Question.6. Give an account of the Northern plains of India.
Ans.

1. The Himalayan uplift out of the Tethys sea and subsidence of the Northern flank of the peninsular plateau resulted in the formation of a large basin. In course of time, this depression gradually got filled with deposition of sediments from rivers flowing from the mountains in the north and led to formation of the fertile Northern plains.
2. It spreads over an area of 7 lakh sq km. The plain is about 2400 km long and 240-230 km broad.
3. It is a densely populated and an intensively cultivated area.
4. With its adequate water supply and favourable climate, it is agriculturally a very productive part of India.
5. The Northern plains are broadly divided into 3 sections.
6. The Western part of the Northern plains is called the Punjab plains, formed by the Indus and its tributaries.
7. The Ganga plain extends between the Ghaggar and the Teesta rivers, spread over the states of Haryana, Delhi, UP, Bihar and West Bengal.
8. The Brahmaputra Plain to the East of the Ganga plains lies the Brahmaputra plain covering the areas of Assam and Arunachal Pradesh.

Question.7. Write short notes on the following
(i) The Indian Desert
Ans.

1. The Indian desert lies towards the Western margin of the Aravali hills.
2. It is an undulating sandy plain covered with sand dunes.
3. This region receives very low rainfall, below 150 mm per year.
4. It has arid climate with low vegetation cover.
5. Streams appear during the rainy season. Soon they disappear into the sand as they do not have enough water to reach the sea.
6. Luni is the only large river in this region.
7. Barchan (Crescent shaped duners) cover the larger areas but longitudinal dunes become more prominent near the Indo-Pakistan border.
8. The Indian desert is popularly known as the Thar desert.

(ii) The Central Highlands
Ans.

1. The Peninsular plateau consists of two broad divisions, namely the central highlands and the Deccan plateau.
2. The part of the Peninsular plateau lying to the north of the Narmada river covering a major area of the Malwa plateau is known as the Central Highlands.
3. They are bound by the Vindhya Range from the south and by the Aravali hills from the north-west.
4. The further westward extension gradually merges with the sandy and rocky desert of Rajasthan.
5. The flow of the rivers draining this region, namely the Chambal, the Sind, the Betwe and Ken is from south-west to north-east.
6. The central highlands are wider in the west but narrower in the east.
7. The eastward extensions of their plateau are locally known as ‘Bundelkhand’ and ‘Baghelkhand’.
8. The Chhotanagpur plateau marks the further eastward extension drained by the Damodar river.

(iii) The Island Groups of India
Ans.
India has two groups of islands namely the Lakshadweep group and the Andaman and Nicobar group.

(a) The Lakshadweep Islands Group lie close to the Malabar coast of Kerala.

1. These islands are composed of small coral islands.
2. Earlier, they were known as Laccadive, Minicoy and Amindive. In 1973, these were renamed as the Lakshadweep.
3. They cover a small area of 32 sq km.
4. Kavaratti Island is the administrative headquarters of Lakshadweep.
5. This island group has a great diversity of flora and fauna.
6. The Pitti Island, which is uninhabited, has a bird sanctuary.

(b) Andaman and Nicobar Islands

1. The elongated chain of islands located in the Bay of Bengal extending from north to south are the Andaman and Nicobar Islands.
2. They are bigger in size and more numerous and scattered than the Lakshadweep Islands.
3. The entire group of islands is divided into two broad categories, the Andaman in the north and Nicobar in the south.
4. It is believed that these islands are an elevated portion of the submarine mountains.
5. These islands are of great – strategic importance for the country. They have great diversity of flora and fauna.
6. These islands lie close to the equator experience equatorial climate and have thick forest cover.