NCERT Solutions For Class 6 Geography Social Science Chapter 7 Our Country - India

CHAPTER - 7 OUR COUNTRY - INDIA

NCERT Chapter Summary and Solutions For Class 6 Social Science Geography Chapter 7- Our Country - India 

Peninsula - The Peninsula is a piece of land that is surrounded by water on three sides.

Geographical Extent of India:-

• India has an area of about 3.28 million square km or (1,269,219 sq mi).
• The North-South (NS) extent from Kashmir ---> Kanyakumari is about 3,200 km.
• The East-West (EW) extent from Arunachal Pradesh ---> Kuchchh is about 2,900 km.
• The lofty mountains, the Great Indian Desert (Thar), the Northern Plains, the uneven plateau surface and the coasts and islands present a diversity of landforms.
• There is a great variety of climates, vegetation, and wildlife as well as language and the culture.
• Current population = 1,380, 004, 385 (as of July 2020), which is equivalent to 17.7% of the total world population.
• It is the second populous country in the world after China.

Location Extent of India:-

• India is located in the Northern Hemisphere.
• The Tropic of Cancer (23° 30′ N) passes almost halfway through the country. States are Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh, Chattisgarh, Jharkhand, West Bengal, Tripura, and Mizoram. 
• From South-North (SN), the mainland of India extends between 8° 4′ N and 37° 6′ N latitudes.
• From East-West (EW), it extends between 68° 7′ E and 97° 25′ E longitudes.
• Due to the great longitudinal extent of about 29°, there could be a wide difference in the local time of places located at two extreme points of India. As such differences between these points would be of about two hours. (Local time changes by 4 min. for every 1° of longitude.)
• In the East (Arunachal Pradesh), the sun rises about 2 hours earlier than in the West (Gujarat).
• Local time of longitude of 82°30' E has been taken as the Indian Stranded Time. This meridian or longitude is also known as Standard Meridian of India. 

   

Fig. Geographical and Location Extent of India.

India's Neighbours:-

• India has land borders of 15,106 km and a coastline border of 7,516 km.
• Seven countries - Pakistan, Afganistan, China, Nepal, Bhutan, Bangladesh, and Myanmar that share land boundaries with India.
• Two countries - Sri Lanka, Maldives, these are Island neighbors.
• Sri Lanka is separated from India by Palk Strait between Dhanuskodi of Pamban Island (Tamilnadu) and Jaffna district of Sri Lanka.

Political and Administrative Division of India:-

• India is divided into 28 states and 8 Union Territories.
• The formation of the state has been made based on language.
• These states are further divided into districts.
• Capital - New Delhi
• Largest state - Rajasthan
• Smallest state - Goa

Fig. Political Map of India.

Physical Division of India:-

1. Himalaya:-

• India has a diverse physical feature, such as mountains, plateau, plains, coast, and islands.
• The Himalaya- Him + Alaya = "the abode of snow"
• The mountains are divided into three main parallel ranges.
• 1.) The Great Himalayas or Himadri - the northernmost highest mountain range. The world's highest peaks (Mount Everest, K2) are located in this range.
• 2.) Middle Himalayas or Himachal - it lies to the south of Himadri. Many popular hill stations are situated here. E.g. Shimla, Nanital, Dalhousie, Manali, Darjeeling.
• 3.) The Shivalik - the southernmost range.

2. The Northern Plains:-

• They lie to the south of the Himalayas.
• They are usually level and flat and, the plains are formed by the alluvial deposits laid down by the rivers - the Indus, the Ganga, the Brahmaputra, and their tributaries.
• These are fertile regions and are suitable for cultivation. That is the reason for the high concentration of the population lives in these plains.

3. The Great Indian Desert:-

• It is situated in the western part of the country.
• It is a dry, hot, sandy stretch of land.
• Rainfall is very poor, hence very little vegetation is found here.

4. The Peninsular Plateau:

• It is triangular in shape.
• It lies to the south of northern plains.
• Its relief is highly uneven.
• Numerous hill ranges and valleys are found here.
• Ranges - Aravali hills, the Vindhyas, and the Satpura.
• Rivers - West flowing rivers Narmada, and Tapi flow through these ranges, and fall into the Arabian sea.
• On the west of the plateau lie the Western Ghats (Sahyadri), which is continuous.
• On the east of the plateau lie the Eastern Ghats, which is broken and uneven.
• The plateau is rich in minerals like Coal, Iron ore and Manganese.

5. Coastal Plains:-

• They lie to the West of the Western Ghats and East of the Eastern Ghats.
• The western coastal plains are narrow while eastern coastal plains are much broader. There are numbers of east following rivers.
• Rivers - Mahanadi, Godavari, Krishna, Kaveri (all east following rivers) fall into the Bay of Bengal, which forms the fertile delta at their mouth.
• The Sunderban delta - is formed by where the Ganga and Brahmaputra flow into the Bay of Bengal.

6. Islands:- 

• Any area of land which is smaller than a continent and entirely surrounded by water.
• Lakshadweep island (Coral island), near the coast of Kerala located in the Arabian Sea.
• Andaman & Nicobar islands lie to the south-east of the mainland in the Bay of Bengal.

Fig. Physical Map of India.

NCERT Exercises

Q1. Answer the following questions briefly.

(a) Name the major physical division of India.

Ans. The major physical division of India:-

        1.) The Himalayas

        2.) The Northern Indian Plains

        3.) The Great Indian Desert

        4.) The Peninsular Plateau

        5.) Coastal Plains

        6.) Islands

(b) India shares its land boundaries with seven countries. Name them.

Ans. Pakistan, Afganistan, China, Nepal, Bhutan, Bangladesh, and Myanmar.

(c) Which two major rivers fall into the Arabian Sea?

Ans. The Narmada and Tapi River.

(d) Name the delta formed by the Ganga and Brahmaputra?

Ans. The Sunderbans delta (world's largest delta)

(e) How many states and union territories are there in India? Which states have a common capital?

Ans. India has 28 States and 8 Union Territories. 

      - Punjab and Haryana have a common capital, ie. Chandigarh.

(f) Why do a large number of people live in the Northern Plain?

Ans. The Northern Plains flat and level land, having alluvial deposits which are laid down by the rivers, such as the Indus (Sindhu), the Ganga, and the Brahmaputra.

      - These river plains provide fertile land for cultivation. Hence, a large population prefers to live in.

(g) Why Lakshadweep is known as coral islands?

Ans. Lakshadweep is made up of coral reefs which are the skeleton of tiny marine animals called Polyps.

Q2.Tick the correct answer.

(a) The southernmost Himalayas are known as

      (i) Shivalik (ii) Himadri (iii) Himachal

(b) Sahyadris is also known as

      (i) Aravali (ii) Western Ghats (iii) Himadri

(c) The Palk strait lies between the countries

      (i) Sri Lanks & Maldives (ii) India & Sri Lanka (iii) India & Maldives

(d) The Indian islands in the Arabian Seas are known as

      (i) Andaman & Nicobar Island  (ii) Lakshadweep (iii) Maldives

(e) The oldest mountain range in India is

     (i) Aravali hills (ii) Western Ghats (iii) Himalayas

Ans. (a) - (i) Shivalik

        (b) - (ii) Westen Ghats

        (c) - (ii) India & Sri Lanka

        (d) - (ii) Lakshadweep

        (e) -  (i) Aravali hills

Q3. Fill in the blanks.

(a) India has an area of about __________.

(b) The Greater Himalayas are also known as __________.

(c) The largest state in India in terms of area is ___________.

(d) The river Narmada falls into the __________.

(e) The latitude that runs almost halfway through the India is __________.

Ans. (a) 3.28 million square km.

        (b) Himadri

        (c) Rajasthan

        (d) Arabian Sea

        (e) Tropic of Cancer (23° 30′ N)