Class 7 Maths Chapter 1 NCERT Book - Large Numbers Around Us

 Page 1


1.1 A Lakh Varieties!
Eshwarappa is a farmer in Chintamani, 
a town in Karnataka. He visits the 
market regularly to buy seeds for his 
rice field. During one such visit he 
overheard a conversation between 
Ramanna and Lakshmamma. Ramanna 
said, “Earlier our country had about a 
lakh varieties of rice. Farmers used to 
preserve different varieties of seeds 
and use them to grow rice. Now, we 
only have a handful of varieties. Also, 
farmers have to come to the market to buy seeds”.
Lakshmamma said, “There is a seed bank near my house. So far , they 
have collected about a hundred indigenous varieties of rice seeds from 
different places. You can also buy seeds from there.”
You may have heard the word ‘lakh’ 
before. Do you know how big one lakh is? Let 
us find out.
Eshwarappa shared this incident with his 
daughter Roxie and son Estu .
Estu was surprised to know that there 
were about one lakh varieties of rice in this 
country. He wondered “One lakh! So far I 
have only tasted 3 varieties. If we tried a new 
variety each day, would we even come close 
to tasting all the varieties in a lifetime of 100 
years?”
What do you think? Guess.
LARGE NUMBERS 
AROUND US
1
Chapter-1.indd   1 Chapter-1.indd   1 4/12/2025   12:13:49 PM 4/12/2025   12:13:49 PM
Page 2


1.1 A Lakh Varieties!
Eshwarappa is a farmer in Chintamani, 
a town in Karnataka. He visits the 
market regularly to buy seeds for his 
rice field. During one such visit he 
overheard a conversation between 
Ramanna and Lakshmamma. Ramanna 
said, “Earlier our country had about a 
lakh varieties of rice. Farmers used to 
preserve different varieties of seeds 
and use them to grow rice. Now, we 
only have a handful of varieties. Also, 
farmers have to come to the market to buy seeds”.
Lakshmamma said, “There is a seed bank near my house. So far , they 
have collected about a hundred indigenous varieties of rice seeds from 
different places. You can also buy seeds from there.”
You may have heard the word ‘lakh’ 
before. Do you know how big one lakh is? Let 
us find out.
Eshwarappa shared this incident with his 
daughter Roxie and son Estu .
Estu was surprised to know that there 
were about one lakh varieties of rice in this 
country. He wondered “One lakh! So far I 
have only tasted 3 varieties. If we tried a new 
variety each day, would we even come close 
to tasting all the varieties in a lifetime of 100 
years?”
What do you think? Guess.
LARGE NUMBERS 
AROUND US
1
Chapter-1.indd   1 Chapter-1.indd   1 4/12/2025   12:13:49 PM 4/12/2025   12:13:49 PM
Ganita Prakash | Grade 7
But how much is one lakh? Observe the pattern and fill in the boxes 
given below.
999 The largest 3-digit number is
The smallest 4-digit number is
The largest 4-digit number is
The smallest 5-digit number is
The largest 5-digit number is
1,00,000 The smallest 6-digit number is
+1
+1
+1
1,00,000 is read as “One Lakh”
99,995
99,996
99,998
Roxie and Estu found that if they ate 
one variety of rice a day, they would come 
nowhere close to a lakh in a lifetime! Roxie 
suggests, “What if we ate 2 varieties of 
rice every day? Would we then be able to 
eat 1 lakh varieties of rice in 100 years?”
What if a person ate 3 varieties of rice every day? Will they be able to 
taste all the lakh varieties in a 100 year lifetime? Find out.
Estu said, “We know how many days there are in a year?—?365, if 
we ignore leap years. If we live for y years, the number of days in our 
lifetime will be 365 × y.”
2
Chapter-1.indd   2 Chapter-1.indd   2 4/12/2025   12:13:49 PM 4/12/2025   12:13:49 PM
Page 3


1.1 A Lakh Varieties!
Eshwarappa is a farmer in Chintamani, 
a town in Karnataka. He visits the 
market regularly to buy seeds for his 
rice field. During one such visit he 
overheard a conversation between 
Ramanna and Lakshmamma. Ramanna 
said, “Earlier our country had about a 
lakh varieties of rice. Farmers used to 
preserve different varieties of seeds 
and use them to grow rice. Now, we 
only have a handful of varieties. Also, 
farmers have to come to the market to buy seeds”.
Lakshmamma said, “There is a seed bank near my house. So far , they 
have collected about a hundred indigenous varieties of rice seeds from 
different places. You can also buy seeds from there.”
You may have heard the word ‘lakh’ 
before. Do you know how big one lakh is? Let 
us find out.
Eshwarappa shared this incident with his 
daughter Roxie and son Estu .
Estu was surprised to know that there 
were about one lakh varieties of rice in this 
country. He wondered “One lakh! So far I 
have only tasted 3 varieties. If we tried a new 
variety each day, would we even come close 
to tasting all the varieties in a lifetime of 100 
years?”
What do you think? Guess.
LARGE NUMBERS 
AROUND US
1
Chapter-1.indd   1 Chapter-1.indd   1 4/12/2025   12:13:49 PM 4/12/2025   12:13:49 PM
Ganita Prakash | Grade 7
But how much is one lakh? Observe the pattern and fill in the boxes 
given below.
999 The largest 3-digit number is
The smallest 4-digit number is
The largest 4-digit number is
The smallest 5-digit number is
The largest 5-digit number is
1,00,000 The smallest 6-digit number is
+1
+1
+1
1,00,000 is read as “One Lakh”
99,995
99,996
99,998
Roxie and Estu found that if they ate 
one variety of rice a day, they would come 
nowhere close to a lakh in a lifetime! Roxie 
suggests, “What if we ate 2 varieties of 
rice every day? Would we then be able to 
eat 1 lakh varieties of rice in 100 years?”
What if a person ate 3 varieties of rice every day? Will they be able to 
taste all the lakh varieties in a 100 year lifetime? Find out.
Estu said, “We know how many days there are in a year?—?365, if 
we ignore leap years. If we live for y years, the number of days in our 
lifetime will be 365 × y.”
2
Chapter-1.indd   2 Chapter-1.indd   2 4/12/2025   12:13:49 PM 4/12/2025   12:13:49 PM
Large Numbers Around Us
Choose a number for y. How close to one lakh is the number of days in 
y years, for the y of your choice?
Figure it Out 
1. According to the 2011 Census, the population of the town of 
Chintamani was about 75,000. How much less than one lakh is 75,000?
2.  The estimated population of Chintamani in the year 2024 is 1,06,000. 
How much more than one lakh is 1,06,000?
3.  By how much did the population of Chintamani increase from 2011 
to 2024?
Getting a Feel of Large Numbers
You may have come across interesting facts like these: 
•  The world’s tallest statue is the ‘Statue of Unity’ 
in Gujarat depicting Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel. Its 
height is about 180 metres.
• Kunchikal waterfall in Karnataka is said to drop 
from a height of about 450 metres.
It is not always easy to get a sense of how big these measurements 
are. But, we can get a better sense of their size when we compare them 
with something familiar. Let us see an example.
Look at the picture on the right. Somu is 1 metre tall. If each floor 
is about four times his height, what is the approximate height of the 
building?
Which is taller?—?The Statue of Unity or this building? How much taller? 
____________m.
We can see that the 
height of the Statue of Unity 
is close to 4 times the height 
of Somu’s building.
How much taller is the 
Kunchikal waterfall 
than Somu's building? 
____________m.
How many floors should 
Somu’s building have to be 
as high as the waterfall? 
____________ .
500
400
300
200
100
meters
0
3
Chapter-1.indd   3 Chapter-1.indd   3 4/12/2025   12:13:50 PM 4/12/2025   12:13:50 PM
Page 4


1.1 A Lakh Varieties!
Eshwarappa is a farmer in Chintamani, 
a town in Karnataka. He visits the 
market regularly to buy seeds for his 
rice field. During one such visit he 
overheard a conversation between 
Ramanna and Lakshmamma. Ramanna 
said, “Earlier our country had about a 
lakh varieties of rice. Farmers used to 
preserve different varieties of seeds 
and use them to grow rice. Now, we 
only have a handful of varieties. Also, 
farmers have to come to the market to buy seeds”.
Lakshmamma said, “There is a seed bank near my house. So far , they 
have collected about a hundred indigenous varieties of rice seeds from 
different places. You can also buy seeds from there.”
You may have heard the word ‘lakh’ 
before. Do you know how big one lakh is? Let 
us find out.
Eshwarappa shared this incident with his 
daughter Roxie and son Estu .
Estu was surprised to know that there 
were about one lakh varieties of rice in this 
country. He wondered “One lakh! So far I 
have only tasted 3 varieties. If we tried a new 
variety each day, would we even come close 
to tasting all the varieties in a lifetime of 100 
years?”
What do you think? Guess.
LARGE NUMBERS 
AROUND US
1
Chapter-1.indd   1 Chapter-1.indd   1 4/12/2025   12:13:49 PM 4/12/2025   12:13:49 PM
Ganita Prakash | Grade 7
But how much is one lakh? Observe the pattern and fill in the boxes 
given below.
999 The largest 3-digit number is
The smallest 4-digit number is
The largest 4-digit number is
The smallest 5-digit number is
The largest 5-digit number is
1,00,000 The smallest 6-digit number is
+1
+1
+1
1,00,000 is read as “One Lakh”
99,995
99,996
99,998
Roxie and Estu found that if they ate 
one variety of rice a day, they would come 
nowhere close to a lakh in a lifetime! Roxie 
suggests, “What if we ate 2 varieties of 
rice every day? Would we then be able to 
eat 1 lakh varieties of rice in 100 years?”
What if a person ate 3 varieties of rice every day? Will they be able to 
taste all the lakh varieties in a 100 year lifetime? Find out.
Estu said, “We know how many days there are in a year?—?365, if 
we ignore leap years. If we live for y years, the number of days in our 
lifetime will be 365 × y.”
2
Chapter-1.indd   2 Chapter-1.indd   2 4/12/2025   12:13:49 PM 4/12/2025   12:13:49 PM
Large Numbers Around Us
Choose a number for y. How close to one lakh is the number of days in 
y years, for the y of your choice?
Figure it Out 
1. According to the 2011 Census, the population of the town of 
Chintamani was about 75,000. How much less than one lakh is 75,000?
2.  The estimated population of Chintamani in the year 2024 is 1,06,000. 
How much more than one lakh is 1,06,000?
3.  By how much did the population of Chintamani increase from 2011 
to 2024?
Getting a Feel of Large Numbers
You may have come across interesting facts like these: 
•  The world’s tallest statue is the ‘Statue of Unity’ 
in Gujarat depicting Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel. Its 
height is about 180 metres.
• Kunchikal waterfall in Karnataka is said to drop 
from a height of about 450 metres.
It is not always easy to get a sense of how big these measurements 
are. But, we can get a better sense of their size when we compare them 
with something familiar. Let us see an example.
Look at the picture on the right. Somu is 1 metre tall. If each floor 
is about four times his height, what is the approximate height of the 
building?
Which is taller?—?The Statue of Unity or this building? How much taller? 
____________m.
We can see that the 
height of the Statue of Unity 
is close to 4 times the height 
of Somu’s building.
How much taller is the 
Kunchikal waterfall 
than Somu's building? 
____________m.
How many floors should 
Somu’s building have to be 
as high as the waterfall? 
____________ .
500
400
300
200
100
meters
0
3
Chapter-1.indd   3 Chapter-1.indd   3 4/12/2025   12:13:50 PM 4/12/2025   12:13:50 PM
Ganita Prakash | Grade 7
Is One Lakh a Very Large Number?
Eshwarappa asked Roxie and Estu, “Is a lakh big or 
small?” 
Roxie feels that 1 lakh is a large number:
• “We had one lakh varieties of rice?—?that 
is a lot.”
• “Living 1 lakh days would mean living for 274 
years?—?that is a really long time!”
• “If 1 lakh people stood shoulder to shoulder in a line they could 
stretch as far as 38 kilometres.”
Estu, however, thinks it is not that big:
• “Do you know that the cricket stadium in 
Ahmedabad has a seating capacity of more 
than 1 lakh? One lakh people in such a small 
area!”
• “Most humans have 80,000 to 1,20,000 hairs on 
their heads. Imagine, 1 lakh hairs fit in such a 
tiny space!”
• “I heard that there are some species of fish 
where a female fish can lay almost one lakh 
eggs at once very comfortably. Some even lay tens of lakhs of eggs 
at a time.”
How do you view a lakh?—?is a lakh big or small?
Reading and Writing Numbers
We have already been using commas for 5-digit numbers like 45,830 in 
the Indian place value system. As numbers grow bigger, using commas 
helps in reading the numbers easily. We use a comma in between the 
digits representing the “ten thousands” place and the “one lakh” place 
as you have seen just before (1,00,000).
The number name of 12,78,830 is twelve lakh seventy eight thousand 
eight hundred thirty.
Similarly, the number 15,75,000 in words is fifteen lakh seventy five 
thousand.
Write each of the numbers given below in words:
(a)  3,00,600 
(b)  5,04,085
(c)  27,30,000
(d)  70,53,138
4
Chapter-1.indd   4 Chapter-1.indd   4 4/12/2025   12:13:50 PM 4/12/2025   12:13:50 PM
Page 5


1.1 A Lakh Varieties!
Eshwarappa is a farmer in Chintamani, 
a town in Karnataka. He visits the 
market regularly to buy seeds for his 
rice field. During one such visit he 
overheard a conversation between 
Ramanna and Lakshmamma. Ramanna 
said, “Earlier our country had about a 
lakh varieties of rice. Farmers used to 
preserve different varieties of seeds 
and use them to grow rice. Now, we 
only have a handful of varieties. Also, 
farmers have to come to the market to buy seeds”.
Lakshmamma said, “There is a seed bank near my house. So far , they 
have collected about a hundred indigenous varieties of rice seeds from 
different places. You can also buy seeds from there.”
You may have heard the word ‘lakh’ 
before. Do you know how big one lakh is? Let 
us find out.
Eshwarappa shared this incident with his 
daughter Roxie and son Estu .
Estu was surprised to know that there 
were about one lakh varieties of rice in this 
country. He wondered “One lakh! So far I 
have only tasted 3 varieties. If we tried a new 
variety each day, would we even come close 
to tasting all the varieties in a lifetime of 100 
years?”
What do you think? Guess.
LARGE NUMBERS 
AROUND US
1
Chapter-1.indd   1 Chapter-1.indd   1 4/12/2025   12:13:49 PM 4/12/2025   12:13:49 PM
Ganita Prakash | Grade 7
But how much is one lakh? Observe the pattern and fill in the boxes 
given below.
999 The largest 3-digit number is
The smallest 4-digit number is
The largest 4-digit number is
The smallest 5-digit number is
The largest 5-digit number is
1,00,000 The smallest 6-digit number is
+1
+1
+1
1,00,000 is read as “One Lakh”
99,995
99,996
99,998
Roxie and Estu found that if they ate 
one variety of rice a day, they would come 
nowhere close to a lakh in a lifetime! Roxie 
suggests, “What if we ate 2 varieties of 
rice every day? Would we then be able to 
eat 1 lakh varieties of rice in 100 years?”
What if a person ate 3 varieties of rice every day? Will they be able to 
taste all the lakh varieties in a 100 year lifetime? Find out.
Estu said, “We know how many days there are in a year?—?365, if 
we ignore leap years. If we live for y years, the number of days in our 
lifetime will be 365 × y.”
2
Chapter-1.indd   2 Chapter-1.indd   2 4/12/2025   12:13:49 PM 4/12/2025   12:13:49 PM
Large Numbers Around Us
Choose a number for y. How close to one lakh is the number of days in 
y years, for the y of your choice?
Figure it Out 
1. According to the 2011 Census, the population of the town of 
Chintamani was about 75,000. How much less than one lakh is 75,000?
2.  The estimated population of Chintamani in the year 2024 is 1,06,000. 
How much more than one lakh is 1,06,000?
3.  By how much did the population of Chintamani increase from 2011 
to 2024?
Getting a Feel of Large Numbers
You may have come across interesting facts like these: 
•  The world’s tallest statue is the ‘Statue of Unity’ 
in Gujarat depicting Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel. Its 
height is about 180 metres.
• Kunchikal waterfall in Karnataka is said to drop 
from a height of about 450 metres.
It is not always easy to get a sense of how big these measurements 
are. But, we can get a better sense of their size when we compare them 
with something familiar. Let us see an example.
Look at the picture on the right. Somu is 1 metre tall. If each floor 
is about four times his height, what is the approximate height of the 
building?
Which is taller?—?The Statue of Unity or this building? How much taller? 
____________m.
We can see that the 
height of the Statue of Unity 
is close to 4 times the height 
of Somu’s building.
How much taller is the 
Kunchikal waterfall 
than Somu's building? 
____________m.
How many floors should 
Somu’s building have to be 
as high as the waterfall? 
____________ .
500
400
300
200
100
meters
0
3
Chapter-1.indd   3 Chapter-1.indd   3 4/12/2025   12:13:50 PM 4/12/2025   12:13:50 PM
Ganita Prakash | Grade 7
Is One Lakh a Very Large Number?
Eshwarappa asked Roxie and Estu, “Is a lakh big or 
small?” 
Roxie feels that 1 lakh is a large number:
• “We had one lakh varieties of rice?—?that 
is a lot.”
• “Living 1 lakh days would mean living for 274 
years?—?that is a really long time!”
• “If 1 lakh people stood shoulder to shoulder in a line they could 
stretch as far as 38 kilometres.”
Estu, however, thinks it is not that big:
• “Do you know that the cricket stadium in 
Ahmedabad has a seating capacity of more 
than 1 lakh? One lakh people in such a small 
area!”
• “Most humans have 80,000 to 1,20,000 hairs on 
their heads. Imagine, 1 lakh hairs fit in such a 
tiny space!”
• “I heard that there are some species of fish 
where a female fish can lay almost one lakh 
eggs at once very comfortably. Some even lay tens of lakhs of eggs 
at a time.”
How do you view a lakh?—?is a lakh big or small?
Reading and Writing Numbers
We have already been using commas for 5-digit numbers like 45,830 in 
the Indian place value system. As numbers grow bigger, using commas 
helps in reading the numbers easily. We use a comma in between the 
digits representing the “ten thousands” place and the “one lakh” place 
as you have seen just before (1,00,000).
The number name of 12,78,830 is twelve lakh seventy eight thousand 
eight hundred thirty.
Similarly, the number 15,75,000 in words is fifteen lakh seventy five 
thousand.
Write each of the numbers given below in words:
(a)  3,00,600 
(b)  5,04,085
(c)  27,30,000
(d)  70,53,138
4
Chapter-1.indd   4 Chapter-1.indd   4 4/12/2025   12:13:50 PM 4/12/2025   12:13:50 PM
Large Numbers Around Us
Write the corresponding number in the Indian place value system for 
each of the following:
(a)  One lakh twenty three thousand four hundred and fifty six 
(b)  Four lakh seven thousand seven hundred and four
(c)  Fifty lakhs five thousand and fifty
(d)  Ten lakhs two hundred and thirty five
1.2 Land of Tens
In the Land of Tens, there are special calculators with special buttons.
1. The Thoughtful Thousands only has a +1000 button. How many 
times should it be pressed to show:
(a)  Three thousand? 3 times
(b)  10,000? ____________  
(c)  Fifty three thousand? ___________  
(d)  90,000? ______________ 
(e)  One Lakh? ________________
(f)  ____________? 153 times
(g)  How many thousands are required to make one lakh?
2.  The Tedious Tens only has a +10 button. How 
many times should it be pressed to show:
(a) Five hundred? _____________ 
(b)  780? _________ 
(c) 1000?  _________
(d)  3700?  ________
(e)  10,000? ___________ 
(f)  One lakh? _____________
(g)  ____________? 435 times
3.  The Handy Hundreds only has a +100 button. How many 
times should it be pressed to show:
(a)  Four hundred? ___________times
(b)  3,700? __________ 
Note to the Teacher: Encourage students to make connections between these facts. 
For example, can the whole population of Chintamani fit in the stadium? How 
can we imagine the line of 38 km, having a lakh people, sitting next to each 
other in the stadium?
5
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