Q.1 What is a Resource?

Ans. Everything found in the environment which can be used to satisfy our needs provided it is
technologically accessible, economically feasible and culturally acceptable can be termed as a
resource.
Q.2 Why is human resource considered to be the most important resource?
OR
Explain the role of human resource in resource development.
Ans.
1.Human beings are essential components of resources. They transform material available in our
environment into resources and use them.
2.They interact with nature though technology and create institutions to accelerate their economic
development.

Q.3 What is resource development? Why is it important?

Ans. Resource development is the exploitation as well as preservation and reuse of natural resources.
Importance of resource development
i. Resources are important for human survival as well as to maintain the quality of life.
ii. Resources cannot be used directly to satisfy human needs. One has to make an effort an develop it
for human satisfaction.
iii. Eg. Minerals have to be taken out from the earth and smelted before they are used for making
machinery etc.

Q.4 List the problems faced by man due to indiscriminate exploitation of resources.
OR
Indiscriminate use of resources has led to numerous problems. Justify the statement.
Ans. The problems faced by man due to indiscriminate exploitation of resources are:
i) Depletion of resources for satisfying the greed of a few individuals.
ii) 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.
iii) Indiscriminate exploitation of resources has led to global ecological crisis such as, global
warming ,ozone layer depletion, environmental pollution and land degradation

Q5 What is sustainable development? Why is it important?

Ans. Sustainable development means development should take place without damaging the
environment and development at present should not compromise with the needs of the future
generations.
Importance of Sustainable Development
1. Limited resources
The stock of natural resource is limited. The growth of all countries in future is likely to be
endangered if the limited resources are completely exhausted. e.g. fossil fuels,
2. Concern for the environment
Over utilisation of natural resources damages the environment. Sustainable development
aims at making the use of natural resources in such a way that they do not harm the
environment.
Q.6 What is resource planning? Why is it necessary?
Ans. Resource planning is a strategy for judicious use of resources. It is necessary because of
the following reasons
i. Resources are limited in supply and mostly exhaustible.
ii. T o prevent over exploitation.
iii. For sustainable existence of all forms of life.
Q7. Why is resource planning important in India?
OR
India has enormous diversity in the availability of resources.’ Illustrate with examples.
Ans. Resources are unevenly distributed in India. There are regions that are rich in certain types
of resources but are deficient in some other types of resources.
Examples
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 cold desert of Ladakh is relatively isolated from rest of the country but has a very
rich cultural heritage. At the same time it is deficient in water, minerals and infrastructure.
iv) The State of Rajasthan is well endowed with solar and wind energy but lacks in water resources.
Therefore, it is necessary to have balanced resource planning at the national, state and local level.

Q 8. State the three stages of resource planning in India.

Ans. Resource development requires systematic planning which consists of three components or
stages.
(i) Identification and inventory of resources across the regions.
It includes surveying, mapping, qualitative and quantitative estimation and
measurement of the resources.
(ii) Evolution
Evolving a planning structure endowed with appropriate technology, skill and
Institutional setup for implementing resource development plan.
(iii)Matching the resource development plans with overall national development plans.

Q.9 Resources can contribute to development only when they are accompanied by appropriate
technological development and institutional changes. Explain this statement in the light of India’s
experience in different phases of colonization.
Ans. The availability of resources is necessary condition for the development of a region. Along
with this, changes in technology and institutions are required. That is why many regions in India,
although rich in resources, are included in backward regions and vice versa.

1. The history of colonization reveals that resources in colonies were the main attractions
for the foreign invaders. It was primarily the higher technological developments that
helped the British to exploit resources and establish their supremacy over the colonies.
2. Therefore, in India, development, in general, and resource development in particular does
not only involve the availability of resources but also the technology, quality of human
resources and the historical experiences of the people.
Q.10 Why is resource conservation necessary?
1. Resources are vital for any developmental activity
2. irrational consumption and over utilization of resources may lead to socio economic and
environmental problems.
3. To overcome these problems resource conservation at various levels is important.

Q.11 What were Gandhiji’s views about resource conservation?

Ans.
1. Gandhiji said ‘There is enough for everybody’s need but not for anybody’s greed’
2. Gandhiji placed the greedy and selfish individuals and exploitative nature of modern
technology as the root cause of resource depletion at the global level.
3. He was against mass production and wanted to replace it with the production by the masses.
Q.12 Why is land resource considered to be of utmost importance? Why is it necessary to plan
its use?
Ans.
1. Land is a natural resource of utmost importance as it supports natural vegetation, wildlife,
human life, economic activities, transport and communication systems.
2. It is necessary to plan its use because it is an asset of finite magnitude for every country.
Therefore, it is important to use the available land for various purposes (forest, pastures,
economic activities etc.) with careful planning.

Q.13 India has land under a variety of relief features. Discuss the importance of each feature.
Ans.
Relief Feature Percentage Significance
cover
Plains About 43% Provide facilities for agriculture and
industry
Mountains 30% Give rise to perennial rivers,provide
facilities for tourism and ecological
aspects
Plateaus About 27% Possesses rich minerals,fossil fuels
and forests

Q.14 Give a short account of the purposes for which land resources are used.
Ans. The land resources are used for the following purposes.
1. Forests
2. Land not available for cultivation
i. Barren and wasteland
ii. Land put to non-agricultural uses eg. buildings, roads, factories etc.
3. Other uncultivated land (excluding fallow land)
i. Permanent pastures and grazing land
ii. Land under miscellaneous tree crop groves (not included in net sown area)
iii. Cultruable waste land (left uncultivated for more than 5 agricultural years)
4. Fallow lands
i. Current fallow-left without cultivation for one or less than one agricultural year
ii. Other than current fallow-left uncultivated for the past 1 to 5 agricultural years
5. Net sown area -The physical extent of land on which crops are sown and harvested.
Gross cropped area -Area sown more than once in an agricultural year plus net sown area.

Q.15What is the total geographical area of India? Why is land use data available for only 93% of
the total area?
Ans. Total geographical area of India is 3.28 million sq.km
Land use data is available only for 93% of the total geographical area because
i. Land use reporting for most of the north-east states except Assam has not been done.
ii.Some areas of Jammu and Kashmir occupied by Pakistan and China have not been surveyed.

Q.16 Why has the pressure of livestock population increased on agricultural land?
Ans. Land under permanent pastures has decreased. Therefore, the cattle in India are reared on
agricultural waste, grain shaft and few fodder crops. Hence, this has increased tremendous
pressure of livestock population on agricultural land.

Q.17 Name the states which have high and low proportion of Net Sown Area. Give reasons for
the same.
Ans. The states of Punjab and Haryana have high proportion of Net Sown Area (over 80per cent).
This is due to the existence of:
 • Good irrigational facilities
• Modern methods of agriculture
• Favourable climate throughout the year
• Suitable topography i.e. level land
Low proportion (less than 10%) of Net Sown area is found in Arunachal Pradesh, Manipur,
Mizoram, Andaman and Nicobar Island. This is due to the following reasons
i. Arunachal Pradesh, Manipur and Mizoram are mountainous states and have thin layer of
soil.
ii. Andaman and Nicobar Islands (Union Territory) have rugged topography, dense forest and
lack of awareness.

Q.18 What is land degradation? State the human activities that are responsible for land
degradation in India.
Ans.Continuous use of land over a long period of time, without taking appropriate measures to
conserve and manage it makes it unfit for cultivation.This is called land degradation.

Human activities responsible for land degradation in India are:

i.Mining activities –Surface mining leads to degradation of land. The mining sites are often
abandoned after excavation work is complete. Eg. Deforestation in states like Chhattisgarh,
Madhya Pradesh and Odisha is due to mining.
ii.Overgrazing- In Gujarat, Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh and Maharashtra land is degraded due
to overgrazing.
iii.Over irrigation-It causes waterlogging, leading to increase in salinity and alkalinity in the
soil. Eg.in Punjab, Haryana and western UP.
iv.Mineral processing- Mineral processing like grinding of limestone for cement industry and
calcite and soapstone for ceramic industry generate huge quantity of dust in the atmosphere.
It retards the process of infiltration of water into the soil after it settles down on the land.
v.Industrial effluents-In recent years, industrial effluents as waste have become a major source
of land degradation and pollution in several parts of the country.

Q.19 State the measures adopted to control land degradation.

Ans. The measures adopted to control land degradation are:
i. Afforestation, planting shelter belts of plants, control on overgrazing, and stabilization of
sand dunes by growing thorny bushes (in arid areas)
ii. Proper management of grazing i.e., to control overgrazing
iii. Control on mining activities
iv. Proper management of wastelands
v. Proper discharge and disposal of industrial effluents and wastes after treatment.
Q.20 Describe the factors that influence the formation of soil
Ans.
i.The factors which influence the formation of soil are relief, parent rock or bed rock, climate,
vegetation and other forms of life and time.
ii. Forces of nature such as change in temperature, action of running water, wind and glaciers,
activities of decomposers etc.
iii. Chemical and organic changes which take place in the soil are equally important for the
formation of soil.
Q.21 Name the different types of soils found in India. Give a brief account of each.
1. Alluvial Soil
Area
Northern plains, parts of Rajasthan and Gujarat, eastern coastal plains (deltas of
Mahanadi, the Godavari. the Krishna and the Kaveri rivers)
Formation
The soil is formed due to the deposition of silt brought down by the Himalayan River
 systems -the Indus, The Ganga and the Brahmaputra
Chemical Composition
Alluvial soil contains adequate proportion of phosphoric acid, potash and lime which are ideal for
the growth of sugarcane, paddy, wheat and other cereal and pulse crop etc.
Features
i. Alluvial soil is very fertile and widely spread
ii. It is composed of sand, silt and clay.
iii. On the basis of their age alluvial soil can be classified as Khadar and Bhangar.

KHADAR BHANGAR

i.It is new alluvium It is old alluvium

ii. It has very fine particles It has higher concentration of kankar
nodules
iii. It is more fertile. It is less fertile

2. BLACK SOIL/REGUR SOIL

Area
It is found in the Deccan Trap (Basalt) region spread over North -West Deccan plateau..They
cover the plateau of Maharashtra ,Saurashtra,Malwa ,Madhya Pradesh,Chhattisgarh and extend
in South-East direction along the Godavari and Krishna valleys.
Formation
Climatic conditions along with the parent rock material are the important factors for the
formation of the soil.
Chemical composition
Black soil is rich in soil nutrients such as calcium carbonate,magnesium, potash and lime.These
soils are generally poor in phosphoric contents.
Features
1.It is made up of extremely fine particles such as clayey material.
2. It is well known for its capacity to hold moisture.
3.It develops deep cracks in hot weather which helps in proper aeration of the soil.
4.These soils are sticky when wet and difficult to work on unless, tilled immediately
after the first shower during the pre-monsoon period.
5.lt is black in colour and ideal for growing cotton.

3.RED AND YELLOW SOILS

Area
These soils are found in the eastern and southern parts of Deccan plateau, parts of Odisha,
Chhattisgarh, southern part of middle Ganga plain and along the piedmont zone of the western
GhatFormation
This soil develops on crystalline igneous rocks in areas of low rainfall.
Features
1. These soils develop reddish colour due to diffusion of iron in crystalline and metamorphic
rocks.
2. It looks yellow when it occurs in hydrated form.
4. LATERITE SOIL
Areas: Karnataka,Kerala ,Tamil Nadu,Madhya Pradesh and hilly areas of Madhya Pradesh
Formation The laterite soil develops under tropical and sub-tropical climate with alternative wet
and dry season. This soil is the result of intense leaching due to heavy rain.

Features
1.These soils are mostly deep to very deep, acidic (pH<6.0)

2.They are generally deficient in plant nutrients.

3. These soils are humus rich in deciduous and evergreen forests and under sparse vegetation
and in semi-arid environment it is generally humus poor.
4. They are prone to erosion and degradation due to their position on the landscape.
Crops cultivated
1. Tea and coffee is cultivated in hilly areas of Karnataka, Kerala and Tamil Nadu.
2. Cashewnut is cultivated in Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh and Kerala.

5.ARID SOIL
Area-Rajasthan
Features
1.They range from red to brown colour.
2.They are sandy in texture and saline in nature.
3.In some areas salt content is high and common salt is obtained by evaporating the
Water.
4.Due to dry climate and high temperature evaporation is faster and soil lacks humus
moisture.
5.The lower horizons or the soils are occupied by kankar because of the increasing
calcium content downwards.
6. The kankar layer formations in the bottom horizon restrict the infiltration of water.
7. After proper irrigation these soils become cultivable. Eg in Western Rajasthan

6. FOREST SOILS
1.These soils are found in hilly and mountainous areas where sufficient rain forests are available.
2.The texture of the soil varies according to the mountain environment where they are found.
3.They are loamy and silty in valley sides and coarse grained in the upper slopes.
4. In snow covered areas of Himalayas, these soils experience denudation 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.

Q.22 What is soil erosion? How is it caused?

Ans. The removal of soil, especially top fertile layer, either naturally i.e., by wind and water or
as a result of human action is called as soil erosion.
Causes of soil erosion
Natural causes- wind, glacier and water.
Human causes- deforestation, overgrazing, construction,mining, defective methods of farming.

Q.23 Explain the types of soil erosion.

Ans. Gully Erosion
When the running water cuts through the clayey soil and makes deep channel as
gullies it is called as gully erosion.The land becomes unfit for cultivation and is known as bad
land.
E.g ln the Chambal basin such bad lands are called ravines.
Sheet erosion
Sometimes water flows as a sheet over large areas down a slope. In such cases the topsoil is
washed away.
Wind erosion
Wind blows loose soil off flat or sloping land. It is known as wind erosion.
Q.24 Discuss the methods o f soil conservation.
Ans. The following steps can be taken for soil conservation:
1.Contour ploughing
Ploughing along the contour line can reduce the flow of water down the slopes. This is known as
contour ploughing
2.Terrace farming
Steps can be made on the slopes making terraces.This reduces soil erosion.
E.g Western and central Himalayas have developed terraces.

3.Strip cropping
Large fields can be divided into strips. Strips of grass are left to grow between the crops.
This breaks the force of wind.

4.Shelter belts
Trees are planted in rows to create shelter.
Eg.In western India.These shelter belts have contributed significantly to the stabilization of sand
dunes and in stabilizing the desert.