Indo-Gangetic Plain
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The Indo-Gangetic Plain, also known as the North Indian River Plain, is a 700-thousand
History
The region is known for the
The name 'Hindustan' (हिन्दुस्तान) is Persian; it means literally 'country of the Hindus/Indians'. Its first member, Hindu (हिन्दु), was borrowed from the Sanskrit word sindhu (सिन्धु) m./f. 'river', while stān is a cognate of the Sanskrit word sthāna (स्थान) n. 'a place'.
The term was later used to refer to the whole of the Indian subcontinent. The term "Hindustani" is also used to refer to the people, music, and culture of the region.[4][5]
In the 12th century, much of the Indo-Gangetic Plain was ruled by the
In 1191, the
Shihabuddin returned,
The defeat of the Rajputs marks a watershed moment in medieval India's history, as it not only shattered Rajput power in the Indo-Gangetic Plain but also firmly established a Muslim presence.[10]
Following the battle the Delhi Sultanate became prominent in the region, and collapse of organised Rajput resistance in northern India led to Muslim control of the region within a generation.[11]
Geography
The Indo-Gangetic Plain is divided into two drainage basins by the Delhi Ridge; the western part drains to the Indus, and the eastern part consists of the Ganga–Brahmaputra drainage systems. This divide is only 350 metres above sea level, causing the perception that the Indo-Gangetic Plain appears to be continuous from Sindh in the west to Bengal and Assam in the east.
A thin strip between the foothills of the
Below the Bhabar lie the grasslands of Terai and Dooars.[13]
The many tributaries of the
The annual rainfall increases from west towards the east..
Some
Roughly, the Indo-Gangetic Plain stretches across:
- the Jammu Plainsin the north;
- the Punjab Plainsin eastern Pakistan and northwestern India;
- the Sindh Plains in southern Pakistan;
- the Indus Delta in southern Pakistan and western India;
- the Ganga-Yamuna Doab;
- the Rohilkhand (Katehr) Plains;
- the Awadh Plains;
- the Purvanchal Plains;
- the Bihar Plains;
- the North Bengal plains;
- the Ganges Delta in India and Bangladesh;
- and the Brahmaputra Valley in the east.
The fertile
The Indus–Ganga plains, also known as the "Great Indian Plains", are large floodplains of the Indus, Ganga and
The Indus-Ganga belt is the world's most extensive expanse of uninterrupted alluvium formed by the deposition of silt by the numerous rivers. The plains are flat and mostly treeless, making it conducive for irrigation through canals. The area is also rich in ground water sources. The plains are the world's most intensely farmed areas. The main crops grown are rice and wheat that are grown in rotation. Others include maize, sugarcane and cotton.[citation needed]
Sustaining 9% to 14% of the global population across various studies, the Indo-Gangetic plains rank among the world's most densely populated areas.[15][16]
Fauna
Until recent history, the open grasslands of the Indus-Ganga Plain were inhabited by several large species of animal. The open plains were home to large numbers of herbivores which included all three of the Asian rhinoceros (Indian rhinoceros, Javan rhinoceros, Sumatran rhinoceros). The open grasslands were in many ways similar to the landscape of modern Africa. Gazelle, buffalo, rhinos, elephants, lions, and hippo roamed the grasslands as they do in Africa today. Large herds of Indian elephants, gazelles, antelopes and horses lived alongside several species of wild cattle including the now-extinct aurochs. In the forested areas there were several species of wild pig, deer and muntjac. In the wetter regions close to the Ganga, there would have been large herds of water buffalo grazing on the riverbanks along with extinct species of hippopotamus.
So many large animals would have supported a large population of predators as well. Indian wolves, dholes, striped hyenas, Asiatic cheetahs and Asiatic lions would have hunted large game on the open plains, while Bengal tigers and leopards would stalk prey in the surrounding woods and sloth bears hunt for termites in both of these areas. In the Ganges there were large concentrations of gharial, mugger crocodile and river dolphin controlling fish stocks and the occasional migrating herd crossing the river.
Agriculture
Farming on the Indus-Ganga Plain primarily consists of rice and wheat grown in crop rotation. Other crops include maize, millets, barley, sugarcane, and cotton.
The main source of rainfall is the southwest monsoon which is normally sufficient for general agriculture. The many rivers flowing out of the Himalayas provide water for major irrigation works.
Due to a rapidly growing population (as well as other factors), this area is considered at high risk for water shortages in the future.
The area constitutes the land between the Brahmaputra River and the Aravalli Range. The Ganga and other rivers such as the Yamuna, the Ghaghara and the Chambal River flow through the area.
Administrative divisions
Because it is not fully possible to define the boundaries of the Indo-Gangetic Plain, it is also difficult to give an exact list of which administrative areas are part of the plain.
The areas that are completely or more than half in the plain are:
- Bangladesh (Excluding the Chittagong Hill Tracts)
- Bhutan (Only southern fringes of the country bordering India)
- India
- Arunachal Pradesh (The southern fringes bordering Assam)
- Assam (The Brahmaputra and Barak Valley)
- Bihar (Almost entirely)
- Chandigarh
- Delhi (Almost entirely)
- Haryana
- Himachal Pradesh (Una district and the southern fringes bordering Punjab and Haryana)
- Jammu Division)
- Madhya Pradesh (Gird Region Including the Chambal division)
- Punjab
- Rajasthan (Sri Ganganagar and Hanumangarh districts)
- Uttarakhand (Terai Region encompassing Haridwar and Udham Singh Nagar districts)
- Uttar Pradesh (Excluding the Chitrakoot division)
- West Bengal (Excluding the Darjeeling Himalayan hill region)
- Nepal
- Pakistan
- Balochistan (Kacchi Plains)
- Cholistan desert)
- Thar desert)
- Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (Derajat region and the Peshawar Valley)
See also
- Ecoregions: Northwestern thorn scrub forest.
References
- ^ Taneja, Garima; Pal, Barun Deb; Joshi, Pramod Kumar; Aggarwal, Pramod K.; Tyagi, N. K. (2014). Farmers preferences for climate-smart agriculture: An assessment in the Indo-Gangetic Plain. Intl Food Policy Res Inst. p. 2.
- ^ Gopal, Madan (1990). K.S. Gautam (ed.). India through the ages. Publication Division, Ministry of Information and Broadcasting, Government of India. p. 70.
- ^ Michael Cook (2014), Ancient Religions, Modern Politics: The Islamic Case in Comparative Perspective, Princeton University Press, p. 68: "Aryavarta ... is defined by Manu as extending from the Himalayas in the north to the Vindhyas of Central India in the south and from the sea in the west to the sea in the east."
- ^ "India". CIA – The World Factbook. Retrieved 14 December 2007.
- ^ "Hindustani Classical Music". Indian Melody. Archived from the original on 11 December 2007. Retrieved 14 December 2007.
- ^ a b c Jadunath Sarkar 1960, p. 32.
- ^ Jadunath Sarkar 1960, pp. 32, 34.
- ^ Satish Chandra 2006, pp. 25–26.
- ^ Jadunath Sarkar 1960, pp. 37.
- ^ Jadunath Sarkar 1960, pp. 36–37.
- ^ Jadunath Sarkar 1960, pp. 38.
- ^ a b "Indo-Gangetic plains: Geography, Facts, Divisions and Importance". General Knowledge Today. 3 April 2016. Retrieved 30 May 2019.
- ^ Dinerstein, E., Loucks, C. (2001). "Terai-Duar savanna and grasslands". Terrestrial Ecoregions. World Wildlife Fund.
- ISBN 978-81-321-0424-7.
- S2CID 237688850. Retrieved 20 June 2023.
- PMID 32246046.
Bibliography
- ISBN 9780861251551.
- Satish Chandra (2006) [First published 1997]. Medieval India: From Sultanat to the Mughals-Delhi Sultanat (1206-1526) (3rd ed.). Har-Anand. ISBN 978-81-241-1064-5.