Back to: MBOSE Social Science Class 10

Transportation: the movement of goods and persons from place to place and the various means by which such movement is accomplished.

Inland Waterway and Airways are the two modes of transport which are widely used in the northeastern states of India. The northeastern part of the country is marked with the presence of hilly terrain, dissected relief, dense forests, large number of rivers, heavy rainfall as well as international frontiers.
Road can be classified on the basis of materials used for construction. Metalled and non-metalled roads

Different types of roads in India

• NATIONAL HIGHWAYS:- These are the important roads of the country. They connect state capitals, ports and foreign highways. They also include roads of military importance. They are financed by the central government. The National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) is the nodal agency responsible for building, upgrading, and maintaining most of the National Highways network. It operates under the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways.
• STATE HIGHWAYS: – these are the important roads of a state. They connect important cities and district head quarters in the state, national highways & state highways of neighboring states. They are financed by state government roads and buildings department of the state government constructs & maintain these roads. Public Works Department (PWD) constructs and maintains the State Highways.
• DISTRICT ROADS: – these are the roads within a district. They are financed by zillaparishads with the help of grants given by state government. The construction and maintenance of district road are conducted by Zila Parishad and PWD (Public Works Department).
• THE MAJOR DISTRICT ROADS:- They are roads connecting district headquarters, taluk head quarters and other important town in the district production and market centers with each other and with state & national highways & railways.
• OTHER DISTRICT ROADS: – They are district roads of less importance
• VILLAGE ROADS: – they connect villages with each other and to the nearest district road. They are financed by panchayats with the help of zillaparishads and state government.
• Border Roads are the roads constructed along the northern and northeastern borders of our country. These roads are constructed and maintained by Border Roads Organisation (BRO) which was set up in 1960 by the government of India. BRO is regarded as a symbol of nation building, national integration and an inseparable component in maintaining the security of the country.

Write a short note on the Golden Quadrilateral Super Highways.

The Golden Quadrilateral is a highway network connecting many of the major industrial, agricultural and cultural centres of India. It forms a quadrilateral connecting Chennai, Kolkata, Delhi and Mumbai. Other cities connected by this network are Ahmedabad, Bengaluru, Bhubaneswar, Jaipur, Kanpur, Pune, Surat, Vijayawada, Ajmer, and Vizag.

It is the largest highway project in India and the fifth longest in the world, at 5,846 km. Started by the NDA government led by Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee[1] it is the first phase of the National Highways Development Project (NHDP), and consists of 5,846 km (3,633 mi) four/six lane express highways, built at a cost of ₹600 billion (US$9.2 billion).[2] The project was launched in 2001 by Atal Bihari Vajpayee, and was completed in 2012.[3] The vast majority of system is not access controlled, although safety features such as guardrails, shoulders, and high-visibility signs are in use.

The Golden Quadrilateral project is managed by the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) under the Ministry of Road, Transport and Highways. The Mumbai-Pune Expressway, the first controlled-access toll road to be built in India, is a part of the GQ Project but not funded by NHAI, and separate from the main highway. Infrastructure Leasing & Financial Services (IL&FS) has been one of the major contributors to the infrastructural development activity in the GQ project. This project was conceptualised in 1999 and started in 2001. It was projected to connect four metropolitan cities of India: Delhi, Mumbai, Chennai and Kolkata. The project consisted of constructing four- and six-lane express highways. Although the project was planned to be completed by 2006, due to delays like land acquisition, awarding contracts, zoning challenges, and funding problems, it was finally completed in 2012. It is a network of highways that connect the four major metropolitan cities of the country in four directions – Delhi (North), Chennai (South), Kolkata (East) and Mumbai (West) – thereby forming a quadrilateral, and hence the name Golden Quadrilateral.

Name the northern, southern, eastern and westernmost stations of the Golden Quadrilateral.

• Northern station – Srinagar (Jammu and Kashmir)
• Eastern station – Silchar (Assam)
• Southern station– Kanyakumari (Tamil Nadu)
• Western station – Porbandar (Gujarat)

Importance of Road

1. Good transport infrastructure, like highway network enhances transport system that reduces transportation costs and this, in turn, definitely reduces the production costs while it increases productivity and profitability of organizations.

2. Highway network also makes transportation schedules and deliveries more reliable and timely.

3. Highways also contribute immensely to social growth, relatives are able to visit their loved ones more often and it enhances good relationship between family and friends.

4. Highways can relatively reduce travel time to villages, cities and towns thereby encourage people to travel for business and trade.

5. Highways make journeys faster, comfortable and safer than usual while at the same time reduce fuel consumption.

Advantages of Road Transportation:

1. Less Capital Outlay: Road transport required much less capital Investment as compared to other modes of transport such as railways and air transport. The cost of constructing, operating and maintaining roads is cheaper than that of the railways. Roads are generally constructed by the government and local authorities and only a small revenue is charged for the use of roads.

2. Door to Door Service: The outstanding advantage of road transport is that it provides door to door or warehouse to warehouse service. This reduces cartage, loading and unloading expenses.

3. Service in Rural Areas: Road transport is most suited for carrying goods and people to and from rural areas which are not served by rail, water or air transport. Exchange of goods, between large towns and small villages is made possible only through road transport.

4. Flexible Service: Road transport has a great advantage over other modes of transport for its flexible service, its routes and timings can be adjusted and changed to individual requirements without much inconvenience.

5. Suitable for Short Distance: It is more economic and quicker for carrying goods and people over short distances. Delays in transit of goods on account of intermediate loading and handling are avoided. Goods can be loaded direct into a road vehicle and transported straight to their place of destination.

6. Lesser Risk of Damage in Transit: As the intermediate loading and handling is avoided, there is lesser risk of damage, breakage etc. of the goods in transit. Thus, road transport is most suited for transporting delicate goods like chinaware and glassware, which are likely to be damaged in the process of loading and unloading.

7. Saving in Packing Cost: As compared to other modes of transport, the process of packing in motor transport is less complicated. Goods transported by motor transport require less packing or no packing in several cases.

8. Rapid Speed: If the goods are to be sent immediately or quickly, motor transport is more suited than the railways or water transport. Water transport is very slow. Also much time is wasted in booking the goods and taking delivery of the goods in case of railway and water transport.

9. Less Cost: Road transport not only requires less initial capital investment, the cost of operation and maintenance is also comparatively less. Even if the rate charged by motor transport is a little higher than that by the railways, the actual effective cost of transporting goods by motor transport is less. The actual cost is less because the motor transport saves in packing costs and the expenses of intermediate loading, unloading and handling charges.

10. Private Owned Vehicles: Another advantage of road transport is that big businessmen can afford to have their own motor vehicles and initiate their own road services to market their products without causing any delay.

11. Feeder to other Modes of Transport: The movement of goods begins and ultimately ends by making use of roads. Road and motor transport act as a feeder to the other modes of transport such as railways, ships and airways.

Disadvantages of road Transportation: In spite of various merits, road/motor has some serious limitations:

1. Seasonal Nature: Motor transport is not as reliable as rail transport. During rainy or flood season, roads become unfit and unsafe for use.

2. Accidents and Breakdowns: There are more chances of accidents and breakdowns in case of motor transport. Thus, motor transport is not as safe as rail transport.

3. Unsuitable for Long Distance and Bulky Traffic: This mode of transport is unsuitable and costly for transporting cheap and bulky goods over long distances.

4. Slow Speed: The speed of motor transport is comparatively slow and limited.

5. Lack of Organization: The road transport is comparatively less organised. More often, it is irregular and undependable. The rates charged for transportation are also unstable and unequal

The desirable features of mass transit systems are balanced by a number of serious drawbacks. In the first place, such systems are economically feasible only in areas that have relatively large populations. As the number of inhabitants per square mile decreases, the efficiency of a mass transportation system also decreases.

Mass transit systems are also very expensive to build and to operate. This factor becomes more important when cities decide to install mass transit systems long after development has already taken place and disruption of existing structures is a serious problem. Since mass transit systems seldom receive the government assistance provided to highway construction, consumers often have to pay a higher fraction of the costs of using mass transportation.

People complain about mass transportation systems also because they can be crowded, uncomfortable, dirty, and unreliable. Again, with limited budgets, mass transit systems are seldom able to maintain equipment and schedules to the extent that riders can rightly demand.

Finally, mass transportation systems are simply not as convenient as the automobile. A person can step into her or his car and drive virtually anywhere with a minimum of inconvenience. No mass transportation system can approach this level of ease.

The means of transportation and communication are called the lifelines of National economy: A country ‘s economy depends not only on the production and sale of goods and services, but on their transport as well A country makes tremendous progress because of its developed means of transport and communication. Without these all the developmental activities will come to an end and the country would meet its doom.

1. it linked the world with transport network
2. Railways, roadways newspaper, television, cinema and internet have been contributing to socio-economic progress.
3. The trades from local to international levels have added to the vitality of its economy.
4. It has enriched our life and added substantially to growing amenities and facilities for the comforts of life.

What is Rail Gauge: The gauge of the railway track is a clear minimum vertical distance between the inner sides of two tracks is called railway gauge. That is, the distance between the two tracks on any railway route is known as railway gauge. Approximately sixty percent of the world’s railway uses standard gauge of 1,435 mm. There are 4 types of railway gauge used in India. Broad gauge, Metre Gauge, Narrow gauge and Standard gauge (for Delhi Metro). Let’s study them.

Broad Gauge: Broad gauge is also called wide gauge or large line. The distance between the two tracks in these railway gauges is 1676 mm (5 ft 6 in). It would not be wrong to say that any gauge, wider than standard gauge or 1,435 mm (4 ft 8½ inches), is called broad gauge. The first railway line built in India was a broad gauge line from Bore Bunder (now Chhatrapati Shivaji Terminus) to Thane in 1853. Broad gauge railway is also used on ports for crane etc. This gives better stability and they are even better than thinner gauges.

Standard Gauge: The distance between the two tracks in this railway gauge is 1435 mm (4 ft 8½ in). In India, standard gauge is used only for urban rail transit systems like Metro, Monorail and Tram. Till 2010, the only standard gauge line in India was the Kolkata (Calcutta) tram system. All metro lines coming in urban areas will be made only in the standard gauge because it is easy to get rolling stock for the standard gauge as compared to the Indian gauge. By 2016, the lines that are in operation are Delhi Metro, Rapid Metro Rail Gurgaon, Bangalore Metro and Mumbai Metro. All these are operated separately from Indian Railways.

Metre Gauge: The distance between the two tracks is 1,000 mm (3 ft 3 3/8 in). The metre gauge lines were made to reduce the cost. All meter gauge lines except the Nilgiri Mountain Railway which is a legacy run on a meter gauge in India will be converted into broad gauge under project Unigauge.

Narrow Gauge: The small gauge is called a Narrow gauge or a small line. The narrow-gauge railway is the railway track, in which distance between two tracks is 2 ft 6 in (762 mm) and 2 ft (610 mm). In 2015, there was a 1,500 km narrow gauge rail route, which is considered to be about 2% of the total Indian rail network. As the country is developing, small line services are expected to be completed by 2018. Now the small lines are being converted into big lines. Trains with small bogies now will no longer be able to see much. The Darjeeling Mountain Railway has declared UNESCO World Heritage on 24 July, 2008. Kalka Shimla Railway is also very popular.

Factors affecting the Railway Gauge

• Traffic conditions: If the traffic intensity is likely to be high on the track, then the broad gauge will be appropriate instead of the standard gauge.
• Poor areas development: Narrow gauges have been installed in some parts of the world to develop a poor area and thus helpful in linking the poor area with the outside world.
• Cost of track: The cost of the railway track is directly proportional to the width of its gauge. If available funds are not enough to make standard gauge and there is no railway line in the area, then the metre gauge or narrow gauge is preferred.
• Speed of the train: The speed of a train is a function of the diameter of the wheel, which in turn is limited by the gauge. The wheel’s diameter is usually 0.75 times the width of the gauge and thus, the speed of the train is almost proportional to the gauge. If higher speeds are to be achieved then the broad gauge track is given the priority instead of metre gauge or narrow gauge track.

Road transport more useful than other means of transport
Road Transport – Road transport is a kind of transportation by roads. It means transportation of goods and people from one place to another by using roads. There are many advantages compared to other modes of transport as its operating cost is cheaper than rail transport.

Rail Transport –Rail Transport also called as train transport. Rail transport is a kind of transportation by railways It means transportation of goods and people from one place to another by using trains. There are many advantages compared to other modes of transport as it is very less and operating cost is cheaper than air transport. It is one of the common transports often used by people.

Differences –

• Road transport is more important than Rail transport in many ways.
• Road transport operating cost is cheaper than Rail transport.
• Road transport is easy to access in hilly areas whereas in Rail transport it’s difficult to reach such places.
• Construction and maintenance cost is less in road transport whereas it’s more in rail transport.
• Road transport is better than Rail transport to transport goods for short distance.

Pipeline transport network is a new arrival on the transportation map of India. In the past, these were used to transport water to cities and industries. Now, these are used for transporting crude oil, petroleum products and natural gas from oil and natural gas fields to refineries, fertilizer factories and big thermal power plants. Solids can also be transported through a pipeline when converted into slurry. The far inland locations of refineries like Barauni, Mathura, Panipat and gas based fertilizer plants could be thought of only because of pipelines. Initial cost of laying pipelines is high but subsequent running costs are minimal. It rules out trans-shipment losses or delays. There are three important networks of pipeline transportation in the country.

1.From oil field in upper Assam to Kanpur (Uttar Pradesh), via Guwahati, Barauni and Allahabad. It has branches from Barauni to Haldia, via Rajbandh, Rajbandh to Maurigram and Guwahati to Siliguri.

2.From Salaya in Gujarat to Jalandhar in Punjab, via Viramgam, Mathura, Delhi and Sonipat. It has branches to connect Koyali (near Vadodara, Gujarat) Chakshu and other places.

3.Gas pipeline from Hazira in Gujarat connects Jagdishpur in Uttar Pradesh, via Vijaipur in Madhya Pradesh. It has branches to Kota in Rajasthan, Shahajahanpur, Babrala and other places in Uttar Pradesh.

Pipeline transport advantages are:

(1)Transport capacity, a foreign coal pipeline diameter 720 mm, and a year to transport 20 million tons of coal, equivalent to almost one-directional transmission capacity of a single-track railway;  small amount of traffic engineering, small footprint, pipeline transportation just laying pipelines, construction of pumping stations, construction of railways is much smaller than the earthwork and the plains are mostly buried under, does not occupy farmland;

(2)Energy consumption in various modes of transport is the lowest;

(3)Safe, reliable, non-polluting, low cost;

(4)The climate, and all-weather transport, high reliability and delivery of goods

(5)Pipeline can take shortcuts., short distance transport;

(6)Can be closed transport, less wear and tear.

The disadvantages of pipeline transportation are:

(1)Specific and strong, can only transport oil, natural gas and solid slurry (such as coal), but in the field it occupies, with a fixed and reliable market;

(2)Pipeline from input the magnitude of the amount of the highest traffic among small, so in the early field development, the use of pipeline transportation difficulties, but also to road, rail, sea and land transportation as a transition.

(3)The construction of pipelines, gas stations and oil storage device has to spend huge investment. In addition, the pipeline route through a set dressing, unregulated traffic room, small transport elasticity, and flexibility is poor.

Waterways are the cheapest mode of transport. Neither construction cost, nor maintenance cost is required for the waterways as they use the rivers, lakes, seas and oceans as highways. They are suited for the transport of bulky and heavy raw materials.
Waterways are a fuel efficient and environment friendly mode of transportation. The boats and steamers, even if mechanized, consume much lesser fuel and do not pollute the surrounding. The following waterways have been declared as the National Waterways by the Government:

• The Ganga river between Allahabad and Haldia (1620 km) – National Waterway No. 1.
  • The Brahmaputra river between Sadiya and Dhubri (891 km) – National Waterway No. 2.
  • The West-Coast Canal in Kerala (Kottapuram – Komman, Udyogamandal and Champakkara canals – 205 km) – National Waterway No. 3.

The coastline of the country is 7,516.6 km; which includes the Andaman and Nicobar and Lakshadweep. India has got 13 seaports.

• Kandla Port, Gujarat – Busiest Port in India.
• Jawaharlal Nehru Port, Maharashtra (Earlier Known as Nhava Sheva)
• Mumbai Port (Largest Port of India)
• Visakhapatnam Port, Andhra Pradesh.
• Chennai Port (Second Largest Sea Port in India)
• Mormugao Port, Goa.
• Port Blair Port, Andaman and Nicobar Islands
• Kolkata Port 
• Paradip Port, Orissa
• Tuticorin Port, Tamil Nadu
• Cochin Port, Kochi (Kerala)
• Ennore Port, Chennai
• Panambur Port, Mangalore, Karnataka (Also Known as New Mangalore Port)

Waterways are the cheapest mode of transport. Neither construction cost, nor maintenance cost is required for the waterways as they use the rivers, lakes, seas and oceans as highways. They are suited for the transport of bulky and heavy raw materials.
Waterways are a fuel efficient and environment friendly mode of transportation. The boats and steamers, even if mechanized, consume much lesser fuel and do not pollute the surrounding. The following waterways have been declared as the National Waterways by the Government:

• The Ganga river between Allahabad and Haldia (1620 km) – National Waterway No. 1.
  • The Brahmaputra river between Sadiya and Dhubri (891 km) – National Waterway No. 2.
  • The West-Coast Canal in Kerala (Kottapuram – Komman, Udyogamandal and Champakkara canals – 205 km) – National Waterway No. 3.

The coastline of the country is 7,516.6 km; which includes the Andaman and Nicobar and Lakshadweep. India has got 13 seaports.

• Kandla Port, Gujarat – Busiest Port in India.
• Jawaharlal Nehru Port, Maharashtra (Earlier Known as Nhava Sheva)
• Mumbai Port (Largest Port of India)
• Visakhapatnam Port, Andhra Pradesh.
• Chennai Port (Second Largest Sea Port in India)
• Mormugao Port, Goa.
• Port Blair Port, Andaman and Nicobar Islands
• Kolkata Port 
• Paradip Port, Orissa
• Tuticorin Port, Tamil Nadu
• Cochin Port, Kochi (Kerala)
• Ennore Port, Chennai
• Panambur Port, Mangalore, Karnataka (Also Known as New Mangalore Port)

An airway is the most expensive mode of transportation. The northeastern part of the country is marked with the presence of difficult hilly and mountainous terrain, dissected relief, large number of rivers, dense forest, heavy rainfall and frequent floods. International frontiers also mark this region. Air transport is the best mode of travel in these areas as airways can negotiate over geographical obstacles and political boundaries with great ease. Roads and railways cannot be properly laid out in such difficult terrain and heavy rainfall and frequent floods disrupt all other modes of transportation. Air transport is the only means of communication under such situations. They can access remote and inaccessible areas in these north-eastern states. They are the fastest and most comfortable means of transport. Domestic airlines have made special provisions to extend air service to the northeastern states at subsidized rates to meet the requirement of the common people. So, the airways are also within the financial reach of the common people in this region.
On account of all these factors, airways are the preferred mode of transportation in the north eastern states of India.

Mass communication: Mass communication provides entertainment as well as information to a large number of people at the same time. As they are means of communication with the masses, they are known as mass communication. 

Means (like electronic media) which covers large number of people at the same time. Different means of communication are radio, television, films and internet, newspapers and magazines.

Significance of mass communication is shown in the following points: 

(i) Covers more than 95% of India’s total population. 

(ii) Source of education and entertainment. 

(iii) Most instant means of mass information. 

(iv) Brings all classes of people together.

Trade is a basic economic concept involving the buying and selling of goods and services, with compensation paid by a buyer to a seller, or the exchange of goods or services between parties. Trade can take place within an economy between producers and consumers. An example of trade is the act of exchanging one item for another or one item for money.

Trade can be divided into following two types, viz.,

• Internal or Home or Domestic trade.
• External or Foreign or International trade.

Difference between Local Trade and International Trade.

Local Trade	International Trade
When trade takes between states, cities or villages within a city, it is known as local trade	When trade takes place between two countries, it is known as international trade.
Local trade does not impact the value of the national currency. It does however, impact the use of resources and generate employment in the country.	It impacts the value of a national currency.
Calculation of taxes when goods ar transported from one region to the other within the country is much simple.	When goods are shipped across various countries calculation of taxes becomes extremely difficult as they pass from one country to another.