Question

On what factors are the regions differentiated? Give examples.

Answer 1

A region is an area of a country or any part of the world with the same common features. Thus, regions are differentiated based on physical or man-made or sociocultural factors. For example, the Chota Nagpur plateau region has plateau relief. The Himalayan mountain region has mountainous relief. The desert region of Rajasthan has a shortage of rainfall and very high temperatures. The northern plain region has plain relief, fertile soil and a moderate climate. The region may be differentiated based on man-made factors like political factors such as administrative boundaries or political boundaries. For example, Uttar Pradesh and Punjab are different regions because they have different political boundaries and government bodies. The region may be differentiated based on socio-cultural factors such as language, religion or ethnicity. For example, in Mumbai, there is an area where people speaking the Gujarati language live in one region. The Middle East countries form one region where people of the Muslim religion stay together. Thus, regions are differentiated based on various factors.

Answer 2

The regions are differentiated on the following factors:

1. Size: The regions can be very small and very large. e.g. Rajasthan is the largest state and Goa is the smallest state in India.
2. Natural features: Regions are formed on basis of physiography, climate, vegetation, soil or wildlife. For example, on basis of altitude and topography the Himalayan ranges region and the Northern Plains region are considered as two different regions.
3. Socio-cultural factors: The socio-cultural factors like language, ethnicity, etc. make one region differ from another. For example: Majorly Marathi speaking region, Bengali speaking region, etc. can be seen in India. 
4. Political factors: On basis of administrative boundaries regions differ from each other. For example, Madhya Pradesh and Maharashtra are two different regions because they have their own boundaries and government. Similarly, Pune and Ahmednagar are two different districts, so they are two different regions. 
5. Sub-regions: In a region, there can be two or more sub-regions. For example, within the Northern Plains of India, there are various sub-regions of different plains like the Indus and its tributaries, the Ganga-Yamuna plains and the Brahmaputra-Hooghly plains. Similarly within a district, there can be talukas. Each taluka is a region in itself. Each city and village in Taluka is also considered a region. 
6. Economic activities: Economic activities, such as a particular crop production make a region differ from another region.
7. Functions of region: Functional regions may involve more than one type of physical or political regions but still it can be one functional region because that function binds these regions together. For example – Cities are considered as functional regions.