All about India part 1: political and physical || Learners Hobby

                                                         Location and extent- political
LOCATION
    Indian is almost in the center of the southern end of the Asian continent. India lies entirely in the Northern Hemisphere. The Tropic of Cancer divides the Indian landmass into two almost equal halves. Peninsular India, below the Tropic of Cancer, lies in the Tropical zone.

NEIGHBOURS
    India share its land boundaries with seven neighbouring countries. These countries are Pakistan and Afghanistan in the North-West; China, Nepal and Bhutan in the North; Bangladesh and Myanmar to the East. The Palk Strait separates India from Sri Lanka.
INDIA-POLITICAL
    India has 29 States and 7 Union Territories. For administrative purpose, these political divisions are subdivided into 604 districts. Rajasthan is the largest State and Goa is the smallest State in terms of area.
    The Indian Republic is governed by the Constitution. The constitution provided for division of powers between the Union and the States. The three wings of the government, both at the central and the state level are - the Executive, the Legislature and the Judiciary.
IST
    India Standard Time (IST) is 5.30 hours ahead of UT (Universal Time). Sri Lanka uses the same Standard Meridian and its time is also same. Standard Time of Pakistan is half hour behind IST and that of Bangladesh half-hour ahead. Find out the reasons.
                                                                         India - Physical
RELIEF
    The physical shape of the surface of the earth is known as its relief. The landmass of India is divided on the basis of relief. The Himalayan Mountains are found in ranges. They branch out in different directions from Pamir Knot.
TRANS-HIMALAYA
    Mountain ranges which are farther away from the Himalayas are known as Trans-Himalayan Ranges. The eastern ranges, separated from the main Himalayas, are known as Purvanchal or the Eastern Hills. The arc-shaped Himalayan range in India is about 2,500 km in length. Its width varies from 400 km in the west to about 150 km in the east.
    India together with four other countries is known as a sub-continent. It is because of diversity of relief and climate. These conditions are a characteristic of a continent.
NORTHERN PLAINS
    The North Indian plains extend from the Indus Plain in the west to Brahmaputra Valley in the east. It is about 2500 km long. Its width varies from 150 to 180 km. The Ganga-Brahmaputra Delta is the largest and the fastest growing delta in the world. It is a marshy area known as Sundarbans or 'Beautiful forest'. It is an area renowned for its Mangrove swamps.
PLATEAU
    The Deccan Plateau in the south is subdivided into many smaller plateaus. Though of volcanic origin, the soil is of varied types. People also live here.

DESERT
    The Rajasthan desert, west of Aravallis, is a fairly flat and low lying land, an extensive sandy plain merging in the west with the Sind desert of Pakistan. Sambhar Lake is the India's largest saltwater lake.
COASTAL PLAIN
    Coastal Plain are generally flat. The west coast is narrower than the East Coast.
GHATS
    Two hill ranges known as Ghats run parallel to both west coast and east coast. There are gaps known as passes within the hill ranges for access to sea coast.
ISLANDS GROUPS
    Two islands groups of India are Andaman and Nicobar Islands in the Bay of Bengal and Lakhadweep Islands in the Arabian sea.

Go to Part 2 of this post - All About India - Part 2 || PHYSIOGRAPHIC, NORTHERN MOUNTAINS, PENINSULAR INDIA AND GIS AND MAPPING || LEARNERS HOBBY