RAS question
The Barak River national waterway (National Waterway-16), running from Lakhipur to Bhanga, has what approximate length?
Correct answer: (D) 121 km.
The Barak River stretch from Lakhipur to Bhanga is National Waterway 16 and has an approximate length of 121 km.
Explanation
The Barak River waterway is identified by IWAI as National Waterway 16 under the National Waterways Act, 2016. The official IWAI page states that River Barak is one of the 111 National Waterways and gives the total length of NW-16 as 121 km for the Lakhipur-Bhanga stretch. That directly matches option D. The key is not to confuse this short Assam waterway with longer national waterways elsewhere: the question is asking specifically about Barak River, Lakhipur to Bhanga, and its IWAI-listed length, not about Brahmaputra, the Kerala west-coast canal system, or NW-5.
Why the other options are wrong
- (A) 891 km refers to National Waterway 2 on the Brahmaputra, not the Barak River stretch from Lakhipur to Bhanga.
- (B) 623 km is associated with National Waterway 5, so it does not match IWAI's listed length for NW-16 on the Barak River.
- (C) 205 km is the length of National Waterway 3 in Kerala, whereas NW-16 on the Barak River is listed as 121 km.
Concept
This tests the Indian transport geography syllabus area on inland waterways, especially the mapping of National Waterway numbers to rivers and stretches. It recurs in RAS because such questions often check precise official nomenclature and route-length pairs.