RAS question
Mount Abu is the coolest place in Rajasthan due to which factor?
Correct answer: (B) High altitude (1,722 m).
Mount Abu is the coolest place in Rajasthan because its high altitude, marked by Guru Shikhar at 1,722 metres, gives it a hill-station climate.
Explanation
The factor being tested is altitude, not vegetation, latitude, or sea influence. Rajasthan Tourism describes Mount Abu as Rajasthan's only hill station and places it at a height of 1,722 metres above sea level, within the green hills of the Aravalli range. Guru Shikhar at 1,722 metres links this elevation directly to Mount Abu being the coolest place in Rajasthan. In a state otherwise associated with a hot, arid climate, that height is the decisive reason Mount Abu stands apart climatically. Forested surroundings may add to the hill-station feel, but the MCQ asks for the primary factor, and the supported answer is high altitude.
Why the other options are wrong
- (A) Dense forest cover can moderate the local environment, but altitude is the primary reason Mount Abu is the coolest place.
- (C) Northern location does not fit the question because Mount Abu is in south Rajasthan, while its coolness is tied to height.
- (D) Proximity to the sea cannot explain Mount Abu's climate because it is a high hill station, not a coastal location.
Concept
This tests the physical-geography idea that altitude controls local climate. It recurs in RAS because Rajasthan questions often ask why a specific place differs from the state's broader arid-climate pattern.