Question

Describe the factors, why Mumbai is called the Manchester of India.

Answer 1

Hint: Mumbai, the capital city of Maharashtra was the leading cotton textile producing centre in India during British rule. Ahmedabad at present is considered to be the Manchester of India.

Complete Answer: Mumbai is formerly known as Bombay used to be known as the Manchester of India. This was due to the set up of cotton textile mills by the British people during the British colonial period.
The locational factors of the cotton textile industry in Mumbai are
-Availability of raw materials, that is, raw cotton as cotton grows best in black soil.
-Hot and moist climate also contributed to the development of cotton textile mills in this region.
-Nearness to the port of Mumbai played an important factor in exporting goods to other countries.
-Mumbai city is huge and provides a huge market with cheap labour. Thus, the availability of manpower increased the production rate of the industry.
-Availability of hydel power from TATA hydroelectric project also played an important role in the smooth function of the textile industries.

Girangaon was once integral to Mumbai’s economy. It once had 130 textile mills of which majority was cotton textile mills but with the development of newer industries mills located inGirangaon ceased to be profitable and fell into a state of despair.

Note: The tag “Manchester of India” is related to the textile industry and is given to a city with a rich industrial heritage. Initially, Mumbai was given the tag of Manchester of India but with the disintegration of the textile industries during the 1980s Mumbai lost its position in the textile industry.