RAS question
Which canal system is a major source of drinking water for Bikaner city?
Correct answer: (D) IGNP pipeline.
Bikaner city receives its drinking water through the IGNP pipeline linked to the Indira Gandhi Nahar canal system.
Explanation
The major source is the IGNP pipeline, because Bikaner receives drinking water through a pipeline from the Indira Gandhi Nahar canal system. The Press Information Bureau states that the Indira Gandhi Feeder/Canal passes through Punjab, Haryana and Rajasthan, and that in Rajasthan the Indira Gandhi Canal traverses western districts including Bikaner to provide water for drinking and irrigation. Canal water, like other surface-water sources, needs conventional treatment and disinfection before it is suitable for drinking. The key geographic link is not a local dam but the Indira Gandhi Canal/IGNP network serving western Rajasthan, including Bikaner.
Why the other options are wrong
- (A) Bisalpur supplies Jaipur and Ajmer, not Bikaner city through the IGNP-linked Indira Gandhi Nahar canal system.
- (B) Jawai Dam is associated with Pali, so it does not explain Bikaner city's canal-fed drinking-water supply.
- (C) Mahi Bajaj Sagar is located in Banswara, whereas Bikaner's drinking-water link is the Indira Gandhi Canal system.
Concept
This tests Rajasthan's canal-irrigation and drinking-water geography, especially how the Indira Gandhi Canal supports western districts. It recurs in RAS because water supply in arid Rajasthan is a standard map-based application of physical and regional geography.