With reference to the Indus river system, of the following four rivers, three of them pour into one of them which joins the Indus direct. Among the following, which one is such river that joins the Indus direct?
Answer & explanation
Answer: (d) Sutlej
Why not the tempting option · UPSC's key is (d). The Jhelum and the Ravi join the Chenab, the Chenab empties into the Sutlej, and the Sutlej's lower course, called the Panjnad once the five rivers have united below Uch, joins the Indus near Mithankot. A strict reader may say the Panjnad, not the Sutlej, is what meets the Indus, but the question treats the Panjnad as the Sutlej's continuation, as standard descriptions do. In the exam, follow the order Jhelum and Ravi → Chenab → Sutlej → Indus.
The Sutlej is the river that carries the other three onward to the Indus: the Jhelum and the Ravi join the Chenab, and the Chenab then empties into the Sutlej, whose combined stream (the Panjnad) meets the Indus near Mithankot.
- ✗ (b) The Jhelum joins the Chenab near Jhang (Trimmu) in Pakistan, so it does not reach the Indus on its own.
- ✗ (c) The Ravi joins the Chenab near Sarai Sidhu in Pakistan, so it too ends in the Chenab.
- ✗ (a) The Chenab receives the Jhelum and the Ravi, but it then empties into the Sutlej west of Bahawalpur instead of reaching the Indus directly.
- ✓ (d) The Sutlej takes in the Beas, receives the Chenab, and its united stream, the Panjnad, links the five Punjab rivers to the Indus near Mithankot.
Remember · Jhelum and Ravi join the Chenab; the Chenab joins the Sutlej; the Sutlej-Chenab stream (the Panjnad) joins the Indus near Mithankot.
📘 Read it in NCERT: Class 11 India: Physical Environment, Ch 3 (practise this chapter) · Class 11 India: Physical Environment, Ch 3 (practise this chapter) · Class 11 India: Physical Environment, Ch 3 (practise this chapter)
Sources
- NCERT Class 11 · India: Physical Environment, Chapter 3 “Before entering Pakistan and joining the Chenab near Sarai Sidhu, it drains the area lying between the southeastern part of the Pir Panjal and the Dhauladhar ranges.”
- NCERT Class 11 · India: Physical Environment, Chapter 3 “It flows through Srinagar and the Wular lake before entering Pakistan through a deep narrow gorge. It joins the Chenab near Jhang in Pakistan.”
- NCERT Class 11 · India: Physical Environment, Chapter 3 “The river flows southward and receives 'Panjnad' a little above Mithankot. The Panjnad is the name given to the five rivers of Punjab, namely the Satluj, the Beas, the Ravi, the Chenab and the Jhelum.”
- Central Water Commission, Indus Basin Organisation: About Basins ↗ “The Indus is the western most River system in the subcontinent. Jhelum, Chenab, Ravi, Beas and Satluj are its main tributaries.”
- Encyclopaedia Britannica: Sutlej River ↗ · reference work “to join the Chenab River west of Bahawalpur. The combined rivers then form the Panjnad, the link between the Five Rivers and the Indus.”
- Encyclopaedia Britannica: Chenab River ↗ · reference work “After receiving the Jhelum River near Trimmu, the Chenab empties into the Sutlej River, a tributary of the Indus River.”
Question and answer: UPSC's official GS Paper I (2021, Series A) — paper ↗ · answer key ↗. Explanation: Minimalist IAS, checked 1 Oct 2026 (how we verify). ·