PYQ and UPSC-style practice

• UPSC-style · Ranges · 1

  Consider the following countries: 1. Venezuela 2. Brazil 3. Ecuador 4. Argentina The Andes pass through how many of the above?

  • AOnly one
  • BOnly two
  • COnly three
  • DAll four

• UPSC-style · Ranges · 2

  Consider the following: 1. Nepal 2. Bhutan 3. Afghanistan 4. Myanmar The Himalayas pass through how many of the above?

  • AOnly one
  • BOnly two
  • COnly three
  • DAll four

• UPSC-style · Ranges · 3

  Consider the following ranges: 1. Urals 2. Appalachians 3. Andes 4. Scandinavian Mountains How many of the above are old fold mountains?

  • AOnly one
  • BOnly two
  • COnly three
  • DAll four

• UPSC-style · Peaks · 4

  K2 is correctly described as:

  • AA Himalayan peak on the Nepal–China border
  • BA Karakoram peak on the Pakistan–China border
  • CThe highest peak of the Hindu Kush
  • DThe highest peak of the Kunlun

• UPSC-style · Peaks · 5

  The highest peak of the Rocky Mountains is:

  • ADenali
  • BMount Elbert
  • CAconcagua
  • DMont Blanc

• UPSC-style · Peaks · 6

  With reference to the highest peak in Europe, which of the following is correct?

  • AMont Blanc is higher than Elbrus
  • BElbrus stands in the Alps
  • CElbrus, in the Caucasus, is the usual answer; Mont Blanc is the highest peak of the Alps
  • DThe Elburz is the highest peak of Europe

• UPSC-style · Ranges · 7

  Consider the following statement: ‘Elbrus is in Russia; the Elburz is a fold range in northern Iran and its highest point is the volcano Damavand.’

  • AThe statement is correct
  • BElbrus and the Elburz are the same feature
  • CDamavand is in the Caucasus
  • DThe Elburz lies south of the Black Sea, not the Caspian

• UPSC-style · Rivers · 8

  Which of the following is correct about the Nile?

  • AIt flows south from the Mediterranean to Lake Victoria
  • BThe White Nile supplies most of the floodwater and the silt
  • CThe Blue Nile, from Lake Tana, supplies most of the water and nearly all the silt
  • DA major perennial tributary joins it at Cairo

• UPSC-style · Rivers · 9

  Which of the following is not correct about the Amazon?

  • AIt has the greatest discharge of any river
  • BIts conventional source lies in the Andes
  • CIt flows east to the Atlantic
  • DIt builds a classic bird-foot delta

• UPSC-style · Rivers · 10

  Which major river crosses the equator twice?

  • ANile
  • BAmazon
  • CCongo
  • DNiger

• UPSC-style · Drainage · 11

  Consider the following rivers: 1. Volga 2. Amu Darya 3. Syr Darya 4. Rhine How many of the above are inland-drainage rivers?

  • AOnly one
  • BOnly two
  • COnly three
  • DAll four

• UPSC-style · Rivers · 12

  Consider the following countries: 1. Germany 2. Poland 3. Hungary 4. Ukraine The Danube flows through how many of the above?

  • AOnly one
  • BOnly two
  • COnly three
  • DAll four

• UPSC-style · Rivers · 13

  Consider the following countries: 1. China 2. India 3. Laos 4. Vietnam The Mekong flows through how many of the above?

  • AOnly one
  • BOnly two
  • COnly three
  • DAll four

• UPSC-style · Rivers · 14

  Which pair is correct?

  • ADanube — longest river in Europe — Black Sea
  • BVolga — longest river in Europe — Caspian Sea
  • CRhine — longest river in Europe — Black Sea
  • DVolga — longest river in Europe — Black Sea

• UPSC-style · Drainage · 15

  Lake Baikal drains through:

  • AThe Lena, to the Laptev Sea
  • BThe Ob, to the Gulf of Ob
  • CThe Angara, into the Yenisei
  • DThe Amur, to the Sea of Okhotsk

• UPSC-style · Rivers · 16

  Which of the following reaches the Pacific, and not the Arctic?

  • AOb
  • BYenisei
  • CLena
  • DAmur

• UPSC-style · Rivers · 17

  Which of the following is correct?

  • AAbove the confluence, the Mississippi is longer than the Missouri
  • BThe Murray is longer than the Darling
  • CAbove the confluence, the Irtysh is longer than the Ob
  • DThe White Nile carries more silt than the Blue Nile

• UPSC-style · Rivers · 18

  The Orinoco rises in:

  • AThe Andes of Colombia
  • BThe Guiana Highlands
  • CThe same Brazilian highland source as the Paraná
  • DThe Bolivian Altiplano

• UPSC-style · Drainage · 19

  The Casiquiare channel naturally links:

  • AThe Orinoco and the Amazon
  • BThe Paraná and the Amazon
  • CThe Nile and the Congo
  • DThe Niger and the Congo

• UPSC-style · Belts · 20

  Which of the following is correct?

  • AThe Atacama lies on the eastern, windward side of the subtropical Andes
  • BThe dry zone of Patagonia lies east of the Andes
  • CThe Tibetan plateau lies on the windward southern side of the Himalayas
  • DThe Canterbury Plains are the windward side of New Zealand’s Southern Alps

• UPSC-style · Ranges · 21

  Which pair is correctly matched?

  • ADrakensberg — young fold mountain
  • BAtlas — residual escarpment
  • CUrals — old fold mountain
  • DAndes — old fold mountain

• UPSC-style · Peaks · 22

  On the Bass list of the Seven Summits, the Australian summit is:

  • APuncak Jaya
  • BMont Blanc
  • CKosciuszko
  • DK2

• UPSC-style · Peaks · 23

  Kilimanjaro is correctly described as:

  • AA fold peak in Kenya, higher than any rift volcano
  • BA volcanic peak in Tanzania, the highest in Africa
  • CThe source of the Blue Nile
  • DA peak of the Atlas, above 5,800 m

• UPSC-style · Drainage · 24

  Which river rises on an eastern highland and flows west to the Atlantic?

  • AZambezi
  • BOrange
  • CDanube
  • DLena

• UPSC-style · Rivers · 25

  The Three Parallel Rivers of Yunnan include the Yangtze, the Mekong and the Salween. Which of the following is not one of them?

  • AJinsha
  • BLancang
  • CNu
  • DIrrawaddy

• UPSC-style · Rivers · 26

  Which of the following is correct?

  • AThe Rhine and the Danube both rise in the Black Forest and reach the North Sea
  • BThe Rhine and the Rhône rise close together in the Swiss Alps and reach different seas
  • CThe Rhine reaches the Mediterranean
  • DThe Rhône reaches the Caspian Sea

• UPSC-style · Belts · 27

  In which of the following are young fold mountains, frequent earthquakes and an active volcanic arc found together?

  • AHimalayas
  • BUrals
  • CAndes
  • DAppalachians

• UPSC-style · Drainage · 28

  Which of the following is correct about the Murray–Darling?

  • AIt flows east from the Great Dividing Range to the Pacific
  • BThe Darling is longer than the Murray, and the system flows west
  • CIt rises in the Southern Alps of New Zealand
  • DIt has a bird-foot delta on the Tasman Sea

Mains frameworks · 7

• UPSC GS-I 2014 · 10 marks

  Why are the world’s fold mountain systems located along the margins of continents? Bring out the association between the global distribution of fold mountains and the earthquakes and volcanoes.

  10 marks. Write about 150 words. The framework below is fuller than the word limit — use four headings, not all the points.

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• UPSC GS-I 2021 · 15 marks

  Briefly mention the alignment of major mountain ranges of the world and explain their impact on local weather conditions, with examples.

  15 marks, 250 words. Spend the length on weather, not on how the ranges were built.

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• UPSC-style · 10 marks

  Distinguish the Alpine–Himalayan belt from the Circum-Pacific belt. Why does one carry a near-continuous volcanic arc and the other does not?

  10 marks, about 150 words.

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• UPSC-style · 10 marks

  Distinguish young fold mountains from old fold mountains with reference to their world distribution, form and present geological activity.

  10 marks, about 150 words.

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• UPSC-style · 15 marks

  Examine the international character of major rivers with reference to their source, course and mouth. Illustrate with the Nile, the Amazon, the Danube and the Mekong.

  15 marks, 250 words. Four rivers are enough if each has source, direction, mouth and one political fact.

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• UPSC-style · 10 marks

  What is inland drainage? Explain, with examples, why some of the world’s large rivers never reach the ocean.

  10 marks, about 150 words.

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• UPSC-style · 15 marks

  Mountain ranges decide where great rivers are born and which sea they can reach. Illustrate with examples from the Andes, the Alps, the Himalayas and the East African highlands.

  15 marks, 250 words.

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