Class 7 Civics Chapter 2

Class 7 Civics Chapter 2 Role of the Government in Health

1. In this chapter you have read that health is a wider concept than illness. Look at this quote from the Constitution and explain the terms ‘living standard’ and ‘public health’ in your own words.
An important part of the Constitution says it is the “duty of the state to raise the level of nutrition and the standard of living and to improve public health. ”

Answer: Living standard means the level of living of people at which they live. If they live in hygeinic conditions enjoying all the comforts of life, it means their living standard is high. On the contrary, if they are bound to live in a filthy surroundings and drink polluted water and eat unhygeinic foods, it means they lead a low standard of living.
Public health. It refers to the health of the general public.

2. What are the different ways through which the government can take steps to provide healthcare for all? Discuss.
Answer: The government can take steps to provide healthcare for all by:

• Increasing the number of hospitals, healthcare centres and family welfare centres.
• Organising free camps for check up of general public.
• Organising Pulse Polio campaigns.
• Spreading health awareness among common people through different means. Workshops, seminars and training camps can also prove to be effective ways.

3. What differences do you find between private and public health services in your area? Use the following table to compare and contrast these.

4. ‘Improvement in water and sanitation can control many diseases’. Explain with the help of examples.
Answer: Water and sanitation are the basic necessities for the maintenance of our health. Poor quality of water causes a lot of health problems. Similarly poor sanitation causes many epidemics giving birth to dangerous insects and worms. Recently we saw the spread of Dengue caused by Aedes (a mosquito). Malaria is also caused by a mosquito called anopheles. Improvement in water and sanitation can control these happenings.