Chapter 1
Chapter 2
People migrate for a better economic and social life. There are two sets of factors that influence migration.
The Push factors make the place of origin seem less attractive for reasons like unemployment, poor living conditions, political turmoil, unpleasant climate, natural disasters, epidemics and socio-economic backwardness.
The Pull factors make the place of destination seem more attractive than the place of origin for reasons like better job opportunities and living conditions, peace and stability, security of life and property and pleasant climate.
The expanding world trade during the sixteenth and seventeenth century, set the stage for rapid population growth. Around 1750, at the dawn of the Industrial Revolution, the world population was 550 million. World population exploded in the eighteenth century after the Industrial Revolution. Technological advancement achieved so far helped in the reduction of birth rate and provided a stage for accelerated population growth.
How Science and Technology helped Population Growth?
The steam engine replaced human and animal energy and also provided mechanised energy of water and wind. This increased agricultural and industrial production.
Inoculation against epidemics and other communicable diseases, improvement in medical facilities and sanitation contributed to a rapid decline in death rates throuhout the world.
SPATIAL PATTERN OF POPULATION CHANGE
Population growth in different parts of the world can be compared. The growth of population is low in developed countries as compared to developing countries. There is negative correlation between economic development and population growth.
Although the annual rate of population change (1.4 per cent) seems to be low (Table 2.3), it is actually not so. This is because:
When a small annual rate is applied to a very large population, it will lead to a large population change.
Even if the growth rate continues to decline, the total population grows each year. The infant mortality rate may have increased as has the death rate during childbirth.
IMPACT OF POPULATION CHANGE
A small increase in population is desirable in a growing economy. However, population growth
beyond a certain level leads to problems. Of these the depletion of resources is the most serious. Population decline is also a matter of concern. It indicates that resources that had supported a population earlier are now insufficient to maintain the population.
The deadly HIV/AIDS epidemics in Africa and some parts of the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) and Asia have pushed up death rates and reduced average life expectancy. This has slowed down population growth.
DEMOGRAPHIC TRANSITION
Demographic transition theory can be used to describe and predict the future population of any area. The theory tells us that population of any region changes from high births and high deaths to low births and low deaths as society progresses from rural agrarian and illiterate to urban industrial and literate society. These changes occur in stages which are collectively known as the demographic cycle.
POLPULATION CONTROL MASURES
Family planning is the spacing or preventing the birth of children. Access to family planning services is a significant factor in limiting population growth and improving women’s health. Propaganda, free availability of contraceptives and tax disincentives for large families are some of the measures which can help population control.
Thomas Malthus in his theory (1793) stated that the number of people would increase faster than the food supply. Any further increase would result in a population crash caused by famine, disease and war. The preventive checks are better than the physical checks. For the sustainability of our resources, the world will have to control the rapid population increase
Chapter 3
Population Composition
SEX COMPOSITION
The number of women and men in a country is an important demographic characteristic. The ratio between the number of women and men in the population is called the Sex Ratio. In some countries it is calculated by using the formula:
Male Population / Female Population *1000
or the number of males per thousand females.
In India, the sex ratio is worked out using the formula:
Female Population / Male Population *1000
or the number of females per thousand males.
The sex ratio is an important information about the status of women in a country.
In regions where gender discrimination is rampant, the sex ratio is bound to be unfavourable to women. Such areas are those where the practice of female foeticide, female infanticide and domestic violence against women are prevalent. One of the reasons could be lower socio-economic status of women in these areas.
On an average, the world population reflects a sex ratio of 102 males per 100 females. The highest sex ratio in the world has been recorded in Latvia where there are 85 males per 100 females. In contrast, in Qatar there are 311 males per 100 females.
The sex ratio is favourable for females in 139 countries of the world and unfavourable for them in the remaining 72 countries listed by the United Nations.
In general, Asia has a low sex ratio. Countries like China, India, Saudi Arabia, Pakistan, Afghanistan have a lower sex ratio.
Declining Populations
The Japan pyramid has a narrow base and a tapered top showing low birth and death rates. The population growth in developed countries is usually zero or negative.
The excess of females in urban areas of U.S.A., Canada and Europe is the result of influx of females from rural areas to avail of the vast job opportunities.
It is also worth noting that in countries like India, female participation in farming activity in rural area is fairly high. Shortage of housing, high cost of living, paucity of job opportunities and lack of security in cities, discourage women to migrate from rural to urban areas.
In India – literacy rate denotes the percentage of population above 7 years of age, who is able to read, write and have the ability to do arithmetic calculations with understanding.
Occupational Structure
The working population (i.e. women and men of the age group – 15 to 59) take part in various occupations ranging from agriculture, forestry, fishing, manufacturing construction, commercial transport, services, communication and other unclassified services.
Chapter 4
Human Development
Both growth and development refers to changes over a period of time. The difference is that growth is quantitative and value neutral. It may have a positive or a negative sign. This means that the change may be either positive (showing an increase) or negative (indicating a decrease).
Development means a qualitative change which is always value positive. This means that development cannot take place unless there is an increment or addition to the existing conditions. Development occurs when positive growth takes place. Yet, positive growth does not always lead to development. Development occurs when there is a positive change in quality.
For example, if the population of a city grows from one lakh to two lakhs over a period of time, we say the city has grown. However, if a facilities like housing, provision of basic services and other characteristics remain the same, then this growth has not been accompanied by development.
The concept of human development was introduced by Dr Mahbub-ul-Haq. Dr Haq has described human development as development that enlarges people’s choices and improves their lives. People are central to all development under this concept. These choices are not fixed but keep on changing. The basic goal of development is to create conditions where people can live meaningful lives.
A meaningful life is not just a long one. It must be a life with some purpose. This means that people must be healthy, be able to develop their talents, participate in society and be free to achieve their goals.
A man of vision and compassion, Pakistani economist Dr Mahbub-ul-Haq created the Human Development Index in 1990. According to him, development is all about enlarging people’s choices in order to lead long, healthy lives with dignity. The United Nations Development Programme has used his concept of human development to publish the Human Development Report annually since 1990.
Dr Haq’s flexibility of mind and ability to think out of the box can be illustrated from one of his speeches where he quoted Shaw saying, “‘You see things that are, and ask why? I dream of things that never were, and ask why not?’
Nobel Laureate Prof Amartya Sen saw an increase in freedom (or decrease in unfreedom) as the main objective of development. Interestingly, increasing freedoms is also one of the most effective ways of bringing about development. His work explores the role of social and political institutions and processes in increasing freedom.
The works of these economists are path breaking and have succeeded in bringing people to the centre of any discussion on development.
Leading a long and healthy life, being able to gain knowledge and having enough means to be able to live a decent life are the most important aspects of human development.
Therefore, access to resources, health and education are the key areas in human development. Suitable indicators have been developed to measure each of these aspects. Can you think of some?
Very often, people do not have the capability and freedom to make even basic choices. This may be due to their inability to acquire knowledge, their material poverty, social discrimination, inefficiency of institutions and other reasons. This prevents them from leading healthy lives, being able to get educated or to have the means to live a decent life.
Building people’s capabilities in the areas of health, education and access to resources is therefore, important in enlarging their choices. If people do not have capabilities in these areas, their choices also get limited.
For example, an uneducated child cannot make the choice to be a doctor because her choice has got limited by her lack of education. Similarly, very often poor people cannot choose to take medical treatment for disease because their choice is limited by their lack of resources.
THE FOUR PILLARS OF HUMAN DEVELOPMENT
Just as any building is supported by pillars, the idea of human development is supported by the concepts of equity, sustainability, productivity and empowerment.
Sustainability means continuity in the availability of opportunities. To have sustainable human development, each generation must have the same opportunities. All environmental, financial and human resources must be used keeping in mind the future. Misuse of any of these resources will lead to fewer opportunities for future generations.
Ultimately, it is people who are the real wealth of nations. Therefore, efforts to increase their knowledge, or provide better health facilities ultimately leads to better work efficiency.
Empowerment means to have the power to make choices. Such power comes from increasing freedom and capability. Good governance and people-oriented policies are required to empower people. The empowerment of socially and economically disadvantaged groups is of special importance.
APPROACHES TO HUMAN DEVELOPMENT
There are many ways of looking at the problem of human development. Some of the important approaches are: (a) The income approach; (b) The welfare approach; (c) Minimum needs approach; and (d) Capabilities approach
Minimum needs approach:This approach was initially proposed by the International Labour Organisation (ILO). Six basic needs i.e.: health, education, food, water supply, sanitation, and housing were identified. The question of human choices is ignored and the emphasis is on the provision of basic needs of defined sections.
Capabilities approach :This approach is associated with Prof. Amartya Sen. Building human capabilities in the areas of health, education and access to resources is the key to increasing human development.
MEASURING HUMAN DEVELOPMENT
The human development index (HDI) ranks the countries based on their performance in the key areas of health, education and access to resources. These rankings are based on a score between 0 to 1 that a country earns from its record in the key areas of human development.
The human poverty index is related to the human development index. This index measures the shortfall in human development.
Since 1990, the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) has been publishing the Human Development Report every year. This report provides a rank-wise list of all member countries according to the level of human development. The Human Development index and the Human Poverty index are two important indices to measure human development used by the UNDP.
International comparisons of human development are interesting. Size of the territory and per capita income are not directly related to human development. Often smaller countries have done better than larger ones in human development. Similarly, relatively poorer nations have been ranked higher than richer neighbours in terms of human development.
For example, Sri Lanka, Trinidad and Tobago have a higher rank than India in the human development index despite having smaller economies. Similarly, within India, Kerala performs much better than Punjab and Gujarat in human development despite having lower per capita income.
Providing education and healthcare is an important government priority. Countries with higher human development are those where a lot of investment in the social sector has taken place. Altogether, a higher investment in people and good governance has set this group of countries apart from the others.
Chapter 5
human beings might have thought of domestication of animals. People living in different climatic conditions selected and domesticated animals found in those regions. Depending on the geographical factors, and technological development, animal rearing today is practised either at the subsistence or at the commercial level.
New Zealand, Australia, Argentina, Uruguay and United States of America are important countries where commercial livestock rearing is practised
Subsistence Agriculture
Subsistence agriculture is one in which the farming areas consume all, or nearly so, of the products locally grown. It can be grouped in two categories — Primitive Subsistence Agriculture and Intensive Subsistence Agriculture.
Primitive Subsistence Agriculture
Primitive subsistence agriculture or shifting cultivation is widely practised by many tribes
in the tropics, especially in Africa, south and central America and south east Asia
Intensive Subsistence Agriculture
This type of agriculture is largely found in densely populated regions of monsoon Asia.
Plantation Agriculture
Plantation agriculture as mentioned above was introduced by the Europeans in colonies situated in the tropics. Some of the important plantation crops are tea, coffee, cocoa, rubber, cotton, oil palm, sugarcane, bananas and pineapples.
The French established cocoa and coffee plantations in west Africa. The British set up large tea gardens in India and Sri Lanka, rubber plantations in Malaysia and sugarcane and banana plantations in West Indies. Spanish and Americans invested heavily in
coconut and sugarcane plantations in the Philippines. The Dutch once had monopoly over sugarcane plantation in Indonesia. Some coffee fazendas (large plantations) in Brazil are still managed by Europeans.
Today, ownership of the majority of plantations has passed into the hands of the government or the nationals of the countries concerned.
Extensive Commercial Grain Cultivation
Commercial grain cultivation is practised in the interior parts of semi-arid lands of the mid- latitudes. Wheat is the principal crop, though other crops like corn, barley, oats and rye are also grown. The size of the farm is very large, therefore entire operations of cultivation from
ploughing to harvesting are mechanised
This type of agriculture is best developed in Eurasian steppes, the Canadian and American Prairies, the Pampas of Argentina, the Velds of South Africa, the Australian Downs and the Canterbury Plains of New Zealand.
Mixed Farming
This form of agriculture is found in the highly developed parts of the world, e.g. North-western Europe, Eastern North America, parts of Eurasia and the temperate latitudes of Southern continents (Fig. 5.14).
Mixed farms are moderate in size and usually the crops associated with it are wheat, barley, oats, rye, maize, fodder and root crops. Fodder crops are an important component of mixed farming. Crop rotation and intercropping play an important role in maintaining soil fertility. Equal emphasis is laid on crop cultivation and animal husbandry. Animals like cattle, sheep, pigs and poultry provide the main income along with crops.
There are three main regions of commercial dairy farming. The largest is North Western Europe the second is Canada and the third belt includes South Eastern Australia, New Zealand and Tasmania (Fig. 5.16).
Mediterranean Agriculture
Mediterranean agriculture is highly specialised commercial agriculture. It is practised in the countries on either side of the Mediterranean
sea in Europe and in north Africa from Tunisia to Atlantic coast, southern California, central Chile, south western parts of South Africa and south and south western parts of Australia. This region is an important supplier of citrus fruits.
Viticulture or grape cultivation is a speciality of the Mediterranean region.
The regions where farmers specialise in vegetables only, the farming is know as truck farming. The distance of truck farms from the market is governed by the distance that a truck can cover overnight, hence the name truck farming.
In addition to market gardening, a modern development in the industrial regions of Western Europe and North America is factory farming. Livestock, particularly poultry and cattle rearing, is done in stalls and pens, fed on manufactured feedstuff and carefully
supervised against diseases. This requires heavy capital investment in terms of building, machinery for various operations, veterinary services and heating and lighting. One of the important features of poultry farming and cattle rearing is breed selection and scientific breeding.
Types of farming can also be categorised according to the farming organisation. Farming organisation is affected by the way in which farmers own their farms and various policies of the government which help to run these farms.
Co-operative Farming
Co-operative movement originated over a century ago and has been successful in many western European countries like Denmark, Netherlands, Belgium, Sweden, Italy etc. In Denmark, the movement has been so successful that practically every farmer is a member of a co-operative.
Collective farming or the model of Kolkhoz was introduced in erstwhile Soviet Union to improve upon the inefficiency of the previous methods of agriculture and to boost agricultural production for self-sufficiency.
Methods of Mining
Depending on the mode of occurrence and the nature of the ore, mining is of two types: surface and underground mining. The surface mining also known as open-cast mining is the easiest and the cheapest way of mining minerals that occur close to the surface.
The developed economies are retreating from mining, processing and refining stages of production due to high labour costs, while the developing countries with large labour force and striving for higher standard of living are becoming more important. Several countries of Africa and few of south America and Asia have over fifty per cent of the earnings from minerals alone.
Chatper 6
Secondary Activities
Manufacturing involves a full array of production from handicrafts to moulding iron and steel and stamping out plastic toys to assembling delicate computer components or space vehicles. In each of these processes, the common characteristics are the application of power, mass production of identical products and specialised labour in factory settings for the production of standardised commodities.
Access to Market
The existence of a market for manufactured goods is the most important factor in the location of industries. ‘Market’ means people who have a demand for these goods and also have the purchasing power (ability to purchase) to be able to purchase from the sellers at a place. Remote areas inhabited by a few people offer small markets. The developed regions of Europe, North America, Japan and Australia provide large global markets as the purchasing power of the people is very high. The densely populated regions of South and South-east Asia also provide large markets. Some industries, such as aircraft manufacturing, have a global market. The arms industry also has global markets.
Access to Agglomeration Economies/ Links between Industries
Many industries benefit from nearness to a leader-industry and other industries. These benefits are termed as agglomeration economies. Savings are derived from the linkages which exist between different industries.
Cotton Textile Industry
Cotton textile industry has three sub-sectors i.e. handloom, powerloom and mill sectors. Handloom sector is labour-intensive and provides employment to semi-skilled workers. It requires small capital investment. Why did Mahatma Gandhi propagate Khadi as part of the independence movement? This sector involves spinning, weaving and finishing of the fabrics. The powerloom sector introduces machines and becomes less labour intensive
and the volume of production increases. Cotton textile mill sector is highly capital intensive and produces fine clothes in bulk.
Chapter 7
Rural marketing centres cater to nearby settlements. These are quasi-urban centres.
Retail Trading
This is the business activity concerned with the sale of goods directly to the consumers.
Tourist Regions
The warmer places around the Mediterranean Coast and the West Coast of India are some of the popular tourist destinations in the world.
Medical Tourism
When medical treatment is combined with international tourism activity, it lends itself to what is commonly known as medical tourism.
Quaternary activities involve some of the following: the collection, production and dissemination of information or even the production of information. Quaternary activities centre around research, development and may be seen as an advanced form of services involving specialised knowledge and technical skills.
Outsourcing has resulted in the opening up of a large number of call centres in India, China, Eastern Europe, Israel, Philippines and Costa Rica. It has created new jobs in these countries. Outsourcing is coming to those countries where cheap and skilled workers are available. These are also out-migrating countries. With the work available though outsourcing, the migration in these countries may come down. Outsourcing countries are facing resistance from job-seeking youths in their respective countries.
The KPO industry is distinct from Business Process Outsourcing (BPO) as it involves highly skilled workers. It is information driven knowledge outsourcing. KPO enables companies to create additional business opportunities. Examples of KPOs include research and development (R and D) activities, e-learning, business research, intellectual property (IP) research, legal
profession and the banking sector.
Outsourcing
Outsourcing or contracting out is giving work to an outside agency to improve efficiency and to reduce costs.
Chapter 8
Important Sea Routes
The Northern Atlantic Sea Route
This links North-eastern U.S.A. and North- western Europe, the two industrially developed regions of the world. The foreign trade over this route is greater than that of the rest of the world combined.
The Mediterranean–Indian Ocean Sea Route
This sea route passes through the heart of the Old World and serves more countries and people than any other route. Port Said, Aden, Mumbai, Colombo and Singapore are some of the important ports on this route.
The construction of Suez canal has greatly reduced the distance and time as compared to the earlier route through the Cape of Good Hope.
The Cape of Good Hope Sea Route
This sea route is another important one across the Atlantic Ocean which connects West European and West African countries with Brazil, Argentina and Uruguay in South America. The traffic is far less on this route because of the limited development and population in South America and Africa. Only southeastern Brazil and Plata estuary and parts of South Africa have large-scale industries. There is also little traffic on the route between Rio de Janeiro and Cape Town because both South America and Africa have similar products and resources.
The North Pacific Sea Route
This sea route links the ports on the west-coast of North America with those of Asia. These are Vancouver, Seattle, Portland, San Francisco and Los Angeles on the American side and Yokohama, Kobe, Shanghai, Hong Kong, Manila and Singapore on the Asian side.
The South Pacific Sea Route
This sea route connects Western Europe and North America with Australia, New Zealand and the scattered Pacific islands via the Panama Canal. This route is also used for reaching Hong Kong, Philippines and Indonesia. The distance covered between Panama and Sydney is 12,000 km. Honolulu is an important port on this route.
Shipping Canals
The Suez and the Panama Canals are two vital man-made navigation canals or waterways which serve as gateways of commerce for both the eastern and western worlds.
The Suez Canal
This canal had been constructed in 1869 in Egypt between Port Said in the north and Port Suez in the south linking the Mediterranean Sea and the Red Sea. It gives Europe a new gateway to the Indian Ocean and reduces direct sea-route distance between Liverpool and Colombo compared to the Cape of Good Hope route. It is a sea-level canal without locks which is about 160 km and 11 to 15 m deep. About 100 ships travel daily and each ship takes 10-12 hours to cross this canal.
The Panama Canal
This canal connects the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west. It has been
constructed across the Panama Isthmus between Panama City and Colon by the U.S. government which purchased 8 km of area on either side and named it the Canal Zone. The Canal is about 72 km. long and involves a very deep cutting for a length of 12 km.
It shortens the distance between New York and San Francisco by 13,000 km by sea.
The Rhine Waterways
The Rhine flows through Germany and the Netherlands. It is navigable for 700 km from Rotterdam, at its mouth in the Netherlands to Basel in Switzerland.
The Danube Waterway
This important inland waterway serves Eastern Europe. The Danube river rises in the Black Forest and flows eastwards through many countries. It is navigable up to Taurna Severin. The chief export items are wheat, maize, timber, and machinery.
The Volga Waterway
Russia has a large number of developed waterways, of which the Volga is one of the most important. It provides a navigable waterway of 11,200 km and drains into the Caspian Sea.
The Great Lakes – St. Lawrence Seaway
The Great Lakes of North America Superior, Huron Erie and Ontario are connected by Soo Canal and Welland Canal to form an inland waterway. The estuary of St. Lawrence River, along with the Great Lakes, forms a unique commercial waterway in the northern part of North America.
The Mississippi Waterways
The Mississippi-Ohio waterway connects the interior part of U.S.A. with the Gulf of Mexico in the south. Large steamers can go through this route up to Minneapolis.
PIPELINES
Pipelines are used extensively to transport liquids and gases such as water, petroleum and natural gas for an uninterrupted flow. Water supplied through pipelines is familiar to all. Cooking gas or LPG is supplied through pipelines in many parts of the world. Pipelines can also be used to transport liquidified coal. In New Zealand, milk is being supplied through pipelines from farms to factories.
In U.S.A. there is a dense network of oil pipelines from the producing areas to the consuming areas.
Big Inch is one such famous pipeline, which carries petroleum from the oil wells of the Gulf of Mexico to the North-eastern States.
The proposed Iran-India via Pakistan international oil and natural gas pipeline will be the longest in the world.
Communication through satellites emerged as a new area in communication technology since the 1970s after U.S.A. and former U.S.S.R. pioneered space research. Artificial satellites, now, are successfully deployed in the earth’s orbit to connect even the remote corners of the globe with limited on- site verification. These have rendered the unit cost and time of communication invariant in terms of distance. This means it costs the same to communicate over 500 km as it does over 5,000 km via satellite
India has also made great strides in satellite development. Aryabhatt was launched on 19 April 1979, Bhaskar-I in 1979 and Rohini in 1980. On 18 June 1981, APPLE (Arian Passenger Payload Experiment) was launched through Arian rocket. Bhaskar,
Challenger and INSAT I-B have made long- distance communication, television and radio very effective. Today weather forecasting through television is a boon.
As billions use the Internet each year, cyberspace will expand the contemporary economic and social space of humans through e-mail, e-commerce, e-learning and e-governance. Internet together with fax, television and radio will be accessible to more and more people cutting across place and time. It is these modern communication systems, more than transportation, that has made the concept of global village a reality.
Chapter 9
International Trade
Fifteenth century onwards, the European colonialism began and along with trade of exotic commodities, a new form of trade emerged which was called slave trade. The Portuguese, Dutch, Spaniards, and British captured African natives and forcefully transported them to the newly discovered Americas for their labour in the plantations. Slave trade was a lucrative business for more than two hundred years till it was abolished in Denmark in 1792, Great Britain in 1807 and United States in 1808.
During the World Wars I and II, countries imposed trade taxes and quantitative restrictions for the first time. During the post- war period, organisations like General Agreement for Tariffs and Trade (which later became the World Trade Organisation), helped in reducing tariff.
International trade is based on the principle of comparative advantage, complimentarity and transferability of goods and services and in principle, should be mutually beneficial to the trading partners.
Case for Free Trade
The act of opening up economies for trading is known as free trade or trade liberalisation. This is done by bringing down trade barriers like tariffs. Trade liberalisation allows goods and services from everywhere to compete with domestic products and services.
Globalisation along with free trade can adversely affect the economies of developing countries by not giving equal playing field by imposing conditions which are unfavourable.
Countries also need to be cautious about dumped goods; as along with free trade dumped goods of cheaper prices can harm the domestic producers.
Dumping
The practice of selling a commodity in two countries at a price that differs for reasons not related to costs is called dumping.
The WTO has however been criticised and opposed by those who are worried about the effects of free trade and economic globalisation. It is argued that free trade does not make ordinary people’s lives more prosperous. It is actually widening the gulf between rich and poor by making rich countries more rich. This is because the influential nations in the WTO focus on their own commercial interests. Moreover, many developed countries have not fully opened their markets to products from developing countries. It is also argued that issues of health, worker’s rights, child labour and environment are ignored.
Regional Trade Blocs
Regional Trade Blocs have come up in order to encourage trade between countries with geographical proximity, similarity and complementarities in trading items and to curb restrictions on trade of the developing world. Today, 120 regional trade blocs generate 52 per cent of the world trade. These trading blocs developed as a response to the failure of the global organisations to speed up intra-regional trade.
Types of Port
Generally, ports are classified according to the types of traffic which they handle.
Types of port according to cargo handled:
Types of port according to cargo handled:
- (i) Industrial Ports: These ports specialise in
bulk cargo-like grain, sugar, ore, oil,
chemicals and similar materials.
- (ii) Commercial Ports: These ports handle general cargo-packaged products and manufactured good. These ports also
handle passenger traffic.
Types of port on the basis of location:
- (i) Inland Ports: These ports are located away from the sea coast. They are linked to the sea through a river or a canal.
- (ii) Out Ports: These are deep water ports built away from the actual ports. These serve the parent ports by receiving those ships which are unable to approach them due to their large size.
- (iii) Comprehensive Ports: Such ports handle bulk and general cargo in large volumes. Most of the world’s great ports are classified as comprehensive ports.
(v) Naval Ports: These are ports which have only strategic importance. These ports serve warships and have repair workshops for them. Kochi and Karwar are examples of such ports in India.
Chapter 10
Human Settlements
Conurbation
The term conurbation was coined by Patrick Geddes in 1915 and applied to a large area of urban development that resulted from the merging of originally separate towns or cities. Greater London, Manchester, Chicago and Tokyo are examples
Megalopolis
This Greek word meaning “great city”, was popularised by Jean Gottman (1957) and signifies ‘super- metropolitan’ region extending, as union of conurbations. The urban landscape stretching from Boston in the north to south of Washington in U.S.A. is the best known example of a megalopolis.
Million City
The number of million cities in the world has been increasing as never before. London reached the million mark in 1800, followed by Paris in 1850, New York in 1860, and by 1950 there were around 80 such cities. The rate of increase in the number of million cities has been three-fold in every three decades – around 160 in 1975 to around 438 in 2005.
Distribution of Mega Cities
A mega city or megalopolis is a general term for cities together with their suburbs with a population of more than 10 million people. New York was the first to attain the status of a mega city by 1950 with a total population of about 12.5 million.
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