ENVIRONMENT STUDY.pdf

ENVIRONMENT STUDY
AR.VIJAY KUMAR

DEFINE ENVIRONMENT
Environmental studies deals with every issue that
affects an organism. It is essentially a multidisciplinary
approach that brings about an appreciation of our
natural world and human impacts on its integrity. It is
an applied science as its seeks practical answers to
making human civilization sustainable on the earth’s
finite resources. Its components include biology,
geology, chemistry,physics, engineering, sociology,
health, anthropology, economics, statistics, computers
and philosophy.
ENVIRONMENT STUDY AR.VIJAY KUMAR 2

Scope
As we look around at the area in which we live, we see that our surroundings were
originally a natural landscape such as a forest, a river, a mountain, a desert, or a
combination of these elements. Most of us live in landscapes that have been
heavily modified by human beings, in villages, towns or cities. But even those of us
who live in cities get our food supply from surrounding villages and these in turn
are dependent on natural landscapes such as forests, grasslands, rivers, seashores,
for resources such as water for agriculture, fuel wood, fodder, and fish. Thus our
daily lives are linked with our surroundings and inevitably affects them. We use
water to drink and for other day-to-day activities. We breathe air, we use
resources from which food is made and we depend on the community of living
plants and animals which form a web of life, of which we are also a part.
Everything around us forms our environment and our lives depend on keeping its
vital systems as intact as possible. Our dependence on nature is so great that we
cannot continue to live without protecting the earth’s environmental resources.
Thus most traditions refer to our environment as ‘Mother Nature’ and most
traditional societies have learned that respecting nature is vital for their
livelihoods. This has led to many cultural practices that helped traditional societies
protect and preserve their natural resources. Respect for nature and all living
creatures is not new to India. All our traditions are based on these values. Emperor
Ashoka’s edict proclaimed that all forms of life are important for our well being in
Fourth Century BC.

Importance of environmental study
Environment is not a single subject. It is an integration
of several subjects that include both
Science and Social Studies. To understand all
the different aspects of our environment we
need to understand biology, chemistry, physics,
geography, resource management, economics
and population issues. Thus the scope of environmental
studies is extremely wide and covers
some aspects of nearly every major discipline.
We live in a world in which natural resources
are limited. Water, air, soil, minerals, oil, the
products we get from forests, grasslands, oceans

Importance of environmental study
and from agriculture and livestock, are all a part of our life support systems. Without them, life
itself would be impossible. As we keep increasing in numbers and the quantity of resources
each of us uses also increases, the earth’s resource base must inevitably shrink. The earth
cannot be expected to sustain this expanding level of utilization of resources. Added to this is
misuse of resources. We waste or pollute large amounts of nature’s clean water; we create
more and more material like plastic that we discard after a single use; and we waste colossal
amounts of food, which is discarded as garbage. Manufacturing processes create solid waste
byproducts that are discarded, as well as chemicals that flow out as liquid waste and pollute
water, and gases that pollute the air. Increasing amounts of waste cannot be managed by natural
processes. These accumulate in our environment, leading to a variety of diseases and other
adverse environmental impacts now seriously affecting all our lives. Air pollution leads to respiratory
diseases, water pollution to gastro-intestinal diseases, and many pollutants
are known to cause cancer.

Natural Resources
Natural resources are useful raw materials that we get from the Earth. They
occur naturally, which means that humans cannot make natural resources.
Instead, we use and modify natural resources in ways that are beneficial to
us. The materials used in human-made objects are natural resources. Some
examples of natural resources and the ways we can use them are:

Natural Resources
Natural Resource Products or Services
Air Wind energy, tires
Animals
Foods (milk, cheese, steak, bacon)
and clothing (wool sweaters, silk
shirts, leather belts)
Coal Electricity
Minerals
Coins, wire, steel, aluminum cans,
jewelry
Natural gas Electricity, heating
Oil
Electricity, fuel for cars and
airplanes, plastic
Plants
Wood, paper, cotton clothing,
fruits, vegetables
Sunlight Solar power, photosynthesis
Water
Hydroelectric energy, drinking,
cleaning
Effect of modern agriculture on food resources
Agriculture is one of the oldest professions which
include the largest sector of Indian population (70%).
Modern agricultural practices have substantially
changed the farming, crop production and
harvesting, on the other hand it leads to several ill
effects on environment.

Natural Resources
Some Local and Regional Changes of Modern Agricultural Practices:
1. It leads to soil erosion.
2. It results into increase in sedimentation towards downstream side of river.
3. Alteration in the fertility of soil.
4. Increase in deforestation for more cultivated land.
5. Leads to soil pollution.
6. It leads to desertification i.e. lands converting into deserts.
7. It results into change in the ecology of estuaries due to increase in sedimentation at the junctions of
rivers.

Natural Resources
Disadvantages of Use of Artificial Chemical Fertilizers:
1. Increase in water borne diseases due to contamination of surface and ground water resources.
2. Loss of natural fertility of the soil.
3. Loss of organic matter from the soil.
4. Threat to the quality of drinking water due to disposal of fertilizers into landfills sites and lands.
Disadvantages of Use of Pesticides:
Pesticides are the chemicals used to mixed with the soil to kill pests. Following are its disadvantages:
1. Species which are not targeted are also killed or injured.
2. After sometime the pest develop resistance against the pesticides.
3. Soil fertility is reduced.
4. On short duration exposure it causes illness and slow poisoning to human beings.
5. On long duration exposure it causes cancer, genetic defects, immunological and other chronic
diseases

POND AS AN ECOSYSTEM
A pond is either a natural or an artificial body of water that is enclosed. Ponds can occur naturally in the world
or they can be human made (such as a garden pond).
An ecosystem is the technical term for a community of organisms. For such a community to form an ecosystem,
it needs to be a distinct system where the organisms live and interact.
Pond Ecosystem is differs from other water ecosystems. Unlike the river ecosystem, which is categorized under
the Lotic systems, pond ecosystem falls under the Lentic ecosystem for the reason that the water remains
stagnant in ponds for a relatively longer period time.
Meaning of Pond Ecosystem
A pond ecosystem is a system of organisms that live together in a pond. A pond ecosystem can be defined in
three ways:
1.A closed community of organisms in a body of water.
2.An enclosed body of water that houses numerous different creatures.
3.A biological system that includes water and plant and animal life interacting with each other.
So, to summarize, a pond ecosystem is:
# A community of organisms living together…
# Within a body of water that can be either…
# Artificially enclosed or…
.# Naturally enclosed.
# A distinct community with its own ecology.

POND AS AN ECOSYSTEM
Types of pond ecosystem.
1. Salt ponds.
2. Garden ponds
3. Freshwater pools
4. Vernal pools.
5. Underground ponds
Pyramid OF energy
An energy pyramid is a graphical model of energy flow in a community. The different levels represent different
groups of organisms that might compose a food chain. From the bottom-up, they are as follows
Producers — bring energy from nonliving sources into the community
Primary consumers — eat the producers, which makes them herbivores in most communities
Secondary consumers — eat the primary consumers, which makes them carnivores
Tertiary consumers — eat the secondary consumers Food Chains

FOOD CHAIN
FOOD CHAIN
A food chain is a pathway that represents the exchange of energy from one organism to another. In other words,
it is the chronological order of who eats whom in a biological community. Food chains go hand-in-hand with
food webs, though there are differences between the two. While a food chain is a single pathway of energy
transfer, a food web shows all of the different relationships or possible energy transfers between a selected
group of species.How Food Chains Work Every biological community can have multiple and diverse food chains,
but every food chain starts with a primary source of energy. The most obvious source of energy is the big ball in
the sky, the sun. Other food chains may start with a boiling-hot deep sea vent as a source of energy.In some
food chains, there is a fourth consumer level, and rarely, a fifth. Have you ever wondered why there are limits to
the lengths of food chains? The next organism to benefit off of this initial source is called the primary producer.
These are organisms that can create their own food from the main energy source. Some examples include plants
and algae. For example, plants are a primary producer because they can harness and use the energy from the
sun through a process called photosynthesis.
After the plant goes through the work of photosynthesis, another organism may come along and eat the plant,
taking its energy to use as its own. As human beings, we are not primary producers because we cannot create
our own energy to survive, and must consume energy from other sources, like plants. By eating plants, we are
part of the next sequence in the food chain, called the primary consumer, or organisms that consume primary
producers.

FOOD CHAIN
With each transition of energy, the food chain moves up levels. These levels are called trophic levels. Here is a
list of the order of trophic levels. What is water pollution?
Water pollution can be defined in many ways. Usually, it means one or more substances have built up in water
to such an extent that they cause problems for animals or people. Oceans, lakes, rivers, and other inland waters
can naturally clean up a certain amount of pollution by dispersing it harmlessly. If you poured a cup of black ink
into a river, the ink would quickly disappear into the river's much larger volume of clean water. The ink would
still be there in the river, but in such a low concentration that you would not be able to see it. At such low levels,
the chemicals in the ink probably would not present any real problem. However, if you poured gallons of ink into
a river every few seconds through a pipe, the river would quickly turn black. The chemicals in the ink could very
quickly have an effect on the quality of the water. This, in turn, could affect the health of all the plants, animals,
and humans whose lives depend on the river.

ENERGY PYRAMIDS
Why are energy pyramids shaped the way they are?
An energy pyramid’s shape shows how the amount of useful energy that enters each level — chemical energy in
the form of food — decreases as it is used by the organisms in that level. How does this happen?
Recall that cell respiration “burns” food to release its energy, and in doing so, produces ATP, which carries some
of the energy as well as heat, which carries the rest. ATP is then used to fuel countless life processes. The
consequence is that even though a lot of energy may be taken in at any level, the energy that ends up being
stored there – which is the food available to the next level — is far less. Scientists have calculated that an
average of 90% of the energy entering each step of the food chain is “lost” this way (although the total amount
in the system remains unchanged). The
consumers at the top of a food pyramid, as a group, thus have much less energy available to support them than
those closer to the bottom. That’s why their numbers are relatively few in most communities. Eventually, the
amount of useful energy left can’t support another level. That’s why energy flow is depicted in the shape of a
pyramid. The energy that enters a community is ultimately lost to the living world as heat. Some forms of water
pollution are very obvious: everyone has seen TV news footage of oil slicks filmed from helicopters flying
overhead. Water pollution is usually less obvious and much harder to detect than this. But how can we measure
water pollution when we cannot see it? How do we even know it's there?

ENERGY PYRAMIDS
There are two main ways of measuring the quality of water. One is to take samples of the water and measure
the concentrations of different chemicals that it contains. If the chemicals are dangerous or the concentrations
are too great, we can regard the water as polluted. Measurements like this are known as chemical indicators of
water quality. Another way to measure water quality involves examining the fish, insects, and other
invertebrates that the water will support. If many different types of creatures can live in a river, the quality is
likely to be very good; if the river supports no fish life at all, the quality is obviously much poorer. Measurements
like this are called biological indicators of water quality.

ENERGY PYRAMIDS
NUCLEAR HAZARDS Definition:
Risk or danger to human health or the environment posed by radiation emanating from the atomic nuclei of a
given substance, or the possibility of an uncontrolled explosion originating from a fusion or fission reaction of
atomic nuclei. Sources/causes of nuclear hazards The sources of radioactivity are both natural and man-made.
The natural sources include:
1) Cosmic rays from outer space. The quantity depends on altitude and latitude; it is more at higher latitudes
and high altitudes.
2) Emissions from radioactive materials from the Earth's crust.
People have been exposed to low levels of radiation from these natural sources for several millenia. But it is the
man-made sources which are posing a threat to mankind. The man-made sources of radioactivity are nuclear
wastes (i.e., waste material that contains radioactive nuclei) produced during the:

ENERGY PYRAMIDS
1) Mining and processing of radioactive ores;
2) Use of radioactive material in nuclear power plants;
3) Use of radioactive isotopes in medical, industrial and research applications; and
4) Use of radioactive materials in nuclear weapons.
The greatest exposure to human beings comes from the diagnostic use of X-rays, radioactive isotopes used as
tracers and treatment of cancer and other ailments.
Effects of nuclear hazards
The effects of radioactive pollutants depend upon half-life, energy releasing capacity, rate of diffusion and rate
of deposition of the contaminant. Various atmospheric conditions and climatic conditions such as wind,
temperature and rainfall also determine their effects.
All organisms are affected from radiation pollution, and the effects are extremely dangerous. The effects may be
somatic (individual exposed is affected) or genetic (future generations) damage. The effects are cancer,
shortening of life span and genetic effects or mutations. Some of the possible effects are listed as under:

ENERGY PYRAMIDS
1) Radiations may break chemical bonds, such as DNA in cells. This affects the genetic make-up and control
mechanisms. The effects can be instantaneous, prolonged or delayed types. Even it could be carried to future
generations.
2) Exposure at low doses of radiations (100-250 rads), men do not die but begin to suffer from fatigue, nausea,
vomiting and loss of hair. But recovery is possible.
3) Exposure at higher doses (400-500 rads), the bone marrow is affected, blood cells are reduced, natural
resistance and fighting capacity against germs is reduced, blood fails to clot, and the irradiated person soon dies
of infection and bleeding.
4) Higher irradiation doses (10,000 rads) kill the organisms by damaging the tissues of heart, brain, etc.
5) Workers handling radioactive wastes get slow but continuous irradiation and in course of time develop cancer
of different types.
6) Through food chain also, radioactivity effects are experienced by man. But the most significant effect of
radioactivity is that it causes long range effects, affecting the future of man and hence the future of our
civilization.

ENERGY PYRAMIDS
Global warming
the phenomenon of increasing average airtemperatures near the surface of Earth over the past one to two
centuries. Climate scientists have since the mid-20th century gathered detailed observations of
various weather phenomena (such as temperatures, precipitation, and storms) and of related influences
on climate (such as ocean currents and the atmosphere’s chemical composition). These data indicate that
Earth’s climate has changed over almost every conceivable timescale since the beginning of geologic time and
that the influence of human activities since at least the beginning of the Industrial Revolution has been deeply
woven into the very fabric of climate change.
Giving voice to a growing conviction of most of the scientific community, the Intergovernmental Panel on
Climate Change (IPCC) was formed in 1988 by the World Meteorological Organization (WMO) and the United
Nations Environment Program (UNEP). In 2013 the IPCC reported that the interval between 1880 and 2012 saw
an increase in global average surface temperature of approximately 0.9 °C (1.5 °F). The increase is closer to 1.1
°C (2.0 °F) when measured relative to the preindustrial (i.e., 1750–1800) mean temperature. The IPCC stated
that most of the warming observed over the second half of the 20th century could be attributed to human
activities. It predicted that by the end of the 21st century the global mean surface temperature would increase
by 0.3 to 5.4 °C (0.5 to 9.7 °F) relative to the 1986–2005 average. The predicted rise in temperature was based
on a range of possible scenarios that accounted for future greenhouse gas emissions and mitigation (severity
reduction) measures and on uncertainties in the model projections. Some of the main uncertainties include the
precise role of feedback processes and the impacts of industrial pollutants known as aerosols which may offset
some warming. ENVIRONMENT STUDY AR.VIJAY KUMAR 19

ENERGY PYRAMIDS
VARIOUS PROBLAM AND CONCERNS
A vigorous debate is in progress over the extent and seriousness of rising surface temperatures, the effects of
past and future warming on human life, and the need for action to reduce future warming and deal with its
consequences. This article provides an overview of the scientific background and public policy debate related to
the subject of global warming. It considers the causes of rising near-surface air temperatures, the influencing
factors, the process of climate research and forecasting, the possible ecological and social impacts of rising
temperatures, and the public policy developments since the mid-20th century. For a detailed description of
Earth’s climate, its processes, and the responses of living things to its changing nature, see climate. For
additional background on how Earth’s climate has changed throughout geologic time, see climatic variation and
change. For a full description of Earth’s gaseous envelope, within which climate change and global warming
occur, see atmosphere.

ENERGY PYRAMIDS
AIDS
(acquired immunodeficiency syndrome) is a syndrome caused by a virus called HIV (human immunodeficiency
virus). The disease alters the immune system, making people much more vulnerable to infections and diseases.
This susceptibility worsens if the syndrome progresses.
HIV is found throughout all the tissues of the body but is transmitted through the body fluids of an infected
person (semen, vaginal fluids, blood, and breast milk). In this article, we explain HIV and AIDS, their symptoms,
causes, and treatments.HIV is a virus that attacks immune cells called CD-4 cells, which are a subset of T cells.
AIDS is the syndrome, which may or may not appear in the advanced stage of HIV infection.
HIV is a virus.
AIDS is a medical condition.HIV infection can cause AIDS to develop. However, it is possible to contract HIV
without developing AIDS. Without treatment, HIV can progress and, eventually, it will develop into AIDS in the
vast majority of cases.

ENERGY PYRAMIDS
Causes
HIV can be passed from one person to another through blood-to-blood and sexual contact.
HIV is a retrovirus that infects the vital organs and cells of the human immune system.
The virus progresses in the absence of antiretroviral therapy (ART) - a drug therapy that slows or prevents the
virus from developing. The rate of virus progression varies widely between individuals and depends on many
factors.These factors include the age of the individual, the body's ability to defend against HIV, access to
healthcare, the presence of other infections, the individual's genetic inheritance, resistance to certain strains of
HIV, and more.
How is HIV transmitted?
Sexual transmission — it can happen when there is contact with infected someone who is HIV-positive.
Perinatal transmission — a mother can transmit HIV to her child during childbirth, pregnancy, and also through
breastfeeding. Blood transmission — the risk of transmitting HIV through blood transfusion is extremely low in
developed countries, thanks to meticulous screening and precautions. However, among people who inject
drugs, sharing and reusing syringes contaminated with HIV-infected blood is extremely hazardous. sexual fluids
(rectal, genital, or oral mucous membranes). This can happen while having sex without a condom, including
vaginal, oral, and anal sex, or sharing sex toys with

Watershed Management
Watershed management is an adaptive, comprehensive, integrated multi-resource management planning
process that seeks to balance healthy ecological, economic, and cultural/social conditions within a watershed.
Watershed management serves to integrate planning for land and water; it takes into account both ground and
surface water flow, recognizing and planning for the interaction of water, plants, animals and human land use
found within the physical boundaries of a watershed.
Watershed management provides a framework for integrated decision-making to help: assess the nature and
status of the watershed; identify watershed issues; define and re-evaluate short and long-term objectives,
actions and goals; assess benefits and costs; and implement and evaluate actions.
Adopting a watershed approach is founded on the basis that Alberta’s water resources must be managed within
the capacity of individual watersheds and that all Albertans recognize there are limits to the available water
supply. What happens on the land and water in a watershed can affect the water supply that rivers provide.
While land and water are closely linked, these resources have not historically been managed in a fully integrated
manner. Focusing efforts at the watershed level provides a comprehensive understanding of local management
needs, and encourages locally led management decisions.
The Triple Benefits of a Healthy Watershed
Water is essential for our future. A healthy watershed provides the triple benefits of human, ecological and
economic health. The goal of watershed management is to properly balance and manage this resource.

Watershed Management
Ecological Health
A healthy watershed functions as a complete ecological system promoting the health of all living organisms and
landscapes within the watershed. A healthy, intact watershed minimizes the impacts of flooding and erosion
and serves to filter sediments and contaminants so they do not reach our streams, lakes, and groundwater.
Economic Health
An abundant supply of clean water is essential for a vibrant economy. Homes, farms, municipalities and
businesses all need an ample supply of clean water to operate effectively. Clean water allows municipalities,
businesses, agricultural producers, and industries to operate more cost effectively, saving money for taxpayers
and consumers. Healthy rivers, lakes, wetlands and natural spaces are foundations for recreation and tourism.
Human Health
Life requires a safe daily supply of water. But water is far more than that: clean surface and ground water is
essential to support our high quality of life and the social aspects of our communities. Clean rivers, lakes and
streams provide many healthy recreational opportunities including swimming, boating, and fishing.

Population: Definition, Growth and Variation
among Nations!
In context of solar system, it took nearly 4000 million years for the earth, after the delicate adjustment of
chemical elements in its various spheres, to finally reach to a state to sustain life. Hence origin of life was not a
simple phenomenon, rather it was a very complicated process involving number of chemical complex reactions,
conditions of temperature and pressure over a period of 4000 million years.
The period of 600 million years from the present era witnessed tremendous explosion of life forms through
evolutionary process with man at the apex of the evolution, appearing only a few million years ago. At present,
it is estimated that earth has about 10 to 30 million life forms of which man is one of the life form.
But, because of the ability of the man to change the environment according to his needs, he has acquired a
supreme status among the existing life forms. However, of fate, perhaps his ability to change environment as
desired has now posed a real question to him, as how to plan his future survival.
This question has emerged because of his over indulgence with natural resources in order to satisfy the need of
his ever growing population and more so the unquenchable desire for more comforts which in real terms is
energy intensive life style. It needs to be understood clearly that natural resources are limited. They have
limited carrying capacity and with continued interference beyond tolerance limits they will exhaust sooner or
later

among Nations!
Population Growth:
Each population has a characterized pattern of increase which is termed as its growth form. It increases in size in
a characteristic S-Shaped or sigmoid fashion. When a population starts growing, first the growing is slow, and
then it becomes rapid and finally slows down until equilibrium is reached.
If we plot time on n-axis and number of organisms any-axis, on a graph paper, we should get a s-shaped sigmoid
curve. Human population shows a s-shaped growth. However, if the growth stops abruptly, a J-shaped growth
curve is obtained. The level beyond which no major increase can occur is called the saturation level or carrying
capacity the following states have been ruined to occur in the population growth form:
1) The Period of Positive Growth:
The curve representing this period (Fig. 7.1) is usually sigmoid or S-shaped in form.

among Nations!
(2) The Equilibrium Position:
Equilibrium state can be defined as the onion numerical stability i.e. the average size helped by a population
over a considerable period of time. Since human populations have not yet attained their maximum growth, it
has not been possible to report on their equilibrium state.

Earthquake
You know how when you have a really bad day and it seems like everything is going wrong? It's just one thing
after another, and you get so frustrated that by the end of the day you are ready to explode from frustration. In
fact, you may get so frustrated that you have a sudden outburst or release of all that built-up energy. And those
unlucky enough to be around you when that happens should watch out!
Earth also builds up and releases energy in this way. When this occurs, we have an earthquake, which is the
shaking of the ground when rock below Earth's surface breaks. Energy builds up underground and once it builds
up enough it just can't hold back any longer, and we get the same explosive release of energy as a person might
at the end of a long, bad day.
When the energy is released it radiates outward in all directions. As the energy travels toward Earth's surface
from underground it shakes the ground, sometimes so much that it can cause damage above the ground.
A seismograph is a machine that records ground movement from earthquakes. The information recorded tells
us about the strength and speed of the energy traveling from the breaking point underground.

Earthquake
What Causes Earthquakes?
We now know what an earthquake is, but what exactly causes the rock underground to break? This is the result
of stress along plate boundaries on Earth. The plates are dynamic, so they are always moving. Sometimes they
move enough that they push into each other or pull apart. Compressional stress occurs when rocks are pushed
together - they're pressed into one another. Tensional stress occurs when rocks are pulled apart - they're being
stretched farther than they would be otherwise. Shear stress is when rocks slide past each other in opposite
directions - it's like rubbing your hands together; they don't push or pull, but there's a lot of friction there!
When the stress gets to be too much, like all of the events building up on a bad day, the rock breaks and the
ground begins to shake. If the rock splits into separate pieces, we get a fault, which is the line of fracture along
the split rock. One of the most famous faults on Earth is the San Andreas Fault in California. This fault runs
almost the entire length of the state of California, and is well known for causing frequent earthquakes in this
area.

Earthquake
The Components of an Earthquake
Just like you may have some release of your tension at different times during your bad day, not all of the
breaking of rock and energy release happens at once during an earthquake. There may
be foreshocks and aftershocks, which are the energy released before and after the main quake.
The point underground where the actual breaking of the rock occurs is called the focus. It might help to
remember this by thinking of it as the focal point of the earthquake. This is where the main event occurs
underground. The point directly above the focus on the surface of Earth is called the epicenter. This is where the
ground shaking is usually the strongest. From this point on the surface, the waves of energy from below ground
begin to travel outward, so you can think of this as the central point of shaking above ground. Because the
shaking is strongest here, this is also where the most damage usually occurs.
You may be surprised to learn that earthquakes don't actually kill people; it's all of the damage that occurs
because of the shaking ground that causes people harm. Buildings crumble and fall, landslides and avalanches
may be triggered, and roads and bridges can collapse. Falling objects are also quite likely to harm people during
an earthquake, as items are shaken off of shelves, walls, and buildings.

Women and Child Welfare Schemes in India!
Women constitute 48 per cent of the total population of the country. They suffer many disadvantages as
compared to men in literary rates, labour participation rates and earnings. The development of women has
been receiving attention of the Government of India from the First Plan. But it was treated as a subject of
‘welfare’ and clubbed together with the welfare of the disadvantaged groups like destitute, disabled, aged, etc.
In 1953, the Central Social Welfare Board was set up which acts as an Apex Body at the Centre to promote
voluntary action at various levels, especially at the grassroots, to take up welfare-related activities for women
and children. The Second to Fifth Plans continued this strategy, besides giving priority to women’s education,
and launching measures to improve material and child health services, supplementary feeding for children and
expectant and nursing mothers. In the Sixth Plan, there was a shift in the approach from ‘welfare’ to
‘development’ of women. The Sixth Plan adopted a multi-disciplinary approach with special emphasis on the
three core sectors of health, education and employment. The Seventh Plan stressed on raising their economic
and social status and bringing them into the mainstream of national development. One of the significant step in
this direction was to identify/promote the ‘Beneficiary Oriented Schemes’ in various developmental sector
which extended direct benefits to women. The strategy also included the generation of both skilled and
unskilled employment through proper education and vocational training. The Eighth Plan ensured that the
benefits of development to women should flow from other development sectors and enable women to function
as equal partners and participants in the development process.

The Ninth Plan made two important changes in the strategy of development of women. The first was the
‘Empowerment of Women’. Its aim was to create an enabling environment where women could freely exercise
their rights both within and outside home, and are equal partners along with men.
The second was the convergence of existing services available in both women-specific and women-related
sectors To this effect, a special strategy of ‘Women’s Component Plan’ was adopted through which not less than
30 per cent of funds/benefits now flow to women from all the general development sectors.

For social and economic development of women, the Centre has set up the Department of Women and Child
Development which has been implementing the following schemes:-
1. Swayamsidha:
Swayamsidha is an integrated scheme for the development and empowerment of women through self-help
groups. It covers services, access to micro-credit and promotes micro-enterprises.
2. Swashakti Project:
Swashakti Project aims at increasing women’s access to resources for better quality of life through the use of
time reduction devices, by providing health and education services and by imparting skills to women for income
generating activities.
3. Child Development Services Scheme (CDS):The scheme started in 1975 with the objective to give special
coverage to slums in urban areas. The scheme also envisages delivery of an integrated package of services
consisting of immunization, health check-ups, nutrition and health education and refreshment services to child
and pregnant women.

For social and economic development of women, the Centre has set up the Department of Women and Child
Development which has been implementing the following schemes:-
4. Support to Training and Employment Programme for Women:
It provides new skills and knowledge to poor assetless women in agriculture, animal husbandry, dairying,
fisheries, sericulture, handlooms, handicrafts and khadi and village industry sectors of employment.
5. Swavlamban:
This scheme provides training and skills to women to enable them to obtain employment or become self-
employed. The trades in which training is imparted include computer programming, medical transcription,
electronic assembling, electronics, radio and TV repairs, garment making, handloom weaving, handicrafts,
secretarial practice, embroidery and community health.

THANK YOU

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