Class 9 Economics Chapter 1 Question Answers - Economics

Q1: Describe the poverty trends in India since 1973.

Ans: The trends in poverty since 1973 are:

• There is a substantial decline in the poverty ratio from 55% in 1973 to 36% in 1993 and 26% in 2000.
• Rural poverty has declined sharply from 56% in 1973 to 27% in 2000 and the numbers from 261 million to 193 million.
• The latest estimates indicate a significant reduction in the total urban and rural number of poor to about 260 million, down from 321 million in 1973.

Q2: What are the conditions of MGNREGA?

Ans: Conditions of MGNREGA:

• The Act provides 100 days of assured employment every year to every rural household in 200 districts.
• Under the programme, if an applicant is not provided employment within 15 days, he/she will be entitled to a daily unemployment allowance.

Q3: Explain social exclusion concept of poverty.

Ans: 

• According to this concept, poverty must be seen in terms of the poor having to -live only in a poor surrounding with other poor people, excluded from enjoying the social equality of better-off people in better surroundings. 
• Social exclusion can be both a cause and a consequence of poverty in the usual sense. 
• Broadly, it is a process through which individuals or groups are excluded from facilities, benefits and opportunities that others enjoy.

Q4: Explain any four causes of poverty.

Ans: Four causes of poverty are:

• Unemployment: When With the increase in population, employment opportunities do not grow at the same rate, it results in poverty.
• Social factors: Social factors like illiteracy, ignorance; fatalism and joint family system stopped from adopting modern ideas and techniques so that they could not increase their income.
• Underutilised natural resources: The resources have not been, fully utilised. The bulk of our resources are still lying unused.
• Backward agriculture: There is lack of basic facilities like water, fertiliser, pesticides etc. The productivity is low and Indian farmer remains poor.

Q5: What are the dimensions of poverty?
Ans: Dimensions of Poverty:

• Poverty means hunger and lack of shelter.
• It is a situation in which parents are not able to send their children to school or a situation where sick people cannot afford treatment.
• Poverty also means a lack of clean water and sanitation facilities.4. It also means a lack of a regular job at a minimum decent level.

Q6: Explain how poverty begets more poverty.

Ans: Poverty begets more poverty. It is both a cause as well as consequence of poverty. A poor country cannot save much out of its national income. As a result, it suffers from capital deficiency which adversely affects the level of production and income in the country.

Q7: Explain the concepts of :
 (a) Social exclusion
 (b) Vulnerability

Ans: 

(a) Social Exclusion : According to this concept, poverty must be seen in terms of the poor who have to live only in a poor surroundings with other poor people. Poor people are excluded from better surroundings with better-off people. For example, in India people belonging to certain castes are excluded from equal opportunities.

(b) Vulnerability : There is a greater possibility of remaining poor in case of certain communities (such as members of a backward classes, widows, physically handicapped persons). These groups of people face greater risks at the time of natural disasters (earthquakes, tsunami). Thus vulnerability describes the greater possibility of being adversely affected in comparison of other people in odd times.

Q8: What are the methods to measure the poverty line?

Ans: Methods to measure poverty line-

• Expenditure method: Firstly, for each person the minimum nutritional food requirement forsurvival is measured. Then it is converted into equivalent money value i.e. rupees. Apart fromfood, the money required for other items is also added to it. This total equal amount isconsidered as the poverty line. Those families which spend less than the poverty line, areconsidered as below poverty line families.
• Income method: In this method, all those families whose total income in a month is less thanthe poverty line as fixed by the government are considered to be below the poverty linefamilies.

Q9: Who are poor in the rural areas?

Ans:  In the rural sector, the poor include farm labourers, small and marginal farmers, rural artisans, backward classes and backward tribes. They lack basic literacy and skills. They are unable to find alternative employment elsewhere. They generally become victims of village moneylenders.

Q10: Who are poor in the urban sector?

Ans: In the urban sector, the poor consist of rickshaw-pullers, cobblers, street vendors, petty self13 employed persons, domestic servants and low-paid workers working in factories or in other occupations. They reside in poor localities where the conditions of living are very poor.

Q11: Explain how the low level of education can be held responsible for poverty in India.

Ans:  Low level of education of the poor is a major cause behind their poverty. Poor people are illiterate. Because of their illiteracy, Indian farmers have failed to learn new methods of cultivation. Even the village moneylenders succeed in cheating them quite easily. Moreover, poor parents are not able to send their children to schools. Because of their illiteracy, poor people are employed as unskilled workers and are paid low wages.

Q12: Suggest some measures to reduce regional poverty.

Ans:  

Measures to reduce regional poverty: Several states of India like Orissa, Bihar, Madhya Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh, Nagaland, etc., are economically very poor. To remove this regional poverty the following measures may be suggested :

• More Central assistance and grants should be given to backward states.
• Special concessions may be given for investments in backward areas.
• Public sector enterprises should be set up in backward states.

Q13: Discuss any three measures to reduce poverty in India.  [CBSE 2010]

Ans: 

Three measures to reduce poverty are:

1. More Industrialisation: In order to remove poverty and unemployment, especially in cities, more and more industries are to be set up.
2. Improvement in Agriculture: While latest methods should be adopted in improving agriculture, steps should also be taken so that land is provided to the tiller and it is not concentrated in the hands of few rich farmers and landlords.
3. Education: Education is must for removing any evil, including poverty and unemployment. It must be made cheaper so that every person could get it easily.

Q14: Discuss any three government programmes for poverty alleviation. [CBSE 2010]

Ans: Three government programmes made for poverty alleviation are as follows:

1. Prime Minister's Rojgar Yojana (PMRY): These schemes have been started for the welfare of the educated unemployed in urban areas. Youth belonging to the weaker sections of society are given priority.
2. Employment Assurance Scheme (EAS): These were launched in 1999 to create wage employment to families below poverty line and to improve the quality of life in the rural areas.
3.  Jawahar Gram Samridhi Yojana (JGSY): The objective of this programme is to generate gainful employment for the unemployed and underemployed men and women in rural areas, community and social assets are created such as soil conservation work.

Q15: Give brief account of inter-state disparities of poverty in India.  [CBSE 2010]

Ans: 

• Inter-state disparities of poverty in India are quite significant, with different states having different proportions of poor people. The poverty ratio varies greatly across the states, with some states having a poverty percentage higher than the national average, and others having it lower.
• In 20 states and union territories, the poverty ratio is less than the national average. However, in states such as Orissa, Bihar, Assam, Tripura, and Uttar Pradesh, the poverty percentage is more than 35%, indicating that poverty is a serious problem in these regions. This issue is not just limited to rural areas, as urban poverty is also high in these states.
• On the other hand, states like Kerala, Jammu and Kashmir, Tamil Nadu, and Andhra Pradesh have experienced a significant decline in poverty. This can be attributed to various factors such as better governance, social welfare programs, and economic growth.
• In the case of Punjab and Haryana, high agricultural growth rates have played a key role in reducing poverty. Similarly, in West Bengal, land reform measures have contributed to the reduction of poverty in the state.

Q16: Mention any three features of the National Rural Employment Guarantee Act, 2005. [2011 (T-2)]

Ans: National Rural Employment Guarantee Act, 2005 was passed in September 2005 with the following features:-

• It provides 100-days assured employment every year to every rural household with the reservation for one-third of the proposed jobs for women.
• The central government will establish a National Employment Guarantee Fund for Women and state governments will establish State Employment Guarantee Funds for implementation of the scheme.
• If an applicant is not provided employment within 15 days, he/she will get daily unemployment allowance.

Q17: How is the regular growth of population one of the major causes of poverty?    [2011 (T-2)]

Ans: The significant issue of high population growth in India's economy is a major obstacle to economic growth. This leads to limited job opportunities and a slow growth rate of income. When combined, these factors result in a low per capita income growth rate.

The inability to effectively address both economic growth and population control perpetuates the cycle of poverty.

The rapid increase in population adds to the number of job seekers, while job opportunities remain limited. Thus, population growth is one of the primary contributors to poverty in India.

Q18: What are the main causes of poverty in India?     [2011 (T-2)]

Ans: Main causes of poverty in India are:-

• Huge income inequalities makes it difficult for the government policies to implement properly for poverty elimination. Therefore income inequality is a major cause of poverty in India.
• Exploitation of traditional Indian handicrafts and textile industries by British colonial administration is another major cause of poverty.
• In order to fulfil social obligations and observe religious ceremonies, the poor spend a lot of money. Poor people borrow money for different reasons and become the victims of indebtedness.

Q19: How the policies of colonial government were responsible for poverty in India?   [2011 (T-2)]

Ans: Policies of colonial government is one of the historical reasons of poverty after and at the time of British colonial administration. The policies of the colonial government ruined traditional handicrafts and discouraged development of industries like textiles. The low rate of growth persisted until the nineteen eighties. This resulted in less job opportunities and low growth rate of incomes. This was accompanied by a high growth rate of population. The two combined to make the growth rate of per capita income very low. The failure at both the fronts – promotion of economic growth and population control – perpetuated the cycle of poverty.

Q20: Explain three ways in which poverty can be estimated in India.   [2011 (T-2)]

Ans: While determining the poverty line in India, a minimum level of food requirement, clothing, footwear, fuel and light, educational and medical requirement etc. are determined for subsistence.

• The calorie requirement depending upon the age, sex, area and type of work is the way of estimating poverty. Average calorie requirement in India is 2400 per person per day in rural areas and 2100 per person per day in urban areas.
• Monetary expenditure per capita needed is also a way of estimating poverty. In the year 2000, poverty line for a person was fixed at Rs 328 per month for the rural areas and Rs 454 for the urban areas.
• A uniform standard for poverty line is also used, which is given by international organisations like World Bank. This is equivalent of $ 1 per person per day.

Q21: Explain the principal measures taken in Punjab, Kerala and Andhra Pradesh to reduce poverty. [2011 (T-2)]

Ans: 

• The principal measures taken in Punjab to reduce poverty is increasing the agricultural growth rates.
• Kerala focussed more on human resource development to reduce poverty.
• Andhra Pradesh focussed on public distribution of foodgrains to reduce poverty.

Q22: ‘‘In poor families all suffer but some suffer more than others.’’ Explain.   [2011 (T-2)]

Ans:  Analysis of poverty on the basis of social exclusion and vulnerability shows that there are people in our economy who suffer more than others. Socially excluded people due to caste discrimination are excluded even from facilities, benefits and opportunities that others enjoy. Vulnerability brings greater risks to the people at the time of natural disasters or terrorism etc. Vulnerable groups lack social and economic ability to handle risks.

Q23: What is poverty line? Give the income for poverty line fixed for the rural and urban areas in India according to 2000.   [2011 (T-2)]

Ans:  A person is said to be poor if his or her income or consumption level falls below a given ‘‘minimum level’’ necessary to fulfil basic needs. Each country uses an imaginary line that is considered appropriate for its existing level of development and its accepted minimum social norms.

In the year 2000, a family of five members living in rural areas and earning less than about Rs 1640 per month were below the poverty line, whereas in urban areas earning less than about 2270 per month in similar family were below the poverty line.

Q24: ‘‘There is a strong link between economic growth and poverty reduction.’’ Explain. [2011 (T-2)]

Ans: Economic growth widens the opportunities and provides the resources needed to invest in human development. This also encourages people to send their children, including the girl child, to schools in the hope of getting better economic returns from investing in education. Since eighties, India's economic growth has been one of the fastest in the world. The growth rate jumped from the average of about 3.5% a year in the 1970s to about 6% during the 1980s and 1990s which significantly helped in the reduction of poverty.

Q25: Give one positive and one negative side of poverty conditions in India, and mention the major weaknesses of poverty alleviation programmes.   [2011 (T-2)]

Ans: 

• Positive aspect- India's economic growth is one of the fastest in the world which helps in reducing poverty.
• Negative aspect- Large number of poors live in villages and dependent upon agriculture where growth is much below expectation.
• Weakness of Poverty alleviation programme- Lack of proper implementation and right targetting with lots of over lapping schemes.