GIPE-PUNE-OIIOI2 - DSpace@GIPE

THE RAILWAY INDUSTRY AND COMM:ERCE OF INDIA 219
ation the Balkan states including Greece, Eastern Europe
.and Russia.
A comparison with Japan in regard to the rate of
progress would be illuminating. Japan too begins late,
in 1874, twenty years later than India. But her velocity
is remarkable by the Indian standard. From 1874 to
1913, i.e., in 39 years she catches up to India's conditions
of 1925, for, as we have seen, in 1913 she possesses
exactly , 1.9 km per 10,000 inhabitants (the Indian coefficient
of 1925). India's 72 years = Japan's 39 years.
The Japanese rate during this early period of her railroad
history is, however, slower than France's and Italy's
and of course considerably slower than Germany's during
their early periods. Since 1913 there has been no question
of India's overtaking Japan in the race for railway
industrialism.
Politically speaking, Japan, Italy, France and Germany
are "great powers." But in regard to railway
industry and commerce it is impossible to discover
a "great power" standard. IS In 1925 Japan belongs to
class III (with less than 5 km per 10,000), the same
group to which India belongs, Germany and Italy to
class II (between 5 and 10 km per 10,000) and France
to class I (with more th::m 10 km per 10,000). Evidently
one canr.ot assert that in order to be appraised as a
19 Sarkar: "Indiens Enlw;cklung im Vergl,,:ch zu Eur-Amerika:'
Deutsche Rundo:;hau, Berlin, Ju'y 1930; "Aspetti e Problemi della moderns
Econ~mia Indiana:' Annali di EconcJtnia, Milan, July 1930; "II Movimento
industriale e commercial" nell' In :i:a odierna ed i suoi rapporti internazion·
.ali," Commercia, Rome, September
1931; "Die Entwicklung und weltwirtschaftliche
Bedeutung des moder!1en Indien," Indien (Stuttgart.
Technische Hochschule, 1931.