CBSE has introduced the Open Text Book Assessment OTBA into the curriculum of the Class 9 syllabus. Now it is an integral part of the whole paper, and it is worth 10 marks. The following are the sample questions which will help you ace the Open Text Book Assessment OTBA Social Studies exam. Please note that these answers and study material is designed to help students but you can only score high marks if you work hard.
A Tale From the Hills - History
1. In what ways can a natural disaster cause damage? Answer: A natural disaster causes massive damage in multiple ways. Apart from causing harm to the environment, it destroys lives and public and private properties. Thus, a disaster hampers a state and its people on economic, social, ecological and psychological grounds.
2. What does it mean to live in a city?Answer: Living in a city means living in high-rise buildings, shopping in malls and eating in food outlets. One is always in the midst of a fast-moving crowd. Cities offer exposure to people from different states, speaking different languages, eating different food and following different traditions. At the same time, living in a city makes one sacrifice the pleasure of living amidst nature.
3. What is your take on the healthcare facilities in rural areas of our country? Answer: In India, healthcare facilities are not up to mark, especially in rural areas. Every year, a large number of people lose their lives due to non-availability of doctors and other medical convinience in villages. Besides, the limited medical help available in these parts of the country either lacks in quality or is not affordable.
Health is wealth. Therefore, healthcare should be a primary concern and our government should properly plan its health policies and schemes. It should work towards providing proper medical care in the villages. Apart from this, it is equally important to educate the rural public about the importance of maintaining good health.
4. Describe in one line the scene at rehabilitation camps after any natural disaster. Answer: After any natural disaster, the rehabilitation camps are full of chaos, panic and fear.
5. Do you think promotion of tourism also holds some disadvantages? Given reasons. Answer: Yes, one of the major disadvantages of promotion of tourism is environmental destruction. To cater to the increasing influx of tourists, unchecked and unplanned development of roads, hotels, shops, restaurants, resorts is carried out. Most of these are built upon forest lands leading to the encroachment of natural boundaries.
6. Why do you think a wedding in a village is a huge affair for the whole village? Answer: Villages are usually small and people living there know each other quite well. Besides, most villagers are warm by nature. They share the joys and sorrows of others as their own. Unlike in cities, vilages have limited means of reacreation and amusement. Hence, all celebrations in villages, such as weddings, become grand and huge affairs.
7. What do you understand by natural calamity. Give examples. Also, mention the major reasons behind such calamities.
Answer: The term 'natural calamity' refers to any major natural disaster, unfortunate occurrence or phenomenon that results mainly from the natural processes occurring on or inside the Earth. Such calamities may also be a result of human activities that lead to environmental degradation. Examples of natural calamities include floods, earthquakes, volcanic eruptions, etc.
Migration - Geography
1. Use the following information to answer the next questions. Identify and explain the migration law that is being depicted in the above picture. (3 marks)
Answer: Zipf’s Inverse Distance Law is being depicted in the given picture. According to the law, as the distance from the home country to the host country increases, the number of migrants fall and vice versa. You may explain how with the increase in the distance from Town A to other towns, the number of migrants decreases.
2. List and explain the obstacles that hinder the free flow of people from one place to another.Answer: Physical boundaries and barriers play important roles in the free flow of people, as it might not be possible for all people to cross physical barriers like mountains and oceans. Several legal formalities are involved in the process of migration like visa requirements, work permit requirements, etc. Every country or city has its own political as well as social aspects. Thus, the adaption to these aspects might add to the cost of migration.
3. Shyam, a native of a village in Lucknow, went to the town for elementary education. After completing elementary education, he shifted to the city to pursue secondary education. Later, he moved to Kanpur to complete his higher education and accepted a job there and settled there. Draw a chart showing the pattern of migration reflected here. On the basis of this chart, identify the type of migration depicted in the given case. Do you think there should be restrictions on these types of movements? Comment with appropriate reasons. (4 marks)
Answer: The type of migration depicted in the given case is step migration. Explain step migration and elaborate on whether there should be restrictions on such movements or not.
4. List any two factors that lead to return migration in India. (2 marks)
Answer: Political factors - Whenever a war breaks out, individuals often come back to their hometowns to be with their families during the unstable situations.
• Economic factors- When an individual gets a better job opportunity in the homeland, he/she decides to come back.
• In addition to this, the individuals are also emotionally attached with their families and therefore, would like to stay with their relatives and friend if they have an opportunity to earn higher income there.
• Moreover, if unemployment increases in the area where the individual has migrated to, he/ she might decide to back to the home town and start its own business.
• Environmental factors - Floods, earthquakes or other natural calamities often force an individual to come back to his/her place of origin.
5. Use the following information to answer the next questions.
‘Brain drain (as depicted in the above picture) poses a serious threat to India’. Give appropriate reasons to justify your answer. (4 marks)
Answer: Yes/No. Build up arguments on the basis of the statement. Arguments against the statement (No, brain drain does not pose a serious threat to India.) Migration leads to an increase in the income of migrants. These migrants often send part of their incomes (in the form of remittances) to their families in India, thus providing foreign exchange to India. Migrants acquire better skills and technical know-how that can be beneficial to India in case the migrants come back and take up jobs here. Arguments in favour of the statement (Yes, brain drain does pose a serious threat to India.) It leads to the loss of skilled labour force from India such as scientists, engineers, doctors, etc. This loss in skilled labour leads to a decrease in the income of the country as a large number of skilled people migrate. Lack of skilled professionals affects the ability of the companies to undertake research and development. As a result, they continue to produce goods using old and inefficient technologies. This, in turn, leads to a decline in the output of the country. Increase in the number of unskilled workers leads to lesser opportunities for growth for the country. Students often migrate abroad to take advantage of the highly integrated method of teaching. Later, they settle down there only.
6. List various push and pull factors that influence an individual’s decision to migrate. Also, build up a short story to show how any one of the factors works in real life. (4 marks)Answer: Push factors:
- Political instability in the homeland
- Wars
- Natural calamities like floods, earthquakes, drought, etc.
- High unemployment
- Pull factors
- Better job opportunities
- High income
- Family bonding
- Marriage
Now, frame a short story. Choose a factor around which you story will be based. In case you choose drought as your push factor, build up your story around it. For example: Ram, a farmer in Shaolapur village of Hisar, used to live happily with his family. Two years back, the village faced a very severe drought. The severity of the drought resulted in an acute shortage of food for the villagers. The villagers started migrating from the village with their families, leaving their ancestral property behind. But Ram was reluctant to leave his village, as he had deep emotional attachment with his village. Soon the conditions became worse, with no food to eat, no water to drink and no chances of any relief. This forced Ram to migrate to the nearby town. For some days, Ram and his family took shelter on the roadsides. He and his wife had to work as laborers at a construction site there. You can expand the story by telling how Ram went back to the village when the conditions there became better, thus, including the role of the pull factor, which is family bonding.
This was the study material from the Open Text Book Assessment OTBA Social Studies for class 9. Please let us know if the comments section your answers. We would be glad to check them. Also, if there is an error please feel free to comment. Good luck for your exams!
