Resources and Development [geo]

• Resources are things in the environment that can be used to satisfy our needs, provided they are technologically accessible, economically feasible, and culturally acceptable
• The transformation of things in the environment involves an interactive relationship between nature, technology, and institutions
• Resources are not free gifts of nature, but a function of human activities
• Resources can be classified based on origin (biotic and abiotic), exhaustibility (renewable and non-renewable), ownership (individual, community, national, international), and status of development (potential, developed stock, reserves)
• Depletion of resources for satisfying the greed of a few individuals has led to major problems like accumulation of resources in few hands, global ecological crises, and societal divides
• Equitable distribution of resources is essential for a sustained quality of life and global peace
• Resource planning is essential for sustainable existence of all forms of life
• Sustainable economic development means development should take place without damaging the environment and should not compromise the needs of future generations
• Agenda 21 is a declaration signed by world leaders in 1992 at the United Nations Conference on Environment and Development, aiming at achieving global sustainable development
• Resource planning involves identification and inventory of resources, planning structure with appropriate technology, skill, and institutional set up, and matching resource development plans with overall national development plans
• Land resources are used for purposes like forests, barren and waste land, land put to non-agricultural uses, permanent pastures, fallow lands, and net sown area
• The use of land is determined by physical factors like topography, climate, soil types, and human factors like population density, technological capability, and culture
• Forest area in the country is lower than the desired 33% outlined in the National Forest Policy (1952)
• The livelihood of millions of people living on the fringes of forests depends on forest land
• The land under permanent pasture has decreased, affecting the feeding of the cattle population and leading to consequences
• Land degradation is a result of continuous use of land over a long period of time without appropriate conservation measures
• Human activities like deforestation, overgrazing, mining, and quarrying contribute significantly to land degradation
• Mining sites are often abandoned after excavation, leaving deep scars and traces of over-burdening
• Deforestation due to mining has caused severe land degradation in states like Jharkhand, Chhattisgarh, Madhya Pradesh, and Odisha
• Overgrazing is a major reason for land degradation in states like Gujarat, Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, and Maharashtra
• Over irrigation in states like Punjab, Haryana, and western Uttar Pradesh leads to land degradation due to water logging, increasing salinity, and alkalinity in the soil
• Industrial activities like grinding of limestone and processing minerals generate dust that retards water infiltration into the soil
• Industrial effluents have become a major source of land and water pollution in many parts of the country
• To combat land degradation, afforestation, proper grazing management, planting shelter belts, controlling mining activities, and proper disposal of industrial waste are recommended
• Soil is a renewable natural resource that supports plant growth and living organisms
• Soil formation is influenced by relief, parent rock, climate, vegetation, and time
• Soil consists of organic (humus) and inorganic materials
• India's soils are classified based on factors like colour, thickness, texture, age, and chemical and physical properties
• Alluvial soils are widely spread and important, found in the northern plains and deltas of rivers like the Ganga, Indus, and Brahmaputra
• Black soils, also known as regur soils, are ideal for growing cotton and are found in the Deccan trap region
• Red and yellow soils develop on crystalline igneous rocks in areas of low rainfall in the Deccan plateau
• Laterite soils develop under tropical and subtropical climates with intense leaching due to heavy rain
• Arid soils are sandy, saline, and range from red to brown in colour, found in areas with high evaporation rates
• Forest soils are found in hilly areas with varying textures based on the mountain environment
• Soil erosion is caused by human activities like deforestation, over-grazing, and mining, as well as natural forces like wind, glacier, and water
• Soil conservation methods include contour ploughing, terrace farming, strip cropping, and planting shelter belts
• 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’
• Natural resources refer to those that occur naturally without any human intervention or effort.
• 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.
• 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.’