Maharashtra Board Class 8 Geography Chapter 7 Population PDF Download

Population

Geographical Explanation

In the above exercise, you obtained information about the strength of students in your school. In a similar manner information can be obtained about the population of a village, taluka, district, state, nation and world. While obtaining this information we have to also consider age and sex ratio, literacy etc.

Several factors are responsible for the development of a region. Out of these, population is an important factor. While studying the population of any region, the following aspects have to be considered.

Population growth, Population distribution, Population density, Structure of population

Find Out

Obtain the following information for a particular day.

How many students are there in your class?

Out of the total number, how many are boys and how many girls?

How many are absent?

What is the total strength of students in your school?

What is the total number of boys and girls in your school?

Which class has maximum strength of student?

Which class has the most absentees?

Can You Tell?

Which city has greater number of newly born children?

Which city records greater number of deaths?

Looking at the figures of in-migration and out-migration which city has received more migrants?

Calculate the population of both the cities in 2017.

After considering all the points, which city has recorded more growth of population in one year?

The total number of births are given. What would be this figure per thousand population? What is the term for this?

What would be the number of deaths per thousand population? What is the term used for this?

Geographical Explanation

Population Growth

From the above exercise, it can be seen that there is a constant change in the population of a region. Sometimes there is a decrease in population and at other times there is an increase. This increase or decrease is related to the following factors.

Birth Rate: The number of live births per one thousand people in a year shows the birth rate.

Death Rate: The number of deaths per one thousand people in a year, shows the death rate.

Life Expectancy: The average lifespan of an individual expected in an area at the time of birth.

Migration: The movement of an individual or a group out of an area or into an area is called migration. When people move into a region from outside, for residence, it is called in migration and when people move out of a region for residential purpose it is called out-migration.

All the above factors affect the population growth. The difference between the birth rate and the death rate is clearly responsible for the natural changes in population. Similarly the migration of an individual or a group constantly results in the change of population. The unchecked growth of population puts pressure on the resources of a region. On the other hand a controlled growth of population will lead to the availability of resources in the right proportion. A controlled population is an indicator of the development of a region.

Teacher's Note

Birth rate and death rate change the population of our villages and towns. When more babies are born than people die, the population grows fast, like in cities.

Exam Trick

Remember: Birth Rate - Death Rate = Natural Population Growth. Just like money going in minus money going out gives you net savings!

Points to Remember

Birth rate is the number of babies born in one year per 1000 people.

Death rate is the number of people who die in one year per 1000 people.

Migration means people moving from one place to another for jobs or better life.

Life expectancy is how long a person can live on average in an area.

Population growth happens when births and migration are more than deaths.

Try This

Take about 100 grains of black eyed beans (chawali)

First scatter these beans on a square of 30 x 30 cms.

Now scatter 100 more beans on a square of 15 x 15 cms.

While scattering the grains take care to see that the grains do not touch one another or pile up one on top of the other.

Answer the following questions.

In which of the squares can the grains of chawali be easily scattered?

In which of the squares do the grains of chawali appear crowded?

Can there be a correlation between the distribution of chawali grains and the distribution of population in a region?

Geographical Explanation

Distribution of Population

When the grains of chawali are scattered over two areas of different sizes, in the larger area, the distribution appears sparse.

Similarly we can understand the distribution of population in a region. Some regions are mountainous while others are flat plains. Geographical conditions vary. Some regions are well endowed with natural resources, while others have limited resources. These conditions affect the distribution of population.

In areas with abundant resources, naturally the population is more. In these areas there is dense population distribution. In areas with scarce resources, unfavouvable climate, undulating terrain etc. the population, distribution is sparse.

Try This

Draw a square of 2 x 2 m. In this square ask two students to stand. Slowly increase the number of students and ask the following questions.

In the space provided can you move around easily?

Can more students be accommodated in the square?

When the answers to the above questions are negative, then ask all the students to write their observations about the experiment and initiate a discussion on population density in the class.

Teacher's Note

Population distribution shows why some areas are crowded and others are empty. Cities like Mumbai are crowded because they have jobs and good facilities, while deserts have fewer people.

Exam Trick

Remember: Good land = More people, Bad land = Fewer people. Like how more students gather in the big school ground but not in a small classroom!

Points to Remember

Population distribution means how people are spread across different areas.

Dense population means many people live close together in small areas.

Sparse population means few people live in large areas.

Physical factors like climate, soil, and resources affect where people choose to live.

Economic factors like jobs, trade, and industries attract people to certain places.

Geographical Explanation

Density of Population

The ratio of the population of a country to its area is population density. While discussing population distribution density of population is also considered. The density is calculated as per the formula given below.

Density of population = Population of a region divided by Area of a region

Complete the Table (Census - 2011)

From the area of a region and its population one can calculate how many people live in a square km. Density of population is not the same everywhere. In some regions, the area is small but the population is large. For example, Kerala. In other regions the area is large but the population is small. Therefore, the density of population is low. For example Rajasthan.

Teacher's Note

Population density tells us how crowded a place is. Kerala has high density because it is small with many people, while Rajasthan has low density because it is very large with fewer people.

Exam Trick

Remember: Density = Population divided by Area. Think of it like: How many students fit in one classroom? That is density!

Points to Remember

Population density is the number of people living in one square kilometer.

High density means many people live in a small area, like cities.

Low density means few people live in a large area, like villages or forests.

We calculate density by dividing total population by total area.

Natural resources, climate, and geography affect population density.

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