Marketing Draft: Les Mills Essay

Introduction: The Olympian â€Å"Les Mills† first opened the gym in 1968 and has been expanding its branches ever since including its Wellington branch in 1982, the gym I am focusing on (Les Mills, n.d). Les Mills is a one-stop comprehensive and full service gym located in Wellington. It offers facilities assisting in attaining active and healthy lifestyles through its extensive services. Mission Statement: Les Mills is a business providing a service with the goal of helping its consumers lead healthy and active lifestyles in central locations in Wellington. Market Analysis: Market Environment: The market is a considerable size in Wellington. Gyms like Jetts and City Fitness are key contributors to that size. Gyms vary in size and what they offer, they may be gender exclusive gyms, small stand alone gyms, large chain gyms, outdoor based training, and so on. Trends in the market consist of; attentive staff with relevant qualifications and a range of services within the gym (personal training, classes, good equipment). Customers within the market are in the â€Å"age of obesity† and generally concerned with â€Å"weight loss, muscle toning cardiovascular fitness, stress management and injury prevention/rehabilitation,† (The New Zealand Institute of Health and Fitness (March 2009). External Environment: Les Mills has many competitors as all gyms offer many of the same things. However all differ in internal features to set themselves apart from their competitors to target certain markets. Les Mills competitors are gyms like Jetts and City Fitness, and extend beyond gyms alone but also businesses which offer fitness, health and weight loss services, such as paddleboarding companies, Bikram Yoga and Jenny Craig. Internal Environment: Les Mills offers a strong motivational culture, this is important in gyms, to motivate their costumer in achieving their goals. Les  Mills staff are all well trained, personable people who create a motivational culture within the gym. They also offer the facility of personal training, Les Mills also offers a very wide range of equipment and workout machinery, as well as running classes. Competitive analysis: The gym market is an oligopoly-structured market. It consists of many small and large gyms. Gyms generally charge similar amounts for their services but price competition and calling can occur to gain customers over their competitors. Jetts and City Fitness charge less for memberships, however they attrac3t mostly to students or adults with lower incomes as they charge a more affordable fee. MACRO Environment analysis: Economic: Sociocultural Technological Gyms, like majority of businesses were and are affected by the post 2007 recession, which changed consumer-spending patterns. Les Mills had to factor that into its membership cost and how to market itself. Demographics impact Les Mills. Its locations need to be close to their target market. It seats customers who have disposable income to spend on membership costs. Due to the age of obesity there is increasing importance on fitness and health. This is predicted to become more trend in the future. Technological Environment: The Internet has changed the face and conduct of business. Les Mills has adapted to this by creating a website. The technological environment is not highly influential as they are a location-based service, but it is important in terms of communicating with their customers. TOWS: (Heinz Weihrich (n.d).) Threats: Opportunities: Economic struggle/recession: The 2007 economic recession lead to a decrease in its customers. Prior to the crash they had more disposable income. New Entrants: New entrants with innovative ideas extending beyond Les Mills  services is a threat to membership levels, and impact upon profit. Expanding target market: Les Mills could branch out to consumers who otherwise workout in the outdoors. Introducing Nutrition as a core aspect of the services offered. This would give it a competitive edge against competitors, as well as competing against weight loss competitors such as Jenny Craig. Strengths: Weaknesses: Good reputation: Les Mills is a well known, reputable and trusted. It has been operating since 1968. This allows for word of mouth among consumers. Innovative culture: Les Mils innovative marketing ideas such as, popular fitness classes and 24-hour services has set them apart from competitors and allowing them to charge more for memberships. Location: They are locate near customers generally working in corporate fields who can afford to pay higher subscriptions for convenience in city centers. Cost of running services: The classes Les Mills run are costly, as they need to supply the facilities, equipment, and trainers to run them. (Heinz Weihrich (n.d).) Target Market: Les Mills Target Market consists primarily of those in established jobs who have the additional disposable income to spend on a gym membership, typically priced higher than most other gyms. Recommendations: Les Mills could increase its membership levels by attracting a wider base of consumers, perhaps those whose interests lie in fitness but don’t like always being confined to a gym, who enjoy getting outdoors. A marketing idea that introduces a weekly activity such as Standup Paddle Boarding sessions where they take groups of people out on the water each week. The advantage of this is that it attracts customers interested in trying something new, as well as ones who have experience in it. It also strengthens their sense of community and culture in the gym because paddle boarding as a team is a social way to exercise, as opposed to running on a treadmill for example. Reference List: Heinz Weihrich (n.d). The TOWS Matrix— A Tool For Situational Analysis. Retrieved from http://www.usfca.edu/fac_staff/weihrichh/docs/tows.pdf MPlans (n.d) Health Fitness Marketing Plan. Retrieved from http://www.mplans.com/health_fitness_marketing_plan/situation_analysis_fc.php Andrew Weber.(n.d) Fitness Industry Analysis 2014 – Cost & Trends. Retrieved from https://www.franchisehelp.com/industry-reports/fitness-industry-report/ The New Zealand Institute of Health and Fitness. (May 2009). A profile on the New Zealand fitness industry (article). Retrieved From http://www.nzihf.co.nz/media-resources-1/articles/a-profile-of-the-new-zealand-fitness-industry Les Mills (n.d) Welcome to Les Mills. Retrieved from http://www.lesmills.co.nz/join-us/?club=1836&plan=fbabd202-741e-df11-9eaa-0050568522bb,c3280ab8-741e-df11-9eaa-0050568522bb

Thank You for Smoking

Ethical issues brought up in the movie, â€Å" Thank You for Smoking† : When Nick Naylor appears on the talk show along side with the cancer patient and he basically turns the situation around so that the tabocco industry isn’t to blame for the young boy being diagonosed with cancer from smoking, and in fact by people dying from using their product the industry wouldn’t be making any profit. The â€Å"mod squad†, which stands for merchants of death, in the movie, all the people who are a part of this group are well aware that the products that they sell and promote are generally appealing to the younger generation that contributes to hundreds and thousands of deaths a year, yet they continue to defend them. In one scene Naylor is helping his son do homework, he teaches his son about how to argue something he is writing about. Naylor says ,† that’s the beauty of arguement, because if you argue correctly you’re never wrong†. This is teaching his son that no matter what he side he decides to be on, if he keeps on argueing and finds some usable facts to support his arguement he will always be right. Naylor doesn’t address the issues head on necessarily, in fact the way he approaches how to argue that tobacco is poison and that you shouldn’t smoke it etc, is he simply just goes with his theory of every individuals has the right to choose what they what to do, or listen too. When a member of the mod squad is visiting Nick in the hospital after he nearly died of a nicotine over dose, he places a gun on the table right in front of Joey, Nick’s son. Immediatly Joey is intrigued with the weapon, then retracts his actions and says, â€Å" gunsshould be treated with respect†. The other member swats his hand away, and is clearly annoyed by his behaviour which then makes me think of them as hypocrits. The captain sends a briefcase full of money to Naylor’s hotel when he is in California and tell’s him that he must visit â€Å"Marlboro Man†, Lorne Lutchwho has been diagnosed with Cancer. Naylor is to try and bribe Lutch into accepting the money in exchange for silence, and to retract all his previous comments towards the tobacco industry. In this scene Naylor is very good at convincing the Marlboro Man into taking the money, simply because he uses his best tactics of negotiation to lure him into thinking that by taking the money he might feel better about himself in the sense that now he has money to perhaps be able to pay medical bills to help him prolong his life. Give him the right reatment and he might just fight the cancer. Social Responsibility in Thank You for Smoking I think that the part when Senator Finistirre is doing his speech about putting the poison logo on every cigarette package is an example of social responsibility. Because as the Senator of Vermont, he is standing up against the tobacco industry and educating the younger generation as well as the older, of how harmful it is. Society as a whole will eventually embrace this campaign and learn how to educate others of tobacco use. In 1952, Readers digest slammed the tobacco industry by stating that it had some health risks associated with smoking. This then lead to the invention of â€Å"filters† in cigarette’s and thus resulted in more people buying the product. This is an example of social responsibility because when there were public outcry’s of how unhealthy it was smoking the cigarette’s (back in the 50’s) the tobacco industry improvised and came out with a solution to diminish the amount of chemicals being inhaled. Speaking to the press, Naylor swears he will clear the names of those mentioned in the Heather Holloway’s recent article, where she bashes Naylor as well as the Mod squad. (? ) Ethics and Social Responsibility – Tana In the movie Thank You for Smoking, there are quite a few examples where you will find how ethics and social responsibility is exercised, and not always in a positive way. The main character Nick Naylor, is a lobbyist who works for a Tobacco Company. Naylor is a smooth talker who slyly turns the words around in a conversation and turns it on the people who are against him. Thank You for Smoking Ethical issues brought up in the movie, â€Å" Thank You for Smoking† : When Nick Naylor appears on the talk show along side with the cancer patient and he basically turns the situation around so that the tabocco industry isn’t to blame for the young boy being diagonosed with cancer from smoking, and in fact by people dying from using their product the industry wouldn’t be making any profit. The â€Å"mod squad†, which stands for merchants of death, in the movie, all the people who are a part of this group are well aware that the products that they sell and promote are generally appealing to the younger generation that contributes to hundreds and thousands of deaths a year, yet they continue to defend them. In one scene Naylor is helping his son do homework, he teaches his son about how to argue something he is writing about. Naylor says ,† that’s the beauty of arguement, because if you argue correctly you’re never wrong†. This is teaching his son that no matter what he side he decides to be on, if he keeps on argueing and finds some usable facts to support his arguement he will always be right. Naylor doesn’t address the issues head on necessarily, in fact the way he approaches how to argue that tobacco is poison and that you shouldn’t smoke it etc, is he simply just goes with his theory of every individuals has the right to choose what they what to do, or listen too. When a member of the mod squad is visiting Nick in the hospital after he nearly died of a nicotine over dose, he places a gun on the table right in front of Joey, Nick’s son. Immediatly Joey is intrigued with the weapon, then retracts his actions and says, â€Å" gunsshould be treated with respect†. The other member swats his hand away, and is clearly annoyed by his behaviour which then makes me think of them as hypocrits. The captain sends a briefcase full of money to Naylor’s hotel when he is in California and tell’s him that he must visit â€Å"Marlboro Man†, Lorne Lutchwho has been diagnosed with Cancer. Naylor is to try and bribe Lutch into accepting the money in exchange for silence, and to retract all his previous comments towards the tobacco industry. In this scene Naylor is very good at convincing the Marlboro Man into taking the money, simply because he uses his best tactics of negotiation to lure him into thinking that by taking the money he might feel better about himself in the sense that now he has money to perhaps be able to pay medical bills to help him prolong his life. Give him the right reatment and he might just fight the cancer. Social Responsibility in Thank You for Smoking I think that the part when Senator Finistirre is doing his speech about putting the poison logo on every cigarette package is an example of social responsibility. Because as the Senator of Vermont, he is standing up against the tobacco industry and educating the younger generation as well as the older, of how harmful it is. Society as a whole will eventually embrace this campaign and learn how to educate others of tobacco use. In 1952, Readers digest slammed the tobacco industry by stating that it had some health risks associated with smoking. This then lead to the invention of â€Å"filters† in cigarette’s and thus resulted in more people buying the product. This is an example of social responsibility because when there were public outcry’s of how unhealthy it was smoking the cigarette’s (back in the 50’s) the tobacco industry improvised and came out with a solution to diminish the amount of chemicals being inhaled. Speaking to the press, Naylor swears he will clear the names of those mentioned in the Heather Holloway’s recent article, where she bashes Naylor as well as the Mod squad. (? ) Ethics and Social Responsibility – Tana In the movie Thank You for Smoking, there are quite a few examples where you will find how ethics and social responsibility is exercised, and not always in a positive way. The main character Nick Naylor, is a lobbyist who works for a Tobacco Company. Naylor is a smooth talker who slyly turns the words around in a conversation and turns it on the people who are against him.

Progress Report Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Progress Report - Essay Example For example, in this case, a business might introduce various promotions and selling activities to make sure its market share remains high. (Kevinlane Keller and Kotler, 2000) Scenario planning is also used by various exporting business as a part of their strategic management policies to counter problems caused by uncertainty. For example, in our case we are analyzing a business which exports organic clothing to India. This involves certain processes which are not under control such as crops that are used to manufacture clothes and textile mills which are going manufacture these crops into raw cloth. Exporting process is a tough job and time management is extremely necessary, otherwise the importing companies which are based in Europe and the US do not accept the cloth. The rules are so strict that even if the exporting companies are one day late, these companies cancel the order and exporting companies suffer huge losses. Now let's look at the situation of our clothing company in light of PEST analysis of India. As we all know that India is biggest democracy in the world and perhaps the biggest economy of all emerging market economies of the world. In the recent year, we know that India has faced problems like terrorism and strikes. During these strikes all the business activity is ceased in India. This causes a lot of problem for exporting business and they have to plan head and keep themselves ahead of the deadline. So, considering the political environment of India and acts of terrorism, our organic clothing company will have to be very cautious of political situation of India and will have to be ahead of time, so that it does not find its buyers canceling orders. This can be done by telling textile firms and farmers that they need the particular quantity of material on the specified dates and keep check and balance by visiting the sites such as farms and textile factories to see that both the farms and factories will be able to provide the necessary amount of material at the specified d ates. If these farms and factories do not provide the firms with the specified material, the firm should use its contingency plan, to make sure it does not lag behind the shipment data. These contingencies plans can be buying cloth that is already available in the market and then process it and export it to the USA and Europe. This way, our clothing firm can beat the political challenges that are there in the Indian economy. (CNN IBN Video Report on Terrorism in India, 2008) If we look at economic analysis we will find out that Indian economy relies on old and unreliable infrastructure. This infrastructure often gets badly damage and does not function properly in case of rains and other natural catastrophes. In order to remove this problem, firm can contract an international firm like Fed-Ex or any other big name in the market to make sure that its material always reaches the buyers on time (Data Monitor, 2008). Similarly, another problem in the Indian economy is less mechanization and more dependence on unskilled labor. This labor often spoils the whole lot, which is a big profit-reducer for our firm. Our firm therefore, should try to invest on R& D to make sure that we transfer the best technology to India which will not only increase our reputation in the international market, but this will also help us into becoming more efficient and

IMC Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3000 words

IMC - Essay Example Investment in large inventories believed to have an adverse effect on a firm’s cash flow as well as working capital. It basically represents a considerable portion of entire capital investment in any entity. It is in as a result essential to create a balance between the advantages of having a resources inventory of resources and the costs associated with maintenance in order to establish the optimum inventory level associated with each and every resources and keep the inventory costs minimal. Holding of stock can be quite expensive and hence controls are necessary to make sure that stock levels are kept at as low as possible. Stocks need to be controlled based on rational policies to create a balance between the cost of holding and the demand for the same. One of the approaches often adopted is the economic order quantity for stock replenishment which results into lowered holding cost reduces as well as a low total yearly inventory cost. Although maintaining exact EOQ is somet ime impossible, working within vicinity of it outcomes in lower total yearly inventory cost is possible and commendable. Holding cost is considered a straight line that directly varies with ordering quantity. This is according to the classic EOQ model and is substantially true for non-perishable products. This research will check through linear regression the relation of holding cost with time and quantity that it is a curve. Introduction In the period of recession of each and every firm is keen on to cutting their costs and inventory cost management plays a vital role in this endeavor. Managing inventory effectively is an important way of regulating costs and, as a result, improving the profitability of organization. Given that a higher quantity is not the best †¦ and a lower quantity is not similarly the best †¦ there has to be some â€Å"Economic order quantity (EOQ)† which ensures minimal total variable costs associated with the inventory (Cardenas 950). Total v ariable costs are often computed based on a yearly terms and incorporates two components, which are the costs of ordering and holding inventory. Yearly ordering cost is defined as the number of orders that one places multiplied by the marginal or incremental cost one incurs for every order. This incremental cost incorporates various components such as the costs of preparing purchase orders, making pay for vendor's invoice, as well costs associated with inspection and handling of the material upon arrival. It is not easy to estimate these components precisely but a ball?park figure is good a good option for doing this. The holding costs are used within the EOQ model needs to also be marginal in nature. Such may include although not limited to insurance, taxes, as well as storage charges (Liberatore 394). Some of the entities also include the interest cost associated with the money tied up within the inventory. In classical EOQ model, as the quantity rises holding cost as well rise pr oportionally i.e. it remains lineal to the time function although in real life, the cumulative holding cost is indeed a convex time function due to the fact that the handling and holding costs work side by side to rise alongside cumulative rise in daily cost due to wastage, pilferage as well as obsolescence (Liberatore 395). This is however not common with non-perishable goods such as

China and Globalization Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

China and Globalization - Essay Example Hence, regardless of the final outcome, the Third Plenum and its aftermath represent a defining moment in the history of the economic modernization of China. At first, Deng supported modernization with negligible central involvement so as to eliminate the barriers created by centralization, which had pushed China to its 1978 crisis. Eventually, the emphasis remained on modernization, yet with centralized macro-control. Deng had successfully loosened the grip of central planners, who had attempted to diminish, disrupt, and unsettle his Western-based market socialism (Zhang 38). Deng’s approaches to economic modernization were rooted in the idea that the inflexibility of Mao Tse Tsung’s economic policy should be abandoned. Mao Tse Tung enforced balancing socialist ideals in a state of China’s historical economic retardation. Thus, the emerging status of China as a global leader started with the vision of Deng Xiaoping when he became the Communist Party’s frontrunner in 1978 (Waters 2). With Deng’s rise to power, China started its journey toward global leadership. On the 10th of October 1978, Deng tersely discussed one facet of his agenda for China. To progress, he thought, China had to attain what he referred to as the four ‘modernization’—modernization of science and technology, national defense, agriculture, and industry (Waters 2). He believed that China should gain knowledge of other countries’ best practices and acquire massive foreign support. As a point of departure for progress, he supported the launching of latest technology and facilities as created by other countries. Deng’s recommendation, especially with regard to gaining knowledge from other countries and launching cutting-edge technology, is still considered by incumbent Chinese leaders (Zhang 44). On the 23rd of October 1985, Deng stressed to his government officials that nothing separates a market

Research Critique of Ostomy patients' perceptions of quality of care Essay

Research Critique of Ostomy patients' perceptions of quality of care - Essay Example The discussions are based on the researchers' ability to demonstrate an understanding of the qualitative paradigm and the particular qualitative method being used, if the problem clearly delineated with an appropriate rationale for using a qualitative approach, if the purpose for the study one of discovery and description, conceptualization (theory building), illusions, or sensitization, if the researcher-respondent relationship is understood and if the role of the researcher as "research tool" is apparent. This research critique carefully assessed the importance of a research paper for the improvement of the quality nursing care given to Ostomy patients. Recommendations would not be effective unless the process before setting up a recommendation is to be found true, correct and free from any bias. Centuries had already passed and compared to the world way back centuries ago, people today are more knowledgeable, and curios about the things going on around us. Compared to the lifestyle of the olden days, there are things which they believe is indescribable and even tuberculosis has no cure. Today, there are many things that science can do. It is no doubt then, that today's technological era has been achieved by the careful research of scientists, engineers and concerned people who aims to improve something which is inline with their forte. Through thorough research, things have been achieved which changes the world, that is why, careful and truthful research is essential. Can you imagine a world being deceived by false research It could not only harm the world and the society, malicious research, especially medical researches could cause death to patients instead of nursing them to make them better. In the research conducted by Persson, Eva PhD RN ETN; Gustavsson, Bengt PhD MD; Hellstrm, Anna-Lena PhD RN; Lappas, George BSc and Hultn, Leif PhD MD entitled Ostomy patients' perceptions of quality of care [ISSUES AND INNOVATIONS IN NURSING PRACTICE], the researchers aim to improve the nursing practices towards Ostomy patients to be able to provide them with quality care. They have fully understood and identified the needs of Ostomy patients, though following the qualitative research, it lacks the identification and thorough explanation of what Stoma is all about. They should have clearly defined Stoma and give a narrative explanation which would enable readers to picture out the severity if this illness. Through this, the reader would understand how and why it is important to focus on issues and innovations in nursing practice with regards to the quality care given to Ostomy patients. Before continuing with the research, the researchers should have also explained in clear, straightforward terms, all aspects of living with a stoma, including ways to feel more comfortable with it, and helps you overcome any embarrassment a patient may feel when talking to doctors and other healthcare professionals, to be able to get the best possible help and support. For those who have stoma, the surgery is life-saving, but they can be hard to adjust to, and even though no-one may know that a person have stoma it can make a patient feel

Care of Vulnerable people Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Care of Vulnerable people - Essay Example One of the reasons that might result in schizophrenia are genes associated with the family where the man comes from, which caused alteration of the brain structure. Secondly, the man can be born with a risk of developing mental illness when he attempts to use harmful drugs such as illicit drugs. Often, depressions such as family tensions may cause mental illness to be developed by the persons (Calder, 2010). This condition of schizophrenia is of priority to the country so much since it needs to intervene by ensuring there is education regarding those who have this kind of mental illness. The patient may recover as he can learn topics that enable him to adapt to changes needed to manage the disease and acquires life skills. It is a concern of the government since it hires the personnel (Lambert, Naber & Killackey, 2012). Nurses also play the important roles in efforts of fighting against schizophrenia. One of the roles is that they give patients medicines that decrease symptoms by equalizing the chemical in the brain. The nurses also offer support to the affected (Frank & Cobb, 2005). Vulnerability is defined both as psychological and physiological. Psychological vulnerability is a trend of developing panic disorder over harmful occasions or even additional alerts that arise from experiences, which have predictions and control. Biological vulnerability is a tendency of a body of a person to be neurobiological much reactive to stress. This client diagnosed with schizophrenia is at a high risk since they exhibit a greater frequency neurological signs, which are not accurate at an early development of the children of the affected parents. Risk is the chances of having effects such as illness to occur as a result of physical or biological factors over a specified period. On the other hand, resilience is the ability of someone to adapt to depressions and stress in a proper way. Risk increases high chances of

Film Analysis - The Joy Luck Club - Prajakta Kanegaonkar Essay

Film Analysis - The Joy Luck Club - Prajakta Kanegaonkar - Essay Example Going ahead this becomes a major point of clash between the two generations, none comprehending and understanding other’s view point. For the women in the film ‘The Joy Luck Club’ we see this struggle going on constantly. In this essay based on the film, we are going to analyse this clash of culture as strong as generation gap and how the women in the film try to bridge the gap in the relations with the help of their values and cultures. This film is based on the novel by Amy Tan by the same name. This was completed and released in the year 1993 and received critical as well as mainstream acclaim. This movie and the book is based on the lives of four Chinese women who came to America because of some or the other reason and settled there. They came together and found the club called ‘The Joy Luck Club’ indicating that they would always find joy and happiness wherever they go and would not let circumstances affect them. The story could have happened any where in this world. Howsoever torn we are with the extreme circumstances around us we don’t give up and nor should we. The name of the club in itself is an indicator of the ever going hopeful attitude of the ladies who have formed the club. There are many stories that go on at the same time in the film. Unlike the book the director of the film has to make choices about which character to bring to surface and which one should relegate at the background. Irrespective of a few characters going in the background the weave of the story is not loosened. In fact all these characters contribute to the protagonist’s sketch very beautifully. The purpose of including Jing-Mei in the club is to tell her about her half-sisters in China, whom her mother longed to be reunited with all her life. The seamless flow of the story begins at this point. The story is not about Jing-Mei fulfilling her mother’s last wish. The story narrates the highs and lows of her relationship with h er mother, of broken moments, of tears and joys and most importantly of discovering her mother all over again. The story ends with Jing-Mei meeting her sisters and introducing them the mother they never had. The journey of a relation begins with self-discovery and acceptance of our own self and then the closed ones around us as they are. This journey is portrayed beautifully in the book but is also conveyed with same passion by the actors through their excellent acting and by the powerful media of cinema. The movie impacts the audience as much as the impact caused by the book on the reader. History and traditions are carried forward by the women of the society all around the world. This handing over happens seamlessly through stories, through teachings of pride, memories and is blended beautifully in the upbringing of the children. When we go through the stories of the club members, it becomes increasingly apparent that the cultural gaps between America and China would never be full y reconciled. The question arises when women in the film are trying to blend into a new culture of individualism, freedom of speech and decisions and free thought they are unable to let go of their Chinese ties and traditions. Surprisingly each of them has been a direct or indirect victim of the same ties and tradition. The daughters Jing-Mei, Lena, Waverly and Rose are all American women, because they don’t want to be a part of their Chinese heritage. This is what worries the mothers in the club, while their trying to preserve the Chinese traditions

Case Study 2 Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words - 1

Case Study 2 - Essay Example During 1970s quite a few environmental laws and regulations were framed with an effort to control ocean dumping. President Nixon addressed to Congress on banning of unauthorized and harmful waste dumping on the ocean. Subsequently Environmental Protection Agency passed a bill to the Congress which resulted in formation of Marine Protection, Research, and Sanctuaries Act 1972. It established a permit system for ocean dumping with a view to end all oceans dumping by 1975. EPA along with the Army Corps of Engineers began to issue permit for dumping of waste in ocean. On October 15, 1973, the EPA issued its final regulations and criteria’s for ocean dumping which were strict and highly restrictive. It aimed at terminating all oceans’ dumping regardless of the permit issued to the applicant. It led to a highly protective approach to ocean dumping. But the scenario changed in 1980s when New York City authorities filed a suit in a federal district court against EPA on the rejection of its application on dumping waste in the ocean. The verdict was delivered in favor of city and the power of EPA to terminate ocean dumping was limited. As a consequence of the verdict EPA adopted a more flexible rules regarding ocean dumping and viewed ocean as an authorized disposal option of dumping wastes. 3) The change in the administration with the President ship of Ronald Reagan led EPA to move away from confronting intergovernmental relations and to comply with federal stance towards municipal sludge dumping. 2) The passing of bill by EPA to Congress which resulted in formation of MPRS Act 1972 also changed the ocean dumping policy. A more strict dumping system was followed and permit system was started for dumping of wastes. Ocean dumping should not be allowed liberally. Strict rules regarding dumping of wastes should be adopted by the government. There is already enough pollution in the water world due to various oil tragedies like the Gulf Oil

The novel the help by kathryn stockett Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

The novel the help by kathryn stockett - Essay Example The diverse views of the characters indicate the behaviour of the characters, which help us understand the character development in this novel. For the case of Skeeter, we see her change her priorities throughout the novel. For instance, at first, she aspires to become a journalist for a well-known paper; she began writing answers for a local magazine and later she is seen offering advice on cleaning and cooking among other house chores. The author makes Skeeter to appear different from other white women by exhibiting her bravely, which is admirable by the audience (Kathryn, 69). She comes out strong as a defender of the house help. She exposes all the bad life the maids undergo under the hands of her friends. This is true when we see her long-term relationship with Stuart ends. The character development of Skeeter can be well approached through a focus of her relationship with situations and other characters such as Constantine and her author Kathryn Stockett. One of the fundamental moves that shape Skeeter’s character development as the protagonist in the novel The Help is her decision to move away from the social helm held by the white women. This allowed her to shape her character as exemplary amongst the white dominated populace that lived discriminative of the black house cleaners. It is observable that her decision is not expectable in the setting of this novel. This implies that, she takes a bold step conscious of the outcome which includes discrimination by her friends, which is evident. It is satisfactory that, the Skeeter character revolves around her relationship with other characters and certain scenarios in the novel. In the thirteen chapters of the novel, Skeeter is seen as a character that seeks the truth, kind and committed to help the less advantaged in the society. Constantine is a black woman hired to take care of Skeeter. Skeeter turns to develop very strong and close relationship with the woman.

Classical Music Essay Example for Free

Classical Music Essay Kerala (/ˈkeÉ ªrÉ™lÉ™/), also known as Keralam (/ˈkeÉ ªrÉ™lÉ™m/) is a state located in the south-west region of India on the Malabar coast. Thiruvananthapuram is the state capital among the 14 districts; other major cities include Kochi andKozhikode. At a population of 33,388,000 in 2011, the state has the lowest population growth rate. It also has the highest literacy rate; It is also considered as the cleanest state in India. Production of pepper and natural rubber constitute prominent output in the total national output, as well as in the agricultural sector, coconut, tea, coffee, cashew, spices are important. Climate Kerala has a wet and maritime tropical climate influenced by the seasonal heavy rains of the southwest summer monsoon and northeast winter monsoon. Agriculture Kerala produces 97% of the national output of black pepper[180] and accounts for 85% of the area under natural rubber in the country.[181][66] Coconut, tea,coffee, cashew, and spices—including cardamom, vanilla, cinnamon, and nutmeg—comprise a critical agricultural sector.[182][183][184][185][89][186] The key agricultural staple is rice, with varieties grown in extensive paddy fields Fisheries Kerala is one of the leading producers of fish in India. about 1.1 million people earn their livelihood from fishing and allied activities such as drying, processing, packaging, exporting and transporting fisheries. Culture-Dance The culture of Kerala is composite and cosmopolitan in nature and its an integral part of Indian culture. Kerala is home to a number of performance arts. These include five classical dance forms: Kathakali, Mohiniyattam, Koodiyattom, Thullal andKrishnanattam, Culture-Music: Carnatic music dominates Keralite traditional music. Development of classical music in Kerala is attributed to the contributions it received from the traditional performance arts associated with the temple culture of Kerala. Culture-Cuisine- Kerala cuisine has a multitude of both vegetarian and non-vegetarian dishes prepared using fish, poultry and meat Elephants Elephants have been an integral part of culture of the state. Kerala is home to the largest domesticated population of elephant in India—about 700 Indian elephants, owned by temples as well as individuals.[324] These elephants are mainly employed for the processions and displays associated with festivals celebrated all around the state. Tourism Kerala is a tourist destination: the backwaters, beaches, Ayurvedic tourism, and tropical greenery are among its major attractions. Keralas beaches, backwaters, mountain ranges and wildlife sanctuaries are the major attractions for both domestic and international tourists. The city of Kochi ranks first in the total number of international and domestic tourists in Kerala. RÄ jasthÄ n, ) Known as The land of kings, is the largest state of the Republic of Indiaby area. It is located in the northwest of India. Jaipur is the capital and the largest city of the state. Eastern Rajasthan has the world famous Keoladeo National Park near Bharatpur, a World Heritage Site known for its bird life. It also has two national tiger reserves, Ranthambore and Sariska Tiger Reserve, and a famous temple in Khatu, Sikar district, Language: Rajasthani is the main spoken language of the state, although Hindi and English are used for official purposes. It is spoken by 13 million people in Rajasthan and o ther states of India. Economy Rajasthans economy is primarily agricultural and pastoral. Wheat and barley are cultivated over large areas, as are pulses, sugarcane, and oilseeds.Cotton and tobacco are the states cash crops. Rajasthan is among the largest producers of edible oils in India and the second largest producer ofoilseeds. Rajasthan is also the biggest wool-producing state in India and the main opium producer and consumer. There are mainly two crop seasons. The water for irrigation comes from wells and tanks. The Indira Gandhi Canal irrigates northwestern Rajasthan. The main industries are mineral based, agriculture based, and textiles. Rajasthan is the second largest producer of polyester fibre in India. Rajasthan is pre-eminent in quarrying and mining in India The state is the second largest source of cement in India Tourism: Endowed with natural beauty and a great history, tourism is a flourishing industry in Rajasthan. The palaces of Jaipur and Ajmer-Pushkar, the lakes of Udaipur, the desert forts of Jodhpur, Taragarh Fort (Star Fort) in Bundi, and Bikaner and Jaisalmer rank among the most preferred destinations in India for many tourists both Indian and foreign. Culture: The Ghoomar dance from Udaipur and Kalbeliya dance of Jaisalmer have gained international recognition. Folk music is a vital part of Rajasthani culture.Kathputli, Bhopa, Chang, Teratali, Ghindr, Kachchhighori, Tejaji etc. are the examples of the traditional Rajasthani culture. Rajasthan is known for its traditional, colorful art.wall painting in bundi . The block prints, tie and dye prints, Bagaru prints, Sanganer prints, and Zariembroidery are major export products from Rajasthan. Handicraft items like wooden furniture and handicrafts, carpets, and blue pottery are some of the things commonly found here. Rajasthani clothes have a lot of mirror-work and embroidery. A Rajasthani traditional dress for females comprises an ankle length skirt and a short top, also known as a lehenga or a chaniya choli. Cuisne Rajasthani cooking was influenced by both the war-like lifestyles of its inhabitants and the availability of ingredients in this arid region.[1] Food that could last for several days and could be eaten without heating was preferred. Rajasthani cuisine is a splendid array of colorful, spicy and unique dishes. Rajasthani food is incomplete without the mention of the famedDal-Baati-Churma, a distinctive dish of the state. Amir Khusrau AmÄ «rKhusrow was an Indian musician, scholar and poet. He was an iconic figure in the cultural history of the Indian subcontinent. A Sufi mystic and a spiritual disciple of Nizamuddin Auliya of Delhi, AmÄ «r Khusrow was not only a notable poet but also a prolific and seminal musician. He wrote poetry primarily in Persian, but also in Hindavi. He compiled the oldest known printed dictionary (Khaliq-e-bari ) in 1320 which mainly dealt with Hindvi and Persian words. He is regarded as the father of qawwali. He is also credited with enriching Hindustani classical music by introducing Persian and Arabic elements in it, and was the originator of the khayal and tarana styles of music. The invention of the tabla is also traditionally attributed to AmÄ «r Khusrow. Early life and background AmÄ «r Khusrow was born in Patiyali in Uttar Pradesh. His father, AmÄ «r Sayf ud-DÄ «n MahmÃ… «d, was a Turkic officer and a member of the Lachin tribe of Transoxania, themselves belonging to the Kara-Khitais.[5][6][7] His mother was the daughter of Rawat Arz, the famous war minister of Balban, and belonged to the Rajput tribes of Uttar Pradesh Khusrow the royal poet Khusrow was a prolific classical poet associated with the royal courts of more than seven rulers of the Delhi Sultanate. He is popular in much of North India and Pakistan, because of many playful riddles, songs and legends attributed to him. Through his enormous literary output and the legendary folk personality, Khusrow represents one of the first (recorded) Indian personages with a true multi-cultural or pluralistic identity. Last Days I 321 Mubarak Khilji was murdered and Ghiyath al-Din Tughluq came to power. Khusro started to write theTughluqnama. 1325 Sultan Muhammad bin Tughluq came to power. Nizamuddin Auliya died, and six months later so did Khusrow . Khusrow s tomb is next to that of his master in the Nizamuddin Dargah of Delhi. - Tulsi Das TulsiDas also known as Goswami Tulsidas), was a Hindu poet-saint, reformer and philosopher renowned for his devotion to the god Rama. A composer of several popular works, he is best known as the author of the epicRamcharitmanas, a retelling of the Sanskrit Ramayana in the vernacular Awadhi. Tulsidas was acclaimed in his lifetime to be a reincarnation ofValmiki, the composer of the original Ramayana in Sanskrit.[4] He is also considered to be the composer of the Hanuman Chalisa, a popular devotional hymn dedicated to Hanuman, the divine devotee of Rama.[5] Tulsidas lived permanently and died in the city of Varanasi.[6] The Tulsi Ghat in Varnasi is named after him.[3] He founded the Sankatmochan Temple dedicated to Hanuman in Varanasi, believed to stand at the place where he had the sight of Hanuman.[7] Tulsidas started the Ramlila plays, a folk-theatre adaption of the Ramayana.[8] He has been acclaimed as one of the greatest poets in Hindi, Indian, and world literature.[9][10][11][12] The impact of Tulsidas and his works on the art, culture and society in India is widespread and is seen to date in vernacular language, Ramlila plays, Hindustani classical music, popular music, and television series. Tulsidas is believed to be a reincarnation of Valmiki Early life Birth Tulsidas was born on the seventh day of the bright half of the lunar Hindu month Shraavana (July–August). After renunciation, Tulsidas spent most of his time at Varanasi, Prayag, Ayodhya, and Chitrakuta but visited many other nearby and far-off places. He traveled across India to many places, studying different people, meeting saints and Sadhus and meditating Tulsidas died at the Assi Ghat on the bank of the river Ganga in the Shraavan (July–August) month of the year Vikram 1680 (1623 CE). Like the year of his birth, traditional accounts and biographers do not agree on the exact date of his death. Different sources give the date as the third day of the bright half, seventh day of the bright half, or the third day of the dark half.[77][78] - Works Kamban Kambar (Kampan in casual address) was a medieval Tamil poet and the author of the Tamil Ramayanam Ramavatharam, popularly known as Kambaramayanam, the Tamil version of Ramayana. He was born in the 12th century in Tiruvaluntur in Tanjore district - Life Kambar belonged to the Ochchan or Occhan caste, traditionally nadaswaram players in southern India.[3][4] But he was brought up in the household of a wealthy farmer in Vennai Nellur in south India. The Chola king having heard of this talented bard, summoned him to his court and honoured him with the title Kavi Chakravarthi or The Emperor of Poets. The Ramavataram or Kamba Ramayanam of Kamban is an epic of about 11,000 stanzas as opposed to Valmikis 24000 couplets. Kamba Ramayana is not a translation of the Sanskrit epic by Valmiki, but an original retelling of the story of the God Rama. The poetic work is well known for its similes. Many Tamil poets, statesmen, kings and common people have praised Kambar for his Kambaramayanam which has more than 10000 songs forming one of the greatest epics of Tamil. Kambaramayanam has more than 45000 lines. Thyagaraja Kakarla Tyagabrahmam (May 4, 1767–January 6, 1847), was one of the greatest composers of Carnatic music or classical South Indian music. He was a prolific composer and highly influential in the development of the South Indian classical music tradition. Tyagaraja composed thousands of devotional compositions, most in praise of Lord Rama — many of which remain popular today. Of special mention are five of his compositions called the Pancharatna Krithis (English: five gems), which are often sung in programs in his honor. Tyagaraja was born in 1767 in Tiruvarur, Tiruvarur district, in what is now called Tamil Nadu, to Kakarla Ramabrahmam and Sitamma in a Telugu Brahmin family of the Mulukanadu subsect He was named Tyagaraja after Lord Tyagaraja, the presiding deity of the temple at Tiruvarur. Tyagaraja began his musical training under Sri Sonthi Ramanayya, a music scholar, at an early age. He regarded music as a way to experience Gods love. His objective while practising music was purely devotional, as opposed to focusing on the technicalities of classical music. Tyagaraja, who was totally immersed in his devotion to Lord Rama and led the most spartan way of life without bothering in the least for the comforts of the world, The songs he composed were widespread in their popularity. due to the labour of love by these musicians and researchers, there is a definitive collection of Thyagarajas music. However out of 24,000 thousand songs said to have been composed, about 700 songs remain known. Tyagaraja Aradhana, the commemorative music festival is held every year at Thiruvaiyaru in the months of January to February in Tyagarajas honour. This is a week-long festival of music where various Carnatic musicians from all over the world converge at his resting place. SAROD The sarod is a stringed musical instrument, used mainly in Indian classical music. Along with the sitar, it is the most popular and prominent instrument in Hindustani (northern Indian, Bangladeshi and Pakistani) classical music. The sarod is known for a deep, weighty, introspective sound, in contrast with the sweet, overtone-rich texture of the sitar, with sympathetic strings that give it a resonant, reverberant quality. It is a fretless instrument able to produce the continuous slides between notes known as meend (glissandi), which is important to Indian music. The sarod is believed by some to have descended from the Afghan rubab, a similar instrument originating in Central Asia and Afghanistan. The nameSarod roughly translates to beautiful sound or melody in Persian . Design The design of the instrument depends on the school (gharana) of playing. There are three distinguishable types, discussed below. The conventional sarod is an 17 to 25-stringed lute-like instrument — four to five main strings used for playing the melody, one or two drone strings, twochikari strings and nine to eleven sympathetic strings. The design of this early model is generally credited to Niyamatullah Khan of the Lucknow Gharana as well as Ghulam Ali Khan of the Gwalior-Bangash Gharana. Among the contemporary sarod players, this basic design is kept intact by two streams of sarod playing Another type is that designed by Allauddin Khan and his brother Ayet Ali Khan. This instrument, referred to by David Trasoff (Trasoff, 2000) as the 1934 Maihar Prototype, is larger and longer than the conventional instrument, though the fingerboard is identical to the traditional sarod described above. This instrument has 25 strings in all. Sarod strings are made either of steel or phosphor bronze. Early sarod players used plain wire plectrums, which yield a soft, ringing tone. Playing The lack of frets and the tension of the strings make the sarod a very demanding instrument to play, as the strings must be pressed hard against the fingerboard. There are two approaches to stopping the strings of the sarod. One involves using the tip of ones fingernails to stop the strings, and the other uses a combination of the nail and the fingertip to stop the strings against the fingerboard

Designing lesson plan Essay Example for Free

Designing lesson plan Essay Introduction A. Background To achieve the Content Standard (Standar Isi) in the curriculum which covers the Competency Standard (Standar Kompetensi (SK)) and the Basic Competency (Kompetensi Dasar(KD)), students should go through the teaching and learning process. Educational Ministry Regulation number 41, the year of 2007 about the Process Standard states that every school teacher should make Lesson Plans (Rencana Pelaksanaan Pembelajaran(RPP)) to foster the teaching and learning process to be interactive, inspirative, joyful, challenging, motivating the students to participate actively, and giving enough opportunities to them to be innovative, creative and self reliance according to their talents, motivations, and physical as well as psychological development. Through out this module, the important elements of a lesson plan will be discussed. You are supposed to be able to implement your knowledge concerning language teaching and learning such as language competency, methodology and approaches to foreign language learning, media and learning resources, and language assessment in developing lesson plans. By completing of every parts presented in this module you will be able to design lesson plans which can fulfill the required process standard mentioned above. B. Objective Through the elaborations and the discussions of important factors and elements in lesson planning, you will be prepared to be able to carry out the teaching and learning process as requested by the new curriculum (KTSP) C. Indicators After completing this module you are supposed to be able to : 1. state the important elements of lesson planning. 2. determine the indicators of achieving the basic competencies 3. formulate the objectives of the teaching and learning 4. select relevant learning materials 5. plan the stages of teaching and learning activities 6. assess the students achievements DESIGNING LESSON PLAN A. The Concept of Lesson Plan Activity 1 Instructions : Think about these three questions Discuss them; how they relate to the lesson planning A lesson plan is a teachers detailed description of the course of instruction for an individual lesson. (Wikipedia, accessed on the 6th of September 2009). The government regulation No. 19, the year of 2005 states that the planning for instructional process covers the sylabus and the lesson plan containing the purpose, learning materials, methodology, the learning resources and the evaluation. Those are the components of a lesson plan. But by the discussion you have just done, we may conclude that those components could be summarized into three important aspects; the purpose of the instruction (question 1), the learning activity (question2), and the feedback or evaluation (question3). Based on the ministry regulation, number 41, year 2007, the process standard, it was explained that a Lesson plan is the elaboration of syllabus which illustrates the teaching and learning activities to achieve the goals of the basic competency. Every teacher who uses school curriculum, should design a plan completely and systematically to make the teaching and learning interactive, inspirative, joyful, challenging, and be able to motivate students to be active, creative, and self reliance, in line with their talent, motivation, their physical and psychological development. This statement is mostly about the teaching and learning activities. Every stage of the lesson should be planned to fulfill the above requirements and make certain that the instructional objectives could be achieved. B. The components of a Lesson Plan Activity 2 Instructions : Share your experiences with your friends for the lesson plans you have ever made. Which components do you think is the most difficult to write? A Lesson plan is designed to meet the basic competencies, which can be carried out in one meeting or more. Things that should be written in the lesson plan are as follows: 1. Identity of the subject matter which consists of; a. Title of the lesson b. Class/ Semester c. Program (especially for Senior High) d. Theme e. Time allotment 2. Competency Standard Competency Standard is the qualification of the students’ minimal ability, which illustrates the mastery of knowledge, attitude, and skill obtained through each class or semester for every subject. 3. Basic Competency Basic competency is a sum of students’ ability for certain subjects as the reference for determining the indicators for competency achievement in a subject. 4. Indicator for competency achievement The measurable or observable behavior, which shows the achievement of specific basic competency as the reference for the subject evaluation. The indicators for competency achievement are formulated with operational verbs that can be measured which cover the knowledge, attitude, and skills. 5. The Instructional goal Instructional goal illustrates the process and the learning outcome achieved by the students in accordance to the basic competency 6. Instructional material It includes the fact, concept, principle, and the relevant procedure, and written as suitable items in relation to the indicators for competency achievement. 7. Time allotment Time is allocated as much as needed to achieve the Basic competency and the learning load. 8. Methodology Methods are used by teachers to create the teaching and learning process to enable the students to achieve the basic competency or a set of specified indicators. The choice of methods should consider the students’ situation and condition as well as the characteristics of every indicators and the competency which will be achieved in every subjects. 9. Learning activities a) Pre- activity This activity is done at the beginning of the lesson and meant for arousing the students’ motivation and to focuss the students’ attention as well, so that they can particà ­pate actively during the lesson. b) Whilst activity This is the main learning process and aimed at achieving the basic competency. This activity is conducted interactively, inspiratively, joyfully, chalenging, motivating the students to participate actively, and giving opportunities to the students to have innovation, creativity, and selfreliance in accordance to their talent, motivation, physical and psychological development. This activity is conducted systematically through exploration, elaboration, and conformation processes. c) Post activity This activity is done to end the lesson which can be in the form of summarizing, evaluation, reflection, feedback , and follow up activities. Stages of Learning Activity : 10. Evaluation The procedure and the instruments for assessment should be based on the indicators for competency achievement and refer to the evaluation standard 11. Learning Resource Selecting the learning resource should concider the competency standard and the basic competency, as well as the learning material, the teaching and learning activities and also the indicators for competency achievement. C. The Principles of Designing Lesson Plan Activity 3 Instructions : Take any English lesson plan you have had. Try to make a judgment for this (excellent, good, or poor) What criteria do you take for consideration? a. Individual differences Consider the individual differences concerning students’ level of mastery, interest, motivation, potential, emotion, learning style, special need, learning speed, socio cultural background, values, and living environment. b. Fostering students’ participation The lesson should be students-focus and fostering, crea ­tivity, initiative, inspiration, self reliance, and learning motivation. c. Developing students’ reading and writing habits Teaching and learning should develop students’ reading habits on various resources and their ability to express feelings and opinions in different forms of writing. d. Giving feedback and follow up A lesson plan should include activities which can give positive feedback, reinforcement, enrichment, and remedial. e. Link and Unity Lesson plan is designed considering the links and the unity among the competency standard, basic competency, learning material, instructional activities, and indicators for competency achievement, evaluation, and learning resources. Lesson plan should accommodate the thematic instructions, links with other subjects, across the learning aspects, and cultural diversity. f. Employing the information and communication technology Lesson plan is written to foster the use of information and communication technology, integrated, systematic, and effective depending on the situation and condition. D. The Stages of Developing a Lesson Plan A well developed lesson plan reflects interests and needs of students. It incorporates best practices for the educational field. (Skowron, Janice.2006). In Indonesian schooling, the Curriculum of School Level (KTSP) has already been set up by the content standard (SK) and the graduation standard (SKL). Therefore students should be able to achieve what so called the minimum requirements which have been stated in those two documents. The students’ interest relates to the learning materials and depends on how the learning activity is conducted. Therefore you must employ various kinds of methods and approaches. The use of teaching aids and media may also be inspiring and increasing the students’ motivation. According to the process standard (Educational Ministry Regulation no.41, the year of 2007) a lesson plan is a unit plan which covers one basic competency and the time span may be more than one meeting. But the English curriculum and syllabus developed in the content standard are directed to follow the two cycles (oral and written), and the four stages (building  knowledge of the field, model of the text, joint construction, and independent construction). Therefore, English lesson plans should be integrated units which may cover more than one single basic competency; listening and speaking for the oral cycle, reading and writing for the written cycle. Integrating all the four basic skills will also be possible. Here are the stages of designing an English Lesson Plan : Mapping the Competency Standard and the Basic Competency Determining the indicators for basic competency achievement Setting up the Purpose Selecting the Learning Material Structuring the stages of instruction Preparing the assessment The flow of a lesson development : 1. Mapping the Competency Standard and the Basic Competency This stage is ideally done when designing the syllabus. The Competency Standard and the Basic Competency which can directly picked up from the documents are to be analyzed and put into units. English or language in general has special characteristics which might be different from other subjects. The competency based curriculum developed in the content standard is prepared to teach students the communicative competency which covers the actional competence, linguistic competence, socio cultural competence, and strategic competence. The competencies are interrelated to each other and the core of those four competencies is the discourse competence. (Kurikulum Berbasis Kompetensi, Bahasa Inggris, 2004) Diagram 5: Model Kompetensi Komunikatif (Celce-Murcia et al. 1995:10) In general, there four Competency Standards; Listening, Speaking, Reading, and Writing which are states in the documents of content standard (SI), attachment for English subject. Your task is to select the basic competencies which can be combined into unit plans considering the suggested aproach in designing the stages of instruction (four stages in two cycles). Here is examples of mapping the basic competencies : Class VII/ Semester 1 SK 1 dan 3. KD Listening 1.1 dan KD Speaking 3.1 3.2 Merespon makna , melakukan : Tindak tutur : Menyapa orang yang belum/sudah dikenal Memperkenalkan diri sendiri/orang lain Memerintah atau melarang Class IX/ Semester 1 SK 5 dan 6 KD Reading 5.3 dan KD Writing 6.2 Merespon makna dan langkah retorika dan Mengungkapkan makna dan langkah retorika: monolog descriptive dan recount 2. Determining the indicators for basic competency achievement. Indicators reflect measurable or observable behavior to show the achievement for the basic competency which will be used as the reference of the assessment. Indicators for achievement should be written by using operational verbs covering the knowledge, attitude, and skills. i.e. : knowledge : mentioning, interpreting, defining, completing, summarizing, explaining, developing, etc. attitude : participating, adjusting, helping, proposing, serving, inspiring, etc. skill : expressing, practicing, fixing, arranging, demonstrating, etc. 3. Setting up the Purpose Educational Ministry Regulation No. 41, about the Process Standard states that the Purpose of Instruction describes the process and the learning outcome expected to be achieved by the students referring to the basic competency. (Tujuan pembelajaran menggambarkan proses dan ha ­sil belajar yang diharapkan dicapai oleh peserta didik sesuai dengan kompetensi dasar). The two aspects you have to include in setting up the purpose are : a.The process It reflects the expected students activities during the lesson. The activities should student centered. The more students involved through out the lesson would be the better. Consider the students’ motivation, interest, challenge, and creativity. i.e. Listening : minimal pair, sound identificatifying, gap-filling, predicting, comprehending etc. Speaking : interactive communication activities, role playing, scenario, speech, debating, interviewing, dialogue, etc. Reading : scanning, skimming, reading intensively, predicting, classifying, etc. Writing : co-operative writing, drafting, analyzing, guided writing, programming, listing, revising, reviewing, giving comments, summarizing, etc. b.The learning outcome It refers to the achievement of the basic competencies covering the knowledge, attitude, and skills. i.e. : responding meaning to different kinds of text type. expressing meaning for different kinds of purposes pronouncing, reading aloud etc. 4. Selecting Learning Material The learning materials prepared for the lesson plan should be based on the students’ literacy level; performative, functional, or informative. The latest is meant for high school. In performative level, students are taught how to use English to accompany actions, participate in classroom and school interactions, and recognize simple written English. While in the functional level students are supposed to learn to use English to get things done, for  survival purposes (buying and selling, asking and giving permission, making and canceling appointments, read and write simple texts, read popular science, etc.) You have to remember that our English curriculum is text based. Therefore we have to select the material according to the suggested text type. For junior high school are descriptive, procedure, recount, narrative, and report. While news item, discussion, explanation, exposition, and review are for senior high school. There are various resources where we can get the learning materials. Any learning material will be applicable as long as they can meet the curriculum requirement of teaching the students for communicative purposes. They might be presented in all types of communication, transactional conversation, Interpersonal conversation, Informational texts (spoken and written) in the daily life context. For example : Transactional conversation : giving directions in various contexts (kitchen, street etc.) Interpersonal conversation : talking about how to do things casually for the sake of maintaining conversation 5. Structuring the stages of instruction The lesson is carried out through three phases; Pre-activity, Whilst-activity, and Post-activity. a. Pre- activity  This activity is done at the beginning of the lesson and meant for arousing the students’ motivation and to focus the students’ attention as well, so that they can participate actively during the lesson. b. Whilst activity This is the main learning process and aimed at achieving the basic competency. This is suggested to follow the two-cycle approach (oral and written) and the four stages of lesson development; Building Knowledge of the Field (BKOF), Modeling of the Text (MOT), Joint Construction of the Text (JCOT), and Independent Construction of the Text (ICOT). This approach is in line with the flow of a lesson mentioned in the process standard;  exploration, elaboration, and confirmation. Exploration = BKOF Elaboration = MOT Confirmation = JCOT, and ICOT c. Post activity This activity is done to end the lesson which can be in the form of summarizing, evaluation, reflection, feedback, and follow up activities. 5. Preparing the assessment Assessment is a method of evaluating student performance and attainment, Microsoft ® Encarta ® 2009. This stage focuses on ensuring that your students have arrived at their intended destination and has been formulated as the indicators for competency achievement. For this, you will need to gather some evidence that they have done. You usually can do by gathering students work and assessing this work using some kind of grading rubric that is based on the indicators. You could also give test to the students on various domains as well. Here are what we have to assess : Communication that happens in texts Students’ ability to create and respond to texts In listening, speaking, reading, and writing The texts that we may use : Spoken : Informational texts -Transactional and interpersonal dialogues Monologues in the target genres Written : Informational texts Essays in the target genres Test items should not measure the students’ knowledge on the rules of the language. Instead they should be focus on meanings. The meanings tested are : Ideational meaning (isi berita) Interpersonal meaning (tujuan text, tindak tutur) -Textual meaning (termasuk punctuation) Logical meaning (hubungan logis antar gagasan) 6. An Example of a Lesson Plan Engish Version : SMP/MTs: †¦. Subject : English language Class/Semester : VII (Seven) / 1 Text types : Transactional / Interpersonal Theme : Personal Life Skill : Listening Time allotment : 2 x 40 minutes Competency Standard : 1. To understand the meaning of transactional and interpersonal dialogues to interact with the closest environment. Basic Competencies : 1.1. To response the meaning in the transactional ( to get things done) and interpersonal dialogue which is used in the simple oral communication accurately, fluently, understandable to interact with the closest environment that involves: greeting people/ friends, self introduction, others, ordering and forbidding somebody. To ask and to forbid. Greeting strangers / familiar people Introducing selves and other people Ordering / forbidding Indicators for Achievement : The students are able to: a. response the expression of hello from the strangers b. response the expression of self introduction. c. response the expressions of other people’s introductions. d. response the comment expression. e. response forbid expression. f. response the expression of hello from the familiar people Purpose : Through modeling and interactive activities, students can conduct simple communication in the transactional and interpersonal dialogues. Learning Materials: Dialogues that uses the following expressions : 1. A : Good morning. How are you ? B : Good morning. Fine thank you. 2. A : Hello, I’m Nina. Nice to meet you B : Hello, I’m Renny. Nice to meet you, too 3. A : Don’t do that ! B : No, I won’t. Don’t worry 4. A : Stop it ! B : Ok Vocabularies related to text-type and theme, e.g : name, live, address, etc. Verbs : live, meet, do, stop, have To be : is, am, are Personal Pronouns : I, you, we, they, he, she, it Standard expression : Good morning Don’t worry Thanks Nice to meet you OK How are you ? a. Teaching method/ Strategy : Three-phase technique A. Pre- activities Question and answer about things related to students’ life Students answer the questions of personnal identity B. Whilst activities 1. To discuss new vocabulary of the texts 2. To listen some sentences of teachers models 3. To guess the meaning and function of sentences produced by teachers 4. To immitate some sentences of teachers’ pornounciation 5. To listen to the dialogue of introductions 6. To answer the question of the content of the dialogue. 7. To response to the expressions of greeting, introduction, command, and prohibition. 8. To act out the teacher’s commands. C. Post-activities 1. To ask the students’ difficulties in learning activities. 2. To summarize the learning materials. 3. To give students some tasks of using expressions in the real situation Learning Resources The relevant text book : ( title, author, publisher, year, page ) Script of dialogues or dialogue recording The relevant pictures Evaluation Technique: Responding to the expressions / questions orally and written . Forms : oral questions Test Items : Part I : Listen to the expressions and give your response orally Good morning. How are you? †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦.. Hi, I’m Reno and you are? †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦.. Are you Anisa? †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦.. Hello, it’s nice to meet you †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦.. Who is that girl? †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦.. Part II : Listen to the expressions and choose the best response, a, b, c or d. 1. A: Hello, how are you ? B : †¦ a. Fine, thanks b. I’m Renny c. Thank you d. Don’t worry 2. A: Is that your sister, Anna ? B : †¦ a. Yes, it is b. No, she’s not here c. I don’t know d. Very well, thanks. 3. A: Budi, this is my friend, Susan. B : Hi, Susan †¦ a. Fine, thanks. b. It’s Ok c. Nice to see you d. I’m alright 4. A: Open the door ! B : †¦ a. OK b. Fine b. Fine c. Good d. Really 5. A: Don’t be late to school. B : †¦ a. Yes, Sir b. No, Sir c. Ok, Sir d. Fine, Sir Scoring guide: 1. For part I, each correct item is scored 3 2. For part II, each correct item is scored 2 3. Total Score Part I : 5 x 3 = 15 Part II : 5 x 2 = 10 TOTAL : 25 4. Maximal score = 10 5. Students’ score = Rubrics for Part I: No. Uraian Skor I Content and grammar are correct The content is correct, grammar is wrong Content and grammar are not correct No answer 3 2 1 0 II For every correct answer For every wrong answer/ no answera 2 0 Approved by : School Principal English Teacher . RESOURCES FOR LESSON PLAN IDEAS ON THE INTERNET PBS TeacherSource A large collection of lesson plans, teacher guides, and online student activities correlated to 90 sets of state and national curriculum standards. http://www.pbs.org/teachersource/ Best of Education World ® 2002 http://www.education-world.com/best_of/2002/ Education World ® Lesson Planning Center http://www.education-world.com/a_lesson/ Education World ® National Standards http://www.education-world.com/standards/national/index.s

Economic Problems of Northeast India

Economic Problems of Northeast India ABSTRACT This paper attempts to examine the reasons for the failure of the North East to catch up with the rest of India in terms of economic growth even though it has done fairly well with respect to human development indicators. The paper shows that the government has proposed policies for development of this region but various factors such as insurgency, geographical factors and infrastructural constraints have hindered the expected outcome of the policies. After analyzing these reasons we conclude our paper by suggesting various measures that can be adopted to overcome these problems and accelerate the development process. INTRODUCTION North-East India consisting of seven states: Arunachal Pradesh, Assam, Manipur, Meghalaya, Mizoram, Nagaland and Tripura; occupies a distinctive place primarily due to its social, cultural, political, geographical and historical features resulting in lack of uniformity, integration and assimilation. As unified it is in conflict ridden issues like ethnic unrest, insurgency, and illegal immigration; there exist wide intra-regional disparities in socio-economic issues. Since the colonial period it has been a witness to highly inequitable rates of economic growth. For the British, the North-East was a storehouse of raw materials such as coal, natural oil, forests and tea. There was a mass extraction of these resources which were then exported to other parts of the country for processing. This region however did not benefit from this process as the British did not set up processing and manufacturing units, neither did they pay any attention on the development of transport and communication facilities in the region. With the partition of India, for a long period of time trade with Bangladesh (East Pakistan) came to a stop which seriously damaged the economic and growth potential of the region. Government of India brought about several developmental packages for the region but these policies and programmes were not evaluated at appropriate times. This widened the gap between the region and rest of India. Thus all the socio-economic and political proble ms of these states were put under one unit, i.e., north-east region and a North Eastern council was created to address these as a whole  [1]  , thereby ignoring the inter-state disparities. In recent times the picture has got somewhat better. The north-eastern region has performed reasonably well in comparison to all India average situations in respect of human development indicators for both the sexes but it has failed in bringing commensurate economic growth. In spite of being a tribal belt and, in some cases having matrilineal society women still need to come at par with men. If these problems are not properly addressed the region may fall into the trap of vicious cycle instead of moving to a virtuous one. (Nayak, 2007)  [2]   The objective of the paper is to review the general claim that the North-Eastern states have done relatively well as compared to the all India average situations in terms of human development indicators; but the region has still not been able to achieve corresponding levels of economic growth. To this end, we have undertaken a comprehensive literature review comprising of various government reports and research articles. The data sources are RBI, NEDFi Databank. The paper is structured as follows: We begin by analysing the human development indicators and economic growth scenario in the region and also discuss the presence of intra-regional disparities at the disaggregated level. Next we look into the past and present policies introduced by the government for the economic and social upliftment of the region. We then state the recurrent problems prevailing in the North-Eastern states and we conclude with a discussion of potential policies and measures that can be undertaken so that th e region is able to tap its true potential. Human Development and Economic Growth in the region Disparities in Human Development Indicators and Economic Growth Human development indicators have been consistently high for the North-Eastern states on an average. A look at the Human Development Report (2002) reaffirms this fact. However as apparent there are huge inter-state disparities. The HDI value during 1981 in the region varied from the lowest figure of 0.242 in Arunachal Pradesh to the highest of 0.461 in Manipur as against the national average of 0.302. Similarly in 1991 the lowest and highest figures were 0.328 (Arunachal Pradesh) and 0.548 (Mizoram) as against 0.389 at the national level (Nayak, 2009). Thus on an aggregate the region seems to have done well but there exist wide rural-urban and gender disparities. We now separately present an overview of the various human development indicators. Literacy UNDPs national human development report (2003) studied the region and concluded that the region has done well in the social sector and more so in the spread of literacy. The overall literacy rate of the region in 2001 (65.83%) was marginally higher than the national average (64.8%). States such as Mizoram, Tripura, Nagaland and Manipur had literacy rates higher than the national average, whereas other states like Assam kept pace with the national average. Starting from relative backwardness in 1971, by 2001 Meghalaya and Arunachal Pradesh closed gaps with the country average. Considering that Arunachal Pradesh had a literacy rate of only 11.30 per cent in 1971, the attainment to 54.34 per cent by 2001 constitutes a huge progress in just three decades. There were considerable improvements in the field of female literacy too. Female literacy for all the states is higher as compared to the all India average except for Arunachal Pradesh. In spite of these positive trends there are questi ons about the quality of undergraduate, postgraduate and vocational education available here.  [3]   Infant Mortality Rate and Nutritional Status Some states have continuously lagged behind in terms of several important economic indicators. For instance, states such as Assam and Arunachal Pradesh have higher infant mortality rates (66 and 61respectively) whereas other states in the region have done well for example Mizoram (34). The poor state of infant mortality rates in Arunachal Pradesh and Assam can be attributed to poor utilisation of antenatal healthcare units, lack of proper healthcare infrastructure, limited access to healthcare facilities due to geographical constraints. The region is marked by the prevalence of diseases such as diarrhoea, parasitic infestation, hepatitis and entric fever. Mizorams high levels of literacy and urbanisation are reflected in the better than average utilisation of reproductive and child healthcare services (RCH); 20% of its mothers make use of antenatal check-up (ANC) services. Moreover more than 35% of its children are immunised.  [4]   The National Family Health Survey 3 (NFHS) 2005-06, which defines nutritional status of children as percentage of children under age 3 born to ever married women classified as under-weight, shows Mizoram with the lowest percentage of under-weight children at 14.3 which is way below the national average of 40.4. Most of the states lie way below this national average the only exception being Meghalaya with a percentage of 42.9. The reason for the dismal performance of Meghalaya can be attributed to inadequate food intake, chronic illness and low levels of immunisation. Only 33% of the children aged 12-23 months are fully vaccinated as against the national average of 44%. Gross-State Domestic Product (GSDP) The standard of living of the people in the region, as measured by the per capita gross state domestic product (GSDP), has lagged significantly behind the rest of the country. In 2004-05, the GSDP of the region at Rs. 18027 was less than the overall state average of Rs. 25968. In the post-independence era the growth rate of per capita GSDP started lagging behind the rest of the country and by the late 1960s, the per capita income in the region had declined substantially. With the introduction of market based economic reforms this difference in the growth rates increased further. During the period 1990-91 to 2004-05, while the aggregate GSDP of all states increased at the rate of 6% per year, the corresponding figure for the region was 4.4%. Also, the regions growth rate of per capita income at 2.5% was significantly low as compared to the national growth rate of 4% during the same period. The reasons for low GSDP such as geographical inaccessibility, insurgency, and infrastructural b ottlenecks and will be discussed later in the paper. An Overview of Government Policies Industrial Policies: NORTH EAST INDUSTRIAL AND INVESTMENT PROMOTION POLICY (NEIIPP), 2007: It was an extension of the NEIIPP introduced in 1997. The earlier NEIIPP did not cover Sikkim, but under the new NEIPP Sikkim was also included. Under this scheme all new units as well as existing units which go in for a substantial expansion (an increase by not less than 25% in the value of fixed capital investment in plant and machinery for the purpose of expansion of capacity/modernization and diversification) will be eligible for incentives for a period of 10 years from the date of commencement of commercial production. In addition to this firms will also be given other incentives such as interest subsidy, capital investment subsidy, income tax exemption, excise duty exemption and comprehensive insurance.  [5]   NEDFi (North-Eastern Development Finance Corporation Ltd.): North Eastern Development Finance Corporation Ltd. (NEDFi) was incorporated under the Companies Act, 1956, on August 9, 1995 with its registered office at Guwahati, Assam, for the development of industries, infrastructure, animal husbandry, agri-horticulture plantation, medicinal plantation, sericulture plantation, aquaculture, poultry and dairy in the North Eastern states of India. NEDFi has been promoted by All India Financial Institutions Industrial Development Bank of India, ICICI Ltd., Industrial Finance Corporation of India, Small Industries Development Bank of India, Insurance Companies Life Insurance Corporation of India, General Insurance Corporation and its subsidiaries, Investment company Unit Trust of India and Bank State Bank of India. Agricultural Policies: Watershed Development Project in Shifting Agriculture Area(WDPSCA): The Ministry of Agriculture and Cooperation, GoI launched a programme WDPSCA which is a Special Central Assistance to State Plan Programme for the benefit of jhumia communities. The programme was launched in 1994-95 in the Seven North Eastern States during the 8th Five Year Plan and continues to be implemented during the 9th Plan Period. The Soil and Water Conservation Department of the Government of Meghalaya initiated the Jhum Control Programme in 1974- 75 to control topsoil degradation due to jhum cultivation. The prominent feature of the programme was to support rehabilitation of the communities dependent on Jhum cultivation by improving their socio-economic conditions, enabling alternative livelihood options and food production. The major impact of this policy as evaluated by different agencies has been a decrease of about 30% in the shifting cultivation area due to adoption of settled cultivation. Sustainable i ncrease in productivity of agricultural crops and increased practise of horticulture was also noticed. Moreover, about 25% increase in income of an average Jhumia family was also reported.  [6]   National Horticulture Mission (NHM): For the North-Eastern states and hilly areas, the government had launched a centrally sponsored scheme on integrated development of horticulture in the North-Eastern states in 2001-02 which was extended to Jammu Kashmir, Himachal Pradesh and Uttrakhand in 2003-04. The scheme has been renamed Horticulture Mission for North-East and Himalayan States with effect from 2010-11, which provides higher subsidy than what is available under National Horticulture Mission (NHM) in plane areas.  [7]   Infrastructural Policies: Development of infrastructure has been neglected in north-east India. According to Nayak, the North-East region which constitutes 7.8 percent of the total geographical area of the country has a meagre of 1, 16,551 kms. of road length. Similarly development of railways has been poor. However, the Government through DoNER (Department Of North Eastern Region) has undertaken infrastructural projects in the last few years. The Government has invested substantially in road, air, rail, energy, and telecommunications. 8The Eleventh Plan devotes nearly Rs. 50000 crores on road development in this region. Some road development programs include SARDP-NEP (Special Accelerated Road Development Project ), East-West Corridor, NHDP-II and programs initiated by DoNER and NEC ( North East Council) . Railway network in this region is only 4% of the countrys rail system. Fourteen major railway projects for which Rs.10000 crores has been allocated include 8 new lines, 5 gauge conversions and 1 doubling of line, is expected to connect the state capitals of Arunachal Pradesh, Manipur and Nagaland to already connected states of Assam and Tripura. As this region is blessed with rivers, inland water transportation is important for its development. Notable projects include NW-II on the river Brahmaputra from Dhubri to Sadiya and National Waterway -IV on the river Barak from Lakhipur to Bhanga. In case of energy there has been an imbalance between the generation and availability of thermal and hydroelectric power. To attain a sustainable growth of this sector emphasis needs to be laid on hydroelectric power where ever possible. The gas based power projects include Palatana project and Monarchak, while Dibang Multi-purpose Hydroelectric Project focuses on hydro electric energy source. One of the programs introduced by the government is Rajiv Gandhi Grameen Vidyutikaran Yojana (RGGVY) which was introduced in 1995 to provide electricity to all villages and rural households. Ministry of Power has been giving assistance to the states in this region to improve power distribution of power under the Accelerated Power Development Program (APDRP). The Annual Report 2008-09 suggests continuation of these measures till the desired results are achieved.  [9]   In terms of social infrastructure though the levels of literacy are generally well off, there is a need for improving the infrastructure and facilities of educational institutions as well as improving the quality of education. The North East states have been provided with grants under Non Lapsable Central Pool of Resources (NLCPR) to improve infrastructural facilities. The Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan has also been implemented in these states with positive improvements. The important Central Sector Institutions in the North East Region are IIT, Guwahati; NERIST, Itanagar; NIT, Silchar; Regional Centers of IGNOU; Central Universities of Assam, Tezpur, Mizoram, Nagaland and NEHU.  [10]   Policies to Combat Insurgency: Until the 1970s the Indian government used collective punishment, forcible relocation and military occupation in an attempt to end insurgency in the North-East. In addition to creating a severe sense of grievance among some groups, this strategy rendered civil and political institutions virtually meaningless by concentrating power over local affairs with the security forces. Even today, the military remains the only Indian institution with any significant presence in parts of this region, which has given rise to anti central government sentiments. Major Socio-Economic Problems of the Region We now examine the problems which have not only existed in spite of the above policies, but also hamper the effective implementation of the same. Geographical Factors: The entire region of the North-East can be broadly divided into two characteristic zones mountain and plains. While Arunachal Pradesh, Meghalaya, Mizoram and Nagaland are almost entirely hilly, about four fifths of Assam is plain. Manipur and Tripura have both plain areas and hilly tracts. The hills account for about 70 per cent area and accommodate about 30 per cent of population of the region and the plains constituting the remaining 30 percent of area hold about 70 per cent of its population.  [11]  The regions accessibility has always remained weak due to geographical reasons and underdeveloped transport links with the rest of India. Also, as the region witnesses floods and landslides in the Brahmaputra and Barak Valleys of Assam, considerable strain is exerted on the economy of not only Assam but other North-Eastern states too. Infrastructural Factors: One of the reasons for the economic backwardness of the North-Eastern states is the poor state of basic infrastructural facilities. Infrastructure i.e. physical (like roadways, waterways, energy and so on) as well as social infrastructure (for instance educational institutions, health facilities) plays an important role in human development and economic growth of any region. The region has about 6% of the national roads and about 13% of the national highways (Sachdeva). However, the quality of these roads is not good due to poor maintenance. The Indian planners neglected the development of infrastructure in this region for a long period of time. Only in recent years, serious efforts have been made for the provision of these facilities. However, as infrastructural development entails long gestation periods the recent efforts made by North-Eastern Council (NEC) and Ministry of Development of North-Eastern Region (DoNER) did not have much of an economic impact. The prominent indicators of shortfalls in infrastructure in this region are: increasingly congested roads, power failures, shortage of drinking water etc. Constraints on Industrial Growth: North-East India has remained historically underdeveloped in terms of industrial growth. At the time of Independence, there was a small but significant industrial sector in Assam which was mostly dominated by the colonial capitalists. This sector consisted of plantation and manufacturing of tea, mining of coal and oil, oil refinery, manufacturing of plywood and other forest resource based products. Post Independence, due to the partition of India, the industrial sector in Assam received a serious setback as its trade routes were cut-off with the rest of the country. This in turn hindered economic integration with other parts of India and also reduced the attractiveness of the region as a destination of investment. The main strength of the region for industrial development comes from its huge natural resource base. For instance, the setting up of National Hydro-Electric Power Corporation to harness the huge hydro-electric potential of the region and Gas Authority of India Limited (GAIL) and Oil and Natural Gas Corporation (ONGC) for exploration and extraction of oil and gas reserves. The forest based industrial units have been on decline following the ban on felling of trees, by the Supreme Court of India in 1995. Besides dearth of local capital, marketing and transport bottlenecks hinder the industrial development of this region. Tea industry is one of the oldest industries in India. Tea industry started well in the beginning of 20th century. Tea established itself as a major manufacturing industry in Assam that heralded a huge potential. One of the major problems facing the tea industry, especially in Assam has been increased conflict between the mainstream Assamese and the labourers regarding the health issues and welfare benefits of the labourers. Agriculture: Agriculture is the major subsistence occupation of the tribal population of the region. The pattern of agricultural growth has however been uneven across states and between crops. Rice is the major crop of the region (kharif). Other crops (rabi) grown in the region are wheat, potato, sugarcane, pulses and oilseeds. The North-Eastern region produces only 1.5% of the countrys total food grain production and provides livelihood support to 70% of the population (Mishra and Misra).The pace of agricultural growth in the eastern and North-Eastern regions has been slower than the rest of the country. The Green Revolution was largely limited to the North-Western parts of the country and has not benefited the North-Eastern region. By and large, the production conditions in agriculture in the North-East are traditional. The agricultural productivity is the lowest, irrigation facilities are almost non-existent in some areas and consumption of fertilisers is extremely low in the regi on. One of the most common agricultural practise in the North-East is shifting or Jhum cultivation. Approximately 1.7 million hectares of land is under shifting agriculture. This leads to large scale deforestation resulting in soil erosion and loss of soil fertility. Insurgency and Political Issues: Insurgency or terrorism is a political weapon and is often the result of accumulated anger due to political, economic and social causes. The North-Eastern states have witnessed a rise of insurgent activities and regional movements. These movements derive their roots from differences in language and ethnicity, human rights, tribal rivalry and ethnic resentment, migration, underdevelopment, control over local resources, access to markets and a widespread feeling of exploitation and alienation from the Indian state. Nagaland has been the epicentre of insurgency in the North-East; however, the problem has now spilled over to the rest of the region. Some of the insurgent groups are United Liberation Front of Assam (ULFA), Peoples Liberation Army, National Socialist Council of Nagaland, All Tripura Tiger Force (ATTF), and National Democratic Front of Bodoland. Often these insurgent groups indulge in subversive activities like damaging rail tracks, smuggling, extortion, kidnapping, strikes and curfews and illegal cross-country migration. One of the important targets of the insurgents is the resource-based industries like petroleum and tea which form the core industries in the region. Assam also faces illegal infiltration from Bangladesh while Arunachal Pradesh faces constant threat from Chinese incursions. Natural Resource Base: North-East is endowed with rich natural resource base- soil, water, vegetation and hydrocarbons. In spite of having huge natural resources, the North-Eastern part of the country is underdeveloped. The resources are being exploited and mismanaged, thereby leading to depletion of the very assets that are usually highlighted as triggering the greatest potential for growth and development of the North-Eastern region. Resources have been extracted primarily for survival and for further capital formation and also the biodiversity of the region is under severe threat. The bulk of natural resource degradation is being caused by coal mining, fertiliser industry, paper industry, cement industry and militant activities. Conclusion In recent years, the government has been trying to put in place policies regarding the economic development and social integration of North-East, however, as we can conclude from our literature review there have been various social, economic, political and geographical problems which have hindered development of these states. It is generally believed that agriculture in the North-Eastern states has a lot of potential. Given the resource endowment of the region, this hypothesis seems quiet plausible. This can be attributed to socio-economic features as well as institutional, organizational and technological constraints. The agricultural policies for the region should thus focus not only on increasing agricultural productivity but also pay attention on eliminating the constraints on agricultural productivity and providing incentives for promoting sustainable agricultural practises and setting up of related activities such as fisheries, animal husbandry etc. The need for stepping up of investment in the agricultural sector has been felt very strongly given the fact that this region has been historically capital-starved. From the point of view of medium and large industry the most promising resources are the forest wealth of the region and the substantial deposits of oil, coal and limestone. The development of horticulture and plantations can assist in the growth of small and medium agro-based industries. The growth of sericulture and the demand for yarn in the handloom sector provide a base for the development of textile industries. These along with a variety of small units for serving local consumption demands can provide the basis for a more rapid industrialisation of the area. To protect the environment and resources it is necessary to implement pollution standards and put in place environmental laws regarding emissions, waste and effluent discharges from industries. There is a need to preserve the biodiversity of the region as livelihoods can be improved by developing forest produce, cultivation and export of exotic fruits and plants and harnessing of medicinal plants. National programmes and sc hemes are needed to support indigenous community forestry institutions and practises. Also it can be used to develop the tourism sector which will generate employment opportunities. The area has tremendous potential for Hydro-Power generation which needs to be appropriately harnessed as it is not only environment friendly but will also provide immense financial benefits, reduced flood damage if storage facilities are a part of Hydro-Power projects, employment generation which in turn would have an impact on sectors such as services, transport and tourism. The government should strive to resolve inter-state water conflicts and maintenance of dams. Private investment can play a critical role in fuelling economic growth and is essential to generate productive employment, raise productivity and improve technology and the work culture in areas like infrastructure, industry and agriculture. Incentives can also be given for attracting foreign investment in this region. This can however be done once the basic infrastructure facilities are put in place. These policies to encourage employment would reduce discontentment among the youth of these states thereby curbing the spread of insurgency. Thus we conclude that the North East has done reasonably well in terms of human development indicators .Also the government has put into place policies for development and integration of the region but in the end it is upto the local people to work hand in hand with the Central and State Governments to ensure prosperity of the region.