Geography 12th Previous Year Paper 2017 SET-II (CBSE)

Geography

Q. 1. What are the two types of Intensive subsistence agriculture ?

Answer: It is of the following two types

Intensive subsistence agriculture dominated by wet paddy cultivation.
Intensive subsistence agriculture dominated by crops other than paddy.

Q. 2. Which country has the largest rail network in Africa ?

Answer: South Africa, with 18,000 km of railways has the densest rail network because of the gold, copper and diamond activities.

Q. 3. Name any two towns of India, initially developed as mining towns. [1/2 + 1/2 = 1]

Answer: Raniganj, Jharia, Digboi and Singrauli were all developed as mining towns initially.

Q. 4.Why is West Asia the least developed in rail facilities ? Explain one reason.

Answer: West Asia is the least developed in terms of rail facilities because of vast deserts and sparsely populated regions.

Q. 5. Examine the twin environmental problems that have emerged in the ‘Indira Gandhi Canal Command Area’.

Answer: Due to intensive irrigation and excessive use of water has led to the emergence of problems of water logging and soil salinity and both these have an adverse effect on soil fertility and agricultural productivity.

Q. 6. Classify minerals on the basis of chemical and physical properties. [1/2 + 1/2 = 1]

Answer: Minerals are divided into groups on the basis of chemical and physical properties.

These are:

Metallic and
Non-Metallic minerals. Examples of metallic minerals are iron, copper, gold, silver and non-metallic minerals are salt, coal, copper, etc.

Q. 7. How can you help in improving the quality of water in your locality ? [1]

Answer: Quality of water suffers from large scale of pollution almost throughout the country. In the populated locality, we can avoid dumping all waste matter into water and into our rivers.

Q. 8. Study the map given below carefully and answer the Questions that follow : [3]

Answer: The canal shown in map is Suez Canal, constructed in 1869 between Port Said and Port Suez in Egypt.

Q. 8.2. Write any four characteristics of this canal.

Answer: The main characteristics of this canal are:

It gives Europe a new gateway to the Indian ocean and reduces sea-route distance between Liverpool and Colombo by 6400 km compared to Cape of Good Hope route.
It is a sea level canal without locks which is 130 km long and 11 to 15 meter deep.
About 100 ships travel daily and each ship takes around 10-12 hours to cross the canal.
As the tolls are heavy, some find it cheaper to go by the longer Cape Route whenever the consequent delay is not important.
A navigable fresh canal also follows from Nile.

Q. 9. Describe any three characteristics of agro-based industries in the world.

Answer: Agro-based industries are those industries which obtains raw materials from agricultural activities. Cotton textile, jute textile, silk, sugar, vegetable oil and paper industry are the main industries of agro-based group of industries. Its characteristics are Agro-based industries are part of small scale industry which needs very nominal investment. Major agro processing industries are food processing industries. Most crucial factor is the availability of the raw materials. It should be available within a radius of 60 kms. In addition, water, power and other infrastructure facilities like access to roads, railways, ports and airports as well as the markets for the products have to be ensured.

Q. 10. Study the diagram given below and answer the Questions that follow : [3 × 1 = 3]

Q. 10.1. Identify and name the steel plant given above. In which state this plant located ?

Answer: Steel plant is “Bhilai” and located in Chhattisgarh State.

Q. 10.2. Which is the main source of power for this steel plant ? Which rail route provides transport facilities to this plant ?

Answer: Main power source is “Korba Thermal Power Station”. The rail route connecting to this plant is Kolkata-Mumbai rail route.

Q. 10.3. What are the major sources of Iron ore and water for this steel plant ?

Answer: Major source of rich Hematite Iron Ore for this plant is “Dalli-Rajhara range” of mines. The water source is “Tandula Tank”.

Q. 11. “There is no consensus on what exactly defines a village or a town.” Analyse the statement by using different criteria.

Answer: We all live in a cluster of houses which can be called as a village or a town. It is widely accepted that settlements can be differentiated in terms of rural (village) and urban (town), but there is no consensus on what exactly defines a village or a town. Although the population size is an important criterion, it is not a universal criteria since many villages in densely populated countries like India and China have population exceeding than some towns of Europe and USA. In certain countries, urban settlements are defined on the economic basis. For example, in India, towns are called urban towns cities when it has 75% of its work force engaged in non-agricultural activities, whereas in some western countries an urban area is if more than 50% of the economically productive population are engaged in non-agricultural pursuits.

Q. 12. “Nature provides opportunities and humans make use of these and slowly nature gets humanised and starts bearing the imprints of human endeavour.” Justify the statement.

Answer: When the human being makes use of opportunities provided by nature, it starts bearing the imprints of human endeavour and this situation is known as humanisation of nature. Human beings interact with their physical environment with the help of technology. Technology indicates the level of cultural development of society.

Knowledge about nature is extremely important to develop technology and advanced technology loosens the shackles of environment on human beings. In the early stages of their interaction with their natural environment humans were greatly influenced by it. They adapted to the dictates of nature. This is so because the level of technology was very low and the stage of human social development was also primitive. They create possibilities with the resources obtained from the environment. The human activities create the cultural landscape. The imprints of human activities are created everywhere; health resorts on highlands, huge urban sprawls, fields, orchards and pastures in plains and rolling hills, ports on the coasts, oceanic routes on the oceanic surface and satellites in space.

Q. 13. “Indiscriminate use of water by increasing population and industrial expansion has led to degradation of the water quality considerably in India.” Explain the values that can help in maintaining the quality of water.

Answer: Indiscriminate use of water by increasing population and industrial expansion has led to degradation of the quality of water considerably. Values that can help in maintaining the quality of water are:

Judicious/optimum use of water; controlling population and recycle and reuse of water; Watershed Management and Rainwater Harvesting.
Haryali is the watershed development started by the government of India for the same reason.
Industries which are located on the river banks should be monitored for the waste disposals. They should not be throwing the waste in the river.

Q. 14. Mention any four major objectives of the New Industrial Policy, 1991 of India. Describe the role of globalisation in achieving these objectives. [2 + 3 = 5]

Answer: Major objectives of India’s New Industrial Policy 1991 are as follows:

The New Industrial Policy, 1991 seeks to liberate the industry from the shackles of licensing system. Maintain a sustained growth in productivity.
Encourage foreign participation in India’s industrial development.
Gainful employment and attain international competitiveness.

The process of globalisation includes opening up of world trade, development of advanced means of communication, internationalization of financial markets, growing importance of MNCs, population migrations and increased mobility of persons, goods, capital, data and ideas. It refers to the integration of economies of the world through uninhibited trade and financial flows, as also through mutual exchange of technology and knowledge. It also contains free inter-country movement of labour. This implies opening up the economy to foreign direct investment by providing facilities to foreign companies to invest in different fields of economic activity in India, removing constraints and obstacles to the entry of MNCs, allowing Indian companies to enter into foreign collaborations and also encouraging them to set up joint ventures abroad; carrying out massive import liberalisation programs by switching over from quantitative restrictions to tariffs and import duties, therefore globalisation has been identified with the policy reforms of 1991 in India.

Q. 15. What is meant by human development ? Classify countries into four groups on the basis of the human development scores earned by them. Explain one feature of each group. [1 + 2 + 2 = 5]

Answer:

Human Development: The concept of human development was introduced by Dr. Mahbub-ul-Haq. Dr. Haq has described human development as development that enlarges people’s choices and improves their lives. People’s choices are not fixed but keep on changing. The basic goal of development is to create conditions where people can live meaningful lives. A meaningful life is not just a long one. It must be a life with some purpose. This means that people must be healthy, be able to develop their talents, participate in society and be free to achieve their goals. Countries can be classified into four groups on the basis of the human development scores earned by them.

Level of development	Score in development
(i) Very High	Above 0.808
(ii) High	Between 0.700 up to 0.507
(iii) Medium	Between 0.556 up to 0.699
(iv) Low	Below 0.555

Countries which are classified under High Human Index or Very High Human Index have a score of over 0.8; this group includes 57 countries. These countries provide higher human development through proper investment in people and good governance.
Countries which are classified under High Human Index also includes a good number of countries who provide appropriate human development through investment in the right areas.
Countries with Medium Human Index have more than 50 countries who have emerged after the Second World War. Some were former colonies while others appeared after the Soviet Union collapsed. They have a high social diversity however, they have faced social or political instability and uprising in history.
About 32 countries record Low Level of Human Development because they have been going through political turmoil.

Q. 16. How is migration a response to the uneven distribution of opportunities over a space ? Explain the economic consequences of migration in India. [2 + 3 = 5]

Answer: Migration is a response to the uneven distribution of opportunities because of the following reasons:

In India many people live in rural areas and they migrate to urban areas mainly due to poverty, high population pressure on land, lack of basic infrastructural facilities like health, education, etc. This proves that migration is responsible for the uneven distribution over space.
People tend to move from a place of low opportunities and less safety to a place which has more opportunities and safe.

Economic Consequences

People migrating send remittance to their families at home and add to economic prosperity.
Remittances from international migrants is one of the major sources of foreign exchange. In 2002, India received US $11 billion as remittances from international migrants. Remittances are used for food, repayment of debts, treatment, marriages, children education, agricultural development, construction of houses, etc. Thousands of poor villages of many states works as live blood for economy.
Punjab, Kerala and Tamil Nadu receive very significant amount from their international migrants. Internal Migrants play an important role in the growth of economy of the source area.

Q. 17. “In modern times international trade is the basis of the world economy.” Support the statement with examples.

Answer: Trade is the base of the world economy. The exchange of surplus goods between different countries is called international trade. It is the index of economic development of the country. The countries which export the commodities earn foreign exchange. Developed countries are major trading countries. It also helps to raise the standards of living of the people of developing countries. Some densely populated countries have to import raw materials to meet their demands for their economic and industrial development.

Such countries are Japan, Sri Lanka and other countries. The actual tonnage of goods traded makes up the volume. However, services traded cannot be measured in tonnage. Therefore, the total value of goods and services traded is considered to be the volume of trade. The total volume of world trade has been steadily rising over the past decades. Trade of primary products was dominant in the beginning of the last century. Later manufactured goods gained prominence and currently, though the manufacturing sector commands the bulk of the global trade, service sector which includes travel, transportation and other commercial services have been showing an upward trend.

Q. 18. Explain the importance of five non-conventional sources of energy with suitable examples.

Answer: Importance of non-conventional sources of energy are:

(i) Solar Energy : Sun rays tapped in photovoltaic cells can be converted into energy, known as solar energy. The two effective processes considered to be very effective to tap solar energy are photovoltaics and solar thermal technology. It is cost competitive, environmentally friendly and easy to construct. It is generally used more in appliances like heaters, crop dryers, cookers, etc. The Western part of India has greater potential for the development of solar energy in Gujarat and Rajasthan.

(ii) Wind Energy : Wind energy is absolutely pollution free, inexhaustible source of energy. The mechanism of energy conversion from blowing wind is simple. The kinetic energy of wind, through turbines is converted into electrical energy. The permanent wind systems such as the trade winds, westerlies and seasonal winds like monsoon have been used as a source of energy. Besides these, local winds, land and sea breezes can also be used to produce electricity. India, already has started generating wind energy. It has an ambitious programme to install 250 wind-driven turbines with a total capacity of 45 megawatts, in Rajasthan, Gujarat, Maharashtra and Karnataka, favourable conditions for wind energy exists.

(iii) Tidal and Wave Energy : Ocean currents are the store-house of infinite energy. Since the beginning of the seventeenth and eighteenth century, persistent efforts were made to create a more efficient energy system from the ceaseless tidal waves and ocean currents. Large tidal waves are known to occur along the west coast of India. Hence, India has great potential for the development of tidal energy along the coasts but so far these have not yet been utilised.

(iv) Geothermal Energy: When the magma from the interior of earth, comes out on the surface, tremendous heat is released. This heat energy can successfully be tapped and converted to electrical energy. Apart from this, the hot water that gushes out through the geyser wells (hot wells) is also used in the generation of thermal energy. It is popularly known as geothermal energy. This energy is now considered to be one of the key energy sources which can be developed as an alternate source. The hot springs and geysers are being used since the medieval period. In India, a geothermal energy plant has been commissioned at Manikaran in Himachal Pradesh.

(v) Bio-energy: Bio-energy refers to energy derived from biological products which includes agricultural residues, municipal, industrial and other wastes. Bio energy is a potential source of energy conversion. It can be converted into electrical energy, heat energy or gas for cooking. It will also process the waste and garbage and produce energy. One such project converting municipal waste into energy is Okhla in Delhi.

Q. 19. Analyse the significance and growth of the service sector in the modern economic development of the world. [5]

Answer:

Services are provided to individual consumers who can afford to pay for them. For example gardener, launderers and barber do primarily physical labour. Teachers, lawyers, physicians, musicians and others perform mental labour.
Many services have now been regulated. Making and maintaining highways and bridges, maintaining firefighting departments and supplying or supervising education.
Customer care is among the important services often supervised or performed by governments or companies.
Professional services are primarily healthcare, engineering, law and management. The location of recreational and entertainment services depends on the market.
In modern times, the Service sector has grown at a very fast speed all over the world. Economy of most of the developed countries is based on the earnings of service sectors.

Q. 20. Classify means of communication on the basis of scale and quality into two categories. Explain any two characteristics of each category. [1 + 4 = 5]

Answer: Classification of means of communication on the basis of scale and quality : Personal Communication System:

It is the most effective and advanced one and widely used in urban areas.
It enables the user to establish direct connect through Email to get access to the world of knowledge and information.
It is used for e-commerce and carrying out monetary transaction.
It is a huge central warehouse of data, with detailed information on various items. (Letters, Telephone, Fax, Email, Internet, etc).

Mass Communication System

Radio broadcasting started in India in 1923 by the Radio Club of Bombay and changed the socio-cultural life of people.
Television broadcasting emerged as the most.
Use of satellite and synoptic view of larger area effective audio visual medium for information and for economic and strategic reasons.

(Radio, Television, Cinema, Satellite, Newspaper, Magazine and Books, Seminar and Conference, etc.).

Q. 21. Identify the five geographical features shown on the given political outline map of the world as A, B, C, D and E and write their correct names on the lines marked near them with the help of the following information: [5 × 1 = 5]