Daily Static Quiz Prelims Practice 2027
The Narmada originates from the Amarkantak plateau in Madhya Pradesh and flows westward through a rift valley into the Gulf of Khambhat. It is the longest west-flowing river in India and forms a natural boundary between North and South India.
- The Indus, Ganga, and Brahmaputra are antecedent rivers — they predate the Himalayas and have cut deep gorges through the mountains.
- Peninsular rivers like the Godavari and Krishna carry more water than Himalayan rivers because they drain larger catchment areas.
Statement 1 is correct — Himalayan rivers are antecedent, having existed before the Himalayas rose and continuing to cut their courses as the mountains uplifted, creating spectacular gorges; they are also perennial, fed by glaciers and the monsoon year-round. Statement 2 is incorrect, since peninsular rivers are rainfed and seasonal, carrying significantly less water than Himalayan rivers — rivers like the Ganga and Brahmaputra have far larger discharge volumes due to their combined glacial and monsoon feeding.
Option (c) is incorrect — the Narmada and Tapti flow westward, draining into the Arabian Sea through the Gulf of Khambhat, not eastward into the Bay of Bengal; they flow through rift valleys (grabens), which explains their westward course unlike most peninsular rivers. Options (a), (b), and (d) are all factually correct.
- Assertion (A): The Brahmaputra has one of the highest rates of silt deposition among Indian rivers, causing frequent and severe flooding in Assam.
- Reason (R): The Brahmaputra flows through one of the world's most seismically active and geologically young zones — where intense erosion, high gradient, and the narrowing of the valley as it enters the plains dramatically increases its sediment load and flood potential.
Assertion A is correct — the Brahmaputra carries one of the highest sediment loads of any river globally, and its Assam valley floods are annual, catastrophic, and among India's most severe recurring disasters. Reason R is correct and directly explains A, since the eastern Himalayan zone is geologically young and tectonically active, and the Brahmaputra descends steeply from the Tibetan plateau, picks up enormous sediment, and spreads across the flat Assam valley, causing braided channels, high silt deposition, and devastating floods.
- The Ganga originates from the Gangotri glacier in Uttarakhand and is joined by the Yamuna at Prayagraj.
- The Kaveri river originates in the Brahmagiri hills of Coorg (Kodagu) in Karnataka.
- The Sutlej, Beas, and Ravi are all tributaries of the Indus river system.
All three statements are correct. The Ganga originates from the Gangotri glacier (Gomukh) in Uttarakhand and is joined by the Yamuna at Prayagraj (Triveni Sangam). The Kaveri originates from Talakaveri in the Brahmagiri hills of Kodagu, Karnataka, and is the most important river of South India. The Sutlej, Beas, and Ravi are all part of the Indus river system, with their waters allocated between India and Pakistan under the Indus Waters Treaty, 1960.
