Give reason why there are more salt pans on the western coast of india then it's eastern coast
Answers
1) West coast is coast of submergence( except Malabar coast) while east coast is an emergent coast. The continental shelf of east coast extends till 500km into sea.
These imply that sea is deeper in west coast than sea on east coast. So, west coast has favourable conditions for natural harbours.
2) Trade winds play a crucial role in sea travel. During south west monsoon season, these winds help ships to reach India and return during north east monsoon season.
3) India's involvement in a huge trade with Africa, Europe(construction of Suez canal) and central Asia.
4) British rule might have also favoured ports on west coast as it is easier and faster to transport raw materials to England.
5) India is famous for its cotton from ancient times. Cotton mills are mainly located in Ahmedabad and Mumbai.
So, all these might have favoured development of ports on west coast.
Arabian Sea lie to the west of India. This sea is located in the tropical belt. Arabian sea is exposed to clear sky and hence bright sunlight. The temperature as well as the rate of evaporation of Arabian Sea is always high. Narmada and Tapi are the only two major rivers of India meet Arabian Sea, which is less as compared to fresh water supply that the Bay of Bengal receive. As a result, the salinity of Arabian Sea is as high as 36%. In comparison, even though the Bay of Bengal is also located in tropical belt, it is surrounded by land on three sides. Sky over the Bay of Bengal is cloudy for most of the day in the year. Cyclones developing in this area also have its effect. Besides, all major rivers of India and Bangladesh namely Ganga, Mahanadi, Godavari, Krishna, Kaveri and Meghna (i.e. Brahmaputra + Ganga + Padma) empty in Bay of Bengal and provide abundant supply of fresh water. As a result, the salinity of Bay of Bengal is less at 32%, which is almost 4% less than Arabian sea.
With higher temperature and salinity, conditions to develop salt pans along the Arabian Sea are more conducive. Hence, the Western coast of India along Arabian sea has more salt pans than the eastern coast of India along the Bay of Bengal.