Development Economics

The term economic development was rarely used before the emergence of independent nations. In the early fifties most economists came to interpret economic development as denoting growth in per capita real income in underdeveloped countries. A few of them considered development as growth plus change-change in values and institutions. They make a distinction between the under development of the natural resources of a country and the economic backwardness of the people. By mid-fifties, a group of economists began expressing development in quantitative terms. However, it was felt that a cumulatively large increase in per capita wealth, income, products are not indicators of development, at least they are indicators of the growth of the economy. Thus development economics failed to become effective for solution of problems relating to the development of society to have sustainability in growth and development. Contrary, it resulted in concentration of power in fewer hands and has widened rural-urban disparities and has aggravated the problems of poverty and social deprivation. The strategy of economic growth on which emergent nation followed for their development has provided both the motivation and the resources for repression. The problems initially perceived as cyclical are fact essentially structural. The growth models of yesterday have become obsolete and incapable of throwing much light on problems so badly need solution. The book has reinterpreted development economics in the light of emerging requirements of developing nations. It will be of much use to policy makers, planners and to all those who are interested in making the emergent nations really developed in addition to the students of economics. To make it useful for a large number of people every concept has been explained in very simple language.