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Roads and railways

मराठीत स्पष्टीकरण

Industry and transport in India · Part 3 / 4 · Fact-checked on 8 November 2026 · how we check

Written with AI from the sources listed at the bottom of this page, then fact-checked by a separate AI.

How roads are classified and divided between the Union and the states, the National Highways Act (1956) and NHAI, the Golden Quadrilateral, Bharatmala, expressways, the BRO and PMGSY; then railways from the first train of 1853, zones, gauges and Project Unigauge, the Konkan Railway, the dedicated freight corridors, Vande Bharat, high-speed rail and the mountain railways on the World Heritage List.

Each idea is explained first in Marathi (मराठी), ending with the English and Hindi exam terms, followed by the same point in exam English. UPSC Prelims is in English or Hindi, so understand it in Marathi and revise it in English.

आपण गावातून शहरात एसटीने जातो, पण कोळसा, सिमेंट, तांदळाची पोती दूर पाठवायची तर रेल्वेच स्वस्त. रस्ते जवळजवळ प्रत्येक खेड्यापर्यंत पोहोचतात आणि कमी अंतरासाठी माणसे व माल वाहतात; रेल्वे जड माल खूप दूर स्वस्तात नेते. दोघांचे नियोजन वेगवेगळ्या संस्था करत असल्या तरी त्यांनी एकत्र काम करायचे असते. या भागात रस्त्यांचे प्रकार, मोठ्या महामार्ग योजना, मग रेल्वेचा इतिहास, गेज आणि नवे प्रकल्प. (→ English: road transport; rail transport · हिन्दी: सड़क परिवहन; रेल परिवहन)

In exam EnglishParts 1 and 2 showed that factories depend on moving raw materials in and finished goods out. This part covers the two land modes that do most of that work in India: roads and railways. Roads reach almost every village and carry most passengers and a large share of freight over short and medium distances; railways move bulk goods such as coal, ore, cement and grain cheaply over long distances and carry crowds of passengers between cities. The two are planned by different authorities and serve different needs, but they are meant to work together. The part first explains how roads are classified and who builds them, then the big highway programmes, then the railway's history, gauges and newer projects such as freight corridors and high-speed rail.

शरीरात मोठ्या धमन्या, लहान शिरा आणि बारीक केशवाहिन्या असतात तसे रस्त्यांचेही स्तर आहेत. सर्वांत मोठा राष्ट्रीय महामार्ग: संघ सूची नोंद 23, 1956 च्या कायद्यानुसार केंद्र घोषित करते, 1988 च्या कायद्याने स्थापन NHAI बहुतेक भाग बांधते व चालवते. बाकी रस्ते राज्य सूची नोंद 13: राज्य महामार्ग राजधानीला जिल्ह्याच्या शहरांशी जोडतात, मग जिल्हा रस्ते, शेवटी आपल्या गावाला बाजाराशी जोडणारा ग्रामीण रस्ता. राष्ट्रीय महामार्ग लांबीने थोडे, पण वाहतूक जास्त. (→ English: national highway; Union List; State List · हिन्दी: राष्ट्रीय राजमार्ग; संघ सूची; राज्य सूची)

In exam EnglishFew countries have as many kilometres of road as India; by the count of the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways, only one country has more. The Constitution splits responsibility for it. Highways declared as national highways by or under a law of Parliament are entry 23 of the Union List, while other roads are entry 13 of the State List. Under the National Highways Act, 1956, the Union declares and develops national highways, and the National Highways Authority of India, set up under an Act of 1988, builds and runs much of that network, often through private partners on toll. State highways join state capitals with district towns and are built by state public works departments. Below them come major and other district roads, and finally village roads linking each settlement to the nearest market or bigger road. Measured by length, national highways are a minor slice of the network, yet a disproportionately large part of all road traffic moves on them.

Classes of roads in India
Class	What it links	Who is responsible
National highways	State capitals, ports, major cities, borders	Union (MoRTH, NHAI); Union List entry 23
State highways	State capital with district towns	State public works departments
District roads	District towns with taluka towns and markets	State and district bodies
Village roads	Villages with markets and bigger roads	Panchayats and states; PMGSY for new links
Border roads	Frontier and high-mountain areas	Border Roads Organisation

अंगणात चौकोनी रांगोळी काढून तिच्या मधोमध अधिकचे चिन्ह काढले आहे अशी कल्पना करा. चौकोन म्हणजे सुवर्ण चतुष्कोण: दिल्ली, मुंबई, चेन्नई, कोलकाता यांना जोडणारा सुमारे 5,846 किमी चौपदरी व सहापदरी महामार्ग. अधिकचे चिन्ह म्हणजे दोन कॉरिडॉर: उत्तर–दक्षिण (श्रीनगर–कन्याकुमारी) आणि पूर्व–पश्चिम (सिलचर–पोरबंदर); ते झाशी येथे मिळतात. 1990 च्या दशकाअखेर राष्ट्रीय महामार्ग विकास प्रकल्पात हे आले, ट्रकना औद्योगिक प्रदेश आणि बंदरे यांच्यात वेगवान मार्ग. (→ English: Golden Quadrilateral; North–South and East–West corridors · हिन्दी: स्वर्णिम चतुर्भुज; उत्तर–दक्षिण और पूर्व–पश्चिम गलियारे)

In exam EnglishThe first big push to modernise national highways came with the National Highways Development Project at the end of the 1990s. Its best-known part is the Golden Quadrilateral, about 5,846 km of four- and six-lane highway joining the four metros, Delhi, Mumbai, Chennai and Kolkata, in a rough square. The second part drew a plus sign across that square. Its vertical bar, the North–South corridor, runs from Srinagar down to Kanyakumari, and its horizontal bar, the East–West corridor, from Porbandar in Gujarat across to Silchar in Assam, meeting at Jhansi in Uttar Pradesh. Together these gave trucks fast, wide routes between the main industrial regions and ports. A useful way to fix the pattern in mind is that the quadrilateral rings the metros while the two corridors run through the middle of the country, crossing each other near its centre.

घराच्या खोल्या स्वतंत्रपणे नव्हे तर संपूर्ण घराचा आराखडा करून बांधाव्यात तशी भारतमाला परियोजना (ऑक्टोबर 2017, पहिला टप्पा सुमारे 34,800 किमी) रस्त्यांचे एक जाळे म्हणून नियोजन करते: आर्थिक कॉरिडॉर, जोडमार्ग, सीमा व शेजारी देशांकडील रस्ते, किनारी व बंदर रस्ते, द्रुतगती मार्ग. द्रुतगती मार्गावर कडेच्या घरातून थेट चढता येत नाही, ठरावीक ठिकाणीच चढ-उतार. मुंबई–पुणे द्रुतगती मार्ग (2002) सुरुवातीचे उदाहरण, दिल्ली–मुंबई द्रुतगती मार्ग बांधला जात आहे. उद्देश: मालवाहतूक खर्च कमी करून कॉरिडॉर आणि बंदरांना सेवा. (→ English: Bharatmala Pariyojana; expressway · हिन्दी: भारतमाला परियोजना; एक्सप्रेसवे)

In exam EnglishThe next stage is Bharatmala Pariyojana, approved by the Union Cabinet in October 2017, with a first phase of about 34,800 km. Instead of only widening single roads, it plans the network as a system: economic corridors between centres of production and consumption, inter-corridor and feeder routes, roads to the borders and to neighbouring countries, coastal and port-connectivity roads, and access-controlled expressways. An expressway allows no direct entry from roadside property and has entry and exit only at fixed points, so traffic flows fast and safely; the Mumbai–Pune Expressway, opened in 2002, was an early example, and longer ones such as the Delhi–Mumbai Expressway are now being built. The thinking behind Bharatmala links back to Part 2: well-planned highways are meant to cut freight costs and serve the industrial corridors and ports rather than run in isolation.

पावसाळ्यात आपल्या गावचा कच्चा रस्ता चिखलाचा झाला की तालुक्याला जाणेच कठीण, नाही का. प्रधानमंत्री ग्राम सडक योजना (25 डिसेंबर 2000) अशा गावांना बारमाही रस्ता देते: मैदानी भागात 500 पेक्षा जास्त, डोंगरी, वाळवंटी व आदिवासी भागात 250 पेक्षा जास्त लोकसंख्येच्या गावांना. शेतकऱ्याला बाजार, मुलांना शाळा, रुग्णाला दवाखाना. दुसरीकडे सीमा रस्ते संघटना (7 मे 1960) उंच डोंगरांत रस्ते, पूल, बोगदे बांधते; रोहतांगखालचा अटल बोगदा (ऑक्टोबर 2020) हिवाळ्यातही मनाली–लाहौल मार्ग खुला ठेवतो. (→ English: Border Roads Organisation; Pradhan Mantri Gram Sadak Yojana · हिन्दी: सीमा सड़क संगठन; प्रधानमंत्री ग्राम सड़क योजना)

In exam EnglishTwo other programmes take roads where markets alone would not. The Border Roads Organisation, formed on 7 May 1960, builds and keeps open roads, bridges and tunnels in the high mountains and remote frontier areas, mainly for defence but also for the people living there. One of its best-known works is the Atal Tunnel under the Rohtang Pass, opened in October 2020, which keeps the route from Manali to the Lahaul valley usable in winter. At the other end of the scale, the Pradhan Mantri Gram Sadak Yojana, launched on 25 December 2000, aims to link every unconnected habitation above a set size with a road usable in all seasons. The size bar is 500 people on the plains, halved to 250 in hilly, desert and tribal areas, where settlements are smaller and more scattered. A village road may look small, but it lets farmers reach markets, children reach schools and patients reach hospitals in every season, which is why rural connectivity is treated as a basic development need.

मोठ्या एकत्र कुटुंबाचा कारभार घरातला कर्ता पाहतो आणि प्रत्येक मुलाकडे एकेक शेत सोपवतो, तशी रेल्वे विभागांत (प्रत्येकावर महाव्यवस्थापक) आणि विभाग मंडलांत वाटलेली आहे. पहिली प्रवासी गाडी 16 एप्रिल 1853 रोजी मुंबईच्या बोरीबंदरहून ठाण्याला, सुमारे 34 किमी. ब्रिटिश काळात मार्ग बंदरांपासून कापूस, ताग, धान्याच्या जिल्ह्यांपर्यंत टाकले, कच्चा माल किनाऱ्यावर नेण्यासाठी. आज कोळसा, लोहखनिज, सिमेंट, धान्य, खते आणि लाखो प्रवासी. शहरी रेल्वे वेगळी: कोलकाता मेट्रो (24 ऑक्टोबर 1984) देशातील पहिली. (→ English: Indian Railways; railway zones; Kolkata Metro · हिन्दी: भारतीय रेल; रेलवे ज़ोन; कोलकाता मेट्रो)

In exam EnglishRailways came to India under British rule. The first passenger train ran on 16 April 1853 from Bori Bunder in Bombay to Thane, a trip of about 34 km. Private companies, backed by guaranteed returns, then laid lines from the ports into the cotton, jute and grain districts, so the early network was shaped to carry raw materials to the coast and British goods inland. After independence the lines were brought under Indian Railways, run by the Ministry of Railways. The system is organised into zones, each under a General Manager, and every zone into divisions. It carries bulk freight such as coal, iron ore, cement, foodgrains and fertilisers, along with millions of passengers each day. City rail is a separate layer: the Kolkata Metro, opened on 24 October 1984, was India's first metro, and many cities have since built their own.

एका गावच्या बैलगाडीच्या चाकांतले अंतर एक आणि पुढच्या गावच्या रस्त्यातल्या चाकोरीचे अंतर दुसरे असेल तर गाडी तिथेच थांबणार; रेल्वे गेज म्हणजे दोन रुळांच्या आतील कडांमधील अंतर. ब्रॉड गेज 1,676 मिमी, मीटर गेज 1,000 मिमी, नॅरो गेज 762 व 610 मिमी. गेज बदलतो तिथे प्रवाशांना गाडी बदलावी लागे, माल हाताने उतरवून चढवावा लागे. म्हणून 1992 मध्ये प्रोजेक्ट युनिगेज: सगळे मार्ग ब्रॉड गेज करणे. काही जुन्या डोंगरी गाड्या इतिहास आणि पर्यटन मूल्यासाठी नॅरो गेजवरच. (→ English: railway gauge; broad gauge; Project Unigauge · हिन्दी: रेल गेज; बड़ी लाइन; प्रोजेक्ट यूनिगेज)

In exam EnglishA railway's gauge is the distance between the inner faces of its two rails, and India built lines in several gauges. Broad gauge, 1,676 mm, became the main gauge; metre gauge, 1,000 mm, was used for cheaper lines in many regions; and narrow gauges of 762 mm and 610 mm served hill and feeder lines. Mixed gauges caused a real problem: where a broad-gauge line met a metre-gauge one, every passenger had to change trains and every load had to be shifted by hand, adding time, cost and damage. To end this, Indian Railways began Project Unigauge in 1992, converting metre- and narrow-gauge lines to broad gauge so that trains could run through without a break. Most of the network is now broad gauge; some heritage hill lines are kept on narrow gauge because of their historic and tourist value.

Railway gauges in India
Gauge	Width between rails	Use today
Broad gauge	1,676 mm	Main network; target of Project Unigauge
Metre gauge	1,000 mm	Few remaining lines, most converted
Narrow gauge	762 mm	Hill and heritage lines, e.g. Kalka–Shimla
Narrow gauge	610 mm	Hill and heritage lines, e.g. Darjeeling

डोंगरावरच्या गावाला थेट वाट नसली की वळसा घालून जावे लागते; पश्चिम किनारा तसाच होता: पश्चिम घाट आणि समुद्र यांच्यामधली अरुंद पट्टी, अनेक नद्या, उभे डोंगर. 1990 मध्ये केंद्र, महाराष्ट्र, गोवा, कर्नाटक, केरळ यांनी मिळून कोकण रेल्वे महामंडळ स्थापले. रोह्यापासून मंगळुरूजवळच्या ठोकूरपर्यंत, गोव्यामार्गे, सुमारे 740 किमीचा मार्ग 1998 मध्ये पूर्ण झाला, अनेक पूल आणि बोगद्यांसह. मुंबई–दक्षिण-पश्चिम किनारा प्रवासाचा वेळ खूप घटला; पण पावसाळ्यात दरडी अजूनही अडथळा. (→ English: Konkan Railway · हिन्दी: कोंकण रेलवे)

In exam EnglishThe Konkan Railway shows how relief shapes railway building. Between the Western Ghats and the Arabian Sea lies a thin coastal belt, crossed by river after river and walled in by steep hills, so for more than a century there was no direct line down the west coast. The Konkan Railway Corporation, set up in 1990 with the Union and the states of Maharashtra, Goa, Karnataka and Kerala as partners, built a line of about 740 km from Roha in Maharashtra to Thokur near Mangaluru in Karnataka, passing through Goa. It was completed in 1998 and needed a great many bridges and tunnels through laterite hills and across river mouths. The line cut travel time between Mumbai and the south-west coast sharply and opened the Konkan, Goa and coastal Karnataka to faster trade. It also shows the cost of building in rugged, high-rainfall country, where landslides and heavy monsoon rain still disrupt services.

गावच्या अरुंद रस्त्यावर बैलगाडी आणि एसटी एकाच वाटेने जात असतील तर एसटीसाठी बैलगाडीला बाजूला थांबावेच लागते. म्हणून मालगाड्यांसाठी वेगळा मार्ग: समर्पित मालवाहतूक मार्गिका. 2006 मध्ये यासाठी महामंडळ स्थापन झाले. पूर्व मार्गिका: लुधियानाजवळच्या साहनेवालपासून बिहारच्या सोननगरपर्यंत सुमारे 1,337 किमी, कोळसा, पोलाद, सिमेंट, धान्य. पश्चिम मार्गिका: दादरीपासून जवाहरलाल नेहरू बंदरापर्यंत सुमारे 1,506 किमी, कंटेनर. जुन्या मार्गांवर प्रवासी गाड्यांना जागा वाढते. (→ English: dedicated freight corridor · हिन्दी: समर्पित माल गलियारा)

In exam EnglishOn busy trunk routes, passenger and goods trains share the same tracks, so slow freight trains are often held up to let express trains pass. A dedicated freight corridor solves this by building a separate line only for goods trains, which can then run longer, heavier and faster. The Dedicated Freight Corridor Corporation of India was set up in 2006 to build two such lines. The Eastern corridor runs about 1,337 km from Sahnewal near Ludhiana in Punjab to Sonnagar in Bihar, through the Ganga plain, and mainly carries coal for power stations, steel, cement and foodgrains. The Western corridor runs about 1,506 km from Dadri near Delhi to the Jawaharlal Nehru Port near Mumbai, and mainly carries containers between the northern hinterland and the western ports. Freeing the old lines of much goods traffic also leaves more room for passenger trains, and, as Part 2 showed, the corridors form the spine of the new industrial corridors.

जुन्या बैलगाडीतून रिक्षात आणि मग कारमध्ये आलो तशाच रेल्वे गाड्या बदलत आहेत. वंदे भारत: चेन्नईच्या इंटिग्रल कोच फॅक्टरीत बनून फेब्रुवारी 2019 मध्ये नवी दिल्ली–वाराणसी सेवा सुरू; वेगळे इंजिन नसून संपूर्ण गाडीत मोटरी. मुंबई–अहमदाबाद अतिवेगवान रेल्वे, सुमारे 508 किमी, जपानी शिंकानसेन तंत्रज्ञान, जपानी कर्ज, सप्टेंबर 2017 मध्ये पायाभरणी. विद्युतीकरणामुळे आयात डिझेल कमी. दुसरीकडे युनेस्को वारसा यादीत डोंगरी रेल्वे: दार्जिलिंग (1999), नीलगिरी (2005), कालका–शिमला (2008). (→ English: Vande Bharat; Mumbai–Ahmedabad high-speed rail; Mountain Railways of India · हिन्दी: वंदे भारत; मुंबई–अहमदाबाद उच्च गति रेल; भारत की पर्वतीय रेलवे)

In exam EnglishPassenger rail is also being upgraded. Vande Bharat trains, designed and built at the Integral Coach Factory in Chennai, began service in February 2019 between New Delhi and Varanasi; they are semi-high-speed trains with their own motors spread along the train instead of a separate locomotive. True high-speed rail is coming through the Mumbai–Ahmedabad line of about 508 km, built with Japanese Shinkansen technology and a Japanese loan; its foundation stone was laid in September 2017. Electrification of broad-gauge lines has been pushed hard, cutting the use of imported diesel. At the other end of history, three hill lines are inscribed together as the Mountain Railways of India on UNESCO's World Heritage List: the Darjeeling Himalayan Railway (1999), with the Nilgiri Mountain Railway (2005) and the Kalka–Shimla Railway (2008) added later.

घरापासून बसस्थानकापर्यंत रिक्षा आणि तिथून दूरच्या शहरापर्यंत रेल्वे, तसे रस्ते आणि रेल्वे वेगवेगळी कामे करतात. राष्ट्रीय महामार्ग केंद्राचा विषय, बाकी रस्ते राज्यांचे; रेल्वे पूर्णपणे केंद्राची. रस्ता दारापर्यंत, म्हणून कमी अंतरासाठी ट्रक आणि खेड्यांसाठी PMGSY. लांब अंतरासाठी रेल्वे प्रति टन स्वस्त व स्वच्छ, म्हणून कोळसा, खनिज, कंटेनर मालवाहू मार्गिकांवर. हे सर्व मोठे प्रकल्प औद्योगिक कॉरिडॉर आणि बंदरांसोबत नियोजित होत आहेत; चौथ्या भागात बंदरे, जलमार्ग, हवाई मार्ग, पाइपलाइन. (→ English: national highway; road and rail transport · हिन्दी: राष्ट्रीय राजमार्ग; सड़क और रेल परिवहन)

In exam EnglishRoads and railways do different jobs and are planned by different hands. Each national highway is a Union subject and other roads are state subjects, with special agencies for border areas and villages; railways are wholly a Union responsibility. Roads give door-to-door reach and flexibility, which is why trucks dominate short and medium hauls and why programmes like PMGSY matter for villages. Railways are cheaper and cleaner per tonne over long distances, which is why coal, ore and containers are being moved onto dedicated freight lines. The big projects of both modes, from the Golden Quadrilateral and Bharatmala to the freight and high-speed corridors, are increasingly planned together with the industrial corridors and ports of Part 2. Part 4 completes the picture with ports, waterways, airways and pipelines, and with how the whole transport network shapes regional development.

Exam traps

National highways are in the UNION List (entry 23); other roads, including state highways, are in the STATE List (entry 13).
The National Highways Act is of 1956; the NHAI was created by a separate Act of 1988. Do not mix the two years.
The North–South (Srinagar–Kanyakumari) and East–West (Silchar–Porbandar) corridors cross at JHANSI, not at Nagpur or Delhi.
PMGSY (25 December 2000) targets habitations of 500+ in the plains but 250+ in hill, desert and tribal areas.
The first passenger train ran Bori Bunder (Bombay)–Thane on 16 April 1853; the first METRO was Kolkata, 1984.
Project Unigauge (1992) converts lines to BROAD gauge (1,676 mm), not to metre gauge.
The EASTERN DFC (Sahnewal–Sonnagar) mainly carries coal; the WESTERN DFC (Dadri–JNPT) mainly carries containers.
The Mountain Railways of India World Heritage site has THREE lines: Darjeeling (1999), Nilgiri (2005), Kalka–Shimla (2008); Matheran is not one of them.

Recap

Roads: national highways (Union List 23; NH Act 1956; NHAI Act 1988), state highways, district and village roads (State List 13).
Golden Quadrilateral about 5,846 km joins Delhi, Mumbai, Chennai and Kolkata; NS and EW corridors cross at Jhansi.
Bharatmala (October 2017, first phase about 34,800 km) plans corridors, feeders, border, port roads and expressways.
BRO (1960) builds frontier roads and the Atal Tunnel (2020); PMGSY (2000) links villages of 500+ (250+ in special areas).
Railways: first train 16 April 1853, Bori Bunder–Thane; zones and divisions; Kolkata Metro 1984.
Gauges: broad 1,676 mm, metre 1,000 mm, narrow 762 and 610 mm; Project Unigauge from 1992.
Konkan Railway: corporation 1990, about 740 km Roha–Thokur, completed 1998, through the Western Ghats coast.
DFCCIL (2006): Eastern DFC Sahnewal–Sonnagar (coal), Western DFC Dadri–JNPT (containers); Vande Bharat 2019; Mumbai–Ahmedabad HSR about 508 km; three mountain railways on the World Heritage List.

Practice questions

Q1. Consider the following statements:
1. Highways declared as national highways by or under a law of Parliament are a subject in the Union List.
2. The National Highways Authority of India was set up under the National Highways Act, 1956.
Which of the statements given above is/are correct?

1 only
2 only
Both 1 and 2
Neither 1 nor 2

Show answer

Answer: A. 1 only

Statement 1 is correct (Union List entry 23). Statement 2 is wrong: the 1956 Act lets the Union declare national highways, but the NHAI was created by a separate Act of 1988. So 2 only, both and neither are wrong.

Q2. The North–South and East–West highway corridors of the National Highways Development Project intersect at

Nagpur
Jhansi
Bhopal
Prayagraj

Show answer

Answer: B. Jhansi

The Srinagar–Kanyakumari and Silchar–Porbandar corridors meet at Jhansi in Uttar Pradesh. Nagpur, Bhopal and Prayagraj are not the crossing point.

Q3. Under the Pradhan Mantri Gram Sadak Yojana, the population size of unconnected habitations eligible for an all-weather road in hill, desert and tribal areas is

100 or more
250 or more
500 or more
1,000 or more

Show answer

Answer: B. 250 or more

In hill, desert and tribal areas the threshold is 250 or more. 500 or more is the threshold for the plains; 100 and 1,000 are not the scheme's thresholds.

Q4. Consider the following statements:
1. India's first passenger train ran between Bori Bunder (Bombay) and Thane in 1853.
2. Project Unigauge aims to convert broad-gauge lines to metre gauge.
Which of the statements given above is/are correct?

1 only
2 only
Both 1 and 2
Neither 1 nor 2

Show answer

Answer: A. 1 only

Statement 1 is correct (16 April 1853). Statement 2 reverses the project: Unigauge converts metre- and narrow-gauge lines to broad gauge. So 2 only, both and neither are wrong.

Q5. The Konkan Railway passes through which of the following states?
1. Maharashtra
2. Goa
3. Karnataka
4. Kerala
Select the correct answer using the code given below.

1 and 2 only
1, 2 and 3 only
2, 3 and 4 only
1, 2, 3 and 4

Show answer

Answer: B. 1, 2 and 3 only

The line runs from Roha in Maharashtra through Goa to Thokur near Mangaluru in Karnataka. Kerala is a partner in the corporation, but the Konkan line itself ends in Karnataka, so options containing 4 are wrong, and '1 and 2 only' leaves out Karnataka.

Q6. Match List I (dedicated freight corridor) with List II (end points):
List I
A. Eastern dedicated freight corridor
B. Western dedicated freight corridor
List II
1. Dadri to Jawaharlal Nehru Port
2. Sahnewal (Ludhiana) to Sonnagar
Select the correct answer using the code given below.

A-1, B-2
A-2, B-1
A-1, B-1
A-2, B-2

Show answer

Answer: B. A-2, B-1

The Eastern corridor runs Sahnewal–Sonnagar through the Ganga plain and the Western corridor runs Dadri–JNPT to the western ports. The first option swaps them, and the last two give both corridors the same end points, which cannot be right.

Q7. Which of the following are inscribed as part of the 'Mountain Railways of India' World Heritage site?
1. Darjeeling Himalayan Railway
2. Nilgiri Mountain Railway
3. Kalka–Shimla Railway
4. Matheran Light Railway
Select the correct answer using the code given below.

1 and 2 only
1, 2 and 3 only
2, 3 and 4 only
1, 2, 3 and 4

Show answer

Answer: B. 1, 2 and 3 only

The site covers Darjeeling (1999), Nilgiri (2005) and Kalka–Shimla (2008). Matheran is not part of it, so options containing 4 are wrong, and '1 and 2 only' leaves out Kalka–Shimla.

Q8. Consider the following statements about the Mumbai–Ahmedabad high-speed rail project:
1. It uses Japanese Shinkansen technology.
2. It runs along the Eastern dedicated freight corridor.
Which of the statements given above is/are correct?

1 only
2 only
Both 1 and 2
Neither 1 nor 2

Show answer

Answer: A. 1 only

Statement 1 is correct: the line of about 508 km is built with Shinkansen technology and a Japanese loan. Statement 2 is wrong: it is a separate passenger line in the west, while the Eastern DFC is a goods line from Sahnewal to Sonnagar. So 2 only, both and neither are wrong.

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Sources

Constitution of India, Seventh Schedule: List I entry 23 (national highways), List II entry 13 (roads) — https://legislative.gov.in/constitution-of-india
Ministry of Road Transport and Highways: annual reports; National Highways Act, 1956; National Highways Authority of India Act, 1988; National Highways Development Project; Bharatmala Pariyojana (Cabinet approval, October 2017) — https://morth.nic.in
Ministry of Rural Development: Pradhan Mantri Gram Sadak Yojana programme guidelines (launched 25 December 2000) — https://pmgsy.nic.in
Border Roads Organisation (Ministry of Defence): history (raised 1960) and projects including the Atal Tunnel, Rohtang (2020) — https://bro.gov.in
Ministry of Railways (Indian Railways): history of Indian Railways, gauges and Project Unigauge, Indian Railways Year Book, Vande Bharat; Kolkata Metro history — https://indianrailways.gov.in
Konkan Railway Corporation Limited: corporate profile and history of the Roha–Thokur line — https://konkanrailway.com
Dedicated Freight Corridor Corporation of India: Eastern (Sahnewal–Sonnagar) and Western (Dadri–JNPT) corridors — https://dfccil.com
National High Speed Rail Corporation Limited: Mumbai–Ahmedabad High Speed Rail project — https://nhsrcl.in
Ministry of Culture and Archaeological Survey of India: World Heritage Sites in India, Mountain Railways of India (1999, extended 2005 and 2008) — https://asi.nic.in