NCERT solutions for Economics Indian Economic Development [English] Class 12 chapter 5 - Rural Development [Latest edition]

On a monthly basis, go through the newspapers of your region and identify the problems raised by them in relation to rural areas and the solutions offered. You could also visit a nearby village and identify the problems faced by people there. Discuss this in the classroom.

Prepare a list of recent schemes and their objectives from the government website https:// www.rural.nic.in. Collect the details of how anyone of these schemes implemented in your region/rural neighbourhood areas. Discuss your observations in class.

In your locality/neighbourhood, you might notice self-help groups providing credit. Attend a few meetings of such self-help groups. Write a report on the profile of a self-help group. The profile may include, when it was started, the number of members, amount of savings and type of credit they provide and how borrowers use the loan.

You might also find that those who take a loan for starting self-employment activities but use it for other purposes. Interact with a few such borrowers. Identify the reasons for not starting self-employment activities and discuss in the classroom.

In the last few years, you might have taken note, in your neighbourhood if you are living in rural areas or read in the newspapers or seen on TV, of farmers committing suicides. Many such farmers had borrowed money for farming and other purposes. It was found that when they were unable to pay back due to crop failure, insufficient income and employment opportunities, they took such steps. Collect information relating to such cases and discuss in the classroom.

Visit banks that cater to rural areas. They may be primary agricultural cooperative banks, land development banks, regional rural banks or district cooperative banks. Collect details such as how many rural households borrowed from them, amount generally borrowed, kinds of collateral used, interest rates and dues.

If farmers who borrowed from cooperative banks could not pay back due to crop failure and other reasons, their loans should be waived; otherwise, they may take drastic decisions like committing suicides. Do you agree?

Visit a nearby vegetable and fruit market. Observe and identify different characteristics of the market. Identify the place of origin of at least ten different fruits and vegetables and distance travelled to reach the market. Further, look at the modes of transport and its implication on prices.

Most small towns have regulated market yards. Farmers can go to these markets and sell their produce. They can also store their goods in the yard. In 2016, Union Government launched a portal named e-National Agriculture Market (e-NAM), and a Pan-India online portal by connecting mandis and RMYs. Visit one regulated market yard or Agriculture Produce Marketing Committee collect the details of its functioning, kind of goods coming to the yard and how prices are fixed. Prepare a detailed report and discuss in the class.

Visit one such alternative marketing system which farmers in your locality, or in the neighbourhood rural areas, use. How are they different from regulated market yards? Should they be encouraged and supported by the government? Why and how? Discuss

Make a list of five popular items that are organically produced in India.

Visit a nearby supermarket, vegetable shop and/or a departmental shop. Identify a few products. Prepare a chart comparing a few goods that are produced organically and in the normal way on the basis of their prices, shelf life, quality and the kind of advertisement through which they are popularised.

Visit a horticultural farm in the nearby locality. Collect the details of goods that they cultivate on the farm. They could have diversified their cropping patterns. Discuss with them the merits and demerits of the diversification.

What do you mean by rural development? Bring out the key issues in rural development.

Discuss the importance of credit in rural development.

Explain the role of microcredit in meeting credit requirements of the poor.

Explain the steps taken by the government in developing rural markets.

Why is agricultural diversification essential for sustainable livelihoods?

Critically evaluate the role of the rural banking system in the process of rural development in India.

What do you mean by agricultural marketing?

What are the alternative channels available for agricultural marketing? Give some examples.

Distinguish between ‘Green Revolution’ and ‘Golden Revolution’.

Do you think the various measures taken by the government to improve agricultural marketing are sufficient? Discuss.

Explain the role of non-farm employment in promoting rural diversification.

Bring out the importance of animal husbandry, fisheries and horticulture as a source of diversification.

‘Information technology plays a very significant role in achieving sustainable development and food security’ — comment.

What is organic farming and how does it promote sustainable development?

Identify the benefits and limitations of organic farming.

Enlist some problems faced by farmers during the initial years of organic farming.

“Jan-Dhan-Yojna helps in the rural development.” Do you agree with this statement? Explain.