Previous Year Question
Given below are two statements:
Assertion (A): According to the World Health Organization (WHO) in 1993, there were 16.5 million deaths due to infectious diseases worldwide.
Reason (R): Urbanization without health planning leads to the spread of such diseases.
Choose the correct answer from the codes given below:
Both (A) and (R) are true and (R) is the correct explanation of (A).
Both (A) and (R) are true but (R) is not the correct explanation of (A).
(A) is true but (R) is false.
(A) is false but (R) is true.
Correct Answer: B
Detailed Solution
Assertion (A) is correct. According to historical estimates of the World Health Organization (WHO), approximately 16.4–16.5 million (1.64–1.65 crore) people died worldwide due to Infectious and Parasitic Diseases in 1993. These included diseases such as respiratory infections, Tuberculosis, Malaria, and Diarrhoeal Diseases. At that time, infectious diseases were among the leading causes of global mortality.
Reason (R) is also correct. Rapid Urbanisation without adequate Health Planning can increase the risk of infectious disease transmission. High population density, overcrowded housing, unsafe drinking water, inadequate sanitation, and poor Waste Management create conditions in which infections caused by Pathogens can spread more easily.
Causal Relationship Between the Statements: Urbanisation without adequate health planning may contribute to the spread of infectious diseases, but it does not fully explain the approximately 16.5 million deaths recorded worldwide in 1993. These deaths were associated with several factors, including poverty, malnutrition, inadequate vaccination, limited access to healthcare, and infections caused by different pathogens. Infectious diseases were not confined to urban areas.