Railways: A Vital Mode of Transportation in India PDF

Railways Railways are the principal mode of The World’s longest Highway tunnel-Atal transportation for freight and passengers Tunnel (9.02 Km) has been built by Border...

Railways Railways are the principal mode of The World’s longest Highway tunnel-Atal transportation for freight and passengers Tunnel (9.02 Km) has been built by Border in India. Railways also make it possible for Road Organisation. This tunnel connects people to conduct multifarious activities Manali to Lahul-Spiti valley throughout the like business, sightseeing, pilgrimage year. Earlier the valley was cut off for about along with transportation of goods over 6 months each year owing to heavy snowfall. longer distances. Apart from an important The tunnel is buit with ultra-modern means of transport the Indian Railways specifications in the Pir Panjal range of have been a great integrating force for more Himalayas at an altitude of 3000 metres than 150 years. Railways in India bind the from the Mean Sea Level (MSL). economic life of the country as well as Source: http://www.bro.gov.in/pagefimg. accelerate the development of the industry asp?imid=144,And PIBdelhi03October2020 and agriculture. The Indian Railways is the largest public sector undertaking in the country. The first train steamed off from Mumbai to Thane in 1853, covering a distance of 34 km. The Indian Railway is now reorganised into 17 zones. Find out the current Railway zones and their headquarters. Also locate the headquarters of Railway zones on the map of India. Fig. 7.3: Hilly Tracts The distribution pattern of the Railway network in the country has been largely influenced by physiographic, economic and administrative factors. The northern plains with their vast level land, high population density and rich agricultural resources provided the most favourable condition for their growth. However, a large number of rivers requiring construction of bridges across their wide beds posed some obstacles. In the hilly terrains of the peninsular region, railway tracts are laid through low hills, Fig. 7.4: Traffic on north-eastern border road gaps or tunnels. The Himalayan mountainous (Arunachal Pradesh) regions too are unfavourable for the construction Roads can also be classified on the basis of of railway lines due to high relief, sparse the type of material used for their construction population and lack of economic opportunities. such as metalled and unmetalled roads. Likewise, it was difficult to lay railway lines on Metalled roads may be made of cement, the sandy plain of western Rajasthan, swamps concrete or even bitumen of coal, therefore, of Gujarat, forested tracks of Madhya Pradesh, these are all weather roads. Unmetalled roads Chhattisgarh, Odisha and Jharkhand. The go out of use in the rainy season. contiguous stretch of Sahyadri could be crossed 74 CONTEMPORARY INDIA – II Reprint 2024-25