Let’s learn the chapter, Physical Features of India. Now, children, you have already learnt earlier that India is a vast country with varied landforms, different types of land.

What kind of terrain do you live in? Terrain here means land. If you live in the plains you are familiar with vast stretches of plain land. If you live in hilly regions, the rugged terrain with mountains and valleys are common features. The word rugged here means covered with stones.

Then coming to India, our country has practically all major physical features of the earth. Whether it is mountains, then it is plain lands, plateaus, deserts and coastal plains. Finally it is islands, that is Andaman Nicobar Islands as well as Lakshadweep islands. We will be studying all of these one by one in detail.

Now, we have different types of rocks. Coming to this one, some are very hard like marble which has been used for making the Taj Mahal. Some are very soft like soap stone. Then which is used in making talcum powder. The colour of soil varies from one place to other this is because the soil is formed out of different types of rocks. Now, most of these variations are caused due to difference in rock formation.

Now, India is a large landmass formed during different geological periods which has influenced her relief. Relief means variation in height. Now, different geological period’s means the geology or deep time of Earth’s past has been organised into various units. Then it is done according to the events which took place in each period. Besides geological formations, a number of processes such as weathering, erosion and deposition have created and modified the relief to its present form. Coming to the word weathering, this in geography it is commonly used. The word weathering means softening and breaking up of rocks. The other one is erosion, then comes deposition, this continuously happens. Now, the word relief also will be commonly used in geography. This refers to difference in height or variation in height. In mountainous areas this is very commonly seen.

Now, the earth scientists have attempted to explain the formation of physical features, with the help of some theories that are based on certain evidences. One such plausible theory is the “Theory of Plate Tectonics”. Plausible here refers to possible theory. Now, according to this theory, the crust that is the upper part of the earth has been formed out of seven major and some minor plates.

Now, the seven major and some minor plates, one is Pacific Plate, African Plate, South American Plate, Antarctic Plate, North American Plate, then it is Indian Australian Plate, Eurasian Plate. These are the seven plates and some minor plates. This is how planet earth with all the continents are available to us.+-`1