INSIGHTS REVISION TEST for Preliminary Exam 2018: Test – 36 (Geography)

Answer: (b)

Justification:

Karaikal district, part of the discontiguous union territory of Pondicherry, is a small enclave within Tamil Nadu. Karaikal and the other parts of Pondicherry are former French colonial territories in India.

Telangana is bordered by the states of Maharashtra to the north, Chhattisgarh to the northeast, Andhra Pradesh to the southeast and south, and Karnataka to the west.

Answer: (d)

Justification:

Gondwana (originally Gondwanaland) is an hypothesized ancient southern supercontinent comprising most of the landmasses in today’s southern hemisphere, including Antarctica, South America, Africa, Madagascar, Australia-New Guinea and New Zealand, as well as Arabia and the Indian subcontinent, which are in the Northern Hemisphere.

The peninsular plateau is a table land composed of the old crystalline, igneous and metamorphic rocks. It was formed due to breaking and drifting of the Gondwana land and thus making it a part of oldest landmass. This plateau has broad and shallow valleys and rounded hills. The peninsular plateau consists of broad divisions, namely, the central highlands and the Deccan plateau

Answer: (b)

Justification:

-The width of Himalayas in western part is around 400 km and it decreases towards to the east which is around 125 km in Arunachal Pradesh

Because of the anti-clockwise rotation (door slam shut movement ) of Indian plate there is abrupt rise in the heights of Eastern Himalayas whereas because of ease of pressure on western side western Himalayas have gradual rise in height and greater width

Duns are longitudinal valleys formed as a result of folding when Eurasian plate and Indian plate collided.They are formed between Lesser Himalayas and Shiwaliks.These valleys are deposited with coarse alluvium brought down by Himalayan rivers.

River Indus is an antecedent river as it is considered as older than the Himalayas. The deep gorges of the Indus, the Satluj, the Brahmaputra etc. clearly indicate that these rivers are older than the Himalayas

Answer: (d)

Justification:

Garo and Khasi hills are the extensions of peninsular part of the subcontinent. Along with the Karbi Anglong plateau , the Meghalaya plateau (comprising Garo ,Khasi and Jaintia hills ) is separated from the Chotanagpur plateau (part of peninsular india ) by Malda fault (in Bengal).

Rajmahalhills are part peninsular plateau located in Jharkand. They are volcanic mountains formed by Kergulean hotspot. The hills are oriented in a north-south axis with an average elevation of 200–300 m (600-1,000 ft). The River Ganga meanders around the hills changing direction of flow from eastwards to southwards.

Answer: (a)

Justification:

Sal and teak forests are best grown in central highlands. Teak and sal are tropical deciduous trees. Madhya Pradesh has the highest concentration of teak and sal forest in India. Suitable topographical and climatic conditions of central highlands are suitable for growth of teak and sal.The extent of teak and sal forest is less in rest of the regions because of climatic conditions.

Answer: (b)

Justification:

The Manjra  is a tributary of the river Godavari. It passes through the states of Maharashtra, Karnataka and Telangana. It originates in the Balaghat range of hills near Ahmednagar district at an altitude of 823 metres (2,700 ft) and empties into the Godavari River.

Hiran is a right bank tributary of Narmada river. Hiran River rises in the Bhanrer range in the Jabalpur district of Madhya Pradesh near the Kundam village at an elevation of 600 m. The river flows in a generally south-westerly direction for a total length of 188 km to join the Narmada from the right near Sankal village.  Hiranhas the distinction of being the biggest right bank tributary of the Narmada and drains a total area of 4,792 sq. km.

Answer:(c)

Justification:

The frequency of the tropical depressions originating from the Bay of Bengal varies from year to year. Their tracks over India are mainly determined by the position of ITCZ, which is generally termed as monsoon trough. As the axis of the monsoon trough oscillates, the tracks of these depressions also vary. This cause wide fluctuations in the direction and the paths these depressions take leading to variation in intensity and amount of rainfall from year to year.

Answer: (a)

Justification:

Variability of rainfall in highest in regions of low rainfall. Rainfall variability is highest in North-western part of India.

Duration of southwest monsoons decreases as we move from southern India to northern and north-western part of the country.

Changes in pressure and sea surface temperatures in southern pacific leads to El- nino.

High-pressure over Mascarenes along with Somali Jetstream pushes monsoon winds towards Indian subcontinent.

Answer: (c)

Justification :

Type of vegetation in any region is not dependent on soil type. Rest of the factors determine the kind of vegetation of a particular region.

Answer: (a)

Justification:

The Mahi is a river in western India, it rises in Madhya Pradesh and, after flowing through the Vagad region of Rajasthan, enters Gujarat and flows into the Arabian Sea.   It is one of the rivers in India that flows in a rift valley, the other rivers which flow through rift valley include Damodar River in Chota Nagpur Plateau , Tapti and Narmada river.

There are many west flowing rivers in Orissa and Indravati is one of them

Answer: (c)

Justification :

Tamil Nadu              –   555 persons per sqkm

Madhya Pradesh     —  236

Uttarakhand             —  189

India                           —  382

Answer : (a)

Justification:

Sex ratio of Chattisgarh – 992 and Odisha – 979 and India – 940

Answer: (a)

Justification :

The largest part of the northern plain is formed of older alluvium. They lie above the flood plains of the rivers and present a terrace like feature. This part is known as Bhangar. The soil in this region contains calcareous deposites locally known as kankar. The newer, younger deposits of the flood plains are called khadar .

Doabs refers to the region between two rivers.Starting from east to west,

Bist Jullundhur Doab – Satluj and Beas

Bari Doab – Beas and Ravi

Rachna Doab – Rabi and Chenab

Chal/Jech Doab – Chenab and Jhelum

Sindh Sagar Doab – Jhelum and Indus

 Dooars or Duars are the alluvial floodplains in northeastern India that lie south of the outer foothills of the Himalayas and north of the Brahmaputra River basin. This region is about 30 km (19 mi) wide and stretches over about 350 km (220 mi) from the Teesta River in West Bengal to the Dhanshiri River in Assam. The region forms the gateway to Bhutan. It is part of the Terai-Duar savanna and grasslands ecoregion. Duar region is rich in wildlife.

The amount of rainfall decreases from East to West.

Answer: (a)

Justification :

Because of the variation in climatic conditions the vegetation along the western and eastern slopes are different. Western slopes have Tropical evergreen and semi-evergreen vegetation whereas the eastern slopes are dominated by Tropical moist and dry deciduous forest.

Answer: (b)

Justification:

Rajaji National Park is an Indian national park and tiger reserve that encompasses the Shivaliks, near the foothills of the Himalayas. The park is spread over 820 km2 and three districts of Uttarakhand: Saharanpur, Dehradun and Pauri Garhwal.

Valley of flowers is located in Greater Himalayan ranges of Uttarakhand.

The Zabarwan Range is a short (20 mi (32 km) long) sub-mountain range between Pir Panjal and Great Himalayan Range in the central part of the Kashmir Valley in the state of Jammu and Kashmir in India. The Zabarwan mountain range possesses great Himalayan features with rich wildlife. The Dachigam National Park, spread over 141 km2, is the main feature of the range. The Dachigam National Park holds the last viable population of Kashmir stag (Hangul) and the largest population of black bear in Asia.

Answer: (d)

Justification:

Coringa mangroves is located in Andhra Pradesh. Coringa Wildlife sanctuary is important conservation site of the region.

Pichavaram mangrove wetland is in Tamil Nadu

One of the biggest mangrove forest is found in Bartang island in Andamans.

Answer: (c)

Justification:

Lion Tailed Macaque is endangered species of Western Ghats .Papikonda National park is in East Godavari district of Andhra Pradesh.

Nilgiri Tahr is endemic to western ghats found in greater numbers in Eravikulam National Park in Kerala

Orang national park is in Assam known for conservation of one-horned Rhinoceros.

Answer: (b)

Justification:

Pitti Bird Sanctuary is a small reef that is approximately 24 north-west of Kavaratti, Pitti is an important nesting place for pelagic birds such as the sooty tern (Sterna fuliginosa), the greater crested tern (Sterna bergii) and the brown noddy (Anous stolidus).

Answer: (c)

Justification:

Eastern Himalayas extend over the states of Sikkim and Arunachal. The elevation extends beyond 6000mts where Alpine shrub and meadows are found.

Answer: (d)

Justification:

River Ramganga flows through Corbett National park

Small river Kunthipuzha flows through Silent Valley National Park.

Solution: b.

It was organised by the AP State Tourism Department.

http://www.thehindu.com/todays-paper/tp-national/tp-andhrapradesh/pelican-festival-at-kolleru-a-huge-hit/article22653092.ece

Solution: c.

You can eliminate the 1^st given pair easily. Because satellites and missile tests always are launched from the east coast (http://www.thehindu.com/sci-tech/science/why-are-all-satellites-and-missiles-launched-from-the-east-coast/article7202159.ece)

Kennedy Space Centre – Florida

Europe’s Spaceport – Kourou, French Guiana

Satish Dhawan Space Centre – Sriharikota, Andhra Pradesh

Rocket Lab Launch Complex – Mahia Peninsula, NZ

Improvisation (passing reference to the launch pad at Kourou): http://www.thehindu.com/sci-tech/science/isro-needs-4-years-to-catch-up-with-satellite-demand-dr-sivan/article22651083.ece

Solution: a.

Mangrove trees grow in areas with low-oxygen soil, where slow-moving waters allow fine sediments to accumulate. Mangrove forests only grow at tropical and subtropical latitudes near the equator because they cannot withstand freezing temperatures.

The Sundarbans lies south of the Tropic of Cancer.

https://oceanservice.noaa.gov/facts/mangroves.html;

Improvisation: http://www.thehindu.com/news/national/other-states/sundarbans-mangroves-struggle-to-find-new-ground/article22785340.ece;

Solution: b.

In the news (http://www.thehindu.com/business/Economy/what-is-the-lowdown-on-industrial-renewal/article22785218.ece): “Industrial activity, as measured by the government’s Index of Industrial Production (IIP) and the private sector Purchasing Managers’ Index (PMI), has improved significantly over the last two months.. Growth in the IIP soared to 8.8% in November, the highest since October 2015, and stood at a slightly slower but still robust 7.07% in December.. Similarly, the PMI surged to a 60-month high of 54.7 in December and came in at 52.4 in January (The PMI is usually released at the start of the month, much before most of the official data on industrial output, manufacturing and GDP growth becomes available. It is, therefore, considered a good leading indicator of economic activity). These two sets of data are interesting because not only do they show the picture from both the government and private sector sides but also highlight different elements of the sectors they measure. While the IIP is an output measure, the PMI is an indication of the activity at the input, or purchasing, level. If both show strong growth, the implication is an overall recovery in industrial activity and sentiments.”

PMI or a Purchasing Managers’ Index (PMI) is an indicator of business activity – it can be utilised as an indicator for both, the manufacturing and services sectors. It is a survey-based measures that asks the respondents about changes in their perception of some key business variables from the month before.

The PMI is derived from a series of qualitative questions. Executives from a reasonably big sample, running into hundreds of firms, are asked whether key indicators such as output, new orders, business expectations and employment were stronger than the month before and are asked to rate them. A figure above 50 denotes expansion in business activity. Anything below 50 denotes contraction. Higher the difference from this mid-point, greater the expansion or contraction.

https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/economy/indicators/what-is-purchasing-managers-index-pmi/articleshow/6259031.cms;

https://www.investopedia.com/terms/p/pmi.asp

Solution: a.

• SATH (http://pib.nic.in/newsite/PrintRelease.aspx?relid=165545): NITI Aayog has launched SATH, a program providing ‘Sustainable Action for Transforming Human capital’ with the State Governments. The vision of the program is to initiate transformation in the education and health sectors. SATH aims to identify and build three future ‘role model’ states each for health and education systems (NITI Aayog has selected Uttar Pradesh, Assam, and Karnataka to improve healthcare delivery and key outcomes. In Education, Madhya Pradesh, Odisha, and Jharkhand have been selected for support to better learning outcomes.)
• Samavesh (http://niti.gov.in/content/concept) is a programme launched by the NITI Aayog to link together various lead Knowledge and Research Institutions.
• Champions of Change (http://niti.gov.in/content/champions-change-transforming-india-through-g2b-partnership) is an initiative organised by NITI Aayog to “transform India through G2B (Government-to-Business) partnership”.

NITI Aayog and Competitive federalism

• Introduction of Digital Transformation Index and Innovation Index for ranking states
• Launch of the Health Index, which is to become an annual exercise across the country evaluating health outcomes.
• SATH
• School Education Quality Index (SEQI)
• Composite Water Management Index

http://pib.nic.in/newsite/PrintRelease.aspx?relid=176698