CBSE Class 12 Geography Chapter 4 Human Settlements Question Answer Part 2

Class 12 Geography Chapter 4 CBSE Class 12 Geography Chapter 4 Human Settlements Question Answer Part 2 NCERT Textbook Questions Solved

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Chapter 4 Human Settlements Part B Geography- India People and Economy NCERT Solutions for Class 12 Geography

CBSE Class 12 Geography Chapter 4 CBSE Class 12 Geography Chapter 4 Human Settlements Question Answer Part 2

1. Choose the right answers of the following from the given options.

(i) Which one of the following towns is NOT located on a river bank?

Agra
Bhopal
Patna
Kolkata

Ans (2) Bhopal

(ii) Which one of the following is NOT the part of the definition of a town as per the census (i) of India?

Population density of 400 persons per sq km.
Presence of municipality, corporation, etc.
More than 75% of the population engaged in primary sector.
Population size of more than 5,000 persons.

Ans. (3) More than 75% of the population engaged in primary sector.

(iii) In which one of the following environments does one expect the presence of dispersed rural settlements?

Alluvial plains of Ganga
Arid and semi-arid regions of Rajasthan
Lower valleys of Himalayas
Forests and hills in north-east

Ans. (1) Alluvial plains of Ganga

(iv) Which one of the following group of cities have been arranged in the sequence of their ranks i.e. 1, 2, 3 and 4 in size?

Greater Mumbai, Bangalore, Kolkata, Chennai
Delhi, Greater Mumbai, Chennai, Kolkata
Kolkata, Greater Mumbai, Chennai, Kolkata
Greater Mumbai, Kolkata, Delhi, Chennai

Ans. (4) Greater Mumbai, Kolkata, Delhi, Chennai

2. Answer the following questions in about 30 words.

(i) What are garrison towns? What is their function?

Ans. Garrison/ Cantonment towns are basically locations/places where army contingents are posted. It stations troops permanently. It protects and defend the place. It includes important settlements like training centre,offices and residence. For example, Ambala, Jalandhar, Mhow, Babina, Udhampur etc.

(ii) How can one identify an urban agglomeration?

Ans. An urban agglomeration can be identified on the basis of size, population, occupation and economic activities. This are generally compact and larger in size. It’s total population (i.e.all the constituents put together) should not be less than 20,000 as per the previous Census. It consists of atleast a statutory town(all places with a municipality, corporation, cantonment board or notified town area committee, etc.). It possesses the urban features in terms of infrastructure and amenities such as pucca roads, electricity, taps, drainage system for disposal of waste, water etc., educational institutions, post offices, medical facilities, banks etc.and physically contagious with the core town of the urban agglomeration. The contagious areas made up of other urban as well as rural administrative units should have close mutual socio-economic links with the core town.

(iii) What are the main factors for the location of villages in desert regions?

Ans. The main factors for the location of villages in desert regions are-

(a) Water is most important for human survival and settlement particularly in the dry desert regions. Therefore, availability of water is the primary factor for location of villages in desert regions. In order to make optimum utilisation of water, villages are located in the form of clustered settlements.

(b) Access to other geographic area close by for resource availability where intra-day movement can occur.

(iv) What are metropolitan cities? How are they different from urban agglomerations?

Ans. Cities accommodating population size between one to five million are called metropolitan cities. Metropolitan areas include one or more urban areas,as well as satellite cities, towns and intervening rural areas that are socio-economically tied to the urban core, typically measured by committing patterns.

A metropolitan area, sometimes referred to as a metro area or commuter belt,is a region consisting of a densely populated urban core and it’s less-populated surrounding territories, sharing industry, infrastructure and housing. A metro area usually comprises multiple jurisdictions and municipalities: neighborhoods, townships, boroughs,cities,towns,exurbs,suburbs,counties, districts,states and even nation’s like the euro districts.

An urban agglomeration is a continuous urban spread constituting a town and it’s adjoining outgrowths or two or more physically continuous towns together with or without outgrowths of such towns. An urban Agglomeration must consider of at least a statuory town and it’s population should not be less than 20,000.

An Urban Agglomeration would be constituted:(i)a city or town with one or more contiguous outgrowths;(ii) two or more adjoining towns with their outgrowths; and (iii) a city and one or more adjoining towns with their outgrowths all of which form a continuous spread.

3. Answer the following questions in about 150 words.

(i) Discuss the features of different types of rural settlements. What are the factors responsible for the settlement patterns in different physical environments?

Ans. There are four different types of rural settlements-

(i) Compact settlements:

If the number of villages equals the number of hamlets in an area unit, the settlement is designated as compact. In such villages all the dwellings are concentrated in one central site. The inhabitants of the village live together and enjoy the benefits of community life. Such settlements range from a cluster of about 30 to 100 of dwellings of different forms, sizes and functions . Their size varies from 500 to 2500 persons in sparsely populated parts like Rajasthan to more than 10,000 in the Ganga plains.

Such settlements are found throughout the plateau region of Malwa, in the Narmada valley, Nimar Upland, large parts of Rajasthan, paddy lands in Bihar, Uttar Pradesh, Vindhyan Plateau and several other cultivated parts of India.

(ii) Semi compact settlements:

If the number of villages equals more than half of the Hamlet’s, it is semi compact settlement. These are found both in plains and plateaus depending upon the environmental conditions prevailing there. The dwellings in such settlements are not very closely knitted and are huddled together at one common site. It covers more area than the compact settlements ; the hamlets occupy new sites near the periphery of the village boundary. Such settlements are widespread in the Gujarat plain and some parts of Rajasthan.

(iii) Hamleted settlements:

If the number of villages is equal to half of hamlet number, it is a hamlet settlement. The hamlets are spread over the area with intervening fields and the main or central settlement is either absent or has febble influence upon others. Often the original site is not easily distinguishable and the morphological diversity is rarely noticed. Such settlements are found in West Bengal, eastern Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh and coastal plains.

(iv) Dispersed settlements:

If the number of villages is less than half the number of hamlets, the settlement is regarded as dispersed. The inhabitants of dispersed settlements live in isolated dwellings scattered in the cultivated fields. Individualism, sentiments of living freely, custom of marriage relations are conducive to such settlements. Many areas of Meghalaya, Uttaranchal, Himachal Pradesh and Kerela have this type of settlement.

The factors responsible for the settlement patterns in different physical environments are

(a) Water: Water is considered the exilir of life. Humans are largely dependent on water for life, thus, the supply of water has been a strong factor that determines the location of settlements. People are willing to face other adverse conditions in order to fulfill their need for water, for example,on islands and low-lying swampy areas.

Water also forms a kind of natural defence to these settlements. Such sites are mainly along riverbanks. However, in water scarce areas, water resources deserts, springs and wells serve as the main source of water. Water supply is main factor because water is used for drinking, cooking and washing; rivers and lakes can be used to irrigate farmland, water-bodies also have fish which can be caught for diet and navigable rivers and lakes can be used for transportation.

(b) Topography and climate: Topography refers to the shape and elevation of the land. It includes features like mountains ,hills, plains, valleys and deserts. The topography of an area was important for early human settlement. Farmers preferred to settle in flat, open areas such as plains and valleys. Large, flat spaces gave farmers room to grow crops. Also, the rich soil in coastal plains and river valleys are excellent for growing crops.

Mountains were less friendly to human settlement. Steep mountains were hard to cross. Their jagged peaks ,cold temperatures and rocky land made farming difficult.

Desert also discouraged settlement. They were hot and dry. They contained very little water for farming. Sandstorms occured when strong winds carried dense clouds of sand that could block out the sun. The intense heat, lack of water and sandstorm made travel and living in the desert difficult.

(ii) Can one imagine the presence of only one-function town? Why do the cities become multi functional?
Ans. It is difficult to imagine the presence of only one-function town. It is very much possible that one particular function becomes dominating in a town. But other functions will be existent in some degree. For example, Banaras is a cultural town but at the same time it is extremely popular for its silk saree and Banaras Hindu University. There are also administrative offices of local governments. Similarly, New Delhi is an administrative town but it has many industries, historical monuments and educational importance.

Cities becomes multi functional because one function acts as a promoter of other functions. If a town is religious and cultural then certainly it will attract tourists and may become a tourist town. The functions change due to their dynamic nature. Even specialised cities, as they grow into metropolis become multifunctional wherein industry, business, administration, transport etc.become important. The functions get so intertwined that the city cannot be categorised in a particular functional class.

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Human Settlements Important Extra Questions Very Short Answer Type

Question 1.
What is a settlement ?
Answer:
A settlement is a cluster of dwellings of different sizes.

Question 2.
Name any two modern towns built by the British in modern style? (Sample Paper 2018-19)
Answer:
Mumbai, Chennai.

Question 3.
Which town was developed as centre of modern industries after 1850? (Sample Paper 2018-19)
Answer:
Jamshedpur.

Question 4.
Name any two towns of India, initially developed as educational centres. (C.B.S.E. Outside Delhi 2017 Set-III)
Answer:
Varanasi, Aligarh, Pilani etc., developed as educational centres.

Question 5.
Name the local names of hamleted settlements.
Answer:
Panna, Para, Palli, Nagla and Dhani.

Question 6.
Why is India a popular tourist destination in the world. (CBSE 2018)
Answer:
Because of favourable climatic conditions, medical services, heritage home, national parks, etc.

Question 7.
Name the areas of dispersed settlements are found.
Or
Name any one state of India, where dispersed settlements are found. (Outside Delhi 2019)
Answer:
Meghalaya, Uttarakhand, Himachal Pradesh and Kerala.

Question 8.
Name two most ancient town in India. (C.B.S.E. 2014)
Answer:
Varanasi and Ayodhaya.

Question 9.
Name three nodal towns of India.
Answer:
Mumbai, Chennai and Kolkata.

Question 10.
Name three satellite towns around Delhi.
Answer:
Ghaziabad, Rohtak and Gurgaon.

Question 11.
What is the population size of the class I cities in India ?
Answer:
1,00,000 persons and above.

Question 12.
Which type of the rural settlement in India includes Panna, Para, Palli, Nagla, Dhani, etc.
Answer:
Hamleted settlement.

Question 13.
Give any two examples of mining towns in India, (C.B.S.E. 2013)
Or
Name any two towns of India, initially developed as mining towns. (C.B.S.E. Outside Delhi 2017 Set-11)
Answer:
Jharia and Raniganj.

Question 14.
Name any one area of hamleted settlement in India. (Outside Delhi 2019)
Answer:
Chattisgarh, Lower Valleys of Himalayas.

Human Settlements Important Extra Questions Short Answer Type

Question 1.
On what factors does the location of rural settlements depend ?
Answer:
There are various factors and conditions responsible for having different types of rural settlements in India.
These include:
(i) physical features – nature of terrain, altitude, climate and availability of water
(ii) cultural and ethnic factors social structure, caste and religion
(iii) security factors – defence against thefts and robberies.

Question 2.
Name the main types of rural settlements in India.
Answer:
Rural settlements in India can broadly be put into four types:
(i) Clustered, agglomerated or nucleated,
(ii) Semi-clustered or fragmented,
(iii) Hamleted, and
(iv) Dispersed or isolated.

Question 3.
What are administrative towns? State one example from India. (Sample Paper 2017-18)
Answer:
Towns supporting administrative headquarters of higher order are called administrative towns e.g. Chandgara.

Question 4.
What is the meaning of a settlement ? What is its base ?
Answer:
Human Settlement means cluster of dwellings or any type of size where human beings live. For this purpose, people may erect houses and other structures and command some area or territory as their economic support-base. Thus, the process of settlement inherently involves grouping of people and apportioning of territory as their resource base.

Question 5.
What is the basic difference between rural and urban settlements ? (C.B.S.E. Delhi 2017)
Answer:
The basic difference between rural and urban settlements is as follows :
The rural settlements derive their life support or basic economic needs from land based primary economic activities, whereas, urban settlements, depend on processing of raw materials and manufacturing of finished goods on the one hand and a variety of services on the other.

Question 6.
How does an agglomeration develop ?
Answer:
Majority of metropolitan and mega cities are urban agglomerations. An urban agglomeration may consist of any one of the following three combinations :
(i) a town and its adjoining urban outgrowths
(ii) two or more contiguous towns with or without their outgrowths, and
(iii) a city and one or more adjoining towns with their outgrowths together forming a contiguous spread.

Question 7.
State any three characteristics of clustered rural settlements in India.
Answer:
(i) This is a cluster of compact houses.
(ii) The General living area is separated from farming area.
(iii) These settlements are rectangular and linear in shape.

Question 8.
Classify Indian Towns on the basis of their evolution in three different periods. Name one town of each period. (C.B.S.E. 2009)
Answer:
The Indian towns are classified into three groups on the basis of their Evolution in different periods.

Types of Town Example :

Ancient Towns — Pataliputra
Medieval Towns — Agra
Modern Towns — Chandigarh.

Question 9.
What are salient characteristics of Indian cities ?
Answer:
Indian Cities : Salient Characteristics.

Salient features of the Indian cities are as follows :
1. Most towns and cities are over-grown villages and have much rural semblance behind their street frontages.

2. People are even more rural in their habits and attitude, which reflects their socio-economic outlook in housing and other aspects.

3. Sizeable chunk of cities are full of slums largely due to the influx of immigrants without much infrastructure.

4. Several cities have distinct marks of earlier rulers and old functions.

5. Functional segregation is distinctly rudimentary, non-comparahle to western cities.

6. Social segregation of population is based either on caste, religion, income or occupation.

Question 10.
Classify Town and Cities on basis of population size.
Answer:
Towns and Cities based on Population Size
Census of India classifies urban centres into six classes. Urban centre with population of more than one lakh is called a city and less than one lakh is called a town. Cities accommodating population between one to five million are called metropolitan cities and more than five million are mega cities. Majority of metropolitan and mega cities are urban agglomerations. An urban agglomeration may consist of any one of the following three

Combinations :
(i) a town and its adjoining urban outgrowths
(ii) two or more contiguous towns with or without their outgrowths, and
(iii) a city and one or more adjoining towns with their outgrowths.

It is evident that majority of urban population lives in 423 cities, i.e., only 8.2 per cent of all urban places. They support 60.3 per cent of the total urban population of the country. Out of 423 cities, 35 cities / urban agglomerations have population more than 1 million each, thus they are metropolitan cities. Six of them are mega cities with population over five million each. More than one-fifth (21.0%) of urban population lives in these mega cities.

More than half (55.2%) of the towns (with population less than 20 thousand each) accommodate only 11.0 percent of urban population. One-fourth (26.78%) of urban population lives in middle-sized towns of the country. These medium towns recorded highest growth during the last decade, raising their share in total urban population from 24.3 per cent to 26.8 percent.

Question 11.
Differentiate between Hamletled and Dispersed Survival Settlements of India. (C.B.S.E. 2016)
Answer:
Hamletled settlements: When a village is fragmented on social and ethnic factors, its units are separated from each other. They bear a common name. These units are called pauna, Para, Palli, nagla and dhani. Such villages are more frequently found in the middle and lower Ganga plains.

Dispersed settlements: Isolated settlements are called dispersed settlements. These are found in forests, on hill slopes and fragmente fields. These include hamlets of few huts. Dispersion of settlements is caused by extremely fragmented nature of the terrain. Many areas of Meghalaya, Uttaranchal, Himachal Pradesh and Kerala have this type of settlement.

Question 12.
Discuss the factors that determine the type of rural settlements. (C.B.S.E. 2011)
Answer:
The rural settlements vary in size, shape and lay-out plans. The types of rural settlement depends upon the following factors :
(i) Physical Factors. Physical factors such as relief, altitude, drainage, water table, climate and soil play an important role in determining the type of settlement. In dry areas, the houses are clustered around a source of water.

(ii) Cultural Factors. Ethnic and cultural factors such as tribal, caste or communal identity are also important in determining the lay-out of a rural settlement. The nucleus of the settlement is occupied by land-owners. Harijan Dwellings are located on the periphery away from the main settlement. The settlement is divided into several units.

(iii) Historical factors. The Northern plains of India have been exposed to frequent invasions from invadors and conquerors. The villagers preferred to live in compact settlement in order to defend against the invaders.

Human Settlements Important Extra Questions Long Answer Type

Question 1.
What is a Town ? Classify Towns according to urban Historians and describe their evolution.
Or
“Examine flourished since prehistoric times in India.” (Delhi 2019)
Or
Examine the level of urbanisation in India after Independence. (Delhi 2019)
Or
“Towns flourished since prehistoric times in India.” Examine. (Delhi 2019)
Answer:
Definition of Town
Town is defined in different ways in different countries. In India, the census of India 2001 identifies two types of towns : Statutory and Census :

Statutory Towns : Ail places which have municipal, or corporation, or cantonment board, or a notified town area committee.

Census Towns: All other places which satisfy the following criteria :

A minimum population of 5,000 persons;
At least 75 percent of male wmrking population engaged in non-agricultural pursuits;
A density of population of atleast 400 persons per sq. km.

Evolution of towns in india

Towns flourished since prehistoric times in India. Even at the time of Indus valley civilisation, towns like Harappa and Mohanjodaro were in existence. The second phase of urbanisation began around 600 B.C.E. It continued with periodic ups and downs until the arrival of Europeans in India in the 18th century. Urban historians classify towns of India as :
(1) Ancient towns
(2) Medieval towns, and
(3) Modern towns.

(1) Ancient Towns : At least 45 towns have historical background and have been in existence at least for over 2000 years. Most of them developed as religious and cultural centres. Varanasi is one of the important towns among these. Ayodhya, Prayagraj (Allahabad), Pataliputra (Patna), Mathura and Madurai are some other ancient towns.

(2) Medieval Towns : About 100 of the existing towns have their roots in the medieval period. Most of them developed as headquarters of principalities and kingdoms. Most of them are fort towns and came up on the ruins of earlier existing towns. Important among them are Delhi, Hyderabad, Jaipur, Lucknow, Agra and Nagpur.

(3) Modern Towns : The British and other Europeans modified the urban scene. As an external force, starting their foothold on coastal locations, they first developed some trading ports such as Surat, Daman, Goa, Puducherry, etc. The British later consolidated their hold from three principal nodes – Mumbai (Bombay), Chennai (Madras) and Kolkata (Calcutta) – and built them in the British fashion.

Rapidly extending their domination either directly or through super control over the princely states, they established their administrative centres, hill-towns as summer resorts, and added new civil, administrative and military areas to them. Towns based on modern industries also evolved after 1850. Jamshedpur can be cited as an example.

After independence, a large number of towns emerged as administrative headquarters (Chandigarh, Bhubaneshwar, Gandhinagar, Dispur, etc.) and industrial centres (Durgapur, Bhilai, Sindri, Barauni, etc.). Some old towns also developed as satellite towns around metropolitan cities such as Ghaziabad, Rohtak, Gurgaon, etc. around Delhi. With increasing investment in rural areas, a large number of medium and small towns have developed all over the country.

Human Settlements Important Extra Questions HOTS

Question 1.
‘Towns act as nodes of economic growth.’ Discuss.
Answer:
Cities act as nodes of economic growth provide goods and services not only to urban dwellers but also to the people of the rural settlements in their hinterlands in return for food and raw materials. This functional relationship between the urban and rural settlements takes place through transport and communication network.

Question 2.
‘Rural and urban settlements differ in their way of life, attitude and outlook.’ Explain.
Answer:
Rural and urban settlements differ also in their way of life, attitude and outlook. Rural people are less mobile and therefore social relations among them are intimate. They employ simple techniques to perform their activities and their pace of life is slow. In urban areas, on the other hand, way of life is complex and fast and social relations are formal and institutionalized.