Class 10 Economics Chapter 3 Question Answers - Understanding Economic Development

Q1: Who are Producers?
Ans: People who make goods and provide services are called producers. As producers of goods and services, we could be working in any of the sectors such as agriculture, industry or services.

Q2: Who are Consumers?
Ans: Consumers participate in the market when they purchase goods and services that they need. These are final goods that people as consumers use.

Q3: What is the need of rules and regulations in the market?
Ans: Rules and regulations are needed to protect workers in unorganised sector or protect people from high interest rates charged by moneylenders in the informal sector or for protecting a consumer in the market.

Q4: Why do individual consumers often find themselves in a weak position?
Ans: Whenever there is a complaint regarding a good or service that they had bought, the seller tries to shift all the responsibility on to the buyer.

Q5: How can large companies with huge wealth and power manipulate the market?
Ans: At times, false information is given through media, and other sources to attract consumers. Such big companies with huge wealth and power can manipulate the market.

Q6: Give an example to prove how big companies can manipulate market with wealth and power.
Ans: A long battle had to be fought with court to make cigarette–manufacturing companies accept that their product could cause cancer.

Q7: Why did consumer movement arise in India?
Ans: Consumer movement arose out of the dissatisfaction of the consumers as many unfair practices were being indulged in by the sellers.

Q8: Who does the standardisation of products at National level?
Ans: Standardisation of products is done at the national level by the Bureau of Indian Standards Act, 1986. ISI, AGMARK, Hallmark are well known, certification marks for national standardisation.

Q9: Name two certification marks for international standardisation.
Ans: Standardisation of product is done at the international level. ISO 9000 and ISO 14000 are the well-known certification marks for international standardisation.

Q10: Which logo will you like to see on the electric heater to be sure of its quality?
OR
Which quality logo would you like to see on the electric goods to be sure about their quality? [CBSE (F) 2016], [CBSE (F) 2017]
Ans: ISI.

Q11: Initially what was done by consumers to protect themselves from the exploitation?
Ans: Initially when a consumer was not happy with a particular brand, product or shop, he or she generally avoided buying that brand product, or would stop purchasing from that shop.

Q12: Why did the consumer movement begin as a social force in India?
Ans: In India, the consumer movement as a ‘social force’ originated with the necessity of protecting and promoting the interests of consumers against unethical and unfair trade practices.

Q13: What was the status of consumer movement in 1960s?
Ans: Rampant food shortages, hoarding, black marketing, adulteration of food and edible oil gave birth to consumer movement in an organised form in 1960s.

Q14: What efforts were done in 1970s by consumer groups?
Ans: Till 1970s, consumer organisations were largely engaged in writing articles and holding exhibitions. They formed consumer groups to look into the malpractices in ration shops and overcrowding in the road passenger transport.

Q15: What is COPRA?
Ans: A major step taken in 1986 by the Indian government was the enactment of the Consumer Protection Act, 1986, popularly known as COPRA to protect consumer’s interests.

Q16: When and why was ‘Consumer International’ adopted?
Ans: In 1985, United Nations adopted the UN Guidelines for Consumer Protection. This was a tool for nations to adopt measures to protect consumers’ advocacy groups to press their governments to do so.

Q17: What is the status of Consumer International today?
Ans: Today, Consumer International has become an umbrella body of over 250 member organisations from in 120 countries.

Q18: Give any one example of consumer’s ‘right to choose.’ [CBSE Delhi 2017]
Ans: If a person wants to buy toothpaste and the shop owner says that she can sell the toothpaste only if the customer buys toothbrush. If you are not interested in buying the brush, you have right to deny.

Q19: Why should Right to Safety be practised by the consumers?
Ans: While using many goods and services, we as consumers, have the right to be protected against the marketing of goods and delivery of services that are hazardous to life and property.

Q20: Why do producers need to strictly follow the required safety rules and regulations?
Ans: There are many goods and services that we purchase that require special attention to safety. For example, pressure cookers have a safety valve which, if defective, can cause a serious accident. The manufacturers of the safety valve have to ensure high quality.