Chapter 7 Lifelines Of National Economy Long Questions And Answer
Question 1. “Indian road transportation is confronted with problems”. Justify the statement.
Answer:
Road transportation is economical for the transportation of smaller amounts of goods and few passengers over short and medium distances.
Though they are relatively cheap and easy to construct and maintain, road transportation in India is confronted with a number of problems.
- On account of its large population, India has a large volume of traffic and passengers which requires a large number of vehicles. However, the road network is not adequate to meet the requirement of handling heavy traffic.
- As most roads are kuccha or unmetalled, their usage is limited during the rainy season. The potholes on roads from muddy pools in the accidents.
- There are still more national highways to be built to connect the different parts of the country.
- The roads in the cities are highly congested and traffic jams are a constant problem. Most of the bridges and culverts are also old and narrow aggravating the problem.
- Roadside amenities like emergency medical facilities, telephone booths, etc., are lacking.
- Police patrolling on the highways is not adequate. So, goods and passengers are not safe at times.
Question 2. Discuss the importance of tourism in India.
Answer:
Tourism has great importance in the economy and cultural development of India. It promotes national integration. It makes us aware of the beauty and rich cultural heritage of our nation.
It promotes inter-regional relationships. Tourism encourages cultural pursuits and provides support to local handicrafts. It helps in the development of international understanding. Tourism is considered to be an invincible trade.
India’s natural beauty, diversity, and glorious past attract innumerable visitors to India every year. Overseas holidayers and travelers have awarded India the fourth rank among the best holiday destinations in the world.
Over 2.6 million foreign tourists visit India every year. Foreign tourists visit India for heritage tourism, cultured tourism, ecotourism, adventure tourism, medical tourism, and business tourism. Tourism in India has grown substantially over the last three decades.
Foreign tourists’ arrivals in the country witnessed an increase of 23.5% during the year 2004 as against the year 2005. Thus, tourism has contributed ₹ 21,828 crore of foreign exchange.
The trend is towards the increase of foreign tourism and foreign exchange. Tourism also plays a major role in employment generation.
More than 15 million people are directly engaged in the tourism industry and many more are indirectly connected to it. There is a bright future for the Tourism Industry in India.
Question 3. Write a short note on:
- Personal written communication
- Telecom network of India.
or
What are the various means of communication? Explain under different heads.
Answer:
- Personal written communication: Personal written communication is handled by the Indian postal network. Cards and envelopes are considered first-class mail and book packets, registered newspapers, and periodicals are called second-class mail.
- The first class mail is airlifted while the second class mail is carried by surface transport. For quick delivery of mail in cities and large towns, six mail channels have been introduced.
- They are called Rajdhani Channel, Metro Channel, Green Channel, Business Channel, Bulk Mail Channel, and Periodical Channel.
- Telecom network of India: India has one of the largest telecom networks in Asia. It has about 37,565 telephone exchanges spread all over the country.
- Apart from the towns and cities, more than two-thirds of the villages have already been covered with Subscriber Trunk Dialling (STD) provisions to extend 24-hour STD facility to all villages.
- It has been possible by integrating development in Space Technology with Communication Technology.
- A number of private companies have entered the field of telecommunication and this has resulted in the availability of better facilities to the customers.
Question 4. Why is Road Transport more useful than Rail Transport in India?
Or
“Road transport is considered more useful as compared to rail transport”. Give reasons.
Answer:
Road transport is more useful than Railways on account of the following reasons:
- Construction and maintenance of roads is much lower than the Railways.
- Roads can traverse comparatively much dissected and undulating topography.
- They can negotiate higher gradients of slope and can traverse mountainous
regions such as the Himalayas. They can reach remote villages and hilly
regions where Railway tracts cannot be constructed. - Roads provide 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 transportation. For example, they provide a link between Railway stations, Airports, and Seaports.
- They link the villages, towns, and cities to the Railways. They provide linkage between ports markets, and trading centres.
Question 5. How do physical and economic factors influence the distribution pattern of the Indian railways network? Explain with suitable examples.
Answer:
The distribution pattern ofthe railway network in India has been greatly influenced by physical and economic factors.
- Level lands of the Northern Plains of India with a high density of population, rich agricultural resources, and greater industrial activity have favoured the development of railways in this region. The regions, therefore, have the densest network of railways in India.
- The rugged terrain areas of the Himalayan mountain region in the north and north-eastern States with sparse populations and lack of economic opportunities are unfavorable for the construction of railway lines and railway networks.
- Sparsely populated sandy deserts of Rajasthan, hilly contiguous tracts of the Sahyadri swamps of Gujarat, forested tracks of Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Orissa, and Jharkhand, frequently flooded floodplains of Bihar and Assam have posed great difficulty in laying of railway lines.
- On account of the economic importance of the region, the Konkan Railways were developed in recent times along the west coast despite problems of sinking of tracks, landslides, and the need for the construction of tunnels.
Question 6. What are the merits of pipeline transport in India?
Answer:
pipelines are used for the transportation of crude oil, petroleum products, and Natural gas. The merits of pipeline transportation in India are as follows:
- Pipelines help in the growth of refineries, petrochemicals, fertiliser factories, and big thermal power plants by providing raw materials directly from producing areas to the factories and plants.
- Pipelines can take petroleum and natural gas to places far off from the oil and gas fields. They help in setting up refineries in far inland locations to cater to the demands of markets inland. The refineries of Barauni, Mathura, and Panipat were possible due to the development of pipelines.
- The initial cost of laying the pipelines may be high but subsequent running costs are nominal.
- Pipelines transport petroleum and natural gas directly from producing areas to demand areas, hence, they rule out trans-shipment losses and delays.
Question 7. Explain why is air transport preferred in the north-eastern States of India.
Or
Why is air travel preferred in northeastern states?
Answer:
The air transport is preferred in the north-eastern regions of India because of the following reasons:
- The northeastern part of the country is marked by the presence of difficult hilly and mountainous terrain, dissected relief, a large number of rivers, dense forests, 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 transportation in such situations.
- They can access remote and inaccessible areas in these northeastern 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 requirements 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 northeastern states ofIndia.
Question 8. “Rail transport is the most convenient means of transportation”. Why?
Answer:
Railways can transport a large number of goods and passengers over long distances at an economical cost. Hence, Railways are the most convenient means of transport in the vast Northern Plains of India.
The flat terrain, dense population, rich agricultural resources, and greater industrial activity have favored the development of railways in the Northern Plains of India.
Therefore, this region has transport networks. Railways have accelerated the development of industry and agriculture in this region by providing quick availability of raw materials and distributing the finished products to the market.
Question 9. Discuss the significance of National Highways and Border Roads.
Answer:
- The National Highways are the primary route systems of India. They link extreme parts of the country and provide connectivity between the different states of India.
- They have been planned to meet the requirements of fast movements of traffic in the country. A good number of major NHs run in NorthSouth and East-West directions.
- They connect most ofthe important towns and cities of the country. The NHs are laid and maintained by the Central Public Works Department (CPWD).
- The Border Roads are vital roads linked along the frontiers ofIndia. These Border Roads are of strategic importance. They have improved accessibility in areas of difficult terrains, mainly in the northern and northeastern border areas.
- They have played a major role in the economic development of these areas. The Border Roads Organisation, a government of India undertaking, was established in 1960 to build border roads.
- The Organisation is in charge of the construction and maintenance of these roads.
Question 10. What social values are promoted by tourism?
Answer:
Tourism not only is helpful in developing the economy of a region but also promotes social values like support for local handicrafts, cultural pursuits, and national integration.
It generates care, and concern about the environment, culture, and heritage. Tourism also develops love and concern for fellow countrymen and international understanding.
Question 11. Outline the values that the means of transport and communication help in developing among the people.
Answer:
The means of transport and communication help in developing the following values among the people:
- Respect for unity in diversity cultural and ethnic.
- Develops love and concern for fellow countrymen.
- National integration.
- Dignity and respect for national property.
Question 12. What values among users will help in the maintenance of railway property?
Answer:
Take care of national property.
Sense of collective responsibility