Quaternary sector
Topic: Sectors of the Indian Economy · NCERT: Beyond NCERT
Meaning
The quaternary sector covers knowledge work: activities built on creating, handling and using information and ideas. Examples are research and development (R&D), IT, consulting and information processing. It is not a separate fourth sector. It is treated as a subset of the tertiary (service) sector. The term helps us single out high-skill, knowledge-based services.
Example
A scientist doing drug research in a Hyderabad laboratory, a software engineer building an app in Bengaluru and a management consultant advising a company all do quaternary-sector work.
Don't confuse with
- Quinary sector: this is also a subset of tertiary, but it covers only the highest level of decision-making, such as top executives and senior officials. Quaternary covers knowledge work in general.
Related concepts
- Primary sector
- Secondary sector
- Tertiary sector
- Natural products
- Manufactured goods
- Manufacturer
- Service provider
- Industrial divisions
- Quinary sector