Britannica Sources used in this answer

How do the Western Ghats affect rainfall on India’s west coast and the Deccan plateau?

Created from Britannica articles using AI. AI can make mistakes, so verify using Britannica articles.

Flag of India — India The Indian flag is also called the tricolor. The top band is saffron in color (signifying courage), the middle band is white (signifying peace and truth), and the bottom band is green (signifying fertility and growth). The wheel in the middle depicts the wheel of the law in the lion capital in Sarnath that Mauryan emperor Ashoka created.

The Western Ghats play a critical role in India’s monsoon weather patterns by acting as a major barrier to moisture-laden winds from the Arabian Sea.12

As these winds encounter the steep seaward slopes of the mountains, the air is forced upward, cools, and releases its moisture as heavy rainfall on the narrow western coastal plain. This process, known as orographic precipitation, results in dense forests on the seaward side of the range.123

Conversely, the Deccan plateau, located on the landward or "lee" side of the mountains, experiences a rain shadow effect. Because the mountains trap the majority of the moisture, the air that descends toward the interior is significantly drier, resulting in much lighter precipitation across the plateau. Consequently, the Western Ghats serve as the principal watershed for peninsular India, dictating the distribution of water between the coast and the inland regions.231