Physical features of India: The Islands

The Islands: Relevance

• GS 1: Distribution of key natural resources across the world

Physical Features of India

• India’s physical features can majorly be divided into 6 parts:
  • The Northern and North-eastern Mountains
  • The Northern Plain
  • The Peninsular Plateau
  • The Indian Desert
  • The Coastal Plains
  • The Islands.
• We have already dealt with Himalayas, Northern Plains, Peninsular Plateau, The Coastal Plains of India and The Indian Desert comprehensively. In this article, we will discuss about The Islands.

The islands

• There are two major island groups in India – one, Andaman and Nicobar Archipelago in the Bay of Bengal and the other, Lakshadweep islands in the Arabian Sea.
• Other than the above two groups, there are islands in Indo-Gangetic Delta, which are more a part of delta than islands; and between India and Sri Lanka, which are remnants of Adams Bridge or Rama Setu; formed due to submergence.

Andaman and Nicobar Islands

• Andaman and Nicobar Islands were formed due to collision between Indian Plate and Burma Plate.
• They are the southward extension of Arakan Yoma range in Myanmar, which in itself is an extension of Purvanchal Hills.
• These are situated roughly between 6°N-14°N and 92°E -94°E.
• The two principal groups of islets include the Ritchie’s archipelago and the Labrynth island.

Andaman islands

• The entire group of islands is divided into three broad categories – North Andaman, Middle Andaman and South Andaman.
• North and South Andaman are separated by a waterbody which is called the Ten degree channel.
• Little Andaman is separated from South Andaman by Duncan Passage.
• Port Blair, the capital of Andaman and Nicobar Islands is located in the South Andaman.

Nicobar Islands

• Great Nicobar is the largest island in the Nicobar Islands. It is very close to Sumatra Island of Indonesia.
• Here, some smaller islands are volcanic in origin. Barren island, the only active volcano in India is situated in the Nicobar Islands.

Lakshadweep Islands

• There are three types of islands n the Arabian Sea: Amindivi Islands, Laccadive Islands, and Minicoy Island.
• The above islands are collectively known as Lakshadweep Islands.
• The entire island group is built of coral deposits.
• These islands are a part Reunion Hotspot volcanism.
• These islands receive convectional rainfall and have an equatorial type of vegetation.
• These are widely scattered between 8°N-12°N and 71°E -74°E longitude.
• These islands are located at a distance of 280 km-480 km off the Kerala coast.
• There are approximately 36 islands of which 11 are inhabited.
• Minicoy is the largest island with an area of 453 sq. km.
• The entire group of islands is broadly divided by the Ten degree channel, north of which is the Amini Island and to the south of the Canannore Island.
• Most of the islands have low elevation and do not rise more than five metre above the sea level.
• The Islands of this archipelago have storm beaches consisting of unconsolidated pebbles, shingles, cobbles and boulders on the eastern seaboard.
• Moreover, the topography of these islands is flat, so relief features such as hills, streams, valleys, etc. are absent.

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