Transport and Communication Notes in English Class 12 Geography Chapter-7 Book-India-People And Economy

 

transportation

Transportation is the service or facility for carrying people and goods from one place to another 

Modes of transport 

1. Site

• road

• Railway

• line pipe

2. Water

• inland

• oceanic oceanic

3. Air

• National

• international

land transport 

• In India, roads and unpaved roads have been used for transportation since ancient times. 

• With economic and technological development, paved roads and railways have been developed to transport large quantities of goods and people from one place to another. 

• Means such as ropeways, cableways and pipelines were developed to meet the demand for transport of specific materials under specific conditions.

Road Transport 

• India's road network is the second largest in the world. Its total length is about 62.16 lakh km. About 85 percent of passengers and 70 percent of heavy traffic is transported by roads here every year. Road transport is the best for travelling short distances.

• After independence, a twenty-year road plan (1961) was launched to improve the condition of roads in India. But roads were concentrated only in cities and their surrounding areas.

• There was almost no road connectivity to villages and remote areas.

Classification of roads for the purpose of construction and maintenance – 

1. National Highway (NH),

2. State Highway (SH),

3. Major District Road

4. Rural road

National Highway 

• National Highways are those roads which are constructed and maintained by the Central Government. 

• These roads are used for inter-state transportation and movement of defence materials and troops to strategic areas. 

• These highways also connect state capitals, major cities, important ports and railway junctions.

• The length of National Highways is only 2% of the total road length of the entire country but they carry 40% of the road traffic.

• National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) came into operation in 1995. 

• Besides, it is also the apex body for improving the quality of roads designated as National Highways.

National Highway Development Project  

• Golden Quadrilateral Project: It includes 5,846 km long 4/6 lane high density traffic corridors connecting the four big metropolises of the country- Delhi-Mumbai-Chennai-Kolkata. With the construction of Golden Quadrilateral, the time-distance and cost of transportation between these metropolises of India will be reduced significantly.

North-South and East-West Corridor :

• The North-South Corridor aims to connect Srinagar in Jammu and Kashmir to Kanyakumari in Tamil Nadu (including the Kochi-Salem section) via a 4,016 km long route. The East-West Corridor aims to connect Silchar in Assam to Porbandar in Gujarat via a 3,640 km long route.

1. State Highway 

• State highways are those roads which are constructed and maintained by the state government. 

• These roads connect the state capital to district headquarters and main cities 

• These highways are connected to the national highways 

2. District Roads 

These roads connect the district headquarters and other important places of the district 

3. Rural roads 

These roads connect rural areas to each other. 80% of the total road length of the country is rural roads. 

rail transport 

• The Indian railway network is one of the longest railway networks in the world. 

• Indian Railways not only facilitates goods and passenger transportation but also contributes to economic growth.

• Indian Railways was established in 1853.  A 34 km long railway line was constructed between Mumbai (Bombay) and Thane.

• The total length of the Indian railway network is 67956 km

• Indian Railways is divided into 17 zones.

• Indian Railways has launched a massive programme to convert metre and narrow gauge railways to broad gauge.

• Apart from this, diesel and electric engines have been introduced in place of steam engines.

• With this step, the speed of trains has increased as well as their carrying capacity.

• The replacement of steam engines with coal-powered ones has also improved the environment of railway stations.

• The British brought railways to India so that India's resources could be exploited.  After independence these railway lines were expanded to other areas as well. 

• The most significant of these is the development of the Konkan Railway which provides direct connectivity between Mumbai and Mangalore along the western seacoast of India.

Konkan Railway

• The construction of Konkan Railway in 1998 is a significant achievement of Indian Railways. 

• This 760 km long railway line connects Roha in Maharashtra to Mangalore in Karnataka.

• It is considered a unique marvel of engineering. 

• This railway line crosses 146 rivers and streams and 2000 bridges and 91 tunnels. 

• This route also has Asia's longest tunnel of 6.5 km. 

• The states of Karnataka, Goa and Maharashtra are partners in this venture

Metro Rail

• Metro rail has revolutionized the urban transport system in India. 

• The operation of metro rail has helped in controlling air pollution in the urban area 

water transport 

• Waterways are an important mode of transport in India for both passenger and cargo movement.

• It is the cheapest mode of transport and is most suitable for transporting heavy and bulky materials.

• It is a fuel efficient and eco-friendly transportation system. 

• There are two types of water transport – (a) Inland waterways and (b) Oceanic waterways.

water transport 

1. Inland waterways

2. Ocean waterways

Inland waterways -

• When there were no railways, waterways were used more 

• Waterways faced tough competition from rail and road transport. 

• Due to diversion of river water for irrigation, most parts of their routes are no longer suitable for navigation.

• At present 14,500 km long waterway is available for navigation 

• Which contributes about 1% to the country's transportation.  

• The Inland Waterways Authority was established in 1986 for the development, maintenance and regulation of national waterways in the country. 

National Waterways declared by the government

• The back waters of Kerala (Kadal) have a special importance among the inland waterways. 

• Apart from providing a cheap mode of transportation, these also attract a large number of tourists to Kerala. 

• The famous Nehru Trophy Boat Race (Vallamkali) is also held in this backwater.

Ocean waterways -

• India has an extensive coastline of about 7,517 km including islands. 

• 12 major and 200 minor ports provide the structural base to these routes. 

• Ocean routes play an important role in the transport sector of India's economy. 

• In India, about 95% of foreign trade by weight and 70% by value takes place through oceanic routes. 

• Apart from international trade, these routes are also used for transportation between the mainland and islands of the country.

Air Transport 

• Air transport in India began in 1911, when air mail operations were started from Allahabad to Naini, a distance of 10 km.

• Air transport is the fastest means of travelling from one place to another. It has reduced distances by reducing travel time.

• Air transport is very important for a large country like India because the distances here are very long and the terrain and climatic conditions are extremely diverse. But its real development took place after the country attained independence.

• One drawback of air transport is that it is very expensive.

• The Air Authority of India is responsible for providing safe and efficient air traffic and aeronautical communication services in the Indian airspace.

• Pawan Hans is a helicopter service serving the mountainous regions and is widely used by tourists in the North-East sector.

Oil and Gas Pipelines 

• Pipelines are a highly convenient and efficient transportation system for transporting gases and liquids over long distances. 

• Even solid substances can be transported by converting them into solution or slurry. 

• Oil India Limited (OIL),  established under the administration of the Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas,  is engaged in the exploration, production and transportation of crude oil and natural gas. 

• It was incorporated as a company in the year 1959.

• Asia's first 1157 km long cross country pipeline (from Naharkaritaya oil field in Assam to Barauni oil refinery) was constructed by IOL.

• It was further extended to Kanpur in 1966. 

• GAIL (India) Limited was established in 1984 

• It was created to transport, process and market natural gas for its economic use. 

Communications network 

• Humans have developed various means of communication since ancient times. 

• In the early times , messages were transmitted with the help of fast runners,  by beating drums or hollow tree trunks, or  by signals made by fire or smoke  .

• At that time, horses, camels, dogs, birds and other animals were also used to convey messages.

• The invention of post office, telegraph, printing press, telephone and satellites made communication very fast and easy. 

• Development in the field of science and technology has contributed significantly in bringing revolution in the field of communication.

Communications

• Personal

• Public 

Personal  

• Phone

• Telegram 

• Fax 

• Email 

• internet etc 

Public 

• Radio 

• TV 

• Satellite 

• Newspapers

• magazine 

• Books 

Personal Communication System -   

• The Internet is the most widespread and effective of all personal communication systems; it is also the most modern

• Email is widely used in urban areas for sending messages  

Public communication system (Mass communication)  

Radio 

• Radio broadcasting in India was started in 1923 by the Radio Club of Bombay. 

• Radio has gained immense popularity and has brought about a change in the social and cultural life of the people. 

• Within a short span of time it has found its place in every home across the country. 

• The government took control of this popular medium in 1930 under the Indian Broadcasting System. 

• In 1936 it was changed to All India Radio and in 1957 to Akashvani. 

• All India Radio broadcasts a variety of programmes related to information, education and entertainment. 

• Special news bulletins are also broadcast.

Television

• Television has emerged as an audio-visual medium that  has proved highly effective in disseminating information and educating the common people  .

• In the initial stages TV services were limited to the national capital only 

• Where it was started in 1959. 

• Many other centres came into operation after 1972. 

• In 1976, TV was separated from All India Radio (AIR) and  given a separate identity as Doordarshan (DD). 

• They were extended to backward and remote rural areas across the country.

Satellite communications 

• Satellites are a mode of communication in themselves and  they also regulate other means of communication. 

• The images obtained from the satellite can be used for  weather forecasting, monitoring natural disasters,  surveillance of border areas, etc.

satellite system of india 

• INSAT

• IRS

INSAT

Indian National Satellite System  

IRS

Indian Remote Sensing Satellite System  

INSAT

• Established – 1983

• Multinational satellite system

• Telecommunications 

• Meteorology

IRS

• Established – 1988

• data acquisition

• Management of natural resources