Economic Geography (primary, secondary, tertiary activities)
Economic geography explains how primary, secondary and tertiary activities are located and linked. The exam tests classification, location factors, value addition and the difference between formal and informal work.
Core rules
- Primary activities extract resources directly: farming, fishing, forestry, mining and quarrying.
- Secondary activities process raw materials: manufacturing, construction, power generation and handicrafts.
- Tertiary activities provide services: transport, trade, banking, education, health and tourism. Quaternary activities handle knowledge and decision-making.
- Location factors include raw material, power, transport, market, labour, capital, government policy and agglomeration.
- Weight-losing industries locate near raw materials; weight-gaining industries locate near markets. Footloose industries are relatively free of such ties.
Worked example
A coir unit is proposed near a Kerala backwater. Classify it and justify the site. Coir processing is secondary because it converts coconut husk into yarn and mats. It is weight-losing at the first stage, so proximity to husk supplies and retting water matters. Labour, port access and export markets also count. The answer should mention value addition: raw husk becomes a higher-value product, and the activity links primary coconut farming to tertiary trade.
Traps
Do not call mining secondary; extraction is primary. Do not treat quaternary work as ordinary services. Do not list location factors without explaining which are fixed and which are footloose. Avoid saying industry needs market when the material is weight-losing and should be near the source.