HSC Arts (English Medium) 12th Standard Board Exam - Maharashtra State Board Important Questions for Geography

Different types of human settlements include padas, villages, small towns, big cities, all remote places, towns and groups of towns. In some systems, human settlements are divided into urban, suburban and rural. For example, The United States Census Bureau classifies settlements in urban or rural areas based on a defined definition. In small settlements, such as padas and villages, access to low population and services is limited. Larger settlements, such as cities, have higher populations, higher densities, and greater access to services. For example, a village may have only one or two general stores, while a large metropolis may have many specialized stores. These differences are known as low order service settlement and high-order service settlement. The functions of human habitation are also different. Because settlements can be established as ports, markets and resorts. Types of rural settlements can also be classified by activities such as agriculture, fishing and mining. Settlements that focus on one economic activity are called single functional settlements.

Human habitation can be permanent or temporary. For example, a refugee camp is a temporary settlement, while a city is a permanent settlement.

Land is very valuable – natural resource as land is required for the production of food, construction of buildings, roads, railways, lakes. Similarly, land is required for the growth of fodder, grass, trees etc. If the fertile land of country is more then the productivity of agriculture is more. Forest resources provide us medicinal plant, livestock farming and help to maintain the balance of environment.

The geographical area of India is 32,87,263 Sq.Km. India ranks 7^th according to area of world. Similarly, India ranks 7^th in the cultivable area in the world. The total cultivable area is 18,64,00,000 hectares. It is about 77% of the total area but only 46% of this area is used for cultivation. Area under cultivation is reduced due to growth of population in the country, development of industries, construction of roads, lakes etc.

The type of land is different, in different states of India. States in Northern India are the hilly region so the are under cultivation and fertility of land is less. The part of Rajasthan and Gujarat’s state is covered by deserts. The amount of fertile land is more in Madhya Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh, Punjab, Haryana and Maharashtra.