Resource

 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’.
 The process of transformation of things available in our environment involves an interactive
relationship between nature, technology and institutions.
 Human beings interact with nature through technology and create institutions to accelerate
their economic development
 Resources are free gifts of nature as is assumed by many but they are not.
 Resources are a function of human activities.
Human beings themselves are essential components of resources.
They transform material available in our environment into resources and use them.
These resources can be classified in the following ways –
(a) On the basis of origin – biotic and abiotic
(b) On the basis of exhaustibility – renewable and non-renewable
(c) On the basis of ownership – individual, community, national and international
(d) On the basis of status of development – potential, developed stock and reserves.
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 following major problems.
• Depletion of resources for satisfying the greed of a few individuals.
• Accumulation of resources in few hands, which, in turn, divided the society into two
segments i.e. haves and have nots or rich and poor.
• Indiscriminate exploitation of resources has led to global ecological crises such as, global
warming, ozone layer depletion, environmental pollution and land degradation.

An equitable distribution of resources has become essential for a sustained quality of life
and global peace.
If the present trend of resource depletion by a few individuals and countries continues, the
future of our planet is in danger.
Therefore, resource planning is essential for sustainable existence of all forms of life.
Sustainable existence is a component of 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
In June 1992, more than 100 heads of states met in Rio de Janeiro in Brazil, for the first
International Earth Summit.
The Summit was convened for addressing urgent problems of environmental protection and
socio economic development at the global level.
The assembled leaders signed the Declaration on Global Climatic Change and Biological
Diversity.
The Rio Convention endorsed the global Forest Principles and adopted Agenda 21 for
achieving Sustainable Development in the 21st century.
Agenda 21
 It is the declaration signed by world leaders in 1992 at the United Nations Conference on
Environment and Development (UNCED), which took place at Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. It aims at
achieving global sustainable development.
 It is an agenda to combat environmental damage, poverty, disease through global co-
operation on common interests, mutual needs and shared responsibilities.
 One major objective of the Agenda 21 is that every local government should draw its own
local Agenda 21.
RESOURCE PLANNING
Planning is the widely accepted strategy for judicious use of resources.
It has importance in a country like India, which has enormous diversity in the availability of
resources.
There are regions which are rich in certain types of resources but are deficient in some other
There are some regions which can be considered self sufficient in terms of the availability of
resources and there are some regions which have acute shortage of some vital resources.
For example
 The states of Jharkhand, Chhattisgarh and Madhya Pradesh are rich in minerals and coal
deposits.
 Arunachal Pradesh has abundance of water resources but lacks in infrastructural
development.
 The state of Rajasthan is very well endowed with solar and wind energy but lacks in water
resources.
 The cold desert of Ladakh is relatively isolated from the rest of the country. It has very rich
cultural heritage but it 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 in India
Resource planning is a complex process which involves:
(i) 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.
(ii) Evolving a planning structure endowed with appropriate technology, skill and
institutional set up for implementing resource development plans.
(iii) 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.
The availability of resources is a necessary condition for the development of any
region, but mere availability of resources in the absence of corresponding changes in
technology and institutions may hinder development.
There are many regions in our country that are rich in resources but these are
included in economically backward regions.
On the contrary there are some regions which have a poor resource base but they
are economically developed.
The history of colonisation reveals that rich resources in colonies were the main
attractions for the foreign invaders.
It was primarily the higher level of technological development of the colonising
countries that helped them to exploit resources of other regions and establish their
supremacy over the colonies.
Therefore, resources can contribute to development only when they are
accompanied by appropriate technological development and institutional changes.
India has experienced all this in different phases of colonisation.
Therefore, in India, development, in general, and resource development in particular
does not only involve the availability of resources, but also the technology, quality of
human resources and the historical experiences of the people.
Conservation of Resources:
Resources are vital for any developmental activity. But irrational consumption and
over-utilisation of resources may lead to socio-economic and environmental
problems. To overcome these problems, resource conservation at various levels is
important. This had been the main concern of the leaders and thinkers in the past.
For example, Gandhiji was very apt in voicing his concern about resource
conservation in these words: “There is enough