AL FALAH INTERNATIONAL EDUCATION CO.

DPS, JEDDAH
Geography –L-1 India: Size and Location
Grade: IX
Subject: Social Science
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QUESTION AND ANSWERS

1) Describe the size and location of India.

Location:
a) India is a vast country. It lies entirely on the north of the equator. India is a southward
extension of the Asian continent.
b) The main land extends between latitudes 8°4'N and 37°6'N and longitudes 68°7'E and
97°25'E.
c) The Tropic of Cancer (23° 30'N) divides the country into almost two equal parts.
d) To the southeast and southwest of the mainland, lie the Andaman and Nicobar Islands and
the Lakshadweep islands in Bay of Bengal and Arabian Sea respectively.
Size:
a) The land mass of India has an area of 3.28 million square km. India’s total area
accounts for about 2.4 per cent of the total geographical area of the world.
b) India is the seventh largest country of the world. India has a land boundary of about
15,200 km and the total length of the coastline of the mainland including Andaman and
Nicobar and Lakshadweep is 7,516.6 km.
c) India is bounded by the young fold mountains in the northwest, north and north east.
South of about 22° north latitude, it begins to taper, and extends towards the Indian
Ocean, dividing it into two seas, the Arabian Sea on the west and the Bay of Bengal on
its east.

2) The central location of India at the head of the Indian Ocean is considered of great
significance. Why?
Or
In what way central location of India in the Indian Ocean has been to its advantage?
a) The trans-Indian Ocean routes which connect the countries of Europe in the West and the
countries of East Asia provide a strategic central location to India.
b) The Deccan Peninsula protrudes into the Indian Ocean, thus helping India to establish
close contact with West Asia, Africa and Europe from the western coast and with
Southeast and East Asia from the eastern coast.
c) No other country has a long coastline on the Indian Ocean as India has and indeed, it is
India’s eminent position in the Indian Ocean which justifies the naming of an Ocean after

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 3) Why do we need a standard meridian for India?
The latitudinal and longitudinal extent of the mainland is about 30°. From Gujarat to
Arunachal Pradesh there is a time lag of two hours. Hence to avoid confusion, the mid-point
of the two places i.e. 82°30'E longitude, passing through Mirzapur (in Uttar Pradesh) is
taken as the Standard Meridian for the whole country and the time followed at this meridian
is taken as the Standard time for India.

4) The sun rises two hours earlier in Arunachal Pradesh as compared to Gujarat in the
west but the watches show the same time. Why?
The longitudinal gap between Arunachal Pradesh and Gujarat is about 30°. Due to this, there is
time lag of about two hours between these states. Since Arunachal Pradesh is in the east, the sun
rises earlier here compared to Gujarat. The Indian Standard Time is taken from the time of
Standard Meridian of India and hence, the watches show the same time in both the states.

5) Name the neighbouring countries of India.

a) India shares its land boundaries with Pakistan and Afghanistan in the northwest, China (Tibet),
Nepal and Bhutan in the north and Myanmar and Bangladesh in the east.
b) Our southern neighbours across the sea consist of the two island countries, namely Sri Lanka and
Maldives.
c) Sri Lanka is separated from India by a narrow channel of sea formed by the Palk Strait and the
Gulf of Mannar while Maldives Islands are situated to the south of the Lakshadweep Islands.

6) The latitudinal and longitudinal extent of India is 30 degrees. But the north south
distance is larger than the east west distance. Why?
a) The latitudinal and longitudinal extent of India is almost the same degrees. i.e 30 degrees.
But the north south distance in Kilometers is 3214 and the east west distance is 2933 km.
This is because of the nature of the lines.
b) The latitudes are parallel lines and the distance is fixed between any two points and will
not vary according to the area or shape. The longitudes are not parallel lines and the
distance between the lines vary from equator to the poles. The distance is maximum near
the equator and minimum at the poles.

7. Give a brief account of India’s cultural contact with the outside world.
OR
How have the ancient and much older lands routes contributed to exchange of ideas and goods?
Explain.
a) The various passes across the mountains in the north have provided passages to the ancient
travellers, while the oceans restricted such interaction for a long time.
b) These routes have contributed in the exchange of ideas and commodities since ancient times. The
ideas of the Upanishads and the Ramayana, the stories of Panchtantra, the Indian numerals and the
decimal system thus could reach many parts of the world.
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 c) The spices, muslin and other merchandise were taken from India to different countries.
On the other hand, the influence of Greek sculpture, and the architectural styles of dome
and minarets from West Asia can be seen in different parts of our country.

8) Why is the difference in day and night hardly felt at Kanyakumari, but not in Delhi?
Kanyakumari is located near to the equator. Therefore it experience direct sun rays for
nearly 6 to 8 months continuously. Delhi is located far away from the equator. So the
difference of day and night is longer in Delhi.

Additional Questions:
1. Which ocean is named after India ? Give two reasons as to why it was named after
India.
A. The Indian Ocean is named after India. India is the only country which has the credit of an
ocean named after it. The Arabian Sea and the Bay of Bengal, extensions of the Indian
Ocean, lie to the west and east of Indian Peninsula, and the Indian Ocean lies to its south.

2. Name the countries which are larger than India.

A. Russia, Canada, China, USA, Brazil, Australia.
3. Which island group of India lies to its south-east?
A. Andaman & Nicobar Islands
4. Which island countries are our southern neighbours?
A. Srilanka, Maldives.
5. The Island groups of India lying in the Arabian Sea and the Bay of Bengal.
A. Lakshadweep Islands and Andaman & Nicobar Islands respectively.
6. The countries constituting Indian Subcontinent:
A. India, Pakistan, Nepal, Bhutan, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka and Maldives.
7. The states through which the Tropic of Cancer passes:
A. Gujarat, Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Jharkhand, West Bengal, Tripura and Mizoram.
8. The place situated on the three seas.
A. Kanyakumari.
9. The strait separating Sri Lanka from India.
A. Palk Strait.

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10. The Union Territories of India:
1) Andaman and Nicobar Islands.
2) Dadra and Nagar Haveli and Daman and Diu.
3) Chandigarh.
4) Lakshadweep.
5) Puducherry.
6) Delhi.
7) Ladakh.
8) Jammu and Kashmir.
11. Name the canal that shortened the distance between India and Europe.
A. Suez Canal
12. Name the southernmost point of Indian Union.
A. Indira Point
13. Name the smallest and largest states of India.
A. Smallest: Goa ; Largest: Rajasthan

14. State the types of states India had before 1947.

A. Before 1947, there were two types of states in India such as the Provinces and Princely States.

15. What is a strait ?

A. A narrow channel of sea that connects two layer bodies of water.

16. What influences the duration of the day and night as one moves from south to north ?
A. Latitudinal extent

17. Name the Indian states which are situated on the eastern coast of India.
A. West Bengal, Odisha, Telangana, Andhra Pradesh and Tamil Nadu.

18. Name the Indian states which are situated on the western coast of India.
A. Kerala, Karnataka, Goa and Maharashtra.

19. Define the term sub-continent.

A big geographical unit which stands out distinctively from the rest of the continent is called a
sub- continent.
20. In which year did Indira Point submerge under water due to Tsunami?
A. In 2004.

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Map Skills:

Q1. On the given outline map of India. Mark the following.

1. Standard Meridian
2. A Latitude which divides India into two equal halves.
3. Southernmost point of mainland of India.

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Answer:

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2. On the given outline map of India mark the States through which the Tropic of
Cancer passes.
Gujarat, Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Jharkhand, West Bengal,
Tripura, Mizoram.

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Answer:

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3. On the given outline map of India mark the states and their capitals.

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Answer:

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Q.On the given outline map of India mark the Standard Meridian, Tropic of
cancer, the Eastern, Western, Northern and Southern point of India.

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Answer:

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