The term irrigation efficiency expresses the performance of a complete irrigation system or components of the system. Irrigation efficiency is defined as the ratio between the amount of water used to meet the consumptive use requirement of crop plus that necessary to maintain a favourable salt balance in the crop root zone to the total … Read more
Besides the longitudinal divisions, the Himalayas have been divided on the basis of regions from west to east. These divisions have been demarcated by river valleys. Punjab Himalaya: The part of the Himalayas lying between Indus and Satluj has been traditionally known as Punjab Himalaya but it is also known regionally as Kashmir and Himachal … Read more
Warming and cooling of the Pacific Ocean is most important in terms of general atmospheric circulation. The warm water of the central Pacific Ocean slowly drifts towards the South American coast and replaces the cool Peruvian current. Such an appearance of warm water off the coast of Peru is known as El Nino. The El … Read more
When the wind blows parallel to a coastline, surface waters are pushed offshore and water is drawn from below to replace the water that has been pushed away. The upward movement of this deep, colder water is called upwelling. The deeper water that rises to the surface during upwelling is rich in nutrients. These nutrients … Read more
Inter Cropping: Growing two or more crops simultaneously on the same piece of land with definite row arrangementor in a fixed ratio. It was originally practiced as an insurance against crop failure under drained conditions. Intercroppingsystems utilizes resources efficiently and their productivity is increased. Example: – Maize + Cowpea, Potato + Mustard, Groundnut + Redgram. … Read more
India is one of the major producers of fertilizers and meets 80 percent of urea requirements by domestic production.For feeding millions of mouths, high productivity is required which makes high level of plant nutrients essential. NBS scheme is being implemented from April 2010 by the Department of Fertilizers,Ministry of Chemicals & Fertilizers. Under NBS, a … Read more
Manufactured sand (M-Sand) is a substitute of river sand for concrete construction . Manufactured sand is produced from hard granite stone by crushing.The crushed sand is of cubical shape with grounded edges, washed and graded to as a construction material. The size of manufactured sand (M-Sand) is less than 4.75mm.Manufactured sand is an alternative for … Read more
The Sargasso Sea, located entirely within the Atlantic Ocean, is the only sea without a land boundary. The Sargasso Sea is a vast patch of ocean named for a genus of free-floating seaweed called Sargassum. While there are many different types of algae found floating in the ocean all around world, the Sargasso Sea is … Read more
The North Eastern Council is the nodal agency for the economic and social development of the North Eastern Region which consists of the eight States of Arunachal Pradesh, Assam, Manipur, Meghalaya, Mizoram, Nagaland, Sikkim and Tripura. The North Eastern Council was constituted in 1971 by an Act of Parliament.The constitution of the Council has marked … Read more
District Mineral Foundation (DMF) is a trust set up as a non-profit body, in those districts affected by the mining works, to work for the interest and benefit of persons and areas affected by mining related operations. It is funded through the contributions from the holder of major or minor mineral concession in the district … Read more
The main reasons for concentration of jute industries in WB are: Favourable condition for Jute production: Ample amount of water, high humidity and warm and wet climate. Secondly cheap labour is also available from Bihar, West Bengal, Odisha etc Hubly river also provide import and export of jute. Problem faced by Jute industry: Shortage of … Read more
Coal bed methane: Coal Bed Methane (CBM) is an unconventional form of natural gas found in coal deposits or coal seams. CMB is formed during the process of coalification, the transformation of plant material into coal. It is considered a valuable energy resource with reserves and production having grown nearly every year since 1989. Varied … Read more
Environmental Consequences One of the primary disadvantages of hydroelectric energy is its potential to destroy ecosystems. Plant and animal life in rivers and streams depends on certain environmental factors, from the speed at which the water flows, the level of water in the river bed, and the temperature of the water to the exact mix … Read more
PVTGs constitute the most vulnerable section among tribals and largely reside in isolated, remote and difficult areas in small scattered hamlets. PVTG tag is given to identify the vulnerable tribes and to have specialised scheme to safeguard their cultural identity. Tag is given by Ministry of Home affairs. 75 tribal groups have been categorized by … Read more
Earth magnetism is the property of earth behaving like a dynamo and showing magnetic property just like that of a magnetic bar. There are various theories behind this property. There is no valid reason for the cause of earth’s magnetism or why earth has giant magnetic field but there are some theory related to earth’s … Read more
Temperate cyclones are also known as Extra-tropical cyclone where the term “Extra-tropical” signifies that this type of cyclone generally occurs outside the tropics with a latitude range between 30° and 60°. Characteristics of Temperate Cyclone (Extra-Tropical Cyclones) The Extra-Tropical Cyclones are storm systems emerging in the mid and high latitudes, away from the tropics. They … Read more
They are places on Earth that are so cold that water is frozen solid. These areas of snow or ice, which are subject to temperatures below 32°F for at least part of the year, compose the cryosphere. The term “cryosphere” comes from the Greek word, “krios,” which means cold. Ice and snow on land are one part … Read more
Environmental ethics is a branch of ethics that studies the relation of human beings and the environment and how ethics play a role in this. Environmental ethics believe that humans are a part of society as well as other living creatures, which includes plants and animals. These items are a very important part of the … Read more
On 23 December 2005, the Government of India enacted the Disaster Management Act, which envisaged the creation of National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA), headed by the Prime Minister, and State Disaster Management Authorities (SDMAs) headed by respective Chief Ministers, to spearhead and implement a holistic and integrated approach to Disaster Management in India. NDMA Vision: … Read more
A watershed is the geographic area through which water flows across the land and drains into a common body of water – stream, river, lake, or ocean. The watershed boundary follows the highest ridgeline around the stream channels which separates the water flow which may be basically rainwater, groundwater, water from melting snow etc. and … Read more
The factors, which affect the distribution of temperature of ocean water are as follows: Latitude: The temperature of surface water decreases from the equator towards the poles because the amount of insolation decreases pole-ward. Unequal distribution of land and water: The oceans in the northern hemisphere receive more heat due to their contact with … Read more
Tropical Cyclone Extra tropical cyclone It has thermal origin and derives its energy from the latent heat of condensation It has dynamic origin involving coriolis force and movement of air masses. The energy of a temperate cyclone depends on the densities of air masses. It is confined to 10o – 300 N and S of … Read more
Fold Mountains are commonly associated with continental crust. They are formed due to convergence between two continental plates or between an oceanic and a continental plate. This convergence happens at the convergent plate boundaries, also called as continental collision zones or compression zones. The convergence of two continental plates causes sediments between them to get … Read more
A plain is a broad area of relatively flat land and is one of the major landforms on the earth surface. There are various types of Plains which are discussed as: Structural plains: relatively undisturbed horizontal surfaces of the earth. They are structurally depressed areas of the world that make up some of the most extensive … Read more
Weathering, water, elevation, sinking, and erosion of the soil are constantly shaping the surface of the Earth. It doesn’t really happen overnight but takes hundreds and thousands of years for us to notice these changes. These are the natural processes that lead to various formations of the Landforms. Landforms originate from these geological processes. Landforms can be categorized into Mountains, Plateaus, and Plains depending … Read more
Inland waterways is an important mode of transport for any economy. Inland water transport contribute just 1% of the total freight and as the data suggest it is underutilised as in other countries the proportion of freight is relatively high. There are challenges in the development of Inland waterways in India and they are as … Read more
The jute industries are majorly located in eastern region of the country. About 25% of the workforce are enrolled in the jute industry. 80% of the industries are in West Bengal only. The reasons for the high concentration of Jute Industries are as follows: Soil: The alluvial conditions of Eastern Bengal offer ideal environment for … Read more
India’s geographical location of it being in tropical zone make it potent solar energy power house. As per Ministry of New and Renewable Energy or MNRE with about 300 clear and sunny days in a year, the calculated solar energy incidence on India’s land area is about 5000 trillion kilowatt-hours (kWh) per year. Solar Energy … Read more
There are places on Earth that are so cold that water is frozen solid. These areas of snow or ice, which are subject to temperatures below 32°F for at least part of the year, compose the cryosphere. The term “cryosphere” comes from the Greek word, “krios,” which means cold. Ice and snow on land are one part … Read more
The Golan Heights are a fertile plateau of around 1,300 sq km area lying to the north and east of the Sea of Galilee, which Israel seized from Syria during the Six-Day War of 1967, and has occupied ever since. The Golan overlooks both Israel and Syria, and offers a commanding military vantage. Israel argues that Golan is a … Read more
After independence, India witnessed green , blue and white revolutions in farm, fishery and dairy sector respectively. Green revolution: It was initiated to achieve food security in the country. It included three components : continued expansion of farming areas, double-cropping existing farmland, using seeds with improved genetics. The Green Revolution resulted in a record grain … Read more
Diastrophism refers to deformation of the Earth’s crust due to diastrophic movements (deforming movements) such as folding, faulting, warping (bending or twisting of a large area) and fracturing. All processes that move, elevate or build up portions of the earth’s crust come under diastrophism. They include: orogenic processes involving mountain building through severe folding (crust is severely deformed into folds) and affecting long … Read more
Landslide is defined as the movement of mass of rock, debris or earth down a slope under the direct influence of gravity. It’s a natural disaster which takes place because of both natural and anthropogenic factors. Being at a great height,h imalyan region is quite prone to this disaster. Natural Factors Intensive rainfall : rainy … Read more
Fold mountains are created where two or more of Earth’s tectonic plates are pushed together. At these colliding, compressing boundaries, rocks and debris are warped and folded into rocky outcrops, hills, mountains, and entire mountain ranges. Fold mountains are created through a process called orogeny. An orogenic event takes millions of years to create a fold mountain. Fold mountains are often associated with continental crust. … Read more
Small farming systems not only have fed much of the world population for centuries and continue to feed people in many parts of the planet, especially in developing countries, but also have the potential to bring solutions to many uncertainties facing humanity in a peak oil era of global climate change and financial crisis. Recent … Read more
PVTGs constitute the most vulnerable section among tribals and largely reside in isolated, remote and difficult areas in small scattered hamlets. PVTG tag is given to identify the vulnerable tribes and to have specialised scheme to safeguard their cultural identity. Tag is given by Ministry of Home affairs. 75 tribal groups have been categorized by … Read more
The purported objective of the National Socialist Council of Nagaland-Isak-Muivah (NSCN-IM) is the establishment of a Nagalim (Greater Nagaland), consisting of all the Naga-inhabited areas of neighbouring Assam, Manipur, Arunachal Pradesh and some portions Myanmar, which it considers to be the rightful homeland of the Nagas. Slated to be an independent State, the Nagalim lies … Read more
Earth magnetism is the property of earth behaving like a dynamo and showing magnetic property just like that of a magnetic bar. There are various theories behind this property. There is no valid reason for the cause of earth’s magnetism or why earth has giant magnetic field but there are some theory related to earth’s … Read more
Democracy is well known by the definition of ‘ for the people, by the people and of the people. Democracy success depends upon the way the government of the state is elected. The election is done on the basis of First past the poll or Proportional representation. The other major aspect of democracy is the … Read more
There are mountains, basins, plateaus, ridges, canyons and trenches beneath the ocean water too. These relief features found on the ocean floor are called Submarine Relief. The ocean basins are broadly divided into four major subdivisions. They are; Continental Shelf: They slope seaward from coast to a point where the slope becomes very steep. This shallow submerged extension … Read more
When corals are stressed by changes in conditions such as temperature, light, or nutrients, they expel the symbiotic algae living in their tissues, causing them to turn completely white. Warmer water temperatures can result in coral bleaching. When water is too warm, corals will expel the algae (zooxanthellae) living in their tissues causing the coral to turn completely … Read more
An eclipse of the Sun happens when the New Moon moves between the Sun and Earth, blocking out the Sun’s rays and casting a shadow on parts of Earth. The Moon’s shadow is not big enough to engulf the entire planet, so the shadow is always limited to a certain area (see map illustrations below). This area changes during … Read more
Transport is considered to be an important aspect in improving agricultural efficiency. It improves the quality of life of individuals, structures a market for agricultural productions, makes interaction possible among geographical as well as regions and opened up new areas to economic focus. Road transport is the most regular and multifaceted network that includes wide … Read more
Soil conservation includes all those measures which help in protecting the soil from erosion and exhaustion. Soil erosion has been continuing over, such a large part of India for such a long time that it has assumed alarming proportions. Afforestation The best way to conserve soil is to increase area under forests. Indiscriminate felling of … Read more
Main objectives of the Mission are: Promote holistic growth of horticulture sector, including bamboo and coconut through area based regionally differentiated strategies, which includes research, technology promotion, extension, post harvest management, processing and marketing, in consonance with comparative advantage of each State/region and its diverse agro-climatic features; Encourage aggregation of farmers into farmer groups like … Read more
Surface Irrigation In this method water flows and spreads over the surface of the land. Varied quantities of water are allowed on the fields at different times. Hence, flow of water under surface irrigation comes under unsteady flow. As a result it is very difficult to understand the hydraulics of surface irrigation. However, suitable and … Read more
River interlinking is an ambitious project of central government to link surplus river basin with deficient river basin to solve surplus and shortage problem of various regions of the country. Recently Bihar and Assam faced the flood situation diverting of water through inter linking can solve the crisis. Points in favour are as: Prevention of … Read more
This theory was put forth by Alfred Wegener. The continental drift hypothesis was developed in the early part of the 20th century. According to this theory, e continents were once united into a single supercontinent named Pangaea, meaning all earth in ancient Greek. He suggested that Pangaea broke up long ago and that the continents … Read more
A glance at the world map reveals that most of the desert region is on the western part of the continent for example. Mohave desert in North America, Atacama in Southern America, Namib, Sahara in Africa , Arabian in west Asia. The reasons for such homogeny are: The hot desert lie astride the Horse latitudes … Read more
Feminisation of agriculture refers to the increasing number of women in multiple roles as labourers, cultivators, farmers and entrepreneurs in agricultural sector. According to agricultural census 2011, there has been a 24 per cent increase in the number of female agricultural labourers between 2001 and 2011, from 49.5 million to 61.6 million. Women in rural … Read more
