Public Section Preview
Glossary Terms
| Term (EN) | Definition | Exam Relevance |
|---|---|---|
| Physiography | Study of natural features and landforms of a region | Foundational concept for Section 2 |
| Aeolian | Formed by wind action; e.g., sand dunes in Thar Desert | Thar Desert landforms |
| Barchan | Crescent-shaped mobile sand dune; horns point downwind | PYQ type question |
| Watershed / Drainage Divide | Ridge separating two drainage basins | Aravalli's watershed role |
| Perennial River | Flows throughout the year; fed by snow/groundwater | Chambal — only perennial river in Rajasthan |
| Ephemeral River | Flows only during/after rainfall | Most western Rajasthan rivers |
| Inland Drainage | Rivers that do not reach the sea; water lost inland | ~60% of Rajasthan |
| Badlands / Ravines | Deeply eroded gully landscape along Chambal | Chambal ravines; Kota-Dholpur belt |
| Playa | Flat-bottomed depression (lake bed) in arid inland area; salt-encrusted | Sambhar, Didwana, Pachpadra |
| Ramsar Site | Wetland of international importance under Ramsar Convention (1971) | Sambhar Lake, Keoladeo |
| Harike Barrage | Confluence of Beas and Sutlej; headworks of IGNP | IGNP origin question |
| Jh / Jhil | Natural or artificial body of water; lake | Generic term |
| Guru Shikhar | Highest peak of Aravalli (1,722 m); Mount Abu (Sirohi) | Highest peak PYQ |
| Chambal Valley Project | Multi-purpose project: Gandhi Sagar + Rana Pratap Sagar + Jawahar Sagar dams; 386 MW total | Dam-related questions |
| ERCP | Eastern Rajasthan Canal Project; ₹37,247 crore; National Project 2023; links Chambal-Kalisindh surplus to north Rajasthan | Current affairs 2023 |
| Endorheic Basin | Closed drainage basin with no outlet to the sea; water accumulates in lakes or evaporates; covers ~60% of Rajasthan (Luni exception: exorheic to Rann of Kutch) | Explains why western rivers have saline lakes |
| Alluvial Plain | Flat land formed by river deposition; fertile; eastern Rajasthan (Chambal, Banas tracts) | Agriculture belt of Rajasthan |
| Barrage | Low dam across a river that raises water level for diversion into canals; no storage reservoir; e.g., Bisalpur Barrage (Banas), Jawahar Sagar (Chambal) | Differentiates barrage vs. dam; irrigation PYQs |
| Command Area | Area of agricultural land that can be irrigated from a canal system; IGNP command area is largest in India (~19.6 lakh ha) | IGNP scope questions |
| Tethys Sea | Ancient shallow sea that once covered NW India; its marine sediments formed the Aravalli-Vindhyan rocks; fossils of marine organisms found in Rajasthan | Geological history of Rajasthan PYQ |
| Pediplain | Eroded rock surface of low relief in arid zones; characteristic landform of shield areas in western Rajasthan | Arid geomorphology |
| Inundation Canal | Canal fed only by floodwater during high-river season; no headwork storage; older form of irrigation (e.g., early Gang Canal) | Historical irrigation comparison |
Topic 83 of 138 | Paper II, Unit 3 — Earth Science / Geography & Geology | Generated: 2026-04-06