Geography of Karnataka


The Indian State of Karnataka is located 11°30' North and 18°30' North latitudes and 74° East and 78°30' East longitude. It is situated on a tableland where the Western and Eastern Ghat ranges converge into the complex, in the western part of the Deccan Peninsular region of India. The State is bounded by Maharashtra and Goa States in the north and northwest; by the Arabian Sea in the west; by Kerala and Tamil Nadu States in the south and by the States of Andhra Pradesh and Telangana in the east. Karnataka extends to about 750 km from north to south and about 400 km from east to west.
Karnataka is situated in the Deccan Plateau and is bordered by the Arabian Sea to the west, Goa to the northwest, Maharashtra to the north, Andhra Pradesh and Telangana to the east, Tamil Nadu to the southeast, and Kerala to the southwest. It is situated at the angle where the Western Ghats and Eastern Ghats of South India converge into the Nilgiri hills. The highest point in Karnataka is the Mullayanagiri hill in Chikkamagaluru district which has an altitude of above sea level.

Landforms of Karnataka

The state has three principal physical zones;
Karnataka has one of the highest average elevations of Indian states at 1,500 feet. The highest recorded temperature was 45.6 °C at Raichur on 23 May 1928. The lowest recorded temperature was 2.8 °C at Bidar on 16 December 1918.

Area and population

Karnataka has a total land area of 191,791 km² and accounts for 5.83% of the total area of the country. This puts it in seventh place in terms of size. With a population of 6,11,30,704, it occupies eighth place in terms of population. The population density which stands at 319 persons per km² is lower than the all-India average of 382.

Mineral resources

Karnataka is rich in its mineral wealth which is distributed fairly evenly across the state. Karnataka's Geological Survey department started in 1880 is one of the oldest in the country. Rich deposits of asbestos, bauxite, chromite, dolomite, gold, iron ore, kaolin, limestone, magnesite, Manganese, ochre, quartz and silica sand are found in the state. Karnataka is also a major producer of felsite, moulding sand and fuchsite quartzite in the country.
Karnataka has two major centers of gold mining in the state at Kolar and Raichur. These mines produce about 3000 kg of gold per annum which accounts for almost 84% of the country's production. Karnataka has very rich deposits of high grade iron and manganese ores to the tune of 1,000 million tonnes. Most of the iron ores are concentrated around the Bellary-Hospet region. Karnataka with a granite rock spread of over 4200 km² is also famous for its Ornamental Granites with different hues.

Geography

According to Radhakrishnan and Vaidyanadhan, there are four main types of geological formations in Karnataka:
Eleven groups of soil orders are found in Karnataka viz. Entisols, Inceptisols, Mollisols, Spodosols, Alfisols, Ultisols, Oxisols, Aridisols, Vertisols, Andisols and Histosols. Depending on the agricultural capability of the soil, the soil types are divided into six types viz., Red, lateritic, black, alluvio-colluvial, forest and coastal soils.
The common types of soil groups found in Karnataka are:
With a surface water potential of about 102 kilometers, Karnataka accounts for about six percent of the country's surface water resources. Around 60% of this is provided by the west flowing rivers while the remaining comes from the east flowing rivers. There are seven river basins in all formed by the Godavari, Cauvery, Krishna, the west-flowing rivers, North Pennar River, South Pennar, and Palar.

Waterfalls in Karnataka

30 East-flowing rivers.
12 West-flowing rivers, providing 60% of state's inland water resources.
Karnataka has the following four seasons in the year:
The post-monsoon and winter seasons are generally pleasant over the entire state. The months April and May are hot, very dry and generally uncomfortable. Weather tends to be oppressive during June due to high humidity and temperature. The next three months are somewhat comfortable due to reduced day temperature although the humidity continue to be very high. The highest recorded temperature was at Raichur on 23 May 1928. The lowest recorded temperature was C at Bidar on 16 December 1918.
Karnataka is divided into three meteorological zones:
The southwest monsoon accounts for almost 80% of the rainfall that the state receives. The annual rainfall across the state ranges from low 50 cm to copious 350 cm. The districts of Bijapur, Raichur, Bellary and Southern half of Gulbarga experience the lowest rainfall ranging from 50 to 60 cm while the west coastal region and Malenadu enjoy the highest rainfall.
The following were the top 5 places that peaked in rainfall statistics
RankHobli/VillageDistrictTalukYearRainfall in mmElevation in metres
1AmagaonBelgaum districtKhanapur201010,068785
2MundroteKodagu district/Coorg DistrictMadikeri20119,974585
3HulikalShimoga districtHosanagara20139,383614
4AgumbeShimoga districtThirthahalli20138,770643
5Kokalli/KakalliUttara KannadaSirsi20148,746780

Forests

About 38724 km² are covered by forests. The forests are classified as reserved protected, unclosed, village and private forests. The percentage of forests area to Geographical area in the State is less than the all-India average of about 23%, and 33% prescribed in the National Forest Policy. The area under protected forests in the neighboring States is as follows: Andhra Pradesh 62,000 km², Maharashtra 54,000 km², Tamil Nadu 22,000 km² and Kerala 11,000 km².
Karnataka is known for its valuable timbers from the evergreen forests in the Western Ghat region, notably Teak and Rosewood, the richly ornate panels of which adorn the beautiful chambers of the Two Houses of Karnataka Legislature.