Class IX - Food Security in India

NCERT TEXTBOOK QUESTIONS

Questions Within The Lesson

Q.1. (a) Why is agriculture a seasonal activity?

(b) Why is Ramu unemployed for about four months in a year?

(c) What does Ramu do when he is unemployed?

(d) Who are supplementing income in Ramu’s family?

(e) Why does Ramu face difficulty when he is unable to get work?

(f) When is Ramu food insecure?

Ans. (a) Agriculture is a seasonal occupation because farmars remain out of work for 4 to 5 months in a year.

(b) Because Ramu works as a casual labourer in agriculture. Agriculture being a seasonal activity, Ramu gets works only during the times of sowing, transplanting and harvesting. He remains unemployed for about 4 months during the period of plant cultivation and maturing in a year.

(c) He looks for work in other activities such as construction activities, brick laying etc. in the village.

(d) Ramu’s three sons and food grower also work on the field. His wife works as a house cleaner for the livestock, removing and managing cow dung.

(e) Ramu is food insecure during 4 months when he remains unemployed.

Q.2. (a) Does Ahmed have a regular income from rickshaw-pulling?

(b) How does the yellow card help Ahmed run his family even with small earnings from

rickshaw-pulling?

Ans. (a) No, Ahmed's earning from rickshaw-pulling fluctuates every day.

(b) With his yellow card, Ahmed gets sufficient quantity of wheat, rice, sugar and kerosene oil for his daily requirements. He gets these essential items at half of the market price. In this way, Ahmed is able to manage   his family even with small earnings.

Q.3. Graph 4.1 : Production of Food grains in India (Million Tonnes)

Source : Economic Survey 2004-05.

Study the Graph 4.1 and answer the following questions :

(a) In which year did our country cross the 200 million tonnes per year mark in food grain produciton?

(b) In which decade did India experience the highest decadal increase in food grain production?

(c) Is production increase consistent in India since 2000-01?

Ans. (a) In 2001-02 (212.9 million tonnes) in 20.3-04 (213.5 million tonnes)

(b) During 1980-81 to 1990-91

(c) No.

Q.4. Graph 4.2 : Central Food grains (Wheat + Rice) Stock and Minimum Buffer Norm (Million Tonnes)

Study the Graph 4.2 and answer the following questions :

1. In which recent year food grain stock with the government was maximum?

2. What is the minimum buffer stock norm for the FCI?

3. Why were the FCI granaries overflowing with food grains?

Ans. 1. In 2002

2. 24.3 million tonnes

3. Because poor people were not able to buy food.

QUESTIONS IN THE EXERCISE

Q.1. When is food security ensured ?

Ans. Food security is ensured under the following conditions :

(a) When food is available in adequate quantity as well as quality to meet nutritional requirements.

(b) When food is within the reach of every person.

(c) When an individual has enough money to buy sufficient, safe and nutritious food to meet one’s dietary needs.

Q.2. Which are the people more prone to food insecurity? [Important]

Ans. People more prone to food insecurity are :

(i) Landless and small farmers

(ii) Traditional artisans

(iii) Providers of traditional services

(iv) Petty self-employed persons and

(v) Beggars

Q.3. Which states are more food insecure in India?

Ans. More food insecure states of India: The states of Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Jharkhand, Orissa, West Bengal, Chhattisgarh, parts of Madhya Pradesh and Maharashtra are more food-insecure in India.

Q.4. Do you believe that Green Revolution has made India self-sufficient in foodgrains? How?

Ans. After Independence, Indian policy-makers adopted all possible measures to achieve self-sufficiency in food grains. India adopted a new strategy in agriculture which resulted in the Green Revolution. Green Revolution took place especially in the production of wheat and rice. The core of this new strategy was the use of HYV seeds along with chemical fertilizer and assured water supplies. As a result, total production of foodgrains increased from 50.8 million tonnes in 1950-51 to 212.0 million tonnes in 2003-04. The largest contribution came from wheat, whose production rose from 6.4 million tonnes to 72.1 million tonnes.

Q.5. A section of people in India are still without food. Explain.

Ans. Despite large increase in foodgrain production we find people without food in India. Poor

people suffer from chronic hunger. They find themselves unable to buy food. Over one-fifth

of the country’s population still suffers from chronic hunger.

Q.6. What happens to the supply of food when there is a disaster or a calamity?

Ans. The supply of food is adversely affected during a natural calamity or disaster. Due to a natural calamity, say drought, the production of food grains is less and hence supply decreases.

Q.7. Differentiate between seasonal hunger and chronic hunger.

Ans. Hunger has seasonal and chronic dimensions. Seasonal hunger is a consequence of seasonal nature of work. For example, agriculture in India is seasonal occupation. Farm labourers remain out of work during some months of the year. Hence, during off-season poor people are not able to buy food. On the other hand, chronic hunger exists among people who are not able to buy food because of their very low income. For example land less labourers earn very less to earn enough for food.

Q.8. What has our government done to provide food security for the poor? Discuss any two schemes launched by the government.

Ans. Our government has undertaken a number of measures to provide food security for the poor.

A brief account of these measures is given below :

1. Maintenance of Buffer Stock.  Our government maintains buffer stock of foodgrains through Food Corporation of India. The FCI purchases wheat and rice from the farmers in surplus states and stores in granaries.

2. Public Distribution System (PDS). The food procured by the FCI is distributed among the poor through ration shops. Presently, there are about 4.6 lakh ration shops in the country.

3. Nutritional Programmes.  In order to provide nutritional security, our government has launched various schemes. Mid-day meal scheme for schoolchildren, scheme for supply of foodgrains to scheduled castes/scheduled tribes and special nutrition programmes for pregnant/nursing mothers are examples of such schemes. In 2000, two special schemes were launched. One, Antyodaya Anna Yojana and second, the

Annapurna Schemes. The former relate to the poorest of the poor, while the latter targets indigent senior citizens.  The functioning of these two schemes was linked with the PDS.

Under AAY scheme, thirty-five kilograms of foodgrains are made available to each eligible family at a rate of Rs 2 per kg for wheat and Rs 3 per kg for rice.

Under APS, 10 kilograms of food grains is made available to eligible persons free of cost.

Q.9. Why is buffer stock created by the government?

Ans. The government creates buffer stock of foodgrains to protect the interest of both farmers as

well as consumers. Farmers’ interests are protected when they are assured to get a certain

minimum price for their crops. This price is called ‘minimum support price’.

The interests of the consumers are protected when the procured food is made available to the

consumers at subsidised rates. This task is done through fair price shops.

Q.10. Write notes on :

(a) Minimum Support Price

(b) Issue Price

(c) Fair Price Shops

Ans. (a) Minimum Support Price : With a view to provide incentives to the farmers for raising the production of their crops, the government announces price of some crops before the sowing season. The government remains ready to purchase their crops at these pre-announced prices. This price is called minimum support price (MSP).

(b) Issue Price : The purchased foodgrains are stored in granaries. This is done to distribute foodgrains

among the poorer section of the society. The government makes foodgrains available to the poor at a price much lower than the market price. This is known as issue price.

(c) Fair Price Shops : The food procured by the government is distributed among the poor. This task is done

through government regulated shops which are known as fair price shops.

Q.11. What are the problems of the functioning of ration shops?

Ans. There are various problem of the functioning of ration shops such as ;

1. Ration cards are issued only to those people who have their proper residential addresses.

Hence a large number of homeless poor fail to get ration from these shops.

2. The owners of these shops sell ration in the open market at higher prices.

3. Sometimes shopkeepers make bogus entries in the ration cards.

Q.12. Write a note on the role of cooperatives in providing food and related items.

Ans. Role of Cooperatives in providing food and related items is as follows:-

The cooperatives are playing an important role in food security in India, especially in the southern and western parts of the country. The cooperative societies set up shops to sell goods to the poor people at lower prices. For example, out of all fair price shops operating in Tamil Nadu, nearly 94 percent are being run by the cooperatives. In Delhi, Mother Dairy is providing milk and vegetables to the consumers at controlled prices which are decided by the Delhi Government. Amul  is another example in this regard. It has brought about the White Revolution in the country. There are many more cooperatives and NGOs also working intensively towards this direction.