DAV Class 8 SST Chapter 7 Question Answer

DAV Class 8 SST – Chapter 7 Question & Answer

Tick the Correct Option

Which one of the following is not an area of sparse population?
Answer: The Ganga Valley
Out of every 100 people in the world –
Answer: 60 people live in Asia.
Which one of the following is false?
Answer: The total population of USA is bigger than the combined population of India, Pakistan and Bangladesh.
Which one of the following states has the highest density of population in India?
Answer: Bihar
Which one of the following age-groups represents the productive population group of the population?
Answer: 15 to 59 years

Fill in the Blanks

India ranks second in population next to China, in the world.
Number of children below 15 years and adults above 59 years is defined as dependent population.
The growth of population is affected by its birth rate, death rate and migration.
The important attributes of population composition are sex ratio, age structure and literacy rate.
In India, almost half of the population resides in five states of India, i.e., Uttar Pradesh, Maharashtra, Bihar, West Bengal and Madhya Pradesh.

True or False

The total population of the world has crossed 10 billion marks in the year 2011. – False
The sex-ratio of India in 2011 was 943. – True
The density of population is the number of persons per square kilometre of an area. – True
The natural growth rate of population is the difference between the birth rate and the death rate. – False
Population becomes human capital when there is investment made in industries, agriculture and means of transport. – False

Answer the Following Questions in Brief

Q1. What is meant by the growth rate of population?
Answer: The net change in population between two fixed periods of time expressed in percentage is called the growth rate of population.

Q2. What are the three important attributes of population composition?
Answer: Age structure, Sex ratio and Literacy rate.

Q3. What makes the human beings the most valuable resource?
Answer: Education, creative skills and better health make human beings the most valuable resource.

Q4. Which regions of the world have high concentration of population and why?
Answer: Fertile lowlands of Ganga and Brahmaputra in India, Hwang-ho in China, Nile in Egypt, Mississippi in USA and Tigris in Iraq have high population concentration because of good transportation facilities and navigable rivers.

Q5. Highlight the characteristics of the sparsely populated regions of the world.
Answer:

Unfavourable climate conditions
Lack of natural resources
Unsuitable for vegetation growth

Answer the Following Questions

Q1. Explain relief and climate as factors affecting the distribution of population.
Relief: High mountains, rugged terrain and rocky plateaus restrict human settlement due to poor transportation and harsh living conditions.
Climate: People prefer moderate temperature and rainfall. Extreme heat, cold, dryness or excessive wetness cause discomfort.

Q2. How do minerals and industries affect the distribution of population?
Minerals: Areas rich in minerals like coal and iron ore attract population because these are essential for industries.
Industries: Development of industries increases employment opportunities, attracting people from far-off places.

Q3. What is meant by literacy rate? Why is it considered an important indicator in population composition?
Answer: Literacy rate is the percentage of people who can read and write in a country. It is an important indicator as it affects the socio-economic development of a nation.

Q4. Define sex-ratio. What are the reasons for the declining sex-ratio in India?
Answer: Sex ratio is the ratio between the number of females and males in a population.
Reasons:

Preference for male child
Higher infant mortality among girls due to lack of medical care
Neglect of female children
Illegal pre-natal sex determination and female foeticide

Q5. Which states of India have high density of population and why? Suggest ways and means to check it.
Answer: Bihar (1102), West Bengal (1029), Kerala (859), Uttar Pradesh (828) have high density due to favourable climate, fertile soil, developed agriculture and industrialisation.

Ways to check population growth:

Strictly follow minimum marriage age norms
Promote family planning and birth control awareness
Increase female literacy and education