Geography

Subject : Geography

* Section-A (Physical Georgraphy) Geomorphology

Origin of the earth; Geological Time Scale; Interior of the earth;
Types and characteristics of rocks; Folding and Faulting; Volcanoes;
Earthquakes; Weathering; Landforms caused by fluvial, aeolian and
glacial actions.

* Climatology
Structure and composition of atmosphere; Temperature; Pressure belts and
Wind systems; Clouds and rainfall types; Cyclones and anti-cyclones;
Major climatic types.

* Oceanography
Ocean relief; Temperature; Salinity; Ocean deposits; Ocean currents,
El Nino and La Nino; Waves and tides.

* Biogeography
Origin and types of soils; Major biomes of the world; Ecosystem and
food chain; Environmental degradation and conservation.

* Section-B (Human Geography) Man and Environment Relationship

Growth and development of Human Geography; Concepts of Determinism
and Possibilism.
* Population
Races of mankind and tribes; growth and distribution of world
population; migration; population problems of developed and
developing countries.
* Economic Activities
Food gathering and hunting; pastoral herding; fishing and forestry;
Types of agriculture-shifting, subsistence, commercial and plantation;
Mining, Power; Manufacturing -locational factors of textile, iron and steel,
sugar and fertilizer industries; Tertiary activities-trade, transport,
communication and services.
* Settlements
Origin, types and patterns of rural settlements; Processes of urbanisation;
morphology and functional classification of towns; million-cities and mega-cities.

* Section-C (Geography of the World)

Major Natural Regions : Characteristics, economic base and human adaptation.
* Regional Geography of Developed Countries : Canada, U.S.A., Western Europe,
Russia, Japan, Australia and New Zealand.
* Regional Geography of Developing Countries : S.E. Asia, S.W. Asia, China,
Southern Africa and Brazil.
* Regional Geography of South Asia.

* Section-D (Geography of India) Physical Setting

Landforms, drainage, climate, soils and natural vegetation.
* Economic Base
Minerals & energy resources, aquatic resources, forest resources; irrigation,
agriculture and industries; trade and commerce.
* Population
Growth, distribution and density; demographic characteristics.
* Environmental problems, developmental issues and regional planning.

* Section-E (Geographical Thought)

Ancient Period : Contributions of Indians, Greeks, Romans and Arabs.
* Pre-Modern Period : Contribution of Verenius, Kant, Humboldt and Ritter.
* Modern Period : Dichotomy of determinism and possibilism;
contributions of Ratzel, Semple, Huntington and La Blache.
* Recent Period : Quantitive Revolution; Radicalism, Behaviouralism and Humanism.

* Section-F (Techniques of Geographical Analysis) Maps : Scale and types, uses.
* Diagrams : Types and uses
* Projections : Types, characteristics and uses.
* Remote sensing and geographical information system (GIS) : Aerial
photographs and imagery, GIS.




Main Examination Syllabus

Paper-I (Principles of Geography)

Section-A (Physical Geography)

1. Geomorphology
Factors controlling landform development; endogenetic and exogenetic forces; origin and
evolution of the earth’s crust; physical conditions of the earth’s interior; geosynclines;
continental drift; isostasy; sea-floor spreading; plate tectonics; mountain building;
volcanicity; earthquakes; concepts of geomorphic cycles; landforms associated with
fluvial, arid, glacial, coastal and karst cycle; groundwater; Applied Geomorphology.

2. Climatology
Temperature and pressure belts of the world; heat budget of the earth; atmospheric
circulation; planetary and local winds; monsoons and jet streams; air masses and
fronts; temperate and tropical cyclones; types and distribution of precipitation;
Koppen’s and Thornthwaite’s classification of world climate; hydrological cycle;
climatic change.

3. Oceanography
Bottom topography of the Atlantic, Indian and Pacific Oceans; temperature and salinity
of the oceans; ocean deposits; ocean currents and tides; marine resources–biotic,
mineral and energy resources; coral reefs; sea-level changes.

4. Biogeography
Genesis of soils; classification and distribution of soils; soil profile; soil
erosion and conservation; factors influencing world distribution of plants and
animals; problems of deforestation and conservation measures; social forestry,
agro-forestry.

5. Environmental Geography
Human ecological adaptations; transformation of nature by man; environmental
degradation and conservawtin; ecosystems and their management; global ecological
imbalances–problems of pollution, global warming, reduction in bio-diversity
and depletion of forests.

Section-B (Human Geography)

1. Perspectives in Human Geography
A real differentiation; regional synthesis; dichotomy and dualism;
environmentalism; quantitative revolution and locational analysis; radical,
behavioural, human and welfare approaches; cultural regions of the world
human and welfare approaches; cultural regions of the world; human
development indicators.

2. Economic Geography
World economic develpment–measurement and problems; world resources and
their distribution; energy crisis; the limits to growth; world
agriculture–typology of agricultural regions; agricultural inputs and
productivity; food and nutrition problems; famine–causes, effects and remedies;
world industries–location patterns and problems; patterns of world trade.

3. Population and Settlement Geography
Growth and distribution of world population; demographic atrributes; causes
and consequencies of migration; concepts of over–, under– and optimum
population; world population problems.

Types and patterns of rural settlements; hierarchy of urban settlements;
concept of primate city and rank-size rule; functional classificatipn of
towns; sphere of urban influence; rural-urban fringe; satellite town;
problems of urbanisation.

4. Regional Planning
Concept of a region; types of regions and methods of regionalisation;
growth centres and growth poles; regional imbalances; environmental
issues in regional planning; planning for sustainable development.

5. Models, Theories and Laws in Human Geography
System analysis in Human Geography; Malthusian, Marxian and Demographic
Transition models; Central Place theories of Christaller and Losch;
Von Thunen’s model of agricultural location; Weber’s model of industrial
location; Rostov’s model of stages of growth. Heart-land and Rimland
theories; laws of international boundaries and frontiers.

Note : Candidates will be required to answer one compulsory map question
pertinent to subjects covered by this paper.

Paper-II (Geography of India)

Section-A.

1. Physical Setting
Space relationship of India with neighbouring countries; structure and
relief; drainage system and watersheds; physiographic regions; mechanism
of Indian monsoons; tropical cyclones and western distrubances; floods
and droughts; climatic regions; natural vegetation, soil types and
their distributions.

2. Resources
Land, surface and groundwater, energy, minerals, and biotic resources,
their distribution, utilisation and conservation; energy crisis.

3. Agriculture
Infrastructure–irrigation, seeds, fertilizers, power; institutional
factors–land holdings, land tenure and land reforms; agricultural
productivity, agricultural intensity, crop combination, land capability;
agro-and social forestry; green revolution and its socio-economic and
ecological implications; significance of dry farming; livestock resources
and white revolution; blue revolution; agricultural regionalisation;
agro-climatic zones.

4. Industry
Evolution of industries; locational factors of cotton, jute, iron and
steel, fertiliser, paper, drugs and pharmaceutical, automobile and cottage
indusries; industrial complexes and industrial regionalisaiton; new
industrial policy; multinationals and liberalisation.

5. Transport, Communication and Trade
Road, railway, waterway, airway and pipeline networks and their
complementary roles in regional development; growing importance of ports
on national and foreign trade, trade balance; free trade and export
promotion zones; developments in communication technology and its
impact on economy and society.

Section-B

1. Cultural Setting
Racial and ethnic diversities; major tribes, tribal areas and their
problems; role of langague, religion and tradition in the formation
of cultural regions; growth, distribution and density of population;
demographic attributes–sex-ratio, age structure, literacy rate,
work-force, dependency ratio and longevity; migration (inter-regional,
intra-regional and international) and associated problems, population
problems and policies.

2. Settlements
Types, patterns and morphology of rural settlements; urban development;
census definition of urban areas; morphology of Indian cities;
functional classification of Indian cities; conurbations and metropolitan
regions; urban sprawl; slums and associated problems; town planning;
problems of urbanisaiton.

3. Regional Development and Planning
Experience of regional planning in India; Five Year Plans; integrated
rural development programmes; panchayati raj and decentralised planning;
command area development; watershed management; planning for backward
area, desert drought-prone, hill and tribal area development;
multi-level planning; geography and regional planning.

4. Political Aspects
Geographical basis of Indian federalism; state reorganisation;
regional consciousness and national integration; international
boundary of India and related issues; disputes on sharing of water
resources; India and geopolitics of the Indian Ocean.

5. Contemporary Issues
Environmental hazards–landslides, earthquakes, floods and droughts,
epidemics; issues related to environmental pollution; changes in
patterns of land use; principles of environmental impact assessment
and environmental management; population explosion and food security;
environmental degradation; problems of agrarian and industrial unrest;
regional disparities in economic development; concept of sustainable
growth and development.

Note : Candidates will be required to answer one compulsory map
question pertinent to subjects covered by this paper.