Question

Describe the location and the main features of the Indus Plain.

Answer 1

Hint
The Indus River plain is a vast expanse of fertile land with a gentle slope from Himalayan Piedmont in the north to the Arabian Sea in the south, covering about 200,000 square miles (518,000 square km). The average slope gradient is not greater than 1 foot per mile (1 metre per 5 km). The plain is featureless, with the exception of the microrelief. On account of their different physiographic characteristics, it is divisible into two parts, the upper and lower Indus plains.

Complete answer:
The Indus valley Plain, built up over centuries by sediment, is a flat landform in Pakistan.
Much of it falls within the province of Punjab. The plain is formed by the Indus River and its tributaries in Pakistan's western part of the Northern Plain. It is farmed extensively for maize, sugarcane rice and cotton. You may divide the Indus Plain into two parts:

> Upper Indus Plain: Much of Punjab and some portions of the KPK are included. The Potwar Plateau and the Salt Range are not part of the Upper Indus Plain, however.
> Lower Indus Plain: The central part of Sindh and a part of Balochistan are included. The Thar desert is not part of the Lower Indus Plain, nor is the Sind Region of Kohistan.

TOPOGRAPHICAL FEATURES/PHYSIOGRAPHIC DIVISIONS/PHYSICAL FEATURES OF THE INDUS PLAIN:

Active flood plain---present in both parts
Old flood plain--- present in both
Alluvial Terraces --- only in Upper Indus Plain
Piedmont Plains--- present in both
Rolling Sandplains (Deserts)---present in both
Cuestas--- only in Lower Indus Plain
Tidal Delta ----present only in Lower Indus Plains.

Active flood plain:
There was a small strip of land on both sides of the river. Present in the Indus Plain, both upper and lower. The local language is called 'bet' or ' khaddar '.

Physical Features:

⦁ Floods every year

⦁ New alluvium is deposited

⦁ Oxbow lakes, meanders and levees are important features

⦁ Dry, braided channels full of alluvium visible after the flood

Old flood plain:
Located just off the plain of active floods. Found in both parts of the plain of Indus. It can be further divided into the floodplain of cover and the flood plain of the meander.

Physical Features:

⦁ Floods every 7-8 years since it is further away from the river

⦁ Old alluvium

⦁ Old levees, meander scars(abandoned channels) and dried oxbow lakes(dhands)

Alluvial Terraces:
Areas of higher ground on a doab between the rivers. Less fertile territory. Suitable for human characteristics, since it is unlikely to be flooded, such as homes.

Physical Features:

⦁ It is made up of old alluvium

⦁ Flat surface

⦁ Has a south-west slope

Piedmont Plain:
It's located at the foot of the mountains. Found in both parts of the Plain of the Indus. The Piedmont plain of Sulaiman and Siwaliks are in the Upper Indus plain. The Kirthar Piedmont Plain is located in the Lower Indus Plain.
These are formed because of the river's repetitive braiding until it disappears, due to silt deposition.

Physical Features:

⦁ Alluvial fans or cones made of gravel, sand and alluvium

Cuesta:
A word in Spanish means a slope or a hill. Located in the lower Indus Plain, it is (Sindh). It is a limestone ridge with one side having a steep slope and the other side having a gentle dip slope. There are two cuestas:
Rohri Cuesta located near Sukkur (80 metres high, 48 km long)
Gango takar Cuesta located near Hyderabad(24 km long)

Importance:

⦁ Adds to the scenic beauty of a generally flat area

⦁ Provide raw material for the cement industry

⦁ Provide a firm foundation for the construction of barrages.

Tidal Delta:
It is situated at the mouth of the River Indus in Thatta. A delta is a triangular feature created due to the deposition of silt at the mouth of a river.

Physical features:

⦁ Distributaries

⦁ Marshes

⦁ Swamps

⦁ Levees

⦁ Meanders

⦁ Mangroves

⦁ Alluvium

Rolling sandplains (Deserts)
Pakistan has 3 main deserts:
⦁ The Kharan desert located in Balochistan
⦁ Thal desert also called the Sind Sagar Doab, located in Upper Indus Plain.
⦁ Thar desert located in both upper and Lower Indus Plain. It is a part of the Rajasthan Desert. It has three parts:

⦁ The Cholistan in the Upper Indus Plain ( Punjab)

⦁ Nara in the Lower Indus Plain( Sindh)

⦁ Tharparkar is the Lower Indus Plain( Sindh)

Topographical Features:
⦁ Rolling sand plains
⦁ Sand dunes, either longitudinal or latitudinal
⦁ Weathering of rocks
⦁ Low water table
⦁ Scanty vegetation
⦁ Flatland between dunes, called ‘pattis’

Note
The high plain of the Indus Plain, near the foothills of the Himalayas, is also called the Pothohar Plateau (e.g., Margalla Hills). Thal desert, Indus Valley desert, Thar Desert and Cholistan desert are the deserts found in the Indus plain of Pakistan.