Test: Indian Drainage System - UPSC MCQ

• The Narmada is one of the most famous Rivers of India. It creates the conventional border between South India and North India.

• The river runs to the west for a span of 1,312 km (815.2 miles) before flowing through the Gulf of Khambhat (Cambay) into the Arabian Sea, at a distance of 18.6 miles or 30 km west of the Bharuch city in Gujarat.

• Also known as Rewa. River in Central India. Similar to the Mahi River and the Tapti River, the Narmada River is a river flowing from east to west.

• The Son originates near Amarkantak in Madhya Pradesh, just east of the headwater of the Narmada River, and flows north-northwest through Madhya Pradesh state before turning sharply eastward where it encounters the southwest-northeast- running Kaimur Range.

• The Son river at 784 kilometres (487 mi) long, is one of the largest rivers of India. Its chief tributaries are the Rihand and the North Koel.

• The Ganges is a trans-boundary river of India and Bangladesh. The 2,525 km (1,569 mi) river rises in the western Himalayas in the Indian state of Uttarakhand and flows south and east through the Gangetic Plain of North India into Bangladesh, where it empties into the Bay of Bengal. It is the third-largest river in the World by discharge.

Answer:
Explanation:
The river that is not a tributary of Yamuna is the Gandak River.
Details:
The following rivers are tributaries of Yamuna:
- Chambal River: It originates from the Vindhya Range in Madhya Pradesh and flows through Rajasthan and Uttar Pradesh before joining the Yamuna River.
- Betwa River: It is a major river in central India and flows through the states of Madhya Pradesh and Uttar Pradesh before merging with the Yamuna River.
- Ken River: It is a tributary of the Yamuna River and flows through the states of Madhya Pradesh and Uttar Pradesh.
However, the Gandak River is not a tributary of the Yamuna. It is a major river in Nepal and a left-bank tributary of the Ganges in India. It is also known as the Krishna Gandaki in Nepal. The Gandak River originates in the high Himalayas and flows through Nepal and the Indian states of Uttarakhand, Uttar Pradesh, and Bihar before joining the Ganges River.

The Narmada, also called the Rewa, is a river in central India and the fifth-longest river in the Indian subcontinent. It is the third-longest river that flows entirely within India, after the Godavari and the Krishna.

• Saraswati River refers to a river that was a distributary of the Bhagirathi and is now no more there but was active till around the 16th century AD.

• The course and condition of the Saraswati have played an important role in the development and decline of river port towns in Bengal. Initially, the major port town was Tamralipta, after its decline Saptagram rose and declined, and finally, Kolkata came up.

Conditions for delta formation by a river:

• The river must have a gentle gradient in its lower course

• The river must carry a large amount of sediments along with it

• The coastal plains or area where the mouth of river lies should be wide

Though Narmada originates far from the Western Ghats and empties into the Arabian Sea, the river flows through a rift valley at a steep gradient which increases its speed. Also, the western coastal plains are less wider than that required for delta formation by Narmada.

• The Manas River is a major tributary of the Brahmaputra River flowing through Assam. It is named after “Goddess Manasa”, the serpent God in Hindu mythology.

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  The Manas River is a trans-boundary river in the Himalayan foothills between southern Bhutan and India.

Correct option is B. 

• Most of the Western flowing rivers travel lesser distance away to Western coast through hard rocks and over a higher gradient, they couldn’t collect large amounts of Slit and flow with very high speed compared to East flowing rivers.

• Eastern rivers flow through broken hills and mountain ranges. So, they widened and flowed with lesser velocity before entering the sea. So, they deposit sediments and silt before entering into the sea and can form a Delta.

Explanation:

Amarkantak Hills:
- The Amarkantak Hills are a range of mountains in Madhya Pradesh, India.
- These hills are the origin of several important rivers in India.

Rivers originating from Amarkantak Hills:
- Narmada River: The Narmada River originates from the Amarkantak Hills and flows through central India before draining into the Arabian Sea.
- Mahanadi River: The Mahanadi River also originates from the Amarkantak Hills and flows through the states of Chhattisgarh and Odisha before draining into the Bay of Bengal.
- Son River: The Son River, a tributary of the Ganges, also originates from the Amarkantak Hills and flows through the states of Madhya Pradesh, Jharkhand, and Bihar.

Correct Answer:
- Therefore, the correct answer is option D: 1, 2, and 4 only.

The Kunchikal falls is the highest waterfalls in India and also the second highest in Asia. The height of the waterfall is 1,493 ft is located near Agumbe in Shimoga district of Karnataka.

Tista, Sankosh, Subansiri and Lohit are the tributaries of river Brahmaputra

Indus, Ganga, Brahmaputra, Satluj, Alaknanda, Gandak, Kosi etc are Himalayan rivers