Indian Geography New
Indian Geography New
Indian Geography New
In this post: Indian Geography: India Geographical Extent, Frontiers Border with Neighbors.
India As A Geographical Unit
Locational Extent:
The southernmost point of the country is the Pygmalion Point or Indira Point is located at 6 45' N latitude.
North-south extent from Indira Col in Kashmir to Kanniyakumari is 3,214 km.
East-west width from the Rann of Kachachh to Arunachal Pradesh is 2,933 km.
With an area of 32,87,263 sq km, India is the seventh largest country of the world.
India accounts for about 2.4 per cent of the total surface area of the world.
The Tropic of Cancer passes through the middle of the country dividing it into two latitudinal halves.
The area to the north of Tropic of Cancer is nearly twice the area which lies to the south of it.
South of 22 north latitude, the country tapers off over 800 km into the Indian Ocean as a peninsula.
The earth moves [rotation and revolution] around its axis through 360 in 24 hours. Thus, a difference of 1
The temperate part (north of Tropic of Cancer)is twice the area of tropical part.
But India has always been treated as a tropical country for two different reasons physical and cultural.
Settlements, diseases, agricultural and primary economic activities are all tropical in nature.
India has 15106.7 Km of land border running through 92 districts in 17 States and a coastline of 7516.6 Km
[6100 km of mainland coastline + coastline of 1197 Indian islands] touching 13 States and Union Territories
(UTs).
Barring Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Jharkhand, Delhi and Haryana, all other States in the country have
one or more international borders or a coastline and can be regarded as frontline States from the point of view of
border management.
India's longest border is with BANGLADESH while the shortest border is with Afghanistan.
The length of Indias land borders with neighboring countries is as under
This is the second longest border of India, next only to its border with Bangladesh.
Five Indian states, namely Jammu and Kashmir, Himachal Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Sikkim and Arunachal Pradesh
Separates Jammu and Kashmir state of India from the Sinkiang (Xinjiang) province of China.
The western sector boundary is largely the outcome of the British policy towards the state of Jammu and
Kashmir.
China claims the Aksai Chin district, the Changmo valley, Pangong Tso and the Sponggar Tso area of north-
east Ladakh as well as a strip of about 5,000 sq km down the entire length of eastern Ladakh.
China also claims a part of Huza-Gilgit area in North Kashmir (ceded to it in 1963 by Pakistan).
Two Indian states of Himachal Pradesh and Uttarakhand touch this border.
The 1,140 km long boundary between India and China runs from the eastern limit of Bhutan to a point near
Five states of India, namely Uttarakhand, Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, West Bengal and Sikkim touch the Nepalese
border with India. The border is a porous one with unrestricted movement of goods and people between Indian
and Nepal.
Major portion of Indo-Nepalese border runs in the east-west direction almost along the foothill of the Shiwalik
Range.
Quite peaceful border and there is no boundary dispute between the two countries.
The Indo-Pakistan boundary is the result of partition of the country in 1947 under the Radcliffe award of which
India-Myanmar Boundary
This boundary runs roughly along the watershed between the Brahmaputra and Ayeyarwady [Irrawaddy].
It passes through thickly forested regions, with Mizo Hills, Manipur and Nagaland on the Indian side and Chin
Hills, Naga Hills and Kachin state on the Myanmar side.
India and Sri Lanka are separated from each other by a narrow and shallow sea called Palk Strait.
Dhanushkodi on the Tamil Nadu coast in India is only 32 km away from Talaimanar in Jaffna peninsula in Sri
Lanka. These two points are joined by a group of islets forming Adam's Bridge.
In this post: Archaean Rock System, Archaean Gneisses and Schists, Dharwar System, Purana Rock System, Cuddapah
System, Vindhyan System, Dravidian Rock System, Carboniferous rocks,Carboniferous Coal, Aryan Rock System,
Gondwana System, Gondwana Coal, Jurassic System, Deccan Trap, Tertiary System etc..
Rock System Based on Geological History Of India
1.
2.
3.
4.
The
The
The
The
Formation period ranges from 4 billion years ago to 1 billion years ago.
Highly metamorphosed sedimentary rock-system. [formed due to metamorphosis of sediments of Archaean
Includes two divisions: the Cuddapah System and the Vindhyan System.
Cuddapah System
Unfossiliferous clay, slates, sandstones and limestones was deposited in synclinal basins [depression between two
This system derives its name from the great Vindhyan mountains.
The system comprises of ancient sedimentary rocks (4000 m thick) superimposed on the Archaean base.
Mostly Unfossiliferous.
Large area of this belt is covered by the Deccan trap.
The Vindhayan system have diamond bearing regions from which Panna and Golconda diamonds have been
mined.
It is devoid of metalliferous minerals but provides large quantities of durable stones, ornamental stones,
limestone, pure glass making sand etc..
The Carboniferous rocks (350 million years) comprise mainly of limestone, shale and quartzite.
Mount Everest is composed of Upper Carboniferous limestones.
Coal formation started in the Carboniferous age.
Carboniferous in geology means coal bearing. [most of the coal found in India is not of Carboniferous period; High
quality coal of Great Lakes Region-USA, U.K and Ruhr region is Carboniferous coal].
Gondwana System
The Gondwana System [derives its name Gonds, the most primitive people of Telangana and Andhra Pradesh]
They are deposits laid down in synclinal troughs on ancient plateau surface.
As the sediments accumulated, the loaded troughs subsided.
Fresh water and sediments accumulated in these trough and terrestrial plants and animals thrived.
This happened since Permian period (250 million years ago).
Gondwana Coal
Jurassic System
The marine transgression in the latter part of the Jurassic gave rise to thick series of shallow water deposits in
Deccan Trap
Volcanic outburst over a vast area of the Peninsular India from the end of the Cretaceous till the beginning of the
Swedish.
The process of weathering and erosion (denudation) since millions of years has reduced the Deccan Trap to almost
south, 800 metres in Kuchchh and only 150 metres at the eastern limit.
The weathering of these rocks for a long time has given birth to black cotton soil known as regur.
Found in
Inter-trappean beds
Present
Present
Present
Present
In his post: Major Physical Divisions of India Himalayas - Himalayan Ranges: Shiwaliks or outer Himalayas, Lesser or
Middle Himalayas, Greater Himalayas, Trans-Himalayas or Tibetan Himalayas and Eastern Hills or Purvanchal.
Major Physical Divisions of India
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
Peninsular Plateau
Includes the entire south India, central India, Aravalis, Rajmahal hills, Meghalaya plateau, Kuchchh-Kathiawar
region (Gujarat) etc..
10
Himalayas
Includes the Himalayas, Purvanchal and their extensions Arakan Yoma (Myanmar) and Andaman and Nicobar
Indo-Gangetic Plain
Coastal Plains
Indian Islands
Type of Topography
Extent in %
10.7
18.6
27.7
Plains
43
Himalayan Ranges
11
Most of the Himalayan ranges fall in India, Nepal and Bhutan. The northern slopes are partly situated in Tibet
(trans-Himalayas) while the western extremity lies in Pakistan, Afghanistan and Central Asia.
Himalayas between Tibet and Ganga Plain is a succession of three parallel ranges.
Shiwalik Range
Pradesh.
They are almost unbroken chain of low hills except for a gap of 80-90 km which is occupied by the valley of the
towards west from Nepal (The quantum of rainfall decreases from east to west in Shiwaliks and Ganga Plains).
The southern slopes of Shiwalik rangein Punjab and Himachal Pradesh are almost devoid of forest cover. These
Shiwaliks were formed last of all the ranges (2-20 million years ago).
The Shiwaliks are consolidatedsands, gravels and conglomerate deposits [Alluvial fans] which were brought by the
Name of Shiwaliks
Jammu Region
Jammu Hills
Arunachal Pradesh
Uttarakhand
Nepal
12
Shiwalik Hills were formed by the accumulation of conglomerates (sand, stone, silt, gravel, debris etc.).
Theseconglomerates, in the initial stages of deposition, obstructed the courses of the rivers draining from the
drained away leaving behind plains called duns or doons in the west and duars in the east.
Dehra Dun in Uttarakhand is the best example [75 km long and 15-20 km wide]
Kotah, Patli Kothri, Chumbi, Kyarda, Chaukhamba,Udhampur and Kotli are other important duns.
In between the Shiwaliks in the south and the Greater Himalayas in the north.
Runs almost parallel to both the ranges.
It is also called the Himachal or Lower Himalaya.
Lower Himalayan ranges are 60-80 km wide and about 2400 km in length.
Elevations vary from 3,500 to 4,500 m above sea level.
Many peaks are more than 5,050 m above sea level and are snow covered throughout the year.
Lower Himalayas have steep, bare southern slopes [steep slopes prevents soil formation] and more gentle,
Majority of the Himalayan hill resorts like Shimla, Mussoorie, Ranikhet, Nainital, Almora and Darjeeling, etc. are
located here.
Important ranges of Lesser Himalayas
Region
Himachal Pradesh
Uttarakhand
Mahabharat Lekh
Nepal
The Pir Panjal range in Kashmir is the longest and the most important range.
It extends from the Jhelum river to the upper Beas river for over 300km.
It rises to 5,000 metres and contains mostly volcanic rocks.
Pir Panjal Pass (3,480 m), the Bidil (4,270 m), Golabghar Pass (3,812 m) and Banihal Pass (2,835 m).
The Banihal Pass is used by the Jammu-Srinagar highway and Jammu-Baramula railway.
The Kishanganga, the Jhelum and the Chenab cut through the range.
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Southeast of the Ravi, the Pir Panjal continues as Dhaola Dhar range, passing through Dalhousie, Dharmshala,
and Shimla.
Important Valleys
Between the Pir Panjal and the Zaskar Range of the main Himalayas, lies the valley of Kashmir. (average elevation
A valley perpendicular to the slope or parallel to the ridge [also called as longitudinal valley]
In contrast, transverse streams cut valleys parallel to the slope (along the dip).
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It is mainly formed of the central crystallines (granites and gneisses) overlain by metamorphosed sediments
Region
Nepal
China (Tibet)
Chomlungma (Mother of the World)
Mount Everest was first located by George Everest, the then Surveyor General of India in 1841 and in 1852 it was
established as the highest peak of the world by the Great Trigonometrical Survey of India.
Passes in the Greater Himalayas
The passes because they are generally higher than 4,570 m above sea level and are snowbound for most of the
year.
State
1.
2.
1.
2.
Burzil Pass
Zoji La [La means pass]
Bara Lacha La
Shipki La [The Hindustan-Tibet Road connecting Shimla with Gartok in Western
1.
2.
3.
1.
2.
Tibet]
Thaga La
Niti Pass
Lipu Lekh
Nathu La
Jelep La [important trade route connecting Kalimpong (near Darjeeling) with Lhasa
Himachal Pradesh
Uttarakhand
Sikkim
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Mount Kailas (6714 m). River Indus originates from the northern slopes of the Kailas range.
The northern most range of the Trans-Himalayan Ranges in India is the Great Karakoram Range also known as
5,500 m and above]. It is the abode of some of the greatest glaciers of the world outside the polar regions.
Some of the peaks are more than 8,000 metre above sea level. K2 (8,611 m)[Godwin Austen or Qogir] is the
second highest peak in the world and the highest peak in the Indian Union.
The Ladakh Plateau lies to the north-east of the Karakoram Range. It has been dissected into a number of plains
and mountains [Soda Plains, Aksai Chin, Lingzi Tang, Depsang Plains and Chang Chenmo]
Eastern Hills or The Purvanchal are the southward extension of Himalayas running along the north-eastern edge
of India.
At theDihang gorge, the Himalayas take a sudden southward bend and form a series of comparatively low hills
16
Patkai Bum hills aremade up of strong sandstone; elevation varying from 2,000 m to 3,000 m; merges into Naga
Brahmaputra rivers.
South of the Manipur Hills are the Mizo Hills (previously known as the Lushai hills) which have an elevation of
less than 1,500 metres. The highest point is the Blue Mountain (2,157 m) in the south.
Himalayas extend in the east-west direction from the Indus gorge in the west to the Brahmaputra gorge in the
east.
Himalayan ranges take sharp southward bends at these gorges. These bends are called syntaxial bends of the
Himalayas.
The western syntaxial bend occurs near the Naga Parbat (Karakoram range)where the Indus river has cut a deep
gorge.
17
In this post: Himalayas Regional Divisions Punjab Himalayas, Assam Himalayas, Western Himalayas, Central
Himalayas and Eastern Himalayas.
Himalayas Regional Divisions
Punjab Himalayas
18
Assam Himalayas
Western Himalayas
Between the Indus in the west and the Kali river in the east (880 km).
Spread across three states of Jammu and Kashmir, Himachal Pradesh and Uttarakhand.
It encompasses three physiographic provinces namely Kashmir Himalaya, Himachal Himalaya and Kumaon
and Dhauladhar ranges and the Outer Himalaya by the Shiwalik range.
The southern slopes are rugged, steep and forested while the northern slopes are bare, gentle and show plains
with lakes.
The Kumaon Himalayas lie in Uttarakhand and extend from the Satluj to the Kali river.
The Lesser Himalayas in Kumaon Himalaya is represented by the Mussoorie and Nag Tiba ranges.
The Shiwalik in this region runs south of the Mussoori range between the Ganga and the Yamuna rivers.
The flat valleys between the Lesser Himalaya and the Shiwalik range are called doonsor Duns of which
Dehra Dun is the most famous.
Central Himalayas
800 km between river Kali in the west and river Tista in the east.
The Great Himalaya range attains maximum height in this portion.
Some of the world famous peaks Mt. Everest, Kanchenjunga, Makalu, Annapurna, Gosainthan and Dhaulagiri are
located here.
The Lesser Himalaya is known as Mahabharat Lekh in this region.
The range is crossed by rivers like Ghaghara, Gandak, Kosi, etc.
19
In between the Great and the Lesser Himalayas, there are Kathmandu and Pokhra lacustrine valleys (previously,
Eastern Himalayas
This part of the Himalayas lies between the Tista river in the west and the Brahmaputra river in the east and
Bhutan.
The Assam Himalayas show a marked dominance of fluvial erosion due to heavy rainfall.
The Himalayas take a sudden southward turn after the Dihang gorge and the hill ranges running in more or less
north-south direction along India's border with Myanmar are collectively known as the Purvanchal.
These are known by various local names such as Patkai Bum, Naga hills, Kohima hills, Manipur hills, Mizo hills
(previously known as the Lushai hills), Tripura hills and Barail range.
The extension of the Purvanchal Himalaya continues southwards upto Andaman and Nicobar Islands through the
Myanmar range (Arakan Yoma) and even upto the Indonesian archipelago.
In the eastern section the Himalayas rise abruptly from the plains of Bengal and Oudh and suddenly attain great
elevations within a short distance from the foot of the mountains. Thus the peaks of Kanchenjunga and Everest
are only a few kilometres from the plains and are clearly visible from there.
In contrast, the western Himalayas rise gradually from the plains through a series of ranges. Their peaks of
perpetual snow are 150 to 200 km away from the plain areas.
In this post: Important Valleys in Himalayas Karewas, Snow in Himalayas Snowline, Glaciers in Himalayas and
Significance of the Himalayas.
Important Valleys in Himalayas
The most important valleys in the Himalayan region are
Karewas
Karewas are lacustrine deposits [deposits in lake] in the Valley of Kashmir and in Bhadarwah Valley of the Jammu
Division.
These are the flat topped mounds that border the Kashmir Valley on all sides.
They are characterized with fossils of mammals and at places by peat.
Formation
During the Pleistocene Period (1 million years ago), the entire Valley of Kashmir was under water.
20
Subsequently, due to endogenetic forces, the Baramullah Gorge was created and the lake was drained through
this gorge.
The deposits left in the process are known as karewas.
The thickness of karewas is about 1400 m.
In fact, the karewas have been elevated, dissected and removed by subaerial denudation as well as by the Jhelum
river giving them the present position.
Economic Significance
The karewas are mainly devoted to the cultivation of saffron, almond, walnut, apple and orchards.
The karewas, devoted to saffron cultivation are fetching good income to the growers.
InEastern Himalayas and Kumaon Himalays the snowline is around 3,500 m above sea level whereas in western
Karakoram.
But the major factor is precipitation. Precipitation in western Himalayas is comparatively low and occurs mostly as
snowfall where as in eastern Himalayas the precipitation is greater and occurs mostly in the form of rain.
In the Great Himalayan ranges, the snow line is at lower elevation on the southern slopes than on the northern
slopes because the southern slopes are steeper and receive more precipitation as compared to the northern slopes.
Glaciers in Himalayas
The glaciers of the Pir Panjal Range are less numerous and smaller in size as compared to those of the Karakoram
Range.
The longest Sonapani Glacier in the Chandra Valley of Lahul and Spiti region is only 15 km long.
21
In the Kumaon-Garhwal region of the Himalayas, the largest is the 30 km long Gangotri Glacier which is the source of
the holy Ganga.
Garhwal Region
Lying in the Himalayas, it is bounded on the north by Tibet, on the east by Kumaon region, on the south by Uttar
They intercept the summer monsoons coming from the Bay of Bengal and Arabian Sea causing precipitation in the
of the rainfall due to Western Disturbances coming from the Mediterranean regions).
They protect northern-plains from the cold continental air masses of central Asia.
The Himalayas influence the path of Sub-tropical Jetstream flowing in the region. They split the jet stream and this
Defense
Source of Rivers
22
Rivers that feed nearly half a billion population of India originate in Himalayas. [we will study this in detail later in
drainage system]
All the rivers are perennial supplying water year round.
Fertile Soil
The swift flowing rivers from Himalayas bring enormous amount of silt (alluvium) which constantly enrich the Ganaga
and Bramhaputra plains.
Hydroelectricity
Due to its natural topography and swift flowing perennial rivers, the Himalayan region offers several natural sites with
Forest Wealth
The Himalayan host rich coniferous and evergreen forests. Lower levels have tropical evergreen forests and higher
Agriculture
Due to rugged and sloped terrain, the Himalayas are not potential agricultural sites.
Some slopes are terraced for cultivation. Rice is the main crop on the terraced slopes. The other crops are wheat,
Tourism
Cultural Tourism
Geosynclinical deposits in tertiary rocks are regions of potential coal and oil reserves.
23
Coal is found in Kashmir, Copper, lead, zinc, gold, silver, limestone, semi-precious and precious stones occur at some
24
25
Most of the passes remain closed in winter (Nov Apr) due to heavy snow fall.
SIGNIFICANCE (CONNECTS)
Kashmir and China
COMMENTS
26
Parpik Pass
Khunjerab Pass
Indo-China border
Aghil Pass
Province of China
Jammu and Srinigar
2832 m
across the Pir-Panjal Range
remains snow covered during winter season
The road from Jammu to Srinagar transversed Banihal Pass until 1956 when Jawahar
Tunnel was constructed under the pass. The road now passes through the tunnel and the
Chang-La
Khardung La
altitude of 5360 m
Lanak La
Qara Tag La
Imis La
Karakoram Range
Ladakh region of India and
Pensi La
Tibet in China
vital link between the
Zoji La
heavy snowfall
The road passing through this pass has been designated at
is
responsible
for
side
Elevation: 4,890 m
National highway connecting Mandi in Himachal Pradesh
with Leh in Jammu and Kashmir passes through this pass.
Being situated at high altitude, it remains snow covered in
Debsa Pass
27
Rohtang Pass
districts
trijunction of Uttarakhand
Uttarakhand
Lipu Lekh
Nepal borders
Uttarakhand with Tibet
Mangsha Dhura
Niti Pass
elevation of 5610
Muling La
altitude of 4310 m
it forms part of an offshoot of the ancient Silk Route
an important trade route between India and China
It was closed after the Chinese aggression on India in 1962
but was reopened in 2006 as the governments of the two
Jelep La
Sikkim-Bhutan border
altitude of 4331 m
Situated at an altitude of 4331 m near the western boundary
Arunachal Pradesh
Bom Di La
Bhutan
Dihang Pass
Yonggyap Pass
Myanmar.
Arunachal Pradesh with Tibet
Dipher Pass
and Myanmar
Kumjawng Pass
28
Hpungan Pass
Myanmar
Arunachal Pradesh with
Chankan Pass
Myanmar
Arunachal Pradesh with
Myanmar
In this post: Formation of Indo Gangetic Brahmaputra Plain, Features of Indo Gangetic Brahmaputra Plain,
Geomorphological features of Indo Gangetic Brahmaputra Plain: Bhabar, Terai, Bhangar, Khadar and Reh or Kollar.
Formation of Indo Gangetic Brahmaputra Plain
29
The rivers which were previously flowing into Tethys sea (Before Indian Plate collided with Eurasian Plate
continental drift, plate tectonics) deposited huge amount of sediments in the Tethys Geosyncline. [Geosyncline
a huge depression]
Himalayas are formed out of these sediments which were uplifted, folded and compressed due to northern
Depositional Activity
During the initial stages of upliftment of sediments, the already existing rivers changed their course several times
and they were rejuvenated each time (perpetual youth stage of rivers {Fluvial Landforms}).
The rejuvenation is associated with intense headward and vertical downcutting of the soft strata overlying the
contributed huge amount of conglomerates (detritus)(rock debris, silt, clay etc.) which were carried downslope.
[Head ward erosion== Erosion at the origin of a stream channel, which causes the origin to move back away from
the direction of the stream flow, and so causes the stream channel to lengthen]
These conglomerates were deposited in the depression (Indo-Gangetic Trough or Indo-Gangetic syncline) (the
base of the geosyncline is a hard crystalline rock) between peninsular India and the convergent boundary (the
region of present day Himalayas).
The raising of Himalayas and subsequent formation of glaciers gave rise to many new rivers. These rivers along
with glacial erosion {Glacial Landforms}, supplied more alluvium which intensified the filling of the depression.
With the accumulation of more and more sediments (conglomerates), the Tethys sea started receding.
With passage of the time, the depression was completely filled with alluvium, gravel, rock debris (conglomerates)
and the Tethys completely disappeared leaving behind a monotonous aggradational plain.
[monotonous== featureless topography; aggradational plain== plain formed due to depositional activity. Indo-
30
Purvanchal hills.
The width of the plain varies from region to region. It is widest in the west where it stretches for about 500 km. Its
the basement rocks is about 6,100 m (not uniform and varies greatly from place to place).
The cones or alluvial fans of Kosi in the north and those of Son in the south exhibit greater alluvial thickness
system).
Its average gradient from Saharanpur to Kolkata is only 20 cm per km and it decreases to 15 cm per km from
Varanasi to the Ganga delta.
31
The area is not suitable for agriculture and only big trees with large roots thrive in this belt.
The Terai
Terai is an ill-drained, damp (marshy) and thickly forested narrow tract to the south of Bhabar running
parallel to it.
The Terai is about15-30 km wide.
The underground streams of the Bhabar belt re-emerge in this belt.
This thickly forested region provides shelter to a variety of wild life. [Jim Corbett National Park in Uttarakhand
and Kaziranga National Park in Assam lie in terai region]
The Terai is more marked in the eastern part than in the west because the eastern parts receive comparatively
The Bhangar
The Bhangar is the older alluvium along the river beds forming terraceshigher than the flood plain.
The terraces are often impregnated with calcareous concretions known as KANKAR.
The Barind plains in the deltaic region of Bengal and the bhur formations in the middle Ganga and Yamuna
doab are regional variations of Bhangar.
[Bhur denotes an elevated piece of land situated along the banks of the Ganga river especially in the upper GangaYamuna Doab. This has been formed due to accumulation of wind-blown sands during the hot dry months of the
year]
The Khadar
The Khadar is composed of newer alluvium and forms the flood plains along the river banks.
A new layer of alluvium is deposited by river flood almost every year.
This makes them the most fertile soils of Ganges.
Reh or Kollar
Sindh Plain
Rajasthan Plain.
Punjab Plain.
Ganga Plain.
32
5.
6.
Brahmaputra Plain.
Ganga Brahmaputra Delta
Rajasthan Plain
Saline Lakes
North of the Luni, there is inland drainage having several saline lakes. They are a source of common salt and
Punjab Plain
Ganga Plain
33
rivers:
This is the largest unit of the Great Plain of India stretching from Delhi to Kolkata (about 3.75 lakh sq km).
The Ganga along with its large number of tributaries originating in the Himalayans have brought large quantities
of alluvium from the mountains and deposited it here to build this extensive plain.
The peninsular rivers such as Chambal, Betwa, Ken, Son, etc. joining the Ganga river system have also
such as levees, bluffs, oxbow lakes, marshes, ravines, etc. {Fluvial Landforms, Arid Landfroms}
Almost all the rivers keep on shifting their courses making this area prone to frequent floods. The Kosi river is
very notorious in this respect. It has long been called the Sorrow of Bihar.
Rohilkhand plains
Avadh Plains
Mithila Plain
Magadh Plain.
Ganga-Brahmaputra Delta
km. Two thirds of the area is below 30 m above mean sea level. [Highly vulnerable to sea level changes]
The seaward face of the delta is studded with a large number of estuaries, mud flats, mangrove swamps,
Brahmaputra Plain
This is also known as the Brahmaputra valley or Assam Valley or Assam Plain as most of the Brahmaputra
This one fourth of the land of the country hosts half of the Indian population.
Fertile alluvial soils, flat surface, slow moving perennial rivers and favorable climate facilitate intense agricultural
activity.
The extensive use of irrigation has made Punjab, Haryana and western part of Uttar Pradesh the granary of India
(Prairies are called the granaries of the world).
34
The entire plain except the Thar Desert, has a close network of roads and railways which has led to large scale
In this post: Peninsular Plateau Features of the Peninsular Plateau Marwar Plateau or Mewar Plateau, Central
Highland, Bundelkhand Upland, Malwa Plateau, Baghelkhand, Chotanagpur Plateau, Meghalaya Plateau, Deccan Plateau,
Maharashtra Plateau, Karnataka Plateau, Telangana plateau and Chhattisgarh Plain.
PeninsularPlateau
35
Roughly triangular in shape with its base coinciding with the southern edge of the great plain of North India.
36
Narmada-Tapti are the exceptions which flow from east to west in a rift (rift is caused by divergent boundary
It is the plateau of eastern Rajasthan. [Marwar plain is to the west of Aravalis whereas Marwar plateau is to the
east].
The average elevation is 250-500 m above sea level and it slopes down eastwards.
It is made up of sandstone, shales and limestones of the Vindhayan period.
The Banas river, along with its tributaries [Berach river, Khari rivers] originate in the Aravali Range and flow
towards northwest into Chambal river. The erosional activity of these rives make the plateau top appear like a
rolling plain.
[Rolling Plain: Rolling plains are not completely flat: there are slight rises and fall in the land form. Ex:
Prairies of USA]
Central Highland
and the Parbati flowing from Madhya Pradesh are its main tributaries.
It is a rolling plateau with rounded hills composed of sandstone. Thick forests grow here.
To the north are the ravines or badlands of the Chambal river [They are typical to Chambal river basin]{ Arid
landforms}.
Bundelkhand Upland
Yamuna river to the north, Madhya Bharat Pathar to the west, Vindhyan Scarplands to the east and south-east
and gneiss.
Spreads over five districts of Uttar Pradesh and four districts of Madhya Pradesh.
Average elevation of 300-600 m above sea level, this area slopes down from the Vindhyan Scarp toward the
Yamuna River.
The area is marked by a chain of hillocks (small hill) made of granite and sandstone.
The erosional work of the rivers flowing here have converted it into an undulating (wave like surface) area and
rendered it unfit for cultivation.
37
Malwa Plateau
The Malwa Plateau roughly forms a triangle based on the Vindhyan Hills, bounded by the Aravali Range in the
west and Madhya Bharat Pathar to the north and Bundelkhand to the east.
This plateau has two systems of drainage; one towards the Arabian sea (The Narmada, the Tapi and the Mahi),
and the other towards the Bay of Bengal (Chambal and Betwa, joining the Yamuna).
In the north it is drained by the Chambal and many of its right bank tributaries like the Kali, the Sindh and the
Parbati. It also includes the upper courses of the Sindh, the Ken and the Betwa.
It is composed of extensive lava flow and is covered with black soils.
The general slope is towards the north [decreases from 600 m in the south to less than 500 m in the north]
This is a rolling plateau dissected by rivers. In the north, the plateau is marked by the Chambal ravines.
Baghelkhand
Chotanagpur Plateau
This plateau has isolated hills. It looks like a peneplain due to large scale erosion.
The Ranchi Plateau to the south of the Damodar Valley rises to about 600 m above mean sea level. Most of the
38
Meghalaya Plateau
The peninsular plateau extends further east beyond the Rajmahal hills to from Meghalaya or the Shillong
plateau.
Garo-Rajmahal Gap separates this plateau from the main block.
This gap was formed by down-faulting (normal fault: a block of earth slides downwards). It was later filled by
Deccan Plateau
the Maikal in the north, the Western Ghats in the west and the Eastern Ghats in the east.
Its average elevation is 600 m.
It rises to 1000 m in the south but dips to 500 m in the north.
Its general slope is from west to east which is indicated by the flow of its major rivers.
Rivers have further subdivided this plateau into a number of smaller plateaus.
Maharashtra Plateau
Karnataka Plateau
Telangana plateau
39
Chhattisgarh Plain
The Chhattisgarh plain is the only plain worth the name in the Peninsular plateau.
It is a saucer shaped depression drained by the upper Mahanadi.
The whole basin lies between the Maikala Range and the Odisha hills.
The region was once ruled by Haithaivanshi Rajputs from whose thirty six forts (Chhattisgarh) it derives its
name.
The basin is laid with nearly horizontal beds of limestone and shales.
The general elevation of the plain ranges from 250 m in the east to 330 m in the west.
In this post: Hills of Peninsular India - Aravalis, Vindhyas, Satpuras, Western Ghats, Sahyadris, Eastern Ghats. Hill
Ranges of the Peninsular Plateau - Aravali Range, Vindhyan Range, Satpura Range, Western Ghats [Sahyadris] and
Eastern Ghats.
Hill Ranges of the Peninsular Plateau
Most of the hills in the peninsular region are of the relict type (residual hills).
They are the remnants of the hills and horsts formed many million years ago (horst: uplifted block; graben:
subsided block).
The plateaus of the Peninsular region are separated from one another by these hill ranges and various river
valleys.
Aravali Range
Block Mountains}
After its formation in Archaean Era (several 100 million years ago), its summits werenourishing glaciers and
several summits were probably higher than the present day Himalayas.
Now they are relict (remnants after severe weathering and erosion since millions of years) of the world's oldest
less distinct in Haryana and Delhi (characterized by a chain of detached and discontinuous ridges beyond Ajmer).
According to some geographers, one Branch of the Aravalis extends to the Lakshadweep Archipelago through the
Gulf of Khambhat and the other into Andhra Pradesh and Karnataka.
Its general elevation is only 400-600 m, with few hills well above 1,000 m.
At the south-west extremity the range rises to over 1,000 m. Here Mt. Abu (1,158 m), a small hilly block, is
separated from the main range by the valley of the Banas. Guru Sikhar (1,722 m), the highest peak, is situated
in Mt. Abu.
Pipli Ghat, Dewair and Desuri passes allow movement by roads and railways.
40
Vindhyan Range
The Vindhyan Range, overlooking (have a view of from above) the Narmada valley, rises as an escarpment (a long,
steep slope at the edge of a plateau or separating areas of land at different heights) flanking (neighboring on one side) the
northern edge of the Narmada-Son Trough (the rift through which the Narmada river flows)(trough is opposite of
System}
The Vindhyas are continued eastwards as the Bharner and Kaimur hills.
This range acts as a watershed between the Ganga system and the river systems of south India.
The rivers Chambal, Betwa and Ken rise within 30 km of the Narmada.
Satpura Range
Satpura range is a series of seven mountains (Sat = seven and pura = mountains)
41
It runs in an east-west direction south of the Vindhyas and in between the Narmada and the Tapi, roughl parallel
to
these
42
rivers.
km.
The Western Ghats are steep-sided, terraced, flat-topped hills presenting a stepped topography facing the Arabian
Sea coast.
This is due to the horizontally bedded lavas, which on weathering, have given a characteristic landing stair
Plain.
But they slope gently on their eastern flank and hardly appear to be a mountain when viewed from the Deccan
tableland.
South of Malabar, the Nilgiris, Anamalai, etc. present quite different landscape due to the difference in geological
structure.
The northern section of the Ghats from Tapi valley to a little north of Goa is made of horizontal sheets of Deccan
heights.
Kalasubai (1,646 m) near Igatpuri, Salher (1,567 m) about 90 km north of Nashik, Mahabaleshwar (1,438 m) and
The Middle Sahyadri runs from 16N latitude upto Nilgiri hills.
This part is made of granites and gneisses.
This area is covered with dense forests.
The western scarp is considerably dissected by headward erosion of the west flowing streams.
The average height is 1200 m but many peaks exceed 1500 m.
The Vavul Mala (2,339 m), the Kudremukh (1,892 m) and Pashpagiri (1,714 m) are important peaks.
The Nilgiri Hills which join the Sahyadris near the trijunction of Karnataka, Kerala and TN, rise abruptly to over
2,000 m.
They mark the junction of the Western Ghats with Eastern Ghats.
Doda Betta (2,637 m) and Makurti (2,554 m) are important peaks of this area.
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The southern part of the Western Ghats is separated from the main Sahyadri range by Palghat Gap [Palakkad
Gap].
The high ranges terminate abruptly on either side of this gap.
Palghat Gap it is a rift valley. This gap is used by a number of roads and railway lines to connect the plains of
Eastern Ghats
Eastern Ghats run almost parallel to the east coast of India leaving broad plains between their base and the coast.
It is a chain of highly broken and detached hills starting from the Mahanadi in Odisha to the Vagai in Tamil
Nadu. They almost disappear between the Godavari and the Krishna.
They neither have structural unity nor physiographic continuity. Therefore these hill groups are generally treated
as independent units.
It is only in the northern part, between the Mahanadi and the Godavari that the Eastern Ghats exhibit true
mountain character. This part comprises the Maliya and the Madugula Konda ranges.
The peaks and ridges of the Maliya range have a general elevation of 900-1,200 m and Mahendra Giri (1,501 m)
Pradesh where they are called as Nallamalai Range [Naxalite hideout in AP] with general elevation of 600-850 m.
The southern part of this range is called the Palkodna range.
To the south, the hills and plateaus attain very low altitudes; only Javadi Hills and the Shevroy-Kalrayan Hills
There are huge deposits of iron, manganese. copper, bauxite, chromium, mica, gold, etc.
98 per cent of the Gondwana coal deposits of India are found in the Peninsular Plateau.
Besides there are large reserves of slate, shale, sandstones, marbles, etc.
A large part of north-west plateau is covered with fertile black lava soil which is extremely useful for growing
cotton.
Some hilly regions in south India are suitable for the cultivation of plantation crops like tea, coffee, rubber, etc..
Some low lying areas of the plateau are suitable for growing rice.
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The highlands of the plateau are covered with different types of forests which provide a large variety of forest
products.
The rivers originating in the Western Ghats offer great opportunity for developing hydroelectricity and providing
In this post: Coastline of India Indian Coastline - East Coast of India, West Coast of India, Coastlines: Coastlines of
Emergence and Submergence; Western Coastal Plains Kutch and Kathiawar region: Gujarat Plain, Konkan Plain,
Karnataka Coastal Plain and Kerala Plain; Eastern Coastal Plains of India: Utkal Plain, Andhra Plain and Tamil Nadu
Plain; Significance of the Coastal Plains.
Coastline of India Indian Coastline
India has a coastline of 7516.6 Km [6100 km of mainland coastline + coastline of 1197 Indian islands]
45
[Indented coastlines of Europe provide good natural harbours whereas African and Indian coastlines are not
indented].
The Bay of Bengal and the Arabian Sea came into being during the Cretaceous or early Tertiary period after
the disintegration of Gondwanaland.
The west coast strip extends from the Gulf of Cambay (Gulf of Khambhat) in the north to Cape Comorin
(Kanniyakumari).
Starting from north to south, it is divided into (i) the Konkan coast, (ii) the Karnataka coast and (iii) the Kerala
cost.
It is made up of alluvium brought down by the short streams originating from the Western Ghats.
It is dotted with a large number of coves (a very small bay), creeks (a narrow, sheltered waterway such as an inlet in
Coastlines
Already explained in Marine Landforms. I am discussing here for continuity.
1.
2.
Coastline of Emergence
Coastline of Submergence
Coastline of emergence is formed either by an uplift of the land or by the lowering of the sea level. Coastline of
submergence is an exact opposite case.
46
Bars, spits, lagoons, salt marshes, beaches, sea cliffs and arches are the typical features of emergence. {Marine
Landforms}
The east coast of India, especially its south-eastern part (Tamil Nadu coast), appears to be a coast of emergence.
The west coast of India, on the other hand, is both emergent and submergent.
The northern portion of the coast is submerged as a result of faulting and the southern portion, that is the Kerala
coast, is an example of an emergent coast.
1. Coramandal coast (Tamil Nadu) ==> Coastline of emergence
2. Malabar coast (Kerala Coast) ==> Coastline of emergence
3. Konkan coast (Maharashtra and Goa Coast) ==> Coastline of submergence.
Kutch and Kathiawar, though an extension of Peninsular plateau (because Kathiawar is made of the Deccan Lava
and there are tertiary rocks in the Kutch area), they are still treated as integral part of the Western Coastal Plains
of volcanic origin.
The Gir Range is located in the southern part of the Kathiawar peninsula. It is covered with dense forests and is
famous as home of the Gir lion.
Gujarat Plain
The Gujarat Plain lies east of Kachchh and Kathiawar and slopes towards the west and south west.
Formed by the rivers Narmada, Tapi, Mahi and Sabarmati, the plain includes the southern part of Gujarat and
Konkan Plain
The Konkan Plain south of the Gujarat plain extends from Daman to Goa (50 to 80 km wide).
It has some features of marine erosion including cliffs, shoals, reefs and islands in the Arabian Sea.
The Thane creek around Mumbai is an important embayment (a recess in a coastline forming a bay) which provides
an excellent natural harbour.
Goa to Mangalore.
47
It is a narrow plain with an average width of 30-50 km, the maximum being 70 km near Mangalore.
At some places the streams originating in the Western Ghats descend along steep slopes and make waterfalls.
The Sharavati while descending over such a steep slope makes an impressive waterfall known as Gersoppa (Jog)
Falls which is 271 m high. [Angel falls (979 m) in Venezuela is the highest waterfall on earth. Tugela Falls (948
Kerala Plain
coastline.
The largest among these is the Vembanad Lake which is about 75 km long and 5-10 km wide and gives rise to a
55 km long spit {Marine Landforms}.
Extending from the Subarnarekha river along the West Bengal-Odisha border to Kanniyakumari.
A major part of the plains is formed as a result of the alluvial fillings of the littoral zone ( relating to or on the shore of
the sea or a lake) by the rivers Mahanadi, Godavari, Krishna and Cauvery comprising some of the largest deltas.
In contrast to the West Coastal Plains, these are extensive plains with an average width of 120 km.
This plain is known as the Northern Circars between the Mahanadi and the Krishna rivers and Carnatic
between the Krishna and the Cauvery rivers.
Utkal Plain
monsoon months.
South of Chilka Lake, low hills dot the plain.
Andhra Plain
South of the Utkal Plain and extends upto Pulicat Lake. This lake has been barred by a long sand spit known as
Emergence}.
This part of the plain has a straight coast and badly lacks good harbours with the exception of Vishakhapatnam
and Machilipatnam.
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The Tamil Nadu Plain stretches for 675 km from Pulicat lake to Kanniyakumari along the coast of Tamil Nadu. Its
Large parts of the coastal plains of India are covered by fertile soils on which different crops are grown. Rice is the
In this post: Indian Islands - Andaman and Nicobar islands - Lakshadweep Islands - New Moore Island.
Indian Islands
The major islands groups of India are Andaman and Nicobar Archipelago (A chain of islands similar in origin) in
49
Other than these two groups there are islands in Indo-Gangetic Delta [they are more a part of delta than islands]
and between India and Sri Lanka [Remnants of Adams Bridge; formed due to submergence].
This archipelago is composed of 265 big and small islands [203 Andaman islands + 62 Nicobar Islands][Numbers
are just for understanding. You need not remember trivial facts].
The Andaman and Nicobar islands extend from 6 45' N to 13 45' N and from 92 10' E to 94 15' E for a distance
are mountainous.
Saddle peak (737 m) in North Andaman is the highest peak.
50
Lakshadweep Islands
51
It is a small uninhabited offshore sandbar landform {Marine Landforms} in the Bay of Bengal, off the coast of the
disappearing.
Although the island was uninhabited and there were no permanent settlements or stations located on it, both
India and Bangladesh claimed sovereignty over it because of speculation over the existence of oil and
52
Drainage basin, Drainage Divide, Difference between a River Basin and a Watershed. Drainage patterns Discordant
drainage patterns and Concordant Drainage Patterns.
Drainage basin
Other terms that are used to describe drainage basins are catchment, catchment area, catchment basin,
Drainage Divide
Adjacent drainage basins are separated from one another by a drainage divide.Drainage divide is usually a ridge
or a high platform.
Drainage divide is conspicuous in case of youthful topography [Himalayas] and it is not well marked in plains
[Ganga plains] and senile topography [old featureless landforms Rolling plateaus of Peninsular region though
which South Indian rivers flow].
Type
Continent
Drains to
Basin Area
km2
Amazon River
Primary River
South America
Atlantic Ocean
6,144,727
Hudson Bay
Mediterranean sea
North America
Atlantic Ocean
3,861,400
Congo River
Primary River
Africa
Atlantic Ocean
3,730,474
Caspian Sea
Lake
Asia/Europe
(endorheic basin ==
3,626,000
Nile River
Primary River
Africa
not outlet)
Mediterranean Sea
3,254,555
Mississippi-Missouri
Primary River
North America
Gulf of Mexico
3,202,230
Lake Chad
Lake
Africa
2,497,918
Black Sea
Mediterranean sea
multiple
Mediterranean Sea
2,400,000
Niger River
Primary River
Africa
Atlantic Ocean
2,261,763
Primary River
Asia
Pacific Ocean
1,722,155
Baltic Sea
Mediterranean sea
Europe
Atlantic Ocean[4]
1,700,000
GangesBrahmaputra
Primary River
Asia
Bay of Bengal
1,621,000
Indus River
Primary River
Asia
Arabian Sea
1,081,733
River
Jiang)
Both river basins and watersheds are areas of land that drain to a particular water body, such as a lake, stream,
river or estuary.
53
In a river basin, all the water drains to a large river. The term watershed is used to describe a smaller area of land
that drains to a smaller stream, lake or wetland. There are many smaller watersheds within a river basin.
Example: watershed of Yamuna + water shed of Chambal + watershed of Gandak + . = Drainage basin of Ganga.
Drainage patterns
Based on the shape and formation of river patters, there are different drainage patterns.
A drainage pattern is described as discordant if it does not correlate to the topology [surface relief features]
and geology[geological features based on both Endogenetic movements and exogenetic movements] of the area.
In simple words: In a discordant drainage pattern, the river follows its initial path irrespective of the changes in
topography.
Discordant drainage patterns are classified into two main types: antecedent and superimposed.
A part of a river slope and the surrounding area gets uplifted and the river sticks to its original slope, cutting
through the uplifted portion like a saw [Vertical erosion or Vertical down cutting], and forming deep gorges: this
type of drainage is called Antecedent drainage.
Example: Indus, Sutlej, Brahmaputra and other Himalayan rivers that are older than the Himalayas
themselves. There are usually called as ANTECEDENT RIVERS.
Superimposed orEpigenetic (Discordant) or Superinduced Drainage
When a river flowing over a softer rock stratum reaches the harder basal rocks but continues to follow the initial
slope, it seems to have no relation with the harder rock bed. This type of drainage is called superimposed
drainage.
Usually, the drainage patterns (dendritic, trellis, etc.) are strongly influenced by the hardness and softness of the
the stream and therefore, gives the stream more erosive power.
The stream has enough erosive power that it cuts its way through any kind of bedrock, maintaining its former
drainage pattern.
You get a situation, then, where the drainage pattern does not correspond to the hardness or softness of the
originally developed on a cover of rocks that has now disappeared due to denudation.
Consequently, river directions relate to the former cover rocks and, as the latter were being eroded, the rivers have
been able to retain their courses unaffected by the newly exposed structures.
The stream pattern is thus superposed on, or placed on structural features that were previously buried.
The Damodar, the Subarnarekha, the Chambal, the Banas and the rivers flowing at the Rewa Plateau present
some good examples of superimposed drainage.
54
Examples:The Damodar, the Subarnarekha, the Chambal, the Banas and the rivers flowing at the Rewa
Antecedent Drainage ==Cut through the newly formed landform and maintain the same path == Himalayan Rivers.
Superimposed Drainage ==Cut deeper through the existing landform and maintain the same path == Some medium
scale rivers of the Northern and Eastern peninsular India.
Antecedent Drainage == The soil formed is weak and it is easily eroded by the rivers.
Superimposed Drainage == The rivers have high erosive power so that they can cut through the underlying strata.
Usually, rivers in both these drainage types flow through a highly sloping surface.
Concordant Drainage Patterns
A drainage pattern is described as concordant if it correlates to the topologyand geologyof the area.
In simple words:In a concordant drainage pattern, the path of the river is highly dependent on the slope of the river
and topography.
Concordant drainage patterns are the most commonly found drainage patterns and are classified into many types.
Consequent Rivers
The rivers which follow the general direction of slope are known as the consequent rivers.
Most of the rivers of peninsular India are consequent rivers.
For example, rivers like Godavari, Krishna and Cauvery, descending from the Western Ghats and flowing into
the Bay of Bengal, are some of the consequent rivers of Peninsular India.
Subsequent Rivers
A tributary stream that is eroded along an underlying belt of non-resistant rock after the main drainage pattern
tree.
A dendritic pattern develops in a terrain which has
uniform lithology, and where faulting and jointing are
insignificant.
55
the
main
stream
atright
angles,
and
for tributaries.
Examples: The
old
folded
mountains
of
the
The main stream bends at right angles and the tributaries join at right angles creating rectangular patterns.
This pattern has a subsequent origin.
Example: Colorado river (USA),streams found is the Vindhyan Mountains of India.
The tributaries from a summit follow the slope downwards and drain down in all directions.
Examples: Streams of Saurashtra region, Central French Plateau, Mt. Kilimanjaro.
A good example of a radial drainage pattern is provided by the
When the upland has an outer soft stratum, the radial streams develop
subsequent tributaries which try to follow a circular drainage around the
summit.
Example: Black Hill streams of South Dakota.
This is not a very common drainage pattern in India. Some examples of this are
however found in Pithoragarh (Uttarakhand), Nilgiri Hills in Tamil Nadu and
Kerala.
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The tributaries seem to be running parallel to each other in a uniformly sloping region.
Example: Rivers of lesser Himalayas and The small and swift rivers originating in
the Western Ghats that flow into Arabian Sea.
A pattern of drainage in which the confluence of a tributary with the main river is characterized by a discordant
In this post: Contribution of Water by Various Rivers, Classification of Drainage Systems of India and Major River System
or Drainage Systems in India.
Contribution of Water by Various Rivers
River
% Contribution of water
Brahmaputra
~ 40
Ganga
~ 25
Godavari
~ 6.4
Mahanadi
~ 3.5
Krishna
~ 3.4
Narmada
~ 2.9
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Rest
~ 20
Major river
20,000
Medium river
20,000 2,000
Minor river
The Himalayan Rivers: Perennial rivers: Indus, the Ganga, the Brahmaputra and their tributaries.
The Peninsular Rivers: Non-Perennial rivers: Mahanadi, the Godavari, the Krishna, the Cauvery, the Narmada and
the Tapi and their tributaries.
Himalayan rivers, Deccan rivers and Coastal rivers that drain into the sea.
Rivers of the inland drainage basin (endorheic basin).Streams like the Sambhar in western Rajasthan are mainly
seasonal in character, draining into the inland basins and salt lakes. In the Rann of Kutch, the only river that
flows through the salt desert is the Luni.
The Bay of Bengal drainage (Rivers that drain into Bay of Bengal)(East flowing rivers)
Arabian sea drainage (Rivers that drain into Arabian sea)(West flowing rivers).
The rivers Narmada (Indias holiest river) and Tapti flow almost parallel to each other but empty themselves in opposite
directions (West flowing). The two rivers make the valley rich in alluvial soil and teak forests cover much of the land.
The area covered by The Bay of Bengal drainage and Arabian Sea drainage are not proportional to the amount of water
that drains trough them.
Over 90 per cent of the water drains into the Bay of Bengal; the rest is drained into the Arabian Sea or forms
inland drainage.
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The Arabian Sea drainage or Western drainage receive less rainfall [Rajasthan, Haryana and Punjab receive very low
rainfall].
The Eastern drainage or the Bay of Bengal drainage receives rainfall both from South-west and North-east monsoons.
Most of the Himalayan waters (perennial rivers) flow into eastern drainage (Ganges and Brahmaputra).
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Indian Rivers that flow into Arabian Sea are seasonal or non-perennial (Luni, Narmada, etc.).
Occurrence of more cyclonic rainfall in the eastern parts is another major reason.
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The Indus, the Ganga and the Brahmaputra comprise the Himalayan river systems.
The Himalayan Rivers existed even before the formation of Himalayas i.e. before the collision of Indian Plate with
Himalayas.
They continued to flow throughout the building phase of the Himalayas; their banks rising steeply while the beds
went lower and lower due to vertical erosion (Vertical down cutting was significant and was occurring at a rate faster
Sanskrit
Sinthos
Greek
Sindus
Latin
Source
Indus
Glaciers
Length
of
Kailas
Range
(Close
to
Manasarovar Lake)
2880 km total.
710 km in India
Jhelum
Verinag
720 km
Chenab
1180 km
Ravi
725 km
Beas
460 km
Satluj
Manasarovar-Rakas Lakes
1450 km total
1050 km in India
previous posts
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Indus River
62
Average elevation at which the Indus flows through JK is about 4000 m above sea level.
It is joined by the Zaskar River at Leh(these kind of points are important for prelims).
Near Skardu, it is joined by the Shyok at an elevation of about 2,700 m.
The Gilgit, Gartang, Dras, Shiger, Hunza are the other Himalayan tributaries of the Indus.
It crosses the Himalayas (ends its mountainous journey) through a 5181 m deep gorge near Attock, lying north of the
tributariesthe Jhelum, the Chenab, the Ravi, the Beas and the Satluj.
The river empties into the Arabian Sea south of Karachi after forming a huge delta.
The Jhelum has its source in a spring at Verinag in the south-eastern part of the Kashmir Valley.
It flows northwards into Wular Lake (north-western part of Kashmir Valley). From Wular Lake, it changes its course
Chenab River
The Chenab originates from near the Bara Lacha Pass in the Lahul-Spiti part of the Zaskar Range.
Two small streams on opposite sides of the pass, namely Chandra and Bhaga, form its headwaters at an altitude of
4,900 m.
The united stream Chandrabhaga flows in the north-west direction through the Pangi valley, parallel to the Pir
Panjal range.
Near Kistwar, it cuts a deep gorge.
It enters the plain area near Akhnur in Jammu and Kashmir.
From here it through the plains of Pakistani Punjab to reach Panchnad where it joins the Satluj after receiving the
waters of Jhelum and Ravi rivers.
Ravi River
The Ravi has its source in Kullu hills near the Rohtang Pass in Himachal Pradesh.
It drains the area between the Pir Panjal and the Dhaola Dhar ranges.
After crossing Chamba, it takes a south-westerly turn and cuts a deep gorge in the Dhaola Dhar range.
It enters Punjab Plains near Madhopur and later enters Pakistan below Amritsar.
It debouches into the Chenab a little above Rangpur in Pakistani Punjab.
Beas River
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The Beas originates near the Rohtang Pass, at a height of 4,062 m above sea level, on the southern end of the Pir
Punjab.
It is a comparatively small river which is only 460 km long but lies entirely within the Indian territory.
Satluj River
The Satluj rises from the Manasarovar-Rakas Lakes in western Tibet at a height of 4,570 m within 80 km of the
constructed.
After entering the plain at Rupnagar (Ropar), it turns westwards and is joined by the Beas at Harike.
From near Ferozepur to Fazilka it forms the boundary between India and Pakistan for nearly 120 km.
During its onward journey it receives the collective drainage of the Ravi, Chenab and Jhelum rivers. It joins the Indus
The waters of the Indus river system are shared by India and Pakistan according to the Indus Water Treaty signed
In this post: Ganga River System - Ganga River: Ganga Brahmaputra Delta.
Right Bank Tributaries of The Ganga: Yamuna River, Chambal River, Banas River, Betwa River, Ken River, Son River,
Damodar river.
Left Bank Tributaries of The Ganga River, Ramganga River, Ghaghra River, Kali River, Gandak River, Burhi Gandak, Kosi
River.
Brahmaputra River System.
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65
River
Source
Bhagirathi (Ganga)
Gangotri glacier
Yamuna
Chambal
Banas
Aravali Range
Betwa
Bhopal district
Ken
Barner Range
Son
Amarkantak Plateau
Chotanagpur plateau
Ramganga River
Ghaghra River
Glaciers of trans-Himalayas
Gandak River
Tibet-Nepal border
Burhi Gandak
Ganga River
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The Ganga originates as Bhagirathi from the Gangotri glacier in Uttar Kashi District of Uttarakhand at an
elevation of 7,010 m.
Alaknanda River joins Bhagirathi at Devaprayag.
From Devapryag the river is called as Ganga.
The Ganges was ranked as the fifth most polluted river of the world in 2007.
Pollution threatens many fish species and amphibian species and the endangered Ganges river dolphin
(Blind Dolphin).
The Ganga Action Plan, an environmental initiative to clean up the river, has been a major failure thus far,
due to corruption, lack of technical expertise, poor environmental planning, and lack of support from
religious authorities.
Bheling
Ganga debouches [emerge from a confined space into a wide, open area] from the hills into plain area at
Haridwar.
It is joined by the Yamuna at Allahabad.
Near Rajmahal Hills it turns to the south-east.
At Farraka, it bifurcates into Bhagirathi-Hugli in West Bengal and Padma-Meghna in Bangladesh (it ceases to
Before entering the Bay of Bengal, the Ganga, along with the Brahmaputra, forms the largest delta of the world
between the Bhagirathi/Hugli and the Padma/Meghna covering an area of 58,752 sq km.
The coastline of delta is a highly indented area.
The delta is made of a web of distributaries and islands and is covered by dense forests called the Sunderbans.
A major part of the delta is a low-lying swamp which is flooded by marine water during high tide.
Yamuna River
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At this site, the water carried by the Tons is twice the water carried by the Yamuna.
Non Peninsular Tributaries
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
Peninsular Tributaries
Rishiganga
Uma
Hanuman Gangaand
Tons join it in the mountains.
Hindon joins at Ghaziabad in the plain area
Chambal
Sind
Betwa
Ken.
Chambal River
The Chambal rises in the highlands of Janapao Hills (700 m) in the Vindhyan Range.
It flows through the Malwa Plateau.
It joins the Yamuna in Etawah district of Uttar Pradesh.
The river flows much below its banks due to severe erosion because of poor rainfall and numerous deep ravines
have been formed in the Chambal Valley, giving rise to badland topography. {Arid Landforms}
The total length of the river is 1,050 km.
The Gandhi Sagar dam is the first of the four dams built on the Chambal River, located on the Rajasthan-
City in Rajasthan.
Water released after power generation at Gandhi Sagar dam, Rana Pratap Sagar dam and Jawahar Sagar Dams, is
diverted by Kota Barrage for irrigation in Rajasthan and in Madhya Pradesh through canals.
Keoladeo National Park is supplied with water from Chambal river irrigation project.
The Banas
The Sind
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The Betwa
The Betwa rises in Bhopal district (Vindhyan Range) and joins the Yamuna near Hamirpur.
It has a total length of 590 km.
The Dhasan is its important tributary.
The Ken
The Ken river rising from the Barner Range of Madhya Pradesh joins the Yamuna near Chila.
The Son
Damodar river
The Damodar river rises in the hills of the Chotanagpur plateau and flows through a rift valley.
Rich in mineral resources, the valley is home to large-scale mining and industrial activity.
It has a number of tributaries and subtributaries, such as Barakar, Konar, Bokaro, Haharo, etc.
The Barakar is the most important tributary of the Damodar.
Several dams have been constructed in the valley, for the generation of hydroelectric power. The valley is called
Ramganga River
Ghaghra River
Its source is near Gurla Mandhata peak, south of Manasarovar in Tibet(river of the trans-Himalayan origin).
It is known as the Karnaili in Western Nepal.
Its important tributaries are the Sarda, the Sarju (Ayodhya is located on its bank) and the Rapti.
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The Ghaghara joins the Ganga a few kilometres downstream of Chhapra in Bihar.
After reaching the plain area, its stream gets divided into many branches of which, Koriyab and Garwa are
important.
The river bed is sandy and sudden bends start occurring in the stream.
The river has a high flood frequency and has shifted its course several times.
Kali River
Gandak River
Burhi Gandak
Originates from the western slopes of Sumesar hills near the India-Nepal border.
It joins the Ganga near Monghyr town.
Kosi River
The Kosi river consists of seven streams namely Sut Kosi, Tamba Kosi, Talkha, Doodh Kosi, Botia Kosi, Arun
Sorrow of Bihar.
In order to tame this river, a barrage was constructed in 1965 near Hanuman Nagar in Nepal.
Embankments for flood control have been constructed as a joint venture of India and Nepal.
Name
Tibet
China
Assam Valley
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Bangladesh
meandering.
The river is nearly 16 km wide at Dibrugarh and forms many islands, the most important of which is MAJULI. It
and silt which results in disastrous floods. The Brahmaputra is thus truly a River of Sorrow.
The river is navigable for a distance of 1,384 km upto Dibrugarh from its mouth and serves as an excellent inland
In this post: Peninsular River System or Peninsular Drainage Evolution of the Peninsular Drainage, Peninsular River
Systems, Himalayan River System vs. Peninsular River System.
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Peninsula rivers are much older than the Himalayan rivers {Discordant}.
The peninsular drainage is mainly Concordant except for few rivers in the upper peninsular region.
They are non-perennial rivers with a maximum discharge in the rainy season.
The peninsular rivers have reached mature stage{Fluvial Landforms} and have almost reached their base level.
eastwards and drain into the Bay of Bengal. These rivers make deltas at their mouths.
But the west flowing rivers of Narmada and Tapi as well as those originating from the Western Ghats and falling in the
Geologists believe that the Sahyadri-Aravali axis was the main water divide in the past.
According to one hypothesis, the existing peninsula is the remaining half of bigger landmass.
The Western Ghats were located in the middle of this landmass.
So one drainage was towards east flowing into Bay of Bengal and the other towards west draining into Arabian Sea.
The western part of the Peninsula cracked and submerged in the Arabian Sea during the early Tertiary period
The now west flowing rivers of the Peninsula, namely the Narmada and the Tapi flow through these rifts.
Straight coastline, steep western slope of the Western Ghats, and the absence of delta formations on the western
coast makes this theory a possibility.
Theory 2
It is believed that the west flowing peninsular rivers do not flow in the valleys formed by the rivers themselves.
Rather they have occupied two fault rifts in rocks running parallel to the Vindhyas.
These faults are supposed to be caused by bend of the northern part of the Peninsula at the time of upheaval of
the Himalayas.
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Peninsular block, south of the cracks, tilted slightly eastwards during the event thus giving the orientation to the
Rivers that drain into Bay of Bengal: The Mahanadi, the Godavari, the Krishna, the Cauveryand several smaller
originating from the Western Ghats flow westwards into the Arabian Sea.
Rivers that drain into the Ganges: Tributaries of the Ganga and the Yamuna such as the Chambal, the Betwa, the
Ken, the Son and the Damodar flow in the north-easterly direction.
Catchment
area
perform.
Drainage Type
Water Flow
These
Valleys
Stage
Meanders
rivers
flow
across
the
young
fold
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Estuaries
Mahanadi River
Godavari River
Krishna River
Kaveri (Cauvery) River
Pennar River
Subarnarekha River
Brahamani River
Sarada River
Ponnaiyar River
Vaigai River
Mahanadi River
The Mahanadi basin extends over states of Chhattisgarh and Odisha and comparatively smaller portions of
Jharkhand, Maharashtra and Madhya Pradesh, draining an area of 1.4 lakh Sq.km.
It is bounded by the Central India hills on the north, by the Eastern Ghats on the south and east and by the Maikala
m.
The Mahanadi is one of the major rivers of the peninsular rivers, in water potential and flood producing capacity, it
Its upper course lies in the saucer-shaped basin called the Chhattisgarh Plain.
This basin is surrounded by hills on the north, west and south as a result of which a large number of tributaries join
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Right bank Tributaries: The Ong, the Tel and the Jonk.
Two important projects completed during pre-plan period in the basin are the Mahanadi main canal and Tandula
reservoir in Chhattisgarh.
During the plan period, the Hirakud dam, Mahanadi delta project, Hasdeo Bango, Mahanadi Reservoir Project
were completed.
Three important urban centes in the basin are Raipur, Durg and Cuttack.
Mahanadi basin, because of its rich mineral resource and adequate power resource, has a favorable industrial
climate.
The Important industries presently existing in the basin are the Iron and Steel plant at Bhilai, aluminium factories
at Hirakud and Korba, paper mill near Cuttack and cement factory at Sundargarh.
Other industries based primarily on agricultural produce are sugar and textile mills.
Mining of coal, iron and manganese are other industrial activities.
The basin is subject to severe flooding occasionally in the delta area due to inadequate carrying capacity of the
channels.
The multi-purpose Hirakud dam provides some amount of flood relief by storing part of flood water.
However, the problem still persists and a lasting solution need to be evolved.
Godavari River
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The Godavari is the largest river system of the Peninsular India and is revered as Dakshina Ganga.
The Godavari basin extends over states of Maharashtra, Andhra Pradesh, Chhattisgarh and Odisha in addition to
smaller parts in Madhya Pradesh, Karnataka and Union territory of Puducherry (Yanam) having a total area of ~ 3
lakh Sq.km.
The basin is bounded by Satmala hills, the Ajanta range and the Mahadeo hills on the north, by the Eastern Ghats
on the south and the east and by the Western Ghats on the west.
The Godavari River rises from Trimbakeshwar in the Nashik district of Maharashtra about 80 km from the Arabian
The left bank tributaries are more in number and larger in size than the right bank tributaries.
The Manjra (724 km) is the only important right bank tributary. It joins the Godavari after passing through the
Nizam Sagar.
Left Bank Tributaries:Dharna, Penganga, Wainganga, Wardha,Pranahita [conveying the combined waters of
Penganga, the Wardha and Wainganga], Pench, Kanhan, Sabari, Indravati etc.
Right Bank Tributaries:Pravara, Mula, Manjra, Peddavagu, Maner etc.
Below Rajahmundry, the river divides itself into two main streams, the Gautami Godavarion the east and the
Vashishta Godavari on the west and forms a large delta before it pours into the Bay of Bengal.
The delta of the Godavari is of lobate type with a round bulge and many distributaries.
The upper reaches of the Godavari drainage basin are occupied by the Deccan Traps containing minerals like
magnetite, epidote, biotite, zircon, chlorite etc (metallic minerals)..
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The middle part of the basin is principally composed of phyllites, quartzites, amphiboles and granites (rocks).
The downstream part of the middle basin is occupied mainly by sediments and rocks of the Gondwana group.
The Gondwanas are principally detritals (waste or debris, in particular organic matter produced by decomposition or
loose matter produced by erosion) with some thick coal seams. [Singareni Coal Seam]
The Eastern Ghats dominate the lower part of the drainage basin and are formed mainly from the Khondalites.
Important projects completed duing the plan period are Srirama Sagar, Godavari barrage, Upper Penganga,
The major urban Centers in the basin are Nagpur, Aurangabad, Nashik, Rajhmundry.
Nashik and Aurangabad have large number of industries especially automobile.
Other than this, the industries in the basin are mostly based on agricultural produce such as rice milling, cotton
Krishna River
The Krishna is the second largest east flowing river of the Peninsula.
The Krishna Basin extends over Andhra Pradesh, Maharashtra and Karnataka having a total area of ~2.6 lakh Sq.km.
It is bounded by Balaghat range on the north, by the Eastern Ghats on the south and the east and by the Western
devastating earthquake (6.4 on richter scale) in 1967 that killed 150 people.
The Bhima originates from the Matheron Hills and joins the Krishna near Raichur after for a distance of 861 km.
The Tungabhadra is formed by the unification of the Tunga and the Bhadra originating from Gangamula in the
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Important ones are the Tungabhadra, Ghataprabha, Nagarjunasagar, Malaprabha, Bhima, Bhadra and Telugu
Ganga.
The major Hydro Power stations in the basin are Koyna, Tungabhadara, Sri Sailam, Nagarjuna Sagar, Almatti,
Naryanpur, Bhadra.
Tunagabhadra is a major inter-States project in the basin. In order to operate the project and to regulate the flows
among the beneficiary States of Karnataka and Andhara Pradesh.
The basin has rich mineral deposits and there is good potential for industrial development.
Iron and steel, cement, sugar cane vegetable oil extraction and rice milling are important industrial activities at
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Some parts of the basin, especially the Rayalaseema area of Andhra Pradesh, Bellary, Raichur, Dharwar, Chitradurga,
Belgaum and Bijapur districts of Karnataka and Pune, Sholapur, Osmanabad and Ahmedanagar districts of
raised due to silt deposition resulting in reduction in carrying capacity of the channel.
The coastal cyclonic rainfall of high intensity and short duration makes the flood problem worse.
Cauvery River
The Kaveri (Cauvery) is designated as the Dakshina Gangaor the Ganga of the South.
The Cauvery River rises at an elevation of 1,341 m at Talakaveri on the Brahmagiri range near Cherangala village of
natural and political regions i.e.,Karnataka plateau in the North and the Tamil Nadu plateau in the South.
Physiographically, the basin can be divided into three parts the Westen Ghats, the Plateau of Mysore and the Delta.
The delta area is the most fertile tract in the basin. The principal soil types found in the basin are black soils, red
soils, laterites, alluvial soils, forest soils and mixed soils. Red soils occupy large areas in the basin. Alluvial soils are
Left Bank: the Harangi, the Hemavati, the Shimsha and the Arkavati.
Right Bank: Lakshmantirtha, the Kabbani, the Suvarnavati, the Bhavani, the Noyil and the Amaravati joins from
right.
The river descends from the South Karnataka Plateau to the Tamil Nadu Plains through the Sivasamudram
rapids.
The falls at this point is utilized for power generation by the power station at Shivanasamudram.
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The two branches of the river join after the fall and flow through a wide gorge which is known as Mekedatu (Goats
leap) and continues its journey to form the boundary between Karnataka and Tamil Nadu States for a distance of 64
km.
At Hogennekkal Falls, it takes Southerly direction and enters the Mettur Reservoir.
A tributary called Bhavani joins Cauvery on the Right bank about 45 Kms below Mettur Reservoir. Thereafter it
as Akhanda Cauvery.
Immediately after crossing Tiruchirapalli district, the river divides into two parts, the Northern branch being called
The Coleron and Southern branch remains as Cauvery and from here the Cauvery Delta begins.
After flowing for about 16 Kms, the two branches join again to form Srirangam Island.
On the Cauvery branch lies the "Grand Anicut" said to have been constructed by a Chola King in 1st Century A.D.
Below the Grand Anicut, the Cauvery branch splits into two, Cauvery and Vennar.
These branches divide and sub-divide into small branches and form a network all over the delta.
The Cauvery basin is fan shaped in Karnataka and leaf shaped in Tamil Nadu. The run-off does not drain off
quickly because of its shape and therefore no fast raising floods occur in the basin.
During the pre-plan period many projects were completed in this basin which included Krishnarajasagar in
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Pennar River
The Pennar (also known as Uttara Pinakini) is one of the major rivers of the peninsula.
The Pennar rises in the Chenna Kasava hillof the Nandidurg range, in Chikkaballapura district of Karnataka
and flows towards east eventually draining into the Bay of Bengal.
The total length of the river from origin to its outfall in the Bay of Bengal is 597 km.
Located in peninsular India, the Pennar basin extends over states of Andhra Pradesh and Karnataka having an
Paliconda ranges.
The major part of basin is covered with agriculture accounting to 58.64% of the total area.
Tungabhadra high level canal in Krishna basin irrigated areas in Pennar basin also. The only major project in the
basin is the Somasila project.
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With limited water and power potential and mineral resources, the scope for industrial development is limited in
the basin.
There are no major industries. The existing small industries are mostly based on agricultural produce such as
cotton weaving, sugar mills, oil mills, rice mills etc.
Subarnarekha
The Subarnarekha originates from the Ranchi Plateau in Jharkhand forming the boundary between West Bengal and
Brahamani River
The Brahmani river comes into existence by the confluence of the Koel and the Sankh rivers near Rourkela. It
Sarada River
The river Sarada, an East flowing medium sized river, lies in the district of Visakhapatnam of Andhra Pradesh.
Ponnaiyar River
The Ponnaiyar is a small stream which is confined to the coastal area only.
It covers a small area in the state of Tamil Nadu, Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh.
The Basin is bounded on the North -West and South by various ranges of the Eastern Ghats like the Velikonda
Range, the Nagari hills, the Javadu hills, the Shevaroy hills, the Chitteri hills and the Kalrayan hills and in the
East by the Bay of Bengal.
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Vaigai River
South of the Cauvery delta, there are several streams, of which the Vaigai is the longest.
The Vaigai basin is an important basin among the 12 basins lying between the Cauvery and Kanyakumari.
This basin is bounded by the Varushanadu hills, the Andipatti hills, the Cardaman hills and the Palani hills on
the West and by the Palk strait and Palk Bay on the East.
The Vaigai drains an area of 7,741 Sq.Km, which entirely lies in the state of Tamil Nadu.
In this post: West Flowing Rivers of The Peninsular India Narmada Tapti Sabarmati Mahi Luni Ghaggar River
[Inland Drainage]. West flowing Rivers of the Sahyadris (Western Ghats)
West Flowing Rivers of The Peninsular India
The west flowing rivers of the Peninsular India are fewer and smaller as compared to their east flowing counterparts.
The two major west flowing rivers are the Narmada and the Tapi.
This exceptional behavior is because these rivers didnt form valleys and instead they flow through faults (linear rift,
rift valley, trough) created due to the bending of the northern peninsula during the formation process of Himalayas.
These faults run parallel to the Vindhyas and the Satpuras.
The Sabarmati, Mahi and Luni are other rivers of the Peninsular India which flow westwards.
Hundreds of small streams originating in the Western Ghats flow swiftly westwards and join the Arabian Sea.
It is interesting to note that the Peninsular rivers which fall into the Arabian Sea do not form deltas, but only
Estuary
An estuary is a partially enclosed body of water along the coast where freshwater from rivers and streams meets and
mixes with salt water from the ocean. [Primary productivity in estuaries is very high. Fishing is a dominant
occupation around estuaries. Most of the estuaries are good bird sanctuaries].
Estuaries and the lands surrounding them are places of transition from land to sea and freshwater to salt water.
Although influenced by the tides, they are protected from the full force of ocean waves, winds, and storms by such
land forms as barrier islands or peninsulas. [You know why estuaries make good ports?]
Estuarine environments are among the most productive on earth, creating more organic matter each year than
recreational activities.
The protected coastal waters of estuaries also support important public infrastructure, serving as harbors and ports
vital for shipping and transportation.
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Estuaries also perform other valuable services. Water draining from uplands carries sediments, nutrients, and other
pollutants to estuaries. As the water flows through wetlands such as swamps and salt marshes, much of the
Narmada River
the south.
It rises from Maikala range near Amarkantak in Madhya Pradesh, at an elevation of about 1057 m.
Narmada basin extends over states of Madhya Pradesh, Gujarat, Maharashtra and Chhattisgarh having an area ~1
Lakh Sq.km.
It is bounded by the Vindhyas on the north, Maikala range on the east, Satpuras on the south and by the Arabian Sea
on the west.
Its total length from its source in Amarkantak to its estuary in the Gulf of Khambhat is 1,310 km.
The hilly regions are in the upper part of the basin, and lower middle reaches are broad and fertile areas well suited
for cultivation.
Jabalpur is the only important urban centre in the basin.
The river slopes down near Jabalpur where it cascades (a small waterfall, especially one in a series) 15 m into a gorge
Since the river flows through a narrow valley confined by precipitous (dangerously high or steep) hills, it does not have
many tributaries.
The absence of tributaries is especially noted on the right bank of the river where the Hiranis the only exception.
The other right bank tributaries are the Orsang, the Barna and the Kolar.
A few left bank tributaries drain the northern slopes of the Satpura Range and join the Narmada at different places.
The major Hydro Power Project in the basin are Indira Sagar, Sardar Sarovar, Omkareshwar, Bargi & Maheshwar.
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Tapti River
The Tapti (also known as the Tapi) is the second largest west flowing river of the Peninsular India and is known as 'the
areas in the state of Maharashtra and a small area in Madhya Pradesh and Gujarat.
The basin extends over states of Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra and Gujarat having an area of ~ 65,000 Sq.km
Situated in the Deccan plateau, the basin is bounded by the Satpura range on the north, Mahadev hills on the east,
Ajanta Range and the Satmala hills on the south and by the Arabian Sea on the west.
The hilly region of the basin is well forested while the plains are broad and fertile areas suitable for cultivation.
There are two well defined physical regions, in the basin, viz hilly region and plains; the hilly regions comprising
Satpura, Satmalas, Mahadeo, Ajanta and Gawilgarh hills are well forested.
The plain covers the Khandesh areas (Khandesh is a region of central India, which forms the northwestern portion of
Maharashtra state) which are broad and fertile suitable for cultivation primarily.
Right Bank: the Suki, the Gomai, the Arunavati and the Aner.
Left Bank: the Vaghur, the Amravati, the Buray, the Panjhra, the Bori, the Girna, the Purna, the Mona and the
Sipna.
Important industries in the basin are textile factories in Surat and paper and news print factory at Nepanagar.
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Sabarmati River
The Sabarmati is the name given to the combined streams the Sabar and Hathmati.
The Sabarmati basin extends over states of Rajasthan and Gujarat having an area of 21,674 Sq km.
The basin is bounded by Aravalli hills on the north and north-east, by Rann of Kutch on the west and by Gulf of
Rajasthan.
The total length of river from origin to outfall into the Arabian Sea is 371 km.
The major part of basin is covered with agriculture accounting to 74.68% of the total area.
Rainfall varies from a meager few mm in Saurastra to over 1000 mm in southern part.
Left bank tributaries: the Wakal, the Hathmati and the Vatrak.
Right bank tributaries: the Sei.
Projects: Sabarmati reservoir (Dharoi), Hathmati reservoir and Meshwo reservoir project are major projects completed
during the plan period.
Gandhinagar and Ahmedabad are the important urban centers in the basin.
Ahmedabad is an industrial city situated on the banks of Sabarmati.
Important industries are textiles, leather and leather goods, plastic, rubber goods, paper, newsprint, automobile,
Mahi River
The Mahi basin extends over states of Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan and Gujarat having total area of 34,842 Sq km.
It is bounded by Aravalli hills on the north and the north-west, by Malwa Plateau on the east, by the Vindhyas on
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It originates from the northern slopes of Vindhyas at an altitude of 500 m in Dhar district of Madhya Pradesh.
The total length of Mahi is 583 km.
It drains into the Arabian Sea through the Gulf of Khambhat.
The major part of basin is covered with agricultural land accounting to 63.63% of the total area
Hydro Power stations are located in Mahi Bajaj Sagar dam and at Kadana Dam.
Vadodara is the only important urban centre in the basin. There are not many industries in the basin.
Some of the industries are cotton textile, paper, newsprint, drugs and pharmaceuticals. Most of these industries are
located at Tatlam.
Luni River
The Luni or the Salt River (Lonari or Lavanavari in Sanskrit) is named so because its water is brackish below Balotra.
Luni is the only river basin of any significance in Western Rajasthan, which form the bulk of arid zone.
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Luni originates from western slopes of the Aravalli ranges at an elevation of 772 m near Ajmer flowing in South West
direction and traversing a course of 511 km in Rajasthan, it finally flow into the Rann of Kachchh(it gets lost in the
marsh).
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Most of its tributaries drain the steep north west of Aravalli hills and join it on left side. Its total catchment area falls
in Rajasthan.
The peculiarity of this river is that it tends to increase its width rather than deepening the bed because the banks
are of soils, which are easily erodible whereas beds are of sand. The floods develop and disappear so rapidly that they
have no time to scour the bed.
About six hundred small streams originate from the Western Ghats and flow westwards to fall into the Arabian Sea.
The western slopes of the Western Ghats receive heavy rainfall from the south-west monsoons and are able to feed
Some rivers of India are not able to reach the sea and constitute inland drainage.
Large parts of the Rajasthan desert and parts of Aksai Chin in Ladakh have inland drainage.
The Ghaggar is the most important river of inland drainage. It is a seasonal stream which rises on the lower slopes of
Usability of Rivers
and the Eastern Ghats offer possibilities of large scale water power development.
Sixty per cent of the total river flow is concentrated in the Himalayan rivers, 16 per cent in the Central Indian rivers
(the Narmada, the Tapi, the Mahanadi, etc.), and the rest in the rivers of the Deccan plateau.
The Ganga and the Brahmaputra in the north and northeastern part of the country, the Mahanadi in Odisha, the
Godavari and the Krishna in Andhra and Telangana the Narmada and the Tapi in Gujarat, and the lakes and tidal
creeks in coastal states possess some of the important and useful waterways of the country.
In the past they were of great importance, which suffered a great deal with the advent of rail and roads.
Withdrawal of large quantities of water for irrigation resulted in dwindling flow of many rivers.
The most important navigable risers are the Ganga, the Brahmaputra and the Mahanadi. The Godavari, the Krishna,
the Narmada and the Tapi are navigable near their mouths only.
Indian Monsoons Factors responsible for south-west monsoon and north-east monsoon formation. Mechanism of Indian
Monsoons. Indian Monsoons ITCZ [Inter-Tropical Convergence Zone].
Indian Monsoons
The term monsoon has been derived from the Arabic word mausin or from the Malayan word monsin meaning
season.
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Monsoons are seasonal winds (Rhythmic wind movements)(Periodic Winds) which reverse their direction with the
change of season.
The monsoon is a double system of seasonal winds They flow from sea to land during the summer and from land to
mainly south-eastern coast of India (Southern coast of Seemandhra and the coast of Tamil Nadu.).
Countries like India, Indonesia, Bangladesh, Myanmar etc. receive most of the annual rainfall during south-west
monsoon season where as South East China, Japan etc., during north-east rainfall season.
Above points +
Subtropical Jet Stream (STJ).
Tropical Easterly Jet (African Easterly Jet).
Inter Tropical Convergence Zone.
Strengths of Low pressure over Tibet and high pressure over southern Indian Ocean.
Somali Jet (Findlater Jet).
Somali Current (Findlater Current).
Indian Ocean branch of Walker Cell.
Indian Ocean Dipole.
Formation and strengthening of high pressure cells over Tibetan plateau and Siberian Plateau in winter.
Westward migration and subsequent weakening of high pressure cell in the Southern Indian Ocean.
Migration of ITCZ to the south of India.
Classical Theory
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Monsoons are mentioned in scriptures like the Rig Veda. But these scriptures didnt make any mention of the
monsoon mechanism.
The first scientific study of the monsoon winds was done by Arab traders.
Arab traders used the sea route to carry out trade with India and monsoon patterns were of prime importance for
them.
In the tenth century, Al Masudi, an Arab explorer, gave an account of the reversal of ocean currents and the
Modern Theories
Besides differential heating, the development of monsoon is influenced by the shape of the continents, orography
(mountains), and the conditions of air circulation in the upper troposphere {jet streams}.
Therefore, Halley's theory has lost much of its significance and modern theories based on air masses and jet
stream are becoming more relevant.
In summer the sunsapparent path is vertically over the Tropic of Cancer resulting in high temperature and low
landmass in summer.
This air flow from sea to land bring heavy rainfall to the Indian subcontinent.
Winter Monsoon
reversed.
The basic idea behind Classical theory is similar to land and sea breeze formation except that in the case of monsoons
the day and night are replaced by summer and winter.
Drawbacks: The monsoons do not develop equally everywhere on earth and the thermal concept of Halley fails to explain
the intricacies of the monsoons such as the sudden burst of monsoons, delay in on set of monsoons sometimes, etc..
Indian Monsoons Modern theory: Air Mass Theory
According to this theory, the monsoon is simply a modification of the planetary winds of the tropics.
The theory is based on the migration of ITCZ based on seasons.
The southeast trade winds in the southern hemisphere and the northeast trade winds in the northern hemisphere
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This is the region of ascending air, maximum clouds and heavy rainfall.
The location of ITCZ shifts north and south of equator with the change of season.
In the summer season, the sun shines vertically over the Tropic of Cancer and the ITCZ shifts northwards.
The southeast trade winds of the southern hemisphere cross the equator and start blowing in southwest to northeast
(July rainy season) and Southern Inter-Tropical Convergence Zone (SITCZ) in winter (Jan dry season).
NITCZ is the zone of clouds and heavy rainfall that effect India.
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Indian Monsoon Mechanism Jet Stream Theory. Role of Sub-Tropical Jet Stream (STJ). Why no south-west monsoons
during winter? Why no south-west monsoons in March May (summer)?
Indian Monsoon Mechanism Jet Stream Theory
Indian Monsoon Mechanism Modern Theory: Jet Stream Theory.
Jet stream Theory is the latest theory regarding the origin of the monsoons and has earned worldwide acceptance
air mass. Troughs occur where cold air mass drops into warm air.
The region on earth below the trough is at low pressure and the region below ridge is at high pressure.
This condition occurs due to weakening of jet stream due to lesser temperature contrast between sub-tropics and
the surface of earth whereas the ridge regions creates anticyclonic condition.
Troughs create upper level divergence which is associated with convergence at the surface (low pressure cyclonic
conditions) and ridges create upper level convergence which is associated with divergence at the surface (high
The
Coriolis
effect creates
the
cyclonic
upper troposphere leads to divergence (high pressure) at the surface (anticyclonic condition).
The Coriolis effect creates the anticyclonic rotation that is associated with clear weather.
But how does this mechanism of jet streams influence Indian Monsoons?
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Sub-Tropical Jet stream plays a significant role in both hindering the monsoon winds as well as in quick onset of
monsoons.
Sub-Tropical Jet stream is a narrow band of fast moving air flowing from west to east [Westerlies].
STJ in northern hemisphere flows between 25 to 35 N in the upper troposphere at a height of about 12-14 km (all
this already discussed in previous posts on Jet Streams). (Here we will consider STJ only. Polar Jet has no influence
on Indian monsoons).
The wind speeds in a westerly jet stream are commonly 150 to 300 km p.h. with extreme values reaching 400 km p.h.
The burst of monsoons depends upon the upper air circulation which is dominated by STJ.
Seasonal Migration of Sub-Tropical Jet Stream STJ
In winter STJ flows along the southern slopes of the Himalayas but in summer it shifts northwards, rather dramatically,
and flows along the northern edge of Himalayas in early June and in late summer (July-August) along the northern edge
matter of days) and subsequent withdrawal (STJ returns back to its position south of Himalayas) of the monsoon.
Northward movement of the subtropical jet is the first indication of the onset of the monsoon over India.
Westerly jet stream blows at a very high speed during winter over the sub-tropical zone.
This jet stream is bifurcated by the Himalayan ranges and Tibetan Plateau.
The two branches reunite off the east coast of China.
The northern branch of this jet stream blows along the northern edge of the Tibetan Plateau.
The southern branch blows to the south of the Himalayan ranges along 25 north latitude.
A strong latitudinal thermal gradient (differences in temperature), along with other factors, is responsible for the
development of southerly jet.
Western Disturbances
Meteorologists believe that southern branch of jet stream exercises a significant influence on the winter weather
conditions in India.
The upper jet is responsible for steering of the western depressions [Western Disturbances] from the Mediterranean
Sea.
Some of the depressions continue eastwards, redeveloping in the zone of jet stream confluence about 30 N, 105 E
these disturbances.
These are generally followed by cold waves in the whole of northern plains.
The southern branch is stronger, with an average speed of about 240 km compared with 70 to 90 km p.h. of the
northern branch.
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Air subsiding beneath this upper westerly current gives dry out blowing northerly winds from the subtropical
anticyclone over northwestern India and Pakistan.
Reason 1: ITCZ has left India (the winds that blow over India are mostly offshore land to land or land to ocean
With the beginning of summer in the month of March, the STJ [upper westerlies] start their northward march.
The southerly branch of STJ remains positioned south of Tibet, although weakening in intensity.
The weather over northern India becomes hot, dry and squally due to larger incoming solar radiation and hot winds
like loo.
Over India, the Equatorial Trough (ITCZ) pushes northwards with the weakening of the STJ [upper westerlies] south
of Tibet, but the burst of the monsoon does not take place until the upper-air circulation has switched to its summer
pattern.
By the end of May the southern jet breaks and later it is diverted to the north of Tibet Plateau and there is sudden
burst of monsoons (the ridge moves northwards into Central Asia = high pressure over north-west India moves
northwards into Central Asia = makes way for south-west monsoon winds). An Easterly jet emerges over peninsular
There is good suns insolation from March May but still there is no s-w monsoons.
Reason: The ridge region of Southern branch of STJ creates strong divergence (high pressure) in north-west India.
The diverging air blocks incoming winds and prevents strong convergence of winds along ITCZ.
During the summer season in the Northern Hemisphere, low pressure areas develop at the ground surface near
Peshawar (Pakistan) and north-west India due to intense heating of ground surface during April, May, and June.
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As long as the position of the upper air jet stream is maintained above the surface low pressure (to the south of
from the surface low pressure areas, with the result that the weather remains warm and dry.
This is why the months of April and May are generally dry and rainless in spite of high temperatures (low pressure on
land) and high evaporation.
Indian Monsoons Role of Tropical Easterly Jet (TEJ) [African Easterly Jet], Indian Monsoons Role of Tibet, Indian
Monsoons Role of Somali Jet and Indian Monsoons Role of Indian Ocean Dipole.
Indian Monsoons Role of Tropical Easterly Jet (TEJ) [African Easterly Jet]
The establishment and maintenance of the TEJ is not fully understood but it is believed that the jet may be caused by
the uniquely high temperatures and heights over the Tibetan Plateau during summer.
The TEJ plays an important role in kick starting southwest monsoon.
This jet descends over the Indian Ocean (near Madagascar) and intensifies its high pressure cell so as to move as
south-west monsoon.
There are major high velocity winds in the lower troposphere called low-level jets (LLJs).
In the tropics, the most prominent of these are the Somali Jet and the African Easterly Jet [Tropical Easterly Jet].
The TEJ is a unique and dominant feature of the northern hemispheric summer over southern Asia and northern
97
an anticyclonic condition is established). The high pressure cell over Tibet strengthens N-E monsoons.
Tibet gets heated in summer and is 2C to 3C warmer than the air over the adjoining regions.
Because the Tibet Plateau is a source of heat for the atmosphere, it generates an area of rising air (convergence)
equatorial westerlies.
It picks up moisture from the Indian Ocean and causes rainfall in India and adjoining countries.
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Polar and subtropical jet streams are the permanent jet streams which greatly influence the weather of temperate
regions.
99
Temporary jet streams are narrow winds with speeds more than 94 kph in the upper, middle and sometimes in lower
troposphere. They are few. Important ones are Somali Jet and The African Easterly jet or Tropical Easterly Jet.
These two jet streams play an important role in the formation and progression of Indian Monsoons.
The progress of the southwest monsoon towards India is greatly aided by the onset of Somali jet that transits Kenya,
Kenya at about 3 S.
It strengthens permanent high near Madagascar and also helps to drive S-W monsoons towards India at a
upwelling.
As the strong winds drive away the surface coastal waters towards the east, extremely cold water from the depths of
Indian ocean Dipole is a recently discovered phenomena that has a significant influence on Indian monsoons.
Indian ocean Dipole is a SST anomaly (Sea Surface Temperature Anomaly different from normal) that occurs
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Similar to ENSO, the atmospheric component of the IOD is named as Equatorial Indian Ocean Oscillation (EQUINOO)
Sumatra.
While EQUINOO and IOD go in step during strong positive IOD events, they do not always do so.
As the summer time approaches, there is increased solar heating of the Indian subcontinent and the Tibetan Plateau.
In the peak summer months (25th of May 10th of Jun), with the apparent northward movement of the sun, the
southern branch of the SJT, which flows to the south of the Himalayas, shifts to the north of the Himalayas.
When the suns position is about to reach the Tropic of Cancer (June), the SJT shifts to the north of the Tibetan
Plateau (1st of Jun 20th of June). The ITCZ is close to its peak position over the Tibetan Plateau.
The altitude of the mountains initially disrupts the jet but once it has cleared the summits it is able to reform over
central Asia.
Its movement towards the north is one of the main features associated with the onset of the monsoon over India.
With the northward shift of SJT, an Easterly Jet is formed over the Indian plains. It generally forms in the first week of
upper troposphere).
This low pressure in the northern plains coupled with the intense low of the Tibetan Plateau leads to the sudden
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In summer the sub-tropical easterly jet fluctuates between the plains region of India and peninsular India varying the
develops (Somali Jet) very quickly indeed, often in a matter of a few days.
Warmth and moisture are fed into the cell by a lower level tropical jet stream which brings with it air masses laden
(August October), this enables the STJ to transition back across the Himalayas.
With the southward shift of ITCZ, subtropical high pressure belt returns back to the Indian plains and the rainfall
ceases.
This leads to the formation of a anticyclonic winter monsoon cell typified by sinking air masses over India and
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103
104
105
106
107
108
109
110
First attempt was made during International India Ocean Expedition (HOE) from 1962 to 1965.
It was organized jointly by the International Council of Scientific Unions (ICSU), Scientific Committee on Ocean
Research (SCOR) and UNESCO with World Meteorological Organization (WMO) joining the meteorology programme.
ISMEX
Two more experiments were conducted, jointly, by India and the former USSR in 1973 and 1977, with limited
MONEX
Western Disturbances - Weather associated and Importance of Western Disturbances. Cloudburst in Jammu and
Kashmir, Himachal Pradesh, Uttarakhand.
Western Disturbances
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In the winter season, the sub-tropical jet (STJ) is bifurcated into two branches due to physical obstruction of the
The ridge of the jet stream creates anticyclonic (with clockwise air circulation) conditions over North-West India.
Consequently, the winds tend to descend over the north-western parts of India, resulting into the development of
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The arrival of these temperate storms [remnants of temperate cyclones] [western disturbances] causes precipitation
The western disturbances affect weather conditions during the winter season up to Patna (Bihar) and give occasional
rainfall which is highly beneficial for the standing rabi crops, (wheat, barley, mustard, gram, lentil, etc.).
113
A cloudburst is an intense torrential rainfall brought by a thunderstorm that lasts for a relatively short duration
(highest in in the last 100 years) and there were numerous cloudbursts in Jammu and Kashmir.
A strong upper-atmospheric high was located over European Russia towards the beginning of summer.
It diverted the jet stream (meandering of Sub-Tropical Jet Stream) and its rain-giving train (trough) of summer storms
farther north than usual, giving much of Southern European Russia drought conditions.
In addition, southern desert heat from central Asia, the Arabian Peninsula and North Africa began to flow northward,
which strengthened this ridge of STJ and tightened its hold over the region.
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The stalled system prevented weather systems being drawn across Russia and the obstacle acted as a barrier
trapping hot air to the south and cold air to the north.
The consequence of this static mass of hot air was the heat wave that devastated Russia.
With the jet stream stalled the Sub-Tropical Jet was unable to transit across the Himalayas as it would do ordinarily,
the monsoon cell to the south, fed by warmer waters in the Indian Ocean, had nowhere to go and as a consequence it
deposited vast amounts of rain over Pakistan, Himalchal Pradesh and Jammu and Kashmir and this led to extensive
flooding.
Indian Climate Climate of India Features of Indian Climate Factors Influencing The Climate Of India: Physiography,
Monsoon Winds, El Nino etc..
115
Indias climate closely resembles the climate that of a tropical country although its northern part (north of tropic of
latitudes.
During summer, due to over the head position of the sun, the climate in the southern parts resemble equatorial dry
climate.
The north Indian plains are under the influence of hot dry wind called loo blowing from the Thar, Baloch and
Iranian Deserts, increasing the temperatures to a level comparable to that of the southern parts of the country.
Thus the whole of India, south of the Himalayas can be climatically treated as a tropical country.
The seasonal reversal of winds in Arabian Sea and Bay of Bengal give India a typical tropical monsoon climate.
So Indian climate, to be precise, is tropical monsoon type (a distinct wet and dry climate) rather than just a
tropical or half temperate climate.
India has high Regional Climatic Diversity because of its topographical diversity (location, altitude, distance from sea
and relief).
Rainfall
The climate in most of the regions is characterized by distinct wet and dry seasons. Some places like Thar desert,
around 1,000 cm of annual rainfall while at Jaisalmer the annual rainfall rarely exceeds 12 cm.
The Ganga delta and the coastal plains of Odisha see intense rainfall in July and August while the Coromandel Coast
Temperature
temperature is 20-25C.
Winters are moderately cold in most of the regions while the summers are extremely hot.
Himalayan regions experience brutal winters while the summers are moderate.
Latitudinal location
Distance from the Sea
The Himalayas
Physiography
116
Monsoon Winds
Upper Air Circulation
El Nino and La Nina
Tropical Cyclones and Western Disturbances
Latitudinal location
are extreme and winters temperatures are moderate in most of the regions.
The northern parts on the other hand lie in the warm temperate zone. They receive comparatively less solar
insolation. But summer are equally hot in north India because of hot local wind called loo. Winter are very cold due
Coastal regions have moderate or equable or maritime climate where as interior locations are deprived of the
Himalayas
The Himalayas act as a climatic divide between India and Central Asia.
During winter, Himalayas protect India from cold and dry air masses of Central Asia.
During monsoon months these mountain ranges act as an effective physical barrier for rain bearing south-west
monsoon winds.
Himalayas divide the Bay of Bengal branch of monsoon winds into two branches one branch flowing along the
plain regions towards north-west India and the other towards South-East Asia.
If the Himalayas were not present, the monsoon winds would simply move into China and most of the north India
would have been a desert.
Why rainfall decreases form east to west in plains region (Indus-Ganga Plains)?
In summer, there are many minor low pressure cells that exist all over the plain region.
As the monsoon winds move from east to west the moisture levels decrease due to successive rainfall at each low
pressure regions.
By the time winds reach western parts of the plains (Delhi, Haryana etc.) all the moisture in the monsoon winds in
exhausted.
Then how come Haryana and Punjab not deserts like Rajasthan?
They receive rainfall due to Western Disturbances in winter. (In summer the rainfall is very low.)
Physiography
Physiography is the most important factor that determines the mean annual rainfall received by a region.
Why are some parts in peninsular India semi-arid?
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Places on the windward side of an orographic barrier receive great amount of rainfall where as those on the leeward
and cause copious rainfall in the Western Coastal plain and the western slopes of the Western Ghats.
On the contrary, vast areas of Maharashtra, Karnataka, Telangana, Andhra Pradesh and Tamil Nadu lie in rainshadow or leeward side of the Western Ghats and receive scanty rainfall.
Why no significant rainfall in Gujarat and Rajasthan? Explain the formation of Thar Desert?
Monsoons winds flowing in Rajasthan and Gujarat are not obstructed by any orographic barrier and hence these
pressure cells in Tibet and hence only horizontal wind movements exist in Gujarat and Rajasthan]
[Sub-tropical high pressure belt: In winter the region experiences strong divergence because of the STJ Sub-Tropical
Jet.]
How come Cherrapunji and Mawsynram receive abnormally high rainfall?
Mawsynram and Cherrapunjiare the wettest places on earth with mean annual rainfall over 1000 cm.
Copious rainfall in these places is due to funneling effect followed by orographic upliftment. [Funneling effect =
clouds are channeled into a narrow region between mountains and hence the cloud density is extraordinary]
Monsoon Winds
The most dominating factor of the Indian climate is the 'monsoon winds'.
The changes in the upper air circulation over Indian landmass is brought about by Jet streams. (Explained in detail
in Indian Monsoons)
Westerly Jet Stream
Westerly jet stream blows at a very high speed during winter over the sub-tropical zone.
Southern branch of the jet stream exercises a significant influence on the winter weather conditions in India.
This jet stream is responsible for bringing western disturbances from the Mediterranean region in to the Indian subcontinent.
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Winter rain and heat storms in north-western plains and occasional heavy snowfall in hilly regions are caused by
these disturbances.
These are generally followed by cold waves in the whole of northern plains.
Easterly Jet Stream
Reversal in upper air circulation takes place in summer due to the apparent shift of the sun's vertical rays in the
northern hemisphere.
The westerly jet stream is replaced by the easterly jet stream which owes its origin to the heating of the Tibet plateau.
This helps in the sudden onset of the south-west monsoons.
Tropical cyclones originate in the Bay of Bengal and Arabian Sea and the influence large parts of the peninsular India.
Majority of the cyclones originate in the Bay of Bengal and influence the weather conditions during the south-west
cyclones) and influence the weather conditions along the eastern coast of India.
The western disturbances originate over the Mediterranean sea and travel eastward under the influence of westerly jet
stream.
They influence the winter weather conditions over most of Northern-plains and Western Himalayan region.
Southern Oscillation is simply the oscillation or alternating positions of low pressure and high pressure cells over
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Winter Season Summer Season Indian Climate: Pressure, Winds, Rainfall, Temperature, Cyclones, Western
Disturbances. Loo, Andhis, Norwesters, Thunderstorms, etc..
Indian Climate Seasons
The
The
The
The
Cancer.
To the south of this isotherm the temperatures are above
20C.
Here
there
is
no
distinctly
defined
winter
High air pressure prevails over large parts of north-west India due to low temperatures coupled with divergence
120
disturbances.
They intensify over Rajasthan, Punjab, and Haryana.
They move eastwards across the sub-Himalayan belt
up to Arunachal Pradesh.
They cause light rain in the Indus-Ganga plains and
The retreating winter monsoons pick up some moisture while crossing the Bay of Bengal and cause winter rainfall
in Tamil Nadu, south Andhra Pradesh, south-east Karnataka and south-east Kerala (Usually in the first weeks
of November).
The highest seasonal rainfall of about 75 cm between October and December.
Most of it occurs along the south-eastern coast of Tamil Nadu and adjoining parts of Andhra Pradesh. Thereafter, it
gradually decreases.
The western disturbances also cause a little rainfall in north-west India.
The amount of rainfall gradually decreases from the north and north-west to east (it is opposite in rainy season).
The northeastern part of India also gets rainfall during the winter months.
March to June.
High temperature and low humidity are the chief characteristics.
Sometimes referred to as pre-monsoon period.
High suns insolation due to apparent movement of sun between the equator and the Tropic of Cancer.
The southern parts of the country are distinctly warmer in March and April whereas in June, north India has higher
temperatures.
In March, the highest temperatures occur in the southern parts (40-45C).
In April the highest temperature of about 45C is recorded in the northern parts of Madhya Pradesh.
In May the highest temperature shifts to Rajasthan where temperatures as high as 48C may be recorded.
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1935.
The highest temperatures are recorded just before the onset of the southwest monsoons (late May).
The diurnal range of temperature is also very high. It may be as high as 18C in some parts.
The maximum summer temperatures are comparatively lower in the costal and southern peninsular regions due to
[A heat wave is an abnormally high temperature experienced by a regions. Temperature increase of the order of 6 to 7C
above normal is termed as 'moderate' and 8C and more as 'severe' heat wave]
Most of the heat waves develop over Rajasthan, Punjab and Haryana (location far away from the sea). From here they
southwest monsoon.
The normal duration of heat waves is 4 to 5 days. However, heat waves are rare over the peninsula south of 13N
latitude due to maritime conditions prevailing there.
high temperature.
But strong dynamically induced divergence over north-west
India prevents the onset of south-west monsoons.
deserts.
In May and June, high temperature in northwest India
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Andhis
The strong dust storms resulting from the convective phenomena are locally known as andhis (blinding storms).
Madhya Pradesh.
They are short lived. The squall and showers which follow these storms bring down the temperature sharply
temporarily.
The strong convectional movements related to the westerly jet stream lead to thunderstorms in eastern and north-
In West Bengal and the adjoining areas of Jharkhand, Odisha and Assam, the direction of squalls is mainly from the
Chheerha.
The period of maximum occurrence of these storms is the month of Vaisakh (mid-March to mid-April) and hence, they
are locally known as Kalabaisakhis, the black storms or a mass of dark clouds of Vaiasakha.
In the south the thunderstorms occur in Kerala (Mango Showers) and adjoining parts of Karnataka (Blossom
Showers) and Tamil Nadu, particularly during evenings and nights.
originating in April.
About three-fourths of the tropical cyclones are born in the Bay of Bengal and the rest originate in the Arabian Sea.
Most of the depressions in April originate to the south of 10N while those originating in May are born to the north of
this latitude.
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Most of the storms of this season initially move west or north-west but later they recurve northeast and strike
This season is not totally rainless (only one per cent of the annual rainfall).
In the northeastern parts of the country, dust storms bring little rainfall.
The precipitation in Kashmir is mainly in the form of snow caused by western disturbances.
The norwesters bring some rainfall in Assam, West Bengal and Odisha. The intensity of rainfall is high.
The rainfall brought by the norwesters is known as the spring storm showers.
This small amount of rainfall is very useful for the cultivation of tea, jute and rice and is known as tea showers in
Assam.
Coastal areas of Kerala and Karnataka receive rainfall from thunderstorms.
Such showers are called mango showers in Tamil Nadu and Andhra Pradesh because they are very beneficial to
mango crop.
In Karnataka they are called cherry blossoms due to their effect on the coffee plantations.
Rainy Season South West Monsoon Season North East Monsoon Season
ISOLINE: imaginary lines joining regions with equal rainfall or any other parameter.
ISOBAR: imaginary lines joining regions with equal pressure.
ISOTHERM: imaginary lines joining regions with equal temperature.
ISOHYET: imaginary lines joining regions with equal rainfall.
Rainy Season South West Monsoon Season
Sudden onset of South West Monsoons leads to significant fall in temperature [3 to 6C].
The temperature remains less uniform throughout the rainy season.
The temperature rises in September with the cease of south-west monsoons.
There is rise in temperature whenever there is break in the monsoons.
The diurnal range of temperature is small due to clouds and rains.
The highest temperatures are experienced at places west of the Aravali [38 to 40C]. This is due to lack of clouds and
hot continental air masses.
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Low pressure conditions prevail over northwest India due to high temperature.
ITCZ (monsoon trough) lies along the Ganga plain. There are frequent changes in its location depending upon the
weather conditions.
The atmospheric pressure increases steadily southwards.
Over the peninsular region, due to pressure gradient between north and south, winds blow in a southwest to
Three fourths of the total annual rainfall is received during this season.
The average rainfall over the plains of India in this season is about 87 per cent.
Normal date of the arrival of the monsoon is 20th May in Andaman and Nicobar Islands.
The advance of the monsoon is much faster in the Bay of Bengal than in the Arabian Sea.
The normal date of onset of the southwest monsoon over Kerala i.e. the first place of entry in the mainland of India
is 1st June.
The monsoons advance quickly accompanied with a lot of thunder, lightning and heavy downpour. This sudden onset
South West Monsoon Arabian Sea branch and Bay of Bengal branch
Monsoon winds beyond south Kerala progress in the form of two branches viz. the Arabian Sea branch and the Bay
of Bengal branch.
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The Arabian Sea branch gradually advances northwards. It reaches Mumbai by 10th June.
The Bay of Bengal branch spreads rather rapidly over most of Assam. The normal date of its arrival at Kolkata is 7th
June.
On reaching the foothills of the Himalayas the Bay branch is deflected westward by the Himalayan barrierand it
The Arabian Sea branch of the southwest monsoons is divided into three distinct streams on arriving in the mainland of
India.
The first stream strikes the west coast of India and gives extremely heavy rainfall of over 250 cm. It strike
perpendicular to Western Ghats causing plentiful Orographic Rainfall [400 to 500 cm annual rainfall on the windward
side].
Rainfall is drastically reduced to about 30-50 cm on the leeward side of the crest.
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There is a narrow belt of marked aridity on the immediate leeward side of the Western Ghats. But once it is passed,
the air starts rising again and the amount of rainfall increases further east.
The second stream enters NarmadaTapi troughs(narrow rift valley) and reaches central India. It does not cause
much rain near the coast due to the absence of major orographic obstacle across the rift. Some parts of central India
The Bay of Bengal Branch of the southwest monsoon is divided into two distinct streams.
The first stream crosses the Ganga-Brahmaputra delta and reaches Meghalaya. Here that the orographic effect
results in intense rainfall. Cherrapunji receives an annual rainfall of 1,102 cm, major portion of which occurs from
June to August.
Mawsynram (present champion) located at 1,329 m above sea level just 16 km to the west of Cherrapunji (X
Prelims Question]
The Tamil Nadu coastremains relatively dry during the south-west monsoon period because of
1. rain shadow effect of the Arabian Sea current and
2. Bay of Bengal current which flows parallel to the coast.
During the Monsoon season, there are periods when the Monsoon trough shifts to the foothills of Himalayas, which
leads to sharp decrease in rainfall over most parts of the country but increase along the Himalayas and parts of
the country outside the Himalayan belt and southeast peninsula. This is known as break in the monsoon.
Breaks are likely to occur during the second week of August and last for a week.
The breaks are believed to be brought about by the northward shifting of the monsoon trough (minimum low
pressure cell in ITCZ). The axis of the trough lies at the foothills of the Himalayas during the break period.
The monsoon trough is a portion of the Intertropical Convergence Zone as depicted by a line on a weather map showing the
locations of minimum sea level pressure, and as such, is a convergence zone between the wind patterns of the southern and
northern hemispheres.
During the break period, heavy rainfall occurs over the sub-Himalayan regions and the southern slopes of the
Himalayas.
On an average one or two breaks do occur during the rainy season. 85 out of 100 years there is a break in the
monsoons.
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A major part of the South West Monsoon rainfall is generated by depressions [intense low pressure] originating in the
Arabian Sea and Bay of Bengal. Some depressions develop over land also.
About 3-4 depressions are formed per month from June to September.
Almost all of them are sucked inward through the deltas of great rivers [They need moisture to be alive], the Ganga,
the Mahanadi, the Godavari, the Krishna and the Cauvery and cause heavy rain in these areas.
The location of depressions strongly coincide with the latitudinal position of ITCZ.
Most of the depression originate to the west of 90 E in Bay of Bengal and move in north-west direction.
In the Arabian Sea in June-July, the depressions move either in north-west or in northerly direction and may affect
Major part of monsoon rains are received between June and September.
Monsoonal rainfall is largely governed by relief and is orographic in its mode.
The amount of rainfall decreases with increasing distance from the sea.
The rainless interval during south west monsoon season is known as breaks. The breaks in rainfall are related to
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Starts with the beginning of the withdrawal of southwest monsoon [middle of September November].
The monsoons withdraw from the extreme north-west end of the country in September, from the peninsula by October
September.
The south-west monsoons reach Coromandel coast in the first week of June and withdraw from there only in the
middle of December.
Unlike the sudden burst of the advancing monsoons, the withdrawal is rather gradual and takes about three
months.
With retreat of the monsoons, the clouds disappear and the sky becomes clear.
The day temperature starts falling steeply.
The diurnal range of temperature increases due to lack of cloud cover.
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As the monsoons retreat, the monsoon trough weakens and gradually shifts southward. Consequently the pressure
gradient is low.
Unlike south-west monsoon, the onset of the north monsoon is not clearly defined.
The direction of winds over large parts of the country is influenced by the local pressure conditions.
Most severe and devastating tropical cyclones originate in the Indian seas especially in the Bay of Bengal.
The highest frequency of the cyclones is in the month of October and the first half of November.
More cyclones are born in October and then in November and more cyclones originate in the Bay of Bengal than in
the Arabian Sea.
In October, the Cyclones of the Bay of Bengal originate between 8N and 14N.
Initially they move in a west or northwesterly direction, but many of them later recurve and move towards the north-
east.
Near 55 per cent of the Bay storms cross or affect the Indian coast.
The areas most vulnerable to these storms include the coastal belts of Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh, Odisha and West
Bengal.
Many of the cyclones which strike the eastern coast of India, south of 15N latitude cross the southern Peninsula and
in November.
Generally they move away from the coast in a north-westerly direction. But about 25% of them later recurve northeast
The humidity and cloud cover are much reduced with the retreat of the south-west monsoons and most parts of the
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Meghalaya (the abode of clouds) is the wettest part of the country with Mawsynram and Cherrapunji getting 1,221
and 1,102 cm of annual rainfall respectively.
Areas of high rainfall
These are desert and semi-desert areas receiving less than 50 cm of annual rainfall.
They include large areas of western Rajasthan, Kachchh and most of Ladakh region of Jammu and Kashmir.
Climatic Regions of India Stamps Classification of Climatic Regions of India: Temperate and Tropical Koeppens
Classification of Climatic Regions of India.
Climatic Regions of India
India has tropical monsoon climate with large regional variations in terms of rainfall and temperature.
While classifying Indian climatic regions, most geographers have given more importance to rainfall than to
temperature as variations in rainfall are much more marked than those of temperature.
Here we will see two classifications - Stamp's and Koeppens. For GS this is more than enough.
Stamp's Classification of Climatic Regions of India
Stamp used 18C isotherm of mean monthly temperature for January to divide the country into two broad climatic
regions, viz., temperate or continental zone in the north and tropical zone in the south.
This line runs roughly across the root of the peninsula, more or less along or parallel to the Tropic of Cancer.
The two major climatic regions are further divided into eleven regions depending upon the amount of rainfall and
temperature.
The
The
The
The
The
Tropical India
1.
2.
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3.
4.
5.
6.
Avg Temperature
Sumer = 4-7C
Annual Rainfall
East = Over 200 cm
North-western Region
Winter = 13-18C
Summer = 16C
Winter = 24C
Arid Lowland
Thar desert of Rajasthan, south western part of
Below 40 cm
Summer = 48C
Winter = 15-18C
40 - 80 cm
Summer = 33-35C
Transitional Zone
15-19C
Summer = 30 - 35C
Tropical India
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100 -150 cm
Winter
18C
in
Over 200
Summer = 32-35C
Winter = 18-24C
100 - 200 cm
Summer = 29-35C
Winter
18-24C
50 -100 cm
Summer = 32C in
Annual = 24-27C.
Over 200 cm
Annual = 27C
Over 250 cm
Annual = 24C
100 to 150 cm
(Retreating monsoon)
Koeppens Classification of Climatic Regions of India is an empirical classification based on mean annual and mean
[Dont have to remember all these alphabets. Only remember the climatic regions and their characteristics. Thats enough
Alphabet codes will help you to remember the concept in the long run. But if you found them hard, just ignore them]
The climatic groups are subdivided into types, designated by small letters, based on seasonality of precipitation and
temperature characteristics.
The seasons of dryness are indicated by the small letters : f, m, w and s, where
a) f - no dry season,
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b) m - monsoon climate,
c) w - winter dry season and
d) s - summer dry season.
The above mentioned major climatic types are further subdivided depending upon the seasonal distribution of rainfall
or degree of dryness or cold.
The capital letters S and W are employed to designate the two subdivisions of dry climate:
1. semi-arid or Steppe (S) and
2. arid or desert (W).
Capital letters T and F are similarly used to designate the two subdivisions of polar climate
1. tundra (T) and
2. icecap (F).
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Koeppen divided India into nine climatic regions making use of the above scheme.
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Region
Western coastal region, south of Mumbai
Annual rainfall
over 300 cm
As
75 - 100 cm
Aw
75 cm
BShw
BWhw
less than 12 cm
Cwg
100 - 200 cm
Amw
(Monsoon type with short
dry winter season)
12 to 25 cm
winters)
Dfc
~200 cm
Et
(Tundra Type)
year.
(Polar Type)
form of snow
from 0 to 10C
Source: Indian Geography KULLAR
Natural Vegetation of India
Climate, soil and topography are the major factors that influence Natural Vegetation of a place.
The main climatic factors are rainfall and temperature. The amount of annual rainfall has a great bearing on the
type of vegetation.
Annual Rainfall
Type of Vegetation
200 cm or more
100 to 200 cm
50 to 100 cm
25 to 50 cm
Below 25 cm
Desert (Arid)
Temperature is the major factor in Himalayas and other hilly regions with an elevation of more than 900 metres.
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As the temperature falls with altitude in the Himalayan region the vegetal cover changes with altitude from
Classification of Natural Vegetation of India is primarily based on spatial and annual variations in rainfall.
E. Alpine Forests
1.
2.
3.
Sub-Alpine
Moist Alpine scrub
Dry Alpine scrub
Forest Type in India
% of Total Area
37
28
Tropical Semi-Evergreen
4
Rest below 4 %
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Characteristics
Evergreen: Due to high heat and high humidity, the trees of these forests do not shed their leaves together.
Mesosphytic:Plants adopted to neither too dry nor too wet type climate.
What are mesophytes?
extremes.
Mesophytic environments are marked by average to hot temperatures and soil
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Distribution
1.
2.
3.
Western side of the Western Ghats (500 to 1370 metres above sea level).
Some regions in the Purvanchal hills.
In the Andaman and Nicobar Islands.
Timber
industry works in Equatorial Rainforests (hardwood) and Taiga Climatic (softwood) conditions].
The important species of these forests are mahogany, mesua, white cedar, jamun, canes, bamboo etc.
They are transitional forests between tropical wet evergreen forests and tropical deciduous forests.
They are comparatively drier areas compared to tropical wet evergreen forests.
Climatic Conditions
Distribution
Western coast
Assam
Lower slopes of the Eastern Himalayas
Odisha and
Andamans.
Characteristics
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Timber
Hardwood: Similar to that in tropical evergreen forests except that these forests are less dense with more pure
stands (timber industry here is better than in evergreen forests).
Characteristics
The trees drop their leaves during the spring and early summer when sufficient moisture is not available.
The general appearance is bare in extreme summers (April-May).
Tropical moist deciduous forests present irregular top storey [25 to 60 m].
Heavily buttressed trees and fairly complete undergrowth.
These forests occupy a much larger area than the evergreen forests but large tracts under these forests have been
cleared for cultivation.
Distribution
Belt running along the Western Ghats surrounding the belt of evergreen forests.
A strip along the Shiwalik range including terai and bhabar from 77 E to 88 E.
Manipur and Mizoram.
Hills of eastern Madhya Pradesh and Chhattisgarh.
Chota Nagpur Plateau.
Most of Odisha.
Parts of West Bengal and
Andaman and Nicobar islands.
Timber
They can survive and grow both in fresh as well as brackish water (The mixture of seawater and fresh water in
estuaries is called brackish water and its salinity can range from 0.5 to 35 ppt).
Occur in and around the deltas, estuaries and creeks prone to tidal influences (delta or tidal forests).
Littoral (relating to or on the shore of the sea or a lake) forests occur at several places along the coast.
Swamp forests are confined to the deltas of the Ganga, the Mahanadi, the Godavari, the Krishna and the Cauvery.
Dense mangroves occur all along the coastline in sheltered estuaries, tidal creeks, backwaters, salt marshes and
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Timber
It provides hard and durable timber which is used for construction, building purposes and making boats.
The important species found in these forests are Sundri, agar, rhizophora, screw pines, canes and palms, etc.
Climatic Conditions
Annual rainfall of 100 cm [mostly from the north-east monsoon winds in October December].
Mean annual temperature is about 28C.
The mean humidity is about 75 per cent.
The growth of evergreen forests in areas of such low rainfall is a bit strange.
Characteristics
Short statured trees, up to 12 m high, with complete canopy.
Bamboos and grasses not conspicuous.
The important species are jamun, tamarind, neem, etc.
Most of the land under these forests has been cleared for agriculture or casuarina plantations.
Casuarina plantation
Distribution
Casuarina is the most popular farm forestry in the states of Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, West Bengal,
Odisha, Maharashtra, Gujarat, and Karnataka.
Benefits
and wrapping.
It is got some serious medicinal values as well.
Wasteland development
The characteristics which make it a suitable species for wasteland development include adaptability to wide
range of habitats, fast growth, salt tolerant, drought resistant, ability to reclaim land and stabilize sand dunes.
Intercrops such as groundnut, cucumber, watermelons, sesamum, and pulses can also be raised along with
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the plantation.
Tropical Dry Deciduous Forests
Climatic Conditions
Characteristics
These are similar to moist deciduous forests and shed their leaves in dry season.
The major difference is that they can grow in areas of comparatively less rainfall.
They represent a transitional type - moist deciduous on the wetter side and thorn forests on the drier side.
They have closed but uneven canopy.
The forests are composed of a mixture of a few species of deciduous trees rising up to a height of 20 metres.
Undergrowth: Enough light reaches the ground to permit the growth of grass and climbers.
Distribution
They occur in an irregular wide strip running from the foot of the Himalayas to Kanniyakumari except in
Characteristics
Distribution
Rajasthan, south-western Punjab, western Haryana, Kachchh and neighbouring parts of Saurashtra.
Here they degenerate into desert type in the Thar desert.
Such forests also grow on the leeside of the Western Ghats covering large areas of Maharashtra, Karnataka,
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Distribution
Eastern Himalayas to the east of 88E longitude at altitudes varying from 1000 to 2000 m.
Characteristics
Western Himalayas between 73E and 88E longitudes at elevations between 1000 to 2000 metres above sea level.
Some hilly regions of Arunachal Pradesh, Manipur, Naga Hills and Khasi Hills.
Timber
Chir or Chil is the most dominant tree which forms pure stands.
It provides valuable timber for furniture, boxes and buildings.
It is also used for producing resin and turpentine.
Found in the Bhabar, the Shiwaliks and the western Himalayas up to about 1000 metres above sea level.
Climatic Conditions
Characteristics
Low scrub forest with small evergreen stunted trees and shrubs.
Olive, acacia modesta and pistacia are the most predominant species.
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Distribution
Higher hills of Tamil Nadu and Kerala, in the Eastern Himalayan region.
Characteristics
Distribution
Occurs in the temperate zone of the Himalayas between 1500 and 3300 metres.
Cover the entire length of this mountain range in Kashmir, Himachal Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Darjeeling and
Sikkim.
Characteristics
Timber
It provides fine wood which is of much use for construction, timber and railway sleepers.
Characteristics
Coniferous forests with xerophytic shrubs in which deodar, oak, ash, olive, etc are the main trees.
Distribution
Such forests are found in the inner dry ranges of the Himalayas where south-west monsoon is very feeble.
Such areas are in Ladakh, Lahul, Chamba, Kinnaur, Garhwal and Sikkim.
Alpine Forests
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These forests can be divided into: (1) sub-alpine; (2) moist alpine scrub and (3) dry alpine scrub.
The sub-alpine forests occur lower alpine scrub and grasslands.
It is a mixture of coniferous and broad-leaved trees in which the coniferous trees attain a height of about 30 m
Soil Soil Types: Sandy-Clayey-Loamy. Soil Profile Soil Horizon: O horizon, A Horizon, E horizon, B Horizon, C Horizon
or Parent rock, R Horizon or Bedrock.
Soil
Soil is the thin top layer on the earths crust comprising rock particles mixed with organic matter.
Pedology is the study of soils in their natural environment.Pedogenesis is the natural process of soil formation
1.
The soil is classified on the basis of the proportion of particles of various sizes.
(a) If soil contains greater proportion of big particles it is called sandy soil.
(b) If the proportion of fine particles is relatively higher, then it is called clayey soil.
(c) If the amount of large and fine particles is about the same, then the soil is called loamy.
Water can drain quickly through the spaces between the sand particles. So, sandy soils tend to be light, well aerated
2.
and dry.
Clay particles, being much smaller, pack tightly together, leaving little space for air. Unlike sandy soil, water can be
held in the tiny gaps between the particles of clay. So clay soils have little air. But they are heavy as they hold more
waterthan the sandy soils.
The besttopsoil for growing plants is loam. Loamy soil is a mixture of sand, clay and another type of soil particle
3.
known as silt. Silt occurs as a deposit in river beds. The size of the silt particles is between those of sand and clay.
The loamy soil also has humus in it. It has the right water holding capacity for the growth of plants.
Clayey and loamy soils are both suitable for growing cereals like wheat, and gram. Such soils are good at
retaining water.
For paddy, soils rich in clay and organic matter and having a good capacity to retain water are ideal.
For lentils (masoor) and other pulses, loamy soils, which drain water easily, are required.
For cotton, sandy loam or loam, which drain water easily and can hold plenty of air, are more suitable.
A vertical section through different layers of the soil is called the soil profile.
Each layer differs in feel (texture), colour, depth and chemical composition. These layers are referred to as
horizons.
A soil horizon is a layer generally parallel to the soil surface, whose physical characteristics differ from the layers
above and beneath.
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Horizons are defined in most cases by obvious physical features, chiefly colour and texture.
The uppermost horizon is generally dark in colour as it is rich in humus and minerals. The humus makes the soil
O Horizon
lichens).
They may be on top of either mineral or organic soils.
E horizon
concentration of resistant minerals, such as quartz, in the sand and silt sizes.
These are present only in older, well-developed soils, and generally occur between the A and B horizons.
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B Horizon or Subsoil
Weathered parent material accumulates in this layer, i.e. the parent material in sedimentary deposits.
It is a layer of large unbroken rocks.
This layer may accumulate the more soluble compounds (inorganic material).
R Horizon or Bedrock
This layer denotes the layer of partially weathered bedrock at the base of the soil profile.
Unlike the above layers, R horizons largely comprise continuous masses of hard rock.
Soils formed in situ will exhibit strong similarities to this bedrock layer.
These areas of bedrock are under 50 feet of the other profiles.
Soil formation in Indian Conditions Factors that influence soil formation: Parent Material Gondwana rocks & Deccan
basalts, Relief, Climate & Natural Vegetation.
Factors that influence soil formation in Indian
Conditions
Parent Material
Relief
Climate
Natural Vegetation
Parent Material
soil.
In some cases, the soil formed may or may not have the same physical properties of the parent rock.
Climatic factors induce chemical changes which also affect physical properties of the soil.
The surface rocks are exposed to the process of weathering. In this process, the rocks are converted into fine
They are theOldest rocks [(pre-Cambrian era)(formed due to solidification of molten magmaabout 4billion years
ago)].
They form the Basement Complex of peninsular India.
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clay] soils.
The soil is mostly devoid of metalliferous minerals.
Gondwana rocks
These rocks are also sedimentary in nature and they are much younger.
On weathering they give rise to comparatively less mature soils.
The soil is more or less of uniform character but of low fertility.
Deccan basalts
Volcanic outburst over a vast area of the Peninsular India many hundred million years ago gave rise to Deccan
Traps.
Basaltic lava flowed out of fissures covering a vast area of about ten lakh sq km.
Basalts are rich in titanium, magnetite, aluminium and magnesium.
Consequently the weathering of these rocks has given rise to soils of darker colour.
The is fertile with high moisture holding capacity and is popularly known as regur or black cotton soil.
Rocks of extra peninsular (plains and Himalayas) India have given rise to soils with high porosity.
These soils are generally immature recent and sub recent rocks, result in alluvial soils on weathering.
Alluvial fertile soils consist of fine silts and clay. These soils have little relation with the original rocks.
On the other hand, the soils of peninsular plateau are generally coarse-grained and are closely related to the
parent rocks. The peninsular soils are generally less fertile.
Relief
The relief is the most important factor for soil formation in places with steep slopes like the hilly regions, edges of
plateaus etc.
Soil erosion on barren slopes is rampant and it hinders soil formation. Example: Chambal ravines, higher
reaches of Himalayas where there is minimal or no forest cover (most on the steep southern slopes) etc.
The areas of low relief or gentle slope generally experience deposition and have deep soils. Example: Indo-Gangetic
plain.
The exceptions in the plateau are river basins where the soil layers are sufficiently deep.
Climate
Temperature and rainfall are the most important factors in soil formation.
They determine the effectiveness of weathering of the parent material, the quantity of water seeping through the
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The crystalline granites produce laterite soil in relatively moist parts of the monsoonal region and non-
parent rock.
In Rajasthan, both granite and sandstone give birth to sandy soil under arid climate.
In arid and semi-arid regions, evaporation always exceeds precipitation. There is little vegetation and the soils
badly lack humus content. Hence the soils are invariably of light colour.
In Rajasthan and the adjoining arid and semi-arid regions, excess of evaporation makes soils lime accumulating.
Hence the soil is pedocal in nature [Pedocal is a subdivision of the zonal soil order. It is a class of soil which forms
in semiarid and arid regions. It is rich in calcium carbonate and has low soil organic matter].
In cold climates of the Himalayan region, the process of vegetation decay is very slow and the soils are acidic in
nature.
In areas of heavy rainfall and high temperature, the soils are red or lateritic. Why?
Torrential rainfall during the rainy season washes the upper soil and leaches the materials into deeper horizon.
During the dry summer season the evaporation exceeds precipitation and through capillary action iron and
aluminium oxides are transported to the surface making the soil red.
In areas of alternate wet and dry climate, the leached material which goes deep down in the horizon is brought up
and the blazing sun bakes the top soil so hard that it resembles a brick. Therefore, this soil is called lateritic
which literally means brick.
Natural Vegetation
Major Soil Groups of India Alluvial Soils Black Soils Characteristics, Chemical properties, Distribution, Crops,
Geological divisions: Bhabar, Terai, Bhangar, Khadar.
Major Soil Groups of India
Geologically, Indian soils can broadly be divided into soils of peninsular India and soils of extra-peninsular India.
The soils of Peninsular India are formed by the decomposition of rocks in situ, i.e. directly from the underlying rocks.
Soils of Peninsular India are transported and re-deposited to a limited extent and are known as sedentary soils.
The soils of the Extra-Peninsula are formed due to the depositional work of rivers and wind. They are very deep. They
are often referred to as transported or azonal soils.
Major groups:
(1) Alluvial soils,
(2) Black soils,
(3) Red soils,
(4) Laterite and Lateritic soils,
(5) Forest and Mountain soils,
(6) Arid and Desert soils,
(7) Saline and Alkaline soils and
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Alluvial Soils
Alluvial soils are formed mainly due to silt deposited by Indo-Gangetic-Brahmaputra rivers. In coastal regions some
They are immature and have weak profiles due to their recent origin.
Most of the soil is loamy. Sandy and clayey soils are not uncommon.
Pebbly and gravelly soils are rare. Kankar (calcareous concretions) beds are present in some regions along the river
terraces.
The soil is porous because of its loamy (equal proportion of sand and clay) nature.
Porosity and texture provide good drainage and other conditions favorable for agriculture.
These soils are constantly replenished by the recurrent floods.
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They occur all along the Indo-Gangetic-Brahmaputra plains except in few places where the top layer is covered by
desert sand.
They also occur in deltas of the Mahanadi, the Godavari, the Krishna and the Cauvery, where they are called deltaic
They are mostly flat and regular soils and are best suited for agriculture.
They are best suited to irrigation and respond well to canal and well/tube-well irrigation.
They yield splendid crops of rice, wheat, sugarcane, tobacco, cotton, jute, maize, oilseeds, vegetables and fruits.
Geologically, the alluvium of the Great plain of India is divided into newer or younger khadar and older bhangar soils.
Bhabar
The bhabar belt is about 8-16 km wide running along the Shiwalik foothills. It is a porous, northern most stretch of
Indo-Gangetic plain.
Rivers descending from the Himalayas deposit their load along the foothills in the form of alluvial fans. These alluvial
fans (often pebbly soils) have merged together to build up the bhabar belt.
The porosity of bhabar is the most unique feature. The porosity is due to deposition of huge number of pebbles and
Terai is an ill-drained, damp (marshy) and thickly forested narrow tract (15-30 km wide) to the south of Bhabar
The Bhangar is the older alluvium along the river beds forming terraces higher than the flood plain (about 30 metres
The Khadar is composed of newer alluvium and forms the flood plains along the river banks.
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The banks are flooded almost every year and a new layer of alluvium is deposited with every flood. This makes them
Black Soils
The parent material for most of the black soil are the volcanic rocks that were formed in the Deccan Plateau (Deccan
generally shallow.
These are the region of high temperature and low rainfall. It is, therefore, a soil group typical to the dry and hot
regions of the Peninsula.
A typical black soil is highly argillaceous [Geology (of rocks or sediment) consisting of or containing clay] with a large clay
The black colour is due to the presence of a small proportion of titaniferous magnetite or iron and black
Spread over 5.46 lakh sq km (16.6 per cent of the total area) acrossMaharashtra, Madhya Pradesh, parts of
Karnataka, Telangana, Andhra Pradesh, Gujarat and Tamil Nadu.
These soils are best suited for cotton crop. Hence these soils are called as regur and black cotton soils.
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Other major crops grown on the black soils include wheat, jowar, linseed, virginia tobacco, castor, sunflower and
millets.
Rice and sugarcane are equally important where irrigation facilities are available.
Large varieties of vegetables and fruits are also successfully grown on the black soils.
This soil has been used for growing a variety of crops for centuries without adding fertilizers and manures, with little
or no evidence of exhaustion.
Indian Soil Types: Red Soils, Laterite Lateritic Soils, Forest Mountain Soils, Arid Desert Soils, Saline Alkaline Soils,
Peaty Marshy Soils.
Previous post: Alluvial Soil Black Soil.
Red Soils
Red soils along with its minor groups form the largest soil group of India.
The main parent rocks are crystalline and metamorphic rocks like acid granites, gneisses and quartzites.
The texture of these soils can vary from sand to clay, the majority being loams.
On the uplands, the red soils are poor, gravelly, and porous. But in the lower areas they are rich, deep dark and
fertile.
They are acidic mainly due to the nature of the parent rocks. The alkali content is fair.
They are poor in lime, magnesia, phosphates, nitrogen and humus.
They are fairly rich in potash and potassium.
The red soils are mostly loamy and hence cannot retain water like the black soils.
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The red soils,with the proper use of fertilizers and irrigation techniques, give good yield of cotton, wheat, rice, pulses,
millets, tobacco, oil seeds, potatoes and fruits.
away and a soil rich in oxides of iron and aluminium compounds is left behind.
Lateritemeans brick in Latin. They harden greatly on loosing moisture.
Laterite soils are red in colour due to little clay and more gravel of red sand-stones.
Eastern Ghats, the Rajmahal Hills, Vindhyan, Satpuras and Malwa Plateau.
They also occur at lower levels and in valleys in several other parts of the country.
They are well developed in south Maharashtra, parts of Karnataka etc. and are widely scattered in other regions.
These soils occupy about 2.85 lakh sq km or 8.67% of the total land area of India.
They are mainly heterogeneous soils found on the hill slopes covered by forests.
The formation of these soils is mainly governed by the characteristic deposition of organic matter derived from forests
and their character changes with parent rocks, ground-configuration and climate.
Consequently, they differ greatly even if they occur in close proximity to one another.
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In the Himalayan region, such soils are mainly found in valleys, less steep and north facing slopes. The south facing
slopes are very steep and exposed to denudation and hence do not support soil formation.
Forest soils occur in Western and Eastern Ghats also.
They are suitable for plantations of tea, coffee, spices and tropical fruits in peninsular forest region.
Wheat, maize, barley and temperate fruits are grown in the Himalayan forest region.
The desert soils consist of Aeolian sand (90 to 95 per cent) and clay (5 to 10 per cent).
They cover a total area of 1.42 lakh sq km (4.32%).
The presence of sand inhibits soil growth. Desertification of neighboring soils is common due to intrusion of desert
sand under the influence of wind [Aeolian sand].
Occur in arid and semi-arid regions of Rajasthan, Punjab and Haryana. The sand here is blown from the Indus basin
Phosphates and nitrates make these soil fertile wherever moisture is available.
There is a possibility of reclaiming these soils if proper irrigation facilities are available.
In large areas, only the drought resistant and salt tolerant crops such as barley, cotton, millets, maize and pulses are
grown.
In Saline and Alkaline Soils, the top soil is impregnated (soak or saturate with a substance) with saline and alkaline
acid.
Some of the salts are transported in solution by the rivers.
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In regions with low water table, the salts percolate into sub soil and in regions with good drainage, the salts are
deposits all the salts in the top soil once the water evaporates.
In regions with high sub-soil water table, injurious salts are transferred from below by the capillary action as a
result of evaporation in dry season.
Capillary action
Capillary action is the ability of a liquid to flow in narrow spaces without the assistance of, and in opposition
Surface tension
Surface tension is the elastic tendency of liquids (a membrane like surface) that makes them acquire the
water surface.
Surface tension offers the necessary buoyant force(buoyancy) required for an object to float in water [Ships
flots because of difference in density as well surface tension].
areas comprising the estuaries of the Narmada, the Tapi, the Mahi and the Sabarmati have thus become infertile.
Along the coastline, saline sea waters infiltrate into coastal regions during storm surges (when cyclones make
landfall) and makes the soil unfit for cultivation. The low lying regions of coastal Andhra Pradesh and Tamil Nadu face
this kind of soil degradation.
These are soils with large amount of organic matter and considerable amount of soluble salts.
The most humid regions have this type of soil.
They are black, heavy and highly acidic.
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Most of the peaty soils are under water during the rainy season but as soon the rains cease, they are put under paddy
cultivation.
Most soils are old and mature. Soils of the peninsular plateau are much older than the soils of the great northern
plain.
Indian soils are largely deficient in nitrogen, mineral salts, humus and other organic materials.
Plains and valleys have thick layers of soils while hilly and plateau areas depict thin soil cover.
Some soils like alluvial and black soils are fertile while some other soils such as laterite, desert and alkaline soils lack
Soil erosion (Himalayan region, Chambal Ravines etc.), deficiency in fertility (Red, lateritic and other soils),
desertification (around Thar desert, rain-shadow regions like parts of Karnataka, Telangana etc.), waterlogging
(Punjab-Haryana plain) salinity and alkalinity (excessively irrigated regions of Punjab, Haryana, Karnataka etc.),
wasteland, over exploitation of soils due to increase in population and rise in living standards and encroachment of
agricultural land due to urban and transport development.
Soil Degradation Soil Erosion, Deforestation, Overgrazing, Faulty Methods of Agriculture, Soil Salinity and Soil
Alkalinity, Desertification &Waterlogging.
Soil Degradation
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Soil degradation is the decline in soil quality caused by its improper use, usually for agricultural, pastoral, industrial
or urban purposes.
Soil degradation is a serious global environmental problem and may be exacerbated by climate change. It
encompasses physical (soil erosion), chemical (salinity and alkalinity, pollution) and biological deterioration (pollution
and deterioration of vegetal cover).
Soil erosion is the removal of top soil by agents like wind and water.
Top soil has most of the nutrients necessary for a plants growth. With depth, the fertility of the soil decreases. Thus,
erosion results in reduction of fertility of the soil by washing away the fertile top layer.
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Erosion by wind and water is much quicker than the soil formation process. So once fertile soil layer is lost, it requires
land management.
Notable Quotable: Soil erosion is essentially a problem created by man and also faced by man himself.
Water Erosion
The whole pattern resembles the shape of a tree. This is called rill erosion.
With further erosion of the soil, the rills deepen and become enlarged and are turned into gullies. Gullies formed over
on Colorado River).
When the entire top sheet of soil is washed away by water or by wind, leaving behind barren rock, it is called sheet
erosion. Sheet erosion attacks a large area of top soil and renders the land almost unfit for cultivation.
In the coastal areas, waves dash along the coast and cause heavy damage to soil. During the landfall of cyclones,
storm surges destroy beaches and wash away the top layer. In estuaries, tidal bores cause extensive damage to the
Wind Erosion
Wind erosion or Aeolian erosion is quite significant in arid and semi-arid regions.
Winds usually blow at high speeds in deserts due to absence of trees (physical obstruction).
These winds remove the fertile, arable, loose soils leaving behind a depression devoid of top soil (the depression
formation in deserts is the first step in Oasis formation. Oasis forms in depressions when there is underground water
creep.
Very coarse sand and gravels are too large to be rolled by wind, so wind-eroded soils have surfaces covered with coarse
fragments larger than 1.00 mm in diameter. This kind of arid soil surface is known as desert pavement.
80 million hectares or about one-fourth of our total area is exposed to wind and water erosion.
One-eighth of land has undergone serious erosion.
Wind erosion is a serious problem in arid and semi-arid parts of north west India.
About one-ninth of land is subject to severe wind erosion in Rajasthan and adjoining areas of Punjab, Haryana,
Gujarat and Western Uttar Pradesh.
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It is estimated that 34 lakh tonnes of fertile soils is removed by wind every year.
The loss due to water erosion is 53.34 million hectares annually.
Deforestation
Population explosion has created pressure on forest land and resources and this causes deforestation. Deforestation
Shifting cultivation
In this practice a patch of land is cleared, vegetation is burned and the ash is mixed with the soil thus adding
piece of land.
This agricultural practice has become totally unsustainable due to raid increase in population pressure in the forested
areas.
160
Population pressure and development agenda have resulted in indiscriminate development of infrastructure, water
reservoirs and dams, hydro power projects, roads and railways etc. This led to greater deforestation.
Open cast mining has resulted in deforestation all over the world.
Plantation Boom
Increase in demand for cocoa, coffee, tea, sugar, palm oil, rubber etc. have resulted in deforestation in the tropical
rainforests.
Fuel Requirements
The increasing demand for firewood with ever. growing population increases greater pressure on the forests, which
results in increased intensity of deforestation.
Population pressure coupled with changes in standard of living have increased the demand for forest resources.
Raw Materials
Wood is used as a raw material by various industries for making paper, plywood, furniture, match sticks, boxes,
Other Causes
Deforestation also results from overgrazing, agriculture, mining, urbanization, flood, fire, pest, diseases, defense and
communication activities.
Effects of Deforestation
Closed forests (based on canopy level) have being diminished due to deforestation leading to increase in degraded
forests.
Forests recycle moisture (natural motors) from soil into their immediate atmosphere by transpiration where it again
precipitates as rain.
Deforestation results in an immediate lowering of ground water level (low percolation due to quick surface runoff on
erosion.
Underground mining also significantly denudes forests because timber is used for supporting the roofs of mine
galleries.
161
A large number of abandoned mines are lying in bad shape and are under extensive gully erosion leading to
Overgrazing
During the rainy season, there is plenty of vegetation and animals get enough fodder.
But during the dry period, there is shortage of fodder and the grass is grazed to the ground and torn out by the roots
by animals.
This leads to loose structure of the soil and the soil is easily washed away by rains.
Moreover, soil is pulverized (reduce to fine particles) by the hoofs of animals, and thus proves detrimental to top soil
agriculture.
If the fields are ploughed along the slope, there is no obstruction to the flow of water and the water washes away the
In Saline and Alkaline Soils, the top soil is impregnated (soak or saturate with a substance) with saline and alkaline
acid.
Some of the salts are transported in solution by the rivers.
In regions with low water table (due to over irrigation in canal irrigated areas), the salts percolate into sub soil and in
regions with good drainage, the salts are wasted away by flowing water.
But in places where the drainage system is poor, the water with high salt concentration becomes stagnant and
deposits all the salts in the top soil once the water evaporates.
In regions with high sub-soil water table, injurious salts are transferred from below by the capillary action as a
sodium, calcium and magnesium appear on the surface as a layer of white salt through capillary action.
Alkalinity implies the dominance of sodium salts, specially sodium carbonate.
Although salts of alkali are somewhat different in their chemical properties from the salts of saline soils both soils
162
It is estimated that about 80 lakh hectares of land (2.43% of the country's total area) is affected by the problem of
of Maharashtra, Gujarat, Andhra Pradesh, Telangana and Karnataka etc. are facing this problem.
Although Indira Gandhi canal in Rajasthan has turned the sandy desert into a granary, it has given birth to serious
problems of salinity and alkalinity.
Salinity and alkalinity have adverse effect on soil and reduce soil fertility.
Cultivation is not possible on saline soils unless they are flushed out with large quantities of irrigation water to leach
Providing outlets for lands to drain out excess water and lower water table.
Seal leakages from canals, tanks and other water bodies by lining them.
Making judicious use of irrigation facilities.
Improve vegetal cover to avoid further degradation by planting salt tolerant vegetation.
Crop rotation..
Liberal application of gypsum to convert the alkalies into soluble compounds.
Alkali can be removed by adding sulphuric acid or acid forming substances like sulphur and pyrite.
Organic residues such as rice husks and rice straw can be added to promote formation of mild acid as a result of their
decomposition.
Flushing the salt by flooding the fields with excess water. However, this practice can lead to accumulation of saline
water in the downstream area.
Desertification
Desertification is the spread of desert like conditions in arid or semi-arid areas due to man's influence or climatic
change.
A large part of the arid and semi-arid region lying between the Indus and the Aravali range is affected by spreading
desert conditions.
Desert soils suffer maximum erosion by wind. The sand carried by wind is deposited on the adjoining fertile lands
whose fertility dwindles and slowly the fertile land start merging with the advancing desert.
It has been estimated that the Thar Desert is advancing at an alarming rate of about 0.5 km per year.
The process of desertification is attributed to uncontrolled grazing, reckless felling of trees and growing population.
Climate change have also contributed to the spread of deserts.
163
Waterlogging
sources.
Extent of waterlogged soils is about 12 million hectares in India half of which lies along the coast and the other half
(a)
Soil conservation is the prevention of soil from erosion or reduced fertility caused by overuse, acidification,
Crop Rotation
Adopting sustainable agricultural practices is the most important measure to conserve soil.
In many parts of India, a particular crop is sown in the same field year after year. This practice leads to exhaustion of
164
Strip Cropping
Crops may be cultivated in alternate strips, parallel to one another. Some strips may be allowed to lie fallow while in
or exposed.
The tall growing crops act as wind breaks and the strips which are often parallel to the contours help in increasing
water absorption by the soil by slowing down run off.
Early maturing varieties of crops take less time to mature and thus put lesser pressure on the soil. In this way it can
help in reducing the soil erosion.
Contour Ploughing
If ploughing is done at right angles to the hill slope, the ridges and furrows break the flow of water down the hill.
This prevents excessive soil loss as gullies are less likely to develop and also reduce run-off so that plants receive more
water.
Checking and reducing shifting cultivation by persuading the tribal people to switch over to settled agriculture is a
Ploughing the land in a direction perpendicular to wind direction also reduces wind velocity and protects the top soil
from erosion.
Mulching
The bare ground (top soil) between plants is covered with a protective layer of organic matter like grass clippings,
straw, etc.
Benefits
Contour barriers
165
Stones, grass, soil are used to build barriers along contours. Trenches are made in front of the barriers to collect
water.
They intercept downslope flowing water and soil particles. These barriers slow down the water movement and reduce
its erosive force. They also filter out and trap many of the suspended soil particles, keeping them from being washed
Rock dam
Rocks are piled up across a channel to slow down the flow of water. This prevents gullies and further soil loss.
Terrace farming
Contour Bunding
Intercropping
Different crops are grown in alternate rows and are sown at different times to protect the soil from rain wash.
Contour ploughing
Ploughing parallel to the contours of a hill slope to form a natural barrier for water to flow down the slope
In the coastal and dry regions, rows of trees are planted to check the wind movement to protect soil cover.
Sand fences
Sand fences are barriers made of small, evenly spaced wooden slats or fabric. They are erected to reduce wind velocity
and to trap blowing sand. Sand fences can be used as perimeter controls around open construction sites to keep
sediments from being blown offsite by the wind.
Afforestation
It includes the prevention of forest destruction along with growing new forests or increase area under forests.
A minimum area 20 to 25 per cent of forest land was considered healthy for soil and water conservation for the whole
country.
166
It was raised to 33 per cent in the second five year plan 20 per cent for the plains and 60 per cent for hilly and
mountainous regions.
Checking Overgrazing
Overgrazingaccentuates erosion. During the dry period, there is shortage of fodder and the grass is grazed to the
ground and torn out to the roots by animals. Soil is pulverized (reduce to fine particles) by the hoofs of animals. All this
Dams
Much of the soil erosion by river floods can be avoided by constructing dams across the rivers in proper places. This
Economic Geography
Iron Ore Raw Material, Commonly found impurities in Iron Ore, What exactly happens in a blast furnace? Beneficiation.
Iron Ore Distribution Across the World.
Factors that influence the location of Iron and Steel industry
167
To understand about the factors that influence the location of Iron and Steel Industry, we have to understand
Sulphur
Phosphorous
Lead
Manganese
Tin
It forms a low melting point brittle film round the grain boundaries making the Steel practically useless ==> very
bad.
Oxygen
Has a bad influence on the properties of steel ==> very bad. [Oxides make Iron and steel weak]
Of the impurities, some are beneficial when present in small quantities while the others are harmful no matter what their
proportion is.
So, the unwanted impurities must be removed and this is done by smelting iron ore in a blast furnace.
What exactly happens in a blast furnace?
In a blast furnace, fuel (coke), iron ore, and flux (limestone) are continuously supplied through the top of the
furnace.
168
A hot blast of air (sometimes with oxygen enrichment) is blown into the lower section.
In a blast furnace, iron oxides are converted into liquid iron called "hot metal".
[Oxides make iron brittle. To make iron strong the oxides need to be removed]
Inputs in to blast furnace
Output
Ore is either Hematite (Fe2O3) or Magnetite (Fe3O4) and the iron content ranges from 50% to 70%.
This iron rich ore can be charged directly into a blast furnace without any further processing.
Iron ore that contains a lower iron content must be processed or beneficiated to increase its iron content.
It is acts as flux (a substance mixed with a solid to lower the melting point, especially in smelting).
Limestone melts and reacts with Sulphur to form Slag (All solid and liquid impurities).
[Limestone marries Sulphur and takes it away from Iron == Very Good]
CaCO3 = CaO + CO2
The CaO formed from this reaction is used to remove sulfur from the iron.
FeS + CaO + C = CaS + FeO + CO
169
1)
2)
3)
Cast iron
Steel
Stainless steel
Wrought iron
Cast iron assumes its finished shape the moment the liquid iron alloy cools down in the mold.
Wrought iron is a very different material made by mixing liquid iron with some slag.
The result is an iron alloy with a much lower carbon content.
Wrought iron is softer than cast iron and much less tough, so you can heat it up to shape it relatively easily, and
170
Iron Ore in Europe Ruhr, South Whales, Krivoy Rog, Bilbao, Lorraine
171
172
173
Iron Ore in Australia Pilbara Region, Koolyanobbing, Iron Duke, Iron Knob
Types of Iron Ore Haematite, Magnetite, Limonite & Siderite. Distribution of Iron Ore in India Iron ore in Orissa,
Jharkhand, Chhattisgarh, Karnataka & other states.
Types of Iron Ore
Haematite
Magnetite
Limonite
Himachal Pradesh.
Advantage == open cast mines == easy and cheap mining.
174
Siderite
Hematite and magnetite are the two most important iron ores in India
Haematite
Magnetite
Haematite
Magnetite
Odisha 33%
Karnataka 73%
Jharkhand 26%
Chhattisgarh 18%
Rajasthan 5%
TN 4.9%
UP
Q1. Statements
1)
2)
Karnataka has more than half of the reserves of magnetite ore in India.
Jharkhand has the highest reserves of haematite ore in India.
Both
1 only
2 only
None
175
Bailadila mine is the largest mechanised mine in Asia [Ore benefication only done here]
A 270 km long slurry (a semi-liquid mixture) pipeline from the Bailadila to Vizag plant transports the ore slurry.
Smelting is done in Vizag [Vishakhapatnam]iron and steel factory.
Bailadilas high grade ore is exported through Vishakhapatnam to Japan[No iron ore in Japan. But market is huge
176
Coal Formation of Coal Types of Coal Peat, Lignite, Bituminous Coal & Anthracite Coal. Carbon content in different
types of coal. Importance of each type.
Coa
Formation of Coal
Most of the worlds coal was formed in Carboniferous age [350 million years ago][Best quality coal].
177
Carboniferous age: In terms of absolute time, the Carboniferous Period began approximately 358.9 million years ago and
ended 298.9 million years ago. Its duration is approximately 60 million years.
The name Carboniferous refers to coal-bearing strata.
Amount of oxygen, nitrogen and moisture content decreases with time while the proportion of carbon increases
[The quantity of carbon doesnt increase, only its proportion increases due to the loss of other elements].
Capacity of coal to give energy depends upon the percentage or carbon content [Older the coal, much more is its carbon
content].
Percentage of carbon in coal depends upon the duration and intensity of heat and pressure on wood. [carbon content also
depends on depth of formation. More depth == more pressure and heat == better carbon content].
Coal formed millions of years ago when the earth was covered with huge swampy [marshy] forests where plants -
rich carbon deposits. In time, material that had been plants became coal.
Coals are classified into three main ranks, or types: lignite, bituminous coal, and anthracite.
These classifications are based on the amount of carbon, oxygen, and hydrogen present in the coal.
Coals other constituents include hydrogen, oxygen, nitrogen, ash, and sulfur.
Some of the undesirable chemical constituents include chlorine and sodium.
In the process of transformation (coalification), peat is altered to lignite, lignite is altered to sub-bituminous,
sub-bituminous coal is altered to bituminous coal, and bituminous coal is altered to anthracite.
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Peat
Lignite
Brown coal.
Lower grade coal.
40 to 55 per cent carbon.
Intermediate stage.
Dark to black brown.
Moisture content is high (over 35 per cent).
It undergoes SPONTANEOUS COMBUSTION[Bad. Creates fire accidents in mines]
Bituminous Coal
Anthracite Coal
179
Semi-metallic lustre.
Ignites slowly== less loss of heat == highly efficient.
Ignites slowly and burns with a nice short blue flame. [Complete combustion == Flame is BLUE == little or no
Distribution of Coal in India Gondwana Coal: Gondwana Coalfields. Tertiary Coal: Tertiary Coalfields, Lignite, Peat.
Coking Coal vs. Non-Coking Coal, Coal Reserves, Coal Production, Imports.
Distribution of Coal in India
Gondwana Coal
Gondwana coal makes up to 98 per cent of the total reserves and 99 per cent of the production of coal in India.
Satpuras, denudation [weathering + erosion] has exposed coal bearing Gondwana strata.
The carbon content in Gondwana coal [250 million years old] is less compared to the Carboniferous coal [350
Extent
Korba district.
Surguja district.
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Chirmiri coalfield
Lakhanpur coalfield
Jhilmili coalfield
Johilla coalfield
Sonhat coalfield
Tatapani-Ramkota coalfields
Gondwana Coalfields in Jharkhand
Jharia coalfield
One of the oldest and the richest coalfields of India; store house of
the best metallurgical coal [coking coal]
Jayanti coalfields
Bokaro coalfield
It is a long but narrow strip in the catchment area of the Bokaro river.
(Karharbari)
Gives out of the finest coking coal in India for metallurgical purposes.
coalfield
Karanpura
Ramgarh coalfields
Auranga coalfield
and
Palamu district
Devgarh coalfields
Dumka district
inferior quality
Rajmahal coalfield
Rajmahal hills
inferior quality
Hutar coalfield
Deltenganj coalfield
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Talcher field
Dhenkanal
Raniganj;
and
Sambalpur
districts
Coal from this field is most suitable for steam and gas
production.
Most of the coal is utilised in thermal power and fertilizer
plants at Talcher.
Rampur-Himgir
coalfields
Ib river coalfield
Sambalpur
and
Jharsuguda
district
182
Singrauli
(Waidhian)
coalfield
Sidhi
and
Shandol
districts
Pench-Kanhan-Tawa
Chhindwara district
Sohagpur coalfield
Shandol district
Umaria coalfield
Umaria district
183
184
4 % of India's coal.
11 % of the coal reserves.
Darjeeling and Jalpaiguri
districts.
RANIGANJ is the largest coalfield of West Bengal.
Raniganj == Barddhaman, Bankura and Purulia districts;
are
the
chief
producing
Tertiary Coal
185
Tamil Nadu and the union territory of Pondicherry also bear tertiary coal reserves [exceptions].
Tamil Nadu, Gujarat, Jammu and Kashmir, Kerala, Rajasthan, West Bengal and Puducherry.
Tamil Nadu excels all other states regarding reserves and production of lignite.
186
Measures to be taken
ash.
coal is
an
essential
ingredient
in
steel
production.
Major producers: Australia, Canada, United States.
% of total reserves
1.
JHARKHAND
80.71
26.76
2.
ODISHA
75.07
24.89
3.
CHATTISHGARH
52.53
17.42
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4.
5.
6.
WEST BENGAL
MADHYA PRADESH
ANDHRA PRADESH
7. MAHARASTRA
8. OTHERS
Coal Production in India by State
31.31
25.67
22.48
10.38
8.51
7.45
10.98
2.81
3.64
0.95
All data from 2013-2014. For latest data you must follow
2)
3)
from Jharkhand]
West Bengal
Madhya Pradesh
Chhattisgarh
Odisha
Madhya Pradesh
Jharkhand
Andhra Pradesh
Chhattisgarh
Jharkhand
Odisha
Madhya Pradesh
Andhra Pradesh
188
Singrauli
2.
Karanpura Bokaro
3.
Jharia
4.
Raniganj
5.
Ib & Talcher
6.
7.
8.
189
Distribution of Coal across the World Global Coal Reserves Top Producers and Consumers of Coal in the World
Distribution of Coal in USA Distribution of Coal in China.
Distribution of Coal across the World
190
is exported to China.
Australia is a leading producer of coal. Most of its coal is exported to China, Japan etc. Australia has rick coking
191
Coal mining occurs in 25 states of which Wyoming, West Virginia, Kentucky, Pennsylvania and Texas are the
coal mine
Allegheny Mountains and Appalachian Mountains have enormous coal deposits.
Most coal now produced in the United States is mined in western surface mines, especially in Wyoming's Powder
River Basin.
192
Formation of Petroleum and Mineral Oil, Distribution of Petroleum and Mineral Oil in India, On-shore and Off-Shore Oil
Production in India.
Petroleum and Mineral Oil
193
194
Most of the oil reserves in India are associated with anticlines and fault traps in the sedimentary rock formations of
tertiary times.
In tertiary period, aquatic life was abundant in various forms, especially the minor microscopic forms of flora and
fauna.
Conditions for oil formation were favourable especially in the lower and middle Tertiary period.
Dense forests and sea organisms flourished in the gulfs, estuaries, deltas and the land surrounding them during
this period.
195
Assam Oilfields
32 km southwest of Digboi
Oil from this area is sent to oil refineries at
196
40 km south-west of Naharkatiya
Gujarat Oilfields
Ankleshwar, Khambhat or Lunej, Ahmedabad and Kalol, Nawgam, Kosamba, Kathana, Barkol, Mahesana and Sanand
Rajasthan Oilfields
One of the largest inland oil discoveries was made in Banner district of Rajasthan.
Other important discoveries == Mangala oil field, Sarswati and Rajeshwari.
Rajasthan is the largest on shore oil producing state of India.
Eastern Coast
The basin and delta regions of the Godawari, the Krishna and the Cauvery rivers hold great potential for oil and gas
production.
The Rawa field in Krishna-Godawari off-shore basin is an important one.
The Narimanam and Kovilappal oilfields in the Cauvery on-shore basin are also important.
Petroleum Refining
India's first oil refinery started working way back in 1901 at Digboi in Assam.
1954: another refinery at Tarapur (Mumbai).
Refinery hub and refining capacity exceeds the demand. Excess refined oil and other petroleum products are
exported.
Oil from wells is transported to nearest refineries through pipelines.
Advantages of Pipeline
Disadvantages of Pipelines
It is not flexible, i.e., it can be used only for a few fixed points.
Its capacity cannot be increased once it is laid.
197
constructed in India
Mumbai High-Mumbai-Ankleshwar-Koyali Pipeline.
Hajira-Bijapur-Jagdishpur (HBJ) Gas Pipeline ==world's largest
underground pipeline
Jamnagar-Loni LPG Pipeline == longest LPG pipeline in the
world
Kochi-Mangalore-Bangalore pipeline
Vishakhapatnam Secunderabad pipeline
Mangalore-Chennaipipeline
Vijayawada-Vishakhapatnampipeline
pipeline
198
199
200
Petroleum and Mineral Oil World distribution: Supergiants, Oilfields in Saudi Arabia, Iraq, Kuwait, Iran, Russia, United
States, Mexico, Canada, Venezuela, Brazil, United Kingdom and African Region.
Petroleum and Mineral Oil - World distribution
More than half of the worlds proven oil reserves are located in the Middle East (including Iran but not North Africa).
Canada, United States, Latin America, Africa, and the region occupied by the former Soviet Union contains less than
15 percent of the worlds proven reserves.
[Reserves are identified quantities of petroleum that are considered recoverable under current economic and technological
conditions.]
The amount of oil a given region produces is not always proportionate to the size of its proven reserves.
201
For example, the Middle East contains more than 50 percent of the worlds proven reserves but accounts for only
202
Supergiants
Petroleum is contained in a few large fields, but most fields are small.
The two largest classes of fields are the
1. supergiants, fields with 5 billion or more barrels of ultimately recoverable oil, and
2. world-class giants, fields with 500 million to 5 billion barrels of recoverable oil.
Fewer than 40 supergiant oil fields have been found worldwide.
The Arabian-Iranian sedimentary basin in the Persian Gulf region contains two-thirds of these supergiant fields.
The remaining supergiants are distributed in the United States, Russia, Mexico, Libya, Algeria, Venezuela, and
China.
203
The Middle Eastern countries of Iraq, Kuwait, and Iran are each estimated to have 25 percent of all proven reserves
in the world.
These countries have a number of supergiant fields.
Al-Burqan oilfield of Kuwait is the worlds second largest oil field.
204
There are two supergiant oil fields Western Siberia and Yenisey Khatanga.
Kamchatka peninsula and Sakhalin Island are said to have significant oil reserves.
Volga-Caspian Region has many oil and gas fields.
Mexico has more than 10 billion barrels of proven oil reserves and is one of the top 10 oil producers in the world.
Canada has less than 10 billion barrels of proven reserves of conventional liquid oil.
But huge deposits of oil sands in the Athabasca region in western Canada bring the countrys total proven oil
reserves to approximately 175 billion barrels, behind only oil giants Saudi Arabia and Venezuela.
Canadas largest oil field is off Newfoundland.
The United Kingdom is an important North Sea producer, and its proven oil reserves of some three billion barrels are
the largest in the European Union.
The main oil-producing countries of Africa are: Libya, Algeria, Nigeria and Egypt.
Niger delta in Nigeria contains enormous amount of oil.
Egypt is self-sufficient in oil production.
Algeria is another significant producer of petroleum where much of the national income comes from oil-export.
Libya became a consistent producer of petroleum. The total oil reserve of Libya is around 3 per cent of global reserve.
205
Natural gas World Distribution of Natural Gas, OPEC. Distribution of Natural Gas in India, Petroleum and Gas Value
Chain: Upstream, Midstream, Downstream sector.
Natural gas
wet gas.
Some reservoirs contain gas and no oil. This gas is termed non-associated gas or dry gas.
Often natural gases contain substantial quantities of hydrogen sulfide or other organic sulfur compounds. In this
On the market, natural gas is usually bought and sold not by volume but by calorific value.
In practice, purchases of natural gas are usually denoted as MMBTUs (millions of British thermal unit
(BTU or Btu)) = ~1,000 cubic feet of natural gas.
206
Layers of mud, sand, rock, plant, and animal matter continued to build up until the pressure and heat turned
them into oil and natural gas.
Power stations using gas accounted for nearly 10 per cent of Indias electricity.
Despite the country reeling under a power crisis, gas power stations are lying idle due to lack of feedstock.
The Government has frozen the construction of new gas plants until 2015-16 because of gas shortages.
Existing plants are operating below capacity on expensive imported liquefied natural gas (LNG).
Indias oil reserves are insufficient for its growing energy needs and situation is made worse by policy paralysis
Russia has the largest natural gas reserves in the world (1,680 Trillion Cubic Feet (tcf)).
It periodically changes place with the United States as the worlds largest or second largest producer.
Some of the worlds largest gas fields occur in a region of West Siberia and east of the Gulf of Ob on the Arctic
Circle.
The worlds largest gas field is Urengoy.
Volga-Urals region also has significant gas reserves.
207
Dutch coast and the North Sea (off the coast of Norway) have proven reserves.
The United States has proven natural gas reserves of 273 tcf.
Its largest gas field, Hugoton extends through the Oklahoma, Texas and Kansas.
Canada has an estimated 62 tcf of proven natural gas reserves.
The largest gas field is in Alberta.
Much of Mexicos natural comes from Gulf of Mexico.
There is an enormous gas potential in the Middle East associated with the major oil fields in the Arabian-Iranian
basin.
Iran and Qatar have the second and third largest natural gas reserves in the world, behind Russia.
The largest gas field in Asia is in the North Sumatra basin of Indonesia.
208
KG basin, Assam, Gulf of Khambhat, Cuddalore district of Tamil Nadu, Barmer in Rajasthan etc.
209
Oil & gas industry is divided in Upstream, Midstream and Downstream sector.
210
Upstream Sector
Promote exploration by providing a level playing field to private players against public enterprises.
Oil blocks are allotted under Production Sharing Contracts.
In Production Sharing Contracts, investment and revenues is shared with government.
The private companies exaggerated or inflated their investment accounts and gobbled up public funds.
211
This resulted in lower government share. It delays revenue to the government by decades.
Suggested linking gas price to price of imported gas and gas prices prevailing in exchanges of USA, UK and Japan
Midstream sector
This sector involves transportation of oil and gas from blocks to refineries and from refineries to distribution
centers.
Most cost effective way is through pipeline, in comparison to road and railways which higher economic and
environmental costs.
Current pipeline infrastructure is skewed in favor of North and West India, which accounts for 60% of gas
In some PPP projects in India, Central and state governments undertake to provide support funding to successful
bidders.
Projects are awarded to those whose requirement for state funding is least.
Indian Oil Corporation and Gas Authority of India are involved in this sector.
Storage
Government is building underground storage capacity of 15 million metric tons for petroleum and related
products.
The first phase construction is in progress in Vishakhapatnam, Mangalore and Padur [All coastal cities].
Storage facilities are essential for safeguard against shortages or supply disruptions.
Downstream sector
This sector involves refining, processing and marketing of products and byproducts of crude oil.
Unconventional Gas Reservoirs: Shale Gas Coalbed Methane. Shale Gas Reserves India, World. Extraction of Shale Gas:
Hydro-fracturing or Fracking. Problems Associated.
Unconventional Gas Reservoirs
212
Conventional reservoirs of oil and natural gas are found in permeable sandstone.
Unconventional Gas Reservoirs occur in relatively impermeable sandstones, in joints and fractures or absorbed
into the matrix of shales [Shale is a Sedimentary Rock], and in coal seams.
Given current economic conditions and state of technology, they are more expensive to exploit.
Example: Tight gas, shale gas, and coal-bed methane.
Coalbed Methane
saturate the seam. [water will occupy the gaps and pores and will push out the gas]
It is now becoming an important source of natural gas.
Unlike much natural gas from conventional reservoirs, coalbed methane contains very little heavier
Fire Accidents in Coal Mines are mainly due to Coalbed Methane, and Lignite deposits which undergo spontaneous
combustion.
213
With one of the largest proven coal reserves, and one of the largest coal producer in the world, India holds
The state-run firms are holding mines in joint venture with private companies and the latter do not have rights to
explore coalbed methane [private sector companies at present have no rights to extract unconventional gas
bureaucratic hurdles.
Extracting unconventional gas is a capital intensive process and at the present levels of gas prices, the companies
In India, gas pricing is a contentious issue. It has never been easy satisfying all the stakeholders involved [consumer,
government, gas companies]. Gas pricing will be critical for private companies before they can invest in
unconventional gas projects so that they can calculate their profit margin.
Shale Gas Shale Gas Formation
Shale gas = Lot of Methane+ Little Ethane, Propane, & Butane+very little carbon dioxide, nitrogen, and
hydrogen sulfide.
Shales are fine-grained sedimentary rocks formed of organic-rich mud at the bottom of ancient seas.
Subsequent sedimentation and the resultant heat and pressure transformed the mud into shale and also
214
Basins of preliminary interest identified by Indian geologists are the Cambay Basin in Gujarat, the Assam-Arakan
basin in northeast India, and the Gondwana Basin.
215
Indian engineers have gathered experience on fracking - the technology to find shale gas - by spending time in the
US and are now able to hunt for the scarce resource on their own.
Fracking technology sends high pressure streams of water, sand and chemicals into shale formations to bring up
of ground water.
One estimate by Indian scientists places potential reserves at as high as 527 tcf.
Shale gas occurs frequently at depths exceeding 1,500 metres (5,000 feet).
Extraction is done through horizontal drilling through the shale seam, followed by hydraulic fracturing, or
fracking, of the rock by the injecting of fluid at extremely high pressure.
Hydro-fracturing or Fracking
Guar gum
more efficient.
High viscosity water is much more effective at suspending sand grains and carrying them into the fractures.
The guar been is grown mainly by farmers in Rajasthan and Haryana.
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Earlier, guar gum was used mainly as an additive in ice creams and sauces.
But with the discovery of its use in shale gas extraction, its price shot up enormously.
217
Environmentalists have objected to fracking because of the damage to forest cover and possible contamination of
ground water.
However, industry officials say that the treated water can be re-used for further fracking and need not be disposed
of at all.
Solutions
All the water required must be obtained from rain water harvesting.
Recycling and reusing of water utilized for fracking should be the preferred method for water management.
Enforcing clear and practical legislation on environmental and water issues.
Coal bed methane (CBM), which is extracted from coal beds, is also an unconventional gas and, in terms of
depth, occurs much closer to the land surface than shale gas.
Shale Gas Extraction Issues in India - If US can then why cant India?
India suffers from physical and economic water scarcity whereas the U.S. do not have the same water worries.
In the US, the natural gas department is exempt from scrutiny for chemical injection in the ground (it exempts
companies from disclosing the chemicals used during hydraulic fracturing). There is no such legislation in India.
In US, the citizen or resident owns the resources that lie beneath the ground. In India, soil below the land is a
public property and the companies must follow all the necessary rules to acquire it.
The US has mapped all its shale reserves. In India there is clarity on the exact recoverable shale reserves.
The population density is much lower in the US and they can afford to do it.
Government-issued leases for conventional petroleum exploration do not include unconventional sources such as
shale gas.
All locations in US is well connected with gas pipelines. Bulk of the reserves in eastern India lack the necessary
network of pipelines to transport the gasa task that many private operators are wary about undertaking.
India has 293 billion tonnes of coal lying under its soil. Extraction is complicated because of environmental
issues.
But, underground coal gasification, can create 6,900 trillion cubic feet of gas which is way HIGHER than shale
reserves.
Indias shale resources at a more modest 65 trillion cubic feet. Indias CBM potential is estimated at 450 tcf.
So, focus must be on CBM exploration rather than on risky shale business.
Mains 2013
It is said that India has substantial reserves of shale oil and gas, which can feed the needs of the country.
However, tapping of resourced does not appear to be high on the agenda. Discuss critically the availability and
issues involved. (10 marks - 200 words)
Answer Yourself with the help of above points.
Distribution of Key Natural Resources across India and World. Bauxite | Lead & Zinc | Tungsten | Pyrites Distribution in
India & World.
Bauxite
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219
Odisha
220
The main deposits occur in Kalahandi, Koraput, Sundargarh, Bolangir and Sambalpur districts.
Chhattisgarh
Maharashtra
Jharkhand
Gujarat
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Australia (31.34%),
China (18.41%),
Brazil (13.93%),
Guinea (8.36%), etc.
Malleable [can be hammered into thin sheets], soft, heavy and bad conductor.
Lead is a constituent in bronze alloy and is used as an anti-friction metal.
Lead oxide is used in cable covers, ammunition, paints, glass making and rubber industry.
It is also made into sheets, tubes and pipes which are used as sanitary fittings.
It is now increasingly used in automobiles, aeroplanes, and calculating machines.
Lead nitrate is used in dyeing and printing.
Lead does not occur free in nature. It occurs as a cubic sulphide known as GALENA.
Galena is found in veins in limestones, calcareous slates and sandstones.
Lead
Zinc
Rajasthan is endowed with the largest resources of lead-zinc ore (88.61 per cent),
Andhra Pradesh (3.31 per cent),
Madhya Pradesh (2.16 per cent),
Bihar (1.67 per cent)
Maharashtra 9 (1.35 per cent).
Almost the entire production comes from Rajasthan.
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Tungsten
Distribution of Wolfram
Pyrites
rubber
Pyrites occur in Son Valley in Bihar, in Chitradurga and Uttar Kannada districts of Karnataka and the pyritous
Gold Silver Distribution India & World. Gold Reserves in India. Gold Distribution Across the World. Silver Distribution
India & World.
Gold Reserves in India
223
1.
2.
3.
Karnataka,
Rajasthan,
Bihar, Andhra Pradesh, Jharkhand, etc.
Kolar Gold Field, Hutti Gold Field and Ramgiri Gold Field are the most important gold fields.
Karnataka
world. Mponeng Gold Mine in South Africa is the deepest mine in the world (3.9 km deep)]
Hutti mines are exploited to their maximum levels and the ore left behind is of very low grade. The mining has
Andhra Pradesh
Jharkhand
Sands of the Subarnarekha (gold streak) river have some alluvial gold.
Sona nadi in Singhbhum district is important.
Sonapat valley is another major site with alluvial gold.
Kerala
The river terraces along the Punna Puzha and the Chabiyar Puzha have some alluvial gold.
224
Countries with significant deposits: South Africa, Australia, Indonesia, Canada, Ghana, Chile, China, USA,
Russia etc.
225
Zinc Smelter].
The Tundoo Lead Smelter in Dhanbad district of Jharkhand is another major silver producer.
Some silver is produced by Kolar Gold Fields and Hutti gold mines.
The Hindustan Copper Ltd. at Maubhandar smelter in Singhbhum district of Jhakhand obtains silver from copper
slimes.
Silver is also produced by Vizag Zinc smelter in Andhra Pradesh from the lead concentrates.
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Manganese Distribution of Manganese in India, State wise reserves of Manganese, World Distribution of Manganese.
Manganese
India processes second largest reserves in the world after Zimbabwe; 430 million tonnes
India is the world's fifth largest producer of manganese ore after China, Gabon, South Africa and Australia.
Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh, Odisha, Andhra Pradesh and Karnataka are the major manganese producing
states.
Maharashtra and Madhya Pradesh together produce more than half of India's manganese
Odisha (44%),
Karnataka (22%),
Madhya Pradesh (13%),
Maharashtra (8%),
Andhra Pradesh (4%)
Jharkhand and Goa (3% each),
Rajasthan, Gujarat and West Bengal (remaining 3 per cent).
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Maharashtra
Madhya Pradesh
Odisha
Andhra Pradesh
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Karnataka
Other producers
Goa,
Panchmahals and Vadodara in Gujarat,
Udaipur and Banswara in Rajasthan and
Singhbhum and Dhanbad districts in Jharkhand are other producers of manganese.
Export of Manganese
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Chromite Ore Distribution In India and World. Copper Reserves in India and World.
Chromite
Chromite is an oxide of iron and chromium = Combination of chromium, iron and oxygen.
It is the only economic ore of chromium.
The chromium extracted from chromite is used in chrome plating and alloying for production of corrosion
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Chromite in Odisha
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Copper
Copper is a good conductor of electricity and is ductile [able to be drawn out into a thin wire].
It is an important metal used by automobile and defense industries.
Alloyed with iron and nickel to make stainless steel.
Alloyed with nickel to make morel metal.
Alloyed with aluminium to make duralumin.
When alloyed with zinc it is known as brass and with tin as bronze.
Copper ore is found in ancient as well as in younger rock formations and occurs as veins and as bedded deposits
Mining for copper is costly and tedious affair because most of the copper ores contain a small percentage of the
metal.
India has low grade copper ore [less than 1% metal content][international average 2.5%]
The major part of supply comes from the USA, Canada, Zimbabwe, Japan and Mexico.
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Madhya Pradesh
Rajasthan
Jharkhand
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Nickel
oils intended for use in soap and foodstuffs and in making vanaspati.
Important occurrences of nickeliferous limonite are found in the Sukinda valley of Jajapur district, Odisha.
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carbon.
It is also known as plumbago or black lead.
The carbon content in Graphite is never less than 95%.
Graphite may be considered the highest grade of coal,
just above anthracite.
Carbon content in Peat < Lignite < Bituminous < Anthracite <
Graphite < Diamond
ignite.
It is found in metamorphic and igneous rocks.
Graphite is extremely soft, cleaves [splits into layers]
Applications of Graphite
Natural graphite is mostly consumed for refractories, batteries, steelmaking, expanded graphite, lubricants etc.
A refractory material is one that retains its strength at high temperatures.
Natural and synthetic graphite are used to construct the anode of all major battery technologies
The lithium-ion battery utilizes roughly twice the amount of graphite than lithium carbonate.
Natural graphite in this end use mostly goes into carbon raising in molten steel. [to make steel stronger]
Natural amorphous graphite are used in brake linings for heavier vehicles, and became important with the need to
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Graphite is not mined in the United States. U.S. substitutes graphite with synthetic graphite.
Diamonds
Diamonds in India
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The Vindhayan system have diamond bearing regions from which Panna and Golconda diamonds have been mined.
1. Panna belt in Madhya Pradesh;
2. Wajrakarur Kimberlite pipe in Anantapur district and
3. Gravels of the Krishna river basin in Andhra Pradesh.
Reserves have been estimated only in Panna belt and Krishna Gravels in Andhra Pradesh.
The new kimberlite fields are discovered recently in Raichur-Gulbarga districts of Karnataka.
Reserves of diamonds in India are not yet exhausted and modern methods are being applied for intensive prospecting
and mining.
Cutting and polishing of diamonds is done by modem techniques at important centres like Surat, Navasari,
The leading producers of natural diamond are Russia, Botswana, Canada, Australia, South Africa, Russia and
Zaire [Congo].
Other important producers include Namibia, Ivory Coast, Sierra Leone, Venezuela, Brazil etc.
US is the largest producer of synthetic industrial diamonds
Russia holds what is believed to be the worlds largest and richest diamond resources.
Botswana is the leading diamond-producing country in terms of value, and the second largest in terms of
volume. The two important ones are Orapa and Jwaneng, two of the most prolific diamond mines in the world.
Botswanas resources produce the full range of diamonds, in all sizes, colors and clarities.
Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) is also one of the Africa's largest diamond producer.
Australia is the leading producer of color diamonds. Australia is famous for its pink, purple and red diamonds.
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South Africa has the most diverse range of diamond deposits in the world. Deposits include open pit and
underground kimberlite pipe/dyke/fissure mining.
Graphite and Diamond are the major allotropes of carbon. Other important allotrope being anthracite coal.
[Allotrope Each of two or more different physical forms in which an element can exist (e.g. graphite, charcoal, and
diamond as forms of carbon).]
Graphite and diamond share the same composition but have very different structures.
Graphite
Diamond
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mantle.
Diamond (one of the most stable) is less stable than
graphite.
In contrast, the carbon atoms in diamond are linked into a
Non-Metallic Mineral Distribution in India Mica, Limestone, Dolomite, Asbestos, Magnesite, Kyanite, Sillimanite and
Gypsum.
Mica
India has a near monopoly in the production of mica [60 % of world's total].
Production decreased in recent times due to fall in demand in the international market. Fall in demand is due to
better synthetic alternatives that are available.
Andhra Pradesh
Rajasthan
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Jharkhand
3rd in production.
Mica is found in a belt extending for about 150 km in length and 32 km in width from Gaya district of Bihar to
Hazaribagh and Koderma districts of Jharkhand.This belt contains the richest deposits of high quality ruby mica.
Koderma is a well-known place for mica production in Jharkhand.
Mica Exports
Limestone
Limestone rocks are composed of either calcium carbonate, the double carbonate of calcium and magnesium, or
mixture of both.
Limestone also contains small quantities of silica, alumina, iron oxides, phosphorus and sulphur.
Limestone deposits are of sedimentary origin and exist in all the geological sequences from Pre-Cambrian to Recent
except in Gondwana.
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75 per cent Limestone is used in cement industry, 16 per cent in iron and steel industry [It acts as flux] and 4 per
Madhya Pradesh
Rajasthan
Rajasthan has about 6 per cent of the reserves and produces over 16 per cent of the total limestone of India.
Production occurs in almost all districts.
Andhra Pradesh
Andhra Pradesh possesses about one-third of the total reserves of the cement grade limestone in the country.
Extensive deposits occur in Cuddapah, Kumool, Guntur, etc.
Gujarat
Gujarat produces only about 11 per cent of the total limestone of India.
High grade limestone deposits occur in Banaskantha district.
Chhattisgarh
Chhattisgarh accounts for more than nine per cent of total limestone of India .Deposits of limestone occur in Bastar,
Durg and surrounding districts.
Tamil Nadu
Large scale reserves in Ramnathapuram, Tirunelveli, Salem, Coimbatore and Madurai districts.
Karnataka
Dolomite
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Orissa
Chhattisgarh
Closely following Orissa is the state of Chhattisgarh which produces about 28 per cent dolomite of India.
The main deposits occur in Bastar, Bilaspur, Durg and Raigarh districts.
Jharkhand
Dolomite occurs in bands to the north of Chaibasa in Singhbhum district and Palamu district.
Rajasthan
Ajmer, Alwar, Bhilwara, Jaipur, Jaisalmer etc. are the main producing districts.
Karnataka
Asbestos
Two quite different minerals are included under this name; one, a variety of amphibole, and the other, more
resistance to fire.
It is widely used for making fire-proof cloth, rope, paper, millboard, sheeting, etc.
It is also used in making aprons , gloves, brake-linings in automobiles etc.
Asbestos cement products like sheets, pipes and tiles are used for building purposes.
When asbestos is brittle, it is made into filter pads for filtering acids.
Mixed with magnesia, it is used for making magnesia bricks used for heat insulation.
Two states of Rajasthan and Andhra Pradesh produce almost the whole of asbestos of India.
Rajasthan is the largest producer. Important occurrences are known in Udaipur, Dungarpur, Alwar, Ajmer and Pali
districts.
In Andhra Pradesh, asbestos of fine quality occurs in Pulivendla taluk of Cuddapah district.
In Karnataka, the main deposits occur in Hassan, Mandya, Shimoga, Mysore and Chikmaglur districts.
Magnesite
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Kyanite
temperatures.
It is also used in making sparking plugs in automobiles.
India has the largest deposits of kyanite in the world. All the three grades of kyanite are found here. Kyanite grades
depend on aluminium content. Greater the aluminium content, greater the quality.
Jharkhand, Maharashtra and Karnataka produce practically the whole of kyanite of India.
Jharkhand
Maharashtra
Maharashtra [second highest producer of kyanite] produced 14.5 per cent of the total kyanite in 2002-03.
Most of the reserves are in Bhandara district.
Karnataka
Sillimanite
The occurrence and uses of sillimanite are almost the same as those of kyanite.
The main concentration of Sillimanite is found in Tamil Nadu, Orissa, Kerala, Andhra Pradesh and West Bengal.
Orissa is the largest producer of sillimanite in India. Ganjam district is an important sillimanite producing district.
Kerala is the second largest producing state. The beach sands of Kerala contain 5 to 6 per cent of sillimanite.
Gypsum
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The recovery of by-product phospho-gypsum, fluoro- gypsum, and marine gypsum together is higher than mineral
gypsum.
Salt
Salt is obtained from sea water, brine springs [salt water springs], wells and salt pans in lakes and from rocks.
Rock salt is taken out in Mandi district of Himachal Pradesh and in Gujarat. It is less than 1 per cent of the total salt
produced in India.
Sambhar Lake in Rajasthan produces about 10 per cent of our annual production.
Sea brine is the source of salt in Gujarat, Maharashtra and Tamil Nadu.
Gujarat coast produces nearly half of our salt.
Mining is often called the robber industry because of its exploitative nature.
Mining should be made efficient with better mining and benefication technologies.
A clear roadmap has to be carved for the better management of mineral resources for decades. Stringent laws to
in electrical industry.
Instead of exporting minerals, India should focus on exporting goods manufactured using these minerals. This would
Nuclear Fission Nuclear Reactor: Nuclear Reactor Coolant, Moderator, Control Rods Criticality etc. Types of Nuclear
Reactors: Light-water reactor (LWR) and Pressurized Heavy-Water Reactor (PHWR) and more.
Prelims: General Science
Mains: Science and technology developments and their applications and effects in everyday life. [Nuclear Energy and
related concepts are all evergreen]
Nuclear fission
The discovery of nuclear fission began with the discovery of the neutron in 1932 by James Chadwick in England.
Nuclear fission of heavy elements was discovered in 1938 by German Otto Hahn and Fritz Strassmann.
It was explained theoretically in 1939 by Lise Meitner and Otto Robert Frisch.
In nuclear physics, nuclear fission is a radioactive decay process in which the nucleus of an atom splits into
[When urea is dissolved in water, the temperature of water solution falls. This reaction is called endothermic reaction].
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Exothermic == Liberation of Heat during a reaction. [CaCO 3(calcium carbonate or lime) + H2O (water) Ca(OH) 2(calcium
hydroxide) + CO2 + HEAT]
Endothermic == Absorption of Heatduring a reaction. [Urea + Water]
The nuclear fission process may take place spontaneously in some cases or may be induced by the excitation of
the nucleus with a variety of particles (neutrons, protons, deuterons, or alpha particles) or with electromagnetic
If controlled in a nuclear reactor, such a chain reaction can be used to generate power. If uncontrolled [atomic
U (0.72%).
Uranium-235 can undergo fission when bombarded with slow neutrons only.
Uranium-238 can undergo fission when bombarded with fast neutrons only.
The nuclei of other heavy elements, such as thorium also fissionable, but with fast neutrons.
245
0.0055% U-234.
The 0.72% U-235 is not sufficient to produce a self-sustaining critical chain reaction.
For light-water reactors, the fuel must be enriched to 2.5-3.5% U-235.
While uranium-235 is the naturally occurring fissionable isotope, Plutonium-239 can be produced by "breeding"
it from uranium-238.
Uranium-238, which makes up 99.3% of natural uranium, is not fissionable by slow neutrons.
U-238 has a small probability for spontaneous fission and also a small probability of fission when bombarded
Uranium Enrichment
Nuclear Reactor
A nuclear reactor is a system that contains and controls sustained nuclear chain reactions.
Fuel [Enriched uranium-235 or Plutonium-239] is placed into the reactor vessel along with a small neutron
source.
The neutrons start a chain reaction where each atom that splits releases more neutrons that cause other atoms to
split.
Each time an atom splits, it releases large amounts of energy in the form of heat.
The heat is carried out of the reactor by coolant, which is most commonly just plain water.
The coolant heats up and goes off to a turbine to spin a generator or drive shaft.
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The coolant is the material that passes through the core, transferring the heat from the fuel to a turbine. It could
A nuclear reactor coolant usually water or molten salt is circulated past the reactor core to absorb the heat
that it generates.
The heat is carried away from the reactor and is then used to generate steam.
Neutron Moderator
A neutron moderator is a medium that reduces the speed of fast neutrons, thereby turning them into thermal
nuclear fission.
The heavy nucleus splits into two or more lighter nuclei, (the fission products), releasing kinetic energy, gamma
release more neutrons, and so on. This is known as a nuclear chain reaction.
To control such a nuclear chain reaction, neutron poisons and neutron moderators can change the portion of
The power output of the reactor is adjusted by controlling how many neutrons are able to create more fissions.
Control rods that are made of a neutron poison are used to absorb neutrons.
Absorbing more neutrons in a control rod means that there are fewer neutrons available to cause fission.
So pushing the control rod deeper into the reactor will reduce its power output, and extracting the control rod will
increase it.
Control rods are composed of chemical elements such as boron, silver, indium and cadmium.
Critical mass
A critical mass is the smallest amount of fissile material needed for a sustained nuclear chain reaction.
247
The critical mass of a fissionable material depends upon its nuclear properties, its density, its shape, its
Criticality
Criticality is a nuclear term that refers to the balance of neutrons in the system.
Balance of neutrons can be achieved using moderators and control rods.
Subcritical refers to a system where the loss rate of neutrons is greater than the production rate of neutrons
neutrons are produced than are lost, and the nuclear reactor becomes supercritical.
When the desired power level is achieved, the nuclear reactor is placed into a critical configuration to keep the
power decreases.
Therefore, when a reactor is said to have gone critical, it actually means it is in a stable configuration
producing a constant power.
A neutron poison (also called a neutron absorber or a nuclear poison) is a substance with a large neutron
absorption cross-section, in applications such as nuclear reactors.
There are various types of reactors based on moderators, coolants, technologies used.
All commercial power reactors are based on nuclear fission.
They generally use uranium and its product plutonium as nuclear fuel, though a thorium fuel cycle is also
possible.
Fission reactors can be divided roughly into two classes, depending on the energy of the neutrons that sustain the
fission chain reaction: thermal reactors and fast neutron reactors.
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their fuel.
moderating coolants.
Boiling
water
reactors
(BWR),
Pressurized
water
The light-water reactor (LWR) is a type of thermal-neutron reactor that uses NORMAL WATER, as opposed to
where steam is generated and flows to turbines which, in turn, spin an electric generator.
In contrast to a boiling water reactor, pressure in the primary coolant loop prevents the water from boiling within
the reactor.
PWRs were originally designed to serve as nuclear marine propulsion for nuclear submarines
Very stable due to their tendency to produce less power as temperatures increase. Easier to operate from a
stability standpoint.
PWR turbine cycle loop is separate from the primary loop, so the water in the secondary loop is not contaminated
by radioactive materials.
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The control rods are held by electromagnets and fall by gravity during power failure. Full insertion safely shuts
The coolant water must be highly pressurized to remain liquid at high temperatures.
This requires high strength piping and a heavy pressure vessel and hence increases construction costs.
The higher pressure can increase the consequences of a loss-of-coolant accident.
The high temperature water coolant with boric acid dissolved in it is corrosive to carbon steel (but not stainless
It is the second most common type of electricity-generating nuclear reactor after the pressurized water reactor
(PWR).
The main difference between a BWR and PWR is that in a BWR, the reactor core heats water, which turns to
steam and then drives a steam turbine. In a PWR, the reactor core heats water, which does not boil.
This hot water then exchanges heat with a lower pressure water system, which turns to steam and drives the
turbine.
The reactor vessel and associated components operate at a substantially lower pressure compared to PWR.
Pressure vessel is subject to significantly less irradiation compared to a PWR.
Operates at a lower nuclear fuel temperature.
Fewer components due to no steam generators and no pressurizer vessel.
Lower risk (probability) of a rupture causing loss of coolant compared to a PWR.
Can operate at lower core power density levels using natural circulation without forced flow.
BWRs do not use boric acid to control fission burn-up to avoid the production of tritium leading to less
BWRs require more complex calculations for managing consumption of nuclear fuel. This also requires more
The supercritical water reactor (SCWR) uses supercritical water as the working fluid.
Supercritical water oxidation or SCWO is a process that occurs inwater at temperatures and pressures above a mixture's
thermodynamic critical point.
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Under these conditions water becomes a fluid with unique properties that can be used to advantage in the destruction of
hazardous wastes.
SCWRs resemble light water reactors (LWRs) but operate at higher pressure and temperaturelike the pressurized
water reactor (PWR) and with a direct once-through cycle like a boiling water reactor (BWR).
The SCWR is a promising advanced nuclear system because of its high thermal efficiency and simpler design.
It is still in development stage.
Supercritical water has excellent heat transfer properties allowing a high power density, a small core, and a small
containment structure.
As a BWR is simpler than a PWR, a SCWR is a lot simpler and more compact than a less-efficient BWR.
There are no steam separators, steam dryers, internal recirculation pumps, or recirculation flow inside the
pressure vessel.
The stored thermal and radiologic energy in the smaller core would also be less than that of either a BWR's or a
PWR's.
Water is liquid at room temperature, cheap, non-toxic and transparent, simplifying inspection and repair.
A fast SCWR could be a breeder reactor, like the proposed Clean And Environmentally Safe Advanced Reactor.
A heavy-water SCWR could breed fuel from thorium (4x more abundant than uranium), with increased
proliferation resistance over plutonium breeders.
Uses heavy water (deuterium oxide D2O) as its coolant and neutron moderator.
The heavy water coolant is kept under pressure, allowing it to be heated to higher temperatures without boiling,
are "more thermal" making PHWR more efficient. So, PHWR uses fuel more efficiently.
Since unenriched uranium fuel accumulates a lower density of fission products than enriched uranium fuel, it
generates less heat, allowing more compact storage.
The reduced energy content of natural uranium as compared to enriched uranium necessitates more frequent
replacement of fuel.
The increased rate of fuel movement through the reactor also results in higher volumes of spent fuel than in LWRs
employing enriched uranium.
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Opponents of heavy-water reactors suggest that such reactors pose a much greater risk of nuclear proliferation
enrichment.
In addition, the use of heavy water as a moderator results in the production of small amounts of tritium when
Uranium - Uranium Distribution, Reserves and Production. Uranium in India. Nuclear Power Plants in India. Thorium Advantages of Thorium, Thorium Distribution.
Atomic Minerals
Uranium and Thorium are the main atomic minerals. Other atomic minerals are beryllium, lithium and zirconium.
Uranium deposits occur in Singhbhum and Hazaribagh districts of Jharkhand, Gaya district of Bihar, and in the
Uranium
Uranium is a silvery-gray metallic radioactive chemical element. It is only naturally formed in supernova
explosions.
Uranium, thorium, and potassium are the main elements contributing to natural terrestrial radioactivity.
Uranium has the chemical symbol U and atomic number 92.
Uranium isotopes in natural uranium are 238U (99.27%) and 235U (0.72%).
252
235
chain reaction).
Traces of Uranium are found everywhere. Commercial extraction is possible only in locations where the proportion
of Uranium is adequate. There are very few such locations.
253
Uranium in India
India has no significant reserves of Uranium. All needs are met through imports.
India imports thousands of tonnes of uranium from Russia, Kazakhstan, France, and Uzbekistan.
India is trying hard to import uranium from Australia and Canada. There are some concerns regarding nuclear
proliferation and other related issues which India is trying to sort out.
Some quality reserves were recently discovered in parts of Andhra Pradesh and Telangana between Seshachalam
forest and Sresailam [Southern edge of Andhra to Southern edge of Telangana].
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255
256
Thorium
uranium].
Thorium metal is silvery and tarnishes black when exposed to air.
Thorium is weakly radioactive: all its known isotopes are unstable, with the seven naturally occurring ones
Kerala Coast].
Thorium is predicted to be able to replace uranium as nuclear fuel in nuclear reactors, but only a few thorium
reactors have yet been completed.
257
Rare earths are a series of chemical elements found in the Earths crust that are vital to many modern
technologies, including consumer electronics, computers and networks, communications, clean energy, advanced
transportation, health care, environmental mitigation, national defense, and many others.
Because of their unique magnetic, luminescent, and electrochemical properties, these elements help make many
technologies perform with reduced weight, reduced emissions, and energy consumption; or give them greater
Advantages of Thorium
Proliferation is not easy: Weapons-grade fissionable material (U-233) is harder to retrieve safely from a thorium
reactor [U-233 produced by transmuting thorium also contains U-232, a strong source of gamma radiation that
makes it difficult to work with. Its daughter product, thallium-208, is equally difficult to handle and easy to
detect].
Thorium reactors produce far less waste than present-day reactors.
Thorium produces 10 to 10,000 times less long-lived radioactive waste [minuscule waste that is generated is toxic
for only three or four hundred years rather than thousands of years].
They have the ability to burn up most of the highly radioactive and long-lasting minor actinides [fifteen radioactive
metallic elements from actinium (atomic number 89) to lawrencium (atomic number 103) in the periodic table]
that makes nuclear waste from Light Water Reactors a nuisance to deal with.
Thorium reactors are cheaper because they have higher burn up.
Thorium mining produces a single pure isotope, whereas the mixture of natural uranium isotopes must be
driven reactor.
And five, thorium reactors are significantly more proliferation-resistant than present reactors. This is because the
The mainstreaming of thorium reactors worldwide thus offers an enormous advantage to proliferation-resistance
as well as the environment.
For India, it offers the added benefit that it can enter the export market [India has the largest reserves of
thorium].
Scientists predict that the impact of climate change will be worse on India. Advancing the deployment of thorium
reactors by four to six decades via a plutonium market might be the most effective step towards curtailing carbon
emissions.
Thorium Distribution
Thorium is several times more abundant in Earth's crust than all isotopes of uranium combined and thorium-232
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India's Three-Stage Nuclear Power Programme. Fast Breeder Reactor at Kalpakkam. What Hinders Deployment of
Thorium-Fuelled Reactors In India? Solution to Indias Fissile Shortage Problem.
India's Three-Stage Nuclear Power Programme
India's three-stage nuclear power programme was formulated by Homi Bhabha in the 1950s to secure the
countrys long term energy independence, through the use of uranium and thorium reserves found in the
monazite sands of coastal regions of South India.
The ultimate focus of the programme is on enabling the thorium reserves of India to be utilized in meeting the
country's energy requirements.
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Thorium is particularly attractive for India, as it has only around 12% of the global uranium reserves, but one of
uranium-235].
The first two stages, natural uranium-fueled heavy water reactors and plutonium-fueled fast breeder
reactors, are intended to generate sufficient fissile material from India's limited uranium resources, so that all its
vast thorium reserves can be fully utilized in the third stage of thermal breeder reactors.
In the first stage of the programme, natural uranium fuelled pressurized heavy water reactors (PHWR) produce
electricity while generating plutonium-239 as by-product.
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PHWRs was a natural choice for implementing the first stage because it had the most efficient reactor design
In the second stage, fast breeder reactors (FBRs)[moderators not required] would use plutonium-239, recovered
by reprocessing spent fuel from the first stage, and natural uranium.
In FBRs, plutonium-239 undergoes fission to produce energy, while the uranium-238 present in the fuel
transmutes to additional plutonium-239.
Thus, the Stage II FBRs are designed to "breed" more fuel than they consume.
Once the inventory of plutonium-239 is built up thorium can be introduced as a blanket material in the reactor
brought online
As of August 2014, India's first Prototype Fast Breeder Reactor at Kalpakkam had been delayed - with first
criticality expected in 2015, 2016..and it drags on.
A Stage III reactor or an Advanced nuclear power system involves a self-sustaining series of thorium-232-
at reactor designs that allow more direct use of thorium in parallel with the sequential three-stage programme
Three options under consideration are the Accelerator Driven Systems (ADS), Advanced Heavy Water Reactor
(AHWR) and Compact High Temperature Reactor
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The Prototype Fast Breeder Reactor (PFBR) is a 500 MWe fast breeder nuclear reactor presently being constructed
in March-April 2016.
Construction is over and the owner/operator, Bharatiya Nabhikiya Vidyut Nigam Limited (BHAVINI), is
reactor design.
The surplus plutonium or uranium-233 for thorium reactors [U-238 transmutes into plutonium] from each fast
reactor can be used to set up more such reactors and grow the nuclear capacity in tune with India's needs for
power.
The fact that PFBR will be cooled by liquid sodium creates additional safety requirements to isolate the coolant
from the environment, since sodium explodes if it comes into contact with water and burns when in contact with
air.
Below text is drawn from.. Fast forwarding to thorium-The Hindu, by JAIDEEP A. PRABHU
http://www.thehindu.com/opinion/op-ed/fast-forwarding-to-thorium/article7834156.ece
What Hinders Deployment of Thorium-Fuelled Reactors In India?
Most people would assume that it is a limitation of technology. But instead, it is due to shortage of uranium fuel
that is needed to convert fertile fuel [thorium] into fissile [fuel that can undergo sustained chain reaction].
Scientists at the Bhabha Atomic Research Centre have successfully tested all relevant thorium-related
A fissile material is one that can sustain a chain reaction upon bombardment by neutrons.
Thorium is by itself fertile, meaning that it can transmute into a fissile radioisotope [U-233] but cannot itself
1.
2.
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would be introduced into the fuel cycle to convert it into uranium 233 for the third stage [thorium will be
3.
After decades of operating pressurized heavy-water reactors (PHWR), India is finally ready to start the second
stage.
A 500 MW Prototype Fast Breeder Reactor (PFBR) at Kalpakkam is set to achieve criticality any day now and four
more fast breeder reactors have been sanctioned, two at the same site and two elsewhere.
However, experts estimate that it would take India many more FBRs and at least another four decades before it
has built up a sufficient fissile material inventory to launch the third stage.
The obvious solution to Indias shortage of fissile material is to procure it from the international market.
As yet, there exists no commerce in plutonium though there is no law that expressly forbids it.
In fact, most nuclear treaties such as the Convention on the Physical Protection of Nuclear Material address only
and plutonium already exists but it is not too complicated as in case Uranium.
Japan and the U.K. who are looking to reduce their stockpile of plutonium will certainly be happy to sell it to
India.
Indias FBRs that are tasked for civilian purposes and can be brought under international safeguards in a system
Obstacles
The U.S. could perhaps emerge as the greatest obstacle to plutonium commerce.
U.S. cannot prevent countries from trading in plutonium, it has the power to make it uncomfortable for them via
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