Chapter 14: Economic Activities Around Us
Introduction
Economic activities are those activities which create monetary value, that is, their value can be measured in terms of money. These activities help people earn their livelihood and contribute to the prosperity of a nation. As societies developed, the number and variety of economic activities increased greatly.
Earlier, most people were involved in activities like agriculture, livestock rearing, pottery and weaving. Today, people work in many new fields such as factories, banks, schools, hospitals, transport services, software companies, hotels, and repair services. To understand these activities better, they are grouped into economic sectors.
Economic Sectors
Economic sectors are broad groups of activities that help in the economic development of a country. Based on similarities in nature and function, economic activities are classified into three sectors:
Primary Sector
Secondary Sector
Tertiary Sector
1. Primary Sector
The primary sector includes activities in which people are directly dependent on nature to obtain goods.
Key Features:
Direct use of natural resources
Produces raw materials
Forms the base for other sectors
Examples:
Agriculture (growing crops)
Fishing and fish farming
Forestry (collecting wood)
Mining (coal, iron ore)
Raising livestock (cows, buffaloes, poultry)
Products like grains, vegetables, milk, fish, wood and minerals come from the primary sector.
2. Secondary Sector
The secondary sector includes activities that process raw materials obtained from the primary sector to make finished or semi-finished goods.
Key Features:
Depends on the primary sector
Uses factories and machines
Converts raw materials into usable products
Examples:
Converting wheat into flour in mills
Making clothes from cotton
Furniture and paper from wood
Making vehicles from steel
Construction of roads, buildings, bridges
Production of electricity and water supply
This sector adds value to raw materials.
3. Tertiary Sector (Service Sector)
The tertiary sector provides services that support both primary and secondary sectors.
Key Features:
Does not produce goods
Provides services
Makes economic activities smooth and efficient
Examples:
Transportation (trucks, trains, ships)
Banking and insurance
Trade and retail shops
Healthcare (doctors, nurses)
Education (schools, teachers)
Communication (mobile, internet)
Repair services, hotels and restaurants
Interdependence Among Sectors
The three sectors are interconnected and interdependent. No sector can function independently.
Example: AMUL Dairy Cooperative
Primary sector: Farmers produce milk from cows and buffaloes.
Secondary sector: Milk is processed into butter, cheese, ghee, milk powder in factories.
Tertiary sector: Transportation, retail shops, marketing, banking and export services help sell the products.
This example shows how raw materials are converted into finished goods and finally reach consumers with the help of services.
Cooperative and Its Importance
A cooperative is a group of people who voluntarily come together to meet their economic and social needs. In cooperatives like AMUL:
Farmers control production and sale
Middlemen are removed
Income of producers increases
Decisions are taken collectively
From Trees to Textbooks
Primary sector: Trees are cut to obtain wood pulp
Secondary sector: Pulp is converted into paper and books
Tertiary sector: Transport, printing, selling and distribution of books
All three sectors work together to make the books students study.
Importance of Recycling
Recycling paper:
Saves trees
Saves energy and water
Reduces waste
Judicious use of paper is important for environmental protection.
LET’S EXPLORE – ANSWERS
1. Name two secondary sector activities
Manufacturing clothes in textile factories
Making furniture from wood
2. Label the stages of book production
Cutting trees for pulp – Primary sector
Making paper and printing books – Secondary sector
Transporting and selling books – Tertiary sector
3. Judicious use of paper in school
Use both sides of paper
Reuse notebooks
Avoid unnecessary printing
Encourage recycling
Use digital notices where possible
4. Economic activities in neighbourhood (example)
Farming vegetables – Primary
Rice mill – Secondary
Grocery shop – Tertiary
Transport of goods – Tertiary
If one activity stops, others are affected, showing interdependence.
Key Points to Remember
Economic activities create monetary value
Primary sector uses natural resources
Secondary sector processes raw materials
Tertiary sector provides services
All three sectors depend on each other
***********
Questions, activities and projects
1. What is the primary sector? How is it different from the secondary sector? Give two examples.
Primary Sector
The primary sector includes economic activities in which people are directly dependent on nature to obtain goods. These activities produce raw materials.
Examples:
-
Farming (growing rice, wheat, vegetables)
-
Fishing or fish farming
Secondary Sector
The secondary sector includes activities that process raw materials obtained from the primary sector into finished or semi-finished goods.
Examples:
-
Making flour from wheat
-
Making clothes from cotton
Difference between Primary and Secondary Sector
| Primary Sector | Secondary Sector |
|---|---|
| Uses natural resources directly | Uses raw materials from primary sector |
| Produces raw materials | Produces finished goods |
| Example: farming | Example: factories |
2. How does the secondary sector depend on the tertiary sector? Illustrate with examples.
The secondary sector depends on the tertiary sector for services such as transportation, electricity, banking, trade and communication.
Examples:
-
Factories need electricity and water supply to run machines.
-
Transport services are needed to bring raw materials to factories and carry finished goods to markets.
-
Banks provide loans to set up factories.
-
Traders and retailers sell manufactured goods to consumers.
Without these services, factories cannot function properly.
3. Give an example of interdependence between primary, secondary and tertiary sectors. Show it using a flow diagram.
Example: Milk and Milk Products (AMUL)
-
Primary sector: Farmers produce milk from cows and buffaloes.
-
Secondary sector: Milk is processed into butter, cheese, ghee and milk powder in factories.
-
Tertiary sector: Transport, retail shops, banking and export services help sell the products.
Flow Diagram:
Primary Sector
⬇
Milk production by farmers
⬇
Secondary Sector
⬇
Milk processed into butter, cheese, ghee
⬇
Tertiary Sector
⬇
Transport, shops, markets, export
This shows that all three sectors depend on each other.
0 Comments