JAC Class 8 Social Science Notes Civics Chapter 1 The Indian Constitution

JAC Board Class 8th Social Science Notes Civics Chapter 1 The Indian Constitution

→ In large societies in which different communities of people live together, these rules are formulated through consensus and in modem countries this consensus is usually available in written form. A written document in which we find the rules is called a Constitution.

→ Why Does a Country Need a Constitution?

  • The Constitution serves several purposes. First, it lays out certain ideals that form the basis of the kind of country that we as citizens aspire to live in. Or, a Constitution tells us what the fundamental nature of our society is.
  • A Constitution helps serve as a set of rules and principles that all persons in a country can agree upon as the basis of the way in which they want the country to be governed.
  • This includes not only the type of government but also an agreement on certain ideals that they all believe the country should uphold.
  • In 2006 the people of Nepal finally succeeded in putting an end to the powers of the King. The people had to write a new Constitution to establish Nepal as
    a democracy. The reason that they did not want to continue with the previous Constitution is because it did not reflect the ideals of the country that they want Nepal to be and that they have fought for.
  • The people of Nepal adopted a new Constitution for the country in 2015.
  • The second important purpose of a Constitution is to define the nature of a country’s political system.
  • The Constitution plays a crucial role in laying out certain important guidelines that govern decision making within these societies.

JAC Class 8 Social Science Notes Civics Chapter 1 The Indian Constitution

→ In a democracy, we choose our leaders so that they can exercise power responsibly on behalf of common people.

  • However, there is always the possibility that these leaders might misuse their authority and the Constitution usually provides safeguards against this.
  • In democratic societies, the Constitution often lays down rules that guard against the misuse of authority by our political leaders.
  • The Right to Equality is one of the Fundamental Rights guaranteed by the Indian Constitution.
  • Another important function that a Constitution plays in a democracy is to make sure that a dominant group does not use its power against other, less powerful people or groups.
  • The Constitution usually contains rules that ensure that minorities are not excluded from anything that is routinely available to the majority.
  • Another reason why we have a Constitution is precisely to prevent this tyranny or domination by the majority of a minority.
  • The third significant reason why we need a Constitution is to save us from ourselves.
  • The Constitution helps to protect us against certain decisions that we might take that could have an adverse effect on the larger principles that the country believes in.

→ The Indian Constitution: Key Features

  • By the beginning of the twentieth century, the Indian national movement had been active in the struggle for independence from British rule for several decades.
  • During the freedom struggle the nationalists had devoted a great deal of time to imagining and planning what a free India would be like.
  • The leaders work was to work out the ways in which a democratic government would be set up in India and the rules that would determine its functioning.
  • • This was done not by one person but by a group of around 300 people who became members of the Constituent Assembly in 1946 and who met periodically for the next three years to write India’s Constitution.
  • When the Constitution was being written, India was going through considerable turmoil. The partition of the country into India and Pakistan was imminent, some of the Princely States remained undecided about their future, and the socio-economic condition of the vast mass of people appeared dismal.
  • The final document also reflects its concern for eradicating poverty through socio-economic reforms as well as emphasising the crucial role the people can play in choosing their representatives.

→ The key features of the Indian Constitution are given below:

  • Federalism
  • Parliamentary Form of Government
  • Separation of Powers
  • Fundamental Rights
  • Secularism

→ Federalism:

  • This refers to the existence of more than one level of government in the country. In India, we have governments at the state level and at the centre. Panchayati Raj is the third tier of government.
  • The vast number of communities in India meant that a system of government needed to be devised that did not involve only persons sitting in the capital city of New Delhi and making decisions for everyone.
  • It was important to have another level of government in the states so that decisions could be made for that particular area.
  • While each state in India enjoys autonomy in exercising powers on certain issues, subjects of national concern require that all of these states follow the laws of the central government.
  • Under federalism, the states are not merely agents of the federal government but draw their authority from the Constitution as well. All persons in India are governed by laws and policies made by each of these levels of government.

JAC Class 8 Social Science Notes Civics Chapter 1 The Indian Constitution

→ Parliamentary Form of Government:

  • The different tiers of government consist of representatives who are elected by the people.
  • The Constitution of India guarantees universal adult suffrage for all citizens.
  • The people of India have a direct role in electing their representatives.
  • Every citizen of the country, irrespective of his/her social background, can also contest in elections. These representatives are accountable to the people.

→ Separation of Powers:

  • According to the Constitution, there are three organs of government. They are the legislature, the executive and the judiciary.
  • The legislature refers to our elected representatives.
  • The executive is a smaller group of people who are responsible for implementing laws and running the government.
  • The judiciary refers to the system of courts in this country.
  • In order to prevent the misuse of power by any one branch of government, the Constitution says that each of these organs . should exercise different powers.

→ Fundamental Rights:

  • The section on Fundamental Rights has often been referred to as the ‘conscience’ of the Indian Constitution.
  • Fundamental Rights protect citizens against the arbitrary and absolute exercise of power by the State.
  • The Constitution guarantees the rights of individuals against the State as well as against other individuals.
  • The Constitution also guarantees the rights of minorities against the majority.
  • As Dr Ambedkar has said about these Fundamental Rights, their object is two-fold.
  • The first objective is that every citizen must be in a position to claim those rights.
  • Secondly, these rights must be binding upon every authority that has got the power to make laws.
  • The Constitution also has a section called Directive Principles of State Policy.
  • This section was designed by the members of the Constituent Assembly to ensure greater social and economic reforms and to serve as a guide to the independent Indian State to institute laws and policies that help reduce the poverty of the masses.

→ Secularism:
A secular state is one in which the state does not officially promote any one religion as the state religion.

JAC Class 8 Social Science Notes

JAC Class 8 Social Science Notes Civics Chapter 2 Understanding Secularism

JAC Board Class 8th Social Science Notes Civics Chapter 2 Understanding Secularism

→ The acts of discrimination take place more easily when one religion is given official recognition by the State at the expense of other religions.

→ What is Secularism?

  • The Indian Constitution allows individuals the freedom to live by their religious beliefs and practices as they interpret these.
  • In keeping with this idea of religious freedom for all, India also adopted a strategy of separating the power of religion and the power of the State.
  • Secularism refers to this separation of religion from the State.

JAC Class 8 Social Science Notes Civics Chapter 2 Understanding Secularism

→ Why is it Important to Separate Religion from the State?

  • The most important aspect of secularism is its separation of religion from State power. This is important for a country to function democratically.
  • If the majority religious group has access to State power. then it could quite easily use this power and financial resources to discriminate against and persecute persons of other religions.
  • This tyranny of the majority could result in discrimination, coercion and at times even the killing of religious minorities.
  • The tyranny of the majority and the violation of Fundamental Rights that can result is one reason why it is important to separate the State and religion in democratic societies.
  • Another reason that is important to separate religion from the State in democratic societies is because we also need to protect the freedom of individuals to exit from their religion, embrace another religion or have the freedom to interpret religious teachings differently.

→ What is Indian Secularism?

  • The Indian Constitution mandates that the Indian State be secular.
  • According to the Constitution, only a secular State can realise its objectives to ensure the following:
    • That one religious community does not dominate another;
    • That some members do not dominate other members of the same religious community;
    • That the State does not enforce any particular religion nor take away the religious freedom of individuals.
  • The Indian State works in various ways to prevent the domination. First, it uses a strategy of distancing itself from religion.
  • The Indian State is not ruled by a religious group and nor does it support any one religion.
  • Government schools cannot promote any one religion either in their morning prayers or through religious celebrations. This rule does not apply to private schools.
  • The second way in which Indian secularism works to prevent the domination is through a strategy of non-interference.
  • The third way in which Indian secularism works to prevent the domination is through a strategy of intervention.
  • In order to prevent the religion-based exclusion and discrimination of Tower castes’, the Indian Constitution bans untouchability.
  • To ensure that laws relating to equal inheritance rights are respected, the State may have to intervene in the religion-based ‘personal laws’ of communities.
  • The intervention of the State can also be in the form of support.
  • The Indian Constitution grants the right to religious communities to set up their own schools and colleges.
  • The First Amendment of the U.S. Constitution prohibits the legislature from making laws ‘respecting an establishment of religion’ or that ‘prohibit the free exercise of religion’.
  • In the U.S.A., the separation between State and religion means that neither the State nor religion can interfere in the affairs of one another.
  • Unlike the strict separation between religion and the State in American secularism, in Indian secularism the State can intervene in religious affairs. This is the difference.

JAC Class 8 Social Science Notes Civics Chapter 2 Understanding Secularism

→ In Indian secularism, though the State is not strictly separate from religion it does maintain a principled distance vis-a-vis religion.

  • This means that any interference in religion by the State has to be based on the ideals laid out in the Constitution.
  • The Indian State is secular and works in various ways to prevent religious domination.
  • The Indian Constitution guarantees Fundamental Rights that are based on these secular principles.
  • The knowledge that such rights exist makes us sensitive to the violations that occurs and enables us to take action when these violations take place.

JAC Class 8 Social Science Notes

JAC Class 8 Social Science Notes Civics Chapter 3 Why Do We Need A Parliament?

JAC Board Class 8th Social Science Notes Civics Chapter 3 Why Do We Need A Parliament?

→ The Parliament enables citizens of India to participate in decision making and control the government, thus making it the most important symbol of Indian democracy and a key feature of the Constitution.

→ Why should People Decide?

  • People from various backgrounds joined the struggle and they were inspired by the ideas of freedom, equality and participation in decision- making.
  • As far back as 1885, the Indian National Congress demanded that there be elected members in the legislature with a right to discuss the budget and ask questions.
  • The Government of India Act 1909, allowed for some elected representation.
  • While these early legislatures under the British government were in response to the growing demands of the nationalists, they did not allow for all adults to vote nor could people participate in decision making.
  • With the coming of independence, we were going to be citizens of a free country.
  • This did not mean that the government could do what it felt like, it meant that the government had to be sensitive to people’s needs and demands.

JAC Class 8 Social Science Notes Civics Chapter 3 Why Do We Need A Parliament?

→ People and their Representatives

  • The take-off point for a democracy is the idea of consent, i.e., the desire, approval and participation of people.
  • The basic idea in the democratic government is that the individual or the citizen are the most important person and that in principle the government as well as other public institutions need to have the trust of these citizens.
  • People would elect their representatives to the Parliament, then, one group from among these elected representatives form the government.
  • The Parliament, which is made up of all representatives together, controls and guides the government.

→ The Role of the Parliament

  • Created after 1947, the Indian Parliament is an expression of the faith that the people of India have in principles of democracy.
  • The Parliament in our system has immense powers because it is the representative of the people.
  • The Lok Sabha is usually elected once every five years.
  • Each of these constituencies elects one person to the Parliament. The candidates who contest elections usually belong to different political parties.
  • Once elected, these candidates become Members of Parliament or MPs. These MPs together make up the Parliament.
  • Once elections to the Parliament have taken place, the Parliament needs to perform the following functions:

→ To Select the National Government

  • Parliament of India consists of the President, the Rajya Sabha and the Lok Sabha.
  • After the Lok Sabha elections, a list is prepared showing how many MPs belong to each political party.
  • For a political party to form the government, they must have a majority of elected MPs.
  • The Opposition in Parliament is formed by all the political parties that oppose the majority party/coalition formed.
  • The largest amongst these parties is called the Opposition party.
  • One of the most important functions of the Lok Sabha is to select the executive.
  • The Prime Minister of India is the leader of the ruling party in the Lok Sabha.
  • From the MPs who belong to the majority party, the Prime Minister selects ministers to work with her to implement decisions.
  • These ministers then take charge of different areas of government functioning like health, education, finance, etc.
  • The different political parties join together with similar interests as they didn’t get majority of votes and who are interested in similar concerns to form what is known as a coalition government.
  • The Rajya Sabha functions primarily as the representative of the states of India in the Parliament.
  • The Rajya Sabha can also initiate legislation and a bill is required to pass through the Rajya Sabha in order to become a law.
  • The members of the Rajya Sabha are elected by the elected members of the Legislative Assemblies of various states.

JAC Class 8 Social Science Notes Civics Chapter 3 Why Do We Need A Parliament?

→ To Control, Guide and Inform the Government

  • The question hour is an important mechanism through which MPs can elicit information about the working of the government.
  • This is a very important way through which the Parliament controls the executive.
  • Asking questions of the government is a crucial task for every MP.
  • The Opposition parties play a critical role in the healthy functioning of a democracy.
  • The government gets valuable feedback and is kept on its toes by the questions asked by the MPs.
  • The MPs as representatives of the people have a central role in controlling, guiding and informing Parliament and this is a key aspect of the functioning of Indian democracy.

→ Law-Making
Law-making is a significant function of Parliament.

→ Who are the People in Parliament?

  • Parliament now has more and more people from different backgrounds.
  • There has also been an increase in political participation from the Dalits and backward classes.
  • There is a realisation that when interests and experiences separate us it is important to ensure that communities that have been historically marginalised are given adequate representation.
  • With this in mind, some seats are reserved in Parliament for SCs and STs.
  • Similarly, it has more recently been suggested that there should be reservation of seats for women.
  • It is issues of this kind that force the country to ask certain difficult and often unresolved questions about whether our democratic system is representative enough.

JAC Class 8 Social Science Notes

JAC Class 8 Social Science Notes Civics Chapter 4 Understanding Laws

JAC Board Class 8th Social Science Notes Civics Chapter 4 Understanding Laws

→ Do Laws Apply to All?

  • Members instituted several provisions in the Constitution that would establish the rule of law.
  • The most important of these was that all persons in independent India are equal before the law.
  • The law cannot discriminate between persons on the basis of their religion, caste or gender.
  • What the rule of law means is that all laws apply equally to all citizens of the country and no one can be above the law7.
  • Any crime or violation of law has a specific punishment as well as a process through which the guilt of the person has to be established.
  • In ancient India, there were innumerable and often overlapping local laws.
  • Different communities enjoyed different degrees of autonomy in administering these laws among their own.
  • The British colonialists introduced the rule of law in India.

→ Historians have disputed this claim on several grounds, two of which include:

  • first that colonial law was arbitrary, and
  • second that the Indian nationalists played a prominent role in the development of the legal sphere in British India.

JAC Class 8 Social Science Notes Civics Chapter 4 Understanding Laws

→ The Sedition Act of 1870 – The idea of sedition was very broadly understood within this Act. Any person protesting or criticising the British government could be arrested without due trial.

  • Indian nationalists also began fighting for greater equality and wanted to change the idea of law from a set of rules that they were forced to obey, to law as including ideas of justice.
  • By the end of the nineteenth century, the Indian legal profession also began emerging and demanded respect in colonial courts.
  • There w7ere several ways in which Indians played a major role in the evolution of the rule of law during the colonial period.
  • Every year our representatives pass several new laws as well as amend existing ones.

→ How Do New Laws Come About?

  • The Parliament has an important role in making laws.
  • An important role of Parliament is to be sensitive to the problems faced by people.
  • The role of citizens is crucial in helping Parliament frame different concerns that people might have into laws.
  • The voice of citizen can be heard through TV reports, newspaper editorials, radio broadcasts, local meetings, all of which help in making the work that Parliament does more accessible and transparent to the people.

JAC Class 8 Social Science Notes Civics Chapter 4 Understanding Laws

→ Unpopular and Controversial Laws:

  • Sometimes a law can be constitutionally valid and hence legal, but it can continue to be unpopular and unacceptable to people because they feel that the intention behind it is unfair and harmful.
  • In a democracy like ours, citizens can express their unwillingness to accept repressive laws framed by the Parliament.
  • When a large number of people begin to feel that a wrong law has been passed, then there is pressure on the Parliament to change this.
  • If the law favours one group and disregards the other it will be controversial and lead to conflict.
  • People who think that the law is not fair can approach the court to decide on the issue.
  • The court has the power to modify or cancel laws if it finds that they don’t adhere to the Constitution.
  • We should bear in mind that it is the extent, involvement and enthusiasm of the people that helps Parliament perform its representative functions properly.

JAC Class 8 Social Science Notes

JAC Class 8 Social Science Notes Civics Chapter 5 Judiciary

JAC Board Class 8th Social Science Notes Civics Chapter 5 Judiciary

→ As an organ of government, the judiciary plays a crucial role in the functioning of India’s democracy. It can play this role only because it is independent.

→ What is the Role of the Judiciary?

  • Courts take decisions on a very large number of issues.
  • The work that the judiciary does can be divided into the following:
  • Dispute Resolution: The judicial system provides a mechanism for resolving disputes between citizens, etc.
  • Judicial Review: As the final interpreter of the Constitution, the judiciary also has the power to strike down particular laws passed by the Parliament if it believes that these are a violation of the basic structure of the Constitution. This is called judicial review.
  • Upholding the Law and Enforcing Fundamental Rights: Every citizen of India can approach the Supreme Court or the High Court if they believe that their Fundamental Rights have been violated.

JAC Class 8 Social Science Notes Civics Chapter 5 Judiciary

→ What is an Independent Judiciary?

  • Rich and powerful people in India sometimes try to influence the judicial
    process, the Indian Constitution protects against this kind of situation by providing for the independence of the judiciary.
  • One aspect of this independence is the ‘separation of powers’.
  • The other branches of government, the legislature and the executive cannot interfere in the work of the judiciaiy. The courts are not under the government and do not act on their behalf.
  • It is the independence of the judiciary that allows the courts to play a central role in ensuring that there is no misuse of power by the legislature and the executive.
  • It also plays a crucial role in protecting the Fundamental Rights of citizens because anyone can approach the courts if they believe that their rights have been violated.

→ What is the structure of Court in India?

  • There are three different levels of courts in our country.
  • The courts that most people interact with are called subordinate or district courts. These are usually at the district or Tehsil level or in towns and they hear many kinds of cases.
  • Each state is divided into districts that are presided over by a District Judge.
  • Each state has a High Court which is the highest court of that state.
  • At the top is the Supreme Court which is located in New Delhi and is presided over by the Chief Justice of India.
  • In India, we have an integrated judicial system, meaning that the decisions made by higher courts are binding on the lower courts.
  • A person can appeal to a higher court if they believe that the judgment passed by the lower court is not just.

→ What are the Different Branches of the Legal System?
In addition to criminal law, the legal system also deals with civil law cases.

JAC Class 8 Social Science Notes Civics Chapter 5 Judiciary

→ Does Everyone Have Access to the Courts?

  • In principle, all citizens of India can access the courts in this country. This implies that every citizen has a right to justice through the courts.
  • While the courts are available for all, in reality access to courts has always been difficult for a vast majority of the poor in India.
  • Legal procedures involve a lot of money and paper work as well as take up a lot of time.
  • The Supreme Court in the early 1980s devised a mechanism of Public Interest Litigation or PIL to increase access to justice.
  • The legal process was greatly simplified and even a letter or telegram addressed to the Supreme Court or the High Court could be treated as a PIL.
  • For the common person, access to courts is access to justice.
  • The courts exercise a crucial role in interpreting the Fundamental Rights of citizens and the courts interpreted Article 21 of the Constitution on the Right to Life to include the Right to Food.
  • There are also court judgments that people believe work against the best interests of the common person.
  • Another issue that affects the common person’s access to justice is the inordinately long number of years that courts take to hear a case.
  • The members of the Constituent Assembly had quite correctly envisioned a system of courts with an independent judiciary as a key feature of our democracy.

JAC Class 8 Social Science Notes

JAC Class 8 Social Science Notes Civics Chapter 6 Understanding Our Criminal Justice System

JAC Board Class 8th Social Science Notes Civics Chapter 6 Understanding Our Criminal Justice System

→ After a person is arrested, it is a court of law that decides whether the accused person is guilty or not.

  • According to the Constitution, every individual charged of a crime has to be given a fair trial.
  • According to Article 22 of the Constitution, ‘ every person has a Fundamental Right to be
    defended by a lawyer.
  • Article 39A of the Constitution places a duty upon the State to provide a lawyer to any citizen who is unable to engage one due to poverty or other disability.

JAC Class 8 Social Science Notes Civics Chapter 6 Understanding Our Criminal Justice System

→ What is the Role of the Police in Investigating a Crime?

  • One important function of the police is to investigate any complaint about the commission of a crime.
  • An investigation includes recording statements of witnesses and collecting different kinds of evidence.
  • Police investigations always have to be conducted in accordance with law and with full respect for human rights.

→ Article 22 of the Constitution and criminal law guarantee to every arrested person the following Fundamental Rights:

  • The Right to be informed at the time of arrest of the offence for which the person is being arrested.
  • The Right to be presented before a magistrate within 24 hours of arrest.
  • The Right not to be ill-treated or tortured during arrest or in custody.
  • Confessions made in police custody cannot be used as evidence against the accused.
  • A boy under 15 years of age and women cannot be called to the police station only for questioning.

→ What is the Role of the Public Prosecutor?

  • A criminal offence is regarded as a public wrong.
  • What is meant by this is that it is considered to have been committed not only against the affected victims but against society as a whole.
  • In court, it is the Public Prosecutor who represents the interests of the State.
  • As an officer of the court, it is his/ her duty to act impartially and present the full and material facts, witnesses and evidence before the court to enable the court to decide the case.

→ What is the Role of the Judge?

  • The judge decides whether the accused person is guilty or innocent on the basis of the evidence presented and in accordance with the law.
  • If the accused is convicted, then the judge pronounces the sentence.

JAC Class 8 Social Science Notes Civics Chapter 6 Understanding Our Criminal Justice System

→ What is a Fair Trial?

  • A fair trial ensures that Article 21 of the Constitution is upheld.
  • For a trial to be fair, several different procedures have to be observed. Article 21 of the Constitution that guarantees the Right to Life states that a person’s life or liberty can be taken away only by following a reasonable and just legal procedure.
  • It is significant that the judge decided the matter only on the basis of the evidence before the court.
  • All need to work to ensure that every citizen, irrespective of their class, caste, gender, religious and ideological backgrounds get a fair trial when accused.
  • The rule of law which says that everyone is equal before the law would not make much sense if every citizen were not guaranteed a fair trial by the Constitution.

JAC Class 8 Social Science Notes

JAC Class 8 Social Science Notes Geography Chapter 3 Mineral and Power Resources

JAC Board Class 8th Social Science Notes Geography Chapter 3 Mineral and Power Resources

→ A mineral is a naturally occurring substance that has a definite chemical composition.

  • Minerals are not evenly distributed over the areas. They are concentrated in a particular area or rock formations.
  • Some minerals are found in regions which are not easily accessible such as the Arctic ocean bed and Antarctica.
  • Minerals are created by natural processes without any human interference. On the basis of their physical properties such as colour, density, hardness and chemical property such as solubility, they are classified and identified.

→ Types of Minerals:

  • On earth, there are over three thousand different minerals.
  • On the basis of composition, minerals are categorised as:
    • Metallic minerals
    • non-metallic minerals.
  • Metals in raw form are present in metallic minerals.
  • The hard substances that conduct heat and electricity and have a characteristic lustre or shine are known as metals. Iron ore, bauxite, manganese ore are some examples.

JAC Class 8 Social Science Notes Geography Chapter 3 Mineral and Power Resources

→ Metallic minerals are of two types:

  • Ferrous minerals are such as iron ore, manganese and chromites contain iron.
  • A non-ferrous mineral does not contain iron but may contain some other metal such as gold, silver, copper or lead.

→ Non-metallic minerals do not contain metals.

  • Limestone, mica and gypsum are non- metallic minerals.
  • The mineral fuels like coal and petroleum are also non-metallic minerals.
  • Minerals can be extracted by mining, drilling or quarrying.
  • Mining is the process of taking out minerals from rocks buried under the earth’s surface.

→ Mining is categorised into two:

  • Open cast mining
  • Shaft mining

→ In open-cast mining, minerals that lie at shallow depths are taken out by removing the surface layer.

  • In shaft mining, deep bores known as shafts, have to be made to reach mineral deposits that lie at great depths.
  • Petroleum and natural gas occur deep below the earth’s surface. Drilling is done to take them out and deep wells are bored.
  • Quarrying is the method in which minerals that lie near the surface are simply dug out.

→ Distribution of Minerals:

  • Metallic minerals are found in igneous and metamorphic rock formations that form large plateaus.
  • Iron-ore in north Sweden, copper and nickel deposits in Ontario, Canada, iron, nickel, chromites and platinum in South Africa are some of the examples of minerals found in these rocks.
  • Non-metallic minerals are found in sedimentary rock formations of plains and young fold mountains contain such as limestone.
  • Limestone deposits of Caucasus region of France, manganese deposits of Georgia and Ukraine and phosphate beds of Algeria are some examples. Coal and petroleum, the mineral fuels are also found in the sedimentary strata.

→ Asia:

  • China and India have large iron ore deposits. The continent produces more than half of the world’s tin.
  • The world’s leading tin producers are China, Malaysia and Indonesia.
  • China is in the leading position in production of lead, antimony and tungsten.
  • Asia also has deposits of manganese, bauxite, nickel, zinc and copper.

→ Europe:

  • Europe is the leading producer of iron-ore in the world.
  • Russia, Ukraine, Sweden and France have the large deposits of iron ore.
  • In eastern Europe and European Russia, minerals found are copper, lead, zinc, manganese and nickel.

JAC Class 8 Social Science Notes Geography Chapter 3 Mineral and Power Resources

→ North America:

  • The mineral deposits are situated in three zones:
    • the Canadian region north of the Great Lakes,
    • the Appalachian region and
    • the mountain ranges of the west.
  • In the Canadian Shield Region, iron ore, nickel, gold, uranium and copper are found.
  • In the Appalachians region, coal is found.
  • In Western Cordilleras, vast deposits of copper, lead, zinc, gold and silver are found.

→ South America:

  • The largest producer of high grade iron-ore in the world is Brazil.
  • The leading producers of copper are Chile and Peru.
  • Among the world’s largest producers of tin are Brazil and Bolivia.
  • In Venezuela, Argentina, Chile, Peru and Columbia, mineral oil is found.

→ Africa:

  • The world’s largest producer of diamonds, gold and platinum is Africa.
  • A major portion of the world’s gold is produced by South Africa, Zimbabwe and Zaire.
  • Copper, iron ore, chromium, uranium, cobalt and bauxite are found here.
  • In Nigeria, Libya and Angola, oil is found.

→ Australia:

  • The largest producer of bauxite in the world is Australia.
  • The largest deposits of gold is found in Kalgoorlie and Coolgardie areas of western Australia.
  • It is a leading producer of gold, diamond, iron ore, tin and nickel.

→ Antarctica:

  • Iron ore, gold, silver and oil are present in commercial quantities.
  • Sufficient and significant amount of deposits of coal in the Transantarctic Mountains and iron near the Prince Charles Mountains of East Antarctica is predicted.

→ Uses of Minerals:

  • Minerals are used in many industries in different forms.
  • Minerals which are used for gems and jewellery are usually hard. These are later processed.
  • Copper is used in almost everything from coins to pipes.
  • Silicon is used in the computer industry and is obtained from quartz.
  • Aluminum obtained from its ore.
  • In automobiles, airplanes, bottling industry, buildings and even in kitchen cookware, bauxite is used.

→ Conservation of Minerals:

  • Minerals are a non-renewable resource.
  • In the process of mining, it is necessary to reduce the wastage.
  • Another way in which the mineral resources can be conserved is recycling of metals.

JAC Class 8 Social Science Notes Geography Chapter 3 Mineral and Power Resources

→ Power Resources:

  • We need power or energy for industry, agriculture, transport, communication and defense.
  • Power resources may be broadly categorised as:
    • conventional resources
    • non-conventional resources.

→ Conventional Sources:

  • Those energy which have been in common use for a long time are known as the conventional energy.
  • The two main conventional energy sources are:
    • Firewood
    • Fossil fuels

→ Firewood:

  • More than fifty per cent of the energy used by villagers comes from firewood in our country.
  • It is mainly used for cooking and heating.

→ Fossil Fuel:

  • Fossil fuels are the fuel which are formed by the natural processes.
  • For millions of years, remains of plants and animals which were buried under the earth got converted by the heat and pressure into fossil fuels.
  • Fossil fuel such as coal, petroleum and natural gas are the main sources of conventional energy.

→ Coal:

  • Electricity from coal is known as thermal power.
  • Coal is also known as Buried Sunshine because the coal which we are using today was formed millions of years ago when giant ferns and swamps got buried under the layers of earth.
  • In India, the coal producing areas are Raniganj, Jharia, Dhanbad and Bokaro in Jharkhand.
  • The leading coal producers of the world are China, USA, Germany, Russia, South Africa and France.

→ Petroleum:

  • A thick black liquid is known as Petroleum. Since they are very valuable, petroleum and its derivatives are called Black Gold.
  • Petroleum is found between the layers of rocks and is drilled from oil fields which is located in off-shore and coastal areas. Then sent to refineries which process the crude oil and produce a variety of products such as diesel, petrol, kerosene, wax, plastics and lubricants.
  • The chief petroleum producing countries are Iran, Iraq, Saudi Arabia and Qatar.
  • The leading producers in India are Digboi in Assam, Bombay High in Mumbai and the deltas of Krishna and Godavari rivers.

→ Natural Gas:

  • Natural gas is found with petroleum deposits and is released when crude oil is brought to the surface. Very few countries in the world have sufficient amount of natural gas reserves of their own.
  • Russia, Norway, UK and the Netherlands are the major producers of natural gas. In India, Jaisalmer, Krishna Godavari delta, Tripura and some areas off shore in Mumbai have natural gas resources.
  • The consumption of fossil fuels has increased which led to their depletion at an alarming rate. The toxic and poisonous pollutants released from burning these fuels are major cause for concern.

JAC Class 8 Social Science Notes Geography Chapter 3 Mineral and Power Resources

→ Hydel Power:

  • Rainwater or river water stored in dams produce electricity by a specific method. This electricity is known as Hydro electricity.
  • The water discharged after the generation of electricity is used for irrigation. The world’s electricity is produced by hydel power is one fourth.
  • Paraguay, Norway, Brazil, and China are the leading producers of hydroelectricity.
  • In India, some important hydel power stations are Bhakra Nangal, Gandhi Sagar, Nagarjun Sagar and Damodar valley projects.

→ Non-Conventional Sources of Energy:
There is need for using non-conventional sources such as solar energy, wind energy, tidal energy which are renewable because the increasing use of fossil fuels is leading to its shortage.

→ Solar Energy:

  • Solar energy trapped from the sun can be used in solar cells to produce electricity. Many of these cells are joined into solar panels to generate power for heating and lighting purpose.
  • Solar energy is also used in solar heaters, solar cookers, solar dryers and traffic signals.

→ Wind Energy:

  • Wind mills have been used for grinding grain and lifting water since ancient times. In modem time, the wind mills with high speed winds rotate the wind mill which is connected to a generator to produce electricity.
  • Windfarms are found in Netherlands, Germany, Denmark, UK, USA and Spain which are known for their wind energy production.

→ Nuclear Power:

  • Nuclear power is obtained from energy stored in the nuclei of atoms of naturally occurring radioactive elements such as uranium and thorium.
  • Rajasthan and Jharkhand have large deposits of Uranium. Thorium is found in large quantities in the Monozite sands of Kerala.
  • In India, the nuclear power stations are situated in Kalpakkam in Tamilnadu, Tarapur in Maharashtra, Ranapratap Sagar near Kota in Rajasthan, Narora in Uttar Pradesh and Kaiga in Karnataka.

→ Geothermal Energy:

  • Geothermal energy is the heat energy which is obtained from the earth. This heat energy can be used to generate power.
  • USA has the world’s largest geothermal power plants followed by New Zealand, Iceland, Philippines and Central America. In India, geothermal plants are situated in Manikaran in Himachal Pradesh and Puga Valley in Ladakh.

→ Tidal Energy:

  • Tidal energy is the energy generated from tides.
  • Electricity is produced during high tide the energy of the tides is used to turn the turbine installed in the dam.
  • Russia, France and the Gulf of Kachchh in India have huge tidal mill farms.

JAC Class 8 Social Science Notes Geography Chapter 3 Mineral and Power Resources

→ Biogas:

  • Biogas is a gaseous fuel made of organic waste such as dead plant and animal material, animal dung and kitchen waste. These wastes are converted into the gaseous fuel.
  • The organic waste is decomposed by bacteria in biogas digesters to emit biogas which is a mixture of methane and carbon dioxide.

JAC Class 8 Social Science Notes