Question

Construct a pie chart for the following table on sectoral contribution to GDP and discuss the difference in the contribution of the sectors in the light of effects of development during 1950-91.

Sector	1950-51	1990-91
Agriculture	59.0	34.9
Industry	13.0	24.6
Services	28.0	40.5

Answer 1

To construct the two pie charts, we use:

`"Central angle" = "percentage"/100 xx 360° = "percentage" xx 3.6°`

Sector	1950-51	Angle	1990-91	Angle
Agriculture	59.0	212.4° ≈ 212°	34.9	125.64° ≈ 126°
Industry	13.0	46.8° ≈ 47°	24.6	88.56° ≈ 89°
Services	28.0	100.8° ≈ 101°	40.5	145.8° ≈ 145°
Total	100	360°	100	360°

1. Agriculture’s contribution to GDP fell sharply from 59.0% in 1950-51 to 34.9% in 1990-91.
2. The contribution of industry increased from 13.0% to 24.6% due to industrial development and the expansion of manufacturing.
3. The service sector’s contribution rose from 28.0% to 40.5%.
4. Services grew because of the expansion of banking, transport, communication, education, healthcare and government services.
5. These changes show that the Indian economy gradually became less dependent on agriculture.
6. Industry and services became more important because of economic development, urbanisation and technological progress.

Hence, between 1950-51 and 1990-91, India shifted from a mainly agriculture-based economy to one with a larger contribution from industry and services.