Class 9 Economics Chapter 2 Extra Question Answers - People as Resource

Q53. Describe any three steps taken by the government in the field of education.

• A child, too with the investment made in his/her education can yield a higher return in future in the form of higher-earning and greater contribution to society.
• Educated parents realise the importance of education.
• They are conscious of proper nutrition and hygiene.  

Q54. Mention any three features of National health policy.

'People as Resource' is a way of referring to a country's working people in term of their existing production skills and abilities. Human resource is different other resources for following reasons:

• Human resource is different from land and physical capital because only they can use other resources.
• Only human resource is a living, active and sensitive factor of production.
• Only human resource can think, analyse and take decisions.
• Human resources add to productive power of country whereas land and physical capital cannot be useful on their own. 

Q55. On what factors do the quality of population depend? How does the education enhances the quality of population? Explain. Or Analyse the role of education in the formations of human capital. Or How can education contribute toward the growth of society? Explain in three points.

Any activity which adds value to national income is called economic activity. Two types of economic activities are as follow

Q56. Explain in three points the role of health in human capital formation. Or Why has the improvement in health status of population has been the basic priority of a country? Given three reasons. Or "Health is the priority of the country". Justify the statement giving five arguments.

• There is a provision made for providing universal access, retention and quality in elementary education with a special emphasis on girls.
• There is also an establishment of pace setting of schools like Novodaya Vidyalaya in each district.
• Vocational streams have been developed to equip  students  with  occupation  related knowledge and skills.  

Q57. Explain any three demerits of unemployment. Or "Unemployment leads to a depressed economy". Justify the statement with five arguments. Or "Increase in unemployment is an indicator of a depressed economy". Do you agree with this statement. Support your answer by giving arguments. 

• National health policy of government aims to improve accessibility of healthcare.
• It is focused on family welfare.
• It provides nutritional services with special focus on underprivileged segment of society.
• Over the last five decades India has built up a vast health infrastructure thus enhanced its vast pool of man power.  

Q58. Explain the four requirements for the production of goods and services. What are the items that come under physical capital ?

The four main requirements for the production of goods and services are 

• The first requirement is land and other natural resources.
• The second is labour i.e., people who carry out the work for production.
• The third is physical capital i.e., varieties of inputs that are required for production such as fixed capital (Building, equipment, machinery and tools, etc.) and working capital (cash, raw materials, etc).
• The fourth requirement is human capital, which may include technology, qualified manpower, etc. The items under physical capital are fixed capital and working capital. 

Q59. What are the two types of unemployment found in rural areas? How does unemployment affect the overall growth of an economy? Explain by giving four points.

Two types of unemployment found in rural areas are

• Seasonal Unemployment Agriculture being a seasonal activity, most of the labour is required during sowing and harvesting. At other times the labour is unemployed.
• Disguised Unemployment This occurs when all the members of a family of a small farmer are working in the fields, but all may not be required. For instance, the farmer may require only five labourers for the work, but because eight are available, all are working. Actually they are working at less than full productivity. Unemployment affects the overall growth of an economy as
  i) it is a wastage of manpower resource.
  ii) it increases the economic overload.
  iii) it tends to increase the number of dependent population.
  iv) increase in unemployment is an indicator of a depressed economy.  

Q60. Why are women employed in low paid work?

Education is one of the major determinants of the earning of an individual in the market. As a majority of the women in India have lesser education and lesser skill training than men due to traditional reasons, they are paid less than men or are employed in low paid work. Another reason is that jobs involving physical labour are entrusted to men only due to their physique; here women cannot do as much physical work as men. Women also generally have an additional responsibility of bringing up their family and children and so they cannot be as regular as men in their duties. So, they are often given non-critical and low paid duties.  

Q61. Why is educated unemployment, a peculiar problem of India ?

Educated unemployment is a peculiar problem of urban India. This is the situation wherein a number of youth with matriculation, graduation and post graduation degrees are not able to find suitable jobs. The education system is such that even after about 18 years of education, a person is practically 'unskilled'. So, a large number of unskilled educated youth get churned out of educational institutions year after year, but only a fraction of them are able to find suitable jobs. Among the remaining, some remain unemployed while others get employed in activities that are not as per their potential, i.e., they are underemployed. In effect, it is wastage of the resources spent on educating them.  

Q62. What are the objectives of India's national policy on health? Suggest two ways in which the policy objectives can be met.

The objectives of the national health policy (2002) are as follow

• Enhancing the contribution of Private sector in providing health service for people who can afford to pay.
• Giving primacy for prevention and first line curative initiative.
• Emphasising rational use of drugs.
• Increasing access to tried systems of traditional medicine. 

Some of the policy objectives can be met through the following methods.

• Increasing the number of trained nurses or midwives to one per village.
• Making available generic medicines (instead of branded medicines) at all government dispensaries. There are many other methods for fulfilling the other policy objectives. 

Q63. What is the mid-day meal scheme? Explain its purpose.

The Mid-day meal scheme was started to provide a cooked Mid-day meal on every school day with nutritional content of 450 calories, 12 gms proteins and other micro nutrients to all children studying in classes I to VIII in government, local body and government aided schools, etc. The basic purpose of this scheme was to improve enrollment, retention and attendance of the children in school and simultaneously improving nutritional levels among them. This encouraged poor children, belonging to disadvantaged sections, to attend school more regularly and help them concentrate on classroom activities. An additional purpose was to provide nutritional support to children of primary classes in drought affected areas during summer vacation.  

Q64. Study the graph and answer the following questions.
(a) Has the literacy rates of the population increased since 1951 ?
(b) In which year, India has the highest literacy rates? 
(c) Why literacy rate is high among the males of India? 
(d) Why are women less educated than men? 
(e) How would you calculate literacy rate in India?

Yes, the literacy rates of the population have increased since 1951 as shown below.

Q65. Table: Health Infrastructure over the years

SC : Sub Centre PHC: Primary Health Centre CHC: Community Health Centre Study the above table and answer the following questions. 
(a) What is the percentage increase in dispensaries from 1951 to 2001 ?
(b) What is the percentage increase in doctors and nursing personnel from 1951 to 2001?
(c) Do you think the increase in the number of doctors and nurses is adequate for India? If not, why?
(d) What other facilities would you like to provide in a hospital?
(e) Discuss about the hospital you have visited.

India has the highest literacy rates in 2011. India traditionally has a patriarchal male dominated society where more importance is given to males. Culturally due to division of labour, the males go out of their homes and get better access to education. Poor families, due to monetary constraints, prefer to send only their sons to school and not their daughters. 

Q66. What is the difference between disguised unemployment and seasonal unemployment?

Q67. "Sakal was meritorious and interested in studies from the beginning. After sometime he got a job in a private firm..... His boss acknowledged his services and rewarded him with a promotion." "Vilas's father Mahesh was a fisherman, who passed away when he was only two years old. His mother Geeta sold fish to earn money to feed the family. She could earn only Rs. 20 to 30 a day by selling fish. Vilas......was not interested in studies. He helped his mother in cooking and also looked after his younger brother Mohan. After his mother died, Vilas, too, was forced to sell fish in the same village. He, like his mother, earned only a meagre income." Sakal and Vilas are friends. What has Vilas not got which Sakal had? Is it possible for Vilas to improve his financial position now? If so how? Explain in about 120 words.

Answer:  Vilas has not received the same educational opportunities and job prospects that Sakal had. Sakal's merit and interest in studies led to him securing a job in a private firm and subsequently earning a promotion. In contrast, Vilas faced a disadvantaged upbringing, with his family struggling to make ends meet through low-income activities like selling fish. Vilas did not have the chance to pursue education and career advancement as Sakal did.

However, it is possible for Vilas to improve his financial position at this point in his life. He can consider the following steps:

• Education: Vilas could explore opportunities for adult education or vocational training programs to acquire new skills and qualifications that would make him eligible for better job prospects.
• Entrepreneurship: With his experience in the fishing industry, Vilas could explore the possibility of starting a small business related to fisheries or any other local venture. This could potentially increase his income.
• Government Support: He could inquire about government welfare programs, scholarships, or subsidies for adult learners or individuals looking to start their own businesses.
• Financial Planning: Vilas should focus on efficient financial management and savings to gradually improve his financial stability over time.

While Vilas faced initial challenges, with determination and the right support, he can work towards a better financial future and break the cycle of meager income.

Q68) How is human resource different from other resources like land and physical capital?

Human resource is different from other resources in many senses. Human resources need education, training and healthcare to develop. On the other hand, land and physical capital need money and physical inputs to develop. Land and physical capital are useless without human resources.

Q69. The quality of a population depends on which factors?

The quality of a population depends on literacy, skill development, life expectancy and health. 

Q70. What was the purpose of Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan? What are its goals?

Its basic aim is providing elementary education to all children of age group 6 to 14 years by 2010. Additionally, it is an effort to universalize elementary education by community ownership of the school system. It was started in response to the demand for quality basic education all over the country. The SSA programme is also an attempt to provide an opportunity for improving human capabilities of all children, through provision of community owned quality education in a mission mode. The mid-day meal scheme is part of it to reduce the dropout rate of children from schools.  

Q71. Distinguish between physical and human capital.

Physical capital includes the variety of inputs required at all stages of a production activity. This includes fixed capital and working capital in the form of machinery, land and building, raw materials, cash in hand, etc. In contrast, human capital is the stock of competencies, knowledge, social and personality attributes, including creativity, embodied in the ability to perform labour so as to produce economic value. Here, it refers to the persons performing the economic activity like labourers, knowledge persons and others involved in the activity. 

Q72. What do you understand by 'people as a resource'?

'People as a resource' is a way of referring to a country's working people in terms of their existing productive skills and abilities. Because the humans contribute to GDP, they are also considered as a resource.