NCERT Solutions Class 9 Social Science Chapter 11 Life on Earth

F R E E S T U D Y M AT E R I A L F O R E V E R Y S T U D E N T

CLASS 9 · SOCIAL SCIENCE

NCERT Solutions

Chapter 11: Life on
Earth

NCERT Textbook — Understanding Society: India
and Beyond

BOOK PAGES SECTIONS QUESTIONS MEDIUM

Part II, 21 – 43 17 37 English

Every question Step by step Exam ready
Activities, in-text questions The working shown, not Written to match how
and all exercises. just the final answer. marks are awarded.

Solutions, notes, sample papers & more at 50 pages

Class 9 Social Science Chapter 11 Life on Earth AglaSem · NCERT Solutions

CLASS 9 · SOCIAL SCIENCE · UNDERSTANDING SOCIETY: INDIA AND BEYOND

NCERT Solutions — Chapter 11: Life on Earth
This is Part II, Chapter 2 of Understanding Society: India and Beyond. It explains how climate and landforms
divide the Earth into biomes — forests, grasslands, deserts, tundra and aquatic biomes — and how plants,
animals and people adapt to each. It then shows how forests support livelihoods, how forest dwellers, sacred
groves and laws such as the Forest Rights Act protect them, and how communities manage shared
resources. You will be able to read a biome map, use the biome pyramid and explain why conserving
biodiversity matters.

TEXTBOOK BOOK PAGES
Understanding Society: India and Beyond (Class 9) Part II, 21 – 43

SECTIONS QUESTIONS
17 37

MEDIUM
English

The Big Questions — Page 21
Chapter opener
THE BIG QUESTIONS

Q1 How do physiography and climate shape life on Earth?

Climate (temperature and rainfall) and physiography (landforms and height above sea level)
decide which plants can grow in a place; the plants decide which animals can live there; and
together they decide how people live. This is why the Earth is divided into biomes.
Hot and wet all year (near the Equator): dense tropical rainforests, as in the Amazon, the
Congo and India’s Andaman & Nicobar Islands.
Moderate rainfall: grasslands with grazing animals and farming.
Very little rain: deserts with cacti, camels and lizards.
Freezing cold: tundra with permafrost, mosses and lichens.
Height: in the subtropical Himalaya, altitude brings conifer forests; Ladakh is a cold desert.
People adapt too: desert families store rainwater, hill farmers build terraces.

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Class 9 Social Science Chapter 11 Life on Earth AglaSem · NCERT Solutions

The chapter opens with the idea of the Earth as a patchwork quilt (Fig. 2.1): each patch
has its own colours, weather and living beings. The patches are biomes, and the chapter
says the factors that decide them are “temperature, precipitation patterns, dominant plant
species, growth forms of vegetation, etc.” (page 22).
Think of it as a chain:

climate + landform → soil and water → plants (producers) → animals (consumers) →

human ways of life

Climate: the tropical rainforest stays “hot and wet throughout the year” (page 23), so
trees grow tall and dense. Deserts get so little rain that only plants that store water
survive.
Physiography: mountains, plateaus, plains and coasts change temperature and rainfall
over short distances. The Himalaya, though in the subtropics, has conifer forests
because temperature falls with height (page 27).
Animals adapt: the two-humped camel of the Nubra Valley grows thick fur for the cold,
while the Rajasthan camel has a thin coat (page 26).
Humans adapt: terrace farming in hills and agroforestry in plains (page 30); tanks in
regions of seasonal rainfall (page 42).

Why: The same kind of climate produces the same kind of biome in different
continents. That is why rainforests occur in South America, Africa and Asia, all
near the Equator.

Q2 How are humans and other life forms interconnected?

Humans and other life forms depend on each other through the biome they share.
Nature supports people: forests give food, fuel, fodder, medicine, timber, bamboo and
honey; rivers and lakes give water and fish; grasslands support livestock.
Living beings support each other: animals pollinate flowers and spread seeds, and
microorganisms recycle nutrients. Energy flows from plants to herbivores to carnivores (the
biome pyramid).

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Class 9 Social Science Chapter 11 Life on Earth AglaSem · NCERT Solutions

People change biomes: farming, cities, deforestation and forest fires damage them. Sacred
groves, the Bishnoi and Chipko movements, and Mendha Lekha’s community forest show
that people can also protect them.
So biomes and living beings form one system. When one part is harmed, the others suffer too.

The chapter states the idea directly on page 29: “biomes and living beings are
interconnected systems that depend on one another to maintain ecological balance and
biodiversity.”
Examples of the link in both directions:

HOW NATURE SUPPORTS PEOPLE HOW PEOPLE AFFECT NATURE

Forest dwellers collect tendu leaves, mahua Restrictions, deforestation and commercial
flowers, honey, lac and bamboo for income exploitation reduce these resources (page 38)
(Fig. 2.17)

Fishers of Bihar depend on lakes (mauns) Commons-based management under the Bihar
and river waterfronts (page 41) Fish Jalkar Management Act, 2006 has kept fish
production growing

GI-tagged products such as Kandhamal Tribal farmers’ knowledge and care keep the
Haldi come from forest soils (page 37) product unique

Forests keep up oxygen levels and balance Forest fires, many caused by people, destroy
climate (page 23) forests (page 39)

Why: Every living thing needs energy, which enters the biome through plants.
Humans are consumers in the same pyramid as other animals, so damage at the
base (plants) affects everyone above it.

Q3 What is the importance of preserving various life forms, and how can we contribute to
their conservation?

Importance:
Biodiversity keeps ecosystems healthy and maintains the balance of nature.
Forests are a gene bank, keep oxygen levels up and balance the climate.
Millions of people get food, medicine, fuel and income from forests, rivers and seas.

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Class 9 Social Science Chapter 11 Life on Earth
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Class 9 Social Science Chapter 11 Life on Earth AglaSem · NCERT Solutions

Biomes: world map of biomes (Fig. 2.2)
LET’S MAP

Q1 Look at the world map in Fig. 2.2 and answer the following questions.

Arctic Circle
Arctic Circle

Tropic of
Tropic of Cancer
Cancer

Equator
Equator

Tropic of
Tropic of Capricorn
Capricorn

Antarctic Circle
Antarctic Circle

Tropical Rainforest Biome Grassland Biome Desert Biome
Temperate Deciduous Biome Taiga Biome Tundra Biome
Fig. 2.2, page 22 — World map showing distribution of biomes (map not to scale), redrawn
on an equal-spacing (latitude–longitude) grid; the biome areas are traced from the book’s
map. Land left plain grey has no biome marked, as in the book.

Which type of biome is found in smaller, separate regions, and why?

The tropical rainforest biome. It appears as separate patches: the Amazon Basin, Central
America, the Congo Basin and coast of West Africa, eastern Madagascar, South-East Asia
(Indonesia, Malaysia), New Guinea, a strip in north-east Australia, and small areas in India.
Why: a rainforest needs high temperature and heavy rainfall throughout the year. These
conditions occur only near the Equator, between the Tropics. Even there, the land is broken up
by oceans, and highlands such as the East African plateau and the Andes are cooler or drier.
So the rainforest is found only in scattered lowland patches.

Compare it with other biomes on the map. Tundra and taiga form long, continuous belts
across North America, Europe and Asia, because the cold climate stretches in a band
along the same latitudes. Deserts and grasslands also cover large blocks of land. The
rainforest is the one that is found in separate, smaller pieces.

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Class 9 Social Science Chapter 11 Life on Earth AglaSem · NCERT Solutions

Did you know? The temperate deciduous biome also appears in three separate
regions on the map — eastern North America, western and central Europe, and
eastern China, Korea and Japan — but each of these is a large region.

Check it yourself: On the map, trace the Equator from left to right and note
every patch of dark green it crosses. You will find gaps over the oceans and
over the highlands of East Africa.

Q2 Look at Fig. 2.2 (above). Which continent has the least number of biomes? What could
be the reason for this?

Leaving out Antarctica (covered by an ice sheet, so no biome is marked on it), Australia has
the least number of biomes: only three — desert and grassland, with a small strip of tropical
rainforest in the north-east. It has no temperate deciduous forest, taiga or tundra.
Reasons:
Australia is the smallest continent and is compact in shape.
Its mainland lies roughly between 10°S and 40°S, and the Tropic of Capricorn passes
through its middle. Most of it is dry, so desert and grassland cover most of it.
It does not reach the cold high latitudes, so there is no taiga or tundra.
It has no very high mountain ranges to create cold mountain climates.

Compare it with Asia, which stretches from the Equator almost to the North Pole and rises
to the Himalaya. Asia has all six biomes shown on the map. A continent that covers many
latitudes and many heights has many climates, and so many biomes.

Why: The number of biomes depends on how many different climates a
continent has. A small continent that lies in one latitude belt and has few high
mountains has fewer climates.

Check it yourself: Africa also shows only three biomes on this map (rainforest,
grassland and desert), but over an area about four times as large as Australia.
So an answer of “Australia, with Africa equal in the number of biomes” is also
correct if you give reasons.

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Class 9 Social Science Chapter 11 Life on Earth AglaSem · NCERT Solutions

Tip: Mention Antarctica in your answer, because a student may also say
“Antarctica”: it has no biome at all on this map, as it is almost entirely covered by
ice.

Q3 Look at Fig. 2.2 (above). Why are there areas that do not have any specific biomes?

Some land areas are left white on the map because:
They are covered by ice: Greenland and Antarctica have almost no plants or animals living
on the land.
They are high mountains and plateaus: the Himalaya and Tibet, the Rockies and the Andes.
Here the climate changes quickly with height, so many kinds of vegetation are packed into a
small area and cannot be shown as one biome.
They belong to biomes not shown in the legend: the map shows only six biomes. Areas
such as the lands around the Mediterranean Sea (chaparral or scrub) are not coloured.
They are transition zones, where one biome slowly changes into another.

A world map is drawn at a very small scale, so it can show only the main biomes. The
biome pyramid on page 28 lists eleven biomes, including chaparral, scrubland and tropical
seasonal forest, which do not appear in the six-colour legend of Fig. 2.2.

Why: A map legend shows only selected categories. Anything that does not fit
those categories, or is too small or too mixed to show, is left blank.

LET’S EXPLORE — Page 24

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Class 9 Social Science Chapter 11 Life on Earth AglaSem · NCERT Solutions

Terrestrial Biomes: Forest Biome
LET’S EXPLORE

Q1 Look at the layers of vegetation in a rainforest. What do the yellow shapes in the figure
indicate?

Emergent
layer

Upper
canopy

Understory/
Lower canopy

Forest
floor

Fig. 2.4, page 24 — Ideal structure of a rainforest biome (redrawn). A yellow shape is drawn
beside each layer.

The yellow shapes show how much sunlight reaches each layer of the rainforest.
Emergent layer (full circle): the tallest trees rise above the rest and get full sunlight.
Upper canopy (three-quarters): most of the light is still available, but the emergent trees
take some.
Understory/lower canopy (half): the thick canopy above blocks much of the light.
Forest floor (quarter): very little sunlight reaches the ground, so it is dark and damp.
Each layer of leaves catches light, so less light reaches every layer below.

The amount of light decides what grows in each layer:

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Class 9 Social Science Chapter 11 Life on Earth AglaSem · NCERT Solutions

Terrestrial Biomes: Grassland Biome
LET’S EXPLORE

Q1 Observe Fig. 2.5 and explore which of these animals you will find in the grasslands of
India.

Photograph: a grassland with dry golden grass, a few trees in the distance and a
waterhole in front. The animals shown are an elephant, two lions, a giraffe, a zebra
and a few antelopes (deer-like animals).
Fig. 2.5, page 24 — Typical grassland landscape (described)

ANIMAL IN FOUND IN INDIA’S WHERE
FIG. 2.5 GRASSLANDS?

Elephant Yes (the Asian elephant) Grasslands of Kaziranga (Assam) and the Terai

Lion Yes (the Asiatic lion) Only in and around the Gir forest, Gujarat

Antelopes and Yes Blackbuck, chinkara and nilgai in the grasslands of
deer Gujarat, Rajasthan and the Deccan; swamp deer
(barasingha) in Kanha’s meadows

Giraffe No Found wild only in Africa

Zebra No Found wild only in Africa

So the elephant, lion and antelopes can be seen in India’s grasslands; the giraffe and zebra
cannot.

Fig. 2.5 shows an African savanna, a tropical grassland with scattered trees. The chapter
says savannas are “home to large animals such as lions, elephants, and giraffes” (page
25).
India has its own grasslands: the Banni grassland of Kutch (Gujarat), the Terai grasslands
at the foot of the Himalaya, the grasslands of Kaziranga, and the shola grasslands on the
high hills of the Western Ghats. The great Indian bustard, a large bird, also lives in India’s
dry grasslands.

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Class 9 Social Science Chapter 11 Life on Earth AglaSem · NCERT Solutions

Your own answer: You may visit a nearby zoo, national park or open grassland
and note which animals you see there.

LET’S EXPLORE — Page 26
Terrestrial Biomes: Desert Biome
LET’S EXPLORE

Q1 What types of activities do you think people in desert regions generally undertake to
sustain their households and livelihood?

People in deserts choose activities that need little water:
Animal rearing: camels, goats and sheep give milk, wool, meat, hides and transport. Camels
can go without water for many days.
Dry farming in the rainy season: crops like bajra, jowar and pulses that need little water.
Handicrafts: embroidery, mirror work, tie-and-dye, leather work and pottery.
Tourism: camel safaris, desert festivals, forts and havelis.
Salt-making in the Rann of Kutch during the dry season.
Mining and work in oil fields, since many deserts have minerals and oil.
Fetching and storing water, often done by women, as Fig. 2.6 shows.

Fig. 2.6 (Life in the Thar Desert) shows women carrying water pots on their heads and a
man leading camels, two everyday activities in the Thar.

Why: In a desert, water is the scarcest resource. People take up activities that
need little water, such as herding, which also lets them move with their animals
to wherever grass and water are available.

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Class 9 Social Science Chapter 11 Life on Earth AglaSem · NCERT Solutions

Q2 With the help of your teacher, explore how do people address issues related to the
availability of water.

Desert people have developed many ways to collect, store and save every drop of rain:
Tanka or kund: an underground covered tank in a house or courtyard that collects rainwater
from the roof or a sloping catchment.
Nadi and johad: village ponds and small earthen dams that store rainwater for people and
animals.
Baoris (step wells) and small wells reach groundwater.
Khadin: an earthen wall that holds rainwater on a field so the soil stays moist for crops.
Canals: the Indira Gandhi Canal brings river water from Punjab to western Rajasthan.
Saving water: drip irrigation, reusing water and growing crops that need little water.

Most of these are traditional methods built and looked after by the community, much like
the tanks described on page 42 of the chapter. Modern piped-water schemes and canals
now add to them, but traditional rainwater harvesting is still important because rain in the
desert is scarce and uncertain.

Your own answer: Ask your teacher or an elder how water is stored in your own
area: in a tank, a well, a pond or a rooftop rainwater system.

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Class 9 Social Science Chapter 11 Life on Earth AglaSem · NCERT Solutions

Q3 Compare the physical features of the Rajasthan camel (Fig. 2.7a) and the Nubra Valley
(Ladakh) camel (Fig. 2.7b).

Photographs of two camels. (a) Rajasthan camel: standing on dry sandy ground; it is
tall, with long thin legs and one hump, and its coat is short and light brown. (b)
Nubra Valley (Ladakh) camel: standing on stony ground; it has two humps, shorter
legs and a stocky body, and is covered in long, thick, shaggy brown fur, especially
on the neck, humps and upper legs.
Fig. 2.7, page 26 — Camels in deserts (described)

FEATURE RAJASTHAN CAMEL (FIG. 2.7A) NUBRA VALLEY CAMEL (FIG. 2.7B)

Humps One hump Two humps

Height and legs Tall, with long, thin legs Shorter, with sturdier legs

Body Slim Stocky and heavy

Coat Short, thin and light brown Long, thick, shaggy and darker brown

Home Hot, sandy desert (Thar) Cold, high-altitude desert (Ladakh)

Both have long necks and broad, padded feet for walking on sand and loose ground.

The one-humped camel is called the dromedary (or Arabian camel). The two-humped
camel is the Bactrian camel. The hump stores fat, not water; the camel uses this fat for
energy when food is scarce.

Tip: When asked to compare, use a table with the same features in each
column. It makes the differences easy to see.

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THINK ABOUT IT — Page 27
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Class 9 Social Science Chapter 11 Life on Earth AglaSem · NCERT Solutions

Terrestrial Biomes: Tundra Biome
THINK ABOUT IT

Q1 Tundra in polar regions has mosses, lichens, shrubs, etc., while the Himalaya, in the
subtropics, is dominated by conifers. What could be the reason for this? What
difference do you find in the animals found in these two regions? Which species are
found only in the Himalaya? Discuss in class.

Two photographs. Left: tundra — low grasses, mosses and shrubs among rocks,
with snowy hills behind and no trees. Right: the Himalaya — a slope covered with
dense, dark-green coniferous trees below snow-covered peaks.
Fig. 2.8, page 27 — Tundra (left) and the Himalaya (right) (described)

(a) Reason: the tundra lies in high latitudes. Winters are long and dark, summers are short and
cool, the ground stays frozen (permafrost) and cold winds blow, so trees cannot grow. The
Himalaya lies in the subtropics (about 27°N–36°N). The Sun is higher and the growing season
longer, and the soil is not permanently frozen. Between about 1,500 m and 3,000 m it is cool
but not too cold, so conifers (pine, deodar, fir, spruce) grow. Only above about 3,600 m do
trees give way to alpine shrubs and grasses.
(b) Animals: the tundra has reindeer, arctic foxes and polar bears. The Himalaya has snow
leopards, yaks, musk deer and red pandas, as well as many birds.
(c) Found only in the Himalaya (and the high mountains next to it), never in the polar tundra:
the Himalayan tahr, the Himalayan monal, the Himalayan snowcock, the red panda and the yak.

The difference comes from latitude versus altitude. In the tundra, cold comes from being
far from the Equator. In the Himalaya, cold comes from height, but the latitude is the same
as that of north India, so sunlight is strong and the summer is long enough for trees.

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Class 9 Social Science Chapter 11 Life on Earth AglaSem · NCERT Solutions

FEATURE POLAR TUNDRA HIMALAYA (MIDDLE HEIGHTS)

Cause of cold High latitude High altitude

Soil Permafrost Not permanently frozen

Growing Very short Longer
season

Vegetation Mosses, lichens, small Coniferous forests; alpine meadows higher up
shrubs

Animals Reindeer, arctic fox, Snow leopard, yak, musk deer, red panda,
polar bear Himalayan tahr, monal

Did you know? The highest parts of the Himalaya, above the tree line, have
vegetation much like the tundra — mosses, lichens and low shrubs — because
the climate there is as cold as in polar regions. This is sometimes called alpine
tundra.

Fig. 2.12 of the chapter shows two Himalayan animals: the Himalayan snowcock and the
yak.

LET’S EXPLORE — Page 28

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Class 9 Social Science Chapter 11 Life on Earth AglaSem · NCERT Solutions

Aquatic Biomes
LET’S EXPLORE

Q1 Explore your local environment. This could be your village, city, town, or residential
area. Observe how people, plants, and animals build structures and interact. Complete
the table with your findings.

COMPONENT TYPE EXAMPLES OBSERVED INTERACTION WITH HUMANS

Trees/Vegetation/Plants

Insects

Animals

Non-living things

Sample answer (a residential area of a small town):

COMPONENT TYPE EXAMPLES INTERACTION WITH HUMANS
OBSERVED

Trees/Vegetation/Plants Neem, peepal, mango, Give shade, fruit, medicine (neem, tulsi) and
banyan, tulsi, grass and fresh air; some are worshipped; people plant
shrubs in the park and water them but also cut them for roads
and buildings

Insects Honeybees, butterflies, Bees pollinate fruit trees and give honey;
ants, termites, termites damage wooden doors; mosquitoes
mosquitoes spread diseases such as malaria and dengue

Animals Cows, dogs, squirrels, Cows give milk; dogs guard houses; birds nest
sparrows, crows, in buildings and trees; monkeys and pigeons
pigeons, monkeys take food; people feed and care for some
animals

Non-living things Soil, water (tank, taps, People use water and soil for drinking and
drain), air, sunlight, gardening; buildings and roads replace trees;
rocks, buildings, roads drains carry waste water

Structures: people build houses; birds build nests; ants make anthills; termites build mounds;
spiders spin webs; bees make hives.

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Class 9 Social Science Chapter 11 Life on Earth AglaSem · NCERT Solutions

What the table shows: in even a small area, people, plants, animals and non-living things
are linked. Plants make food using sunlight, water and soil; insects and birds depend on
plants; people depend on all of them. People also change the area most — by building,
paving, cutting trees and producing waste.

Your own answer: Walk around your own area for 20–30 minutes with a
notebook. Fill each row with what you actually see — for example, a coastal
village may list coconut palms, crabs, fishing boats and sea water; a hill town
may list pine trees, yaks or mules and stone terraces.

Why: The activity helps you see that an ecosystem is a “neighbourhood” where
living and non-living things interact closely, as the chapter says on page 21.

LET’S MAP — Page 29

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Biome Pyramid
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Fig. 2.10, page 28 — Biome pyramid (redrawn). Rows: polar region, subpolar, temperate,
tropical. Bottom arrow: wet → dry. Right side: hot → cold.

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REGION LEVEL AND BIOME REASON

Andaman & Nicobar Tropical, wet end — 7 Hot and very wet all year; dense
Islands (A) Rainforest evergreen forests

Keralam (K) Tropical, wet end — 7 Heavy monsoon rain; evergreen forests
Rainforest of the Western Ghats

Meghalaya (M) Tropical, wet end — 7 One of the rainiest places in the world
Rainforest

Lakshadweep (L) Tropical, wet side — between 7 Hot and humid coral islands with
and 8 coconut palms and scrub

Chhattisgarh (C) Tropical, middle — 9 Tropical Monsoon rain with a long dry season;
Seasonal Forest sal forests

Odisha (O) Tropical, middle — 9 Tropical Deciduous forests of the plateau, as in
Seasonal Forest Chhattisgarh

Ladakh (Lh) Temperate, dry end — 6 Cold desert, like the Gobi: very cold and
Desert dry

Sample home: Delhi (H) — bottom (tropical) row, dry side, between 10 Savanna and 11 Desert.
It has very hot summers, low rainfall, thorny scrub and dry grasses.

COLD

POLAR REGION
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Class 9 Social Science Chapter 11 Life on Earth AglaSem · NCERT Solutions

Sample answer: A = Andaman & Nicobar Islands, K = Keralam, M = Meghalaya, L =
Lakshadweep, C = Chhattisgarh, O = Odisha, Lh = Ladakh, H = home (sample: Delhi). The
dashed arrow is the answer to Q2.

How to decide the level: first ask how cold the place is (this gives the row), then ask how
wet it is (this gives the position from left to right).
All the regions except Ladakh are warm, so they go in the tropical row. India lies mainly
between about 8°N and 37°N.
Ladakh lies at about 32°N–36°N, in the temperate belt, and gets very little rain, so it
goes at the dry end of the temperate row (6, desert). The chapter treats it as a cold
desert: the Nubra Valley camel appears under the Desert Biome, which can be “cold,
like the Gobi” (page 25). Its great height makes it colder still, so its highest parts could
be placed further up, towards 1 (tundra).
Meghalaya’s higher plateau is cooler and has pine forests, so parts of it could be placed
one level up, among temperate forests.

Your own answer: Place your own home by the same two steps. A home in the
Thar goes near 11 (desert); one in the Western Ghats or the North-East near 7;
one on the Deccan plateau near 9 or 10; one in the hills of Himachal Pradesh or
Uttarakhand in the temperate row (3, deciduous forest) or the subpolar row (2,
coniferous forest).

Q2 Look at Fig. 2.10 (above). There is no arrow on the third side of the triangle. What
would happen if we drew an arrow? Would it point upwards or downwards?

The third (left) side runs from the tropical row at the base up to the polar region at the top, so
an arrow drawn there would show latitude (and, on mountains, altitude). It would point
upwards, in the same way as the other two arrows run from hot to cold and from wet to dry.
Moving up this arrow, places become colder and, as the chapter says, the number of
organisms, biomass and available energy decrease (pages 28–29). The number of biomes also
falls, from five in the tropical row to one (tundra) at the top. So the arrow would show that life
becomes poorer as we go from the tropics towards the poles, or up a high mountain.

Each side of the pyramid shows one change. The base shows moisture (wet → dry), the
right side shows temperature (hot → cold) and the left side carries the latitude labels
(tropical → subpolar → polar). Both drawn arrows point from more to less: from more water

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to less, from more heat to less. An arrow on the left side would also point from more to
less: from the warm tropics, the “world’s richest storehouse of biodiversity” (pages 23–
24), up to the cold, bare polar region.

Another way to see it: If you use the arrow to show the increase in biodiversity
and biomass instead, it would point downwards, towards the hot, wet tropics.
This can also be accepted if you say clearly what your arrow stands for. The
upward arrow fits the book’s labels and its other two arrows best.

LET’S MAP — Page 31

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Maintaining Ecological Balance and Biodiversity
LET’S MAP

Q1 Mark and name the following regions on the map in Fig. 2.13. Also gather more
information about these biodiversity regions from your teacher or other sources and
discuss their features with your peers.
1. Namdapha National Park
2. Rann of Kutch
3. Gahirmatha beach
4. Gulf of Mannar
5. Pachmarhi
6. Achanakmar–Amarkantak

N

30°N

20°N

Bay of Bengal
Arabian Sea

10°N

Indian Ocean
70°E 80°E 90°E

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Fig. 2.13, page 31 — Political map of India (outline, redrawn)
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NO. REGION STATE KEY FEATURE

1 Namdapha Arunachal Pradesh Eastern Himalayan forests, from tropical
National Park rainforest to snowy peaks

2 Rann of Kutch Gujarat Salt desert and seasonal wetland; Indian
wild ass, flamingos

3 Gahirmatha beach Odisha Mass nesting site of olive ridley sea
turtles

4 Gulf of Mannar Tamil Nadu (sea between Coral reefs, sea grass and the dugong
India and Sri Lanka) (sea cow)

5 Pachmarhi Madhya Pradesh Satpura hills; biosphere reserve with sal
and teak forests

6 Achanakmar– Chhattisgarh and Madhya Biosphere reserve in the Maikal hills;
Amarkantak Pradesh source of the Narmada and Son rivers

More about each region
Namdapha National Park (Changlang district) lies in the Eastern Himalaya, a
biodiversity hotspot. Its height ranges from low river valleys to high snowy peaks, so it
has many forest types. It is known for having four big cats (tiger, leopard, clouded
leopard and snow leopard) and the hoolock gibbon, India’s only ape.
Rann of Kutch: the chapter calls it “one of the world’s largest salt deserts”, a marshy
wetland in the monsoon and a white salt desert in the dry season (page 25). The Little
Rann has a sanctuary for the Indian wild ass; flamingos breed in the Great Rann.
Gahirmatha (Kendrapara district) is a marine sanctuary. Lakhs of olive ridley turtles
come ashore together to lay eggs, an event called an arribada. It lies close to the
Bhitarkanika mangroves.
Gulf of Mannar is a marine national park and biosphere reserve made up of small
islands with coral reefs. It is part of UNESCO’s World Network of Biosphere Reserves.
Pachmarhi, the highest part of the Satpura range, is the centre of the Pachmarhi
Biosphere Reserve. This includes Satpura National Park and is also part of UNESCO’s
World Network of Biosphere Reserves.
Achanakmar–Amarkantak Biosphere Reserve covers forests of the Maikal hills across
Chhattisgarh and Madhya Pradesh. Amarkantak is the source of the Narmada and Son
rivers.

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Tip: When marking a map, use a dot or symbol for the exact place, write the
name neatly beside it, and add a key if you use numbers. Gulf of Mannar is a
sea area, so mark it in the sea between India and Sri Lanka, not on land.

LET’S EXPLORE — Pages 32–33
Forest Ecotourism: Thenmala Ecotourism in Keralam
LET’S EXPLORE

Q1 Thenmala, located in the Kollam district of Keralam, is India’s first planned ecotourism
destination, developed jointly by the Tourism Department, the Forest Department, and
the Irrigation Department of Keralam. The name Thenmala means ‘Honey Hill’ … The
project was launched to promote sustainable tourism while conserving forests and
supporting local communities, by employing the inhabitants as guides, eco-guards,
and service providers … (Fig. 2.14).
Is there any such ecotourism site in your State/UT? Collect some information and
discuss with your friends.

Sample answer — Meghalaya: the living root bridges near Sohra.
What: bridges grown over many years by Khasi villagers, who guide the roots of rubber fig
trees across streams. Villages such as Nongriat (with a famous double-decker bridge) and
Mawlynnong, known for its cleanliness, receive many visitors.
Ecotourism features: visitors trek through forest; villagers work as guides and run
homestays and small shops; entry fees help the village; plastic and littering are discouraged.
Benefit: tourism gives income to local people while the forest and traditional knowledge are
protected, just like Thenmala.

Points to collect for any ecotourism site: name and location; what is special (forest, wildlife,
waterfall, bridge); who manages it (forest department, community, both); how local people
benefit; rules for visitors; and any problems such as crowding or waste.

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Your own answer: Choose a site in your own State/UT. Examples: Thenmala or
Periyar (Keralam); Kanha or Pachmarhi (Madhya Pradesh); the Sundarbans
(West Bengal); Khangchendzonga National Park (Sikkim); Jim Corbett National
Park (Uttarakhand). The chapter also mentions the Swadesh Darshan 2.0
Scheme of the Ministry of Tourism, which aims to develop sustainable tourism
destinations with local community involvement.

Q2 What should be a tourist’s behaviour while visiting any tourist site? What should one
be mindful of?

Photograph: visitors walking on a raised wooden and steel walkway through the tree
canopy of a dense forest.
Fig. 2.14, page 33 — Exploring forest canopy in Thenmala (described)

A responsible tourist should:
Leave no waste: carry back plastic, bottles and wrappers.
Stay on marked paths and follow the rules of the site and the guides.
Not disturb wildlife: no feeding, chasing, shouting or loud music; keep a safe distance.
Not pluck plants, carve on trees or rocks, or take away anything natural.
Never light fires or throw away matches in a forest.
Save water and electricity.
Respect local people: their customs, sacred places and privacy; ask before taking photos.
Support the local economy: hire local guides and buy local products.

The chapter defines ecotourism as “travelling to nature-friendly places without harming
the environment, and supporting local people” (page 32). Every rule above follows from
one of these two parts: do no harm to nature, and share the benefit with the community.

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Why: Tourist sites, especially forests, are fragile. If thousands of visitors each
do a little damage, the total harm is large; if each behaves responsibly, tourism
can pay for conservation.

Map activity (Fig. 2.16) — Page 34
Forests and Livelihoods: forest produce of Indian states
ACTIVITY

Q1 Fig. 2.16 is a map of India showing forest produce from different Indian states (map not
to scale). It lists:

FOREST PRODUCE STATES SHOWN

Timber and bamboo Assam, Tripura, Keralam

Tendu leaves, mahua flowers, sal seeds, gums Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh

Herbs like ashwagandha, neem, and tulsi Himalayan region, Western Ghats

Wild fruits, honey, mushrooms, and roots Jharkhand, Odisha

Ecotourism Uttarakhand, Assam, Keralam

Handicrafts and cottage industries Rajasthan, Keralam

You may add some examples of forest produces from your own state/UT in the map
above.

Sample answer — Maharashtra:

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co m
m.
FOREST PRODUCE WHERE IN THE STATE

m as e
Bamboo
.co ag l
Gadchiroli and Chandrapur (Vidarbha); Mendha Lekha village

a s em harvests bamboo

gl leaves (for bidi) and mahua
aTendu Forests of Gadchiroli, Gondia and Chandrapur
flowers

co m
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Kokum, karvanda and jamun (wild Konkan and the Western Ghats
fruits)
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Hirda (a medicinal fruit) and other
a Forests of the Sahyadri (Western Ghats)
herbs
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Honey Forests of the Western Ghats, such as around Mahabaleshwar
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agthe
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seand the forest type. Bamboo and timber come from
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agsal from the dry deciduous forests of central India; herbs
Notice the link between the produce
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from the Himalaya and the Western Ghats.
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Your own answer: Ask at a weekly market (haat) or the forest
. co what forest products are sold. In the hills it mayabeglwalnuts, apricots or
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g las medicinal herbs; in the North-East, bamboo shoots and wild honey; in coastal
a states, cashew or coconut-based crafts.
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LET’S EXPLORE — Page 36
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Forest Dwellers
LET’S EXPLORE

Q1 Try to identify and classify the items for sale in the images given in Fig. 2.18.

Four photographs of a market. Top left: a woman carrying a very large, round
woven basket on her head; many more big baskets stand stacked behind her. Top
right: two women sitting beside woven baskets filled with small, round, yellow-
orange fruits. Bottom left: women sitting on the ground selling small heaps of brown
roots or tubers spread on sheets. Bottom right: two hands, one holding knobbly
ginger-like roots (rhizomes) and the other holding small dried fish.
Fig. 2.18, page 36 — Traditional tribal livelihoods (described)

ITEM IN THE PICTURE WHAT IT IS CLASS

Large woven baskets Made from bamboo or cane Handicraft (forest-based cottage
industry)

Small yellow-orange fruits in Wild forest fruits Food — non-timber forest produce
baskets

Roots and tubers on the Wild roots and tubers Food — non-timber forest produce
ground

Ginger-like roots (rhizomes) Ginger or turmeric-type Spice / medicinal produce
roots

Small dried fish Fish from streams, rivers or Food — from fresh water
lakes

So the items fall into three groups: food, medicinal or spice plants, and handicrafts. All of
them come from forests or nearby waters, and are collected or made by tribal families to earn
an income.

These are examples of the non-timber forest products (NTFPs) described on pages 33
and 35: honey, fruits, nuts, resins, medicinal plants, tendu leaves, mahua flowers, lac and
bamboo. Selling them at weekly markets (haats) is an important source of cash for forest
dwellers.

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Check it yourself: A product can belong to more than one class. Turmeric, for
example, is both a spice (food) and a medicine. Write it under the class that
matches how it is mostly used.

Q2 Also, make a list of the food and medicinal varieties available in your local market.

Sample list (a weekly market in central India):

FOOD VARIETIES MEDICINAL VARIETIES

Mahua flowers (dried) Amla (Indian gooseberry)

Jamun, ber and wild mango Harad and baheda (dried fruits used in triphala)

Chironji seeds Giloy stems

Honey Ashwagandha roots

Tamarind Neem leaves and twigs

Mushrooms (in the rainy season) Tulsi leaves

Bamboo shoots, wild leafy greens Turmeric and ginger

Many of these come from nearby forests and are sold by local or tribal sellers.

Your own answer: Visit your local market or a herbal shop, or ask a vegetable
seller, and list what you actually find. Note for each item whether it is grown on
farms or collected from forests, and when in the year it is available. Fruits like
jamun and mushrooms are seasonal.

Why: Making this list shows how much of our daily food and traditional
medicine still comes from forests, which is the point the chapter makes about
forests and livelihoods.

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LET’S EXPLORE — Page 38
Geographical Indication (GI): GI-tagged forest products in India
LET’S EXPLORE

Q1 The GI-tagged forest products shown in Fig. 2.19 (page 37) are:

NO. GI-TAGGED STATE LINK WITH THE FOREST (FROM
FOREST THE BOOK)
PRODUCT

1 Ramban Sulai Honey Jammu and Nutritious; strong antioxidant and
Kashmir immuno-modulatory potential; distinct
flavour, aroma and taste

2 Tezpur Litchi Assam Grown in forest-influenced soil and
climate; bright colour, high pulp

3 Channapatna Toys Karnataka Made from Wrightia tinctoria, a forest
tree (‘Aale mara’)

4 Kandhamal Haldi Odisha Turmeric grown by tribal communities in
forest regions; high curcumin

5 Erode Manjal (Erode Tamil Nadu Grown in forest-influenced soils;
Turmeric) cooking and ayurvedic medicine

6 Nilgiri Tea Tamil Nadu, Plantation-based, but quality depends
Keralam, on Western Ghats forest conditions
Karnataka

7 Tripura Queen Tripura Forest-dependent cultivation; sweetness
Pineapple and aroma

8 Khasi Mandarin Meghalaya Citrus fruit from the forest-rich hills

Can you explain how GI tagging of the forest products mentioned above connects
geography, cultural traditions, local governance, and rural economy?

Geography: a GI tag exists because the product’s quality comes from its place, from its soil,
climate and forest. Kandhamal Haldi gets its high curcumin from forest regions of Odisha;
Nilgiri Tea depends on Western Ghats conditions.

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Cultural traditions: many GI products rest on traditional knowledge passed down
generations. Channapatna toys are made from a forest tree; Kandhamal Haldi is grown by
tribal communities.
Local governance: producers’ groups, cooperatives and community bodies register the tag,
keep up quality standards and stop others from misusing the name. Communities such as
Gram Sabhas also manage the forests these products depend on.
Rural economy: the tag gives exclusive market recognition, so genuine products earn
better prices. This raises rural incomes and creates jobs.
So GI tagging links a place, its people, their institutions and their income.

The chapter defines a GI tag on page 36 as “a type of intellectual property right that
identifies a product as originating from a specific place, where a given quality, reputation,
or other characteristics of the product are essentially linked to its geographic origin.” It
adds that GI tagging helps “protect region-specific products, promote cultural heritage,
and generate economic benefits for local communities.”
The link also works in reverse. If the forest is destroyed, the soil and climate that give the
product its quality are lost too. So a GI tag gives communities a reason to protect their
forests.

Did you know? In India, GI tags are registered under the Geographical
Indications of Goods (Registration and Protection) Act, 1999. Darjeeling Tea was
the first product in India to receive a GI tag.

Q2 Can you name some GI-tagged forest products from your state or union territory?

Sample answer — forest-linked GI products from some states:

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co m
m.
STATE GI-TAGGED PRODUCT FOREST LINK

mKandhamal Haldi; Similipal Kai as e
Odisha
.co Chutney ag l
Turmeric from forest regions; chutney made from

a s em red weaver ants collected in the Similipal forests

gl
aKarnataka Channapatna Toys; Mysore Wood of a forest tree; sandalwood oil; oranges
Sandal Soap; Coorg Orange from the forested hills of Kodagu

. comGrown by tribal farmers in the forested Eastern ag
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Araku Valley Arabica Coffee
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Nagaland
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Naga Mircha (Naga king chilli) Grown in the hills of Nagaland

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m
Ginger
l ase
m .co ag
la seChhattisgarh Bastar Dhokra Metal craft of tribal artisans of the forested

ag
Bastar region

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Name the products listed for your own state/UT.
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ag
Your own answer: The chapter suggests the School Bhuvan–NCERTm
o
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for exploring GI-tagged products state by state. Choose products m
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a s emrather than all GI products (some, such as sarees, are not
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Why: The question is about forest products, so for each product say in one
se m
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phrase how it is linked to the forest.
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LET’S EXPLORE — Page 39
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Challenges Faced by People Living in Forests: Pradhan Mantri Ujjwala Yojana
LET’S EXPLORE

Q1 You may have heard about the Pradhan Mantri Ujjwala Yojana (PMUY). How are the
benefits of this scheme impacting the health of women?

The Pradhan Mantri Ujjwala Yojana (launched in 2016) gives LPG cooking-gas connections, in
the name of women, to poor households. Its effects on women’s health:
Cleaner air at home: cooking on firewood, cow-dung cakes or coal fills the kitchen with
smoke. LPG burns cleanly, so women breathe less smoke.
Fewer illnesses: less coughing, breathing problems, lung disease and eye irritation.
Less hard work: women and girls spend less time and effort collecting and carrying heavy
loads of firewood.
Safety: fewer burns from open fires, and less danger while going into forests for fuelwood.
Time saved for rest, children, education or earning.

The chapter notes on page 38 that “women are exposed to fuelwood fumes and face
many health issues.” The scheme addresses this directly. It also helps forests: when fewer
families cut firewood, there is less pressure on forests.

Check it yourself: The benefit is greatest when families keep using LPG and
refill their cylinders. Where refills are too costly, some families go back to
firewood, so affordable refills matter as much as the connection itself.

THINK ABOUT IT — Page 39

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Challenges Faced by People Living in Forests: human–wildlife conflict
THINK ABOUT IT

Q1 Which wild animals (like monkeys or deer) have you seen in your residential area?

Photograph (aerial view): a wide road cutting through a dense conifer forest, with a
broad bridge covered in soil and plants built across the road, joining the forest on
both sides.
Fig. 2.21, page 39 — Forest bridge to avoid roadkill (described)

Sample answer: In my residential area I have seen:
Monkeys (rhesus macaques and langurs) on rooftops and trees;
Peafowl in gardens and fields;
Nilgai (blue bull) and wild boar in farms at the edge of the town;
Jackals at night near open land;
Snakes such as rat snakes and cobras in the rainy season.
Spotted deer are often seen in towns near forests; elephants and leopards sometimes enter
villages near reserves.

Your own answer: Write only the animals you have actually seen. Note where
(rooftop, garden, farm, road), at what time (day or night) and in which season.
City students may also list squirrels, kites, bats and mongooses.

Q2 Identify the causes behind these animals’ presence in human settlements.

Loss of habitat: forests are cut for farms, roads, houses and mines, so animals lose their
homes.
Broken corridors: roads and railways cut through forests and block animal routes, pushing
animals into villages.

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Easy food: crops, fruit trees, garbage and food thrown by people attract monkeys, boars,
deer and elephants.
Feeding by people: animals that are fed lose their fear and keep coming back.
Shortage of water and food in the forest, especially in summer or drought.
Towns spreading into forest edges, so people and animals now share the same land.

The chapter notes that crops are often damaged by elephants, monkeys or wild boars and
that people sometimes face direct attacks, causing economic loss, fear and insecurity
(page 38).
Fig. 2.21 shows one solution: a forest bridge (wildlife overpass) built over a highway.
Animals can cross safely without coming onto the road, which reduces roadkill and keeps
the forest connected. This is the idea of wildlife corridors mentioned on page 30.

Why: When animals lose food, water and safe paths in their own habitat, they
move to where these are available, which is often a human settlement.

LET’S EXPLORE — Page 42
Ecological Commons: Case Study of Water Tanks Built by the Gond Kings
LET’S EXPLORE

Q1 Below is Fig. 2.24 from the School Bhuvan–NCERT Geoportal. Observe the image
carefully and see if you can identify some of the tanks and mark the agricultural fields
irrigated by them.

Satellite image (seen from above): a grey-brown patchwork of small fields with
many small dark-green or almost black patches scattered across it. Near the centre
is a large, roughly round area with a curved, light-brown band along its left side.
One road runs diagonally from the left edge towards the bottom; another curves
down the right side; a built-up village area appears at the top right.
Fig. 2.24, page 42 — Water tanks in Bhandara district, Maharashtra (described)

How to identify the tanks:

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Water absorbs most light, so tanks look dark — black, dark blue or dark green — with a
smooth texture and clear edges. The many small dark patches scattered over the image are
small tanks.
A tank has an earthen embankment (bund) on its lower side to hold the water. The large
round area in the centre, edged by a curved light-brown band, looks like a big tank whose
bed is partly dry, with its bund or silt showing as the light band.
Fields irrigated by them: the greener fields lying just next to and below each tank, on the
downhill side of the bund, receive its water through small channels. Mark them by shading the
green fields around each dark patch and drawing an arrow from the tank to them. Fields that
look bare and grey-brown, far from any tank, are not irrigated.

Water flows downhill, so a tank always irrigates the land below its embankment. When
marking, draw an outline around each tank and an arrow from the bund to the fields it
feeds.
Bhandara district lies in the Vidarbha region of eastern Maharashtra, a land of seasonal
monsoon rainfall in central India, where Gond rulers once held power. Like the katas
funded by the Gond kings (page 42), its many old tanks have long been used as common
resources by villages, showing how a community can manage water together.

Did you know? According to the chapter, India has more than 15 lakh functional
tanks today. Between 800 and 1200 CE, the Chandella and Bundela kings alone
built around 8,000 tanks in Bundelkhand.

Questions and Activities — Page 43
End-of-chapter exercises
QUESTIONS AND ACTIVITIES

Q1 Why does India have diverse biomes? How does the local geography connect to the
diversity?

India has diverse biomes because it has a great variety of climates and landforms within one
country.
Latitude: India stretches from about 8°N to 37°N, and the Tropic of Cancer passes through
its middle, so it has both tropical and subtropical climates.

Page 38 of 50

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Class 9 Social Science Chapter 11 Life on Earth
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Q2 Make a list of economically valuable native plants in your region and comment on their
abundance.

Sample answer (central India — Madhya Pradesh and Chhattisgarh):

NATIVE ECONOMIC VALUE ABUNDANCE (SAMPLE
PLANT OBSERVATION)

Sal Timber; sal seeds for oil; leaves for Common in forests, but large old trees
plates are fewer

Teak Valuable timber for furniture and Common, much of it in plantations
buildings

Tendu Leaves used to make bidis; seasonal Abundant
income for forest dwellers

Mahua Flowers for food and oil; seeds for oil Common near villages, but few young
trees seen

Bamboo Baskets, mats, building, paper Common, but reduced where over-cut

Amla, harad, Medicinal fruits Moderately common
baheda

Chironji Costly dry fruit (seeds) Declining, as fruits are often picked
before seeds can grow

Comment: many of these plants are still common, but several are declining because of over-
harvesting, forest fires, grazing and clearing of forests. They need sustainable collection and
replanting.

To find the abundance in your own area, you can (1) ask farmers, forest guards or elders
whether a plant is more or less common than before, (2) count the trees of each kind along
a road or in a patch of forest, and (3) check whether young plants are growing. A species
with many old trees but no young ones is in danger even if it looks common.

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Your own answer: Replace the table with plants of your own region. In Keralam
you might list coconut, jackfruit, pepper, cardamom and rosewood; in the
Himalaya, deodar, oak, rhododendron and medicinal herbs; in Rajasthan, khejri,
ber, babool and rohida.

Q3 Prepare a map of your state or Union Territory showing national parks and sanctuaries.

N

RAJASTHAN U T TA R P R A D E S H

Kuno NP
Kuno NP
Madhav NP
Madhav NP
Panna NP
Panna NP
MADHYA PRADESH
Bandhavgarh NP
Bandhavgarh NP
G U J A R AT
Van Vihar
Van Vihar NP
NP (Bhopal)
(Bhopal)
Ratapani WLS
Ratapani WLS
Satpura NP
Satpura NP
Pachmarhi WLS
Pachmarhi WLS Kanha NP
Kanha NP
Pench NP
Pench NP C H H AT T I S G A R H
National park (NP)
Wildlife sanctuary (WLS) MAHARASHTRA

Sample answer: Madhya Pradesh — selected national parks (NP) and wildlife sanctuaries (WLS).
Positions are approximate; state boundaries as on the official map of India.

Sample map: Madhya Pradesh. National parks shown: Kanha, Bandhavgarh, Pench, Satpura,
Panna, Madhav, Kuno and Van Vihar (Bhopal). Wildlife sanctuaries shown: Pachmarhi and
Ratapani.
Steps to make your own map: (1) take an outline map of your state; (2) list its national parks
and sanctuaries from the State Forest Department website or an atlas; (3) mark each with a
symbol (for example, a green dot for a national park and a brown square for a sanctuary); (4)
write the names; (5) add a title, a key and a north arrow.

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Notice what the sample map shows: the largest parks — Kanha, Pench, Satpura and
Bandhavgarh — lie in the hilly, forested Satpura and Maikal ranges of the south and east,
where forests have survived best. This is the chapter’s point that “protected areas … are
chosen based on geography to preserve critical habitats” (page 30).
A national park has stricter protection than a wildlife sanctuary: no grazing or private
rights are allowed inside a national park, while some limited activities may be allowed in a
sanctuary.

Your own answer: Draw the map for your own State/UT. If your State/UT is
small (for example, Delhi, Goa or Chandigarh), there may be only one or two
sanctuaries; show them carefully and add any wetlands, biodiversity parks or
ridge forests.

Q4 Study the impact of forest fires on people dependent on forests. Try to include the
causes, losses, and preventive measures.

Causes:
Human-induced (most common): burning land for farming; burning the forest floor to
collect mahua flowers or to grow fresh grass for cattle; careless campfires, cigarettes and
matches.
Natural: lightning, high temperatures and dry leaf litter, made worse by climate change.
Losses to forest-dependent people:
Homes, crops, stored grain and cattle may burn.
Loss of income from honey, tendu leaves, fruits, bamboo and medicinal plants.
Shortage of firewood, fodder and water; smoke causes breathing and eye problems.
Wildlife and soil are damaged, so the forest gives less for years afterwards.
Preventive measures: clearing fire lines (gaps in the forest), removing dry leaf litter, watch
towers and satellite fire alerts, awareness drives, community fire watchers, safe methods of
collecting forest produce, and quick reporting of fires.

The chapter says that “forest fires can quickly spread through dense vegetation,
destroying homes and resources. Human care and preventive measures can help prevent
many forest fires” (page 38). About 36 per cent of India’s forest cover is prone to fires, and

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nearly 4 per cent is extremely prone (pages 38–39).
How to do the study: choose one area (for example, the chir pine forests of Uttarakhand,
where dry pine needles catch fire easily, or the sal forests of central India). Collect
newspaper reports and data from the School Bhuvan–NCERT Geoportal; talk to forest
guards or villagers if possible; then write your findings under the three headings above.

Tip: Organise a project like this under clear headings — Causes, Losses,
Preventive measures — and end with a short conclusion. That is exactly what
the question asks for.

Q5 Why are forests often called the ‘lungs of the Earth’?

Forests are called the ‘lungs of the Earth’ because, like lungs, they exchange gases with the
air and keep it fit for life.
Through photosynthesis, trees take in carbon dioxide and release oxygen, helping to
maintain oxygen levels.
They store huge amounts of carbon in wood, leaves and soil, so they act as a carbon sink
and help balance the Earth’s climate.
Leaves trap dust and smoke, so they clean the air.
Through transpiration they release water vapour, which cools the air and helps form rain.

The chapter says forests “play an important role in maintaining oxygen levels and
balancing the Earth’s climate” (page 23).
The comparison is not exact. Our lungs take in oxygen and give out carbon dioxide; forests
in daylight do the reverse. But in both cases the organ keeps the gases of the air in
balance, which is why the name fits.

Did you know? Tiny ocean plants called phytoplankton also produce a very
large share of the world’s oxygen, about half by many estimates. The oceans
are sometimes called the Earth’s “other lungs”.

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Taking only what is needed: collecting fallen or dead wood instead of cutting live trees;
lopping branches instead of felling whole trees; leaving some fruit and honey for animals
and new growth.
Seasonal rules: no collection during flowering or breeding seasons; rituals before collecting
forest produce, as the Gonds and Bhils do.
Community guarding: villagers take turns to patrol the forest. In Odisha this is called
thengapalli (passing a stick from house to house); in Uttarakhand, Van Panchayats manage
village forests.
Rotational grazing, so that grass can grow back.

The chapter mentions several of these: rituals before collecting resources by the Gonds
and Bhils (page 33), sacred groves (page 33), the Bishnoi Movement led by Amrita Devi
and the Chipko Movement (Fig. 2.17), and Mendha Lekha’s community forest management
(page 40).
What these methods have in common: they were enforced by the community itself
through belief, custom and social pressure, not by outside law. Today, laws such as the
Forest Rights Act and programmes like Joint Forest Management try to combine this
traditional knowledge with legal rights.

Your own answer: Record what the elder in your family actually tells you, with
the name of the place and the practice. Ask questions such as: Were there trees
no one could cut? Were there rules about when to collect firewood or fruit? Who
guarded the forest?

Q8 How do forest dwellers contribute to the protection and conservation of forests?

Knowledge holders: they know which herbs, plants and forest resources are useful and
how to use them sustainably. This knowledge, passed down generations, helps biodiversity
conservation.
Forest protection movements: they have led movements such as the Bishnoi Movement in
Rajasthan, led by Amrita Devi, and the Chipko Movement in Uttarakhand, where village
women hugged trees to prevent deforestation.
Community forest management: in Mendha Lekha (Gadchiroli, Maharashtra), the Gond
villagers protect 1,800 hectares of forest through their Gram Sabha by regulating tree
cutting, preventing forest fires and harvesting bamboo sustainably.

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Cultural guardianship: rituals, festivals, sacred groves and beliefs make them guardians of
ecological and cultural traditions.
Joint Forest Management: they help forest departments protect forests in return for a share
of forest produce.
Eco-restoration: they replant and restore damaged forests.

Fig. 2.17 (page 35) sums up five links between forest dwellers and forests: livelihood and
income, knowledge holders, forest protection, household needs and cultural and social
role. The chapter notes that women in particular play a vital role in collecting and managing
forest resources and sustaining traditional knowledge.
Mendha Lekha follows the principle Mawa Nate Mawa Raj (our village, our rule) and
became the first village in India to gain rights over its forest resources under the Forest
Rights Act, 2006 (page 40).

Why: People whose lives depend on a forest have the strongest reason to keep
it healthy for the future. When they have rights over it, they also have the power
to protect it.

Q9 What is a forest fire? Prepare a plan for prevention and mitigation of forest fires.

A forest fire is an uncontrolled fire that spreads through a forest, burning trees, shrubs,
grass and dry leaf litter. It may be started by people or by natural causes such as lightning,
and spreads fast in hot, dry and windy weather.
Plan for prevention and mitigation:

STAGE ACTIONS

Before Clear fire lines and remove dry leaf litter before summer; ban fires and burning in the
(prevention) dry season; teach villagers and tourists not to drop matches or cigarettes; train
village fire-watch volunteers; set up watch towers and use satellite fire alerts

During Report the fire at once to the forest office or emergency number 112 (fire: 101); move
(response) people and cattle to safety; beat out small fires with green branches; dig trenches to
stop the spread; firefighters control larger fires

After Help affected families; treat injuries; replant native trees; protect burnt areas from
(recovery) grazing so they can recover; study the cause to prevent it next time

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The chapter stresses that “human care and preventive measures can help prevent many
forest fires” (page 38). Since about 36 per cent of India’s forest cover is fire-prone,
prevention is far cheaper than fighting fires after they start.
Mitigation means reducing the harm when a fire does happen. Fire lines, quick reporting
and trained local volunteers reduce the area burnt, while recovery work helps the forest
and its people get back on their feet.

Tip: A “plan” question is best answered in stages — before, during and after —
so that nothing is missed. A table makes it easy to read.

Chapter at a glance
Biomes are large natural regions where certain plants and animals live under similar
climatic conditions; an ecosystem is a neighbourhood within a biome. Biomes depend on
temperature, precipitation, dominant plants and vegetation forms.
Terrestrial biomes: tropical rainforests (hot and wet all year, 23.5°N–23.5°S; a ‘gene bank’),
grasslands (moderate rain; prairies, steppes, savannas), deserts (driest; hot Sahara, cold
Gobi, salt desert of the Rann of Kutch) and tundra (coldest; permafrost, mosses and
lichens).
Aquatic biomes cover about three-fourths of the Earth’s surface: freshwater (rivers, lakes,
ponds, wetlands) and marine (oceans, seas, coral reefs).
The biome pyramid has producers at the base and herbivores, carnivores and top
predators above; numbers, biomass and energy decrease upwards because energy is lost
as heat at each level.
Biodiversity is the variety of life — species, genetic differences and habitats. India’s
hotspots are the Himalaya, the Western Ghats, North-East India and the Andaman &
Nicobar Islands; conservation uses protected areas, corridors and ecosystem-based
methods.
Forests provide food, fuel, fodder, medicine, timber and non-timber forest products;
communities protect sacred groves (over 1,00,000 in India); forest products such as
Kandhamal Haldi carry GI tags; ecotourism (Thenmala) shares income with local people.
Forest dwellers face poor services, fuelwood smoke, restrictions, disasters, forest fires
(about 36% of forest cover is fire-prone) and human–wildlife conflict. The Forest Rights
Act, 2006, JFM, PESA, DAJGUA and PM JANMAN support them; Mendha Lekha shows
community forest management.
Ecological commons — forests, rivers, lakes, grazing lands — are shared resources:
Bihar’s commons-based fisheries (Bihar Fish Jalkar Management Act, 2006) and traditional

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tanks (more than 15 lakh functional tanks in India) are examples.

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TERM WHAT IT MEANS WHERE IT WHAT THE CHAPTER
APPEARS IN THE SAYS ABOUT IT
CHAPTER

Ecological Natural resources shared and Pages 41–42 Shrinking with population
commons managed by a community growth, industry and
privatisation

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