NCERT Solutions for Class 8th Social Science Chapter 12 Citizenship: Rights and Duties
Updated on 2026-09-19
About this chapter
A citizen is someone who legally belongs to a country and is a member of its political community — that is, they can participate in the decision-making of the country. In India the Citizenship Act of 1955 and the Citizenship (Amendment) Act of 2019 set the rules for gaining or losing citizenship. Citizenship is both a legal identity and a social responsibility; living in a place makes you a resident, but citizenship is a formal, legal membership. Rights are justified claims — what we need to live with dignity, safety and respect. Not everything we want is a right: actions that cause harm to ourselves or others cannot be considered rights. The Constitution lists six broad categories of Fundamental Rights (Articles 14–32): the right to equality (14–18), freedom (19–22), against exploitation
- Chapter opener
- Right to equality (Fig. 5.3)
- Right to freedom
- Right to life
- Right against exploitation
- Right to constitutional remedies
- Understanding duties
- Rights and Duties: Two Sides of the Same Coin
- Visible and invisible discrimination
- Understanding inclusion (Fig. 5.14)
Quick revision
| Term | What it means | Where the chapter uses it | Fact to remember |
|---|---|---|---|
| Citizen | Someone who legally belongs to a country and is a member of its political community, i.e. they can participate in the decision-making of the country | Who Is a Citizen?, p. 144 | A person can be a resident without being a citizen, and a citizen can even reside in another country |
| Rights | Freedoms like equality, free speech, religion and education that let people live with dignity — justified claims, not simply whatever we want | Rights, p. 145; What are rights?, p. 147 | Actions that cause harm to ourselves or others cannot be considered rights |
| Fundamental Rights | The six broad categories of basic rights the Constitution gives every Indian citizen, which can be enforced by law | Fundamental Rights in the Indian Constitution, p. 147 (Fig. 5.2) | Articles 14–32; the table on p. 154 lists them article by article |
| Equity | The quality of being fair and just, especially in a way that takes account of and seeks to address existing inequalities | Margin note, p. 149, with Fig. 5.3 | The Beti Bachao Beti Padhao campaign is the chapter’s example of an equity initiative |
| Right to constitutional remedies | The right to approach the Supreme Court if fundamental rights are violated | p. 153, with the Ambedkar quotation | Article 32 — it makes rights “not just promises on paper” |
| Exploitation | Taking unfair advantage of others, often by denying them basic respect, liberty and rights | Right against exploitation, p. 151 | Articles 23–24 ban human trafficking, forced labour and child labour |
| Child labour | Making children work instead of going to school, particularly in hazardous situations | p. 151 | Below 14, children are generally not allowed to be employed; they may help in non-hazardous family enterprises only during vacations or after school hours |
| Childline 1098 | The government’s national helpline for children | DON’T MISS OUT, p. 151 | Easy to remember — count backwards from 10. In 2015 one call rescued 20 children from an embroidery factory |
| Fundamental Duties | The responsibilities the Constitution lists for citizens, alongside their rights | What are duties?, p. 156; Fig. 5.8–5.10, pp. 156–158 | Added in 1976 as Article 51A (Part IV-A); 10 at first, an 11th added in 2002 |
| Dharma · ṛiṇa · adhikāra | Older Indian ideas: dharma, often translated as ‘duty’ but far wider; ṛiṇa, the debts we owe by the very fact of being born; adhikāra, which in ancient texts meant capacity, competence or authority | DON’T MISS OUT, p. 158 | Rights then depended on one’s capacity; dharma implicitly gave everyone the right to justice — in theory at least |
| Discrimination | Mistreating any person or group because of their caste, religion, ethnicity, disability, race, physical appearance, gender, sexuality or economic background | Understanding discrimination, p. 160 | Invisible discrimination is difficult to prove, and hence difficult to penalise |
| Inclusion | Creating an environment where everyone feels welcomed, respected, valued and included, with equal access to opportunities | Understanding inclusion, p. 163 | It goes beyond just giving reservations — it means removing barriers to participation |
Exercises
- Chapter opener — The Big Questions Page 143
- Right to equality (Fig. 5.3) — LET’S EXPLORE Page 148
- Right to freedom — THINK ABOUT IT Page 149
- Right to life — DON’T MISS OUT Page 150
- Right against exploitation — THINK ABOUT IT Page 152
- Right to constitutional remedies — LET’S EXPLORE Page 153
- Understanding duties — DON’T MISS OUT Page 158
- Understanding duties — THINK ABOUT IT Page 159
- Rights and Duties: Two Sides of the Same Coin — LET’S EXPLORE Page 159–160
- Visible and invisible discrimination — LET’S EXPLORE Page 162
- Understanding inclusion (Fig. 5.14) — In-text Questions Page 163
- Understanding inclusion — THINK ABOUT IT Page 163
- End of chapter — Questions and activities Page 165–166