Question

Arrange the following river basins in descending order according to their size.
(A) Mahanadi
(B) Godavari
(C) Ganga
(D) Pennar
Choose the correct answer from the options given below:

• A. (D), (B), (C), (A)
• B. (B), (C), (A), (D)
• C. (B), (A), (D), (C)
• D. (C), (B), (A), (D)

Hint:

Remember the general hierarchy of Indian river basins: The largest is the Ganga, followed by other major Peninsular rivers like Godavari, Krishna, and then smaller ones like Mahanadi, Narmada, and Cauvery. This mental map helps in ordering them.

Answer 1

The Correct Option is D

Step 1: Understanding the Concept:
This question requires knowledge of the relative sizes (catchment areas) of major river basins in India.
Step 2: Detailed Explanation:
Let's look at the approximate catchment area for each river basin:


(C) Ganga: The Ganga basin is the largest in India, covering over 861,000 sq. km within the country.
(B) Godavari: The Godavari is the largest river system of Peninsular India (often called the Dakshina Ganga). Its basin covers about 312,000 sq. km.
(A) Mahanadi: This is a major river in east-central India with a basin size of approximately 141,600 sq. km.
(D) Pennar: This is a smaller peninsular river flowing through Andhra Pradesh and Karnataka, with a basin size of about 55,000 sq. km.
Arranging these in descending order (largest to smallest) gives: Ganga>Godavari>Mahanadi>Pennar.
Step 3: Final Answer:
The correct sequence is (C), (B), (A), (D), which corresponds to option (4).