Shelter Questions and Answers

Answer: A

The answer is A is incorrect, but B is correct.

Manali, in the Kullu valley of Himachal Pradesh, does receive heavy rain and snowfall in winter, so statement B is correct. That is why houses there have sloping roofs, so that rain and snow slide off.

Statement A is incorrect because of its last part: traditional houses in Manali are built of wood and stone on stone foundations, not raised on bamboo pillars. Houses on bamboo stilts are typical of flood-prone and very wet regions such as Assam and other parts of the North-East.

Answer: C

The correct statements are A and C.

In Rajasthan, villagers build mud houses with roofs of thorny bushes that keep the inside cool (A). In Leh, houses are built of stone with two floors: the ground floor shelters animals and stores things, while the family lives above (C).

Statement B is wrong: houses on bamboo pillars are typical of Assam and other flood-prone areas of the north-east. Houses in Manali are built of wood and stone with sloping roofs, so options containing B are incorrect.

Answer: D

This part is Himachal Pradesh.

In the hills of Himachal Pradesh, houses are commonly built of stone and wood, materials that are locally available and keep out the cold. The roofs slope steeply so that rain and snow slide off instead of collecting on top.

Ladakh is a cold desert with very little rain or snowfall, so its houses traditionally have flat roofs, used for drying crops. Houses in Rajasthan's dry desert also tend to have flat roofs and thick mud or stone walls. In Assam's heavy rains, many houses are built on bamboo stilts.

Answer: D

The characteristics of houses in Leh and Ladakh are A, B and D.

Ladakh is a cold desert with very little rain and bitter winters. Houses there have thick walls of stone plastered with mud and lime (D), which keep the cold out. The floors and flat ceilings are made of wood (A); flat roofs are possible because it hardly rains. The ground floor usually has no windows and is used for keeping animals and storing things needed through the winter (B), while the family lives above.

Houses raised on pillars with slanting roofs (C) suit regions of heavy rain or flooding, where water must run off and the floor must stay dry, so any option containing C is wrong.

Answer: D

The statement that is not true is that many families in Srinagar live in 'Dongas' built in hilly areas.

Dongas are boats: families who live on Dal Lake and the river in Srinagar make their homes in these boat houses on the water, not in buildings in the hills.

The other statements are true. Old houses in Srinagar are built of stone, brick and wood, some have windows that jut out from the wall, called 'dab', and the houseboats on Dal Lake are among the city's best-known sights.

Answer: A

Both A and R are true, and R is the correct explanation of A.

In many villages floors and walls are coated with a mixture of mud and cow dung. The coating helps keep the inside of the house cool in summer and warm in winter, and it is believed to keep insects away.

Those properties are exactly why the mixture is used, so R explains A, and neither statement is false.

Answer: C

The houses described are typical of Assam.

Assam receives very heavy rainfall, and the Brahmaputra and its tributaries flood large areas every year. Villagers therefore build houses raised about 3 to 3.5 m above the ground on strong bamboo pillars, with sloping roofs to shed rain. Bamboo is plentiful there.

Rajasthan is dry, and its traditional houses are thick-walled mud or stone homes that keep out heat. Ladakh is a cold desert, with flat-roofed houses of stone and mud. Odisha is a coastal state, but raised bamboo houses of this kind are the classic description of Assam.