UPSC

Structural features.

• coastal plains are depositional plains along the peninsular coast
• They are younger and will have alluvium
• Predominantly river in aluvium and less marine alluvium

Genesis.

• eastern and western coastal plains are mostly composite plains.
• composite planes have features of submergent emergent and features of neutral coastline.
• Malabar - emergent smoother lagoons. Vembanad lagoon, ashtamudi lagoon Kollam
• Canara Karnataka - submergent coast
• Konkan - submergent and emergent
• Kathiyawar - submergent and emergent
• Coromandel - emergent lagoon pulicat lagoon
• Andhra - submergent
• Odisha - emergent chilika lake shot Island wheeler Island kalam Island
• Bengal coast - evidences of river rejuvenation

Coastal Plains

• Depositional plains along the peninsular coast
• Younger and have alluvium (Riverine alluvium - (predominant) and Marine alluvium)

3 types - Degree of compactness

1. Compact / Clustered
2. Dispersed
3. Semi - Clustered

Patterns

1. Rectangular
2. Circular
3. Amorphous

Rectangular

• Hollow
• Grid
• Ribbon / Strip

Circular

Reasons - compact

• Wet Point
• Security

Variants

• Annual
• Radial

Horse Shoe

• Mallital
• Tallital

Amorphous

No two cities are similar but invariably they have some commonalities on which they may be grouped into categories. The earliest classification was based on the evolutionary stages of a city.

Aurosseau gave the first functional classification of cities. He classified the cities on the basis of dominant functions.

Aurosseau's functional classification of cities

1. Administrative towns
   • Cities that perform an administrative function
   • Washington DC, Gandhinagar, Delhi, Islamabad, Brasilia
2. Cultural cities
   • They are cultural centers
   • Varanasi Saint Petersburg Madurai Venice
3. Recreational center
   • Like hill stations
   • Shimla, Las-Vegas
   • Beach town Goa
4. Manufacturing center
   • Bokaro, Detroit, Pittsburgh, Birmingham, etc.
5. Defense towns
   • Made for security reasons
   • Cantonment areas like Jabalpur, Ranikhet, Rawalpindi, Edinburgh, etc.
6. Centers for communication
   • Mumbai, Singapore, Rotterdam, Colombo, Mugalsarai, Itarsi, Khadakpur

Aurosseau's scheme was based on subjective evaluation in depicting the nature of a city. It did not use any statistical method.

Modifications over this scheme started using statistical data such as the proportion of population employed in certain categories of function. In India, one such example of quantitative statistics-based classification was that of Ashok Mitra.

Ashok Mitra's classification of Indian cities

• He used census data to classify the Indian cities
• The 1971 census identified 9 categories of workers
  1. Cultivators
  2. Agricultural labor other than cultivators
  3. Workers in forestry fishing and mining
  4. workers in housing
  5. Manufacturing
  6. Construction other than housing
  7. Trade and commerce
  8. Transport communication
  9. Other services

Ashok Mitra didn't consider function 1 and 2 because they are purely agriculture function.

Manufacturing functions - Functions 3, 4, 5, and 6 were together considered as Manufacturing functions.

Forestry fisheries and mining are primary activity but mining is related to industry and so also many forestry activities.

Trade functions - Functions 7 and 8 were considered as Trade functions.

Service function - Function 9 was considered as Service function.

For every city that he studied, statistically, he tried to establish the proportion of workers in each of the above three categories.

He tries to plot the city on a triangular graph on the basis of the proportion of workers in each category of employment. Namely Services, trade, and manufacturing.

For identifying the character of the city, Ashok Mitra first draws an incircle and subdivides the incircle into three concentric zones of equal width because the graph is divided in 4 parts.

• Zone 1 - Depict city with maximum diversification
• Zone 2 - They are cities with moderate diversification
• Zone 3 - Cities with function predominantly accentuated
• Zone 4 - City with function highly accentuated

Zone 3 and Zone 4 depicts cities with specialization where some category of function is the character of the city.

With the diversity of soil forming factors and processes there are innumerable types of soils on earth. Soil classification is a technique in grouping soil based on some proper parameters so as to study soils more objectively.

Doku chiev.

He was a Russian pedologist. His was the first attempt in soil classification.

There are two ways of classification.

1. on the basis of genesis - primary condition is climate
2. On the basis of soil property / morphological classification

Genetic classification based on climate is more appropriate in geographical perspective because it can detail pattern of soil distribution and relate it to the climate types across the world.

If not specified in the question, the genetic scheme needs to be detailed while morphological is mentioned.

Morphological classification is more detail and more relevant in agriculture planning. It is difficult to make a world map on the basis of rock property.

Marbut scheme.

Doku Chiev gave the first scheme and was modified by Glinka. Both of them where Russians.

Marbut modified Glinkas scheme for America. Eventually he expanded it for the world soil types.

Marbut classified the soils on the basis of soil forming factors.

broadly there are three types of soils

• zonal
• intrazonal
• azonal

zonal

Podsols.

• pedalfer soil of cool humid region
• Represented in taiga
• The process is podsolization.
• Formed due to leaching in the presence of chelating agents
• Aluminium and iron oxides are more mobile and form sesquioxides. They become thick hard iron pans.
• Acidic greyish in colour.
• Not the best for agriculture
• Lumbering is the main activity

Latosols.

• variants of laterites
• Leaching and laterization process
• Condition required is humid and warm
• Good formation of laterites. Alternate wet and dry conditions - uplands monsoonal
• Silicon is more mobile and hence leached.
• B illuviated layer is silicon enriched
• Soil is red in colour because of iron and aluminium oxides.
• Aluminium is acidic in nature.

chernozems

seirozems

Morphological classification of soil.

• USDA
• On the basis soil properties
• Properties nutrients texture soil profile soil horizons PH value colour
• This is a very detailed scheme
• It has application in agriculture planning

This classification is not the best scheme in understanding the spatial pattern of soil distribution.

1. Enti
2. Insepti
3. Histo
4. Aridi
5. Molli
6. Verti
7. Alfi
8. Lato ??

Humanistic Geography

The most extreme backlash against quantification is humanistic backlash. It was against positivism and against any form of quantification. It also rejected the objective analysis in establishing the cause-effect relationship of a phenomenon or its pattern. It believes that the reasons for any man-environmental relationship have its root in the man himself which cannot be known objectively. Please there is nothing called as objective reality or real environment and what exists are subjective perceptions that are dynamic and can never be deciphered with certainty and precision. it is there for against mental maps and the techniques it suggests are more awake and difficult to replicate with objectivity. Techniques like b e r s t h a n getting into the minds of individuals and hermeneutics technique of continuous cyclic debates in interpretations and re interpretation of an event and phenomenon.

humanistic geography developed under different schools. with the purpose of studying and appreciating all aspects of man and management relationship it was important to understand the basis in the relationship without trying to generalize the cores into a law or a model when the reasons were shot in the ideas it is called idealism. The reality acid exists is constituted in one's mind first. Angiography idealism was part in by Harish and goyal CA.

for Ralph and coke the routes in a man and environment relationship is the environment are the phenomenon the subject cognitive eggs experience with which he develops the idea the phenomenon becomes the essence that distills into an idea this was the school of phenomenology.

School of Existentialism

Before the essence of a phenomenon, there exists a man first who experiences a phenomenon that becomes the basis of an idea.

For example, for every landscape that has to be someone who can be held accountable, this is a school of existentialism in geography.

Identity - Critique of positivism

Humanistic geography and its methods, techniques, and philosophy remained a very vague school of thought. Its identity was largely a critique of positivism and never developed into an independent geographical paradigm.

Main Post - Geography Optional Syllabus.
Next Post - Welfare Geography.

Behavioral Geography Primarily wanted to change 2 aspects of QR

1. Laws should be made not on Spatial patterns but the patterns of Human cognitive decision making
2. It disputed the normative economic rational man assumption

Patterns of Human cognitive decision making

Laws should be made not on Spatial patterns but seek reasons for the patterns of the phenomenon in Human cognitive decision making. Making laws on the spatial pattern was only another type of description and not the analysis of the pattern

Normative economic rational man🤔assumption

Behavioral Geography disputed the normative economic rational assumption about the man. Man is capable of thinking and evaluating nature based on his perceptions. So a man was defined as satisficer not a maximizer and man's rationality was bonded because man operated on on a perceived environment and not real objective environment.

Focus back to man.

The behavioral geography was not against quantification and positivist methods but wanted to bring the focus on geography back to the man and change the objective of quantification and generalization.

Stochastic laws - Probabilistic and not exact

One of the important insights in behavioral geography was that the generalizations can only be probabilistic and not exact. Hence the laws are called stochastic laws.

This idea is based on the idea that even though the perceptions are subjective and the decisions are based on mental images the response to the perceived reality can be consistent and therefore can be quantified at least by the probabilistic laws. While the influence during the quantitative revolution was Economics 📈, the influence in the Behavioral revolution was cognitive sciences like Psychology 🔱.

Influences that inspired behavioral geography

Julian Wolpert. 👨‍🌾

he studied the behavior of farmers where the decisions are not taken on the basis of rational economic objectives in his theory species the decision-making process in special context 1964

Simon 👨🤑💰 - Bounded rationality

Simon who had questioned the basic postulate of economic man as a rational profit-maximizing individual according to Simon decision-maker had bounded rationality.

Gilbert White. ⛈️🌊

Wolpert's conclusion was are also influenced by Gilbert white's thesis on human responses to floods. According to Gilbert people don't make rational decisions while evaluating hazards. They respond according to their subjective perceptions of hazard.

Gould and Downs - mental maps 🧠🗺️

one of the innovations in behavioral geography is the concept of mental maps. Mental maps are objective depictions of the subjective perceived world plotted on a paper. Based on such maps and depictions generalizations of the behavioral response of individuals can be made. The concept was given by Gould and improvise by downs.

1. Mental maps have been used extensively in studying the response to natural hazards special behavior in urban areas such as shopping behavior and the role of neighborhood preferences in intra-urban migration.
2. The techniques and methods in the regional Chorological approach were descriptive. The technique and methods in the QR phase where's positivist based on new technique systems analysis locational analysis and statistical methods
3. the technique and methods in behavioral geography was also positivist. The used tools were mental maps
4. The method in humanistic geography was anti-positivist that used tools like Verstehen and hermeneutics which are subjective descriptive and vague in their application.

Frontiers and Boundaries are international political concepts that divide political territories and national jurisdictions.

Frontiers and Boundaries

The concept of Frontier is an older concept and it represent zone at the Periphery of the state which is the populated because of unfavourable physical condition. Most of the frontiers eventually have been demarcated as distinct lines and are called boundaries.

Frontiers have a sense of ambiguity and are not objectively define. But boundaries are more defined and develop only after a treaty. In our contemporary geopolitics, most frontiers have now become zones of conflict. because of which frontiers still have some relevance when countries cannot agree on the precise boundary. Frontiers continue to be relevant as on of the options in dispute resolution between countries.

Classification of boundaries

1. Morphological boundaries
   • The boundary is demarcated on the basis of some feature of the surface
   • Example
     • Physical feature - Rivers, Deserts Mountains
     • Cultural features - Traditional ethnic and linguistic borders
   • Most of such morphological boundaries are very old traditional boundaries but man-made boundaries can also include the ones that were demarcated on the basis of mutual treaties. Eg - the Macmohan line, the Radcliffe line, the Duronto line.
2. The genetic classification of boundaries
   • in 1936 Richard Hartshorne suggested types of boundaries on the basis on the origin of the boundaries
   • They include
     1. Antecedent boundaries
     2. superimposed boundaries
     3. subsequent boundaries
     4. consequent boundaries

Antecedent boundaries

These are boundaries which were delimited much before the area was settled by people who established them. These are boundaries that came up in totally undeveloped territories and much before the clusters have developed across the boundaries. Antecedent boundaries are the most stable boundaries

Example

• The 49th parallel between Canada and US.
• The German polish territory
• The Russia before World War across silesia River

Superimposed boundaries & Subsequent boundaries

These are boundaries that have come up after the culture and political histories of a place have developed and such boundaries are negotiated by political treaties or cease-fire lines and they cut across the uniformity of the cultural landscape. Super imposed boundaries are drawn why not considering the administrative divisions the boundaries of Africa are superimposed

Subsequent boundaries do follow some pre-existing administrative boundaries Indo Pak boundary Radcliffe line is an example of subsequent boundary

Both the boundaries are unstable and prone to conflicts

Consequent boundaries

Such boundaries separate two distinct cultures that have first developed and established their identity but there after they acknowledge that some area between which has physical disability Can be converted into a boundary. Mountain regions are generally the favoured location of consequent boundary

Example - Pyrenees between Spain and France

Laws of boundaries

1. Conventions for land boundaries
2. Conventions for Sea boundaries

Conventions for land boundaries

Land boundaries are generally drawn on the basis of any of the above genetic types example forest mountain culture which has conflicts.

For physical features like

• For mountains, the crest line principle is followed.
• For rivers, the thalweg line or the median line principle is followed.
• In areas of conflicts that have actively participated in Wars, the ceasefire lines are converted into boundaries.

Conventions for Sea boundaries

Von Thunen propounded the theory of agricultural location in 1826 in his book 'isolated stat'. He was an Aristocrat who owned a large estate. The book was based on his observation in trying to manage Von Thunen's estate. His concept was more of an Economic concept.

The objective was to conclude and arrive at what is the best possible way in using agricultural land to maximize profit and Returns. How best, a land can be cultivated, and which land should be under what types of crops and what type of agriculture practice so as to maximize profits.

His theory is the first locational theory that inspired other theories like that of Weber and Christaller and eventually, the concept was used in the quantitative revolution.

It is one of the three locational triads - Von Thunen, Weber, Christaller.

It is a normative theory based on simplifying assumptions. It is also the least cost theory

Von Thunen's Assumptions

• Man is economic and rational
• Isotropic surface
• Perfect competition
  • Man is a maximizer
  • The price cant be manipulated
  • Returns can be maximized only by maximizing cost

There are two concepts of Von Thunen

1. Concept of isolated state - farmland
2. Concept of locational rent - economic rent

Concept of isolated state

• It is a Farm estate which is isotropic in properties
  • Flat surface
  • no Terrain difference
  • no climatic difference
  • no fertility difference
• The input management at every location is the same
• It is surrounded by wilderness forest Barren land which is is non transendable a barrier which can't be crossed.
• Economic man
• It also single market at the centre and all transactions happen at the Marketplace
• Von thunen was giving is 3 in mediaeval times when are drawn cards where the popular modes of transportation so assumes all transportation is drawn by single horse cart

Concept of locational rent

rent is a cost the person is willing to pay for using some resources. The cost is also referred to as economic rent. Economic rent can depend on many factors like subjective evaluation emotional preferences which however are assumed to be constant because we have reduced the land to isotropic surface perfect competition conditions and the economic & rational man operating on the system. Land fertility in the isotropic office is also not a fact. The only factor that controls the value of land is the location of the land because based on location transportation cost can vary and hence land rent for Von Thunen is referred to as locational rent.

Ricardo - Rent

There is another locational theory in agriculture given by Ricardo who considered the variations in land fertility. So in Ricardo's case, the rent is referred to as economic rent and not locational rent but in Von Thunen's case, the economic rent is equal to the locational rent.

The locational rent in perfect competition is what a farmer is willing to pay which in turn depends on the profits that he makes. In a perfect competition where there are no losses or no excessive profits the rent is the differential of the price and the cost

Hence locational rent LR = price - cost.

• If Y is the yield namely weight per unit area
• P is the price per unit weight
• C is the production and labour cost per unit weight
• t is the transportation cost per unit distance per unit weight
• D is the distance of travel

formula

the only variable in the above equation is d

The above equation is a straight line equation with negative slope which implies that the locational rent reduces with distance from the central market we call this as distance decay function of locational rent.

figure

Because we have assumed anisotropic surface, the locational rent pattern will be a series of concentric circles around the central market and agricultural land use pattern therefore will also be concentric circle

Hence essentially the land near the market is costlier and has higher locational rent where as the land father is relative Lichi per based on this pattern of locational rent Von Thunen concludes that the land near the market will be used for higher-value Agricultural Products and higher land-use intensity to be able to pay for higher rents where has the land farther away can be used for low value crops and extensive land use the agriculture pattern that Von Thunen arrived is are below

Figure

zone zone 1 market gardening

zone 2 forest but not wilderness the forest is relevant in the mediaeval Europe for source of domestication and

Zone 3 crop farming without fallowing

Zone 4 crop farming with fallowing

Zone 5 three field rotation system crops grazing fallow

Figure

Evaluation and applicability

• It is a normative theory and ideal assumptions
• Hence theory will not be applicable to Real-world one to one correspondence
• But there are two examples where it is seen to be partially relevant where the pattern depicts Von Thunen's conclusion ie US and Europe

USA

Agriculture pattern in USA is such that the land use pattern and the choice of crops becomes low intensity land use South wards and West wards away from Northeast New England states of US grazing economy is in California and Texas and Western us where as Southern us along the gulf coast is cotton and corn fields

Europe

The Pattern was also observed for Europe by Smith and Johnson. they are observed that Western Europe and parts of Netherland Belgium have more intensive agriculture and farming to support the dense Urban population where has east in Southern words the intensity Falls there were also concluded that this intensity pattern of Europe may not be so much because of distance from highly urbanized Western Europe alone the pattern is more reflective of the physiographic and Terrain difference Where are Southern Europe is mountainous and Highlands and stepper is are not most fertile soil these factor result in more extensive farming

According to Sinclair region in the immediate vicinity of urban Centre will not be used for intensive agriculture because of high speculative land prices farmers and land owners prefer to idle the land in anticipation of good returns from same auch land gets converted for extensive urban land uses and becomes an area of urban blight.

Energy status in India.

HEP,Nuclear Solar wind GT

Nuclear renewable solar thermal hydroelectric etc.

Fossil fuels

Coal

Coal in India

• Gondwana
• Lignite / Tertiary

Gondwana coal distribution

• Damodar
• Mahanadi
• Son
• Narmada
• Tapi

Problems of coal

• Not good grade
• Shallow - Smuggling
• Techniques - wasteful
  • Selective
  • Shaft

Oil reserves

Sedimentary rocks of marine origin

4 main regions of oil production

• Saurashtra shelf
• KG Basin
• Cuttack shelf
• Assam Shillong Shelf

Himalayan Region - Potential region

Saurashtra shelf

• Gujarat Rajasthan Onshore
• Gujarat W Coast Offshore
• ?? South Bassein
• ?? Alia bet

E Coast Off shore

• KG Basin
• Rawa
• Mukta
• Panna

Upper Assam

• Part of Shillong Shelf
• Sibsagar Dibrugarh Naharkatia Digboi

GAS

Found in Anticlines of Sedimentary rocks

India lack Tech hence flared out

Dhuvaran Plant in Gujarat - Gas based thermal plant

Sui Feilds in Pak - Exclusive gas reserve