Mountains are formed when tectonic plates collide and push the land upward. The Himalayas are still growing today, by about 0.78 inches a year, because the tectonic plates beneath India and Asia continue to push into each other. Like the Appalachians, the Himalayas are being eroded, but at a slower rate than that at which they're growing. The Himalayan mountains' highest point is Mount Everest, which has an elevation of 29,029 feet.