Bhagya

Punjab State Board PSEB 9th Class Science Important Questions Chapter 15 Improvement in Food Resources Important Questions and Answers.

PSEB 9th Class Science Important Questions Chapter 15 Improvement in Food Resources

Long Answer Type Questions:

Question 1.
How to meet the needs of ever-increasing population of our country? List two main steps. Give in a tabulated form some of the crops grown in India.
Answer:
The present population of 1.21 billion people will reach about 1.343 billion people by the year 2020. This population will need about 241 million tonnes of grain production per year. Following two measures will help up to meet the demand.
1. Increase food production of both plants and animals.
2. Sustainable agriculture where by we should minimize using chemicals as fertilizers and insecticides. These can be replaced by biological resources.
Some crop plants grown in India:

Type	Some Examples
Cereals or grain crops Fibre crops Pulses Oil seeds Fodder crops Root crops Tuber crops Sugar crops Plantation crops Products from animals	Rice, Wheat, Barley, Ragi, Maize, Jowar, Bajra. Jute, Cotton, Hemp, Coir. Grams, Peas, Beans, Masoor, Mung. Mustard, Groundnut, Sunflower, Coconut, Taramira. Barseem, Oat, Sudan grass. Sweet potato, Carrot, Radish, Beet. Potato, Tapioca. Sugarcane, Beetroot. Coffee, Tea, Rubber, Coconut. Fish, Egg, Milk, and Meat.

Question 2.
How is manure prepared?
Answer:
Method of preparing compost manure:
Manure is a natural organic substance obtained by decomposition of animal wastes and plant residue through the action of microbes. It is of three types
1. Farmyard manure
2. Compost
3. Green manure.

1. A trench having the desirable size of 4-5 m long, 1.5 to 1.8m broad with a depth of 1.0 to 1.8 m is made.
2. A layer of about 30 cm in thickness containing well mixed refuse is spread in the trench.
3. This layer is sprayed with water containing slurry of cow dung.
4. Another layer of mixed refuse in trench up to the height of 45-60 cm (height of fish layer included).
5. Top of these two layers is covered by thin layer ot earth.
6. After a gap of about three months, material is taken out of trench, moistened with water and covered with earth.
7. Compost is ready for use after gap of 1-2 months.

Question 3.
Differentiate between manures and fertilizers.
Answer:
Differences between manures and fertilizers:

Manure	Fertilizers
1. Manures are partially decayed wastes and animal residues by microbes. 2. Organic substances. 3. Voluminous, bulky, difficult to store and transport. 4. Not very rich in minerals like N, P and K. 5. Contain all nutrients, although in small amount. 6. Slow absorption, being less soluble in water. 7. Plenty of humus is added to soil and improves the texture of soil.	1. Fertilizer is a salt or organic compound containing essential plant nutrients. 2. Inorganic salts or organic compounds. 3. Compact, can be easily stored and transported. 4. Rich m minerals like N, P, K. 5. Specific. Every fertilizer contains one or more nutrients. 6. Rapid absorption due to easy solubility in water. 7. Humus is not added to soil.

Question 4.
What is mixed cropping? Discuss the advantages of mixed cropping.
Answer:
Mixed cropping is growing of two or more crops simultaneously on the same piece of land.
Objectives of mixed cropping:

1. To minimise risk and insure against crop failure.
2. To reduce cultivation expenses.
3. To provide balanced nutrition to farmer and his family.

Advantages:

1. It acts as insurance against possible total crop failure in poor rainfall areas.
2. It saves time and labour of the farmer.
3. It provides different types of food materials.
4. Thus, farmer and his family can get balanced nutrition.

Some of the prominent mixed cropping practices:

1. Maize + urdbean
2. Cotton + mungbean
3. Groundnut + sunflower
4. Wheat + chickpea
5. Wheat + mustard

Question 5.
Define livestock. Classify the cattle on the basis of their utility and give one example of each.
Answer:
Livestock includes domesticated animals like cows, buffaloes, sheep, goats, pigs, horses, etc. Cattle and buffaloes are most important livestock animals. These are used in agricultural operations and transportation though also provide milk, meat, hides (for leather goods), dung manure and fuel (in biogas plants). There are 30 breeds of cows and 10 breeds of buffaloes in India.

1. Milch breeds: Milk-yielding varieties of cows but their males are not useful as working animals e.g. Gir, Sahiwal, etc.
2. Draught breeds: Their males are used as beast of burden and good work animals but their cows are poor milk-yielding e.g. Malvi, Hallikar, etc.
3. Dual-purpose breeds: Their cows are good milk-yielding while their males are good Work animals and help in agricultural operations e.g. Haryana, Tharparkar, etc.

Indian breeds of cows and buffaloes

1. Cows:

(a) Milch breeds:

1. Gir
2. Sahiwal
3. Red Sindhi

(b) Draught breeds:

1. Malvi
2. Nageri
3. Hallikar
4. Kangayam

2. Buffaloes:

1. Murrah
2. Mehsana
3. Surti
4. Nili Ravi

Buffalo milk is richer in fat, tocopherol, proteins, calcium, phosphorus and contains low sodium, potassium, cholesterol. Buffalo milk is ideal for making milk products like khoa, rabri, dahi and ghee.

Question 6.
What is the need of proper shelter to cattle? List the characters of a good animal shelter.
Answer:
Shelter to Cattle: A good animal shelter not only increases the milk-production but also improves the health of animals.
A good animal shelter has following characteristics:
(a) It should provide protection to the animals from unfavourable environmental factors and predators.
(b) It should be clear, dry, airy, spacious and well ventilated (proper sunlight).
(c) It should have arrangement for the hygienic disposal of animal excreta.
(d) It should have arrangement for clear drinking water for animals.
(e) It should have hygienic conditions to protect the animals from various diseases.

Question 7.
What are additive feeds for cattle? How can one detect that an animal is sick?
Answer:
The cattle feed consists of two main components i.e. roughage and concentrate. However high yielding cows require more feed. Dairy animals require minerals and antibiotics and they are commonly called additive. Additive feed performs following functions:
1. Protects the animals from diseases.
2. They enhance milk yield.
3. Promote growth of the animals.

Symptoms of detection of sick animals:

1. Laziness, tired and prefer to stay alone.
2. Stop feeding or take a very little feed.
3. Walks very slowly.
4. Fall in milk or egg production.
5. Waste passed out is dilute.
6. Rise in temperature with shivering and sneezing.
7. Secretion of excess of saliva.

Question 8.
Write a short note on variety improvement of poultry farming.
Answer:
Variety Improvement of Poultry Farming. It involves cross-breeding of indigenous varieties with exotic breeds. The improved varieties are developed for the following desirable traits:

1. Quality and quantity of chicks.
2. Dwarf broiler parent for commercial chick production.
3. Summer adaptation capacity/tolerance to high temperature.
4. Low maintenance requirements.
5. Reduction in the size of the egg-laying bird with ability to utilise more fibrous cheaper diets formulated using agricultural by-products.

Question 9.
What steps should be taken to improve production of food from animal sources in our country?
Answer:

1. Introduction of high-yielding varieties.
2. The output of research work carried out at various centres such as NDRI Kamal, Central Institute of Fresh Water Aquaculture (CIFA) Bhubaneshwar, should be made available to the public for their projects.
3. Protection of animals from diseases.
4. Providing proper shelter to animals.

Question 10.
What are the practices adopted to improve crop production?
Answer:
The practices adopted to improve crop production are as follows:

1. Fertilizers: These are the chemical compounds which are added to the soil to increase the fertility. They make up for the deficiency of the required nutrients and help in increasing the crop production.
2. Selective Breeding: Disease-resistant seeds are produced by selective breeding. Regular use of high yield variety results in better crop production.
3. Weed Control: The unwanted plants or weeds are controlled by using certain chemicals called weedicides.
4. Control of Plant Diseases: Crops should be protected from insects, fungi, animals and other diseases.

It is very useful for increasing crop production. Insects are very harmful to crops. So insecticides should be used to kill insects.

Question 11.
Discuss the preventive and control measures to check losses of grain during storage.
Answer:
Preventive and control measures
These are used before storing and the grains are stored for future use.
1. This can be done by proper drying of the produce in sun followed by drying in shade.

2. Maintenance of Hygiene. Godowns and stores should be properly cleaned. All sort of dust, dirt, rubbish, webbing or refuse of the previous grain should be swept away. Cracks and holes in the wall, floor or ceiling should be sealed. If old gunny bags are being used, clean them properly, turn inside out and expose to sun or fumigate. Earthen pots should also be cleaned and properly exposed to sun before using them for grain storage.

3. Fumigation. Chemicals which can exist in gaseous state in sufficient concentration to be lethal against the pest is known as fumigants. Aluminium phosphide tablets commonly known as black poison (3 g each) can be used at the rate of 2 tablets per ton grains.

4. Plant Products. The practice of adding small quantity of vegetable oil or mineral oil to grains or legumes to protect them from insect pests and mixing of neem kernel (seed) powder, crushed dried fruit of black pepper or cloves is also effective in controlling insects.

Question 12.
Write a brief account of procedure of Inland Fishery.
Answer:
Inland fishery involves the rearing of fishes in the specially designed breeding ponds near the rivers or other fresh-water natural sources.

It involves the following steps :
Breeding of good male and female culturable fishes in the breeding ponds either by natural breeding or induced breeding. In induced breeding, the male and female breeder fishes are injected with pituitary extract containing FSH and LH hormones (called Hypophysiation) which induce them to spawn within 24 hours. Fertilization occurs in the water so is external.

1. The fish seed (of fertilized eggs) are collected with the help of shooting net or benchi jal.
2. The fertilized eggs are kept in hatching pits, called hapas, and young ones are called hatchlings.
3. Hatchlings are allowed to grow in hapas for about 3-14 days to form fry.
4. Fries are allowed to feed and grow in the nursery ponds to form the fingerlings.
5. Fingerlings are allowed to grow in rearing ponds for about 3 months.
6. Fingerlings are allowed to attain full size in the still larger stocking ponds.
7. Harvesting or fishing involves the capturing of fully-grown fishes.

Question 13.
Briefly explain marine fisheries.
Answer:
Marine Fisheries: India’s marine fishery resources include 7500 km of coastline and the. deep seas beyond it. Popular marine fish varieties include pomphret, mackerel, tuna, sardines and Bombay duck. Marine fish are caught using many kinds of fishing nets from fishing boats.

The modern technologies for catching more fish include echosounders and use of satellite. Some marine fish of high economic value are also farmed in sea water. This includes finned fishes like mullets, bhetki and pearl spots, shellfish such as prawns, mussels and oysters.

Short Answer Type Questions:

Question 1.
How human beings depend upon plants and animals for nutrition?
Answer:

1. Man is omnivorous and takes plants and animals as food.
2. The plant sources of food are cereals (wheat, rice, maize), pulses, millets, fruits and vegetables.
3. The animal sources of food are meat, milk, fish, egg, milk products and liver oil.

Question 2.
Define nutrients. Give examples of macronutrients and micronutrients.
Answer:

• Nutrients: The elements needed for growth^of plants and animals are called nutrients. ^
• Macronutrients: The mineral elements needed by the plants in large amounts (more than 1 ppm) are called macronutrients.
• Examples: Nitrogen, Phosphorus, Carbon, Hydrogen, Oxygen, Potassium, Calcium, Sulphur.
• Micronutrients: The mineral elements needed by plants in small amount (or traces) are called micronutrients.
• Examples: Iron, Manganese, Copper, Zinc, Boron, Molybdenum, Chlorine.

Question 3.
What are Fertilizers?
Answer:
Fertilizers:

1. Fertilizers are commercially produced plant nutrients by using different chemicals.
2. Fertilizers supply Nitrogen, Phosphorus, Potassium (NPK), basically this is used for good vegetative growth (leaves, branches and flowers), giving rise to healthy plants.
3. Fertilizers are one of the major components for obtaining higher yields specially in high cost farming practices.
4. They are easy to store and transport.

Question 4.
What is the need of water to plants? Explain different types of irrigation system.
Answer:
Periodic Irrigation of Crops:
Crops are irrigated periodically due to the following reasons:
1. Plants absorb water from the soil by roots. The amount of water in the soil is not constant throughout the year. It is constantly lost by evaporation and percolation to lower depths of the ground.
2. The water is also lost by the aerial parts of the plants by transpiration.

Irrigation Systems:

1. Canal System: Here reservoirs or rivers supply water to canals. Canal is divided into sub-canals and distributaries. Further field channels may be made. Rotation system is usually followed to provide irrigation water to all the fields at the time of scarcity of water supply.

2. Tanks: Here water is stored, which is available due to run off. Small dams can be made at the base of higher elevation of catchment region. Outflow of water in tanks is kept in control. If it is not done, it may lead to:
(a) Uneven distribution of water.
(b) Shortage of water at tail end and excessive use at the top. This leads to uneven distribution of water.

3. Wells. Wells are made to exploit groundwater. They are of two types i.e. dug wells and tubewells. In dug well, water accumulates due to available groundwater table. From deeper areas of earth, tube wells can tap water. Here water is lifted by diesel or electricity-operated water pumps. Continuous supply can be ensured by this system.

4. River valley system: In Western Ghats of Karnataka and Kerala, many steep and narrow riverine valley are present. Rainfall in these areas is present only for shorter period i.e. 3-4 months. Extra water shifts in river in these months. In Rabi season, no rainfall is there. On slopes, plants like coconuts, arecanuts, coffee, rubber and tapioca are grown. These all are perennial plants. In basement areas, single crop like rice is grown.

5. River lift system: In this system, water is directly drawn from rivers for irrigation purpose. This all is done in areas nearby the rivers and canal flow is insufficient.

Question 5.
How do insect pests attack plants? Give examples.
Answer:
1. Cut root, stem and leaf – weevil attack wheat crops.
2. Suck cell sap from various parts of plants – aphids feed on mustard plants.
3. Bore into stem and fruits – top borer and shoot borer, larvae and caterpillars which bore into stem and fruits. The plant pathogens are transmitted to plants through water, soil, air and seeds.

Diseases caused by these pathogens include

1. Blast in paddy (rice).
2. Rust in wheat.
3. Stem rot in pigeon pea (mung).
4. Wilt in chickpea (gram).

Question 6.
What are weeds? What are the two types of weeds?
Answer:
Weeds: They are the small-sized unwanted plants which grow along with a cultivated crop in a field. Weeds are economically very important as they can severely reduce crop yields by competing for light, water and nutrients.

Based on the morphology of plants, weeds are classified into two types:

1. Narrow-leaf weeds, e.g., Wild sorghum, Wild oat.
2. Broadleaf weeds, e.g., Amaranthus viridis, Trianthima.

Question 7.
Discuss the three major methods of weed control.
Answer:
Methods of weed control:

1. Mechanical Methods: Uprooting, weeding with khurpi, hand hoeing, interculture, ploughing, burning and flooding.
2. Culture Methods: Proper seedbed preparation, timely sowing of crops, intercropping and crop rotation.
3. Chemical Methods: Spraying of some chemicals as herbicides or weedicides, is also done in case of heavy infestation.
4. Biological Control: Use of insects or some organisms which consume and destroy the weed plants.
5. Examples: Prickly-pear cactus (Opuntia) is controlled by cochineal insect and aquatic weeds are controlled by fish grass carp.

Question 8.
Briefly explain three types of manures on the basis of biological material used.
Answer:
Types of manure:

1. Farm Yard Manure (FYM): Livestock farm waste i.e. cattle excreta (cow dung and urine) is stored in a pit for decomposition. After 1-2 months this is used as FYM in farming practices.
2. Compost: The process in which waste material like vegetable waste, animals refuse, domestic waste, sewage waste, straw, eradicated weeds, etc. is decomposed in pits is known as composting. The compost is rich in organic matter and nutrients.
3. Green Manure: In cultivation field prior to the sowing of the seeds, some crops like sun hemp, guar, etc. are grown. After some time these plants are mulched by ploughing. These green plants thus turn into green manures which help in enriching the soil by N and P.

Question 9.
What are weeds? How does it affect the yield of crop?
Answer:
Weeds. They are unwanted plants which grow on their own along with crop plants. They are a harm to the crops.
Weeds damage the crops: They compete with the crop for nutrients and water in the field. They occupy space meant for crop plants. This leads to poor yield and quality of produce.

Methods of weed control:

1. Removal by hands: The weed can be uprooted and removed by hand.
2. Removal by instruments: The weeds can be removed by using a trowel (khurpa).
3. Removal by using chemicals: Weeds can also be destroyed by spraying special chemicals called weedicides.
4. These chemicals easily kill the broad-leaved weeds without affecting the crop.

Question 10.
List any five chemical fertilizers rich in nitrogen.
Answer:
Chemical fertilizers rich in nitrogen:

1. Urea
2. Ammonium sulphate
3. Ammonium nitrate
4. Sodium nitrate
5. Calcium ammonium nitrate

Out of these urea is organic while others are inorganic.

Question 11.
How has the excess use of pesticides and fertilizers proved harmful?
Answer:
If pesticides are not used with care, they lead to the disappearance of not only the undesirable insects but even the helpful ones. There is a danger that the pests may become resistant to pesticides and make them ineffective. Indiscriminate use of pesticides and fertilizers can lead to environmental degradation. Excess fertilizers is washed away into surrounding water bodies.

The resulting high concentration of nitrates and phosphates in ground and surface waters make them toxic and unfit for human and animal consumption.

Question 12.
What are the two main crop seasons? List the crops of respective season.
Answer:
1. Kharif Season. (June to October)
Crops grown: Paddy, Soyabean, Arhar, Maize, Cotton, Urad and Moong.
2. Rabi season. (November to April)
Crops grown: Wheat, Gram, Peas, Mustard, Linseed.

Question 13.
Write a note on organic farming.
Answer:
Organic Farming: It is a farming system with minimum or no use of chemicals as fertilisers, herbicides, pesticides, etc. and with maximum input of organic manures, recycled farm wastes, use of bio-agents such as culture of blue-green algae in preparation of biofertilisers, neem leaves or turmeric specifically in grain storage as bio-pesticides, with healthy cropping systems.

Question 14.
Define crop rotation. What is the role of leguminous plants in it?
Answer:
Crop Rotation: The process in which different types of crops are grown alternately in the same field is called crop rotation.

Leguminous crops save the nitrogenous fertilizers because such plants grown during crop rotation fix nitrogen from the air and enrich the soil with nitrate and nitrites. These nitrogen-containing compounds are used by plants.

Question 15.
What is the role of soil in better yield?
Answer:
Soil provides all the nutrients such as nitrogen, phosphorus, potassium etc. to the crop plants. Soil also serves as a source of water. If soil is deficient in one or more nutrients, the yield of crop will reduce.

Question 16.
What is mixed farming? Define it with suitable examples.
Answer:
Mixed farming can be defined as a system of farming on a particular farm to sustain and satisfy the essential needs of the farmers.
Examples: In mixed farming, crop production is combined with the rearing of livestock, poultry, fish and bees etc.

Question 17.
How can mixed farming sustain agricultural production? Answer With suitable examples.
Answer:
When earnings from one enterprise on small farms is not sufficient to sustain the family, farmer considers about the different possible combinations of enterprises.

In mixed farming from livestock, farmyard manure is made available to be used again in agricultural farms. With exact combination of mixed farming, a better money/ income is available. It provides the farmer work throughout the year. It provides the farmer with all the food needs of the family.

Question 18.
What are the uses of mixed farming?
Answer:

1.  From livestock, farmyard manure is available to be used again in agricultural farms.
2. Number of animals can be increased as per food available to them (as per crop availability) to provide milk and milk products.
3. By this method, straw, husks and chaffs of grains, refuse of household kitchen, shed grains in the field are converted into human food through the agency of cattle, sheep, poultry, pigs etc. as per choice of farmer.
4. With exact combination in mixed farming, a better income is available.
5. It provides work to all the members of a family throughout the year. Thus it provides subsidiary occupation to all the members of a household, without the need of employing special labour.

Question 19.
Write a note on crop protection management.
Answer:
Crop Protection Management: In fields, crops have to be protected from weeds, insect-pests and disease-causing organisms like fungi.

All these cause damage to crop plants so much so that most of the crop is lost. Thus, crops can be protected by the following methods:

1. Use of pesticides.
2. Use of resistant varieties.
3. Crop rotation and cropping system.
4. Summer ploughing.

Question 20.
Discuss the requirements for a good crop rotation.
Answer:
Requirements for a good Crop Rotation

1. The area of each crop should be nearly the same year after year.
2. The rotation should provide roughage and pastures for domestic animals.
3. Most profitable cash crops with wisdom should be selected for rotation.
4. Rotated crops can be cared for.
5. The rotation should include one tilled crop for elimination of weeds.
6. Organic matter should increase in soil due to rotation and feeding system. By growth of leguminous plant in rotation, nitrogen contents of soil increase.

Question 21.
List group of plants for crop rotation on the basis of one year, two year and three-year rotation.
Answer:

Duration	Rotation of Crops
1. One-year rotation 2. Two-year rotation 3. Three-year rotation	1. Maize-mustard 2. Rice-wheat1. Maize-mustard-sugarcane – fenugreek (Methi) 2. Maize-potato-sugarcane-peas1. Rice-wheat-moong-mustard – sugarcane-berseem 2. Cotton-sugarcane-peas-maize-wheat

Question 22.
List five groups of plants according to their soil needs for crop rotation.
Answer:
For crop rotation, plants are put into five groups according to their soil:

Roots	Legumes	Brassica	Others	Permanent
Potatoes Carrots Beet root	Peas Runner beans Broad beans French beans	Cabbages Cauliflowers Broccoli Turnips Radishes	Lettuces Onions Cucumber Spinach tomatoes	Asparagus Herbs Fruits

Question 23.
Describe biological method of pest control.
Answer:
Biological pest control methods
They can be further classified into three categories:
(a) Breeding disease resistant varieties. It is the development of varieties having resistance to pathogenic infection.
(b) Hyperparasitism. It involves the control of one pathogenic organism with the help of another organism, which parasitizes the pathogen.
(c) Trap crops. Many plants secrete some substances after infestation by some pathogens. These substances are toxic to pathogens. Such hosts are called trap or antagonistic plants.

Question 24.
What is inter-cropping? How does it differ from mixed cropping?
Answer:
Inter-cropping is the growing of two or more crops simultaneously in the same field in definite rows.
Differences between mixed cropping and inter-cropping

Characters	Mixed cropping	Intercropping
1. Aim 2. Pattern 3. Mixing of seeds 4. Application of fertilizers 5. Harvesting and threshing 6. Application of pesticides	To reduce the chances of crop failure. No definite pattern of rows. Seeds are mixed up before sowing. Fertilizers cannot be applied easily to different crops. Cannot be done separately for crops. Spraying of pesticides for separate crops not possible.	To enhance the production of crops per unit area. Grown in definite pattern of rows like 1 : 1, 1 : 2, 1 : 3. Seeds are not mixed before sowing. Can be applied as per need of individual crops. Crops can be harvested and threshed separately. Can be done easily.

Question 25.
Make a table showing the nutritional values of animal products.
Answer:
Nutritional values of animal products:

Animal products	Percent (%) Nutrients
	Fat	Protein	Sugar	Minerals	Water
Milk (Cow)	3.60	4.00	4.50	0.70	87.20
Egg	12.00	13.00	*	1.00	74.00
Meat	3.60	21.10	*	1.10	74.20
Fish	2.50	19.00	*	1.30	77.20

Present in very little amount

Question 26.
What does cattle feed consist of?
Answer:
Feed of Cattle: Supply of uncontaminated and balanced diet containing sufficient quantities of required nutrients is an essential need of animal husbandry. Cattle feed is formed of two main components: roughage and concentrate.

Question 27.
Differentiate roughage and concentrate.
Answer:
Roughage contains large amount of fibre but have low nutrients and include hay, fodder, silage and legumes like barseem, lucerene and cowpea. It also includes Common fodder grasses like Napier grass, Guinea grass and Elephant grass.

The concentrate is a mixture of cereals like maize, oat, barley, jowar, broken grams, rice polish, cotton seeds, gram barn and oilseed cake etc. moistened in water. These are rich in proteins and other nutrients, highly palatable and easily digestible.

Question 28.
Discuss the average daily feed of a cow.
Answer:

1. Green fodder = 15 – 20 kg
2. Grain mixture = 4 – 5 kg
3. Water = 30 – 35 litres
4. Additive feeds like antibiotics, hormones, minerals, etc.

Additive feed increases the milk yield and also protects the animals from diseases.

Question 29.
Name four animals which provide us food.
Answer:

1. Cows (milk and meat)
2. Buffaloes (milk)
3. Goats (milk and meat)
4. Pigs (provide pork)
5. Poultry birds (eggs and meat)
6. fishes (meat)

Question 30.
Mention the names of animal products which are used as food.
Answer:
Milk, beef (cow’s meat), pork (pig meat), mutton (sheep and goat meat), eggs (poultry birds) and fish meat and by-products of fishery such as fish meal, fish-protein concentrate, oil etc.

Question 31.
Name any two Indian breeds of:
1. Cows
2. Buffaloes
Answer:
1. Cow-breeds : Sahiwal and Gir.
2. Buffalo breeds : Murrah and Mehsana.

Question 32.
Name two exotic breeds of cows.
Answer:
1. Jersey of USA.
2. Brown-Swiss of Switzerland.

Question 33.
Mention the improved crossbreeds of cows.
Answer:

1. Karan-Swiss
2. Karan-Fries
3. Frieswal

Question 34.
List some Indian breeds of cows and buffaloes.
Answer:
1. Cows:

(a) Milch breeds

1. Gir
2. Sahiwal
3. Red Sindhi

(b) Draught breeds

1. Malvi
2. Nageri
3. Flallikar
4. Kangayam

(c) General utility breeds

1. Haryana
2. Ongole
3. Tharparkar

2. Buffaloes:

1. Murrah
2. Bhadawari
3. Jaffarabadi
4. Surti
5. Nagpuri
6. Nili Ravi
7. Mehsana

Question 35.
Briefly explain contribution of Dr. V. Kurien.
Answer:
Contribution of Dr. V. Kurien:
Dr. V. Kurein born on 26th November 1921, is the founder Chairman of the National Dairy Development Board (NDDB), which designed and implemented the world’s largest dairy development programme – the “Operation Flood”. Dr. Kurien is called the architect of India’s modem dairy industry and the father of white revolution.

Question 36.
Write a note on foot and mouth disease of cattle.
Answer:
It is a viral disease of cows and buffaloes. It is characterized by excessive salivation and reddish granules on their feet and mouth. It can be prevented by vaccinating the cows and by keeping their shelter clean and hygienic.

Question 37.
Write two infectious diseases of each of cows, poultry and fishes.
Answer:

Animal	Diseases
1. Cows 2. Poultry 3. Fishes	Anthrax (bacterial) and Foot and mouth disease (viral). Ranikhet (viral) and Salmonellosis (bacterial). Viral Haemorrhagic Septicemia (VHS) and Infectious Pancreatic Necrosis (IPN).

Question 38.
Mention a few measures for prevention of diseases in the animals.
Answer:
Preventive measures of diseases in animal

1. Compulsory vaccination of animals.
2. Proper disposal of dead animals and animal wastes.
3. Hygienic handling of all animal products and by-products.
4. Periodical screening of animals for diseases.
5. Providing a clean, dry, airy and well-ventilated good animal shelter with hygienic conditions.

Question 39.
List the main reasons for low milk yield of cattle in India.
Answer:
Preventive measures of diseases in animals:

1. The poor quality of feed.
2. The shortage of feed.
3. Low milk-yielding varieties of cattle.

Question 40.
Discuss the importance of poultry as a source of food.
Answer:
Poultry birds supply eggs and meat both being good sources of food. Whole egg contains 36% yolk, 64% proteins and vitamins like A and D. Poultry meat contains proteins (like myosin, globulins, actinomyosin, etc.), fats, vitamins, minerals, etc.

Question 41.
Name some indigenous and exotic breeds of fowls.
Answer:
1. Indigenous breeds: e.g. Aseel, Ghagus, Basara, Brahma and Chittagong,
2. Exotic breeds:
(a) American breeds e.g. Plymouth rock and Rhode Island Red.
(b) English breeds e.g. Sussex and Australorp.
(c) Mediterranean breeds e.g. Minorcha and White Leghorn.

Question 42.
Make a list of diseases of poultry.
Answer:

1. Poultry Diseases: The poultry birds suffer from various diseases caused by:
2. Virus – Fowl pox
3. Bacteria – Tuberculosis, Cholera, Diarrhoea
4. Fungi – Aspergillosis
5. Parasites – Worms, mites, lice, etc.

They also suffer from nutritional deficiency diseases. The most common disease of poultry is ‘Bird Flu’. This disease is damaging the poultry on vast scale.

Question 43.
Write the names of two exotic breeds of poultry.
Answer:

1. American breeds like Plymouth rock and Rhode Island Red.
2. English breeds like Australorp and Sussex.
3. Mediterranean breeds like White Leghorn and Minorcha.

Question 44.
What are important points to remember in poultry farming?
Answer:
Important points in poultry farming:

1. Maintenance of temperature and hygienic conditions in housing.
2. Proper poultry feed.
3. Prevention and control of diseases and pests.
4. Isolation of diseased birds.
5. Proper vaccination of birds.
6. Spraying of disinfectants at regular intervals.

Question 45.
List various measures of prevention of poultry diseases.
Answer:
Prevention of Poultry Diseases. To prevent the poultry from disease the following measures should be taken:

1. The poultry birds should be kept in good spacious, airy and ventilated shelter.
2. The shelter should be cleaned properly and regularly. Quick and hygienic disposal of excreta should be ensured.
3. External parasites should be controlled by applying insecticide solution.
4. Disinfectant should be sprayed to kill mosquitoes and other external parasites,
5. Every animal should be vaccinated at regular interval to minimise it against common infections and diseases.

Question 46.
Name three common fresh water and three marine food fishes.
Answer:
Fresh-water food fishes

1. Labeo rohita – Rahu
2. Catla catla – Katla or Theila
3. Wallago attu – Mullee

Marine food fishes
1. Harpodon – Bombay duck
2. Hilsa – Hilsa
3. Sardinella – Salmon

• Total fish production in India – 7th position in the world.
• Marine fish production – 10th position in the world.
• Aquaculture production – 2nd in south East Asian countries.
• Fish industry contribution – Rs. 400 crores annually as foreign exchange.

Question 47.
Why is fish meat considered advantageous than meat of other animals?
Answer:

1. Fish meat contains more proteins (13 – 20%) but less fats.
2. It has good amount of vitamins A and D and is rich in iodine (for thyroxine formation).
3. It is more easily digestible than other proteins.
4. So, fish meat is considered next to the mother’s milk as baby food.

Question 48.
Why are the major carps considered best culturable fishes?
Answer:

1. These survive even at high temperature and at low oxygen.
2. These have fast growth rate.
3. These have easily digestible and nutritive flesh.

Question 49.
Give the economy of fishes.
Answer:

1. Fish meat is rich in proteins (13 – 20%), vitamins and iodine but has less fats.
2. Their liver oil is rich source of vitamins A and D.
3. Fish meal is very rich source of proteins (55 – 70%), so is good food for domesticated animals.
4. Fish wastes can be used as manure for coffee, tea and tobacco plants.
5. Fish skin of sharks is used to form hand bags, shoes, tobacco pouches, etc.

Question 50.
Give the functions of followings in fishery:
1. Hapas
2. Nursery ponds
3. Traps
Answer:
1. Hapas: These are hatching pits. These are formed of cloth and supported by bamboo sticks. In these pits, hatching occurs and young ones called hatchlings, emerge and grow in hapas to form fries.
2. Nursery ponds: These are small-sized ponds located near the hapas. In these ponds, fries feed upon the planktons and grow into young ones called fingerlings.
3. Traps: These are used to harvest the fish from the stocking ponds.

Question 51.
Differentiate capture fishery and culture fishery.
Answer:
Capture fishery involves the catching of fish by various methods while culture fishery involves the rearing of fish in artificial freshwater bodies.

Question 52.
List certain common diseases of fishes.
Answer:
1. Main infectious diseases of fishes are:
(a) Viral Haemorrhagic Septicemia (VHS) and
(b) Infectious Pancreatic Necrosis (IPN).

2. Water-pollution caused diseases of fishes are:
(a) Gill rot (blackening of gills).
(b) Fin rot (cutting down of fins).
(c) Dropsy (swollen belly).

3. Fish-ectoparasites – e.g. fish lice – Argulus.

Question 53.
List some measures to control fish diseases.
Answer:

1. Pollution of fish farm should be avoided.
2. Regular monitoring of the level of oxygen, carbon dioxide and pH of the water of fish farm.
3. Argulus – fish lice can be controlled by adding 2.5 ml/litre of malathion in the pond water.

Question 54.
List the steps of fish seed production by induced breeding techniques.
Answer:
Fish Seed Production by induced breeding technique consists of the following steps:

1. Use of inducing agents.
2. Selection of healthy brooders.
3. Administration of hormones by injection.
4. Releasing sets of brooders in breeding pool.
5. Spawning.
6. Collection of Eggs.
7. Hatching.
8. Post care of fish seeds in nursery and rearing ponds.
9. Transfer of fingerlings in stocking ponds.

Question 55.
What are the uses of honey?
Answer:
Utility of honey:

1. Honey has great importance for its medicinal value specially in disorders related to digestion, dysentery, vomiting and stomach and liver ailments.
2. It also helps in growth of our body as it contains iron and calcium.
3. It is also used as a source of sugar in confectionary items.

Question 56.
Write the components of honey.
Answer:
Honey is a dense sweet liquid, containing sugars 20-40%, moisture 60-80%, minerals 0.22-0.3%, vitamins 0.2-0.5%, enzymes and pollen.

Question 57.
What are the advantages of beekeeping?
Answer:
Advantages of beekeeping:

1. Beekeeping is undertaken on commercial basis as an enterprise. Besides honey, other products obtained from beekeeping include wax, royal jelly and bee venom.
2. Beekeeping requires low investments, therefore, farmers along with agriculture also do beekeeping as an additional income-generating activity.
3. It also helps in cross-pollination as pollens are transferred from one flower to another by bees while collection of nectar.

Question 58.
List the varieties of honeybee used for beekeeping.
Answer:
Honeybee varieties used for beekeeping
The indigenous varieties of bee used for commercial production of honey are Apis cema indica F., commonly known as Indian bee, Apis dorsata, the rock bee and A-florae little bee. An exotic variety from Italy has been domesticated in India to increase yield of honey. This variety is called Italian bee i.e. Apis mellifera, commonly known as Italian bee.

Question 59.
How are honeybees affected by different factors?
Answer:
1. Honeybees generally get bacterial and viral diseases.
2. Common pests of bees are wasps, wax moths and mites. Wasps are controlled manually, by exposing bees in bee hive to sun or by increasing temperature. King crow and greenbee eater prey upon bees. They can be scared away by some devices.

Question 60.
Explain compound fish culture. List the factors.
Answer:
Composite Fish Culture:
Combination of 6 species is used in the culture system. This combination is highly
advantageous because these fishes do not compete for food among them having different types of food habits. Another advantage is that food available in all the parts/zones of the pond is utilized due to their food habits.

The food habits of six species are catla, a surface feeder, rohu feed in middle zone of the pond i.e. column feeder and mrigal and common carp feed at the bottom, where as grass carp feed on aquatic weeds in the pond. Amongst them three are foreign or exotic, i.e. transplanted from China and 3 species are of Indian origin.

Factors: Important factors to be taken into consideration for fish culture include:

1. Topography or location of pond.
2. Water resources and quality.
3. Soil quality i.e. composition particle size as well as nutrients.

Question 61.
What are the uses of chemical fertilizers?
Answer:
Uses of fertilizers:

1. They cover up the mineral deficiency of soil due to excessive and repeated cropping in a field.
2. They are required in smaller bulk.
3. They are easy to transport.
4. They are quickly available to their plant food constituents.
5. The chemical fertilizers are available both in soil form as well as in solution form.
6. Chemical fertilizers are soluble in water, hence are easily absorbed by plants.

Very Short Answer Type Questions:

Question 1.
What are the major sources of food for us?
Answer:
Plants and animals.

Question 2.
List the nutrients supplied by food.
Answer:
Proteins, carbohydrates, fats, vitamins and minerals.

Question 3.
Coin the terms for extensive production of :
1. fish
2. milk
3. oil
Answer:
1. Blue revolution
2. White revolution
3. Yellow revolution

Question 4.
What term is used for extensive production of pulses?
Answer:
Golden revolution.

Question 5.
List cereal crops which provide carbohydrates for energy.
Answer:
Wheat, rice, maize, minor millets, and sorghum.

Question 6.
Name a few pulses which provide proteins.
Answer:
Gram, Pea, Black gram, green gram, pigeon pea, lentil.

Question 7.
List any six oil seed crops which provide fatty acids.
Answer:
Soyabean, groundnut, seasame, castor, mustard, linseed, niger and sunflower.

Question 8.
From where we get minerals and vitamins?
Answer:
Vegetables, spices and fruit crops.

Question 9.
Name three fodder crops.
Answer:
Berseem, oat and Sudan grass.

Question 10.
Name the crops grown in rabi season (November to April).
Answer:
Wheat, gram, peas, mustard, linseed.

Question 11.
Name kharif season crops.
Answer:
Paddy, soyabean, arhar, maize, cotton, urad and moong.

Question 12.
How many nutrients are required by plants?
Answer:
16 nutrients.

Question 13.
Name four macronutrients.
Answer:
Nitrogen, phosphorus, potassium and sulphur.

Question 14.
Name nine micronutrients.
Answer:
Iron, Manganese, Boron, Zinc, Copper, Molybdenum, Chlorine, Calcium, Magnesium.

Question 15.
What is farmyard manure (FYM)?
Answer:
FYM is the decomposed mixture of cattle excreta (dung) and urine along with litter (i.e. bedding material used in night under cattle) and left over organic matter such as roughage or fodder.

Question 16.
What is composting?
Answer:
Composting is a biological process in which both aerobic and anaerobic micro-organisms decompose the organic matter.

Question 17.
What is vermicomposting?
Answer:
The degradation of organic wastes through the consumption by the earthworms is called vermicomposting.

Question 18.
What are nitrogenous fertilizers? Give one example.
Answer:
These fertilizers supply the macronutrient nitrogen. Example. Urea.

Question 19.
What are complex fertilizers?
Answer:
When a fertilizer contains atleast two or more nutrients (N, P₂O₅ and K₂O), it is called complex fertilizer.

Question 20.
Define irrigation.
Answer:
The process of supplying water to crop plants by means of canals, reservoirs, wells etc. is called irrigation.

Question 21.
Name two potassium fertilizers.
Answer:
Potassium sulphate and potassium chloride.

Question 22.
When even excessive application of manure does not cause pollution?
Answer:
Manures are biodegradable, so they do not cause any damage.

Question 23.
List three important nitrogen-containing fertilizers.
Answer:
Urea, Ammonium Sulphate and Ammonium nitrate.

Question 24.
List three phosphorus-containing fertilizers.
Answer:
Ammonium phosphate, Ammonium hydrogen phosphate, Calcium Superphosphate.

Question 25.
Name two potassium-containing fertilizers.
Answer:
Potassium sulphate, Potassium chloride.

Question 26.
What is being traditionally used as manure in our country?
Answer:
Cow-dung.

Question 27.
Define herbicide.
Answer:
Herbicide is the chemical agent that destroys or inhibits plant growth ; used to destroy weeds in the cultivated patch of land.

Question 28.
List any three manures.
Answer:
Farmyard manure, composted manure and green manure.

Question 29.
What is monoculture?
Answer:
Growing the same crop in a field year after year is called monoculture.

Question 30.
A fanner grows gram crop between two cereal crops. Which agricultural practice is being followed by him?
Answer:
Crop rotation.

Question 31.
Suppose you are incharge of a grain store. How will you find out the presence of pests? Mention any two indications.
Answer:
1. By presence of living or dead insects.
2. By noticing white powdery materials on the bags or on the floor.

Question 32.
What are weeds?
Answer:
Unwanted plants growing alongwith main crops are called weeds.

Question 33.
Define fungicide.
Answer:
The pesticides that kill fungi are called fungicides.

Question 34.
What is the basic objective of mixed cropping?
Answer:
Minimize risk and insurance against crop failure due to abnormal weather conditions.

Question 35.
List any two prominent mixed cropping practices.
Answer:
1. Maize and urd bean.
2. Cotton and mung bean.

Question 36.
Which crops can be grown along with wheat during mixed cropping practices?
Answer:
Chickpea and mustard.

Question 37.
What is intercropping?
Answer:
Intercropping is growing of two or more crops simultaneously in the same field in definite rows.

Question 38.
Expand HYV.
Answer:
High Yielding Varieties.

Question 39.
Name any two subsidiary occupations which are part of mixed farming.
Answer:
Daily farming and poultry farming.

Question 40.
What is row inter-cropping?
Answer:
Growing two more crops at the same time with atleast one crop planted in rows.

Question 41.
What is inter-cropping?
Answer:
Growing two or more crops together in strips wide enough to permit separate crop production using machines but close enough for the crops to interact.

Question 42.
Name any two improved varieties of wheat.
Answer:
Sonara, PPW 154.

Question 43.
Name any two improved varieties of rice.
Answer:
Kasturi, PNR-591-18.

Question 44.
What is green revolution?
Answer:
The tremendous increase in food grains (especially wheat) during the last three decades due to the use of HYV, high dose of fertilizers and irrigation is known as green revolution.

Question 45.
Define selection.
Answer:
Selection is the sorting out of individual plants or groups of plants from mixed population.

Question 46.
Name the oldest method of crop improvement.
Answer:
Introduction.

Question 47.
Give one example of crop combination used in mixed cropping.
Answer:
Soyabean and pigeon pea.

Question 48.
Define plant breeding.
Answer:
Plant breeding means production of new varieties or strains by a programme of artificial selection spanning several generations of the organism concerned.

Question 49.
Name the branch which deals with feeding, caring and breeding of domestic animals.
Answer:
Animal husbandry.

Question 50.
What are milch animals?
Answer:
Animals providing milk are called milch animals.

Question 51.
Define the livestock.
Answer:
Domesticated animals reared to provide milk, meat, etc. e.g. cows, buffaloes, sheep, goats, etc.

Question 52.
Give two uses of cattle.
Answer:
1. Cattles provide hide to prepare leather goods.
2. They are useful in agricultural operations like ploughing, harrowing, levelling, etc.

Question 53.
Give two examples of each of indigenous breeds and exotic milch breeds of cows.
Answer:
1. Indigenous breeds. Sahiwal and Red Sindhi.
2. Exotic breeds. Jersey and Brown Swiss.

Question 54.
List three categories of cattle on the basis of their utility. Give one example of each.
Answer:

1. Milch breed e.g. Sahiwal.
2. Draught breed e.g. Hallikar.
3. General utility breed e.g. Haryana.

Question 55.
Name two high milk-yielding crossbreeds of cows.
Answer:
Karan-Swiss and Karan-Fries.

Question 56.
Name two exotic breeds of cows.
Answer:
Jersey (USA) and Brown-Swiss (Switzerland).

Question 57.
Name two breeds of buffaloes.
Answer:
Murrah and Mehsana.

Question 58.
What are the two components of cattle feed?
Answer:
Roughage and Concentrate.

Question 59.
How roughage and concentrate differ from each other?
Answer:
Roughage contains fibres but less nutrients e.g. fodder, while concentrate is rich in proteins e.g. cereal grains.

Question 60.
What is ration of cow?
Answer:
Ration is the amount of food, which is given to animal during 24 hours period. For cow it is about 15 to 20 kg of green fodder and 4-5 kg of grain mixture.

Question 61.
What are additives?
Answer:
Dairy animals require certain additive feeds, which contain antibiotics, minerals and hormones, they promote growth of animals, facilitate good yield of milk and protect them from diseases.

Question 62.
Name the progeny of cross breed of Brown Swiss and Sahiwal.
Answer:
Karan Swiss.

Question 63.
What is artificial insemination?
Answer:
Introduction of semen of a high quality pedigree bull into the vagina of a healthy female cow by artificial means is called artificial insemination.

Question 64.
Give the term for the process by which a female cow of good breed is stimulated by the hormones to release more ova from its ovaries.
Answer:
Superovulation.

Question 65.
Give the significance of superovulation.
Answer:
It increases the chances of transmission of good characters to progeny.

Question 66.
Who is called “Father of White Revolution”?
Answer:
Dr. V. Kurien.

Question 67.
What is NDRI? Where is it located?
Answer:
National Dairy Research Institute. It is located at Kamal (Haryana).

Question 68.
Name two bacterial diseases of cattle.
Answer:
Anthrax and Brucellosis.

Question 69.
Name two viral diseases of cattle.
Answer:
Foot and mouth disease and cowpox.

Question 70.
Name two animal products in which carbohydrate is totally absent.
Answer:
Eggs and meat.

Question 71.
Name two non-leguminous dry fodders.
Answer:
Pounded straw of wheat and dry grass.

Question 72.
Give one term for the science dealing with rearing of birds.
Answer:
Poultry.

Question 73.
Name two indigenous breeds of fowls.
Answer:
Aseel and Brahma.

Question 74.
Name two exotic breeds of fowls.
Answer:
Rhode Island Red and White Leghorn.

Question 75.
Name two high-yielding crossbreeds of fowls.
Answer:
“B-77” and “HH-260”.

Question 76.
What are broilers?
Answer:
Meat-providing birds are called broilers.

Question 77.
What are layers?
Answer:
Egg-laying hens are called layers.

Question 78.
Name one viral and one bacterial disease of fowls.
Answer:
1. Ranikhet (Viral disease)
2. Salmonellosis or Pullorum (Bacterial disease)

Question 79.
What are vegetarian eggs?
Answer:
Infertile eggs are called vegetarian eggs.

Question 80.
Define pisciculture.
Answer:
Pisciculture is rearing and management of fishes.

Question 81.
Give one term for composite fish-farming.
Answer:
Polyculture.

Question 82.
What is economic importance of fish as food?
Answer:
Fish meat contains more proteins (13 – 22%), less fats, vitamins (A and D) and iodine.

Question 83.
Name two by-products of fishery.
Answer:
Liver oil and fish meal.

Question 84.
Which two vitamins are present in liver oil of certain fishes?
Answer:
Vitamins A and D.

Question 85.
Name two indigenous breeds of carps used as food fishes.
Answer:
1. Catla (Theila)
2. Labeo (Rahu)

Question 86.
Name two exotic breeds of carps used as food for fishes.
Answer:
Silver carp and Grass carp.

Question 87.
What is fish meal? Give its significance.
Answer:
It is prepared from non-oil type fishes and is rich in proteins (55 – 70%).

Question 88.
Define inland culture fishery.
Answer:
Rearing of fishes in the artificially prepared fresh water ponds.

Question 89.
Give two examples of marine food fishes.
Answer:
Sardinella (Salmon) and Harpodon (Bbmbay duck).

Question 90.
What is hypophysation?
Answer:
Process by which female and male fishes are injected the hormones of pituitary extract to induce spawning.

Question 91.
Give the term for the newly-hatched young ones of fishes.
Answer:
Hatchlings.

Question 92.
Define fingerlings.
Answer:
Fingerlings are about 4″ – 6″ sized fishes formed from fries in nursery ponds and rearing ponds.

Question 93.
What is harvesting?
Answer:
Capturing of fully grown fishes is called harvesting or fishing.

Question 94.
Name two methods of fishing.
Answer:
Angling and trapping.

Question 95.
What are hapas?
Answer:
These are rectangular boxes of mosquito net cloth in which hatching of fish eggs occur.

Question 96.
Name two infectious diseases of fishes.
Answer:
1. Viral Haemorrhagic Septicemia (VHS)
2. Infectious Pancreatic Necrosis (IPN)

Question 97.
Name two varieties of Indian fishes.
Answer:
Carps (e.g. Catla) and Cat-fishes (e.g. Mystus).

Question 98.
Mention seafood items other than fishes.
Answer:
Lobsters, prawns, oysters, mussels, etc.

Question 99.
Name the different types of ponds.
Answer:
Nursery ponds, rearing ponds, stocking ponds and broodstock ponds.

Question 100.
List the products obtained from beekeeping.
Answer:
Honey, wax, royal jelly and bee venom.

Question 101.
“Honey is a dense sweet liquid.” Write its composition.
Answer:
Sugar 20-40%, moisture 60-80%, minerals 0.22 to 0.3%, vitamins 0.2 – 5%, enzymes, pollen etc.

Question 102.
What is the utility of pollen for bees?
Answer:
Pollens serve as protein food for bees.

Question 103.
What is a beehive?
Answer:
A beehive is a wooden box of size 46 × 23 cm made up of wooden chambers for egg-laying, honey collection, as honey reserve.

Punjab State Board PSEB 9th Class Science Important Questions Chapter 14 Natural Resources Important Questions and Answers.

PSEB 9th Class Science Important Questions Chapter 14 Natural Resources

Long Answer Type Questions:

Question 1.
Write a note on formation of soil.
Answer:
Formation of Soil: The formation of soil depends on the parent rock material, the climate and topography of the area, the organisms present in the soil and the time over which the soil has been developing. Over long periods of time, thousands and millions of years, the rocks near the surface of the Earth are broken down by various physical, chemical and some biological processes. The end product of this breaking down is the fine particles of soil.

Processes for soil formation:
1. The Sun: The sun heats up rocks during the day so that they expand. At night, the rocks cool down and contract. The unequal expansion and contraction in different parts of the rock results in the formation of cracks and ultimately rocks break up into smaller pieces.

2. Water: Water helps in the formation of soil in two ways:

1. Water could get into the cracks in the rocks formed due to uneven heating by the sun. If this water freezes, it will widen the cracks.
2. Fast flowing water carries big and small particles of rock downstream, causing breakdown of rock particles into smaller, finer particles through their abrasive effects.

3. Wind: Strong winds also break down rocks. They also carry sand from one place to the other like the water does.

4. Living organisms: They also influence the formation of soil. While lichens grow on surface of rocks, they release certain substances that cause the rock surface to powder down and form a thin layer of soil. Likewise, small plants like moss and roots of big trees also break the rocks.

Question 2.
What are the effects of use of fertilizers and pesticides for long period on soil fertility? What are the causes of soil erosion?
Answer:
Effects of excessive use of fertilizers and pesticides:

1. Use of these substances over a long period of time can destroy the soil structure by killing the soil micro-organisms that recycle nutrients in the soil.
2. They also kill the earthworms which are instrumental in making the rich humus.
3. Fertile soil can quickly be turned barren if sustainable practices are not followed.
4. Major cause of soil pollution is removal of useful components from the soil and addition of other substances, which adversely affects the fertility of the soil and kills the diversity of organisms living in it, is called soil pollution.

Causes of Soil Erosion:

1. Wind causes soil erosion by carrying away the top loose soil particles.
2. Rain causes soil erosion on unprotected topsoil by washing it down.
3. mproper farming or tilling and leaving the field fallow for long time causes soil erosion.
4. Frequent flooding of rivers causes soil erosion by removing the fertile top soil of the fields near the river banks.
5. Deforestation also leads to soil erosion.

Question 3.
Why is soil as resource important for mankind? Mention the constituents of soil.
Answer:
Soil is a rich source of minerals and humus. It is important for growing crops. Soil water is used by plants for various functions.
Soil provides support to crops, grassland and forests thus it is an important natural resource.

Components of Soil. Soil is a mixture, it contains:

1. Small particles of rocks.
2. Bits of decayed living organisms which is called humus.
3. Soil also contains various forms of microscopic life.
4. It contains nutrients and availability of which depends on the rocks from which it was formed.
5. Soil water – 25% – 35%
6. Soil air – 15-25 %

Question 4.
Define soil fertility. How can it be maintained?
Answer:
Soil fertility. It is the ability of soil to provide minerals, water and other nutrients to the plants.
Conservation of Soil fertility:

1. Adding of manure to the soil.
2. Rotation of crops.
3. Keeping the land as such without growing any crop.
4. Addition of fertilizers.

Artificial methods to maintain soil fertility:

1. Nitrogenous and other fertilizers are added.
2. For natural restoration of nutrients, soil is kept uncultivated for certain period.

Role of humus:

1. Humus increases the soil fertility.
2. Humus has high retaining capacity for water.
3. It makes the soil porous and allows water and air to penetrate deep.

Question 5.
What is air pollution? Write the main sources and preventive measures.
Answer:
Air Pollution. Air pollution refers to the release into the atmosphere of materials that are harmful to man, other animals, plants and buildings or other objects.

Sources of Air pollution:
The major sources of air pollution are fossil fuels (coal and petroleum) and industries. Human Sources. Many activities done by man are the main sources of air pollution. These activities can be divided into following categories.

1. Combustion activities.
2. Industrial activities.
3. Agricultural works.
4. Use of solvents.
5. Activities concerned with atomic energy.

Preventive measures for air pollution:
To prevent and control air pollution two types of measures can be adopted.
1. Instead of releasing poisonous gases containing various pollutants into the atmosphere they could be destroyed or used by some other measures.
2. Converting harmful pollutants to harmless products and then releasing them into
the atmosphere.

Control measures for minimizing air pollution:
1. Simple combustible solid wastes should be burnt in incinerators.
2. Automobiles must be either made to eliminate the use of gasoline and diesel oil or complete combustion is obtained in the engine so that harmful products are omitted.

Question 6.
Write a few properties of water. Sketch water Cycle.
Answer:
Water is a liquid at room temperature. It is densiest (heaviest) at about 4°C. The dense water sinks and the lighter frozen water (ice) floats, ice also insulates the water below. This enables the aquatic life to survive under the ice in cold weather.

Question 7.
What is nitrogen cycle? Make a simple line sketch to show nitrogen cycle in the biosphere.
Answer:
The nitrogen cycle in the biosphere is regarded as a perfect cycle because the cycling process keeps the overall amount of nitrogen constant in the atmosphere and water bodies. The use of chemical nitrogeneous fertilizers like NPK and urea also help in the maintenance of soil nutrients and nitrogen cycle.

However, some of the nitrogen compounds present in soil get trapped within sedimentary rocks and therefore, they are not available to nitrogen cycle for circulation in the biosphere. However, this loss is compensated by volcanic eruptions and erosions and sedimentary rocks. Both these processes release nitrogen.

Micro-organisms involved in Nitrogen Cycle:

As already learnt, micro-organisms play a very important role in nitrogen cycle in nature. Different organisms are involved in different processes of nitrogen cycle. The main micro-organisms involved in nitrogen cycle are listed below:

Activity:

1. Nitrogen fixation
2. Ammonification
3. Ammonia to nitrites
4. Nitrification (Nitrites to nitrates)
5. Denitrification (Nitrates to free Nitrogen)

Organisms:

1. Rhizobium, blue-green algae
2. Decay bacteria, fungi
3. Nitrosomonas
4. Nitrobacter
5. Pseudomonas

The nitrogen cycle in the biosphere involves the following steps:

Question 8.
Briefly explain oxygen cycle.
Answer:
Oxygen cycle: Oxygen is very abundant element on earth. It is found in the elemental form in the atmosphere to the extent of 21%. It also occurs extensively in the combined form in the earth’s crust as well as also in the air in the form of carbon dioxide. In the crust, it is found as the oxides of most metals and silicon, and also as carbonate, sulphate, nitrate and other minerals. It is also an essential component of most biological molecules like carbohydrates, proteins, nucleic acids and fats (or lipids).

But when we talk of the oxygen cycle, we are mainly referring to the cycle that maintains the levels of oxygen in the atmosphere. Oxygen from the atmosphere is used up in three processes, namely combustion, respiration and in the formation of oxides of nitrogen. Oxygen is returned to the atmosphere in only one major process, that is, photosynthesis. And this forms the broad outline of the oxygen cycle in nature.

Question 9.
Briefly explain carbon cycle in nature.
Answer:
The Carbon Cycle. Carbon is found in various forms on the earth. It occurs in the elemental form as diamond and graphite. In abiotic environment, carbon is present in the following forms:

1. as carbon dioxide in the atmosphere.
2. as carbonate and hydrogen-carbonate salts in various minerals.
3. as dissolved carbonic acid and bicarbonates in water.
4. as fossil fuels like coal, petroleum and natural gas.
5. Plants utilise the atmospheric carbon dioxide in photosynthesis to produce carbohydrates, which are taken by herbivores and then pass through small and large carnivores.

Forms of Carbon: Carbon is found in various forms on the earth.

1. It occurs in the elemental form as diamonds and graphite.
2. In the combined state, it is found as carbon dioxide in the atmosphere, as carbonate and hydrogen-carbonate salts in various minerals.
3. All life forms are based on carbon-containing molecules like proteins, carbohydrates, fats, nucleic acids and vitamins.
4. Both plants and animals release carbon dioxide to the atmosphere as a product of respiration.
5. By decomposition of organic wastes and dead bodies by decomposers.
6. By burning of fossil fuels, like coal, and petroleum.

Question 10.
What are the causes of ozone depletion?
Answer:
Ozone depletion: Recently it was discovered that ozone layer was getting depleted. Various man-made compounds like CFCs (carbon compounds having both fluorine and chlorine which are very stable and not degraded by any biological process) were found to persist in the atmosphere.

Once they reached the ozone layer, they would react with the ozone molecules. This resulted in a reduction of the ozone layer and recently they have discovered a hole in the ozone layer above the Antarctica. It is difficult to imagine the consequences for life on earth if the ozone layer dwindles further, but many people think that it would be better not to take chances. Measures should be taken towards stopping all further damage to the ozone layer.

Question 11.
Write a note on freshwater resources.
Answer:
Fresh Water Resources:
Fresh water resources range from ponds to lakes and large rivers. It has the following characteristics :
(a) Freshwater is exhaustible, however, it is being made available again by oceans through hydrological cycle.

(b) Out of this three per cent, 77.2 per cent is stored in glaciers and ice caps. And 22.4 per cent is groundwater and soil moisture. Remaining 0.36 per cent is found in lakes, rivers, streams and swamps etc. Out of the total water evaporated from oceans 90 per cent falls on the oceans and remaining 10 per cent falls on the land. This water is utilised by various terrestrial ecosystems.

(c) Freshwater is essential for life on earth as well as for survival of human race.

(d) The total water in hydrosphere is 1.4 billion cubic kilometres (Km³). Total ocean
water is 97%. The ocean water cannot be consumed by human beings. Remaining three percent (freshwater) is available for human consumption. The water resources in India have an average run off in river system of 1,869 km² and 432 km³ groundwater.

Short Answer Type Questions:

Question 1.
What is atmosphere? Name its different layers.
Answer:
Atmosphere: Gaseous envelope surrounding the earth is called atmosphere. Several concentric layers can be identified in vertical profile of atmosphere. Density, temperature and composition differ in these layers. Near the earth’s surface, density is highest and with increase in latitude density decreases. Starting from earth’s surface five concentric layers can be distinguished:

1. Troposphere
2. Stratosphere
3. Mesosphere
4. Thermosphere
5. Ionosphere.

Exosphere which forms the outer fringe of atmosphere is highly rarefied and gradually get mixed with other space.

Composition of dry atmosphere:

Components	Volume
Nitrogen (N2)	78%
Oxygen (O2)	21%
Carbon dioxide (CO2)	0.03%
Argon	0.93%
Helium, Neon, Ozone, ammonia	0.04%

Helium, Neon and Argon are noble gases.

Question 2.
What is the role of atmosphere in climate control?
Answer:
Role of atmosphere in climate control. Atmosphere covers the earth like a blanket. Air is a bad conductor of heat. The atmosphere keeps the average temperature of the earth fairly steady during the day and even during the course of the whole year. The atmosphere prevents the sudden increase in temperature during the daylight hours.

During the night, it slows down the escape of heat into outer space. Moon, which is about the same distance from the sun that the earth is. Despite that, on the surface of the moon, with no atmosphere, the temperature ranges from -190° C to 110° C.

Question 3.
What is ozone layer? Write its importance.
Answer:
Ozone layer: It is the protective layer. Ozone in stratosphere is responsible for protecting the earth from high energy ultraviolet radiation. It forms a life-saving screen as it checks the entry of lethal UV- rays. Ozone found in troposphere has warming effect. Ozone is one gas which is harmful as well as useful for human beings.

16th September, 1996 was celebrated as “International Day for the Preservation of Ozone layer”. It was aimed to generate awareness about the dangers of ozone depletion in the stratosphere and it was drawn up by UNEP.

Question 4.
What is meant by ozone shield? How the CFC’s and ozone-depleting substances effect ozone shield?
Answer:
Ozone shield: An equilibrium is established between generation and destruction of O₃, leading to a steady-state concentration of ozone layer in the stratosphere between 20 and 26 km above the sea level. The thickness of the vertical column of stratospheric O₃ layer, condensed to standard temperature and pressure, average 0.29 cm above the equator and may exceed 0.40 cm above the poles at the end of the winter season. This layer acts as the ozone shield protecting the earth biota from harmful effects of strong UV radiations.

CFC’s produce active chlorine (Cl with CIO radical) in the presence of UV radiations. These radicals catalytically destroy ozone converting it into oxygen. CH₄ and N₂O also cause ozone destruction.

Question 5.
Write a note on the air pollution caused due to combustion.
Answer:
The mobile combustion sources are the main sources of air pollution especially in the cities. They include the locomotives, automobiles and aircrafts.
The air pollutants from these are:
1. (i) Carbon monoxide (ii) oxides of nitrogen and (in) a mixture of hydrocarbons.
2. The petroleum used as fuel in these sources contains lead as an impurity in the form of tetraethyl lead Pb (C₂H₅)₄, and tetramethyl lead Pb (CH₃)₄.

Question 6.
Discuss harmful effects of air pollution.
Answer:
Harmful Effects of Air Pollution
1. Air pollution affects the respiratory system causing breathing difficulties and diseases such as bronchitis, asthma, lung cancer, tuberculosis and pneumonia.

2. Burning of fossil fuels like coal and petroleum releases oxides of nitrogen and sulphur. Inhalation of these gases is dangerous. These gases also dissolve in rain to give rise to acid rain.

3. The combustion of fossil fuel also increases the amount of suspended particles in air. These suspended particles could be unbumt carbon particles or substances called hydrocarbons. The presence of high levels of all these pollutants, reduce visibility in cold weather where water also condenses out of air forming smog. Smog is an indication of air pollution.

4. Regular breathing in the polluted air increases allergies, cancer and heart diseases.

Question 7.
What is the role of biotic components in living organisms?
Answer:
The living or biotic components are plants and animals including us and non¬living or physical components are air, water, soil, light and temperature. All these components interact and effect each other, resulting in the establishment of a complex and complete balance in the environment. The environmental components like mountains, rivers, ponds, forests, minerals, coal and even petrol and other natural resources are of great importance to us.

CO₂ is fixed in two ways:
1. Green plants convert CO₂ into glucose in the presence of sunlight and chlorophyll pigments.
2. Many marine animals use carbonates dissolved in sea water to make their shells. Oxygen is required by eukaryotic and many prokaryotic cells. All the cells need oxygen to break down glucose molecules in order to release energy required to carry out this vital functions of life.

Question 8.
What are aerosols?
Answer:
Aerosols. Aerosols are certain chemicals released in the air with force in the form of mist or vapour. The important source of aerosols is the jet aeroplane emissions in the outer atmosphere. The aerosols contain fluorocarbons which deplete the ozone layer in the atmosphere.

Question 9.
What are acid rains?
Answer:
Acid Rain. It is the rain which contains small amount of acid in it that is formed from the gases like sulphur dioxide and nitrogen oxides present in polluted air. It causes damage to living and non-living things.

Question 10.
What is smog?
Answer:
Smog. Smoke and fog when combined together forms smog in the presence of sunlight. Various unbumt hydrocarbons produced from the automobile combustion react with oxides of nitrogen to form ozone, peroxyacyl nitrates and aldehydes. They are called photochemical oxidants. Together with smoke and fog they constitute smog which has a harmful effect on humans repiratory and nervous system; it also harm the plants and rubber goods.

Question 11.
Explain the role of sun in soil formation.
Answer:
Role of sun in soil formation:
The sun heats up rocks dtiring the day as a result that they expand. At night, these rocks cool down and contract. Since all parts of the rock do not expand and contract at the same rate, this results in the formation of cracks and ultimately the huge rocks break up into smaller pieces and small pieces further break up into still smaller pieces and fine particles.

Question 12.
How does water take part in soil formation?
Answer:
Role of water in soil formation:
1. Water enters into cracks formed as a result of uneven heating by sun. As this water freezes, it causes the cracks in the rocks to widen.
2. Flowing water wears away hard rocks over long period of time. The fast flowing water often carries big and small particles of rock downstream. These pieces of rock rub against other rock pieces and the abrasion causes the rocks to wear down into smaller and still smaller pieces.

Question 13.
Discuss the role of wind and living organisms in soil formation.
Answer:
Role of wind in the soil formation. Strong wind rubs against rocks and wear them down. The wind also carries soil particles from one place to another.

Role of living organisms in soil formation:

Living organisms also influence the formation of soil. The lichen that we read about earlier, also grows on the surface of rocks. While growing, they release certain substances that cause the rock surface to powder down and form a thin layer of soil.

Other small plants like moss, are able to grow on this surface now and they cause the rock to break up further. The roots of big trees sometimes go into cracks in the rocks and as the roots grow bigger, the crack further becomes bigger causing the rocks to break down to form soil.

Question 14.
What is the role of atmosphere in movement of air which causes winds?
Answer:
The movement of air causes winds:
1. The atmosphere gets heated from the radiation that is reflected back or re-radiated by the land or water bodies. As a result of heating convection currents are set up in the air. Since land gets heated faster than water, the air over land gets heated faster than the air above water bodies.

2. In coastal regions, during the day, the air above the land gets heated faster and starts rising. So a region of low pressure is created and air over sea moves into this area of low pressure. The movement of air from one region to the other region causes winds.

3. During the day, the direction of wind would be from the sea to the land and at night, both land and sea starts to cool. Since water cools down slower than the land, the air above water would be warmer than the air above land, thus the direction of wind would be from the land to the sea.

Question 15.
How are rainfall patterns decided?
Answer:

1. Rainfall patterns are decided by the prevailing wind patterns.
2. In large parts of India, rains are mostly brought by the southwest or northeast monsoons.
3. Depressions in the Bay of Bengal have caused rains in some areas, is the common comment during weather ireports.

Question16.
What is the role of atmosphere in causing rain?
Answer:
Role of atmosphere in causing rain:

1. When water bodies are heated during the day, a large amount of water evaporates and goes into the air.
2. The wind carries the water vapour to various places.
3. The air gets heated and rises up carrying the water vapour with it.
4. As this air rises, it expands and cools causing the water vapour in the air to condense in the form of tiny droplets.
5. Once the water droplets are formed, they grow bigger by the ‘condensation’ of these water droplets.
6. When the drops grow big and heavy, they fall down in the form of rain.

Question 17.
Comment “Water is one of the major resources which determine life on land”. List a few other factors also.
Answer:
The availability of water decides not only the number of individuals of each species that are able to survive in a particular area, but it also decides the diversity of life there. Of course, the availability of water is not the only factor that decides the sustainability of life in a region. Other factors like the temperature and nature of soil also matters. But water is one of the major resources which determine life on land.

Question 18.
What is water pollution?
Answer:
Water pollution: Addition of harmful materials to water is termed water pollution. The sources of inland water pollution are community wastewater (sewage) and wastes from industries and agricultural practices. Water pollutants include organic matter, pathogens, chemicals and minerals, solid particles, radioactive wastes and heat.

Question 19.
What are the sources of water pollution?
Answer:
Sources of Water Pollution:

1. Agriculture substances such as fertilisers and pesticides are used to increase crop yield, and some amount of these chemicals is washed into the water bodies that pollutes the water.
2. Sewage from homes and wastes from factories are dumped into rivers or lakes also cause water pollution.
3. Hot and cold water discharged from industries make a change in temperature, which is harmful for aquatic organisms.
4. All these affects the balance among various organisms that are found in water bodies.

Question 20.
What are the effects of water pollution?
Answer:
Effects of Water Pollution:

1. Water pollutants reach the sea directly from the coastal cities and ships, and indirectly with river water from distant places. Oil spilled in tanker accidents is a major threat to ocean life.
2. The substances like fertilisers and pesticides used in farming, mercury salts used by paper industries could be poisonous. There could also be disease-causing organisms, like the bacteria which causes cholera.
3. Industrial or household waste reduces the dissolved oxygen in water bodies, thereby affecting the aquatic life.
4. Aquatic organisms can stay alive in a certain range of temperature. Sudden change in temperature of water bodies is dangerous for aquatic organisms and affects their breeding.

Question 21.
Make a list of various diseases caused by polluted water.
Answer:
Diseases caused by polluted water

1. Bacterial diseases. Cholera, Typhoid, Diarrhoea, Dysentery.
2. Viral diseases. Jaundice, Polio etc.
3. Protozonal diseases. Diseases associated with stomach and intestines eg. Amoebic dysentery, Giardiasis etc.
4. Helminthic diseases. Infection of some intestinal parasites like Ascaris lumbricodies is through drinking water only.
5. Guinea worm diseases is through Cyclops present in the drinking water. Through contaminated water they reach to another host i.e. man.

Question 22.
What is greenhouse effect? Show the % age of gases that cause greenhouse effect.
Answer:
Greenhouse effect. Earth’s temperature is maintained by reradiated infra-red radiations by CO₂, CH₄, O₃, NO and NO₂ and slightly by water vapours in atmosphere. These gases prevent heat from escaping to outer space, so are functionally comparable to glass panels of a greenhouse and are called greenhouse gases (GHGs) and the process is called greenhouse effect. The CO₂ is added to atmosphere mainly by burning fossil fuels, volcanic activities and respiration.

Question 23.
List Various Measures for Soil Conservation
Answer:
Various Measures for Soil Conservation:

1. Stopping clear-cutting of forests and overgrazing checks soil erosion by streams and rivers.
2. Intensive cropping helps in checking soil erosion. A field always under a crop is protected against erosion.
3. Bunds around the fields contain rain water and check soil erosion besides washing away of minerals.
4. Irrigation channels in the fields should be so designed as to carry water at a slow speed.
5. Drainage canals to carry flood water will protect the fields against erosion.

Question 24.
How will you determine composition of soil?
Answer:

Determination of Soil Composition:

1. Materials required: 150 cc of sifted soil, a measuring glass cylinder of 1 litre capacity, water, glass rod.
2. Procedure: Take 150 cc of sifted soil in a glass cylinder. Pour about 750 cc of water over it. Stir the soil well with the help of a glass rod. Take out the rod. Allow the particles to settle. Observe after 30 minutes.
3. Results: The bottom of the cylinder has a layer of coarse sand. A layer of fine sand lies above it. Then there is a layer of silt. Clay lies above silt.

Turbid water occurs above the clay. It contains clay as well as mineral salts. Humus or organic matter floats over the top of turbid water.

Question 25.
Make an outline sketch of nitrogen cycle.
Answer:
Nitrogen Cycle

Very Short Answer Type Questions:

Question 1.
Life exists on which planet?
Answer:
Earth.

Question 2.
What are the materials required for life?
Answer:
Environment, Heat, Light, Water and food.

Question 3.
What is environment?
Answer:
Environment. The earth and everything which affects the living organisms constitute its environment.

Question 4.
Basic requirment of life are obtained from which sources.
Answer:
Energy from sun and resources present on earth.

Question 5.
What is atmosphere?
Answer:
Atmosphere: It is the multilayered gaseous envelope of air that covers the whole of the planet earth like a blanket.

Question 6.
How much surface of earth is covered by water?
Answer:
About 75 percent.

Question 7.
How atmosphere covers the earth?
Answer:
Atmosphere covers the earth as a blanket.

Question 8.
What is biosphere?
Answer:
It is the life-supporting zone of earth where the atmosphere, the hydrosphere and the lithosphere interact and make life possible.

Question 9.
What are biotic components of biosphere?
Answer:
All living organisms.

Question 10.
List the abiotic components of bioshphere?
Answer:
Air, water and soil.

Question 11.
Name the gaseous components of atmosphere.
Answer:
Nitrogen, Oxygen, CO₂ and Water vapour.

Question 12.
Name the gases present on Venus and Mars planet.
Answer:
95 to 97% CO₂.

Question 13.
What is respiration?
Answer:
A process in which O₂ is used and CO₂ is liberated.

Question 14.
How is CO₂ used so that balance is maintained?
Answer:
1. CO₂ is used during photosynthesis and carbohydrates are formed.
2. Used as carbonates by marine molluscs.

Question 16.
How is temperature regulated on earth?
Answer:
Atmosphere regulates the temperature on earth.

Question 17.
What is the minimum and maximum temperature on moon?
Answer:
Minimum temperature = – 190°C
Maximum temperature = 110°C.

Question 18.
What causes wind?
Answer:
Movement of air caused by uneven heating of the atmosphere in different regions of earth.

Question 19.
How are clouds formed?
Answer:
Clouds are formed by condensation of water droplets in the air.

Question 20.
Which wind gets hot : Water to earth surface or from surface of earth to upward.
Answer:
Land (surface of earth) to upward.

Question 21.
During night what is the direction of movement of air?
Answer:
From surface of earth (land) to the sea.

Question 22.
What is the cause of movement of wind?
Answer:
Interaction of atmospheric components.

Question 23.
List two factors which affect wind.
Answer:
1. Rotation of earth
2. Presence of mountain heights.

Question 24.
What is deforestation?
Answer:
Cutting of trees on large scale is called deforestation.

Question 25.
What is the effect of deforestation?
Answer:
Deterioration of atmosphere.

Question 26.
Is air a good or bad conductor of heat?
Answer:
Air is a bad conductor of heat.

Question 27.
What is the cause of rain on Indian Land.
Answer:
Rain in India is due to monsoon from south-west or east-west direction.

Question 28.
What is smog?
Answer:
Smoke mixed with fog is called smog.

Question 29.
What does the smog indicate?
Answer:
It indicates pollution of air.

Question 30.
Where is the purest form of water available.
Answer:
Snow/Ice caps.

Question 31.
Write one importance of water for living organisms.
Answer:
All cellular processes take place in water medium in living organisms.

Question 32.
Write one cause of pollution of water in town.
Answer:
Sewage.

Question 33.
What is soil?
Answer:
The top weathered part of earth’s surface is called soil.

Question 34.
What is the role of sun in the formation of soil?
Answer:
Heating of rocks causes cracking and ultimately breaking up into smaller pieces.

Question 35.
What is the role of wind in soil formation?
Answer:
Wind causes erosion of rocks.

Question 36.
What is soil erosion?
Answer:
Removal of useful components from the soil which affect the fertility of soil is called soil erosion.

Question 37.
What is the importance of soil?
Answer:
Soil supports terrestrial plants and animals and it decides the diversity of life in an area.

Question 38.
How is soil formed?
Answer:
Soil is formed by weathering of rocks.

Question 39.
What are three kinds of water sources?
Answer:
Rainwater, Groundwater and Subsoil water.

Question 40.
Write one advantage of seawater.
Answer:
It is a house of table salt (common salt).

Question 41.
What are the two types of water resources?
Answer:
1. Freshwater resources.
2. Saltwater (sea) resources.

Question 42.
What are the sources of freshwater?
Answer:

1. Rainwater
2. Surface water
3. Groundwater
4. Polar ice caps
5. Ponds and Pools

Question 43.
What do you understand by aquatic habitat?
Answer:
Organisms which are found in water possess aquatic habitat.

Question 44.
How much percent of nitrogen is present in atmosphere?
Answer:
78%.

Question 45.
How is nitrogen used in living organisms.
Answer:
Nitrogen is a component of proteins, nucleic acid (DNA and RNA).

Question 46.
Name two plants which are capable of fixing atmospheric nitrogen.
Answer:
Green pea and other leguminous plants.

Question 47.
Write two uses of mirco-organisms.
Answer:
Micro-organisms act as biofertilizers. They also produce antibiotics.

Question 48.
Name any two natural cycles operating in nature.
Answer:
1. Carbon cycle
2. Nitrogen cycle

Question 49.
Name the gaseous components of biosphere.
Answer:
CO₂, O₂ and Nitrogen.

Question 50.
Name the source of energy for the process of photosynthesis.
Answer:
Solar energy.

Question 51.
Define biomass.
Answer:
The total weight of a living organism.

Question 52.
Name two nitrifying bacteria.
Answer:
Nitrosomonas and Nitrobacter.

Question 53.
Define pollution.
Answer:
Pollution is an undesirable change in physical, chemical or biological characteristics of air, water or land caused by pollutants.

Question 54.
What are pollutants?
Answer:
The substances causing pollution are termed pollutants.

Question 55.
What are the three major types of pollution?
Answer:
Water, air and soil pollution.

Question 56.
What is soil pollution?
Answer:
Soil pollution is removal of useful components from soil and addition of other substances which adversely affect the soil is termed soil pollution.

Question 57.
Which part of solar radiation is absorbed by ozone layer?
Answer:
UV rays.

Question 58.
Name the major surface water pollutant from farm run off and bathroom water.
Answer:
Phosphorus.

Question 59.
Give the source of pathogens in the water.
Answer:
Domestic sewage.

Question 60.
What is the source of aerosols?
Answer:
Aeroplanes.

Question 61.
Which term is used for pollutants that are degraded by natural means?
Answer:
Biodegradable.

Question 62.
How can SO₂ pollution of air be checked?
Answer:
By using sulphur-free fuel in automobiles.

Question 63.
Mention the regions where rainfall is highest and lowest in India.
Answer:

• Minimum rainfall: Arid region having rainfall of 20 to 50 cm.
• Maximum rainfall: Wet region having rainfall of more than 200 cm.