Delhi has become the most polluted city in India. Due to this, how will the production possibility curve of Delhi be affected?
Answer & explanation
Correct answer: option 1
The correct answer is Option (1) → Will shift to the left.
The Production Possibility Curve (PPC) represents the maximum possible output combinations of two goods that an economy can produce using its available resources and technology efficiently.
When pollution increases severely (as in Delhi’s case):
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The health of workers deteriorates, reducing productivity.
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Natural resources (like air, water, and soil) get degraded.
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Overall efficiency and capacity of production decline.
Since the severe pollution effectively reduces the quantity and quality of the available productive resources (especially human capital), the maximum potential output of the city is permanently lowered. This leads to a reduction in the economy’s potential output, causing the PPC to shift leftward (inward) — showing a fall in productive capacity of the region.