Transport System And Economic Development In Assam in Assamese (Pinhole An Old And Rare Book)

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Dr. Medhi's book is of wider interest than the limited geographical area (Assam) and the particular country involved Improving transport may trigger various backward and forward development linkages as Dr, Medhi brings out clearly through a fine combination of historical and relevant economic analysis. Development. however, requires not only a resource potential-as clearly existed in Assam-but also must be accompanied by initiative, enterprise and modernised attitudes towards such matters as marketing, technical efficiency. organizational arrangements and productive discipline. In other words, transport improvement is a necessary but not sufficient condition for effective economic and social improvement. This may be self-evident. but evidence exists of large- scale investments being undertaken more in hope than planned integrated development. As I read Dr Medhi's valuable book. the important message he wants readers to grasp is that improving transport must be looked at more rationally as a deliberate tool for the achievement of broader economic, social, national integration and defense strategy goals. In particular, those of us responsible for planning transport improvement must, more consciously, identify those whom we consider are the beneficiaries that the improvements are Intended to help.

Dr Madhi's extremely valuable contribution is in the tradition of diligent collection and interpretation of historical data to assess causes and effects. It is also modern-in the 'cliometric' sense of attempting to measure the relative costs and benefits of alternative transport solutions to the opening up and subsequent ex- ploitation of a region. More 'post-evaluation case studies of the quality of Dr. Medhi's contribution are needed to give modern transport planners a deeper in- sight of both the internal (i.e. to the enterprise) and external (ie. to the soci- ety generally) effects and issues in transport development.

Dr. Medhi's book is a notable contribution to understanding of both the problems of an isolated region in obtaining adequate transport facilities. and the problems of the transport operators in providing them. Its lessons are relevant to many other areas beside Assam. The transport history of Assam is one of slow and tortuous development in which the pioneers showed foresight in seeking the best rather than the quickest solutions. Dr. Medhi shows clearly the interplay of rail and river transport over the railway's first fifty years, without which an understanding of present problems would be difficult. The availability of transport has shaped the economic develop- ment of Assam, just as the geography of Assam has shaped its transport. Its resources are locked-in by distance from markets in general and by local geographical barriers in particular cases.

Just as, after fifty years of development, the transport system after Word War Two should have been the catalyst in Assam's growth, Partition breached its trunk routes, both rail and river. And then by the time the rail routes had been recreated, defence considerations on the Northern frontier were absorbing a large proportion of the capacity of Assam's transport links with the rest of India and the world.

Dr. Medhi provides a very fair analysis of the problems of Indian Railways in meeting Assam's present transport needs, pointing out areas where improvement is needed if the railways are to fulfil their natural role of long-distance transporters. On the face of it Assam's long-distance from its markets should mean that the railway is the natural carrier. The erosion of traffic to motor-trucks in recent years casts doubt on the railway's effectiveness in an area in which it should be pre-eminent.

By drawing this to the attention of a wide audience, publication in book form of Dr. Medhi's Doctoral Thesis should be of great service to the future development of the State of Assam.

**Contents and Sample Pages**