Class 9th Annual Exams are about to begin and students are usually stressed about their final revisions. To make this process easier we have created this article with chapter-wise important questions and answers from the Economics book of Social Science syllabus.
Chapter 1 : The Story of Village Palampur
Ques 1 Why are the wages for farm labourers in Palampur less than minimum wages?
Ans: The minimum wage fixed by the Indian government for a farm labourer is Rs 60 per day, however, farm labourers in Palampur get about 35 to 40 rupees a day. This is because of the the competition for work among the agricultural labourers in the village. Just to get the work, labourers themselves agree to work on normal wages. The use of modern agricultural implements like tractors, threshers and harvesters also reduces the amount of agricultural labour required.
Ques 2 What are the different ways of increasing production on the same piece of land? Use examples to explain.
Ans: There are two common ways of increasing production on the same piece of land- Multiple cropping and the use of modern farming methods. . Multiple cropping involves growing more than one crop on a piece of land during the year.
For eg: In western UP during the rainy season (kharif), farmers grow jowar and bajra. These plants are used as cattle feed. It is followed by the cultivation of potato between October and December. In the winter season (rabi), fields are sown with wheat.
Modern farming methods involve the use of high-yielding variety seeds, irrigation, and chemical fertilisers and pesticides to produce maximum output from the same piece of land. The high-yielding varieties of seeds.
Ques 3 How did the spread of electricity help farmers in Palampur?
Ans: The spread of electricity in Palampur transformed the system of irrigation in the village. This improvement in irrigation allowed farmers to grow three different crops in a year, which ensured that the cultivable land was being used for producing the maximum possible output.
Chapter 2 : People as Resource
Ques 1 How is human resource different from other resources like land and physical capital?
Ans: Human resource makes use of other resources like land and physical capital to produce an output. The other resources are not useful on their own. This is why human resource is considered to be a superior resource than the other two.
Ques 2 What is the role of health in human capital formation?
Ans: Human capital refers to the stock of skill and productive knowledge embodied in a population. This skill and productive knowledge is provided with the help of proper education and training. However, the benefits of education alone do not lead to the creation of human capital. A human population which is educated but unhealthy cannot realise its potential. An unhealthy population is a liability, and not an asset. Hence, health is an indispensable basis for realising one’s well being.
Ques 3 What are the various activities undertaken in the primary sector, secondary sector and tertiary sector?
Ans: Primary Sector - activities related to the extraction and production of natural resources. Agriculture, forestry, animal husbandry, fishing, poultry farming, mining and quarrying are the activities undertaken in this sector.
Secondary Sector - activities related to the processing of natural resources. Manufacturing is included in this sector.
Tertiary Sector - activities that provide support to the primary and secondary sectors through various services. Trade, transport, communication, banking, education, health, tourism, insurance, etc., are examples of tertiary activities.
Ques 4 How will you explain the term unemployment?
Ans: Unemployment refers to a situation in which people who are able and willing to work at the current wages but cannot find jobs.
Ques 5 What is the difference between disguised unemployment and seasonal unemployment?
Ans:
| Disguised Unemployment |
Seasonal Unemployment |
| situation in which an individual appears to be employed, but he does not add to the productivity. That is, the productivity would remain the same even in his absence |
situation in which an individual is not able to find a job during certain months of the year. |
Chapter 3 : Poverty as a Challenge
Ques 1 Identify the social and economic groups which are most vulnerable to poverty in India.
Ans: The proportion of people below poverty line is not the same for all social groups and economic categories in India. The social groups of scheduled castes and scheduled tribes, and the economic groups of rural agricultural labourers and urban casual labourers are the ones most vulnerable to poverty. The poverty ratios for each of these groups are higher than the average Indian poverty ratio. Apart from these groups, women, elderly people and female infants are considered to be the poorest of the poor.
Ques 2 What do you understand by human poverty?
Ans: Human poverty refers to the denial of political, social and economic opportunities to an individual to maintain a “reasonable” standard of living. Illiteracy, lack of job opportunities, lack of access to proper healthcare and sanitation, caste and gender discrimination, etc., are all responsible for human poverty
Ques 3 Who are the poorest of the poor?
Ans: Women, female infants and elderly people are the poorest of the poor. Within a poor family, such individuals suffer more than the others.
Ques 4 Describe how the poverty line is estimated in India.
Ans: In India, poverty lineis determined by calculating a minimum level of food requirement, clothing, footwear, fuel and light, educational and medical requirements, which is then multiplied by their prices in rupees. This calculation gives the poverty line.
Chapter 4 : Food Security in India
Ques 1 Differentiate between seasonal hunger and chronic hunger.
Ans: Seasonal hunger is related to cycles of food growing and harvesting. This is common in rural areas because of the seasonal nature of agricultural activities, and in urban areas because of the casual labour. This type of hunger exists when a person is unable to get work for the entire year.
Chronic hunger is a consequence of inadequacy in terms of quantity or quality. Poor people suffer from chronic hunger because of their low income and in turn, inability to buy food even for survival.
Ques 2 Why is a buffer stock created by the government?
Ans:A buffer stock of food grains is created by the government so as to distribute the procured food grains in the food-deficit areas and among the poorer strata of society at a price lower than the market price. A buffer stock helps resolve the problem of shortage of food during adverse weather conditions or during periods of calamity.
Ques 3 Write notes on Minimum support price
Ans: Minimum Support Price is the predetermined price at which the government purchases food grains from the farmers in order to create a buffer stock. This price is declared by the government every year before the growing season. The aim of creating a MSP is to provide incentives to the farmers for raising the production of the crops.
Ques 4 What happens to the supply of food when there is a disaster or a calamity?
Ans:When there is a disaster or a calamity, the production of food grains decreases in the affected area. This reults in shortage of food in the area. Due to the food shortage, the prices rise. The raised prices of food materials affect the buying capacity of many people. When the calamity occurs in a very wide spread area or is stretched over a long period of time, it may cause a situation of starvation which can take the form of famine.
