Test: International Boundaries - 1 - UPSC MCQ

Nagaland shares its international border with Myanmar.
Myanmar is also called Burma.
In 1989, the name Burma was changed to Myanmar.

India International Boundaries

• India has 15,106.7 km of land border and a coastline of 7,516.6 Km including island territories.
• In total, India shares land borders with 7 sovereign countries and Bangladesh is one of those.
• Indian states that share borders with Bangladesh are Assam, West Bengal, Mizoram, Meghalaya, and Tripura.
• Seven countries share the boundaries with India. In Northwest there lies Afghanistan and Pakistan, In the North, India, is bound with China, Bhutan and Nepal, to far east India, is surrounded by Myanmar and Bangladesh to the east. Among all these the longest border is shared by Bangladesh.
• Border Line share between India and Bangladesh is 4096.7 Km.
• It is the fifth-longest land border in the world.
• India and Bangladesh share one of the longest borders in the world and it covers an area of 1,43,998 sq km and along with a coastline of 580 km. Hence, Option 2 is correct.
• The two countries share 54 common rivers.
• Bangladesh is a vital trading partner for India.
• Cultural and linguistic exchanges are key factors for the bond of friendship between the people of two countries.
• Rajshahi, Dhaka, Chittagong, Khulna, Rangpur, and Sylhet are the Bangladeshi states that share their borders with India.
• India- Afghanistan border shares a length of 106 km.

The Sundarbans stretch to India's neighbouring country Bangladesh.

• About 60% of the Sundarbans is in Bangladesh and the rest is in India's territory.
• Sundarbans delta is the world's largest delta.
  • It was formed by the action of Ganga and the Brahmaputra in the Bay of Bengal.
  • The delta is triangular in shape.
  • Sundarbans forest is a mangrove area in the delta.
  • It extends over a vast area of 9,630 sq. km and consists of mangrove forests, swamps, and forested islands.
  • The 'Sundari' is the most significant tree in the Sundarbans forest.
  • Sundarbans forest supply timber and forest wood.
• Nepal shares a border with 5 Indian states namely Uttarakhand, Uttar Pradesh, West Bengal, Sikkim, and Bihar.
• Radcliffe Line is the borderline between India and Pakistan.
• In terms of area, Bhutan is the smallest neighbouring country of India.

49th parallel is a boundary between the USA and Canada.

• The 49th parallel lies in the Northern Hemisphere.
• It is a circle of latitude that is 49° north of Earth's equator.
• It was demarcated after the Anglo-American Convention of 1818 and the Oregon Treaty of 1846.
• The line also forms the international border between the northern USA and Canada.

McMahon line is between India and China.

• Sir Henry McMahon negotiated the boundary agreement at Shimla Accord in the year 1913-14.
• India shares 2nd longest border with China.
• On the northern front, China claims Aksai Chin in Ladakh UT.
• Uttarakhand, Himachal Pradesh, Arunachal Pradesh, and Sikkim shares a border with China.
• Land borders of India

Durand Line is an international land border that stretches for about 1,600 miles (2,600 km) between Afghanistan and Pakistan. It culminates at its western end at the border with Iran and at its eastern end at the border with China. The Durand Line is an important international boundary line.

The 49th Parallel is the boundary line that divides the USA and Canada.

• It is located 49 degrees north of the equator.
• It was demarcated after the Anglo-American Convention of 1818 and the Oregon Treaty of 1846, it forms the international border between the northern USA and Canada. 
• This line excludes Alaska.

The 38th Parallel is the boundary line that divides South Korea and North Korea.

• It is located 38 degrees north of the equator.
• It is used to demarcate the central part of the Demilitarized zone between North and South Korea.
• The line was chosen by U.S. military planners at the Potsdam Conference (July 1945) near the end of World War II as an army boundary, north of which the U.S.S.R. was to accept the surrender of the Japanese forces in Korea and south of which the Americans were to accept the Japanese surrender. 

The 22nd Parallel is the boundary line that divides Egypt and Sudan.

• The 22nd latitude north of the equator marks a major portion of the Sudan-Egypt border.
• In 1899, the Anglo-Egyptian condominium agreement for Sudan set the boundary on the 22nd parallel as the border between the two countries.

McMahon Line is the boundary line that divides India and China.

• This line was determined by Sir Henry McMahon, then Foreign Secretary in the Government of British India.
• It runs from the eastern border of Bhutan along the crest of the Himalayas until it reaches the great bend in the Brahmaputra River where that river emerges from its Tibetan course into the Assam Valley.

Laos:

• ​It is a landlocked nation in Southeast Asia, northeast of Thailand, west of Vietnam.
• It is surrounded by Myanmar (Burma), Cambodia, the People's Republic of China, Thailand, and Vietnam.

Serbia:

• ​It is a landlocked country situated at the crossroads of Central and Southeast Europe in the southern Pannonian Plain and the central Balkans.

Ethiopia:

• ​It is a landlocked country on the Horn of Africa.
• It shares borders with Eritrea to the north, Djibouti to the northeast, Somalia to the east, Kenya to the south, South Sudan to the west, and Sudan to the northwest.

Cambodia:

• It is a country in mainland Southeast Asia, bordering Thailand, Laos, Vietnam, the Gulf of Thailand.
• It is not a landlocked country, it shares a border with the Gulf of Thailand.

Important Points

• The largest landlocked country is Kazakhstan in Central Asia with a land area of over 2.7 million kilometers. 
• The smallest landlocked country is the city-state of Vatican City with an area of just 44 hectares (109 acres). 

There are five Indian states through which Nepal shares its border.  Nepal shares a border of almost 1850 km with Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Bihar, Sikkim, and West Bengal.

International Boundaries of India: 

• After China and Russia, India has the third-largest international border in the whole world.
• India is also called the 'most sensitive border' globally because it varies from infiltration to extreme climatic conditions. 
• Its border in the Western part with Pakistan extends up to 3,323 km, dividing the Punjab region.
• After dividing the Punjab region, It running the boundaries up to the Rann of Kutch & Thar Desert in Rajasthan. 
• Basically, India claims the entire state of Jammu and Kashmir, which includes China-administered Aksai Chin & Part of Kashmir(Pakistan Administrated).
• According to India, both are illegally occupied areas.

Amur River forms the boundary between Russia and China.

Important information's about Asia:

• The Caspian Sea is the world’s largest lake and five times larger than Lake Superior. 
  • It separates Europe from Asia.
• Dast-e-Kavir is the largest salt desert in the world situated in Northern Iran.
• Lop Nor Lake in China is a site for numerous nuclear tests.
• Hwang Ho is called China’s Sorrow. 
  • It flows through loess land; hence it is also called as Yellow river.
• Quisling Mountains divide China into North and south China.
• Yangtze River is the longest river in Asia.
• Mekong River flows through China, Thailand-Laos border, Cambodia, and Vietnam to the South China Sea.
• Laos is the only landlocked country in the South-East Asian Peninsula.
• Group of Islands is called an Archipelago.
  • Indonesia is the largest Archipelago in the world.
• Irrawaddy River is known as the lifeline of Myanmar.
  • It falls into the Gulf of Martaban. In the Gulf of Martaban, pearls are found.
• Lake Van of turkey is the most saline water body of Asia.
• Fujiyama, a volcanic mountain is the highest peak in Japan.
• Japan is the most industrialized nation in Asia.
• Myanmar is called the land of mountains and rivers.
• Pakistan is the country of canals.
• Japan is the land of the Rising Sun.
• The Dead Sea, the third saltiest water body in the world, is a landlocked Sea.
  • It lies between Israel and Jordan. 

Bhutan shares borders with the Indian states of

• Arunachal Pradesh in its east,
• Sikkim in the west and
• Assam, West Bengal in the south.
• The Himalayan kingdom also shares a border with China.
• This Bhutan-India Border is the international boundary between the Kingdom of Bhutan and the Republic of India.
• This border is 699 km long.

China does not share its border with Bulgaria.

• China, officially known as the People's Republic of China, is a country in East Asia.
• It is the world's most populated country, having a population of around 1.4 billion.
• It covers approximately 9.6 million square kilometres.
• China shares its borders with 14 Sovereign Countries.
• They are Afghanistan, Bhutan, India, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Laos, Mongolia, Myanmar, Nepal, North Korea, Russia, Tajikistan, and Vietnam. 

Asia:

• According to population size, the largest Continent is Asia.
• The population of Asia is equivalent to 59.76% of the total world population. It is comprised of the 6 most populated countries.
• The chronology of the Largest content in population size from highest to lowest in Asia, Africa, Europe, North America, South America, Australia, Antarctica.

Radcliffe Line" is the boundary line between India and Pakistan.

• Radcliffe Line divided British India into two independent countries India and Pakistan in 1947.
• Radcliffe Line was named after its architect Sir Cyril Radcliffe.
• Three Indian states and one union territory share a boundary with Pakistan.
• Indian states/union territory that share borders with Pakistan are:
  • Jammu and Kashmir
  • Rajasthan
  • Gujarat.
  • Punjab.

A landlocked country is a country that is entirely surrounded by land and does not have a coastline or access to the sea. Among the given options, Switzerland is the only landlocked country. It is located in Central Europe and is bordered by France, Germany, Italy, Austria, and Liechtenstein. Unlike Germany, Italy, and France, Switzerland does not have any coastline as it is completely surrounded by land.