2. The Tarai Tract

South of the Bhabar tract lies the Tarai belt which is 15-30 km wide. It is a marshy tract infested with mosquitoes. The Tarai is more wide in the eastern parts of the Great Plains, especially in Brahmaputra Valley due to heavy rainfall. It is a zone of excessive dampness, thick forests, rich wild life and malarial climate. In Uttarakhand, Uttar Pradesh, Haryana, Punjab, and Jammu Divisions (J & K) the Tarai forests have been cleared for cultivation of crops. At present, the Tarai

belt is known for the good cultivation of sugarcane, rice, wheat, maize, oilseeds, pulses, and fodder.

The Tarai, once a marshy zone of jungle and wild grass along the southern edge of the Shiwaliks, has been almost entirely reclaimed for agriculture.