CBSE Class 12 Geography

Revision Notes
India-People and Economy
Chapter-9 Planning and Sustainable

Key Notes:

Planning involves the process of thinking, formulation of a scheme or programme

and implementation of a set of actions to achieve some goal
It has been used with reference to the process of economic development
India has centralised planning and the task of planning in India has been entrusted to
the Planning Commission
It is a statutory body headed by the Prime Minister and had a Deputy Chairman and
members
The planning in the country is largely carried out through Five Year Plans
The First 5 Year Plan was launched in 1951 & covered the period, 1951-52 to 1955-56
Second and Third Five Year Plan covered the period from 1956-57 to 1960-6 and 1961-
62 to 1965-66 respectively
The Fourth Five Year Plan began in 1969-70 and ended in 1973-74
The Fifth Five Year Plan began in 1974-75 but it was terminated by the then
government one year earlier i.e. in 1977-78.
The Sixth Five Year Plan took off in 1980
The Seventh Five Year Plan covered the period between 1985 and 1990
Due to the political instability and initiation of liberalisation policy, the Eighth Five
Year Plan got delayed. It covered the period, 1992 to 1997
The Ninth Five Year Plan covered the period from 1997 to 2002
The Tenth Plan covered the period from 2002 to 2007
The Eleventh Plan covered the period from 2007 to 2012
The Twelfth Five Year Plan initiated in 2012 with a focus on Faster More inclusive and
sustainable growth
There are two approaches to planning, i.e. sectoral planning and regional planning
The sectoral planning means formulation and implementation of the sets of schemes
or programmes aimed at development of various sectors of the economy such as

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 agriculture, irrigation, manufacturing, power, construction, transport,
communication, social infrastructure and services
Uneven pattern of development over space necessitates that the planners have a
spatial perspective and draw the plans to reduce regional imbalance in development.
This type of planning is termed as regional planning

Target Area Planning

Target area planning means making schemes for the development of backward
regions of India
Some of the examples of programmes directed towards the development of target
areas are Command Area Development Programme, Drought Prone Area
Development Programme, Desert Development Programme

Hill Area Development Programme

The Small Farmers Development Agency (SFDA) and Marginal Farmers Development
Agency (MFDA) which are the examples of target group programme
In the 8th Five year Plan special area programmes were designed to develop
infrastructure in hill areas, north-eastern states, tribal areas and backward areas
Hill Area Development Programmes were initiated during Fifth Five Year Plan
It covers 15 districts comprising all the hilly districts of Uttar Pradesh (present
Uttarakhand), Mikir Hill and North Cachar hills of Assam, Darjiling district of West
Bengal and Nilgiri district of Tamil Nadu
The National Committee on the Development of Backward Area in 1981
recommended that all the hill areas in the country having height above 600 m and not
covered under tribal sub-plan be treated as backward hill areas
The detailed plans for the development of hill areas were drawn keeping in view their
topographical, ecological, social and economic conditions
These programmes aimed at harnessing the indigenous resources of the hill areas
through development of horticulture, plantation agriculture, animal husbandry,
poultry, forestry and small-scale and village industry

Drought Prone Area Programme

This programme was initiated during the Fourth Five Year Plan

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 The objectives of this programme is to provide employment to the people in drought-
prone areas and creating productive assets
This programme laid emphasis on the construction of labour-intensive civil works
It emphasised on irrigation projects, land development programmes, afforestation,
grassland development and creation of basic rural infrastructure such as electricity,
roads, market, credit and services
National Committee on Development of Backward Areas, reviewed the performance
of this programme
This programme is largely confined to the development of agriculture and allied
sectors with major focus on restoration of ecological balance
The other strategies of development of these areas include adoption of integrated
watershed development approach at the micro-level
The restoration of ecological balance between water, soil, plants, and human and
animal population should be a basic consideration in the strategy of development of
drought-prone areas
Planning Commission of India (1967) identified 67 districts (entire or partly) of the
country prone to drought
Irrigation Commission (1972) introduced the criterion of 30 % irrigated area and
demarcated the drought prone areas
The drought- prone area in India spread over semi-arid and arid tract of Rajasthan,
Gujarat, Western Madhya Pradesh, Marathwada region of Maharashtra, Rayalseema
and Telangana plateaus of Andhra Pradesh, Karantka plateau and highlands and
interior parts of Tamil Nadu
The drought prone areas of Punjab, Haryana and north-Rajasthan are largely
protected due to spread of irrigation in these regions

Case Study – Integrated Tribal Development Project in Bharmaur Region

Bharmaur tribal area comprises Bharmaur and Holi tehsils of Chamba district of
Himachal Pradesh
It spread over an area of about 1,818 sq km, the region mostly lies between 1,500 m to
3,700 m above the mean sea level
This region popularly known as the homeland of Gaddis is surrounded by lofty
mountains on all sides

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It has Pir Panjal in the north and Dhaula Dhar in the south and in the east, the
extension of Dhaula Dhar converges with Pir Panjal near Rohtang Pass
The river Ravi and its tributaries– the Budhil and the Tundahen, drain this territory.
These rivers divide the region into four physio graphic divisions called Holi, Khani,
Kugti and Tundah areas. Bharmaur experiences freezing weather conditions and
snowfall in winter
Its mean monthly temperature in January remains 4°C and in July 26°C
Bharmaur is inhabited by ‘Gaddi’, a tribal community who have maintained a distinct
identity in the Himalayan region as they practised transhumance and conversed
through Gaddiali dialect
Bharmaur tribal region has harsh climate conditions, low resource base and fragile
environment
According to the 2011 census, the total population of Bharmaur sub-division was
39,113 i.e., 21 persons per sq km
It is one of the most (economically and socially) backward areas of Himachal Pradesh
The economy is largely based on agriculture and allied activities such as sheep and
goat rearing
The process of development of tribal area of Bharmaur started in 1970s when Gaddis
were included among ‘scheduled tribes’
Under the Fifth Five Year Plan, the tribal sub-plan was introduced in 1974 and
Bharmaur was designated as one of the five Integrated Tribal Development Projects
(ITDP) in Himachal Pradesh
This area development plan was aimed at improving the quality of life of the Gaddis
and narrowing the gap in the level of development between Bharmaur and other
areas of Himachal Pradesh
This plan laid the highest priority on development of transport and communications,
agriculture and allied activities, and social and community services
The most significant contribution of tribal sub plan in Bharmaur region is the
development of infrastructure in terms of schools, health care facilities, potable
water, roads, communications and electricity
The villages located along the river Ravi in Holi and Khani areas are the main
beneficiaries of infrastructural development
The social benefits derived from ITDP include tremendous increase in literacy rate,

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 improvement in sex ratio and decline in child marriage
The female literacy rate in the region increased from 1.88 % in 1971 to 65 % in 2011
The Gaddis had subsistence agricultural-cum-pastoral economy having emphasis on
foodgrains and livestock production
During the last three decades of twentieth century, the cultivation of pulses and other
cash crops has increased in Bharmaur region

Sustainable Development

The term development is used to describe the state of particular societies and the
process of changes experienced by them
The processes of human- environment interaction depend upon the level of
technology and institutions nurtured by a society
The technology and institutions have helped in increasing the pace of human-
environment interaction, the momentum thus, generated in return has accelerated
technological progress and transformation and creation of institutions
Development is a multi-dimensional concept and signifies the positive, irreversible
transformation of the economy, society and environment
In the post World War II era, the concept of development was synonymous to
economic growth which is measured in terms of temporal increase in gross national
product (GNP) and per capita income/per capita consumption
In 1970’s it was realised that the concept of development cannot be restricted to the
economic sphere alone
It also includes the issues such as improving the well-being and living standard of
people, availing of the health, education and equality of opportunity and ensuring
political and civil rights
By 1980s, development emerged as a concept encapsulating wide-spread
improvement in social as well as material well-being of all in a society
Sustainable development emerged in the wake of general rise in the awareness of
environmental issues in the late 1960s in Western World
It reflected the concern of people about undesirable effects of industrial development
on the environment
Concerned with the growing opinion of world community on the environmental
issues, the United Nations established a World Commission on Environment and

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 Development (WCED) headed by the Norwegian Prime Minister Gro Harlem
Brundtland
The Commission gave its report (also known as Brundtland Report) entitled ‘Our
Common Future’ in 1987
The report defines sustainable development as a “development that meets the needs
of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their
own needs.”
Sustainable development takes care of ecological, social and economic aspects of
development during the present times and pleads for conservation of resources to
enable the future generations to use these resources

Case Study- Indira Gandhi Canal (Nahar) Command Area

Indira Gandhi Canal, previously known as the Rajasthan Canal, is one of the largest
canal systems in India
It was coconceived by Kanwar Sain in 1948, the canal project was launched on 31
March, 1958
The canal originates at Harike barrage in Punjab and runs parallel to Pakistan border
at an average distance of 40 km in Thar Desert (Marusthali) of Rajasthan
The total planned length of the system is 9,060 km catering to the irrigation needs of a
total culturable command area of 19.63 lakh hectares
Out of the total command area, about 70 % was envisaged to be irrigated by flow
system and the rest by lift system
The construction work of the canal system has been carried out through two stages:
Stage-l: The command area of Stage-I lies in Ganga Nagar, Hanumangarh and
northern part of Bikaner districts. It has a gently undulating topography and
its culturable command area is 5.53 lakh hectares. The command area of Stage-
II is spread over Bikaner, Jaisalmer, Barmer, Jodhpur, Nagaur and Churu
districts covering culturable command area of 14.10 lakh ha. It comprises
desert land dotted with shifting sand dunes and temperature soaring to 50ºC in
summers. In the lift canal, the water is lifted up to make it to flow against the
slope of the land
Stage-II : the command area of Stage-II beganreceiving irrigation in mid-1980s.
The introduction of canal irrigation in this dry land has transformed its

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 ecology, economy and society. It has influenced the environmental conditions
of the region both positively as well as negatively. The availability of soil
moisture for a longer period of time and various afforestation and pasture
development programmes under CAD have resulted in greening the land. This
has also helped in reducing wind erosion and siltation of canal systems
Introduction of canal irrigation has brought about a perceptible transformation in the
agricultural economy of the region
Soil moisture has been a limiting factor in successful growing of crops in this area
Spread of canal irrigation has led to increase in cultivated area and intensity of
cropping.
The traditional crops sown in the area, gram, bajra and jowar have been replaced by
wheat, cotton, groundnut and rice

Measures for Promotion of Sustainable Development

i. The first requirement is strict implementation of water management policy. The canal
project envisages protective irrigation in Stage-I and extensive irrigation of crops and
pasture development in Stage-II.
ii. In general, the cropping pattern shall not include water intensive crops. It shall be
adhered to and people shall be encouraged to grow plantation crops such.as citrus fruits.
iii. The CAD programmes such as lining of water courses, land development and levelling
and warabandi system (equal distribution of canal water in the command area of outlet)
shall be effectively implemented to reduce the conveyance loss of water.
iv. The areas affected by water logging and soil salinity shall be reclaimed.
v. The eco-development through afforestation, shelterbelt plantation and pasture
development is necessary particularly in the fragile environment of Stage-II.
vi. The social sustainability in the region can be achieved only if the land allottees having
poor economic background are provided adequate financial and institutional support for
cultivation of land.
vii. The economic sustainability in the region cannot be attained only through development
of agriculture and animal husbandry. The agricultural and allied have to develop
alongwith other sectors of economy. This shall lead to diversification of economic base
and establishment of functional linkages between basic villages, agro-service centres and
market centres.

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