Ch20 India Transport - Revision Notes

CBSE Class 12 Geography

Revision Notes

India-People and Economy

Chapter-10 Transport and Communication

The major means of transportation are -

Land transportation
Air transportation
Water transportation

Land Transport

The three main forms of land transport in India are Road, Railway and Pipeline
Road transport
India has one of the largest road networks in the world with a total length of 42.3 lakh km (2008-09)
About 85% of passenger and 70% of freight traffic are carried by roads every year
After Independence i.e. in 1961 road plan was introduced to improve the conditions of roads in India
For the purpose of construction and maintenance, roads are classified as National Highways (NH), State Highways(SH), Major District Roads and Rural Roads

National Highways

The National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) was operationalised in 1995
It is an autonomous body under the Ministry of Surface Transport
It is entrusted with the responsibility of development, maintenance and operation of National Highways
This is also the apex body to improve the quality of the roads designated as National Highways.
The main roads which are constructed and maintained by the Central Government are known as the National Highways
These roads are meant for inter-state transport and movement of defence men and material in strategic areas
These also connect the state capitals, major cities, important ports, Railway junctions, etc
The length of the National Highways has increased from 19,700 km in 1951 to 70,934 km in 2008-09
As on 31st March 2016, the total length of national Highways was 1, 01, 011 km
The National Highways constitute only 1.67% of the total road length but carry 40 % of the road traffic

State Highways

These are constructed and maintained by State governments
They join the state capitals with district headquarters and other important towns
These roads are connected to the National Highways
These constitute 4% of total road length in the country
As on 31st March 2016, the total length of state Highways was 176,166 km

District Roads

These roads are the connecting link between District Headquarters and the other important nodes in the district
They account for 14% of the total road length of the country
As on 31st March 2016, the total length of district roads was approx 561,490 km of which 95% of the total length were surfaced

Rural Roads

The rural roads in India forms a substantial portion of the Indian road network, constituting 70.23% of the total roads in India (as of March 2016)
These roads are vital for providing links in the rural areas
For the development of these rural roads, Pradhan Mantri Gram Sadak Yojana was introduced in 2000 by the Indian government to provide connectivity to unconnected rural habitations
The scheme envisions that these roads will be constructed and maintained by the village panchayats

Other roads

Other roads include Border Roads and International Highways
The Border Road Organisation (BRO) was established in May 1960 for accelerating economic development and strengthening defence preparedness through rapid and coordinated improvement of strategically important roads along the northern and north-eastern boundary of the country
It has constructed roads in high altitude mountainous terrain joining Chandigarh with Manali (Himachal Pradesh) and Leh (Ladakh).
This road runs at an average altitude of 4,270 metres above the mean sea level
Besides these, the BRO also undertakes snow clearance in high altitude areas
The international highways are meant to promote the harmonious relationship with the neighbouring countries by providing effective links with India
The distribution of roads is not uniform in the country
Density of roads (length of roads per 100 square km of area) varies from only 12.14 km in Jammu and Kashmir to 517.77 km in Kerala with a national average of 142.68 km in 2011
The density of road is high in most of the northern states and major southern states. This is mainly because construction of roads is easy and cheaper in the plain areas
It is low in the Himalayan region, north eastern region, Madhya Pradesh and Rajasthan. This is because it is difficult to construct road in hilly and plateau areas

Rail transport

Indian railways network is one of the longest in the world
It facilitates the movement of both freight and passengers and contributes to the growth of economy
Indian Railway was introduced in 1853, when a line was constructed from Bombay to Thane covering a distance of 34 km
Indian Railways is the largest government undertaking in the country
As of March 2017, the total length of Indian Railways network is 121,407 km
It is the fourth largest railway network in the world
In India, railway system has been divided into 16 zones

Railway Zone - Headquarters

Central- Mumbai CST
Eastern- Kolkata
East Central- Hajipur
East Coast- Bhubaneswar
Northern- New Delhi
North Central - Allahabad
North Eastern- Gorakhpur
North East Frontier- Maligaon (Guwahati)
North Western- Jaipur
Southern- Chennai
South Central- Secunderabad
South Eastern- Kolkata
South East Central-Bilaspur
South Western- Hubli
Western- Mumbai (Church Gate)
West Central - Jabalpur

On the basis of width of the track of Indian Railways, three categories have been made:

Broad gauge: The distance between rails in broad gauge is 1.676 metre. The total length of broad gauge lines was 55188 km in 2011.
Metre gauge: The distan ce between rails is one metre. Its total length was 6809 km in 2011
Narrow gauge: The distance between the rails in this case is 0.762 metre or 0.610 metres. The total length of narrow guage was 2463 km in 2011. It is generally confined to hilly areas.

The most significant deveilopment has been the development of Konkan Railway along the western coast providing a direct link between Mumbai and Mangalore
Areas around towns, raw material producing areas and of plantations and other commercial crops, hill stations and cantonment towns were well-connected by railways from the British colonial era

Water transport

Waterways is an important mode of transport for both passenger and cargo traffic in India
It is the cheapest means of transport and is most suitable for carrying heavy and bulky material
It is a fuel-efficient and eco-friendly mode of transport
The water transport is of two types– (a) inland waterways and (b) oceanic waterways

Inland waterways

It was the chief mode of transport before the advent of railways
India has 14,500 km of navigable waterways, contributing about 1% to the country’s transportation.
It comprises rivers, canals, backwaters, creeks, etc
At present, 3,700 km of major rivers are navigable by mechanised flat bottom vessels, out of which only 2,000 km are actually used
Out of 4,300 km of the network of navigable canal, only 900 km is navigable by mechanised vessels
The Inland Waterways Authority was set up in 1986 for the development, maintenance and regulation of national waterways in the country

The authority has declared three inland waterways as National Waterways -

NW 1- Allahabad-Haldia stretch (1,620 km) - It is one of the most important waterways in India, which is navigable by mechanical boats up to Patna and by ordinary boats up to Haridwar. It is divided into three parts for developmental purposes– (i) Haldia-Farakka (560 km), (ii) Farakka-Patna (460 km), (iii) PatnaAllahabad (600 km).
NW 2 - Sadiya-Dhubri stretch (891 km)- Brahmaputra is navigable by steamers up to Dibrugarh (1,384 km) which is shared by India and Bangladesh
NW 3 Kottapuram-Kollam stretch (205 km)- It includes 168 km of west coast canal along with Champakara canal (23 km) and Udyogmandal canal (14 km)

The backwaters (Kadal) of Kerala has special significance in Inland Waterway
The famous Nehru Trophy Boat Race (VALLANKALI) is also held in the backwaters

Oceanic Routes

India has a vast coastline of approximate 7,517 km, including islands
Oceanic routes play an important role in the transport sector of India’s economy
Approximately 95 % of India’s foreign trade by volume and 70 % by value moves through ocean routes
These are also used for the purpose of transportation between the islands and the rest of the country

Air Transportation

Air transport is the fastest means of movement from one place to the other
It has reduced distances by minimising the travel time
It is very essential for a vast country like India, where distances are large and the terrain and climatic conditions are diverse
Air transport in India made a beginning in 1911 but its real development took place in post-Independent period
The Airport Authority of India is responsible for providing safe, efficient air traffic and aeronautical communication services in the Indian Air Space
The authority manages 126 airports including 11 international, 86 domestic and 29 civil enclaves at defence air fields
The air transport in India is managed by two corporations, Air India and Indian Airlines after nationalisation

Air India

Air India provides International Air Services for both passengers and cargo traffic
It connects all the continents of the world through its services
In 2005, it carried 12.2 million passengers and 4.8 lakh metric tonnes of cargo
About 52 % of the total air traffic was handled only at Mumbai and Delhi airports
In 2005, domestic movement involved 24.3 million passengers and 20 lakh metric tonnes of cargo
Pawan Hans is the helicopter service operating in hilly areas and is widely used by tourists in north-eastern sector
Pawan Hans Limited mainly provides helicopter services to petroleum sector and for tourism

Oil and Gas Pipelines

Pipelines are the most convenient and efficient mode of transporting liquids and gases over long distances
Oil India Limited (OIL) under the administrative set up of the Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas is engaged in the exploration, production and transportation of crude oil and natural gas which was incorporated in 1959 as a company
Asia’s first cross country pipeline covering a distance of 1,157 km was constructed by OIL from Naharkatiya oilfield in Assam to Barauni refinery in Bihar which was further extended up to Kanpur in 1966
Another extensive network of pipelines has been constructed in the western region of India of which Ankleshwar-Koyali, Mumbai High -Koyali and Hazira-Vijaipur-Jagdishpur (HVJ) are most important

Communication Networks

The means of communication were also the means of transportation
Invention of postoffice, telegraph, printing press, telephone, satellite, etc has made the communication much faster and easier
Development in the field of science and technology has significantly contributed in bringing about revolution in the field of communication
On the basis of scale and quality, the mode of communication can be divided into following categories :
a) Personal communication system; b) Mass communication system

Personal Communication System

Internet is the most effective and advanced personal communication system
It is widely used in urban areas
It enables the user to establish direct contact through e-mail to get access to the world of knowledge and information
It is increasingly used for e-commerce and carrying out money transactions
The internet is like a huge central warehouse of data, with detailed information on various items.
The network through internet and e-mail provides an efficient access to information at a comparatively low cost
It enables us with the basic facilities of direct communication

Mass Communication System

1) Radio

Radio broadcasting started in India in 1923 by the Radio Club of Bombay.
In 1930 it came under the control of Indian Broadcasting System
It was changed to All India Radio in 1936 and to Akashwani in 1957
All India Radio broadcasts a variety of programmes related to information, education and entertainment
Special news bulletins are also broadcast at specific occasions like session of parliament and state legislatures

2) Television (T.V)

Television broadcasting has emerged as the most effective audio-visual medium for disseminating information and educating masses
In 1976, TV was delinked from All India Radio (AIR) and got a separate identity as Doordarshan (DD)
After INSAT-IA (National Television-DD1) became operational, Common National Programmes (CNP) were started for the entire network and its services were extended to the backward and remote rural areas

3) Sattelite Communication

Satellites are mode of communication in themselves as well as they regulate the use of other means of communication
Satellite communication play a very vital for the country due to the economic and strategic reasons
Satellite images can be used for the weather forecast, monitoring of natural calamities, surveillance of border areas, etc
On the basis of configuration and purposes, satellite system in India can be grouped into two:
- Indian National Satellite System (INSAT) - The INSAT was established in 1983,is a multipurpose satellite system for telecommunication, meteorological observation and for various other data and programmes.
- Indian Remote Sensing Satellite System (IRS) - These satellites collect data in several spectral bands and transmit them to the ground stations for various uses. The National Remote Sensing Agency (NRSA) at Hyderabad provides facilities for acquisition of data and its processing. These are very useful in the management of natural.