Class 11 Political Science Short Questions With Answers -Development

Q1. Explain the concept of development.
Ans: The word ‘Development’ carries many connotations. It is a very wide concept with different aspects. The very purpose of the development is to build a modem society, to change the face of not only every section of the society but of every man by taking the fruits of development to the last man. It seeks to make maximum utilization of all the resources and to make their just distribution. It is opposed to the concentration of resources in few hands or the resources remain unexploited. Therefore it is a very positive concept, however, it has been understood in a negative sense only.

Q2. Mention some main objectives of the development.
Ans:
Although the concept of development is a wide term with broader objectives. Its main objectives can be specified as under

• Identification of unexploited resources.
• Maximum utilization of available resources.
• To build a modern society by transforming the traditional and backward society.
• To ensure that fruits of development reach the last man in the queue.
• To make the change and growth human-oriented.

Q3. What are the targets of Development?
Ans: Followings are the areas of targets of Development:

• Poverty
• Unemployment
• Unexploited Resources
• Industrialization
• Modernisation of agriculture
• Illiteracy
• Low per capita income and low per capita consumptions.

Q4. What are the main challenges of Development?
Ans: Followings are the challenges of development in developing countries of Asia and Africa

• The low standard of living
• Illiteracy
• Poor health
• Malnutrition
• Lack of basic amenities
• Feudal agrarian system
• Legacy of colonial economies of under-developed countries.

Q5.
What are the main features of the development model of India?
Ans:
India has adopted a socialistic pattern of society which is based on the principle of From each according to his ability and to each according to his ability. We have a mixed economy in which some economic activities are to be undertaken in the public sector and others are taken in the private sector. We have adopted planned economic development with a five-year plan system. Some targets are fixed for realization in every plan. Economic pursuits are undertaken in different fields with the collaborations.

Q6. What are the social costs of development?
Ans: The process of development has its social cost which can be mentioned as under

• Displacement of the people from their homes
• Change in culture
• Illiteracy
• Adoption of a new culture
• Loss of livelihood
• A search for a new identity
• a Large number of rural and urban poor.

Q7. Explain in brief tire environmental costs of development.
Ans: The unplanned development has definitely rather, unfortunately, has its environmental cost which can be understood as under

• Environmental degradation.
• Displacement of the people from one area to another area.
• Natural disasters like Tsunami and earthquakes etc.
• Global warming.
• Greenhouse effects.
• Water pollution.
• Air pollution.
• Sound pollution.
• Ecological disorder.
• Energy crisis.

Q8. What is sustainable development?
Ans: The present model of developments seems to be oriented to the present needs of mankind, neglecting the needs of the future generation. Sustainable development is an approach to development that seeks to use the presently available resources in such a way that:

• There should not be misuse and wastage of present resources.
• All the resources should be exploited fully.
• There should be conservations of energy.
• Policies should be future-oriented.

Q9. What do you understand by the term environmentalism?
Ans: Environmentalism stands for environmental movement which works to protect natural resources and the eco-system. It emphasizes that human beings should learn to live in harmony with the requirements of the eco-system and should not manipulate the natural environment to serve the personal petty interests which harm nature and the cause of future generations.

Q10. Discuss the impact of environmental movements.
Ans: The different environmental movements started in different parts of the world have been able to evoke public consciousness and awareness and also successfully pressuring to modify the governmental policies in the light of environmental goals and sustainable development.
The roots of environmentalism can be traced back to the nineteenth century. Today the environmental movement has become a worldwide phenomenon with thousands of Non-governmental groups and even some green political parties are pursuing the cause of protection of the environment. In India Chipko movement started by Sunder, Lai Bahuguna has been playing an effective role.

Q11.How growth and development are related?
Ans: Growth related to the advancement in agricultural and industrial areas and progress in infrastructure and production in agriculture and industrial areas thereby affecting all other aspects of human life but it does not necessarily ensure the just and equal distribution of the fruits of such growth. Development seeks to ensure this distribution of progress and change of material development and development in infrastructure when economic growth and redistribution of the benefits do not go together, the benefits are cornered by few development seekers to break this chain for improving the standard of living of underprivileged.

Q12. What are social indicators of development?
Ans: Followings are the main social indicators of development:-

• Literacy and education level.
• Life expectancy.
• Maternal mortality rates.
• Housing.

Q13. What do you understand by the basic need approach?
Ans: The human development report of the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) ranks countries on the basis of their performance in social indicators like literacy, life expectancy, and maternal mortality rates which are called as Human Development Index. According to these parameters, the development should be a process that allows more and more people to make meaningful choices. For this fulfillment of basic needs like education, health, and shelter. This approach is called as basic needs approach.

Q14. What do you mean by right claims?
Ans: Since the fruits of development have not reached the people for whom the development meant. It is desirable that people should be given the right to claim their dues from the state and society. It is necessary to check the process of concentration of resources in the hands of few privileged sections of society. It becomes more essential in the democratic framework of the government where people have the right to be consulted in the decision-making process, which is related to them.

Q15. How the democratic participation is useful for development?
Ans: Democratic participation ensures the maximum involvement of maximum people in the decision-making process in the democratic framework of the government. Democratic participation is useful to the development. Both democracy and development are concerned with the realization of the common good and the welfare of maximum people. The people’s participation in the decision-making process makes the development people’s oriented. A decentralized approach can bring, people’s participation and development together.

Q16. Explain the meaning of the term ‘Development.
Ans: The meaning of the concept of development is different for different people. One thing is definitely common that development means the diffusion of growth to all sections of the society to raise the standard of life of the people. The development conveys the ideas of improvement, progress well-being, and inspiration for a better life. Through the process of development, society seeks to achieve the vision of the future for the future generation.
The development has also been Understood and used in a narrow sense y understanding it related with limited goals such as increasing the ate of economic growth or modernizing the society. In fact, the development is not concerned with just achieving the present targets or completing projects like dams and factories i.e. growth of infrastructure but it is more concerned with realizing the broader vision of society. We can say that development is a value ridden concept.

Q17. Explain various issues that are involved in the process of development.
Ans: Since the concept of development is very wide, a number of issues are involved in it which are as under

• The rights of the people should be taken into account during the course of development.
• To make development more pervasive, there should be the democratization of the social, economic, and political environment.
• The benefits of development should reach all sections of society.
• There should be qualitative improvement in the lives of the people.

Q18. Explain socialist, communist, and capitalistic model of development.
Ans: Every state has its own model of development. Every state is concerned with the welfare of its people and raising the standard of living of its people. Although the number of models has been evolved there have been three main models of development in prevalence. These models are as under

• Socialistic model
• Communistic model
• Capitalist model

1. Socialistic model:- Socialist pattern of development prevailed in developing countries of Asia and Africa to make distribution of resources as per the reeds of the people and to exploit the potentialities of the people to the fullest.
2. Communist model:- Communist model of development initially started in the countries of Eastern Europe and then spread to some other countries. It was based on the principles of Marxism.
3. Capitalist model:- This model of development become popular in the USA. and European countries which are based on the principle of economic pursuits on competition basis and profit basis with the minimum role of the state.

Q19. What are the main targets of development?
Ans: The process of development seeks to achieve positive changes and improvement in the following areas

• Poverty
• Unemployment
• Illiteracy
• Unexploited resources
• Regional imbalances
• Social backwardness.
• Fatalism
• Impact of colonialism.

Q20. Enumerate certain features of development undertaken in different parts of the world.
Ans: The process of development has undergone many changes over the years in different countries as it is understood in its meaning. Initially, it was linked with the economic growth and social development with the purpose of modernization of societies. The main features and activities undertaken were as under:

• Industrialization
• Commercialization
• Urbanization
• Agrarian reforms
• Use of science and technology
• Educational development
• Secularisation
• Democratization.

In the process of development, the state was given a leading role to play in the above areas.

Q21. Explain the mode of development in India.
Ans: After independence, India got the colonial legacy at the social, economic, and political levels. India adopted a mixed economy for its development. Planning Commission was set to start planned economic development. The first five-year plan was started in 1951-56. So far we have successfully completed the ten five years plan which has helped in transforming the Indian society and economy to an appreciable extent. Today India is on its way to being a modernized society. The process of liberalization, globalization, and privatization has fastened the pace of development. In India, the process of development is going in Libera secular democratic framework. All efforts are being made to take the benefits of development to all sections of the society through their participation at all levels.

Q22. What is the impact of development in India?
Ans: India, through its planned socio-economic development, has achieved tremendous growth in different areas i.e. agriculture, roads, housing, industry, medicine, health, raising employment opportunities, education, and developing infrastructure. Through the doses of modernization, India has been able to transform Indian society in the last sixty years. In fact through the development face of India is changed from an agrarian, traditional and backward, and undeveloped society to a modem, secular, democratic, and developing society.
But still, we have not been able to achieve the goals of development in the real sense and as per the true meaning of development. We are still in grip of inequalities, disparities, and imbalance. Still, we have 26% of people who are yet to reach the level of subsistence needs. Still, we have situations of excess and deprivation. The ultimate objective of development is rational utilization of the resource and to take the fruits of development to the last man. We feel that we are far away from these two goals of development.

Q23. What are the main hindrances in achieving the goals of development in developing countries like India?
Ans: Almost every society is in the process of development and is trying to get the goals of development. But there are certain structural hindrances in the path of development, particularly in developing countries. Some of the hindrances are as under:-

• Lack of definite and relevant model of development.
• Lack of political will.
• Lack of people’s awareness.
• Traditional social structure.
• Traditional occupations.
• Lack of people-oriented approach of bureaucracy.

Q24. What do you know about the social cost of development?
Ans: The process of development involves a lot of desirable and undesirable activities with negative and positive consequences which can be called social costs. These social costs can be understood as under

• Displacement of persons due to developmental projects like bridges and dams and other such projects.
• Migration of people in search of better opportunities and better quality of life in which they lose their old identities and due course of time acquire new values and new identities.
• Pressure on urban civic amenities due to the process of urbanization in the wake of development.
• Loss of traditional skills acquired in a long time.
• Loss of culture.
• Regional and cultural confrontations.
• Social agitations.
• Unemployment and uncertainties.

Q25. Explain the environmental costs of development.
Ans: The environmental cost of development can be measured in the following ways.

• Pollution.
• Ecological crisis.
• Environmental degradation by the phenomenon like depletion of ozone, ozone hole, global warming, and Green House effects.
• Natural disasters like earthquakes and Tsunami.
• Loss of human life.
• Loss of forest due to deforestation cause havoc.
• Loss of subsistence needs of the poor.
• Wastage of medicinal plants.
• Loss of traditional sources of energy, therefore, leading to the energy crisis.
• Dirty drinking water.

Q26. What is the meaning and objectives of Environmentalism?
Ans: The thinking and supporting, the thinking of protecting the environment and environmental life is known as environmentalism. It is therefore as an urge and passion to save the environment and human life from the hazards which are being played in the name of development.
Environmentalists maintain that human beings should learn to live in harmony with the rhythms of the eco-system and should not indulge in such selfish activities that are destroying the beauty and utility of the eco-system and environment. It is a fact that if this trend is not checked/stopped, we will get barren earth, poisoned rivers, and polluted air for future generations. Due to this fear, the environmental movement has become a worldwide movement with the support of government and non-governmental organization who have been successful in modifying
the government’s industrial and developmental policies in the right of goals of protection of the environment.

Q27. Explain the relationship between growth and development.
Ans: Although the two concepts i.e. growth and development are very frequently used for each other and simultaneously but there is a perceptible difference between the two, although both are related to the welfare of man and society. Growth denotes a change in infrastructure and progress in different areas. The growth has not been able to achieve the goals of social justice. It is largely material development. On the other hand, the concept of development is broader than growth and can be understood as a process that seeks to improve the quality of life of the people at large. Growth is not an indicator of social justice. It is the development that is an instrument and measure of social justice and quality of life of the people.

Q28. How the development can be measured?
Ans: Measuring economic growth is not adequate as the indicator of social and economic progress and social justice. The need of measuring the development was felt. Several attempts have been made in this direction. One such attempt is the Human Development Re| which is annually brought out by the United Nation Development Programme (UNDP) which ranks the different countries of the two, on the basis of their performance in social indicators like education, lii expectancy, and maternal mortality rates. This measure is called the Human Development Index. This proves that the development revolves around the basic needs of man. Thus development is a process which allows more and more people to make meaningful life with the minimum adequate availability of basic needs like food, education, shelter, and health.

Q29. What do you mean by the Top-down approach of development? What changes does it need?
Ans: There has been the social and environmental cost of development at different levels, due to which the development could not bring the desired results. The benefits of development have not been evenly distributed among the people. It has been due to the ‘Top-down’ approach, which has been the strategy of development. The very important feature of the Top-down approach has been the selection of priorities and preferences and methods of implementation of the decisions and project^ were all generally decided by the top bureaucrats, politicians, executives, and technocrats with the actual participation of those for whom these decisions are taken. This was the scenario of both the democratic and non-democratic countries. Thus the need for alternate model development is felt.

Q30. What do you understand by the Concept of Right Claims?
Ans: In most of the models of development the benefits of change, progress and development have not been reached to the people for which they were meant and are cornered by the privileged sections of the society. It has been due to the Top-down approach in the developmental models. Now the time has come and which duly accepted and recognized that the aspirations and needs of the affected people should be taken into account. People should be allowed to put up their views, rights, and claims before the decision-makers.
In a democratic framework, people have the right to be consulted in the exercise of decision making and in the process of development. The people have their natural; rights on the available resources for developmental activities. Therefore on the fruits of development, local people have a natural claim which should be duly given to make development meaningful.

Q31: What is the significance of Democratic Participation in the process of development?
Ans: Democracy is a system of government that provides an opportunity to the people to participate in the decision-making process and the developmental activities which are a pre-requisite of the success of democracy. Democracy also aims to provide a better quality of life by establishing equality, justice, fairness, brotherhood, the dignity of man, and ensuring people’s participation.
Democracy and development, both are concerned with realizing the common good. The most important relationship between democracy and development is that development is supposed to be undertaken by people’s participation at the micro-level and macro-level.