Q. Consider the following statements regarding the extreme geographical limits of major river basins in India:
1.The Indus river basin extends furthest to the west in Indian territory.
2.The Brahmaputra river basin marks the easternmost major river basin of the country.
3.The Ganga river basin represents the absolute northernmost river basin of India.
4.The Kodayar river basin system represents the southernmost river basin in mainland India.
How many of the above statements are correct?
Answer: B
Notes:
Explanation:
- Statement 1 is incorrect: While the Indus system touches the westernmost parts of the Indus-plains/Ladakh region, the westernmost river basin entirely or predominantly located in peninsular/mainland India’s western arid boundary is the Luni or Sabarmati/Mahi river basin flowing into the Arabian Sea, not the Indus basin proper which is centered in the northwest/J&K/Ladakh region rather than the absolute western geographic extreme defined by Kutch river regimes.
- Statement 2 is correct: The Brahmaputra and its eastern sub-basins (like the Lohit basin) stretch into the extreme eastern boundaries of Arunachal Pradesh and Assam, constituting India’s easternmost major river basin system.
- Statement 3 is incorrect: The Indus basin (via its northernmost tributaries like the Shyok, Gilgit, or Hunza/Zanskar) extends much further north into the trans-Himalayan and Karakoram ranges than the Ganga basin, which lies entirely south of the major Himalayan crest line.
- Statement 4 is correct: Small coastal and southern drainage basins in the Kanyakumari district, such as the Pazhayar river basin, mark the true southernmost river basins of mainland India.
