Read the following passage and answer the question :
The iron and steel industry forms the base of all other industries and, therefore, it is called a basic industry. It is basic because it provides raw material for other industries such as machine tools used for further production. It may also be called a heavy industry because it uses large quantities of bulky raw materials and its products are also heavy. Iron is extracted from iron ore by smelting in a blast furnace with carbon (coke) and limestone. The molten iron is cooled and moulded to form pig iron which is used for converting into steel by adding strengthening materials like manganese. The large integrated steel industry is traditionally located close to the sources of raw materials – iron ore, coal, manganese and limestone – or at places where these could be easily brought, e.g. near ports. But in mini steel mills access to markets is more important than inputs. These are less expensive to build and operate and can be located near markets because of the abundance of scrap metal, which is the main input. Traditionally, most of the steel was produced at large integrated plants, but mini mills are limited to just one-step process – steel making – and are gaining ground. Distribution: The industry is one of the most complex and capital-intensive industries and is concentrated in the advanced countries of North America, Europe and Asia. In USA, most of the production comes from the north Appalachian region (Pittsburgh), Great Lake region (Chicago-Gary, Erie, Cleveland, Lorain, Buffalo and Duluth) and the Atlantic Coast (Sparrows Point and Morisville). The industry has also moved towards the southern state of Alabama. Pittsburg area is now losing ground. It has now become the “rust bowl” of U.S.A. In Europe, U.K., Germany, France, Belgium, Luxembourg, the Netherlands and Russia are the leading producers. The important steel centres are Scun Thorpe, Port Talbot, Birmingham and Sheffield in the U.K.; Duisburg, Dortmund, Dusseldorf and Essen in Germany; Le Creusot and St. Ettienne in France; and Moscow, St. Petersburgh, Lipetsk, Tula, in Russia and Krivoi Rog, and Donetsk in Ukraine. In Asia, the important centres include Nagasaki and Tokyo-Yokohama in Japan; Shanghai, Tienstin and Wuhan in China; and Jamshedpur, Kulti-Burnpur, Durgapur, Rourkela, Bhilai, Bokaro, Salem, Visakhapatnam and Bhadravati in India.
Due to which of the following reasons iron and steel industry is mainly concentrated in the advanced countries of the world?
Answer & explanation
Correct answer: option 3
The correct answer is Option (3) → Complex and capital-intensive industry
The passage states: “Distribution: The industry is one of the most complex and capital-intensive industries and is concentrated in the advanced countries of North America, Europe and Asia.”
A capital-intensive industry needs a very large amount of money to set up and run.
Option (1) Availability of raw materials — Incorrect. Nearness to iron ore, coal, manganese and limestone decides where a large integrated steel plant is located. It does not explain the concentration in advanced countries.
Option (2) Access to markets — Incorrect. Access to markets decides where mini steel mills are located. It is a factor of location, not the reason for the concentration in advanced countries.
Option (3) Complex and capital-intensive industry — Correct. Because the industry is complex and capital-intensive, it is concentrated in the advanced countries of North America, Europe and Asia.
Option (4) People prefer to operate iron and steel industry in developed world as it is very easy to install — Incorrect. The industry is one of the most complex industries, so it is not easy to install.
Note: This passage is taken from the section ‘Iron and Steel Industry’ in the chapter ‘Secondary Activities’ of the pre-rationalised NCERT book (Fundamentals of Human Geography), almost word for word. The latest edition (2026-27) does not have this part.