India's Geography

Having a shape of a heart, India is the seventh-largest country by geographical area and the second most populous country in the world.

Boundaries:

South: Indian Ocean, Sri Lanka, Maldives, Indonesia;
West: Arabian Sea, Pakistan;
East: Bay of Bengal, Bangladesh, Myanmar;
North – East: China, Nepal and Bhutan.

Coastline: 7000 km;
Land: 2,973,190 sq km;
Water: 314,400 sq km;

Lowest point: Indian Ocean – 0 m;
Highest point: Kanchenjunga – 8,598 m.

India's total land mass is 2,973,190 square kilometers and is divided into three main geological regions: the Indo-Gangetic Plain, the Himalayas, and the Peninsula region.

The Indo-Gangetic Plain and those portions of the Himalayas within India are collectively known as North India. South India consists of the peninsular region, often termed simply the Peninsula.

On the basis of its physiography, India is divided into ten regions:

• the Indo-Gangetic Plain;
• the northern mountains of the Himalayas;
• the Central Highlands;
• the Deccan or Peninsular Plateau;
• the East Coast (Coromandel Coast in the south);
• the West Coast (Konkan, Kankara, and Malabar coasts);
• the Great Indian Desert (a geographic feature known as the Thar Desert in Pakistan) and the Rann of Kutch;
• the valley of the Brahmaputra in Assam;
• the northeastern hill ranges surrounding the Assam Valley;
• the islands of the Arabian Sea and the Bay of Bengal.

* The information regarding India's geography is from The Library of Congress Country Studies and the CIA World Factbook.