Northern mountainous region
This is an essential natural region of India. It is known as the Himalayan mountain system spread over 2400 km in the west-east direction in the north. It has an are shape. Its width ranges between 240 km to 320 kilometers. The Himalaya is not a single mountain but is a complex of many mountain ranges. Going towards east from Afghanistan, it extends upto Myanmar via India, Nepal, and Bhutan. It has more span in Tibet in the north. It is a part of the mountain system known as the Pamir knot.
The Himalayas on the whole, can be divided into two divisions:
(1) Northern Himalayan Region (2) Eastern Himalayas
Northern Himalayan Region:-
There are three mountain ranges parallel to each other.
The northern range is called the Greater Himalayas. This is the loftiest range among the Himalayas, wherein more than 40 peaks exceed 7000 meters. The most famous among them is Mt. Everest which is 8848 meters high. It is on Nepal - China border. It is known as Sagarmatha in Tibet. Another famous peak is Godwin Austin or K(8611 m)
which is the highest peak of India. There are three distinct ranges in the Himalayas which are almost parallel to each other. There are some high mountain passes in the Greater Himalayas, such as Jelep La, Nathu La, Shipki La, etc. Mansarovar, which is considered a sacred holy place (China), is located in this range.
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Mt. Everest
8848 meters
8611 meters
K² (Mt. Godwin Austin)
8598 meters
8481 meters
8198 meters
Kanchenjungha
Makalu
Dhavalgiri
Annapurna
8070 metres
Second range, in the south of the Greater Himalayas is also spread in a broader area. It is called Central Himalayas or the Lesser Himalayas. With a width ranging from 80 to 100 km, this range includes mountain ranges like PirPanjal, Mahabharat, Nagtiba etc. Many hill stations have developed in this moderately high range. Some of these hill stations are Dalhousie, Dharamshala, Shimla, Mussoorie, Ranikhet. Amanda, Nainital, Darjeeling etc. Gangotri, Yamnotri, Badrinath, Kedarnath, Hemkund Sahib etc. are famous holy places. Kullu, Kangada and Kashmir are extremely beautiful natural valleys in this region.
Third range, situated further south, is known as Shivalik (Outer Himalayas), and most of it falls within India. It is about 10 to 15 km wide and has an average height of 1000 meters.
Eastern Himalaya:-
Ranges situated in the eastern part of Himalayan ranges have lesser height. Some of them are more famous as Hills. These hills in eastern Himalayas are spread as smaller ranges.
Great Northern Plain:-
This northern plain is located between the north of the mountainous region and the southern peninsula. This plain is formed due to the alluvial sediments brought by Himalayan rivers such as Satluj, Ganga and Brahmaputra. At some places, the layers of the deposits are about 50 meters thick—essential cities such as Delhi, Kanpur, Lucknow, Allahabad. Varanasi, Patna, Kolkata, etc., are situated on this plain. Sindhu river and its tributaries Jhelum, Chenab, Ravi, Beas, and Satluj originate in the Himalayas. Generally, a region between two rivers is called "DOAB' (ie. DO means two and AB means water). Thu,s the plain formed by five rivers is called "Punjab' ( Panj + Ab). Most of this plain is in Pakistan. On the basis of physiography, the table is divided into four parts: (1) Bhabar, (2) Tarai, (3) Bangar (4) Khadar.
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