RBSE Solutions for Class 8 Social Science Civics Chapter 10 Law and Social Justice

Rajasthan Board RBSE Solutions for Class 8 Social Science Civics Chapter 10 Law and Social Justice Textbook Exercise Questions and Answers.

RBSE Class 8 Social Science Solutions Civics Chapter 10 Law and Social Justice

RBSE Class 8 Social Science Civics Law and Social Justice InText Questions and Answers

Page-121

Question 1. Why do we need a law on minimum
wages?
Answer:
Many owners do not give their workers the right wages. Since laborers need work, they are unable to maintain and are willing to work at very low wages. Workers need a minimum wage law to protect against this exploitation.

Page-122

Question 1. 
Table I provides some Important laws relating to the protection of these various Interests. Column (2) and column (3) in table I state why and for whom these laws are necessary. Based on discussions In the classroom, you have to complete the remaining entitles In the table.
Answer:

Law	Why is it necessary	Whose interests does the law protect?
Minimum Wages Act specifies that wages should not be below a specified minimum.	Many workers are denied fair wages by their employers. Because they badly need work, workers have no bargaining power and are paid low wages.	This law is meant to protect the interests of all workers; particularly farm laborers, construction workers, factory workers, and domestic workers.
Law specifying that there be adequate safety measures in workplaces. For example, alarm systems, emergency exits, and properly-functioning machinery.	This law is compulsory as it ensures the safety of workers. Many business people pay attention to earning maximum profit out of their business and neglect the safety measures of workers.	This 'law will protect workers’ interests. People living near factory areas will also get the benefit from this.
Law requires, that the quality of goods meets certain prescribed standards. For example, electrical appliances have to meet safety standards.	Consumers might be put at risk by the poor quality of products such as electrical appliances, food, and medicines.	This law is meant to protect the interest of the general public who are the end consumers of any product
The law requires that the prices of essential goods are not high. For example, sugar, kerosene, and foodgrains.	This law will help in keeping prices stable. It has been observed that people living below the poverty line could not	The interest of the poor who will otherwise be unable to afford these goods.
The law requires that factories do not pollute air or water.	afford these goods and the children in rural areas suffer from malnutrition.	This law is purely in the public interest.
Law against child labor in workplaces.	To counter the problem associated with air & water pollution. To protect the environment from harmful gases.	This law protects the children’s Fundamental Right which includes the Right to Education.

Page-127

Question 1. 
Why -do you think enforcement of safety laws is important in any factory? 
Answer:
Enforcement of safety laws is important in any factory to ensure the Rights to Life guaranteed under Article 21 of the Constitution are. not violated.

Question 2. 
Can you point to a few other situations where laws (or rules) exist but people do not follow them because of poor enforcement? (For example, over-speeding by motorists, not wearing a seat belt/helmet, and use of mobile phone while driving). What are the problems in enforcement? Can you suggest some ways in which enforcement can be improved?
Answer:
Yes, there are some situations:

1. Smoking in public places where smoking is prohibited.
2. Roadside urination.
3. Not crossing the road from the Zebra crossing.
4. Crossing railway tracks even when gates are closed.
5. High speeds of motor vehicles.
6. Not wearing helmet/seat belt.
7. Using mobile phones while driving.
8. Breaking traffic signals, etc.

Problems in enforcing laws:

1. People are not aware of the laws.
2. There are problems in enforcing the law due to weak laws, corrupt machinery of their implementation, and not punishing those who do not follow the law.
3. Lack of adequate staff such as lack of traffic policemen. 

Suggestions for improvement:

1. People should be made aware of general laws.
2. For the correct implementation of the law, it is necessary that the laws should be absolutely clear. Before implementing them, awareness should be created in the society about them.
3. The government machinery should have transparency in implementing the laws and there should be a clear facility for punishing the employee who shows carelessness in implementing the laws.
4. Also, there should be a clear system of punishment for those who do not follow the law.
5. Adequate staff availability must be ensured.

Page-128

Question 1. 
A clean environment is a public facility. Can you explain this statement? 
Answer:
A clean environment is a public facility as it is essential for the lifelike any other basic requirement. It is the duty of the government to provide and make provisions for a safe and clean environment.

Question 2.
Why do we need new laws?
Answer:
To ensure public environment safety. 

Question 3. 
Why are companies and contractors able to violate environmental laws?
Answer:
Companies and contractors are able to violate environmental laws because the laws are not strictly enforced.

Page-129

Question 1. 
Do you think everyone got justice in the case cited above?
Answer:
No.

Question 2. 
Can you think of other ways in which the environment can be protected? Discuss in class.
Answer:
Students should discuss this with the help of the subject teacher. Few measures can be:

1. Using public vehicles, 
2. Banning of posters, 
3. Afforestation, 
4. Proper disposal of garbage, 
5. Say “No” to plastic, 
6. Following the method of 3 Rs.

RBSE Class 8 Social Science Law and Social Justice Textbook Questions and Answers 

Question 1. 
Talk to two workers (For example, construction workers, farmworkers, factory workers, or workers at any shop) to find out if they are receiving the minimum wages laid down by law.
Answer:
NOTE: Students do this project work themselves.

Question 2.
What are the advantages to foreign companies in setting up production in India? 
Answer:
The advantage to foreign companies in setting up production in India is cheap labor. Wages that the companies pay to workers, say in the U.S.A., are higher than what they have to pay to workers in poorer countries like India. In India, not only do they get cheap labor but the laborers can also work for more hours. Thirdly, additional expenses such as housing facilities for workers are also fewer.

Thus, companies can save costs and earn higher profits. Fourth, cost-cutting can be done by lowering safety measures. Unemployment is so high here that a lot of people are willing to work in unsafe conditions instead of for a low wage. Making use Of the workers’ vulnerability, employers ignore safety in workplaces.

Question 3. 
Do you think the victims of the Bhopal gas tragedy got justice? Discuss.
Answer:
People suffering from the Bhopal gas tragedy have not gotten social justice. Even after 36 years, people are struggling for justice. They are demanding health facilities and jobs for people poisoned by Union Carbide. They are also agitating for the punishment of Anderson, the Union Carbide Chairman but the government has not been able to punish Anderson yet. They have not yet received adequate compensation.

Question 4. 
What do we mean when we speak of law enforcement? Who is responsible for enforcement? Why is enforcement so important? 
Answer:
The government has to ensure that these laws are implemented. This means that the law must be enforced. Enforcement becomes even more important when the law seeks to protect the weak from the strong. For instance, to ensure that every worker gets fair wages, the government has to regularly inspect worksites and punish those who violate the law.

While the government has a leading role in enforcing the law, people can exert pressure so that both private companies and the government act in the interests of society. If laws are not enforced then the powerful people will continue to violate the laws and the powerless will continue to be exploited.

Question 5. 
How can laws ensure that markets work in a manner that is fair? Give two examples to support your answer.
Answer:
As with the law on minimum wages, which is meant to protect workers, there are also laws that protect the interests of producers and consumers in the market. These help ensure that the relations between these three parties: the worker, consumer, and producer: are governed in a manner that is not exploitative. These laws, it is tried to curb unfair practices in the market.

Question 6. 
Imagine yourself to be a worker working in a chemical factory, which has received orders from the government to move to a different site 100 km away from the present location. Write about how your life would change? Readout your responses in the classroom.
Answer:
(The order of moving the polluting chemical factory to another place 100 km away from the present place, may put the livelihood of the laborers working in the factory at risk. Therefore, along with protecting the environment, the government should also pay attention to the safety of workers while giving orders). You can make your opinion in this context. Read your opinion in front of the class.

Question 7. 
Write a paragraph on the various roles of the government that you have read about in this unit.
Answer:
Markets everywhere tend to be exploitative of people whether workers, consumers, or producers. To protect people from such exploitation, the government makes certain laws. These laws try to ensure that unfair practices are kept at a minimum in the markets. After making the laws the government has to ensure that these laws are implemented so as to protect the weak from the strong.

For the proper working of the laws, the government has to regularly inspect worksites and punish those who violate the law. By making, enforcing, and upholding these laws, the government can control the activities of individuals or private companies so as to ensure social justice. Thus, the government should not only make the right laws but also implement them properly. If the laws are weak and not implemented properly then they can cause huge losses.

Question 8. 
What are the sources of environmental pollution in your area? Discuss with respect to (a) air; (b) water and (c) soil. What are the steps being taken to reduce pollution? Can you suggest some other measures? 
Answer:
There are many sources of environmental pollution in our area:
(a) Air Pollution:
Industrial factories, brick kilns, traffic vehicles, etc.

(b) Water Pollution:
Contaminated water coming out of factories, dirty sewage water, sewer water, chemical water derived from dying clothes, contaminated leather skin dyeing water, etc.

(c) Soil Pollution:
Increased use of pesticides and chemical fertilizers, solid waste, contaminated water from factories, soil erosion, and seepage of chemical water into the ground.

The following steps have been taken to prevent pollution:
(1) In response to this pressure from environmental activists and others, in the years following the Bhopal gas tragedy, the Indian government introduced new laws on the environment. Henceforth, the polluter was to be held accountable for the damage done to the environment.

(2) The Supreme Court held that the Right to Life is a Fundamental Right under Article 21 of the Constitution and it includes the right to the enjoyment of pollution-free water and air for full enjoyment of life.

(3) The Supreme Court had ordered all public transport vehicles using diesel to switch to Compressed Natural Gas (CNG). As a result of this move, air pollution in cities like Delhi came down considerably. To stop pollution, a suggestion can be made that we insist on adopting more hygienic techniques and processes in factories and impose fines, on 90 polluters. Chemical fertilizers should be used sparingly. We should plant more and more trees.

Question 9. 
How was the environment treated earlier? What has been the change in perception? Discuss.
Answer:
The environment was treated as a ‘free’ entity and any industry could pollute the air and water without any restrictions. Whether it was our rivers, air, or groundwater the environment was being polluted and the health of people disregarded. Thus, not only was UC a beneficiary of lower safety standards, it didn’t have to spend any money to clean up the pollution. The Bhopal disaster brought the issue of the environment to the forefront. In response to this pressure from environmental activists and others, in the years following the Bhopal gas tragedy, the Indian government introduced new laws on the environment. 

Henceforth, the polluter was to be held accountable for the damage done to the environment. The environment is something that people over generations will share, and it could not be destroyed merely for industrial development. The government is responsible for setting up laws and procedures that can check pollution, clean rivers, and introduce heavy fines for those who pollute.

Question 10. 
What do you think the famous cartoonist R.K. Laxman is trying to convey in this cartoon? How does it relate to the 2016 law that you read about on page 123? 
Answer:
In this cartoon, a boy is hired to help the lady’s son. This is a violation of die 2016 law that prohibits the employment of children under 14 in all occupations and adolescents (14-18 years) in risky occupations and procedures. This has now been made a cognizable offense. Through this cartoon, the cartoonist is satirizing that the woman is telling the burden on the children on one side and on the other hand she is putting the burden on the other children for her child. This cartoon is seen to mock the 2016 law.