Bulletin No. 16 of National Geographical Society of India Banaras

But the fact that such industries have been established *Text of address delivered on the occasion of the Special Anniversary Meeting of the Society held on the 13th September 1952.2 GEOGRAPRIOAL CONTROL OF MINERAL INDUSTRIES there has given them the advantage of early start and of the pefection resulting from a long period of training and practice. [...] As is well known the factors to be taken into account are the availability of raw materials and the cost of their assemblage at the works ; the availability of fuel power and water ; supply of equipment and of labour whether skilled or unskilled ; the distance to the market or markets and the cost of distribution of the finished products. [...] It is well known that high grade iron ores occur in the Singhbhum district of Bihar and the adjacent parts of Orissa ; in the Drug Chanda and Bastar districts in Madhya Pradesh ; in the Ratnagiri-Goa area of Bombay ; in some of the nortcentral districts of Mysore and in the Bellary and Salem-Trichinpoly districts of Madras. [...] If we examine the distribution of t he mines producing base metals (copper lead and zinc) and of the location of metal manufacturing industries it will be found that in some cases the ore concentrates from the mines travel appreciable distances before being smelted and fabricated.6 GEOGRAPHICAL CONTROL OF MINERAL INDUSTRIES The influence of the economic factors on the location of the industry is [...] In such cases the industries may be located near the markets mainly because the local demand provides the necessary incentive to manufacture at the places where there is a ready market The raw materials and cost of manufacture bear little or no relation to the value of the final product and almost the sole criterion is the availability of a market whose whims and fancies may change from year to