Describe the regional variations in the climatic conditions of India with the help of suitable examples.

In India, there are perceptible regional variations in climatic conditions within the country.

(i) In summer, the temperature may be 50°C or more in some parts of Rajasthan desert, whereas it may be around 20°C in Pahalgam in Jammu and Kashmir. On a winter night, the temperature at Dassin Jammu and Kashmir may be as low as -45°C, while Thiruvananthapuram may have a temperature of +20°C.

(ii) In certain places there is a wide difference between day and night temperatures. In the Thar Desert, the day temperature may be 50°C and drops down to near freezing point the same night. On the other hand, there is hardly any difference between day and night temperatures in the Andaman and Nicobar Islands or in Kerala.

(iii) While precipitation is mostly in the form of snowfall in the upper parts of Himalayas, it only rains over the rest of the country.

(iv) The annual precipitation varies from 400 cm in Meghalaya to less than 10 cm in Ladakh and Western Rajasthan.

(v) Most parts of the country receive rainfall from June to September, but Tamil Nadu coast receives rainfall during autumn and early winter.