Haryana : Geographical Features

Haryana is a state in northern India located between 27° 37' to 30° 35' latitude and between 74° 28' to 77° 36' longitude. It is surrounded by Uttar Pradesh (UP) on the east, Punjab on the west, Uttaranchal, Himachal Pradesh & Shivalik Hills on the north and Delhi, Rajasthan and Aravalli Hills on the south. The altitude of Haryana varies between 700 ft to 900 ft above the sea level. An area of 1,553 sq km is covered by forests.

The four main geographical features of the state are: Shivalik Hills, Ghaggar Yamuna Plain, Semi-desert sandy plain and Aravalli hills. Rivers like Saraswati, Ghaggar, Tangri and Markanda originate from the Shivalik Hills. Ghaggar Yamuna Plain is made up of sand, clay, silt and hard calcareous balls like gravel known locally as “kankar”. This plain forms the largest part of the state. The other two regions are dry hilly areas and share its borders with Rajasthan. The state has a total of 81 cities & towns and 6,759 villages. For administrative purpose, the state has been divided into four divisions (Ambala, Rohtak, Gurgaon and Hissar) and 20 districts.

Most of the land of Haryana is flat, covered with loamy soil which is very suitable for agriculture. Haryana significantly contributed to the Green Revolution which started in 1960. Haryana falls in the Seismic Zones II, III & IV creating low to moderate damage risk from Earthquakes. But the state comes under the “Cyclonic Zone” creating very high damage risk.