Geography Lesson– 1

Resources and Development

❖ Everything or anything 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 in nature involves an

interactive relationship between nature, technology and
institutions. Human beings interact with nature through
technology and create institutions to accelerate their
economic development.

Do you think that resources are free gifts of nature as is assumed by many people?

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.

Classification of resources

Classification of resources on the basis of Origin.

a) Biotic resources – The resources which are obtained from living things. For example: fisheries, plants and
animals.
b) Abiotic resources – The resources which are obtained from non-living things. For example: rocks and minerals.
Classification of resources on the basis of Exhaustibility.

a) Renewable resources - The resources which can be renewed or replenished by physical, chemical or
mechanical processes. For example: Solar and wind energy, water, forests and wildlife.
b) Non-renewable resources – The resources which occur over a very long geological time. For example:
minerals and fossil fuels. These resources take millions of years in their formation. Some of the resources
like metals are recyclable and some like fossil fuels are non-recyclable.

Classification of resources on the basis of Ownership.

a) Individual resources – The resources which are owned privately by individuals. For example: our own
house and field.

b) Community owned resources – The resources that are accessible to all the members of the community.
For example: Public parks and village pond.

c) National resources – The resources that belong to the nation. The country has legal power to acquire even
private property for public good. For example: Railways.

d) International resources – The Resources that are regulated by international institutions. The oceanic
resources beyond 200 nautical miles of the Exclusive Economic Zones belong to open ocean and no
individual country can utilize these resources without the concurrence of international institutions.

Classification of resources of the basis of Status of development.

a) Potential resources – Resources which are found in a region, but not been utilized. For example: wind and
solar energy found in Gujarat and Rajasthan but so far, they have not been developed properly.
b) Developed resources – Resources which are surveyed and their quality and quantity have been
determined for utilization. For example: minerals that are used in our day-to-day life.
c) Stock resources – Resources which have potential to satisfy human needs but human beings do not have
the appropriate technology to access them. For example: Two components of water Hydrogen and Oxygen
which are a rich source of energy. But we do not have advanced technical know-how (knowledge) to use
them.
d) Reserve resources – They are subset of the stock, which can be put into use with the help of existing
technical know-how (knowledge) but their use has not been started. They can be used to meet future
generations requirements. For example: River water can be used for generating Hydel power.

Development of Resources.

The Efficient and optimum utilization 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.

‘Indiscriminate use of resources has led to numerous problems’.

1. Depletion of resources for satisfying the greed of few individuals.

2. Accumulation of resources in few hands divided the society into two segments i.e. haves and have nots or
rich and poor.
3. Indiscriminate exploitation of resources has led to global ecological crises like global warming, ozone layer
depletion, environmental pollution and land degradation.
SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT

• An equitable distribution of resources has become essential for a sustained quality of life and global
peace.
• 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’.

It is essential to have resource planning.

1. If the present trend of resource depletion by a few individuals continues, the future of our planet is in
danger.
2. Resource planning is essential for sustainable existence of all forms of life.
3. Indiscriminate exploitation of resources has led to global ecological crises.

Rio de Janeiro Earth Summit, 1992

1. The first international Earth Summit was held in June 1992, in Brazil in which 100 heads of states met.
2. The Summit was convened for addressing urgent problems of environmental protection and socio-
economic development at the global level. Agenda 21 was adopted in this Summit.

The principles of Agenda 21 adopted in Rio de Janeiro Earth Summit, 1992.

1. Declaration signed by world leaders at the United Nations Conference on Environment and Development
(UNCED).

2. To combat environmental damage, poverty, disease through global co-operation on common interests,
mutual needs and shared responsibilities.

3. Every local government should draw its own local Agenda 21.

4. To achieve sustainable development in the 21st century.

Planning is the widely accepted strategy for judicious use of resources. Judicious use of resources is known as
resource planning.

Resource planning is so important in a country like India.

1. India 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 resources.
2. 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.
3. For example:
i. the states of Jharkhand, Chhattisgarh and Madhya Pradesh are rich in minerals and coal deposits.
ii. Arunachal Pradesh has abundance of water resources but lacks in infrastructural development.
iii. The state of Rajasthan is very well endowed with solar and wind energy but lacks in water resources.
iv. Ladakh has 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.

The three stages of resource planning in India.

1) Identification and inventory of resources across the regions of the country that involves surveying,
mapping and qualitative and quantitative estimation and measurement of the resources.
 2) Evolving a planning structure endowed with appropriate technology, skill and institutional set up for
implementing resource development plans.
3) 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 two components that may hinder development of an area.

1) Absence of Corresponding changes in technology and

2) Institutional development.

The main causes for colonization of the countries of Asia and Africa by foreign invaders.

1. There are many regions in our country that are rich in resources but these regions are economically
backward.
2. The higher level of technological development of the colonizing countries helped them to exploit
resources of other regions and establish their supremacy over the colonies.
3. Therefore, resources can contribute to development only when they are accompanied by appropriate
technological development and institutional changes.

Technical and economical developments lead to more consumption of resources.

1) New and improved equipments are introduced with the development of technology that leads to an
increase in the use of natural resources.
2) The technological advancement is attributed to the economic growth of a developing country. People
of an economically developing nation consume more resources. Hence, we can safely say that an
improvement in economic development of a nation will directly result in the increase of its people’s
consumption of resources.
3) Development of new technologies is widely seen in developing economies. Due to economic
development, the bright minds get an opportunity to experiment with their ideas. As a matter of fact,
various materials are converted into useful resources. This creates an atmosphere, which will see a
steady increase in consumption of available resources.

CONSERVATION OF RESOURCES – It means wise and judicious use of resources.

The factors that lead to socio-economic and environmental problems.

• Irrational (unreasonable) and over-utilization of resources.

• Gandhiji voiced his concern about resource conservation – “There is enough for everybody’s need and not
for any body’s greed.”
• He placed the greedy and selfish individuals and exploitative nature of modern technology as root cause
for resource depletion at the global level.
• He was against mass production and wanted to replace it with the production by the masses.

The different steps taken for the conservation of resources at the global level.

❖ 1968 - At international level, the Club of Rome advocated resource conservation for the first time in a
more systematic way.
❖ 1974 - Gandhian philosophy was presented by Schumacher in his book Small is Beautiful.
❖ 1987 - Brundtland Commission Report introduced the concept of ‘Sustainable Development’ as a means
for resource conservation, published in a book Our Common Future.
❖ 1992 - Significant contribution was made at the Earth Summit at Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.
‘Land is a natural resource of utmost importance’.

a) We live on land, we perform our economic activities on land and we use it in different ways.
b) It supports natural vegetation, wildlife, human life, economic activities, transport and communication
systems.
c) It is an asset of a finite magnitude. Therefore, it is important to use land with proper planning

LAND RESOURCES

India has land under a variety of relief features.

1) Plains 43% which provides facilities for agriculture and

industry.
2) Mountains 30% of the total surface area of the country and
ensure perennial flow of some rivers, provide facilities for
tourism and ecological aspects.
3) Plateaus 27% of the area of the country. It provides rich
reserves of minerals, fossil fuels and forests

LAND UTILISATION

Land resources are used for the following purposes:

1. Forests
2. Land not available for cultivation
– Barren and waste land (Barren land – cannot produce any vegetation).
– Land put to non-agricultural uses, e.g. buildings, roads, factories, etc.
3. Other uncultivated land (excluding fallow land)
– Permanent pastures and grazing land.
– Land under miscellaneous tree, crops and groves (not included in net sown area).
– Cultivable waste land (land left uncultivated for more than 5 agricultural years).

Agricultural year – The time period between one harvest to the next harvest of an agricultural produce.

4. Fallow lands
– Current fallow - (land left without cultivation for one or less than one agricultural year).
– Other than current fallow - (land left uncultivated for the past 1 to 5 agricultural years).
5. Net sown area - It represents an area in which total crops are grown only once in a year.
Gross cropped area - Total area sown with crops once or more in a year. It also include the net sown area

LAND USE PATTERN

 The use of Land is determined both by

• Physical factors – like topography, climate and soil types.

• Human factors – like population density, technological capability, culture and traditions, etc.

Land use pattern in India

Total geographical area of India is 3.28 million sq km.

• Land use data is available only for 93 per cent of the area. Because:
• Land use report for North-eastern states except Assam is not done fully.
• Pakistan Occupied Kashmir (POK) and China have also not been surveyed.

LAND USE PATTERN IN INDIA

• The land under permanent pasture has also decreased that leads to intensive grazing on the limited land
which leads to soil erosion, Land degradation, desertification (unproductive land) and famine, etc.
• Most of the other than the current fallow lands are either of poor quality or has high cost of cultivation
(require more fertilizers and other inputs), Hence, these lands are cultivated once or twice in about two to
three years
• Net sown area varies greatly from one state to another. Over 80% of the total area in Punjab and Haryana
is cultivated. Less than 10% of the total area in Arunachal Pradesh, Mizoram, Manipur and Andaman
Nicobar Islands is cultivated.
• India’s Forest area is far lower than the desired 33% of geographical area. It was outlined in the National
Forest Policy (1952).
• Forests are essential because
a) For maintenance of the ecological balance.
b) The livelihood of millions of people who live near forests depend on it.
• A part of the land is termed as waste land and put to other non-agricultural uses like settlements, roads,
railways, industry, etc.
• Waste land includes rocky, arid and desert areas.

Land degradation means rendering land unfit for cultivation.

The factors responsible for land degradation: -

• Human activities such as deforestation, over grazing, mining and quarrying, etc.
• Deforestation due to mining caused severe land degradation in states like Jharkhand, Chhattisgarh,
Madhya Pradesh and Odisha.
• Overgrazing is one of the main reasons for land degradation in Gujarat, Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh and
Maharashtra.
• Over irrigation is responsible for land degradation in Punjab, Haryana, western Uttar Pradesh. Due to
water logging leads to increase in salinity and alkalinity in the soil.
• Grinding of limestone for cement industry and calcite and soapstone for ceramic industry generate huge
quantity of dust in the atmosphere that leads to land degradation.
• Industrial effluents (wastes) have become a major source of land and water pollution.

The steps to check land degradation

• Afforestation and Proper management of grazing.

• Planting of shelter belts of plants.
 • Control on over grazing.
• Stabilization of sand dunes by growing thorny bushes.
• Proper management of waste lands.
• Control of mining activities.
• Proper discharge and disposal of industrial effluents and wastes after treatment can reduce land and
water degradation.

Soil – The loose materials on the top layer of the earth's crust where plants grow. Soil is the most important
renewable natural resource.

Why is soil considered as an important resource ?

1. It is the most important renewable natural resource.

2. It is used to satisfy our needs.
3. It is the medium of plant growth.
4. It supports different types of living organisms on the Earth.
5. It is the base of our life.

Explain the factors responsible for soil formation.

1. The parent rock is the first factor which provides the basic material for the formation of soil.
2. Climate breaks the parent rock into small pieces.
3. Vegetation: Plant and animal organisms help in the weathering of the rocks slowly but continuously.
4. Various forces of nature such as change in temperature, actions of
running water, wind and glaciers, activities of decomposers, etc.,
contribute to the formation of soil.
5. Chemical and organic changes take place in the soil.

SOIL AS A RESOURCE

Soil also consists of organic (humus) and inorganic materials

CLASSIFICATION OF SOILS IN INDIA

On the basis of the factors responsible for soil formation, colour, thickness,
texture, age, chemical and physical properties, the soils are classified as

1. Alluvial soil.
2. Black soil.
3. Red and yellow soil.
4. Laterite soil.
5. Arid soil.
6. Forest soil.

The features of alluvial soil.

1. It is the most widely spread and important soil.

2. The entire northern plains are made of alluvial soil.
3. They are deposited by three important Himalayan River
systems – the Indus, the Ganga and the Brahmaputra.
4. These soils also extend in Rajasthan and Gujarat through a
narrow corridor.
 5. It is also found in the eastern coastal plains like in the deltas of the Mahanadi, the Godavari, the Krishna
and the Kaveri rivers.
6. It consists of various proportions of sand, silt and clay.
7. Regions of alluvial are intensely cultivated and densely populated due to its high fertility.
8. Alluvial soil contains adequate proportion of potash, phosphoric acid and lime which are ideal for growth
of rice, wheat, sugarcane, etc.
9. In the inlands of the river valleys - soil particles appear bigger in size.
10. In the upper reaches of the river valley near the break of slope – the soils are coarse. Such soils are more
common in piedmont plains such as Duars, Chos and Terai.
11. Soils in the drier areas are more alkaline and can be productive after proper treatment and irrigation.

• Old alluvial soil is found along both sides of the river bank.
• New alluvial soil is found in the middle of the flood plains of the river.

According to their age, alluvial soils can be classified as

Khadar (New alluvial) Bangar (Old alluvial)

1. It is new alluvial soil. 1. It is old alluvial soil.
2. Lower concentration of Kankar nodules. 2. Higher concentration of Kankar nodules.
3. It has more fine particles. 3. It has less fine particles.
4. It is more fertile. 4. It is less fertile.

The features of ‘regur’ (black) soil.

1. Regur soil is also known as black soil.

2. It is ideal for growing cotton, so it is also known as ‘black cotton soil’.
3. It is made up of extremely fine clayey soil.
4. It is rich in soil nutrients like calcium carbonate, magnesium, potash
and lime.
5. Climatic condition and parent rock material are the important factors
to form it.
6. Typical of the Deccan trap (Basalt) region in the northwest Deccan
plateau and is made up of lava flows.
7. It is found in the plateaus of Maharashtra, Saurashtra, Malwa, Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh and along
the Godavari and the Krishna valleys.
8. It develops cracks in hot weather which helps in proper aeration of the soil. It can hold moisture, is sticky
when wet and difficult to work on unless tilled immediately.
The main features of Red and Yellow soil.

1. It develops a reddish colour due to diffusion of iron in crystalline

and metamorphic rocks.
2. It looks yellow when it occurs in a hydrated form.
3. This type of soil develops on crystalline igneous rocks in areas of
low rainfall in the eastern and southern parts of the Deccan
plateau.
4. It is found in parts of Odisha, Chhattisgarh, southern parts of the
middle Ganga plain and along the piedmont zone of the Western
Ghats.

The features of Laterite soil.

1. Laterite has been derived from the Latin word ‘later’ which means brick.
2. It develops under tropical and sub-tropical climate with alternate wet and
dry season. It is useful for growing tea and coffee.
3. It is formed due to intense leaching where there is heavy rain.

[Leaching - Removal of organic matter (humus) from the soil horizon].

4. Lateritic soils are acidic (pH <6.0) in nature and generally lack plant
nutrients.
5. It is found mostly in Southern states, Western Ghats region of
Maharashtra, Odisha, some parts of West Bengal and North-east areas.

Characteristics of ‘Arid soils’.

1. Arid soils range from red to brown in colour.

2. Sandy in texture and saline in nature.
3. Evaporation is faster, soil lacks humus and moisture.
4. The lower horizons of the soil are occupied by Kankar because of the
increasing calcium content downwards.
5. After proper irrigation these soils become cultivable as in western
Rajasthan.

The features of forest soils.

1. They are Found in the hilly and mountainous areas where

sufficient rain forests are available.
2. The soils texture varies according to the mountain
environment where they are formed.
3. They are loamy and silty in valley sides and coarse grained in
the upper slopes.
4. In the snow-covered areas of Himalayas, these soils
experience denudation (erosion) and are acidic with low
humus content.
5. The soils found in the lower parts of the valleys particularly
on the river terraces and alluvial fans are fertile.
• River terrace - bench or step that extends along the side of a valley.
• Alluvial fans - Alluvial fans are triangular-shaped deposits of water-transported material, often referred to as
alluvium.
• Soil Erosion – The denudation of the soil cover and subsequent washing down.

The processes of soil formation and erosion, go on simultaneously and generally there is a
balance between the two.

The factors responsible for soil erosion.

1. Human activities - deforestation, over-grazing, construction and mining, etc.

2. Natural forces - wind, glacier and running water.
3. Soil erosion is also caused due to defective methods of farming and wrong way of ploughing.

Types of erosion.

1. Gullies: The running water cuts through the clayey soil and makes deep channels as gullies. The land
becomes unfit for cultivation and is known as bad land. In the Chambal basin such lands are called ravines.
2. Sheet erosion: Sometimes water flows as a sheet over large areas down a slope washing away top soil.
3. Wind erosion: Wind blows loose soil off flat of sloping land.

The steps that can be taken to control soil erosion.

1. Contour Ploughing – Ploughing along the contour lines can decelerate the flow of water down the
slopes.
2. Terrace Cultivation – Steps can be cut out on the slopes making terraces. Terrace cultivation restricts
erosion. Popular in Western and central Himalayas.
3. Strip cropping – Large fields can be divided into strips. Strips of grass are left to grow between the
crops. This breaks up the force of the wind.
4. Shelter belts – Planting lines of trees. Rows of such trees are called shelter [Link] shelter belts
helped in stabilization of sand dunes and in stabilizing the desert in western India.

Thank you