Deccan

The Deccan, short for the Deccan Plateau, is a large geographic and geological region in south-central India. It extends across parts of Maharashtra, Karnataka, Telangana, Andhra Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, and Chhattisgarh, with smaller extensions into Tamil Nadu. It is bounded by the Western Ghats to the west and the Eastern Ghats to the east, forming a high central plateau that slopes toward the Bay of Bengal in the east and the Arabian Sea in the west. The plateau’s average elevation is roughly 600–900 meters, with hills and volcanic basalt formations.

Geology and landscape are dominated by the Deccan Traps, a vast outpouring of basalt lava that occurred around 66 million years ago at the end of the Cretaceous period. The bedrock is largely ancient volcanic rock, and the region features a mix of rugged uplands and broad valleys. Climate varies from semi-arid to tropical wet and dry, with rainfall decreasing from west to east. Major river systems such as the Godavari and Krishna drain the plateau, along with several smaller basins.

Soils include extensive black cotton soil (regur), which supports cotton and other crops, as well as red loams in other areas. The Deccan supports diverse ecosystems, including dry deciduous forests in some zones.

Historically, the Deccan was home to successive dynasties and polities, including the Satavahana, Chalukya, Rashtrakuta, Deccan sultanates, and the Vijayanagara Empire. It has long been a commercial and cultural corridor linking inland India with coastal regions. Today, cities like Pune, Hyderabad, Bengaluru, and Nagpur lie on or near the plateau. The term Deccan derives from the Sanskrit dakṣiṇa, meaning south.