Crisis of development: displacement, environmental problems and sustainability ( Sociology Optional)

The term development is used in several ways, but most sociologists agree that development should mean, at the very least, improvement or progress for people who desperately need positive change in their lives.
Development means “improvement in country’s economic and social conditions”. More specially, it refers to improvements in way of managing an area’s natural and human resources. In order to create wealth and improve people’s lives.

Concept of Development: Thinker’s views

The “capability approach,” of Amartya Sen defined development as “a tool enabling people to reach the highest level of their ability, through granting freedom of action, i.e., freedom of economic, social and family actions, etc.”
This approach became a basis for the measurement of development by the HDI (Human Development Index), which was developed by the UN Development Program (UNDP) in 1990.
Martha Nussbaum developed the abilities approach in the field of gender and emphasized the empowerment of women as a development tool.
Development refers to the strategy of planned social change which is considered desirable by members of the society”. – Yogendra Singh

It refers to a situation of development with its negative fallouts.
It existed in the society in forms of displacement, loss of livelihood, emotional stress, migration, environmental problems and increasing inequalities.
It could be regarded as a situation of non-development resulting from development.

India’s unprecedented economic growth during the last two decades has been spearheaded by lopsided spatial development, with clusters of economic activity concentrated in a few highly dense megacities.
Factors of growth have failed to spread to less dense secondary cities.
Only those districts that have improved their physical and human infrastructure have attracted manufacturing enterprises.
This phenomenon has affected employment, distribution of income and developmental process.
Development induced displacement had increased pre-existing gender inequalities in India as many tribal women who previously had superior position in family lost their ownership rights, loss of access to services, lack of sanitation, additional burden of workloads and responsibilities, deteriorating health status etc.
Unplanned urbanization, environmental degradation, rural and tribal displacement etc are some of the major issues faced by India today due to the development process.