The Deccan Plateau

The Deccan Plateau is a large, flat area of land in southern India. It is one of the oldest pieces of land on Earth. The plateau is bordered by mountains on three sides. Many important rivers flow across it before reaching the sea.

The Land

The Deccan Plateau is made of very old rock, including hardened lava from ancient volcanoes. The Western Ghats and Eastern Ghats are mountain ranges along the edges of the plateau. The land is higher in the west and slopes down to the east. The plateau is mostly dry with some forests.

People and Resources

Hundreds of millions of people live on the Deccan Plateau. Farmers grow cotton, sugarcane, and rice. The plateau has valuable minerals like iron ore and diamonds. Big cities like Bangalore and Hyderabad sit on the Deccan Plateau.

Fun Facts

• The Deccan Plateau covers about 190,000 square miles.
• The word Deccan comes from a word meaning south.
• Some of the rock on the Deccan Plateau is over 2 billion years old.

Did You Know?

The Deccan Plateau was formed by massive volcanic eruptions about 66 million years ago, around the same time the dinosaurs went extinct!