Deccan Plateau

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Deccan Plateau
Country India
Rivers Godavari, Krishna, Kaveri
Deccan Plateau covers parts of central and southern India

The Deccan Plateau[1] is a large plateau in India, making up most of the southern part of the country. It rises a hundred metres high in the north, and more than a kilometre high in the south, forming a raised triangle within the familiar downward-pointing triangle of the Indian subcontinent's coastline.[2]

It extends over eight Indian states and encompasses a wide range of habitats, covering most of central and southern India.[3]

It is located between two mountain ranges, the Western Ghats and the Eastern Ghats. Each rises from its respective nearby coastal plain. They almost meet at the southern tip of India. The Deccan Plateau is separated from the Gangetic plain to the north by the Satpura and Vindhya Ranges, which form its northern boundary. The Deccan produced some of the greatest Dynasties in Indian History like the Satavahana dynasty, Vakataka dynasty, Chalukya dynasty, Rashtrakuta dynasty, Western Chalukya Empire, Vijayanagara Empire, Bahmani Sultanate, Deccan Sultanates and Maratha Empire.

The name Deccan is an anglicised form of the Bengali word dakkhin, itself derived from the Sanskrit word dákṣiṇa, meaning "south".[4]


Topographic Map of the Deccan plateau showing the locations of Major cities and Towns.
Hills of granite boulders are a common feature of the landscape on Deccan Plateau, Rock Formations at Hyderabad, Telangana
Deccan Traps in Maharashtra

The Western Ghats Mountain Range is very tall and blocks the moisture from the southwest monsoon from reaching the Deccan Plateau, so the region receives very little rainfall.[5][6] The eastern Deccan Plateau is at a lower elevation spanning the southeastern coast of India. Its forests are also relatively dry but serve to retain the rain to form streams that feed into rivers that flow into basins and then into the Bay of Bengal.[2][7]

Most Deccan plateau rivers flow south. Most of the northern part of the plateau is drained by the Godavari River and its tributaries, including the Indravati River, starting from the Western Ghats and flowing east towards the Bay of Bengal. Most of the central plateau is drained by the Tungabhadra River, Krishna River and its tributaries, including the Bhima River, which also run east. The southernmost part of the plateau is drained by the Kaveri River, which rises in the Western Ghats of Karnataka and bends south to break through the Nilgiri Hills at the island town of Shivanasamudra and then falls into Tamil Nadu at Hogenakal Falls before flowing into the Stanley Reservoir and the Mettur Dam that created the reservoir, and finally emptying into the Bay of Bengal.

The two main rivers which do not flow into the Bay Of Bengal are the Narmada and Tapti. They start in the central India and flow into the Arabian Sea. All Deccan plateau rivers depend on rains and dry up in the summers.


The climate of the region varies from semi-arid in the north to tropical in most of the region with distinct wet and dry seasons. Rain falls during the monsoon season from about June to October. March to June can be very dry and hot, with temperatures regularly exceeding 40 °C. The Deccan plateau is a topographically variegated region located south of the Gangetic plains-the portion lying between the Arabian Sea and the Bay of Bengal-and includes a substantial area to the north of the Vindhya Range, which has popularly been regarded as the divide between northern India and the Deccan. The name derives from the Sanskrit daksina ("south"). The plateau is bounded on the east and west by the Ghats, while its northern extremity is the Satpura Range. The Deccan's average elevation is about 2,000 feet (600 m), sloping generally eastward; its principal rivers, the Godavari, Krishna, and Cauvery, flow from the Western Ghats eastward to the Bay of Bengal. The plateau's climate is drier than that on the coasts and is arid in places. Although sometimes used to mean all of India south of the Narmada River, the word Deccan relates more specifically to that area of rich volcanic soils and lava-covered plateaus in the northern part of the peninsula between the Narmada and Krishna rivers.




Comprising the northeastern part of the Deccan Plateau, the Telangana Plateau has an area of about 148,000 km2, a north-south length of about 770 km, and an east-west width of about 515 km.



The Deccan Traps[edit]

Main article: Deccan Traps

The northwestern part of the plateau is made up of lava flows or igneous rocks known as the Deccan Traps. The rocks are spread over the whole of Maharashtra and parts of Gujarat and Madhya Pradesh, thereby making it one of the largest volcanic provinces in the world. It consists of more than 2,000 metres (6,600 ft) of flat-lying basalt lava flows and covers an area of nearly 500,000 square kilometres (190,000 sq mi) in west-central India. Estimates of the original area covered by the lava flows are as high as 1,500,000 square kilometres (580,000 sq mi). The volume of basalt is estimated to be 512,000 cubic km. The thick dark soil (called regur) found here is suitable for cotton cultivation.


The volcanic basalt beds of the Deccan were laid down in the massive Deccan Traps eruption, which occurred towards the end of the Cretaceous period between 67 and 66 million years ago. Some paleontologists speculate that this eruption may have accelerated the extinction of the dinosaurs. Layer after layer was formed by the volcanic activity that lasted many thousands of years, and when the volcanoes became extinct, they left a region of highlands with typically vast stretches of flat areas on top like a table.The volcanic hotspot that produced the Deccan traps is hypothesized to lie under the present day island of Réunion in the Indian Ocean.[8]

Typically the Deccan Plateau is made up of basalt extending up to Bhor Ghat near Karjat. This is an extrusive igneous rock. Also in certain sections of the region, we can find granite, which is an intrusive igneous rock. The difference between these two rock types is: basalt rock forms on eruption of lava, that is, on the surface (either out of a volcano, or through massive fissures—as in the Deccan basalts—in the ground), while granite forms deep within the Earth. Granite is a felsic rock, meaning it is rich in potassium feldspar and quartz. This composition is continental in origin (meaning it is the primary composition of the continental crust). Since it cooled relatively slowly, it has large visible crystals. Basalt, on the other hand, is mafic in composition—meaning it is rich in pyroxene and, in some cases, olivine, both of which are Mg-Fe rich minerals. Basalt is similar in composition to mantle rocks, indicating that it came from the mantle and did not mix with continental rocks. Basalt forms in areas that are spreading, whereas granite forms mostly in areas that are colliding. Since both rocks are found in the Deccan Plateau, it indicates two different environments of formation.

The Deccan is rich in minerals. Primary mineral ores found in this region are mica and iron ore in the Chhota Nagpur region, and diamonds, gold and other metals in the Golconda region.


The Deccan is home to many languages and people. Bhil and Gond people live in the hills along the northern and northeastern edges of the plateau, and speak various languages that belong to both the Indo-European and Dravidian families of languages. Marathi, an Indo-Aryan language, is the main language of the north-western Deccan in the state of Maharashtra. Speakers of Telugu and Kannada, the predominant languages of Telangana, Andhra Pradesh and Karnataka respectively, occupy those states' portions of the plateau. Tamil is the main language of Tamil Nadu to the south of the plateau, and Malayalam that of the hills and coast to the south-west, in the state of Kerala. The city of Hyderabad is an important center of Urdu language in the Deccan; its surrounding areas also host a notable population of Urdu speakers. The Urdu dialect spoken in this region is also known as Dakhini or as Deccani. North of Andhra is the state of Odisha. People speak the language Oriya here.

The chief crop is cotton; also common are sugarcane, rice, and other crops.

Apart from the states already mentioned, the state of Chhattisgarh is found in the northeast corner of the plateau. The three large cities in the Deccan are Hyderabad the capital of Telangana, Bangalore the capital of Karnataka and Pune, the cultural hub of Maharashtra. Other major cities include Mysore in Karnataka, Coimbatore and Salem in Tamil Nadu, Nagpur, Amravati, Sangli, Nanded and Aurangabad in Maharashtra and Raipur in Chhattisgarh and Vijayawada, Visakhapatnam, Guntur, Kakinada, Eluru, Rajahmundry in Andhra Pradesh and Warangal, Karimnagar, Nizamabad, Mahbubnagar in Telangana.


The Deccan produced some of the greatest dynasties in Indian History like the Satavahana dynasty, Vakataka dynasty, Chalukya dynasty, Rashtrakuta dynasty, Western Chalukya Empire, Vijayanagara Empire and Maratha Empire. Of the early history, the main facts established are the growth of the Mauryan empire (300 BC) and after that the Deccan was ruled by the Satavahana dynasty which protected the Deccan against the Scythian invaders.[9] Prominent dynasties of this time include the Cholas (3rd century BC to 12th century AD), Chalukyas (6th to 12th centuries), Rashtrakutas (753–982), Hoysalas (10th to 14th centuries), Kakatiya (1083 to 1323 AD) and Vijayanagara Empire (1336–1646). Ahir Kings once ruled over the Deccan. A cave inscription at Nasik refers to the reign of an Abhira prince named Ishwarsena, son of Shivadatta.[10][11] After the collapse of the Satavahana dynasty the Deccan was ruled by the Vakataka dynasty from the 3rd century to 5th century. From the 6th to 8th century the Deccan was ruled by the Chalukya dynasty which produced great rulers like Pulakesi II who defeated the north India Emperor Harsha or Vikramaditya II whose general defeated the Arab invaders in the 8th century. From the 8th to 10th century the Rashtrakuta dynasty ruled this region. It led successful military campaigns into northern India and was described by Arab scholars as one of the four great empires of the world.[12] In the 10th century the Western Chalukya Empire was established which produced scholars like the social reformer Basava, Vijñāneśvara, the mathematician Bhāskara II and Someshwara III who wrote the text Manasollasa. From the early 11th century to the 12th century the Deccan Plateau was dominated by the Western Chalukya Empire and the Chola dynasty.[13] Several battles were fought between the Western Chalukya Empire and the Chola dynasty in the Deccan Plateau during the reigns of Raja Raja Chola I, Rajendra Chola I, Jayasimha II, Somesvara I and Vikramaditya VI and Kulothunga Chola I.[14]

In 1294, Alauddin Khilji, emperor of Delhi, invaded the Deccan, stormed Devagiri, and reduced the Yadava rajas of Maharashtra to the position of tributary princes (see Daulatabad), then proceeding southward to conquer the Telangana and Carnatic. In 1307, a fresh series of Muslim incursions led by Malik Kafur began in response to unpaid tributes, resulting in the final ruin of the Yadava power; and in 1338 the conquest of the Deccan was completed by Sultan Muhammad bin Tughluq. The imperial hegemony was brief, as soon Telingana and Karnataka reverted to their former masters. These defections by the Hindu states was soon followed by a general revolt of the Muslim governors, resulting in the establishment in 1347 of the independent Muslim dynasty of Bahmani.[15] The power of the Delhi sultanate evaporated south of the Narmada River. The southern Deccan was ruled by the famous Vijayanagara Empire which reached its zenith during the reign of Emperor Krishnadevaraya.[16]


In the power struggles which ensued, the Hindu kingdom of Telingana fell bit by bit to the Bahamani dynasty, who advanced their frontier to Golkonda in 1373, to Warangal in 1421, and to the Bay of Bengal in 1472. When the Bahmani empire dissolved in 1482, its dominions were distributed into the five Muslim states of Golkonda, Bijapur, Ahmednagar, Bidar and Berar, giving rise to the Deccan sultanates.[15] South of these, the Hindu state of Carnatic or Vijayanagar still survived; but this, too, was defeated, at the Battle of Talikota (1565) by a league of the Muslim powers. Berar had already been annexed by Ahmednagar in 1572, and Bidar was absorbed by Bijapur in 1619. Mughal interest in the Deccan also rose at this time; Ahmadnagar was partially incorporated in the Empire in 1598 and as fully in 1636, Bijapur in 1686, and Golkonda in 1688.

In 1674, Shivaji laid the foundation of the Maratha Empire which within 75 years of his death covered territory of over 250 million acres (1 million km²) or one-third of the Indian sub-continent. Marathas under Shivaji directly challenged the foreign rule of the Bijapur Sultanate and ultimately the mighty Mughal empire. Once the Bijapur Sultanate stopped being a threat to the Maratha Empire, Marathas became much more aggressive and began to frequently raid Mughal territory. The Marathas had conquered part of central and western India by Shivaji Maharaj's death in 1680. After Shivaji, Sambhaji defended the Maratha empire from the Mughal onslaught led by Aurangzeb. Peshwas began commanding Maratha armies after the execution of Sambhaji. After 1707, the Marathas acquired the right to levy tribute in southern India. After the death of Chhatrapati Shahu, the Peshwas became the de facto leaders of the Empire from 1749 to 1761, while Shivaji's successors continued as nominal rulers from their base in Satara. The Marathas kept the British at bay during the 18th century. By 1760, with the defeat of the Nizam in the Deccan, Maratha power had reached its zenith. However, dissension between the Peshwa and their sardars (army commanders) saw a gradual downfall of the Empire leading to its eventual annexation by the British East India Company in 1818 after the three Anglo-Maratha wars.

A few years later, the Aurangzeb's viceroy in Ahmednagar, Nizam-ul-Mulk, established the seat of an independent government at Hyderabad in 1724. Mysore was ruled by Hyder Ali. During the contests for power which ensued from about the middle of the 18th century between the powers on the plateau, the French and British took opposite sides. After a brief course of triumph, the interests of France declined, and a new empire in India was established by the British. Mysore formed one of their earliest conquests in the Deccan. Tanjore and the Carnatic were soon annexed to their dominions, followed by the Peshwa territories in 1818.

In British India, the plateau was largely divided between the presidencies of Bombay and Madras. The two largest native states at that time were Hyderabad State and Mysore State; many smaller states existed at the time, including Kolhapur, Sawantwari, Travancore, and Cochin.

After independence in 1947, almost all native states were incorporated into the Republic of India. Hyderabad refused to join, and was annexed by the Indian Army in Operation Polo in 1948.[17] In 1956, the States Reorganisation Act reorganized states along linguistic lines, leading to the states currently found on the plateau.

See also[edit]


  1. ^ Page 46, Dr. Jadoan, Atar Singh (September 2001). Military Geography of South-East Asia. India: Anmol Publications Pvt. Ltd. pp. 270 pages. ISBN 81-261-1008-2. Retrieved 2008-06-08. 
  2. ^ a b "The Deccan Peninsula". sanctuaryasia. Retrieved 2007-01-05. 
  3. ^ "The Deccan Plateau". Retrieved 2007-01-05. 
  5. ^ World Wildlife Fund (2001). "South Deccan Plateau dry deciduous forests". WildWorld Ecoregion Profile. National Geographic Society. Archived from the original on 2010-03-08. Retrieved 2007-01-05. 
  6. ^ "South Deccan Plateau dry deciduous forests". Terrestrial Ecoregions. World Wildlife Fund. Retrieved 2007-01-05. 
  7. ^ "Eastern Deccan Plateau Moist Forests". World Wildlife Fund. Retrieved 2007-01-05. 
  8. ^ "Deccan". 
  9. ^ History of Asia by B.V. Rao p.288
  10. ^
  11. ^ The castes and tribes of H.E.H. the Nizam's dominions, Volume 1 By Syed Siraj ul Hassan-page-12
  12. ^ Portraits of a Nation: History of Ancient India by kamlesh kapur p.584-585
  15. ^ a b Marshall Cavendish Corporation (2008). India and Its Neighbors, Part 1, p. 335. Tarreytown, New York: Marshall Cavendish Corporation.
  16. ^ A Social History of the Deccan, 1300-1761: Eight Indian Lives by Richard M. Eaton p.83
  17. ^ Benichou, Lucien D. (2000). From Autocracy to Integration: Political Developments in Hyderabad State (1938—1948), p. 232. Chennai: Orient Longman Limited.