NCERT Solutions for class 10th Social Science Chapter 7 Geography –  Forest and Wildlife Resources.

Intext Questions

On Page 16

Question 1. What are the negative factors that cause fearful depletion of flora and fauna?

Answer: The negative factors include the following-

  1. Cutting of forests for developing agriculture. This leads to the decline of habitat as well as prey for the wild animals. 
  2. Depletion of forest resources like wood, bark, leaves, etc for use in the manufacture of rubber, medicines, dyes, foodstuffs, etc.
  3. River water development projects submerge large forest areas.
  4. Development of roads and railway network.
  5. Hunting/Poaching of wild animals.
  6. Expansion of mining activities.
  7. Commercial plantation of certain trees at the expense of other varieties.

On Page 18

Question 1. Have you noticed any activity which leads to the loss of biodiversity around you? Write a note on it and suggest some measures to prevent it. 

Answer Activity which led to loss of biodiversity our area –

  1. Cutting of Sheesham trees for making wooden furniture.
  2. Hunting of deer and other animals in the nearby forest by illegal poachers. 

Suggested measures for preventing this –

  1.  People should be made aware about the necessity of maintaining an ecological balance so that biodiversity is not affected. This should be done by government agencies and NGOs.
  2. Forest department rangers should step up their vigil to prevent poaching and tree cutting.

On Page 19

Question 1. Collect more information on the wildlife sanctuaries and national parks of India and cite their locations on the map of India.

Answer:  India has 441 Widlife Sanctuaries and 102 National Parks. Th e 15 major National Parks are shown on the map given below –

On Page 21

Question 1. Write a short essay on any practices which you may have observed and practiced in the everyday lives that conserve and protect the evironment around you.

Answer: I have observed many activities being practiced by our colony residents which are helping to conserve and protect the environment. The first activity which we carry out regularly every year when the monsoon rains start is celebrating the Van Mahotsav. We normally celebrate this on 1st of July by planting trees saplings in various parts of the colony and watering them. These saplings are protected from being eaten by stray animals by encircling them with metal guard enclosures. This improves the atmospheric oxygen activity in and around our colony. 

Another activity being carried out in our colony is segregating kitchen waste and other household waste into recyclable and biodegradable categories by keeping them in different bins at home and every day disposing of them in similar bins coloured blue (for recyclable waste) and green (for biodegradable waste) in the big bins just outside the colony. This helps the municipality in easy disposal of these wastes and keeps the environment clean.

Exercises

Question 1. Multiple choice questions.

(i) Which of these statements is not a valid reason for the depletion of flora and fauna?

(a) Agricultural expansion

(b) Large-scale developmental projects

(c) Grazing and fuel wood collection

(d)Rapid industrialisation and urbanisation

(ii) Which of the following conservation strategies do not directly involve community participation?

(a) Joint Forest Management.

(b) Beej Bachao Andolan.

(c) Chipko Movement.

(d) Demarcation of Wildlife Sanctuaries.

Answer:

  1. (c) Grazing and fuel wood collection are not valid reasons for the depletion of flora and fauna.
  2. (d) Demarcation of Wildlife Sanctuaries do not directly involve community participation.

Question 2. Match the following animals with their category of existence. Match the following animals with their category of existence.

Question 3. Match the following.

Question 4. Answer the following questions in about 30 words.

  1. i) What is biodiversity? Why is biodiversity important for human lives?
  2. How have human activities affected the depletion of flora and fauna? Explain. 

Answer:

  1. Biodiversity is immensely rich in wildlife and cultivated species, diverse in form and function, but closely integrated into a system through multiple networks of interdependencies. Biodiversity is important for human lives because the human being, along with the biodiversity, form a complete ecological system in which we are part and are dependent on this system for our own existence.
  2. The following human activities have been major causes for the depletion of flora and fauna.
    • Agricultural expansion. 
    • Shifting cultivation (Jhum), a type of ‘slash and burn’ agriculture. 
    • Large-scale development projects. 
    • Mining activities.

Question 5. Answer the following questions in about 120 words. 

  1.  Describe how communities have conserved and protected forests and wildlife in India?
  2. Write a note on good practices towards conserving forest and wildlife.

Answer:

  1. The communities have conserved and protected forests an d wildlife in India in the following ways –
    • In Sariska Tiger Reserve Rajasthani villagers have fought against mining by citing the Wildlife Protection Act. In many areas villagers themselves are protecting habitats and explicitly rejecting government involvement.
    • The famous Chipko Movement launched by the woman of Chamoli in Uttarakhand saved more than 12000 sq km area of forests just by hugging the trees when the lumberjacks attempted to cut them. 
    • Many states have launched the Joint Forest Management Programme to involve local communities in the management and restoration of degraded forests. Odisha was the first state to launch this programme.
    • The inhabitants of five villages in the Alwar district of Rajasthan have declared about 1200 hectares of forest area as the ‘Bhairodev Dakav Sonchuri’. The community has declared their own set of rules and regulations which do not allow hunting and are protecting the wildlife against any outside encroachments.
  2. Conservation of forests and wildlife was prevalent among the tribal communities and in villages in the name of nature worship. The cultural beliefs of the communities helped to preserve the plant and animal species without creating any harm to the ecosystem. e g . ., the tulsi plants and the banana trees are worshipped by many people even today. Certain beliefs of traditional communities in the name of God, has helped in the preservation of plants and animals. Certain plants and animals were considered sacred and kept in temples. The cow is considered as Kamdhenu, which has prevented the slaughtering of cows in India. There are large scale people’s movements like ‘Chipko Movement’ in the Himalayas. Narmada Bachao Andolan clearly indicates the involvement of local communities in the conservation of forests and wildlife.Therefore, all conservation practices and programmes should be people friendly, economically acceptable, and ecofriendly. The life of the local communities and tribal people is intimately related to forests and any developmental projects undertaken by the government should not be at the cost of the destruction of forests and livelihoods of these people. Hence, the voice of these people should be taken into consideration in the decision-making process.

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