India Geography – Study Material & Notes

 India Geography

● India is the 7th largest country in the world with an area of 3287263 sq km, which is 2.42% of world’s area.

● India is the second most populous country in the world with a population of 1.21billion (2011), which is 17.44% of the world’s population.

● Indian sub-continent is located in the Northern and Eastern hemisphere.

● India shares longest boundary with Bangladesh (4096 km), followed by China (3488km), Pakistan (3323 km), Nepal (1751 km), Myanmar (1643 km), Bhutan (699 km) and Afghanistan (106 km).

● In India, the Tropic of Cancer (23.5°N latitude) passes through 8 States (Gujarat,Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Jharkhand, West Bengal, Tripura andMizoram).

● Islands Andaman and Nicobar Island group in the Bay of Bengal; Lakshadweep,island group in the Arabian Sea.

● Indian Standard Time (IST) The 82°30’ E longitude is taken as the Standard

Meridian of India, as it passes through middle of India (from Naini, near Allahabad).

● The 82° 30’ E Meridian also decides the time in Sri Lanka and Nepal.

● On the South-East, the Gulf of Mannar and the Palk Strait separates India from Sri

Lanka.

INDIA : BASIC INFORMATION

n Latitudinal extent 8°4’ North to 37° 6’ North

n Longitudinal extent 68°7’ East to 97° 25’ East

n North-South extent 3214 km

n East-West extent 2933 km

n Land Frontiers 15200 km

n Total Coastline 7516.6 km

n Number of States 28

n Number of Union Territories 8

n Land Neighbours (7) Pakistan, Afghanistan, China, Nepal,

Bhutan, Bangladesh and Myanmar

n States with Longest Coastline Gujarat

n Active Volcano Barren Island in Andaman and Nicobar Islands

n Southern most point Indira Point or Pygmalion point in Great Nicobar

n Southern most tip of mainland Kanyakumari

n Northern most point Indira Col

n Western most point West of Guhar Mota in Gujarat

n Eastern most point Kibithu in Arunachal Pradesh

Indian States Situated on the Border

Country Indian States Sharing their Borders

Pakistan (5) Gujarat, Rajasthan, Punjab, Ladakh and Jammu and Kashmir

Afghanistan (1) Ladakh

China (5) Ladakh, Uttarakhand, Himachal Pradesh, Sikkim and Arunachal Pradesh

Nepal (5) Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Bihar, West Bengal, Sikkim

Bhutan (4) Sikkim, West Bengal, Assam and Arunachal Pradesh

Bangladesh (5) West Bengal, Assam, Meghalaya, Tripura and Mizoram

Physiographic divisions of India are as follows:

● The Himalayan Range of Mountains

● The Peninsular Plateau

● The Great Plains of India

● The Coastal Plains

● The Islands of India

The Himalayas

● Himalayas means ‘Abode of snow’. These

are young fold mountains of tertiary period,

which were folded over Tethys sea due to

inter-continental collision.

● They are one of the youngest fold mountain

ranges in the world and comprises mainly

sedimentary rocks.

● They stretch from the Indus river in

the West to the Brahmaputra river in

the East.

● The Pamirs, popularly known as the

Roof of the World is the connecting

link between the Himalayas and the

high ranges of Central Asia.

● The total length is about 2500 km

with varying width of 240 to 400 km

and a total area of 595000 km2

.

They consists of three parallel ranges

such as:

(i) Himadri (Greater Himalayas)

(ii) Himachal (Lesser Himalayas)

(iii) Shiwaliks (Outer Himalayas)

Greater Himalaya (Himadri)

● Northern most part of the Himalayan

range, it is one of the world’s highest

regions with an average altitude of 6100

m above sea level.

● It includes world’s highest peak, Mt

Everest (8848 m) located in Nepal. It is

known as Sagarmatha in Nepal and

Chomolungma in China.

● Zaskar range is situated on the Western

part of Greater Himalayas. It includes

Nanga Parbat (8126 m) in Kashmir-

Himachal region) and Dhaulagiri

(8172 m) in Nepal.

Other Important Peaks

● Kanchenjunga (8598 m, Sikkim)

Makalu (8481 m, Nepal), Mansalu

(8156 m, Nepal), Nanga Parbat (8108

m, Gilgit Baltistan), Kamet (7756 m,

Uttarakhand) and Nanda Devi (7816 m,

Uttarakhand).

Important Passes in Greater

Himalaya

Pass Location Connectivity

Karakoram

Pass

Ladakh India to China

Burzil Pass PoK Kashmir valley

to Gilgit

Zojila Pass Ladakh Srinagar to

Leh

Shipki la Pass Himachal

Pradesh

Shimla to

Gartok (Tibet)

Jelep la Pass Sikkim Sikkim to

Lhasa (Tibet)

Yangyap Pass Arunachal

Pradesh

Entry of

Brahmaputra

river

Middle Himalaya or Lesser

Himalaya (Himachal)

● From West to East middle Himalaya is

divided into following ranges:

¡ Pirpanjal range (Jammu and

Kashmir). It is longest range of the

middle Himalaya

¡ Dhauladhar range (Himachal Pradesh)

¡ Mussoorie range (Uttarakhand)

¡ Nagtibba range (Uttarakhand)

¡ Mahabharat range (Nepal)

Important Passes in

Middle Himalaya

Pass Location Connectivity

Pirpanjal

Pass

Jammu and

Kashmir

Jammu-Srinagar road

passes from this

pass

Banihal

Pass

Jammu and

Kashmir

Jammu-Srinagar

NH-44 passes from

this pass. Jawahar

tunnel (India’s

longest road tunnel)

Rohtang

Pass

Himachal

Pradesh

Kullu valley with

Lahaul and Spiti

valley in Himachal

Pradesh

● Average altitude of the Middle Himalaya

is 3700-4500 km.

● Important hill resorts are Shimla,

Ranikhet, Almora, Nainital and Darjeeling.

Outer Himalayas (Shiwalik)

● These are the Southern most Himalayan

mountain range.

● Their average altitude varies from 600 to

1500 metres.

● They are known as Jammu hills in

Jammu and Dafla, Miri, Abor, Mishmi

hills in Arunachal Pradesh.

● They are the youngest part of Himalayas.

● They form the foothills of Himalayas.

Trans Himalayan Zones

● This zone lies to the North of the Great

Himalayas.

● Some important ranges of this zone are

Karakoram and Ladakh etc. The highest

peak in region is K2 or Godwin Austin or

Qagir (8611m, in Pak occupied

Kashmir). Mount K2 is also the 2nd

highest peak of the world and the highest

peak of India, located in Karakoram

range.

● Mt Rakaposhi is the highest peak in

Ladakh range and the steepest peak in

the world.

● Siachin glacier is second longest glacier

of the world outside the polar region

(75 km) and is located in Nubra valley.

Ladakh, Baltoro, Biafo, Batura, Hispar

are the other important glaciers in this

region.

Mountain Peaks : Quick Digest

Highest peak of India Mt K2 or Godwin

Austin (8611 m)

Highest peak of Satpura Dhupgarh

Highest peak of Aravalli Gurushikhar in Mount

Abu (1722 m)

Highest peak of Western

Ghat

Anaimudi (2695 m)

Highest peak of Eastern

Ghat

Mahendragiri

(1501 m)

Highest peak of Nilgiri Doda Beta (2637 m)

Highest peak of Naga hills Saramati (3826 m)

Highest peak of Andaman

and Nicobar

Saddle peak (731 m)

Himalayan Mountain Peaks

Peak Height (m) Country

Mt Everest 8848 Nepal-China

Mt K2 8611 PoK (India)

Kanchenjunga 8586 Nepal-India

Lhotse 8516 Nepal-China

Makalu 8481 Nepal-China

Cho oyu 8201 Nepal-China

Dhaulagiri 8172 Nepal

Manaslu 8163 Nepal

Nanga Parbat 8125 Pakistan

Annapurna 8091 Nepal

Gasherbrum I 8080 Pakistan-China

Broad peak 8051 Pakistan-China

Mountain Peaks in India

Highest Peak Height

(m)

State

Mt K2 8611 PoK (India)

Kanchenjunga 8586 Sikkim

Nanda Devi 7817 Uttarakhand

Saltoro 7742 Jammu and

Kashmir

Kangto 7090 Arunachal

Pradesh

Reo Purgil 6816 Himachal Pradesh

Saramati 3841 Nagaland

Sandakphu 3636 West Bengal

Khayang 3114 Manipur

Anaimudi 2695 Kerala

Doda Beta 2636 Tamil Nadu

The Great Plain

● To the South of the Himalayas and to

the North of the peninsula lies the

great plains of North India.

● It extends from West to East for 2400

km having an average width in

between 150-300 km.

● The plains are formed by depositional

works of three major river systems

Indus, Ganga and Brahmaputra.

● The vast plains of North India are

alluvial in nature and the Western

most portion is occupied by the desert.

● It is composed of Bhangar (old

alluvium), Khadar (new alluvium) in

the river bed, Bhabhar (plains

containing porous gravel and pebbles

where the streams disappear) and Terai

(damp, thick forest area, where Bhabhar

streams reappear).

Sub-Divisions of the Great Plain

The

Rajasthan

Plain

Thar or Great Indian desert is the

Western most region of the Great

Indian plain. A semi-arid plain,

lying to the East of Thar desert is

known as Rajasthan Bagar. The

Luni is the only South-West

flowing river of the region.

The

Punjab-

Haryana

Plain

It extends from Punjab in the

West to Yamuna (Haryana) in

East. They are composed of

Dhaya (Heavily gullied bluffs)

and Bets (Khadar Plains).

The

Ganga

Plain

It extends from Delhi to Kolkata

across the states of Uttar

Pradesh, Bihar and West Bengal.

The Ganga and its tributaries

deposit large amount of alluvium

and make this extensive plain

more fertile.

The

Brahma-

putra Plain

Low level plain formed by

Brahmaputra river system. It is

situated between Eastern

Himalaya in North and lower

Ganga plain and Indo-

Bangladesh border in the West.

● The Punjab – Haryana plain is drained

by five rivers and the intervening area

between the rivers is known as doab.

From South to North, doabs are as

follows:

Doab Region

Bist Doab Between Beas and Sutlej

Bari Doab Between Beas and Ravi

Rachna Doab Between Ravi and Chenab

Chaj Doab Between Chenab and

Jhelum

Sind Sagar Doab Between Jhelum, Chenab

and Indus

The Peninsular Plateau

● Rising from the height of 150m above

the river plains up to the average

elevation of 600-1000 m is the irregular

triangle known as the peninsular

plateau.

● It is composed of the old cystalline,

igneous and metamorphic rocks.

● It covers a total of 160000 km2 (about

half of total land area of the country).

● Narmada, which flows through a rift

valley divides the region into two parts:

the Central Highlands in the North and

the Deccan plateau in the South.

● The Deccan plateau is the largest plateau

in India.

Plateaus of Peninsular India

The Central Highland

● The Central Highlands lie to the North of

the Narmada river covering a major area

of the Malwa plateau.

● The Aravalis range is bounded by the

Central Highlands on the North-West

and Vindhyan range on the South.

● It is also known as Madhya Bharat

Pathar.

The Deccan Plateau

● The Deccan plateau is a triangular land

lying to the South of the river Narmada.

It is made up of lava flows in the

cretaceous era through the fissure

eruptions.

● It comprises Maharashtra plateau,

Karnataka plateau and the Telangana

and Rayalseema plateau (Andhra

Pradesh).

● The general slope is from West to East.

● The Eastern and Western Ghats

demarcate the Eastern and Western edges

of the Deccan plateau.

Meghalaya Plateau

● This plateau is separated from main

block of the peninsular plateau by a gap

called Garo-RajMahal gap.

● From East to West, the plateau comprises

Garo, Khasi, Jaintia and Mikir hills.

The Bundelkhand Upland

● It is located to the South of Yamuna river

between Madhya Bharat Pathar and the

Vindhyan Range. It is composed of

granites and gneiss.

The Marwar Upland

● It lies East of Aravali range. It is made up

of sandstone, shale and limestone of

Vindhyan period.

Chhotanagpur Plateau

● It covers mostly Jharkhand, Chhattisgarh

and Purulia region of West Bengal.

● It is composed mainly of Gondwana rocks

with patches of granites and gneisses and

Deccan lavas.

Hill Ranges of the Peninsula

Aravali Range

● Aravalis are one of the world’s oldest fold

mountains running in North-East to

South-East direction from Delhi to

Palanpur in Gujarat. It is an example of

relict mountain.

● It separates the fertile regions of Udaipur

and Jaipur regions from the semi-arid

regions of Rajasthan.

● Piplighat, Barr, Dewair and Desuri passes

allow movements by roads and railways.

Vindhyan Range

● This range acts as a water divide between

Ganga river system with the river system

of South India. The Maikal range forms a

connecting link between Vindhya and

Satpura.

Satpura Range

● It is a series of seven mountains running

in East-West direction South of Vindhya

and in between the Narmada and Tapi.

● It comprises Rajpipla hills, Mahadeo hills

and Maikal Range.

Eastern Ghats

● It comprises the discontinuous and

low hills that are highly eroded by

the rivers such as the Mahanadi,

the Godavari, the Krishna, the Cauveri

etc.

● Some of the important ranges include the

Javadi hills, the Velikonda range, the

Nallamalai hills, the Mahendragiri hills

etc.

Western Ghats

● Western ghats are locally known by

different names such as Sahyadri in

Maharashtra, Nilgiri hills in Karnataka

and Tamil Nadu and Anaimalai hills,

Cardamom hills in Kerala.

● It runs from the South of the valley of

river Tapi to Kanyakumari.

● The Sahyadris upto 16° North latitude

are mainly composed of basalt.

There are three important passes in the

Sahyadris

(i) Thalghat (between Mumbai and

Pune)

(ii) Palghat (between Palakkad and

Coimbatore)

(iii) Bhorghat (between Mumbai and

Nashik)

● The Eastern and the Western Ghats

meet each other at the Nilgiri hill.

Difference Between Eastern

Ghat and Western Ghat

Eastern Ghat Western Ghat

Located East of

Deccan Plateau.

Located West of

Deccan Plateau.

They are parallel of

Eastern Coast i.e.

Coromandel and

Northern Circar etc.

They are parallel to

Western Coast, i.e.

Konkan, Malabar etc.

Mahanadi, Cauveri,

Godavari, Krishna etc

rivers are drawn in this

region.

Narmada, Tapi,

Sabarmati and Mahi

etc rivers are drawn in

this region.

Mahendragiri with an

altitude of 1501 m is

the highest peak here.

Anaimudi with an

altitude of 2695 m is

the highest peak here.

The Coastal Plains

On the basis of location and active

geomorphological processes, it can be

broadly divided into

● Eastern coastal plain

● Western coastal plain

The Eastern Coastal Plain

● The East coastal plain extends from the

deltaic plains of the Ganga in the North

to Kanyakumari in the South for 1100

km with an average width of 120 km.

● Utkal plain extends from deltaic plains

of Ganga to the Mahanadi delta for

about 400 km.

● Andhra coastal plain extends from the

Southern limit of Utkal plains to Pulicat

lake (Andhra Pradesh). It has large

deltas of Krishna and the Godavari

rivers.

● Tamil Nadu plains extend from the

North of Chennai to Kanyakumari in

the South. Coromandel coast is a part

of this plain. It has the deltaic plains of

Cauveri and is popularly known as the

Granary of South India.

The Western Coastal Plain

It is about 1500 km long extending from

Surat to Kanyakumari.

These plains are sub-divided into six

Western Coastal Plain :

1. Kachchh Plains It is an arid and

semi arid region having salt deposits

Great Rann and Little Rann are

located within it.

2. Kathiawar Plains It extends from

Rann of Kuchchh to Daman in the

South.

3. Gujarat Plains Lies to the East of

Kachchh and Kathiawar, formed by

the rivers Narmada, Tapi, Mahi

and Sabarmati.

4. Konkan Plains It extends from

Daman to Goa for a distance of

about 500 km.

5. Karnataka Plains It extends from

Goa to Mangalore in a narrow belt.

6. Malabar or Kerala Plains It

extends between Mangalore and

Kanyakumari. The backwaters,

locally called kayals are the

shallow lagoons. The largest among

these is Vembanad Kayal followed

by Ashtamudi Kayal.

Difference Between Eastern

and Western Coast

Eastern Coast Western Coast

Smooth outline Dissected outline

Occurrence of

deltas

Occurrence of

estuaries

Less rainfall More rainfall

Broader Narrower

Long rivers Short rivers

Islands

● India has large number islands, most

of which are located in two groups

¡ Andaman and Nicobar group

¡ Lakshadweep group

● Group of islands is called

archipelago.

Andaman and Nicobar Group

● It is located in Bay of Bengal.

● There are nearly 325 islands in Andaman

group, whereas the Nicobar group of

islands consist of 247 islands.

● Ten degree channel separates Andaman

group from Nicobar group. Duncan

passage lies between South Andaman and

Little Andaman group.

Lakshadweep Group

● It is located in Arabian sea.

● Minicoy is the second largest and Southern

most island and the Andrott island is the

largest island of this group.

● Minicoy is separated from rest of the

Lakshadweep by Nine Degree Channel.

● Eight degree channel separates

Lakshadweep group from Maldives.

DRAINAGE SYSTEM

OF INDIA

● Water drains in two directions of the main

water divide line of India. 90% of water

drains into Bay of Bengal and the rest

drains into Arabian sea.

● Those Himalayan rivers, which originated

before the formation of Himalaya are

known as Antecedent rivers, such

as-Indus, Brahmaputra and Sutlej.

● India is blessed with hundreds of large and

small rivers, which drains the length and

breadth of the country.

In India, the rivers can be divided into two

main groups:

(i) Himalayan rivers (ii) Peninsular rivers

The river basins have been divided into three parts such as: 

River Basins

Major Medium Minor

River basins

Himalayan Rivers

Himalayan rivers are divided into three

major river systems:

The Indus System

● The Indus, also known as Sindhu, is

the Western most of Himalayan rivers

in India.

● It is one of the largest river basins of

the world covering an area of

1178440 sq km (in India it is 321284

sq km) and a total length of 2880 km

(in India 709 km).

● It originates from a glacier near

Bokhar Chu in the Tibetan region

near Mansarovar lake.

● In Tibet, it is known as Singi

Khamban or Lion’s mouth.

● In Jammu and Kashmir, its

Himalayan tributaries are Zanskar,

Dras, Gortang, Shyok, Shigar, Nubra,

Gilgit etc.

● Its most important tributaries,

which join Indus at various places,

are Jhelum, Chenab, Ravi, Beas and

Sutlej.

● According to Indus Water Treaty

signed between India and Pakistan in

1960, India can utilise only 20% of

the total discharge of Indus, Jhelum

and Chenab.

Indus River System

River Source Length

(km)

Falls

into

Indus Near

Manasarovar

Lake

2880

(709 in

India)

Arabian

Sea

Jhelum Verinag 724 Chenab

Chenab Bara Lacha

Pass

1180 Indus

Ravi Near

Rohtang

Pass

725 Chenab

Beas Near

Rohtang

Pass

460 Sutlej

Sutlej Manasarovar-

Rakas Lake

1450

(1050 in

India)

Chenab

The Ganga System

● The Ganga system is the second major

drainage system of India.

● It rises in the Gangotri glacier near

Gaumukh (7010 m) in the Uttarakhand.

Here, it is known as the Bhagirathi. At Dev

Prayag, the Bhagirathi, meets the

Alaknanda, hereafter, it is known as the

Ganga. The Alaknanda has its source in the

Satopanth glacier above Badrinath.

● The Alaknanda consists of the Dhauli and

the Vishnu Ganga, which meet at Joshimath

or Vishnu Prayag.

● The other tributaries of Alaknanda such as

the Pindar joins it at Karna Prayag, while

Mandakini or Kali Ganga meets it at Rudra

Prayag.

● It is 2525 km long of which 1450 km is in

Uttarakhand and UP, 445 km in Bihar and

520 km in West Bengal.

● The left bank tributaries of Ganga are

Ramganga, Gomti, Kali or Sharda,

Gandhak, Kosi, Mahananda.

● The right bank tributaries of Ganga are

Yamuna and Son. Yamuna joins the Ganga

at Allahabad.

● Kosi is called as Sorrow of Bihar while

Damodar is called as Sorrow of Bengal as

these cause floods in these regions.

Hooghly is a distributory of Ganga flowing

through Kolkata.

● In terms of area and length Ganga is the

largest as well as longest river in India.

Ganga River System

River Source Length (km)

Ganga Gangotri Glacier 2525

Yamuna Yamunotri Glacier 1376

Chambal Near Mhow (MP) 1050

Ramganga Garhwal district 596

Ghaghra Near Gurla Mandhota

peak South of

Manasarovar

1080

Son Amarkantak Plateau 784

Damodar Chhotanagpur

Plateau

541

Gandak Tibet-Nepal border 425*

Kosi Sikkim-Nepal-Tibet

Himalaya

730*

* length in India

The Brahmaputra System

● It is one of the largest rivers of the world.

● It is known as Tsangpo in Tibet, Dihang or Siang in Arunachal Pradesh,

Brahmaputra in Assam and Jamuna in Bangladesh.

● Brahmaputra forms large number of riverine islands. Majuli is the largest riverine

island in the world.

● The combined stream of Ganga and Brahmaputra forms the biggest delta in the world,

the Sundarbans, covering an area of 40,000 sq km. Its major part is in Bangladesh.

The Peninsular River System

Peninsular river system can be divided in two groups:

East Flowing Rivers

(or Delta forming rivers)

● East flowing rivers form Delta.

● East flowing rivers fall in Bay of Bengal.

West Flowing Rivers (or Estuaries forming rivers)

● West flowing rivers do not form delta.

● West flowing rivers fall in Arabian Sea.

East Flowing Rivers

Rivers Source Length Tributaries

Mahanadi North foothills of

Dandakarnaya

857 km Seonath, Hasdeo, Ib, Mand, Tel, Ong

and Jonk.

Godavari Triambak plateau of North

Sahyadri near Nashik

1465 (longest

river of Peninsular

India)

Penganga, Wardha, Wainganga

Indravati, Sabari, Manjira.

Krishna North of Mahabaleshwar in

the Western Ghats

1400 km Bhima, Tungabhadra, Ghat Prabha,

Malaprabha, Musi and Koyna.

Cauveri Rise in Brahmgiri range in

Western Ghats

800 km Herongi, Hemavati, Shimsa, Arkavati,

Kabani, Bhavani and Amravati etc.

Western Disturbances

These are the depressions generated over the

Mediterranean sea and enter India after

crossing over Iraq, Iran, Afghanistan and

Pakistan under the influence of Westerly jet

stream. After reaching India, they move

Eastwards, causing light rain in the

Indo-Gangetic plains and snowfall in Himalayan

belt.

● Upper Air Circulation The upper air

circulation of India is dominated by a

westerly flow. An important component of

this flow is the Jet Stream. The Western

cyclonic disturbances experienced in

North and North Western parts of the

country are brought in by this Westerly

flow.

● Tropical Cyclones The tropical cyclones

generated in Arabian sea and Bay of Bengal

during the South-West monsoon and the

retreating monsoon seasons influence the

weather conditions of the Peninsular India.

● El Nino and La Nina El Nino is a narrow

warm current, which occasionally appears

off the coast of Peru in December by

temporarily replacing the cold Peru current.

● The warming of tropical Pacific waters

affect the global pattern of pressure and

wind systems including the monsoon

winds in the Indian ocean. La Nina is

the reverse of El-Nino. It is a harbinger

of heavy monsoon showers in India.

● Southern Oscillation Whenever the

surface level pressure is high over the

Indian ocean, there is low pressure over

the Pacific ocean and vice versa. This

inter-relation of high and low pressure

over the Pacific and the Indian ocean is

called Southern Oscillation.

Seasons in India

● Indian climate is characterised by

distinct seasonality. Indian

Meteorological Department (IMD) has

recognised the following four distinct

seasons:

(i) The cold season or winter season.

(ii) The hot weather season or

summer season.

(iii) The South-West monsoon season or rainy season. 

(iv) The season of the retreating monsoon or cool season.

Climatic Regions of India

Trewartha’s Classification

● Dr Trewartha’s scheme has been most prominent of all classifications of the Indian

climatic regions. He presented a modified form of Koppen’s classification.

● Dr Trewartha’s classification divides India into four major regions of the A, B, C and H

types. The A type refers to tropical rainy climate, where high temperatures are

consistent. The B type stands for a dry climate with high temperatures, but little

rainfall. The C type indicates a region with dry winters, where there is low temperature

range between 0°C and 18°C. The H type indicates a mountain climate. The A, B, and

C types are further sub-divided.

ENERGY

● India is a fast growing country and

therefore the demand for energy is

also continuously growing. India is

exploiting almost all the sources of

energy such as hydroelectricity,

thermal energy, nuclear energy,

solar energy and wind energy etc.

● Power development commenced in

India with the commissioning of

Sidrapong hydel power station in

Darjeeling during 1897, followed by

a hydropower station at

Sivasamudram in Karnataka during

1902.

● Himachal Pradesh, Meghalaya,

Nagaland, Sikkim and Uttarakhand

are largely dependent upon

hydroelectricity.

● National Hydro Power Corporation

(NHPC) was set-up in 1975, under

public sector for the generation of

hydropower in India.

● National Thermal Power

Corporation (NTPC) was set-up in

1975, for generation of thermal

energy. NTPC has 18 coal based

super thermal power projects and 7

gas/liquid based combined cycle

projects.

● Atomic Energy Institute at Trombay

was set-up in 1954 which was

renamed as Bhabha Atomic

Research Centre (BARC) in 1967.

● Heavy Water Plants are at Baroda,

Tuticorin, Kota, Thal, Hazira and

Manuguru. The first heavy water

plant was set-up in Nangal in 1962.

● The Renewable Energy Programme

started with the establishment of

the Department of

Non-Conventional Energy Sources

in 1982. Indian Renewable Energy

Development Agency was set-up in

1987. In 1992; DNES was

converted into Ministry of

Non-conventional Energy Sources.

In 2006, it was again renamed as

Ministry of New and Renewable

Energy (MNRE).

Haryana Faridabad, Panipat

Punjab Bhatinda, Ropar, Mansa

Delhi Badarpur, Indraprastha

Rajasthan Kota, Bikaner, Barmer

Uttar

Pradesh

Son bhadra, Raebareli,

Prayagraj, Etah, Kanpur, Jhansi

Gujarat Ukai, Sikka, Ahmedabad,

Sabarmati, Mundra

Madhya

Pradesh

Satpura, Amarkantak, Pench

Chhattisgarh Korba, Bhilai

Maharashtra Nagpur, Nashik, Uran ,

Chandrapur, Trombay,

Dabhol, Jalgaon