GEOGRAPHY
DRAINAGE
CLASS -9
Assignment
Q.1 Define the terms –
1. Drainage: The flow of water through well-defined channels is known as
drainage and the network of such channels is known as drainage system.
2. Drainage/river basin:
A river drainage basin is an area drained by a river and its tributaries. A river basin
is made up of many different watersheds.
3. Water divide: Any elevated area, such as a mountain or an upland, which
separates two drainage basins is known as a water divide.
Q.2 Name the features formed by the river in each course(upper,
middle and lower)
ANS:
UPPER COURSE. V-shaped Valleys, Interlocking Spurs, Gorges &
Waterfalls MIDDLE COURSE. Meanders & Oxbow lakes.
LOWER COURSE. Floodplains & Deltas.
Q.3 Give reasons for the following statements-
a. Most of the peninsular rivers flow towards the Bay of Bengal.
ANS: The main reason for most of the rivers draining into the Bay of Bengal is due
to the slope of the peninsular plateau towards the east, river flows where it finds a
slope.
b. River Ganga forms large meanders in the middle and lower course.
ANS: silt deposition occurs at a large level in the Ganga River, the river cannot
move forward as it used to and has to bend along the deposition to retrace the route
in the middle & lower levels. This bending of rivers due to deposition of silt and
sediments is called meandering.
c. River Brahmaputra carries less silt in its Tibetan part
despite a longer course.
ANS: The Brahmaputra river is known as Tsangpo in the Tibetan part. Tibet is a
very cold and dry area, thus, the river carries a very small amount of water leading
to very less silt content, despite having a large course.
But once it enters India, Brahmaputra is fed by heavy rains, and it carries a lot of
water and silt.
d. River Brahmaputra has a braided channel in its entire length in Assam.
ANS: Brahmaputra is a braided river because it is one of the number of channel
types & huge deposits of sediments, and has a channel consisting of a network of
small channels which are separated by small islands with braids.
e. The rivers in arid and semi-arid regions form inland drainage
ANS: The rivers in arid and semi-arid regions form inland drainage because of
excessive evaporation & seepage of river water.
f. Peninsular rivers are not navigable .
ANS: The rivers of Peninsular India are not suitable for navigation as they flow
swiftly over the plateaus and highlands They have their source in the Western
Ghats and flow across hills making several waterfalls.
Q.4 Differentiate between :
a) West flowing and East flowing rivers.
West Flowing Rivers:
1. These rivers originate in central India and flow westwards
[Link] rivers flow into the Arabian Sea.
3. These rivers form estuaries at their mouths.
East Flowing Rivers:
1. These rivers originate from the Western Ghats and flow eastwards.
2. These rivers flow into the Bay of Bengal.
3. These rivers from deltas at their mouths.
b) Himalayan Rivers & Peninsular rivers.
1. Himalayan Rivers are the water bodies that emanate from the north of
Himalayan Mountain ranges. On the other extreme, Peninsular Rivers
include those watercourses that arise from, the Western Ghats or Central
Highlands.
2. The Himalayan rivers are perennial, i.e. they have water all around the
year. As against, Peninsular rivers are seasonal, in the sense that they
have water during a particular period only.
3. Big deltas are formed by Himalayan Rivers. On the other extreme, some
peninsular rivers like the Mahanadi, the Godavari, the Krishna and the Kaveri
form deltas, while the Narmada and the Tapi form estuaries.
4. While Himalayan rivers form meanders, there is an absence of meanders in
the case of Peninsular rivers.
5. The bedrock of Himalayan rivers is soft, sedimentary and easily erodible.
Conversely, the bedrock of Peninsular rivers is hard, resistant and not easily
erodible. 6. Himalayan rivers get water from snow and rain, whereas Peninsular
rivers are fed by rain only.
7. The drainage basin of Himalayan rivers is comparatively larger than the
Peninsular rivers.
8. Himalayan river water helps in the irrigation of Northern Plains. In
contrast, Peninsular rivers irrigate the Deccan Plateau.
9. Himalayan rivers form a V-shaped valley, while Peninsular watercourses form
a valley having a U-shape
c) Tributary and Distributary
Tributaries
A stream that flows into a mainstream (or parent) river.
Does not flow directly into a sea, ocean or lake
Generally found in the upper course of the river.
Example: Yamuna is the tributary of the Ganga.
Distributaries
A tributary that branches off and flows away from the mainstream or the
parent river. May or may not flow directly into a sea, ocean or lake
Generally found in the lower course of the river.
Example: Hooghly is the distributary of Ganga.
d) Delta & Estuary.
Ans: An estuary is a body of water where fresh water and saltwater mix. For e.g.,
when river water meets the seawater. On the other hand, a delta is a triangular-
shaped area which is loaded with sediments deposited by the river.
THE DELTA:
• A delta is a meeting point or junction where rivers deposit their load.
• The delta spreads and accumulates as a low cone. The coarsest materials are
deposited first and finer fractions like silts and clay are deposited later.
• The delta being a fertile area becomes highly suitable for agriculture. Hence, they
can support large amounts of population.
• The delta is usually a flat area which may or may not have animal diversity.
• Examples of the delta are Sundarbans delta and Ganges delta.
THE ESTUARY:
• The estuary acts as a transition zone between salty and freshwater bodies.
• The estuary is not very fertile. Although estuaries are very productive as they can
trap plant nutrient
• The estuary is not suitable for agricultural-related activities.
• The estuary supports a great amount of wildlife diversification because it acts as an
ecotone.
• Examples of estuary are Narmada (Maharashtra) and Periyar estuary (Kerala)
Ms. Sheeba Pillai