Major Physiographic Divisions

The Peninsular Plateau is considered an ancient and stable landmass of India. Exam tip: remember plateau for old landmass.

The direct answer is D, western India. The Indian Desert, or Thar Desert, lies mainly in the north-western part of the country, especially western Rajasthan, with related areas near Gujarat and Punjab/Haryana. Therefore its broad physiographic location is western India. Option A, eastern India, has different landforms such as plains, hills and plateaus, not the main Indian Desert. Option B, southern India, contains the Peninsular Plateau and coastal regions. Option C, Northern Plains, are fertile river-deposited plains lying south of the Himalayas; they are not the desert division, although the desert is near their western edge. Option D is correct. Memory cue: on an India map, the Thar is the dry western side.

The direct answer is A, the Coastal Plains. Coastal means connected with the coast, which is the land beside the sea. India has coastal plains along its western and eastern shores, between the sea and nearby upland or plateau areas. Option A is correct because these plains are formed and spread along the Arabian Sea and Bay of Bengal sides. Option B, the Himalayan Mountains, is a high mountain system in the north, far from the main sea coast. Option C, the Northern Plains, are broad river-made plains mainly formed by the Indus, Ganga and Brahmaputra systems; they are not the division defined by a sea coast. Option D, the Indian Desert, is a dry region in the west and is not a coastal division. Reasoning is simple: read ‘coastal’, identify ‘sea shore’, and select Coastal Plains. Memory cue: coastal = coast = sea-side plain.

Andaman and Nicobar are part of India's island groups. Exam tip: also connect them with the Bay of Bengal.

India is commonly divided into six major physiographic divisions. Exam tip: remember the list of six divisions.

A physiographic division is a broad natural part of the land, identified by its relief and formation. Mountains are high, elevated areas with steep slopes and ridges. The Himalayas form the great mountain system along the northern edge of India, so they are an example of the mountain division. They are not plains, deserts, or islands.

The answer can be found directly from the physical character of the Himalayas. Their name refers to a vast range of high mountains, and their relief is very different from the level surface of the Northern Plains, the dry surface of a desert, or land surrounded by water as in an island. Therefore, option B, the mountain division, is correct.

The Northern Plains are formed by deposits of the Ganga, Indus, Brahmaputra and their tributaries. Exam tip: connect alluvial plains with these rivers.

The Peninsular Plateau is an elevated landmass with hard rocks. Exam tip: connect plateau with elevated flat land.

The direct answer is D, Arabian Sea. India’s western side faces the Arabian Sea, so the narrow coastal plains along that side are called the Western Coastal Plains. Option D is correct because it gives the sea bordering India’s western coast. Option A, Bay of Bengal, lies on India’s eastern side and borders the Eastern Coastal Plains. Option B, the southern Indian Ocean, is a broad oceanic region south of India, not the specific sea named for the western coast. Option C, Red Sea, lies between north-eastern Africa and the Arabian Peninsula and does not touch India. The key is to match direction with water body: west with Arabian Sea and east with Bay of Bengal. Exam cue: west coast–Arabian Sea; east coast–Bay of Bengal.

The Eastern Coastal Plains lie along the Bay of Bengal. Exam tip: connect the eastern coast with the Bay of Bengal.

Lakshadweep is an Indian island group in the Arabian Sea, to the west of the mainland. It consists mainly of small coral islands and atolls. In the classification of India’s major physiographic divisions, Lakshadweep is therefore included under the island groups. Its location and island character are the important clues in this question.

To choose the answer, identify what kind of geographical feature Lakshadweep is. It is not a plain, a mountain range, or a desert; it is a group of islands. Thus option B is correct. The Arabian Sea clue supports the location, but the question asks for the physiographic division, so “island groups” is the most precise answer. The Andaman and Nicobar Islands are another major Indian island group, though they lie in the Bay of Bengal.

The correct answer is C, the Indian Desert. The Aravalli Range runs broadly from south-west to north-east across Rajasthan and forms an important geographical reference. The Indian Desert, also called the Thar Desert, lies mainly to the west of the Aravallis, close to the India–Pakistan border. It is a dry region with very low and irregular rainfall, sandy surfaces, and sparse vegetation. A, the Northern Plains, lie mainly to the north and east of the Aravallis and are formed by river deposits. B, the Himalayas, stand along India’s northern margin, far from the western desert location. D, the island groups lie in surrounding seas, not west of the Aravalli Range. Memory cue: Aravalli is the eastern edge reference; Thar lies west of it.

The direct answer is D, the Northern Plains. The Himalayas stand in northern India, and immediately to their south lies the broad Northern Plains, formed mainly by the Indus, Ganga and Brahmaputra river systems and their deposits. Option A, Coastal Plains, lies along the eastern and western seashores, not directly as the extensive belt south of the Himalayas. Option B, the Indian Desert, is mainly to the west of the Northern Plains and is dry, sandy and receives little rainfall. Option C, Island Groups, are surrounded by seawater and cannot be the large mainland plain described here. Option D is correct because the Northern Plains occupy the wide level area between the Himalayan foothills and the Peninsular Plateau. A useful mental map is: north to south—Himalayas, Northern Plains, Peninsular Plateau. Memory cue: the plains are the broad belt just below the Himalayas.

The direct answer is option A: the Indian Desert is associated with sand dunes. A sand dune is a mound or ridge of sand formed and moved mainly by wind. The Indian Desert, commonly called the Thar Desert, has a dry climate, little rainfall, sparse vegetation and many wind-shaped sandy surfaces. Option A is correct because dunes are a familiar landform of this desert region. Option B is wrong because the Northern Plains are mainly flat alluvial plains made by river deposits; they are not identified by desert dunes. Option C is wrong because the Himalayas are high, rugged mountains with snow, valleys and slopes, not a desert dune landscape. Option D is wrong because island groups are surrounded by water and are identified by island and coastal features, not broad desert dunes. Some sandy places can occur elsewhere, but the major physiographic association in this question is the Indian Desert. Memory cue: wind-blown sand heaps point to the Thar or Indian Desert.

Himadri is the northernmost and highest Himalayan range. Exam tip: remember Himadri as the Greater Himalaya.

The Himalayas are commonly divided from north to south into three parallel ranges: Himadri, Himachal, and Shiwalik. Himadri, or the Great Himalaya, is the highest and northernmost range. Himachal, or the Lesser Himalaya, lies south of it. Shiwalik, also called the Outer Himalaya, is the lowest and southernmost range. This order is the key to answering the question.

The correct choice is C, Shiwalik. Moving from the high inner Himalaya toward the plains, the sequence is Himadri, Himachal, and then Shiwalik. Karakoram is a separate high mountain system to the north and is not the southernmost Himalayan range. The word “southernmost” means the range closest to the northern plains among the three main Himalayan divisions. Therefore, Shiwalik is the correct answer, and it should be remembered as the Outer Himalaya.

The direct answer is option D: Himachal is the middle range of the Himalayas. From north to south, the three main parallel Himalayan ranges are Himadri, also called the Great or Inner Himalaya; Himachal, also called the Lesser or Middle Himalaya; and Shiwalik, the Outer Himalaya. Option D is correct because Himachal occupies the middle position between the higher Himadri and the lower outer Shiwalik. Option A, Aravalli, is an old mountain range in western and north-western India, not a main Himalayan range. Option B, Eastern Ghats, are discontinuous hills along eastern peninsular India. Option C, Western Ghats, lie along the western edge of the Deccan Plateau. None of these three is the middle Himalayan range. A useful exam order is from north to south: Himadri, Himachal, Shiwalik. Do not confuse Himachal Pradesh, the state, with Himachal, the name of a Himalayan range.

The direct answer is option A: the Northern Plains mainly have alluvial soil. Alluvial soil is material such as sand, silt and clay deposited by rivers and their tributaries. The Indus, Ganga and Brahmaputra river systems have carried sediments from the mountains and spread them over a broad, level region. This repeated deposition formed the fertile Northern Plains. Option A is correct because river deposits are the origin of the main soil type there. Option B, black rock, is not a soil type describing the Northern Plains; black soil is associated especially with basaltic regions. Option C, sandy desert soil, belongs mainly to dry desert areas such as the Thar, not the extensive river plain. Option D, lava soil, is not the standard name for the soil of the Northern Plains and is associated with volcanic parent material. The word alluvial should immediately suggest river-borne deposits. Memory cue: rivers bring, spread and renew alluvium across the Northern Plains.

The Northern Plains are good for agriculture due to fertile alluvial soil and flat land. Exam tip: connect plains with agriculture.

The Western Ghats lie on the western edge of the Peninsular Plateau. Exam tip: remember western edge with Western Ghats.

The Eastern Ghats lie on the eastern edge of the Peninsular Plateau. Exam tip: remember eastern edge with Eastern Ghats.

The Deccan Plateau is a major part of the Peninsular Plateau. Exam tip: connect Deccan with the southern plateau region.

The Indian Desert, especially the Thar Desert, receives very low and irregular rainfall; in many areas, annual rainfall is below 150 mm. Therefore, option A is correct. Regions receiving 100–200 cm rainfall are generally much wetter and are not desert regions. Exam tip: associate deserts with scanty rainfall, sparse vegetation, and a dry climate.

The direct answer is B, Luni. The Indian Desert mainly means the Thar Desert in north-western India. A desert has very little rainfall, so rivers there are usually seasonal rather than permanently flowing. The Luni rises near the Aravalli region, flows through Rajasthan, and is the most important river associated with the Thar. Step by step: identify the region as the Indian Desert; recall its main river; match that river with Luni; therefore option B is correct. Option A, Ganga, is associated mainly with the Northern Plains and the Ganga basin, not the Thar Desert. Option B, Luni, is correct because it flows through the desert region. Option C, Brahmaputra, flows mainly through the north-east and the Brahmaputra valley, not the Indian Desert. Option D, Kaveri, is a major peninsular river flowing through southern India. A useful memory cue is: “Luni links with the sandy land of Rajasthan.” Do not confuse the largest Indian rivers with the main river of a desert.

Coastal Plains are divided into Western and Eastern Coastal Plains. Exam tip: remember both coasts separately.