Question

The region famous for the Barchan or crescent shaped dunes in India is ___________.
A. Western Ghats
B. Rajasthan Desert
C. Northern Plains
D. Southern Plains

Answer 1

Hint: The region near the Indo-Pak border is famous for the crescent-shaped dunes or Barchans in India. These crescent sand dunes are visible in the Thar Desert of India.

Complete Answer: The Indian Desert is the continuation of the Northern Plains. It lies to the west of Aravalli Hills. The desert has two slopes - one to the west and second to the south. One of the main features of the Indian desert is the shifting sand dunes. Longitudinal, Barkhans or Barchan and Transverse dunes are the three types of sand dunes.

Now, let us examine the options
Option A - The Western ghats form the western arm of the Peninsular Plateau. These ghats are higher in height than the Eastern Ghats. Their height goes on increasing as one goes towards the south.
Option B - The barchans or barkhans can be noticed in the Rajasthan desert. Barchans are concentric in shape, have convex sides which face the prevailing winds. These can be found in Jaisalmer city of Rajasthan. The Thar Desert or the Great Indian Desert, a large arid region which covers 200,000 square kilometres and ranks 17 in terms of the world’s largest desert.
Option C - The Northern Plains of India have been formed by the Indus, the Ganga, the Brahmaputra rivers and their tributaries. The Plains extend for 3,200 kilometres between the mouths of the Ganga and the Indus all along the foot of the mountain rim.
Option D - Southern Plains or the Deccan plateau constitutes the major physiographic unit of the Indian subcontinent to the south of the Narmada river. It is bound by the Satpura Hills and its extension in the north and by the Western and Eastern Ghats in the west and east, respectively. The Western and Eastern Ghats meet each other in the Nilgiris and it forms the apex of the plateau.

Thus, the correct answer is option (B).

Note: In 1881, the term Barchan was introduced by a Russian naturalist Alexander von Middendorf with reference to the crescent-shaped sand dunes found in Turkestan. Barchans are found in sandy deserts all over the world.