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GEOGRAPHY
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GEOGRAPHY-7
TOPICS: Indian Geography- Indian Rock System and Physiography (Himalayas, Plateaus,
Plains, Coastal plains, Deserts, Islands)

INDIAN ROCK SYSTEM

India's Geographical land area can be classified as below

Rock system Features

Archaean System  Result of the hot-molten earth becoming cold. These are the
oldest and primary rocks.
 Their original form has been destroyed because of too much
metamorphosis.
 There are no fossils found in them.
 Gneiss is formed because of the metamorphosis of the
igneous rocks. The Bundelkhand gneiss is the oldest one.
 Found mainly in Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh,
Madhya Pradesh, Orissa, Chotanagpur plateau in Jharkhand
and the southern-eastern part of Rajasthan.
Dharwar System  Result of the erosion and sedimentation of the rocks of the
Archaean system.
 oldest sedimentary rocks.
 The Aravali mountain range which is the oldest fold mountain
of the world has been made with these rocks.
 found in the districts of Dharwar and Shimoga in Karnataka,
the southern Deccan region from Karnataka to the Kaveri
valley, districts of Bellary, Sasar mountain range in Jabalpur
and Nagpur and the Champaner mountain range in Gujarat.
 In north India the rocks of this system are found in the
Himalayan ranges of Ladakh, Zaskar, Garhwal and Kumaon,
and the long range of Assam plateau.
 The rocks of this system are economically very important. All
prominent metallic minerals (iron, gold, manganese etc) are
found in these rocks.
 No fossil is found here. It is so because either there was no
origin of species during their formation or the forms of the
fossils got destroyed with the passage of time.
Cuddapah System  Formed as a result of erosion and sedimentation of the rocks
of Dharwar system. These are also sedimentary rocks.
 Named after the district of Cuddapah in Andhra Pradesh
where these are semi-circular in expansion.
 Famous for sandstone, limestone, and marble, asbestos.
 The Cuddapah rocks are also found in Rajasthan.
Vindhyan System  Formed after the cuddapah rocks by the deposition of silt of
river valleys and shallow oceans.
 These rocks are also sedimentary rocks.
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 The evidences of fossils of micro-organisms

 Found in the Vindhyas, e.g. the Malwa plateau, the Semari
range in the Sonvalley, Bundelkhand etc.
 Famous for house-building rocks.
 The Sanchi Stupa, the Red Fort, the Jama Masjid etc. are built
with the red sandstone of this structure. Besides, limestone,
china clay, dolomite etc are also found in this structure.
 The diamond mines of Golconda in Telangana and Panna in
Madhya Pradesh are found in this structure.
Gondwana System  The word Gondwana has originated from the Gond region of
Madhya Pradesh.
 98% of coal in India is found in this structure.
 Formed between the Carboniferous and Jurassic periods.
 Several cracks were formed in the peninsular India during the
Carboniferous period.
 Basin-like depressions were made because of the sinking of
land among these cracks.
 Coal was formed by the burying down of the vegetation of
that period.
 This coal is now found mainly in the river valleys of the
Damodar, the Son, the Mahanadi, the Godavari, and the
Wardha etc.
Deccan Trap  The volcanic action in the peninsular India began in the last
period (Cretaceous period) of the Mesozoic era
 the Deccan trap has been formed as a result of fissure
eruption.
 Made up of basalt and dolerite rocks.
 These rocks are very hard and their weathering has resulted in
the formation of the black soil.
 This structure is found in the most parts of Maharashtra and
some parts of Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh and Tamil Nadu.
The Tertiary  These rocks have been formed between the Eocene and
System Pliocene periods.
 The Himalayan mountain range has developed as discussed
below:
I. The Great Himalayas were formed during the Oligocene
period'
II. The Lesser Himalayas were formed during the Miocene
period
III. Shiwaliks were formed during the Pliocene and Upper
Pliocene periods.
 Mineral oil in Assam, Rajasthan and Gujarat is found in the
structures of the Eocene and Oligocene period.
 The Tertiary epoch has been divided chronologically into four
parts- (a) Eocene (b) Oligocene (c) Miocene (d) Pliocene
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The Quaternary  These rocks are found in the plains of the Indus and the
System Ganga.
 The Quaternary epoch is divided chronologically into two
parts- Pleistocene and Holocene periods.
 During the Upper and Middle Pleistocene periods, old alluvial
soil was formed which is known as 'bangar'.
 The formation of the alluvial soil began at the end of the
Pleistocene period and it is still going on in the present
Holocene period. It is known as 'khadar'.
 The Kashmir valley was formed during the Pleistocene period.
 This valley was a lake in the beginning. The continuous
deposition of soil gave rise to the present form (valley) which
is known as 'Kareva'.
 Deposition of the Pleistocene period is found in the Thar
Desert. The 'Rann of Kachchh' was previously a part of the
ocean. It was filled by the sedimentary deposits during the
Pleistocene and Holocene period.
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GEOLOGICAL DIVISIONS

The Peninsular
Block

 The northern boundary from Rann of Kuchchh – western

flank of Aravali mountain –Delhi ridge – Parallel to
Yamuna and Ganges –Rajmahal hills
 Karbi Anglongand Meghalaya plateau are part of
peninisular block separated by Malda fault from Chota
Nagpur plateau
 It also includes Rajasthan in west where desert and desert
like features overlay this block, which has undergone
metamorphic processes
 Includes very ancient gneisses and granite
 It’s a rigid block since Cambrian times except some
changes like submergence of western coast
 Subject to various vertical movements and block faulting
eg. Narmada, Tapi and Mahanadi flow through rift valleys
 Consists of relict and residual mountains eg. Aravali
The Himalayan  Young, weak and flexible in their geological structure as
and Peninsular compared to peninsular block
Mountain  Subjected to both exogenic and endogenic forcesleading
to development of faults, folds, thrust plains
 Tectonic in origin
 Dissected by fast flowing rivers
Indo – Ganga –  Formed by rivers Indus,Ganges and Brahmaputra.
Brahmaputra  Originally it was geo synclinal depression
basin  Later got filled with Himalayan and peninsular rivers
 Avg. depth is 1000 – 2000 mtrs
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PHYSIOGRAPHY

North and North-eastern Mountains

The North and North-eastern mountains
 Consists of Himalayas and north-eastern hills
 Himalayas are geologically young and structurally fold
 General orientation from
o northwest to southwest in northwest region e.g. Jammu and Kashmir,
Himachal Pradesh
o Eastward in Darjeeling and Sikkim
o Southwest to northeast in Arunachal Pradesh
o North to south in Nagaland, Manipur and Mizoram
 Himalayas are series of mountains
o Greater Himalayan range/ Himadri
 Length nearly 2500km from west to east and width from 160 to 400 kms
from north to south. The width is more in west than east
 Includes great Himalayas and trans himalayan ranges
 Most continuous with avg height of 6000 mtrs
 Asymmetric folds
 Core of this part includes Granite
 Perennially snow bound
 All major peaks situated here
o Himachal or lesser Himalaya
 To the south of great Himalayas
 Major ranges like Pirpanjal in Kashmir, Dhauladhar (Himachal Pradesh),
Nagtibhat(Uttarakhand) and Mahabharata range in NEPAL
 Composed of highly compressed and altered rocks
 Altitude – 3700 to 4500mtrs, width 50kms
 Major famous valleys like Kashmir, Kangra ,Kullu are in this range
o Shiwaliks
 Width 10 to 50 kms and altitude 900 to 1000 mtrs
 Composed of unconsolidated sediments brought down by rivers
 The valleys between Shiwalik and lesser Himalaya are longitudinal and are
known as Dunes eg. Dehra Dun,Kotli Dun, Patli Dun, Chandigarh-
kalkaDun,Nalagarh Dun, Harike Dun
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Along with above classification, these are classified region wise as below
Kashmir or  Consists ranges –Karakoram, Ladakh, Zaskar,Pir Panjal
Northwestern  North-western part is cold desert between great Himalayas
Himalayas and Karakoram e.g. Ladakh
 Kashmir valley in great Himalayas and Pir Panjal
 Famous for Karewa formation famous for Zafran
cultivation
 Important passes in this region like
o Zoji la in great Himalayas
o Banihal in Pir Panjal
o Photu la on Zaskar
o Khardung la on Ladakh
 Important lakes like Dal, Wular and salt water lakes of
PangongTso and TsoMoriri
 Important rivers -Indus, Chenab, Jhelum
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The Himachal  Between Ravi and Kali

and Uttarakhand  Drained by both Indus (Ravi,Beas,Sutlej)and Ganges(Yamuna
Himalayas and Ghaghara )river system
 Cold desert present in Lahaul and Spiti region in northern
most part of this Himalaya
 All the three Himalayan ranges present here
 British setup many hill stations in lesser Himalayan region
 Valleys in great Himalaya inhabited by Bhotia’s who migrate
to bugyals (summer Grassland) in summer and return to
valleys in winter
 Places of pilgrimage - Kedarnath , Badrinath, Yamunotri,
Hemkund sahib,Gangotri
Darjeeling and  In between Nepal and Bhutan Himalayas
Sikkim  Known for fast flowing rivers like Teesta
Himalayas  Mountain peaks like Kanchenjunga present here
 Inhabited by Lepcha tribe
 Known for tea cultivation
 Duar formation is present here and shiwalik is absent
 Very well known for orchids
Arunachal  From Bhutan to Dipu pass
Himalayas  Important rivers –Kamenskoye,subansiri,Dihang, Dibang
 Tribes–monpa, daffla, Abor, Mishmi, Nishi and Nagas
 Duar region is used for communication along Assam
Arunachal border
Eastern Hills and  From north to south
Mountains  Composed of strong sandstones and sedimentary rocks
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/Purvanchal  In north known as Patkai bum, Naga hills, Manipur hills

 In south known as Mizo or LUSHAI hills
 Important rivers – Barak in Manipur and Mizoram is
tributary of Meghna
 Loktaklake in Manipur surrounded by hills
 Mizoram is known as ‘MOLASSIS basin’ made of soft
unconsolidated deposits
 Most of the rivers here are tributaries of Barak
 Rivers in east Manipur are tributaries of Chidwin in
Myanmar
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The Northern Plain

i.From interplay of three river system i.e. Ganges, Indus and Brahmaputra
ii.Of alluvial soil
iii.Spread over 7 lakhs sq.km., 2400km long and 240 to 320 km broad
iv. Broadly divided into 3 sections
1. Punjab plains
a. Westernmost part
b. By Indus and its tributaries
c. Largest part is in Pakistan
d. This part is dominated by Doabs
2. Ganges plain - Between Ghaggar and Teesta
3. Brahmaputra plain
v. Can be divided into 4 regions
1. Bhabar–deposition of pebble in narrow stretch of 8 to16 kms, when rivers descent
from hills parallel to slopes of shiwalik. All streams disappear here
2. Terai – just south of Bhabar, rivers re-emerge creating swampy, wet and marshy
region.
3. Bhangar – largest part of northern plain, lie above the flood plain and present
terrace like features, composed of old alluvium, contain calcareous deposits known
as kankar
4. Khadar- renewed every year, fertile
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The Peninsular Plateau

 Area –Delhi ridge in northwest – RAJMAHAL hill in the east –Gir range in the
west – cardamom hills in south. Extension also in Karbi Anglong and
Meghalaya plateau
 Composed of old crystalline, igneous and metamorphic rocks
 Made of series of pat-land plateaus like Hazaribagh, Palamu, Ranchi,
Malwa, Coimbatore, Karnataka
 General elevation from west to east
 North-western part is reliefs of ravines and gorges of Chambal, Bhind and
Morena

Three fold division of the plateau as shown below

The Deccan plateau
Central Highlands
 Area – western ghat in west, eastern Ghat in
east, Satpura, Maikal and Mahadeo in north
 Locally known by various names like Sahyadri
in Maharashtra, Nilgiri hills in Karnataka,
cardamom in Kerala
 Western Ghat
o are higher in elevation and are
continuous than eastern ghats.
o average height of 1500 mtrs with
height increasing from north to south
o Highest peak Anaimudi (2695 mtrs) in
Anaimalai hills, followed by Dodabetta
in Nilgiri (2637 mtrs)
 Eastern Ghat
o Discontinoud and low hills eroded by
rivers
o Important ranges like Javadi, Palconda,
Nallamalla, Mahendragiri
o Starts from Mahanadi valley to Nilgiri
hills
o Highest peak is Mahendragiri (1501
mtrs)
 Eastern Ghat and Western Ghat meet at Nilgiri
Hills.
 Area –Aravali in west, Satpura in south.
 General elevation -700 to 1000 mtrs and
slopes towards north and northeastern
direction
 Wider in the west and narrower in the east
 The eastward extensions are locally known as
Bundelkhand and Baghelkhand
 Chotanagpur plateau is further eastward
extension and it is drained by Damodar river
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 Most tributaries of Chambaloriginate here

 Major rivers in this region – Chambal, Sind,
Betwa, Ken and Son

The north-eastern  Consisted of Karbi Anglong and Meghalaya

plateau plateau
 Meghalaya plateau is divided into Garo, Khasi
and Jaitia
 Meghalaya plateau is also rich in mineral
resources coal, iron ore,sillimanite, limestone
and uranium
 It’s extension of main peninsular plateau
 Separated from mainland by MALDA fault
created during northwestern movement of
Indian plate

The Indian Desert

 Area – to the northwest of Aravali
 Also known as Marusthali
 It is believed that, it was under sea during Mesozoic era
 Underlying rock structure is extension of peninsular plateau
 Can be divided into two parts on the basis of orientation
 Northern part sloping towards Sindh
 Southern part towards Rann of Kachchh
 Most rivers ephemeral e.g.Luni and presence of inland drainage

Coastal Plains
Can be divided into two
Western coastal plain
o From Gujrat to Kerala
o Submerged coastal plain
o It’s narrow plain due to
submergence and hence provides
natural conditions for ports and
harbours
o Divided into different divisions
o Kachchh and Kathiawar in
Gujrat
o Konkan in Maharashtra
o Malabar in karnataka and
Eastern coastal plain
o From West Bengal
o It’s emergent coast and hence less
number of ports and harbours
o Well developed deltas will be
present
o These are referred by different
names like northern circar in north
and coromandel coast in south
o Chilka lake is present in Orissa. It’s
largest salt water lakein India
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Kerala
o It narrows in middle and broader
towards north and south
o Rivers here don’t make delta
o Kayals (backwaters) present in
Malabar coast

The Islands

Arabian Sea Bay of Bengal

o Lakshadweep and minicoy
o Scattered between 8 to 12
degrees north
o The entire island group is of
coral deposits
o Nearly 36 islands
o Minicoy is the largest
o Entire group is divided by 11
degree channel
o North – Amini
o South –Canannore
o Consists of storm beaches
consisting of unconsolidated
pebbles, shingles, cobbles and
boulders on the eastern
seaboard
o 572 islands
o Located between 6 to 14-degree
North
o Two principle islet groups
o Ritchies archipelago
o Labrynthisland
o Entire group divided into two which
are separated by 10 degree channel
o Andaman group in north
o Nicobar group in the south
o These are elevated portions of
submarine mountains and some are
volcanic in origin e.g. Barren island
o Equatorial type climate and
convectional rainfall

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