ECONOMIC TRENDS

COMMUNICATIONS

Communications.—Bhandara district is not provided with interconnecting arterial roads which are so very essential for its economic development. The uneven topography of the district does not favour easy road development. Extensive forested areas and general economic backwardness were the other contributing factors responsible for a low-priority to road development in the past. In the beginning of this century the Nagpur-Calcutta road which was known as the Great Eastern road, was the only important line of traffic. A few more roads were constructed by the British Administration connecting the above mentioned road with Tumsar and Amgaon.

The pace of road development, however, gathered momentum since the Second Plan. The period between 1961 and 1967 witnessed an increase of 765 kilometres of new roads in the district. This development was conspicuous because this increase meant more than double the road length existing prior to 1961. It was also the result of the vigorous road development programme undertaken by the Zilla Parishad which made determinate efforts to construct approach roads. This quantitative development, however, was not matched by qualitative progress in the form of improving the surface of roads. This is borne by the fact that only 22.73 per cent of the total road length was black-topped up-to 1967. The condition of many of the approach roads is such that they are not capable of sustaining heavy and quick flow of traffic throughout the year. Even in respect of the proportion of road length to 100 square kilometres of area, which was only 14.92 km. in 1967, the district ranks below the State average.

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