20 multiple-choice (MCQ / objective) questions from this chapter, in every exam-style shape used in the paper. Every question comes with an explanation along with the answer, so you remember why the option is correct, not just which one it is.
1 Direct Questions
Direct Questions
- 1 markEnvironmental pollution results from the release of substances and energy from waste products of which of the following?
(A) Only heat emission(B) Human activities(C) Only population growth(D) Only deforestation - 1 markOn the basis of the medium through which pollutants are transported and diffused, into how many types is pollution classified?
(A) Two(B) Three(C) Five(D) Four - 1 markAccording to the World Health Organization’s report quoted in the chapter, about what proportion of communicable diseases in India are water-borne?
(A) About one-fourth(B) About one-tenth(C) About half(D) About three-fourths - 1 markWhich of the following is NOT one of the objectives of the ‘Namami Gange Programme’ listed in the chapter?
(A) Developing sewerage treatment systems in towns(B) Cleaning of the river surface(C) Setting up new industries along the river bank(D) Afforestation along the bank to increase biodiversity - 1 markIn metropolitan cities like Mumbai, Kolkata, Chennai and Bengaluru, about what percentage of solid waste is collected and disposed of?
(A) 50 per cent(B) 70 per cent(C) 100 per cent(D) 90 per cent - 1 markHow did Mahatma Gandhi regard villages, according to the chapter?
(A) Unproductive units(B) Temporary settlements(C) Suburbs of towns(D) Ideal republics - 1 markThe Swachh Bharat Mission (SBM) is described in the chapter as part of which mission launched by the Government of India?
(A) An agricultural reform campaign(B) A forest conservation campaign(C) A census campaign(D) The urban renewal mission - 1 markWhich organisation has classified wastelands using remote sensing techniques, according to the chapter?
(A) India Meteorological Department(B) Survey of India(C) National Remote Sensing Centre (NRSC)(D) Indian Council of Agricultural Research - 1 markWhat does the chapter’s wasteland table (printed as “Table 12.3” in the English edition) indicate?
(A) Wastelands caused by man-made processes are more important than those caused by natural processes(B) Natural processes create more wasteland than human processes(C) The extent of wasteland has now stopped growing(D) Wasteland is found only in coastal states - 1 markWhich tribal community is found in high concentration in Jhabua district, according to the chapter?
(A) Gonds(B) Bhils(C) Santhals(D) Mundas
2 Assertion-Reason
Assertion-Reason
- 1 markAssertion (A): Combustion of fossil fuels is a major source of air pollution.
Reason (R): These combustion processes release oxides of sulphur and nitrogen, hydrocarbons, carbon dioxide, carbon monoxide, lead and asbestos.
(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, R is false(D) A is false, R is true
3 Match the Following
Match the Following
- 1 markMatch List-I (type of wasteland) with List-II (main cause):
(i) Desertic or coastal sandy land (ii) Degraded pastures (iii) Waterlogged and marshy areas
(1) Both natural and human-made (2) Natural agents (3) Human activities
(A) (i)-1, (ii)-2, (iii)-3(B) (i)-3, (ii)-1, (iii)-2(C) (i)-2, (ii)-1, (iii)-3(D) (i)-2, (ii)-3, (iii)-1
4 Statement-Based Questions
Statement-Based Questions
- 1 markConsider the following statements:
Statement I: Solid waste is disposed of only by household establishments.
Statement II: Waste from industrial or commercial units is disposed of by municipalities at low-lying public grounds.
(A) Only Statement I is correct(B) Only Statement II is correct(C) Both statements are correct(D) Both statements are incorrect
5 Arrange in the Correct Order
Arrange in the Correct Order
- 1 markArrange the steps of the Petlawad encroachment dispute in the order the chapter describes them.
(A) A villager from an adjoining village encroached on the common land → The villagers called the tehsildar to ascertain the rights of the common land → The encroacher was offered membership of the villagers’ user group(B) The villagers called the tehsildar to ascertain the rights of the common land → A villager from an adjoining village encroached on the common land → The encroacher was offered membership of the villagers’ user group(C) The encroacher was offered membership of the villagers’ user group → A villager from an adjoining village encroached on the common land → The villagers called the tehsildar to ascertain the rights of the common land(D) The villagers called the tehsildar to ascertain the rights of the common land → The encroacher was offered membership of the villagers’ user group → A villager from an adjoining village encroached on the common land
6 Fill in the Blanks
Fill in the Blanks
- 1 markThe world’s urban population share is estimated to reach ________ per cent by 2050.
(A) 48(B) 58(C) 68(D) 78
7 Odd One Out
Odd One Out
- 1 markWhich of the following types of wasteland is caused mainly by natural agents, not human activity, according to the chapter?
(A) Glacial areas(B) Degraded forests(C) Degraded pastures(D) Mining and industrial wastelands
8 Passage-Based Questions
Passage-Based Questions
Passage
Based on the universal law “Polluter pays”, effort to restore the ecology and safeguard the human health with people’s participation has taken place in Daurala near Meerut. These efforts are now bearing fruits after a span of three years when Meerut based NGO had developed a model for ecological restoration. The powerful logics, authentic studies and the pressure of people have brought a new lease of life to the twelve thousand residents of this village. It was in the year 2003 that the pitiable condition of Dauralaites drew the attention of the civil society. The groundwater of this village was contaminated with heavy metals. The reason was that the untreated wastewater of Daurala industries was leaching to the groundwater table. The overhead water tank’s capacity in the village was enhanced and a 900m extra pipeline was laid to supply potable water to the community. 1000 trees have also been planted which have improved the environment.
- 1 markWhat is the population of Daurala village, whose ecology was restored, according to the chapter?
(A) 1,200(B) 1,20,000(C) 120(D) 12,000
Passage
Only one main road traverses the slum, the miscalled ‘ninety-foot road’, which has been reduced to less than half of that for most of its length. The whole neighbourhood consists of temporary buildings, two or three storeyed high with rusty iron stairways to the upper part, where a single room is rented by a whole family, sometimes accommodating twelve or more people. (Seabrook, 1996, pp. 50, 51-52)
- 1 mark(Based on the passage) What misnomer is used for the only main road through Dharavi?
(A) The ‘Ninety-foot road’(B) The ‘Hundred-foot road’(C) The ‘Fifty-foot road’(D) The ‘Sixty-foot road’
Passage
At present, 55 per cent of the world’s population lives in cities and more will join them in near future. This proportion is estimated to go up to 68 per cent by 2050. In India, it is estimated that after 1961 around 60 per cent of the urban growth has been attributed and about 29 per cent of them from rural areas to urban migration.
- 1 markIn India, of the total increase in urban population after 1961, what percentage is estimated to be attributed to rural-urban migration?
(A) 60 per cent(B) 29 per cent(C) 68 per cent(D) 90 per cent
9 True / False
True / False
- 1 markChoose the correct combination of statements:
(i) Jhabua is one of the five most backward districts of India.
(ii) Jhabua has a high concentration of the Bhil tribal population.
(iii) Jhabua is located in eastern Madhya Pradesh.
(A) (i) and (ii) only(B) (ii) and (iii) only(C) (i) and (iii) only(D) All three statements
Answer Key and Explanations
Direct Questions
- (B) The chapter defines environmental pollution as the release of substances and energy from waste products of human activities.
- (D) The chapter classifies pollution into four types: air pollution, water pollution, land pollution and noise pollution.
- (A) The chapter states that the World Health Organization shows about one-fourth of the communicable diseases in India are water-borne.
- (C) The chapter’s objectives of Namami Gange include sewerage treatment systems, monitoring industrial effluents, river-front development, afforestation, cleaning the river surface, Ganga Grams and public awareness, not setting up new industries.
- (D) The chapter states that in these metropolitan cities, about 90 per cent of the solid waste is collected and disposed.
- (D) The chapter states that villages were considered the ideal republics by Mahatma Gandhi.
- (D) The chapter states that the Swachh Bharat Mission is part of the urban renewal mission launched by the Government of India to improve the quality of life in urban slums.
- (C) The chapter states that the National Remote Sensing Centre (NRSC) has classified wastelands using remote sensing techniques.
- (A) The chapter states that the table indicates that wastelands caused by man-made processes are more important than natural processes. (The English edition prints the table number as “Table 12.3”; it is quoted here as printed.)
- (B) The chapter states that Jhabua is characterised by a high concentration of tribal population, mostly Bhils.
Assertion-Reason
- (A) The chapter states that these processes release all the listed pollutants into the atmosphere, so R correctly explains why combustion is a major source of air pollution.
Match the Following
- (D) The chapter attributes desertic/coastal sandy land to natural agents, degraded pastures to human activities, and waterlogged/marshy areas to both natural and human factors.
Statement-Based Questions
- (B) Statement I is wrong because disposal is from two sources, household AND industrial/commercial; Statement II is the chapter’s own true statement about industrial waste disposal.
Arrange in the Correct Order
- (A) The chapter says that before the community began managing the pasture there was encroachment by a villager from an adjoining village; the villagers called the tehsildar to ascertain the rights of the common land; the ensuing conflict was tackled by offering to make the defaulter a member of their user group and sharing the benefits of greening the common lands.
Fill in the Blanks
- (C) The chapter states that the current 55 per cent urban share is estimated to reach 68 per cent by 2050.
Odd One Out
- (A) The chapter lists glacial areas among natural-agent wastelands; degraded forests, degraded pastures and mining/industrial wastelands are all human-made.
Passage-Based Questions
- (D) The chapter states that the restoration effort brought a new lease of life to the twelve thousand residents of Daurala village.
- (A) The quoted passage (Seabrook, 1996) calls it the miscalled ‘ninety-foot road’, reduced to less than half of that width for most of its length.
- (B) The chapter states that in India, after 1961, about 29 per cent of the urban growth came from rural to urban migration.
True / False
- (A) (i) and (ii) are the chapter’s own facts. (iii) is wrong: Jhabua is in the westernmost, not eastern, agro-climatic zone of Madhya Pradesh.
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