Countries of the World/COUNTRYS.BIN/dp/0255/02552.txt

Text File | 1991-06-25 | 18KB | 336 lines

$Unique_ID{COW02552}
$Pretitle{235D}
$Title{Nepal
Chapter 3A.   Geography and Population}
$Subtitle{}
$Author{George L. Harris}
$Affiliation{HQ, Department of the Army}
$Subject{tarai
miles
region
feet
western
river
eastern
mountains
north
area}
$Date{1973}
$Log{Figure 4.*0255203.scf
Figure 5.*0255204.scf
}
Country:     Nepal
Book:        Nepal, Bhutan, Sikkim, An Area Study: Nepal
Author:      George L. Harris
Affiliation: HQ, Department of the Army
Date:        1973

Chapter 3A.   Geography and Population

     Nepal, a predominantly mountainous rectangle, 90 to 150 miles wide and
about 500 miles long, has a total area of about 54,400 square miles.
Landlocked, it is bounded by Tibet on the north, Sikkim on the east and India
on the south and west (see fig. 1). Katmandu, the centrally situated capital
and most important town, is some 500 miles east of New Delhi and
approximately 1,900 miles south of Peiping. The nearest seaport is Calcutta,
400 miles to the southeast at the head of the Bay of Bengal.

     The boundaries generally follow prominent terrain features except in the
southeast and south, where the border with India runs through the Tarai in the
northern part of the Ganges River plain (also known as the Gangetic Plain).
On the north, the frontier with Tibet-which in 1962-63 was surveyed and marked
by a Nepalese and Chinese Communist joint boundary committee-extends for about
670 miles along the main Himalayan range. On the east the crest of a ridge
jutting south from the peak of Kanchenjunga (28,208 feet) marks the 60-mile
boundary with Sikkim. In the southeast and south the border is an extremely
irregular line running for about 745 miles across flat plains dotted with
swamps, jungles, cultivated plots and-especially in the west-a few densely
wooded ridges. Demarcation stones along this section outline the frontiers
with the three adjoining Indian states as follows: to the east, West Bengal
(about 65 miles) and to the south, Bihar (350 miles) and Uttar Pradesh (330
miles). To the west the Kali River (called Sarda in India) flows for 125 miles
between Nepal and the Indian state of Uttar Pradesh.

     Nepal presents a wider range of physical diversity than probably any
other country of comparable size. The complex mountain mass in the north
contains some of the world's highest peaks-six are more than 26,000 feet above
sea level. To the south, no more than 100 miles from these barren, icy
heights, the cultivated fields and steaming jungles of the northern rim of the
Gangetic Plain are less than 600 feet above sea level (see figs. 2 and 3).

     Numerous streams and rivers flow generally southward out of the
mountains, meander across the Tarai plain and finally join the Ganges in
northern India (see fig. 4). The presence of fertile alluvial soil at stream
junctions and at other places in the valley bottoms is a major determinant
in the settlement pattern, most of the largest population concentrations being
along the rivers and their principal tributaries. Virtually the entire country
is drained by three large river systems: in the east, the Kosi, with its seven
large tributaries, three of which rise in Tibet, north of the main Himalayan
range; in the center, the Narayani (called the Gandak in India); and in the
west, the Karnali (called the Girwa in the Western Tarai and the Gogra in
India).

     The main factors affecting climate are the Himalayan massifs in the
north and the moisture-carrying monsoons from the Indian Ocean to the south.
Local variation is great, but in general rainfall is abundant on windward
slopes and meager on leeward slopes and valleys. Seasonal changes in
temperature decrease with increasing altitude until they virtually disappear
at heights above 10,000 feet. Temperatures, moderate at an elevation of about
5,000 feet, reach extremes of heat and cold at lower and higher altitudes
respectively.

     Soils and vegetation are also diverse and may vary greatly within short
distances mainly because of rapid changes in elevation. The largest areas of
fertile soils are found in the Tarai and in the valleys and on the slopes of
the foothills just to the north. Erosion is a serious problem almost
everywhere, particularly on the steep slopes in the higher altitudes (see ch.
17, Agriculture).

     Nepal, according to the preliminary report of the 1961 census, has a
total population of approximately 9.76 million. Population density varies
widely from region to region. The barren uplands of the Himalayas are almost
uninhabited, while the fertile Katmandu Valley is one of the most densely
populated places in the world.

     Most of the people live in rural settlements near water sources, and
only six towns have more than 10,000 inhabitants. Despite difficult terrain
and lack of transportation and communication facilities, there is a
considerable amount of moving about in the country. Many groups seasonally
shift from one elevation to another to take advantage of climatic conditions
favorable to cultivation and pasturage; others, especially in the mountain
districts, periodically go to India for temporary employment and to purchase
supplies (see ch. 19, Trade and Industry).

Major Geographical Regions

     The country can be divided into three main geographic regions: the
Mountain Region, which constitutes almost three-fourths of the total area; the
Katmandu Valley (sometimes called the Nepal Valley), a relatively small,
disc-shaped area enclosed in the east-central part of the Mountain Region; and
the Tarai Region, a narrow belt which extends along the boundary with India
in the northern part of the Ganges River plain (see fig. 5). Characteristics
of terrain peculiar to each region are associated with sharp contrasts in
soil, vegetation, climate, and even in the economic and social patterns of the
people.

[See Figure 4.: River Systems of Nepal.]

The Mountain Region

     The Mountain Region is part of the Himalayan range. Its major heights in
northeastern Nepal generally define the boundary with Tibet, while in the
northwest they lie just to the south of the boundary. The gigantic peaks and
deep gorges of the region provide much of the subject matter of the myths and
folklore of the various local ethnic groups. Even for Nepalese living in the
Tarai flatlands, the mountains are a near presence, too large and spectacular
ever to be entirely out of mind.

     The whole Mountain Region is marked by a series of parallel northsouth
ridges flanking deep, narrow, southward-sloping valleys. Extending east-west
across the southern edge of the Region are the subsidiary Mahabharat Lekh and
the Siwalik Ranges, both much lower than the main Himalayan range. The rivers
in the principal valleys rise some 50 to 100 miles inside Tibet on the high
plateau north of the boundary. These streams are older than the mountain mass
through which they flow, having created their valleys by erosion as the
mountain barrier lifted around them. Thus, the actual watershed is not
generally the line of high peaks in the region itself, but the Tibetan
plateau farther north. Drainage north of the main Himalayan range is into the
Brahmaputra River in Tibet (where it is known as the Tsangpo); in the south,
into the Ganges. The waters of both rivers virtually join in the delta region
northeast of Calcutta before emptying into the Bay of Bengal (fig. 1).

     The valleys, hills and slopes of the Mountain Region are densely
populated wherever tillable soil can be found. Most communication routes are
restricted to treacherous tracks feasible only for travel by foot.
Precipitation in most places is sufficient to support dense forests at
elevations up to about 13,000 feet. In settled areas, clearings have been made
by cutting for timber or by burning to open up croplands. Large tracts of
untouched timber remain in the more inaccessible areas.

     Based mainly on differences in physical features and climate, the region
may be subdivided into three general areas by two lines, one running generally
northwa