Progress of Human Development in India free essay sample

Therefore, large –scale investments in human resources are needed under public sector if physical capital available is to be exploited in a more efficient way. Human development index of India has improved from 0. 515 in 1990 to 0. 611 in 2004, but India still has miles to go before she can enter the group of high human development countries. The process of development has to accelerate the pace of human development. In this paper an attempt is made to highlight some of the factors which promotes human development. 1. INTRODUCTION Human development report 1990, has defined human development ‘as the process of enlarging people’s choices’. The most critical ones are to lead a long and healthy life, to be educated and to enjoy a decent standard of living. Additional choices include political freedom, other guaranteed human rights and various ingredients of self respect. Human development is thus a process of widening people’s choices as well as raising the level of well-being achieved (UNDP 1997). We will write a custom essay sample on Progress of Human Development in India or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page The concept of human development puts people back at center stage, after decades in which a maze of technical concepts had obscured this fundamental vision (Paul Streeten 1996). â€Å"Income clearly is only one option that people would like to have, though an important one. But it is not the sum total of their lives. Income is also a means, with human development the end (UNDP 1997). Economic growth contributes most to poverty reduction when it expands the employment, productivity and wages of poor people and when public resources are channeled to promoting human development. A virtuous cycle of economic growth and human development arises when growth is labour using and employment generating and when human skills and health improve rapidly. The defining difference between the economic growth and the human develop- ment schools is that the first focuses exclusively on the expansion of only one choice – income – while the second embraces the enlargement of all human choices- whether economic, social, cultural or political (Mahbub-ul-Haq 1996). Haq rightly warns† unless societies recognize that their real wealth is their people, an excessive obsession with creating material wealth can obscure the goal of enriching human life. † The world Bank (IBRD 2006) is used GNI per capita to classify the economies by income per capita and by region: Low- income $ 825 or less in 2004: middle income, $ 826 to $ 10, 665; and high income, $ 10, 066 and above. A further division at GNI per capita $ 3, 255 is made between lowerTable 1: GNP per capit a and PPP estimates of GNP per capita in U. S dollars (2004) (in U. S $) Country Norway Switzerland United states United kingdom Australia China Srilanka India Bangladesh Kenya Niger GNP per capita 52030 48230 41400 33940 26900 1290 1010 620 440 460 230 PPP estimates of GNP per capita 38550 35370 39710 31460 29200 5530 4000 3100 1980 1050 830 Source: World Bank, World Development Report 2006. 14 middle – income and upper- middle – income economies. It Can be concluded from the table 1 that while GNP per capita in India was only $ 620 in 2004 as against $ 41,400 in USA, the PPP estimate of GNP per capita in India was $ 3100 against $ 39710 in USA (which is the standard for comparison) in 004. If we use PPP estimates of GNP per capita, we find that income inequalities between the High, middle and lower income economies are some what lower than those we observe on the basis of exchange rates as conversion factors. Human development report states (UNDP 2006) that millions of the world’s people lack access to safe water not because of scarcity, but because they are locked out by poverty, inequality and government failures. Tackling these problems holds the key to resolving the global water crisis. Safe water and sanitation are fundamental to human development. When people are deprived in these areas they face diminished opportunities to realize their potential as human beings. Unsafe water and inadequate sanitation are two of the great drivers of world poverty and inequality. They claim millions of lives, destroy livelihoods, compromise dignity and diminish prospects for economic growth. Poor people especially poor women and children, bear the brunt of the human costs. At the start of the 21st century we live in a world of unparalleled prosperity. Yet almost 2 million children die each year for want of clean water and toilet. More than 1 billion people do not have access to safe water and some 2. 6 billion lack adequate sanitation. Mean while, inadequate access to water as a productive resource consigns millions to lives of poverty and vulnerability. The rest of the paper is organized as follows. Various human development indices of UNDP and HDI and its trends for selected countries have been discussed in Section ii. Comparison of human development indices for some selected countries and HDI trends among selected states are discussed in Section iii. The progress of human development in India is discussed in Section iv. Section v presents concluding observations. II. HUMAN DEVELOPMENT The search for an alternative to GNP as a measure of economic development has led to the T. KOTI REDDY computation of the Human Development Index (HDI). The United Nations development programme (UNDP) introduced the HD1 in its first Human development report prepared under the able stewardship of Mahbub ul Haq, and published in 1990. The measure has been enlarged and refined over the years and many related indices of human development like Gender- Related development Index (GDI), Gender empowerment measure (GEM) Human poverty index (HPI) have been developed in subsequent human development reports published annually by UNDP. Human Development Index (HDI) The HDI is a summary measure of human development. It measures the average achievements in a country in three basic dimensions of human development (UNDP 2006). A long and healthy life as measured by life expectancy at birth  · Knowledge, as measured by the adult literacy rate (with two – thirds weight) and the combined primary, secondary and tertiary gross enrolment ratio (with one- third weight)  · A decent standard of living as measured by GDP per capita in purchasing power parity terms (ppp) in US dollars. Gender – Related Development Index (GDI) While the HDI measures average achievement, the GDI adjusts the average achievement to reflect the inequalities between men and women in the following dimensions (UNDP 2006)  · A long and healthy life, as measured by life expectancy at birth. Knowledge, as measured by the adult literacy rate and the combined primary, secondary and tertiary gross enrolment ratio.  · A decent standard of living as measured by estimated earned income (PPP US $) Human Poverty Index for Developing Countries (Hpi-1) While the HDI measures average achievement, the HPI-1 measures deprivations in the three basic dimensions of human development captured in the HDI (UNDP 2006)  · A long and healthy life- vulnerability to death at a relatively early age, as measured by the probability at birth of not surviving to age 40. PROGRESS OF HUMAN DEVELOPMENT IN INDIA 15 development report 2006 calculated the index. India which was at No. 138 in HDI in 1994 has improved its position to 126 in 2004 (Table 2). It is observed that the HDI trends for selected countries over the last 15 years (1990 – 2004) reveals that all countries are making efforts in varying degrees to improve their human development indices. If the trend is maintained, several medium HDI countries will enter the high HDI group and several low HDI countries will join the medium HDI range. This is a welcome development. India has improved its HDI index value from 0. 510 in 1990 to 0. 611 in 2004 (Table 3). It is observed that near gender equality exists in Norway, Iceland, Australia, United States, New Zealand, Russian Federation, China and Sri Lanka. There is a greater awareness in the world about gender inequality and efforts are being made to reduce gender inequality by promoting the education of females and giving them a better status in the family (Table 4). It is observed from the table 5 that HDI varies between 0. 38 for Kerala and 0. 367 for Bihar in 2001 while Kerala can be ranked as a medium HDI state; Bihar presents a dismal value of HDI even  · Knowledge – exclusion from the world of reading and communications as measured by the adult literacy rate.  · A decent standard of living – lack of access to overall economic provisioning, as measured by the unweighted average of two indicators, the percentage of the population without sustainable a ccess to an improved water source and the percentage of children under weight for age.

Engineering in the World between 1000-1500 essays

Engineering in the World between 1000-1500 essays The castle is a unique phenomenon. Most buildings are created to fulfill a single, specific purpose like a church, a house, a factory, a school, etc. A castle could be a military base, a seat of government, a court, and a stronghold for the surrounding region. Castles have fascinated generations of people even after they outlived their usefulness. Their remains still put people in awe today. The design of medieval castles in England changed during 1000-1500 as the castle developed into the most important defense asset in war and politics only to become outdated. Castles were the product of that period of history termed the Middle Ages. Feudalism is the name applied to the military society which was created in Europe during the 9th and 10th centuries AD and reached its most developed form in Normandy in the 11th century. Feudal society resembled a pyramid. At its apex was the king who owned all the land in his kingdom (Platt 2). Immediately below the king was a group of major landholders who held their land directly from him, his tenants-in-chief. These were the great lords and magnates of the kingdom. In return for their land, they swore to give the king military service; that is, they and their retainers would fight for the king whenever and wherever he chose. The tenants-in-chief let out land to their tenants, the lesser barons and lords, on the same terms. This process was repeated all the way down the pyramid to the knight who was the local lord of the manor. The amount of land a man held was directly proportional to the amount of military service he could render (Platt 1). A knight might only be liable to appear at the muster with a horse, his weapons, a suit of chain mail and one or two servants as men-at-arms. A tenant-in-chief would be expected to provide scores of knights and several hundred men-at-arms. This decentralization of land-holding and power required that each landholder provide himself with a base from...

The Age of the Ocean Floor

The Age of the Ocean Floor The youngest crust of the ocean floor can be found near the seafloor spreading centers or mid-ocean ridges. As the plates split apart, magma rises from below the Earths surface to fill in the empty void. The magma hardens and crystallizes as it latches onto the moving plate and continues to cool over millions of years as it moves farther away from the divergent boundary. Like any rock, the plates of basaltic composition become less thick and denser as they cool. When an old, cold and dense oceanic plate comes into contact with a thick, buoyant continental crust or younger (and thus warmer and thicker) oceanic crust, it will always subduct.  In essence, oceanic plates are more susceptible to subduction as they get older.   Because of this correlation between age and subduction potential, very little ocean floor is older than 125 million years and almost none of it is older than 200 million years. Therefore, seafloor dating isnt that useful for studying plate motions beyond the Cretaceous. For that, geologists date and study continental crust.  Ã‚   The lone outlier (the bright splash of purple that you see north of Africa) to all of this is the Mediterranean Sea. It is the lasting remnant of an ancient ocean, the Tethys, that is shrinking as Africa and Europe collide in the Alpide  orogeny. At 280 million years, it still pales in comparison to the four-billion-year-old rock that can be found on the continental crust.   A History of Ocean Floor Mapping and Dating The ocean floor is a mysterious place that marine geologists and oceanographers have struggled to fully grasp. In fact, scientists have mapped more of the surface of the Moon, Mars, and Venus than the surface of our ocean. (You may have heard this fact before, and while true, there is a logical explanation as to why.)   Seafloor mapping, in its earliest, most primitive form, consisted of lowering weighted lines and measuring how far the sunk. This was done mostly to determine near-shore hazards for navigation. The development of sonar in the early 20th century allowed scientists to get a clearer picture of seafloor topography.  It didnt provide dates or chemical analyses of the ocean floor, but it did uncover long oceanic ridges, steep canyons and many other landforms that are indicators of plate tectonics.   The seafloor was mapped by shipborne magnetometers in the 1950s and produced puzzling results - sequential zones of normal and reverse magnetic polarity  spreading out from the oceanic ridges. Later theories showed that  this was due to the reversing nature of Earths magnetic field. Every so often (it has occurred over 170 times over the past 100 million years), the poles will suddenly switch.  As the magma and lava cool at seafloor spreading centers, whatever magnetic field is present get ingrained into the rock. The ocean plates spread and grow in opposite directions, so rocks that are equidistance from the center have the same magnetic polarity and age. That is, until they get subducted and recycled under less-dense oceanic or continental crust.   Deep ocean drilling and radiometric dating in the late 1960s gave an accurate stratigraphy and precise date of the ocean floor. From studying the oxygen isotopes of the shells of microfossils in these cores, scientists were able to begin studying the Earths past climates in a study known as paleoclimatology.

Marketing Experiential Exercise Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Marketing Experiential Exercise - Essay Example Looking at some important insights on how a number of university students decide on their actual purchase of backpacks? As far as modern backpack’s fashion style, convenience and capacity are concerned, there are a lot of stories to tell. Here’s a quite interesting point of view from one of the respondents. â€Å"I prefer a backpack that will make me feel good, aside from the great consideration of its capacity†. There’s no doubt why this respondent rated the three given criteria with five points. â€Å"It feels good when you carry at your back, not just convenience and satisfaction, but a remarkable sense of touch of fashion in it, for fashion is the common trend today, starting from your hairstyle and down to anything else†, she added in a comment. On average, fashion and convenience came on top, followed by capacity as consideration of the respondents prior to the actual purchase of their backpacks. The other respondent stated, â€Å"I think if I am convenient with my backpack, it follows that at some point, it addressed the consideration of its capacity.† The said respondent added, â€Å"In as much as possible, I just want to carry something at my back at a considerable weight, but just enough to satisfy me by giving me a brief space that is required for my belongings.† The survey was conducted at one of the renowned university in town, where there are many university students who gladly have chosen backpacks for daily use in school. Systematic purposive random sampling was employed so as to randomly choose the respondents who are using backpacks, but without considerable bias because everybody in the target population has equal chance of being chosen. The data collection was made possible by employing personal and laddering interviews. Below is the actual analysis based on the respondents’ responses concerning the backpacks in terms of fashion style, convenience and

Business strategy report Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3250 words

Business strategy report - Essay Example This research report tends to demonstrate an in-depth analysis regarding the strategic approaches of RBS Group through critically assessing its range of banking and financial tactics. Moreover, the discussion of this report also incorporates strategy development process by recommending most effective business plans for RBS Group. In order to successfully apply the proposed business strategies, the study have also recommended effective implementation plan that would empower the competitive position of RBS Group and maintain its long-term sustainability in the fiercely growing global banking and financial services industry. Table of Contents 1. Introduction and Paper Objectives 4 2. Strategic Analysis 4 2.1 Industry Analysis 4 2.2 Profile of the Company 5 2.3 Stated Organisational Purpose 6 2.4 External and Internal Analysis 6 3. Strategy Development 7 3.1 Evaluation of RBS Group’s Strategy using Strategy Toolbox 7 3.1.1 External or Environment-Based Strategy 8 3.1.2 Resource ba sed Strategy 9 Strategic Business Units (SBUs) of RBS Group 10 3.2 Propose Strategies for the Next 5 Years at Corporate, Business Stream & Operational Levels: 10 3.2.1 Use of Strategic ‘Toolbox’ Widely 11 3.2.2 Identification of Strategic Options at the Business Stream/SBU Level 12 3.2.3 Using of Portfolio Methodologies for Evaluate and Rank SBU Level Strategies 15 3.2.4 Important Operational Level Strategies Critical to Successful Implementation 16 4. Strategy Implementation 17 4.1 Outline of the Plans for Implementing Strategies 18 4.2 Structuring Major Activities that are Needed in Strategy Impelmentation 19 5. Conclusion 21 References 23 1. Introduction and Paper Objectives Strategic decisions have long been identified to provide an extensive support to contemporary organisations in attaining goals and predetermined business objectives (Teece, 2010). Emphasising this concept, a strategic analysis of RBS with respect to its continuous accomplishment of goals and obje ctives encompassing different business units and branches across the globe, will be undertaken in this report. Moreover, the discussion would assist in developing adequate insights regarding the strategy development process of RBS and the competencies of the applied process to ensure that the organisation is able to cope with the growing competition in the banking and financial industry. The report would finally summarise with the discussion through appropriate theoretical evaluations and explanations in line with the strategic direction and strategic development process implemented by RBS. 2. Strategic Analysis 2.1 Industry Analysis In the past few years the banking and financial business industry had to experience radical oscillations due to the increasing challenges and hurdles. The industry had faced traumatic challenges due to the demise of few major investments and financial services providers from different regions across the globe (Deloitte Center for Financial Services, 201 3). Moreover, the changing trends in the financial markets and continuous investments associated with the strategic decisions have also been witnessed to significantly influence the organisational operations in the respective business industry (Pennington & Thornton, 2010). However, the long-term structural process of the emerging markets can be considered to provide adequate support to the banking and financial business industry to effectively deal with the devastating investment and financial markets (Deloitte Development LLC, 2006). Moreover, the banking

Gender Identity Paper Essay Example for Free

Gender Identity Paper Essay The determination of gender identity is much deeper than whether a person is born a male or a female. The exact identifier that separates gender identity is currently unknown but researchers believe that genetics, hormones, reproductive organs, biological, and environmental factors all play a role in distinguishing a person’s gender identity. A person’s physical gender and their sense of gender are formed at two different times in two different parts of the body. A person’s gender is whether they are born male or female, but the way they identify themselves may be the opposite, which is not uncommon and has occurred since the beginning of time. In culture males are known to be the stronger, more aggressive sex, while females are the fairer, more nurturing sex. Usually, by the age of four, individuals have identified their gender identities aside from what gender they were born as physically. Throughout this paper, I will discuss the biological factors of gender identity (nature), environmental factors (nurture), and the role between hormones and behavior, and how these interactions all affect the determination of one’s gender identity. Gender identification begins to develop while the fetus is in the beginning stages of development. Between weeks six and twelve of gestation is when the fetus begins developing reproductive organs and that is when the fetus takes on the role of male or female. Hormones are produced in both the nervous system and the endocrine system and are transported through the blood stream. Specifically, hormones are chemicals that combine and respond to certain cell receptors. Hormones like testosterone and androgen are mainly found in the male gender while estrogen is mainly found in the female gender. Testosterone is a contributing factor to behaviors like aggression. â€Å"Gender identity, an individual’s self-awareness of maleness or femaleness, and gender role, are programmed for the child within his mother’s womb,† (Institute of Medicine, 2006). Evidence has shown that the female gender is likely to excel in verbal skills and muscular coordination when their production of estrogen is high rather than when it is low. For men, they are stronger and more aggressive when their testosterone levels are high and they are able to perform better in actions that require physical performance. The nature side of the theory relies on prenatal hormones that modify the brain and peripheral tissue and the development of male or female external genitalia. Although a person may have a certain physical gender, their gender role is the adoption of masculine or feminine behavioral traits that are appropriate for that specific sex. Gender identity differs from the gender role because it is an individual’s personal sense of sex, which is not necessarily their physical gender. There are multiple stages from childhood to adulthood when hormones are present that are identifiable of a specific gender. The pituitary gland (or hypophysis) secretes many hormones during puberty including adrenocorticotropic hormones, growth hormones, gonadotrophins, prolactin, and thyroid stimulating hormones. Gonadotrophins, which include luteinizing and follicle stimulating hormones, stimulate sex hormone production in the ovaries or testes and also lead to egg and sperm maturity. Prolactin stimulates milk production and adrenocorticotropic hormones stimulate the adrenal glands to secrete steroid hormones like cortisol. All of these hormones play a major role in sexual development and an individual’s determination of gender identity. Environmental factors of gender identity arise as soon as the individual is born. Everything from a female child wearing a pink dress to a male child having a sports themed blanket can play a role in their gender identity. Sociologists believe that by the age of five years old, females show a preference for dolls, arts and crafts, and playing dress up while males prefer cars, blocks, tools, and outdoor play. â€Å"The environment has a direct relation to personality traits, because characteristic adaptations are always involved in expression,† (Nature over Nurture, 2000). At a young age, children who are taught that traits and activities are appropriate or inappropriate for them to perform because of their gender tend to absorb those teachings and are influenced by them later in life. For example, young girls who are raised believing boys are innately better at sports than girls, may disclaim their interest in sports and go on to believe they are not good at them without pract icing them to their full potential. Both males and females have proven to be great athletes but if at a young age, a girl is told she will never be as good as a boy she may never give sports and athleticism a chance. Young children learn by observations, if a young girl witnesses her mother performing the acts of a man then she will repeat those acts and believe that is what is appropriate for her. The same goes for the male gender, if a little boy observes his father doing something that a woman is more likely to do like sewing or interior decorating then that is what the little boy will believe is expected of him upon adulthood. â€Å"For instance, the way in which one educates children, how children in institutions such as orphanages are raised, and the kinds of day-care are considered optimal have all been influenced by one’s understanding of the interaction of biology and environment regarding gender identity,† (Kowalski Westen, 2005). The previous statement is very true because children observe many things that one may never think would make any difference but in reality they do. Nature factors include everything from what kind of parents raise the child, what roles they perform, the culture, and even the color of paint on the child’s walls all make a difference in the child’s personal gender identity. I believe that between nature and nurture and their influence on gender identity, nature has a greater influence. For example, if a perfectly healthy little girl with no hormone disorders is raised with a single father and only brothers with no immediate influence of females, she is more likely to become a tomboy and take on the gender identity that resembles that of her father’s or brothers’. The same reference goes for a boy raised with a single mother and only sisters with no immediate influence of a male figure in his life. Matthew Wolfe-Meyer makes a valid point when saying, â€Å"nature and its contestation is a dominant strategy†¦ unfortunately nurture fails to receive similar scrutiny and culture is more often used as an explanatory device than deeply interrogated for its logistics.† Often times when a child is going through puberty and takes on the role of the opposite gender, many people jump to the hypothesis that there may be something wrong with their hormones or a chemical imbalance but before jumping to that conclusion, they should look at their home life, how was the child raised, what was their environment like and from there they will find many answers. All children naturally comply with the demands of their internal sense of gender without effort. If the child becomes confused with their gender then they often refer to behaviors of adults near them and they learn what actions are appropriate for them relatively quick. Environmental factors bear a critical amount of effectiveness in gender identity but because environmental factors are ever changing, it proves that the nurture theory is a substantial factor. Currently, psychologists and researchers do not know the exact causes of gender identity and individuals taking on the opposite roles. But there are many factors that support both sides of the nature versus nurture argument. The male and female genders each have differences in many areas both physical and emotional but neither is â€Å"better† than the other. By the age of four years old each child already has an idea of who they are and what gender they belong to. Gender confusion is normal but most children are able to look at parents or acting influences in their lives and see what the appropriate actions are for their gender. Nature versus nurture has and will continue to be a strong argument. References: McCrae, R. R., Costa, P. r., Ostendorf, F., Angleitner, A., HÃ…â„¢ebà ­Ã„ kovà ¡, M., Avia, M. D., Smith, P. B. (2000). Nature over nurture: Temperament, personality, and life span development. Journal Of Personality And Social Psychology, 78(1), 173-186. doi:10.1037/0022-3514.78.1.173 Matthew Wolf-Meyer. (2007). Complexities: Beyond nature and nurture. Anthropologica, 49(2), 325-327. Retrieved from http://search.proquest.com/docview/214174663?accountid=35812 Money, J. (1971). Differentiation of gender identity and gender role. Psychiatric Annals, 1(4), 32-37,42-43,8-9. Retrieved from http://search.proquest.com/docview/894195162?accountid=35812 (2006). Institute of medicine (us) committee on assessing interactions among social, behavioral, and genetic factors in health. Washington DC: National Academies Press (US). Retrieved from http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK19934/

Mastering The Short Story :: essays research papers

Mastering The Short Story Although I perceive Paul Darcy Boles to be an uppity, egotistic, and somewhat euphorically rambling old man from his style of writing, there is some beneficial information for someone wishing to create a commercially viable short story. However, I feel that creating a story with the goal of marketability is a grave mistake that ruins countless numbers of otherwise perfectly enjoyable works of literature. It is no surprise that this style of writing is being taught to the new generation, which promises to be far more creative than it's predecessors. Boles' first advice is to follow Chekhov's observation: "The art of writing is the art of abbreviation." A story of 3000 words or less has no need for excessive 1 paragraph descriptions. "Today's reader" (whoever that is) has no need for the descriptive style found in older works. So much for Alistair MacLeod. A lot of importance is put on not stringing random sentences together. Each sentence should be aimed towards a specific goal. The sum total of these sentences is your story. Boles' views a sentence as a factor in a mathematical equation. He also gets almost romantic about the sentence as a living, sentient being. Once you shovel the pop-lit drivel where it belongs, you are free to apply his suggestions to your own work. It is a good idea to check your story for too much obvious meaning. Not only will this make the story shorter and clearer, the hidden meanings imbedded in the story will have a chance to be probed and discovered. As well, avoid "signpost" sentences that could easily be replaced by more legitimate conversations or actions. A lot of emphasis is put on simulating a sense of "in-ness"; that is, giving your work a believable lived in feeling. When reading the story, one should have a clear picture of the environment around it's characters, and it is of imperial importance that it is realistic. In conclusion, Boles discusses the important of a strong beginning and