Updated on: 2026-03-31 | Author: SSC Solutions Editorial Team
Concentrated settlements are found in Narmada Valley because of Cultivable Land.
Explanation:
Concentrated/clustered/nucleated settlements are those in which the habitation regions are closed together and clustered. It is found mostly in the cultivable areas of the Narmada Valley, Bihar, Uttar Pradesh, and the Vindhyan plateau.
Both Ganga and Amazon Rivers are considered to be the lifeline of the respective countries – India and Brazil. Even though both are gigantic rivers of the countries, the nature of human settlements in their banks differ. The concentration of settlement depends upon many important factors like the availability of water, natural resources, climatic conditions and the type of region.
GANGA:
Ganga river basin in India is the second-largest river basin in the country. Since it is the most fertile land in the country, this region is one of the most densely populated regions.
But the density is less in the mountainous regions as compared to its plains. The whole fertile land is called the northern plains. It is an important place opted for human settlement because of the fertility of the land.
Farming and dairying are the important occupations of the people. The main crop grown is paddy and wheat along with maize, millets, and gram.
Many highly populated cities like Allahabad, Lucknow, and Varanasi is located in its banks. Because of this, the transportation network, communication facilities, and the infrastructure is highly developed in the region.
But because of the growing population and human interferences, the region is depleting resulting in many problems.
AMAZON:
Amazon River basin is the largest river basin in the world. It has been exploited since the earlier days of human Civilization but has still some of the unexplored parts of the world.
Since the river system is located near the equatorial region, it is both hot and humid and experiences high rainfall. This has resulted in the growth of dense forests which is home to innumerable flora and fauna.
People live sparsely in the river basin as most of the area is covered by the dense forests. They cut a few trees and practice shifting cultivation.
The land is very fertile. The main crop grown is cassava along with tapioca, maize, coffee, and cocoa. They also practice fishing and hunting.
Because of human interference, the forest cover is depleting and leading to many ecological problems.
| Urbanisation in India | Urbanisation in Brazil | |
| 1. | The growth of urbanisation in India has been slow. | Brazil is highly urbanised. |
| 2. | In 2011, the level of urbanisation in India was 31.2% which is quite low in comparison to the developed countries | Currently, 86% of Brazil’s population resides in cities. |
| 3. | The southern part of India is more urbanised than the northern part. | The rate of urbanisation is high in south and south-east. |
| 4. | The urbanisation in Goa is 62%, while in Delhi it is more than 80%. Urbanisation is also more in the states of Tamil Nadu, Maharashtra, Gujarat and Kerala. | States like Sao Paulo, Goias, Rio De Janeiro, Espirito Santo have more urban population than states in the North. |
| 5. | The states of Himachal Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Bihar, and Rajasthan experience low levels of urbanisation. | In Amazon Basin and Brazilian Highlands, as population is less, urbanisation is also less. However, urbanisation has occurred in Manaus in Amazon Basin region. |
Human settlements are organised and structured human habitations in different regions.
The concentration of settlement depends upon many important factors like the availability of water, natural resources, climatic conditions and the type of region.
Even though the nature of the region and the climatic conditions also influence the concentration of settlement, the availability of clean water is the most important determinant.
Because of this reason, we can find most of the ancient human habitations on the banks of the rivers. Indraprastha, Harappa, Mohenjo-Daro, and Varanasi are some examples of such settlements.
Thus, the availability of water is the most important determinant of the concentration of human settlement.
Urbanization refers to the movement of people and human settlements from rural areas to urban areas.
Rapid urbanization is taking place in India because of the rapid increase in its population. Because of the increase in its population, people require more land and other resources.
Thus villages have given way to the formation of cities and have contributed to the migration of people from rural areas to urban areas.
Other factors like employment opportunities, a higher standard of living, better facilities and infrastructure also force people to migrate from rural areas to urban areas.
Urbanisation refers to the movement of people and human settlements from rural areas to urban areas.
Urbanisation is increasing rapidly in India especially in Delhi and Chandigarh. This is mainly because of the settlement pattern of the states.
Availability of plain, agriculturally productive land along with drinking water, improved human resources, employment opportunities, and infrastructure is the main reason for the higher urbanisation in these states.
Although the coastal climate is hot and humid, and flat land is limited due to rugged topography, the eastern coast of Brazil has a good water supply and a large range of natural resources.
The region has rich fertile soil which is most suitable for coffee cultivation.
The region is rich in minerals like iron ore and has a steady power supply.
An excellent transportation facility is also available here.
Due to these factors, agriculture, industries and trade flourish and settlements increase.
So, majority of Brazil’s population is found in the eastern coastal areas.
The thick equatorial rainforest zones are in the Northeast. The climate here is unhealthy and unfit for settlement.
There are limitations on the use and exploitation of natural resources.
Transport facilities are very poor in the region due to poor infrastructure facilities.
In the Northeast of Brazil lies the ‘Drought Quadrilateral’, which has poor rainfall and lacks any kind of cultivation.
Dispersed
Explanation:
The settlements in the north-eastern parts of Brazil are scattered/dispersed settlements in which the habitation regions are isolated or located far away from each other. This is because of the occurrence of severe droughts and famines in the highlands because of the scarcity of water. Thus, agriculture practices will be lesser resulting in sparse settlements.
The percentage of urbanisation in 1961 was 18%.
The highest urbanization took place in the decade 1971–1981.
The growth of urbanisation was lowest in the decade 1961–1971.
After reading the graph, we can say that urbanisation in India is slowly but continuously rising.
In 2001, the percentage of urbanisation was 27.8.
The difference between the percentage of urbanisation from 1971 and 1981 is 5.1%.
Development of roads is one of the development index of a country- Right
Availability of water
Human settlements refer to organised and structured human habitation in different regions. The concentration of settlement depends upon many important factors like the availability of water, natural resources, climatic conditions and the type of region. Even though the nature of the region and the climatic conditions also influence the concentration of settlement, the availability of clean water is the most important determinant.
Because of this reason, we can find most of the ancient human habitation on the banks of the rivers. Thus the availability of water is the most important determinant of the concentration of human settlement.
Hilly areas
Scattered/dispersed settlements are those in which the habitation regions are isolated or located far away from each other. They are mostly found in the plateaus, hilly or forested areas. In India, such type of settlements are found in the tribal parts of Central India, eastern and southern Rajasthan and the Himalayan slopes
Sao Paulo is the most urbanised state in Brazil.
Para
Urbanisation refers to the movement of people and human settlements from the rural areas to the urban areas. Brazil is one of the highly urbanised developing countries. But it is restricted to the south and southeastern parts.
Para is mostly to the central part of Brazil covered by dense forests having hotter climate and poor transportation facilities. Thus, urbanisation will be limited.
Nucleated settlement is mainly found in the south eastern parts of Brazil.
Dispersed settlements are found in the desert of Rajasthan.
Human settlements are organized and structured human habitation in different regions. It determines how the population is distributed in different regions. Human settlements grow only in specific regions.
Some important determinants of the location-specific growth of settlements are:
Availability of water resources: An important factor in determining the growth of human settlements is the availability of freshwater. The existence of lakes and rivers is an important feature influencing the growth of settlements. Only these regions will permit cultivation and allied activities like dairying.
Because of this reason, we can find most of the ancient human habitations in the banks of the rivers. Indraprastha, Harappa, Mohenjo-Daro and Varanasi are some examples of such settlements.
The topography of land: The landscape is an important aspect influencing the growth of human settlements. Flat, plain and fertile lands will be more densely populated as compared to hilly and rugged areas. The transportation and other facilities will be more developed in the plains leading to a higher concentration of population.
Climate: Climate of the area also determines the density of human settlement. Population and settlements will be much lesser in deserts and arid lands with less rainfall. Population will be higher in the coastal areas and the plains even if the climate is hot and humid because of adequate rainfall.
Natural resources: Regions rich in fertile soil and other natural resources will be densely populated than others. The rich natural resources will provide more opportunities for the people thus improving their quality of life.
Infrastructure development: The population will be concentrated in areas with high infrastructure development and facilities. This will improve the transportation and communication network resulting in the migration of more people.
Urbanisation refers to the movement of people and human settlements from the rural areas to the urban areas. It is an important phenomenon of the 21st century. People migrate to other areas because of factors like employment opportunities, a higher standard of living, and better facilities and infrastructure.
BRAZIL:
Brazil is one of the few developing countries that is experiencing a huge increase in urbanisation. Urbanisation is an important factor that is contributing to its economic growth.
Nearly 86% of the country’s population is living in cities. Cities like Sau Paulo is emerging as one of the major hubs of the country. But it is concentrated in the southern and the south-eastern parts of the country.
This is because of the better facilities found in these parts.
Even though the southern coastal climate is hot and humid, the region has adequate availability of water and natural resources.
The transportation facilities are also much better.
The settlements in the north-eastern parts of Brazil are scattered/dispersed in which the habitation regions are isolated or located far away from each other. This is because of the occurrence of severe droughts and famines in the highlands because of the scarcity of water.
Thus, agriculture practices will be lesser resulting in sparse settlements. Also, the population in Amazon River basin is less.
‘Go West’ policy to reduce regional imbalance and ensure balanced development.
INDIA:
Urbanisation in India is also similar to that experienced in Brazil. About 34% of the population is living in urban areas.
Even though the rate is lesser in India, urbanisation is contributing to the rapid development in both countries.
As of the present data, Delhi and Chandigarh experience the highest rate of urbanisation. But in India also the trend is lopsided.
Southern India is highly urbanised compared to Northern India. Goa is the most urbanised state with 62.17% of its population living in urban areas. It is followed by Tamil Nadu and Kerala.
This is because of the higher level of development and a higher standard of living associated with the southern states as compared to the northern ones.
Northern states - except Delhi and Chandigarh -experience low levels of urbanisation. It is the lowest in Himachal Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Bihar, and Rajasthan where people migrate to other states for better opportunities.
Thus, it can be said that in both Brazil and India the effects of urbanisation is lopsided.
The growth of urbanisation: The growth of urbanisation in India has been slow as compared to Brazil.
More urbanisation:
The southern part of India is more urbanised than the northern part. The urbanisation in Goa is 62%, while in Delhi it is more than 80%. Moreover, urbanisation is more in the states of Tamil Nadu, Maharashtra, Gujarat, and Kerala.
In Brazil, the rate of urbanisation is high in South and South-east with Sao Paulo emerging as a major, metropolitan and industrial area. States like Sao Paulo, Goias, Minas Gerais have more urban population than states in the North.
Less urbanisation:
In India, Himachal Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Bihar, Rajasthan are some of the states with low levels of urbanisation.
While in Brazil, in Amazon Basin and Brazilian Highlands, as population is less, urbanisation is also less. However, urbanisation has occurred in Manaus because it is a port on the confluence of the River Negro and the River Amazon.