Whereas the British planters had developed tea gardens all along the Shivaliks and Lesser Himalayas from Assam to Himachal Pradesh, in effect they did not succeed beyond the Darjeeling area. Explain.

Theme

T39 Location of industries: steel, refineries, sugar, textiles, tea, rubber, corridors

What UPSC asks in this theme

UPSC asks location factors for specific industries: iron and steel away from raw material, refineries, sugar shifting south, decentralised cotton textiles, tea gardens limited to Darjeeling, rubber, industrial corridors, and non-farm primary activities.

What to cover

• Weber-type factors: raw material, market, transport, labour, power, policy
• Iron and steel: shift to coastal and market locations
• Sugar: southern advantage (yield, crushing season, cooperatives)
• Cotton textiles: decentralised due to market and power
• Industrial corridors: DMIC etc.
• Non-farm primary activities and physiography

Writing the answer

• Always give specific locations; a rough map sketch helps

These notes are for the whole theme, built from all 7 of its PYQs. UPSC does not publish model answers.