GeographyISC Class 11 · Mountains, Plateaus and Plains

Plateaus and Depositional Plains (ISC Class 11 Geography)

Updated 17 October 2026 · Fact-checked

A plateau is an upland with a broad level top and at least one steep side; by situation it is intermontane (Tibet), piedmont (Patagonia, Malwa) or continental (Deccan, Western Australia). Depositional plains are riverine, glacial, aeolian (loess) or lacustrine, such as the Indo-Gangetic plain, the North European Plain and the Kashmir valley.

Compare where each flat orange plateau top sits: enclosed by mountains, at a mountain foot, or rising steeply from lowland far from mountains.

Illustration drawn for QuestionBuddy.

Understand Plateaus and Depositional Plains

Plateaus by situation.

Intermontane: enclosed by mountains, formed in mountain building; highest and often largest. Tibet (highest and largest), Bolivia (Altiplano), Mexico, Iran, Anatolia.
Piedmont: at the foot of mountains, bounded by mountains on one side and a plain or sea on the other. Patagonia, the Piedmont plateau of eastern USA, Malwa.
Continental: broad tablelands rising abruptly from lowlands or the sea far from mountains, formed by uplift or lava flows. Deccan, Western Australia, Arabia, Brazil, Antarctica and Greenland.
Importance: minerals (Chotanagpur, Western Australia), waterfalls for hydropower, grazing and fertile lava soils (Deccan). Limits: rugged edges, poor transport.

Depositional plains.
1. Riverine: alluvial and flood plains (Indo-Gangetic, Mississippi, North China) and delta plains (Ganga-Brahmaputra, Nile).
2. Glacial: till and outwash plains (North European Plain, Canadian prairies).
3. Aeolian: loess plains of northern China.
4. Lacustrine: filled lake beds (Kashmir valley Karewa deposits, Red River valley of North America).
Erosional plains (peneplains) form by long erosion of uplands.

Importance of plains. Fertile soils, easy farming and irrigation, transport and dense settlement. Limitations: floods and, in deltas, cyclones and salinity. India has all three landforms: Himalayas, Peninsular plateau, Northern Plains.

Plateaus and Depositional Plains: key facts

Plateaus by situation: Intermontane Tibet
Piedmont Patagonia, Malwa
Continental Deccan, Western Australia
Depositional plains: $R i v er in e ∣ Gl a c ia l ∣ A eo l ian ∣ L a c u s t r in e$
Plain examples: Indo-Gangetic
North European
North China loess
Kashmir valley
Contrast: Depositional plains: built by deposits | Erosional plains: peneplains

Intermontane	Tibet
Piedmont	Patagonia, Malwa
Continental	Deccan, Western Australia

How to answer Plateaus and Depositional Plains questions

Questions are 4 marks: classification with examples and importance.

1Define a plateau or plain in one line.
2Give three types with a feature and example each.
3Add importance and a limitation.
4Close with the Indian example.

Plateaus and Depositional Plains in real life

The idea, met in an everyday situation. Answer the question in your own words, then compare with the model answer. The one-line hook is what to remember.

Hills around a tableland

Suppose a high flat tableland is ringed by mountain ranges on several sides.

Classify it and name an example.

Try it first, then show the solutionSolution

Enclosed by mountains: intermontane.
Example: Tibet, the highest and largest.

Answer: Intermontane plateau; Tibet.

Memory hook: Mountains all around.

Old lake bed

Suppose a flat fertile valley was once a lake that filled with sediment.

Name the plain type and an Indian example.

Try it first, then show the solutionSolution

Filled lake beds give lacustrine plains.
Example: Kashmir valley (Karewa deposits).

Answer: Lacustrine plain; Kashmir valley.

Memory hook: Lake gone, plain left.

Tricks to remember Plateaus and Depositional Plains

Short memory aids. Say each one aloud once, then use it on a question the same day.

IPC
Intermontane, Piedmont, Continental.
Use it when: Plateau types.
RGAL
Riverine, Glacial, Aeolian, Lacustrine.
Use it when: Plain types.

Plateaus and Depositional Plains: solved examples

Ordered from board level to HOTS. Try each one before you open the solution.

Example 1: Plateau type · 1 mark · MCQBoard level

Patagonia is an example of a:
(a) continental plateau
(b) piedmont plateau
(c) intermontane plateau
(d) volcanic plateau

Try it first, then show the solutionSolution

Foot of the Andes.

Answer: (b) Piedmont plateau.

Example 2: Plateau examples · 3 marks · Short answerBoard level

Name the highest plateau and an Indian example of a continental plateau and a piedmont plateau.

Try it first, then show the solutionSolution

Tibet.
Deccan (continental).
Malwa (piedmont).

Answer: Tibet; Deccan; Malwa.

Example 3: Plateau types · 4 marks · Long answerHarder board level

Classify plateaus by situation with one feature and two examples of each.

Try it first, then show the solutionSolution

Intermontane: enclosed by mountains; Tibet, Bolivia.
Piedmont: foot of mountains; Patagonia, Malwa.
Continental: rises from lowlands or sea away from mountains; Deccan, Western Australia.
Each has an uplift or lava origin.

Answer: Intermontane, piedmont and continental with the examples given.

Example 4: Depositional plains · 4 marks · Long answerHarder board level

Explain the types of depositional plains with an example of each.

Try it first, then show the solutionSolution

Riverine: silt from floods; Indo-Gangetic plain.
Glacial: till and outwash; North European Plain.
Aeolian: wind-blown dust; loess plains of northern China.
Lacustrine: filled lake bed; Kashmir valley.

Answer: Riverine, glacial, aeolian and lacustrine, with the examples listed.

Example 5: Compare uses · 5 marks · Case-basedHOTS / competency

Case: A planner compares the Deccan plateau and the Indo-Gangetic plain for development. (a) Name one advantage of each. (b) Name one limitation of each. (c) Give a plateau mineral region.

Try it first, then show the solutionSolution

(a) Plateau: minerals or hydropower; plain: fertile alluvium and dense settlement.
(b) Plateau: rugged edges and poor transport; plain: floods.
(c) Chotanagpur (or Western Australia).

Answer: (a) Minerals; fertile soil (b) rugged edges; floods (c) Chotanagpur.

Where students lose marks in Plateaus and Depositional Plains

The slips examiners see most often, and what to write instead.

Mistake: Calling the Deccan intermontane
Situation confused.
Do this: Deccan is a continental plateau.
Usually costs: 1 mark.
Mistake: Using only one example for a type
Answer lacks breadth.
Do this: Give two examples.
Usually costs: 1 mark.
Mistake: Omitting limitations
Importance only.
Do this: Add one limitation for each landform.
Usually costs: 1 mark.

Exam tips

Give agent plus example for each plain.
Say Tibet is highest and largest.
Mention peneplains for contrast.
Add Indian examples.

Practice questions on Plateaus and Depositional Plains

Write each answer on paper first. Open the hint only if you are stuck, and the answer only when you have finished.

Q1 · 1 mark · MCQBoard level
The Kashmir valley with Karewa deposits is a:
(a) glacial plain
(b) aeolian plain
(c) lacustrine plain
(d) delta plain
Hint
Old lake.
Answer
(c) Lacustrine plain.
Q2 · 3 marks · Short answerHarder board level
Describe a delta plain with two examples.
Hint
River mouth deposit.
Answer
A delta plain is built at a river mouth by deposited silt; examples are the Ganga-Brahmaputra (Sundarbans) delta and the Nile delta.
Q3 · 4 marks · Long answerHarder board level
Explain why plains are the most densely populated regions.
Hint
Soil, farming, transport.
Answer
Fertile alluvial soils, flat land for farming and irrigation, easy construction of roads and railways, and settlement and cities attract dense populations, as in the Indo-Gangetic plain.
Q4 · 3 marks · Short answerHarder board level
Why are intermontane plateaus the highest?
Hint
Uplift during mountain building.
Answer
They are enclosed by ranges and formed when land between the ranges was uplifted during mountain building, as in Tibet.
Q5 · 4 marks · Case-basedHOTS / competency
Case: A region has a flat, windblown, yellow-grey dust plain in northern China, an ice-built plain in northern Europe and a lake bed plain in Kashmir. (a) Name each type. (b) Name the agent of each. (c) Name the contrasting erosional plain.
Hint
Agents differ.
Answer
(a) Aeolian, glacial, lacustrine. (b) Wind, ice, lake deposits. (c) Peneplain.

Test your recall

Answer in your head or on paper first, then open the card. Pulling an answer out of memory makes it stick far better than re-reading.

1.Highest plateau?Show answer
Tibet.
2.Delta plain example?Show answer
Ganga-Brahmaputra.
3.Aeolian plain example?Show answer
Northern China loess.
4.Piedmont plateau in India?Show answer
Malwa.
5.Peneplain is?Show answer
An erosional plain.

Plateaus and Depositional Plains: frequently asked questions

What is a plateau?

An extensive upland with a broad level top and a steep side.

What is the Altiplano?

The intermontane plateau of Bolivia.

Why are plains fertile?

They are built of fine deposited silt.