Q1. Define different "Gauge (in meters)" of railway tracks can be found in India.
Ans: In India generally we find three different gauges of railway tracks:
(a) Broad Gauge - 1.676 meters
(b) Meter Gauge - 1.000 meter
(c) Narrow Gauge - 0.762 meter & 0.610 meter

Q2. Describe about the first port which was developed soon after independence?
Ans: Kandla port was the first port which was developed soon after independence.
(a) Kandla port was developed to ease the volume of trade on the Mumbai port, in the wake of loss of Karachi port to Pakistan after the partition.
(b) Kandla is a tidal port.
(c) It caters to the convenient handling of exports and imports of highly productive granary and industrial belt stretching across the states of Jammu and Kashmir, Himachal Pradesh, Punjab, Haryana, Rajasthan and Gujarat.

Q3. Mention any three problems faced by Indian Railways.
Ans: Following are some of the problems faced by the Indian Railways:
(a) Many passengers travel without tickets.
(b) Thefts and damaging of railway property has not yet stopped completely.
(c) People stop the trains, pull the chain unnecessarily and this causes heavy damage to the railway.

Q4. Highlight some of the key points of the India Postal Service.
Ans: Given below are some of the key points of the India Postal Service:
(a) The Indian postal network is the largest in the world.
(b) It handles parcels as well as personal written communications.
(c) Cards and envelopes are considered first-class mail and are airlifted between stations covering both land and air.
(d) The second-class mail includes book packets, registered newspapers and periodicals. They are carried by surface mail, covering land and water transport.
(e) To facilitate quick delivery of mails in large towns and cities, six mail channels have been introduced recently. They are called Rajdhani Channel, Metro Channel, Green Channel, Business Channel, Bulk Mail Channel and Periodical Channel.

Q5. Highlight the merits of road transportation against any other means of transportation.
Ans: Following are the positives of road transport against the other means of transportation:
(a) Construction cost of roads is much lower than that of railway lines.
(b) Roads can pass through comparatively more dissected and undulating topography.
(c) Roads can negotiate higher gradients of slopes and as such can traverse mountains such as the Himalayas.
(d) Road transport is economical in transportation of few persons and relatively smaller amount of goods over short distances.
(e) It also provides door-to-door service, thus the cost of loading and unloading is much lower.
(f) Road transport is also used as a feeder to other modes of transport such as they provide a link between railway stations, air and sea ports.

Q6. Describe the classification of roads according to their capacity.
Ans: Roads are classified in the following six classes according to their capacity:
(a) Golden Quadrilateral: The government has launched a major road development project linking Delhi-Kolkata- Chennai-Mumbai and Delhi by six-lane super highways. These highway projects are being implemented by the National Highway Authority of India (NHAI).
(b) National Highways: National highways link extreme parts of the country. These are the primary road systems and are laid and maintained by the Central Public Works Department (CPWD).
(c) State Highways: Roads linking a state capital with different district headquarters are known as state highways. These roads are constructed and maintained by the state Public Works Department (PWD) in state and union territories.
(d) District Roads: These roads connect the district headquarters with other places of the district. These roads are maintained by the Zila Parishad.
(e) Other Roads: Rural roads, which link rural areas and villages with towns, are classified under this category. These roads received special momentum under the Pradhan Mantri Grameen Sadak Yojana.
(f) Border Roads: These roads have improved accessibility in areas of difficult terrain and have helped in the economic development of these areas. Constructions and maintenance of these roads is done by Border Roads Organization, a government of India undertaking.

Q7. Mention three important networks of pipeline transportation in the country.
Ans: The three important networks of pipeline transportation in the country are:
(a) 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.
(b) (b) 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.
(c) (c) 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.

Q8. Describe the waterways that have been declared as the national waterways by the government of India.
Ans: Following are the waterways that have been declared as the national waterways by the government of India:
(a) The Ganga river between Allahabad and Haldia (1620 km) - N.W. No. 1
(b) The Brahmaputra river between Sadiya and Dhubri (891 km) – N.W. No. 2
(c) The west-coast canal in Kerala (Kottapurma - Kollam, Udyogamandal and Champakkara canals) - 205 km – N.W. No. 3
(d) Specified stretches of the Godavari, Krishna Rivers alongwith Kakinada, Puducherry stretch of canals – 1078 km – N.W. No – 4
(e) Specified stretches of the river Brahmani along with Matai River, delta channels of Mahanadi and Brahmani rivers and east coast canal – 588 km – N.W. No - 5
(f) There are some other inland waterways, like: Mandavi, Zuari and Cumberjua, Sunderbans, Barak, backawaters of Kerala and tidal stretches of some other rivers.

Q9. What is International Trade? What are the two major components of International Trade? What is balance of trade?
Ans: The exchange of goods among people, states and countries is referred to as trade. The market is the place where such exchanges take place. Trade between two countries is called international trade.

Import and export are the two main components of international trade.
(a) Export: Exports are the goods and services produced in one country and sold to another country.
(b) Import: Imports are foreign goods and services bought by a country.

Balance of Trade: The difference between export and import of a country.
When the value of exports is higher than value of imports then this is termed as favourable balance of trade.
On the other hand, when the value of imports is higher than value of exports, then this is termed as unfavourable balance of trade.

Q10. How tourism has helped in growth of Indian economy?
Ans:
(a) Tourism in India has grown largely over the last three decades.
(b) Foreign tourist's arrivals in the country witnessed an increase of 11.8 per cent during the year 2010 as against the year 2009, contributing Rs 64,889 crore of foreign exchange in 2010.
(c) 5.78 million foreign tourists visited India in 2010.
(d) More than 15 million people are directly engaged in the tourism industry.
(e) Tourism also promotes national integration, provides support to local handicrafts and cultural recreations.
(f) It also helps in the development of international understanding about our culture and heritage.
(g) Foreign tourists visit India for heritage tourism, eco tourism, adventure tourism, cultural tourism, medical tourism and business tourism.

Q11. On the map of India locate the following:

Major Sea Ports:
(A) Kandla
(B) Mumbai
(C) Jawahar Lal Nehru
(D) Marmagao
(E) New Mangalore
(F) Kochi
(G)Tuticorin
(H) Chennai
(I) Vishakhapatnam
(J) Paradwip
(K) Haldia
(L) Kolkata

International Airports:
(M) Amritsar (Raja Sansi)
(N) Delhi (Indira Gandhi International)
(O) Mumbai (Chhatrapati Shivaji)
(P) Thiruvanantapuram (Nedimbacherry)
(Q) Chennai (Meenam Bakkam)
(R) Kolkata (Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose)
(S) Hyderabad (Rajiv Gandhi)

Ans: Locate and label the places mentioned above by using the map given below:

 

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