ANSWERS WITH EXPLANATION

PHYSICAL GEOGRAPHY
OF INDIA & WORLD
1. (a)
2. (d)
3. (a)
Exp.: They are of short duration, occurring over
a small area but are violent.
4. (d)
5. (a)
Exp.: When the moisture is deposited in the form
of water droplets on cooler surfaces of solid
objects (rather than nuclei in air above the
surface) such as stones, grass blades and
plant leaves, it is known as dew. The ideal
conditions for its formation are clear sky,
calm air, high relative humidity, and cold
and long nights. For the formation of dew,
it is necessary that the dew point is above
the freezing point.
6. (c)
Exp.: The area situated on the leeward side, gets
less rainfall and known as the rain-shadow
area.
7. (a)
8. (d)
9. (d)
10. (b)
Exp.: They are more densely spaced on steep slopes
while being rare on gentle slopes.
11. (d)
12. (d)
13. (b)
Exp.: The size and shape of the detached mass
depends on the nature of discontinuities in
the rock, the degree of weathering and the
steepness of the slope.
14. (d)
15. (b)
Exp.: They may be bedrock surfaces without any
alluvial cover or alluvial terraces consisting
of stream deposits. River terraces are
basically products of erosion as they result
due to vertical erosion by the stream into its
own depositional floodplain. There can be
a number of such terraces at different heights
indicating former river bed levels.
16. (b)
Exp.: Cirrus clouds are formed at high altitudes
(8,000 - 12,000m). They are thin and
detached clouds having a feathery
appearance. They are always white in
colour.
17. (c)
Exp.: Highland climates are governed by
topography. In high mountains, large
changes in mean temperature occur over
short distances. Precipitation types and
intensity also vary spatially across high
lands. There is vertical zonation of layering
of climatic types with elevation in the
mountain environment.
18. (c)
Exp.: Labrador is a cold current which lowers
down the temperature near north-east coast
of North America.
19. (c)
Exp.: The Tundra climate (ET) is so called after
the types of vegetation, like low growing
mosses, lichens and flowering plants. The
short growing season and water logging
support only low growing plants. During
summer, the Tundra regions have very long
duration of day light.
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20. (b)
Exp.: The North Sea, in spite of its location in
higher latitudes, records higher salinity due
to more saline water brought by the North
Atlantic Drift.
21. (a)
Exp.: Tropical cyclones often transform into
extratropical cyclones at the end of their
tropical existence, usually between 30 and
40 latitude, where there is sufficient forcing
from upper-level troughs or shortwaves
riding the Westerlies for the process of
extratropical transition to begin.
22. (c)
23. (a)
Exp.: Earthquakes often occur in volcanic regions
and are caused there, both by tectonic faults
and the movement of magma in volcanoes.
24. (c)
Exp.: It is an interconnected chain of mountain
system within the ocean.
25. (d)
26. (a)
Exp.: Surges are not regular like tides.
27. (d)
28. (b)
Exp.: Both continents and ocean are parts of plate.
29. (d)
30. (a)
Exp.: All processes that move, elevate or build up
portions of the earth's crust come under
diastrophism. They include: (i) orogenic
processes involving mountain building
through severe folding and affecting long
and narrow belts of the earth's crust; (ii)
epeirogenic processes involving uplift or
warping of large parts of the earth's crust;
(iii) earthquakes involving local relatively
minor movements; (iv) plate tectonics
involving horizontal movements of crustal
plates.
31. (b)
Exp.: Perihelion - The position of the earth in its
orbit when it is at the nearest point to the
sun.
32. (a)
Exp.: Surface waves in earthquake can be divided
into love wave and Rayleigh waves. Love
wave's motion is essentially that of S waves
that have no vertical displacement, it moves
the ground from side to side in a horizontal
plane which particularly damage to the
foundation of structure. Rayleigh waves
move both horizontally and vertically in a
vertical plane in the direction in which the
waves travel.
33. (c)
Exp.: Igneous rocks do not have strata like
sedimentary rocks but have layers of lavas.
Water does not penetrate easily to these
rocks, so less affected by chemical
weathering. Igneous rocks are also called
parent rocks.
34. (a)
Exp.: Sabkha - It is the depositional coastal areas
having flat surface in the dry tropical zones
which are flat but barren coastal lands.
35. (d)
36. (a)
Exp.: In the higher latitudes, the warm currents
flow on the western shores and cold on the
eastern shore.
37. (b)
Exp.: Reverse true for statement 2 & 3 for
conjunction and opposition.
38. (d)
39. (c)
Exp.: Calm and stable air so that is no vertical
mixing at lower levels.
40. (d)
41. (c)
Exp.: Dhaya - heavily gullied bluffs three metre
or more high and flank the khadar plains.
42. (c)
Exp.: The eastern coastal plains are broader than
the western coastal plains with well
developed deltas of major rivers. Unlike the
Western Ghats, the Eastern Ghats are
isolated, broken hills with no structural
unity. Western ghats has lagoon or
backwaters called Kayals such as
Vembanad and Ashtamudi.
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43. (c)
Exp.: These rives have small basins and catchment
areas. They are seasonal and non-perennial.
The hard rock surface and non-alluvial
character of the plateau permits little scope
for the formation of meanders. As such,
the rivers of the Peninsular Plateau follow
more or less straight course.
44. (a)
45. (a)
46. (a)
Exp.: Social forestry or community based forestry
has the basic objective of involving the local
community in forestry activities to promote
growth of trees and preserve them. It has
one of the objective to reduce encroachment
on the existing forests.
47. (c)
Exp.: There is large reservoir of surface water in
perennial rivers India is endowed with a
long crop growing season except in the
mountainous regions.
48. (c)
Exp.: Mostly prevalent in uneven and relatively
rocky plateau of peninsular India, tanks are
a popular method of irrigation in the states
of T.N., Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh and
Maharashtra. The scattered nature of
population and agricultural fields also
favours tank irrigation.
49. (a)
50. (d)
51. (a)
52. (a)
Exp.: Horse latitude exists between 30 35 degree
latitudes on both sides of equator. High
altitude air currents descends along this
altitude. So, the weather is warm and dry
with very less rainfall. Hadley Cell exists
between ITCZ and Horse latitude whereas
Farrell Cell exists between Horse latitude
and Polar front.
53. (c)
54. (d)
55. (c)
56. (b)
Exp.: The following conditions favour the
formation of deltas:
(1) active vertical and lateral erosion in the
upper course of the river to supply large
amount of sediments;
(2) tideless, sheltered coast;
(3) shallow sea, adjoining the delta
(4) no strong current at the river mouth which
may wash away the sediments.
57. (d)
58. (b)
Exp.: Season is a period of the year charcterized
by a particular set of weather conditions
resulting from the inclination of the earth's
axis and the revolution of the earth round
the sun.
59. (d)
Exp.: The conditions favouring deposition of wind
are:
(i) When the amount of dust particles present
in the air exceed its carrying capacity, a
part of the material being transported is
deposited. This is the material which is in
excess of the transportation capacity of the
wind.
(ii) When the speed of the wind is reduced, its
carrying capacity is also re- duced. The
material in suspension is thus deposited.
(iii) When an obstruction comes in the path of
the wind, air has to rise above this
obstruction. When it rises, the velocity of
the wind is reduced and it starts dropping
its load. This material is deposited in the
form of a mound at the foot of the
obstruction.
60. (a)
Exp.: The plain topography has led to set up of
agrobased industries due to availability of
rich agricultural resources.
61. (a)
Exp.: Mineral nodules are found on the deep sea
floor.
62. (d)
Exp.: The tidal current clear away the river
sediments and slows down the growth of
delta. It increases the depth of water which
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help ships to move safely to the ports. It
also acts as a source for producing
electricity.
63. (a)
64. (d)
65. (a)
Exp.: Conclusions related to Distribution of
rainfall:
Precipitation is greatest in the equatorial
region and decreases towards the poles.
Precipitation is heaviest in the coastal regions
and decreases towards the interior of the
continents.
Eastern coastal areas of tropical lands and
western coastal areas of temperate lands
receive heavy precipitation including
equatorial regions.
Precipitation is very heavy on the windward
side of highlands; very dry condition
prevails on the leeward side.
Coastal areas adjacent to cold currents are
drier than coastal areas near warm currents.
The western margin of tropical land and
polar region receive scanty rainfall. The
main reason being that easterlies become
dry winds and polar winds are cold and
dry.
66. (d)
Exp.: Weathering is the process of gradual
destruction of rocks at or near the earth's
surface through physical, chemical and
biological processes caused by wind, water,
climate change etc.
Erosion is the process of gradual
transportation of weathered rock materials
through natural agencies like wind, river,
streams, glaciers etc.
Weathering is distinguished from Erosion
as no transportation of material is involved
in case of weathering.
67. (b)
Exp.: Kanchenj unga is the highest peak of
Himalaya in India.
68. (b)
Exp.: The pressure increases from the surface
towards the centre of the earth due to huge
weight of the overlying rocks.
69. (d)
70. (d)
71. (d)
72. (c)
73. (b)
Exp.: Eastern coast of South America is identical
to Western coast of Africa which fits to a
certain depth in the ocean.
74. (a)
Exp.: Urban areas create heat islands which can
increase convectional rainfall. Particulates
released by industry and transport also make
excellent condensation nuclei thus increases
rainfall.
75. (d)
Exp.: The escarpments of Western Ghats ones
looking the Arabian Sea are thought to be
the result of faulting.
76. (d)
Exp.: Cnurbation refers to a specific kind of
geographical region. Due to rapid increase
in population and industrial and
technological developments, the city
boundary expands and one urban centre
coalesces with another in a slow but
continuous process of urbanization and
regional development. It is thus that
conurbations are formed.
77. (a)
Exp.: Cropping intensity refers to the raising of a
number of crops from the same field during
one agriculture year. This also implies higher
productivity per unit of arable land during
one agricultural year.
78. (d)
Exp.: According to WMO, in the Indian Ocean
basin an improved understanding of climate
variability and climate change is stymied
by the lack of climate data, which hampers
generating weather and climate forecasts
and help in detecting early on, extreme
weather and climate events.
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79. (c)
80. (b)
81. (d)
82. (b)
83. (d)
84. (d)
Exp.: Both the statements given are characteristics
of Anabatic winds, i.e. - valley breeze.
85. (b)
Exp.: Hailstorms seldom occurs in polar area due
to absence of strong convectional current.
86. (b)
87. (c)
88. (a)
Exp.: Cold airmass is associated with instability
and atmospheric turbulence while warm
airmass is associated with stable weather
conditions.
89. (b)
90. (c)
Exp.: Though river capture is a natural process,
but it does not take place in all circumstances
rather it requires certain necessary
conditions. One of the condition include that
there should be relatively narrow valley so
that water may not spread in the otherwise
wide and flat valleys and there should be
low sediment so that the river may resort to
resort to active erosion etc.
91. (a)
92. (d)
Exp.: Reverse is true for statement 1 & 2
93. (d)
Exp.:
1. Dynamic - involving uplift or subsidence of
land resulting in a change in base level.
2. Eustatic - imply a worldwide change in sea
level.
3. Static - a reduction in river load or an
increase in volume may alter the rate of
erosion.
4. Climate - like aridity, glaciations etc.
94. (d)
95. (c)
96. (b)
97. (c)
98. (b)
Exp.: Reverse is true for statement 2 & 3
99. (a)
Exp.: The one region of the Earth which has an
absence of trade winds is the north Indian
Ocean.
100. (b)
Exp.: They are more developed than entisols. They
have no accumulation of clays, iron oxide,
aluminum oxide or organic matter.