GK Questions NCERT Solutions (Part-13)

ANSWER- Cyclic Resource
Water is a cyclic resource with abundant supplies on the globe. Approximately, 71 percent of the earth’s surface is covered with it but fresh water constitutes only about 3 percent of the total water. In fact, a very small proportion of fresh water is effectively available for human use. The availability of fresh water varies over space and time. The tensions and disputes on sharing and control of this scarce resource are becoming contested issues among communities, regions, and states.

ANSWER- The Ganga

The total replenishable groundwater resources in the country are about 432 cubic km. Table 6.1 shows that the Ganga and the Brahmaputra basins have about 46 percent of the total replenishable groundwater resources. The level of groundwater utilisation is relatively high in the river basins lying in north-western region and parts of south India.

ANSWER- 4,000

India accounts for about 2.45 percent of world’s surface area, 4 percent of the world’s water resources and about 16 percent of world’s population. The total water available from precipitation in the country in a year is about 4,000 cubic km. The availability of surface water and replenishable groundwater is 1,869 cubic km. Out of this only, 60 percent can be put to beneficial uses. Thus, the total utilisable water resource in the country is only 1,122 cubic km.

ANSWER- Tamil Nadu

The groundwater utilisation is very high in the states of Punjab, Haryana, Rajasthan, and Tamil Nadu. However, there are States like Chhattisgarh, Odisha, Kerala, etc., which utilise only a small proportion of their groundwater potentials. States like Gujarat, Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Tripura and Maharashtra are utilising their groundwater resources at a moderate rate.

ANSWER- Irrigation

In agriculture, water is mainly used for irrigation. Irrigation is needed because of spatiotemporal variability in rainfall in the country. The large tracts of the country are deficient in rainfall and are drought prone. North-western India and Deccan plateau constitute such areas. Winter and summer seasons are more or less dry in most part of the country. Hence, it is difficult to practise agriculture without assured irrigation during dry seasons.