Prelims 2013 · archive
EasyOn the planet earth, most of the freshwater exists as ice caps and glaciers. Out of the remaining freshwater, the largest proportion
Answer & explanation
Answer: (c) exists as groundwater
Answer: (c). Ice holds most of Earth's freshwater, roughly 70–78%. Groundwater holds most of the rest, roughly 22–30%. Lakes, rivers, soil moisture and the atmosphere together hold only a tiny fraction, well under 1%.
- ✗ (a) Water held in the atmosphere as vapour and clouds is a minute fraction of freshwater, far smaller than groundwater.
- ✗ (b) Freshwater lakes and rivers are visible and important, but together they hold only a tiny share of freshwater, much smaller than groundwater.
- ✓ (c) Groundwater makes up roughly 22–30% of all freshwater. That makes it by far the largest store after ice.
- ✗ (d) Soil moisture is a very small store of freshwater, far below groundwater.
Remember · Freshwater stores: ice (~70–78%) > groundwater (~22–30%) > everything else (lakes, rivers, soil moisture, atmosphere) together, well under 1%.
📘 Read it in NCERT: Class 11 Fundamentals of Physical Geography, Ch 12 (practise this chapter)
Sources
- NASA Earth Observatory – Water (Estimate of Global Water Distribution) ↗ “Groundwater may constitute anywhere from approximately 22 to 30% of fresh water, with ice (including ice caps, glaciers, permanent snow, ground ice, and permafrost) accounting for most of the remaining 78 to 70%.”
- NCERT Class 11 · Fundamentals of Physical Geography, Chapter 12 “The remaining is held as freshwater in glaciers and icecaps, groundwater sources, lakes, soil moisture, atmosphere, streams and within life.”
Question: UPSC Civil Services (Preliminary) 2013, General Studies paper. Explanation: Minimalist IAS, checked 25 Oct 2026 (how we verify). ·