Drainage
Grade IX
Glossary1. / Drainage- A system of flowing water from the higher level to the lower level.
2. / River – A natural stream of flowing water from a mountain/ lake/ spring to the sea, lake or another water body.
3. / Lake – A deep and vast depression on the surface of the earth filled with water.
4. / Dendritic Pattern – The stream with its tributaries resembling the branches of the trees.
5. / Trellis Pattern – The tributaries joining the main stream at the right angles.
6. / Radial Pattern – the streams flowing in different directions from a central peak.
7. / Centrifugal Pattern- Streams emerging from all sides towards the central depression.
8. / Perennial Rivers- Rivers which flow throughout the year.
9. / Tributary – A small stream or river which joins another big river.
10. / Distributary- A channel which branches of from the main river and carry away a part of its water.
11. / Meanders – Winding sections or loops of river that swing from side to side as it flows over a level tract normally along its lower course.
12. / Delta- A more or less triangular and level tract of alluvium formed at the mouth of a river entering a relatively quite body of a river.
13. / Estuary – Tidal mouth of a river where sweet and salty waters freely mix together.
14. / Source of the River – the place the river originates.
15. / Mouth of the river – the place where the river empties itself in the sea or the lake.
16. / River valley – the path followed by the river to its mouth.
17. / Drainage Basin – the entire area in which the river and its tributaries flow.
18. / Water divide or water shed – the higher area separating two drainage basins.
19. / Catchment area – the upland area from which the river draws its water.
20. / The river forms a variety of landforms through its erosion, transportation and deposition throughout its course from the source to mouth.
21. / The Indus River System: it rises in Tibet (near the lake Mansarovar)
Features: Gentle slope, one of the longest rivers of the world. Indus basin – in Jammu and Kashmir, Himachal Pradesh, Punjab, and Pakistan
22. / The Ganga River System: Headwaters of Ganga- Bhagirathi (source – Gangotri Glacier) and Alaknanda (source – Alkapuri glacier) join at Devprayag.
23 / The Brahmaputra Basin – it rises in Tibet east of lake Mansarovar
Features: longer course, in Tibet there is less volume of water, less silt as it is a cold, dry area. In India, the river passes through a region of heavy rainfall, carries large amount of water and lot of silt (layer of fine particles, carried and deposited by rivers)
24. / The Narmada Basin – it rises in Amarkantak hills in Madhya Pradesh.
Features: It flows in a rift valley (trough), drains into Gulf of Khambhat by an estuary (a funnel shaped mouth of a river, river joins the sea directly without depositing the silt)
25. / The Tapi Basin – it rises in Satpura range in Madhya Pradesh. Flows in rift valley parallel to Narmada basin- Madhya Pradesh, Gujarat and Maharashtra.
26. / The Godavari Basin – It rises from the slope of Western Ghats in Nasik. Largest peninsular river. Basin – Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh, Orissa, Andhra Pradesh. Because of its length and area it covers, it is called DakshinGanga.
27. / The Mahanadi Basin – it rises in hills of Chhattisgarh. Drainage basin – Maharashtra, Chhattisgarh, Jharkhand, Orissa.
28. / The Krishna Basin – it rises from the spring in Mahabaleshwar. Basin – Maharashtra, Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh
29. / The Kaveri Basin – it rises in Brahmagiri range in Western Ghats. Basin – Karnataka, Kerala, Tamil Nadu.
30. / Gorge – in the hilly areas when river passes through the bed of hard rocks, the main action is cutting resulting in narrow steep side valley.
Eg: River Satluj, Indus, Brahmaputra, Gandak, Kosi cut the deep gorges in the Himalayas.
31. / V- Shaped valleys – They are formed in areas of sufficient rainfall where the rocks are not hard. Down cutting, side cutting are done simultaneously.
32. / Waterfalls – when the river water falls down almost vertically from the sufficient height along the course of the river it forms the waterfalls.
Eg: Jog Falls, Dhuandhar falls
33. / Alluvial plains: it is a fan shaped deposit formed where a fast flowing stream flattens, slows and spreads typically at the exit of a canyon onto a flatter plain.
34. / Floodplain: it is a flat or nearly flat land adjacent to a stream or river that experiences occasional or periodic flooding.
35. / Braided Channels: in streams having highly variable discharge and easily eroded banks, sediments gets deposited to form the bars and the islands that are exposed during the periods of low discharge. In such a stream the water flows in a braided form around the bars and the islands, dividing and reuniting as it flows downstream.
36. / Dendritic pattern: it is derived from Dendron meaning a tree and develops on uniform rock pattern.
Important Questions and answer:
1. / State the differences between the Himalayan Rivers and the Peninsular Rivers
Ans / Himalayan Rivers / Peninsular Rivers
(i) / These rivers are snow and rain fed. As a result the water always flows through these rivers. / Most of these rivers are rain fed and as a result there is very little or no water during the dry winter season.
(ii) / Most of these rivers flow on the plain land and there is proper navigation and irrigation facility. / These rivers flow on the plateaus and the navigation is not possible always. Only in some parts the irrigation is possible.
(iii) / The rivers are tender aged and new. They can change their directions. / These rivers are old. They cannot change their directions.
(iv) / There are many ox-bow lakes and islands at the mouth of these rivers. / There are islands but there are no lakes on the course of these rivers.
(v) / There are many branches and the tributaries of these rivers and form large drainage basins. / There are few branches of these rivers and have comparatively small drainage basins.
(vi) / The rivers of the north are long and there are many cities and the towns on both sides of the rivers. / They are not so long and there are few cities on these rivers.
(vii) / These rivers are new so they cause soil erosion and deposition. / These rivers being old they cause much of the soil erosion.
(viii) / These rivers being new, proportionate slopes are found in all these rivers. They can be said to be the model rivers. / We cannot see the proportionate slopes on these rivers as they are very old.
2. / Give the different names of river Brahmaputra.
Ans / The different names are:
Tibet: Tsangpo ;
Arunachal Pradesh- Dihang;
Assam(after the confluence of Lohit, Dihang and Dibang)- Brahmaputra;
Northern Bangladesh- Jamuna
Central Bangladesh- Padma
Southern Bangladesh- Meghna
3. / Compare the east flowing and the west flowing rivers of the peninsular India.
Ans / East Flowing Rivers / West Flowing Rivers
(i) / These rivers drain in the Bay of Bengal. / These rivers drain in the Arabian Sea.
(ii) / These rivers form the deltas. / These rivers form the estuaries.
(iii) / The tributaries of these rivers are large in size. / The tributaries of these rivers are smaller in size.
(iv) / These rivers flow through the shallow or the mature valleys
Examples: Mahanadi, Godavari, Kaveri and Krishna. / These rivers flow through rift valleys.
Examples: Narmada, Tapi
4. / Which two Peninsular rivers flow through troughs?
Ans / Narmada and Tapi.
5. / What is our national water budget like? Why is it as important as our food budget?
Ans / Our total surface water resource is:
167 million hectare metres (mhm), out of which only 66 mhm is utilizable for irrigation purposes. Our target is to use it all by 2010 A.D. Out of 40 mhm of the underground water, only 10mhm is utilized.
The water resource is important for irrigation, domestic use, industrial use, generation of hydel power, maintenance of underground water level in order to maintain soil moisture.
However, the availability of water for use in India is inadequate because:
- Water is being wasted due to high evaporation rate and rapid run off, and floods.
- Lack of financial and technological resources stands in the way of making optimum use and to divert surplus water to dry areas.
6. / Mention the main features of the treaties with Pakistan and Bangladesh about the use of the river water.
Ans /
- India has entered into Indus Water Treaty with Pakistan.
- The Indus river basin was divided with Pakistan having effective control of the three western rivers- Indus, Jhelum and Chenab and India having the control over the three eastern rivers- Ravi, Sutlej, Beas.
- India is obliged to let flow the waters of the western rivers to Pakistan- India can only use the waters for household and agricultural purposes.
- India can use only 20 percent of the total water carried by Indus river system.
- India has entered into a treaty with Bangladesh with regard to the sharing of the Ganga water.
7. / Floods and famines are the two sides of the same problem. Comment.
Ans / Floods and famines both are related to availability of water either in excess or in paucity. Floods are caused because of the excessive supply of water and famines are caused largely because of the droughts due to the non-availability of water.
These are twin problems and need to be solved in an integrated fashion. The excessive water can be stored and channelized to water thirsty or drought affected areas through the inundation and permanent irrigation canals. Areas with heavy rainfall call for efficient drainage system to minimize damage to crops and property. Multi-purpose river valley projects are the right answer to resolve the problems in all its dimensions.
8. / Where was the first hydel power station set up?
Ans / Sivasamudram on the river Kaveri in the old Mysore state, now part of Karnataka since 1902.
9. / Which was the first multi-purpose river valley project set up after independence?
Ans / Damodar river valley project was set up on river Damodar in Jharkhand. Once “a river of sorrow” has now brought considerable prosperity to the entire valley lying in Jharkhand and West Bengal.
10. / What is common between river Damodar and river Kosi?
Ans / Both have been known as “ rivers of sorrow”:
- Damodar in Jharkhand and Kosi in North Bihar.
11. / Name two salt water lakes on the eastern coast of India.
Ans / Chilika Lake and Pulicat lake.
12. / Which is the largest tributary of the Ganga?
Or
Name the largest tributary of river Ganga.
Ans / Yamuna
13. / Which is the main watershed in Peninsular India?
Ans / The main watershed in peninsular India is formed by the Western Ghats which is quiet close to the Western Coast.
14. / What is National River Conservation Plan?
Multiple Choice Questions:
1. / The river Narmada has its source at:
(a) / Satpura / (b) / Brahmagiri / (c) / Amarkantak / (d) / Slopes of Western Ghats
2. / Wular lake is located in:
(a) / Rajasthan / (b) / Punjab / (c) / Uttar Pradesh / (d) / Jammu and Kashmir
3. / Which of the following river has the largest drainage basin in the world
(a) / River Nile / (b) / River Ganga / (c) / River Amazon / (d) / River Mississippi
4. / Given below are the names of the salt water lakes of the eastern coast of India. Find out the names of the lakes.
(a) / Chilika and Pulicat / (b) / Pulicat and Wular / (c) / Chilkhand and Wular / (d) / Wular and Sambhar
5. / Total length of River Ganga drainage basin is:
(a) / 2525 km / (b) / 2900 km / (c) / 2800 km / (d) / 321290 km
6. / The Dihang and Lohit are the tributaries of river______
(a) / Mahanadi / (b) / Narmada / (c) / Godavari / (d) / Brahmaputra
7. / Which of the following is the origin place of river Indus?
(a) / Alaknanda and Bhagirathi / (b) / Kailash and Mansarovar / (c) / Mansarovar / (d) / Amarkantak
8. / When was Indus Water Treaty signed?
(a) / In 1961 / (b) / In 1962 / (c) / In 1965 / (d) / In 1960
9. / A total of ______schemes of pollution abatement have been sanctioned and so far ______schemes have been completed under The Ganga Action Plan (GAP).
(a) / 215 and 79 / (b) / 215 and 61 / (c) / 205 and 69 / (d) / 215 and 68
10. / Which of the following describes the drainage pattern resembling the branches of a tree?
(a) / Radial / (b) / Centrifugal / (c) / Dendritic / (d) / Trellis
11. / A river along with its tributaries is known as:
(a) / Drainage pattern / (b) / River system / (c) / Delta / (d) / Estuaries
12. / (i) It is known for Bengal Tiger and Sundari trees
(ii) It is the most fertile region.
(iii) It has a large island
The given above three characteristics hold true for: / (c) / (d)
(a) / The Brahmaputra river system / (b) / The Tapi Basin / (c) / The Ganga river system / (d) / Ganga- Brahmaputra river system
13. / Which among the following rivers flows through a rift valley:
(a) / Damodar / (b) / Tungabhadra / (c) / Krishna / (d) / Tapi
14. / Given below are the features made by the rivers. Find out which is the correct sequence of these features:
(i)Source of the river
(ii)Upper course
(iii)Middle course
(iv)Meander
(v)Ox-bow lake
(vi)Lower course
(vii)Delta
(a) / (i),(ii), (iii), (iv), (v), (vi), (vii) / (b) / (i), (iii), (iv),(v), (ii), (vii), (vi) / (c) / (vii), (vi), (v), (iv),(iii), (ii),(i) / (d) / (vi),(vii),(iv),(v),(iii),(ii),(i)
15. / NagarjunaSagar Dam is build on river
(a) / Kaveri / (b) / Krishna / (c) / Godavari / (d) / Narmada
16. / The activities of the Ganga Action Plan(GAP) Phase I, initiated in ______were declared closed on______:
(a) / 1985,31st March 2000 / (b) / 1985, 1st March 2000 / (c) / 1985, 2nd April 1986 / (d) / 1985, 31st May 1986
17. / The Peninsular River known as DakshinGanga is
(a) / Narmada / (b) / Tapi / (c) / Godavari / (d) / Krishna
18. / Two rivers which form the estuaries are:
(a) / Ganga and Brahmaputra / (b) / Narmada and Tapi / (c) / Mahanadi and Tapi / (d) / Narmada and Mahanadi
19. / A delta is formed at the :
(a) / Meander / (b) / Upper course / (c) / Middle course / (d) / Mouth of the river
20. / Which one of the following lakes is a salt water lake?
(a) / Sambhar / (b) / Dal / (c) / Wular / (d) / GobindSagar
21. / Which one of the following is the longest river of the peninsular India?
(a) / Narmada / (b) / Krishna / (c) / Godavari / (d) / Mahanadi
22. / Which one amongst the following rivers flows through a rift valley?
(a) / Damodar / (b) / Krishna / (c) / Tungabhadra / (d) / Tapi
23. / Which one of the following is the correct definition of the drainage basin?
(a) / The area drained by the single river system / (b) / The area drained by the two rivers / (c) / The area drained by a large river / (d) / The area drained by the perennial river
24. / Most of the Himalayan rivers are:
(a) / Seasonal / (b) / Receive water from rain only / (c) / Receive water from the melted snow only / (d) / Perennial and receive water from rain as well as from the melted snow
25. / Which river has the largest basin in India?
(a) / Yamuna / (b) / Ganga / (c) / Narmada / (d) / Kaveri
26. / Which of the following statements is correct about the peninsular rivers:
(a) / Most of them originate in the Western Ghats and flow towards the Bay of Bengal / (b) / Most of them originate in the Eastern Ghats and flow towards Arabian Sea / (c) / Most of them originate in the Central Highlands and flow to the west / (d) / Most of them originate in the Central Highlands and flow to the east
27. / Which river rises in Tibet near Lake Mansarovar:
(a) / Ganga / (b) / Brahmaputra / (c) / Indus / (d) / Yamuna
28. / Which one of the following rivers does not join with the rivers to enter the Indus near Mithankot in Pakistan?
(a) / Satluj / (b) / Beas / (c) / Ganga / (d) / Ravi
29. / According to the regulations of the Indus Water Treaty (1960) how much water can be used by India from the Indus River System?
(a) / 10 percent / (b) / 20 percent / (c) / 30 percent / (d) / 40 percent
30. / Where is Bhagirathi joined by Alaknanda?
(a) / Prayag / (b) / Haridwar / (c) / Devprayag / (d) / Rishikesh
31. / Which of the following rivers does not originate from the Himalayas?
(a) / The Yamuna / (b) / The Gandak / (c) / The Narmada / (d) / The Kosi
32. / Which of the following rivers does not rise in the Nepal Himalayas?
(a) / Ghaghara / (b) / Gandak / (c) / Kosi / (d) / Yamuna
33. / From the following which of the two rivers of the peninsular India originate in the Western Ghats and flow towards the Bay of Bengal?
(a) / Narmada / (b) / Kosi / (c) / Kaveri / (d) / Godavari
34. / What is the length of Indus river?
(a) / 2800 km / (b) / 2900 km / (c) / 3000km / (d) / 3100km
35. / Where does river Yamuna meet the Ganga?
(a) / Banaras / (b) / Haridwar / (c) / Allahabad / (d) / Rishikesh
36. / Which one is not the main tributary of the Ganga that comes from the peninsular uplands?
(a) / Chambal / (b) / Betwa / (c) / Son / (d) / Godavari
37. / Which river takes a U turn at the NamchaBarwa and enters India in Arunachal Pradesh?
(a) / Brahmaputra / (b) / Ganga / (c) / Kosi / (d) / Tapi
38. / Which river is known as Jamuna in Bangladesh?
(a) / Yamuna / (b) / Brahmaputra / (c) / Ganga / (d) / Tungabhadra
39. / Which river joins the Ganga in Bangladesh?
(a) / Brahmaputra / (b) / Yamuna / (c) / Chambal / (d) / Betwa
40. / Which one of the following rivers is the largest peninsular river?
(a) / Tapi / (b) / Kaveri / (c) / Godavari / (d) / Wardha
41. / Which river is known as DakshinGanga?
(a) / Godavari / (b) / Tapi / (c) / Narmada / (d) / Kaveri
42. / Which of the following lakes is the result of the tectonic activity?
(a) / Wular lake / (b) / Dal lake / (c) / Bhimtal / (d) / Loktak
43. / Which of the following peninsular rivers makes the second biggest waterfall Sivasamudram – in India?
(a) / Kaveri / (b) / Godavari / (c) / Mahanadi / (d) / Krishna
44. / Which is the largest fresh water lake in India?
(a) / Wular lake / (b) / Dal lake / (c) / Sambhar lake / (d) / Pulicat lake
45. / Which of the following lakes has been formed by the damming of the rivers for the generation of hydel power?
(a) / Guru GobindSagar / (b) / Dal Lake / (c) / Wular lake / (d) / Pulicat lake
46. / What is an area drained by a single river called?
(a) / Drainage / (b) / Drainage basin / (c) / Water divide / (d) / All of these
47. / Which among the following rivers has a shorter and shallower course?
(a) / Narmada / (b) / Ganga / (c) / Indus / (d) / Godavari
48. / Which of the following drainage patterns develop where hard and soft rocks exists parallel to each other?
(a) / Dendritic / (b) / Radial / (c) / Trellis / (d) / Rectangular