Do you remember this picture from your Grade 6 textbook? A high-speed train running on a railway line Road-laying machines building a new road A doctor examining a patient in a hospital ward, her family beside the bed Soldiers on guard with rifles at a dry border post A traffic policeman signalling

Yes — Fig. 9.2 is the picture of government at work from the Grade 6 book. It is a grid of ten small scenes, and each scene stands for one role of government. Look at them one by one and the whole list on page 186 falls into place. What the panel shows The role of government it stands for A modern train on the tracks Transport — an essential public service A road roller laying a highway Building infrastructure A health worker attending to a family Delivering healthcare Soldiers patrolling a border National defence A traffic policeman at a signal Maintaining law and order Rescue workers in helmets at a damaged site Disaster relief — security and safety of the people A classroom full of children Providing education The Supreme Court building Justice — the judicial function People at counters in an office or bank Managing the economy and public administration A postman with his bicycle and a letter box Communication and postal services Why the book repeats the picture: Grade 6 asked what a government is. Grade 7 asks what kinds of government exist. Starting from the same familiar picture makes the point that every one of these tasks has to be done in any country — what differs is who decides how they are done, and to whom that person answers.

NCERT Solutions for Class 7th Social Science Chapter 9 What is Government? What are its Functions? — LET'S EXPLORE

Book page 186 Updated on2026-09-19

Q1.

Do you remember this picture from your Grade 6 textbook?

Fig. 9.2, page 186 — the block of ten small pictures, in the two columns and five rows in which the book prints them. Each picture is described in words here; see the textbook for the artwork.

Answer

Yes — Fig. 9.2 is the picture of government at work from the Grade 6 book. It is a grid of ten small scenes, and each scene stands for one role of government. Look at them one by one and the whole list on page 186 falls into place.

What the panel shows	The role of government it stands for
A modern train on the tracks	Transport — an essential public service
A road roller laying a highway	Building infrastructure
A health worker attending to a family	Delivering healthcare
Soldiers patrolling a border	National defence
A traffic policeman at a signal	Maintaining law and order
Rescue workers in helmets at a damaged site	Disaster relief — security and safety of the people
A classroom full of children	Providing education
The Supreme Court building	Justice — the judicial function
People at counters in an office or bank	Managing the economy and public administration
A postman with his bicycle and a letter box	Communication and postal services

Why the book repeats the picture: Grade 6 asked what a government is. Grade 7 asks what kinds of government exist. Starting from the same familiar picture makes the point that every one of these tasks has to be done in any country — what differs is who decides how they are done, and to whom that person answers.

Q2.

The government also has many other roles. Try to list them.

Answer

Page 186 lists seven roles. Here are further ones you can see around you every day — with the ministry or body that usually does the work.

Other role of government	What it looks like in daily life
Running elections	The Election Commission conducts polls, issues voter ID cards and counts votes
Collecting taxes and preparing the Budget	Income tax, GST; the Union Budget presented in Parliament every year
Issuing currency and regulating banks	The Reserve Bank of India prints notes and sets interest rates
Disaster management	NDRF teams during floods, cyclones and earthquakes
Protecting the environment	Forest departments, national parks, pollution control boards
Public distribution and welfare	Ration shops, mid-day meals, pensions, MGNREGA work
Science, technology and space	ISRO's satellites; agricultural and medical research institutes
Culture and heritage	Archaeological Survey of India, museums, libraries, protection of monuments
Registration and records	Birth and death certificates, land records, passports, Aadhaar
Sports and public health campaigns	Stadiums and coaching; vaccination drives, Swachh Bharat
Diplomacy and helping citizens abroad	Embassies, visas, evacuating Indians from conflict zones

Try this: walk from your home to your school and count how many things you pass that exist because of a government decision — the road, the streetlight, the bus, the drain, the school itself. Make your own list of ten and name the role each one belongs to.

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