Resources and Development

Resources
Resource: “everything available in our environment that can be used to satisfy our needs, and
is technologically feasible, economically viable and culturally acceptable”

Classification of Resources
Origin

Biotic

Living things; obtained from biosphere and have/had life

Flora, Fauna, Livestock, Human Beings

Abiotic

Non-Living things

Rocks, Metals, Soil, Land

Exhaustibility

Renewable

Can be renewed or replenished by physical, chemical or mechanical processes.

Solar Energy, Wind Energy, Water

Non-Renewable

Cannot be renewed

Takes a long (geological) time to form

Some can be recycled (metals)

Metals, Fossil Fuels

Ownership

Individual

Owned privately by individuals

Plots, Houses, Water in (Private) Wells

Community

Accessible to all members of the community

Grazing Grounds, Burial Grounds, Village Ponds etc.

National

Technically, all resources belong to the nation;

It has the legal power to acquire private properties for public good

Oceanic Area within 12 nautical miles → territorial waters

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 International

Oceanic resources beyond 200 nautical miles

Needs approval of international institutions

India has the right to mine Mn from India Ocean.

Status of Development

Potential

Found; Not Utilized

Rajasthan, Gujarat → Solar Energy

Developed

Surveyed; Their quality and quantity have been determined for utilization

Stock

Potential to satisfy, but no appropriate technology

Ex: Hydrogen in H2 O

Reserve

Subset of stock

Can be put into use with the current technical knowledge

But, use has not been started

Development of Resources
Problems:

1. Depletion → Satisfying needs of a few

2. Accumulation → Rich and Poor strata's of society

3. Exploitation → Global Ecologic Crises

a. Global Warming

b. Ozone Later

c. Environmental Pollution

d. Land Degradation

Sustainable Development: Development,

without damaging the environment

without compromising the needs of future generations

Rio de Janeiro Earth Summit

- June 1992; International Earth Summit

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 - Signed: “Declaration on Global Climatic Change and Biological Diversity”
- Adopted Agenda 21

Agenda 21
- Aims at achieving Global Sustainable Development
- Every Local Government → Own Agenda

Resource Planning
Rich and Deficient Regions

Jharkhand, Chhattisgarh, Madhya Pradesh → {Plateau Region} Minerals and Coal Deposits

Arunachal Pradesh → {Water Resources ⬆; Infrastructure ⬇}

Rajasthan → {Solar and Wind Energy ⬆; Water Resources ⬇}

Ladakh (Cold Desert) → {Cultural Heritage ⬆; Water, Infrastructure, Minerals ⬇}

Resource Planning in India

1. The resource planning process includes identifying and inventorying resources through surveys,
mapping, and estimation.

2. An appropriate planning structure with technology, skill, and institutions is necessary for implementing
resource development plans.

3. Resource development plans must align with national development plans for successful
implementation.

Done using the first five year plan.

Conservation of Resources
To overcome irrational consumption and over-utilization of resources, resource conservation at various
levels is important.

Land Resources
Supports {Natural Vegetation, Wild Life, Human Life, Economic Activities, Transport, Communication
Systems}

Limited

India → 43% Plains + 27% Plateaus + 30% Mountains

Land Utilization

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00%2C2164%2C1119%2C0_0&invitationId=inv_db8f7ad6-e8c7-4577-a47c-a97966d60068

Land Use Pattern

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 Land use data → 93%; {North Eastern States except Assam, Parts of Jammu and Kashmir etc} Have
not been surveyed.

Forest Area lower than desired 33% (only 23.3% in 2014-15)

Land Degradation and Conversation

Deforestation

Jharkhand, Chhattisgarh, MP, Odisha

Afforestation

Over Grazing

Gujarat, Rajasthan, MP, Maharashtra

Proper Management of Grazing

Over Irrigation

Punjab, Haryana, UP

Increase in salinity and alkalinity of soil.

Mining & Quarrying

Griding of {Limestone, Calcite, Soapstone} → Huge Amt. of Dust in Atm. → Infiltration of Water →
Soil

Management of Waste Lands, Control of Mining activities

Industrial Effluents

Disposal after treatment

In Arid Areas → Stabilization of Sand Dunes by Thorny Bushes

Soil
Plant Growth + Living Organisms

Top Soil → Subsoil → Weathered Rock → Bed Rock

Classification
Fertility and
Soil Type Characteristics Location Particle Size Subtypes
Features
Widespread and
Important,
Very Fertile
Himalayan River Bangar (Old
(Potash,
System (Indus, Duars > Chos > Alluvium),
Alluvial Soil Northern Plains Phosphoric Acid,
Ganga, Terai Khadar (New
Lime), Replenished
Brahmaputra), Alluvium)
by floods
Eastern Coastal
Plains, Deltas
Black Soil Regur Soils, Ideal Deccan Plateau Rich in Nutrients,
for Cotton Growth Cracks during Hot
(Black Cotton

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 Soil), Deccan Season (Aeration of
Trap (Rel. to Soil)
Lava), Clayey
Material
Odisha,
Chhattisgarh,
Crystalline Red - Diffusion of
Red and Yellow Southern Parts
Igneous Rocks — Iron, Yellow -
Soil of Ganga Plain,
Deccan Plateau Hydrated
Piedmont Zone -
W.G.
Humus rich under
forests, Humus
poor under sparse
vegetation and in
semi-arid
Tropical and
environment, Prone
subtropical Deep to very
to erosion and
Laterite Soil ‘later’ - brick climate regions deep, acidic
degradation. Useful
with wet and dry (pH<6.0)
for tea and coffee
seasons
cultivation after soil
conservation. Red
laterite soils
suitable for cashew
nut crops.
Ranges from red
Contains Kankar Becomes cultivable
to brown color,
Arid Soils Arid regions Sandy layer in lower after proper
Saline and sandy
horizons irrigation.
texture
Acidic with low
Found in hilly and Varies from humus content in
mountainous Hilly and loamy and silty snow-covered
Forest Soils areas with mountainous in valley sides to Himalayan areas,
sufficient rain regions coarse-grained Fertile in lower
forests in upper slopes parts of valleys and
river terraces

Conservation
1. Soil Erosion:

Denudation of soil cover and washing down is soil erosion.

Soil formation and erosion occur simultaneously with a natural balance.

Human activities (deforestation, over-grazing, construction, mining) and natural forces (wind,
glacier, water) can disturb this balance.

Running water can cut through clayey soils, creating deep channels known as gullies.

Excessive erosion makes land unfit for cultivation, known as bad land or ravines.

Sheet erosion occurs when water flows as a sheet over large areas, washing away topsoil.

Wind erosion happens when loose soil is blown off flat or sloping land.

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 Defective farming methods, such as ploughing up and down slopes, can create channels for
water flow and lead to erosion.

2. Soil Conservation Methods:

Contour ploughing involves ploughing along contour lines to slow down water flow on slopes.

Terraces can be created on slopes to prevent erosion; Western and central Himalayas practice
terrace farming.

Fields can be divided into strips, leaving grass between crops to break wind force (strip cropping).

Planting lines of trees (shelter belts) creates shelter and stabilizes soil against wind and erosion.

Shelter belts have helped stabilize sand dunes and desert areas in western India.

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