Question

significance of the himalayas mineral resources in himalayas

Answer 1

Economic conditions in the Himalayas partly depend on the limited resources available in different parts of that vast region of varied ecological zones. The principal activity is animal husbandry, but forestry, trade, and tourism are also important. The Himalayas abound in economic resources. Those include pockets of rich arable land, extensive grasslands and forests, workable mineral deposits, easy-to-harness waterpower, and great natural beauty. The most productive arable lands in the western Himalayas are in the Vale of Kashmir, the Kangra valley, the Sutlej River basin, and the terraces flanking the Ganges and Yamuna rivers in Uttarakhand; those areas produce rice, corn (maize), wheat, and millet. In the central Himalayas in Nepal, two-thirds of the arable land is in the foothills and on the adjacentplains; that land yields most of the total rice production of the country. The region also produces large crops of corn, wheat, potatoes, and sugarcane.


Most of the fruit orchards of the Himalayas lie in the Vale of Kashmir and in the Kullu valley of Himachal Pradesh. Fruits such as apples, peaches, pears, and cherries—for which there is a great demand in the cities of India—are grown extensively. On the shores of Dal Lake in Kashmir, there are rich vineyards that produce grapes used to make wine and brandy. On the hills surrounding the Vale of Kashmir grow walnut and almond trees. Bhutan also has fruit orchards and exports oranges to India.