Covering an area of 75,000 km2 (29,000 sq mi), it traverses the states of Odisha, Telangana, Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, and Tamil Nadu.

Geologic evidence indicates that the mountains were formed during the archeozoic era and became part of the Indian subcontinent post the break-up of the supercontinent of Rodinia and the formation of Gondwana.

The middle section stretches up to the Penna River and consists of two parallel ranges with an average elevation of 520 m (1,710 ft).

The Eastern Ghats forms a part of one of the major watersheds of India, consisting of many perennial river systems such as the Godavari, Krishna, Mahanadi and Kaveri.

Because of the higher elevation of the Deccan plateau on the west, most rivers originate from the Western Ghats and flow eastwards to cut across the range to the Bay of Bengal.

As the mountains are discontinuous and have a lower elevation, they have a considerably lesser influence than the Western Ghats on the weather patterns in India.

[5] The Eastern Ghats are an ancient orogenic belt which started forming during the collision of crustal rocks during the archeozoic era.

[9] The Eparchaean Unconformity of the Tirumala Hills is a major discontinuity of stratigraphic significance that represents an extensive period of erosion and non-deposition, which is evident from the steep natural slopes, and ravines.

[10][11] Along the western edge, sedimentary rocks were deposited due to volcanic activity, which and later formed schist belts.

[7] The Eastern Ghats extend from north of the Mahanadi River and runs approximately 1,750 km (1,090 mi) to the Vaigai basin in the south of Indian peninsula.

[12] It covers an area of 160,000 km2 (62,000 sq mi), traversing across the Indian states of Odisha (25%), Telangana (5%), Andhra Pradesh (40%), Karnataka (5%), and Tamil Nadu (25%).

The northern section of the range lies majorly in Odisha and stretches from the Similipal hills in the north to the Andhra Pradesh border.

It consists of two parallel ranges with an average elevation of 520 m (1,710 ft) and is separated by a 160 km (99 mi) wide gorge through which the rivers Godavari and Krishna flow.

[7][18][19] Most rivers flow eastwards towards the Bay of Bengal owing to the steeper gradient moving from east to west.

[22][23] As the mountains are discontinuous and have a lower elevation, they have a considerably lesser influence than the Western Ghats on the weather patterns in India.

The higher hill ranges are generally wetter and cooler with the lower parts remaining semi-arid and dry.

[18] Tropical evergreen forests occur in small patches in Shevroy in Tamil Nadu and in north Andhra Pradesh.

These include grey-headed bulbul, Nilgiri wood pigeon, Malabar parakeet, crimson-backed sunbird, and rufous babbler.

Other species of avifauna include laughing dove, Indian nightjar, jungle owlet, red avadavat, Malayan night heron, striated heron, white-naped woodpecker, savanna nightjar, brown hawk-owl, Nilgiri flowerpecker, spot-bellied eagle-owl, blue-eared kingfisher, green imperial pigeon, oriental dwarf kingfisher, Indian swiftlet, and white-browed fantail.

[12][13] Various natural disasters such as heavy rainfalls, extreme temperature, environmental changes, competition due to invasive species have been threats to the biodiversity in the region.

[12] Till 1980, logging was a major contributor for the loss of forest cover with decrease in tree species such as teak, sal, red sanders, and sandalwood.

[14]: 103, 107  Increased urbanisation, and expansion of cities, construction of roads and railways, and tourism have led to encroachments into forest lands, and threats to bio-diversity in the region.

[14]: 112, 114 The Government of India had enacted various policies over the years to address the environmental concerns, access to forest resources, and protection of wildlife.