Q1.
Let’s go back to the map. Trace your path slowly from the Thar Desert towards the east. Do you see the Aravalli Hills?
Answer
Yes. Move your finger east from the yellow Thar area and you cross a thin, broken brown ridge running from the south-west to the north-east — from near Mount Abu in Gujarat and southern Rajasthan, through Udaipur, Ajmer and Jaipur, all the way up to the ridge at Delhi. That line is the Aravalli Range.
| About the Aravallis | Detail from the chapter |
|---|---|
| Age | About 2.5 billion years — among the oldest mountains in the world |
| Highest peak | Mount Abu, over 1700 m |
| Most of the hills | Between 300 and 900 metres |
| Minerals | Marble, granite, zinc, copper |
| Historic forts | Chittorgarh, Kumbhalgarh, Ranthambore |
Why it looks thin and low on the map: the Aravallis are so old that wind and water have been wearing them down for billions of years. The Himalayas are only about 50 million years old — and still rising — which is why they look massive on the same map.
Did you know? The chapter points out that a drive of about four and a half hours takes you from Mount Abu in the Aravallis to Jodhpur in the Thar — from cool green hills to open desert.