India - Size and Location long answers

Question 1

The central location of India at the head of the Indian Ocean is considered of great significance. Why? Or In what way central location of India in the Indian Ocean has been to its advantage?

Answer 1

i) India is situated between East and West Asia.
ii) International trade routes are passing by very close to Indian Coastlines.
iii) After the opening of Suez Canal, the importance of India’s ports has increased manifold.
Iv ) Large water body is named after India due to its eminent position in south Asia

Question 2

Describe the size and location of India.

Answer 2

i) India is a vast country. It lies entirely on the north of the equator. India is a southward extension of the Asian continent.
ii) The mainland extends between latitudes 8° 4 min N and 37°6 min N and longitudes 68°7 min E and 97°25 min E.
iii) The Tropic of Cancer (23° 30 min N) divides the country into almost two equal parts.
Iv ) To the southeast and southwest of the mainland, lie the Andaman and Nicobar Islands and the Lakshadweep Islands in the Bay of Bengal and the Arabian Sea respectively

Question 3

Which ocean is named after India ? Give two reasons as to why it was named after India.

Answer 3

i) The Indian Ocean is named after India.
ii) No other country has a long coastline on the Indian Ocean as India.
iii) The central location of India at the head of the Indian Ocean has provided India a strategic location of great significance along the trans Indian Ocean routes.
Iv ) It is India’s eminent position in the Indian Ocean which justifies the naming of the ocean after India.

Question 4

What are the neighbors of India?

Answer 4

i) India shares its land boundaries with Afghanistan and Pakistan in the northwest
ii) China, Nepal, and Bhutan in the north
iii) Myanmar and Bangladesh in the east.
Iv ) The island states of Sri Lanka and the Maldives are our southern neighbors across the sea.

Question 5

The sun rises 2 hours earlier in Arunachal Pradesh as compared to Gujarat in the West but the watches show the same time? How does this happen.

Answer 5

i) The longitude difference between Gujarat and Arunachal is almost 30°
ii) There is a little lag of 2 hours between Gujarat and Arunachal Pradesh
iii) Hence time along 82°30 min E longitude passing through Mirzapur is taken as Indian standard time for the whole country.
Iv ) Otherwise different regions with different times would create more confusion.