All the products, which are obtained from nature directly, are called primary products. Forestry, farming, mining, animal rearing and fishing are concerned with production of raw materials for food and industrial uses. Hence, they are called primary activities. Primary products after being processed and transformed into utilities are called secondary products. The activities related to the transformation of primary products into secondary products are called secondary activities. These two groups of activities are linked by the tertiary activities. They include transport, trading of commodities and provision of personal services such as education, health and construction. The term industry refers to secondary activities, and especially to manufacturing process. It is a different kind of economic activity.
Growth of Modern Industry
The processing and manufacturing of secondary products were earlier done with the help of simple tools. It used manual and muscle or animal power. Such activities were generally confined to individual’s home. Gradually simple tools were replaced by more and more sophisticated powerful machines. They run with the help of energy derived from water, coal or mineral oil. These machines required big space and large workplace. Thus, mills or factories were established. Goods could be produced faster and there is uniformity in quality. The use of machine called for specialization and division of labour. The entire process was divided into a number of small steps following a definite sequence. Each worker was responsible for only a small part of the job which he could do more quickly and efficiently. Industries are classified in different ways- on the basis of:
• The raw materials
• Size of the industrial unit
• Ownership
Industries on the basis of raw materials
Industries are grouped under two broad categories on the basis of the raw materials they use.
• Industries obtaining raw materials from agriculture are called agro-based industries, for example, Food-processing, sugar and cotton industries.
• The other groups of industries, using minerals as their raw materials, are called mineral-based industries such as iron and steel, aluminium, cement and copper industry.
Industries on the basis of size of the industrial unit
Industries may also be classified on the basis of the size of industrial units both in terms of the member of employees and the amount invested in setting up the plant and the running cost. Accordingly there are large, medium and small-scale industries.
• Iron and steel, cotton textiles and oil refining are examples of large scale industries.
• Most of the industrial units in India come under the category of medium and small-scale industries. If the industrial unit is small, having very few people employed and the amount of money invested is also not very high, it is called a small-scale industry.
• A wide variety of goods such as carving on woods, making of cane furniture and other items, weaving of cloth or handlooms, making pickles etc. are produced in very small units mostly in homes with the help of family members only. These industries are known as cottage industries.
Industries on the basis of Ownership
Depending upon the nature of ownership, the industries may be classified as private, co-operative, public and joint-sector industries.
• An industry owned and managed by an individual or a group of individuals is called a private sector industry.
• If the ownership of an industry belongs to co-operatives, it is called a cooperative Sector (formed by a group of people) industry.
• If the Government- Central or the State- is the owner of an industry, it is called a public sector industry.
• Industries set up, owned and managed in co-operation between the government and the private initiatives are called joint sector industries. In recent years, a number of industries have been set up in collaboration with foreign investors. They are called multinational companies (MNCs).
Major Industries
• Textiles Industry – Cotton, jute, silk, wool and synthetic are different varieties of natural fibres providing raw material for the textile industry. The first modern cotton textile industry was set up in India in Mumbai in 1854. It shares about 1/3rd of the total export earnings.Rayon, nylon and terrene are examples of synthetic fibres. There are over 1, 500 cotton man-made fibre mills. Most of them are in private sector. The cotton and the man- made fiber industry are concentrated mainly in Gujarat, Maharashtra and Tamil Nadu. A substantial production is also obtained from the handloom sector.
• The Jute Industry – This is traditionally export-oriented. This industry is located mostly in West Bengal on both sides of the river Hugli.
• The Wool and Silk Industries – These industries have comparatively small percentage of share in the total output of fabrics. The wool textile mills are located in Amritsar, Dhariwal Srinagar, Mumbai, Jamnagar, Kanpur and Bangalore. The silk industry is located in Mysore, Kanchipuram, Murshidabad, Varanasi and Srinagar.
• Sugar Industry – The sugarcane is the raw material for this industry. Maharashtra is an important producer of sugarcane. Here the cultivation of sugarcane and the sugar industry are under co-operative sector. India is one of the major sugar producers of the world.
• Iron and Steel Industry – The modern iron and steel industry was set up in Kulti, West Bengal in 1870. However the first large scale plant got underway with the establishment of Tata Iron and Steel Company (TISCO) in 1907 at Jamshedpur. Iron and steel industries are also established at Burnpur, Bhadravati, Vijainagar, Durgapur, Bhilai, Bokaro Rourkela, and Vishakhapatnam. Besides, there is an alloy steel plant at Durgapur and stainless steel plant at Salem. Except for TISCO, all other steel plants are owned and managed by the government.
• Engineering Industries – The HMT produces a large variety of big and small machines. Its plants are located in Bangalore, Pinjore, Hyderabad, Kalamassery (Kerala) and Srinagar (Jammu and Kashmir).
• Oil refining – India imports crude oil from a number of West Asian countries. In order to refine crude oil, several oil refineries have been set up in different parts of the country. The oldest refinery is Digboi in Assam. Others are at Noonmati, Haldia, Bongaigaon, Barauni, Mathura, Vishakhapatnam, Chennai, Cochin, Mumbai and Koyali (Vadodara).
• Chemical industry – India produces a wide variety of chemicals such as sulphuric acid, soda ash, caustic soda, phenol and dyes. It contributes about 12% of the total export from India.
Distributions of cotton textiles, sugar, iron and steel industry points towards the concentration of these industries near the source of their raw materials. On the other hand, engineering industry, oil refining and food- processing are either near the raw materials or the market. There are other factors also which influence the location of Industries. There are good transport facilities, skilled labour and other commercial services.