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 a Social Sciences
BR Textbook for
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Authors
MAKKHAN LAL BASABI KHAN BANERJEE
SIMA YADAV M. AKHTAR HUSSAIN

Editor
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NATIONAL COUNCIL OF EDUCATIONAL RESEARCH AND TRAINING

First Edition ISBN 81-7450-007-3
September 2002 Bhadrapada 1924
Second Reprint Edition
January 2003 Magha 1924

PD 150T + 25T (A) RS

© National Council of Educational Research and Training, 2002

ALL RIGHTS RESERVED

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 Social Science is an integral component of general education upto the
secondary stage. It helps the learners understand the human
environment in its totality. In order to make social science education
meaningful, relevant and effective, the concerns and issues of the
contemporary world have been kept in the forefront.
As a follow up of the National Curriculum Framework Sor School
Education — 2002, new syllabuses in all subjects have been developed.
The present textbook is based on the new syllabus which, for the first
time, has adopted integrated thematic approach. Sincere efforts have
been made to address various dimensions and faces of human society
over space and tire as well as in relation to each other.
The present textbook, the first in the series, is woven around the theme
‘India and the World’. It has been designed in three units with a focus on
the appropriate inter-relatedness between the themes. The three units
are : Unit I : The Earth Our Habitat; Unit Il : People and Society in the
Ancient Period; and Unit II] : Community and its Development.
I am grateful to all subject experts, faculty members and experienced
teachers who contributed generously in the development and finalisation
of the manuscript. I hope that the book will help learners develop a
holistic view of the society and a rational outlook. Further, they will
acquire necessary skills and competencies required for being productive,
successful and responsible citizens, who could participate and
contribute effectively in the process of development and nation building.
The Council welcomes comments and suggestions for the
improvement of this book.

J.S.Raupur
Director
New Delhi National Council of Educational
August 2002 Research and Training
 Participants of the Review Workshop

Makkhan Lal* M.Akhtar Hussain*

Professor and Director Reader (Geography)
Delhi Institute of Heritage Research Regional Institute of Education
and Management (DIHRM) Bhopal
New Delhi
S.M. Sharma
B.S. Parakh Principal (Retd.)
Professor (Retd.) S.R.S.D. Sr. Secondary School
Radha Priya Terraces, Karve Nagar Lajpat Nagar
Pune New Delhi

Hari Om Veena Vyas

Professor (History) PGT
Department of History DM School,
Jammu University Regional Institute of Education
Jammu Bhopal

P.S. Khare M.R. Goswami

Principal (Retd.) PGT
Agrasen Inter College Kendriya Vidyalaya
Allahabad New Delhi

Sima Yadav* NCERT Faculty (DESSH)

Lecturer
Delhi Institute of Heritage Research Savita Shatin Professor
and Management (DIHRM) Basabi Khan Banerjee*
New Delhi
Neerja Rashmi
Manjistha Bose
Retd. Teacher Mily Roy Anand
Springdales School, Dhaula Kuan (Coordinator)
Supta Das
New Delhi

* Authors
 CONTENTS
ForEWworRD
ili
Unit I 1-48
The Earth Our Habitat 2
1. Our Earth and the Solar System 3
2. How the Globe and Maps Help us 10
3. Locating Places on the E: 16
4. How Days and Seasons 22
5. Major Domains of 1 27 Hy
|
6. India - Our C oe
7. Our Climate,
42
Unit I 49-140
. People and Society in the A \ 49
| INTRODUCTION ‘ + 50
|| 8. aed
The Early Human 52
9. Early Non-Indian Ci ee 57
| Egyptian Civilization Seat ab 59
Mesopotamian Civilization
63
Greek Civilization
Roman Civilization OG
ae
Chinese Civilization 73
Iranian Civilization 77
10. Indian Civilization
‘ -~
Harappan Civilization
11. The Vedic Civilization j 88
12. Indian History (600 to 100 B.C.) ny
The Age of Janapadas and Mahajanapadas 93
The Age of Mauryas and Sungas So
13. Megalithic Culture of Deccan and South India 105
Early History of Deccan and South India
107
14. North India after Mauryas and Sungas dil
(First Century B.C. to Third Century A.D.) 4
The Gupta Empire 114
The Era of Harsha : 120
15. Deccan and South India 124
(Fourth to Seventh Century A.D.) haa Pe
16. India’s Cultural Contacts with the Outside World 128 j
17. Major Religions : 133
Unit M1 141-165

Community and its Development ; ; 142

18. How Communities Meet Their Needs 143 Fae
| i 19. How Village People Meet Their Needs 148
20. How People in Cities Meet Their Needs 155
21. Caring for Things Belonging to Us All 162
Glossary _ ; 166
 GANDHIU?S TALISMAN

“T will give you a talisman.Whenever

you are in doubt or when the self
becomes too much with you, apply
the following test :
Recall the face of the poorest and
the weakest man whom you may
have seen and ask yourself if the
step you contemplate is going to be
of any use to him. Will he gain
anything by it ? Will it restore him
to a control over his own life and
destiny ? In other words, will it lead
to Swaraj for the hungry and
spiritually starving millions ?
Then you will find your doubts and
your self melting away.”
 UNIT I

v0
i
<
Scientists believe that life on earth began about 3500 million
years ago. Then, how old is the earth? No one can tell the exact
time of its birth. It is believed that our planet is the part of our
solar system which began about 4500 million years ago.
Earth is our home. This planet belongs to a larger family,
which is called the solar family. The sun is at the centre of this
solar family. This was propounded by Aryabhatta long before it
was presented by Copernicus and later confirmed by Galileo
Galilei. This solar family has nine planets, their satellites,
asteroids, meteorites and comets. In this unit we shall learn
about the solar system, the earth, the moon and the basic
characteristics of our earth in the initial chapters. After obtaining
the basic knowledge about the earth and the family, we will learn
briefly about the continents, oceans and various landforms that
prevail on our planet. This unit will focus on the location of India
on the globe, which will give a brief sketch of our country in terms
of its physiography, climate, natural vegetation and wild life.
After going through this unit, learners will be able to
comprehend the facts about the planet earth, where we all live,
the family it belongs to and also about the country we live in.
 Our EARTH AND
THE SOLAR SYSTEM

How wonderful it is to watch the sky!

The sun is one of the stars.
The sun shines brightly during the
day. As the night falls, you may see It looks so big and bright because it is
close to us.
thousands and thousands of
twinkling objects. The sun and all We, with our naked eyes, can see no
more than 6000 stars. ,
these twinkling bodies are called
stars. You may wonder, what stars With powerful telescopes we can see
millions of stars in the sky.
are? How many of them are there in
the sky? Stars are huge bodies of
and several other things. A group of
glowing gases. You can see many of
stars thus forming various shapes is
them. But, there are many more than
called constellation. In ancient India
what you can see with your naked
people observed these shapes.
eyes. Those stars are far away from
Saptarishi is one such constellation.
us. They look so small and dim. Apart
It is a group of seven stars, i.e. seven
from stars there are planets, dust and
sages. Saptarishi forms a part of the
gases in the space. Planets, unlike
stars, have no light or heat of their constellation Ursa Major or the Big
own. They are lit by the light of the Bear. Look at the picture of the
stars. All these heavenly bodies are constellation and try to identify them
called Celestial Bodies, which form in the night sky. In ancient Greece
also people observed such shapes
the Universe. The universe is the
and gave names to them. The science
whole body of these stars, planets,
of studying stars, planets and other
dust or gases. The universe is vast.
heavenly bodies is known as
All of you must have watched astronomy. Ancient Indians and
clouds floating in the blue sky. They Greeks were very good in this field.
form various shapes. Similarly in the In ancient times, people used to
night sky the stars also form various watch stars to determine directions.
patterns and forms. If you look at The North Star or Polaris indicates
those patterns carefully, you can the north because it is seen directly
imagine pictures of humans, animals above the north pole.
4 / India and the World

universe. In some places stars are so

close that they look like a white,
glowing path. This path is the Milky
Way Galaxy. In India it is known as
Akash Ganga. The sun is a member
of this galaxy.

_ Asingle galaxy consists of millions of

stars. '
A million means 10 lakhs. One lakh
means 100 thousand.
Scientists have identified number of
galaxies.
All these galaxies put together make
only a part of the universe. _
True! Our universe is vast.
Constellation

On a clear night watch the starlit The Sun and Its Family
sky. A huge system of stars is called The sun is a star. It is the source of
galaxy. A galaxy has billions of stars light and heat to us. It is at the centre
very close to one another. There are
of the solar system with nine planets
billions of such galaxies in the and their satellites. This is called the
solar family. The sun is the head of
this solar family. Nine planets, i.e.
Mercury, Venus, Earti, Mars, Jupiter,
Saturn, Uranus, Neptune and Pluto
move around the sun. These planets
have no light or heat of their own.
They get all their light and heat from
the sun. The sun is very big and hot.
But that tremendous heat is not so
much felt by us because we are far
away from it. Our earth is 150 million
kilometres away from the sun. Is it
not very, very far?
‘But, where from the sun came?
Scientists believe that the sun has
been formed from a moving cloud of
gases, which is called Nebula. The
sun as well as the planets were born

4
 Sk @&
Our Earth and the Solar System / 5

9Q
The names and symbols of most of the
planets are very ancient. Even now
astronomers use these symbols for
these planets. Given here are the
SUN MOON MERCURY VENUS
various symbols.

6 1 2
out of this cloud. The force of gravity
has created them. For over millions
of years, these balls of dust and gas
are moving around the sun. The sun,
JUPITER SATURN
by virtue of its mass and weight,
controls the movement of the planets.
This force is called the force of
gravity. Have you ever watched a top Ld
spin? These planets actually are
spinning around the sun. They keep URANUS NEPTUNE PLUTO

wandering or moving in the sky. They Symbols of the Sun and the Planets
have their own path of movement
known as the orbits. They have their diagram on solar system showing the
own speed also. That is the reason, sun and the planets. You can make
each planet takes different time to a chart and show the time taken by
complete its revolution. Observe the each planet to complete its round.

Jupiter

Venus Earth
@
Mars
6

@ Mercury

Asteroid belt

Solar System
=
aAe®
6 / India and the World

Another set of smaller heavenly the solar system. But according to

bodies move round the planets. These size it is the fifth planet. The surface
are called satellites. Like planets, temperature of the earth is moderate
satellites also have no light or heat and can support living things. Thus
of their own. Our Earth has only one the earth is unique because life is
natural satellite — the Moon. Find known to exist only on this planet.
cut which planet has the largest Like other planets, the earth is
number of satellites? revolving round the sun. To complete
Solar Family is a Big Family one revolution it takes about 365
days and 6 hours. Your age will tell
Now, you know about stars, planets
and satellites. These apart, there are you how many rounds you have made
numerous tiny bodies, which also around the sun. Is it not fascinating?
revolve round the sun. These bodies The shape of this planet is more or
are called Asteroids. less like a sphere, which is slightly
Asteroids are found between the flattened in the north and south. But
orbits of Mars and Jupiter. The largest in ancient times people in various
asteroid is Ceres. Scientists say that
parts of the world used to think of
different shapes. There are many
asteroids are parts of some exploded
interesting stories floating around the
planets. While making their rounds the
globe about the shape of our planet.
asteroids often collide and break into
Some used to think that the earth is
smaller pieces. These smaller pieces or
Meteorites sometimes fall on to the
like a pancake; others thought it
looks like lotus. Slightly flattened or
earth. They crash to the ground and
Crater in tapered at the poles, the earth is best
create craters. Meteor
to be described as Geoid. Geoid
Arizona, USA is a good example of that.
means earth-like shape. So, you can
After reading this chapter, you now see, how unique our planet is.
know that the sun has a very big and
complex family. Altogether this is The earth is composed of land and
water. One-third of the earth is land
called the Solar System. List the
of the planets according to and the rest is covered by water. In
names
photographs taken from the space, the
their distance from the sun.
earth appears blue. It is, therefore,
Earth: Our Home is Unique in the
called the blue planet. No other planet
Solar System has surface water. Our survival
Earth, our home is a planet. The word depends on the availability of water.
planet comes from the Greek word
The Moon: Earth’s Only Companion
‘Planetai’ which means wanderers.
Considering the distance from the The moon is the earth’s only natural
sun, the earth is the third planet in satellite. In the space it is our nearest

«Lag ROR Eo Crit Gi Naa TT a jul ae

 Our Earth and the Solar System / 7

wrong. Who knows? Perhaps the

moon was formed during the same
TNL Tey (620 )51 time as the earth!
After so many expeditions under
the Apollo Project, now we know more
about the moon than any other
heavenly bodies. Neil Armstrong and
Edwin Aldrin set foot on the moon
and they found uplands and valleys.
If you see the photograph of the moon
taken from space, it shows that the
Teacher in the class room explaining
stars and planets

The size of the earth was calculated by

a Greek mathematician, Eratosthenes.
He calculated it by observing the
difference in the size of the shadow in
two different places. Applying geometry
he determined the size of the earth.

neighbour. Like all heavenly bodies,

it has two separate movements. It Astronauts
spins on its own axis and it revolves
round the earth. Strangely enough, moon has no life. Valleys are filled
the moon takes almost the same with dry rocky materials. You can
time, 27 days and 7 hours to collect some more photographs of
complete both the movements. Thus Lunar Expeditions along with related
it always presents the same side information.
towards our earth, the other side the moon has no
Like our earth,
could not be seen from here.
light of its own. It reflects the light of
The moon is about 384,400 the sun. We see it glowing in the night
kilometres away from the earth and sky. As the moon revolves round the
it looks very small. Nobody is certain, earth, its position in relation with the
how the moon was formed. Earlier, sun, changes everyday. That is how
people used to believe that it was a it appears different each night. In
part of the earth. But when astronauts reality the moon neither decreases
went to the moon, they brought rock nor increases, as most people believe.
samples. Those rock samples, on The moon only appears to change its
examination, have proved this theory shape. When the far side of the moon
 8 / India and the World

Water creates life

In a glass pan put some fresh hay and
water.

Boil the mixture on a low flame for

sometime.

Keep that mixture for a day or two.

Take a drop of water from it and
observe under a microscope.
Yes, you can find very tiny organisms.
Now, ask yourself — Where do they |
come from? Picture of the mioon as seen
: i from the space
faces the sun, that side is
illuminated. Then we cannot see the
moon from the earth. This situation A new mineral was discovered on the
is called the New Moon. Gradually, ft ee eee
from a slim crescent, the shape grows Hi ie Pevstions Tne oats
to Full Moon in 15 days. This bright COLlins!!
surface slowly disappears again in
Do you know who first set foot on the
another New Moon. This complete moon?
phase is of 29 days and 12 hours.

Various phases of the moon

Review Questions
1. Answer the following questions briefly
(i) Describe the Universe.
(ii) What are Celestial bodies?
(iii) What does the word ‘planet’ mean?

(iv) How does a satellite differ from a star?

A : j
 Ls Bia 1
Our Earth and the Solar System / 9

2. Fill in the blanks

(i) The Milky Way galaxy is known as___———sSCSCSFCSssS sin India.
(ii) The earth’s only natural satellite is
(iii) The first human to set foot on the moon was
{iv) Meteorites are

3. Make correct pairs from the two columns

(i) The planet nearest to the sun (a) Jupiter
(ii) The planet farthest from the sun (b) Mercury
(iii) Star at the centre of the Solar System (c) Pluto
(iv) The largest planet (d) Sun

9 Make a chart showing distance of the planets from the sun.

DO
TO

9 Try to observe and identify constellation with the help of the star
THINGS

chart.

|
 oF

How THE GLOBE AND

Maps HeEtp Us
You know that our earth is a sphere. distance between the two adjoining
Towards the poles it is slightly meridians decreases as one goes
flattened. You may have already seen away from the equator towards the
our earth in photographs. But only a poles.
model of the earth perhaps can give
Another advantage of the globe is ,
you a more realistic view of our that we can rotate it, just like the
planet. Unlike a photograph a globe earth rotates on its axis. Look at the
is a model of the earth. A small model globe carefully. North-south of the
of our big earth. It is very effective globe is slightly tilted as the earth has
because it is a three-dimensional
a tilt with its orbit. Because of this
model. tilt seasons are caused which we
A globe can give us the correct idea experience in our life. Therefore, the
of the shape of the earth. Both the globe is an important tool for us.
poles, latitudes and longitudes, Globe has some limitations as well.
oceans and continents are shown on
A globe can be useful when we talk
it. Thus it can give a more vivid idea about the earth as a whole. But, when
of our planet. we want to study only a part of the
In the past, globes used to be earth, about our country, our state, the
rather difficult
to carry. But now, we district in which we live or only the
have folded globes, which can be town or village, it is of little use. In all
inflated. Such globes can be used as such cases, maps of various sizes,
we use air pillows/balloons. They drawn on different scales, can help us.
have become more handy than Maps have become very useful not only
before. Nowadays, there are globes to geographers but also to the people
which show various relief features working in various disciplines. Even
like mountains, plateaus and the common men and women use
plains. We can feel them by our maps. The science of map-making is
hands. We can also see how the known as Cartography.
 ae f ri vette * 5
ee pate
How the Globe and Maps Help Us / 11

A globe is a three-dimensional model knotting reeds. During early periods

of the earth. maps were based more on memory
Amap is a representation of the earth’s and tales rather than on authentic
surface or a part of it drawn on a flat information.
surface.
But at present map-making has
It is drawn to scale.
become an important science. Maps
A sketch is a drawing mainly based on
are very precise. Before going to any
memory and not to the scale.
region you can have all kinds of
A plan is a layout of an area or a
building. information you require. These are
shown on maps. An Egyptian
Maps geographer and a mapmaker made
map-making a science. His name was
It is rather difficult to give
Ptolemy. In his map, he first showed
information in great details on a
direction by drawing a ‘North-Line’ at
globe. If we draw the world. or a part
of it on a piece of paper, that drawing the top of the map.
is called a map. The details are given
in the form of symbols, words, lines
and colours. You cannot imagine how
much information a map can
contain. One map may contain as
many facts as a big book.
You will be surprised to know that
the earliest map which we know
about, was made in 2300 B.C. It was
drawn on a clay table or a tablet. In
course of time maps were made to
show boundaries of land or property
boundaries. Some of these maps were
made as early as 2200 B.C.
Ancient people used to make maps Ptolemy
by different techniques. For example,
Eskimos used to cut coastal islands Maps have three Pillars: Distance,
in a dark coloured animal skin. Those Direction and Symbol
shapes were then sewn on a light
coloured skin, symbolising oceans. Maps are drawings, which reduce the
entire world or its parts to fit ona
Egyptians used to engrave maps on sheet of paper. But, this reduction is
metal plates. People in the Pacific done with utmost care so that the
Islands used to make plans by distances between the places are kept
 a®
12 / India and the World

true. In other words, distances are two places on your map. You can
kept true to scale. express scale like, 1 centimetre to 5
kilometres or you can draw the same
Distance is a very important
on the map. If the scale is drawn then
component of any map. Therefore, a
it is called a graphic scale or linear
scale is chosen for this purpose. What
scale.
is a scale? Scale is the proportion or
ratio between the actual distance on When a map shows larger areas on
the ground or the earth’s surface and asmall map, it is called a small-scale
the same distance shown on the map. map. But if we show a part of Delhi
For example, you want to show the or any town or village on the sheet of
distance between your school and the same size, it is a large-scale map.
your home, which is 10 kilometres. In asmall-scale map we can give very
If you show this 10 kilometres limited information. On a large-scale
distance by 2 centimetres on a map, map, information can be given in
it means 1 centimetre on the map will greater details. The map of India, for
show 5 kilometres on ground. example, is a small-scale map while
Therefore, the scale of your drawing a map of Delhi, shown on a sheet of
will be 1 centimetre is to 5 kilometres the same size, is a large-scale map.
or 1 cm = 5 km. Thus in any map, ‘Direction is another very
scale is a very important component. important part of any map. Look at
If you know the scale, you will be able any map in the following chapters.
to calculate distances between any Near the top towards the right, you
For measuring the shortest distance can see an arrow with the letter ‘N’.
between 2 places on the globe or on a This arrow is pointing towards north.
map This is called the ‘North Line’. When
Take a piece of thread or string. you know the north, you can find out
Join those two points or places with other directions, e.g. east, west and
the string and measure it. south. Is it not very interesting?
Note the scale given on the globe/map. A very simple instrument is used
Calculate the distance as per the scale to find the main directions. Do you
to get the actual distance. know what it is? It is a compass.
Or, you can show it by drawing the Chinese were the first who invented
scale as it is shown in the diagram the compass. Now we all use it.
below.

Metre |!000 500 & ° ! 2

gets

KILOMETRES

Linear scale

glabra
ee cS mee aes
 ‘aa
i
idl
¢ eG

How the Globe and Maps Help Us / 13

COMPASS CARDINAL POINT

NORTH

WEST EAST

SOUTH
Compass

Four major directions, north, symbols and colours. Even if you do

south, east and west are called not know the language of a certain
cardinal points. Once you know the place you intend to visit, you can have
major directions, you can also basic information about that area
identify places situated in between through map. It will help you to visit
these major cardinal points. that place. Tourists from many
Symbol is the third important countries visit India. Most of them do
component of any map. When an area not know our languages; but they can
is shown in a map, it is not possible collect information from our maps. It
to show various features, e.g. trees, is rightly said that maps have a
buildings, roads or railway-lines in universal language — a language that
their actual shape and size. To can be read by all.
overcome this difficulty, the features As mentioned above, symbols used
are shown by different symbols. The all over the world in various maps are
use of symbols saves space and a lot called conventional symbols. You can
of information can be given in a single read a map using these symbols and
map. Various colours in maps are tell the story of the map to your friends.
chosen for the same purpose. You will
notice that only blue colour is used to Maps are of Various Types
show water bodies, be they oceans, There are various types of maps.
rivers or small lakes. All over the world Maps can be classified on the basis
there has been some kind of of scale, type of information they
agreement regarding the use of contain and their properties.
Eo es

14
Aa @®
/ India and the World
em
iia
a

CONVENTIONAL SYMBOLS
, Metalled under Construction == ;
Roads : Metalled, Unmetalled

International , State , District, Tehsil, Village

Duet. tree
Boundary: oe
eh
River Dry bed, With name , With waterfall

Stream- : Single Line Perennial, NonPerennial <a

Religious : Temple , Church , Mosque , Tomb Bene ciahyn
Post Office , Telegrah Office , Post&Telegrapn Office ,Police Station PO, TO, PTO,
eet
PS
Village Open Village, Walled Village 4 Uninhabited as 2 ae) 2)

Conventional symbols and map

Based on scale, maps can be of plan. A plan can show the detailed
large-scale as mentioned earlier in layout of various rooms and spaces,
this chapter. Maps of the world, their length and breadth. A map
continents or countries fall under shows only important features of an
small-scale maps, while maps of area. In fact this is the greatest
cities / tehsils / talukas or mouzas advantage of a map. On the ground
fall under large-scale maps. there are hundreds of natural and
When you draw the layout of a man-made features which might
building/school/playground, it is confuse us. But the maps select only
called a plan. A plan is also drawn some of them.
true to scale and shows true Some maps may focus on specific
direction but you must know the information one may require to know.
difference between a map and a Rainfall maps, road maps, maps of

ea eR ee
 UNer

aoe

ecules
neal
tbe
How the Globe and Maps fees te
Us a

tourist places or topographical maps are being made in computers.

are such maps. They represent a Computer generated maps are not
particular topic or theme . Such maps only sharp but are very accurate.
are called thematic maps. You can compare an ancient map
From early maps, map-making with a modern map and see how
techniques have undergone changes the improvement in technology has
over the decades. Nowadays maps improved the quality of maps.

Review Questions
1. Answer the following questions briefly
(i) In what way a globe is different from maps?
(ii) List the situations in which the globe is far more useful than maps.
(iii) How is a plan different from a map?
(iv) What are the shortcomings of a globe?
2. Fill in the blanks correctly
(i) The globe shows the ___ of the earth correctly, (shape/size)
(ii) The end points of the earth’s axis are . (poles/equator and prime meridian)
(iii) A ratio between actual distance on the ground and that on the map is
called . (scale/compass)
3. Make correct pairs from the following
(i) A compass (a) Three dimensional device
(ii) A globe (b) Distances
(iii) A map (c) Directions

(iv) A scale (d) Two dimensional device

8 Draw a map of your classroom. Show the rows of desks as north-

south (7), lines 1 to 6. Also show lines of desks as east-west (<>),
lines A to F. Thinking the rows of desks as meridians of longitude
and the lines of desks as parallels of latitude, find out the locations
THINGS To DO

of the seats of your friends. How do rows (1 to 6) and lines (A to F)

help you in locating seats of your friends.
© Draw a sketch of your school and show therein your classroom,
your seat, and the garden.
@ Draw a dial of a compass showing major directions.
 LOCATING PLACES
ON THE EARTH

When you go to a new place, you equal parts or halves. The northern
observe certain prominent features. half is known as the Northern
It could be a tree, a river or a hill. It Hemisphere and the southern half is
helps to locate other nearby places. called the Southern Hemisphere.
Such features are called landmarks Equator is an imaginary circular line
Or points of reference. Without such and is very important reference point
reference points it is very difficult to to locate places on the earth. You
locate places on our big planet. know that a circle consists of 360°. If
you travel from the equator to the pole
Two Poles and the Equator you can cover only one-fourth i.e. 90°
The spherical earth has no edge or a of a circle. That is why the North Pole
corner from where we can begin to is located at 90° from the equator. We
measure the distance of a place. But mention the North Pole as simply
there are two reference points on the 90° N. Similarly, the South Pole is
earth’s surface. These two points are located at 90° south of the equator.
the North Pole and the South Pole.
Parallels of Latitude
These are the tips or the end-points
of the axis of the earth. For locating a Parallel to the equator one set of
place these two points act as basic imaginary lines are drawn which
points of reference. If you hold a globe encircle the earth and run in east-
in front of you, the top will be the west direction. (See Figure on
North Pole and the bottom will be the page 17). These are called latitudes.
South Pole. Slowly rotate it and mark Since all these lines are parallel to
a series of points near the middle of the equator as well as one another,
the globe, from west to east. If you they are called parallels of latitudes.
join these points it will form a big Latitude is angular distance of a
circle, around the globe. This circle is place from the equator, lying either
the largest possible circle that can be in the north or in the south
drawn on the globe. It is called the directions. This angle is formed at the
Equator. It divides the globe in two centre of the earth. From the equator
 kai | ‘
Locating Places on the Earth / 17

to the poles, parallels of latitudes Capricorn (23°30' S), (iii) the Arctic
become smaller. It becomes a point Circle (66°30' N), and (iv) the
at the pole. As mentioned above, Antarctic Circle (66°30' S).
there are 90 latitudes at an interval
of 1° in the northern and southern
- direction of the equator. The value of
the equator is zero. In order to avoid
the confusion, it is necessary to
mention the latitudes using letters ‘N’
Temperate
or ‘S’ with the value of the latitude. Zone
For example, Ernakulam in Kerala
and Lindi in Tanzania are situated Torrid Zone
near 10° latitude. But Ernakulam is
in the Northern Hemisphere while
South Temperate
Lindi is in the Southern Hemisphere. Zone

Therefore, it is necessary to write South Frigid Zone

10°N latitude for Ernakulam and
Important Latitudes and Heat Zones
10° S for Lindi. You can calculate the
total number of latitudes drawn at The Tropic of Cancer is important
1° interval from Pole to Pole. because on 21st June the sun is
directly over this latitude. Similar
phenomenon happens on 22nd
December on the Tropic of
Capricorn. These two latitudes form
the outer limit of the Torrid Zone.
This zone spans across the equator.
The Tropic of Cancer passes almost
through the centre of India. It
influences our climate to a great
extent.

Latitudes
The Arctic Circle demarcates the
northern Frigid Zone. This zone is
Important Latitudes and Heat very cold and lies north of the
Zones temperate zone of the Northern
Besides the Equator (0°), the North Hemisphere: Similarly the Antarctic
Pole, (90° N) and the South Pole (90° Circle separates southern Frigid
S), we have four important parallels Zone from the temperate zone of the
of latitude. They are — (i) the Tropic Southern Hemisphere. The Torrid
of Cancer (23°30' N), (ii) the Tropic of Zone is the hottest part of the world.
 WTI NRE TT

i ee ,
oe fa Sara:
. oe Cit hee
18 / India and the World

We find most of the deserts are into the eastern and the western
located here. But the temperate zone hemispheres. This imaginary line is
is neither very hot nor very cold. The called the Prime Meridian. A set of
Frigid Zone is very cold. lines is imagined to run over the earth
in north south direction which are
There are 90 latitudes in each of the called meridians of longitudes.
Hemispheres drawn at an interval of These lines are not parallel to one
1 degree(*).
another. They all converge at the poles.
Each degree is divided into 60 equal On a globe you can notice that they
parts. Each part is known as minute (’).
form semi-circles. They are also drawn
Each minute is divided into 60 equal at an interval of 1°. These meridians
parts. Each part is known as second ("’).
of longitude and parallels of latitude
form a network which is called grid.
Meridians of Longitude With the help of these two sets of lines,
Like the equator, there are i.e., parallels of latitudes and
imaginary lines which divide the earth meridians of longitude, we can
determine location of places on the
earth. From the diagram showing
latitudes and longitudes you can
prepare a comparative chart of their
similarities and differences.
Unlike the parallels of latitudes, the
meridians of longitudes are equal in
length. But they are not parallel to
one another. As one goes from the
equator to the poles the distance
between two meridians decreases.
There was an agreement world over
that the longitude passing through
Greenwich Observatory near the city
of London will be considered as the
Prime Meridian. The Chief or Prime
Meridian is considered to be 0°. Areas
lying to the east of this meridian is
called the Eastern Hemisphere while
areas lying to the west is known as
the Western Hemisphere.
There are 180 meridians drawn at an
Longitudes interval of 1° on both the sides of the
 ise en ne
aS |

Tacatee Places on the Earth Yt 19

Prime Meridian. To avoid the confusion Therefore, it takes about one hour to
letters ‘E’ and ‘W’ are written with the complete each 15° or 4' (minutes) for
values of meridians for the Eastern each degree. Accordingly, the earth
Hemisphere and the Western has been divided into 24 time zones
Hemisphere respectively. To which of one hour each. This means each
Hemisphere do we belong? You can find place will have different time of
out in which Hemisphere Paris, sunrise and sunset. For 1° (degree)
Moscow, Tokyo and Sydney are located. of longitudinal difference, the time
difference will be of4 minutes ('). But
Locate Singapore in the world map. It
as the earth rotates from west to east,
is situated close to the equator. Find
out the oceans lying to its west and day starts at different times in
east. different places. Places east of the
Another way to know its location is its Greenwich meridian experience day/
longitude. It is 104° E or sunrise earlier than the place lying
Locate Stanley Falls in Africa whose west of the prime meridian. If
latitude is 0° and longitude is 25° E Greenwich Time is taken as a base
or Standard Time, then places
Longitude and Time located at 15° east of Greenwich will
Would you be able to tell time if you have sunrise one hour ahead of
have no clock? Thousands of years Greenwich Time. Similarly, places
ago clock, calendar or television did ‘located at 15° west of Greenwich will
not exist. To early humans, the sun have sunrise one hour later than
was the most important thing in their Greenwich Time.
lives. They used to watch the sky and Day breaks with the sunrise and
the progress of the sun along the sky. ends with the sunset. Shadow of an
object helps us to find out time.
Shadow is longest during the

Sundial

The earth takes about 24 hours to

complete a rotation. This means, in
24 hours the earth completes 360°. Jantar Mantar, Dethi
20 / India and the World

mornings and evenings and is standard time for the country as a

shortest at the noon. When you go whole. In India 82°30'E has been
to any place, you adjust your watch considered for this purpose. It is
observing the midday sun. It will be called the standard meridian. The
12 Noon. The watch fixed or adjusted local time as per this meridian is
by the sun in this manner will give followed all over the country. This is
you the local time. All the places known as Indian Standard Time
situated along the same meridian (IST). The Greenwich time is 5 hours
will have the same local time. and 30 minutes behind the Indian
Standard Time. In Pakistan 75°E
Standard Time is considered as its
meridian
As you know now, places situated on standard meridian. Find out the
different meridians will have different standard meridians of Bangladesh
local time. This is bound to create and Sri Lanka.
problems for people to function. For In global context Greenwich (0°)
example, flight schedules or train time time is followed which is called the
tables, which cross several longitudes Greenwich Mean Time (GMT). Some
will be difficult to prepare. In India countries have vast east-west
the longitude span is from 68°7' E to expanse. In such countries several
97°25'E. Therefore, it was felt standard times have been adopted.
necessary to adopt the local time of Russia is a good example where there
central meridian of our country as the are several time zones.

a |
Review Questions
1. Answer the following questions briefly
(i) Which are the two basic points of reference on the earth’s surface?
Name them.
(ii) How can we draw the greatest circle on the earth?
(iii) Name the three heat zones along with their exact boundaries.
(iv) Which is the standard meridian of India?
(v) What is the difference between the local time and standard time?
2. Fill in the blanks correctly
(i) The value of the Tropic of Cancer is . (26°30'E/
55°0'W/23°30'N/45°15'W)

(ii) The value of the is 23°30' S. (Tropic

of Cancer/Arctic Circle/Antarctic Circle/Tropic of Capricorn)

(iii) The O° latitude is called the . (Arctic Circle /Equator/

Prime Meridian/ Antarctic Circle)
 a@ Se;
Locating Places on the Earth / 21

3. Make correct pairs from the following two columns

(i) Temperate Zone (a) Sri Lanka and Tanzania
Gi) Torrid Zone (b) Antarctica and Greenland
(iii) Frigid Zone (c) United Kingdom and
New Zealand

9 The earth takes about 24 hours to complete its rotation. Calculate

the hourly speed of the earth at the equator if the length of the
equator is 40,000 km.

9 A cricket match is being played between India and Australia in

Sydney. Sydney is located at 151°E meridian. The match starts at
TuINGS TO DO

10 a.m. according to the local time in Sydney. At what time can we

watch the telecast of the match according to Indian Standard Time?
98 Capital cities of four Indian States lie very close to the Tropic of
Cancer towards south. Name them correctly from west to east and
show them on a map of India.
-————____

8 Draw a diagram of the earth showing the earth’s axis, the Great
Circle, Tropics of Cancer and Capricorn, Arctic Circle and Antarctic
Circle.
 How Days anp SEASONS
ARE CAUSED

You already know that our earth, like feel the electric poles, trees and
any other planet, has two motions — houses or fields are moving in the
rotation and revolution. Let us opposite direction. But in reality they
know more about the earth’s rotation do not move. Imagine you are ina
and its effects. space station; you can watch how sun
How the Earth Rotates rays move across the globe and
illuminate the globe, part by part.
Draw an imaginary line from pole to
While the earth rotates, the face of
pole which will pass through the
the earth, receiving sunlight,
centre of the earth. This imaginary
experiences day, while the other face
line is called axis. Northern tip of the
away from the sunlight remains in
axis is North Pole. The southern tip
darkness. That part experiences
of the axis is South Pole. Have you night.
ever played with a top? Recollect
how it spins. Our earth spins
continuously about its axis, just like For this experiment you will require
a spinning top. This movement is (a) Globe
(b) One lighted lamp.
called rotation. The earth takes
On a table keepa globe and the
about 24 hours to complete one lamp in a line.
rotation. This period of rotation is Light the lamp.
known as the earth-day. Glow of the lamp will illuminate a
part which will be daytime in those
Owing to rotation every part of the parts of the globe.
earth gets sunlight, turn by turn. The side which is away from the
Sunlight, as you know, is very lamp will look dark. Night will
prevail in those parts.
important for the growth and survival
of living beings. Because the earth
rotates from west to east we get a Are we not lucky to have day and
wrong impression that the sun rises night one after the other? We work
or sets. You can compare this feature hard during the day and can rest
with your journey in a train when you during the night.

Fan
NDOT OE ETC ae Oe eae mana 8s)
 How Days and Seasons are etal
/ 33

This path is known as the orbit of

the earth. This path is not exactly a
circle. It is somewhat elongated. This
elongated circle is known as an
ellipse.
You can find out from the elders
how an ellipse can be drawn on a
paper using a thread, a pencil and
two pins. Your drawing teacher can
Experiment showing day and night perhaps help you. The figure showing
‘revolution of the earth’ can give you
For this experiment you will require
an idea of an ellipse.
A dark room, a globe representing
The total time our earth takes to
the earth; a lighted lamp to repre-
sent the sun.
complete one revolution around the
Mark a point X on the surface of the sun is called a year. The earth takes
globe. Keep the lighted table lamp 365 days and about 6 hours to
at some distance away from it. : complete one revolution. For the sake
Keep the globe in such a way that of convenience we consider a year is
the point X is in complete darkness.
of 365 days. The additional 6 hours,
It means the point X is experiencing after 4 years, become 24 hours or one
midnight.
additional day. This additional day
Now, move the globe from left to
right till the point X enters the area we add to the month of February
of light. For the point X it is every 4 years. Thus, the month of
morning. Continue to move the February has 29 days instead of 28
globe till the point X comes in front days once in every 4 years. That
of the. lamp. It is now noon for the particular year is called a leap-year.
point X. Leap-year is divisible by four. Try to
Continue to move ihe globe till the calculate, from 1901 to 2001, how
point X enters the area of darkness. many leap-years we had.
It is now evening for the point X.
This is how every part of the earth’s The earth’s axis is not
surface experiences mid-night, perpendicular to the plane of the
morning, noon and evening. earth’s orbit. It is tilted by an angle
of 23%° from the vertical line or
How the Earth Revolves perpendicular line which you can
The other motion of the earth is called observe in the diagram. Because of
revolution. While rotating on its axis this tilt the earth is making an angle
the earth moves forward and revolves of 6614° with its plane.
around the sun. In this movement the Like rotation, direction of the
earth follows a fixed route or path. earth’s revolution is anti-clockwise
24 / India and the World

vertical rays from the sun. Sunlight

received in those parts during the day
is longer. This is summer in the |
Northern Hemisphere. But, the same
hemisphere, when remains away
from the sun’s rays, direct sunlight
does not reach there. Those regions
experience lesser hours of sunlight.
It is winter condition in those
SUN regions.
Earth’s axis and orbit While revolving around the sun,
the earth comes in four critical
i.e. from west to east. Now, carefully positions. These changing positions
observe the diagram of earth’s are responsible for the cycle of ©
revolution. You will find, because of season. We can study these four |
the tilt of the earth’s axis, one positions one by one.
hemisphere comes to face the sun On June 21, the Northern
first and then comes the other Hemisphere is tilted towards the sun.
hemisphere. Therefore, variations in The sun is directly over the 232° N |
the weather phenomena is observed latitude or the Tropic of Cancer. On
which we call seasons. this date, the sunlight is available for
When the Northern Hemisphere maximum hours in this hemisphere.
faces the sun it receives direct and This situation is called the summer
as Autumn/Spring
}
||
!

|
c Winter in {
the northern
hemisphere }|
ae,
Summer in
the northern
hemisphere

Summerin \
the southern *
hemisphere

Winter in
the southern
hemisphere

Autumn/Spring

Revolution of the earth and seasons

 How
By &
ey
Days and Seasons
i lee
are Caused / 25

solstice. During this period, the sun latitude or Tropic of Capricorn. This
ray is vertical on the Tropic of Cancer is summer solstice for the Southern
and give more heat. This is the Hemisphere. On this day the
summer condition in the Northern Northern Hemisphere experiences
Hemisphere. shortest day and it is called winter
solstice in the Northern Hemisphere.
‘On September 23, as the earth’s
revolution continues, equator faces As the earth moves forward, on
the sun most directly. On this date March 21, the equator again comes
day and night are equal all over the to face the sun, which is directly over
world. Or you can say, on this date it. Day and night become equal again
we have 12 hours of day and 12 on this day. This is called vernal
hours of night. Therefore, it is called equinox in the Northern Hemisphere.
Equinox. September 23 is an
Equinox. As autumn season prevails Nights on the poles extend for six
months.
during this time, it is called
The sun is never very high above
autumnal equinox in the Northern the horizon in the polar regions.
Hemisphere.
As the revolution continues, Now, you know that what are
gradually the Southern Hemisphere solstices and equinoxes. You also know
comes closer to the sun and the that in the Southern Hemisphere
Northern Hemisphere moves away summer and winter solstices happen
from it. Daylight hours increase in at different times than those in the
Southern Hemisphere. On December Northern Hemisphere. Try to explain
22, the sun is directly over the 2342°S why this is so.

Been

Review Questions
1. Answer the following questions briefly
(i) How is the rotation of the earth responsible for caus ing day and
night?
(ii) When do we observe a leap year?
experience winter and summer
(iii) Why does the Southern Hemisphere
f the Northern Hemisphere?
solstices in different times than that 0
but
long in the
Find out why your shadow: sa repiivetione
morning and evening
(iv) in relation to the seasons we
short at noon. What are its im
experience?
26 / India and the World

2. Fill in the blanks

(i) The earth’s axis forms an angle of _____~————_—s'wiith:« the plane of the
earth’s orbit.
(ii) The days and nights are equal on ___—SSsa arn
(iii) The seasons are opposite in and _______—szAhemispheres.

3. Make correct pairs from the following two columns

(i) Inclination of the earth’s axis (a) Day

(ii) Revolution of the earth (b) Seasons

(iii) Rotation of the earth (c) Year

How does the sun illuminate our earth?

For this experiment you will need — a small ball and a torch.
% Hold the ball in one hand. Shine the torch beam directly on to the
THINGS TO DO

middle of the ball. A circle of bright light will fall at the centre of the
ball. It is similar to the solar ray shining at the equator.
Now, look at the light in other part of the ball. There the light is spread
a

over much wider area and it is dim and dull. That is how polar region
-————.__

gets the sunshine.

 Mayor DOMAINS
OF THE EARTH

Our earth is a unique planet. Why is the atmosphere. It is made up of

it so? Because life is known to exist several layers of air, containing
only on the earth. Till today we do mixture of gases. Some of these gases
‘not know about any other heavenly are essential for life. We need oxygen
body supporting living things. Life is to breathe and survive. In our
found almost in all corners of the language oxygen is called pran vayu.
earth. It is found in water, on land Similarly, plants need carbon-dioxide
and also in the air. This makes our for their survival. Air contains
earth unique in the entire solar nitrogen, oxygen and carbon-dioxide
system. What makes the life possible along with several other gases. The
on the earth? One reason is that the most dominant gas in the atmo-
earth has plenty of water on its sphere is nitrogen. Its presence is
surface. Over two-thirds of its surface important both for plants and
is covered with water in the form of animals including humans. You can
oceans, seas, lakes, rivers and ice study the table below to understand
caps. All kinds of life depend on the composition of the atmosphere.
water. To be precise, every living thing
Table 5.1 Proportion of various
is made of a considerable proportion
gases in the atmosphere
of water. DOr

sustains various kinds of life from

| humans to the smallest microbes.
_Land is the home of most of the
| mammals.
_ For the development of life equally Thus, air, land and water form
important is the presence of air. The three major domaims of the earth
air envelopes the earth which is called where life is found to exist. In fact all
 4 : ae 8
vy riaitaies |G
_— ie
28 / India and the World
upward air becomes thinner and less
Satellite
dense. In fact, the air is most dense
Aurora near to the surface of the earth. Have
you ever been to a hill station? If you
‘Space shuttle go to a high altitude place you might
feel out of breath because in higher
altitudes lesser amount of oxygen in
the air causes us discomfort. The
Shooting stars atmosphere acts like a blanket. It
Weather balloon retains heat to keep uS warm and
Stratosphere

"Tropopause |

@ Tepospne
2 Hot-air balloon

Mountains

|Sea-tevel)
Different layers of the atmosphere
Weather sattelite
kinds of life is confined in a narrow
zone where air, water and land come protects us from harmful effects as
in contact with one another. This well as the scorching rays of the sun.
narrow zone containing life is called Plants need carbon-dioxide from
biosphere. In this chapter we will the atmosphere for their survival. We
learn more about these major exhale carbon-dioxide, which the
domains and the life on the earth. plants take in. Plants release oxygen,
The moon has no atmosphere. which we inhale. So, it is a beautiful
Therefore, the day is extremely hot _ cycle of reversal, which is working,
and the night is very cold because © harmoniously on this planet.
of which life is not found on the ©
The Domain of Land
eee : wae
_ The outer layer of the earth is called
The Domain of Air skin of
the crust. Crust is like the
The air envelopes our earth on all the earth. The hard crust forms the
sides. It extends upto 1600 kilo- outer solid surface of the earth. It is
metres from the earth’s surface. But, called lithosphere, where the word
throughout this span the density of litho means stone or rock. About one-
these gases is not uniform. As we go third of the earth’s surface is
 Major Domains of the Earth / 29

Name three oceans surrounding the Find out the names of major mountain
Continent of Asia. ranges of Europe.
Which is the largest country in Asia? Name the highest peak of the continent.
Find out the most populous country How many countries are there in
of Asia. Europe?
Name two different hemispheres to Please consult an atlas for this exercise.
which Asia belongs.
Continents
occupied by land while the rest is Asia is the largest continent. Several .
covered with water. countries are situated in this
Extensive masses of land rising continent. Make a chart of the
above the sea level are called countries, which are in the continent
continents. There are seven continents of Asia.
on the earth. They are generally Europe lies to the west of Asia. But
separated from one another by huge it is not separated from Asia by any
bodies of water. These are Asia, Africa, water body. Europe and Asia are
Europe, North America, South continuous single landmass. These
America, Australia and Antarctica. If two continents are separated by the
you look at the world map carefully, Ural Mountains and the Ural River.
you wiil find most of the land area lies These two continents are referred to
in the Northern Hemisphere. as Eurasia.

oul erate

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=> TROPIC OF CANCER
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Continents and oceans

 ae
80 / India and the World

The second largest continent is recent past, there had been several
Africa. In your atlas, see the map of expeditions to Antarctica. India also
Africa. You will find that the equator has participated in such expeditions.
runs almost half way through this Now we know more about this
continent but does not divide it into continent than we knew before. Find
equal halves. The portion lying in the out the names of research centres set
Northern Hemisphere is far bigger up in Antarctica by the Indian
than the part lying in the Southern scientists.
Hemisphere. Major Landforms
The continents of North America The land surface is not the same
and South America are linked by a everywhere. Some parts are very
narrow stretch of land across high, several thousand metres above
Panama. You can use your atlas to the sea level. They are rugged and
find Panama. North America lies in difficult landforms. But there are also
the Northern Hemisphere. The major some parts, which are moderately
part of South America lies in the high or not much higher than the sea
Southern Hemisphere. Because of level. Broadly these various features
such locations in the northern and can be grouped as mountains,
the southern hemispheres these two plateaus and plains. They form the
continents are called North America major landforms on our earth.
and South America respectively.
Mountains or hills are highly
Australia is a continent situated in elevated lands, which rise above the
the Southern Hemisphere. Being the surrounding region. When such high
smallest continent it is often referred hills form a long chain, they are called
to as the ‘Island Continent’. a mountain range. They may stretch
Antarctica is the southernmost continuously and may occur in a
continent. The South Pole lies at the series of parallel ranges. The
centre of this continent. Observe the Himalayas are a very good example
globe in your classroom. It will be
Making of a mountain
interesting to know that the North
All you require is a pile of paper.
Pole is situated in an ocean, while
Put the papers on your table.
the South Pole is at the heart of a
Push the papers from both sides by
continent. In size, Antarctica is bigger
your hands.
than Australia and Europe taken
The sheet will be folded and rise into
together. But, because it is situated a peak.
in the Antarctic Circle, it remains
You have made a mountain!
covered by deep snow throughout the
In the same process our Himalayas
year. Therefore, human habitation is _or the Alps were formed!
not possible on this continent. In
 a @
yd
Major Domains
iat Neal ,
of the Earth / 31

of a mountain with parallel ranges. in the world. Therefore it is called “the

Mountains may be called young or roof of the world”. Plateaus are
old according to their age. The Alps moderately populated regions.
or the Himalayas are young Transport is not so difficult here as
mountains while the Aravallis or the it is in the mountains.
Appalachian are old mountains. Due
Plains are low-lying and relatively
to erosion over the years these old
flat stretches of land. They are not
mountains have become rounded
very high above the sea level. Often
and low in height. Now they are mere
you will find plains along the coasts
stumps. Human habitation is not
or across the rivers. Rivers, emerging
very dense in high hills because it is
from the mountains carry huge
difficult to construct communication
amount of silt, mud and sand. Rivers
lines in such mountainous areas.
carry these materials down to the sea
On the globe or on the world map and deposit them along the seacoast
you can find out major mountain or along their banks. The largest
ranges in other continents. plains are found along the river
valleys in all the continents, except
in Antarctica. Deposits made by
rivers consist of sand, silt and clay.
Thus the plains become very fertile.
Agriculture all over the world
flourishes on such plains. The North
Indian Plain is a very good example.
You can find out which rivers are
responsible in the formation of this
plain.
Making of a mountain Generally plains are very fertile.
Construction of transport network is
Plateaus are moderately elevated these plains are very
easy. Thus,
flat-topped lands. They often thickly populated regions of the
resemble a table and are also called world.
tableland. Plateaus rise abruptly
The Domain of Water
from the surrounding areas. They
water
may stretch over thousands of square Our earth is blessed with huge
kilometres. Laddakh and Deccan are bodies. In fact two-thirds of the
the plateaus. List out the major surface of our earth is covered with
plateaus of the world located in water. Oceans, seas, lakes and rivers
various continents. Plateau of Tibet are various water bodies. Together
is very high. It is the highest plateau they form the Hydrosphere.
32 / India and the World

Oceans are vast stretches of water. from the point of view of business,
Unlike the continents, oceans are all i.e. export and import of products.
inter-connected. There are four major The Domain of Life
oceans on the earth — the Pacific
We have discussed the domains of
Ocean, the Atlantic Ocean, the Indian
land, water and air. Now we will
Ocean and the Arctic Ocean. The
discuss the domain of life. It is
oceans account for about 71 per cent
of the earth’s surface. The
known as biosphere. The word’ ‘bio’
means life. It is a rim-like narrow
hydrosphere also includes inland
zone, where land, air and water come
seas, rivers and lakes.
in close contact. The entire range of
The Pacific Ocean is the largest as life on earth is confined to this zone.
well as the deepest ocean. Earth’s It is just a few kilometres below and
deepest part is the Mariana Trench above the sea level. Animals, plants
(11022 m deep) which is situated in and microbes are found in this
the Pacific Ocean. In the map try to sphere.
find out which are the continents that
At the time of its birth the earth had
bound this ocean. no life. :
The Atlantic Ocean looks like the First came the plants in the seas and
then on the land to inhabit the earth.
letter ‘S’. It is bordered by North and The plants manufacture food from
South Americas on the west and the rays of the sun for themselves as
Europe and Africa on the east. well as for the animals including the
humans.
The Indian Ocean is bordered by In a way we all depend on plants for
the continents of Africa, Asia and our survival.
Australia. The name of this ocean
The size of organisms in biosphere
points to the importance of India in
varies from a minute virus to huge
the international trade even in early
elephants. Scientists have classified
years. classes called
them into two broad
The Arctic Ocean has North Pole kingdoms — Animal kingdom and
at the centre of the ocean. For most Plant kingdom. We, the humans are
part of the year the ocean remains very important members of the
frozen. Therefore, it is not of much animal kingdom. Therefore we should
use either for trade or for navigation. understand the interactions between
The coastline may be straight or the animal kingdom and plant
indented in nature. Indented kingdom and should work to
coastlines facilitate the development maintain the balance that is
of harbours or ports. Therefore, many beneficial for the survival of the both.
ports or harbours develop along such All the realms of the earth are
coasts. Thus coastline is important inter-dependent. Therefore each of the