INDIA- GEOGRAPHICAL FEATURES AND THEIR IMPACT ON HISTORY
The
Himalayan Mountains
The Himalayan Mountains are
situated on the north of India. Starting from the Pamir in the extreme
northwest of India, the mighty Himalayan range extends towards northeast.
It has a length of nearly 2560
kilometres with an average breadth of 240 to 320 kilometres.
The highest peak of the Himalayas
is known as Mount Everest with its height being 8848 metres.
It
acts as a natural wall and protects the country against the cold arctic winds
blowing from Siberia through Central Asia.
This keeps the climate of
northern India fairly warm throughout the year. The Himalayan region is mostly
inhospitable in winter and generally covered with snow.
It was considered for a long time
that the Himalayas stood as a natural barrier to protect India against
invasions. But, the passes in the northwest mountains such as the Khyber, Bolan, Kurram and Gomal provided
easy routes between India and Central Asia.
These passes are situated in the Hindukush, Sulaiman and Kirthar ranges.
In the north of Kashmir is
Karakoram Range. The second highest peak in the world, Mount Godwin Austen is
situated here.
This part of the Himalayas and
its passes are high and snow-covered in the winter. The Karakoram highway via
Gilgit is connected to Central Asia but there was little communication through
this route.
In the east, the Himalayas extend
up to Assam. The mountains in this region are Pat Koi, Nagai and Lushai ranges. These hills are covered with thick forests due to heavy
rains and mostlyremain inhospitable.
The mountains of northeast India is difficult to cross
and many parts of this region had remained in relative isolation.
The
Indo-Gangetic plain
is irrigated by three important rivers, the
Ganges, Indus and Brahmaputra
The Punjab plains are benefited
by the Indus river system. The
literal meaning of
the term ‘Punjab’ is the land of five rivers.
Sind is situated at
the lower valley of the Indus. The Indus plain is known for its fertile soil.
The
Thar Desert
and Aravalli hills are situated in
between the Indus and Gangetic plains. (Mount
Abu is the highest point (5650 ft.) in the Aravalli hills.)
The Ganges river rises in the Himalayas, flows south and then
towards the east.
The river Yamuna flows almost parallel to the
Ganges and then joins it. (The area
between these two rivers is called doab – meaning the
land between two rivers.)
The
important tributaries
of the Ganges are the Gomati, Sarayu, Ghagra and Gandak.
In the east of India, the Ganges
plain merges into the plains of Brahmaputra.
Banares,
Allahabad, Agra, Delhi and Pataliputra
are some of the important cities of the Gangetic
plain.
The most important city on the
western side of the Gangetic plain is Delhi.
Most of the decisive battles of
Indian history such as the Kurukshetra, Tarain and Panipat were fought near Delhi.
The Southern
Peninsula
The Vindhya and Satpura mountains along with Narmada and the Tapti rivers form the great dividing line between northern and southern India. The plateau to the south of the Vindhya
Mountains is known as the Deccan plateau. It consists of volcanic rock,
which is different from the northern mountains.
The Deccan plateau is flanked by
the Eastern Ghats and Western Ghats.
The Coramandal Coast stands
between the Eastern Ghats and the Bay of Bengal. The Western Ghats runs along
the Arabian sea and the lands between these are known as Konkan up to Goa and
beyond that as Kanara.
The southernmost part is known as Malabar Coast. The passes in the
Western Ghats like Junnar, Kanheri and Karle linked the trade routes to the western ports. The Deccan
plateau acted as a bridge between the north and south India. However, the dense
forests in the Vindhya Mountains makes this region isolated from the north.
The Anaimudi is the highest peak in the southern peninsula. Doddapetta is another highest peak in
the Western Ghats. The Eastern Ghats are not very high and have
several openings caused by the eastward flow of the rivers into the Bay of
Bengal. The port cities of Arikkamedu,
Mamallapuram and Kaveripattanam were situated on the Coramandal coast.
The
word Hind is derived from the Sanskrit term Sindhu, and in course
of time the country came to be known as ‘India’ in
Greek, and ‘Hind’ in Persian and Arabic languages.
MODEL QUESTIONS
Choose the
correct answer.
1.
Alexander
of Macedon came to India through -
(a) Deccan Plateau
(b) Kharakoram range
(c) Swat valley
(d) Aravalli hills
Ans- Swat Valley
2.
The
region between two rivers is called
(a) Plateau
(b) Peninsula
(c) Doab
(d) Peak
Ans- Doab
Fill in the
blanks.
1. The river Ganges rises in …….Himalayas
2. The highest peak in the
southern peninsula is …… Anaimudi
III. Match the
following.
1. Mount Everest a) Aravalli hills
2. Mount Abu b) Kharakoram
3. Doddabetta c) Himalayas
4. Godwin Austin d) Western Ghats
Ans-
1-C,2-A,3-D,4-B
IV. Find out the
correct statement. One statement alone is
right.
a) Narmada river runs from east
to west. T
b) Kaveri river runs from south
to north. F
c) Yamuna river merges with
Tapti. F
d) Maha Nadhi river irrigates the
Punjab region. F
V. State whether
the following statements are true or False.
1. The city of Pataliputra was
situated at the confluence of Ganges
with Brahmaputra. False (The city of
Pataliputra was situated at the confluence of Son
river with the
Ganges.)
2. The long coast line in the
southern peninsula contributed to the growth of maritime trade. T
3. The Palghat Pass is situated
on the Western Ghats. T
4. India is a multi-cultural
society. T
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