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Q.1 Fill in the blanks by selecting appropriate alternative :1. The F.A.O has estimated that there were ................... crore

malnourished people in India during 2002-03.(21.37 crore, 50 crore, 11.37 crore)

2. Ration cards were issued to the households on the basis of ...................address. (district, state, residential)

3. A ................... pricing structure was introduced under the TargetedPublic Distribution System. (Single, dual, triple)

4. The offtake in urban areas was about ................... percent of total offtakefrom P.D.S . (50, 30, 85)

5. The Government has started various programmes to ...................employment. (reduce, remove, boost)

6. The approximate number of malnourished people in the world is ................(86 crore, 68 crore, 16 crore)

7. The ................... is an essential component of Government’s FoodManagement Policy.

(Public Distribution System, People’s Distribution System.)8. Rice, wheat, sugar and kerosene together accounted for ...................%

of the total P.D.S (86, 85, 83)9. In the year 2002, the number of fair price shops increased from

.................. lakhs in 1960 to 4.74 lakhs in 2002. (0.47, 4.74, 7.47)10. The PDS distributes commodities worth more than Rs. ...................

annually. (Rs. 40,000 crore, Rs. 30,000 crore, Rs. 13000 crore)11. ................... families are benefitted annually due to P.D.S.

(16 crore, 17 crore, 61 crore)12. The P.D.S price of wheat and rice was revised ................... times between

1990 and 1994. (three, four, five)

Q.2 Answer the following questions in one or two sentences : (2 Marks)1. What is the basic objective of PDS? (March ’08, ’10, Sept. ’09)Ans. (i) The basic objective of P.D.S. is to provide essential consumer goods

at cheap and subsidised prices to the consumer.(ii) Besides this, the other important objective is to maintain the

minimum nutritional status of the population.

In Bangalore, ration cards issued forthe BPL people, exceeded the entire

population of the city

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2. In which year was the offtake from P.D.S outlets maximum?Ans. The offtake from P.D.S outlets was a maximum of 19 million tonnes in

the year 1991-1992.

3. Why is the offtake from P.D.S decreasing? (March ’08)Ans. (i) In recent years the offtake from P.D.S. is decreasing due to the

reducing gap between open market price and P.D.S. price especiallyof wheat and rice.

(ii) For example - In Delhi the gap between open market price and P.D.Sprice of wheat reduced from 47% to 8% from 1991 to 1994.

4. What is the share of 4 Northern states in the total offtake of foodgrains for families below poverty line?

Ans. (i) The four Northern States of Bihar, Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan andUttar Pradesh accounted for 48% of Below Poverty Line families.

(ii) And the food grain offtake from PDS accounted for just 10% of thetotal offtake of food grains in the country.

5. Who do not purchase food grains from PDS?Ans. (i) The homeless poor and those who do not have proper residential

address do not purchase food grains from PDS.(ii) The Above Poverty Line (APL) families also have reduced their

purchase from PDS after the introduction of the Dual Pricing Systemin 1997.

6. What is P.D.S.? (Sept. ’08)(i) Public Distribution System (PDS) is a system created by Government

to supply essential goods at reasonable prices through a chain of fairprice shops.

(ii) It is an essential component of the Government’s food management policy.

7. Which major items are covered under PDS? (Sept. ’10)Ans. (i) The major items covered under PDS are rice, wheat, sugar, kerosene,

cloth and edible oils.(ii) These essential goods are sold at cheap and subsidised prices.

8. According to the FAO estimate, what was the number of malnourishedpeople in India during 2002-03 ?

Ans. (i) According to the FAO estimate, there were 21.37 crore malnourishedpeople in India during 2002-03, i.e. 21% of India’s population suffersfrom malnourishment.

(ii) It also estimated that one out of four hungry people of the world isfound in India.

9. What is the role played by the Government in P.D.S. ?Ans. (i) The Central Government looks after the procurement and storage of

food grains through its agency, the Food Corporation of India (FCI).(ii) The State Governments look after the distribution of subsidised food

grains through a chain of fair-price shops.

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10. What is the offtake from the PDS outlets in the rural areas ? Why?Ans. (i) The offtake from the PDS outlets in the rural areas is only 15% of

the total offtake.(ii) This is because even though fair price shops exist in rural areas, the

food grains are not available in them due to very poor delivery system.

11. Why do the poor people depend less on P.D.S?Ans. The dependance of the poor people on the P.D.S is less because :

(i) Ration cards are issued only to those households who have properregistered address.

(ii) It means that the homeless poor and others who do not have properresidential address are left out of the P.D.S.

Q.3 Answer the following questions in five or six sentences : (4 Marks)1. What is the progress of PDS?Ans. PDS is a system created by Government

to supply essential goods at reasonableprices through a chain of fair price shops.

(i) Major items covered :Major items covered under PDSare rice, wheat, sugar, kerosene,cloth and edible oils.

(ii) Items in demand :86% of the total PDS sales werefor rice, wheat, sugar andkerosene.

(iii) Requirements of PDS :Ration cards are issued to the households on the basis of residentialaddress.

(iv) Coverage of PDS :PDS covers the entire population.

(v) Number of fair price shops :The number of fair price shops have increased from0.47. lakhs 4.74 Lakhs (1960) (2002)

RATION CARD

During 2006-07, the MaharashtraGovt. cancelled nearly 18 lakh ghost

(bogus) ration cards

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(vi) P.D.S distribution worth :-The P.D.S distributes commodities worth Rs. 30,000 crore annually.

(vii) Families benefitted :16 crore families are benefitted annually by PDS.

(viii) Peak level offtake :Peak level offtake of 19 million tonnes took place in 1991-92.

(ix) Decreasing offtake :In recent years the offtake from P.D.S. is decreasing due to thereducing gap between open market price and P.D.S. price especiallyof wheat and rice.

2 Explain Targeted Public Distribution System.Ans. (i) In 1997, a dual pricing structure was introduced under the Public

Distribution system called as the Targeted Public Distribution System.

(ii) The P.D.S prices for Below Poverty Line families (BPL) were 50% ofthe market prices.

(iii) On the contrary, P.D.S prices for Above Poverty Line (APL) familieswere very close to market prices.

(iv) There was no incentive for the Above Poverty Line (APL) families tobuy from the P.D.S.

(v) As a result, their purchase from P.D.S reduced and the stock of foodgrains with the government piled up.

(vi) To solve this problem the government has reduced the P.D.S price by30% for Above Poverty Line (APL) families in July 2001.

3 What are the defects of P.D.S?Ans. The PDS has been criticised due to some of its defects.

They are :

(i) Limited benefits to poor :(a) Only 20% of the poor were benefitted

from P.D.S.(b) This means it left out majority of the

homeless poor and others who do nothave proper registered address.

(ii) Regional disparities:a) The four southern states accounted for 18% of Below Poverty Line

(BPL) population and 49% offtake of the PDS commodities in 1995.b) The four northern states accounted for 48% of Below Poverty

Population (BPL) population and 10% offtake of PDS commodities.

(iii) Urban Bias :a) The offtake in the urban areas was about 85% of the total PDS offtake.b) 75% fair price shops are in rural areas but due to very poor

delivery system often foodgrains are not available in them.

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(iv) Inefficient Food Corporation of India (F.C.I.) :a) The economic cost of F.C.I. has been rising.b) The surplus stocks of wheat and rice are concentrated in only a

few states.

4. Explain the regional disparities in the distribution of PDS?Ans. (i) The four Southern states of Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Kerala and

Tamil Nadu together had 18% of total Below Poverty Line (BPL)population in 1993-94.

(ii) However, these four Southern states accounted for 49% of the totalofftake from PDS in 1995.

(iii) The four Northern states of Bihar, Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan andUttar Pradesh together had 48% of total Below Poverty Line (BPL)population in 1993-94.

(iv) However, these four Northern states accounted for just 10% of thetotal offtake from PDS in 1993-94.

Food Corporation of India Godown

In the last two years foodgrainsworth `.30,000 crore meant for PDS,

has been diverted illegally to theopen market !

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(v) This disparity was because of high population density, backward stateof agriculture and industries, low per capita income.

5. Which measures have been suggested in order to remove the defectsof P.D.S?

Ans. To overcome the defects of P.D.S. thefollowing measures can be adopted :

(i) Establishment of food banks :a) Food banks should be

established at the local levelas this would help in theprocurement, storage anddistribution at the local level.

b) This would reduce the costof transport, storage andhandling, ensuringadequate and timely supplyof essential commodities.

(ii) Extension of P.D.S Coverage :P.D.S coverage should be extended to cover all BPL families especiallythe homeless ones.

(iii) Adoption of Wage Employment Programmes:Wage Employment Programmes should be adopted by the Governmentto liquidate the food stocks of Food Corporation of India.

(iv) Restructuring of P.D.S:The P.D.S should be restructured to solve the problem of large numberof hunger ridden people on one hand and stock of excess food grainsin Government godowns on the other.

Regional Disparities

States BPL Population Total offtakeSOUTH(Karnataka, Kerala, Andhra 18% 49%Pradesh & Tamil Nadu)

NORTH(Bihar, Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh, 48% 10%Madhya Pradesh)

Wage employment programme

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Mujhe Raaha dikhao (correct the wrong statements) :

1. According to FAO, 83 crore of India's population was malnourished

in the year 2002-03

Ans. _______________________________________________________________

2. The offtake from the PDS outlet was maximum in the year 1990-

91.

Ans. _______________________________________________________________

3. Items in demand from PDS outlet are sugar, rice, kerosene and

cloth.

Ans. _______________________________________________________________

4. The basic objective of PDS is to maintain the minimum nutritional

status of the people of the country.

Ans. _______________________________________________________________

5. The share of 4 Northern states in the total offtake from PDS was

48% whereas the BPL population accounted for 10%.

Ans. _______________________________________________________________

6. 80% of the poor benefitted from PDS.

Ans. _______________________________________________________________

Q.5 Fill in the blanks by selecting appropriate alternative :1. The ................... is an essential component of Government’s Food

Management Policy.

(Public Distribution System, People’s Distribution System.)2. ................... families are benefitted annually due to P.D.S.

(16 crore, 17 crore, 61 crore)

3. The F.A.O has estimated that there were ................... croremalnourished people in India during 2002-03.

(21.37 crore, 50 crore, 11.37 crore)

4. The Government has started various programmes to ...................employment.

(reduce, remove, boost)

Q.6 Answer in 1 or 2 sentences each : (Any 4)1. What is the basic objective of PDS?2. In which year was the offtake from P.D.S outlets maximum?3. Who do not purchase food grains from PDS?4. Why is the offtake from P.D.S decreasing?5. What is the share of 4 Northern states in the total offtake of

foodgrains for families below poverty line?

Q.7. Answer in 5 or 6 sentences each : (Any 2)1. What are the defects of P.D.S?2. Explain Targeted Public Distribution System.3. What is the progress of PDS?

4

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Best Of Luck

CHAPTER 5 : PUBLIC DISTRIBUTION SYSTEM (SET A)

Std. : SSC

ECONOMICS

Marks : 20

Duration : 1 hr.

Q.5 Fill in the blanks by selecting appropriate alternative :1. Ration cards were issued to the households on the basis of

................... address.(district, state, residential)

2. The offtake in urban areas was about ................... percent of totalofftake from P.D.S .

(50, 30, 85)

3. A ................... pricing structure was introduced under the TargetedPublic Distribution System.

(Single, dual, triple)

4. The Government has started various programmes to ...................employment.

(reduce, remove, boost)

Q.6 Answer in 1 or 2 sentences each : (Any 4)1. What is P.D.S.?2. Who do not purchase food grains from PDS?3. Why is the offtake from P.D.S decreasing?4. What is the share of 4 Northern states in the total offtake of

foodgrains for families below poverty line?5. In which year was the offtake from P.D.S outlets maximum?

Q.7. Answer in 5 or 6 sentences each : (Any 2)1. What is the progress of PDS?2. Which measures have been suggested in order to remove the defects

of P.D.S?3. Explain the regional disparities in the distribution of PDS?

4

8

8

Best Of Luck

CHAPTER 5 : PUBLIC DISTRIBUTION SYSTEM (SET B)

Std. : SSC

ECONOMICS

Marks : 20

Duration : 1 hr.