UPSC Prelims 2014 · Question 63 of 100
UPSC Prelims 2014 question on Ten Degree Channel
- ExamUPSC CSE
- Year2014
- PaperGeneral Studies Paper I
- SubjectGeography
- TopicIndian Geography
- DifficultyEasy
- TypeMatch
Which one of the following pairs of islands is separated from each other by the 'Ten Degree Channel'?
Show answer
Answer: A. Andaman and Nicobar
Verdict
The answer is Andaman and Nicobar. The Ten Degree Channel separates the Andaman group in the north from the Nicobar group in the south.
Analysis
The channel takes its name from its position near the ten degree north parallel and is a busy shipping lane. The Nicobar and Sumatra option is wrong because those are separated by the Great Channel, which lies further south. Maldives and Lakshadweep are separated by the Eight Degree Channel, and Lakshadweep itself is split by the Nine Degree Channel. Sumatra and Java are separated by the Sunda Strait, in a different ocean basin altogether.
Source
NCERT Class XI Geography, page 19.
How to crack it
The channel names in this region are literally their latitudes, which makes them self checking. Eight Degree Channel lies between Maldives and Lakshadweep, Nine Degree Channel splits Lakshadweep at Minicoy, Ten Degree Channel splits Andaman from Nicobar. Once you attach the number to the latitude, you can reconstruct the whole set from a mental map without memorising pairs, and every distractor in this question becomes another entry you can name.