Question

Name the three sections into which the northern plains have been divided. Write one feature of each.

Answer 1

Hint: It is the alluvial apron of sediments washed down from the Siwaliks along the northern edge of the Indo-Gangetic Plain, an area south of the Lower Himalayas and the Shivalik Hills in Uttarakhand state of India. The area is a wildlife sanctuary. It runs parallel to the lower ranges of the Himalayas in northern India and southern Nepal.

Complete answer:
-In the west, the northern plains have the Indus river system, and in the east, the Ganga Brahmaputra river system. Bhabar,Terai,Bhangar and Khadar are divided into four regions in the Northern Plains.
Bhabhar -
-In Uttarakhand state of India, Bhabar or Bhabhar is an area south of the Lower Himalayas and the Shivalik Hills.
-It is the alluvial sediment apron that washed down along the northern edge of the Indo-Gangetic Plain from the Siwaliks.
-Bhabar is a narrow belt (8-10km wide) which runs from the river Indus to Teesta in the west-east direction along the foot of the Himalayas.
-Rivers that descend from the Himalayas deposit their load in the form of alluvial fans along the foothills.
-To build up the piedmont plain/ the Bhabar, these fans consisting of coarser sediments have fused together.

Terai -
-In the eastern parts of the Great Plains, especially in the Brahmaputra valley, the Tarai is wider because of heavy rainfall.
-It is marked by the re-emergence of the Bhabar belt's underground streams.
-The re-emerged water turns vast regions along the rivers into marshy lands that are badly drained.

Bhangar –
-It is the older alluvium, which forms terraces higher than the flood plain along the river beds.
-Black in color, rich and productive in humus material.
-The soil is argile in structure and has lime modules (called kankar).
-Discovered in doabs (inter-fluve areas).
-The Bhangar also exhibits tiny saline and alkaline efflorescence tracts known as 'Reh',' Kallar' or 'Bhur' in comparatively drier regions. In recent times, Reh areas have spread with an increase in irrigation (capillary action brings salts to the surface).

Khadar -
-It is made of younger alluvium and shapes the flood plains along the banks of the river.
-Soft in color, sandy and more porous in texture.
-Found in the beds of rivers.
-A fresh layer of alluvium is deposited almost every year by river floods. This makes it the Ganges' most fertile soil.

Note:
- We can further divide the alluvial plains into the Khadar and the Bhangar.
-The Khadar-rich flood plains are locally known as 'Betlands' or 'Bets' in Punjab.
-There are large flood plains of Khadar flanked by bluffs, locally known as Dhayas, the rivers in the Punjab-Haryana plains. These bluffs are up to 3 metres high.