Highlands

The Central Highlands are composed of three main plateaus - the Malwa Plateau in the west, the Deccan Plateau in the south, (covering most of the Indian peninsula); and the Chota Nagpur Plateau in Jharkhand towards the east.

The Deccan plateau is a large triangular plateau, bounded by the Vindhyas to the north and flanked by the Eastern and Western Ghats. The Deccan covers a total area of 1.9 million km² (735,000 mile²). It is mostly flat, with elevations ranging from 300 to 600 m (1,000 to 2,000 feet) [3].

The name Deccan comes from the Sanskrit word dakshina, which means “the south”. The plateau slopes gently from west to east and gives rise to several peninsular rivers such as the Godavari, the Krishna, the Kaveri and the Narmada. This region is mostly semi-arid as it lies on the leeward side of both Ghats. Much of the Deccan is covered by thorn scrub forest scattered with small regions of deciduous broadleaf forest. Climate ranges from hot summers to mild winters.

The Chota Nagpur Plateau is a plateau in eastern India, which covers much of Jharkhand state as well as adjacent parts of Orissa, Bihar, and chhattisgarh. The total area of Chota Nagpur Plateau is approximately 65,000 km² (25,000 mile²). The Chota Nagpur Plateau is made up of three smaller plateaus, the Ranchi, Hazaribagh, and Kodarma plateaus. The Ranchi plateau is the largest of the plateaus, with an average elevation of 700 m (2,300 feet). Much of the plateau is forested, covered by the Chota Nagpur dry deciduous forests. The plateau is famous for its vast reserves of ores and coal.

Besides the Great Indian peninsula, the Kathiawar Peninsula in Gujarat is another large peninsula of India.

East coast

The Eastern Coastal Plain is a wide stretch of land lying between the Eastern Ghats and the Bay of Bengal. It stretches from Tamil Nadu in the south to West Bengal in the north. Deltas of many of India’s rivers form a major portion of these plains. The Mahanadi, Godavari, Kaveri and Krishna rivers drain these plains. The region receives both the Northeast and Southwest monsoon rains with its annual rainfall averaging between 1,000 mm (40 in) and 3,000 mm (120 in). The width of the plains varies between 100 to 130 km (62 to 80 miles) [4].

The plains are divided into seven regions: The Mahanadi delta; the southern Andhra Pradesh plain; the Krishna Godavari deltas; the Kanyakumari coast; Coromandel Coast and sandy littoral.

West coast

The Western Coastal Plain is a narrow strip of land sandwiched between the Western Ghats and the Arabian Sea. The strip begins in Gujarat in the north and extends across the states of Maharashtra, Goa, Karnataka and Kerala. The plains are narrow, and range from 50 to 100 km (30 to 60 miles) in width.

Small rivers and numerous backwaters inundate the region. The rivers, which originate in the Western Ghats, are fast flowing and are mostly perennial. The fast flowing nature of the rivers results in the formation of estuaries rather than deltas. Major rivers flowing into the sea are the Tapi, Narmada, Mandovi and Zuari.

The coast is divided into three regions. The northern region of Maharashtra and Goa is known as the Konkan Coast, the central region of Karnataka is known as the Kanara Coast and the southern coastline of Kerala is known as the Malabar Coast. Vegetation in this region is mostly deciduous. The Malabar Coast has its own unique ecoregion known as the Malabar Coast moist forests.

Islands

India has two major offshore island possessions: the Lakshadweep islands and the Andaman and Nicobar Islands. Both these island groups are administered by the Union government of India as Union Territories.

The Lakshadweep islands lie 200 to 300 km (124 to 186 miles) off the coast of Kerala in the Arabian Sea. It consists of twelve coral atolls, three coral reefs, and five banks. Ten of these islands are inhabited.

The Andaman and Nicobar island chain lies in the Bay of Bengal near the Myanmar coast. It is located 950 km (590 miles) from Kolkata (Calcutta) and 193 km (120 miles) from Cape Negrais in Myanmar. The territory consists of two island groups, the Andaman Islands and the Nicobar Islands. The Andaman islands consist of 204 islands having a total length of 352 km (220 miles). The Nicobar Islands, which lie south of the Andamans, consists of twenty-two islands with a total area of 1,841 km² (710 mile²).

The highest point is Mount Thullier at 642 m (2,140 feet). Indira Point, India’s southernmost land point is situated in the Nicobar islands, and lies just 189 km (117 miles) from the Indonesian island of Sumatra to the southeast.

Significant islands just off the Indian coast include Diu, a former Portuguese exclave; Majuli, Asia’s largest freshwater island; Salcette Island, India’s most populous island, on which Mumbai (Bombay) city is located; Elephanta in Bombay Harbour; and Sriharikota barrier island in Andhra Pradesh.

Rivers

All major rivers of India originate from one of the three main watersheds.

They are:

The Himalaya and the Karakoram ranges
Vindhya and Satpura range in central India
Sahyadri or Western Ghats in western India

The Himalayan river networks are snow-fed and have a continuous flow throughout the year. The other two networks are dependant on the monsoons and shrink into rivulets during the dry season.

Twelve of India’s rivers are classified as major, with the total catchment area exceeding 2,528,000 km² (976,000 mile²).

Himalayan rivers or the northern rivers that flow westward into Pakistan are the Indus, Beas, Chenab, Ravi, Sutlej, and Jhelum.

The Ganga-Brahmaputra-Meghana system has the largest catchment area of 1,100,000 km² (424,700 mile²). The river Ganga originates at the Gangotri Glacier in Uttaranchal. It flows in a south easterly direction, draining into Bangladesh. The Yamuna and Gomti rivers also arise in the Western Himalayas and join the Ganga river in the plains. The Brahmaputra, another tributary of the Ganga originates in Tibet and enters India in the far eastern state of Arunachal Pradesh. It then proceeds westwards, unifying with the Ganga in Bangladesh.

The Chambal, another tributary of the Ganga originates from the Vindhya-Satpura watershed. The river flows eastward. Westward flowing rivers from this watershed are the Narmada (also called Nerbudda) and Tapti (also spelt Tapi) rivers which drain into the Arabian Sea in Gujarat. The river network that flows from east to west constitutes 10 percent of the total outflow.

The Western Ghats are the source of all Deccan rivers. Major rivers in the Deccan include the Mahanadi, Godavari, Krishna, and Kaveri River (also spelt Cauvery), all draining into the Bay of Bengal. These rivers constitute 20 percent of India’s total outflow.