RAS question
Which agro-climatic zone of Rajasthan includes Sri Ganganagar and Hanumangarh?
Correct answer: (B) Irrigated North Western Plain.
Sri Ganganagar and Hanumangarh are included in Rajasthan's Irrigated North Western Plain agro-climatic zone, listed as Zone I-B.
Explanation
Sri Ganganagar and Hanumangarh fall in the Irrigated North Western Plain, or Zone I-B. The official Economic Review 2024-25 says Rajasthan is divided into 10 agro-climatic zones on the basis of climate, soil types, topography and cropping patterns, and its agro-climatic-zone table lists only Sriganganagar and Hanumangarh under the Irrigated North Western Plain. Canal irrigation from IGNP and the Gang Canal makes this an irrigated north-western plain rather than a merely directional region. The answer is therefore not just a directional label; it is the formal agro-climatic classification used for these two north-western districts.
Why the other options are wrong
- (A) Internal drainage refers to the Shekhawati-side inland-drainage belt, while the official table places Sriganganagar and Hanumangarh in the Irrigated North Western Plain.
- (C) Flood-prone Eastern Plain is the eastern Bharatpur-side zone, and the official table lists Alwar, Deeg, Bharatpur, Dholpur, Karoli and Sawai Madhopur there, not Sriganganagar or Hanumangarh.
- (D) Arid Western Plain is the Jaisalmer-Barmer-side western desert zone; the official table assigns Jodhpur, Phalodi, Barmer and Balotara to it, not Sriganganagar and Hanumangarh.
Concept
This tests Rajasthan's agro-climatic zonation, a recurring RAS geography area because district-to-zone mapping links physical geography with agriculture. It is especially easy to confuse north-western irrigated districts with adjoining arid or inland-drainage zones.