The process by which forces inside the Earth move, elevate or build up portions of the Earth's crust is called:

Diastrophism refers to all the processes that move, elevate, build up or deform portions of the Earth's crust. It is caused by forces originating inside the Earth, so it is an endogenic process.

Two types of geomorphic processes:

Endogenic processes are driven by the Earth's internal energy, such as the heat released by radioactivity and the heat left over from the Earth's formation. They include diastrophism and volcanism.

Exogenic processes are driven by energy from the Sun and by gravity, acting on the surface. They wear the land down and are covered in a separate question.

Forms of diastrophism:

Orogeny (mountain building): Intense folding and faulting of the crust along long, narrow belts create mountain ranges, such as the Himalayas, the Alps and the Andes.

Epeirogeny (continent building): Broad uplift or subsidence of large parts of the crust, without much folding. It can raise or lower continents and plateaus.

Earthquakes: Sudden movements along faults that release energy and can shift parts of the crust.

Plate tectonics: The horizontal movement of crustal plates, which drives most mountain-building and earthquakes.

Folding and faulting:

Folding happens when layers of rock are compressed and bend into upfolds (anticlines) and downfolds (synclines).

Faulting happens when rocks break and the blocks on either side move. It can form rift valleys and block mountains (horsts).

Examples in India:

• The Himalayas were raised by orogeny as the Indian Plate collided with the Eurasian Plate.
• The Satpura range is an example of a block mountain.

Relationship with volcanism:

Volcanism is another endogenic process, in which molten rock (magma) moves from inside the Earth to or towards the surface.

Overall effect:

• Endogenic forces tend to create unevenness in the Earth's surface by building up relief, while exogenic forces tend to level it.
• The landscape at any place is the result of the balance between these two sets of forces.

Why not the other options?

• ✗Erosion, weathering and deposition are exogenic processes that act on the surface.