Describe any two challenges faced by India during the term of Prime Minister Lal Bahadur Shastri.
Describe any two challenges faced by India during the term of Prime Minister Lal Bahadur Shastri.
Official answer
Lal Bahadur Shastri became Prime Minister in 1964 after Nehru's death and faced two serious challenges within his short tenure.
War with Pakistan (1965)
- Pakistan attacked India over Kashmir in 1965, forcing Shastri's government to fight a full-scale war while simultaneously managing the economy.
- His slogan "Jai Jawan Jai Kisan" captured the twin need to honour soldiers and boost farm output during the crisis.
Severe food crisis
- Successive drought years caused a serious food shortage, making India dependent on wheat imports (PL-480 aid) from the USA.
- This crisis exposed the weakness of Indian agriculture and pushed the government towards the Green Revolution.
Marking scheme
- 1.1 mark for correctly describing the Indo-Pak War of 1965 as a challenge (context of Kashmir conflict).
- 2.1 mark for correctly describing the severe food crisis/drought and dependence on food imports as a second challenge.
- 3.Alternative valid challenge: the anti-Hindi agitation in Madras (1965) may be accepted in place of either point.
Hint
Think of the war and the food/monsoon-related emergency Shastri had to manage right after Nehru's death.
Quick oral answer
Shastri faced the 1965 Indo-Pak War over Kashmir and a severe food crisis caused by drought, which together tested India's young leadership and led to the Green Revolution.
Common mistakes
- 1.Naming only one challenge instead of two, or repeating the same challenge in different words.
- 2.Confusing the 1965 war with the 1971 Bangladesh war (a common date mix-up).
- 3.Not linking the food crisis to its cause (drought) or its consequence (Green Revolution).
Analysis and explanation
This question tests understanding of the turbulent transition period right after Nehru's death.
Concept
- Shastri's short tenure (1964–66) was marked by the first major war since independence and a domestic agricultural emergency, both of which tested India's new leadership.
Exam trap
- Students often confuse the anti-Hindi agitation (a language-related regional challenge in Madras, 1965) with the war/food challenges — both are acceptable, but two DISTINCT challenges must be described with specific detail, not merely named.
Real-world link
- The food crisis directly led to the Green Revolution and to India's continuing policy focus on agricultural self-sufficiency.
Interesting facts
Shastri's famous slogan 'Jai Jawan Jai Kisan' (Hail the Soldier, Hail the Farmer) was coined in 1965 to boost morale on both the war and food fronts simultaneously.
Shastri died suddenly in Tashkent (USSR) in January 1966, a day after signing the Tashkent Declaration ending the 1965 war with Pakistan.
India's dependence on PL-480 food imports from the USA at the time was often seen as compromising foreign-policy independence — a key reason the Green Revolution was pursued so urgently.
Question details
Q17 of 38 questions
- Board
- CBSE
- Class
- Class 12
- Subject
- Political Science
- Year
- 2026
- Section
- Section B
- Marks
- 2
- Type
- Short Answer
- Chapter
- Challenges to and Restoration of Congress System
- Topic
- Challenges during Lal Bahadur Shastri's tenure
- Bloom's level
- understand
- Syllabus topic
- Unit 2: Politics in India Since Independence — Challenges to and Restoration of Congress System: the post-Nehru succession and the Shastri era
- Author
- CBSE
- Reviewed by
- Padhantu Academic Team
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Frequently asked questions
What was Lal Bahadur Shastri's famous slogan and why?
Shastri coined 'Jai Jawan Jai Kisan' (Hail the Soldier, Hail the Farmer) in 1965 to simultaneously honour soldiers fighting the Indo-Pak War and encourage farmers to overcome the severe food crisis caused by drought.
Why did India face a food crisis during Shastri's tenure?
Successive years of poor monsoon caused a sharp fall in foodgrain production, forcing India to import wheat under the US PL-480 programme; this dependence eventually pushed the government to launch the Green Revolution.