states that all laws apply equally to all citizens of the country
and no one can be above the law. The law is equal and similar for all, be it a government
official, a wealthy person or even the President--none of them are above the law. Hence, the
law cannot differentiate between people on the basis of their religion, caste or gender.
Nevertheless, any crime or violation of law has to be established after which a specific
punishment is given.

Answer 9 – Five important functions of the Parliament are as follows:

i) Law-making
ii) Introduction of new laws
iii) Financial control over the government’s income
iv) Control over the Executive
v) Organ of Information

Answer 10 – It is important that government schools do not promote any one religion
because if the government itself does not follow the rules in the Constitution, a normal
citizen will also not understand the importance of following it. Also, it results in the
discrimination between the students belonging to different religious backgrounds.

Answer 11 - Nepal is on the northern borders of India. It has witnessed several people’s
struggles for democracy. The previous Constitution of Nepal, which was adopted in 1990,
had the final authority rested with the King. Thus, people’s struggle in 1990 established
democracy that lasted for 12 years until 2002. However, in October 2002, King Gyanendra
cited the Maoist uprising in the countryside and started taking over different aspects of the
government with the army’s assistance. The King then finally took control as the head of
government in February 2005.

In 2006, the people’s movement for democracy began gaining immense force and it
repeatedly refused the small concessions that the King made. In April 2006, the King
restored the Third Parliament and asked the political parties to form a government. Finally,
in 2007, Nepal adopted an Interim Constitution.
Answer 12 – Following points underline the importance of the judiciary in a State:

i) It provides a mechanism for resolving disputes/conflicts between people, between

people and the state government, between two state governments and between the
centre/union and state governments.
ii) Because it is the final interpreter of the Constitution, it has the power to declare the
law passed by the government as null and void if there is any kind violation of the
principles and ideals of our Constitution.
iii) It upholds, enforces and protects the Fundamental Rights of every citizen of the
country. People can move the court if any of their Fundamental Rights are violated.

SECTION C
Geography

Answers

1. B
2. D
3. A
4. C
5. B

Answer 6 – Anything that can be used to satisfy a need is a resource. When something can
be used, you say it has ‘utility’. Utility or usability is what makes an object or substance a
resource.

Answer 7 - A patent enables the creator to have an exclusive right over an idea or
invention patented by him/her.

Answer 8 – Private land is owned by individuals, whereas community land is owned by the
community for common uses like collection of fodder, fruits, nuts or medicinal herbs.
Community lands are also known as ‘common property resources’.

Answer 9 – World has varied climate and land. The rugged topography, steep slopes of the
mountains, low-lying areas to water logging and thick forest areas are normally sparsely
populated or uninhabited areas.

Answer 10 – The leading producers of coal in the world are China, USA, Germany, Russia,
South Africa and France.
Answer 11 - Energy is everywhere but we can see that harnessing this energy is both
difficult as well as costly. If we continue exploiting our non-renewable resources, they will
soon be exhausted. The need of the hour is to better utilize our existing resources. Energy
conservation is the most economical solution to the shortage of energy. It reduces energy
consumption and energy demand per capita.

We as citizens should minimize the use of energy resources through conservation methods
like using of public transport, switching of the lights, fans, televisions, computers when not
in use, using energy saving devices, keeping the lights in our homes dust free etc. Each one
of us can make a difference by not wasting energy. Thus, energy saved is energy generated.

Answer 12 - Based on their development and use, resources can be classified into two
groups - ‘actual resources’ and ‘potential resources’.

Actual resources are those resources whose quantity is known. These resources are being
used in the present. For example, coal deposits in Ruhr region of Germany or the dark soils
of the Deccan plateau in Maharashtra.

Potential resources are those resources whose entire quantity may not be known and these
are not being used at present. These resources could be used in the future as the level of
technology we have at present may not be advanced enough to easily utilise these
resources, e.g. uranium found in Ladakh.