RESOURCES
AND
DEVELOPMENT
Everything available in our environment which can be used to
satisfy our needs, provided, it is technologically accessible,
economically feasible and culturally acceptable can be termed as
‘Resource’.
PHYSICAL ENVIRONMENT
(NATURE)
HUMAN
BEINGS
TECHNOLOGY INSTITUTION
Although resources are provided by nature, they are not
necessarily free. In many cases, resources require human effort
and investment to extract and utilize.
For example, oil is a natural resource, but it requires drilling,
refining, and transportation to be useful.
Classification of Resources
Status of
Origin Exhaustibility Ownership
Development
Biotic Renewable Individual Potential
Abiotic Non- Renewable Community Developed
Owned
National Reserve
International Stock
Development of Resources
Resources are vital for human survival as well as for maintaining
the quality of life. It was believed that resources are free gifts of
nature.
As a result, human beings used them indiscriminately and this
has led to the major problems.
Problems Related to Resources
Depletion of resources due to over-utilization.
Accumulation in few hands.
Indiscriminate exploitation of resources
Ecological
Imbalances
Global Warming
Ozone Layer
Depletion
Pollution
Land Degradation
Sustainable development
Sustainable economic development means ‘development should
take place without damaging the environment, and development
in the present should not compromise with the needs of the future
generations.’
Rio de Janeiro Earth Summit, 1992
Organisation
United Nations Conference on Environment and Development
Place
Rio de Janeiro in Brazil
Aim
Addressing the problem of environmental degradation
Adopted
The Global Forest Principles and Agenda 21
Agenda 21
Aims at achieving global sustainable development.
For combating environmental damage, poverty and diseases
through global cooperation.
Every country is supposed to formulate its own Agenda 21.
Why is resource
planning necessary?
EXAMPLES
The states of Jharkhand, Chhattisgarh and Madhya Pradesh are
rich in minerals and coal deposits.
Arunachal Pradesh has abundant water resources but lacks
infrastructural development.
The state of Rajasthan has enough solar energy and wind energy
but lacks water resources.
The cold desert of Ladakh has a very rich cultural heritage but is
deficient in water, infrastructure and some vital minerals.
This calls for balanced resource planning at the national, state,
regional and local levels.
Resource Planning Involves
identification and inventory of resources across the regions of
the country. This involves surveying, mapping and qualitative and
quantitative estimation and measurement of the resources.
Evolving a planning structure endowed with appropriate
technology, skill and institutional set up for implementing
resource development plans.
Matching the resource development plans with overall national
development plans.
India has made concerted efforts for achieving the goals of resource
planning right from the First Five Year Plan launched after
Independence.
Conservation of Resources
The Club of Rome advocated resource
conservation for the first time in a
more systematic way in 1968.
In 1974, Gandhian philosophy was
once again presented by Schumacher
in his book Small is Beautiful.
Brundtland Commission Report of 1987 introduced the concept of
‘Sustainable Development’ that focused on the conservation of
resources for the future. Subsequently published in a book
entitled Our Common Future.
LAND RESOURCES
Land is the basic natural resource on which all other resources
exist.
It is considered an essential resource because we are using it for
several purposes such as agriculture, forestry, mining, building
houses and roads, and setting up industries. Also, it provides
habitation to a variety of flora and fauna.
Land under important Relief Features
27%
43%
30%
PLAINS MOUNTAINS PLATEAUS
Land Utilization
Land resources are used for the following purposes:
Forests
Land not available
for cultivation
Other uncultivated
land
Fallow lands
Net sown area
Land not available for cultivation
Barren and waste Land put to non-
land agricultural uses
Example
Buildings, roads,
factories, etc.
Other uncultivated land
Culturable waste land (left
Permanent pastures and
uncultivated for more than
grazing land
5 agricultural years).
Land under miscellaneous
tree crops groves (not
included in net sown area)
Fallow lands
Current fallow (left Other than current fallow
without cultivation for (left uncultivated for the
one or less than one past 1-5 agricultural
agricultural year) years)
Net sown area
Area sown more than
Net sown area represents
once in an agricultural
an area in which total
year plus net sown area
crops are grown only
is known as gross
once in a year.
cropped area.
Land Use Pattern in India
The use of land is determined both by physical factors such as:
Climate
Soil type
Topography
Population density
Technological
capability
Culture
Traditions
