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RAS question

Which of the following statements about ravine land along the Chambal river in Rajasthan is/are CORRECT? 1. Chambal ravines cover approximately 3.5 lakh hectares, representing one of the largest ravine land zones in India. 2. Ravine reclamation methods include gully plugging, vegetative cover through grasses/trees, and terracing. 3. NBSS&LUP has recommended basin-level integrated watershed management for Chambal ravines. 4. The primary cause of ravine formation is wind erosion, not water erosion.

Correct answer: (C) 1, 2, and 3 only.

For Chambal ravines in Rajasthan, statements 1, 2 and 3 are correct because the ravines are a major water-eroded landscape managed through reclamation and watershed approaches, while statement 4 wrongly attributes their formation to wind erosion.

  1. (A)

    1 and 4 only

  2. (B)

    2 and 3 only

  3. (C)

    1, 2, and 3 only

  4. (D)

    1, 2, 3, and 4

Explanation

Chambal ravines in Rajasthan are treated as one of India's major ravine zones, with their extent placed at roughly 2-3.5 lakh hectares depending on boundary definition. Their reclamation is not a single engineering fix: it combines gully plugging with boulder or soil checks, vegetative cover through grasses and trees, and terracing. The Indian Farming, ICAR e-Pubs article supports the central geomorphic point: ravine formation is described as the most severe form of water erosion, caused by erosive runoff, so rainwater management on a watershed basis is the appropriate control approach. That aligns with the NBSS&LUP recommendation for basin-level integrated watershed management. Statement 4 fails because Chambal ravines are fluvial, not aeolian, landforms.

Why the other options are wrong

  • (A) Option A includes statement 4, but Chambal ravines form through water or fluvial erosion, not wind erosion.
  • (B) Option B omits statement 1 even though the Chambal ravines are treated as a very large ravine zone of roughly 2-3.5 lakh hectares.
  • (D) Option D accepts all four statements, but statement 4 contradicts the water-erosion basis of ravine formation.

Concept

This tests Rajasthan geomorphology and land-degradation management, especially the distinction between fluvial ravines and wind-eroded desert landforms. It recurs in RAS because Chambal ravines combine physical geography, soil conservation and watershed planning in one Rajasthan-specific topic.

Source

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