1- Landforms and Resources

I) Mountains and Plateaus

A) South Asia is often called a subcontinent because it is large, but not as big as a continent
a) the region is also separated by various mountain systems, which physically separates
it from the rest of Asia, making it unique
b) the region also contains about 1/5 of the world’s population
B) Northern Mountains
a) based on geologic records, South Asia used to be part of Africa, but broke away
millions of years ago and slammed into Asia
(i) the gradual collision of two large tectonic plates forced the land upward into huge
mountain ranges that form the northern border of South Asia
1 the Himalayas are the most recognizable of these ranges because they are the
tallest in the world
 Mt. Everest is the tallest, and grows a little each year
 in the Himalayas lie two remote countries, Nepal and Bhutan
2 the Hindu Kush connect to the western edge of the Himalayas
 the mountains are rugged and very deadly
 there is one pass through, the Kyber Pass, which historically has
funneled conquering armies and has been fought over for centuries
3 the Karakoram Mountains connect the Hindu Kush and Himalayas
C) Southern Plateaus
a) other mountain ranges were created by the tectonic plates
(i) the Vindhya Range crosses east to west across central India
(ii) the Eastern and Western Ghats cover the coastline of India, and with the Vindhya
Range create a triangle of elevation
1 between the three ranges lies the Deccan Plateau
 the region is blocked from wind and rain by the mountains, so it is arid
II) Rivers, Deltas, and Plains
A) Great Rivers
a) the three great rivers of South Asia come from the Himalaya Mountains
(i) the Indus flows west then south through Pakistan
(ii) the Ganges flows from central to east across northern India
(iii)the Brahmaputra winds east, then west, then south through Bangladesh
1 the Brahmaputra and Ganges eventually meet to form a massive delta before
emptying into the Bay of Bengal
B) Fertile Plains
a) the rivers carry healthy soil, called alluvial soil, from the mountains
(i) any time they overflow, they deposit the soil, creating alluvial plains
1 alluvial plains are very rich farmland
(ii) areas where the rivers meet or are near to each other have some of the richest soils
in the world, and therefore are the most heavily populated
1 the Indo-Gangetic Plain contains 3/5 of India’s population
 it includes the massive cities of New Delhi, Kolkata, and Dakha
III) Offshore Islands
A) Sri Lanka: the Subcontinent’s Tear Drop
 a) Sri Lanka is a large, tear drop shaped island off the coast of India
b) it is a lush, green tropic, with a range of mountains near the middle of the island
(i) many small rivers flow down into the wetlands below
B) The Maldives Archipelago
a) an archipelago is an island group, and the Maldives are made up of 1200 small islands
(i) the islands are the tops of submerged volcanoes (like Hawaii), surrounded by
coral reefs and lagoons
(ii) only about 200 of the islands are inhabited
IV) Natural Resources
A) Water and Soil
a) the region relies heavily on farming and fishing
b) flowing water also means they can travel quickly and have hydroelectric power
B) Forests
a) timber is an important resource
b) rain forests, especially in India, provide unique woods, which are expensive(ish)
(i) because of this, deforestation is a severe problem and the forests have been
devastated over the years
C) Minerals
a) most energy in South Asia comes from minerals
(i) India ranks 4th in coal production and supplies a large portion of its oil needs
(ii) India, Pakistan, and Bangladesh also rely on natural gas
(iii)India has uranium for nuclear energy
b) India also has large amounts of iron ore, which means they are a leading exporter of
steel and resources to make steel
c) India provides most of the world’s mica, which is a key component in creating
electrical equipment
d) the region also mines precious valuable stones
(i) India is known for diamonds
(ii) Sri Lanka is known for sapphires and rubies

pg. 555 (1, 3ab) R (1, 3) H

2- Climate and Vegetation

I) Climate- Wet and Dry, Hot and Cold

A) Climate Zones
a) highland zone is contained in regions around the Himalayas and Hindu Kush
(i) these have cold temperatures and snow year round
b) humid subtropical exists at the foot of the mountains and around the Brahmaputra and
Ganges Rivers
c) semiarid zone is found in parts of the Deccan Plateau
(i) the area is hot and has light rainfall
1 most rain is blocked by mountain chains around the Plateau
d) desert exists in western India and southern Pakistan
e) tropical wet covers the western-most portion of India and part of Sri Lanka
 f) tropical wet and dry is found on the eastern and western coasts of India and most of
Sri Lanka
B) Monsoons and Cyclones
a) while the region has many climate zones, all areas are affected in some way by the
monsoon season
(i) monsoons are seasonal winds
1 from October to February, dry winds blow southwest, carrying moisture away
2 from June to September, winds blow northeast, carrying moisture from the
Indian Ocean and bringing heavy rains
b) monsoons are critical to life in South Asia
(i) they bring seasonal rains to water crops and cause the rivers to flood and deposit
silt
(ii) while needed, monsoons also bring destruction
1 sometimes, the rain falls too little or too much in the wrong area
2 unpredictable rains cause floods that cause damage and loss of life
c) cyclones are the most extreme weather pattern of South Asia
(i) similar to hurricanes in the Atlantic
(ii) cyclones hit Bangladesh harder than most
1 the country is a low-lying coastal region (similar to Louisiana and Florida)
(iii)a single cyclone in 1970 killed more than 300,000 people
II) Vegetation: Desert to Rain Forest
A) Vegetation Zones
a) the most forested zones are in the tropical areas, especially western India and
southern Bangladesh
(i) teak, ebony, and bamboo are found here (these are more rare and therefore more
valuable)
(ii) there is also pine, fir, oak, chestnut, etc in other areas
(iii)all forests are having an issue with deforestation
1 less than 1/5 of India’s original forests remain
b) other areas have smaller vegetation, including grasses and shrubs

pg. 558 (1, 3)

3- Human-Environment Interaction

I) Living Along the Ganges

A) A Sacred River
a) in Hindu belief, the Ganges is a sacred river that brings life
(i) each year, millions bathe in the waters as a religious practice
(ii) many also scatter the ashes of relatives in the waters
b) many temples and sacred sites line the banks
B) A Polluted River
a) after centuries of use, the Ganges is one of the most polluted rivers in the world
b) millions of gallons of sewage, dead animals, and even dead humans are scattered in
the water
(i) this has poisoned the water with toxic chemicals and bacteria
 1 many who drink or bathe in the water get sick with hepatitis, typhoid, or
cholera
c) since 1986, India has attempted to fix these problems
(i) corruption has slowed this progress to a crawl
II) Controlling the Feni River
A) A River Overflows
a) the Feni is a small but important river in Bangladesh
b) when monsoon season hits, the Feni often overflows
(i) in the low region of Bangladesh, this means the area suffers much more damage
than high areas
(ii) villages and fields are flooded regularly
c) fixes were proposed in the 1980s, but Bangladesh is poor and unable to afford the
changes needed
B) Using People Power
a) the one real resource available to Bangladesh is people- their population is massive
for such a small country
(i) in 1984, many workers (helped by the Dutch) were able to construct a dam around
the mouth of the river to control flood waters
1 the truly difficult part was closing the dam, so the people waited for the tide to
shift, then 15,000 workers used sandbags to close the dam before the tide
came back
C) Completing the Dam
a) before a cyclone or monsoon season hit, Bangladesh added tons of clay and bamboo
to strengthen the dam
(i) today, Bangladesh has the largest estuary dam in South Asia
b) just three months after construction was finished, the area was hit by a cyclone
(i) the dam held up, and thousands of lives were saved

pg. 563 (1, 3) R (1, 3, 4) H