DEVELOPMENT

Question 1.
Why do different persons have different notions of development?
Answer:
Each person seeks different things. All persons seek things that are most important for them i.e.,
that which can fulfil their aspirations or desires.

Question 2.
Give an example of conflicting desires/aspirations.
Answer:
An industrialist may want more dams to get more electricity but this may submerge the land and
disrupt the lives of people who are displaced such as tribal people. They prefer small dams.

Question 3.
What is average income of a country?
Answer:
Average income is the total income of the country divided by its total population. The average
income is also called per capital income.

Question 4.
How is the development of a country determined?
Answer:
Development of a country can generally be determined by its per capital income.

Question 5.
Why is per capita income always considered as an important parameter of measuring
development?
Answer:
The aim of economic development is to raise the living standard of the people and through this to
raise consumption level. This can be estimated through per capital income rather than national
income. Thus, the per capital income is a good, measure of economic development.

Question 6.
Give some examples where factors other than income are important aspects of our lives.
Answer:
Income can be measured but there are things which cannot be measured but are important in life.
For example, a person gets a job offer in a far-off place. The salary is very good but before
accepting that offer he will consider the following points:

1. Facilities for the family.

2. Working atmosphere e., night duty or morning duty hours.
3. Regular or temporary employment.
4. Accommodation for living.

Person will have to consider all the above points before joining. He may join only if the conditions
are favourable for him. Thus, the developmental goals that people have are not only about better
income but also about other important aspects.
Question 7.
What is meant by National Development? Give your own opinion.
Answer:
National development refers to the development of a country which include the following
points:

1. There should be a fair and just path for all.

2. There should be a pollution free environment.
3. It should benefit a large number of people and not a small group. There should be increase
in per capita income in such a way that the gap between the rich and the poor be the
minimum. Citizens should be provided better health facilities, better educational facilities.

Question 8.
What do you mean by public facilities? Why are they important? Name two public facilities
available in India.
Or
Highlight any three major advantages of public facilities.
Answer:
(1) Public facilities are those facilities and services which are required for society or for public to
lead a better life. These are generally provided by the government.
(2) These are important and have advantages as mentioned below :

 Money cannot buy all services required for a better quality of life , pollution free environment
and better transport.
 It is cheapest way and the best way to provide goods and facilities to the people.
 It develops the national feeling and a sense of collective responsibility.

(3) Public facilities available in India are Public Distribution System (PDS), Public Transport,
hospitals, police and government colleges and schools.

Question 9.
What does HDI stand for? Explain the main criteria of measuring HDI according to UNDP Report
of 1990.
Answer:
HDI Stand for Human Development Index.
Main criteria of measuring HDI:

1. HDI published by UNDP compares countries based on the educational levels of the people,
their health status and per capita income.
2. HDI determines the rank of a country by its overall achievement in three areas, i.e., life
expectancy, educational level and per capita income.
3. Many improvements have been suggested in calculating HDI and many new components
have been added to Human Development Report.
4. Pre-fixing Human to Development, it has made it clear that what is important in development
is what is happening to citizens of a country, i.e., the health and well-being of the people is
most important.

Question 10.

Why do we use averages? Are there any limitations to their use? Illustrate with your
own examples related to development.
Answer: We use averages for comparison between two countries, two persons or any
two or more things.
There are the following limitations to the use of averages:

 Averages do not tell us about similarities or differences between two

countries or persons or things.
 By averages only one aspect income, size etc. in case of country, marks or
participation in sports activities etc. in case of student, can be compared.
All aspects or achievements are not compared.
 As only one aspect is compared, it does not give true picture of different
countries, persons or things. For example, students differ in height, health,
talents and interests. The healthiest student may not be the most
intelligent or topper in studies. Similar is the case in respect of countries or
states. A country may be ahead than the other country in one field but may
lag behind in the other field. So averages do not give the correct picture.

Question 11.

‘Conflicting goals can also be developmental goals. Elaborate with examples.

Answer:
All persons do not have the same notion of development or progress. Each one of them seeks
different things. The seek things that are most important for them, i.e., that which can fulfil their
aspirations or desires. In fact, at times two persons or groups of persons may seek things which
are conflicting.

A girl expects as much freedom and opportunity as her brother and that he also shares in the
household work. Her brother may not like this.

To get more electricity, industrialists may want more dams. But this may submerge the land and
disrupt the lives of people who are displaced, such as tribals. They might resent this and may
prefer small check dams or tanks to irrigate their land.

Question 12.
“Money cannot buy all the goods and services that one needs to live well” Do you agree with this
statement? Justify your answer with any three suitable arguments.
Answer:
Yes, I agree with the statement because money income and material goods alone are not an
adequate indicator of a good quality of life. Money cannot buy all the goods and services one
needs to live well.

 Money cannot buy a pollution free and dean environment with fresh air.
 It cannot protect us from infectious diseases and guarantee good health for us.
 Money cannot assure that medicines available in the market are not adulterated.
To live well one needs non-material factors such as equal treatment, freedom, security,
equal opportunity to learn, a pollution free environment, good and safe working conditions
etc.

Question 13.
Why do people look at a mix of goals for development? Explain.
Answer:

Though income is one of the most important components of development, but there are other
important goals which people look at for development—
 1. People also seek things like equal treatment, freedom, security and respect.
2. Women need a safe and secure environment to take up a variety of jobs or to run
businesses as entrepreneurs.
3. People seek a pollution free environment.
4. Students seek better education and equal opportunities to learn.

Question 14.

Kerala, with lower per capita income, has a better human development ranking than
Punjab. Hence, per capita income is not a useful criterion at all and should not be
used to compare States. Do you agree? Discuss

Answer:
Per capita income is not a useful criterion at all to measure the human development
ranking of a state. High per capita income is not the only attribute to a good quality
life. Money cannot buy all the essential things required for a good life. Pollution-free
atmosphere to ensure good health, protection from infectious diseases, lowering of
mortality rate, promotion of literacy, etc. are essential for a good standard of living. In
order to achieve these, joint efforts have to be made by all members of a community,
be it rich or poor.
Kerala ranks higher compared to Punjab even with a lower per capita income because
—

1. mortality rate is lower

2. literacy rate is higher and
3. total number of children attending school (Classes I-V) is higher.

Question 15.

Why do different persons have different notions of development? Which of the

following explanations is more important and why?
(a) Because people are different.
(b) Because life situations of persons are different.
Answer:
The correct explanation is ‘Because life situations of persons are different.’
Developmental goals are different for different categories of people because of their
different aspirations. Aspirations are based on their needs. At times people may have
conflicting developmental goals also. What may be development for one may not be
development for another. It may even be destructive for the other.

Example, Industrialists may want construction of more dams for more electricity, but
this may lead to displacement of tribals who live in those areas and thereby disrupt
their lives.

Example, The inhabitants of Nandigram in West Bengal are mainly agriculturists and
their aspirations are to see development in the field of agriculture, whereas to some it
may appear that industrial advancement is more necessary for national development.

Question 16.

Explain any five fields other than income where development is needed.
Answer:
Fields other than income where development is needed:
 1. Education. The government must provide adequate education facilities in
all rural and urban areas. The government must necessarily focus on
education for girls so that all girls are able to acquire at least secondary
level schooling. Running proper schools and providing quality education,
particularly elementary education, is the duty of the Government.
2. Health. Basic health care facilities are a must for all. Establishment of
government hospitals, clinics and dispensaries, especially in rural areas, to
provide subsidized and unadulterated medicines to the poorer sections of
society.
3. Nutrition. An effective Public Distribution System—proper functioning of
ration shops and equitable distribution of food grains is very essential.
4. Transportation. A well-developed public transport system to make it easy
for general public to commute.
5. Electricity. It is the duty of the government to provide electricity and water
at reasonable rates to the common man and prevent him from exploitation
by private companies.

Question 17.

Why is the issue of sustainability important for development?

Answer:
Sustainable development means that development should meet the needs of the
present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their needs.
However, since the second half of the twentieth century, a number of scientists have
been warning that the present type and levels of development are not sustainable.
The issue of sustainable development has emerged from rapid industrialization of the
world in the past century. It is felt that economic growth and industrialization have led
to the reckless exploitation of natural resources. On the other hand, the stock of
natural resources is limited. So, the growth of all countries in the future is likely to be
endangered if the limited resources are completely exhausted.

Under these circumstances, the issue of sustainability has become important for
development. A number of resources are being overused. For example, groundwater
is under serious threat of overuse in many parts of the country i.e., Punjab, Haryana
and western U.P. The water level has declined over 4 meters. As a result of it if we go
on overusing there will be a water crisis in the future. Similarly, if non-renewable
resources are used recklessly these will also be exhausted.

Question 18.

What is the main criterion used by the World Bank in classifying different
countries? What are the limitations of this criterion, if any?

Answer:

(1) In the World Development Report, 2006, the World Bank has used the criterion of
average income or per capita income in classifying different countries.

 The average income or the per capita income is the total income of the
country divided by its population.
(2) According to the WDR 2006, countries are classified as mentioned
below :

 Rich countries : Countries with per capital income of? 4,53,000 per
annum and above in 2004 are called rich countries
 Low-income countries : Countries with per capital income of? 37,000 or
less are called low-income countries.
 India comes in the category of low-income countries because its per capital
income in 2004 was just ? 28,000 per annum.
 Rich countries, excluding countries of Middle East and certain other small
countries are generally called developed countries.

(3) Limitations of the criterion are as mentioned below :

1. It does not tell us how this income is distributed among people. A country
may have more equitable distribution. People may be neither very rich nor
extremely poor.
2. In another country with same average income, one person may be
extremely rich while others may be very poor. So, the method of average
income does not give correct picture of a country.
3. This system hides disparities among people.

Question 19.
“The Earth has enough resources to meet the need of all but not enough to satisfy
the greed of even one person.” How is this statement relevant to the discussion of
development? Discuss.

Answer:
This statement is relevant to the discussion of development since both resources and
development go hand in hand. As the statement claims, our earth has enough resources –
renewable and non-renewable to satisfy everyone’s need if we use them in an economic
manner. For the sustainability of development, the consumption and maintenance of
resources is also crucial. We have to use the resources keeping our environment protected
and clear so that there is a balance between the development and use of our resources. As
otherwise after a certain point of time in the future, the development will be stagnated.

Question 20.

List a few examples of environmental degradation that you may have

observed around you.

Answer:
Some of the examples of environmental degradation in the area are as
follows :

1. Air pollution has increased due to the emission of smoke from factories
and vehicles.
2. There is an increase in water pollution due to shops and small factories in
residential areas.
3. There is noise pollution due to the use of loudspeakers at night and the
blowing of horns unnecessarily on the roads by different vehicles.
4. People throw garbage wherever they want. Perhaps there is no provision
for dustbins in the streets or roadsides.
5. Sometimes people urinate in the open on the roadside due to a lack of
public conveniences.