Which one of the following is the youngest mountain range of India?

Question

UnlockIAS · Accepted Answer

Correct — (a) Himadri Range. The Himadri (the Greater or Inner Himalaya) is part of the Himalayas — the youngest fold mountains in India and the world — thrown up only about 50 million years ago (Cenozoic era) by the collision of the Indian and Eurasian plates. The process is still going on, which is why the Himalayas keep rising and are seismically active.

Why the other options are wrong — (b) The Aravallis are among the oldest fold mountains in the world (Precambrian) — the very opposite of 'youngest'; they are now heavily eroded and low.  (c) The Western Ghats are old block/escarpment mountains along the faulted western edge of the Deccan plateau, far older than the Himalayan uplift.  (d) The Vindhyas are ancient relict/block mountains of Peninsular India built on very old rocks — not a young fold range.

Concept: Mountains are classified by mode and age of formation. The Himalayas are young fold mountains (Tertiary/Cenozoic, ~50 mya) formed by plate collision. Peninsular ranges — Aravalli, Vindhya, Satpura — are old relict/block mountains on some of Earth's oldest crust, while the Western Ghats are the uplifted, faulted western margin of the Deccan.

State PCS 2020 Q60 — Geography PYQ with Answer

State PCS 2020 Q60 — Geography PYQ with Answer