Road transport
India has one of the world's largest road networks. Roads give door-to-door service and suit short distances. For building and upkeep, roads are grouped as:
- National Highways (NH): built and kept by the Central Government through the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI). They link state capitals, big cities and ports. The Golden Quadrilateral links Delhi–Mumbai–Chennai–Kolkata; the North–South corridor links Srinagar to Kanyakumari and the East–West corridor links Silchar to Porbandar.
- State Highways: built by state governments; link the state capital with district headquarters.
- District roads: link district headquarters with other places in the district.
- Rural roads: link villages; the Pradhan Mantri Gram Sadak Yojana gives all-weather roads to villages.
- Other roads: border roads built by the Border Roads Organisation (1960) in high and far areas, and international highways linking neighbouring countries.
Road density is high in plains and low in hills, deserts and forests.
Rail transport
Indian Railways, started in 1853 between Mumbai and Thane, is one of the largest in the world. It is divided into zones for management. Three gauges (distance between rails): broad gauge 1.676 m, metre gauge 1.000 m and narrow gauge 0.762 m or 0.610 m (mostly hill lines). Under Uni-gauge work most lines are being changed to broad gauge. The Konkan Railway (1998) runs about 760 km along the west coast through hills and rivers. Metro rail now serves many cities.
Pipelines
Pipelines carry liquids and gases like crude oil, petroleum products, natural gas and water, and even solids as slurry. They run nonstop, need little labour, cut loss and avoid traffic. The first was from Naharkatia oil field to Nunmati (Assam), later extended to Barauni and Kanpur. Oil India Limited and GAIL run big lines, like the Hazira–Vijaipur–Jagdishpur (HVJ) gas pipeline that supplies fertiliser and power plants. The high starting cost and difficulty of fixing leaks are drawbacks.
Inland and ocean water transport
Inland waterways
Rivers, canals, backwaters and creeks can carry cheap bulky goods and need no track. The Inland Waterways Authority (1986) develops National Waterways: NW-1 on the Ganga (Haldia–Prayagraj), NW-2 on the Brahmaputra (Sadiya–Dhubri) and NW-3 on the West Coast Canal in Kerala (Kottapuram–Kollam), with many more declared later. Silt, low water in dry months and dams limit their use.
Ocean water transport
India has a long coastline with 12 major and about 200 minor ports. About 95% of India's foreign trade by volume moves by sea. Coastal shipping also links far parts of the country and islands cheaply.
Air transport
Air transport is the fastest and reaches hills, deserts, forests and islands. Air travel in India began in 1911 with airmail. It was nationalised in 1953 (Indian Airlines for domestic, Air India for international). Now many private airlines fly. Pawan Hans gives helicopter services in hilly areas and for oil fields. Air travel costs more and depends on weather, so it mostly carries people and light, valuable, perishable goods.
Personal and mass communication
Personal communication links one person with another: letters by post (India has one of the largest postal networks), telephone and mobile, and the internet (email, video calls, online services).
Mass communication reaches many people at the same time: radio (All India Radio / Akashvani, began 1936), television (Doordarshan), newspapers and magazines in many languages, and films (India makes the most feature films in the world).
Satellites connect it all. India's INSAT series helps communication, TV and weather forecasting; the IRS series gives remote-sensing data for resources and disasters.
Key formulas and definitions
- Road types: NH → State Highway → district road → rural road; plus border roads
- Gauges: broad 1.676 m, metre 1.000 m, narrow 0.762/0.610 m
- Cheapest for bulky goods: water; fastest: air
- NW-1 Ganga (Haldia–Prayagraj); NW-2 Brahmaputra (Sadiya–Dhubri); NW-3 West Coast Canal
- HVJ = Hazira–Vijaipur–Jagdishpur gas pipeline
- Personal: post, phone, internet; mass: radio, TV, press, films; satellites: INSAT, IRS
Worked examples
1. A factory must send 10,000 tonnes of iron ore 800 km to a port. Which mode is best and why?
Rail, because it carries heavy bulky goods over long distances cheaply; if a waterway exists, water is even cheaper.
2. Medicines are needed urgently on an island. Which mode?
Air, because it is fastest and can reach islands directly.
3. Why is road density low in Arunachal Pradesh?
Steep hills, thick forests, heavy rain and landslides make roads costly and hard to build and keep.
4. Why are pipelines good for natural gas?
They move gas nonstop and safely with little loss and no traffic, straight to fertiliser and power plants.
5. Give two limits of inland waterways in India.
Rivers carry silt and become shallow in the dry season; dams and barrages break the route.
6. How did INSAT satellites change communication?
They link TV, radio, phones and internet across the whole country, including far villages, and give weather warnings.
Common mistakes
- Saying State Highways are built by NHAI. NHAI builds National Highways; states build State Highways.
- Mixing up gauges. Broad is the widest at 1.676 m.
- Thinking air is best for heavy goods. It is fastest but most costly; heavy bulky goods go by water or rail.
- Calling a phone call mass communication. It is personal; TV and radio are mass communication.