The Himalayan mountain system in India is approximately how many kilometres broad from south to north?

Introduction / Context:

The Himalayas form one of the most striking physical features of India and South Asia. Questions about their length, breadth, and orientation are standard in physical geography. While many students remember that the Himalayas extend for thousands of kilometres from west to east, they sometimes forget how wide they are from south to north. This question focuses on the approximate breadth of the Himalayan system within the Indian region.

Given Data / Assumptions:

• The question asks for the approximate breadth of the Himalayas in kilometres.
• The options give different ranges, all in kilometres.
• The Himalayas are not of uniform width; they are broader in some regions and narrower in others.
• We rely on standard textbook values that summarise this variation into an approximate range.

Concept / Approach:

Most school and competitive exam geography books state that the width of the Himalayas varies roughly from about 400 kilometres in the north western region to about 150 kilometres in the eastern region. This variation reflects how the range fans out or narrows as it curves across the subcontinent. Therefore, the best approximate breadth range is 150 to 400 kilometres. The other options either omit the lower bound, omit the upper bound, or propose a range that does not match commonly cited figures.

Step-by-Step Solution:

Verification / Alternative check:

Verification can be done by consulting a physical map with a scale. Measuring the north south distance across the Himalayas in Jammu and Kashmir or Himachal Pradesh yields close to 400 kilometres, whereas a similar measurement across Arunachal Pradesh gives a figure nearer 150 kilometres. Additionally, many exam oriented guidebooks explicitly mention the range of 150 to 400 kilometres, which becomes a standard fact. This confirms that the option 150 to 400 is the correct choice for approximate breadth.

Why Other Options Are Wrong:

Common Pitfalls:

Students sometimes confuse the length of the Himalayas with their breadth or mix up the figures for other mountain systems. Some also try to guess based on vague memory of numbers without recalling that the Himalayas are narrower in the east and wider in the west. It helps to visualise a map and remember the simple phrase: width varies from about 150 kilometres in the east to about 400 kilometres in the west.

Final Answer:

The Himalayas are approximately 150 to 400 kilometres broad from south to north.