Coastal Plains in India and How are They Formed?

Coastal Plains

Coastal plains refer to the coastline of India. Moreover, the coastline of India is very wide and covers an area of 7516.6 km. Furthermore, it touches the 13 states and union territories (UTs).

Coastal Plains of India

During the continental drift from the Gondwanaland, the Indian continent collides with Asia continent and settled there. Besides, the Indian Sub-continent has access to water from the two sides known as east coast and west coast.

Most noteworthy, the coastline consists of an area of 7516.6 km in which the mainland coastline is 6100 km and coastline of 1197 Indian islands that touches 13 States and Union Territories (UTs).

Furthermore, the Arabian Sea and Bay of Bengal came into existence at the time of the tectonic movement of the Gondwanaland.

The Eastern Coastal Plains of India

This coastline lies between the Bay of Bengal and the Eastern Ghats of India. Also, it extends from the Ganga delta to the Kanyakumari. Furthermore, it is marked by deltas of rivers like the Godavari, the Mahanadi, the Kaveri, and the Krishna.

Besides, the important geographical feature of the eastern coast is the Chilika Lake and the Pulicat Lake (lagoon).

Regional Name of the Eastern Coastline

The people of Odisha (Orissa) refer to it as Utkal coast. Moreover, from the southern limits of the Utkal plains, the Andhra Coast stretches. Furthermore, in the south of the Andhra coast lies the Tamil Nadu coast.

Besides, the Tamil Nadu coast and part of Andhra coast together are known as the Coromandel Coast or Payan Ghat.

The Western Coastline of India

The west coast extends from the Gulf of Khambhat (Gulf of Cambay) in the north to Kanyakumari (Cape Comorin) in the south. Besides, it divides, into 3 coasts from north to south namely the Konkan coast, the Karnataka coast, and the Kerala coast.

Moreover, it is formed of alluvial soil brought down by short streams that originated in the Western Ghats. In addition, it is dotted with a number of creeks (a sheltered narrow waterway such as inlet in shoreline or channel in a marsh), estuaries (Marine landforms), and coves (small bay).

Besides, the estuaries of the Tapi and the Narmada are the major ones. Moreover, the Kerala coast (Malabar Coast) has some lakes backwaters and lagoon, the largest being the Vembanad Lake.

Regional Name of the Western Coastline

The Maharashtra coast and Goa coast together form the Konkan coast of the western coast. Also, the Kerala coast and the Karnataka coast together form the Malabar Coast.

Emergence and Submergence of Coastline

Emergence of coastline happens due to the lowering of sea level or uplift of the land. Besides, the submergence of coastline is just opposite of it. Moreover, the bars, lagoons, beaches, arches, sea cliffs, salt marshes, and spits are the typical structures of emergence.

The south-eastern part of the eastern coast is a coast of emergence. Most noteworthy, the western coast formed due to both emergence and submergence.

How Coastal Plains Form

The coastline can form in various ways. It can form by deposits of sediments carried by ocean current or rivers entering the sea. Furthermore, it can form by erosion by waves. Besides, the rocky and rugged coastlines form by erosion. While on the other hand, shallow and sedimentary coastline usually forms by sediments deposits.

In addition, the tectonic movements can also spill out lave from mountains or push up new landforms from underwater that can create new coastline.

Solved Question for You

Question. How many states the Indian coastline touches?

1. 9
2. 10
3. 11
4. 13

Answer. The correct answer is option A.