Roughly extending from 8 degree north to 38 Degree north latitude and from 68 degree east to 98 degree east longitude the country of India is of great geographical extent and diversities. It sprawls from the snowy ranges of the Himalayas in the north to the shores of the Indian Ocean in the south through the great plains and plateaus in between. It is about 3200 km in length from north (Kashmir) to south (Kanyakumari) and 2900 km from west (Gujarat) to east (Arunachal Pradesh), its vast ness in area and variation in tropographic character and geological structure result in great diversities in climate, vegetation, soil, cropping pattern, human activities and so on across the country. It is often known as a subcontinent. Although the extents of latitude and longitude are same, i.e., 30 degree why is Indiaӳ north-south length longer than the east- west length by 300 km ?

India's latitudinal and longitudinal extents are both approximately 30°. However, the north-south distance (3,214 km) is greater than the east-west distance (2,933 km) due to the spherical geometry of the Earth. Parallels of latitude are roughly equidistant, meaning the distance between two latitudes remains constant everywhere [4]. In contrast, meridians of longitude converge toward the poles [1]. Consequently, the linear distance of one degree of longitude decreases as one moves away from the equator [3]. Since India is located north of the equator, its east-west extent is measured along 'small circles' (parallels) where the distance between longitudes is shorter than at the equator [2]. Conversely, the north-south extent is measured along 'great circles' (meridians), which maintain a consistent length per degree [2].

Sources

1. [3] Physical Geography by PMF IAS, Manjunath Thamminidi, PMF IAS (1st ed.) > Chapter 18: Latitudes and Longitudes > 18.1. Latitude or Parallel > p. 240
2. [4] https://sathee.iitk.ac.in/ncert-books/class-06/social-science/the-earth-our-habitat/chapter-02-globe-latitudes-and-longitudes/
3. [1] Certificate Physical and Human Geography , GC Leong (Oxford University press 3rd ed.) > Chapter 2: The Earth's Crust > Longitude > p. 11
4. [2] INDIA PHYSICAL ENVIRONMENT, Geography Class XI (NCERT 2025 ed.) > Chapter 1: India — Location > INDIA – LOCATION > p. 2