Physical Geography of Kerala

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Contents Location

Boundary

Major Geographical Divisions

High Land Mid Land

Low Land

Coastal Plains

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Contents Major Geographical Components

Mountains Forest & Wildlife

Rivers, Lakes, Backwaters and Waterfalls

Coastal Plains

Climate Seasonal Variations

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Location Located in the southern part of India

Accounts for 1.18% of total landmass (38,855 sqkm)

Popularly known as ‘God’s Own Country’ 

14 Districts Trivandrum – The Capital

Ernakulam - Commercial Capital

Thrissur - Cultural Capital

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Boundaries East & South - Tamilnadu

West - Arabian Sea

North - Karnataka

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Western Ghats

Located in the Eastern Part of this state

Home for 18 Protected Areas Network 13 Wildlife Sanctuaries

5 National Parks

Home for 44 Rivers

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Major Geographical Features

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 Coastal Plains

•0 – 10 Mtrs•16.40 %

Low Land•10 – 300 mtrs•54.17 %

Mid Land•300 -600 mtrs•8.44%

High Lands•600 – 2695 mtrs•20.99%

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High Land The Higher Altitude Areas in the Western Ghats

Elevation is 600 – 2695 mtrs above sea level

Home for Major Rivers of this state (44 rivers)

Home for major Hill Stations

Climate is the Major Attractions for Tourists

Examples Ponmudi, Munnar and Nelliyampathy

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Located on the foot hills of High Lands

Elevation is 300 – 600 mtrs above sea level

 Also known as Cardamom hills

Famous for Spice Production

Midland

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Low Land Located on the foot hills of the mid land

Elevation is 10-300 mtrs above sea level

Famous for backwaters and Agricultural

Production

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Coastal Plains

Located in the coastal areas

Elevation is 0-10 mtrs above sea level

Famous for Beach Tourism

Major activities are fishing

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Mountains Western Ghats

The highest peak is Anamudi (2965 mtrs above Sea

level)

Forms 18 Protected Areas Network

Cool temperature attracts tourists

Home for Hill Stations

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Forest and Wildlife

 Accounts 28.9% of the total land

13 Wildlife Sanctuaries and 5 National Parks

Dense forest - Open forest - Mangroves – Grasslands

Endemic and Endangered Species

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Rivers, Lakes, Backwaters and Waterfalls

44 rivers (3 eastern flowing)

Longest is River Periyar

Largest is River Bharathapuzha

Largest fresh water lake is Vembanad

Alleppey to Cochin

The freshwater lake is Sasthamkotta in Kollam dist 

The famous waterfalls are Athirapally, Vazhachal andPalaruvi

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Coastal Plains

580 km length of Coastal Areas

Trade Routes with abroad

Form various beaches

Fishing is a major Economic Activities

Major beaches are Kovalam, Varkala and Kappad

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Climate

 Varies according to the Altitude

3 types of Climate Condition

 Winter Dec – Feb

Summer Feb – May 

Monsoon

South West May – September (80% Rain)

North East October – December (10% Rain)

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Season to Visit ????????

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For further reading….. 

Sureendhara Menon. A(2007) - A Survey of Kerala History, DC Books,Kottayam

Madhava Menon. T (2000) – A Hand Book of Kerala, InternationalSchool of Dravidian Linguistics, Trivandrum