CBSE Notes Class 7th Geography Social Science Chapter – 7 Human Environment – Settlement, Transport and Communication

Overview

Settlements are places where people build their homes. Early human beings lived on trees and in caves. Settlements can be permanent or temporary.

Settlement can be further classified into two categories: the rural and urban settlements.

In rural areas, people build houses to suit their environment. In regions of heavy rainfall, they have slanting roofs. Places where water accumulates in the rainy season the houses are constructed on a raised platform or stilts. Thick mud-walled houses with thatched roofs are very common in areas of hot climate.

Transport Services

Transport is the means by which people and goods move. In the early days, people used to walk and animals are used to carry their goods. Invention of the wheel made transport easier.

The early traders from other countries used to take several months to reach India. They took either the sea route or the land route. Modern means of transport thus saves time and energy. The four major means of transport are roadways, railways, waterways and airways.

Roadways

The most commonly used means of transport, especially for short distances, are roads. They can be metalled and unmetalled. Roads have also been built in terrains like deserts, forests and even high mountains. Manali-Leh highway in the Himlayan Mountains is one of the highest roadways in the world. Roads built underground are called subways/under paths. Flyovers are built over raised structures.

Railways

The invention of the steam engine and the Industrial Revolution helped in speedy development of rail transport. Diesel and electric engines have largely replaced the steam engines. The railway network is well developed over the plain areas. Advanced technological skills have enabled laying of railway lines in difficult mountain terrains also. The Indian railway network is well developed. It is the largest in Asia.

Waterways

Waterways are the cheapest for carrying heavy and bulky goods over long distances. They are mainly of two types – inland waterways and sea routes. Navigable rivers and lakes are used as inland waterways. Some of the important inland waterways are the Ganga-Brahmaputra river system, the Great Lakes in North America and the river Nile in Africa.

Sea routes and oceanic routes are mostly used for transporting merchandise and goods from one country to another. These routes are connected with the ports. Some of the important ports of the world are Singapore and Mumbai in Asia, New York, Los Angeles in North America, Rio de Janerio in South America, Durban and Cape Town in Africa, Sydney in Australia, London and Rotterdam in Europe.

Airways

Airways is the fastest way of transport developed in the early twentieth century. It is also the most expensive due to the high cost of fuels. Air traffic is adversely affected by bad weather like fog and storms. It is the only mode of transport to reach the most remote and distant areas, especially where there are no roads and railways. Helicopters are extremely useful in most inaccessible areas and in times of calamities for rescuing people and distributing food, water, clothes and medicines.

Communication

Communication means conveying messages to others. With the development of technology, humans have devised new and fast modes of communication. Different modes of communication are used to provide information, to educate as well as to entertain. Through newspapers, radio and television we can communicate with a large number of people. They are therefore called mass media.

The satellites have made communication even faster. Satellites have helped in oil exploration, survey of forest, underground water, mineral wealth, weather forecast and disaster warning. Wireless telephonic communications through cellular phones have become very popular today. Internet not only provides us with worldwide information and interaction but has also makes our lives more comfortable. With this kind of interconnectivity of people, services and institutions – across the world, we are a large global society.