UPSC NCERT Notes - Geography - Industries in India

The UPSC NCERT Notes on Geography, specifically focusing on Industries in India, provide a comprehensive and insightful overview of the country’s economic landscape. Covering a wide array of topics related to industrial development, these notes delve into the historical evolution, geographical distribution, and significant trends shaping the industrial sector in India. By drawing upon the rich content curated from the National Council of Educational Research and Training (NCERT) resources, these notes serve as an indispensable tool for aspirants preparing for the Union Public Service Commission (UPSC) examinations. Exploring the intricacies of India’s industrial geography, the notes offer a nuanced understanding of the diverse industrial activities across regions, their impact on the economy, and the challenges and opportunities that characterize this crucial sector. Aspiring civil servants will find these UPSC NCERT Notes to be an invaluable resource in their quest for a thorough grasp of India’s industrial dynamics, enhancing their knowledge and analytical skills for the challenging terrain of the UPSC examinations.

Table of Contents

Introduction to Industrial Development:

The industrial sector is considered the driving force behind a nation’s economic development. In India, as an emerging economy, the industry sector plays a pivotal role in contributing 27.3% to the GDP and generating 24.3% of employment post-reform.
Industrial development in India can be categorized into two phases.

Industrial Development Before Independence:

India had a significant global industrial presence before the arrival of the British. At that time, India accounted for a quarter of the world’s industrial output. Exports included various manufactured goods such as cotton, silk, artistic ware, and silk and woolen cloth.
The impact of British policies and the Industrial Revolution led to the decline of India’s handicraft industry.
After the Industrial Revolution in Britain, machine-made goods inundated Indian markets.
The decline of traditional handicrafts did not usher in modern industrialization in India due to British policies favoring the import of British-made goods and the export of raw materials from India.

Major Industries Before Independence:

Cotton Textile Industry: In 1818, the first unsuccessful cotton mill was established in Fort Gloster. However, in 1854, the first successful cotton mill was set up in Mumbai by Cowasji Nanabhai Davar.
Jute Industry: The first jute industry was established in Rishra (near Kolkata) in 1855.
Woollen Textile Industry: The first woolen textile industry was set up in Kanpur in 1876 with the brand name Lal Imli.

Industrial Development After Independence:

The first post-independence industrial policy, known as the Industrial Policy Resolution of 1948, was announced on April 6, 1948, by Dr. Shyama Prasad Mukherjee.
The Industrial Policy of 1956 emphasized expanding the public sector and building a large and growing cooperative sector.
In December 1977, the Janata Government introduced its New Industrial Policy.
The Industrial Policy of 1980 aimed to promote the concept of economic federation, enhance public sector efficiency, and reverse the trend of industrial production.

The New Industrial Policy of 1991 marked a significant structural break for the Indian economy, substantially deregulating the industrial sector.

Factors Affecting Location of Industries:

Raw Materials: Industries using weight-losing raw materials are located where these materials are abundant.
Power: Availability of power is crucial for industry, determining its location.
Market: Proximity to markets is essential for industries, especially those oriented toward high-demand areas.
Transport: Key industrial hubs like Mumbai, Chennai, Delhi, and Kolkata initially became nodal points due to well-established transport links.
Capital: Large investments are necessary for establishing industries, especially in modern, capital-intensive sectors.
Water: Many industries are established near water bodies like rivers, canals, and lakes.
Labor: The availability of skilled labor, coupled with India’s large population, makes labor accessible for industries.
Historical Factors: Historical influences, particularly the colonial past, played a significant role in the emergence of industrial nodes like Mumbai, Kolkata, and Chennai.

Major Industries in India

India boasts several major industries, classified into different categories:

Mineral-based Industries
Agro-based Industries
Chemical Industries
Engineering Industries
Other Industries, including Oil Refineries and Forest-based Industries

Mineral-based Industries

Mineral-based Industries play a crucial role in utilizing minerals as raw materials for production, making significant contributions to both domestic and global economies. These industries, which employ thousands of people across rural and urban sectors, rely on minerals such as iron, copper, zinc, lead, and more.

Iron and Steel Industry

Iron and Steel Industry The iron and steel sector holds a fundamental position as other heavy, medium, and light industries depend on it for their machinery.
As of 2021, India ranks second globally in crude steel production, with China maintaining its position as the largest producer. Additionally, India leads in sponge iron production. The iron and steel industry requires resources like iron ore, coking coal, limestone, dolomite, manganese, and fire clay for its operations.
Raw materials for iron and steel production are heavy, leading to high transportation costs. Consequently, iron and steel plants are strategically located near the sources of these raw materials.

Major Steel Plants in India:

Tata Iron and Steel Company (TISCO):

Established in 1907 by Jamshedji Tata in Sakchi, Jharkhand.
Began producing pig iron in 1911 and steel in 1912.
Growth is aided by raw material availability, transportation development, labor availability, proximity to Kolkata port, and market access.

Indian Iron and Steel Company (IISCO):

Three plants were established in 1864, 1908, and 1937 in West Bengal.
Merged to form IISC; placed under government control in July 1972.
Iron-ore sourced from Guna mines in Singhbhum district and Mayurbhanj area of Odisha.

Visvesvaraya Iron and Steel Plant (VISL):

Established by the erstwhile state of Mysore as Mysore Iron and Steel Company (MISCO) in 1923.
Located in Karnataka’s Shimoga district on the Bhadravati River.
Engaged in producing steel for defense purposes.

Hindustan Steel Limited (HSL), Bhilai:

Set up in Durg district of Chhattisgarh in 1957 with Soviet Union support.
Production started in 1959; located in the Mahanadi basin.

Hindustan Steel Limited (HSL), Rourkela:

Plant in Odisha’s Sundargarh district, established during the second Five-Year Plan in 1959 with Krupps and Demang’s assistance.

Hindustan Steel Limited (HSL), Durgapur:

Located in Bardhaman district, West Bengal, established in 1959 with UK assistance.
Production started in 1962; benefits from hydroelectricity and proximity to Kolkata port.

Bokaro Steel Plant:

Established in 1964 with Soviet Union assistance in Bokaro, Jharkhand.
Largest Indian steel-making center engaged in rail manufacturing.
Receives iron-ore from Kiriburu mine in Odisha and coal from Jharia coalfields.

Visakhapatnam Steel Plant:

The first shore-based steel plant in India is located on the seaport.
Construction was initiated in 1982 by Rashtriya Ispat Nigam Limited.

Vijaynagar Steel Plant:

Set up near Hospet in the Bellary district of Karnataka.
Known for the production of mild steel.
These steel plants play a pivotal role in India’s industrial landscape, contributing significantly to the nation’s economic development.
Iron ore is sourced from the Hospet region, while coal comes from Singareni in Andhra Pradesh and the Kanhan Valley in Chhattisgarh.

The Salem Steel Plant

The Salem Steel Plant, located in Tamil Nadu, is a prominent producer of high-quality stainless steel. The plant benefits from the availability of rich iron ore and limestone in the vicinity, as well as hydroelectricity from the nearby Mettur dam.

National Steel Policy, 2017:

The policy aims to develop globally competitive steel manufacturing capabilities, targeting a crude steel capacity of 300 MT by 2030-31.
It seeks to increase per capita steel consumption to 160 kgs by the same period.
The policy encourages the industry to lead in energy and raw material-efficient steel production, implementing quality standards for domestic steel products.

Aluminum Industry:

Aluminum smelting is a crucial metallurgical industry in India, known for its lightweight, corrosion resistance, heat conductivity, malleability, and strength when alloyed with other metals.
Originating in 1938 with the Indian Aluminium Company in Kerala, there are eight aluminum smelting plants across the country in Odisha, West Bengal, Kerala, Uttar Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Maharashtra, and Tamil Nadu.

Major Aluminium Industries in India:

Hindustan Aluminium Company (HINDALCO): Based in Renukoot, Uttar Pradesh, founded in 1958, it is India’s largest integrated primary aluminum and semi-fabricated product manufacturer.
Bharat Aluminium Company Ltd. (BALCO): Located in Korba, Chhattisgarh, a public sector company founded in 1965, obtaining bauxite from Amarkantak and electricity from the Korba thermal power plant.
National Aluminium Company Ltd (NALCO), Koraput: The largest aluminium plant in the country, situated at Koraput, extracting bauxite from Panchpatmali mines, and with an alumina refinery at Damanjodi and alumina smelter at Angul.
Madras Aluminium Company Ltd (MALCO), Mettur: Established at Mettur near Salem in 1965, it sources bauxite from the Shevaroy Hills and electricity from the Mettur Hydel Project.
Vedanta Aluminium (VAL): A business of Vedanta Limited, it is India’s largest aluminum producer based in Jharsuguda, Odisha.

Lead Industry:

Lead smelting commenced in 1942 at Tundoo near Dhanbad. In India, lead is obtained from the Zawar and Rajpura-Dariba areas of Rajasthan.

Zinc Industry:

Formally started in 1965 with the establishment of Hindustan Zinc Limited in Zawar (Udaipur) and Visakhapatnam. Prominent zinc smelting plants include Zawar (Udaipur), Kochi (Kerala), and Visakhapatnam (Andhra Pradesh).

Copper Industry:

Copper, the oldest metallurgical industry in India, saw the establishment of the Indian Copper Corporation in 1924 in Ghatsila, Jharkhand.
Post-Independence, Hindustan Copper Limited (HCL) was established in 1967, with centers at Khetri Copper Complex, Rajasthan, and Balaghat. Ghatsila was subsumed as part of HCL in 1972.
Currently, India fulfills only 50% of its requirements, with the rest being imported from Zambia, Zaire, Chile, and the USA. Key private players include Sterlite Group centered at Toothuku, i, G Copper (HINDALCO) Works centered at Dahej, Gujarat, and Jhagadia (SWIL) Copper Limited centered at Bharuch.

Oil Refinery Industry:

The oil and gas sector rank among the major industries in India.
Oil refineries play a crucial role in distilling crude oil into various petroleum products like gasoline, kerosene, or jet fuel, serving the production of transportation and other fuels.
India boasts approximately 250 MMTPA of refining capacity, making it the second-largest in Asia, with over 60% of crude docks in the Gulf of Kutch, Gujarat, a strategically significant location.

List of Major Oil Refineries:

Refinery	Sector	State
Jamnagar	Private	Gujarat
Vadinar Refinery	Private	Gujarat
Kochi Refinery	Public	Kerala
Mangalore Refinery	Public	Karnataka
Paradip Refinery	Public	Odisha
Panipat Refinery	Public	Haryana
Gujarat Refinery	Public	Gujarat
Mumbai Refinery	Public	Maharashtra
Manali Refinery	Public	Tamil Nadu
Visakhapatnam Refinery	Public	Andhra Pradesh
Nagapattinam Refinery	Public	Tamil Nadu
Digboi Refinery	Public	Assam

Agro-Based Industries:

Agro-based industries have direct or indirect links with agriculture, encompassing various industrial, manufacturing, and processing activities based on agricultural raw materials.
It can be further classified into textile and sugar.

Textile Industry:

The textile industry is India’s oldest, most organized, and comprehensive sector, second only to agriculture in employment provision.
There are three types of cotton textile industries: Handloom, Powerloom, and Mill Sectors.

Cotton Industry

There are of three types of cotton textile industry which are as follows
Handloom It involves spinning, weaving and finishing of the fabrics. It is labor intensive, provides employment to semi-skilled workers, and requires small capital investment.
Powerloom It involves machines and becomes less labor intensive and the volume of production is higher as compared to handloom.
Mill Sectors They are highly capital-intensive and produce fine clothes in bulk. This is a highly organised sector among all.

Silk Textile Industry:

India’s silk industry flourished during the medieval period and played a crucial role in global markets.
India produces all five known commercial varieties of silk, with Karnataka being the foremost silk-producing state.

Woollen Textile Industry:

The first woolen textile mill was established in 1876 at Kanpur.
Post-independence, the industry witnessed rapid development, providing employment to around 12 lakh people in organized sectors and 4 lakh in the decentralized or unorganized sectors.
It can be divided into cottage and factory industries.
Most woolen textile mills are situated in Punjab, along the Amritsar-Gurdaspur-Ludhiana belt, and at Patiala and Dhariwal.

Jute Industry:

India is the largest producer of raw jute and jute goods, standing as the second-largest exporter after Bangladesh.
There are approximately 70 jute mills in India, mostly located in West Bengal along the Hooghly River.
Kolkata, as a major urban center, provides banking, insurance, and port facilities for jute goods export. The industry directly supports 2.61 lakh workers and another 40 lakhs small and marginal farmers engaged in jute and mesta cultivation.

National Jute Policy:

Formulated in 2005 with the aim of increasing productivity, improving quality, ensuring fair prices for jute farmers, and enhancing yield per hectare.

Main markets include the USA, Canada, Russia, the United Arab Republic, the UK, and Australia.

Sugar Industry:

The sugar industry is the second most significant agro-based industry in the country, following the cotton textile industry.
India is the second-largest producer of sugarcane and cane sugar, contributing about 8% to the world’s total sugar production.
Sugarcane is a weight-losing crop, making transportation challenging. Recovery of sugar is dependent on crushing within 24 hours of harvesting.
Leading sugarcane and sugar-producing states include Uttar Pradesh, Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, and others.

Engineering Industries:

The engineering sector is the largest among industrial segments in India, providing employment to over 4 million skilled and non-skilled workers.
Key players include Bharat Heavy Electrical Limited, Engineers India Limited, Hindustan Aeronautics Limited, Crompton Greaves, Elgi Equipments, HMT, Kirloskar Oil Engines Limited (KOEL), Larsen and Toubro Limited (L&T), Thermax Limited, Cummins India Limited, Alfa Laval (India) Limited, Asea Brown Boveri Ltd (ABB), and Siemens Limited.

Railway Equipment Industry:

India is self-sufficient and a major exporter in railway equipment.
Chittaranjan Locomotive Works, Diesel Locomotive Works, Diesel Component Works, Tata Engineering and Locomotive Works, Integral Coach Factory, Rail Coach Factory, M/S Jessops Company Limited, and Bharat Earth Movers Limited are key players in manufacturing railway equipment, rails, wagons, coaches, and spare parts.
New factories and plants are continually being established for production and expansion.

Company	Product	Location
Chittaranjan Locomotive Works	Engine (Diesel and	Bardhaman
	Electrical)
Tata and Engineering Locomotive	Steam Engine,	Jamshedpur
Company Limited (TELCO)	Boiler	(West Bengal)
Diesel Locomotive Works	Diesel Engine	Varanasi
Diesel-Loco Modernization Works	Diesel Engine	Patiala
Integral Coach Factory	Rail coach	Perambur, Chennai
Rail Coach Factory	Rail coach	Kapurthala
Bharat Earth Movers Limited	Rail coach	Bengaluru

Shipbuilding Industry

The first shipbuilding factory of India was established at Visakhapatnam in 1941. Kolkata, Goa, Mumbai, and Kochi are major shipbuilding centers.
India Maritime University was set up in 2008 in Chennai with campuses at Chennai and Visakhapatnam as a central university.

Some of the important shipyard/shipbuilding industries are

Industry	Location
Hindustan Shipyard Limited	Visakhapatnam
Cochin Shipyard Limited	Cochin
The Garden Reach Shipbuilding and Engineers Limited	Kolkata
The Mazagaon Dock (Naval Equipments)	Mumbai
The Goa Shipyard Limited (Advanced offshore Petrol Vehicles)	Vasco-da-Gama
ABG Shipyard	Magdalla, Dahel
Bharati Shipyard	Ratnagiri

Aircraft Industry

The aircraft manufacturing industry in India is wholly owned by the government and it is operated by Hindustan Aeronautics Limited “HAL had its origin as Hindustan Aircraft Limited nich was incorporated on 23rd December 1940 as one of the oldest and largest aerospace and Cence manufacturers in the world.
In 1964, it was incorporated as a company wholly owned by the Government of India and its name was changed to Hindustan Aeronautics Limited.

Automobile Industry

The automobile industry mainly includes the manufacturing of commercial vehicles, passenger cars and defense vehicles.
Major clusters of the automobile industry are around Gurgaon, Manesar, Noida (in the North), Mumbai, Pune, Aurangabad, Ahmedabad (in the West), Chennai and Bengaluru (in the South), Kolkata and Jamshedpur (in East) and Indore (in Central India).
Now the automobile industry contributes about 5% to GDP.
TATA Engineering and Locomotive Company (TELCO) dominates the medium and heavy commercial vehicle market, whereas Maruti Udyog dominates the passenger car

Major Automobile Industries and their Locations

Industry	Location
TELCO and Mahindra	Mumbai
Ashok Leyland and Standard Motor Production in India	Chennai
Hindustan Motors	Kolkata
Bajaj Tempo	Pune
Defence Vehicles (Shaktiman Truck and Nissan Jeep)	Jabalpur

Electronics Industry

The electronics industry in India originated with the production of radio sets in the 1950s. In 1948, Indian Telephone Industries was established in Bengaluru.
Bengaluru became a hub for electronic manufacturing with the establishment of Bharat Electronics Limited in 1954, focusing on basic communication equipment.
Addressing the advanced needs of electronic products for ground and aerospace applications, Electronics Corporation of India Limited (ECIL) was founded in Hyderabad in 1967.
It specializes in manufacturing air traffic control systems, tank communication systems, modular systems, etc.
The National Policy of Electronics, 2019 (NPE 2019) continues to shape the direction of the electronics industry in India.
The National Policy of Electronics, 2019 (NPE, 2019) replaces its predecessor, the National Policy of Electronics, 2012 (NPE, 2012).
Proposed by the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MEITTY), NPE, 2019 aims to position India as a global hub for Electronics System Design and Manufacturing (ESDM).
The policy is set to initiate various schemes, initiatives, and measures for the development of the ESDM sector.
Key Features of the Policy:
- Aims to establish India as a global ESDM hub with a target turnover of $400 billion for the electronics sector by 2025, generating employment for one crore people.
- Aims to produce 1 billion mobile handsets in India by 2025.
- Envisions creating an enabling environment for electronic industries to compete globally.
- Requires the establishment of a Sovereign Patent Fund (SPF) for the promotion, development, and acquisition of Intellectual Property (IPs) in the ESDM sector.

IT Industry

India’s IT (Information Technology) industry has earned recognition as a knowledge economy due to its IT and ITES sectors.
The IT-ITES industry comprises two major components: IT services and Business Process Outsourcing (BPO).

Software Industry

India hosts some of the world’s finest software companies, renowned for their efficient IT and business solutions.
The Indian software industry has contributed significantly to the nation’s economic growth.
Export of software, particularly software services like custom software development and consultancy services, constitutes over 80% of revenue from software exports.

Chemical Industries

Various chemical industries exist, including the Cement Industry.

Cement Industry

Cement, one of the eight core industries, has strong linkages with the construction, transportation, coal, and power sectors.
Cement is a compound mixture mainly consisting of silicates and aluminates of calcium, formed from calcium oxide, silica, aluminum oxide, and iron oxide.
The first cement plant was established in Chennai in 1904, with the industry witnessing exponential growth after partial decontrol in 1982 and total decontrol in 1989.
The Indian cement industry is the world’s second-largest producer after China, accounting for about 8% of the total global production.

Cement Producing States	Places
Rajasthan	Lakheri, Udaipur, Sirohi, Modak, Chittorgarh, Nagaur
Madhya Pradesh	Satna, Katni, Jabalpur, Ratlam, Banmore
Chhattisgarh	Jamul, Bhatapara, Jilda-Neora, Mandar, Akaltara
Gujarat	Dwarka, Porbandar, Ranavav, Vadodra, Bhavnagar
Uttar Pradesh	Churk, Dalla, Chunar

Fertiliser Industry

India is the third largest producer of nitrogenous fertilizers. At present, there are 10 PSUs and one in the co-operative sector at Hazira in Gujarat.
Gujarat, Tamil Nadu, Uttar Pradesh, Punjab and Kerala contribute towards half the fertilizer production.
The Fertiliser Corporation of India Limited, established in 1961, is a Public Sector Undertaking (PSU) with manufacturing units in five states:
- Sindri (Jharkhand)
- Ramagundam (Telangana)
- Gorakhpur (Uttar Pradesh)
- Korba (Chhattisgarh)
- Talcher (Odisha)

Glass Industry:

Glass, an inorganic product formed by melting silica, soda, and lime, had its production initiation in Firozabad (the glass city of India) in the 17th century.
The first glass plant was established in August 1988 by Lokmanya Balgangadhar Tilak in Talegaon, Maharashtra. The organized glass factory began in 1941.
Major glass industry centers include Satara, Vadodara, Morbi, Howra, Raniganj, and Shikohabad.

Pharmaceutical Industry:

The Indian pharmaceutical industry ranks high globally in technology, quality, and the extensive range of medicines produced.
India is the third-largest producer by volume (10% global share) and fourteenth-largest by value (1.5% global share). It excels in cost-effective generic drug manufacturing, especially for AIDS medicines.

Petro-Chemical Industry:

Derived from crude petroleum, petrochemical industries encompass various products.
Feedstock and fuel sources are natural gas and naphtha.
Sub-groups include Polymers, Synthetic fibers, Elastomers, and Surfactant intermediates.

Mumbai serves as the petro-chemical hub, with cracker units in locations like Auraiya (Uttar Pradesh), Jamnagar, Gandhinagar, Hazira (Gujarat), Nagothane, Ratnagiri (Maharashtra), Haldia (West Bengal), and Visakhapatnam (Andhra Pradesh).

Plastic Industry:

Known as the sunrise industry for its non-corrosive and moisture-proof properties.
Used in various sectors such as chemicals, textiles, construction, vehicles manufacturing, electronics, mining, defense, marine, engineering, and sports.
Growing at a rate of 16% annually, making it one of the fastest-growing industries globally.
Categorized into Thermoplastic and Thermoset, with Gujarat as the leading plastic processing hub.

Leather Industry:

India has a rich tradition of producing leather and leather goods.
The industry, spread across organized and unorganized sectors, provides employment, especially to weaker sections and women.
Leather is primarily sourced from dead and slaughtered animals, and India contributes 13% to the world’s total leather production.
Major tanneries are located in Kanpur, Agra, Kolkata, Mumbai, Tonk, etc.

Forest Based Industries:

These industries depend on forests for their raw materials.

Paper Industry:

A vital and core industry using raw materials such as bamboo, salai, salai grasses, wastepaper, rags, pulp, and bagasse.
Material and, to a lesser extent, the market influence the dynamics of various industries. The first paper mill in the country, established in Serampore (Bengal) in 1832, faced failure. A renewed attempt in 1870 led to the creation of a mill in Ballygunge near Kolkata.
States playing a significant role in the paper industry include West Bengal, Maharashtra, Andhra Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Karnataka, Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Odisha, Haryana, Tamil Nadu, Gujarat, and Kerala.

Match Industry:

This industry is divided into a highly modernized factory sector and a decentralized cottage industry.
The primary raw materials required by the industry include timber, paper, amorphous, phosphorus, and potassium chlorate.
Key centers for the match industry are Bareilly and Allahabad in Uttar Pradesh, Bilaspur in Chhattisgarh, Jabalpur in Madhya Pradesh, and Kota in Rajasthan.

Lac Industry:

Lac, secreted by a specific insect, is utilized in producing medicines, silk dyes, bangles, cosmetics, fireworks, gramophone records, sealing wax, electrical appliances, and ship-building.
Major lac-producing regions are Chhota Nagpur, followed by Eastern Madhya Pradesh, West Bengal, Maharashtra, Odisha, Assam, and Eastern Uttar Pradesh.

Resin:

Derived from trees like Khair in Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, and Himachal Pradesh, the resin is used in manufacturing turpentine, paints, varnishes, pharmaceutical preparations, soaps, linoleums, adhesives, etc.
Medicinal Drugs: Derived from herbs like atropa, belladonna, cinchona, juniper, sarpagandha, and mentha.

Tobacco Industry:

Introduced by the Portuguese in 1605, tobacco cultivation is prominent in Andhra Pradesh, Gujarat, Uttar Pradesh, Karnataka, and West Bengal.
Bihar and Maharashtra are also notable tobacco-producing states. Tobacco and tendu leaves are used in making beedi.

Other Industries:

Tourism Industries:

Eco-Tourism:

Coined by Hector Ceballos Lascurain in 1983, eco-tourism emphasizes personal growth and learning new ways to live on the planet.
Responsible eco-tourism minimizes negative impacts on the environment and enhances cultural integrity.

Medical Tourism:

Also known as health tourism, it involves providing health services. India is a hub for medical tourism, attracting people for services related to Ayurveda, surgery, water, apathy, and yoga.

Cottage Industry:

Also known as household, rural, or traditional industries, artisans use local raw materials and simple tools to produce everyday goods at home, often with the help of family members or part-time labor.
Small Scale Industries have an investment limit of up to 5 crores, with an annual turnover of up to 10 crores.
Cottage industries, typically small in scale, are often established in cottages or residential spaces. The Khadi and Village Industries Commission (KVIC) is a statutory organization promoting village and cottage industries. Components of the cottage industry include Handicrafts, Khadi/Cotton, Weaving, Match industry, Poultry, Silk weaving, Bidi making, Glasswork, Toy making, and Lock/Knife making, among others.

Industrial Regions of India:

Industries in India are not evenly distributed due to varying factors influencing industrial location. These factors include the presence and proximity of raw materials, power availability, labor cost, transportation, market accessibility, water resources, climate, capital (including banking and insurance facilities), and government policies.

Major Industrial Regions of India:

Ahmedabad-Vadodara Industrial Region: Well-developed petrochemicals, textiles, jewelry, pharmaceuticals, drugs, diamond cutting, leather, glassware, plastics, chemicals, fertilizers, and engineering goods industries.
Mumbai-Pune Industrial Region: Flourishing industries encompass textiles, ships, automobiles, chemicals, plastics, cinematography, pharmaceuticals, machine parts, engineering goods, petrochemicals, toys, leather goods, electronics, armaments, soap, and detergents.
Hugli Industrial Region: Known for the localization of numerous industries including jute, silk, cotton textiles, paper, electrical engineering goods, printing machines, sewing machines, leather goods, match and woodwork, automobile, ship, and boat construction.
Bengaluru-Coimbatore Region: Encompasses parts of Karnataka and Tamil Nadu, specializing in manufacturing cotton and silk textiles, sugar refining, leather goods, auto and aircraft parts, electronics, telecommunication equipment, watches, electricals, and engineering goods.
Chhota Nagpur Industrial Region: Known as the Ruhr of India, rich in minerals and power sources, covering parts of Jharkhand, Odisha, and West Bengal. Major industries include locomotives, automobiles, engineering goods, electronics, cement, fertilizers, and paper.
Delhi and Adjoining Industrial Region: Industries in and around Delhi, including parts of Uttar Pradesh, Agra, Mathura, Meerut, Saharanpur, Haryana, and Rajasthan. Major sectors involve textiles, chemicals, cycles, tractors, engineering goods, electronics, electric equipment, sugar refining, flour milling, petrochemicals, automobiles, oil refining, sports goods, and paper manufacturing.
Visakhapatnam-Guntur Region: Industries in this region encompass paper, fertilizers, sugar, cement, aluminum, steel, petrochemicals, facilitated by natural gas found in the Krishna-Godavari basin.
Kollam-Thiruvananthapuram Region: This is a relatively smaller industrial region primarily focused on agricultural processing and market-oriented industries. Other sectors include fish processing, sugar, coconut, and more.

Minor Industrial Regions:

Chennai: In this industrial region, diverse manufacturing activities have developed, including cotton textiles, rail coaches, rubber tires and tubes, automobiles, electronics, and oil refining.
Godavari-Krishna Delta: Known for industries such as tobacco, sugar, vegetable oil, textiles, and flour milling.
Assam Valley: Engaged in tea processing, rice shelling, textiles, oil refining, and consumer goods.
Kanpur: Known for sugar production, leather goods, textiles, and aircraft parts.
Indore-Ujjain: Involved in cotton textiles, scooters, engineering goods, and consumer goods.
Nagpur-Wardha: Engaged in textiles, engineering goods, glass, and clay industries.
Kohlapur-Sangli: Focused on cotton textiles and leather goods.
Sholapur: Specialized in cotton textiles, leather goods, and engineering industries.

Industrial Corridors:

Industrial corridors are designated stretches across the country aimed at fostering industrial development. They focus on creating clusters of manufacturing or other industries and promoting smart and sustainable cities by leveraging high-speed, high-connectivity transportation systems.

Industrial Corridors in India:

Delhi-Mumbai Industrial Corridor (DMIC)
Chennai-Bengaluru Industrial Corridor (CBIC)
Extension of CBIC to Kochi via Coimbatore
Amritsar-Kolkata Industrial Corridor (AKIC)
Hyderabad-Nagpur Industrial Corridor (HNIC)
Hyderabad-Warangal Industrial Corridor (HWIC)
Hyderabad-Bengaluru Industrial Corridor (HBIC)
Bengaluru-Mumbai Industrial Corridor (BMIC)
East Coast Economic Corridor (ECEC) with Vizag Chennai Industrial Corridor (VCIC) as Phase-1
Odisha Economic Corridor (OEC)
Delhi-Nagpur Industrial Corridor (DNIC)

Industrial Districts:

In addition to major and minor industrial regions, there exist several industrial districts where diverse industrial activities flourish. These include Jammu, Amritsar, Ludhiana, Agra, Raipur, Cuttack, Jabalpur, Gwalior, North Arcot, Tirunelveli, Ramanathapuram, and others.

Minor Industrial Regions in India:

Ambala and Amritsar in Punjab.
Saharanpur, Muzaffarnagar, Bijnor in Uttar Pradesh.
Indore, Dewas, and Ujjain in Madhya Pradesh.
Jaipur and Alwar in Rajasthan.
Kolhapur and South Kannada in Maharashtra and Karnataka.
Northern Malabar in Kerala.
Middle Malabar in Kerala.
Adilabad and Nizamabad in Telangana.
Allahabad, Varanasi, and Mirzapur in Uttar Pradesh.
Bhojpur and Munger in Bihar.
Durg and Raipur in Chhattisgarh.
Bilaspur and Korba in Chhattisgarh.
Brahmaputra Valley in Assam.

Industrial Policy, 1991:

The objectives of the Industrial Policy of India announced in 1991 aimed to accelerate industrial growth, address distortions or weaknesses in industries, maintain sustained productivity growth, generate gainful employment, and achieve international competitiveness.
The three main dimensions of the new Industrial Policy of India are as follows:
Liberalization: The Industrial Policy has been liberalized by abolishing the licensing system, allowing free entry to foreign technology and investment to attract private investors, both domestic and multinational.
Privatization: The private sector has been assigned a significant role in industrial development. Measures were taken to reduce the government’s shares in non-strategic public sector industries and de-reserve industries listed as public sector. Various sectors, including mining, banking, telecom, and defense, were opened to private investment to provide complete autonomy to public sector undertakings.
Globalization: Integrating the country’s economy with the world economy involves opening up to foreign direct investment, facilitating foreign companies to invest in different economic fields in India, removing restrictions for the entry of multinational companies, encouraging Indian companies for foreign collaborations, and promoting them to establish joint ventures abroad.

Prelims Facts

The Steel Authority of India was established in the year – January 1973 (UPPSC (Mains) 2006]
TISCO plant is located near which city? Tatanagar [BPSC (Pre) 2011)
Which city of India is known as Pittsburgh of India? – Jamshedpur (UKPSC (Pre) 2022]
Bokaro Steel Plant was constructed with the collaboration of -Russia (JPSC (Pre) 2016)
Rourkela Steel Plant gets its supplies of iron ore from – Keonjhar (UPPSC (Mains) 2005)
What is used for manufacturing stainless steel? -Chromium and Nickel (UPPSC (Pre) 1997, 2006)
Which group of steel plants were established in India after Independence? -Bhilai, Durgapur and Rourkela [RAS/RTS (Pre) 2013]
Korba in Chhattisgarh has importance for which industry? – Aluminium Industry (UPPSC (Pre) 1994)
In which area, the first cotton textile factory had begun in 1818?
Fort Gloster in West Bengal [JPSC (Pre) 2013]
For which industry Dhanikhali in Bengal is famous Tant industry [WBCS (Pre) 2019]
From which sector largest quantity of cotton textile is produced in the country? Powerloom (CGPSC (Pre) 2016]
Which city is known as ‘Cottonopolis of India? -Mumbai (Odisha PSC (Pre) 2011
Which place in Punjab is known for the hosiery industry? Ludhiana (UKPSC (Pre) 2010]
The largest number of cotton mills in Tamil Nadu are found in Coimbatore (BPSC (Pre) 2017)
The famous textile of Madhya Pradesh is located in Chanderi (MPPSC (Pre) 2013]
*For which item Tiruppur is well known as a huge exporter to many parts of the world Knitted Garments [APSC (Pre) 2016]
Muga silk is product of the silkworm endemic to which Assam (APSC (Pre) 2017
Textile Industries are located more on the – Western coast of India [Nagaland PSC (Pre) 2014)
Nepanagar is related to which commercial industry? – Newsprint paper [MPPSC (Pre) 2018]
The largest sugar mill of Asia is located at which place in -Khatauli [UPPSC (Pre) 2016] Uttar Pradesh?
The first sugar mill in India was setup in 1903 at – Pratappur (UPPSC (Mains) 2013]
The main gypsum producing state of India is – Rajasthan [CGPSC (Pre) 2013)
Dalmianagar of Bihar is famous for which industry? Cement [BPSC (Pre) 2015]
Chittarnajan in West Bengal is well known for its Locomotive works [WBCS (Pre) 2010]
The largest shipbuilding site in India is Cochin [IAS (Pre) 2010]
In which industry is Salward used mostly – Railway Sleepers (MPPSC (Pre) 1995]

UPSC NCERT Practice Questions

1. In India, the steel production industry requires the import of IAS (Pre) 2015

(a) saltpetre

(b) rock phosphate

(d) All of the above

2. Tamil Nadu is a leading producer of mill-made cotton yarn in the country. What could be the reason? IAS (Pre) 2010

1. Black cotton soil is the predominant type of soil in the state.

2. A rich pool of skilled labour is available.

Which of the above is/are the correct reason (s)?

(a) Only 1

(b) Only 2

d) Neither 1 nor 2

3. Consider the following statements.

1. Petrochemical industries can be divided into four sub-groups, which are polymers, synthetic fibres, elastomers and surfactant intermediates.

2. Indian soils are generally deficient in potash and phosphorus.

3. Most of the plants producing nitrogenous fertilisers, use naphtha as the basic raw material.

Which of the statements given above are correct?

(a) 1 and 3

b) 1 and 2

(d) All of these

4. Pittsburgh of India is UKPSC (Pre) 2022

(a) Bhagalpur

(b) Varanasi

(d) Jamshedpur

5. The local supply of coal is not available to UPPSC (Pre) 2017, CGPSC (Pre) 2018

(a) TISCO, Jamshedpur

(b) VISL, Bhadravati

(d) HSL, Bhilai

6. Bokaro Steel Plant was constructed with the collaboration of JPSC (Pre) 2016

(a) USA

(b) Germany

(d) Russia

7. At which of the following places the copper industry is located? BPSC (Pre) 2016

(a) Tarapur

(b) Titagarh

(d) Khetri

8. In which of the following area, did the first cotton textile factory begin in 1818? JPSC (Pre) 2013

(a) Fort Gloster in West Bengal

(b) Mumbai in Maharashtra

(d) Kanpur in Uttar Pradesh

9. Assertion (A) Ahmedabad is the largest center of the cotton textile industry in India.

Reason (R) Ahmedabad is located in the major cotton-growing region of India, so its has no problem of raw materials. UPPSC (Pre) 2020

(a) Both A and R are true and R is the correct explanation of A.

(b) Both A and R are true, but R is not the correct explanation of A.

(d) A is false, but R is true.

10. Muga silk is a product of the silkworm endemic to which the state of India. APSC (Pre) 2017

(a) Karnataka

(b) Tamil Nadu

(d) Manipur

Know Right Answer

1 (c)

2 (b)

3 (d)

4 (d)

5 (b)

6 (d)

7 (d)

8 (a)

9 (d)

10 (c)

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

1. Q: Why is the industrial sector crucial for India’s economic development?

A: The industrial sector plays a pivotal role in India’s economic development by contributing significantly to GDP, generating employment, and promoting innovation. Industries facilitate value addition, technological advancement, and export growth, making them vital for a country’s overall progress.

2. Q: What are the key factors influencing the location of industries in India?

A: The location of industries in India is influenced by factors such as raw material availability, labor supply, transportation infrastructure, market proximity, and government policies. The optimal combination of these factors determines the most suitable locations for different types of industries.

3. Q: How has globalization impacted the industrial landscape in India?

A: Globalization has transformed the industrial landscape in India by opening up avenues for foreign investment, technology transfer, and market expansion. It has led to increased competition, efficiency improvements, and the integration of Indian industries into the global supply chain, fostering economic growth.

4. Q: Discuss the significance of the ‘Make in India’ initiative in the context of industrial development.

A: The ‘Make in India’ initiative aims to promote indigenous manufacturing, enhance job creation, and boost the share of manufacturing in India’s GDP. By encouraging domestic production, the initiative seeks to make India a global manufacturing hub, attract investments, and reduce dependency on imports.

5. Q: How does sustainable development relate to the industrial sector in India?

A: Sustainable development in the industrial sector involves balancing economic growth with environmental conservation and social well-being. India’s industries are increasingly adopting eco-friendly practices, resource efficiency, and corporate social responsibility to ensure long-term sustainability and minimize the negative impact on the environment and society.

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UPSC NCERT Notes – Geography – Industries in India