Chapter-1 Understanding Economic Development

1. Development of a country can generally be determined by

  1. its per capita income

  2. its average literacy level

  3. health status of its people

  4. all of the above

Explanation:

The correct answer (d) All of the above.

Reason - per-person revenue. Major Points The income per person is calculated by dividing the nation's total income by its entire population. One of the more crucial factors to consider when gauging a nation's growth is its income. More developed than low-income nations are those with higher incomes.


2. Which of the following@Àneighbouring countries has better performance in terms of human development than India?

Explanation:

The correct option is (b) Silence.

Reason - Sri Lanka scores best with an HDI rank of 73 according to information for the year 2013 for Indian and its neighbouring countries. According to statistics for 2013, India's HDI rank was 135; Myanmar's HDI rank was 150; Bangladesh's HDI rank was 142; Nepal's HDI rank was 145; and Pakistan's HDI rank was 146. After comparing 177 nations, the aforementioned rankings were created. According to the 2014 Human Development Report, India's lifespan at birth was a very low 66.4.


3.  Assume there are four families in a country. The average per capita income of these families is Rs. 5000. If the income of three families is Rs. 4,000, Rs. 7,000 and Rs. 3,000, respectively, what is the income of the fourth family?


  1. Rs. 7,500

  2. Rs. 3,000

  3. Rs. 2,000

  4. Rs. 6,000

Explanation:

The correct option is (d) 6000.


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

Explanation:

Worldwide Bank categorises various nations based on their per capita revenue.  Division of the nation's overall based on its population's wealth, earned per person is determined. Low-income nations are those for the year 2017 with an average household income of US 955 or less.

The criterion's restrictions are:

  • When classifying the nations, other crucial variables like healthcare, infant mortality, and literacy rates are disregarded.

  • The World Bank does not provide information regarding the uneven distribution of wealth.

  • The state of a nation's economics cannot dictate how it develops.


5. In what respects is the criterion used by the UNDP for measuring development different from the one used by the World Bank?

Explanation:

Due to the fact that the UNDP rates nations according to the level of education, health, and disposable income of their people. Due to the reality that the UNDP ranks countries based on the quality of their citizens' health, education, and financial resources.


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

Explanation:

 Because the populations of various nations change, the mean can be utilized to calculate an outcome that can be compared to different things at various levels. The average can be utilized to determine a result that is comparable to various items at various levels as the populations of different countries fluctuate. 

For instance, If we do the math the income per person of two nations, A and B, with five people each, the salaries of the five employees in country A are Rs. 23,500, Rs. 23,500, Rs. 28,00, and Rs. 25,00, and the salaries of the employees in country B are Rs. 1,50,000, Rs. 22,000, Rs. 50,000, Rs. 4,00, and Rs. 2,500. Nation A will have an average income of Rs. 24,300, while nation B will have an average income of Rs. 45,700. This demonstrates that although country B's average is greater compared to that of nation A, the distribution of income in country B is unequal, while it is distributed equally in country A.


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

Explanation:

Despite possessing an inferior per capita income than Haryana, Kerala ranks better for human growth, Kerala rates higher for human growth than Haryana despite having a lower per capita income. A measure to evaluate states is completely useless. This is accurate because Kerala has superior healthcare facilities than Haryana does, and Kerala has a lower infant mortality rate and literacy rate. Without taking into account any other variables, the income earned by each person is only determined by calculating the state's average revenue.


8.  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?

Explanation:

In India, people currently use firewood, coal, gasoline, crude oil, and natural gas as their energy sources. Other options include using wind and solar power as sources of different energy types in fifty years. This is due to the possibility that the present use of energy sources will lead to the depletion of biodiversity to benefit future generations.


9. Why is the issue of sustainability important for development?

Explanation:

Utilizing resources from nature in a way that allows for their continued use by both current and future populations is known as sustainable development. Sustainable growth is crucial since if resources from nature are not used responsibly, they might not be around for future generations. A country's lack of development may eventually be caused by the depletion of its resources.


10.  “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 statement relevant to the discussion of development? Discuss.

Explanation:

 Availability of material for a country's citizens to use is as important to development as the economic variables that affect it. Since earth's resources are non-renewable resources, the adage "The Earth has enough resources to fulfil everyone's needs, but not enough to satisfy even one person's greed” is completely relevant to a country's development. It is the people's duty to make use of them in order to fulfil their requirements rather than indulge their desires. Natural resources could become unusable for future generations if they fail to be utilized wisely now, which would be detrimental to a nation's ability to grow.


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

Explanation:

Human activity increases the amount of carbon dioxide in the air, which harms the ecosystem. The accessibility of water may be impacted by environmental variables brought on by global warming. Warming up cause’s vegetation to transpire more. Both the likelihood of flooding and the likelihood of drought are increased by an early snowmelt. The yearly precipitation is increasing due to global warming. The extra rain increases the extent of soil loss, which further reduces the quality of the water. Warmer temperatures cause the soil to retain less moisture even with an increase in precipitation.

Global pollution impacts agriculture by increasing the demand for irrigation water. This method of adding water makes the soil more salinous, ultimately to the point where crops cannot be grown there. Here are a few instances of natural degradation:

1. Clearing of forests

2. Soil erosiveness

3. Declining subterranean water levels

4. Extreme air pollution is brought on by the destruction of the ozone layer and vehicle emissions.

5. Pollution of Water

6. Dumping trash into rivers

7. Using herbicides and fertilisers with chemicals 

8. Burning coal and petroleum oil at 8.


12. For each of the items given in Table 1.6, find out which country is at the top and which is at the bottom.

Explanation:

According to Table 1.6, Sri Lanka is in first place in every one of the four categories. For the GDP (GI), Life Expectancy at Beginning, Standard The years of Education for People Older 25 and above, and HDI, it comes in first place globally. Among the mentioned nations, Nepalese has the smallest gross national income. Pakistani has the lowest birthweight and HDI number among the countries on the list. Myanmar as well as Nepal had a below average amount of years invested in education among people over 25.