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Friday, November 6, 2009

Mumbai - Geography

Mumbai is located at 18°58′30″N 72°49′33″E / 18.9750°N 72.8258°E / 18.9750; 72.8258 in the Indian state of Maharashtra.[94] Mumbai consists of two distinct regions: Mumbai City and Mumbai Suburban District, which form two separate districts of Maharashtra.[95] The city region is also commonly referred to as the Island City.[96] Mumbai, as an urban entity, spans a total area of 603.4 km2 (233 sq mi),[97] while Greater Mumbai, the area under the administration of Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC), spans a total area of 437.71 km2 (169 sq mi), with the Island City spanning 67.79 km2 (26 sq mi) and the suburban district spanning 370 km2 (143 sq mi).[98]

File:Mumbaicitydistricts.png

Greater Mumbai accounts for most of Mumbai's territory, excluding some regions such as Defence lands, Mumbai Port Trust lands, and the Borivali National Park area, which are out of the jurisdiction of the BMC. The Mumbai metropolitan region consists of the full districts of Mumbai City and Mumbai suburbs, city of Navi Mumbai, and also part of the districts of Thane and Raigad.[99] It covers an area of about 4,355 km2 (1,681 sq mi).[100]

Mumbai lies at the mouth of the Ulhas River on the western coast of India, in the coastal region known as the Konkan. It sits on Salsette Island, partially shared with the Thane district.[101] Mumbai is surrounded by the Arabian Sea to the west.[102] Many parts of the city lie just above sea level, with elevations ranging from 10 m (33 ft) to 15 m (49 ft);[103] the city has an average elevation of 14 m (46 ft).[104] Northern Mumbai (Salsette) is hilly,[105] and the highest point in the city is 450 m (1,476 ft) at Salsette in the Powai-Kanheri ranges.[106] Sanjay Gandhi National Park (Borivili National Park) is located partly in the Mumbai suburban district, and partly in the Thane district, and it extends over an area of 103.09 km2 (39.80 sq mi).[107]

Apart from the Bhatsa Dam, there are six major lakes that supply water to the city: Vihar, Lower Vaitarna, Upper Vaitarna, Tulsi, Tansa and Powai.[108] Tulsi Lake and Vihar Lake are located in Borivili National Park, within the city's limits.[109] The supply from Powai lake, also within the city limits, is used only for agricultural and industrial purposes.[110] Three small rivers, the Dahisar River, Poinsar (or Poisar) and Ohiwara (or Oshiwara) originate within the park, while the polluted Mithi River originates from Tulsi Lake and gathers water overflowing from Vihar and Powai Lakes.[111] The coastline of the city is indented with numerous creeks and bays, stretching from Thane creek on the eastern to Madh Marve on the western front.[112] The eastern coast of Salsette Island is covered with large mangrove swamps, rich in biodiversity, while the western coast is mostly sandy and rocky.[113]

Soil cover in the city region is predominantly sandy due to its proximity to the sea. In the suburbs, the soil cover is largely alluvial and loamy.[114] The underlying rock of the region is composed of black Deccan basalt flows, and their acidic and basic variants dating back to the late Cretaceous and early Eocene eras.[115] Mumbai sits on a seismically active zone owing to the presence of 23 fault lines in the vicinity.[116] The area is classified as a Seismic Zone III region,[117][118] which means an earthquake of up to magnitude 6.5 on the Richter-scale may be expected.

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