Direction for the question 41 to 45: Read the following passage and answer the question: Nomadic herding or pastoral nomadism is a primitive subsistence activity, in which the herders rely on animals for food, clothing, shelter, tools and transport. They move from one place to another along with their livestock, depending on the amount and quality of pastures and water. Each nomadic community occupies a well-identified territory as a matter of tradition. A wide variety of animals is kept in different regions. In tropical Africa, cattle are the most important livestock, while in Sahara and Asiatic deserts, sheeps, goats and camel are reared. In the mountainous areas of Tibet and Andes, Yak and llamas and in the Arctic and sub-Artic areas, reindeer are the most important animals. Pastoral nomadism is associated with three important regions. The core region extends from the Atlantic shores of North Africa eastwards across the Arabian Peninsula into Mongolia and Central China. The second region extends over the Tundra region of Eurasia. In the southern hemisphere there are small areas in south-West Africa and on the islands of Madagascar. Movement in search of pastures is undertaken either over vast horizontal distances or vertically from one elevation to another in the mountainous regions. The process of migration from plain areas to pastures on mountain during Summer and again from Mountain pastures to plain areas during winters is known as Transhumance. In mountain regions such as Himalayas, Gujjars, Bakarwals, Gaddis and Bhotiyas migrate from plains to the mountains in summers and to the plains from the high-altitude pastures in winters. Similarly, in the Tundra regions, the nomadic herders move from south to north in summers and from north to south in winters. The number of pastoral nomads has been decreasing and the areas operated by them shrinking. This is due to: (a) imposition of political boundaries, (b) new settlement plans by different countries. Pastoral nomadism is a type of __________ activity.
Primary
Understanding Pastoral Nomadism
The question asks about the type of economic activity represented by pastoral nomadism. To answer this, we need to refer to the provided passage and understand the classification of economic activities.
Defining Pastoral Nomadism from the Passage
According to the passage, pastoral nomadism (also called nomadic herding) is described as:
- A primitive subsistence activity.
- Herders relying on animals for food, clothing, shelter, tools, and transport.
- Movement with livestock based on pasture and water availability.
- Occurring in specific traditional territories.
- Involving a wide variety of animals depending on the region (cattle in tropical Africa, sheep/goats/camel in deserts, yak/llamas in Tibet/Andes, reindeer in Arctic).
- Associated with specific regions globally (North Africa to Central China, Eurasian Tundra, small areas in South-West Africa and Madagascar).
- Involving migration patterns like transhumance (vertical movement in mountains) or horizontal movement.
The passage highlights that it's a "primitive subsistence activity" focused on direct reliance on animals, which are a natural resource.
Classifying Economic Activities
Economic activities are generally classified into different sectors:
- Primary Activities: Directly involve the extraction or harvesting of natural resources from the earth. Examples include agriculture, fishing, forestry, mining, and animal husbandry (like herding).
- Secondary Activities: Involve processing raw materials obtained from primary activities into finished goods. Examples include manufacturing and construction.
- Tertiary Activities: Provide services rather than producing goods. Examples include trade, transport, communication, banking, and education.
- Quaternary Activities: Often considered a subset of tertiary activities, involving knowledge-based services like information technology, research and development, and consulting.
Analyzing Pastoral Nomadism as a Primary Activity
Based on the definition and the description in the passage, pastoral nomadism involves raising animals (a form of animal husbandry) and relying directly on them for subsistence. This is a direct interaction with and utilization of a natural resource (animals and the pastures they graze on). Therefore, pastoral nomadism fits the definition of a primary economic activity because it is centered around the direct use and management of biological resources for livelihood.
Why Other Options Are Not Applicable
- Secondary Activity: Pastoral nomadism does not involve manufacturing or processing the animal products into complex finished goods in the way a secondary activity would (e.g., a textile factory processing wool).
- Tertiary Activity: It is not primarily a service-based activity like banking, transport, or education. While transport might be involved in migration, the core activity is herding and resource utilization, not providing a service.
- Quaternary Activity: It is not a knowledge-based service activity like research or IT.
The passage explicitly labels it a "primitive subsistence activity," which aligns well with the characteristics of primary economic activities, especially in a subsistence context.
Conclusion
Considering the description in the passage and the standard classification of economic activities, pastoral nomadism, being a subsistence activity based on herding animals and utilizing natural pastures, is fundamentally a primary activity.
Revision Table: Key Aspects of Pastoral Nomadism
| Aspect | Description from Passage |
|---|---|
| Type of Activity | Primitive subsistence activity |
| Reliance | Animals for food, clothing, shelter, tools, transport |
| Movement | With livestock based on pastures/water |
| Territory | Well-identified, traditional |
| Animals | Variety based on region (Cattle, sheep, goats, camel, yak, llamas, reindeer) |
| Movement Patterns | Horizontal or vertical (Transhumance in mountains) |
Additional Information: Changes Affecting Pastoral Nomadism
The passage mentions that the number of pastoral nomads and their operating areas are shrinking. This is attributed to:
- Imposition of political boundaries, which restrict traditional movement routes across borders.
- New settlement plans by different countries, encouraging or forcing nomadic groups to settle down.
These factors highlight how external forces and modernization are impacting this traditional primary activity.
Important Questions from Primary Activities
The activity solely dependent upon animals is called:
Which of the following is a mining town?
According to density of population arrange the given continents in descending order.
A. Europe
B. Africa
C. Asia
D. North America
Choose the correct answer from the options given below:
Which of the following Geographers has emphasized on ‘synthesis study of relationship between human societies and earth’s surface’ while defining Human Geography?
Direction for the question 41 to 45: Read the following passage and answer the question:
Nomadic herding or pastoral nomadism is a primitive subsistence activity, in which the herders rely on animals for food, clothing, shelter, tools and transport. They move from one place to another along with their livestock, depending on the amount and quality of pastures and water. Each nomadic community occupies a well-identified territory as a matter of tradition.
A wide variety of animals is kept in different regions. In tropical Africa, cattle are the most important livestock, while in Sahara and Asiatic deserts, sheeps, goats and camel are reared. In the mountainous areas of Tibet and Andes, Yak and llamas and in the Arctic and sub-Artic areas, reindeer are the most important animals.
Pastoral nomadism is associated with three important regions. The core region extends from the Atlantic shores of North Africa eastwards across the Arabian Peninsula into Mongolia and Central China. The second region extends over the Tundra region of Eurasia. In the southern hemisphere there are small areas in south-West Africa and on the islands of Madagascar.
Movement in search of pastures is undertaken either over vast horizontal distances or vertically from one elevation to another in the mountainous regions. The process of migration from plain areas to pastures on mountain during Summer and again from Mountain pastures to plain areas during winters is known as Transhumance. In mountain regions such as Himalayas, Gujjars, Bakarwals, Gaddis and Bhotiyas migrate from plains to the mountains in summers and to the plains from the high-altitude pastures in winters.
Similarly, in the Tundra regions, the nomadic herders move from south to north in summers and from north to south in winters.
The number of pastoral nomads has been decreasing and the areas operated by them shrinking. This is due to: (a) imposition of political boundaries, (b) new settlement plans by different countries.
The number of pastoral nomads have been decreasing and operated area shrinking due to?
