Test: Drainage System - 1 - UPSC MCQ

The Damodar occupies the eastern margins of the Chotanagpur Plateau, where it flows through a rift valley and finally joins the Hugli. It was known as the ‘sorrow of Bengal’. Now, the river is controlled by the Damodar Valley corporation-a multipurpose project.

It rises near Sihawa in Raipur district of Chhattisgarh and runs through Orissa to discharge its water into Bay of Bengal.

In the plains of Arunachal Pradesh, River Brahmaputra is known as Dihang. The Brahmaputra is one of the major rivers of Asia, it is the ninth largest river in the world by discharge, and the 15th longest. The Brahmaputra enters India in the state of Arunachal Pradesh, where it is called Siang. It appears in the plains, where it is called Dihang.

When a waterfall retreats upstream, it erodes the rock at the base of a river valley creating a gorge.

It rises in the Gangotri glacier near Gaumukh (3,900 m) in the Uttarkashi district of Uttaranchal and is known as the Bhagirathi. At Devprayag, the Bhagirathi meets the Alaknanda; hereafter, it is known as the Ganga.

About 3 per cent of the Kaveri basin falls in Kerala, 41 per cent in Karnataka and 56 per cent in Tamil Nadu. Its important tributaries are Kabini, Bhavani and Amravati.

An oxbow lake is a crescent-shaped lake formed when a river meanders and eventually cuts off a bend. Here are some key points about oxbow lakes:

• They are formed through the process of erosion and deposition.
• Oxbow lakes can become isolated from the main river channel.
• They often host diverse ecosystems and can be rich in wildlife.
• Over time, they may fill with sediment and become marshy or dry land.

Oxbow lakes are significant in understanding river dynamics and the landscape's evolution.

A ridge of high land dividing two areas that are drained by different river systems is called watershed. Ambala is a watershed for rivers Indus and Ganga.

The Indus river system comprises five tributaries; Jhelum, Chenab, Ravi, Beas and Sutlej.

Himalayas are the youngest mountains of India. Therefore, the rivers of this region are also the youngest rivers of India.