Incredible India

WALT investigate India’s varied environment

You’re a journalist and you’ve been

commissioned to write an article about ‘New

India’ for a British newspaper

You’re finally en route to Bangalore. The flight

takes ten hours, three of which are in Indian air

space.

India is among the world's biggest

countries, covering more than 3.1m sq

km. This amounts to 12 times the size of

the UK. Its size means there are

tremendous variations in its landscape and

climate.

BorderOrientationLegend / KeyTitleShading

Make sure your map

has BOLTS!

Map showing the relief of IndiaN

Map showing the relief of IndiaN

Map showing the relief of IndiaN

This map has BOLTS!

River Ganges

Map showing the relief of IndiaN

On your map label:New Delhi (the capital city)BangaloreMumbai (Previously Bombay)Kolkata (Previously Calcutta)

River Ganges

• Watch the three in-flight films about India’s diverse landscapes.

• How many different landscapes and climate conditions did you notice?

• What were the similarities and differences to the UK?

Incredible India

WALT investigate India’s varied environment

Key questions:What is India’s landscape

and climate like?Where do people live in

India?

India’s main physical features are the ancient Deccan plateau encompassing most of Southern India and flanked by the Western Ghats and Eastern Ghats,

the vast alluvial plain of the River Ganges, the Himalaya mountains stretching for 2,400 km across the north of India, and the Thar desert

which lies mostly in the state of

Rajasthan.

The least populated areas are in the inhospitable

mountain regions of the Western and Eastern

Ghats and the Himalayas

Because of India’s size its Because of India’s size its climate depends not only on climate depends not only on the time of year but also the the time of year but also the

location. It ranges from location. It ranges from tropical in the south to tropical in the south to

temperate and alpine in the temperate and alpine in the Himalayas.Himalayas.

Most of India has three seasons – Most of India has three seasons – summer, rainy or monsoon, and summer, rainy or monsoon, and

winter. South-west monsoon winter. South-west monsoon causes rain over most of the causes rain over most of the

country from June to September. country from June to September. The north-east monsoon hits the The north-east monsoon hits the east coast between October and east coast between October and

February mostly as cyclones. The February mostly as cyclones. The north-east of India receives rain north-east of India receives rain

from both monsoons.from both monsoons.

Does your map have BOLTS!

Draw a word picture.

India’s main cities are New Delhi (capital), Mumbai (Bombay), Kolkata (Calcutta), Chennai

(Madras), Bangalore, Cochin, Jaipur, Shimla, Varanasi. Mumbai is the most populated city with a

population of over 18 million. About 13 million people live in

New Delhi The average density of population

in India is 319 per sq km.

73% of Indian’s population live in more than 500,000 villages while 27% of Indians live in towns and

cities. The Ganges Plain is one of the most populated areas in the world being home to nearly 900 million people (over 1/8th of the

world’s population).

The town of Cherrapunjee is famous for being the

wettest place on earth. It has 12 metres of rain a year – 15 times the amount of the

UK. The total average rainfall for London is 752.1

mm for Bangalore it is 859.6 mm.

The highest mountain in India is Mount

Kanchenjunga at 8,598 metres.

The main rivers are the Ganges, the Brahmaputra, the Yamuna, the Godavari,

the Kaveri, the Narmada and the Krishna.

You’re a journalist and you’ve been

commissioned to write an article about ‘New

India’ for a British newspaper

You’re finally en route to Bangalore. The flight

takes ten hours, three of which are in Indian air

space.

India is among the world's biggest

countries, covering more than 3.1m sq

km. This amounts to 12 times the size of

the UK. Its size means there are

tremendous variations in its landscape and

climate.

• Watch the three in-flight films about India’s diverse landscapes.

• How many different landscapes and climate conditions did you notice?

• What were the similarities and differences to the UK?

• Then match up the landscape/climate/settlement statements how they link.India’s monsoon lasts from June to October. Cherrapunji, situated high up in north east India, is one of the wettest places in the world with 11,000mm of rainfall.

• Low-lying areas near to the coast tend to have high population densities (more people).

• High mountain areas, such as the Himalayas, have low population densities (fewer people).

• Areas with an extreme climate, such as the Thar Desert are most sparsely populated.

• The eastern coast of India has suffered from cyclones and flooding linked to global warming.

• India’s population has grown from 357 million in 1950 to 1.1 billion today (17 times greater than the UK).

• 77% of people live in rural areas and 23% in towns and cities.

• More and more people are migrating (moving) to urban areas because of the new wealth here caused by globalisation.

Check yourAnswers!

Homework - Search for images to do with ‘India’s monsoon’ and

‘climate change’. Find one way in which each of these affects

people’s lives.

Design symbols to represent them and

add to your maps (and key)

Population Pyramid Following Urbanisation in Calcutta

-10 -8 -6 -4 -2 0 2 4 6 8 10

0-4

5-9

10-14

15-19

20-24

25-29

30-34

35-39

40-44

45-49

50-54

55-59

60+ Female

Males