Primary Activities (World)

Hunting And Gathering

Hunting and gathering represent the most rudimentary and ancient forms of primary economic activities. These activities involve obtaining food directly from the natural environment by hunting wild animals and collecting wild plants, fruits, roots, nuts, and seeds. Historically, all human societies were hunters and gatherers.

Characteristics:

Nomadic Lifestyle: Hunters and gatherers are typically nomadic or semi-nomadic, moving frequently to follow animal herds or to find seasonal plant resources. Their settlements are temporary.
Small Social Groups: They usually live in small, egalitarian bands, often based on kinship ties, with minimal social stratification. The size of the group is limited by the carrying capacity of the environment.
Subsistence Economy: The focus is on immediate survival. There is little or no surplus production or storage of food, making them highly dependent on the availability of natural resources.
Simple Technology: They utilize tools made from natural materials like stone, wood, bone, and animal hides. These include spears, bows and arrows, traps, fishing nets, digging sticks, and containers.
Deep Environmental Knowledge: They possess intimate knowledge of their local ecosystems, including the behaviour of animals, the properties of plants, and seasonal cycles.
Division of Labour: A rudimentary division of labour often exists, with men typically involved in hunting and fishing, and women in gathering and childcare, though this can vary.

Global Distribution: While once prevalent worldwide, true hunting and gathering societies are now very rare and exist primarily in remote areas with limited contact with modern economies. Examples include:
- Amazon Basin: Indigenous tribes in the rainforests.
- Arctic Regions: Inuit and Yupik peoples, historically relying on hunting marine mammals and fishing.
- Kalahari Desert (Africa): San (Bushmen) people.
- Southeast Asia: Various tribal groups in forests.
Modern Influences: Even these remaining groups are often influenced by or integrated into modern economies, facing pressures on their traditional lifestyles and environments.

Pastoralism

Pastoralism is an economic system based on the domestication and herding of animals. Pastoralists rely on their livestock for sustenance, obtaining milk, meat, wool, hides, and labour. Their mobility is often tied to the availability of pasture and water, leading to different forms of pastoralism.

Nomadic Herding

Nomadic herding is a traditional form of pastoralism where herdsmen move with their livestock over long distances in search of suitable pastures and water. The mobility is essential for sustaining the herds and the pastoralist communities.

Characteristics:

Mobility: Herders and their families migrate seasonally, following a well-defined route and set of pastures.
Transhumance: A specific type of seasonal migration, where animals are moved between summer and winter pastures. For example, moving to higher mountain pastures in summer and to lower valleys in winter.
Herd Composition: The type of animals herded varies with the environment (e.g., sheep, goats, cattle in grasslands; camels, sheep, goats in deserts; yaks, reindeer in cold regions).
Subsistence-Oriented: Primarily focused on meeting the basic needs of the herding community. Surplus products may be traded.
Simple Technology: Relies on traditional knowledge and basic tools for herding and animal care.

Global Distribution:

Africa: Fulani (West Africa - cattle), Yoruba (West Africa - cattle), Moors (North Africa - camels, sheep, goats), Masai (East Africa - cattle, sheep, goats).
Asia: Arabs (Middle East - camels, sheep, goats), Mongols and other pastoral groups (Central Asia - sheep, goats, horses, yaks), Gujjar and Bakarwal (Indian Himalayas - sheep, goats, buffaloes).
Arctic: Sami people (Lapland, Norway, Sweden, Finland - reindeer), Nenets (Russia - reindeer).

Commercial Livestock Rearing

Commercial livestock rearing is a modern, market-oriented form of pastoralism. It is characterized by large-scale operations, capital investment, and scientific management techniques, focused on producing livestock products for commercial sale.

Characteristics:

Sedentary or Semi-Sedentary: Herders typically operate from fixed ranches or farms.
Commercial Focus: Primarily engaged in producing meat, wool, dairy products, hides, etc., for sale in domestic and international markets.
Extensive Land Use: Requires large areas of land, often grasslands or pastures, for grazing.
Capital Intensive: Involves significant investment in land, fencing, improved breeds of animals, fodder, machinery, and veterinary services.
Specialization: Often specialized in raising specific types of livestock for particular products (e.g., sheep for wool, cattle for beef or dairy).

Global Distribution:

Australia, New Zealand: World-renowned for sheep farming for wool and meat, and dairy farming.
Argentina, Brazil, Uruguay: Major cattle ranching regions for beef production.
United States: Cattle ranching in the Great Plains and Western states.
Canada: Ranching in the Prairie provinces.

Agriculture

Agriculture is the art and science of cultivating the soil, producing crops, and raising livestock and in varying degrees the preparation and marketing of the various agricultural products. It is the primary economic activity for a vast portion of the world's population.

Subsistence Agriculture

Subsistence agriculture is farming practiced to meet the immediate needs of the farmer and their family. The produce is mainly for self-consumption, with little or no surplus traded in the market.

Characteristics: Small landholdings, reliance on family labour, simple traditional tools, low yields, minimal use of modern inputs (fertilizers, pesticides), often diversified crops for food security.
Distribution: Found in areas with high population density and limited land availability, or in regions where economic development is low. Common in parts of Asia, Africa, and Latin America.

Primitive Subsistence Agriculture

This is the earliest and most basic form of subsistence agriculture. It encompasses:

Shifting Cultivation: Clearing forest land by felling trees and burning them, cultivating the ash-enriched soil for a few years until fertility declines, then moving to a new area. Also known as "slash and burn."

Global Examples: Jhum (India), Milpa (Mexico), Ray (Brazil), Tamra Vangi (Burma).
Distribution: Tropical regions of Africa, South America, and Southeast Asia.

Nomadic Herding: As described earlier, moving with herds in search of pasture.

These practices are characterized by very low productivity and are often environmentally damaging due to deforestation and soil erosion.

Intensive Subsistence Agriculture

Practiced in densely populated areas, this type of farming aims to maximize yields from small plots of land through intensive labour and the increasing use of modern inputs.

Characteristics: Small holdings, high labour input per unit area, use of fertilizers, pesticides, HYV seeds, and irrigation. Focus on staple crops like rice, wheat, and millets.
Global Distribution: Predominant in the monsoon regions of South, Southeast, and East Asia, including India, China, and Bangladesh.

Plantation Agriculture

A form of commercial farming where a single crop is grown over a large area. It originated during the colonial era and is practiced in tropical and subtropical regions.

Characteristics: Single crop (monoculture), large landholdings (estates), capital-intensive, scientific approach, significant use of labour, typically market-oriented for both domestic and international consumption.
Crops: Tea, coffee, rubber, sugarcane, tobacco, cotton, cocoa, coconut, fruits (banana, pineapple).
Global Distribution: Tropical regions of Africa (tea, coffee, rubber), Asia (tea, rubber, rice, sugarcane), and Latin America (coffee, sugarcane, bananas).

Extensive Commercial Grain Cultivation

This type of farming is practiced in large, sparsely populated areas of the world, primarily in the mid-latitudes. It involves growing grains on a commercial basis, utilizing large landholdings and mechanization.

Characteristics: Large farm sizes (ranches), low population density, high degree of mechanization (tractors, combine harvesters), capital intensive, monoculture (e.g., wheat, corn), low labour input per unit of land.
Global Distribution:

North America: Prairies of Canada and USA (wheat, corn).
Eurasia: Steppes of Russia and Ukraine (wheat).
Australia: Downs region (wheat).
Argentina: Pampas region (wheat, corn).

Mixed Farming

Mixed farming is an agricultural system that combines crop cultivation with the rearing of livestock. It aims to diversify the farm output, improve soil fertility, and ensure a more stable income for the farmer.

Characteristics: Growing crops and raising animals on the same farm. Use of fertilizers and manure from livestock to maintain soil fertility. Crop rotation is often practiced. Production is for both subsistence and market sale.
Global Distribution: Common in Europe, North America, Australia, and parts of Asia.

Dairy Farming

Dairy farming is a type of commercial farming focused on raising cattle, buffaloes, goats, or sheep for milk production and dairy products (butter, cheese, yogurt). It is highly capital-intensive and requires advanced technology and scientific management.

Characteristics: High capital investment, advanced technology, scientific feeding and breeding of animals, focus on milk quality and hygiene, often located near major urban markets due to the perishable nature of milk.
Global Distribution: Leading producers of dairy products are New Zealand, Australia, Europe (Germany, France, UK), USA, and increasingly India (though per capita consumption and output can vary).

Mediterranean Agriculture

This unique type of farming is characteristic of the regions bordering the Mediterranean Sea and in other areas with a similar climate (hot, dry summers and mild, wet winters).

Characteristics: Highly specialized, with a focus on high-value crops that can withstand the dry summers. Intensive cultivation, often on terraced slopes.
Crops: Viticulture (grape cultivation for wine), olive cultivation, citrus fruits (oranges, lemons), figs, dates, vegetables.
Global Distribution: Mediterranean Basin countries (Spain, Italy, Greece, Turkey, North Africa), California (USA), Chile, South Africa, and parts of Australia.

Market Gardening And Horticulture

This form of agriculture involves the cultivation of high-value crops like vegetables, fruits, and flowers. It is characterized by small-scale, intensive farming, often located close to urban markets.

Characteristics: High value per acre, labour-intensive, focus on quality and timely delivery to urban markets, often uses advanced horticultural techniques like greenhouses.
Global Distribution: Found in regions surrounding major cities worldwide, including Western Europe, North-Eastern USA, and specific regions in Asia.

Co-Operative Farming

In co-operative farming, farmers voluntarily pool their resources (land, capital, labour) to operate their farms collectively. All members participate in decision-making, and profits (or losses) are shared according to their contribution or agreement.

Characteristics: Voluntary association, collective decision-making, shared risks and benefits, aims to improve efficiency and bargaining power.
Global Distribution: Successful examples are found in Denmark, Netherlands, Belgium, Italy, Sweden, and some regions of India.

Collective Farming

Collective farming is a system where land is owned collectively (often by the state or community), and farming operations are carried out collectively by the members under a centralized plan. This is a feature of socialist or communist economic systems.

Characteristics: State ownership of land, collective labour, centralized planning of production, distribution, and marketing.
Global Distribution: Historically prevalent in the former Soviet Union (Kolkhoz and Sovkhoz), China (communes), and some Eastern European countries.

Mining

Mining is the extraction of valuable minerals or other geological materials from the Earth. It is a primary economic activity that supplies raw materials essential for industrial development and technological advancement.

Factors Affecting Mining Activity

The decision to mine a particular deposit is influenced by a combination of geological, economic, technological, and political factors:

Presence of Mineral Deposits: The most crucial factor is the existence of mineral deposits of sufficient quantity and quality (grade) to be economically viable for extraction.
Economic Viability: The cost of extraction must be less than the market value of the mineral. This includes costs related to exploration, labour, machinery, energy, processing, transportation, and environmental compliance.
Technology: The availability of appropriate technology is essential for exploration (geophysical surveys, drilling) and extraction (open-pit mining, underground mining, placer mining). Technological advancements can make previously uneconomical deposits profitable.
Capital Investment: Mining is a capital-intensive industry requiring substantial investment for exploration, development of infrastructure, machinery, and processing plants.
Transportation and Processing Facilities: Efficient transport networks are needed to move the ore from the mine site to processing plants and then to markets. Processing facilities (e.g., smelters, refineries) are often required to convert raw ore into usable materials.
Market Demand and Price: Global and local demand for the mineral and its prevailing market price significantly impact the decision to mine.
Government Policies and Regulations: Mining leases, royalties, taxation, environmental protection laws, and political stability of the region are important considerations.

Methods Of Mining

The method of mining employed depends on the type of mineral, its occurrence (depth and form of the deposit), and the nature of the surrounding rock.

Surface Mining (Open-Cast or Open-Pit Mining):

Description: Used when mineral deposits are located close to the Earth's surface in relatively shallow deposits. The overlying rock and soil (overburden) are removed using heavy machinery like draglines, power shovels, and trucks. The exposed ore body is then extracted.
Advantages: Generally safer, less expensive, and more efficient for large, shallow deposits compared to underground mining. Allows for mechanization.
Disadvantages: Causes significant land disturbance, habitat destruction, and visual impact.
Examples: Extraction of coal, iron ore, bauxite, copper, limestone, and quarrying for building stones.

Underground Mining (Deep Mining):

Description: Employed when mineral deposits are located deep beneath the Earth's surface. Shafts are sunk vertically or inclined tunnels are driven horizontally to reach the ore body. Galleries and tunnels are then excavated to extract the ore.
Advantages: Minimizes surface disturbance, allows extraction of deep-seated ores.
Disadvantages: More expensive, dangerous, labour-intensive, requires complex ventilation and support systems, and poses risks of mine collapses, gas explosions, and fires.
Examples: Extraction of coal, iron ore, copper, gold, silver, diamonds, and uranium from deep-seated veins and lodes.

Placer Mining:

Description: Used to extract heavy minerals from alluvial deposits (sediments deposited by rivers, streams, or glacial action). It involves washing or separating the valuable minerals from the lighter sand and gravel.
Methods: Hydraulic mining (using high-pressure water jets), dredging (using floating excavators), and sluicing (using channels with riffles to trap heavy minerals).
Examples: Extraction of gold, tin, diamonds, and precious metals from riverbeds and beaches.