question_answer 12)

Give the characteristics and effects of the monsoon rainfall in India.

Answer:

Characteristics   (a) The climate of India is described as the 'monsoon' type.   (b) Monsoon refers to the seasonal reversal in the wind direction during the year.   (c) The duration of monsoon is between 100-120 days from .early June to mid September. Around the time of its arrival, the normal rainfall increases suddenly and continues constantly for several days. This is known as 'burst' of the monsoon.   (d) The monsoon has a tendency to have 'breaks'; thus, it has wet and dry spells. In other words, monsoon rains take place only for a few days at a time.   (e) The monsoon is known for its uncertainties.   (f) The alternation of dry and wet spells vary in intensity, frequency and duration.   (g) Distribution of Rainfall Parts of the western coast and north-eastern India receive over 400 cm of rainfall; however, it is less than 60 cm in western Rajasthan and parts of Gujarat, Haryana and Punjab. Kashmir also receives low rainfall. The withdrawal of the monsoon begins when the south-west monsoon winds weaken and start withdrawing gradually. By the beginning of October, the monsoon withdrawal from the northern plains. By mid October, it withdraws completely from the northern half of the peninsula. By early December, the monsoon has withdrawn from the rest of India. Effects of the Monsoon   (a) India has traditionally been an agricultural country with more than 50% of its population dependent on agriculture.   (b) A large part of the country's agriculture is mainly dependent upon the monsoon rains.   (c) There is great variation in the rainfall received by the different parts of the country, somewhere it leads to floods and its absence in other parts leads to drought like conditions.   (d) The Indian landscape, its animal and plant life, the entire agricultural calendar and the life of the people, including their festivities revolve around this phenomenon (monsoon).   (e) The monsoon winds bind the whole country by providing water to set the agricultural activities in motion. It is often irregular in its arrival and its retreat sometimes disturbs the farming schedule of millions of farmers all over the country.