India 2018: Opportunities and Challenges Study Flashcards

Vocabulary terms and key definitions from the lecture notes regarding India's development, geography, social growth, and environmental challenges as of 2018.

Monsoon

The Earth’s most powerful weather system consisting of a period of heavy/torrential rainfall with heavy winds and large-scale floods.

Independence

Achieved by India in $1947$ following a series of devastating wars and nearly $200$ years of British control.

Gross National Income (GNI)

The total amount of goods and services produced outside of a country.

Open Economy

An economic system that allows for trade with other nations.

Transnational Corporations (TNC)

A company that operates in multiple nations.

Diasporas

Groups of individuals of the same nationality who reside in another country; in $2014$ over $20\text{ million}$ Indians were spread across $100$ countries.

Remittances

Income sent home to family and friends by young skilled workers living abroad, totaling over $71\text{ billion}$ in $2014$ for India.

Brain Drain

A negative economic phenomenon where a country loses its most educated and skilled young workers to overseas countries.

Outsourcing

A process where companies such as Vodafone and Apple employ educated Indian females for call centres because of cheaper wages and fluent English skills.

Caste System

A historical social class system where children follow the job status of their parents, determined at birth.

Human Development Index (HDI)

A score indicating advancements in education and healthcare and changes in life expectancy; India's score almost doubled in $10\text{ years}$.

Desertification

The process of land turning into desert, currently experienced by $28$ percent of India’s land.

Degradation

The deterioration of land quality, currently experienced by $35$ percent of India’s land.

Emigrate

The act of leaving one’s own country to settle permanently in another.

Immigrate

The act of moving into a new country to live there.