Why can development be slow even if a region has resources?

Due to lack of technology transport or skill

Natural resources are only a starting point for development. A region may possess minerals, forests, fertile land, or water, but these resources become useful only when people can identify, process, transport, and sell them. This requires suitable technology, roads and other transport, investment, skilled workers, and institutions that can organize production. Without these supporting conditions, resources may remain unused or bring little benefit.

Option A is correct because it identifies the gap between having a resource and having the capacity to use it. Option B is an extreme and false claim: resources do not always stop development. Option C ignores the essential role of human knowledge and work, while option D wrongly assumes that resources can reach markets without transport or organization. Thus availability alone cannot guarantee development.

This is a Class 10 Geography question. Chapter: Resources and Development. Topic: resource interdependence.