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Quick recap: the physiography of India on one page

മലയാളത്തിൽ വിശദീകരണം

Physiography of India · Quick recap · Fact-checked on 8 November 2026 · how we check

Written with AI from the sources listed at the bottom of this page, then fact-checked by a separate AI.

All four parts condensed for quick revision: the Himalaya and the north-eastern hills; the Northern Plains and the Thar; the Peninsular Plateau and the two Ghats; and the coastal plains and the island groups.

Each idea is explained first in Malayalam (മലയാളം), ending with the English and Hindi exam terms, followed by the same point in exam English. UPSC Prelims is in English or Hindi, so understand it in Malayalam and revise it in English.

നമ്മുടെ നാടിന്റെ നിലം ആറു ഭാഗങ്ങൾ: ഹിമാലയം, ഉത്തര സമതലം, ഉപദ്വീപീയ പീഠഭൂമി, ഥാർ മരുഭൂമി, തീരസമതലങ്ങൾ, ദ്വീപുകൾ. എല്ലാറ്റിന്റെയും താക്കോൽ പ്രായം. പീഠഭൂമി മുത്തച്ഛനെപ്പോലെ — പഴയത്, ഉറച്ചത്, ഗോണ്ട്വാനയുടെ കഷണം; ഹിമാലയം ചെറുപ്പക്കാരൻ — ഇപ്പോഴും വളരുന്നു; ഇടയിൽ സമതലം കുഞ്ഞ് — പുഴകൾ കൊണ്ടുവന്ന എക്കൽ മണ്ണ് കൊണ്ട് അടുത്തിടെ ഉണ്ടായത്. തീരങ്ങളും ദ്വീപുകളും അരികുകളിൽ; കടലും പുഴകളും, ആൻഡമാനിൽ ഹിമാലയത്തെ ഉയർത്തിയ അതേ കൂട്ടിയിടിയും അവയെ രൂപപ്പെടുത്തി. (→ English: alluvium · हिन्दी: जलोढ़)

In exam EnglishGeographers sort India's landforms into six major units: the Himalaya, the Northern Plains, the Peninsular Plateau, the Indian Desert, the coastal plains and the islands. The key to all of them is age. The Peninsula is the oldest and most stable land, a fragment of Gondwana; the Himalaya are young fold mountains, still rising as the Indian plate pushes into Eurasia; and the plains between them are the youngest of all, built of river alluvium laid down in the trough in front of the mountains. The coasts and islands sit at the edges, shaped by the sea, by the rivers that reach it and, in the Andamans, by the same collision that raised the Himalaya.

The six physiographic divisions at a glance
Division	Age and make-up	Key features to remember
Himalaya	Young fold mountains, still rising	Shiwalik, Himachal, Himadri, Trans-Himalaya; duns; passes; Purvanchal
Northern Plains	Youngest; river alluvium in a foredeep	Bhabar, Terai, Bhangar, Khadar; doabs; Sundarbans; Majuli
Peninsular Plateau	Oldest; Gondwana block, tilted west to east	Central Highlands, Deccan Traps, Meghalaya plateau, Western and Eastern Ghats
Indian Desert	Sand over older rock, west of the Aravalli	Dunes and barchans, Luni, Sambhar, Rann of Kachchh
Coastal plains	Recent marine and river deposits	West: narrow, estuaries, backwaters; East: broad, deltas, lagoons
Islands	Andamans: drowned fold range; Lakshadweep: coral	Barren Island, Ten Degree Channel, Indira Point; atolls, Minicoy

ഒന്നാം ഭാഗം, ഹിമാലയം: സമതലത്തിൽ നിന്ന് വടക്കോട്ട് പടവുകൾ പോലെ — ശിവാലിക് (പുറത്തേത്, അയഞ്ഞ നദീമണ്ണ്, പിന്നിൽ ഡെറാഡൂൺ പോലുള്ള ഡൂണുകൾ), ഹിമാചൽ (പീർ പഞ്ചാൽ, ധൗലാധർ, മലമ്പട്ടണങ്ങൾ, കശ്മീർ, കുളു താഴ്വരകൾ), ഹിമാദ്രി (ഏറ്റവും ഉയരം, കാഞ്ചൻജംഗ, നന്ദാദേവി), അതിനപ്പുറം ട്രാൻസ് ഹിമാലയം (കാരക്കോറം, K2, ലഡാക്ക്). നദീതാഴ്വരകൾ പ്രകാരം പഞ്ചാബ്, കുമയൂൺ, നേപ്പാൾ, അസം ഹിമാലയം. സോജില, റോഹ്താങ് (അടൽ തുരങ്കം 2020), നാഥുല ചുരങ്ങൾ; കിഴക്ക് പൂർവാഞ്ചൽ കുന്നുകൾ. തണുത്ത കാറ്റിനെ തടഞ്ഞ് മൺസൂൺ മഴ പിഴിഞ്ഞെടുക്കുന്നു, മഞ്ഞുനദികൾക്ക് വെള്ളം നൽകുന്നു. (→ English: monsoon · हिन्दी: मानसून)

In exam EnglishPart 1, the Himalaya: from the plains northward come the Shiwalik (outermost, loose river deposits, with duns such as Dehra Dun behind it), the Lesser Himalaya or Himachal (Pir Panjal, Dhauladhar, hill stations, the Kashmir and Kullu valleys), the Greater Himalaya or Himadri (the highest, with Kangchenjunga and Nanda Devi), and beyond it the Trans-Himalaya (Karakoram with K2, Ladakh, Zaskar). Taking big rivers as the boundaries, the range is split from west to east into the Punjab, Kumaon, Nepal and Assam Himalaya. Passes such as Zoji La, Rohtang (Atal Tunnel, 2020), Shipki La and Nathu La cross it, and the Purvanchal hills (Patkai, Naga, Mizo) bend south along the Myanmar border. The range blocks cold winds, wrings rain from the monsoon and feeds snow-fed rivers.

രണ്ടാം ഭാഗം, ഉത്തര സമതലവും ഥാറും: ഹിമാലയത്തിനു മുന്നിലെ താഴ്ച സിന്ധു, ഗംഗ, ബ്രഹ്മപുത്ര മണ്ണ് നിറച്ചു. മലയടിവാരത്തിൽ നിന്ന് തെക്കോട്ട് — ഭാബർ (കല്ലുകൾ, തോടുകൾ അപ്രത്യക്ഷം), തെരായ് (തോടുകൾ വീണ്ടും പുറത്ത്, ചതുപ്പ്), പിന്നെ ബാംഗർ (പഴയ എക്കൽ, ചുണ്ണാമ്പുമുഴകൾ), ഖാദർ (വെള്ളപ്പൊക്ക സമതലത്തിലെ പുതിയ എക്കൽ). അരിപ്പയിൽ വലിയ കല്ലുകൾ മുകളിൽ നിന്ന് നേർത്ത മണ്ണ് താഴേക്കു പോകുന്നതുപോലെ. ഭാഗങ്ങൾ: പഞ്ചാബ് ദോആബുകൾ, സുന്ദർബൻ വരെ ഗംഗാസമതലം, മജൂലിയോടെ ബ്രഹ്മപുത്ര താഴ്വര. ആരവല്ലിക്കു പടിഞ്ഞാറ് ഥാർ — മണൽക്കുന്നുകൾ, ഏക വലിയ നദി ലൂണി, സാംഭർ ഉപ്പുതടാകം, ഒടുവിൽ കച്ച് റൺ. (→ English: Bhabar, Terai, Bhangar, Khadar · हिन्दी: भाबर, तराई, बांगर, खादर)

In exam EnglishPart 2, the Northern Plains and the Thar: the plains fill a foredeep south of the Himalaya with sediment from the Indus, Ganga and Brahmaputra. Moving south from the foothills you cross the Bhabar, a pebbly strip that swallows streams, then the swampy Terai where they surface again, and then the main plain, made of Bhangar, the old alluvium dotted with kankar, and Khadar, the fresh alluvium of the floodplains. Regionally there are the Punjab plains with their doabs, the Ganga plains down to the Sundarbans delta, and the Brahmaputra valley with Majuli. West of the Aravalli lies the Thar, with dunes, the Luni as its only large river and salt lakes such as Sambhar, ending in the salt marsh of the Rann of Kachchh.

മൂന്നാം ഭാഗം, ഉപദ്വീപീയ പീഠഭൂമി: ഗോണ്ട്വാനയുടെ പഴയ കഷണം, മടങ്ങിയില്ല, പൊട്ടി; പടിഞ്ഞാറുനിന്ന് കിഴക്കോട്ടു ചരിഞ്ഞത് — ചരിച്ച പാത്രത്തിൽ വെള്ളം ഒരു വശത്തേക്ക് ഒഴുകുന്നതുപോലെ മിക്ക നദികളും ബംഗാൾ ഉൾക്കടലിലേക്ക്; നർമദയും താപ്തിയും മാത്രം ഭ്രംശതാഴ്വരകളിലൂടെ പടിഞ്ഞാറോട്ട്. നർമദയ്ക്കു വടക്ക് മധ്യ ഉന്നതതടങ്ങൾ: ആരവല്ലി, മാൾവ, വിന്ധ്യ, ബുന്ദേൽഖണ്ഡ്, ധാതുസമ്പന്നമായ ഛോട്ടാ നാഗ്പൂർ. തെക്ക് ഡെക്കാൻ പീഠഭൂമിക്കു മേൽ ഡെക്കാൻ ട്രാപ്പ് ലാവ; മേഘാലയ പീഠഭൂമി വേർപെട്ട കഷണം. പശ്ചിമഘട്ടം ഉയരമുള്ളതും തുടർച്ചയുള്ളതും (ആനമുടി), കനത്ത മഴ; പൂർവഘട്ടം മുറിഞ്ഞതും താഴ്ന്നതും; നീലഗിരിയിൽ കൂടിച്ചേരുന്നു. (→ English: Deccan Traps · हिन्दी: दक्कन ट्रैप)

In exam EnglishPart 3, the Peninsular Plateau: an ancient block of Gondwana that cracked rather than folded, tilted from west to east, so most rivers flow to the Bay of Bengal while the Narmada and Tapi run west through rift valleys. North of the Narmada lie the Central Highlands: the worn Aravalli (Guru Shikhar), Malwa, the Vindhya, Bundelkhand, Baghelkhand and the mineral-rich Chota Nagpur plateau. South of it the Deccan plateau is capped by the lava of the Deccan Traps; the Meghalaya plateau is a detached piece. The Western Ghats form an unbroken, lofty wall that takes heavy rain and holds Anamudi, the Peninsula's top peak; the Eastern Ghats are lower and cut into pieces, and the two ranges join in the Nilgiris.

നാലാം ഭാഗം, തീരങ്ങളും ദ്വീപുകളും: 2024-25-ലെ പുതിയ അളവിൽ തീരം 11,098.81 കി.മീ. (മുമ്പ് 7,516.6); സംസ്ഥാനങ്ങളിൽ ഗുജറാത്തിന്റെ തീരം ഏറ്റവും നീളം. പശ്ചിമ സമതലം വീതി കുറഞ്ഞത്, മുങ്ങിയ തീരം — കച്ച്-കത്തിയവാർ, കൊങ്കൺ, കാനറ, മലബാർ; നർമദ, താപ്തി വായിൽ അഴിമുഖം, സ്വാഭാവിക തുറമുഖങ്ങൾ, കേരളത്തിലെ കായലുകൾ. കിഴക്കൻ സമതലം വീതിയേറിയത്, ഉയർന്ന തീരം — വടക്കൻ സർക്കാറുകൾ, കോറമണ്ഡൽ; മഹാനദി, ഗോദാവരി, കൃഷ്ണ, കാവേരി ഓരോന്നിനും ഒരു ഡെൽറ്റ; ചിൽക്ക, പുലിക്കാട്ട്. ആൻഡമാൻ നിക്കോബാർ അരാക്കൻ യോമയുടെ തുടർച്ച, ബാരൻ ദ്വീപ് ഏക സജീവ അഗ്നിപർവതം; ലക്ഷദ്വീപ് പവിഴ അറ്റോളുകൾ. ആറു ഭാഗങ്ങളും ചേർന്ന് വെള്ളം, അന്നം, ധാതു, തുറമുഖം, കടൽപ്രദേശം നൽകുന്നു — ഒരു വീടിന്റെ മുറികൾ പോലെ. (→ English: estuary, delta · हिन्दी: ज्वारनदमुख, डेल्टा)

In exam EnglishPart 4, the coasts and islands: the coastline measured 11,098.81 km in the 2024-25 re-measurement (earlier 7,516.6 km), and Gujarat has the longest among the states. The western plain is narrow and submerged, with Kachchh-Kathiawar, Konkan, Kanara and Malabar, an estuary at the Narmada and Tapi mouths, natural harbours and the Kerala backwaters. The eastern plain is broad and emergent, with the Northern Circars and Coromandel, a delta for each of the Mahanadi, Godavari, Krishna and Kaveri, and the Chilika and Pulicat lagoons. The Andaman and Nicobar chain is an extension of Myanmar's Arakan Yoma and holds Barren Island, the one volcano in India that is still active, while Lakshadweep is made up of coral atolls. Together the six divisions supply water, food, minerals, ports and sea space.

Exam traps

Order from the plains northward: Shiwalik, Himachal, Himadri, Trans-Himalaya. The duns, such as Dehra Dun, sit in the gap between the Shiwalik and the Himachal.
Bhabar swallows the streams; the Terai is where they surface again. Bhangar is the OLDER alluvium; Khadar the NEWER floodplain alluvium.
North to south: Vindhya, Narmada, Satpura, Tapi. The Narmada and Tapi flow west through rift valleys and form estuaries; the Mahanadi, Godavari, Krishna and Kaveri flow east and form deltas.
The top of peninsular India is Anamudi; Doddabetta the highest of the Nilgiris; Guru Shikhar the highest point of the Aravalli.
The Northern Circars and the Coromandel coast are on the EAST coast; Konkan, Kanara and Malabar on the WEST.
Chilika is India's largest brackish-water lagoon, Pulicat the second; Kolleru is a freshwater lake between the Godavari and Krishna deltas.
Barren Island is India's only active volcano (Andaman Sea). Ten Degree Channel: Andamans from Nicobars; Eight Degree Channel: Minicoy from the Maldives.
The Meghalaya plateau is a detached part of the Peninsula, not of the Himalaya; the Andaman and Nicobar Islands continue the Arakan Yoma, not the Peninsula.

Recap

Six divisions; the Peninsula is oldest, the Himalaya young and rising, the plains youngest.
Himalaya: Shiwalik, Himachal, Himadri, Trans-Himalaya; Punjab, Kumaon, Nepal and Assam Himalaya; Purvanchal hills.
Passes: Zoji La, Banihal, Rohtang (Atal Tunnel 2020), Shipki La, Lipulekh, Nathu La, Bomdi La.
Plains: Bhabar, Terai, Bhangar, Khadar; Punjab doabs, Ganga plains, Brahmaputra valley with Majuli.
Thar: west of the Aravalli; dunes, Luni, Sambhar; Rann of Kachchh.
Plateau: Gondwana block tilted east; Central Highlands, Deccan Traps, Meghalaya plateau; Narmada and Tapi in rift valleys.
Ghats: Western continuous and high (Anamudi), Eastern broken and low; meet in the Nilgiris.
Coasts: west narrow with estuaries and backwaters; east broad with deltas and lagoons; coastline 11,098.81 km (2024-25).
Islands: Andamans (Arakan Yoma, Barren Island, Indira Point); Lakshadweep (coral atolls, Kavaratti, Minicoy).

Practice questions

Q1. Which one of the following is the correct sequence of Himalayan ranges from south to north?

Himadri, Himachal, Shiwalik, Trans-Himalaya
Shiwalik, Himachal, Himadri, Trans-Himalaya
Shiwalik, Himadri, Himachal, Trans-Himalaya
Himachal, Shiwalik, Himadri, Trans-Himalaya

Show answer

Answer: B. Shiwalik, Himachal, Himadri, Trans-Himalaya

From the plains the Shiwalik comes first, then the Himachal (Lesser Himalaya), then the Himadri (Greater Himalaya) and beyond it the Trans-Himalaya. The first option starts with the highest range; the third swaps Himachal and Himadri; the fourth puts the Himachal outside the Shiwalik.

Q2. Consider the following statements:
1. The Atal Tunnel was built under the Rohtang Pass.
2. Nathu La lies on the India-China border in Sikkim.
Which of the statements given above is/are correct?

1 only
2 only
Both 1 and 2
Neither 1 nor 2

Show answer

Answer: C. Both 1 and 2

Both are correct: the Atal Tunnel (opened in 2020) runs beneath the Rohtang Pass in Himachal Pradesh, and Nathu La is a Sikkim pass on the border with Tibet (China). '1 only' and '2 only' each reject a true statement; 'Neither' rejects both.

Q3. In the Northern Plains, the strip of land in which streams that went underground come back to the surface and make the ground swampy is called

Bhabar
Terai
Bhangar
Khadar

Show answer

Answer: B. Terai

Streams re-emerge in the Terai. In the Bhabar, at the foot of the hills, they sink into porous pebbles; Bhangar is the older alluvium above flood level; Khadar is the newer alluvium of the floodplains.

Q4. Which of the following rivers flow westward into the Arabian Sea through rift valleys?
1. Narmada
2. Tapi
3. Mahanadi
Select the correct answer using the code given below.

1 only
1 and 2 only
2 and 3 only
1, 2 and 3

Show answer

Answer: B. 1 and 2 only

The Narmada and the Tapi flow west through rift valleys and end in estuaries. The Mahanadi flows east to the Bay of Bengal and forms a delta, so any option including 3 is wrong, and '1 only' leaves out the Tapi.

Q5. Consider the following statements:
1. The Western Ghats are more continuous and generally higher than the Eastern Ghats.
2. The Meghalaya plateau is geologically a part of the Himalaya.
Which of the statements given above is/are correct?

1 only
2 only
Both 1 and 2
Neither 1 nor 2

Show answer

Answer: A. 1 only

Statement 1 is correct. Statement 2 is wrong: the Meghalaya plateau is a detached part of the Peninsular Plateau. So '2 only' and 'Both' are wrong, and 'Neither' rejects a true statement.

Q6. The Northern Circars are located along the coast of

Gujarat
Maharashtra and Goa
Andhra Pradesh and Odisha
Kerala

Show answer

Answer: C. Andhra Pradesh and Odisha

The Northern Circars are the northern part of the eastern coastal plain, between the Mahanadi and the Krishna, in Andhra Pradesh and Odisha. Gujarat has the Kachchh-Kathiawar coast, Maharashtra and Goa the Konkan coast, and Kerala the Malabar coast, all on the west.

Q7. Which one of the following separates the island of Minicoy from the Maldives?

Ten Degree Channel
Nine Degree Channel
Eight Degree Channel
Palk Strait

Show answer

Answer: C. Eight Degree Channel

The Eight Degree Channel separates Minicoy from the Maldives. The Ten Degree Channel separates the Andamans from the Nicobars, the Nine Degree Channel separates Minicoy from the rest of Lakshadweep, and the Palk Strait lies between Tamil Nadu and Sri Lanka.

Q8. Consider the following statements:
1. The Luni ends in the Rann of Kachchh.
2. Sambhar is a freshwater lake in the Thar.
Which of the statements given above is/are correct?

1 only
2 only
Both 1 and 2
Neither 1 nor 2

Show answer

Answer: A. 1 only

Statement 1 is correct: the Luni, the only large river of the Thar, ends in the Rann of Kachchh. Statement 2 is wrong: Sambhar is a salt lake. So '2 only' and 'Both' are wrong, and 'Neither' rejects a true statement.

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Sources

Geological Survey of India, Ministry of Mines: geology of India, the Gondwana deposits, the Deccan Traps, the Himalaya and the Andaman-Nicobar arc — https://www.gsi.gov.in
Survey of India, Department of Science and Technology: physical map of India, heights of peaks, the coastal plains and the island groups — https://surveyofindia.gov.in
Press Information Bureau and Border Roads Organisation, Ministry of Defence: the Atal Tunnel at Rohtang (October 2020) and Himalayan passes — https://pib.gov.in
ICAR-Central Arid Zone Research Institute, Jodhpur: the Thar desert, its sand dunes, the Luni basin and the salt lakes — https://cazri.icar.gov.in
India Meteorological Department, Ministry of Earth Sciences: the Himalaya as a climatic barrier, orographic rain on the Western Ghats and the north-east monsoon over Tamil Nadu — https://mausam.imd.gov.in
Ministry of Home Affairs, Annual Report 2024-25, and Press Information Bureau: revised length of India's coastline (11,098.81 km, earlier 7,516.6 km) — https://www.mha.gov.in
Andaman and Nicobar Administration and Union Territory of Lakshadweep Administration: geography of the island groups, Barren Island, the Ten, Nine and Eight Degree Channels — https://andaman.gov.in