Lifelines of National Economy

The means of transportation and communication are called the lifelines of a nation and its economy because:

1. The pace of a country's development depends not only on its capacity to produce goods and services but also on their seamless movement across the country. Therefore, efficient means of transport are prerequisites for national development.
2. A dense and efficient network of transport and communication is a prerequisite for local, national and global trade of today.
3. Transportation and communication networks connect different regions and communities within a country fostering social cohesion and economic integration.
4. It enhances the country's disaster response, healthcare access, education and employment opportunities improving overall quality of life of the nation's population.
5. It facilitates tourism which helps in promoting national integration, provides support to local handicrafts and cultural pursuits and brings in foreign exchange.

The changing nature of the international trade for India, in the last fifteen years has been marked by several key trends such as:

1. India has developed trade relations with all the major trading blocks and all geographical regions of the world over the last fifteen years.
2. India's services sector, particularly information technology (IT), software services, and business process outsourcing (BPO), has been a major contributor to its international trade.
3. India has emerged as a major supplier of generic pharmaceuticals and healthcare services.
4. The e-commerce boom has expanded global digital trade, with Indian companies and platforms taking advantage of this trend to sell products and services globally.
5. India has increased its agricultural exports, including rice, cereals, spices, and fruits, to various countries.
6. Tourism in India has seen substantial growth and helped in international trade. India is one of the top destinations for medical tourism, educational tourism, holidays and business tourism.

Three merits of roadways are:

1. Construction cost of roads is much lower than railway lines.
2. Roads can be made on dissected and undulating topography.
3. It provides door to door service.

Rail transport is the most convenient means of transportation in the Northern plains because these plains are densely populated, rich in agriculture resources and construction of railways is easy due to vast levelled land.

Border roads are significant due to the following reasons:

1. They have helped in the economic development of Northern and Northeastern border areas by improving accessibility.
2. They have strengthened the defence preparedness of our country by enabling quick deployment of troops in the border areas.

The exchange of goods among people, states and countries is referred to as trade. Trade between two countries is called international trade. Trade carried out within the country in its states, cities, town and villages is called local trade.

Silchar and Porbandar

Pipeline

Maharashtra

Vishakhapatnam

Railways

International trade