Plateaus
Notes
A plateau is an elevated, relatively flat-topped land (a tableland) with at least one steep side. Plateaus cover about one-third of the Earth's land surface.
Types of plateaus
Type | Description | Examples |
|---|---|---|
Intermontane | Enclosed or bordered by mountains; the highest plateaus | Tibetan Plateau (the highest and largest; about 4,500 m on average, the "Roof of the World" region), Plateau of Bolivia, Mexico, Tarim, Colorado Plateau |
Piedmont | At the foot of mountains, bordered by a plain or sea on the other side | Patagonian Plateau (Argentina), Piedmont Plateau of the US |
Continental | Large upland rising abruptly from a coast or lowland | Deccan Plateau, Arabian, African, Australian, Brazilian, Siberian plateaus; Meghalaya Plateau |
Volcanic (lava) | Built by lava outpourings from fissures | Deccan Trap, Columbia Plateau, Ethiopian Plateau, Iceland |
Dissected | Cut by rivers into hills and valleys | Chotanagpur Plateau |
Domal / residual | Formed by uplift of a dome or by erosion | Ozark Plateau; remnants of old plateaus |
Plateaus of India
- Peninsular (Deccan) Plateau: triangular; bordered by the Western and Eastern Ghats; divided into the Maharashtra, Karnataka (Mysore) and Telangana plateaus. The north-western part is black soil on Deccan Trap basalt.
- Central Highlands: Malwa (volcanic), Bundelkhand, Baghelkhand, Marwar and Mewar.
- Chotanagpur Plateau: rich in coal, iron ore, mica, bauxite; called the "Ruhr of India".
- Meghalaya (Shillong) Plateau: Garo, Khasi and Jaintia hills; a detached part of the Peninsular block; very high rainfall (Mawsynram, Cherrapunji).
- Tibetan Plateau north of the Himalayas; Ladakh plateau.
Significance: minerals (Chotanagpur; Deccan), waterfalls and hydropower (Jog Falls on the Sharavati; Hundru Falls on the Subarnarekha; Dudhsagar), black soil for cotton, forests, pastoralism and tourism.
Key Points
- Plateau: elevated flat-topped land with a steep side.
- Tibetan Plateau is the highest and largest.
- Types: intermontane, piedmont, continental, volcanic, dissected.
- Deccan Trap: volcanic; Chotanagpur: dissected, mineral-rich.
- Waterfalls are common at plateau edges (Jog, Hundru, Dudhsagar).
MCQs
Q1. The highest plateau in the world is:
(a) Deccan Plateau
(b) Tibetan Plateau
(c) Colorado Plateau
(d) Bolivian Plateau
Ans: (b).
Q2. The Chotanagpur Plateau is an example of a:
(a) Volcanic plateau
(b) Dissected plateau
(c) Piedmont plateau
(d) Coastal plateau
Ans: (b). Rich in minerals.
Q3. The Deccan Trap is a:
(a) Volcanic (lava) plateau
(b) Glacial plateau
(c) Piedmont plateau
(d) Sedimentary plateau
Ans:
(a). Formed by basaltic lava outpourings.
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