Economic Geography: Agriculture, Industry, Transport and Trade
What this domain tests
Economic geography examines agriculture, industry, transport and trade: crop seasons and systems, location factors, industrial regions, modes and networks, and trade balances. Expect map-linked questions on Andhra Pradesh's rice, cotton, chilli and aquaculture and on India's steel and textile belts.
Core rules
- Agriculture: subsistence, commercial, plantation, shifting and intensive systems. Kharif crops are sown with the southwest monsoon; rabi crops depend on winter rain or irrigation; zaid is the short summer season.
- Location factors: land, climate, water, raw material, power, labour, capital, market, transport and government policy. Weber's least-cost theory weighs material and market orientation.
- Industry: iron and steel at Jamshedpur, Bhilai, Rourkela, Durgapur and Visakhapatnam; cotton textiles in Mumbai and Ahmedabad; software in Bengaluru and Hyderabad. Visakhapatnam is India's first shore-based integrated steel plant and uses imported coking coal and iron ore from Bailadila.
- Transport: roads for door-to-door service, rail for bulk, ports for overseas trade. Visakhapatnam, Kakinada and Machilipatnam are Andhra Pradesh's notable ports. Trade balance is exports minus imports.
Worked example
Why is rice dominant in the Godavari–Krishna delta? Reasoning: level alluvium, abundant canal and river water, high temperature and humidity, dense labour and nearby markets together satisfy rice's water and labour demands. Cotton would fit better on the black soils of Rayalaseema, where moisture is scarcer.
Traps
Mixing kharif and rabi; listing location factors without linking them to a specific industry; calling all exports favourable without checking value; confusing Visakhapatnam with a raw-material-only inland plant.