Drainage Systems PYQs — 49 UPSC CSE Previous Year Questions

Question 1

Consider the following assertion: In the Pleistocene period either the Yamuna once flowed into the Indus, or the Sutlej flowed into the Yamuna and one major tributary of either had shifted from the Ganga to the Indus or vice versa. Which of the following is/are the basis of the above assertion? The Nadi-Sukta of the Rigveda The explorations of the Sutlej and the Yamuna by Robert Bruce Foote The presence of the same species of dolphins in both the Indus and the Ganga river systems Select the answer using the code given below:

Accepted Answer

D. 3

Question 2

Identify the river of the Indian sub-continent on the basis of the following information: It has an antecedent drainage system. It flows through three countries. It originates in the Tibetan Plateau and is an important river for irrigation. It does not form distributaries. Select the answer from the following:

Accepted Answer

C. Sutlej

Question 3

With reference to the Himalayan rivers joining the Ganga downstream of Prayagraj from West to East, which one of the following sequences is correct ?

Accepted Answer

B. Gomati – Ghaghara – Gandak – Kosi

Question 4

Consider the following statements : Jhelum River passes through Wular Lake. Krishna River directly feeds Kolleru Lake. Meandering of Gandak River formed Kanwar Lake. How many of the statements given above are correct?

Accepted Answer

A. Only one

Question 5

Gandikota canyon of South India was created by which one of the following rivers ?

Accepted Answer

C. Pennar

Question 6

Consider the following pairs : Reservoirs States 1. Ghataprabha Telangana 2. Gandhi Sagar Madhya Pradesh 3. Indira Sagar Andhra Pradesh 4. Maithon Chhattisgarh How many pairs given above are not correctly matched ?

Accepted Answer

C. Only three pairs

Question 7

With reference to the Indus river system, of the following four rivers, three of them pour into one of them which joins the Indus direct. Among the following, which one is such river that joins the Indus direct?

Accepted Answer

D. Sutlej

Question 8

Consider the following rivers: Brahmani Nagavali Subarnarekha Vamsadhara Which of the above rise from the Eastern Ghats?

Accepted Answer

B. 2 and 4

Question 9

Which of the following Protected Areas are located in the Cauvery basin?

Nagarhole National Park
Papikonda National Park
Sathyamangalam Tiger Reserve
Wayanad Wildlife Sanctuary

Select the correct answer using the code given below:

Accepted Answer

C. 1, 3 and 4 only

Question 10

Consider the following pairs : Famous place River 1. Pandharpur Chandrabhaga 2. Tiruchirappalli Cauvery 3. Hampi Malaprabha Which of the pairs given above are correctly matched?

Accepted Answer

A. 1 and 2 only

Question 11

Consider the following pairs: Glacier River 1. Bandarpunch Yamuna 2. Bara Shigri Chenab 3. Milam Mandakini 4. Siachen Nubra 5. Zemu Manas Which of the pairs given above are correctly matched?

Accepted Answer

A. 1, 2 and 4

Question 12

Which one of the following is an artificial lake ?

Accepted Answer

A. Kodaikanal (Tamil Nadu)

Question 13

With reference to river Teesta, consider the following statements : The source of river Teesta is the same as that of Brahmaputra but it flows through Sikkim. River Rangeet originates in Sikkim and it is a tributary of river Teesta. River Teesta flows into Bay of Bengal on the border of India and Bangladesh. Which of the statements given above is/are correct ?

Accepted Answer

B. 2 only

Question 14

Which of the following is/are tributary/tributaries of Brahmaputra? Dibang Kameng Lohit Select the correct answer using the code given below.

Accepted Answer

D. 1, 2 and 3

Question 15

Consider the following rivers : Vamsadhara Indravati Pranahita Pennar Which of the above are tributaries of Godavari?

Accepted Answer

D. 2 and 3 only

Question 16

Consider the following rivers: Barak Lohit Subansiri Which of the above flows/flow through Arunachal Pradesh?

Accepted Answer

B. 2 and 3 only

Question 17

Consider the following pairs: Wetlands Confluence of rivers 1. Harike Wetlands Confluence of Beas and Satluj/Sutlej 2. Keoladeo Ghana National Park Confluence of Banas and Chambal 3. Kolleru Lake Confluence of Musi and Krishna Which of the above pairs is/are correctly matched?

Accepted Answer

A. 1 only

Question 18

The Narmada river flows to the west, while most other large peninsular rivers flow to the east. Why? It occupies a linear rift valley. It flows between the Vindhyas and the Satpuras. The land slopes to the west from Central India. Select the correct answer using the codes given below.

Accepted Answer

A. 1 only

Question 19

Consider the following pairs: National Park River flowing through the Park 1. Corbett National Park Ganga 2. Kaziranga National Park Manas 3. Silent Valley National Park Kaveri Which of the above pairs is/are correctly matched?

Accepted Answer

D. None of these

Question 20

Which one of the following pairs is not correctly matched? Dam/Lake River (a) Govind Sagar Sutlej (b) Kolleru Lake Krishna (c) Ukai Reservoir Tapi (d) Wular Lake Jhelum

Accepted Answer

B. Kolleru Lake - Krishna

Question 21

Rivers that pass-through Himachal Pradesh are:

Accepted Answer

D. Beas, Chenab, Ravi, Sutlej and Yamuna

Question 22

At which one of the following places do two important rivers of India originate; while one of them flows towards the north and merges with another important river flowing towards the Bay of Bengal, the other one flows towards the Arabian Sea?

Accepted Answer

A. Amarkantak

Question 23

Which one of the following rivers does not originate in India?

Accepted Answer

D. Sutlej

Question 24

Consider the following statements: There are no east-flowing rivers in Kerala. There are no west-flowing rivers in Madhya Pradesh. Which of the statements given above is/are correct?

Accepted Answer

D. Neither 1 nor 2

Question 25

Which of the following pairs are correctly matched? Waterfall River 1. Kapildhara Falls Godavari 2. Jog Falls Sharavathi 3. Shivasamudram Falls Cauvery

Accepted Answer

B. 2 & 3 only

Question 26

With which one of the following rivers is the Omkareshwar Project associated?

Accepted Answer

B. Narmada

Question 27

Consider the following pairs: Tributary River Main River 1. Chambal Narmada 2. Sone Yamuna 3. Manas Brahmaputra Which of the pairs given above is/are correctly matched?

Accepted Answer

D. 3 only

Question 28

Which of the following pairs are correctly matched? Irrigation Project State 1. Damanganga Gujarat 2. Girna Maharashtra 3. Pamba Kerala

Accepted Answer

D. 1, 2 and 3

Question 29

Which one of the following rivers originates in Amarkantak?

Accepted Answer

C. Narmada

Question 30

Match List I with List II and select the correct answer using the code given below the lists:

List-I (Town)	List-II (River Nearer to it)
A. Betul	1. Indravati
B. Jagdalpur	2. Narmada
C. Jabalpur	3. Shipra
D. Ujjain	4. Tapti

Accepted Answer

B. A—4 B—1 C—2 D—3

Question 31

Assertion (A): River Kalinadi is an east-flowing river in the southern part of India.
Reason (R): The Deccan Plateau is higher along its western edge and gently slopes towards the Bay of Bengal in the east.

Accepted Answer

D. A is false but R is true

Question 32

Which one of the following is located in the Bastar region?

Accepted Answer

D. Indravati National Park

Question 33

From north towards south, which one of the following is the correct sequence of the given rivers in India?

Accepted Answer

B. Shyok―Zaskar―Spiti―Sutlej

Question 34

Which one of the following statements is not correct?

Accepted Answer

C. Cauvery River rises in Andhra Pradesh

Question 35

Gandhi Sagar Dam is a part of which one of the following?

Accepted Answer

A. Chambal Project

Question 36

Assertion (A): West-flowing rivers of Peninsular India have no deltas. Reason (R): These rivers do not carry any alluvial sediments.

Accepted Answer

C. A is true, but R is false

Question 37

Consider the following statements:

Damodar Valley Corporation is the first multi-purpose river valley project of independent India
Damodar Valley Corporation includes thermal and gas power stations

Which of the statements given above is/are correct?

Accepted Answer

C. Both 1 and 2

Question 38

What is the correct sequence of the rivers—Godavari, Mahanadi, Narmada and Tapi—in the descending order of their lengths?

Accepted Answer

B. Godavari-Narmada-Mahanadi-Tapi

Question 39

Correct sequence of eastward-flowing rivers of Peninsular India from north to south:

Accepted Answer

A. Subarnarekha, Mahanadi, Godavari, Krishna, Pennar, Cauvery, Vaigai

Question 40

Match the drainage basins labelled as A, B, C and D with the names listed below and select the correct answer using the codes given below the names of the drainage basins.

Names of drainage basins:

Ganga Brahmaputra
Indus
Parana
Zambezi

Codes:

Accepted Answer

A. A­3, B­1, C­2, D­4

Question 41

Which one of the following statements is not true?

Accepted Answer

A. Ghaggar’s water is utilised in the Indira Gandhi Canal

Question 42

Assertion (A): The frequency of floods in North Indian plains has increased during the last couple of decades. Reason (R): There has been reduction in the depth of river valleys due to deposition of silt.

Accepted Answer

A. Both A and R are true, and R is the correct explanation of A

Question 43

In the given figure, the site of the Tehri Dam has been labelled as:

Accepted Answer

C. C

Question 44

Which one of the following east-flowing rivers of India has a rift valley due to down warping?

Accepted Answer

A. Damodar

Question 45

The canal-carrying capacity of Farakka is:

Accepted Answer

C. 40,000 Cusecs

Question 46

The Alamatti is on the river:

Accepted Answer

C. Krishna

Question 47

In the map shown, rivers labelled as 1, 2, 3 and 4 respectively are:

Accepted Answer

C. Gandak, Ganga, Gomti and Ghaghara

Question 48

Which of the following pairs are correctly matched? Idukki: Thermal power station Sabarigiri : Hydro-electric project Ghatprabha : Irrigation project Ramganga: Multipurpose project

Accepted Answer

A. 2, 3 & 4

Question 49

Which one of the following rivers thrice forks into two streams and reunites a few miles farther on, thus forming the islands of Srirangapattnam, Sivasamudram and Srirangam?

Accepted Answer

A. Cauvery

Reservoirs	States
1. Ghataprabha	Telangana
2. Gandhi Sagar	Madhya Pradesh
3. Indira Sagar	Andhra Pradesh
4. Maithon	Chhattisgarh

Famous place	River
1. Pandharpur	Chandrabhaga
2. Tiruchirappalli	Cauvery
3. Hampi	Malaprabha

Glacier	River
1. Bandarpunch	Yamuna
2. Bara Shigri	Chenab
3. Milam	Mandakini
4. Siachen	Nubra
5. Zemu	Manas

Wetlands	Confluence of rivers
1. Harike Wetlands	Confluence of Beas and Satluj/Sutlej
2. Keoladeo Ghana National Park	Confluence of Banas and Chambal
3. Kolleru Lake	Confluence of Musi and Krishna

National Park	River flowing through the Park
1. Corbett National Park	Ganga
2. Kaziranga National Park	Manas
3. Silent Valley National Park	Kaveri

	Dam/Lake	River
(a)	Govind Sagar	Sutlej
(b)	Kolleru Lake	Krishna
(c)	Ukai Reservoir	Tapi
(d)	Wular Lake	Jhelum

Waterfall	River
1. Kapildhara Falls	Godavari
2. Jog Falls	Sharavathi
3. Shivasamudram Falls	Cauvery