Development: 10th CBSE Economics

Question: Why do we use averages? Are there any limitations to their use? Illustrate with your own examples related to development

Answer: We use averages because they are useful for comparing differing quantities of the same category. For example, to compute the per capita income of a country, averages have to be used because there are differences in the incomes of diverse people. However, there are limitations to the use of averages. Even though they are useful for comparison, they may also hide disparities. For example, the infant mortality rate of a country does not differentiate between the male and female infants born in that country. Such an average tells us nothing about whether the number of children dying before the age of one are mostly boys or girls.

Question: 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: No, I do not agree with the statement that per capita income is not a useful criterion at all. Kerala, with lower per capita income has a better human development ranking than Punjab because, human development ranking is determined using a combination of factors such as health, education, and income. So, this does not imply that per capita income is not useful. Rather, per capita income is one of the development factors and can not be neglected. The World Bank uses per capita income as the criterion for measuring development and comparing states. But this criterion has certain limitations because of which determination of Human Development Index (HDI) is done using this criterion along with some other development factors like health, education etc.

Question: Find out the present sources of energy that are used by the people in India. What could be the other possibilities fifty years from now?

Answer: The present sources of energy that are used by the people of India are electricity, coal, crude oil, cow dung and solar energy. Other possibilities fifty years from now, could include ethanol, bio-diesel, nuclear energy and a better utilization of wind energy, especially with the imminent danger of oil resources running out.

Question: Why is the issue of sustainability is important for development?

Answer: Sustainability for development or sustainable development refers to the development which is done without damaging the environment and other resources. In other words, balancing the need to use resources and also conserve them for future is known as sustainable development.

The issue of sustainability is important for the development because development must happen in tandem with future. If natural resources are not sustained, it will cause a stagnation of development after a point of time. Exploiting resources unethically will ultimately undo the development that a country may have achieved. This is because in future, those resources will not be available for further progress.

Question: “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 future the development will be stagnated.

Question: List a few examples of environmental degradation that you may have observed around you.

Answer: Environmental degradation manifests itself in different ways. Deforestation, falling levels of ground water, soil erosion, water pollution, burning of fossil fuels, the hole in the ozone layer and combustion from automobiles causing extreme air pollution especially in urban areas are some of the examples of environmental degradation.