south asia: the land- part ii ch. 23 sec. 1. western ghats eastern ghats
TRANSCRIPT
South Asia: The South Asia: The Land- Part IILand- Part II
Ch. 23 Sec. 1
Western Ghats
Eastern Ghats
Southern HighlandsSouthern Highlands
• Karnataka Plateau–S. of Deccan
–Receives rain instead lush and green
–Lots of spices, plantations, rain forests
Karnataka PlateauKarnataka Plateau
IslandsIslands• Sri Lanka broke away from the
Indian mass
• Maldives are small coral atolls (22-26) –Create over 1,000 islets (250
inhabited)–Smallest in Asia–350,000 ppl live here
Indus RiverIndus River• Mainly thru Pakistan,
empties into Arabian Sea
• Waters orchards, transportation route
• One of earliest
civilization sitesIndus Valley Civilization
Brahmaputra RiverBrahmaputra River• Winds thru Himalaya, India, &
Bangladesh• Meets w/ Ganges R. to form a
delta at Bay of Bengal• Major inland waterway, travel
from bay 800 miles• Provides 50% of hydroelectricity
to Bangladesh
Ganges RiverGanges River• Most important by far• Begins in ice cave in Him.,
–About 1,560 miles long–Basin about 400,000 sq. miles
• Keeps size during dry season, but floods during summer monsoons
• Revered as sacred by Hindus
Indo-Gangetic PlainIndo-Gangetic Plain• AKA- North Indian River plain• River creates world’s longest
fertile, alluvial plain–Over 1/7 of world population
lives here–Grasslands/forest cleared for
crops (rice, sesame, sugarcane, jute)
Natural ResourcesNatural Resources• Water:
–Fertile soil, drinking H20, transportation, hydroelectricity, & fish
–Countries work together to harness power (India & Bhutan)
–Build dams for power & open up new farmland consistent irrigation
Natural ResourcesNatural Resources
• Water cont’d–Challenges
•Dams threaten to flood settlements resistance
•The Tarbela Dam (Pakistan) will be unusable soon from built up silt
Natural ResourcesNatural Resources
• There are oil reserves, but still depend on imported oil
• There’s natural gas & uranium, too
• Most still depend on hydroelectricity, fuel wood, & coal
Natural ResourcesNatural Resources
• India exports 90% of world’s mica (makes electrical equip.)
• India- leading exporter of iron ore
• Sri Lanka- a top exporter of graphite (lead)–Also a variety of precious stones
Natural ResourcesNatural Resources• Timber
–Nepal & Bhutan are covered with conifers (valuable hardwoods)• Overcutting is major prob.
soil erosion
–India has prized sandalwood
–Sri Lanka banned timber exports in 1977 to protect environment