Public Facilities – MCQs with Answers and Explanations
Public Facilities — 30 MCQs with Explanations
CBSE Board Examinations — Systematic Order
What are public facilities?
Public facilities are services or infrastructure meant for public use (e.g., schools, clinics, water supply) usually provided by the government or community bodies to meet basic needs and reduce inequality.
Which of the following is NOT a public facility?
Private luxury spas are commercial services for paying customers, not public facilities meant to serve community needs or provided by the state for universal benefit.
Which three words best summarise what a public facility must offer?
Availability (exists), accessibility (usable by people considering distance/cost/social barriers) and quality (effective services) are key elements that make public facilities meaningful.
Which group benefits most from good public facilities?
Public facilities reduce inequality by providing affordable services to those who cannot afford private alternatives — especially the poor and marginalized.
Which of the following is an example of improving quality in public services?
Training staff improves the quality of services by ensuring better care, teaching and management — a direct way to raise service standards.
Primary Health Centres (PHCs) are mainly designed to provide:
PHCs provide first-contact curative care, immunisation, maternal and child health services and referrals — making basic healthcare accessible locally.
Which preventive measure reduces the spread of contagious childhood diseases?
Immunisation protects children from vaccine-preventable diseases, reducing illness and deaths and lowering public health burden.
One direct benefit of good public healthcare for families is:
Accessible public healthcare prevents and treats illnesses early, reducing treatment costs and preventing loss of income due to sickness.
A mobile health unit is useful because it:
Mobile health units bring basic diagnosis, medicines and preventive services to remote populations who cannot easily reach fixed clinics.
Which of the following weakens public healthcare?
Staff shortages reduce service availability and quality — clinics need trained personnel to deliver care and manage public health activities.
An example of preventive public health is:
Preventive measures like immunisation stop disease before it occurs, which is central to public health strategies.
Which is a direct way public schools reduce inequality?
Free or subsidised schooling allows poor children to access education they otherwise could not afford, promoting social mobility.
Mid-day meal schemes primarily aim to:
Mid-day meals provide nutrition and are an incentive for children to attend school regularly, improving learning outcomes and attendance.
A common reason for poor learning outcomes in some public schools is:
Irregular teacher presence and lack of textbooks or materials reduce learning time and the quality of education.
Which facility in school particularly supports girls' attendance?
Separate and clean toilets ensure sanitation and privacy, encouraging girls to continue attending school, especially after puberty.
Scholarships for poor students are an example of:
Targeted support like scholarships helps remove financial barriers for specific groups, improving their educational access and retention.
Which is a public health benefit of safe drinking water?
Safe drinking water prevents water-borne diseases such as diarrhoea, reducing child morbidity and mortality and improving community health.
What is an integrated approach to school sanitation?
Sanitation works when toilets, clean water, handwashing stations and hygiene education are all available — otherwise one element alone may not be effective.
Which practice reduces mosquito breeding and vector-borne diseases?
Good drainage and waste removal prevent stagnant water where mosquitoes breed, thus reducing diseases like malaria and dengue.
Handwashing with soap is most effective in preventing:
Handwashing with soap removes germs and prevents diseases like diarrhoea and respiratory infections — a simple and effective hygiene practice.
Public transport helps the poor mainly by:
Affordable public transport reduces travel costs and allows people to reach jobs, markets and services, expanding livelihood opportunities.
Reliable electricity in schools primarily enables:
Electricity provides lighting for study after dark and powers equipment (computers, fans), improving learning conditions and school functioning.
Poor roads affect public services because they:
Poor roads raise travel time and vehicle costs, making it harder for people to reach essential services, particularly in emergencies.
Solar lighting in public spaces is useful because it:
Solar-powered lamps are useful where grid electricity is unreliable — they ensure continuous lighting for safety and night-time activities.
Which function is NOT a government responsibility for public facilities?
Government must plan, fund, regulate and monitor services; abandoning delivery contradicts the state's responsibility to provide public goods.
What is decentralisation in service delivery?
Decentralisation hands decision-making and implementation power to local bodies (panchayats, municipalities) so services can better match local needs.
Which is a transparency tool that helps reduce corruption in public schemes?
Public displays (procurement, delivery, beneficiary lists) enable citizens to check records and spot discrepancies, reducing chances of diversion and corruption.
What is a social audit?
Social audits involve community members checking schemes and verifying physical outcomes against records; they promote accountability and corrective action.
Which practice helps ensure that government schemes reach the poor?
Targeted measures (scholarships, subsidies) combined with monitoring and transparency help ensure benefits reach intended poor beneficiaries.
Which combination best reduces problems in public facilities?
Laws set standards, awareness increases demand, monitoring checks delivery, and community participation holds providers accountable — together they improve services.