The Ailing Planet (Hornbill) — Important Questions
24 questions
With answersCBSE format
SUMMARY: "The Ailing Planet: The Green Movement's Role" discusses the environmental challenges facing our planet and the importance of sustainable development. KEY TOPICS: environmental degradation, sustainable development, Green Movement, ecological balance, resource depletion, population growth, environmental ethics, conservation efforts, global responsibility, ecological restoration
Who is the author of 'The Ailing Planet: The Green Movement's Role'?
ANani Palkhivala
BVandana Shiva
CSunita Narain
DM S Swaminathan
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Correct answer: Option 1 — Nani Palkhivala
Q21 Mark
The phrase 'Spaceship Earth' was coined by:
ALester Brown
BR Buckminster Fuller
CMr Lester Pearson
DMahatma Gandhi
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Correct answer: Option 2 — R Buckminster Fuller
Q31 Mark
The Brundtland Commission's report 'Our Common Future' (1987) introduced which key concept?
ACarbon trading
BSustainable development
CMass tourism
DFree trade
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Correct answer: Option 2 — Sustainable development
Q41 Mark
According to the essay deforestation in tropical regions is contributing to:
ABetter climate
BLoss of species and soil erosion
CIncreased rainfall
DReduced flooding
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Correct answer: Option 2 — Loss of species and soil erosion
Q51 Mark
Mr Lester Brown is the founder of:
AGreenpeace
BThe Worldwatch Institute
CFriends of the Earth
DThe Sierra Club
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Correct answer: Option 2 — The Worldwatch Institute
Short Answer Questions5 questions
Q63 Marks
Explain the metaphor of 'Spaceship Earth' as used in the essay.
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The phrase 'Spaceship Earth' was coined by R Buckminster Fuller and used by Palkhivala to remind readers that the Earth has finite resources just like a spaceship. A spaceship can carry only a limited supply of food water air and fuel; the crew must use them carefully and recycle waste because there are no resupply stations along the way. Similarly the Earth's resources - clean water arable land forests minerals fossil fuels - are limited. The metaphor argues that humanity must learn to live within these limits or risk collapse just as a poorly managed spaceship would.
Q73 Marks
What is meant by 'sustainable development'? How was it defined by the Brundtland Commission?
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Sustainable development is development that meets the needs of the present generation without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs. The phrase was popularised by the 1987 Brundtland Commission report 'Our Common Future'. The idea recognises a moral obligation to future generations - that we are not free to consume the planet's resources at a rate that leaves our children and grandchildren unable to live well. It also implies practical commitments - reduced waste cleaner energy soil and water conservation and population stabilisation.
Q83 Marks
List four major environmental concerns highlighted by Palkhivala in the essay.
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The essay identifies several urgent environmental concerns. (1) Deforestation - tropical forests are being cleared at an alarming rate. (2) Loss of biodiversity - species are becoming extinct faster than at any time in history. (3) Soil erosion and desertification - cropland is being degraded. (4) Population growth - the burden on the planet's resources is multiplied by the rising number of people. Other concerns mentioned include water scarcity ozone depletion and the rapid burning of fossil fuels with consequent climate change.
Q93 Marks
What role does Palkhivala assign to the Green Movement?
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The Green Movement is the global response of citizens activists scientists and policy makers who recognise that the planet is in crisis and act to slow its decline. Palkhivala assigns the Green Movement the role of moral and practical leadership - educating the public influencing governments pressing industry to change and supporting the affected communities. He believes the movement is the only force that can reverse the destruction in time. He also argues that environmental responsibility must become a personal everyday discipline and not just an institutional movement.
Q103 Marks
How does the essay link environmental damage with population growth?
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The essay argues that population growth multiplies every environmental problem. Each additional person consumes resources produces waste and competes for limited water and food. India and other developing countries face this most acutely - a fast-growing population imposes severe pressure on cropland forests and water bodies. Palkhivala therefore presents population stabilisation through education healthcare and family planning as a key environmental responsibility - not in a coercive sense but as a foundational element of any sustainable future. Without slowing population growth he argues other environmental measures will be overwhelmed.
Long Answer Questions4 questions
Q116 Marks
Discuss in detail the principal threats to the environment identified by Palkhivala in 'The Ailing Planet'.
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Palkhivala identifies several interlinked threats that together constitute the global environmental crisis. DEFORESTATION - Tropical forests are being cleared at an alarming pace for timber agriculture and urban expansion. The loss of forest cover increases atmospheric carbon dioxide reduces rainfall destroys habitats for thousands of species and erodes soil. India loses tens of thousands of hectares of forest every year. SPECIES EXTINCTION - The current rate of species loss is estimated to be 1000 times the natural background rate. Many species are disappearing before they have even been discovered. The loss is irreversible - extinction is forever. SOIL DEGRADATION AND DESERTIFICATION - Intensive farming overgrazing and chemical fertilisers are stripping cropland of its fertility. Once productive land becomes desert. The world loses an area the size of a small country to desertification each year. WATER SCARCITY - Both surface water and groundwater are being depleted faster than nature can replenish them. Major rivers in India and China are running low. Aquifers in Punjab and Rajasthan are dropping. POPULATION GROWTH - The rapidly growing human population multiplies every other problem. More people consume more resources produce more waste and require more food. Palkhivala argues that population stabilisation is foundational. POLLUTION OF AIR AND WATER - Industries vehicles and untreated sewage are choking cities and destroying river ecosystems. The Yamuna and Ganga are notorious examples. OZONE DEPLETION AND CLIMATE CHANGE - Certain industrial gases are thinning the protective ozone layer; emissions of greenhouse gases are heating the planet. Palkhivala sees these threats as the symptoms of a single underlying disease - human inability to live within natural limits. Treating any one symptom in isolation will not be enough.
Q126 Marks
Explain the metaphor of 'the ailing planet' and discuss its relevance today.
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The title 'The Ailing Planet' is itself a powerful metaphor. Palkhivala presents the Earth not as a passive object that humans use but as a living patient suffering from a serious illness. THE METAPHOR EXPLAINED - Like a sick patient the planet is showing clear symptoms - rising temperatures shrinking glaciers thinning ozone disappearing forests vanishing species toxic rivers and exhausted soils. The diagnosis is not in dispute among scientists. The treatment - reducing emissions protecting forests stabilising population shifting to renewable energy - is also broadly known. What is missing is the will and the urgency to act. WHY THE METAPHOR WORKS - Treating the planet as a patient changes how we think. Patients deserve careful diagnosis - not denial or distraction. Patients require treatment - not endless debate. Patients have caregivers who carry moral responsibility - the international community government industry citizens and ourselves. The metaphor reframes our relationship with nature from owner-of-resources to caregiver-of-a-living-being. CONTEMPORARY RELEVANCE - Decades after the essay was written the metaphor has only grown more apt. The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change has warned that the Earth is at a tipping point. Coral reefs are dying. The Amazon is in retreat. Heatwaves and floods kill thousands every year. India regularly tops the list of cities with the worst air quality. The metaphor invites the next generation - today's school students - to see themselves as the caregivers of a patient who cannot afford to wait any longer. Hope lies in recognising the illness early and committing to the treatment.
Q136 Marks
Why does Palkhivala emphasise the need for an environmental movement led by citizens? What are its key responsibilities?
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Palkhivala emphasises the citizen-led Green Movement because governments alone have rarely solved environmental crises in time. WHY A CITIZEN MOVEMENT - Governments respond to short electoral cycles. Industry responds to short profit cycles. Both find environmental concerns inconvenient until disaster forces action. Citizen movements unconstrained by these short cycles can hold a longer view and apply persistent pressure on governments and industry alike. Movements like Greenpeace the Worldwatch Institute and India's Chipko movement demonstrate that ordinary citizens can shift national policy when they act collectively and persistently. KEY RESPONSIBILITIES - The essay assigns the movement multiple roles. (1) AWARENESS - educating the public through media books schools and demonstrations so that environmental issues stay in collective conversation. (2) ADVOCACY - lobbying governments to pass strong environmental laws and to enforce them honestly. (3) MONITORING - holding industry accountable for pollution illegal logging poaching and unsafe practices. (4) ALTERNATIVE-BUILDING - showing that alternatives are practical - rooftop solar organic farming bicycle cities zero-waste businesses. (5) LITIGATION - using public-interest courts to defend environmental laws when governments fail. (6) PERSONAL HABIT - encouraging citizens to adopt small daily disciplines - reusable bags shorter showers bicycle commutes vegetarian meals once a week. THE CHARACTER OF THE MOVEMENT - Palkhivala emphasises that the movement must be moral not partisan. It serves the future not any one political party. It must speak honestly even when its message is unwelcome. It must persist when results seem distant. The movement is therefore both a strategic force and a moral discipline. The future of the planet Palkhivala argues will be decided by whether enough citizens take it on as their own project.
Q146 Marks
How can each individual contribute to the protection of the environment? Discuss with examples from the essay and from everyday life.
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Palkhivala makes clear that environmental care is not the monopoly of scientists or governments - it is a daily personal discipline that every citizen can practise. INDIVIDUAL CONTRIBUTIONS - (1) ENERGY - Switch off lights and fans when leaving a room. Use LED bulbs. Choose energy-efficient appliances. Walk cycle or use public transport when possible. (2) WATER - Fix leaking taps. Use a bucket instead of a hose. Reuse RO-reject water for plants. Take shorter showers. (3) WASTE - Carry a steel water bottle and a cloth bag. Refuse single-use plastic. Compost kitchen waste. Repair before replacing. Donate or recycle clothes. (4) FOOD - Eat seasonal local produce. Reduce meat consumption. Plan meals to avoid waste. Support farmers' markets. (5) AWARENESS - Read about environmental issues. Talk about them with family. Vote thoughtfully. Volunteer with local clean-up drives or tree-plantation campaigns. (6) ADVOCACY - Write to local representatives about civic environmental issues. Sign petitions for stronger laws. Support credible NGOs. (7) PROFESSIONAL CHOICES - Bring environmental considerations into the workplace - reduce paper use carpool to office switch to digital documentation push for energy audits. THE DEEPER POINT - Palkhivala does not pretend that any one individual can solve a global crisis. But he argues that millions of small daily choices add up. A family that uses one bucket less of water saves thousands of litres a year. A college that switches to LED bulbs saves megawatts of electricity. A city of citizens who refuse single-use plastic empties hundreds of trucks of landfill. Personal habit becomes social norm. Social norm becomes law. Law becomes global policy. The future therefore is not built only by the heroic; it is built by the daily steady disciplined choices of ordinary citizens who choose to care.
Assertion–Reason Questions5 questions
Q151 Mark
Assertion (A): The metaphor of 'Spaceship Earth' suggests that the planet has finite resources.
Reason (R): Like a spaceship the Earth must be managed carefully because there are no resupply stations along the way.
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Correct answer: Option 1 —
Both A and R are true, and R is the correct explanation of A.
Q161 Mark
Assertion (A): The Brundtland Commission introduced the concept of sustainable development.
Reason (R): The concept argues that present needs must be met without compromising the ability of future generations to meet theirs.
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Correct answer: Option 1 —
Both A and R are true, and R is the correct explanation of A.
Q171 Mark
Assertion (A): Population growth multiplies every environmental problem.
Reason (R): More people consume more resources produce more waste and intensify pressure on cropland forests and water bodies.
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Correct answer: Option 1 —
Both A and R are true, and R is the correct explanation of A.
Q181 Mark
Assertion (A): The Green Movement is essential for protecting the environment.
Reason (R): Governments and industry respond to short cycles whereas citizen movements can sustain a longer view and persistent pressure on policy.
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Correct answer: Option 1 —
Both A and R are true, and R is the correct explanation of A.
Q191 Mark
Assertion (A): Environmental care must become a personal everyday discipline.
Reason (R): Daily individual choices about energy water waste and food add up across millions of citizens to determine global outcomes.
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Correct answer: Option 1 —
Both A and R are true, and R is the correct explanation of A.
Statement-Based Questions5 questions
Q201 Mark
Statement 1: The essay is by Nani Palkhivala.
Statement 2: It argues that the planet is in crisis and that the Green Movement and citizen action are essential for its recovery.
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Correct answer: Option 1 —
Both statements are true.
Q211 Mark
Statement 1: The phrase 'Spaceship Earth' was coined by R Buckminster Fuller.
Statement 2: It reminds humanity that Earth's resources are finite and must be managed carefully.
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Correct answer: Option 1 —
Both statements are true.
Q221 Mark
Statement 1: The 1987 Brundtland Commission report 'Our Common Future' popularised the idea of sustainable development.
Statement 2: The report defined sustainable development as meeting present needs without compromising the future.
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Correct answer: Option 1 —
Both statements are true.
Q231 Mark
Statement 1: The essay identifies deforestation species loss soil degradation and population growth as major threats.
Statement 2: Pollution of air and water along with ozone depletion and climate change are also highlighted.
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Correct answer: Option 1 —
Both statements are true.
Q241 Mark
Statement 1: Palkhivala argues that environmental responsibility is a personal daily discipline.
Statement 2: Individual choices about energy water waste and consumption add up to large social impact over time.
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Correct answer: Option 1 —
Both statements are true.
