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Question
Give one example of ‘Rain Shadow’ areas in India.
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Solution 1
An example of a ‘Rain Shadow’ area in India is the Arabian Sea branch: Chennai lies on the leeward side of the Western Ghats and falls under the Rain Shadow.
Solution 2
One example of a rain shadow area in India is the leeward side of the Western Ghats. The moisture-laden summer monsoon winds bring heavy rainfall to the windward side (the western side) of the Western Ghats, resulting in lush forests and high precipitation. However, these winds lose most of their moisture by the time they cross over the mountains, leaving the leeward (eastern) side dry with very little rainfall. This region often faces acute water shortages and sparse vegetation, making it a classic example of a rain shadow area in India.
RELATED QUESTIONS
Give a reason for each of the following:
Kolkata receives heavier rain than Lucknow.
Give geographical reasons for each of the following:
The Ganga Plains gets the monsoon rain much later than the west coast of India.
| Stations | Latitude | Altitude (Metres) | Jan. | Feb. | Mar. | Apr. | May. | Jun. | July. | Aug. | Sep. | Oct. | Nov. | Dec. | Annual Rainfall |
|
Temperature (°C) |
20.5 |
22.7 |
25.2 |
27.1 |
26.7 |
24.2 |
23.0 |
23.0 |
23.1 |
22.9 |
18.9 |
20.2 |
|||
| Bengaluru | 12°58'N | 909 |
|
|
|
||||||||||
| Rainfall (cm) | 0.7 | 0.9 | 1.1 | 4.5 | 10.7 | 7.1 | 11.1 | 13.7 | 16.4 |
15.3 |
6.1 |
1.3 |
88.9 | ||
|
Temperature (°C) |
24.4 |
24.4 |
26.7 |
28.3 |
30.0 |
28.9 |
27.2 |
27.2 |
27.2 |
27.8 |
27.2 |
25.0 |
|||
|
Mumbai |
19° N | 11 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Rainfall (cm) |
0.2 |
0.2 |
– |
– |
1.8 |
50.6 |
61.0 |
36.9 |
26.9 |
4.8 |
1.0 |
– |
183.4 | ||
|
Temperature (°C) |
19.6 |
22.0 |
27.1 |
30.1 |
30.4 |
29.9 |
28.9 |
28.7 |
28.9 |
27.6 |
23.4 |
19.7 |
|||
|
Kolkata |
22°34'N | 6 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Rainfall (cm) |
1.2 |
2.8 |
3.4 |
5.1 |
13.4 |
29.0 |
33.1 |
33.4 |
25.3 |
12.7 |
2.7 |
0.4 |
162.5 | ||
|
Temperature (°C) |
14.4 |
16.7 |
23.3 |
30.0 |
33.3 |
33.3 |
30.0 |
29.4 |
28.9 |
25.6 |
19.4 |
15.6 |
|||
|
Delhi |
29° N | 219 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Rainfall (cm) |
2.5 |
1.5 |
1.3 |
1.0 |
1.8 |
7.4 |
19.3 |
17.8 |
11.9 |
1.3 |
0.2 |
1.0 |
67.0 | ||
|
Temperature (°C) |
16.8 |
19.2 |
26.6 |
29.8 |
33.3 |
33.9 |
31.3 |
29.0 |
20.1 |
27.0 |
20.1 |
14.9 |
|||
|
Jodhpur |
26°18'N | 224 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Rainfall (cm) |
0.5 |
0.6 |
0.3 |
0.3 |
1.0 |
3.1 |
10.8 |
13.1 |
5.7 |
5.7 |
0.2 |
0.2 |
36.6 | ||
|
Temperature (°C) |
24.5 |
25.7 |
27.7 |
30.4 |
33.0 |
32..5 |
31.0 |
30.2 |
29.8 |
28.0 |
25.9 |
24.9 |
|||
|
Chennai |
13°4'N | 7 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Rainfall (cm) |
4.6 |
1.3 |
1.3 |
1.8 |
3.8 |
22.2 |
8.7 |
11.3 |
11.9 |
30.6 |
35.0 |
0.2 |
128.6 | ||
|
Temperature (°C) |
21.5 |
23.9 |
28.3 |
32.7 |
35.5 |
32.0 |
27.7 |
27.3 |
27.9 |
26.7 |
23.1 |
20.7 |
|||
|
Nagpur |
21°9'N | 312 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Rainfall (cm) |
1.1 |
2.3 |
1.7 |
1.6 |
2.1 |
22.2 |
37.6 |
28.6 |
18.5 |
5.5 |
2.0 |
13.9 |
124.2 | ||
|
Temperature (°C) |
9.8 |
11.3 |
15.9 |
18.5 |
19.2 |
20.5 |
21.1 |
20.9 |
20.9 |
17.2 |
13.3 |
10.4 |
|||
|
Shillong |
24°34'N | 1461 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Rainfall (cm) |
1.4 |
2.9 |
5.6 |
14.6 |
29.5 |
47.6 |
35.9 |
34.3 |
30.2 |
18.8 |
3.8 |
1.0 |
225.3 | ||
|
Temperature (°C) |
26.7 |
27.3 |
28.3 |
28.7 |
28.6 |
26.6 |
26.2 |
26.2 |
26.5 |
26.7 |
26.6 |
26.5 |
|||
|
Thiruvananthapuram |
8°29'N | 61 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Rainfall (cm) |
2.3 |
2.1 |
3.7 |
10.6 |
20.8 |
35.6 |
22.3 |
14.6 |
13.8 |
27.3 |
20.6 |
7.5 |
181.2 | ||
|
Temperature (°C) |
−8.5 |
−7.2 |
−0.6 |
6.1 |
10.0 |
14.4 |
17.2 |
16.1 |
12.2 |
6.1 |
0.0 |
−5.6 |
|||
|
Leh |
34°N | 3506 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Rainfall (cm) |
1.0 |
0.8 |
0.8 |
0.5 |
0.5 |
0.5 |
1.3 |
1.3 |
0.8 |
0.5 |
– |
0.5 |
8.5 |
In above Table the average mean monthly temperatures and amounts of rainfall of ten representative stations have been given. It is for you to study on your own and convert them into ‘temperature and rainfall’ graphs. A glance at these visual representations will help you to grasp instantly the similarities and differences between them. One such graph (Figure 1) is already prepared for you. See if you can arrive at some broad generalisations about our diverse climatic conditions. 
Describe the climatic conditions which prevail over India during different Seasons.
Patna receives heavier rain than Delhi.
Mumbai receives rainfall in the summer season while Chennai receives rainfall from October to December. Why?
Thar Desert gets very little rain.
Give reason why Shillong gets hardly 200 cm., rainfall during the year, whereas Cherrapunji gets more than 1250 cm, of rainfall although they are situated very close to each other.
Name the areas receiving very heavy rainfall on account of favourable situation of a mountain
Study the climate data of Station X and answer the questions that follow:
| Month | Jan. | Feb. | Mar. | Apr. | May | June | July | Aug. | Sep. | Oct. | Nov. | Dec. |
| Temperature °C | 21.0 | 21.9 | 24.3 | 27.2 | 28.0 | 26.4 | 26.1 | 25.4 | 26.0 | 26.0 | 23.8 | 21.2 |
| Rainfall in cm | 5.1 | 2.8 | 1.2 | 1.7 | 3.9 | 4.6 | 8.4 | 11.4 | 11.9 | 31.6 | 34.5 | 14.8 |
- Calculate the annual range of temperature of Station X.
- Name the wind that brings most of the rainfall to this station.
- On which coast of India is Station X located?
