NCERT Solutions for Class 10 Social Science (Understanding Economic Development) Chapter 1: Development (NCERT 2026–27)
These Class 10 Economics Chapter 1 solutions cover Development from Understanding Economic Development, the Class 10 NCERT textbook for the 2026–27 session. The chapter explains how different people have different developmental goals, why income is not the only goal, how countries and states are compared using per capita income and other indicators such as Infant Mortality Rate, Literacy Rate, Net Attendance Ratio and the Human Development Index (HDI), why public facilities matter, and why sustainability of development has become a central concern. Below you get the complete Exercises solved verbatim, plus key terms, extra practice, MCQs, Assertion–Reason questions and FAQs.
Chapter 1, Development, begins with the idea that development means different things to different people — a landless labourer, a prosperous farmer, an urban unemployed youth and a girl from a rich family all have different and sometimes conflicting goals. People desire not only higher income but also equal treatment, freedom, security and respect. To compare countries we use average (per capita) income, the criterion the World Bank uses, but averages hide disparities and ignore non-material goals. So we also look at quality-of-life indicators — Infant Mortality Rate, Literacy Rate, Net Attendance Ratio — which is why Kerala, with lower per capita income than Haryana, scores higher on human development. The UNDP’s Human Development Index combines health, education and income. Finally, the chapter stresses that present levels of development are not sustainable: renewable resources like groundwater are being overused and non-renewable resources like crude oil will be exhausted, so the future of development is tied to sustainability.
Key Concepts & Terms
Development: a process of improving lives that involves a mix of goals — higher income together with non-material goals like equality, freedom, security and respect; what is development for one person may not be development for another.
Per Capita (Average) Income: the total income of a country divided by its total population. The World Bank uses it to classify countries; for 2024, those with about US$ 66,500 per annum and above are ‘high income’ (rich) countries and those with about US$ 2,300 or less are ‘low-income’ countries.
Limitation of averages: averages are useful for comparison but they hide disparities — two countries can have the same average income yet very different distribution, so average income does not show how income is shared among people.
Infant Mortality Rate (IMR): the number of children that die before the age of one year out of 1,000 live children born in that year.
Literacy Rate: the proportion of the literate population in the 7-and-above age group.
Net Attendance Ratio: the total number of children of the 15–17 age group attending school as a percentage of the total number of children in the same age group.
Public facilities: goods and services like clean water, healthcare, schools and the Public Distribution System that are best provided collectively; money in one’s pocket alone cannot buy a pollution-free environment or protection from disease.
Human Development Index (HDI): a measure used in the UNDP’s Human Development Report that ranks countries on a combination of per capita income, health (life expectancy) and education (mean years of schooling) — not income alone.
Sustainability of development: using resources so that the level of development can be maintained for future generations — not overusing renewable resources (like groundwater) and not exhausting non-renewable resources (like crude oil).
Renewable vs non-renewable resources: renewable resources (groundwater, crops, plants) are replenished by nature but can still be overused; non-renewable resources (crude oil) have a fixed stock that gets exhausted after a few years of use.
“Exercises” — Full Solutions
All questions below are reproduced verbatim from the NCERT textbook’s end-of-chapter Exercises section. Answers are original, written in exam-ready style.
1. Development of a country can generally be determined by
(i) its per capita income(ii) its average literacy level(iii) health status of its people(iv) all the above
ANSWER(iv) all the above.Development is not measured by income alone. A truly developed country has a high per capita income, a high average literacy level and a good health status of its people. Since all three indicators together give a fuller picture of development, the correct option is ‘all the above’.
2. Which of the following neighbouring countries has better performance in terms of human development than India?
(i) Bangladesh(ii) Sri Lanka(iii) Nepal(iv) Pakistan
ANSWER(ii) Sri Lanka.According to Table 1.6 (Human Development Report 2025), Sri Lanka has a higher Gross National Income per capita, higher life expectancy at birth (77.5 years), more mean years of schooling (10.8 years) and a much better HDI rank (89) than India (rank 130). So among the neighbours listed, Sri Lanka performs better than India on human development.
3. Assume there are four families in a country. The average per capita income of these families is Rs 5000. If the income of three families is Rs 4000, Rs 7000 and Rs 3000 respectively, what is the income of the fourth family?
(i) Rs 7500(ii) Rs 3000(iii) Rs 2000(iv) Rs 6000
ANSWER(iv) Rs 6000.Step 1: Total income of the 4 families = average × number of families = 5000 × 4 = Rs 20,000.Step 2: Income of the three known families = 4000 + 7000 + 3000 = Rs 14,000.Step 3: Income of the fourth family = 20,000 − 14,000 = Rs 6000.
4. What is the main criterion used by the World Bank in classifying different countries? What are the limitations of this criterion, if any?
ANSWERThe main criterion used by the World Bank to classify countries is per capita income (average income) — the total income of a country divided by its total population. On this basis, countries with very high per capita income (about US$ 66,500 per annum and above in 2024) are called rich or high-income countries, while those with about US$ 2,300 or less are called low-income countries.Limitations:(i) Per capita income is an average, so it hides disparities — two countries with the same average income may share that income very differently, with some people very rich and many very poor.(ii) It does not tell us how income is distributed among people, so it ignores inequality.(iii) It ignores non-material and quality-of-life factors such as health, education, equal treatment, freedom, a clean environment and security, which are also essential for development.
5. In what respects is the criterion used by the UNDP for measuring development different from the one used by the World Bank?
ANSWERThe World Bank uses only per capita income to compare and classify countries.The UNDP, in its Human Development Report, uses a broader measure — the Human Development Index (HDI) — which compares countries on a combination of factors: per capita income, the health status of the people (life expectancy at birth) and their educational levels (mean years of schooling).Thus the UNDP criterion is wider: instead of looking at income alone, it gives importance to people’s health and education as well, because what is most important in development is the well-being of citizens, not just money.
6. Why do we use averages? Are there any limitations to their use? Illustrate with your own examples related to development.
ANSWERWe use averages to compare things that differ in size. For example, since countries and states have different populations, comparing their total income is not useful; so we divide total income by population to get per capita income, which lets us compare how much an average person earns.Limitations: averages hide disparities and do not reveal how something is distributed. For example, suppose Country A has five citizens earning Rs 9,500, 10,500, 9,800, 10,000 and 10,200, while Country B has five citizens earning Rs 500, 500, 500, 500 and 48,000. Both have the same average income of Rs 10,000, yet in Country A income is shared fairly equally while in Country B most people are poor and one person is extremely rich. The average alone cannot tell us this, so most of us would prefer to live in the more equal Country A.
7. Kerala, with lower per capita income has a better human development ranking than Haryana. Hence, per capita income is not a useful criterion at all and should not be used to compare states. Do you agree? Discuss.
ANSWERNo, I do not fully agree. It is true that Kerala, although it has a lower per capita income than Haryana, has a better human development record — a much lower Infant Mortality Rate (6 against 28), a higher literacy rate (94% against 82%) and a higher net attendance ratio (94 against 73). This shows that per capita income by itself is not a complete or adequate measure of development.However, it would be wrong to say per capita income should not be used at all. Income remains an important attribute, because with higher income people can buy many of the things they need. The correct conclusion is that per capita income is necessary but not sufficient: it must be used along with other indicators like health, education and public facilities to get a true picture of development.
8. Find out the present sources of energy that are used by the people in India. What could be the other possibilities fifty years from now?
ANSWERPresent sources of energy in India: India largely depends on conventional, mostly non-renewable sources — coal (for most thermal electricity), petroleum and diesel/petrol for transport (much of it imported), natural gas and LPG for cooking, and firewood, cow-dung cakes and other biomass in rural areas. Some electricity also comes from hydro power and a smaller amount from nuclear energy.Possibilities fifty years from now: as fossil fuels get exhausted and become costly to import, India is likely to depend much more on renewable and cleaner sources — solar energy, wind energy, hydroelectric and tidal power, biogas, geothermal energy, nuclear energy and hydrogen-based fuels. Greater energy efficiency and electric vehicles would also reduce dependence on crude oil.
9. Why is the issue of sustainability important for development?
ANSWERSustainability is important because we want the present level of development not only to continue but to improve, and to be maintained for future generations. Since the second half of the twentieth century, scientists have warned that the present type and levels of development are not sustainable.Renewable resources such as groundwater are being overused — many districts report falling water tables — and non-renewable resources such as crude oil have a fixed stock that will be exhausted in a few decades. If development today destroys the resource base, future generations will not be able to enjoy a similar or better life. The consequences of environmental degradation also cross national and state boundaries, so our future is linked together. Hence development must be planned in a way that does not harm the environment or deprive the coming generations — that is why sustainability is essential.
10. “The Earth has enough resources to meet the needs of all but not enough to satisfy the greed of even one person”. How is this statement relevant to the disscusion of development? Discuss.
ANSWERThis statement (attributed to Mahatma Gandhi) is very relevant to the discussion of development because it distinguishes between needs and greed. The Earth’s resources are limited but sufficient to meet the basic needs of all people if they are used carefully and shared fairly.Problems of overuse, pollution and resource exhaustion arise when a few people consume far more than they need out of greed — overpumping groundwater, extracting crude oil rapidly, or polluting the environment for quick profit. Such greed makes development unsustainable and unjust, harming the poor and future generations.Therefore, development should aim at fulfilling everyone’s genuine needs while controlling wasteful and greedy consumption, so that resources last and benefits are shared equitably. The statement reminds us that sustainable, fair use of resources is the true path of development.
11. List a few examples of environmental degradation that you may have observed around you.
ANSWERSome common examples of environmental degradation that can be observed around us are:(i) Air pollution from vehicles, factory smoke and the burning of crop stubble.(ii) Water pollution — rivers, ponds and lakes polluted by sewage, industrial waste and garbage.(iii) Falling groundwater levels due to overuse of borewells and tube-wells.(iv) Deforestation and cutting of trees for construction, leading to loss of green cover.(v) Soil erosion and loss of fertility from over-cultivation and chemical fertilisers.(vi) Heaps of plastic and non-biodegradable garbage, and noise pollution in cities.(You may add your own observations from your area.)
12. For each of the items given in Table 1.6, find out which country is at the top and which is at the bottom.
ANSWERUsing the data of Table 1.6 (India and its neighbours, 2023), the top and bottom countries for each item are:
Item
At the top (best/highest)
At the bottom (lowest)
Gross National Income (GNI) per capita (2021 PPP $)
Sri Lanka (12,616)
Nepal (4,726)
Life Expectancy at birth (years)
Sri Lanka (77.5)
Myanmar (66.9)
Mean Years of Schooling (aged 25 and above)
Sri Lanka (10.8)
Pakistan (4.3)
HDI Rank in the world (lower rank number = better)
Sri Lanka (89)
Pakistan (168)
Thus Sri Lanka is at the top in every item, while the country at the bottom varies — Nepal for GNI, Myanmar for life expectancy, and Pakistan for mean years of schooling and HDI rank. (For HDI rank, a higher rank number means a poorer position, so Pakistan at 168 is at the bottom.)
13. The following table shows the proportion of adults (aged 15-49 years) whose BMI is below normal (BMI <18.5 kg/m2) in India. It is based on a survey of various states for the year 2019-21. Look at the table and answer the following questions.
State
Male (%)
Female (%)
Kerala
8.5
10
Karnataka
17
21
Madhya Pradesh
28
28
All States
20
23
Source: National Family Health Survey-5, 2019-21, http://rchiips.org
(i) Compare the nutritional level of people in Kerala and Madhya Pradesh.(ii) Can you guess why around one-fifth of people in the country are undernourished even though it is argued that there is enough food in the country? Describe in your own words.
ANSWER(i) In Kerala only about 8.5% of males and 10% of females have a below-normal BMI, whereas in Madhya Pradesh the figure is much higher — 28% of both males and females. This means people in Kerala are much better nourished than in Madhya Pradesh, where over a quarter of adults are undernourished. Kerala’s better health and public-distribution facilities explain this difference.(ii) Around one-fifth of people remain undernourished despite enough food mainly because of poverty and unequal distribution. Many poor people cannot afford a balanced diet even when food is available. The Public Distribution System does not work well everywhere, so cheap foodgrains do not reach all the needy. Lack of clean drinking water, sanitation and healthcare causes diseases that prevent the body from absorbing nutrition, and a lack of awareness about balanced diets adds to the problem. Thus undernourishment is caused not by a shortage of food but by unequal access to it.
Extra Practice Questions
Short Answer Type Questions
Q1. Why do different persons have different notions of development?
ANSWERDifferent persons have different notions of development mainly because their life situations are different. A landless labourer wants more work and better wages, a prosperous farmer wants higher support prices, and a girl wants freedom equal to her brother. Since their needs and circumstances differ, what is development for one may not be development for another, and their goals can even conflict.
Q2. What is per capita income, and why is it preferred over total income for comparing countries?
ANSWERPer capita income is the total income of a country divided by its total population, i.e. the average income of a person. It is preferred over total income because countries have different populations; total income would not tell us how much an average person earns. Per capita income lets us compare whether people in one country are, on average, better off than in another.
Q3. Define Infant Mortality Rate and Literacy Rate.
ANSWERInfant Mortality Rate (IMR) is the number of children who die before the age of one year out of 1,000 live children born in that year. Literacy Rate measures the proportion of the literate population in the 7-and-above age group. Both are important indicators of the health and educational development of a region.
Q4. Why is money alone not an adequate indicator of development?
ANSWERMoney cannot buy everything needed to live well. It cannot, by itself, provide a pollution-free environment, protection from infectious diseases, or guaranteed clean water and good schools — these public facilities must be provided collectively. The quality of life also depends on non-material goals like respect, freedom and security. Hence income alone is not an adequate indicator of development.
Q5. What is the difference between renewable and non-renewable resources? Give one example of each.
ANSWERRenewable resources are those replenished by nature, such as groundwater, crops and plants — though they can be overused if used faster than they are replenished. Non-renewable resources have a fixed stock that gets exhausted after some years of use and cannot be replenished, for example crude oil. Sustainable development requires careful use of both.
Long Answer Type Questions
Q1. “Different persons can have different developmental goals, and what may be development for one may not be development for the other.” Explain with examples.
ANSWERPeople’s developmental goals depend on their life situations, so they differ widely. A landless rural labourer wants more days of work, better wages and quality schooling for children; a prosperous Punjab farmer wants higher support prices and cheap labour; an urban unemployed youth wants a secure job. These goals can even conflict. A girl may want as much freedom and opportunity as her brother and want him to share the household work, but the brother may not like this. Industrialists may want more dams to get electricity, but the dams may submerge land and displace tribals, who would prefer small check dams. So what is development for one group — a big dam, for example — may be destructive for another. This shows that development is not a single, uniform idea: it is a mix of goals that varies from person to person.
Q2. Explain how Kerala and Haryana differ on income and human development indicators, and what lesson this teaches.
ANSWERAccording to the textbook tables, Haryana has a higher per capita income (about Rs 3,25,759 in 2023–24) than Kerala (about Rs 2,81,001). If income alone were used, Haryana would be more developed. But on human development indicators, Kerala is far ahead: its Infant Mortality Rate is only 6 per 1,000 against Haryana’s 28, its literacy rate is 94% against Haryana’s 82%, and its net attendance ratio (15–17 years) is 94 against Haryana’s 73. Kerala achieves this because it has adequate provision of basic health and educational facilities and a well-functioning Public Distribution System, which improve health and nutrition. The lesson is that money in one’s pocket cannot buy all the goods and services needed to live well; public facilities matter greatly. Therefore per capita income alone is not an adequate measure of development — health and education indicators must be used along with it.
Q3. Discuss the importance of sustainability of development, using the examples of groundwater and crude oil.
ANSWERSustainability of development means maintaining and improving the present level of development for future generations without exhausting resources or damaging the environment. The chapter gives two clear examples. Groundwater is a renewable resource normally replenished by rain, but in India about 300 districts have reported water-level declines of over 4 metres in 20 years, and nearly one-third of the country is overusing its reserves — if the present way continues, 60% of the country would be doing so within 25 years. So even a renewable resource becomes scarce if used faster than it is replenished. Crude oil is a non-renewable resource with a fixed stock; world reserves are estimated to last only about 50 more years, and countries like India that import oil suffer when prices rise. These examples show that present levels of development are not sustainable. If we exhaust resources and degrade the environment, future generations will be deprived. Hence development must be planned so that resources are used carefully and shared fairly — sustainability is essential for development to continue.
MCQs & Assertion–Reason
1. The most common method used to measure the development of a country is its:
(a) total population (b) per capita (average) income (c) total area (d) number of factories
2. The criterion used by the World Bank to classify countries is:
(a) literacy rate (b) life expectancy (c) per capita income (d) Human Development Index
3. Per capita income is calculated by dividing the total income of a country by its:
(a) total area (b) number of workers (c) total population (d) number of states
4. Infant Mortality Rate refers to the number of children who die before the age of:
(a) one year (b) five years (c) ten years (d) fifteen years
5. The Human Development Index is published in the Human Development Report by the:
(a) World Bank (b) UNDP (c) Reserve Bank of India (d) WHO
6. Which state among the following has the lowest Infant Mortality Rate, according to Table 1.4?
(a) Haryana (b) Bihar (c) Kerala (d) all are equal
7. Among India’s neighbours in Table 1.6, the country with the best HDI rank is:
(a) India (b) Pakistan (c) Sri Lanka (d) Nepal
8. The main limitation of using average income for comparison is that it:
(a) is hard to calculate (b) hides disparities in distribution (c) ignores population (d) cannot be compared across countries
9. Crude oil is an example of a:
(a) renewable resource (b) non-renewable resource (c) human resource (d) public facility
10. Net Attendance Ratio at the secondary stage is measured for children in the age group:
(a) 6–10 years (b) 11–14 years (c) 15–17 years (d) 18–21 years
For each Assertion–Reason question, choose: (A) Both true and the Reason correctly explains the Assertion; (B) Both true but the Reason is not the correct explanation; (C) Assertion true, Reason false; (D) Assertion false, Reason true.
A-R 1. Assertion: Per capita income alone is not an adequate measure of development.
Reason: It hides disparities and ignores quality-of-life factors such as health and education.
A-R 2. Assertion: For comparing countries, total income is a more useful measure than average income.
Reason: Countries have different populations, so total income does not show what an average person earns.
A-R 3. Assertion: Kerala has a better human development ranking than Haryana even though its per capita income is lower.
Reason: Kerala has adequate provision of basic health and educational facilities.
A-R 4. Assertion: The present levels of development are not sustainable.
Reason: Renewable resources like groundwater are being overused and non-renewable resources like crude oil are getting exhausted.
A-R 5. Assertion: Money in one’s pocket can buy all the goods and services needed to live well.
Reason: Public facilities like clean air, collective security and public health are best provided collectively.
Answer key: 1-(A), 2-(D), 3-(A), 4-(A), 5-(D).
Exam Tips & Common Mistakes
How to score full marks in this chapter
Learn the exact definitions of per capita income, IMR, Literacy Rate, Net Attendance Ratio and HDI — one-mark questions are often asked directly. For comparison questions, structure the answer in two clear sides and quote the textbook figures (Kerala IMR 6 vs Haryana 28; Sri Lanka HDI rank 89 vs India 130). Practise the numerical type (Q3) by remembering that total income = average × number of units. When asked about sustainability, always give the two textbook examples — groundwater (renewable, overused) and crude oil (non-renewable, exhausting). Mention the World Bank (income only) versus UNDP (income + health + education) contrast wherever development criteria are discussed.
Common mistakes to avoid
Saying development means only higher income — it is a mix of income and non-material goals.
Confusing total income with per capita (average) income.
Forgetting that averages hide disparities in distribution.
Mixing up the World Bank (per capita income) and the UNDP/HDI (income + health + education) criteria.
Thinking a higher HDI rank number is better — rank 89 (Sri Lanka) is better than rank 130 (India).
Treating groundwater as “unlimited” — even renewable resources can be overused.
Leaving observation questions (like Q11) blank — write real examples from your area.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is Chapter 1 of Class 10 Economics (Understanding Economic Development) about?
Chapter 1, Development, explains that people have different and sometimes conflicting developmental goals, that income is not the only goal, how countries and states are compared using per capita income and other indicators (IMR, literacy rate, net attendance ratio, HDI), why public facilities matter, and why sustainability of development is important.
What is the difference between the World Bank and UNDP criteria for measuring development?
The World Bank uses only per capita (average) income to classify countries. The UNDP uses the Human Development Index, which combines per capita income with the health status of people (life expectancy) and their education (mean years of schooling), giving a broader picture of development.
How many questions are there in the Exercises of Class 10 Economics Chapter 1?
The end-of-chapter Exercises in Understanding Economic Development Chapter 1 (Development) contain 13 questions, including multiple-choice, a numerical, data-based table questions and descriptive answers — all solved step by step on this page.
