Class XII – Planning and Sustainable Development in Indian Context – PYQs

Ans. Bharmaur region lies between 32° 11′ N and 32° 41′ N latitudes and 76° 22′ E and 76° 53′ E longitudes. Spread over an area of about 1818 sq km, the region mostly lies between an altitude of 1500 m to 3700 m above the mean sea level.

This region is popularly known as the homeland of Gaddis (a tribal community) and is surrounded by lofty mountains on all sides.

It has Pir Panjal Range in the North and Dhaula Dhar Range in the South. In the East, the extension of Dhaula Dhar Range converges with Pir Panjal near Rohtang pass.

Ans. The main aims of Bharmaur Tribal Area Development Plan were

● Improving the quality of life of the Gaddis.

● Narrowing the gap in the level of development between Bharmaur and other districts of Himachal Pradesh.

● The highest priority was on development of transport and communication, agriculture and allied activities as well as social and community services.

● To utilise local resources in the efficient manner.

● To create new opportunities for the people.

Ans. The positive impacts of Indira Gandhi Canal irrigation on the environmental conditions of the dryland area of Rajasthan are

● CAD programmes (Command Area Development) i.e. afforestation and pasture development programmes developed the deserted area into a green land.

● Due to availability of moisture for a long time and afforestation, wind erosion has reduced considerably.

● Due to canal development the health of soil is improved as soil erosion is reduced and problem of siltation has also declined.

Ans. The main purpose of the Target Area Programme is to develop the economically backward areas. There are regional imbalances in economic development which is lagging behind the economic sector. In order to combat both regional and social disparities, the planning commission introduced the target area and target group approach to planning.

Some of the examples of these are

Target Area Programme

(i) Command Area Development Programme.

(ii) Drought Prone Area Development Programme.

(iii) Desert Development Programme.

(iv) Hill Area Development Programme.

Target Group Programmes

(i) The Small Farmers Development Agency (SFDA).

(ii) Marginal Farmers Development Agency (MFDA).

As part of target area planning in the Eighth Five Year Plan, special programmes were designed to develop infrastructure in hill areas. North Eastern states, tribal areas and backward areas integrated tribal development project of Bharmaur region in Himachal Pradesh, Indira Gandhi Canal Command Area Project in Rajasthan are some examples of such programmes.

Ans. Yes, it is true that Hill Area Development Programmes in India were drawn keeping in view their topographical, ecological, social and economic conditions because the main objectives of these programmes were to develop horticulture, plantation agriculture, animal husbandry, poultry, forestry, small scale and village industry. By this, efficient use of local resources may become possible.

National Commitee on the Development of Backward Area (1981) set a criterion that the hill areas having a height above 600 m and not covered under tribal sub-plan be treated as backward hill areas. The programme covered all the hilly districts of Uttar Pradesh (present Uttarakhand), Mikir hill and North hills of Assam, Darjeeling district of West Bengal and Nilgiri district of Tamil Nadu.

In drawing up the plans for the region, ecological elements were kept in mind. The aim of plan was to harness local resources without environmental degradation. In the regard deforestation was prohibited and pollution of different type was discharged.

Along with economic, topographical and ecological sphere, social sphere was also given due attention in implementation of the plan. The objective of plan was to promote marginalised and socially backward classes.

Ans. Five main points of the integrated tribal development project implemented in Bharmaur region are

(i) Improving the quality of life of the Gaddis and narrowing the gap in the level of development between Bharmaur and other districts of Himachal Pradesh.

(ii) The highest priority was on development of transport and communications, agriculture and allied activities as well as social and community services.

(iii) Improvement in the basic infrastructure of health care facilities, potable water supply, schools, transport and communication, training, marketing, credit and electricity supply, e.g. villages located along the river Ravi in Holi and Khani areas are main beneficiaries of infrastructural development.

(iv) Employment generation through agricultural allied activities like horticulture, animal husbandry and cottage industry.

(v) The Gaddis had traditionally subsistence agriculture cum-pastoral economy, later on during the last three decades of twentieth century, pulses and other cash crops became one of the main crops of this region.

Ans. If I get power to modify the present planning process, I would broaden the planning process by adding some important concepts such as equity, sustainability and empowerment

● Equity It means providing equal access to opportunities to everybody. The opportunities available to people must be equal irrespective of their gender, race, income and caste. I will promote the concept of inclusive development through participation and everyone will be benefitted by development. With this measure persisting social inequality can be reduced.

● Sustainability It refers to continuity in the availability of opportunities. This means that each generation must have the same opportunities, therefore, we must use our environmental, financial and human resources in such a way that our future generations are not deprived of these opportunities. Sustainability is multidimensional in nature i.e. economic, social and ecological.

● Empowerment It refers to have power to make choices. Such power comes from increasing freedom and capability. Good governance and people oriented policies are required to empower people. The empowerment of social and economically disadvantaged groups are of special importance.

Ans. Development is a multi-dimensional and dynamic concept as it signifies positive and irreversible transformation of the economy, society and the environment. It refers to qualitative change in the life of an individual, e.g. increasing literacy, longevity etc. In economic sphere, creating resources, technological developments such as industries etc. are irreversible in nature. Earlier, development was measured by only the economic growth. Later, the development started including equity and redistribution along with economic growth. Later, it was realised that development cannot be restricted to only the economic sphere. It must include well-being of the people, improving their living standards, education, health, political and civil rights etc.

In the case of India, when it was realised that regional imbalances are getting more noticeable, the Planning Commission introduced the ‘target area’ and target group approaches to planning that aimed at removing regional disparities that have occurred due to development. So, area specific plans such as Hill Area Development Programme, Drought Prone Area Development Programme etc were launched to make development more balanced.

Ans. Measures for promotion of sustainability in ‘Indira Gandhi Canal Command Area’ are

(i) Rigorous implementation of water management policy is the first and foremost requirement of this project.

(ii) Adoption of plantation crops such as citrus fruits, instead of water intensive crops.

(iii) In order to reduce the conveyance loss of water, few important programmes shall be taken into account such as the CAD (Command Area Development) programmes i.e.

● Lining of water courses.

● Land development and levelling.

● Warabandi system (means equal distribution of canal water in the command area of outlet).

(iv) The areas should be reclaimed that got affected by water logging and soil salinity.

(v) Promoting eco-development in the fragile environment especially in stage II command area through afforestation, shelter belt, plantation and pasture development activities.