Answer the following Questions
Q1. Read and discuss the following description of the living conditions of workers who come to the labour chowk.
Most workers that we find at the labour chowk cannot afford permanent accomodation and sleep on pavements near the chowk, or they pay Rs. 6 a night for a bed at a nearby night shelter run by the Municipal Corporation. To compensate for the lack of security, local tea and cigarette shops function as banks, moneylenders and safety lockers, all rolled into one. Most workers leave their tools at these shops for the night for safe keeping and pass on any extra money to them. The shopkeepers keep the money safety and also offer loans to labourers in need.
Source : Aman Sethi, Hindu on-line
Ans: Students are suggested to discuss on the above theme in the class in the presence of their teacher.
Q2. Complete the following table and discuss how their work is different:
| Name | Place of work | Earnings | Security of work | Benefits
received |
Work on their own or employed |
| Bachchu
Manjhi |
Rs 100 a day | ||||
| Harpreet
Vandana |
Work on their own | ||||
| Nirmala | No security | ||||
| Sudha | Company | Rs. 30,000 p.m. |
Ans:
| Name | Place of work | Earnings | Security of work | Benefits
received |
Work on their own or employed |
| Bachchu
Manjhi |
Road | Rs 100 a day | No security | No benefits | Work on his own |
| Harpreet
Vandana |
Showroom | Flexible | Their job is secured | They are planning to buy a flat and car. | Work on their own |
| Nirmala | Garment
factory |
Rs. 80 a day | No security | She can earn extra money by working late. | Employed |
| Sudha | Company
office |
She gets regular salary. | Her job is secured | Holidays,
medical facilities |
Employed |
Q3.In what ways is a permanent and regular job different from a casual job? Discuss.
Ans: In a permanent and regular job an employee gets a regular salary every month. Besides, a regular salary he gets other benefits such as savings for old age, holidays, medical facilities for his family, etc. Thus, his job is secured. But casual workers avail no job security. If workers complain about their pay or working conditions, they are asked to leave. They are also expected to work very long hours. They don’t get other benefits like permanent employees.
Q.4.What benejits does Sudha get along with her salary?
Ans: Sudha is a permanent worker with a company. She gets several benefits along with her salary:
Savings for old age. A part of her salary is kept in a fund with the government. She will earn interests on these savings. When she retires from this job she will get this money in the form of pension.
Sudha gets off on Sundays and national holidays. She also gets some days as annual leave.
Medical facilities for her family. The company pays Sudha medical expenses up to a certain amount for her and her family members. She gets medical leave if she falls ill and her salary is not cut if she takes this leave.
Q5.Fill in the following table to show the services provided by people in markets which you msit frequently.
| Name of the shop or office | Nature of the service provided |
Ans:
| Name of the shop or office | Nature of the service provided |
| Garment showroom | It provides clothes as per the requirement of the customer. |
| Shop selling utensils, footwear, electronic goods, etc. | They provide household things. |
| Banks | They provide security and growth to our money. |
| Note: Students are suggestec | to add more. |
MULTIPLE CHOICE QUESTIONS
Choose the correct option to complete the statements given below:
(i) Vandana is a ……………
(a)Doctor (b) Sales manager
(c) Dress designer (d) Dentist.
(ii) The authority that issues a licence to the permanent shops is the
(a) Municipal corporation (b) Electricity department
(c) Home Ministry (d) None of the above.
(iii) Nirmala works in a ……………
(a) Showroom (b) Garment factory
(c) Company (d) Call centre.
(iv)Workers who are employed on casual basis usually get ……………………
(a) Handsome salary (b) Poor salary
(c) Medical leave (d) Both (a) and (b).
(v) Foreign companies usually set up call centres in India because
(a)They can get people who will work for lower wages
(b)They can get people who can speak English
(c)They can get cheap land to establish the centre
(d)Both (a) and (b).
Ans: (i)—(c), (ii)—(a), (iii)—(b), (iv)—(b), (v)—(d).
FILL IN THE BLANKS
Fill in the blanks with appropriate words to complete each sentence:
(i) There are almost ……… street vendors in the country working in …………………
(ii) Those who work in government departments get a ……………….. salary every month.
(iii) It is the……… that decides on which day of the week the market has to remain closed.
(iv) Call Centres in ………. cities provide a new form of employment to the people.
(v )Street vending is now recognised as a general benefit and as a………………… of people to earn their ……………
Ans: (i) one crore, urban (ii) regular (iii) Municipal Corporation
(iv) big (v) right, livelihood.
TRUE/FALSE
State whether these sentences are true (T) or false (F).
(i)A large number of people in the city work on the streets.
(ii)Shops on streets are usually temporary structures.
(iii)Call Centres are usually seen in small towns.
(iv)Casual workers can complain about their pay or working conditions.
(v) Permanent workers get only medical facilities.
Ans. (i)—T, (ii)—T, (iii)—F, (ziv)—F, (v)—F.
MATCHING SKILL
Match the items in column A correctly with those given in column B.
Column A Column B
(i) Harpreet and Vandana (a) Works as a Marketing Manager
(ii) Bachchu Manjhi (b) Works as a tailor
(iii) Sudha (c) Business persons
(iv) Nirmala (d) Work as helpers to masons
(v) Daily wage workers (e) Rickshaw puller
Ans. (i)—(c), (ii)—(e), (iii)—(a), (iv)—(b), (v)—(d).
VERY SHORT ANSWER TYPE QUESTIONS
Q1. Name some activities which are carried out on the streets.
Ans: Vending, hair-cutting, shoe-repairing, flower-selling etc.
Q2. What was found in a Survey of Ahmedabad city? [V. Imp.]
Ans: In a survey of Ahmedabad city it was found that 12 percent of all the workers in the city were people working on the street.
Q3. What types of things do vendors usually sell?
Ans: Vendors usually sell things that are often prepared at home by their families who purchase, clean, sort and make them ready to sell.
Q4. How was street vending looked upon till recently?
Ans.Street vending was till recently looked upon only as an obstruction to traffic and to people walking.
Q5.How is it looked upon now?
Ans: It is now looked upon as a general benefit and as a right of people to earn their livelihood.
Q6. Mention two features of business persons. [Imp.]
Ans: (i)They own their own shops or business.
(ii)They employ a number of workers as supervisors and helpers.
Q7. What is essential for the permanent shops? [V. Imp.]
Ans: They must have a licence to do business.
Q8. Define ‘labour chowk’.
Ans: Labour chowk is a place where daily wage labourers wait with their tools for people to come and hire them for work.
Q9.What is the normal working day in a garment factory?
Ans: In a garment factory a normal working day begins at 9 a.m. and finishes only by 10 p.m.
Q10. What is a Call Centre? [V. Imp.]
Ans: A Qall Centre is a centralised office that deals with problems and questions that consumers / customers have regarding goods purchased and services like banking, ticket booking, etc.
Q11. Mention two features of permanent jobs.
Ans: Men having permanent jobs get a regular salary with perks and other benefits eveiy month.
They can expect their job to continue for a long period of time.
SHORT ANSWER TYPE QUESTIONS
Q1. How do hawkers manage their work? [V. Imp.]
Ans. Hawkers work on their own. They organise their own work. They know how much to purchase, as well as where and how to set up their shops. Their shops are usually temporary structures. Sometimes just some boards or papers spread over discarded boxes or may be canvas sheet hung up on a few poles. They may also use their own carts or simply a plastic sheet spread on the pavement. They can be asked to dismantle their shops at any time by the police.
Q2. Mention some drawbacks of casual jobs. [V. Imp.]
Ans. In casual jobs, workers are not expected to complain about their pay or working
conditions. If they dare to do this, they are instantly asked to leave.
Casual jobs do not provide security protection if there is ill-treatment.
Casual workers are expected to do work for long hours.
Even if they don’t complain, they can be asked to leave when workload is less.
Q3. What works does Sudha do?
Ans. Sudha works as a Marketing Manager in a company which manufactures biscuits. The factoiy where the biscuits are made is outside the city. Sudha supervises the work of 50 salespersons who travel to different parts of the city. They get orders from shopkeepers and collect payments from them. She has divided the city into six regions and once a week she meets the salespersons of each region. She checks their progress report and discusses problems they face. She has to plan the sales in the entire city and often has to work late and travel to different places.
LONG ANSWER TYPE QUESTIONS
Q1. What are various ways of earning livelihood in the urban areas? Discuss. [V. Imp.]
Ans. People in urban areas are engaged in a variety of activities in order to earn their living. Some are doing the work of a cobbler while some are barbers busy with their work. A number of people earn their livelihood by pulling rickshaw. Vendors are also seen here and there selling household articles. In urban areas showrooms of different items can be seen. These showrooms are run by businesspersons. These people employ a number of workers as supervisors and helpers for their showrooms. Several urban people are engaged in Factories where they work for long hours. They don’t have job security still they continue their work because they don’t have other option. But there are also people who do office work with full job security. They get regular salary and enjoy other benefits of job like savings for old age, holidays, medical facilities etc.
Working in Call Centres is a new form of employment in big cities. It has attracted a large number of young men and women. Thus, we see that with a growing population, job opportunities have also increased and people are availing these opportunities according to their talent and aptitude.
Q2. Write in brief on ‘Call Centres’.
Ans. Call Centres in big cities are providing new job opportunities to young and enthusiastic men and women. A Call Centre is a centralised office that deals with problems and questions that consumers/customers have regarding goods purchased and services like banking, ticket booking, etc. Call Centres are generally set up as large rooms with work stations that include a computer, a telephone set and supervisor’s stations.
India has become a major centre not only for Indian companies but also foreign companies. They set up Call Centres here as they can get people who can speak english and will work for lower wages.