Question

State the reason why alluvial soil is found in the northern plains of India.

Answer 1

Hint: Soil is a mixture of rock debris and organic materials that develop on the earth’s surface. The major factors that affect the formation of soil include climate, vegetation, parent material, relief, and other forms of life and time.

Complete answer:
The formation of soil is also affected by human activities to a large extent. Components of soil are air, hummus, mineral particles, and water.
On the basis of genesis, location, composition, and colour the soils of India are classified into arid soils, alluvial soils, saline soils, laterite soils, black soils, forest soils, red and yellow soils, and peaty soils. Out of these, alluvial soils are found in abundance in the river valleys and the northern plains. The rivers and rapids transfer accumulated sediments which in turn form the alluvial soil; it is considered to be amongst the most fertile soils. It is deposited by water flowing over floodplains or in river beds and is a fine-grained fertile soil. Silt deposited by Indo-Gangetic-Brahmaputra Rivers, which contains alluvium, mainly forms alluvial soils. The alluvial soil is found in abundance all over the plains of north India. They can also be found in the four delta regions of the south. Due to wave action in coastal regions, some alluvial deposits are formed. These soils cover about 40% of the total area of the country. They are transported and deposited by streams and rivers and are depositional soils. They extend through a narrow corridor in Rajasthan into the plains of Gujarat. They are generally found in deltas of the east coast and in the river valleys. The nature of the alluvial soils ranges from sandy loam to clay. They are generally poor in phosphorus but rich in potash.

Note: In the Middle and Upper Ganga plain, two different types of alluvial soils have developed, viz. Khadar and Bhangar. The colour of these soils varies from light grey to ash grey.