La Martiniere College, Lucknow

Digital Academic Services

Class: 8 Subject: Geography

Name/Number of the Chapter: India – Location, Political Divisions and

Physical Features / 3 Final
Module Number: 3(a) Final

Learning Objectives of this Module:

1. To enable the students to locate India on a world map along with the country’s neighbours.
2. To enable them to describe the main political divisions of India.
3. To enable them to describe the Northern Mountains of India.

Guidance Notes:
1. Parents are requested to carefully read through the following pages and exercises along with
the student so that both understand what the module encapsulates.
2. The student must finally attempt the exercises on their own. Parents must oversee this to
ensure the system of education flow smoothly. The student may be aided with his work where
necessary but kept to a minimum.
3. Additional work may be provided at home as a part of revision.

CONTENT
India is home to one of the oldest civilizations of the world. During the course of its long history, different
groups of people conquered and ruled different parts of this land. Many of chose to make India their home.
They brought with them their customs, adding to the already rich cultural heritage of India.
As empires rose and fell, the political boundaries of India kept changing. It was only when India gained
independence in 1947 that the political boundary we are familiar with today, came into being. Throughout
this process, India's physical features contributed greatly towards the shaping of its political boundaries. Let
us study India's political divisions and physical features in greater detail to understand how.

LOCATION
India lies in the southern part of Asia. It is the
seventh largest and the second most populated
country in the world.
North to south, the Indian mainland extends from
latitudes 8°4’ N and 37°6’ N, covering a is 68°7’ E
and 97°25’ E, covering a distance of 2,933 km.
India lies entirely in the Northern Hemisphere, with
the Tropic of Cancer passing roughly through the
middle of the country.
India is surrounded by oceans and seas on three
sides-to the west lies the Arabian Sea, to the south
lies the Indian Ocean and to the east lies the Bay of Bengal. To the north, India is separated from the rest of
Asia by the Himalayan mountain ranges.
The countries which border India include Pakistan to the west, Afghanistan to the northwest, China, Nepal
and Bhutan to thenorth and northeast, and Bangladesh and Myanmar to the east. To the south, across the
Palk Strait, lies the island country of Sri Lanka.
Barring some indentations here and there, India's coastline almost runs straight. As a result, the length of the
coastline-including the islands-is only 7,517 km (compare this to Japan's coastline of 29,751 km) Two island
groups that are a part of India are the Lakshadweep Islands in the Arabian Sea and the Andaman and
Nicobar Islands in the Bay of Bengal. While Kanniyakumari (or Kanyakumari) is the southernmost tip of the
Indian mainland, India's territory extends up to Indira Point at the tip of the Nicobar Islands.

The Central Meridian and Indian Standard Time

There are 30° of longitude between the eastern and western ends of the country. This means that there is a
difference of two hours in time between the two ends. The Sun rises and sets two hours earlier in Arunachal
Pradesh than over the coast of Gujarat. For the sake of uniformity, the local time along the 82%°E
longitude, which is the Central Meridian of the country, is taken as the Indian Standard Time (IST). It is
5%2 hours ahead of GMT (Greenwich Mean Time).

POLITICAL DIVISIONS OF INDIA

The Democratic Republic of India is made up of 28 states and 8 union territories. The states are ruled by
elected state governments, while the union territories are ruled directly by the central government. In terms
of area, Rajasthan is the largest state of India, while Goa is the smallest.
The names of the union territories, the states and their capitals are given below:

Union Territory Capital

Andaman and Nicobar Islands Port Blair
Chandigarh Chandigarh
Dadra & Nagar Haveli and Daman & Diu Daman
Jammu and Kashmir Srinagar (Summer) Jammu (Winter)
Puducherry (Puduchcheri) Puducherry
Lakshadweep Kavaratti
Ladakh Leh
National Capital Territory of Delhi New Delhi

State Capital State Capital State Capital

Andhra Hyderabad* Jharkhand Ranchi Punjab Chandigarh
Pradesh
Arunachal Itanagar Karnataka Bengaluru Rajasthan Jaipur
Pradesh
Bihar Patna Madhya Bhopal Tamil Nadu Chennai
Pradesh
Chhatisgarh Raipur Maharashtra Mumbai Telangana Hydearbad
Goa Panaji Manipur Imphal Tripura Agartala
Haryana Chandigarh Meghalaya Shillong Uttar Pradesh Lucknow
Gujarat Gandhinagar Mizoram Aizawl Uttarakhand Dehradun
Himachal Shimla Nagaland Kohima West Bengal Kolkata
Pradesh (main);
Dharamsala
(second)
Jammu and Srinagar Odisha Bhubaneshwar
Kashmir (summer);
Jammu
(winter)
*According to the Andhra Pradesh Reorganisation Act 2014, Hyderabad will remain the de jure capital of
Andhra Pradesh and Telangana for at least 10 years. Amaravati is the new proposed capital.
PHYSICAL DIVISIONS OF INDIA
India can be divided into six major physical regions:
 The Northern Mountains
 The Northern Plains
 The Thar Desert
 The Plateau of Peninsular India
 The Coastal Plains
 The Islands

The Northern Mountains

This is a region of towering young fold mountains that stretches in a wide sweeping arc across northern and
northeastern India, effectively isolating the country from the rest of Asia. The Northern Mountains can be
further divided into three mountain systems. They are:
 The Trans-Himalayan Ranges
 The Himalayan Ranges
 The Purvanchal Hills
Mt. Everest The Pahalgam Valley in Kashmir
The Trans-Himalayan Ranges
The Trans-Himalayan Ranges lie north of the Himalayas and run parallel to it. They include the Zanskar
Range, the Ladakh Range and the eastern part of the Karakoram Range. The Indus River flows between the
Zanskar and the Ladakh ranges. K2, the second highest peak in the world, lies in the Karakoram Range.

The Himalayan Ranges

The Himalayas are the highest mountain ranges in the world. Of the many chains of young fold mountains
that radiate from the Pamir Knot, the Himalayas are the southernmost. They stretch across north India for
almost 2,500 km. The width of the Himalayas from south to north varies between 200 and 400 km. The
Himalayan system consists of three distinct ranges - the Himadri, the Himachal and the Siwalik ranges.

The Himadri or the Greater Himalayas

This is the highest and the northernmost range of the Himalayas. It extends across north India, from the
northwest to the southeast. The total length of the range is close to 2,300 km. Although the average height of
the range is 6,100 m, there are many peaks over 8,000 m in this range. Some of them are Mt Everest (8,850
m), Kanchenjunga (8,586 m), Dhaulagiri (8,167 m), Nanga Parbat (8,126 m), Annapurna (8,091 m) and
Nanda Devi(7,816 m). Of these, Mt Everest and Dhaulagiri lie in Nepal, Kanchenjunga lies partly in Nepal
and partly in India, and Nanga Parbat lies in Pakistan. Of the peaks that lie completely in India, Nanda Devi
is the tallest. Thus, the Himadri contains some of the tallest peaks in the world. These snow-covered
mountains are the source of many glaciers. One such glacier is the Gangotri, from which the river Ganga
originates.

Himachal or the Lesser Himalayas

This range lies to the south of the Himadri and has an average height of 4,500 m. It consists of the Pir Panjal
and the Dhauladhar Ranges. They extend across Jammu and Kashmir, Himachal Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh and
Uttarakhand. Among these ranges are some beautiful valleys like Kashmir, Kullu and Kangra, and hill
stations like Shimla, Mussoorie, Manali and Darjeeling. Below the snowline, there are thick evergreen
forests.

The Siwaliks or the Outer Himalayas

This range extends north-westward for about 1,600 Km from Sikkim,
through Nepal, Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand, up to Pakistan. Its elevation
ranges from 900 to 1,200 m. The Siwaliks is not a continuous range and is
broken in many places by open valleys called duns. Dehradun is a hill station
in one such valley. This region is home to both broadleaf deciduous trees like
oak and birch, and evergreen coniferous trees like deodar and pine.
At the foothills of the Siwaliks lies the terai region. This is a zone of flat land
characterized by swamps, tall grasses and dense sal forests. It is inhabited by
a variety of wild animals. In some places, the forest has been cleared for rice
cultivation and animal rearing.

The Purvanchal Hills

From Arunachal Pradesh, the Himalayas bend and run southwards as the
Purvanchal Hills.
Its main ranges in India are the Patkai-Bum (Arunachal Pradesh), Naga Hills
(Nagaland), Manipur Hills, Mizo or Lushai Hills (Mizoram), Tripura Range
and Barail Range, The Arakan Yoma, Bago and Lushai Hills form the
boundary between India and Myanmar.
The Purvanchal merges with the Meghalaya Plateau in the west. The Garo,
Khasi and Jaintia Hills lie on the Meghalaya Plateau.

Passes
There are many passes in the Himalayan Ranges which enable people to travel and carry on trade across the
Northern Mountain. Though these passes are at high altitudes and remain snow-covered most of the year,
they are often the only means of communication across these towering ranges. Zoji La (the word la' means
'pass in Tibetan) connects Srinagar to Leh in Ladakh; Shipki La connects Tibet in China to Himachal
Pradesh; Nathu La connects Tibet to Sikkim; and Bomdi La connects Arunachal Pradesh to Bhutan and
Tibet.

The importance of the Northern Mountains

 The Northern Mountains form a natural boundary separating India from Central Asia.
 They affect the climate of India in two ways. They block the moisture-laden Southwest Monsoon
Winds and force the winds to rise, bringing heavy rainfall to the Himalayan foothills and to the
Northern Plains of India. They also prevent the cold winds of Central Asia from entering India in
winter.
 The melting snow on the mountains gives rise to perennial rivers like the Indus, Ganga and
Brahmaputra.
 The forested slopes of these mountains are storehouses of timber and medicinal herbs. They are also
home to many wild animals.
 The mountains and valleys attract tourists from all over the world. Shimla, Srinagar, Mussoorie,
Nainital and Darjeeling are some popular tourist spots.

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Exercises for the Chapter (India: Location, Political Divisions and Physical Features) – Module 3(a)
Final
SECTION A: Worksheet

Q.1 Fill in the blanks:

1. The features contributed greatly towards the shaping of the political divisions.
2. The Tropic of passes roughly through the middle of the country.
3. The River flows between the Zanskar and the Ladakh ranges.
4. The Garo, Khasi and Jaintia Hills lie in the Plateau.
5. The Trans – Himalayan Ranges lie north of the _ and run parallel to each other.

Q.2 State whether the following statements are True or False:

1. India is surrounded by oceans and seas on two sides.
2. The Himalayas bend and run southwards as the Purvanchal Hills from Arunachal Pradesh.
3. The Siwaliks are also known as the Purvanchal Hills.
4. There is a difference of two hours between the two ends of the country.
5. India is the least populated country in the world.

Q.3 Match the following columns:

S.No. COLUMN A S.No. COLUMN B ANS.
1. The Central Meridian of the country a open valley hill station.
2. The southernmost tip of Indian b is taken as the Indian Standard Time.
3. The Naga Hills are found in c mainland is Kanniyakumari.
4. The Patkai- Bum range is found in d Nagaland.
5. Dehradun is an example of an e Arunachal Pradesh.

Q.4 Give one word answers for the following questions:

1. Which country borders India towards the northwest?
2. Which is the smallest state of India?
3. Which region is found at the foothills of Siwaliks?
4. Which river originates from the Gangotri?
5. Which mountains form a natural boundary separating India from Central Asia?
Q.5 Choose the correct answer from the options given below:
1. Which one of the following events played a significant role in shaping India’s political
boundaries?
a. The American Civil War
b. Formation of the European Union
c. Gaining Independence in 1947
d. The Vietnam War

2. Which important line of latitude passes through the middle of India?

a. Tropic of Cancer
b. Tropic of Capricorn
c. Equator
d. 100˚W longitude

3. Which one of the following physical features separate India from the rest of Asia?
a. The Deccan Plateau
b. The Indo-Gangetic Plains
c. The Himalayan Mountains
d. The Aravalli Range

4. What is the southernmost point of India’s territory?

a. Kanniyakumari
b. Indira Point
c. Sri Lanka
d. Andaman Islands

5. Which longitude is taken as the Central Meridian of India?

a. 60˚ E
b. 23½ ˚ S
c. 72 ˚ W
d. 82½ ˚ E

SECTION B: Questions and Answers

Write Short Answers:

Q.1 What is the latitudinal extent of India?
Q.2 How many states and union territories is India divided into?
Q.3 Name the islands that are part of India. Where are they located?
Q.4 Which water bodies surround India and where do we find them?
Q.5 Which three main ranges that make up the Northern Mountains?

Give Detailed Answers

Q.1 Name the six major physical divisions of India.
Q.2 Name the highest mountain ranges above 8,000m in the Greater Himalayas.
Q.3 Describe the Indian Standard Time.
Q.4 Name the passes in the Northern Mountains and the regions they connect.
Q.5 State the importance of the Northern Mountains.

Mark the following features on the given map of India:

a. Delhi
b. Kolkata
c. Chennai
d. Mumbai
e. Bengaluru
f. Prayagraj
g. The Karakoram Range
h. The Himalayas
i. The Indo-Gangetic Plains
j. The Plateau of Peninsular India
k. The Coastal Plains
l. The Purvanchal Hills