Human Resources

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Introduction

People with their demands and abilities are considered as Human Resources .
Human resources like other resources are not equally distributed over the world.
They differ in their educational levels , age and sex . Their numbers and characteristics also keep changing.

Distribution of Population

The way in which people are spread across the earth surface is known as the pattern of population distribution .

The distribution of population in the world is extremely uneven.

More than 90 per cent of the world’s population lives in about 30 percent of the land surface.
Crowded areas : South and south east Asia, Europe and north eastern North America.
Almost three-quarters of the world’s people live in two continents: Asia and Africa .
Sixty percent of the world’s people live in just 10 countries: China , India , USA , Indonesia , Brazil , Pakistan , Bangladesh , Nigeria , Russian Fed. and Japan .

Density of Population

Population density is the number of people living in a unit area of the earth’s surface.
It is normally expressed as per square km.
The average density of population in the whole world is 51 persons per square km.
South Central Asia has the highest density of population.

Factors affecting distribution of Population

Geographical Factors

Topography : People always prefer to live on plains rather than mountains and plateaus because these areas are suitable for farming, manufacturing and service activities.
Example: The Ganga plains are the most densely populated areas of the world while mountains like Andes , Alps and Himalayas are sparsely populated.
Climate : People usually avoid extreme climates that are very hot or very cold.
Example: Sahara desert is very hot and polar regions of Russia , Canada and Antarctica are cold and sparsely populated.
Soil : Fertile soils provide suitable land for agriculture.
Example: Fertile plains such as Ganga and Brahmaputra in India , Hwang-He , Chang Jiang in China and the Nile in Egypt are densely populated.
Water : People prefer to live in the areas where fresh water is easily available.
Example: The river valleys of the world are densely populated while deserts have sparse population.
Minerals : Areas with mineral deposits are more populated.
Example: Diamond mines of South Africa and discovery of oil in the Middle east lead to settling of people in these areas.

Social, Cultural and Economic Factors

Social : Areas of better housing, education and health facilities are more densely populated.
Example: Pune .
Cultural : Places with religion or cultural significance attract people.
Example: Varanasi , Jerusalem and Vatican city .
Economic : Industrial areas attract large number of people as it provide employment opportunities.
Example: Osaka in Japan and Mumbai in India .

Population Change

Population change refers to change in the number of people during a specific time.
The change happens due to changes in the number of births and deaths.
Until the 1800s, the world’s population grew steadily but slowly.
Large numbers of babies were born, but they died early too as there were no proper health facilities.
Also, sufficient food was not available for all the people.

In 1804, the world’s population reached one billion.

In 1959, the world’s population reached 3 billion which is often called population explosion.

In 1999, 40 years later, the population doubled to 6 billion.

The main reason for this growth was that with better food supplies and medicine, deaths were reducing, while the number of births still remained fairly high.

Natural Growth Rate

Birth rate : The number of live births per 1,000 people.
Death rate : The number of deaths per 1,000 people.
Migrations is the movement of people in and out of an area.
The difference between the birth rate and the death rate of a country is called the natural growth rate .
The population increase in the world is mainly due to rapid increase in natural growth rate.

Migration

Migration is another way by which population size changes.
Emigrants are people who leave a country.
Countries like the United States of America and Australia have gained in-numbers by in-migration or immigration.
Immigrants are those who arrive in a country.
Sudan is an example of a country that has experienced a loss in population numbers due to out-migration or emigration.

Patterns of Population Change

Rates of population growth vary across the world.
Countries like Kenya have high population growth rates as they had both high birth rates and death rates.
Countries like United Kingdom , population growth is slowing because of both low death and low birth rates.

Population Composition

Population composition refers to the structure of the population.
It tells about age , sex , literacy level , health condition , occupation and income level of population.
Population pyramid , also called an age-sex pyramid is a way to study the population composition of a country.

Population pyramid

A population pyramid shows:

The total population divided into various age groups, example: 5 to 9 years, 10 to 14 years.
The percentage of the total population, subdivided into males and females, in each of those groups.

There are two groups of dependents:

Young dependents (aged below 15 years)
Elderly dependents (aged over 65 years)

Those between the age of 15 years and 65 years are working age and are the economically active.

The population pyramid tells us how many dependents there are in a country.

The population pyramid of a country in which birth and death rates both are high is broad at the base and rapidly narrows towards the top because although many children are born, a large percentage of them die in their infancy, relatively few become adults and there are very few old people.

Example: Kenya .

Population pyramid of Kenya

The countries where death rates (especially amongst the very young) are decreasing, the pyramid is broad in the younger age groups, because more infants survive to adulthood.

These countries contain a relatively large number of young people and which means a strong and expanding labour force.

Example: India .

Population pyramid of India

The countries where death rates are decreasing allow numbers of people to reach old age.

Example: Japan .

MCQs

1. Which of the following best describes an agro based industry?

(a) Industries depending on ores like Cement, iron and steel etc.

(b) Industries that depend upon the primary products from forests for their raw materials

(d) Industries that use products from the sea and oceans as raw materials

► (c) Industries depending on agricultural products ie plant and animal products

2. Marine-based industries are based on

(a) Minerals

(b) Forest products

(d) Oceanic products

► (d) Oceanic products

3. In the light of various factors that influence industrial location, some industries have a tendency to grow close to each other. Name such areas.

(a) Industrial Structures

(b) Industrial Regions

(d) Industrial Organisms

► (b) Industrial Regions

4. The leading industries of Birla Group, Reliance, Tata Group of industries belong to the private sector. What are the characterstic fetures of these industries ?

(a) Jointly owned, they are owned, managed and controlled by a group of individuals and govenrment agencies . Prices of products are fixed through planning.

(b) Operated mainly for the benefit of the public rather than profits , they are owned, managed and controlled by a group of individuals. Prices of products are determined by market forces

(c) Operated mainly for Profits , they are owned, managed and controlled by a group of individuals. Prices of products are determined by market forces

(d) Members of the cooperative society produce the raw material and add value to earn profit. Generally opearetes with the motive of community welfare

► (c) Operated mainly for Profits , they are owned, managed and controlled by a group of individuals. Prices of products are determined by market forces

5. Basket weaving falls in the category of

(a) Small-scale industry

(b) Cottage industry

(d) None of these

► (b) Cottage industry

6. Change of raw materials into products of more value to people is called

(a) Manufacturing

(b) Resources

(d) None of these

► (a) Manufacturing

7. Fish is a product of the

(a) mineral-based industries

(b) agro-based industries

(d) forest-based industries

► (c) marine-based industries

8. Why is steel called the backbone of modern industries?

(a) Everything we use is related with steel

(b) Steel is cheaper

(d) None of these

► (a) Everything we use is related with steel

9. Name the important Northern industrial region in India

(a) Delhi ,Gurgaon- Meerut region

(b) Bangalore- Tamil Nadu region

(d) Damodar Valley belt

► (a) Delhi ,Gurgaon- Meerut region

10. Which industries are also known as village or household industries?

(a) Small Scale industries

(b) Cottage industries

(d) None of the above

► (b) Cottage industries

11. Joint sector Industries are owned and operated by the state and individuals or a group of individuals. From the given list fo industries, which one can be called a Joint sEctor industry ?

(a) Iron and Steel industry

(b) Tata Group of Companies

(d) Maruti Udyog Limited

► (d) Maruti Udyog Limited

12. Processing sea food and manufacturing fish oil can be considered as examples of :

(a) Agro based industries

(b) Marine based industries

(d) Forest based industries

► (b) Marine based industries

13. Which of the following can be considered as an example of the economic activity extraction of minerals from the industry sector?

(a) Tourism industry

(b) Iron and Steel industry

(d) Coal mining industry

► (d) Coal mining industry

14. Which of the following can be considered as an example of the economic activity service provider from the industry sector?

(a) Textile industry

(b) Banking industry

(d) Coal mining industry

► (b) Banking industry

15. ____________ sector industries are owned, managed and controlled by the state or central government .

(a) Cooperative

(b) Public

(d) Private

► (b) Public

16. Name the three important industrial regions of the world.

(a) Eastern North America, Western and Central Europe, Eastern Asia

(b) Eastern Australia, Western and central Europe, Eastern Asia

(d) Africa, Eastern Asia, Central Australia

► (a) Eastern North America, Western and Central Europe, Eastern Asia

17. With limited capital, a food processing unit is set up in a particular village in Gujarat. This unit generates employment to that particular village. Name the type of classification of industry under which this food processing unit will come under.

(a) Forest based industry

(b) Agro based industry

(d) Large Scale industry

► (c) Small Scale industry

18. To which category of industry (based on raw materials) does Iron made from iron ore belong to?

(a) Marine based

(b) Forest based

(d) Mineral based

► (d) Mineral based