Minimalist IAS
Geography

Prelims · Geography · 39 questions

India: relief, rivers & drainage

Every UPSC Prelims question on this topic, 2016–2026, newest first. Tap an option to check yourself; the answer and explanation open below it.

India: relief, rivers & drainage questions per year: 2016: 3, 2017: 4, 2018: 3, 2019: 3, 2020: 1, 2021: 3, 2022: 3, 2023: 3, 2024: 2, 2025: 0, 2026: 4 Asked in 10 of 11 years · most in 2026 (4)

Practising Geography? Take it as timed sets of 25 →

UPSC syllabus: “Indian and World Geography-Physical, Social, Economic Geography of India and the World.” Sub-topics in the detailed syllabus →

पश्चिम से पूर्व की ओर प्रयागराज के अनुप्रवाह में गंगा में मिलने वाली हिमालय की नदियों के संदर्भ में, निम्नलिखित में से कौन-सा अनुक्रम सही है ?

Read this question in English

With reference to the Himalayan rivers joining the Ganga downstream of Prayagraj from West to East, which one of the following sequences is correct?

(a) Ghaghara – Gomati – Gandak – Kosi · (b) Gomati – Ghaghara – Gandak – Kosi · (c) Ghaghara – Gomati – Kosi – Gandak · (d) Gomati – Ghaghara – Kosi – Gandak

उत्तर और व्याख्या · explanation in English

Answer: (b) गोमती – घाघरा – गंडक – कोसी

Follow the Ganga eastward from Prayagraj: the Gomati joins first at Kaithi (Ghazipur district, near Varanasi), then the Ghaghara near Chhapra, then the Gandak at Sonpur opposite Patna, and finally the Kosi further east in Bihar.

  • ✓ (b) Gomati (Kaithi, Ghazipur) → Ghaghara (Chhapra) → Gandak (Sonpur, opposite Patna) → Kosi (eastern Bihar) is the west-to-east order of their confluences.
  • ✗ (a) The Ghaghara cannot come first: the Gomati meets the Ganga upstream, near Varanasi, well before Chhapra.
  • ✗ (d) The Kosi basin lies east of the Gandak and Burhi Gandak basins, so the Kosi joins after the Gandak, not before it.

Remember · Left-bank Himalayan tributaries of the Ganga, west to east: Ramganga, Gomati, Ghaghara, Gandak, Kosi, Mahananda.

📘 Read it in NCERT: Class 11 India: Physical Environment, Ch 3 (practise this chapter)

Sources

Question and answer: UPSC's official GS Paper I (2024, Series A) — paper ↗ · answer key ↗. Explanation: Minimalist IAS, checked 30 Sept 2026 (how we verify). Permalink ·

निम्नलिखित सूचना पर विचार कीजिए :

जलप्रपातक्षेत्रनदी
1.धुआंधारमालवानर्मदा
2.हुंड्रूछोटा नागपुरसुवणरेखा
3.गेर्सोप्पापश्चिमी घाटनेत्रवती

उपर्युक्त सूचना में से कितनी पंक्तियाँ सही सुमेलित हैं ?

Read this question in English

Consider the following information:

1. Dhuandhar — Malwa — Narmada

2. Hundru — Chota Nagpur — Subarnarekha

3. Gersoppa — Western Ghats — Netravati

In how many of the above rows is the given information correctly matched?

(a) Only one · (b) Only two · (c) All three · (d) None

उत्तर और व्याख्या · explanation in English

Answer: (a) केवल एक

Only the Hundru row is fully right. Dhuandhar is on the Narmada but near Jabalpur in the Narmada rift valley, not in the Malwa plateau; Gersoppa (Jog) Falls is in the Western Ghats but on the Sharavati, not the Netravati.

  • ✗ 1. Dhuandhar falls is on the Narmada near Jabalpur, where the river flows in a rift valley between the Vindhyas and Satpuras. The Malwa plateau lies to the north of the Narmada valley.
  • ✓ 2. Hundru Falls is on the Subarnarekha river on the Chota Nagpur plateau, near Ranchi.
  • ✗ 3. Gersoppa Falls, better known as Jog Falls, is in the Western Ghats but is formed by the Sharavati river. The Netravati is a different west-flowing river further south.

Remember · Dhuandhar — Narmada, near Jabalpur. Hundru — Subarnarekha, Chota Nagpur. Jog/Gersoppa — Sharavati, Western Ghats.

📘 Read it in NCERT: Class 11 India: Physical Environment, Ch 3 (practise this chapter) · Class 11 An Introduction to Indian Art, Part I, Ch 8 (practise this chapter) · Class 6 Exploring Society: India and Beyond, Ch 3 (practise this chapter)

Sources

Question and answer: UPSC's official GS Paper I (2024, Series A) — paper ↗ · answer key ↗. Explanation: Minimalist IAS, checked 30 Sept 2026 (how we verify). Permalink ·

The Syllabus X-Ray of this topic

3 of its 8 sub-topics are Core

3 Core · 2 High · 1 Steady · 2 Rare

  • Core #36Rivers: Himalayan & peninsular systems · 8 questions
  • Core #51Lakes, wetlands, mangroves & coasts · 6 questions
  • Core #52Peninsular plateau, hills, canyons & falls · 6 questions
  • HighLocating India: states, longitudes & regions · 5 questions
  • HighHimalayas: peaks, glaciers & passes · 3 questions

The X-Ray ranks all 928 sub-topics of the UPSC syllabus by what UPSC has asked since 2016. The 60 Prelims Core sub-topics are behind 51% of Prelims questions.

See the whole X-Ray →

The same topic in Mains