Development Concepts with Shashank Priyadarshi

Determining a development approach can be a challenging task, and requires a comprehensive method to identify the most effective approach. In this article, we will discuss the importance of participation in development projects and two methods of participatory research: Rapid Rural Appraisal (RRA) and Participatory Rural Appraisal (PRA). Participation in development projects has many benefits, as identified by Oakley et al. (1991). These benefits include efficiency, effectiveness, self-reliance, development of local human resources, coverage, and sustainability. When local people are involved in the planning and implementation of development projects, they take ownership and responsibility for the project's success. This also ensures that the project is tailored to meet the specific needs of the community. Rapid Rural Appraisal (RRA) is a method of involving people in society to gather information in a short span of time. The purpose of RRA is to validate inferences, hypotheses, ob

In India, nearly 70% of the working population is engaged in agriculture and related sectors. The primary sector is dependent on agriculture-related employment which contributes less than 18% to the country's GDP. Rural areas lack modern amenities, services, and necessary livelihood opportunities for decent living. The absence of cash crops, technology, education, and capital results in unemployment, poverty, and poor economic conditions. This disparity between urban and rural areas is evident in every survey conducted by various agencies from time to time. Urban areas are more developed than rural areas, which results in migration of laborers to the urban centers. This migration creates a sub-urban area where only basic facilities are available to them. Illiterate people and unskilled workers migrate and live on subsistence wages provided by capitalists centered in urban areas. As Mahatma Gandhi said, "The soul of India lives in villages." India cannot be developed until

 Amartya Sen, in 1980, in his Tanner Lectures on human values titled 'Equality of What' at Stanford University, questioned the adequacy of using marginal or total utility and primary goods for measuring equality. The social systems should aim to expand the people's capabilities or their freedom to achieve beings and doings which they value.  Various concepts of the capabilities  theory of Amartya Sen are discussed below : 1. Functionings : Functionings are doing the activity or being in a state that contributes to a person's well-being. Functionings should be separated from the commodities employed to achieve them.  2. Capabilities : Capability is a set of functions a human being can achieve when a person has the freedom and opportunity to choose/select a quality of life that he has reason to value.  3. Agency - Agency refers to any goal/target a person wishes to achieve what he had valued. A person who possesses this ability or agency is the agent. 4. Choosing the most

The human capability theory method has emerged as a new theoretical framework for well-being, development and justice. The evolution of this framework dates back to Aristotle, Adam Smith and Karl Marx. However, Professor  Amartya Sen  pioneered this approach and it was further developed by  Martha Nussbaum and several other scholars. The capability approach states that freedom to achieve well-being is a matter of what people are capable to do and being and hence the kind of life they are effectively able to lead.  The capability approach can be considered as a framework which involves the following exercises: 1. Assessing the individual well being. 2. Evaluating and assessing the social arrangements. 3. Designing policies for social change in society.  The capability approach prioritizes some of the beings and doings of people and their opportunity to realise those beings and doings. In simple words, the capabilities approach tells us what information to look at if we are to judge ho

The Marxian economics system is composed of four components  a) The capitalist economic system  b) the labour theory of value c) the theory of surplus labour  d) The theory of capital accumulation   The Capitalist Economy system -  According to Karl Marx, the capitalist system of Economy consists of the following elements -  a. The Capitalist system is divided into two sections - A. The Capitalists B. The Worker  b. A commodity forms the unit of production in a capitalist society where the commodity is defined as the carrier of use-value (utility) and exchange-value (with other commodities)  c. The growth of capitalism is based upon the exploitation of labour.  d. All the commodity is produced with the motive of profit and exchange equation in m-C-M. The capitalist purchases commodity, C, (Labour power) with money, m , with an intention to sell it (after production) for profit, M.  v) The motive force behind capitalism is profit. the capitalists also reinvest the profit to upgrade tech

According to Karl H. Marx history of Society is dependent on socioeconomic development, he further divided the stages of socioeconomic history of evolution into five distinct stages which are as follows:- 1. Primitive Communism 2. Slavery 3. Feudalism 4. Capitalism 5. Socialism (Details are available on this portal in separate articles )

Production of material is basic to human existence and the mode of production of wealth is determining factor of social development and societal development.   The force of production  The relation of production What do we consider by force of production? Force of production refers to - 1. The organisation, skill and status of labour  2. The techniques and traditions of productions  3. The geographical condition & degree of knowledge to utilize materials and resources  The force of production determines the relationship between man and nature regardless of the form of society, the interaction between man and nature consists of the unity of three elements- 1. Labour  2. Objects of labour  3. The means of labour  The relations of production refer to a particular set of property relations which determines the nature of society's class structure. The relations of production, or the economic relation between people, choose the relation between man and machine. According to Marx, the

Rostow conceived economic development as a process. According to him, development passes through certain stages : 1.Traditional Society / Pre-Industrial stages 2. Pre-conditioning phase 3. The take-off stage 4. Stage of "drive to maturity" 5. Stage of self-sustained growth of mass consumption Now we will see details of each stage for a broader view : 1. Traditional Society : (Assume India in 1947) Stage of Economy where the birth rate is too high, as well as the mortality rate, is high. Lack of industries and major occupation of people is animal husbandry, and agriculture with very few industry setups. 2. Pre-conditioning phase - To move forward from primitive society there should be an urge to develop. This urge usually comes from the elite class and subsequently, the entrepreneurial class emerges which mobilises savings and invests them. Investment hovers around 5% at this stage. 3. The Take-off stage : Take off the stage of an economy is usually defined

The balanced growth theory emphasized that all sectors of an economy should be developed simultaneously and no sector is discriminated against. In a way, it will promote balanced regional development. Balanced development will create external economies. The benefits created in one sector will push the economy into another sector and will provide a boost to the new industries from existing industries. The balance growth approach will create a social overhead capital. When different industry will develop simultaneously a social overhead capital will generate for the promotion of various sectors. It will reduce the dependence of underdeveloped economies on external economies as this process leads to a self-generated less dependent economic structure. Apart from the above merit mentioned by some economists, some development thinkers like Singer had a contrary view as he had stated that  " Balance growth can neither solve the problem of underdeveloped countries nor do they have suffici

R. Nurkse's theory of balanced growth believes that underdeveloped countries are suffering from the  vicious circle of poverty, which is determinantal to economic development in these countries.  According to him "a circular constellation of forces, tending to act and react upon one another in such   a way as to keep a country in a state of poverty." The vicious circle of poverty adversely affects  the accumulation of capital in economically underdeveloped countries. If this vicious circle of poverty is broken then development will follow.  According to Nurkse "the expansion of the market can be realized only through a process of balanced growth, where people in different countries,  working with new and better tools, become each other's consumers. The vicious cycle works on both the demand and supply sides. On the supply side, there is a small capacity to save due to a low level  of income, the low level of income results in low productivity which is again due t

W. A. Lewis believed that in underdeveloped countries supply of labour is unlimited at a subsistence wage rate. Economic development takes place when this surplus labour is withdrawn from subsistence sectors and placed in the capitalist sector through capital accumulation. In other words, the transfer of labour from the labour surplus agriculture sector to the industry sector will promote the balanced development of both sectors.  Lewis' model divided the economy into two major sectors i.e. the capitalist sector and the subsistence sector. The capitalist sector is defined as " the part of the economy which uses reproducible capital, and pays capitalists for the use thereof." In the capitalist sector, the use of capital is controlled by capitalists, who hire the service of the labour. On the other hand, the subsistence sector doesn't use reproducible capital hence total productivity is lower than the capitalist sector.  However, industries require skilled labour, accor

Some of the criticism of Rosenstein's theory of the Big Push method of balanced development is as follows: 1. Big Push Theory can not be effectively adopted in developing countries a lack sufficient funds, skilled labor, and dynamic entrepreneurship abilities. 2. Maintaining coordination between different sectors is a big challenge, According to H. Myint, It is very difficult to coordinate various plans in developing countries. 3. Developing economy is basically an agrarian economy whereas Rodan's theory of Big Push theory emphasizes on investment in industries which is troublesome in the first stage in many countries that lack basic infrastructure, skilled labor, and raw materials.  4. The theory of the big push method of balanced development is dependent on indivisibility. Too much indivisibility will pose practical problems in the process of globalization which lay stress on flexibility and reforms. 5. Rosenstein Rodan has given limited importance to the role of internationa

 Rosenstein Rodan's Theory of Balanced Growth  Rosenstein Rodan advocates the "Big Push" theory which empathizes the concept of large comprehensive investment in an underdeveloped/ stagnant economy to boost the  the cycle of economic activities.  The theory states that investing in it by bit or piecemeal will not generate enough force that will push the economy to overcome the obstacles.  The key factor of the theory of Rodan is "indivisibility".  According to him, the indivisibility of inputs, outputs, or processes leads to increasing returns.  He considered social overhead capitals such as power transport and communication to have greater indivisibility features and are indirectly productive and have a long gestation period. They can not be imported rather than internally generated. Their installation requires a sizeable initial lump of investment. The social overhead capital is characterized by four indivisibility as follows: 1. It is irreversible in time. 2.

There are two basic ways of development - Balanced Development Theory and Unbalanced Growth Theory Let's talk about the Balanced Growth Theory  The Balanced growth theory emphasizes the idea to invest proportionately in all sectors of development so that the goal of holistic development is achieved. There are some theories supporting the balanced growth theory. P L Samuelson says - Balanced growth implies growth in every wind of capital stock at constant rates  Benjamin Higgs says - A wave of capital investment in several industries is called Balanced Growth. W.A. Lewis says - In the development plan, all sectors of the economy should grow simultaneously to balance between industry and agriculture and between the production of home consumption and production for export.  Rosanstein, Ranger Nurkse  and W A Lewis Theory Broadly different type of strategies adopted in applying balanced growth theory is as follow -  1. Balanced growth in Agriculture and Industry -  Lewis has explained

 Education is a systematic process through which a child or an adult acquires knowledge, experience, skill, and sound attitude. In Rig-Veda, education is regarded as " the force that makes an individual self-reliant as well as selfless."It makes an individual civilized, refined, and educated. The education given at earlier stages of an individual helps in the development of attitude, competency, and shapes character. Every society gives importance to education because it provides the solution to all problems. Education is a process that tells how to live life well: how to find happiness: how to make others happy: how to manage all kinds of people and how to grow and succeed in the right manner. A person becomes perfect with education as he is not only gaining something from it but also contributing to the growth of a nation.  Moreover, education is a vehicle of knowledge, self-preserving, and success. It not only gives us a platform to succeed but also knowledge of social con

 The provision of social services is a  development strategy for both the government and non-government organizations: even private individuals are also involved in the provision of social services to society. While the former makes the provision, the beneficiaries who are the community often participate by contributing labor or counterpart funding. Why NGO? Non-Government Organisations (NGOs) are applied to many kinds of organizations ranging from large, Northern-based charities to local self-help organizations in the south, but both to improve the quality of life of people. There are many private institutes involved in development on a non-profit basis. The term "NGO" is comprehended to refer to that autonomous, non-membership, relatively permanent, or institutionalized intermediary organizations, which work with grassroots organizations in a supporting capacity. Therefore, NGOs have become an important and vocal platform for the involvement of civil society in public affa

Social Media is an attentive piece of new age society. The best way to define social media is to separate it from newspapers and the audio-visual medium of television or Radio. It is a group of online communication channels developed for information, connection, substance, and coordination effort. Sites and applications committed to the discussion, micro-blogging, social system administration, social bookmarking, social 'curation', and wikis are among the distinctive social media. Social Media has been advancing rapidly, offering new and significant approaches to individuals around the globe. Presently social media is developing into an indispensable part of daily lives. The social system administration is presently a genuine worldwide sensation. There are various contrasts between social media from conventional/modern media, including quality, achievement, recurrence, ease of use, immediacy, and enduringness. Social Media differs in many aspects. They can take on different for