Geography of India
The geography of India is extremely diverse, with
landscape ranging from snow-capped mountain ranges to deserts, plains,
rainforests, hills and plateaus. India comprises most of the Indian
subcontinent situated on the Indian Plate, the northerly portion
of the Indo-Australian Plate. Having a coastline of over 7,000 km
(4,300 miles), most of India lies on a peninsula in southern Asia
that protrudes into the Indian Ocean. India is bounded in the southwest
by the Arabian Sea and in the southeast by the Bay of Bengal.
The fertile Indo-Gangetic plain occupies most of northern, central
and eastern India, while the Deccan Plateau occupies most of southern
India. To the west of the country is the Thar Desert, which consists
of a mix of rocky and sandy desert. India's east and northeastern
border consists of the high Himalayan range. The highest point in
India is disputed due to a territorial dispute with Pakistan; according
to India's claim, the highest point (located in the disputed Kashmir
territory) is K2, at 8,611 m (28,251 feet). The highest point in
undisputed Indian territory is Kangchenjunga, at 8,598 m (28,208
feet). Climate ranges from equatorial in the far south, to tundra
in the Himalayan altitudes.
India is bordered by Pakistan, the People's Republic of China, Bangladesh,
Myanmar, Nepal, Bhutan and Afghanistan.[1] Sri Lanka and the Maldives
are island nations to the south of India. Politically, India is
divided into 28 states, six federally administered union territories
and a national capital territory. The political divisions generally
follow linguistic and ethnic boundaries rather than geographic transitions.
Location and extent:-
India lies to the north of the equator between 8 degree 4 minutes
and 37 degree 6 minutes north latitude and 68 degrees 7 minutes
and 97 degrees 25 minutes east longitude. It is the seventh-largest
country in the world, with a total land area of 3,287,590 km²
(1,269,219 square miles). India measures 3,214 km (1,997 miles)
from north to south and 2,933 km (1,822 miles) from east to west.
It has a land frontier of 15,200 km (9,445 miles) and a coastline
of 7,516.5 km (4,670.5 miles). The Andaman and Nicobar Islands in
the Bay of Bengal and Lakshadweep in the Arabian Sea are parts of
India.
India is bounded on the southwest by the Arabian Sea and on the
southeast by the Bay of Bengal. On the north, northeast, and northwest
are the Himalayas. Kanyakumari constitutes the southern tip of the
Indian peninsula, which narrows before ending in the Indian Ocean.