PHYSICAL FEATURES OF INDIA:MAJOR PHYSIOGRAPHIC DIVISIONS

The physical features of India can be grouped under the following physiographic divisions:
(1) The Himalayan Mountains
(2) The Northern Plains
(3) The Peninsular Plateau
(4) The Indian Desert
(5) The Coastal Plains
(6) The Islands
The Himalayan Mountains:

The Himalayas, geologically young and structurally fold mountains stretch over the northern borders of India. These mountain ranges run in a west-east direction from the Indus to the Brahmaputra. The Himalayas represent the loftiest and one of the most rugged mountain barriers of the world. They
form an arc, which covers a distance of about 2,400 Km. Their width varies from 400 Km in Kashmir to 150 Km in Arunachal Pradesh. The altitudinal variations are greater in the eastern half than those in the western half. The Himalaya consists of three parallel ranges in its longitudinal extent. A number of valleys lie between these ranges. The northern most range is known as the Great or Inner Himalayas or the ‘Himadri’.It is the most continuous range consisting of the loftiest peaks with an average height of 6,000 metres. It contains all the prominent Himalayan peaks.
The folds of Great Himalayas are asymmetrical in nature. The core of this part of Himalayas is composed of granite. It is perennially snow bound, and a number of glaciers descend from this range.
The range lying to the south of the Himadri forms the most rugged mountain system and is known as Himachal or lesser Himalaya. The ranges are mainly composed of highly compressed and altered rocks. The altitude varies between 3,700 and 4,500 metres and the average width is of 50 Km. While the Pir Panjal range forms the longest and the most important range, the Dhaula Dhar and the
Mahabharat ranges are also prominent ones.

PHYSICAL FEATURES OF INDIA

India has practically all major physical features of the earth i.e. mountains, plains, deserts, plateaus and islands.We find different types of rocks; some are very hard like marble which has been used for
making the Taj Mahal, and some are very soft like soap stone which is used in making talcum powder. The colour of soil varies from one place to the other because soil is formed out of different types of rocks. Have you ever thought about the causes of these variations? Most of these variations are caused due to differences in rock formations.
India is a large landmass formed during different geological periods which has influenced her relief. Besides geological formations, a number of processes such as weathering, erosion and deposition have created and modified the relief to its present form.
Earth scientists have attempted to explain the formation of physical features with the help of some theories based on certain evidences. One such plausible theory is the “Theory of Plate Tectonics”. According to this theory, the crust (upper part) of the earth has been formed out of seven major and some minor plates.(Tectonic plates)

The movement of the plates results in the building up of stresses within the plates and the continental rocks above, leading to folding, faulting and volcanic activity. Broadly, these plate movements are classified into three types. While some plates come towards each other and form convergent boundary. Some plates move away from each other and form divergent boundary. In the event of two plates coming together they may either collide and crumble, or one may slide under the other. At times, they may also move horizontally past  each other and form transform boundary. The movement of these plates have changed the position and size of the continents over millions of years. Such movements have also influenced the evolution of the present landform features of India.


The oldest land mass of India (peninsula part)was the part of Gondwana land. Gondwana included most of the landmasses in today's Southern Hemisphere, including Antarctica, South America, Africa, Madagascar, and the Australian continent, as well as the Arabian Peninsula and the Indian Subcontinent, which have now moved entirely into the Northern Hemisphere.The conventional currents split the crust in the number of pieces thus leading to the drifting of the Indo-Australian plate after being separated
from the Gondwana land, towards north. The northward drift resulted in the collision of the plate
with the much larger Eurasian Plate. Due to this collision, the sedimentary rocks which were
accumulated in the geosyncline known as the Tethys were folded to form the mountain system
of western Asia and Himalaya.
The Himalayan uplift of Tethis sea and subsidence of northern flank of peninsular plateau reasulted in the formation of a large basin. In due course of time this depression, gradually got filled with deposition of sediments by the rivers flowing from the mountains in the north and the peninsular plateau in the south. A flat land of extensive alluvial deposits led to the formation of the northern plains of India.
Gondwanaland, is the name given to the more southerly of two supercontinents (the other being Laurasia) that were part of the Pangaea supercontinent that existed from approximately 300 to 180 million years ago (Mya). Gondwana formed prior to Pangaea, then became part of Pangaea, and finally broke up after the breakup of Pangaea. Gondwana is believed to have sutured between about 570 and 510 Mya, thus joining East Gondwana to West Gondwana. It separated from Laurasia 200-180 Mya (the mid-Mesozoic era) during the breakup of Pangaea, drifting farther south after the split.
The land of India displays great physical variation. Geologically, the Peninsular Plateau constitutes one of the ancient landmasses on the earth’s surface. It was supposed to be one of the most stable land blocks. The Himalayas and the Northern Plains are the most recent landforms. From the view point of geology, Himalayan mountains form an unstable zone. The whole mountain system of Himalaya represents a very youthful topography with high peaks, deep valleys and fast flowing rivers. The northern plains are formed of alluvial deposits. The peninsular plateau is composed
of igneous and metamorphic rocks with gently rising hills and wide valleys.