Lifelines Of National Economy

PPT by Vinod KumarSocialscience4u.blogspot.com

“The means of transport and communication are called the lifelines of a country

and its economy”

Lifelines of a human being are his veins which carry blood to all parts of the body and

provide them energy. Same way means of transport and communication bring all the

regions of a country closer and develop them equally. A country can make tremendous

progress only on the basis of its developed means of transport and communication.

“Various means of transport and communication have reduced distances, bringing

the world closer”.

Earlier people used to move on foot, the means of transportation were not at all

developed, going from one place to another was considered as a burden, but now a

days no place in the world is far away. With the present means of transportation, one

can reach to any part of the world within hours. Earlier the means of communication also

were not developed. It took a long time to send message from one place to another. In

the present world with the means like telephone, television and most importantly

internet, none of the countries or any part of world is far away.

Lifeline of National Economy

Transport Trade Communication

Personal Mass

Roadways

According to their capacity According to type of material used

Railways Waterways Pipelines Airways

Golden Quadrilateral Super Highways Metalled

National Highways Unmetalled State Highways

District Roads

Other Roads

Border Roads

Brood Guage

Meter Guage

Narrow Guage

Domestic

International

Private

Inland

Oceanic

Indian postal Network

Indian Telecom Network

All India Radio

Doordarshan

Newspapers, Books &Magazines

Cinema/Movies

NationalInternational

Favourable Balance of Trade

Un-favourable Balance of Trade

Importance of road transport : Construction cost of roads is much lower than that of railways lines. Roads can traverse

comparatively more dissected and undulating topography. Roads can negotiate higher

gradients of slopes and as such can traverse mountains such as the Himalayas. Road

transport is economical in transportation of few persons and relatively smaller amount of

goods over short distance. It also provides door-to-door service, thus the cost of loading

and unloading is much lower. Road transport is also used as a feeder to other modes of

transport such as they provide a link between railway stations, air and sea ports.

Road Transport

Types of roads : For the purpose of administration roads can be divided into.Express Way National Highway.(i) Golden Quadrilateral : Linking Delhi-Kolkatta-Chennai-Mumbai and Delhi by six lane Super Highways, length 5846 km.(ii) North-south and East-west corridors from Srinagar to Kanyakumari and Silchar to Porbandar, length 7300 km.(iii) Roads connecting 10 major ports with Golden Quadrilateral and corridors, length 363 km.(iv) These are implemented by the National Highway Authority of India (NHAI).Objective : To reduce the time and distance between the mega cities of India.

National highways : These are the primary road systems and are laid and maintained by the Central Public works Department. Connects one state with another and are of national importance.State highways : Join state capitals with district headquarters and other important towns. Constructed and maintained by the State Public Works Department in State and Union Territories.District roads : Connects the district headquarters with other places of the district, are maintained by the Zila Parishad.Village roads : Connects the village with the neighbouring towns and cities. These roads received special impetus under the Pradhan Mantri Grameen Sadak Yojana.

Border Road Organisation a Government of India undertaking constructs and

maintains roads in the bordering areas of the country. This organisation was established

in 1960 for the development of roads of strategic importance in the northern and north-

eastern border areas. These roads have improved accessibility in areas of difficult

terrain and have helped in the economic development of these areas.

The another classification can be done on the basis of type of material used for building roads.Surfaced/Metalled/ Pukka Roads : Smooth and Polished roads, built of Coaltar, cement and stones. Are all weathered roads. Are constructed and maintained by Central and State Governments. 53% of the total road network.Un-Surfaced/Non-Metalled/ Kuchha Roads : Rugged and Dusty roads, built of soil and stones. Becomes inapplicable in rainy season. Constructed and maintained by Local Authoriteis and Gram Panchayats. 47% of the total road network.Road Density : Distribution of road is not uniform in the country. Density of all roads varies from only 10.04 km in Jammu and Kashmir to 532.27 km in U.P (2007-08) with the national average of 125.02 km (2007-08).Problems of Road Transport : The road network is Inadequate. Half of the roads are unsurfaced which become muddy during the rainy season. National highways are inadequate, highly congested in cities, their bridges and culverts are narrow. Road side amenities like telephone booths, books, emergency with services and police protection are poor, needs improvement.

Railway Transport

Principle mode of transportation for freight and passengers in India. Railways also make

it possible to conduct multifarious activities like business, sightseeing, pilgrimage along

with transportation of goods over long distances. Have been a great integrating force for

more than 150 years. Bind the economic life of the country as well as accelerate the

development of the industry and agriculture. Have a network of 7133 stations spread

over a route length of 64460 km. with a fleet of 9213 locomotives, 53220 passenger

service vehicles, 6493 other coach vehicles and 229,381 wagons as on March 2011

Factors affecting the distribution pattern of the railway network in the country : Distribution pattern of the railway network gets influenced by physiographic, economic and administrative factors. Level land of the great plains of India with high density of population and rich agriculture and greater industrial activity have favoured railway network in these areas. On the other hand, flood plains of Bihar and Assam, rugged topography of the Himalayan region, deserts of Rajasthan and hilly tracts of Sahayadri are unfavourable for the development of railways.Problems from which rail transport suffers : Many passengers travel without tickets. Passengers pull chain unnecessarily causing heavy losses to the railway. Thefts and damaging of railway property have not yet stopped completely.

Pipeline TransportImportance : A convenient mode of transport for mineral oil and natural gas. Can be constructed over land as well as in water. Initial cost of laying pipelines is more but subsequent running cost are minimum. Pipeline transport rules out transshipment losses or delays. The transportation cost is also very low.

Important networks of pipeline transportation : (i) From oil fields in upper Assam to Kanpur via Guwahati, Barauni and Allahabad.(ii) From Salaya in Gujarat to Jalandher in Punjab via Virangam, Mathura, Delhi and Sonipat.(iii) Gas pipeline from Hazira in Gujarat to Jagdishpur in U.P. via Vijaipur in M.P.(iv) Pipelines between Mumbai high and Mumbai, Mumbai and Pune.

Inland Water TransportImportance : (i) Cheapest mean as well as near about pollution free form of transport.(ii) Most suitable for carrying heavy and bulky goods. Inland navigable waterways 14500 km, of which 3700 km are navigable by mechanised boats.

National Waterways (N.W.) :

(i) Ganga river between

Allahabad and Haldia (1620

km). Is N.W. No. 1

(ii) Brahmaputra river between

Sadiya and Dhubri (891 km).

Is N.W. No. 2

(iii) West coast canal between

Kollam and Kottayam (168

km). (Kerala) Is N.W. No. 3

(iv) Champakara canal (14

km) (Kerala)

(v) Udyog mandal canal (22

km) (Kerala)

Advantages : Fastest mode of transport. Best mean of transport for remote, inaccessible and hostile areas. Plays a vital role during calamities.Companies operating Airways : Air India provides international air services. Indian airlines, Alliance air and private scheduled airlines provide domestic air services in India. Pawanhans Helicopters ltd. and Air taxi operators provide services to remote areas of India.

Sea Ports

About 7516 km long coast line having 12 major and 181 medium and minor sea ports,

handles 95% of India’s foreign trade.

On the eastern coast:- Kolkata (an inland riverine tidal port, requires constant dredging of Hoogly), Haldia (developed as a subsidiary port, in order to relieve growing pressure on the Kolkata port), Paradip (specialises in the export of iron ore), Vishakapatanam (deepest landlocked and well-protected port), Tuticorin (a natural harbour and rich hinterland) and Chennai (one of the oldest artificial ports of the country, is ranked next to Mumbai in terms of the volume of trade and cargo).

On the western coast:- Kandla (first port to be developed soon after independence to ease the volume of trade on the Mumbai port, is a tidal port, caters to the convenient handling of exports and imports across the states of northern and north-western India), Mumbai (biggest port with a spacious natural and well-sheltered harbour), Jawaharlal Nehru port ( to decongest the Mumbai port and serve as a hub port), Mormagao (premier iron ore exporting port, accounts for about 50% of India’s iron ore export), New Mangalore (caters to the export of iron ore export or iron ore concentrates from Kudremukh mines) and Kochi( located at the entrance of a lagoon with a natural harbour).

Can be divided into 2 parts : Personal communication and Mass communication.Personal communication : Indian Postal Network : Largest in the world. 1.5 lakh post offices (89% in rural areas 11% in urban areas) Carries 2 types of mails.First class mail : It is air lifted between stations, mail covering both land and connected by air. Includes cards and envelopes.Second class mail : Carried by surface mail covering land and water transport. Includes registered newspapers, periodicals and book packets.Telecom network : Largest telecom network in Asia, about 3200 telephone exchanges. Besides urban places covers over 2/3rd of the villages of India. Private companies have also entered, resulting in availability of better facilities to the consumers.

Mass communication :Plays a vital role in creating awareness, provides healthy

entertainment as well.

All India Radio : 200 radio stations, 320 transmitters broadcast a

variety of programmes in National and Regional languages.

Doordarshan : One of the largest terrestrial network, serves over

87% of the country. Its programmes range from entertainment to

education and sports..

Printing media : A large number of newspapers and periodicals,

about 50000 published in about 100 languages and dialects.

Largest producer of feature films, other films produced are short

films, video feature films and video short films.

Modern life is so complex that one has to depend on others. No country today can

prosper without the cooperation and assistance of others. In the present world, Trade

has become a necessity as - No country is self reliant, each country lacks in one

resource or the other. On the other hand some resources are in excess. Requirements

can be fulfilled only through trade. In times of calamities, trade relations are very useful

as help can be received through the friendly countries. Trade relations are a guarantee

of peace. It is generally believed that the trading countries are not going to fight with

each other as they are interdependent.

International trade has undergone a sea change in the last fifteen years. Exchange of commodities and goods have been superseded by the exchange of information and knowledge. India has emerged as a software giant at the international level and it is earning large foreign exchange through the export of information technology.

The difference between value of exports & imports is known as the balance of trade. If value of exports is more than the value of imports it is called favourable balance of trade and if value of import is more than the value of export it is called unfavaurable balance of trade. In 2000-01 India had a foreign trade of Rs. 43 lakh crore. Import constituted 53% and export 47% so it is unfavourable balance. India has trade relations with all the trading blocks of the world, most of the commodities exported from India consist of both raw material and manufactured goods which fetches less income. Commodities imported are mostly petroleum, gold, chemicals etc. which are more costly. Thus the overall balance of trade is unfavourable.

Balance of trade :

Foreign tourist’s arrivals in the country witnessed an increase of 11.8 percent during the year 2010 as against the year 2009, contributing Rs 64,889 crore of foreign exchange in 2010. Over 5.78 million foreign tourists visited India in 2010. More than 15 million people are directly engaged in the tourism industry. Tourism also promotes national integration, provides support to local handicrafts and cultural pursuits. It also helps in the development of international understanding about our culture and heritage. Foreign tourists visit India for heritage tourism, eco-tourism, adventure tourism, cultural tourism, medical tourism and business tourism. Rajasthan, Goa, Jammu and Kashmir and temple towns of south India are important destinations of foreign tourists in India.