RIVER'S TALE-(TEXT)

RIVER'S TALE

ENVIRONMENTAL STUDIES

CBSE-IV

Look carefully at the picture of the river. Read the words given below.

Use these words to make a story. Give a title to your story also. Boat, flowing water, blue, fish, water-plants, river, foul smell, big ship, oil, river banks, factories, washing clothes, animals, other work,

change, city.

Lets us see how the river water flow.

The colour of the river changes as it flows downwards to the plains.

Now see the colour of the water. Water pollution is the main cause of the change in colour of the river water.

How does Water become Dirty?

You saw in the pictures that as the river flowed through or near many villages, towns and cities the water changed.

The people used the river water for many different things such as washing clothes, bathing animals and cleaning utensils.

Many of these activities made the water dirty. The water in the river kept

changing as it flowed through various places. Water in ponds and lakes can also become dirty due to similar reasons.

From where do you get your drinkingwater. We get drinking water from river or a lake. Do you think that like the river in the picture your river or lake can also be affected.

 Because Many towns and factories are built nearrivers so that they can use water from the river. But sometimes the water is not cleaned before it is put back into the river. This dirtying of water (also air and soil) is called pollution.

Pollution can be in a variety of forms:

Rubbish like crisp packets, newspaper and bags. Oil, Poisonous substances, Cans, bottles and other solid objects, Human waste / excrement

Causes of pollution:

There are several causes of water pollution in India. The main causes are briefly described as under:

Urbanisation:

Rapid urbanisation in India during the recent decades has given rise to a number of environmental problems such as water supply, wastewater generation and its collection, treatment and disposal.

Many towns and cities which came up on the banks of rivers have not given a proper thought to problem of wastewater, severage, etc.

Agriculture:

Farmers put fertilizers and pesticides on their crops so that their crops grow better. But these fertilizers and pesticides can be washed through the soil by rain, to end up in rivers. Fertilizers and pesticides are harmful because they cause algae to grow. The algae then destroy water plants.

Factories:

Factories use water from rivers to power machinery or to cool down machinery. Dirty water containing chemicals is put back in the river. Water used for cooling is warmer than the river itself, and this is also a form of pollution.

 Industries:

Most Indian rivers and other sources of fresh water are polluted by industrial wastes or effluents. All these industrial wastes are toxic to life forms that consume this water. The total wastewater generated from all major industrial sources is 83,048 MId which includes 66,700 Mid of cooling water generated from thermal power plants.

Withdrawal of Water:

Indian rivers, particularly the Himalayan Rivers, have plenty of water in their upper course. They are, however, starved of water when they enter the plain area. Irrigation canals whisk away clean water soon after the rivers reach the plains, denying water to flow in the river downstream.

People:

People are sometimes careless and throw rubbish such as bottles and crisp packets directly into rivers.

Effects of water pollution:

Pollution kills water plants and animals. Polluted water also carries diseases. When animals drink the water, they may get diseases which can kill them. People can even get these diseases by eating the infected animal.

This happens a lot in poor countries in Africa where people get untreated water directly from the river. Rivers look unsightly when there is rubbish in them. Polluted rivers smell bad.

Solutions:

Efforts are being made to clean dirtyrivers. Water companies like Southern Water are spending a lot of money to clean up dirty rivers. There are fines for companies and people who deliberately throw rubbish into the river.

We can’t drink sea water because  Seawater is toxic because your body fails eventually when it has to try to get rid of the salt that comes from sea water.

There are many things that dissolve easily in water. Some of these can be very harmful for our body. Hence, it is important that we clean water before drinking it. One of the best ways to do this is to boil the water.

THANKYOU,

NANDITHA

CHANGING TIMES-(TEXT)

CHANGING TIMES

ENVIRONMENTAL STUDIES

CBSE-IV

My name is Chetandas. Many years ago I used to teach children like you. These days I spend my time by writing about the days when I was young. I would love to share some of these with you.

A Big Move

I remember the time when I was nine years old. It must have been over sixty years ago. That was when we lived in Dera Gazikhan.

Today this place is in Pakistan. At that time, there were a lot of problems all around us. I could not understand what was happening. One day Baba told us that we had to leave our village and move to another place.

I was sad to leave my house and my village. That was where I had all my friends. All of us – Baba, Amma, my younger brothers and sisters and I took a train to come here, near Delhi.

Like us, many people from our area also moved. People were saying that our country was being divided into two – India and Pakistan.

Many people from India went to Pakistanjust like we moved to India.

For some time we all stayed in a camp. We lived in big tents that were

put up in a huge ground.

A New Home

One day Baba told us that we had been given some land in Sohna village. He said that we could build our house there. I was very happy.

Baba and Amma worked hard to make the house. We children also helped. Baba dug the soil, and we quickly filled the pans and passed them on to Amma. Gudiya and Amma mixed husk in it. Baba put up the walls.

We brought cow dung from nearby houses. Amma mixed it with the mud. She coated the floor with this mixture, just like she used to do in our old house. Amma used to say that this would keep the insects away.

Then, it was the turn for the roof to be made. Baba made a frame by joining strips of wood and fixed it on the four walls.

We put branches of neem and keekar trees on the frame, so that termites would not harm the wood. Amma put old gunny bags on this and covered them with mud.

Most of the houses around our house were made like ours. A few were different. But I liked my house the best. It was just like our old house.

A Changing House

Time passed quickly. I finished my studies and got a job. Amma- Baba wanted me to get married. I thought that before I got married we should repair our house and build one more room.

In those days, people in cities were using cement. They said that this made the houses stronger. We also thought we would use cement. We used iron and cement for making the roof of the new room.

In those days unbaked bricks were also available in the market. We made the walls with them. 

The use of bricks was useful – we did not need to coat the wall every week.

Once a year we would whitewash the walls. We also built a small kitchen in the courtyard. The kitchen had a mud chulha and place to keep the vessels.

Then I got married, and my wife Suman came to our new house. To cook, Suman used to sit on the floor in the kitchen.  We all used to sit on mats in the kitchen and eat together.

It was a happy time! People used to go out to the field for their toilet in those days. Some of the houses had a separate place for this. We also

made a small toilet with unbaked bricks behind the house.

More Changes

My two sons and a daughter were born in that house. Time passed. The children completed their studies. Fifteen years ago, our daughter Simi got married and moved to Palwal.

When Raju was to get married, we felt that we should get the house ready for the new bride. By then, everyone was using baked bricks.

We also used them for the walls and put a lintel for the roof. We used marble chips and cement for a strong and fancy floor.

In the toilet we put pipes to take away the waste. The kitchen was made bigger.

Now, Raju's wife does not use the clay chulha. She stands while cooking on the gas stove.

Seeing New Things

My younger son Montu moved to Delhi when he got a job there. Now he stays there with his family. Suman and I stay with Montu for some months in a year, and with Raju in Sohna for the rest of the time.

On the way to Delhi from Sohna, we go through Gurgaon. So many big high-rise buildings have come up there!

A few years ago Raju renovated the toilet and the bathroom. He used coloured tiles in his bathroom. Imagine, spending so much money for a place to have a bath!

I am now seventy years old. In all these years, I have seen so many changes, even in my own house. I don't know where my grandchildren will want to live and how their house will be!

I wonder what the houses are like in Dera Gazikhan today. And how about all my friends – where will they be?

THANKYOU,

NANDITHA