CBSE Class 10 Social Science Resources and Development Notes Set 05

What is a resource?

A resource is anything in our surroundings that can meet human needs, provided it is technologically accessible, economically feasible and culturally acceptable. Resources are not fixed: they become resources when people find ways to use them. Human beings themselves are important resources because they turn materials into useful things.

Types of resources

By origin, resources are biotic (living, such as forests and animals) or abiotic (non-living, such as rocks and metals). By exhaustibility they are renewable, such as solar and wind energy, or non-renewable, such as coal and petroleum. By ownership they are individual (a person's house), community (a village pasture or park), national (roads, canals, land within political boundaries) or international (open ocean beyond the Exclusive Economic Zone of 200 nautical miles).

By status of development, potential resources exist in a region but are not yet used, such as wind and solar power in Gujarat and Rajasthan. Developed resources have been surveyed and their use decided. Stock refers to materials that could meet needs but we lack the technology to use, such as hydrogen as fuel. Reserves are a part of stock that can be used with present technology but are being kept for the future, such as water in dams.

Sustainable development and planning

Using resources carelessly has led to depletion, unequal access and environmental problems. Sustainable development means growth that meets present needs without harming the ability of future generations to meet theirs. The Rio Earth Summit of 1992 adopted Agenda 21, a plan for global cooperation to tackle environmental damage and poverty.

Because India's resources are unevenly spread, planning is needed. It has three stages: identifying and listing resources through surveys and mapping, evolving a plan with suitable technology, skills and institutions, and matching these plans with national development plans. Conservation methods include using resources carefully, recycling, using renewable sources and substitutes, and spreading public awareness.

Land resources and land use

India's land is about 43 per cent plains, 30 per cent mountains and 27 per cent plateaus. Land use is shaped by physical factors such as relief, climate and soil, and human factors such as population density, technology and culture. Land is classified as forest, land not available for cultivation (barren land and land under buildings or roads), other uncultivated land (permanent pasture, groves, culturable waste), fallow land, and net sown area. The national forest policy of 1952 aims at 33 per cent forest cover, which India has not yet reached.

Land degradation comes from deforestation, overgrazing, mining, quarrying and industrial waste. Remedies are afforestation, controlling grazing, planting shelter belts, stabilising sand dunes with thorny bushes and treating industrial effluents before release.

Soils of India

Alluvial soil, deposited by rivers, covers the northern plains and is the most widespread. It is very fertile and suits wheat, rice and sugarcane. Older alluvium is bangar, with kankar nodules and lower fertility, while newer alluvium is khadar, finer and more fertile. Black soil, formed from lava, holds moisture and is ideal for cotton, so it is also called regur soil. Red and yellow soils develop on crystalline rocks; laterite soil forms in heavy rainfall areas where leaching removes nutrients and suits cashew; arid soil is sandy and saline and found in western Rajasthan; forest soils occur in hill areas.

Soil erosion and conservation

Soil erosion is the removal of the soil cover by wind, water or human activity. Gully erosion cuts deep channels in clayey soil; the Chambal region's ravines are an example. Sheet erosion washes away the top layer over a wide area. In hilly areas erosion is checked by contour ploughing, terrace farming and strip cropping, and shelter belts protect against wind.

Worked examples

1. Distinguish between renewable and non-renewable resources. Renewable resources, such as wind, can be replenished by natural processes; non-renewable ones, such as coal, take millions of years to form and are exhausted by use.

2. Why is resource planning important in India? Resources are unevenly spread across states, so some regions have plenty of minerals but little water or industry, and planning ensures balanced use.

3. Why is black soil good for cotton? It holds moisture for long periods and is rich in lime, iron, magnesium and potash, which cotton needs.

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