Introduction:

Industry refers to an economic activity that is concerned with production of goods, extraction of minerals or the provision of services.

Body:

Many important geographical factors involved in the location of individual industries are of relative significance. But besides such purely geographical factors influencing industrial location, there are factors of historical, human, political and economic nature which are now tending to surpass the force of geographical advantages. Consequently, the factors influencing the location of industry can be divided into two broad categories – Geographical and Non- Geographical factors.

Non- Geographical factors:

• Capital: Modem industries are capital-intensive and require huge investments. Capitalists are available in urban centers. Big cities like Mumbai, Kolkata, Delhi, and Chennai are big industrial centers, because the big capitalists live in these cities.
• Government Policies: Government activity in planning the future distribution of industries, for reducing regional disparities, elimination of pollution of air and water and for avoiding their heavy clustering in big cities, has become no less an important locational factor.
• Industrial Inertia: Industries tend to develop at the place of their original establishment, though the original cause may have disappeared. This phenomenon is referred to as inertia, sometimes as geographical inertia and sometimes industrial inertia. The lock industry at Aligarh is such an example.
• Efficient Organization: Efficient and enterprising organization and management is essential for running modem industry successfully. Bad management sometimes squanders away the capital and puts the industry in financial trouble leading to industrial ruin.
• Banking Facilities: Establishment of industries involves daily exchange of crores of rupees which is possible through banking facilities only. So the areas with better banking facilities are better suited to the establishment of industries.
• Insurance: There is a constant fear of damage to machine and man in industries for which insurance facilities are badly needed.
• Political and economic situation: Political harmony and peace in a particular region encourage the establishment of industrial units. On the other hand, disturbed political and economic set up discourages the growth of industries in the region. On account of Naxalites movement in West Bengal, Industries started moving out of West Bengal. Similarly, is the case in certain other states where, on account of political disturbances, manufacturers have started thinking to settle elsewhere and further industrial expansion has been greatly affected.
• Availability of research facilities: The main aim of any industrial undertaking is to have maximum production with minimum cost. Constant research and experimentation is undertaken to develop products and improved methods of production.
• Possibilities of future expansion: The area for location should be such as to provide all possible opportunities for future development and expansion of the industrial unit without involving extra cost. Every industrial undertaking is established with the aim to expand in future.

Conclusion:

Thus, the location of industries is dependent on a combination of geographical and non-geographical factors.