Chota Nagpur

Chota Nagpur

a plateau in E India, mainly in Jharkhand state since 2000: forested, with rich mineral resources and much heavy industry; produces chiefly lac (world's leading supplier), coal (half India's total output), and mica

Collins Discovery Encyclopedia, 1st edition © HarperCollins Publishers 2005

The following article is from The Great Soviet Encyclopedia (1979). It might be outdated or ideologically biased.

Chota Nagpur

 

a plateau in India that forms the northeastern part of the Deccan plateau and descends in stages to the Gangetic Plain. The Chota Nagpur is approximately 400 km long and up to 200 km wide. Its highest point is Parasnath Hill, which has an elevation of 1,366 m. The plateau consists of gneisses and quartzites that are overlain by basalts in the west. Its rolling surface, with pinnacle-like remnants of dense sandstone, is dissected by broad valleys. Savanna predominates in the plateau. A considerable measure of the plateau is farmed, and its irrigation systems are based on the Damodar River and its tributaries.

The Great Soviet Encyclopedia, 3rd Edition (1970-1979). © 2010 The Gale Group, Inc. All rights reserved.