NCERT Solutions: Every Drop Counts - Notes | Study EVS Class 5 - Class 5

Think and Find Out

Q.1. Look at the area around your school. Are there any fields, farms, pucca roads, drains, etc.? Is the area sloping, rocky, or flat? Think, what will happen here when it rains? Where will the rainwater go – into the drains, pipes, or pits? Is some water also getting soaked into the soil?

 Ans. Yes, there are fields, farms, concrete roads, drains, etc. around my school. The area around my school is basically flat. When it rains, the rainwater goes into the drains, pipes, and pits. Some water is also absorbed by the soil.

Drop by Drop

Q.1. How do you think the rainwater that falls on the roof will reach the underground tank? Draw the path.

Ans. The water collected on the roof reaches the underground tank, through the pipe, which connects both of these.

Q.3.a) Have you ever faced a shortage of water in your area? If yes, then what was the reason for it?

Ans. Yes. Sometimes we face a shortage of water in our area. This is due to the cut in the supply of water by the Jal Board.

b) Talk to your grandfather or any elderly person. Find out, when they were of your age:

From where did they get water from the house? Has there been a change now?

Ans. They used to get water from wells, bavdis, ponds, rivers, and hand pumps. But now we get water supplied by Jal Board or from tube wells, hand pumps, etc.

Q.4. From where did they get water for the house? Has there been a change now?

 Ans. They usually get water from rivers, ponds, wells, and hand pumps. Yes, now it has changed. They get water from some suppliers now. 

Q.5. What kind of water arrangements were made for travelers – for example, piau, mashak (leather bag), or any other? Nowadays, what do people do about water when they travel?

Ans. For travelers, there were arrangements of piau, mashak etc. Now-a-days, people usually purchase packaged drinking water or carry their own water bottles.

Customs Related to water

Q.1. Can we even imagine life without water?

Ans. No water is essential for the survival of life.

Find Out

Q.1. Is there a lake, well, or stepwell near your house or school? Visit it and find out more about it. How old is it? Who got it built?

Ans. Yes, there is an old well near my house which is about 100 years old. The local people built it.

Q.2. What kind of buildings are around it?

Ans. There are residential buildings around it.

Q.3. Is the water clean? Is it cleaned regularly?

Ans. No, the water is not clean, and neither is it cleaned regularly.

Q.4. Who all uses the water?

Ans. Now no one uses the water.

Q.5. Are there any festivals celebrated at the place?

Ans. Yes, some rituals are performed during marriages etc.

Q.6. Is there any water today or is it dry?

Ans. There is a little water. However, it dries up during summer.

Discuss

Q.1. There are two old wells in the area where Punita lives. Her grandmother says that about fifteen-twenty years ago there was water in these wells. The wells could have dried up because:

Water is being pumped up from under the ground with the help of electric motors. The lakes in which rainwater used to collect are no longer there.  The soil around trees and parks is now covered with cement. Is there some other reason for this? Explain.

Ans. Yes, the causes mentioned above are true. However, there are a few other reasons for the cause, which may be the destruction of more trees, no proper maintenance of the wells, and not being cleaned regularly. 

The Story Today

Q.1. Do you get water in your house in any of these ways? Put a tick (✓) on that. If you get water in some other way, write in your notebook.

Ans. By all the means given in the picture, we get water to my house. We do get water by other means as well like:

• We get water by using a hand pump to draw water from underground water.
• There are tankers who supply water to our houses.
• We get water from the Jal Board through pipelines directly to our house.
• A few people draw water directly from the nearby canals.

Discuss

Q.1. Everyone has the right to live. Yet, is everybody getting enough water to live or even water to drink? Why is it that some people have to buy drinking water? Should it be like this? Water on this earth is for one and all. Some people draw out water from the ground through deep bore wells. How far is it correct? Have you ever seen this? Why do some people pump directly into the Jal Board pipeline? What problems would other people face due to this? Do you have any such experience?

Ans. It is true that today everybody is not getting enough water. Due to the scarcity of drinking water, some people have to buy it. The thing must not be like this. Some people draw water from the ground by deep boring. It is a wrong practice. “It not only deprives other people of water but also affects the environment. In my colony, many people do this. Some people also put a pump in the Jal Board pipe due to which other people face scarcity of water. I also have had such experiences. We often suffer due to such practices by some of our neighbors.

Q.2. From which office has this bill come?

Ans. This bill has come from Delhi Jal Board.

Q.3. Do you get a water bill at home? Find out from where it is sent.

Ans. Yes, we get a water bill at home. We live in Delhi and so get our bill from Delhi Jal Board.

Q.4. Why do you think Dilli Sarkar (Government of Delhi) is written under Delhi Jal Board?

Ans. Dilli Sarkar (Government of Delhi) is written under Delhi Jal Board because Delhi Jal Board is a subsidiary of the Government of Delhi.

Q.5. In whose name is the bill? How much money do they have to pay for each month?

Ans. The bill bears the name of Shri Mohd. Umar and Dr. Mohd. Shoaib.

Q.6. Do you have to pay for water? How much? Is the rate of water different in different colonies? Ask your elders.

Ans. Yes, we have to pay for water for about Rs. 300 per month. The rate is the same in different colonies.

Q.7. Have you ever read this kind of news in any newspaper? How did people solve their problem of water? Did they repair and reuse any old lake or stepwell?

Ans. Yes, a few years back there was an acute scarcity of water in my village. To solve the problem, villagers made collective offers and cleaned up and repaired the pond and all the wells of the village to make them usable again. Tons of garbage were taken out from these water bodies. The hard work of villagers bore fruit and even today they are fulfilling their water requirement from this pond and wells.

 What we have Learned

Q1. Make a poster: Do you remember the slogan – “Water on earth is for one and all.” Think of some other such slogans. Draw pictures and make a nice poster.

Ans.

Q2. Bring a water bill, look at it and tell – This bill is from – date to – date.

Answer: The billing is from 15^th January 2020 to 2^nd February 2020.

Q3. How much money is to be paid for this bill?

Answer: The bill amounts to Rs. 500 per month.

Q4. What else can you see in the bill, like the money spent on repair, maintenance etc.?

Answer: We can see other amounts billed for repair, maintenance arrears, etc.