20 multiple-choice (MCQ / objective) questions from this chapter, in the common exam-style shapes. Every question comes with an explanation along with the answer, so you remember why the option is correct, not just which one it is.
Syllabus note
CBSE 2026-27: this chapter is not examined (Unit 8 is absent; it is still printed in the NCERT book). UP Board 10 marks, Rajasthan Board 10, MP Board 8. Answers follow the usual word limits: 2 marks up to 30 words, 4 marks up to 80, 6 marks up to 200.
1 Direct Questions
Direct Questions
- 1 markAccording to the chapter, ecology denotes
(A) only the plants and animals of a forest(B) the study of human groups and societies(C) the science of water and its flows(D) the web of physical and biological systems and processes of which humans are one element - 1 markAccording to the chapter, the desert of Rajasthan can only support
(A) intensive rice farming(B) large industrial cities(C) pastoralists who move from place to place with their livestock(D) dense agricultural villages - 1 markPlantations in southern North America and the Caribbean were created to supply cotton to the mills of
(A) Bombay(B) Lancashire(C) Paris(D) Moscow - 1 mark“We live in risk societies using technologies and products that we do not fully grasp.” Which set of examples does the chapter give?
(A) Kutch, Corbett and the Delhi Ridge(B) Chernobyl, Bhopal and Mad Cow disease in Europe(C) Lancashire, the Caribbean and West Africa(D) Punjab, Haryana and Uttar Pradesh - 1 markThe gas released in the Bhopal disaster was later identified as
(A) carbon monoxide(B) methane(C) methyl isocyanate (MIC)(D) chlorine - 1 markAccording to the WHO report cited in the chapter, about how many people died in 2012 as a result of air pollution exposure?
(A) Around 7 lakh(B) Around 70 million(C) Around 7 million(D) Around 7,000 - 1 markGenes from Bacillus thuringiensis have been introduced into cotton to make it resistant to
(A) drought(B) frost(C) salinity(D) the bollworm - 1 markWho was the founder of the Institute for Social Ecology, quoted in the chapter?
(A) P. Sainath(B) Ban Ki Moon(C) Murray Bookchin(D) Amita Baviskar - 1 markIn which states, according to the chapter, did thousands of farmers kill themselves, often by drinking pesticide?
(A) Punjab, Haryana and Uttar Pradesh(B) Kerala, Tamil Nadu and Goa(C) Gujarat, Rajasthan and Bihar(D) Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka and Maharashtra
2 Assertion-Reason
Assertion-Reason
- 1 markAssertion (A): Over time, it is often difficult to separate the natural and human factors in ecological change.
Reason (R): Ecology has been modified by human action; deforestation in a river’s upper catchment, for example, may make it more flood-prone.
(A) Both A and R are true, and R is the correct explanation of A(B) Both A and R are true, but R is not the correct explanation of A(C) A is true, but R is false(D) A is false, but R is true - 1 markAssertion (A): How environmental problems affect different groups is a function of social inequality.
Reason (R): Social status and power determine the extent to which people can insulate themselves from environmental crises or overcome them.
(A) Both A and R are true, and R is the correct explanation of A(B) Both A and R are true, but R is not the correct explanation of A(C) A is true, but R is false(D) A is false, but R is true
3 Match the Following
Match the Following
- 1 markMatch List I with List II.
List I: (i) P. Sainath (ii) Murray Bookchin (iii) Amita Baviskar (iv) Sunita Narain
List II: (1) Conflict over urban space in Delhi (2) Farmers’ distress from environmental and economic factors (3) ‘Aspiration is the new God’ (4) Founder of the Institute for Social Ecology
(A) i-4, ii-2, iii-3, iv-1(B) i-2, ii-1, iii-4, iv-3(C) i-2, ii-4, iii-1, iv-3(D) i-3, ii-4, iii-1, iv-2 - 1 markMatch List I (environmental problem) with List II (example in the chapter).
List I: (i) Resource depletion (ii) Noise pollution (iii) Genetically modified organisms (iv) Natural disaster
List II: (1) Tsunami of 2004 (2) Falling groundwater in Punjab (3) Vehicle horns and loudspeakers (4) Bacillus thuringiensis genes in cotton
(A) i-3, ii-2, iii-1, iv-4(B) i-2, ii-4, iii-3, iv-1(C) i-4, ii-3, iii-2, iv-1(D) i-2, ii-3, iii-4, iv-1
4 Statement-Based Questions
Statement-Based Questions
- 1 markConsider these statements on ecology.
(i) The ecology of a place is affected by the interaction between its geography and hydrology.
(ii) Ecological factors have no effect on how human beings can live in a particular place.
(A) Both are true(B) Only (i) is true(C) Only (ii) is true(D) Both are false - 1 markConsider these statements on knowledge and society.
(i) Theories and data about environment and society are influenced by the social conditions under which they emerge.
(ii) Ideas of equality became more widespread during the 18th century’s social and political revolutions.
(A) Both are true(B) Only (i) is true(C) Only (ii) is true(D) Both are false
5 Chronological Ordering
Chronological Ordering
- 1 markArrange these events of the Bhopal case in chronological order.
(i) The gas leak (ii) Union Carbide comes to Bhopal (iii) Three experts from Union Carbide Corporation, USA, survey safety measures (iv) The head of the Bhopal Municipal Corporation issues notice to the company to move out
(A) (iv), (ii), (iii), (i)(B) (ii), (iv), (iii), (i)(C) (ii), (iii), (iv), (i)(D) (i), (ii), (iv), (iii)
6 Fill in the Blanks
Fill in the Blanks
- 1 markThe Ridge forest’s dominant tree species, Prosopis juliflora (vilayati kikar), was introduced into India from ______.
(A) Africa(B) Australia(C) South America(D) England
7 Odd One Out
Odd One Out
- 1 markWhich one is the odd one out among the sources of water pollution named in the chapter?
(A) Domestic sewage(B) Vehicle horns(C) Factory effluents(D) Runoff from farms
8 Passage-Based Questions
Passage-Based Questions
Passage
Ownership and control over resources is also related to the division of labour in the production process. Landless labourers and women will have a different relationship with natural resources than men. In rural India, women are likely to experience resource scarcity more acutely because gathering fuel and fetching water are generally women’s tasks but they do not control these resources.
- 1 markWhich aspect of social organisation does the passage mainly illustrate?
(A) Religious values(B) The division of labour and control over resources(C) Colonial knowledge(D) Global warming
9 True / False
True / False
- 1 markWhich of these statements on pollution facts are true?
(i) Air pollution causes respiratory and other problems which result in serious illness and death.
(ii) Indoor air pollution is never a serious source of risk.
(iii) Cities suffer from noise pollution, which has been the subject of court orders in many cities.
(A) Only (i) and (iii) are true(B) Only (ii) is true(C) (i), (ii) and (iii) are all true(D) Only (i) and (ii) are true
Answer Key and Explanations
Direct Questions
- (d) The book: the term ecology denotes the web of physical and biological systems and processes of which humans are one element.
- (c) The book: the desert of Rajasthan can only support pastoralists who move from place to place to keep their livestock supplied with fodder.
- (b) The book’s box: they were converted to plantations to meet the demand for cotton in the mills of Lancashire.
- (b) Nuclear disasters like Chernobyl, industrial accidents like Bhopal, and Mad Cow disease in Europe.
- (c) The box: the gas was later identified as methyl isocyanate (MIC), released by a Union Carbide pesticide factory.
- (c) WHO: in 2012 around 7 million people died as a result of air pollution exposure.
- (d) The book: making it resistant to the bollworm, a major pest.
- (c) The quote is by Murray Bookchin, political philosopher and founder of the Institute for Social Ecology.
- (d) The box: thousands of farmers in Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka and Maharashtra have killed themselves, often by drinking pesticide.
Assertion-Reason
- (a) Both true, and R explains A: because human action keeps modifying ecology, what looks natural is often human-made, so the two are hard to separate.
- (a) Both true, and R is the book’s own explanation of A.
Match the Following
- (c) Sainath (2); Bookchin (4); Baviskar (1); Narain (3).
- (d) Depletion (2); noise (3); GMO (4); natural disaster (1).
Statement-Based Questions
- (b) (i) is true. (ii) is false: the book says ecological factors limit and shape how human beings can live in any particular place.
- (a) Both are true: the book links the challenge to notions of inborn inferiority of women and Blacks to the spread of ideas of equality in that period.
Chronological Ordering
- (b) 1977 arrival; notice in the late 1970s; survey in May 1982; leak on 3 December 1984.
Fill in the Blanks
- (c) Activity 1: it was introduced into India from South America and has become naturalised all over north India.
Odd One Out
- (b) Vehicle horns are a source of noise pollution; the rest pollute water.
Passage-Based Questions
- (b) The passage links ownership and control over resources to the division of labour.
True / False
- (a) (i) and (iii) are in the book. (ii) is false: indoor pollution from cooking fires is a serious source of risk.
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