Health, Population and Environment Education 9

9.1.5 Objectives of Consumers’ Protection Act, 2054 BS

The basic objectives of this Act are to safeguard the health and comfort of
the consumer, to prevent the adulteration of the food stuffs with undesirable
elements, to prohibit the change of any originalities of the food and to maintain
quality standard of food. The Act has strictly prohibited selling, distributing,
storing and producing such food staple that is under quality or adulterated or
harmful to human health. The preamble of ‘Consumers’ Protection Act, 2054 BS’
states, “Whereas it is expedient to make provisions for protecting consumers
from irregularities concerning the quality, quantity and prices of consumer
goods or services, ensuring that no one lowers or removes the attributes or
usefulness of consumer goods or services, preventing circumstances in which
monopolies and unfair trading practices may lead to an increase in prices, as well
as false and misleading propaganda about the use and usefulness of consumer
goods or services, selling, supplying, importing, exporting and storing safe and
quality consumer goods or services, and protecting the rights and interests of
consumers through the establishment of an agency for redressing the hardships
of consumers, and thus maintaining the health, convenience and economic
welfare of consumers, now therefore, the parliament has enacted this law.”

9.1.6 Legal Provisions of Consumers’ Protection Act, 2054 BS

With the objective of maintaining the health of consumers, offering facilities
and economic benefits, maintaining the quality of goods and services,
controlling the inflation, caused by monopoly and unfair trade practices,
making arrangements to establish institutions for facilitating consumer
complaints and redressing grievances, the Consumer Protection Act 2054 BS
has been enacted and promulgated. This Act includes 30 Sections and it is the
specific and comprehensive legislation protecting the rights of consumer as
well as restricting unfair trade practices to some extent.

The Act assures and recognizes six rights of the consumer out of eight rights
recognized globally. In Section 6, the Act has not included right to basic needs
and the right to a healthy environment. The Act has guaranteed the following
rights to consumers:

a) Right to protection of life, health and property from harmful consumer
goods,

b) Right to be informed about price, quantity and quality of consumer
goods in order to be protected from mal-business practices,

c) Right to choose the goods and services at competitive prices,

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d) Right to be assured on hearing by appropriate authority on consumer
protection ,

e) Right to hearing and compensation, and

f) Right to consumer education
Consumer’s Protection Act, 2054 has provision for obligation of manufactures

of goods to mention the following information in the label of each product.
This provision is mentioned in Section 9 of this act.

a) Name, address and registration number of manufacturing company.

b) Composition, quantity and weight of products like food and medicines.

c) Standard mark of certification if given to the product.

d) Method of consumption and any side effects of the product.

e) Price, batch number, date of manufacturing and expiry date of product.

(f) Products guarantee and guarantee time limit of products like electronics
hardware and machinery parts.

(g) Preventive and security measures necessary for any inflammable and
hazardous products.

The act has also restricted on producing and selling lower-quality goods and
services: Section 10 of the Act restricts the following activities:

a) Production, selling, exports and import of any sub-standard goods.

b) Duplicating any product to cheat consumers.

c) Selling of sub-standard or lower quality goods in the form of standard
goods.

d) Unfair commercial transactions such as false or misleading advertisement
of the use, utility or effectiveness of any goods or services.

e) Manufacturing and selling of any goods or services injurious to the health
of consumers.

The Act also prohibits the creation of circumstances that would lead to any
adverse impact in the market or in demand, supply or price of goods or
services, through conspiracy, by fixing quotas, hoarding and by creating an
artificial scarcity of goods and services.

Section 18 of Consumers’ Protection Act deals with the punishment against
illegal anti-consumer activities as:

a) Maximum of 3 years imprisonment or Rupees 50,000 fine or both in case

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of creating circumstances that leads to any adverse impact in the market
or in demand, supply or price of goods or services, through collusion, by
fixing quotas, hoarding and by creating an artificial scarcity of goods and
services.

b) Maximum of 2 years imprisonment or Rupees 30, 000 fine or both in
case of violating obligation to mention name, address and registration
number of manufacture company in the label of products.

c) Maximum of 3 years imprisonment or Rupees 50,000 fine or both in case
of manufacturing, selling, exports and import of lower quality goods.

d) Maximum of 5 years imprisonment or Rupees 100000 fine or both in case
of duplicating any product, selling of goods in guise of standard goods
and unfair commercial transactions like false or misleading advertisement
of the use, utility or effectiveness of any goods or services.

e) Maximum of 14 years imprisonment or Rupees 500000 fine or both in
case of consuming any goods or services that may cause serious hazard
to life.

(f) Maximum of 10 years imprisonment or Rupees 500000 fine or both in
case of serious injury to any parts of the body that may cause permanent
damage.

(g) Maximum of 5 years imprisonment or Rupees 300000 fine or both in case
of other injury to health.

9.2 Food and Nutrition

Food

Food is anything that can be taken by mouth, digested in body and gives useful
nutrition. In other words, food is any substance consumed to provide nutritional
support for the body. It is usually of plant or animal origin, and contains
essential nutrients, such as fats, proteins, vitamins, or minerals. The substance
is ingested by an organism and assimilated by the organism's cells to provide
energy, maintain life, or stimulate growth. Combination of food constituent in a
proper combination makes a balanced diet. Balanced diet is the balanced intake
of nutrients required for proper continuation of life processes. A balanced diet
contains various groups of nutrients, particularly carbohydrates, proteins,
and vitamins. It meets a person's caloric need. The components of a balanced

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diet differ according to age, sex, physical activity and the physiological state.
Children need more proteins for growth and development. A person who
works very hard needs more intake of carbohydrates and fats.

Nutrition
Nutrition is the process of proper intake of food, which is needed for continuing

life processes. Oxford Advanced Learner's Dictionary has defined nutrition as
“the process by which living things receive the food necessary for them to grow
and be healthy”. Proper nutrition maintains the proper functioning of body
tissues and cells. It is essential for survival. It is said that individual's health
is a result of what he eats. Therefore, an individual must maintain all sorts of
food from different groups so that body can fulfil its requirements for proper
functioning and development. The food that we eat should contain appropriate
nutritive values.
9.2.1 Objectives of Foods
General objectives of food are as follows:

a) To construct healthy body
b) To gain energy
c) To regulate the physiological processes of our body
d) To protect body form diseases and infirmities
e) To develop psychological state of person
f) To assist in socio-cultural functions
g) To develop personality

9.2.2 Classification of Foods
Food is categorized on the basis of sources or presence of nutrients contained

in them. On the basis of sources of foods, they can be categorized into the foods
form animal sources and the foods from plant sources.
a) Foods from animal sources: This category includes the foods like milk,

meat, egg, etc.
b) Foods from plant sources: This category of food includes grains, cereals,

fruits, vegetables, lentils, oil, etc.
On the basis of function of foods, they are categorized into the

followings:

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a) Heat and energy yielding foods

It is the food containing carbohydrates and fats, which are responsible
for production of heat and energy in our body. They are needed more
in comparison to other category of foods for our body. There must be
50-60% of carbohydrates and 30-35% of fat in the balanced diet. They can
be obtained from the foods including rice, maize, potato, sweet potato,
honey, sugar, wheat, yam, oil, butter, ghee, etc.

b) Body building food

The foods containing different forms of proteins are known as body
building foods as they are essential for production of new cells and
tissues. There must be 10-15% of proteins in daily food for balanced diet
to our body. They are necessary for growth and development. Animal
proteins can be obtained from fish, meat, egg, milk, etc. Plant proteins
can be obtained from gram, bean, lentil, etc.

c) Protective food

It is a set of foods containing minerals and vitamins, which are responsible
for developing protective power of the body against germs and diseases.
They can be obtained from food items including vegetables and fruits.

9.2.3 General Outline of Nutritional Requirements

Our body is composed of several kinds of tissues and organs. They need
peculiar set of nutrition to function properly. Therefore, we need a variety
of nutritional components to remain healthy. On the basis of presence of
nutritional components, our body is composed of the following proportion of
nutrition:

Constitution of our body on the basis of nutrients

Water 61.6% Mineral 1.5%
Protein 6.1%
Lipid/Fat 17.0% Carbohydrate 100%

13.8% Total

Water is the major constituent of our body. It occupies approximately more
than sixty percent of the total body mass. Carbohydrates are consumed at
maximum amount with our food) But most of them are used to produce energy
and a significant amount is lost with excretion. Only about 6.1% of carbohydrate
remains stored in our body. There is 17% protein stored primarily in muscle
tissues. Minerals are stored in bones, blood and muscles. There is negligible
amount of vitamins present in our body. Therefore, we should include them
regularly in our food.

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a) Carbohydrates

Carbohydrates are the complex organic compounds consisting of carbon,
hydrogen and oxygen as constituents. They get combined with oxygen in the
body and produce required energy needed for it. They are main source of heat
and energy for the body. They can be obtained from the foods including rice,
maize, potato, sweet potato, sugar, honey, cane, wheat, barley, sweet fruits, etc.
Carbohydrates occupy more than half of the total food in a balanced diet. One
gram of carbohydrate produces 4.1 calories of energy in human body.

b) Fats

Fats can yield more energy than carbohydrates. It is stored in subcutaneous
layer and around the intestine. They also prevent the loss of heat from the
body. Fats are needed 30-35% of total nutrients in a balanced diet. Fats can
be obtained from butter, ghee, meat, fish, egg, milk, oil, etc. Fats can produce
more energy than that of carbohydrates. One gram of fat produces 9 calories
of energy in human body. Fat is not preferred for production of total energy
required as it has various adverse effects including obesity in human body.

c) Proteins

Proteins help in reconstruction and repair of lost and worn-out tissues of body
cells at any part. Proteins are mainly of two types: animal proteins and plant
proteins. Proteins are complex molecules synthesized by assembling amino-
acids, carbon, sulphur, oxygen, hydrogen, nitrogen, phosphorus, etc. Proteins
are required for building up tissues in the body as well as repairing the worn-
out tissues of the body. Proteins are obtained from animal food product like
meat, egg, milk, etc. and plant products like beans, lentils, gram, pea, etc.
Proteins can also produce small amount of energy. They produce energy if
there is severe scarcity of carbohydrate and fat in body.

d) Minerals

Minerals are needed for protection of our body from different diseases. They
are also required for the normal functioning of the body. They are naturally
found in the soil and in the body of living things. Iron, calcium, zinc, copper,
phosphorus, iodine, sodium, magnesium, molybdenum, potassium are some
examples of minerals. Though, minerals are needed in small amount, they are
crucial for body metabolism. They are taken from the soil by plants. When we
take foods of plant products, we obtain minerals. Minerals are also stored in
animal products. Minerals are found in meat, milk, egg, fish, wide range of
vegetables and fruits.

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e) Vitamins

Vitamins are also grouped in nutrient required for protection. These do not
supply energy but have protective functions. Vitamins can be classified as fat
soluble (vitamins A, D, E and K) and water soluble (vitamins B complex and
C). The sources of vitamins are egg, fish, meat, milk, vegetables, fruits, and
external coating of various grains.

f) Water

Water is the main constituent of human body. Water occupies about 60 to 70
percent of the total body weight. We need to have safe drinking water every day.
Water maintains the body temperature, transportation of various substances
within the body, balance of electrolytes and salts, absorption of digested food
from alimentary canal, as well as excretion of wastes from the body. Body
fluids like lymph, blood, hormones, and all secretions contain water as its basic
component. It also forms excreta and the waste products from the body.

9.2.4 Characteristics of Quality Food
The food items which have necessary nutritive values and free form adulteration

are called quality food. The quality foods composition and contents are printed
on the packaging. It should be examined by the concerned authority. There
is a legal provision of providing Nepal Standard (NS) Mark for the quality
products brought in the market. If quality food is not supplied, it affects our
health adversely. Food is regarded as the fuel of life. It is very essential for
survival. Common characteristic of quality food is mentioned below:

i. Quality food provides necessary heat and energy required for the body.

ii. Quality food maintains homeostatic features like temperature, blood
pressure, limit of hormones, salts, etc. in the body.

iii. It promotes growth by replenishing and repairing tissues.

iv. It helps to regulate body processes and functions properly.

v. Quality food protects body from disease.

Quality foods needs the inclusion of following five foods:

i. Milk or any one of the dairy product.

ii. In order to supply protein, there need any one item from meat, fish or
egg for non-vegetarian people and lentil, bean, gram, pea, or any one
source of plant-protein for vegetarian people.

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iii. Any one item of carbohydrate rich foods like rice, wheat, barley etc.

iv. Any one item of green vegetables

v. Any one item of fruits like mango, orange, banana, guava etc.

9.2.5 Food Adulteration

Modification of quality of any products in various ways like mixing low quality
goods, mixing decomposed or outdated foods, misbranding, mislabeling,
substitution, addition of toxic preservatives and such other practices which
degrade its quality is called food adulteration. For example, mixture of soybean oil
in mustard oil, small white pebbles in rice, papaya seeds in pepper, brick-dust in
turmeric powder, etc. are some examples of food adulteration. Adulterated foods
are injurious to health. They may be the cause of different diseases and it may cause
the loss of life. Adulteration of mustard oil with Argemone oil had taken lives of
few Nepali people few years before. They died of dropsy due to consumption of
Argemone oil at that time. In the same way, artificial and harmful taste and scent in
food is also food adulteration. So, while purchasing food, we must see the standard
of food and we must be careful whether the food is nutritive or not.

Some foods look attractive but they may be of low nutritive quality. If we aren't
conscious, even the nutritive food also loses its nutrition. For example, overcooked
food, over-cleaned vegetables, junk food, street foods, and flavoured foods may
have low nutrition. However, in city area the main reason for consuming low
quality food is the food habit of consumers. Nowadays, children are very fond
of instant, readymade, junk, and street foods and they take them in substitution
of their meal. As a result, prevalence of under-nutrition in children has become a
burning problem in Nepal both in rural and town area.

Producers use different non-edible colours to attract the consumers. Mixing such
non-edible colours is harmful to the consumers' health. In the same way, advertising
agency advocates for false information regarding functions and contents of food
items to attract the customers. In fact, the goods may not have the nutritive value
as advertised in the media. Consumers must be conscious regarding the advertised
information and the facts and realities of the foods available in the market.

9.3 Harmful Goods and Precautions against Such Goods

Harmful goods degrade quality of peoples’ life. It is therefore responsible for
degradation of human resources of the country. In order to make people aware of
healthy and quality life, people should be discouraged to use the low quality goods

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and harmful goods. The following guidelines may useful for protecting people from
the harmful goods:

a) Awareness programmes with consumers’ education.
b) Examination of consumers’ goods before bringing them to the market.

c) Effective monitoring and inspection of the market.

d) Promulgation of relevant laws and legal provisions within them.

e. Effective execution of the existing laws, rules and regulations regarding
consumers’ rights.

f) Mobilization of non-government and government organization to
minimize the food adulteration and such anti-consumer activities in the
market.

We consume different food items from different groups in our everyday food intake.
All the food items may not have proper nutrition values in comparison to the volume
of food. This is because nutrient components like vitamins and minerals can easily
escape out from food due to improper food handling. Some of the methods of
preserving nutrients are given below:

i. Rice grains should not be washed many times before cooking. It causes loss
of vitamin B-12, which is present on the outer surface of rice grains.

ii. Avoid washing vegetables after cutting them into small pieces. It causes
loss of nutrients with loss of vegetable sap. It is better to wash vegetables
before cutting them into pieces.

iii. Many nutrient compounds are broken down and lost due to extreme heat
for long time therefore overcooking of food should not be done.

iv. Fried food items do not have proper nutrients. Nutrients are lost due to
frying.

v. Cover the food properly while cooking.

vi. The vegetables like carrot, radish, cucumber, onion, etc. which are eaten
raw should be cleaned properly before eating.

vii. Baking soda should not be used in improper ways.

viii. Use of spices should be minimized as far as possible.

ix. Fruits and potato peeling should be done thinly because important nutri-
ents are present on the inner layer of peels.

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9.4 Planning for Healthier Life

Healthier people can contribute positively and effectively for human society. Therefore,
healthier life of people is important for betterment of family, society, nation and the
whole world. Planning for healthier life means the process of designing healthful
behaviors for every individual and family. The roles that should be played by every
individual and family for planning the healthier life are:
a) To use the family as a platform for all family members to work collectively

for better family health.
b) To involve all the family members in sharing their ideas to run family

healthy.
c) To develop healthier relation between family members.
d) To make peaceful environment in the family.
e. To increase family income and use it wisely in improvement of family

health.

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Notes

l According to Consumers Protection Act 2054 "consumer is a person or
institution who consumes or uses the services and goods available in the
market."

l Consumers’ health means the state of health determined and affected by
the use of goods and services from the market.

l UN Consumer Bill of Rights has declared different eight consumers' rights
to protect the consumers' health of people. The rights are related to safety,
information, choice, voice, basic needs, redressing, education and healthy
environment.

l Essential Commodities Control (Authorization) Act, 2017 BS has defined
the essential commodities in the context of Nepal on the basis of basic
requirement of people for their everyday healthy-survival.

l Consumers' Protection Act, 2054 BS has strictly prohibited selling,
distributing, storing and producing such food staple that is under quality
or adulterated or harmful to human health.

l Food is anything that can be taken by mouth, digested in body and gives
useful nutrition. Nutrition is the process of proper intake of food, which is
needed for continuing life processes.

l Our body is composed of water, proteins, lipids, minerals and
carbohydrates. Among them, water occupies the maximum proportion
i.e. more than sixty percent.

l Minerals are naturally found in the soil and in the body of living things.
Iron, calcium, zinc, copper, phosphorus, iodine, sodium, magnesium,
molybdenum, potassium are some examples of minerals.

l Modification of quality of any products in various ways like mixing low
quality goods, mixing decomposed or outdated foods, misbranding,
mislabelling, substitution, addition of toxic preservatives and such other
practices which degrade its quality is called food adulteration.

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Exercises

Group "A"

Give very short answers to the following questions.
1. What do you mean by consumer?
2. Which country made the first consumers' law in the world?
3. What do you mean by 'Right to Redress"?
4. Define essential goods.
5. Mention any one importance of consumer's health.
6. What punishment is there against a person who creates an artificial
scarcity of goods and services in Nepal?
7. Define nutrition.
8. Write any one objective of food.
9. Give an example of protective food.
10. What is the amount of energy produced in our body from one gram of
carbohydrate?
11. Define food adulteration.

Group "B"

Give short answers to the following questions.
1. What do you mean by consumers' rights? List the rights mentioned in
UN Consumer Bill of Rights.
2. Which act of Nepal has the legal provisions for managing essential
goods? Give an account of such goods in Nepal.
3. Briefly explain the importance of consumers' health education.
4. How can we protect the status of consumers' health? Describe.
5. What is the legal provision against the seller of lower quality goods
according to Consumers' Protection Act, 2054 BS?

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6. Classify nutrients with their functions and examples.
7. What do you mean by quality foods? What do they include in it?
8. Describe the adverse impact of adulterated foods in our health.

Group "C"

Give long answers to the following questions.
1. Explain the developmental history of consumers' health in the global
perspective.
2. Explain the legal provisions concerning the consumer's health on
"Consumer's Protection Act, 2054 BS"?
3. How can we categorize foods on the basis of foods' function? Explain
with examples.
4. How can we plan for our healthier life? Write a brief description of our
roles in planning for healthier life.
5. What is food adulteration? How can it affect human health? Explain.

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PRIMARY HEALTH

10 CARE AND SAFETY
EDUCATION

Contents

10.1 Introduction to Primary Health Care
10.1.1 Characteristics of Primary Health Care
10.1.2 Importance of Primary Health Care

10.2 Concept of Risk, Types of Risk and Techniques
of Minimizing Risks
10.2.1 Concept of Risk
10.2.2 Types of Risk
10.2.3 Techniques of Minimizing Risks

10.3 Safety Education
10.3.1 Introduction to Safety Education
10.3.2 Importance of Safety Education

10.3.3 Safety Measures

10.1 Introduction to Primary Health Care

Health is wealth. It is a fundamental human right. So, it is the major duty of government
to make basic health services available throughout the country. Primary health means
the basic health services that are needed for every individual to be healthy. For the
healthy life of citizens of any country, the individual, community, family, nation,
government, all should be conscious and responsible from their respective field.

More than half of the world population is deprived of even the basic health care.
Mostly, the people of rural and remote areas are losing their life untimely by common
diseases which can be controlled and treated easily. They do not have access to the
basic health care. In developing countries, emphasis is given on curative aspect rather
than preventive aspects. This is because of economic problem, lack of awareness, and
scarcity of health services provided by the nation to its citizen.

As the time changes, concepts of people also go on changing. They become more
conscious about their health. New approaches to health come into existence. In

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1978, there was an international conference held on 6 to 18 September in the capital
city Alma-Ata of present Kazakhstan in USSR. The conference was organized by
WHO and UNICEF. There was participation of 134 countries altogether including
Nepal. Participation of our country initiated the trend of health strategies and plans
according to the concept of Primary Health Care. The conference has defined primary
health care as follows:

Primary health care is an essential health care made universally accessible to
individuals and acceptable to them, through their full participation and at a cost that
the community and country can afford.
From the above-given definition, we can include the following points under
primary health care:
i. Primary health care should have accessibility to all individuals and family

in the community

ii. Primary health care should be available easily and must be affordable to all
classes of people

iii. There must be participation of people in dissemination of Primary Health
Care

iv. Services of Primary Health Care should be bearable to the nation

10.1.1 Characteristics of Primary Health Care

a) Basic Health Services

Primary Health Care includes the elements needed to fulfil the basic health
needs of people. Basic health needs include the commonly required health
services and medications which are most essential for attainment of minimum
health status. Primary Health Care includes the following elements determined
by Alma-Ata conference:

i. Basic knowledge of the prevailing health problems and methods of their
control

ii. Promotion in the fulfilment of the basic needs of people
iii. Supply of clean drinking water and management of sanitation
iv. Family planning
v. Maternal and child health (MCH) care
vi. Immunization against infectious and communicative diseases
vii. Prevention and control of epidemic diseases

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viii. Appropriate and timely treatment of common diseases and injuries

ix) Provision of common and essential drugs

b) Social Acceptability

The practice of primary health care should comply the general social norms
and values. If the health care program has any form of controversy with the
existing social values and expectations of people, it cannot be lunched and
executed properly. Therefore, acceptance from the society must be assured
before providing the primary health care to people of any place.

c) Availability

Basic and minimum health services should be available to all the people of
community. There must be physical presence of health service provider i.e.
health centers and health personnel should be available easily in the community.

d) Accessibility

Health services provided by government or other related agencies should
be within the access of common people. It should be provided in affordable
cost. Basic medicines needed for common health problems should be made
available. The components of Primary Health Care must have affordable price.
In such program, local resources and technologies should be used. Foreign
technologies and medicines may be expensive but the government or health
service provider organizations should manage it for the common people if
these are included under primary health care. For example, basic vaccinations
and immunizations are produced in foreign countries but Nepal government
is providing them free of cost for all infants in all areas of the nation.

e. Public Participation

Any kind of health program needs participation of local people to be successful
and effective. Without participation of people, the program cannot be successful
and it cannot bring changes in the health status of the concerned community.

10.1.2 Importance of Primary Health Care

Different countries have used different kinds of health programs to improve
the health condition of their citizens. But, they are not successful in bringing
significant change in the health status of people. Especially, the third world
countries are the place of experiment of new methods and techniques of health
care. But, people of same countries are facing the maximum health problems.
They are the victims of common diseases like diarrhea, cholera, measles, etc.
It is proved that we should emphasize on primary health care. A significant

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proportion of population of poor countries is illiterate and living in remote
and village areas. They don’t even have basic knowledge of health care. They
are not interested or cannot afford for preventive aspect of health. As a result,
they have to suffer a lot or sometimes lose their life untimely even by the effect
of minor diseases. Such facts prove the importance of Primary Health Care.
In order to improve the health condition of common people of developing
countries, we should make them aware of their personal hygiene, community
health and immunization programs that are launched by the government
for targeted groups. In the same way, lack of nutritive food, education, and
inadequate health services provided by state are major causes of poor health
condition of people in backward countries.

The importance of Primary Health Care in the context of Nepal are:

i. Primary Health Care helps in controlling most of the preventable diseases
which are the main cause of low status of Nepali people.

ii. Primary Health Care promotes active participation of people in caring
their health in the right way.

iii. Primary Health Care gives emphasis on decentralization. As a result, we
can have the maximum participation of local people in health program.
It helps to improve the health condition of the community.

iv. Primary Health Care aims to provide minimum and basic health services
to all people living even in rural and remote areas. All these people can
get such health services and facilities.

v. Primary Health Care deals not only with the preventive and curative
health, but also with the promotive and rehabilitative health of
individuals, families, and communities. In such a way, it plays a role of
milestone in improvement of overall health status of nation.

10.2 Concept of Risk, Types of Risk and Techniques of Minimizing Risks

10.2.1 Concept of Risk

In simple word, risk is the possibility that some injury, loss or any unfavorable
event will happen in the future. Risk is the potentiality of harmful and
inauspicious situation to occur. In our everyday life, we need to tackle with
several kinds of risks. Some of the risks are easy to avoid but some are
inevitable. People fall in accidents and injuries when they cannot overcome
the threats of risky situations and circumstances. Physical infrastructures like
buildings, houses, roads and human residential areas are under the risk of

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natural calamities like landslide, earthquake, fire, volcano etc. If we identify
the risks and their potential threats, we can minimize the hazardous effects to
human being.

10.2.2 Types of Risk

In order to cope with the problems created by different kinds of risks, the nature
of risk should be identified and analyzed. This can guide us for formulating the
mitigating measures against the hazardous results. Risks can be categorized
into the following two groups:

A) Risks Originated from Natural Phenomena

The earth has its own system of its natural processes. Water cycle, gaseous
cycles, wind, geographical vividness, geothermal phenomena and movement
of tectonic plates are some of the major dynamic aspects of the earth. When
these processes and phenomena lose their balance, natural calamities occur.
They may create moderate to heavy loss of human lives and properties. Some
of the problems created by natural phenomena are discussed below:

a) Earthquake
Earthquake is an incident of shaking of the earth's surface. When there is

earthquake, the man-made structures like buildings, roads, town area etc. are
cracked or destroyed. People die and buried under rock, soil, concrete and
other hard materials piled due to such devastation. It is a natural phenomenon
and human has no control over such incidents. Regarding the risks, we can
minimize the possible harms and hazards with appropriate precautions and
measures against it.

Precautions against the risk of the earthquake:

i. Apply anti-earthquake technologies while constructing houses.

ii. Learn first aid for wound, fracture, bleeding and unconsciousness.

iii. Learn how to turn off the gas, water, and electricity.

iv. Make up a plan of where to meet your family after an earthquake.

v. Don't leave heavy objects on shelves or at height (they'll fall during a
quake)

vi. Anchor heavy furniture, cupboards, and appliances to the walls or floor
properly with the help of experts.

vii. Learn the earthquake plan at your school or workplace.

viii. Learn the technique of ‘Drop, Cover and Hold on!’ and determine the
safe places earlier.

218 Health, Population and Environment - 9

Considerations for safety during an earthquake
i. ‘Drop, Cover, and Hold on!’ Drop to the floor, get under a sturdy table,

and hold on until the shaking stops. If your entire body does not fit
underneath the furniture, position your body so that at least your head
and neck are covered.

ii. If you are indoors, stay there; most injuries occur when people inside try
to move to a different location or try to leave. Avoid windows, exterior
walls, stairwells, elevators, and objects that could fall. Be aware that the
electricity may go out and the fire alarm or sprinkler system may turn on.

iii. If you are outside, get into an open area) Stay clear of buildings, power
lines, street-lights, and anything that can fall on you.

iv. If driving, move out of traffic as quickly as possible and shut off the
engine. Avoid bridges and overpasses, and anything that could fall onto
your vehicle (car, bike etc.), such as trees, light posts, power-lines, and
signs.

v. If you are on bed, stay there. Hold on and protect your head with a
pillow. Only move to a nearby safe place if you are under a heavy light
fixture or something that may fall on you.

vi. If you are on a wheelchair, stay in it. Move to a safe location, lock your
wheels, and cover your head and neck.

After an earthquake, there may be minor to heavy devastation of physical
properties and human lives. We must have patience at that time. Shaking
may occur several times even for a year or more after a big earthquake.
Such shaking incidents after a mega earthquake are called aftershock.

b) Flood and Landslide
Flood is the accumulation of excessive water and its overflow inside or

outside the river. Flood occurs when the rivers collect excessive water
from its tributaries and cannot hold within its mainstream. Flood erodes
the soil, rock, agricultural land and man-made structures near the bank.
It may cause sliding of huge mass of soil and rock downward from the

Health, Population and Environment - 9 219

upper part of inclined surface. A landslide is the movement of rock, debris
or earth down a slope. They result from the failure of the materials which
make up the hill slope and are driven by the force of gravity. Landslides
are known also as landslips, slumps or slope failure.

Effects of Flood and Landslide

Landslides cause property damage,
injury, and death and adversely affect a
variety of resources. For example, water
supplies, fisheries, sewage disposal
systems, forests, dams, and roadways
can be affected for years after a slide
event. The negative economic effects of landslides include the cost to repair
structures, loss of property value, disruption of transportation routes, medical
costs in the event of injury, and indirect costs, such as lost timber and fish
stocks. Water availability, quantity, and quality can be affected by landslides.

Precautions against Flood and Landslide

Sometimes, flood and landslides are predictable. Sometimes there is no
warning of flash floods, and that is why it is important to think of them
and prepare for them before they happen. Some of the measures for
precautions against flood and landslide are:

i. Plant trees and shrubs and keep a lot of deep-rooted vegetation in the
surroundings and community. They make strong grip on the soil and
protect from flood and landslide.

ii. Keep emergency numbers and important information handy, as well
as emergency supplies, kits, first aid items. These may include water,
readymade food, can opener, battery-operated radio, flashlight and
protective clothing.

iii. Fold and roll up anything onto higher or safer ground including chemicals
and medicines.

iv. Keep an adequate supply of food, candles and drinking water in case
you are trapped inside your home.

v. Know about local relief centers and evacuation routes and discuss among
family members as well as with community people.

vi. Make sure everything that is of importance is secured (jewelry,
documents, pets, and other valuables).



220 Health, Population and Environment - 9

Safety during flood and landslide

i. Seek safer ground. Do not wait for instructions.

ii. Be ready to evacuate the risky place as conveniently as possible.

iii. If the residential home or building must be left, do not walk through
moving water and sliding ground. Moving water can knock off the feet.
Use a stick to test depth.

iv. Rescue children, elderly people, pregnant women and diseased people
with priority.

v. Provide consolation and help to the wounded or injured people.

vi. Turn off all electrical appliance, gas, heating and the like if there is a bit
of time.

vii. Leave the area before it gets too late. Do not drive through the water as
moving water can sweep you away.

viii. Stay away from power lines or broken power transmission cables.

ix. Try to keep away from flood water as it may contain chemicals or other
hazardous materials.

Safety after flood and landslide

i. Stay away from flood water- do not attempt to swim, walk or drive
through the area

ii. Do not drink tap water until it is proven safe to drink.

iii. Search and rescue the injured victims from the flooded or landslide areas.

iv. Pay proper attention to sanitation. Avoid spread of disease germs
through the dead and decaying bodies.

c) Glacial Falls (Avalanche)

Glacier is a persistent body of dense ice that is constantly moving under
its own weight. It is also called avalanche or snowslide. When it falls
downward with significant movement so that it may cause devastating
effects on the lower ground, it is called glacial falls. When the accumulation
of snow exceeds limit of its own weight, there is occurrence of glacial
falls. Some of the causes of glacial falls are discussed below:

i. Causes related to human activities: Construction of houses and heavy
constructions at highland make the surface area weighty. It can destroy
the natural balance of the land structure as well. It may result in
glacial falls. Similarly, the accumulation of waste materials like bottles,
wrappers, broken instruments etc. loosen the grip between the bulks of

Health, Population and Environment - 9 221

ice-masses and let it slide down. Human encroachment at the mountain
areas increases the chance of glacial falls.

ii. Causes related to natural phenomena: Natural phenomena like regular
accumulation of ice at highland for prolonged period of time and
accumulation of snow without any support of rock and soil results in
increase of ice-mass more than the threshold limit. It results in slow or
rapid fall of ice downwards. Similarly, global warming and changing
climate has irregular and abrupt rise in temperature of higher atmosphere.
It results in sudden heavy melting of ice. Such incidence creates heavy
flow of water and ice downward causing glacial falls.

Precautions and Safety against Glacial Falls

i. Do not pollute the environment at higher altitude.

ii. Make strict rules against the environmental and implement strictly.

iii. Make people aware of the precautions and threats of glacial falls.

iv. If there is probability of life-threatening glacial falls, prepare to escape
away in time to the safer place.

v. Identify the risky area and evacuate if possible.

vi. Construct walls of rocks and metallic wires to prevent rapid flow of ice-
masses.

vii. Stay inside home when there is heavy snowfall or rain.

viii. Manage rescue materials and equipments to provide necessary aids in
time.

ix Manage medical team or first aid team always ready at risky places.

d) Explosion of Glacial Lake

A glacial lake is a lake which
originates from a melting
glacier. When there is excessive
accumulation of snow on the
glacier, the volume of water
increases enormously. If the
marginal support of lake cannot
hold the increased weight
accumulated inside the lake, it outbreaks suddenly causing tremendous
and powerful flow of water. Such incident is called explosion of glacial
lake. It is estimated that there are more than 3000 glacial lakes in Nepal.
Among them, about 20 glacial lakes are vulnerable to explosion. Some of
the major incidents of glacial lake explosion noted in the history are:

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i. Explosion of glacial lake in 1968 AD with tremendous flood in Budhi
Gandaki river.

ii. In 1985 AD, there was an explosion of glacial lake of the upper Himalayan
region of Solukhumbu district. Flood of that explosion had destroyed the
hydroelectricity powerhouse of Thame VDC near Namchebazar.

iii. In 2012 AD, there was a glacial fall on Mt. Annapurna. It caused
tremendous flood in Seti river. 20 people died in the flood and there was
remarkable loss of land and property.

Tsho Rolpa is one of the biggest glacial lakes in Nepal. The lake, which
is located at an altitude of 4,580 metres in the Rolwaling Valley, Dolakha
District, has grown considerably over the last 50 years due to glacial
melting in the Himalayas. The lake threatens to burst through its unstable
dam, which would threaten the lives and livestock of over 6000 villagers
living around the Tamakoshi River. In 2012, UNDP (United Nations
Development Programme) has also shown concern to develop warning
system for the protection of lives and property if the incident occurs.

B) Risks Originated from Human Activities

Risk a situation involving potentiality of exposure to danger. In other words,
risk is an exposure to the chance of injury or loss. There are a number of
human activities that lead to the loss of human lives, properties and the natural
components. Some of the risks originated from human activities are discussed
below.

a) Physical Risks

Physical aspects of man-made structures like buildings, bridges, dams,
industrial equipments posses risk if they are constructed in unscientific ways.
Risk increases after functional expiry of their constituent materials. Such risk
may result in injury of people or loss of their lives in broken or collapsed
buildings. Physically weak dams near rivers lead to massive flood and increased
risk for the lives and property of people.

b) Chemical Risks

Chemical risks mean the potentiality of unfavorable circumstances caused due
to the exposure with harmful chemical substances. In order to get higher yield
from the agricultural crops, farmers are using excessive chemical fertilizers
and toxic substances in their field. It ultimately causes inevitable risk to
human health. Increased pollution in the environment has caused respiratory
tract infection, skin allergy, carcinogenic threats and deviated body functions
of people. Excessive use of drugs and medicines, prolonged exposure to the

Health, Population and Environment - 9 223

harmful chemicals in industries and use of chemically unsafe materials in
different activities have increased chemical risks related to human health and
the environment.

c) Biological Risks

Risks originated from the biological components like disease-germs, biotic
poisons and allergens are called biological risks. There are a number of causative
agents of different diseases in the environments. Fungal spores, bacteria,
viruses, protozoa, worms, toxic plants and allergens are common biological risk
factors around our environment. Such risks increase the potentiality of onset
of different diseases and threat on human health. Waste materials produced
from hospitals and health centers contain communicable disease-germs. The
biological risks can be minimized by personal hygiene, good health habits and
caution against such risk-factors in appropriate ways.

d) Mechanical Risks

Present human life depends upon the industrial products and machines.
Therefore, a number of people are engaged in the works with heavy and risky
machines. People get injured, lose their hands and legs, and they become
handicapped in accidents. Accident of vehicles, trains and aeroplane is also one
of the most prominent mechanical risks that cease lives of people remarkably. In
order to prevent such risks, the workers should be trained properly to run risky
machines and the means of transportation. Safety measures and precautions
should be given more importance.

10.2.3 Techniques of Minimizing Risks

Minimizing risks can protect people's health from diseases and injuries. It can
save life and properties. We cannot control all natural hazards. Earthquake,
volcano, tsunami cannot be brought under control of human influence and
resistance. But, we can minimize the probabilities of landslide and flood
by environmental planning, a forestation, terrace farming and such other
techniques. Risks that may arise with uncontrollable natural calamities can be
minimized by prediction, precautions and awareness. For example, the risks
of the earthquake can be minimized by the construction of the earthquake-
resistant buildings. It can be accomplished with engineering techniques and
use of quality constituents like bricks, cement, rod etc. Risk-education helps
in preparation against such natural calamities and uncontrollable natural
hazards. Environmental sanitation, health education, safety behaviors, first
aid education and application of the principles of sustainable development
help in minimizing the risks originated from natural phenomena and human
activities both.

224 Health, Population and Environment - 9

10.3 Safety Education

10.3.1 Introduction to Safety Education

There are two terms in safety education: ‘safety’ and ‘education’. Safety means
the protection from or non-exposure to the risk of harm or injury. Education
is the process of learning. In this way, safety education can be understood
as the educational process of teaching and learning the methods of gaining
protection from the risks of harm or injury in different activities. Safety
education is the process of changing our behaviours to be safe from potential
dangers and probable accidents or injuries. Safety education helps us to be
careful about the risks in different situations. Though, all the accidents may
not be preventable, we can reduce chance of accidents if we are careful and
conscious about safety measures.

10.3.2 Importance of Safety Education

The following points show the importance of safety education:

i. Safety education teaches us to be safe in different situations.

ii. This branch of education helps in reducing accidents and injuries.

iii. School children can be safe with knowledge and practice of safety
education in school and even at home. If they conduct the activities
according to the guidance and control of teachers and parents, they
become less vulnerable to accidents.

iv. Accidents may cause death or injuries. If we are careful, we can be safe
from such circumstances with the knowledge of safety education.

v. Accident itself is unexpected and sudden event. So, it is difficult to be
away from accidents but we can minimize the chances of accidents if we
have proper knowledge of safety education.

10.3.3 Safety Measures

Safety measures should be followed in different ways in different situations.
Some of the ways in certain situations are given below:

a) Safety measures at home

Management of safety at home: We pass most of the time at home. So, our
home must be safe from different prospects. We find different stages of family
members at home. They need different kinds of safety measures to be followed.
Safe home is determined by various factors at home including construction of
home, management of convenient rooms, passages and corridors, and safety
behaviour of family members. Some of the safety measures to make our home-

Health, Population and Environment - 9 225

life safe are:
i. Keep the kitchen appliances away from the reach of children.
ii. Manage well facilitated and wide rooms, passages, and stairs.
iii. Keep the medicines, poisons, and other chemicals in safe place.
iv. Inflammable objects should be kept away from the kitchen room and

children.
v. Toilets, bathrooms, and latrines should have non-slippery floor.
vi. Proper management of light and ventilations.
vii. Electric wiring should be safe and switch boards should be placed safely.
viii. Knives, swords, scissors, sharp cutters and similar instruments should be

kept and used carefully.
ix. Use heaters, ovens, candles and other source of extreme heat with care

and direct supervision of seniors.

b) Safety measures on roads
Road is common for all people. In some places, roads are overcrowded whereas

it is open in some places. Roads are busy mostly in town areas and open at
rural areas. There are some important rules to follow to maintain safety on
roads listed below:
i. Follow the traffic rules strictly.
ii. Drive vehicles according to the prescribed rules and follow the indication

of traffic signals and traffic lights (red light→stop, yellow light→wait,
and green light→go ahead).
iii. Use footpath while walking on foot.
iv. Use zebra cross and care the traffic signals and traffic lights while crossing
busy roads.
v. As far as possible, do not go along and across the busy roads.
vi. Use overhead bridge or subway (if available. to cross the road)
vii. Do not let the children play on the road.

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c) Safety measures at school

School is the place where there are students of various ages. By nature, children
are restless and fidgeting. Therefore, they are highly vulnerable to accidents.
They fall in accidents very frequently. So, school should apply safety measures
to keep the students safe from injuries and accidents by following the given
methods.

i. Remove the things like broken
desk, bench, wooden pieces,
metals and slippery substances
from the classroom.

ii. Floor of the classroom,
corridors, and stairs should be
non-slippery.

iii. Railings should be made along
the stairs and verandah.

iv. Running, pushing and playing
in classrooms and other narrow
places should be avoided.

v. Class monitors should be selected in each class to monitor unsafe
activities of students in the absence of teachers.

vi. Laboratory equipment should be kept safely and out of reach of small
children.

vii. Proper safety education should be given to the students of all classes.

viii. Children should be trained to dispose waste materials properly in
dustbins and containers.

d) Safety measures in playground

Playground is the place where students and players play certain games.
Students become very active on playground. There may be minor to severe
accidents during games and practices. Therefore, everybody must be careful
in the following ways while playing and practising games on playground:

i. Games should be played obeying the rules strictly.

ii. Warming up exercises make our body flexible. Therefore, it must be
performed before starting games.

iii. Playground must be free from injurious materials like broken glasses,
needles, metal pieces, stones, bricks, etc.

Health, Population and Environment - 9 227

iv. Playground should be made as soft as possible according to nature of
games.

v. Children should not be allowed to play without the care of teacher or
instructor.

vi. Discipline should be given emphasis during the play.
vii. New comers should be taught well about the condition about playground

and general precautions to be taken.

Activity

What are the probable risks present in your community? How do you
tackle with such risks? Prepare a short report and show it to your teacher.

Notes

l According to the Alma-Ata Conference, "Primary health care is an essential
health care made universally accessible to individuals and acceptable to
them, through their full participation and at a cost that the community and
country can afford."

l Risk is the possibility that some injury, loss or any unfavorable event will
happen in the future. In other words, risk is the potentiality of harmful and
inauspicious situation to occur.

l Risks may be associated with the natural phenomena or human activities.
l During earthquake, ‘Drop, Cover, and Hold on!’ technique is adopted for

maximum safety. It means 'Drop to the floor, get under a sturdy table, and
hold on until the shaking stops'. If our entire body does not fit underneath
the furniture, we should position our body so that at least our head and neck
are covered.
l Avalanche is also called glacial fall or snowslide. When huge mass of snow
falls or slides downward with significant movement so that it may cause
devastating effects on the lower ground.
l Human activities may create several kinds of risks. They are mainly
categorized into physical, chemical, mechanical and biological risks.
l Safety education is an educational process of teaching and learning the
methods of gaining protection from the risks of harm or injury in different
activities.
l We have specific safety measures to remain safe at home, school, playground
and road.

228 Health, Population and Environment - 9

Exercises

Group "A"

Give very short answers to the following questions.
1. When was Alma-Ata Conference held?
2. Write any one importance of primary health care.
3. Define risk.
4. What do you mean by flood?
5. What is the role of gravity in landslide?
6. What are glaciers?
7. Give an example of biological risk.
8. Define safety education.
9. Write any one safety rule that should be followed while playing games.

Group "B"

Give short answers to the following questions.
1. What is primary health care? What are the essential components of PHC?
2. What do you mean by accessibility of primary health care? Explain.
3. How can we remain prevented from the risk of the earthquake? Suggest
any five ideas.
4. How do you keep yourself safe during earthquake? Describe.
5. How are flood and landslide related to each other? Justify.
6. List any five importance of safety education.
7. How do you remain safe while walking on the roads?
8. Write short notes on: a) Safety on the playground b) Safety and children

Group "C"

Give long answers to the following questions
1. Explain the safety measures that are to be followed during flood and
landslide.
2. Give an account on threats associated with the explosion of glacial lake in
Nepal.
3. What are the differences between physical and chemical risks? Explain with
examples.
4. "Mechanical risks can be minimized with adequate precautions and
application of safety measures." Elaborate with examples.

Health, Population and Environment - 9 229

Model Question

Subject: Health, Population and Environment Education (Grade IX)

Time: 2 hrs. 15 minutes FM: 75

PM: 24

Group ‘A’

Give very short answers to the following questions 11 x 1 = 11

1. Write any one scope of health education.

2. Write any one difference between formal demography and social

demography.

3. What is the full form of PQLI?

4. When was the first census held in Nepal?

5. What are the demerits of extended family? Describe.

6. Why is nickel useful for us?

7. Write the full form of CFC.

8. Write any one disadvantage of pit latrine.

9. What is peer pressure?

10. Write any one importance of primary health care.

11. Give an example of biological risk.

Group ‘B’

Give short answers to the following questions 9 x 4 = 36

12. "A healthy environment ensures healthy life." Do you agree? Justify.

13. What do you mean by population? Describe the features of social demography

in short. Or

Make a list of personal and household characteristics of population taken

during the census process.

14. What do you mean by indicators of development? How does economic

growth indicate development of a country? Justify with an example.

15. What are social and cultural activities? How are they related to environment?

16. Clarify the concept of family life.

230 Health, Population and Environment - 9

17. Explain any two importance of natural resource with examples.

Or,

Give a short account of biodiversity of Nepal with necessary relevant data.

18. How has World Health Organization (WHO) defined Environmental
Health? Explain its meaning in different perspective.

19. "Adolescence is the stage of day-dreaming." Elaborate.

20. Describe the adverse impact of adulterated foods in our health.

Or,

How do you keep yourself safe during earthquake? Describe.

Group ‘C’

Give long answers to the following questions 4 × 7 = 28

21. How does quality of life indicate development? Explain the techniques of
improving quality of life.

22. Why should we take care of the caring capacity of the earth while using the
resources of the earth? Explain.

23. What is reproductive health? Describe different aspects of reproductive
health.

Best of Luck !!

Health, Population and Environment - 9 231

Annex-1

New Evaluation Scheme for Practical Marks in the Secondary
Education Examination (SEE) and Other Examinations

(Total Practical Marks: 25)

On examination, students are evaluated with two categories of assessment schemes.
Students get a question of 75 full marks and write their answers in examination hall.
The organization of questions follows the guidelines of Specification Grid. Remaining
25 marks are allocated for practical evaluation. Practical evaluation is based upon
CAS (Continuous Assessment System).

Allocation of marks in practical evaluation

i. Positive Change in Behavior 5 Marks

ii. Practical Evaluation File 10 Marks

iii. Project Work, Field Trip and Report 5 Marks

iv. Practical Examination 5 Marks

Total Marks 25 Marks

i. Positive Change in Behavior (5 Marks)

The subject teacher traces each student’s behavior throughout the academic
year and assigns marks according to healthier practices they adopt in their
everyday life. Their attitude and behavior towards environmental protec-
tion is also observed and taken for evaluation.

ii. Practical Evaluation File (10 Marks)

A Portfolio is prepared for each student to record his/her works, attend-
ance and activities and marks are provided according to the merit on port-
folio.

iii. Project Work, Field Trip and Report (5 Marks)

Students are instructed to accomplish at least one project work or field trip
and prepare reports on them. Their work is evaluated to determine marks.
Students may get marks on the basis of their contributions on the tasks of
national importance. Students with specific and multi-talented skills are ac-
cessed with specific tools.

iv. Practical Examination (5 Marks)

It is based on field survey, class work, project work, creative works, skilled
activities, research studies etc. in a continuous assessment system.

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