Question

The famous Lagoon lake of India is ____
A) Chilka Lake
B) Mansarovar
C) Dal Lake
D) Pulicat Lake

Answer 1

Hint:
A lagoon is a shallow water body which is separated from a larger water body. This separation is usually done by reefs, barrier islands or a barrier peninsula.

Complete step by step solution:
 India’s most famous lagoon lake is Chilika lake. It is a brackish water lagoon and is spread over the following districts of Odisha: Puri, Khurda and Ganjam. It covers an area of over 1,100km and is the largest coastal lagoon in India. It is also the second largest brackish water lagoon in the world.
Chilika lake has been listed as a tentative UNESCO World Heritage site. It forms the largest wintering ground for migratory birds in the Indian subcontinent. The ecosystem of this lagoon has large fishery resources, sustaining more than 150,000 fishermen living in more than 130 villages on the shore and islands.
In the peak migratory season, Chilika Lake hosts more than 160 species of birds. These birds come here from faraway regions like Caspian sea, Aral sea and some remote parts of Russia, Southeast Asia, Kazakhstan etc. In order to reach this lake, birds follow much longer routes up to 12,000km.
There is geological evidence which indicates that Chilika Lake was a part of the Bay of Bengal during the later stages of the Pleistocene period.

Note:
Chilika lake was designated as India’s first wetland of international importance under the Ramsar Convention mainly due to its rich biodiversity. But the rapid expansion of commercial aquaculture of prawn has significantly reduced the lake’s fisheries and bird population.