India Size and Location Chapter Notes Class 9 Geography: The notes are comprehensively written with proper headings to make the chapter ‘India – Size and Location’ very well understandable. Video tutorials are also given to help understand the chapter with conceptual understandings.

Location of India in the World

• India lies almost entirely in the Northern hemisphere.
• It lies in the southern part of Asia.
• India is referred to as the Indian subcontinent as it possesses all geographical features found in a continent.
• Indian mainland extends between latitudes 8°’4’N and 37°’6’N and longitudes 68°’7’E and 97°25’E.
• The Tropic of Cancer 23° ’30’N splits India into two almost equal parts.
• The north-south extent is about 3,214 kms while the east-west extent is about 2,933 Kilometres.
• Indira Point is the southernmost point of the Indian Union. It was submerged during the 2004 Tsunami.
• Kanyakumari is the southernmost tip of the Indian mainland.
• Indira Col in Ladakh is India’s northernmost point.

Size of India

• With an area of about 3.28 million square kms, India is the seventh largest country in the world.
• Despite having only 2.4% of the world’s total geographical area, India is the second most populated country in the world.
• India has a land boundary of about 15,200 kms.
• India has a long coastline of about 7,516.6 kms, including Andaman and Nicobar and Lakshadweep islands.
• India is surrounded by mountains in the northwest, north, and northeast.
• Down south, India is surrounded by three water bodies the Arabian Sea, the Indian Ocean, and the Bay of Bengal. Therefore, it is referred to as a peninsula.
• Due to the vast latitudinal and longitudinal extent, there is a time gap of two hours between the easternmost and the westernmost states Arunachal Pradesh and Gujarat.
• The Standard Meridian of India (82°30’E) passes through Mirzapur near Prayagraj in Uttar Pradesh and is considered as the standard time for India.
• The latitudinal extent tends to influence the duration of day and night. So, Kanyakumari being close to the equator, does not experience much difference in day and night. However, as we move northwards, the difference tends to increase. Therefore, Kashmir, which is about 30° away from the equator, experiences a more significant difference.

India is Strategically Located in the world

• The Indian landmass is located in the southern parts of Asia, with Deccan Peninsula protruding into the Indian ocean.
• Due to its strategic location and long coastline, India has been the centre of the trans-oceanic Indian Ocean trade. Therefore, the Indian Ocean has been rightly named after India.
• Lying at the head of the Indian Ocean, its maritime relations with countries of Europe, Africa, and West Asia in the west and Southeast Asia and East Asia in the east.

Role of land Routes

• The Himalayan mountains bound India in its north, northwest, and northeast, and the passes have facilitated the exchange of ideas and merchandises between India and the world since time immemorial.
• Land routes like the Silk Route which connected East Asia to Rome in ancient times travelled by India. Besides, trade, these routes facilitated the exchange of religious ideas, traditions, arts and crafts.
• The philosophies of the Upanishads the Ramayana, the stories of Panchtantra, the Indian numerals, and the decimal system reached the rest of the world through the land routes used extensively by scholars.
• Even Indian culture was influenced due to these cultural exchanges that we can even see in different parts of the country. Most evident is the influence of Greek sculptural art form and the introduction of West Asian architectural styles in construction activities like domes and minarets.

India and her Neighbours

India has 28 states and 8 union territories.

• Rajasthan is the largest state, while Goa is the smallest state
• Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Haryana, and Jharkhand do have an international border and are landlocked states

India shares its land boundaries with the following countries:

• Afghanistan and Pakistan in the northwest
• China (Tibet), Nepal and Bhutan in the north
• Bangladesh and Myanmar in the east
• Sri Lanka and Maldives in the south
• The water bodies Palk Strait and the Gulf of Mannar separate Sri Lanka from India.
• The Maldives lies in the Arabian Sea, south of the Lakshadweep Islands.

Indian states with international frontiers

• Punjab, Rajasthan, and Gujarat share their borders with Pakistan.
• Himachal Pradesh, Sikkim, and Arunachal Pradesh share their border with China.
• West Bengal, Mizoram, Assam, Meghalaya, and Tripura share their borders with Bangladesh.
• Uttarakhand, Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, West Bengal, and Sikkim share their borders with Nepal.
• Arunachal Pradesh, Nagaland, Manipur, and Mizoram share their borders with Myanmar.

A Short Summary with Main Key Points

1. India almost lies entirely in the Northern Hemisphere.
2. India lies between latitudes 8°’4’N and 37°’6’N and longitudes 68°’7’E and 97°25’E.
3. The Tropic of Cancer (23°30’N) splits India into almost two equal parts.
4. With an area of 3.28 million sq. kms, India is the 7th largest country in the world.
5. Due to India’s vast latitudinal and longitudinal extent, the Standard Meridian of India (82°30’E) passing through Mirzapur is considered the standard time for the whole country.
6. India lies in the southern part of the Asian continent.
7. Due to its strategic location in the Indian Ocean and long coastline, India has close contacts with Europe, Africa, and West Asian countries through its western coast and East Asian countries through its eastern shore.
8. India is bounded by Pakistan and Afghanistan in the northwest, China (Tibet), Nepal and Bhutan in the north, and Myanmar and Bangladesh in the east.
9. Sri Lanka and the Maldives, the two island countries, are India’s neighbours in the south.
10. The Palk Strait and the Gulf of Mannar separate Sri Lanka from India. The Maldives lies in the Arabian Sea, south of the Lakshadweep Islands.