1. Development

1. What Development Promises

Development is a complex idea because it means different things to different people. What constitutes progress for one person may not be the same for another, and sometimes these goals can even be conflicting.

• Different Goals: A landless labourer seeks more days of work and better wages, while a prosperous farmer might seek high support prices for crops to settle children abroad.

• Conflicting Goals: An industrialist may want a dam for electricity, but this same dam might submerge the land of local tribals, disrupting their lives.

2. Income and Other Goals

While people desire regular work and better income, money is not the only thing that matters. Quality of life also depends on non-material things like freedom, security, equal treatment, and respect.

Comparison of States (Income vs. Other Criteria)

Even if a state has a high income, it may lag in social indicators.

Table 1.3: Per Capita Income of Select States (2018–19)

Table 1.4: Comparative Social Data (2017–18)

Key takeaway: Haryana has the highest income, but Kerala has a much lower Infant Mortality Rate and higher Literacy Rate. This highlights that money in your pocket cannot buy all the goods and services needed to live well, such as a pollution-free environment or protection from infectious diseases.

3. Comparing Countries: The World Bank vs. UNDP

Different international organizations use different criteria to classify how "developed" a country is.

• World Bank: Uses Per Capita Income (Average Income) to classify countries.

  • Limitation: Averages hide disparities. A country could have a high average income even if one person is extremely rich and the rest are poor.

• UNDP (Human Development Report): Compares countries based on educational levels, health status, and per capita income.

Table 1.6: India and its Neighbours (2019 Data)

4. Sustainability of Development

Development must be sustainable, meaning it should not only meet the needs of the present but also preserve resources for future generations.

• Renewable Resources: Groundwater is an example. If we pump more water than is replenished by rain, we are overusing the resource.

• Non-renewable Resources: Crude oil is a fixed stock that will eventually get exhausted.

Table 1.7: Crude Oil Reserves (2017)

5. Important Definitions

• Per Capita Income: The total income of the country divided by its total population.

• Infant Mortality Rate (IMR): Number of children that die before the age of one year per 1000 live births.

• Literacy Rate: Proportion of literate population in the 7-and-above age group.

• Net Attendance Ratio: Total number of children (age 14-15) attending school as a percentage of the total number of children in that age group.

• Body Mass Index (BMI): A measure used to determine if an adult is undernourished or overweight (Weight in kg / Height in $meters^2$).

I. In-Text Questions

Section: Different Persons, Different Goals

1. 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. Different people have different notions of development because their life situations are different. This is the more important explanation because a person’s immediate needs, aspirations, and desires are born out of their current circumstances. For example, a landless laborer seeks more days of work, while a prosperous farmer seeks high support prices.

2. Do the following two statements mean the same? (a) People have different developmental goals. (b) People have conflicting developmental goals. No, they do not mean the same. "Different goals" means people want different things (e.g., one wants better wages, another wants higher education). "Conflicting goals" means that the development of one may be destructive for the other. For example, a dam provides electricity for industrialists (development) but submerges the land of tribals (destruction).

Section: Income and Other Goals

3. Give some examples where factors other than income are important. Apart from income, people seek things like equal treatment, freedom, security, and respect for others. In a job, factors like a healthy working atmosphere, opportunity to learn, and job security are often as important as the salary.

Section: Average Income and Comparisons

4. Why do you think average income is an important criterion for development? Average income (Per Capita Income) is important because it allows us to compare the material well-being of different countries regardless of their total population size. It tells us, on average, how much an individual in a country is likely to earn.

5. Besides per capita income, what other property of income is important in comparing societies? The distribution of income is crucial. A country might have a high average income, but if it is concentrated in the hands of a few (high disparity), the majority of people may remain poor.

II. Exercise Questions (Book Back)

1. Development of a country can generally be determined by:

• (i) its per capita income

• (ii) its average literacy level

• (iii) health status of its people

• (iv) all the above

2. Which neighbouring country has better performance in terms of human development than India?

• (i) Bangladesh

• (ii) Sri Lanka

• (iii) Nepal

• (iv) Pakistan

3. Assume there are four families. The average per capita income is Rs 5000. If the income of three families is Rs 4000, Rs 7000, and Rs 3000, what is the income of the fourth family?

• Total income for 4 families = $4 \times 5000 = 20,000$.

• Sum of 3 families = $4000 + 7000 + 3000 = 14,000$.

• Fourth family income = $20,000 - 14,000 = 6,000$.

• Answer: (iv) Rs 6000

4. What is the main criterion used by the World Bank? What are its limitations? The World Bank uses Per Capita Income (Average Income) to classify countries.

• Limitations: It hides disparities. It does not tell us how income is distributed among people. It ignores other vital aspects like health and education.

5. How is the UNDP criterion different from the World Bank? While the World Bank relies solely on income, the UNDP (Human Development Report) uses a combination of:

• Per Capita Income (Economic).

• Education Levels (Literacy rate and enrolment ratios).

• Health Status (Life expectancy).

6. Why is the issue of sustainability important for development? Sustainability ensures that the current process of development does not exhaust resources for future generations. Since many resources like crude oil are non-renewable and finite, development must be resource-efficient to last.

7. “The Earth has enough resources to meet the needs of all but not enough to satisfy the greed of even one person.” How is this relevant? This statement highlights that the problem of environmental degradation and resource depletion is caused by over-exploitation and greed. Sustainable development requires using resources for "need" rather than "greed" so that the environment is preserved for the future.