Power Sharing

The Ethnic composition of Belgium

1. 59 per cent lives in the Flemish region and speaks Dutch language.

2. 40 per cent people live in the Wallonia region and speak French.

3. 1% of the Belgians speak German.

4. In the capital city Brussels, 80 per cent people speak French while 20 per cent are Dutch speaking.

5. The minority French-speaking community was relatively rich and powerful. But the majority Dutch-
speaking community was poor and weak.

The Ethnic composition of Sri Lanka

1. Sri Lanka is an island nation, and has about two crore people.

2. The major social groups are the Sinhala-speakers (74 per cent) and the Tamil-speakers (18 per cent).

3. Among Tamils there are two subgroups. Tamil natives of the country are called ‘Sri Lankan Tamils’.
The rest, whose forefathers came from India as plantation workers during colonial period, are called
‘Indian Tamils’.

4. Most of the Sinhala speaking people are Buddhist, while most of the Tamils are Hindus or Muslims.

5. There are about 7 per cent Christians, who are both Tamil and Sinhala.

What is Majoritarianism? How was it practiced in Sri Lanka?

1. Majoritarianism is a belief in which the majority community should be able to rule a country in
whichever way it wants, by disregarding the wishes and needs of the minority.

2. In 1956, an Act was passed to recognise Sinhala as the only official language.

3. The governments followed preferential policies that favoured Sinhala applicants for university
positions and government jobs.

4. A new constitution recognised Buddhism as the national religion.

5. Sri Lankan Tamils felt that none of the major political parties led by the Buddhist Sinhala leaders
were sensitive to their language and culture. They felt that the constitution and government policies
denied them equal political rights and freedoms.
 Accommodation arrangements in Belgium

1. Belgium amended its constitution four times so as to work out an arrangement that would enable
everyone to live together within the same country.

2. Constitution prescribes that the number of Dutch and French-speaking ministers shall be equal in the
central government. Some special laws require the support of majority of members from each
linguistic group.

3. Many powers of the central government have been given to state governments of the two regions of
the country. The state governments are not subordinate to the Central Government.

4. Brussels has a separate government in which both the communities have equal representation.

5. Apart from the Central and the State Government, there is a third kind of government called
community government. This ‘community government’ is elected by people belonging to one
language community. This government has the power regarding cultural, educational and language-
related issues.
What do we learn from these two stories of Belgium and Sri Lanka?

1. In Belgium, the leaders have realized that the unity of the country is possible only by respecting the
feelings and interests of different communities and regions.

2. This realisation resulted in mutually acceptable arrangements for sharing power.

3. In Sri Lanka the majority community wants to force its dominance over others and refuses to share
power.

4. This resulted in long civil war and heavy loss of men and material.

Why is power sharing desirable?

1. Prudential Reason: Power sharing is good because it helps to reduce the possibility of conflict
between social groups.

2. Since social conflict often leads to violence and political instability. Power sharing is a good way to
ensure the stability of political order.

3. Moral Reason: Power sharing is the very spirit of democracy. A democratic rule involves sharing
power with those who live with its effects.

4. In a democracy people have a right to be consulted on how they are to be governed. A legitimate
government is one where citizens participate in the system.
Forms of power sharing
1. Power is shared among different organs of government, such as the legislature, executive and
judiciary. This is called horizontal distribution of power. It allows different organs of government to
exercise different powers. This arrangement is called a system of checks and balances.
2. Power can be shared among governments at different levels – a central government for the entire
country and state governments at the regional level. Division of powers involving higher and lower
levels of government is called vertical division of power.

3. Power can also be shared among different social groups such as the religious and linguistic groups.

4. Power can also be shared by different political parties such as national parties share power with
regional parties in coalition government.

5. Power can also be shared by different pressure groups and movements such as associations of
traders, businessmen, industrialists, farmers and industrial workers either through participation in
governmental committees or bringing influence on the decision-making process.

Explain horizontal distribution of power from the Indian context

1. Power is shared among different organs of government, such as the legislature, executive and
judiciary. This is called horizontal distribution of power.

2. It allows different organs of government placed at the same level to exercise different powers and
separation ensures that none of the organs can exercise unlimited power.

3. In India ministers and government officials exercise power and they are responsible to the Parliament
or State Assemblies.

4. Similarly the judges are appointed by the executive, they can check the functioning of executive or
laws made by the legislatures.

5. Each organ checks the other. This results in a balance of power among various institutions. This
arrangement is called a system of checks and balances.

Explain Vertical Division of power OR Federal division of power from the Indian context.

1. Power can be shared among governments at different levels – a central government for the entire
country and state governments at the regional level. Such a central government for the entire country
is usually called federal government.

2. In India, we refer to it as the Central or Union Government. The governments at the regional level
are called State Governments.

3. In India the constitution clearly lays down the powers of different levels ofgovernment. This is called
federal division of power.

4. The same principle is extended to levels of government lower than the State government, such as the
municipality and panchayat.

5. This type of division of powers involving higher and lower levels of government is called vertical
division of power.
 Explain power sharing between different social groups from the Indian context

1. Power can be shared among different social groups such as the religious and linguistic groups.

2. In India there are constitutional and legal arrangements whereby socially weaker sections are
represented in the legislatures and administration.

3. The system of ‘reserved constituencies’ in assemblies and the parliament of our country is meant to
give space in the government and administration to diverse social groups.

4. This method is used to give minority communities a fair share in power and a way of
accommodating social diversities.

Explain power sharing between different Political parties and pressure groups from the
Indian context

1. Power can also be shared by different political parties, pressure groups and movements.

2. In India the citizens have freedom to choose among various contenders for power. This takes the
form of competition among different parties. Such competition ensures that power does not remain in
one hand.

3. Power is shared among different political parties that represent different ideologies and social
groups. Sometimes this kind of sharing can be direct, when two or more parties form an alliance to
contest elections and form a coalition government.

4. In a democracy, Power can also be shared by different pressure groups and movements such as
associations of traders, businessmen, industrialists, farmers and industrial workers etc.

5. These pressure groups share power either through participation in governmental committees or
bringing influence on the decision-making process of the government.
 Nationalism in India
How did nationalism emerge in India?(Associated with Anti-colonial Movement)

1. People began discovering their unity in the process of their struggle with colonialism.
2. The sense of being oppressed under colonialism provided a shared bond that tied many
different groups together.
3. The Congress under Mahatma Gandhi tried to forge these groups together within one
movement.
4. In India, the growth of modern nationalism is intimately connected to the anti-colonial
movement.

Effects of World War I in India

1. First World War created a new economic and political situation. It led to a huge increase of taxes
like customs duties and income tax introduced.
2. Through the war years prices increased which led to extreme hardship for the common people.
3. Villages were called upon to supply soldiers, and the forced recruitment in rural areas caused
widespread anger.
4. From 1918 to 1921, crops failed in many parts of India, resulting in acute shortages of food.
This was accompanied by an influenza epidemic.
5. According to the census of 1921, 12 to 13 million people perished as a result of famines and
the epidemic.

What is Satyagraha?

1. The idea of satyagraha emphasized the power of truth and the need to search for truth. It
suggested that if the struggle was against truth and injustice, without seeking angry, vengeance
or aggression, a satyagrahi could win the battle through nonviolence.

Successful satyagraha movements from 1916 to1918

Mahatma Gandhi successfully organized three satyagraha movements in various places.

1. In 1916 Mahatma Gandhi travelled to Champaran in Bihar to inspire the peasants to struggle
against the oppressive plantation system.
2. Then in 1917, Mahatma Gandhi organized a satyagraha to support the peasants of the Kheda
district of Gujarat who were affected by crop failure and a plague epidemic and were demanding
that revenue collection be relaxed.
3. In 1918, Mahatma Gandhi went to Ahmadabad to organize a satyagraha movement amongst
cotton mill workers.

The Rowlatt Act and Rowlatt Satyagraha

1. Rowlatt Act (1919)gave the government enormous powers to repress political activities, and
allowed detention of political prisoners without trial for two years.
2. Mahatma Gandhi wanted non-violent civil disobedience against such unjust laws, which would
start with a hartal on 6 April 1919.
3. Rallies were organized in various cities, workers went on strike in railway workshops, and shops
closed down.

Causes for JallianwallaBagh massacre

1. To repress Rowlatt Satyagraha local leaders were picked up from Amritsar, and Mahatma
Gandhi was barred from entering Delhi.
2. On 10 April, the police in Amritsar fired upon a peaceful procession, provoke widespread
attacks on banks, post offices and railway stations. Martial law was imposed and General Dyer
took command.
3. On 13 April a large crowd gathered in the enclosed ground of JallianwallaBaghto attends the
annual Baisakhi fair. Beingfrom outside the city, many villagers were unaware of the martial law
that had been imposed.
4. General Dyer entered the area, blocked the exit points, and opened fire on the crowd, killing
hundreds.
5. As the news of Jallianwalla Bagh spread, crowds took to the streets in many north Indian towns.
There were strikes, clashes with the police and attacks on government buildings. The
government responded with brutal repression, seeking to humiliate and terrorise people.
Seeing violence spread, Mahatma Gandhi called off theRowlatt Satyagraha movement.

Khilafat Committee and Khilafat Movement

1. The First World War hadended with the defeat of Ottoman Turkey and a harsh peace treaty was
imposed on the Ottoman Emperor( Khalifa) – the spiritual head of the Islamic world.
2. Todefend the Khalifa’s temporal powers, a Khilafat Committee wasformed in Bombay in
March 1919.
3. Young Muslimleaders like Muhammad Ali and ShaukatAli, began a movement against the
British in India which is called Khilafat Movement.
4. Gandhiji saw this as an opportunity to bringMuslims and Hindus under the umbrella of a
unified national movement.
5. At theCalcutta session of the Congress in September 1920, he convincedother leaders of the
need to start a non-cooperation movement insupport of Khilafat as well as for Swaraj.

Why did Gandhiji organize Non-cooperation?

1. Mahatma Gandhi declaredthat British rule was established and survived in India with the
cooperation ofIndians.
2. If Indiansrefused to cooperate, British rule in India would collapse within ayear, and swaraj
would come.
How could (idea of )non-cooperation become a mass movement?
(How was Non Cooperation movement unfolded in Stages?)

1. Gandhijiproposed that the movement should beginwith the surrender of titles that the government
awarded.
2. The movement should continue with boycott of civil services, army, police, courts and legislative
councils,schools, and foreign goods.
3. Then, in case the government use drepression, a full civil disobedience campaign would be launched.

How did different social groups conceive of the idea of Non-Cooperation?

The Movement in the Towns with middle-class participation

1. The movement started with thousands of students left government-controlled schools

andcolleges, headmasters and teachers resigned.
2. Lawyers gave uptheir legal practices and boycotted courts.
3. The council elections were boycotted in mostprovinces except Madras.
4. Foreign goods were boycotted, liquor shops werepicketed,and foreign cloth burnt in huge
bonfires.
5. In many places merchants and tradersrefused to trade in foreign goods or finance foreign trade.
Why did the movement in the cities gradually slow down? Give reasons.

1. Khadi cloth was often more expensive than mass produced mill cloth and poor people could not
afford to buy it. Common people began to wear foreign cloth.
2. Similarly the boycott of British educational institutions posed a problem because there were no
alternative Indian institutions. So students and teachers began trickling back to government
schools.
3. Lawyers and officers could not survive without income so they joined back work ingovernment
courts and offices.

Rebellion in the Countryside of Awadh

1. In Awadh, peasants were led by Baba Ramchandra – a sanyasi who had earlier been to Fiji as an
indentured labourer. The movement here was against talukdars and landlords who demanded
high rents, free labour and a variety of other taxes.
2. The peasant movement demanded reduction of revenue, abolition of begar, and social boycott of
oppressive landlords. In many places barbers and washer men refused to serve the landlords
(nai– dhobibandh)
3. By October, 1920 the Oudh Kisan Sabha was set up headed by Jawaharlal Nehru,
BabaRamchandra and a few others. Within a month, over 300 brancheshad been set up in the
villages around the region.
4. When the Non- Cooperation Movement began,the houses of talukdarsand merchants were
attacked,bazaars were looted, and grain hoards were taken over.
5. In manyplaces local leaders told peasants that Gandhiji had declared thatno taxes were to be paid
and land was to be redistributed amongthe poor.

Rebellion in the forest of Andhra Pradesh

1. In the Gudem Hills of Andhra Pradesh, the colonial governmenthad closed large forest areas,
preventing people from enteringthe forests to graze their cattle, or to collect fuelwood and fruits.
2. This enraged the hill people. Not only were their livelihoodsaffected but they felt that their
traditional rights were being denied.When the government began forcing them to
contribute beggar for road building, the hill people revolted.
3. The person who cameto lead them was AlluriSitaramRajuwho claimedthat he had a variety of
special powers: he could make correctastrological predictions and heal people, and he could
surviveeven bullet shots.
4. Raju was inspired by the Non-Cooperation Movement and Gandhiji. He persuaded people to
wear khadiand give up drinking.But at the same time he asserted that India could be liberated
onlyby the use of force, not non-violence.
5. The Gudem rebels attackedpolice stations, attempted to kill British officials and carried
onguerrilla warfare for achieving swaraj. Raju was captured andexecuted in 1924, and over time
became a folk hero.
Plantation workers and Non Cooperation Movement

1. Under the Inland EmigrationAct of 1859, plantation workers were not permitted to leave thetea
gardens.
2. When they heard of the Non-CooperationMovement, thousands of workers defied the
authorities, left theplantations and headed home (Bihar, Bengal and Orissa).
3. For plantation workers in Assam, freedommeant the right to move freely in and out of the
confined space inwhich they were enclosed, and it meant retaining a link with thevillage from
which they had come.
4. They believed that Gandhi Raj has come and everyone would be given land in their own
villages.
5. On the way to steamer and railway stations they were caught by the police andbrutally beaten
up.

What were the two factors that shaped Indian politics towards the late 1920s?

1. The first wasthe effect of the worldwide economic depression. Agricultural pricesbegan to fall
from 1926 and collapsed after 1930.
2. As the demandfor agricultural goods fell and exports declined, peasants found itdifficult to sell
their harvests and pay their revenue.

Simon Commission

1. In 1928 a commission was appointed under Sir John Simon called Simon Commission.
2. It was appointed to look into the functioning ofthe constitutional system in India and
suggestchanges.
3. The problem was that the commissiondid not have a single Indian member. They wereall British.
4. When the Simon Commission arrived in India it was greeted with the slogan ‘Go backSimon’.
5. All parties, including the Congress and theMuslim League, participated in the demonstrations.

Round Table Conferences

1. LordIrwin, the viceroy of India announced (1929) a vague offerof ‘dominion status’ for India in
an unspecifiedfuture, and a Round Table Conference to discuss a future constitution.
2. There were three Round Table Conferences held in London. Gandhiji attended the second
Round Table Conference.
3. Dr B.R. Ambedkar, who organised the dalits into the DepressedClasses Association in 1930,
clashed with Mahatma Gandhi atthe second Round Table Conference by demanding
separateelectorates for dalits.
4. When the British government concededAmbedkar’s demand, Gandhiji began a fast unto death.
He believedthat separate electorates for dalits would slow down the process oftheir integration
into society.
5. Ambedkar ultimately accepted Gandhiji’sposition and the result was the Poona Pact of
September 1932.

Lahore Congress Session-1929

1. Jawaharlal Nehru and Subhas Chandra Bose, became more assertive and brought radical ideas
into the Congress.
2. In December 1929, under the presidency of JawaharlalNehru, the Lahore Congress formalised
the demand of ‘PurnaSwaraj’ or complete independence for India.
3. It was declared thatif British government does not grant self-rulewithin a year, 26 January1930,
will be celebrated as the Independence Day.

The Salt March and the Civil Disobedience Movement

1. Mahatma Gandhi found in salt a powerful symbol that could unitethe nation. Salt was the item
consumed by the rich and the poor alike, and it was oneof the most essential items of food.
2. The tax on salt and thegovernment monopoly over its production made Mahatma Gandhi to
launch a civil disobedience campaign.
3. Mahatma Gandhi started his famoussalt march accompanied by 78 of his trusted volunteers.
4. The marchwas over 240 miles, from Gandhiji’s ashram in Sabarmati to theGujarati coastal town
of Dandi.
5. On 6 April he reachedDandi, and ceremonially violated the salt law, manufacturing salt
byboiling sea water.This marked the beginning of the Civil Disobedience Movement.

How was Civil Disobedience Movementdifferent from the Non-CooperationMovement?

Civil Disobedience Movement Non-Cooperation Movement

People were now asked not only to refuse People were asked to refuse cooperation
cooperation with the British, but also to break with the British,
colonial laws
Participation of women was more in the Participation of women was less in Non
Movement Cooperation Movement

Civil Disobedience Movement

1. Thousands in different parts of the country brokethe salt law, manufactured salt and
demonstrated in front ofgovernment salt factories.
2. As the movement spread, foreign clothwas boycotted, and liquor shops were picketed. Peasants
refused topay revenue and taxes, village officials resigned.
3. Inmany places forest people violated forest laws – going into ReservedForests to collect wood
and graze cattle.
4. When Abdul Ghaffar Khan, a devout disciple ofMahatma Gandhi, was arrested angry
crowdsdemonstrated in the streets of Peshawar, facing armoured cars andpolice firing. Many
were killed.
5. When MahatmaGandhi himself was arrested, industrial workers in Sholapur attackedpolice
posts, municipal buildings, lawcourts and railway stations –all structures that
symbolised British rule.

Gandhi-Irwin Pact
1. Mahatma Gandhi called off the movement and entered into a pact with Irwin called Gandhi-
Irwin Pact.
2. According to the pact Gandhiji agreed to participate in the 2ndRound Table Conference in
London.
3. Lord Irwin agreed to release the political prisoners.

Poona Pact:

1. Dr B.R. Ambedkar, who organised the dalits into the DepressedClasses Association in 1930,
clashed with Mahatma Gandhi atthe second Round Table Conference by demanding
separateelectorates for dalits.
2. When the British government concededAmbedkar’s demand, Gandhiji began a fast unto death.
He believedthat separate electorates for dalits would slow down the process oftheir integration
into society.
3. Ambedkar ultimately accepted Gandhiji’sposition and the result was the Poona Pact of
September 1932.
4. According to Poona Pact Gandhiji promised to give reservations to dalits after independence.
5. According to Poona Pact B.R Ambedkar agreed to give away the separate electorate for Dalits.

How did different social groups participate in the Civil Disobedience Movement?

1. Rich peasant communities:–They were very hard hit by the trade depression and falling prices.
As their cash income disappeared, they found it impossible to pay the government’s
revenuedemand. These rich peasants became enthusiastic supporters of the Civil Disobedience
Movement.
2. The poor peasants: –As the Depression continued andcash incomes dwindled, the small tenants
found it difficult to paytheir rent. They wanted the unpaid rent to the landlord to be
remitted(removed).
3. The business classes(Industrialists):They wanted protection against imports of foreign goods,
and arupee-sterling foreign exchange ratio that would discourage imports.To organise business
interests, they formed the Indian Industrialand Commercial Congress and the Federation of the
IndianChamber of Commerce and Industries (FICCI) in 1927.
4. The industrial workers:some workers did participate inthe Civil Disobedience Movement,
selectively adopting the Gandhianprogramme, like boycott of foreigngoods, against low wages
andpoor working conditions.
5. Women:During Gandhiji’s saltmarch, thousands of women came out of their homes to
participatein protest marches, manufacture salt, andpicket foreign cloth and liquor shops. Many
 went to jail. In urbanareas these women were from high-caste families; in rural areasthey came
from rich peasant households.

The Limits of Civil Disobedience

Dalits
1. Forlong the Congress had ignored the dalits. But Mahatma Gandhideclared that swaraj would
not come for a hundred years ifuntouchability was not eliminated.
2. He called the ‘untouchables’ harijan,or the children of God, organisedsatyagraha to secure them
entryinto temples, and access to public wells, tanks, roads and schools.
3. He himself cleaned toilets to dignify the work of the bhangi (thesweepers), and persuaded upper
castes to change their heart andgive up ‘the sin of untouchability’.
4. Dalit leaders began organising themselves into associations, demanding reserved seats
ineducational institutions, and a separate electorate that would choosedalit members for
legislative councils.
5. Dalit participation in the Civil Disobedience Movement wastherefore limited, particularly in the
Maharashtra and Nagpur regionwhere their organisation was quite strong.

Muslim Political Organisations:

1. After the decline of the Non-Cooperation-Khilafat movement, alarge section of Muslims felt
alienated from the Congress.
2. From themid-1920s the Congress came to be more visibly associated withopenly Hindu religious
nationalist groups like the Hindu Mahasabha.
3. As relations between Hindus and Muslims worsened, eachcommunity organised religious
processions with militant fervour,provoking Hindu-Muslim communal clashes and riots in
variouscities.
4. The Congress and the Muslim League made efforts to renegotiatean alliance. Muhammad
AliJinnah, was willing to giveup the demand for separate electorates, if Muslims were
assuredreserved seats in the Central Assembly.
5. Negotiations over the question of representationcontinued but all hope of resolving the issue at
the All PartiesConference in 1928 disappeared when M.R. Jayakar of the HinduMahasabha
strongly opposed efforts at compromise.When the Civil Disobedience Movement started there
was large sections of Muslims could notrespond to the call for a united struggle.

How did people belonging to different communities,regions or language groups develop a

sense of collective belonging?

1. In the 20thcentury the identity of Indiacame to be visually associated with the image of Bharat
Mata. Theimage was first created by Bankim Chandra Chattopadhyay. Abanindranath Tagore
painted his famous image ofBharat Mata and portrayed it as an ascetic figure, calm, composed,
divine and spiritual.
2. In the1870s Bankim Chandra Chattopadhyaywrote ‘VandeMataram’as a hymn to the
motherland.Later it was included in his novel Anandamathand widely sung during the Swadeshi
movement in Bengal and other national movements.
3. Ideas of nationalism also developed through a movement to reviveIndian folklore. Nationalists
beganrecording folk tales sung by bards and they toured villages to gatherfolk songs and
legends. In Bengal, Rabindranath Tagore himself began collectingballads, nursery rhymes and
 myths, and led the movement for folkrevival. In Madras, NatesaSastri published a massive
four-volumecollection of Tamil folk tales, The Folklore of Southern India.
4. During the Swadeshimovement in Bengal, a tricolour flag (red, green and
yellow)wasdesigned. By1921, Gandhiji had designed the Swaraj flag. It was again a tricolor (red,
green and white) and had a spinning wheel in the centre,representing the Gandhian ideal of self-
help. Carrying the flag,holding it aloft, during marches became a symbol of defiance.
5. Another means of creating a feeling of nationalism was through reinterpretation of history.
The Britishsaw Indians as backward and primitive, incapable of governingthemselves. In
response, Indians began looking into the past todiscover India’s great achievements in art and
architecture, scienceand mathematics, religion and culture, law and philosophy, craftsand trade
had flourished.
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 Resources and Development:

Resource: Anything which can be used for satisfying the human needs is called a resource.

Types of Resources:

Resources can be classified on different bases; into following types:

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

Classification of Resources : On the basis of Origin

a. Biotic Resources: All living organisms in our environment are called biotic resources. For
example, trees, animals, insects, etc.
b. Abiotic Resources: All non-living things present in our environment are termed as abiotic
resources. For example – earth, air, water, metals, rocks, etc.

Classification of Resources: On the basis of Exhaustibility:

a. Renewable Resources: Resources that can be replenished after a short period of time are
called Renewable Resources. For example – agricultural crops, water, forest, wildlife, etc.
b. Non-renewable Resources: Resources which takes million years of time to replenish are
called non-renewable resources. For example – fossil fuel.

Classification of Resources: On the Basis of ownership:

a. Individual: Resources owned by individuals are called Individual Resources. For example –
land owned by farmers, house, etc.
b. Community: Resources owned by community or society are called Community Owned
Resources. For example – Graveyard, grazing land, ponds, burial grounds, park, etc.
c. National Resources: Resources owned by Individual Nations are called National
Resources. For example – Government land, Roads, canals, railway, etc.
d. International Resources: Resources regulate by International bodies are called
International Resources. For example – Ocean and sea beyond 200 km of the Exclusive
Economic Zone and is called open sea or ocean. No individual country can utilize these
resources without the permission of International bodies.

Classification of Resources: On the basis of Status of Development:

a. Potential Resources: Resources which are found in a particular region, but not yet used
properly. For example – Rajasthan and Gujarat receive plenty of solar energy and have
plenty of wind energy, but use of these resources so far has not been developed properly.
b. Developed Resources: Resources which are developed and surveyed for utilization and are
being used in present time are known as Developed Resources.
c. Stock: Resources that are available, but we do not have proper technology to used them are
called Stock. For example – water is made of oxygen and hydrogen, which can be used as
fuel, but because of lack of proper technology these are not being used.
 d. Reserves: Resources which are available and the knowhow to use them is also present but
they are yet to be used are called Reserves. For example – river water which is not used to
generate electricity.

Discriminate use of Resources

Resources are vital for human beings. But indiscriminate use of resources is creating many problems.

Examples:

• Accumulation of resources in only few hands leaves others unsatisfied.

• Indiscriminate use of resources is creating many problems around the world, such as global
warming, ecological crisis, disturbance in ozone layer, etc.
• Thus, equal distribution of resources becomes necessary for sustainable development.

Sustainable Development: Development which takes place without damaging the environment and
compromising with needs of future is called sustainable development.

Keeping the view of justified use of resources and sustainable development, the Earth Summit was
organized in 1992 in Rio de Janeiro in which more than 100 state heads agreed with Agenda 21 for the
sustainable development and proper use of resources.

Agenda 21 is an agenda to combat environmental damage, poverty, disease, etc. through global co-
operation on common interests, mutual needs and shared responsibilities.

Resource Planning:

Resource planning is the judicious use of resources. Resource planning becomes more
important in a country like India, where resources are not distributed properly. For example;
many states are rich in mineral and deficient in other resources, such as Jharkhand is rich in
minerals, but there is problem of drinking water and other facilities, Arunachal Pradesh has
plenty of water but lack of other development because of lack of resources.

These types of discriminations can be reduced or completely vanished with proper planning of
judicious use of resources.

Resource Planning in India:

Resources can contribute in proper development only with a good planning keeping the
technology, skills and institution in mind.

Resource Planning in India is one of the most important goals right from its first Five Years Plan.
Following are the main points of Resource planning.
 a. Making of inventory of resources after their region-wise identification across the
country.
b. Making of the planning structure with appropriate technology, skill and
institutions.
c. Matching of resource plan with development plan, etc.

Conservation of Resources:

Overuse of resources creates many socio-economic problems. Many leaders and thinkers have been
advocating for the judicious use and conservation of resources. Gandhiji told “There is enough for
everybody’s need and not for any body’s greed.” He thought that exploitative nature of modern technology is
the root cause for depletion at global level. He believed in the production by masses and not in the mass
production.

Thus, conservation of resources at various levels becomes most important. Resources can be conserved
only with their judicious use.

Land Resources:

Land is one of the most important natural resources. Land supports our life system. Thus, careful planning
of use of land resource is necessary. India comprises of many types of land. These are mountains, plateau,
plains and islands.

• Mountains: About 30% of land area in India is in the form of mountain. Mountain supports
the perennial flow of rivers, which carry fertile soils, facilitate irrigation and provide drinking
water.
• Plain: About 43% of land area in India is in the form of plains. Plains provide facilities for
agriculture, building of industries and houses, etc.
• Plateau: About 27% of land in India is in the form of plateau which provides many types of
minerals, fossil fuels and forest.

Land Utilisaiton: Patterns of use of Land Resources

1. Forests
2. Land not available for cultivation: There are two types of land which are not used for
agriculture purpose. These are:
a. Barren and waste land
b. Lands used for buildings, roads, factories, etc. i.e for non-agriculture
purpose.
3. Other uncultivated land (excluding fallow land)
a. Permanent pastures and grazing land,
b. Land under miscellaneous tree crops groves (not included in net sown
area),
c. Culturable waste land (left uncultivated for more than 5 agricultural years).
4. Fallow lands
a. Current fallow-(left without cultivation for one or less than one agricultural
year),
b. Other than current fallow-(left uncultivated for the past 1 to 5 agricultural
years).
5. Net sown area: Area which is sown at least once in a year is called net sown area.
 6. Gross cropped area: Area sown more than once in an agricultural year plus net sown area is
known as gross cropped area.

Land Use Pattern in India:

Pattern of use of land depends upon physical and human factors both. Climate, topography, type of soil, etc.
are considered as physical factors while population, technology, skill, population density, tradition,
capability, etc. are considered as human factors.

India has total 3.28 million square kilometer land used data. But only 93% of land of total geographical area
is available. This is because land used data has not been collected for the north eastern states except
Assam and the land occupied by Pakistan and China has not been surveyed because of many unavoidable
reasons.

The land under permanent pasture is decreasing, this will create the problem for grazing. The total net sown
are (NSA) is not more than 54% including land other than fallow land. Land other than fallow land is either of
poor quality or too costly to cultivate, these lands are cultivated only once or twice in two or three
consecutive years.

The pattern of net sown area varies widely from state to state. Where net sown area is 80% in state like
Punjab, it is only 10% in the state of Arunachal Pradesh, Mizoram, Manipur and Andaman and Nicobar
Island. Such difference is creating lot of discrimination.

According to National Forest Policy (1952), the forest should be 33% of total geographical area, which is
essential to maintain ecological balance. But the forest area in India is far less than desired measures. This
is because of illegal deforestation and development which cannot be overlooked, such as construction of
roads and building, etc. On the other hand, a large population which is dwelling at the fringe of forest
depends upon the forest and its produce, resulting in the reduction of forest area.

Moreover, continuous use of land over a long period without taking measures to conserve and manage,
degrade them. This has resulted in repercussion in society and creating serious problem to environment.

Land as Resource

Our past generation left land for us without exploiting them too much and it is expected from us
too. We fulfill most of our needs from land, such as food, clothing, shelter, drinking water, etc.
But in past few decades the quality of land is degrading fiercely because of human activity. Many
human activities aggravated the natural forces which are, in turn, degrading the land resources
also.

Presently, about 130 million hectare of land is reported under degraded land in India, in which
about 28% of land belongs to forest and about 28% is water eroded area. Rest degraded land is
 because of over deposition of salinity and alkalinity. Overgrazing, mining, deforestation, division
of lands in small area because of family feuds, etc. are some of the major causes of degradation
of land.

Because of mining in the states of Jharkhand, Chhattisgarh, Orissa and Madhya Pradesh; lands are left
abandoned without proper treatment after the completion of mining works. This has resulted in the form of
deep scars and traces. Along with mining, deforestation in these states has degraded the land very fast.

In the states of Uttar Pradesh, Punjab, Haryana, over irrigation causes water shortage and increase in
salinity and alkalinity due to water logging.

In Bihar, Assam, Arunachal Pradesh, land is degraded because of flood.

States, in which minerals processing, such as grinding of lime stone, manufacturing of cement, etc. produce
huge quantity of dust. These dusts prevent the percolation of water because of deposition on the ground
and it is responsible for degradation of land.

The degradation of land creates many problems, such as flood, decrease in yield, etc. which leads to
decrease in GDP and country has to face economic problems.

Measures to Conserve the Land Resources:

Degradation of land can be prevented by taking following measures:

a. Afforestation
b. Proper management of grazing.
c. Stabilisation of sand dunes by plantation of thorny bushes.
d. Proper management of waste lands.
e. By proper irrigation.
f. By proper harvesting.
g. Control over mining activities.
h. Proper management of land after completion of mining work.
i. Discharge of industrial waste and effluents only after proper treatment.
j. Plantation of trees along the road sides.
k. By preventing deforestation.

Soil as a natural resource:

Soil is one of the most important natural resources. Soil supports the growth of plants. Soil is the natural
home of many living organism, such as ants, rats, snakes, and many insects.
 Formation of Soil: It takes thousands of years to form even 1 cm of soil. Soil is formed by the weathering
process of the rocks. Various natural forces, such as temperature, running water, wind, etc. along with many
physical and chemical changes are equally important in the formation of soil formation.

Classification of Soil:

Soil is categorized in many types on the basis of texture, colour, age, chemical properties, etc. India is a
vast country which comprises of many types of land. Thus, many types of soils are found in different regions
in India.

Alluvial Soil

Availability: Alluvial soil is found near the river or plains formed by rivers. Alluvial soil is considered relatively
younger in age. In India, alluvial soil is found in the north eastern plain where Ganga, Yamuna, and
Brahmaputra flow. Alluvial soil is deposited by river system. Entire northern plain is made of alluvial soil.

Alluvial soil is also found in eastern coastal plains near the Mahanadi, the Krishna, the Godavari and the
Kaveri rivers.

Nature: Alluvial soil is very fertile, thus plains of Ganga, Brahmaputra, Yamuna, etc. are densely populated.
Alluvial soil is the mixture of various proportions of silt, sand and clay. Alluvial soils differ in the size of their
particles at the area of break of slope.

Apart from the size of particles of grains, soils are also classified on the basis of their age. The older alluvial
soil is known as Bangar and new alluvial soil or Khadar. New alluvial soil has more concentration of coarse
grains while Old alluvial soil has plenty of fine particles.

Alluvial soil is rich in potash, phosphoric acid and lime. Because of presence of these chemicals alluvial soil
is good for the growth of sugarcane, paddy, wheat, maize, and pulses.

Black Soil

Availability: Because of black colour, this type of soil is called black soil. It is also known as Regur Soil.
Black soil is found in the north west deccan plateau. It is found in the plateau of Maharashtra, Saurashtra,
Malwa, Madhya Pradesh and Chattisgarh and extent along with the valley of Krishna and Godavari
Rivers.Nature: Black soil has high concentration of fine particles and thus can hold moisture for long time. It
contains calcium, potassium, magnesium and lime. Black soil is suitable for the growth of cotton, but many
other crop are grown in the area of black soil.

Red and Yellow Soil

The soil looks red due to presence of iron in crystalline or metamorphic rocks. When the soil look yellow
when it occurs in dehydrated form. Red soil is present in the eastern and southern parts of the Deccan
Plateau. Red soil is also found in Orissa, Chhattisgarh, on the southern part of the Gangetic plains and
along the piedomont zone of the Western Ghats.
Laterite Soil

Laterite soil is formed in regions which get high rainfall with high temperature. This causes leaching of the
soil and microorganisms are killed during the process. Due to this, laterite soil does not contain humus or
contains very low amount of humus. This soil is mainly found in Kerala, Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, Madhya
Pradesh and in hilly areas of Orissa and Assam. This soil can be made cultivable with heavy dose of
manures.

Arid Soil

Arid soil is found in those areas which receive scanty rainfall. Due to high temperature, evaporation is faster
in these regions. The soil has a high content of salt. Arid soil can be made cultivable with proper treatment.
Arid soil is present in Rajasthan and Gujarat.

Forest Soil

The forest soil is found in hilly areas. The soil in upper parts is highly acidic because of denudation. The soil
in the lower part is highly fertile.

Soil Erosion and Soil Conservation

Removal of top soil is called soil erosion. Intense farming, grazing, construction activities and other human
activities; along with deforestation have led to soil erosion. Soil erosion; if not checked in time; can even
lead to desertification.

Soil conservation is important to prevent soil erosion. Soil conservation can be done by many methods.
Afforestation is the main method because trees hold the topsoil in place. Terrace farming and shelter belt
planting also help in soil conservation.