Physical features - Relief Drainage

Name the physiographic units of India and briefly explain their formation.

I.Introduction: The Indian subcontinent is characterized by the diversified physical features. They exhibit striking contrasts in structure, altitude, climate etc.

II. Physiographic divisions: India may be divided into four physiographic units.

They are

1. The Himalayas and their associated mountain ranges.

2. The Indo-Gangetic plains

3. The peninsular plateau.

4. The coastal plains.

1. Formation of the Himalayas: 

a. According to the Geologists, during Mesozoic times, the entire Himalayan area was occupied by a great Geosyncline called “Tethys sea”.

b. Angaraland was the land mass to the North of Tethys Sea. Gondwana land which contained the present peninsula was to the south of the Tethys Sea.

c. In the course of time, these two land masses split up and began to move apart.

d. Then the weaker Tethys Sea got compressed and buckled up.

e. After some million years due to immense compressional forces the sediments deposited in the Tethys Sea were folded to acquire the present form of Himalayan Mountains.

2. Formation of Indo Gangetic plains: 

a. In the wake of the Himalayan uplift, a ‘fore deep’ was formed in the intervening space between the peninsular plateau and the Himalayan Mountains.

b. Then an immense amount of Alluvium was deposited in this depression by the Himalayan Rivers. Thus it became the largest alluvial plain in the world.

3. Formation of peninsular Plateau: 

a. According to Geologists, it was a part of The Gondwana land.

b. It was a block of old crystal rocks lifted above the sea level in the pre Cambrian times, and never submerged again.

4. Formation of coastal plains: Were formed by the peninsular rivers.

What are the parallel ranges of the Himalayas? Explain. 

I. Introduction: The Himalayas form India’s northern frontier from Jammu and Kashmir to Arunachal Pradesh with a distance of 2400 km and a width of 500 km.

II. Kinds of parallel ranges of Himalayas: The Himalayas comprise three parallel ranges with deep valleys and extensive plateaus. They are:

1. The Himadri (The greater Himalayas)

2. The Himachal or lesser Himalayas

3. The Siwaliks or outer Himalayas

The Himadri or Greater Himalayas: 

a. This is the highest loftiest and most continuous range with an average elevation of about 6100 mts.

b. It has the world’s highest and prominent peaks such as Mt. Everest, Kanchenjunga etc.

c. It is formidable and snow bound through out the year and found with a number of glaciers.

d. It is mainly composed of crystalline and metamorphic rocks.

The Himachal range: 

a. This is a most intricate and rugged mountain system.

b. It is to the south of the The Himadri range with an altitude of 1000- 4500 mts.

c. Its width is varies between 50 and 80 kms.

d. The most important and longest range in the Himachal is the pirpanjal range of Kashmir.

e. Kashmir valley lies between Himadri and Pirpanjal range.

f. It has beautiful Kulu and Kangra valleys.

g. Many hill stations like Simla, Mussoorie, Nainital etc are situated in this range.

The Siwalikhs: 

a. It is the southern most range of the Himalayas.

b. It extends from Jammu and Kashmir to Arunachal Pradesh.

c. The Siwaliks in Jammu region are called Jammu hills and in Arunachal pradesh as Mishi hills.

d. The width of this range varies between 50 km in Himachal Pradesh and 15 km in Arunachal Pradesh.

e. Its average height ranges from 600 to 1500 mts.

f. These are backed by The ‘Duns’ and are covered with thick tropical deciduous forests.

Describe the importance of Himalayas. 

A. I. Introduction: The Himalayas form India’s northern frontier from Jammu and Kashmir to Arunachal Pradesh covering a distance of about 2400 km and with width of 200 to 500 km.

II. Importance of the Himalayas:

Barriers: The Himalayas act like barriers protecting the great plains of India from the cold winds of central Asia during winter. They also acted as impenetrable borders protecting the country from foreign invasions

Cause rains: The Himalayas are responsible for causing rainfall in the plains during summer and ultimately to have a monsoon type of climate in the country.

Perennial flow of water: Rivers originate in the glaciers of these mountains and cause the perennial flow of water. These lives contributed to the economic development of the Great Plains.

Scenic beauty: Himalayas are known for beautiful valleys like Kashmir Kulu, Kangra etc and hill stations. These valleys and hill stations attract tourist from all over the world and earn foreign exchange for the country.

Horticulture: Himalayan valleys are known for cultivation of fruits like Apples.

Vegetation: Alphine vegetation is an important contribution to the forest economy.

The gaps in the mountain ranges of Himalayas called passes- like Khyber, Bolan, permitted great exchange of culture and commerce with neighbouring countries.

III. Conclusion: Thus, there are many advantages of the Himalayas to India.

What is a pass? Give examples. 

1. The gaps in the Himalayan mountain ranges which provide natural routes across them are called passes.

2. The important passes in the Himalayan mountain ranges are Khyber, Bolan, Karakoram, Nathula and Bomidila etc.

What is a ‘DUN’? Give examples from the Himalayan region. 

1. The Siwalik Mountains are backed by a discontinued series of narrow longitudinal flat-bottomed strike valleys. These valleys are called as ‘Duns’

2. Dehra Dun and Patli Dun in Uttaranchal and Kotli Dun in Jammu are the examples of prominent “Dun Valleys”.

Name the important peaks of Himalayas. 

The Himadri range has world’s highest and prominent peaks. The Important peaks of The Himalayas are

1. Mt. Everest (8848 mts)

2. Kanchenjunga (8598 mts)

3. Makalu(8481 mts)

4. Dhaulagiri (8177 mts)

5. Manaslu (8156 mts)

6. Chooyu (8153 mts)

7. Nanga Prabhath ( 8126 mts)

8. Annapurna (8078 mts)

What is a plain? Describe the surface differences recognized with the geomorphology of Great Plains. 

I. Introduction: The land surface is not the same every where. There are various land forms i.e. mountains, Plateaus and plains.

II. Meaning of plain: The material eroded and transported by rivers is deposited at suitable places and thus plains are formed. A fertile land with level surface, gentle, slope and with heights far less than a plateau is called a plain.

III. Surface differences of Great plains: There are four important surface differences recognized with the Geomorphology of great plains. They are Bhabar, Terai, Bhanger, Khadar Bhabar: The Himalayan rives deposit gravel and unassorted sediments along the foot of the Sivaliks. This pebble studded zone of porous beds is known as Bhabar. It forms a narrow belt, only 8 to 16 km width in northern boundary of Punjab, Harayana and Uttarpradesh.

Terai : Many small Himalayan rivers flow underground through Bhabar zone and reemerge on the surface creating 15-30 kms wide marshy tract called ‘Terai’

Bhangar : the older alluvium of the flood plain is called Bhangar’.

Khadar : The never alluvium of the flood plain is called ‘Khadar’. This zone is found with excessive dampness with a thick growth of forest and a variety of wild life.

Compare and contrast the geomorphologic features between Malwa plateau and Deccan Plateau. 
A. Introduction: The peninsular plateau is one of the physiographic units of India. It is broadly divided into Malwa Plateau and Deccan Plateau. 

Malwa Plateau	Deccan plateau
1. It is bounded by the Aravallis on the north west and the vindhyas on the south.	1. It is bounded by the satpura range on the north, western ghats on the west and eastern
2. Its extensions are known as Bundal khand and Bhaghalkh and uplands in Uttar Pradesh and in as Chota Nagpur plateau in Jharkand.	2. Its extensions are Maharashtra Plateau on the north and north west. Andhra plateau on the south west and Karnataka plateau on the south.
3. In its interior parts its surface is flat with isolated hillocks.	3. Its table land consists of horizontally arranged lava sheets
4. No Deltas are found here	4. It has many deltas.
5. It occupies lesser area	5. It occupies larger area.
6. It is not much suitable for crop cultivation.	6. It is suitable for crop cultivation
7. It tilts towards the Gangetic plain.	7. It tilts towards the east.
8. It has less elevation than the Deccan plateau.	8. It has varied elevation from 900 mts in the west to 300 mts on the east.

Distinguish the differences in physiography of Western ghats and Eastern ghats. 
A. I. Introduction: Deccan plateau is bounded by the western ghats on the west and Eastern ghats on the east. East western ghats and Eastern ghats meet at Nilgiri hills. 

Western ghats	Eastern ghats
1. They start from Khandesh in Maharastra and end at Kanyakumari in Tamil Nadu.	1. They start from the hills of Chotanagpur Plateau in Jharkhand and run upto Nilgiris in Tamil Nadu.
2. They are to the western side of the Deccan Plateau.	2. They are to the eastern side of the Deccan Plateau.
3. They are continuous chain of hills running in a north-south with some gaps like palghat, Thal ghat and Bhorghat gaps.	3. They are represented by irregular line of hills.
4. They are very close to the coast keeping a narrow coastal plain.	4. They are far away from the coast keeping broad coastal plain.
5. They have structural unity and a well defined lay out.	5. They do not have any structural unity and a well defined lay out.
6. The northern part of western ghats is known as Sahyadri. Annamalai hills and cardamom hills are the southern parts.	6. They have local names are called as Simahachalam in Visakhapatnam, Papi Kondalu in Wast Godavari etc. Nallamalai in Kurnool, Pachamalai and in Tamil Nadu.
7. Anaimudi in Kerala the highest peak.	7. The highest peak of Eastern ghats is found in chintapalli village of Vishakapatnam
8. There are dense forests.	8. Forest all not that dense as that to western ghats.

Compare the coastal plains of east and west. 

East coastal plain	West coastal plain
1. They stretch from Bengal to Kanya Kumari.	1. They strech from Rann of Kutch to kanyakumari.
2. They are wider and flat.	2. They are narrow and uneven.
3. They are situated between The Eastern Ghats and the Bay of Bengal.	3. They are situated between the western Ghats and the Arabian sea.
4. Well watered deltas are found.	4. Long bars and lagoons are found. Deltas are not found.
5. Alluvial plains are formed by Mahanadi, Krishna, Godavari and Cauvery rivers.	5. Alluvial plains are formed by Narmada, Tapti, Sabarmati and Mahi rivers. These plains are found to the north of west coastal plains.
6. Irrigational facilities are well developed.	6. This region has less developed irrigational facilities.

Fill in the blanks:

The Himalayas are the young folded mountains.

The Himalayas were once occupied by the sea Tethys.

The Himalayas form India’s northern frontier from Jammu and Kashmir to Arunachal Pradesh.

The longitudinal extent of Himalayas is 5 lakh sq.km.

Greater Himalayas are also known as The Himadri.

K2 mountain peak is in Trans-Himalayan zone.

The highest mountain peak of The Himalayas in India is Kanchanjunga.

Pamir plateau is located in Trans-Himalayan zone.

The longitudinal extent of The great plains in India is 7 lakhs sq.km

The younger Alluvium is known as Khader.

Terai is a wide marshy track.

Bundelkhand upland is an extension of Malwa plateau.

Peninsular plateau is slightly tilting towards The east.

The highest peak in peninsular plateau is Annaimudi.

The Deccan plateau is bounded on north by sathpura range.

Narmada river flows through a rift valley.

Alakananda and Bhagirathi head streams formed the main stream of ganga.

The world’s highest and prominent peaks are found in Himadri range.

The most important Himachal range is Himachal.

South-west world extension of pirpanjal is called Dhaula Dhar range.

The world’s second highest peak is K2.

The longest glacier is Siachin.

The world’s highest table land is Pamir plateau.

Luni basin is found in Rajasthan plain.

Guru sikhar peak is situated in the Aravalli hills.

The important summer resort in M.P is pachmarhi.

The highest peak of the Nigiris is Doda betta.

The Ganga enters Bangladesh and then it is called Padma

The largest peninsular rivers Godavari.

Godavari joins Bay of Bengal near Rajamundary in A.P

A	B
1. Manasarover 2. older alluvium 3. Marshy tract 4. Pirpanjal range 5. West flowing river	a. Himachal [4] b. Brahmaputra [1] c. Bhanger [2] d. Terai [3] e. Tapti [5]

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The Locational and Spatial Setting

• India is a land of great physical and socio – contrasts marked by unity in diversity
• It is a country of great geographical extent and distinctive character often described as a subcontinent
• India has diversified physiographic conditions with a variety of landforms like snowcapped Himalayan mountains on the north, Indo – Gangetic plains in the middle, number of plateaus, desert on the west and the coastal plains on the Indian Ocean shores.
• Indian sub – continent is intersected by great rivers namely the Ganga, the Brahmaputra, the Godavari and the Krishna
• India has a distinctive monsoon type of climate.
• The Tropic of Cancer runs half way through the country.
• The southern half experiences hot tropical climate and the northern half experiences warm temperate Zone.
• A variety of soils like Alluvial, Black, Red and Laterites are distributed.
• There is a great diversity in animal, crop and mineral production.
• Historically, India has always been a land with people of many religions.
• India is a home of diversity of cultures under the influence of different racial and religious groups.
• The name India is derived from the great river the Sindhu or the Indus.
• The great Indian Peninsula is situated in the southern part of continent of Asia.
• The two arms of the Indian Ocean are the Arabian Sea on the south – west and the Bay of Bengal on the south – east.
• Geometrically, the country lies between 8°4’ – 37°6’ north latitudes and 68°7’ – 97°25’ east longitudes.
• India has thirty degrees of latitudinal extent from north to south and the same amount of longitudinal extent from east to west.
• India’s total geographical area is 3.28 million km2
• North to south, India covers a distance of about 3214 kms as against 2933 kms from east to west.
• The snowy land of the Himalayas formed the northern boundary, the hot and sunny Kanyakumari on the south, the salty marshes of the Rann of Kutch on the west and the Virgin forests in the east.
• Arunachal Pradesh state gets the earliest sunrise than Dwarka in Gujarat.
• In India, the sun rises two hours earlier in the easternmost part of Arunachal Pradesh then Gujarat.
• Indian standard time is based on the 82°30’ east longitude.
• Indian standard time is 5 ½ hrs ahead of the Greenwich Mean Time.
• India has a land frontier of 15200 kms and a coastline of 7516.6 Kms.
• The countries which share a common land frontier with India are Pakistan, Afghanistan, China, Bhutan, Nepal, Bangladesh and Myanmar.
• The line dividing India and Pakistan is known as Radcliff line
• To the east of Bhutan, the crest of Himalaya’s acts as the dividing line between the Indian and Chinese realms known as Mac Mohan line.
• The Andaman and Nicobar island chain in the Bay of Bengal and Lakshadweep island cluster in the Arabian Sea forms the parts of Indian Territory.
• The nearest neighbor across the ocean water is Sri Lanka.
• Sri Lanka is separated from India by Gulf of Mannar and Palk Strait.
• At present, India is a union of 28 states and 7 Union Territories.
• Rajasthan is the largest state in terms of area whereas Goa is the smallest.
• Andaman and Nicobar islands form two major groups in the Bay of Bengal, located between 10° and 14°N latitudes.
• Andaman and Nicobar have an area of 8249 km2 of which Andaman Islands extend up to 6408 km2 and Nicobar Islands extend up to 1842 km2.
• Out of 247 groups of islands only 36 are inhabited.
• The Great Nicobar with an area of 862 km2 is the largest island in this group and lies closest to the equator.
• The entire island in the Arabian sea are of coral origin.
• The Lakshadweep Island with a total area of 35 km2 are situated between 8° and 11°N latitudes.
• In the Eight Degree channel lies the Minicoy island with an area of 4.5 km2.
• The Pamban Island located between India and Sri Lanka has a rocky surface.

Questions and Answers:

What is a sub continent? Explain how India can be called a sub continent? 

I. Introduction: India lies in the southern part of Asian continent. Though India is a country it is often called a sub continent.

II. Sub continent – meaning: 

A country which is having features of a great geographical extent, huge population, diversified geographical and socio-cultural features is called a sub continent.

III. Reasons for calling India as a sub continent: 

Though India is not treated as a continent it has the features of a continent. It is called as a sub continent due to the following reasons.

Large area: India has a large area of 3.28 million square kilometers, taking seventh place in the world.

Large population: India has a population of 102.7 crores according to 2001 census, attaining second place in the world.

Diversified physiographic divisions: India has diversified physiographic conditions with a variety of land forms like the Himalayas, the Indo-Gangetic plains, plateaus and coastal plains etc.

Climate: India has a distinctive monsoon type of climate. Extremes in climatic conditions like temperature, rainfall, sunshine, humidity etc can be observed.

Soils: A variety of soils like Alluvial, Black, Red, Laterite etc are found.

Many Religions: The religions like Hinduism, Islam, Christianity, Buddhism, Jainism, Sikhism etc are being practiced.

Land of diversity: It is a land of diversity having varied modes of living, culture etc. There is Aryan culture in North India and Dravidian culture in South India.

Tropic of Cancer: the tropic of cancer runs half-way through the country. The southern half of the country lies with in the tropics and experiences tropical climate.

IV. Conclusion: Thus India can be called a subcontinent. Unity in diversity is the most distinctive feature of India. 

How is the name “India” derived? 

1. The name “India” is derived from the great river the ‘Sindhu’ or the ‘Indus’ located in the North-west part of the country.

2. The people living along this river were recognized as “Indoi” by the Greeks.

3. Later this region was referred to as “India” by the Britishers.

4. India is also known as “Bharath” as it was ruled by the ruler ‘Bharatha’ in the ancient times. 

What is the geometrical location of India and where does India rank in area among the countries of the world? 

1. India lies between 8°4’ and 37°6’ North latitudes, and 68°7’ to 98°25’ East longitudes.

2. India has thirty degrees (30°) of latitudinal extent from North to south and the same amount of longitudinal extent from East to West.

3. India occupies seventh place in area among the countries of the world. 

What are the extreme places of our land frontiers? 

The extreme places of our country are as follows: 

1. North: The snowy capped Himalayas.

2. South: The hot and sunny Kanyakumari

3. West: The salty Marshes of the Rann of Kutch.

4. East: Virgin forests and the untramplled hills on the eastern most frontier. 

How many coastal states are there in our country? What are they? 

There are nine coastal states in India. They are: 1. West Bengal 2. Orissa 3. Andhra Pradesh 4. Tamil Nadu on the east 5. Kerala 6. Karnataka 7. Goa 8. Maharastra. 9. Gujarath on the west coast. 

What is Mac Mohan Line? 

A. 1. The dividing line between India and China in the North-east is called Mac Mohan Line.

2. To the east of Bhutan, the crest of Great Himalayas acts as the dividing line between India and Chinese realms. 

What are the Island groups of India and explain their origin and distribution? 

I. Introduction: India has a number of Islands. They also form part of Indian Territory. In all it has 247 Islands of which 223 lie in the Bay of Bengal and the rest in Arabean sea.

II. Kinds of Indian Islands: The Indian Islands may be divided into four broad groups namely:

1. The Andaman group

2. The Nicobar group

3. The Lakshadeep group

4. Other Islands

1. The Andaman Group: The Andaman Islands are located between 10° to 14° N latitudes. These Islands are Volcanic origin. There are as many as 200 Islands in the Andaman group. They cover a total area of 6408 sq. km.

2. The Nicobar group: There are about 19 Islands in the Nicobar group. They are located between 6°30 to 9°30 N latitudes. They cover an area of 1841 sq. km.

The Greater Nicobar is the largest island in this group. It covers an area of 862 sq. km. The important Islands in this group are little Nicobar, Katchall, Trinkat etc.

3. The Lakshadweep group: These Islands lie in the Arabian sea. They are situated between 8°N and 11°N latitudes. They cover an area of 32 sq.km. They are of coral origin.

4. Other Islands: In addition to the above, there are also other Islands like the Minicoy and the Pamban Islands. The Minicoy Island lies in the Eight degree channel with an area of 4.5 sq.km. The Panban Island is located between India and Srilanka. It has a rocky surface.

Match the following:

A	B
1. The salty marshes in the western part of India.	a. Maldives
2. The southern most tip of Indian main land.	b. Northern hemisphere
3. The country closest to the Lakshadweep.	c. Rann of Kutch
4. India is located in	d. Tibet
5. The roof the world	e. Cape Comorin
Answer: 1 - c; 2 - e; 3 - a; 4 - b; e-2

Fill in the blanks: 

1. The Indian Island closest to the equator is greater Nicobar. 

2. Arunachal Pradesh state gets the earliest sunrise.

3. India is separated from Sri Lanka by Palk strait or Gulf of Mannar. 

4. The smallest state in area is Goa. 

5. The state stands on three seas is Tamil Nadu

6. The border country sharing longest boundary with India is China. 

7. The tropic of cancer runs half way through the country.

8. The total geographical area of India is 3.28 million sq.km

9. India is the seventh largest country.

10. The distance from North to south in India is 3,200 km

11. The distance from east to west in India is 3000km. 

12. Indian standard Time (IST) is measured based on 82° 30 E longitudes. 

13. The difference between IST and Greenwich is 5 ½ hours

14. The length of coast line of India is 6100 km

15. India has a total land frontier of 15,200 km

16. Nepal is called Himalayan kingdom.

17. India is a union of 28 states and 7 union territories.

18. Andhra Pradesh has coast line of 972km

19. The Islands of Andaman and Nicobar are of volcanic origin.

20. The Islands of Arabian sea are of coral origin.

One word Answers: 

1. Which is the largest state in India in terms of area?

A. Rajasthan.

2. Which is the smallest state in India in terms of area?

A. Goa

3. The Island which is located between India and Srilanka?

A. Pamban Island

4. How many Islands are there in India?

A. 247

5. Where is eight degree channel located?

A. Minicoy Island.

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