Bharat is our motherland. It is also called India. It is a vast country lying in the Southern part of Asian Continent. From Kashmir in the North to Cape Comorin (Kanya Kumari) in the South it measures about 3214 km. and from Gujarat in the West to Arunachal Pradesh in the East it measures about 2933 km. Its area is about 32,87,263 sq. km. In area it is the seventh largest country of the world and in population it stands next to China. Only by its size it is called a sub-continent. It is a well knit country having natural boundaries of mountains and seas.

The great Himalayas stands to its North, the Bay of Bengal is on its East, the Indian Ocean on the South and the Arabian Sea on the West. Look at the map of Asia and see the position of India in the South of Asian Continent. It stands almost in the middle of the continent and is on the trade route of the Eastern countries like Myanmar, China and Indonesia and the Western countries like Pakistan, Iran, Iraq and Arab countries. Its neighboring countries are Pakistan in the West, Afghanistan in the North-west, China, Nepal and Bhutan in the North, Myanmar (Burma) and Bangla Desh in the East and Sri Lanka in the South. Sri Lanka is separated from India by a narrow sea ( only 20 km. wide ) known as the Polk Straits.

India being a vast country has varying physical features. It has high mountains and hills, alluvial plains, the oldest plateau, a vast desert and the coastal plains. A vast tract of land which has similar physical features and is similar in many ways is called a Natural Region. The climate, vegetation and the ways of living of the people in a natural region are almost the same.

Look at the map of India. It can be divided into five natural regions according to its physical features namely :

  1. The Himalayan Mountainous Region.
  2. The Northern Fertile Plains.
  3. The Deccan Plateau.
  4. The Coastal Plains and Indian Islands.
  5. The Great Indian Desert.

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THINGS TO LEARN :

  1. India lies to the South of Asian Continent.
  2. It is the seventh largest country of the world.
  3. In population India stands next only to China.
  4. Pakistan, Afghanistan, China, Nepal, Bhutan, Myanmar, Bangla Desh and Sri Lanka are its neighboring countries.
  5. India can be divided into five natural regions namely – the Himalayan Mountainous Region, the Northern Fertile Plains, the Deccan Plateau, the Coastal Plains and the Great Indian Desert.