Geography Optional Notes for OPSC (Premium)
Paper-I: Principles of Geography
Section-A: Physical Geography
1. Geomorphology
- Origin of the earth,
- Physical conditions of the earth’s interior;
- continental drift;
- isostasy;
- plate tectonics;
- mountain building;
- volcanism and earthquakes;
- weathering and erosion,
- Concepts of geomorphic cycles (Davis and Penck),
- Landforms associated with fluvial, arid, glacial, coastal and karst region,
- Polycyclic landforms.
2. Climatology
- Temperature and pressure belts of the world;
- heat budget of the earth;
- atmospheric circulation;
- planetary and local winds;
- monsoons and jet streams;
- air asses and fronts;
- temperate and tropical cyclones;
- types and distribution of precipitation;
- Koppen’s and Thornthwaite’s classification of world climate;
- hydrological cycle; climatic change.
3. Oceanography
- Bottom topography of the Atlantic, Indian and Pacific Oceans;
- temperature and salinity of the oceans;
- ocean deposits;
- ocean currents and tides;
- marine resources and their utilizations,
- Coral reefs;
4. Biogeography
- Genesis of soils;
- classification and distribution of soils;
- soil profile;
- soil erosion and conservation;
- factors influencing world distribution of plants and animals;
- problems of deforestation and conservation measures;
- social forestry,
- agroforestry.
5. Environmental Geography
- Concept and types of environment,
- Environmental degradation and management.
- Ecosystems and their management;
- Energy flow and Biogeo- chemical cycles,
- Global ecological imbalances–problems of pollution,
- global warming,
- reduction in bio-diversity and
- depletion of forests.
Section-B: Human Geography
6. Perspectives in Human Geography
- Areal differentiation;
- regional synthesis;
- dichotomy and dualism;
- environmentalism;
- quantitative revolution and locational analysis;
- radical, behavioural, human and welfare approaches;
- Cultural regions of the world,
- Human development indicators.
7. Economic Geography
- World economic develpment–measurement and problems;
- world resources and their distribution;
- energy crisis;
- the limits to growth;
- World agriculture–typology of agricultural regions;
- Von-Thunen’s theory of agricultural location;
- World industries–locational patterns and locational theories of Weber; Hoover, Losch and Smith,
- Patterns of world trade.
8. Population Geography
- Growth and distribution of world population;
- demographic atrributes;
- causes and consequences of migration;
- concepts of over–, under– and optimum population;
- world population problems.
- Races of man kind.
9. Settlement Geography
- Types and patterns of rural settlements;
- hierarchy of urban settlements;
- Cristaller’s Central Place Theory,
- concept of primate city and rank-size rule;
- functional classification of towns;
- sphere of urban influence;
- rural-urban fringe;
- satellite town;
- problems of urbanisation.
10. Regional Planning
- Concept of region;
- types of regions and methods of regionalisation;
- growth centres and growth poles;
- regional imbalances;
- multi-level planning;
- planning for sustainable development.
- Rostov Model of Stages of Growth.