The Coastal Plains and Islands

Direct answer: D, they deposit fertile silt. A delta forms where a river enters quieter sea water and loses speed. The river then drops fine sediments, called silt, along with mineral nutrients. This creates broad, level and often fertile land suitable for crops, especially when water is available. A is wrong because completely rocky land is difficult to cultivate and is not the normal delta description. B is wrong because eastern Indian deltas are not covered by glaciers. C is wrong because a river delta is mainly made from river-borne sediment, not marine coral. D is correct because deposited alluvium renews soil fertility. Exam cue: slow river at its mouth means deposition, alluvium, delta and farming land.

Lakshadweep lies in the Arabian Sea to the west and Andaman Nicobar in the Bay of Bengal to the east. Exam tip: remember island groups with their seas.

Correct answer: C, the administrative centre of Lakshadweep. Kavaratti is one of the important islands of the Lakshadweep group and serves as the group’s administrative headquarters. Lakshadweep is a group of coral islands in the Arabian Sea, off the southwestern coast of India. To solve the question, first identify the place name, then connect Kavaratti with the island group of Lakshadweep and its administration. A is incorrect because the southernmost point of the Andaman and Nicobar Islands is Indira Point, not Kavaratti. B is incorrect because Kavaratti is not a port of the Coromandel Coast; that coast lies along southeastern India. D is incorrect because the Ganga delta is in eastern India and is unrelated to Kavaratti. Memory cue: “Kavaratti = Lakshadweep administration.” Do not confuse it with Port Blair, the capital of the Andaman and Nicobar Islands.