Question

The major flood prone areas of India cover almost what percentage of the country’s area?
A. 12.5%
B. 13.5%
C. 14.5%
D. 15%

Answer 1

Hint: India does not have much area which is below sea level. Floods in India occur mostly when rivers overflow their banks or some places receive very heavy rainfall. India is more prone to drought than to flood.

Complete answer
Flood is defined as an overflow of excess water over land which is normally dry. This happens due to many different reasons, which can be both man made as well as natural causes. Whatever the cause might be, floods can be severely destructive leading to a heavy loss of life and property. Though India has significantly less land area which is prone to flood, it is still quite severe when it occurs. Let us see how much of India's total land is considered flood prone-

A. 12.5% of India's total area is considered to be flood prone areas. These areas are mostly

B. 13.5% is higher than the percentage of areas of India that are at a risk of flooding. Therefore, it is not the correct answer.

C. 14.5% too is higher than the actual percentage. So this is not the correct answer either.

D. 15% is much higher than the total percentage of area in India which is prone to floods. Thus, this is not the correct answer.

Therefore, the correct answer is Option A.

Note:
i) States in the flood prone areas in India are West Bengal, Andhra Pradesh, Orissa, Kerala, Haryana, Assam and Uttar Pradesh.
ii) Flood prone areas in India are in the areas beside the major rivers like Ganga, Yamuna, Mahanadi, Teesta, Brahmaputra etc.
iii) India is one of the most natural disaster prone countries in the world.
68% of land in India is prone to drought. 60% of it is prone to earthquakes. 12.5% of the land is prone to floods. And 8% is prone to cyclones.