FEATURES OF DEVELOPING ECONOMIES OR UNDER DEVELOPED COUNTRIES

Low per capita income :-The overall poverty ratio may have declined to 21.8% in 2004-05 from 26.1% in 1999-2000 as per the report of National Sample Survey (NSS) released by the Planning Commission but the per capita income per month is still as low as Rs 292.95 in rural Andhra Pradesh against the national average of Rs 356.30 and Rs 378.84 in urban Assam against the national average of Rs 538.60.



The per capita income in rural areas is maximum at Rs 478.02 in Uttarakhand while the highest per capita income in urban areas is Maharashtra and also in Dadra and Nagar Haveli and Goa at Rs 665.90. The tie among the three territories is because the report has used the same estimation for the three of them. Another interesting fact that the figures in the report show is that though Uttarakhand has the highest per capita income in rural areas it has as many as 27.11 lakh people living below poverty line in rural areas at 40.8% which is almost double the national average of 28.3%.






The state has the fourth largest number of people living below poverty line at 39.6% both in rural and urban areas in 2004-05. This has been calculated using the uniform recall period methodology


predominance on Agriculture:- Agriculture in India is one of the most important sectors of its economy. It is the means of livelihood of almost two thirds of the work force in the country and according to the economic data for the financial year 2006-07, agriculture accounts for 18% of India's GDP. About 43 % of India's geographical area is used for agricultural activity. Though the share of Indian agriculture in the GDP has steadily declined, it is still the single largest contributor to the GDP and plays a vital role in the overall socio-economic development of India.



One of the biggest success stories of independent India is the rapid strides made in the field of agriculture. From a nation dependent on food imports to feed its population, India today is not only self-sufficient in grain production but also has substantial reserves. Dependence of India on agricultural imports and the crises of food shortage encountered in 1960s convinced planners that India's growing population, as well as concerns about national independence, security, and political stability, required self-sufficiency in food production. This perception led to a program of agricultural improvement called the Green Revolution. It involved bringing additional area under cultivation, extension of irrigation facilities, the use of improved high-yielding variety of seeds, better techniques evolved through agricultural research, water management, and plant protection through judicious use of fertilisers, pesticides and cropping practices. All these measures had a salutary effect and the production of wheat and rice witnessed quantum leap.




To carry improved technologies to farmers and to replicate the success achieved in the production of wheat and rice a National Pulse Development Programme, covering 13 states, was launched in 1986. Similarly, a Technology Mission on Oilseeds was launched in 1986 to increase production of oilseeds in the country and attain self-sufficiency. Pulses were brought under the Technology Mission in 1990. After the setting up of the Technology Mission, there has been consistent improvement in the production of oilseeds. A new seeds policy has been adopted to provide access to high-quality seeds and plant material for vegetables, fruit, flowers, oilseeds and pulses, without in any way compromising quarantine conditions. To give fillip to the agriculture and make it more profitable, Ministry of Food Processing Industries was set up in July 1988. Government has also taken initiatives to encourage private sector investment in the food processing industry.



However, there are still a host of issues that need to be addressed regarding Indian agriculture. Indian agriculture is heavily dependent on monsoons. The monsoons play a critical role in determining whether the harvest will be rich, average, or poor. The structural weaknesses of the agriculture sector are reflected in the low level of public investment, exhaustion of the yield potential of new high yielding varieties of wheat and rice, unbalanced fertilizer use, low seeds replacement rate, an inadequate incentive system and post harvest value addition.




There is an urgent need for second green revolution in Indian agriculture and taking it to a higher trajectory of 4 per cent annual growth. Following steps need to be taken to achieve this objective:


Doubling the rate of growth of irrigated area;


Reclaiming degraded land and focusing on soil quality;


Improving water management, rain water harvesting and watershed development;


Bridging the knowledge gap through effective extension services;


Diversifying into high value outputs, fruits, vegetables, flowers, herbs and spices, medicinal plants, bamboo, bio-diesel, but with adequate measures to ensure food security;


Providing easy access to credit at affordable rates.


Huge Population Pressue:-
            The problem with a large population in India is probably due to the government's inability to implement FAMILY PLANNING policies. successive governments have failed to tackel this issue which has resulted in a tremendous rise in population in the country. Politicians don't seem to be interested in the welfare of the country and more often than not relegate such issues as unimportant while trying to (or pretending to) deal with other issues, scarcely realising that most of the problems the country faces today are in large part due to the huge population.Implementing the single child and child tax strategies like those of China could have a benificial impact. But, looking at the flip side of things this policy in China has been blamed for a increasingly skewed male- female sex ration in the country.Lack of education in the India also has a huge role to play in the population explosion that has followed since independence. Providing access to sex education and having adult education programs is the least the government could to curb the rise of population. Another factor contributing to the population growth, according to me, is the issue of child marriage. Though the government has an anti child marriage policy and has specified minimum ages for both males and females to get married at, this policy isn't being strictly implemented at the grass root level. Child marriage is still rampant in India.These are just a few of the issues i think the country needs to resolve before embarking on any other mission so to speak. The root cause of most of the problems India faces is population and one this is dealt with other things should fall into place.


As according Census 2001 it  is about 102 crs, it was 84.5 crs in 1991......