Match list-I with list-II and choose the correct answer from the code given below- List–I (River) (A) Godavari (B) Mahanadi (C) Damodar (D) Kaveri List–II (Tributary) (i) Bhavani (ii) Penganga (iii) Seonath (iv) Barakar Code -
- (1)A-(iv), B-(ii), C-(i), D-(iii)
- (2)A-(ii), B-(iii), C-(iv), D-(i)
- (3)A-(i), B-(ii), C-(iv), D-(iii)
- (4)A-(iii), B-(i), C-(ii), D-(iv)
Answer
Why
Correct — option (2), A-(ii), B-(iii), C-(iv), D-(i).
A-(ii), Godavari – Penganga. NCERT's Class XI book India: Physical Environment names the Penganga, the Indravati, the Pranhita and the Manjra as the Godavari's principal tributaries.
B-(iii), Mahanadi – Seonath. The Imperial Gazetteer of India (1908), describing Raipur District, says the Seonath flows north and east in a very tortuous course and joins the Mahanadi on the border of Raipur and Bilaspur.
C-(iv), Damodar – Barakar. NCERT calls the Barakar the Damodar's main tributary.
D-(i), Kaveri – Bhavani. NCERT lists the Kabini, the Bhavani and the Amravati as the Kaveri's important tributaries.
C-(iv) appears only in options (2) and (3), and A-(ii) separates them: the answer is A-(ii), B-(iii), C-(iv), D-(i).
Why the others are wrong
- (1)A-(iv), B-(ii), C-(i), D-(iii) — Every pair in this code is wrong: Godavari – Barakar, Mahanadi – Penganga, Damodar – Bhavani and Kaveri – Seonath.
NCERT places the Barakar with the Damodar on the eastern Chotanagpur margin and the Bhavani with the Kaveri in the south. The Penganga belongs to the Godavari and the Seonath to the Mahanadi.
- (3)A-(i), B-(ii), C-(iv), D-(iii) — Only C-(iv), Damodar – Barakar, is right. The code gives the Godavari the Bhavani, the Mahanadi the Penganga and the Kaveri the Seonath.
The Penganga is on NCERT's list of Godavari tributaries, and the Seonath, per the Imperial Gazetteer, joins the Mahanadi. The Bhavani is a Kaveri tributary.
- (4)A-(iii), B-(i), C-(ii), D-(iv) — Every pair here is wrong: Godavari – Seonath, Mahanadi – Bhavani, Damodar – Penganga and Kaveri – Barakar.
The Barakar joins the Damodar in the east and the Bhavani joins the Kaveri in the south, so Kaveri – Barakar cannot stand. The Seonath joins the Mahanadi, and the Penganga the Godavari.
Concept
A tributary joins a larger river within the same basin, so a tributary and its main river share a region. NCERT's account of the Peninsular river systems places each of these four rivers:
The Godavari rises in Nasik district of Maharashtra; NCERT calls it the largest Peninsular river system and the Dakshin Ganga. The Mahanadi rises near Sihawa in Chhattisgarh and runs through Odisha to the Bay of Bengal.
The Damodar flows through a rift valley on the eastern margins of the Chotanagpur plateau and joins the Hugli. The Kaveri rises in the Brahmagiri hills of Kodagu, Karnataka.
RPSC's 2021 Prelims syllabus lists "Major Rivers & Lakes" under the Geography of India. Rivers and their tributaries fall under that head.
The Kaveri's flow differs from that of other Peninsular rivers. NCERT explains that its upper catchment gets rain from the south-west monsoon and its lower part from the north-east monsoon, so it carries water through the year with less fluctuation than other Peninsular rivers.
The Damodar, NCERT notes, was once known as the 'sorrow of Bengal' and has been tamed by the Damodar Valley Corporation, a multipurpose project.
Key facts
- NCERT (Class XI): the Penganga, the Indravati, the Pranhita and the Manjra are the Godavari's principal tributaries.
- Imperial Gazetteer of India (1908), Raipur District: the Seonath joins the Mahanadi on the border of Raipur and Bilaspur districts.
- NCERT: the Barakar is the main tributary of the Damodar, which flows through a rift valley and joins the Hugli.
- NCERT: the Kaveri's important tributaries are the Kabini, the Bhavani and the Amravati.
- NCERT: the Godavari, 1,465 km long, is the largest Peninsular river system and is also called the Dakshin Ganga.
The code A-(ii), B-(iii), C-(iv), D-(i) is option (2). Pairs from NCERT's India: Physical Environment and, for the Seonath, the Imperial Gazetteer of India (1908).
Study next
Common traps
- Swapping the tributaries of two neighbouring basins. The Penganga goes to the Godavari and the Seonath to the Mahanadi.
- Mixing tributaries that share a first letter. The Bhavani joins the Kaveri in the south; the Barakar joins the Damodar in the east.
- Knowing one tributary per river. NCERT lists four principal tributaries of the Godavari, and a code can use any of them.
A question can match rivers to their tributaries through a code, as this one does.
A question can also ask which river a single tributary joins, pick the one stream that is not a tributary of a given river, or ask where a river rises.
Related PYQs
Match List – I with List – II and select the correct answer using the codes given below : List – I (Tributary) – List – II (River) A. Rapti – i. Brahmaputra B. Tista – ii. Narmada C. Hiran – iii. Godavari D. Purna – iv. Ghaghra Codes :
- (1) A-iv, B-ii, C-iii, D-i
- (2) A-i, B-ii, C-iii, D-iv
- (3) A-iii, B-i, C-iv, D-ii
- (4) A-iv, B-i, C-ii, D-iii
Answer(4)
Same skill of matching tributaries to main rivers. That item pairs the Rapti, Tista, Hiran and Purna with the Brahmaputra, Narmada, Godavari and Ghaghra (RPSC's key: option (4), A-iv, B-i, C-ii, D-iii); this one pairs four main rivers with Penganga, Seonath, Barakar and Bhavani.
Match List – I with List – II and select the correct answer from the codes given below : List – I (District) – List – II (River) A. Udaipur – i. Sabi & Ruparel B. Bundi – ii. Gambhiri & Parvati C. Bharatpur – iii. Som & Jakham D. Alwar – iv. Kural Codes :
- (1) A-iii, B-iv, C-i, D-ii
- (2) A-iv, B-iii, C-ii, D-i
- (3) A-i, B-iii, C-ii, D-iv
- (4) A-iii, B-iv, C-ii, D-i
Answer(4)
Same river-matching format at the level of Rajasthan. That item matches districts to rivers such as Som & Jakham and Sabi & Ruparel (RPSC's key: option (4), A-iii, B-iv, C-ii, D-i); this one matches Indian rivers to their tributaries.
Practice
- practice — not a real PYQ
Which of the following rivers is a tributary of the Damodar?
- (a)Barakar
- (b)Indravati
- (c)Kabini
- (d)Manjra
Answer(1) — NCERT calls the Barakar the Damodar's main tributary. Option (2), the Indravati, and option (4), the Manjra, are principal tributaries of the Godavari; option (3), the Kabini, is a tributary of the Kaveri. - practice — not a real PYQ
The Kabini, the Bhavani and the Amravati are tributaries of –
- (a)Godavari
- (b)Krishna
- (c)Kaveri
- (d)Mahanadi
Answer(3) — NCERT lists all three as the Kaveri's important tributaries. Option (1), the Godavari, has the Penganga, Indravati, Pranhita and Manjra; option (2), the Krishna, the Koyna, Tungabhadra and Bhima; option (4), the Mahanadi, is joined by the Seonath.