Increase in absolute and per capita real GNP do not connote a higher level of economic development, if
Answer & explanation
Answer: (c) poverty and unemployment increase.
Rising GNP and per capita GNP show growth, but development also needs the gains to reach people. If poverty and unemployment increase, the income growth has not improved living standards, so it does not signal a higher level of development.
- ✓ (c) Development is wider than income growth. NCERT notes that even countries with high growth saw poverty rise quickly because the gains were shared unequally. Growth with rising poverty and unemployment is not development.
- ✗ (a) The balance between industry and agriculture affects the structure of the economy but says nothing about whether people are better off.
- ✗ (b) Industry growing faster than agriculture is a normal feature of structural change and does not by itself deny development.
- ✗ (d) Imports growing faster than exports widens the trade deficit. It is a balance-of-payments concern, not a test of whether GNP growth means development.
Remember · Growth (GNP, per capita income) is not the same as development. Rising poverty and unemployment show that growth has not turned into development.
📘 Read it in NCERT: Class 12 India: People and Economy, Ch 6 (practise this chapter) · Class 12 India: People and Economy, Ch 6 (practise this chapter)
Sources
- NCERT Class 12 · India: People and Economy, Chapter 6 “even the countries having high economic growth, experienced speedy rise in poverty because of its unequal distribution.”
- NCERT Class 12 · India: People and Economy, Chapter 6 “development is a multi-dimensional concept and signifies the positive, irreversible transformation of the economy, society and environment.”
Question and answer: UPSC's official GS Paper I (2018, Series A) — paper ↗ · answer key ↗. Explanation: Minimalist IAS, checked 30 Sept 2026 (how we verify). ·