RAS question
Minicoy Island, the southernmost island of Lakshadweep, is separated from the main Lakshadweep group by:
Correct answer: (C) Nine Degree Channel.
Minicoy Island is separated from the main Lakshadweep group by the Nine Degree Channel.
Explanation
Minicoy lies apart from the main Lakshadweep group, and the separating water body is the Nine Degree Channel. The cited Cochin Port document describes the Lakshadweep group as lying on the Lakshadweep-Chagos ridge and states that the ridge has several gaps, the main one being the Nine Degree Channel, which separates the atoll of Minicoy from the northern group of islands. This matches the standard geography distinction in the question: Minicoy is the southernmost island, while the main Lakshadweep group is to its north. The Eight Degree Channel is relevant, but it lies further south and separates Minicoy from the Maldives, not from the main Lakshadweep group.
Why the other options are wrong
- (A) The Ten Degree Channel separates the Andaman group from the Nicobar group, so it does not explain Minicoy's separation within Lakshadweep.
- (B) Palk Strait lies between India and Sri Lanka, which makes it unrelated to the separation of Minicoy from the Lakshadweep group.
- (D) The Eight Degree Channel separates Minicoy from the Maldives, whereas the question asks for the channel between Minicoy and the main Lakshadweep group.
Concept
This tests India's island geography, especially the channels that separate island groups. It recurs in RAS because locations such as Lakshadweep, Minicoy and the surrounding channels are compact map-based facts with high prelims value.