IAS Prelims Preparation 2018
Day # 32 (April 24, 2017)
Topics of the day: Geography X NCERT chapter 6 key points
CHAPTER 6 MANUFACTURING INDUSTRIES
Production of goods in large quantities after processing from raw materials to more valuable products is called manufacturing.
Textile Industry:
The textile industry occupies unique position in the Indian economy, because it contributes significantly to industrial production (14 per cent), employment generation (35 million persons directly – the second largest after agriculture) and foreign exchange earnings (about 24.6 per cent).
It contributes 4 per cent towards GDP.
It is the only industry in the country, which is self-reliant and
complete in the value chain i.e., from raw material to the highest
value added products.
Cotton Textiles:
In ancient India, cotton textiles were produced with hand spinning and handloom weaving techniques.
After the 18th century, power-looms came into use.
Our traditional industries suffered a setback during the colonial period because they could not compete with the mill-made cloth from England.
In the early years, the cotton textile industry was concentrated in the cotton growing belt of Maharashtra and Gujarat.
Availability of raw cotton, market, transport including accessible port facilities, labour, moist climate, etc. contributed towards its localisation. This industry has close links with agriculture and provides a living to farmers, cotton boll pluckers and workers engaged in ginning, spinning, weaving, dyeing, designing, packaging, tailoring and sewing.
The industry by creating demands supports many other industries, such as, chemicals and dyes, mill stores, packaging materials and engineering works.
Jute Textiles
India is the largest producer of raw jute and jute goods and stands at second place as an exporter after Bangladesh.
There were about 80 jute mills in India in 2010-11.
Most of these are located in West Bengal, mainly along the banks of the Hugli river, in a narrow belt (98 km long and 3 km wide).
Factors responsible for their location in the Hugli basin are: proximity of the jute producing areas, inexpensive water transport, supported by a good network of railways, roadways and waterways to facilitate movement of raw material to the mills, abundant water for processing raw jute, cheap labour from West Bengal and adjoining states of Bihar, Orissa and Uttar Pradesh.
Kolkata as a large urban centre provides banking, insurance and port facilities for export of jute goods.
Sugar Industry
India stands second as a world producer of sugar but occupies the first place in the production of gur and khandsari.
The raw material used in this industry is bulky, and in haulage its sucrose content reduces.
This industry is seasonal in nature so, it is ideally suited to the
cooperative sector. Can you explain why this is so? In recent years, there is a tendency for the mills to shift and concentrate in the southern and western states, especially in Maharashtra, This is because the cane produced here has a higher sucrose content. The cooler climate also ensures a longer crushing season. Moreover, the cooperatives are more successful in these states.
Iron and Steel Industry
The iron and steel Industry is the basic industry since all the other industries — heavy, medium and light, depend on it for their machinery. Steel is needed to manufacture a variety of engineering goods, construction material, defence, medical, telephonic, scientific equipment and a variety of consumer goods.
Production and consumption of steel is often regarded as the index of a country‘s development.
Iron and steel is a heavy industry because all the raw materials as well as finished goods are heavy and bulky entailing heavy
transportation costs. Iron ore, coking coal and lime stone are required in the ratio of approximately 4 : 2 : 1.
Some quantities of manganese, are also required to harden the steel.
Most of the public sector undertakings market their steel through Steel Authority of India Ltd. (SAIL).
In the 1950s China and India produced almost the same quantity of steel. Today, China is the largest producer of steel.
China is also the world‘s largest consumer of steel.
In 2004, India was the largest exporter of steel which accounted for 2.25 per cent of the global steel trade.
Chotanagpur plateau region has the maximum concentration of iron and steel industries. It is largely, because of the relative advantages this region has for the development of this industry. These include, low cost of iron ore, high grade raw materials in proximity, cheap labour and vast growth potential in the home market.
Though, India is an important iron and steel producing country in the world yet, we are not able to perform to our full potential largely due to: (a) High costs and limited availability of coking. coal (b) Lower productivity of labour (c) Irregular supply of energy and (d) Poor infrastructure.
Aluminium Smelting
Aluminium smelting is the second most important metallurgical industry in India.
It is light, resistant to corrosion, a good conductor of heat, mallable and becomes strong when it is mixed with other metals.
It is used to manufacture aircraft, utensils and wires.
It has gained popularity as a substitute of steel, copper, zinc and lead in a number of industries.
Aluminium smelting plants in the country are located in Odisha, West Bengal, Kerala, Uttar Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Maharashtra and Tamil Nadu.
Bauxite, the raw material used in the smelters is a very bulky, dark reddish coloured rock.
Regular supply of electricity and an assured source of raw material at minimum cost are the two prime factors for location of the industry.
Chemical Industries
The Chemical industry in India is fast growing and diversifying.
It contributes approximately 3 per cent of the GDP.
It is the third largest in Asia and occupies the twelfth place in the world in term of its size.
It comprises both large and small scale manufacturing units.
Rapid growth has been recorded in both inorganic and organic
sectors. Inorganic chemicals include sulphuric acid (used to
manufacture fertilisers, synthetic fibres, plastics, adhesives, paints, dyes stuffs), nitric acid, alkalies, soda ash (used to make glass, soaps and detergents, paper) and caustic soda.
These industries are widely spread over the country.
Organic chemicals include petrochemicals, which are used for
manufacturing of synthetic fibers, synthetic rubber, plastics, dyestuffs, drugs and pharmaceuticals.
Organic chemical plants are located near oil refineries or
petrochemical plants.
The chemical industry is its own largest consumer.
Basic chemicals undergo processing to further produce other
chemicals that are used for industrial application, agriculture or
directly for consumer markets.
Fertiliser Industry
The fertiliser industry is centred around the production of
nitrogenous fertilisers (mainly urea), phosphatic fertilisers and
ammonium phosphate (DAP) and complex fertilisers which have a
combination of nitrogen (N), phosphate (P), and potash (K).
The third, i.e. potash is entirely imported as the country does not have any reserves of commercially usable potash or potassium compounds in any form.
India is the third largest producer of nitrogenous fertilisers.
Cement Industry
Cement is essential for construction activity such as building houses, factories, bridges, roads, airports, dams and for other commercial establishments.
This industry requires bulky and heavy raw materials like limestone, silica, alumina and gypsum.
Coal and electric power are needed apart from rail transportation.
The industry has strategically located plants in Gujarat that have suitable access to the market in the Gulf countries.
The first cement plant was set up in Chennai in 1904.
After Independence the industry expanded.
Decontrol of price and distribution since 1989 and other policy
reforms led the cement industry to make rapid strides in capacity, process, technology and production.
Automobile Industry
Automobiles provide vehicle for quick transport of good services and passengers.
Trucks, buses, cars, motor cycles, scooters, three-wheelers and multiutility vehicles are manufactured in India at various centres.
After the liberalisation, the coming in of new and contemporary
models stimulated the demand for vehicles in the market, which led to the healthy growth of the industry including passenger cars, two and threewheelers. Foreign Direct Investment brought in new technology and aligned the industry with global developments.
At present, there are 15 manufacturers of passenger cars and
multiutility vehicles, 9 of commercial vehicles, 14 of the two and
three-wheelers.
The industry is located around Delhi, Gurgaon, Mumbai, Pune,
Chennai, Kolkata, Lucknow, Indore, Hyderabad, Jamshedpur and Bengaluru.
Electronics Industry:
The electronics industry covers a wide range of products from
transistor sets to television, telephones, cellular telecom, pagers,
telephone exchange, radars, computers and many other equipments required by the telecommunication industry.
Bangalore has emerged as the electronic capital of India.
Other important centres for electronic goods are Mumbai, Delhi, Hyderabad, Pune, Chennai, Kolkata, Lucknow and Coimbatore.
By 2010-11 (STPI) Software Technology Parks of India have come up across 46 locations at different centres of India. However, the major industry concentration is at Bangalore, Noida, Mumbai, Chennai, Hyderabad and Pune.
A major impact of this industry has been on employment generation.
The continuing growth in the hardware and software is the key to the success of IT industry in India.