IMPORTANT DEFINITIONS

1. REPRESENTATIVE FRACTION (RF): It is the ratio between the

distances on the map to its corresponding distance on actual ground.
The RF on this map is 1:50,000.

2. SCALE: Scale is the ratio between the distance of any two points
on the map and the actual distance of the same points on the ground.
The scale of the given map extract is 2 cm: 1 km or 1:50,000.

ng
3. CONTOUR: Contours are imaginary lines drawn on maps, joining
all places with the same height above sea level.

ni
4. CONTOUR INTERVAL: The interval between two consecutive
contours is called contour interval (*It is a constant 20 metres in your
toposheets.)

5.
ar
INDEX CONTOUR: Contour lines are thickened at regular intervals
to make it easier to read contours. For example at every 100 metres the
Le
contour line is made darker. The darker lines are called Index Contours.

6. TRIANGULATED HEIGHT: It is the height of a place which has

been calculated using trigonometry, represented by a small triangle e.g.
▲540
ify

7. SPOT HEIGHT: The height of random places between contours

shown with a dot. e.g. •425
pl

8. BENCH MARK - Height of a place actually marked on a stone

Am

pillar, rock or shown on a building as a permanent reference. It is written

as BM 200 m.

9. RELATIVE HEIGHT: Relative height is the height of a feature with

reference to the height of the surrounding land and NOT to sea level.
It is represented by the height with a small ‘r’ e.g. –12r.

10. ROCK OUTCROP: It is a portion of rock jutting above the surface

of the earth.

11. SHEET ROCK: Large areas of rock where the overlying soil layers
have been eroded and removed due to mechanical weathering.
12. STONY WASTE: A large area usually in arid/semi-arid regions
where the finer sand/soil has blown away leaving a surface covered with
boulders, stones and pebbles.

13. BROKEN GROUND: A relief feature found mostly in dry regions

around rivers and streams. It is land around river, which is totally
weathered (exfoliated) due to alternate cooling and heating.

14. FIRELINE: A cleared pathway in a forest to prevent the spread

of forest fires.

ng
15. MIXED FOREST: A forest with more than two varieties of trees
growing in close proximity to each other.

16. OPEN JUNGLE: A forest where trees are widely scattered.

ni
17. DENSE JUNGLE. : A forest where trees grow very close to each
other.
ar
18. OPEN SCRUB: Scrub is vegetation found in regions with less than
Le
100 cms of rainfall. Therefore it indicates a dry region.

19. BRACKISH: It is a well, which has water with very high salt
content, generally unfit for drinking purposes.
ify

20. CAUSEWAY: It is a raised road over a small water body. (Usually

a road used only in the non-rainy months)
pl

21. CUTTING: A portion of land, which has been cut in order to make
land available for transport routes. (it is indicative of a rocky region)
Am

22. EMBANKMENT: They are raised rock or soil filled constructions on

which roads/railway tracks are built. Also made near tanks and rivers to
prevent flooding.

23. FORM LINES: Form lines are contour lines, but show only
approximate heights above sea level as they are used to indicate the
elevations of the area which are not accessible for proper survey. Hence
they are drawn as broken lines and are called 'form lines'.

24. Q.C. Q.D., OC, OD, PQ, ETC / NATIONAL GRID REFERENCE:
These are alphabetical codes used in the survey map as their
subdivisions which represent the biggest grid sq. of 10,000 square kms.
The Govt. of India has adopted metric system for all measurements. All
the ordnance survey maps issued by the Survey of India were drawn to
the scale 2 cm = 1 km. In this system, the surveyed territory is divided
into 100km X 100 km squares, and each square is denoted by English
alphabets. For example, OC, OD, PQ, PG, etc . This system of map
drawing is known as National Grid Reference.

25. LAYER TINTING: (colouring)

While spot heights show the height of the land, they only do so at certain
points. To provide an overall image which conveyed height, a technique
called layer tinting was developed. Layer tinting uses different colours

ng
(or shades) to represent different heights. It is a mapping convention for
darker colours to signify greater height. When using layer tinting, green
is often used for low land, yellow for higher land and brown for the
highest land.

ni
Layer tinting is most commonly found on physical maps. While layer
ar
tinting is useful, it does not show the detailed shape of the land.

26. DEPRESSION: It is a depression often found in sandy areas

Le
where the wind, having blown away the sand, leaves a hollow or a
depression.

27. HACHURING: Early cartographers attempted to show surface

features on maps by using the technique of hachuring. Hachures use
ify

short lines of varying thickness to show the shape and slope of the land.
In accordance with this technique, the steeper the slope is, the thicker
the lines are which represent it. While hachuring was initially innovative
pl

for its time, it gradually began to be replaced since the actual height of
the land was not depicted.
Am

28. LIME KILN OR BRICK KILN: These are open furnaces where
limestone is purified or bricks are baked for construction purpose.

29. HILL SHADING: Hill shading resembles a light and shadow effect.
Valleys and the sides of mountains appear as though they are cast in
shadow. This is a visually striking method, which is ideal for providing an
overall view of the relief of an area. Hill shading, however, does not
show height which means that it is no more accurate than hachuring.

30. NATIONAL GRID REFERENCE: The Govt. of India has adopted

metric system for all measurements. All the ordnance survey maps
issued by the Survey of India are drawn to the scale 2 cm = 1 km. In this
system , the surveyed territory is divided into 100 km x 100 km squares,
and each square is denoted by English letters

31. CUTTING: A cutting is an open vertical cut in high ground so that a

road or a railway track can pass through.

32. MOUNDS: Mounds are small hills, just a few metres high. They
are usually rounded on the top and covered with green vegetation. Sand
hills in the desert and rock outcrops in stone areas can also be termed
as mounds.

ng
33. SYMBOL OF TELEGRAPH LINE: A telegraph line is indicated by
bold and light dots with the word telegraph or telephone written on it.

ni
ar
Le
ify
pl
Am