Influence of Geographical Factors on Indian Railways Geographical factors favoured the development of railways in certain respects and discouraged it in some other respects. The northern plains had level tOJ3ography, high population density and intense agricultural and industrial activity. These factors favoured the laying of rail lines through this region. At the same time, a network of rivers had to be overcome by bridges which involved heavy expenditure and difficulty in construction because of wide flood plains and swift flow at the thalweg (i.e., bottommiddle) and also, frequent floods implied huge maintenance costs.
The peninsula has a rugged, hilly terrain. As a result, the rail links have to pass through low hills, gaps and river valleys, or tunnels. A fine example of rail links through gaps and valleys is the Mumbai-Chennai link through Bhorghat, Bhima valley and Pennar valley.
The Himalayan region being mountainous and forested, the rail density is either low or absent. In this region, the rail lines have managed to reach the foothills such as Jammu, Hardwar, Dehradun, Kathgodam, Kotdwar, Darjeeling (through Siliguri) and Shimla (from Kalka). The sandy plains of Rajasthan are another example of a difficult terrain discouraging the development of railways. This region is also characterised by sparse population. Till 1966, there was no rail link from Jodhpur to Jaisalmer. In western Rajasthan, only a few metre gauge railway lines have managed to penetrate the arid tract.
The thickly forested tracts of Madhya Pradesh and Orissa and the deltaic swamps of West Bengal have also been unfavourable for the development of the railway network. The hilly and forested tract of the Sahyadri was also devoid of a continuous railway link along the west coast. Now Konkan rail line has filled this void. The completion of the Konkan Rail in 1998 has been a milestone in the history of Indian Railways. The rail route connects Roha in Maharashtra with Mangalore in Karnataka. The Konkan Railway Corporation (KRC), a public sector undertaking established with the partnership of three states (Maharashtra, Goa and Karnataka), has completed the project. The Konkan rail route is indeed an engineering marvel. Enroute, it crosses 146 rivers and streams. There are about 2,000 bridges and 73 tunnels that connect the 760 kilometre stretch, including Asia's longest (6.44 km) rail tunnel. Apart from this, the rail links penetrate upto the coast along the gaps. Mumbai, Vasco da Gama, Mangalore and Cochin are the examples of such rail heads.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
No comments:
Post a Comment