Question

What do you understand by the term ‘inland drainage’?

Answer 1

Hint The Rivers and its streams usually originate from one place and finally end into a sea or an ocean and make river plains, deltas, etc. In the inland drainage system, this is not the case. Here the rivers and its streams do not directly end into an ocean or a sea.

Complete step by step answer Inland drainage refers to the drainage system where the streams of the rivers do not meet into an ocean or a sea instead they empty their waters in an Inland ocean or a lake.

Characteristics of Inland drainage system
1. The stream ends in an inland body such as a lake.
2. During the rainy season, there are more floods.
3. The main source of water is rainwater here.
4. The streams dry up during summers.
5. The two main rivers forming inland drainage systems in India are the Ghaggar river system and the Luni River.

Additional information The Ghaggar river is a seasonal stream that forms boundaries between Punjab and Chandigarh and originates from the slopes of the Himalayas. Its main tributaries are Chaitanya, Saraswati, Tangri, and Markanda. As the river flows in the parts of Rajasthan it eventually disappears. Luni river has its origin from the Aravalli ranges, finally flows into the Rann of Kachchh.

Note: Luni river is also known as Lavnavari which means salt river, due to its extreme salinity. It is the largest river in the Thar desert in the northwest. Inland drainage of Rajasthan and that of Aksai Chin in Jammu and Kashmir form less than 10 percent of inland drainage.