Topic: Salient features of Indian Society, Diversity of India.
Q1. Community-imposed social norms can act as both protective and exclusionary forces within traditional societies. Comment. (10 M)
Difficulty Level: Medium
Reference: NIE
Why the question
Because recent community bans in Uttarakhand villages have highlighted how traditional societies use collective norms to regulate behaviour, raising debates on their protective and exclusionary impacts.Key demand of the question
The question asks to explain how community-imposed norms help maintain cohesion, culture and economic protection, and simultaneously analyse how these same norms can restrict autonomy, reinforce inequality and conflict with constitutional values.Structure of the answer:
Introduction
Briefly introduce how informal social norms act as parallel governance structures within traditional societies.Body
- Protective aspect, indicate how such norms support cultural preservation, economic security and social cohesion.
- Exclusionary aspect, indicate how these norms can suppress individual rights, reinforce hierarchy, or conflict with constitutional guarantees.
Conclusion
End with the need to balance cultural practices with constitutional morality to ensure inclusion and dignity.
