India - Location and Physical Features

 Textbook exercise  

Chapter Name – India -Location and Physical Feature

 

Q1) Choose the appropriate option.

a) Based on area, which is the largest state of India?

i)            Rajasthan

ii)         Maharashtra

iii)         Tripura

iv)        Haryana

 

b) What is the northern part of the eastern coastal plain called?

i)        Konkan Coast

ii)       Malabar Coast

iii)      Coromandel Coast

iv)           Northern Circar

 

c) The southernmost range of the Himalayas is the ____________.

i)         Himadri Range

ii)       Himachal Range

iii)      Shiwalik Range

iv)           Purvanchal range

 

d) Kavaratti is the administrative headquarters of which of these union

territories?

i)               Lakshadweep islands

ii)             Andaman and Nicobar islands

iii)           Chandigarh

iv)           Daman and Diu

 

Q2) Fill in the blanks.

a) Goa is the smallest state of India.

b) Indira Point is the southernmost tip of India.

c) Sri Lanka is separated from India by the Palk Strait.

 

Q3) Answer the following questions in 10 to 20 words.

a. What are the characteristics of the Great Indian Desert?

Ans. This region is characterized by little rainfall, less vegetation and moving sand dunes.

• The Luni is the only major river flowing through this

region.

• Lake Sambhar is an important saline water lake of this

region.

• This is the region of inland drainage, where most rivers disappear into the sand or drain into the lake.

 

b. Name any two hill stations located in Himachal range.

Ans. In Himachal Pradesh hill stations such as Shimla, Mussoorie, Darjeeling, etc.

 

c. Name the three rivers that drain the Northern Plains of India.

Ans. The Indus, Brahmaputra, Ganga.

 

d. Name the neighboring countries of India.

Ans. There are seven countries that share land boundaries with India.

These countries are China, Nepal, Pakistan, Afghanistan, Myanmar, Bhutan and Bangladesh. Pakistan and Afghanistan in the North- West, China, Nepal and Bhutan in the North, Bangladesh and Myanmar in the East.

 

e. Mention two points of difference between the Western Ghats and the Eastern Ghats.

Ans.

The Western Ghats	The Eastern Ghats
The Western Ghats lie on the western margin of the Deccan Plateau.	The Eastern Ghats lie on the eastern margin of the Deccan Plateau.
The Western Ghats are higher in elevation. Their average elevation is from 900 to 1600 metres.	The Eastern Ghats are lower in elevation. Their average elevation is 600 metres.
They have a continuous chain of mountains and can be crossed through passes only.	The mountain chains are not continuous and are denuded by the rivers which flow into the Bay of Bengal.
No major river has cut across them.	They have been cut across by major rivers like the Godavari, Mahanadi, Krishna and Kaveri.

 

Q4) Answer the following questions in 50 to 70 words.

a) Give an account of the location and size of India.

Ans. India accounts for about 2.4 percent of the total geographical area of the world with an area of about 32,87,263 sq.km. The north-south extent of India is 3,214 Km and the east-west is 2,933 Km. It is located in the Northern hemisphere and Eastern hemisphere. India is a country of vast geographical extent. It is located in the Northern hemisphere and Eastern hemisphere. The Tropic of Cancer (23°30´N) passes almost halfway through the country. The mainland of India extends roughly between 8°4´ N to 37°6´ N latitudes and between 68°7´ E to 97°25´E longitudes. Indira Point is the southernmost tip of India.

 

b) Explain the geographic divisions of northern mountains.

·       Himadri/Greater Himalayas

The northernmost range is known as Himadri or Inner Himalayas. It is the most continuous range consisting of the loftiest peaks with an average height of 6,000 metres. It consists of all the important Himalayan peaks such as Mt. Everest (Nepal), Kanchenjunga, Nanga Parbat, Nanda Devi.

·       Himachal/Lesser Himalayas

The range lying to the south of the Himadri is known as Himachal or Lesser Himalayas. The altitude varies between 3,700 and 4,500 metres and the average width is of 50 km. This range consists of the famous valley of Kashmir and the Kullu Valley in Himachal Pradesh. Hill stations such as Shimla, Mussoorie, Darjeeling, etc. are also located here.

Shiwalik/Outer Himalayas

The southernmost range of the Himalayas is called the Shiwaliks. It extends over a width of 10-50 km and have an altitude varying between 900 and 1100 metres. It comprises of long and fl at valleys called ‘duns’ in the west and duars in the east. For example, Dehradun.

 

c) State three points of difference between the Western and Eastern Coastal Plain.

Ans. The differences and comparison between Eastern and Western

Coastal Plains are as below:

The Eastern Coastal plains	The Western Coastal Plains
Lies between the Western Ghats and the Arabian Sea.	Lies between the Eastern Ghats and the Bay of Bengal.
It extends from the Gujarat coast to Kerala coast.	The plain extends coast to coast from West Bengal to Tamil Nadu.
It consists of three sections – ● Northern part is known as Konkan Coast ● The central part is known as Kannad Plain ● Southern part is known as Malabar coast	It consists of two sections – ● Northern part is known as Northern Circar ● Southern part is known as the Coromandel Coast
● It is comparatively narrow.	● It is quite broad

 

 

d) Write a short note on Deccan Plateau of India.

Ans. The Deccan Plateau of India lies to the south of the Narmada River and is triangular in shape.

It is surrounded by the Satpura Range, the Maikal Range and the Mahadeo Hills in the north, the Western Ghats in the west and the Eastern Ghats in the east. One of the peculiar features of this plateau is the Deccan trap, an area of the large igneous province. It consists of multiple layers of solidified lava. This plateau is of volcanic origin and the igneous rocks in this region are responsible for the formation of black soil.