Assertion:  Areas around towns, raw material producing areas and of plantations and other commercial crops, hill stations and cantonment towns were well-connected by railways from the British colonial era.
Reasoning:  These were mostly developed for the exploitation of resources.

Both Assertion (A) and reasoning (R) are correct, and R is the correct explanation of A.

Areas around towns, raw material producing areas and of plantations and other commercial crops, hill stations and cantonment towns were well-connected by railways from the British colonial era. These were mostly developed for the exploitation of resources. After the Independence of the country, railway routes have been extended to other areas too. The most significant development has been the development of the Konkan Railway along the western coast providing a direct link between Mumbai and Mangaluru