The document summarizes the origin and significance of the Himalayas to India. It discusses how the Himalayas formed from the collision of the Indian plate with Eurasia around 100 million years ago. This collision led to the formation of three phases of mountain building over millions of years. The Himalayas are hugely significant as they intercept summer monsoons, provide water and soil fertility, offer natural resources, and have historically protected India from invaders from the north. While vital for India, the document notes the Himalayas are also degrading due to exploitation, so steps must be taken to prevent overuse of resources.

1. ORIGIN OF HIMALAYA AND ITS SIGNIFICANCES
TO INDIA
Department of Geography
Hemwati Nandan Bahuguna Garhwal University
Srinagar, Uttarakhand-246174
Presenting by
VIKAS RAWAT

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CONTENT
 PHYSIOGRAPHY OF HIMALAYA
 ORIGIN OF HIMALAYA
 CONTINENTAL DRIFT THEORY
 TETHYS SEA
 RIVER SEDIMENTS FROM LANDMASSES
 NORTHWARD MOVEMENT OF GONDWANALAND
 PHASES OF FORMATION
 SIGNIFICANCES OF HIMALAYA
 CONCLUSION

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PHYSIOGRAPHY OF HIMALAYA
 Consist of youngest and loftiest mountain in the
World
 Stretches from the Indus gorge to Brahmputra
gorge
 Width varies from 500km in Kashmir to 200km in
Arunachal Pradesh
 Total area of Himalaya covers 5 lakh sq.km

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ORIGIN OF HIMALAYA
(THIS VIEW MAY BE GROUPED UNDER THESE CATAGORIES)
 CONTINENTAL DRIFT THEORY
(BY ALFRED WEGNER)
 GONDWANALAND, ANGARA LAND
AND TETHYS SEA INTERACTION
 SEDIMENTS BROUGHT BY RIVERS
TO THE TETHYS SEA
 NORTHWARD MOVEMENT OF
GONDWANALAND
PANGEA DURING THE LATE
PALAEOZOIC AND EARLY MESOZOIC
ERAS
NORTHWARD
MOVEMENT OF INDIAN
PLATE

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PHASES OF FORMATION
I. PHASE: 120 million year ago the Greater Himalaya
formed
II. PHASE: 25 to 30 million year ago Middle Himalaya
formed
III.PHASE: In the last phase 2 to 20 million year ago
Shivalik range formed

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THE SIGNIFICANCE OF HIMALAYA
No other mountain range anywhere in the world has
affected the life of people and shape of the nation as the
Himalaya have in respect of India.
 CLIMATIC INFLUENCE
 Intercept the summer monsoon coming from Bay of Bengal
and Arabian sea
 Prevent the cold air masses
 DEFENCE
 Since the early times Himalaya protecting India from outside
invaders

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 SOURCE OF RIVER
 PERENNIAL RIVER PROVIDES WATER EVEN IN DRY
SEASON
 FERTILE SOIL
 Gangatic plain of North India
 HYDROPOWER
 FOREST WEALTH
 Rich in forest resources
 Provides fuel wood and large variety of raw material
 Medicine plants
 Offering rich pastures for grazing animal

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 AGRICULTURE
 The Himalaya do not offer extensive flat lands for agriculture
but still some of the slopes are terraced for cultivstion
 TOURISM
 Scenic beauty and health environment, the Himalaya region
have developed a large number of tourist spots
 MINERALS
 Vast potentialities of mineral oil in the tertiary rocks
 Copper, lead, zinc, cobalt, antimony, tungsten, gold, silver,
limestone, precious stones, gypsum and magnesite are
known to occur at more than 100 localities in the Himalaya

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CONCLUSION
The Himalaya plays a vital role for India if there had no
Himalayas, the whole of India would have been a desert in
the absence of precipitation and its winter would have been
very severe under the influence of cold airmasses coming
from central Asia. Though it is playing such essential role for
our country, on the other side we are not considering about
the factors which causing Himalaya degradation. There are
steps need to be taken to prevent such amount of
exploitation.

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THANK-YOU