NCERT Solutions for Class 12 Geography Fundamentals of Human Geography Chapter 5: Secondary Activities

Chapter at a glance

Exercise Questions

Question 1 (i)

Which one of the following statements is wrong?
(a) Cheap water transport has facilitated the jute mill industry along the Hugli. (b) Sugar, cotton textiles and vegetable oils are footloose industries. (c) The development of hydro-electricity and petroleum reduced, to a great extent, the importance of coal energy as a locational factor for industry. (d) Port towns in India have attracted industries.

Answer

Sugar, cotton textiles and vegetable oils are agro-based industries that depend on raw materials (sugarcane is perishable and weight-losing, so sugar mills are located near cane fields). They are not footloose. Footloose industries (e.g. electronics) are not tied to raw materials.

2. Sugar, cotton textiles and vegetable oils are footloose industries — this statement is wrong.

Question 1 (ii)

In which one of the following types of economy are the factors of production owned individually?
(a) Capitalist (b) Mixed (c) Socialist (d) None

Answer

In a capitalist economy, the factors of production (land, capital, industries) are owned and operated by individuals (private ownership). In socialist economies, they are owned by the state; in mixed economies, by both.

1. Capitalist

Question 1 (iii)

Which one of the following types of industries produces raw materials for other industries?
(a) Cottage Industries (b) Small-scale Industries (c) Basic Industries (d) Footloose Industries

Answer

Basic industries (key industries) supply their products as raw materials to make other goods — e.g. iron and steel used in the manufacture of machines, cars etc.

3. Basic Industries

Question 1 (iv)

Which one of the following pairs is correctly matched?
(a) Automobile industry … Los Angeles (b) Shipbuilding industry … Lusaka (c) Aircraft industry … Florence

Answer

1. Los Angeles – USA has a major automobile and aircraft industry in southern California; this pair is accepted as correct.
   2. Lusaka (Zambia) is a landlocked capital — no shipbuilding.
   3. Florence (Italy) is known for art, leather and textiles, not aircraft.

1. Automobile industry … Los Angeles

Question 2 (i)

Write a short note on High-Tech industry.

Answer

High-tech industry is the latest generation of manufacturing activities. It is best understood as the application of intensive research and development (R&D) efforts leading to the manufacture of products of an advanced scientific and engineering character. Professional (white collar) workers make up a large share of the workforce. Robotics on assembly lines, computer-aided design (CAD) and manufacturing, electronic controls of smelting and refining, and constant development of new chemical and pharmaceutical products are notable examples. High-tech industries are regionally concentrated, self-sustained and highly specialised — called technopolis (e.g. Silicon Valley near San Francisco, Silicon Forest near Seattle, Bengaluru in India).

High-tech industry is the latest generation of manufacturing based on intensive research and development, producing advanced scientific and engineering products with mainly professional (white-collar) workers, using robotics and computer-aided design; such industries cluster in technopolies like Silicon Valley, Silicon Forest and Bengaluru.

Question 2 (ii)

Write a short note on Manufacturing.

Answer

Manufacturing literally means “to make by hand”, but now includes goods made by machines. It is essentially a process involving the transformation of raw materials into finished goods of higher value for sale in local or distant markets. Modern large-scale manufacturing has the characteristics of: specialisation of skills/methods of production, mechanisation, technological innovation, organisational structure and stratification, and uneven geographic distribution. Iron and steel, textiles, automobiles, petrochemicals and electronics are among the world’s most important manufacturing industries; manufacturing contributes significantly to the world economy.

Manufacturing is the mechanical or chemical transformation of raw materials into finished goods of higher value; modern large-scale manufacturing is marked by specialisation, mechanisation, technological innovation, organisational structure and uneven geographical distribution (e.g. iron and steel, textiles, automobiles, petrochemicals, electronics).

Question 2 (iii)

Write a short note on Footloose industries.

Answer

Footloose industries can be located in a wide variety of places. They are not dependent on any specific raw material, weight-losing or otherwise. They largely depend on component parts which can be obtained anywhere. They produce in small quantities and employ a small labour force. These are generally not polluting industries. The important factor in their location is accessibility by road network. E.g. electronics, computer chips, diamond cutting and jewellery.

Footloose industries can be located almost anywhere as they do not depend on any specific raw material but on components obtainable anywhere; they produce in small quantities, employ a small workforce, are generally non-polluting, and are located mainly with regard to road access (e.g. electronics, computer chips).

Question 3 (i)

Differentiate between primary and secondary activities.

Answer

Primary activities directly depend on the environment and extract natural resources (agriculture, fishing, forestry, mining) — done by red-collar workers; secondary activities add value by transforming these raw materials into finished goods through manufacturing, processing and construction — done by blue-collar workers (e.g. cotton picked vs cloth woven).

Question 3 (ii)

Discuss the major trends of modern industrial activities especially in the developed countries of the world.

Answer

1. Large-scale manufacturing – modern manufacturing involves a vast market, a variety of raw materials, enormous energy, specialised workers, advanced technology, assembly-line mass production and large capital.
2. Specialisation and mechanisation – use of machines and automation (robots); mechanisation has reached the stage of automation where little human thinking is needed during manufacturing (e.g. automatic factories with feedback and closed-loop computer control systems).
3. Technological innovation – through R&D, leading to quality control, eliminating waste and inefficiency, and combating pollution.
4. Organisational structure – complex machine technology, extreme specialisation and division of labour, large capital, large organisations and executive bureaucracy; multinational corporations with operations in many countries.
5. Shift to high-tech industries – high-tech industries with intensive R&D (computer, electronics, pharmaceuticals, aerospace) and white-collar professional workers; technopolies like Silicon Valley.
6. Decline of traditional heavy industries – many traditional industrial regions (e.g. the Ruhr coalfield in Germany, the Pittsburgh steel region in the USA) have declined due to exhaustion of resources, competition and new technologies; they have diversified.
7. Relocation – manufacturing has shifted to developing countries with cheap labour (outsourcing), while developed countries focus on services and high-tech manufacturing.
8. Concentration in agglomerations and accessibility to markets; footloose industries located near good road networks.
9. Environmental concern – stricter pollution controls, clean technologies.

In developed countries, modern industry is marked by large-scale mass production with specialisation, mechanisation and automation, continuous technological innovation through R&D, complex organisations and multinational corporations, a shift to high-tech industries and technopolies, decline and diversification of old heavy-industry regions (Ruhr, Pittsburgh), relocation of labour-intensive manufacturing to developing countries, and greater environmental concern.

Question 3 (iii)

Explain why high-tech industries in many countries are being attracted to the peripheral areas of major metropolitan centres.

Answer

High-tech industries (computers, electronics, software, biotechnology, pharmaceuticals) are increasingly located on the periphery (outskirts) of large metropolitan centres in planned business parks and technopolies, because: 1. Neatly spaced, low, modern dispersed office-plant-lab buildings rather than massive assembly structures, factories and storage areas mark the high-tech industrial landscape; they need large, open, pleasant sites, which are available and cheaper on the periphery. 2. Lower land costs and rents than in city centres. 3. Proximity to the metropolis – access to its skilled professional workforce, universities and research institutions, financial services, markets and international airports, while avoiding the congestion of the city centre. 4. Better environment – less pollution and congestion; attractive living conditions for professionals. 5. Good transport and communication – highways, airports, high-speed internet. 6. Government incentives – special economic zones, technology parks (e.g. Electronic City and Whitefield in Bengaluru, HITEC City in Hyderabad, Noida and Gurugram near Delhi, Silicon Valley near San Francisco). 7. Agglomeration – clustering of similar firms creates networks, sharing of ideas and services.

High-tech industries locate on metropolitan peripheries because they need large, pleasant sites for low, dispersed office-lab buildings, land is cheaper there, they can still access the city’s skilled workforce, universities, finance, markets and airports while avoiding congestion and pollution, transport and internet links are good, governments offer technology parks and incentives, and clustering brings agglomeration benefits (e.g. Whitefield, HITEC City, Silicon Valley).

Question 3 (iv)

Africa has immense natural resources and yet it is industrially the most backward continent. Comment.

Answer

Africa’s resources: vast mineral wealth (gold, diamonds, copper, cobalt, uranium, bauxite, iron ore, petroleum — e.g. South Africa, DR Congo, Zambia, Nigeria, Ghana), forests, agricultural resources, large rivers with hydroelectric potential.

Why it is industrially backward: 1. Colonial legacy – Africa was colonised by European powers, who used it as a source of raw materials and a market for manufactured goods; industries were not developed locally; infrastructure was built only to export raw materials. 2. Export of raw materials – most resources are still exported in raw form to developed countries, so value addition happens abroad. 3. Lack of capital and technology – shortage of investment, technical know-how and skilled labour. 4. Poor infrastructure – inadequate transport, power and communication networks, especially in the interior; many landlocked countries. 5. Political instability – civil wars, conflicts, military coups and weak governance discourage investment. 6. Low purchasing power and small markets – widespread poverty limits demand. 7. Harsh physical conditions – deserts (Sahara, Kalahari), dense equatorial forests, diseases. 8. Low literacy and health levels. 9. Dependence on multinational companies which repatriate profits.

Some countries like South Africa, Egypt, Nigeria, Morocco have developed industries; recently, investment (e.g. from China, India) is increasing.

Despite rich minerals, forests and energy resources, Africa remains industrially backward because of its colonial legacy as a supplier of raw materials, continued export of unprocessed resources, lack of capital, technology and skilled labour, poor infrastructure and landlocked interiors, political instability, poverty and small markets, harsh environments and low literacy and health — though South Africa, Egypt and Nigeria have developed some industries.

Question Project/Activity – (i)

Carry out a survey in your school premises of the factory-made goods used by students and the staff.

Answer

(Sample survey findings.)

Conclusion: almost everything we use in school is factory-made; many products come from industries located in different parts of India and abroad (e.g. electronics from China, Taiwan, South Korea), showing the importance of manufacturing and global trade in everyday life.

A survey typically finds that stationery, uniforms, shoes and bags, furniture, fans and lights, computers and projectors, packaged food and water bottles, sports goods and medicines are all factory-made, coming from paper, textile, leather, steel, electronics, food processing, plastics and pharmaceutical industries in India and abroad.

Question Project/Activity – (ii)

Find out the meaning of the terms bio-degradable and non-biodegradable. Which kind of material is better to use? Why?

Answer

• Biodegradable materials are those that can be broken down (decomposed) by natural processes — bacteria, fungi and other micro-organisms — into simpler, harmless substances that return to the environment. E.g. paper, cotton, jute, wood, food waste, leaves, leather.
• Non-biodegradable materials cannot be broken down by natural processes, or take hundreds of years to decompose; they persist in the environment. E.g. plastics, polythene, glass, metals, synthetic fibres, pesticides like DDT, e-waste.

Which is better: biodegradable materials are better to use because: 1. They decompose naturally and do not accumulate as waste. 2. They do not pollute the soil, water and air for long periods. 3. They can be composted and returned to the soil as manure. 4. They do not harm animals (plastic bags kill cattle and marine life) or block drains. Non-biodegradable waste should be reduced, reused and recycled.

Biodegradable materials (paper, cotton, jute, food waste) can be decomposed by micro-organisms into harmless substances; non-biodegradable materials (plastics, glass, metals, e-waste) cannot, and persist for very long. Biodegradable materials are better because they decompose naturally, do not pollute land and water, can be composted and do not harm animals; non-biodegradable waste should be reduced, reused and recycled.

Question Project/Activity – (iii)

Look around and make a list of the global brands, their logos and products.

Answer

(Sample list — students may describe the logos they see.)

These show the global reach of transnational companies and the impact of globalisation on our consumption.

Sample: Apple (bitten apple — phones, computers), Samsung (blue oval — electronics), Coca-Cola (red script — soft drinks), McDonald’s (golden arches — fast food), Nike (swoosh — sportswear), Adidas (three stripes), Toyota (three ellipses — cars), Nestlé (bird’s nest — food), Google (coloured G — internet), Tata (stylised T — steel, cars, tea, IT).

Topic checklist

• ☒ Location of industries and types (Q 1 (i)–(iv), 2 (iii))
• ☒ Manufacturing and high-tech industry (Q 2 (i), 2 (ii), 3 (ii), 3 (iii))
• ☒ Primary vs secondary; Africa (Q 3 (i), 3 (iv))
• ☒ Projects (survey, biodegradable materials, global brands)

Total questions answered: 14 of 14