Question

Which of the following ports has a natural harbour and a natural Hint:erland?
a.Tuticorin
b.Kandla
c.Nhava Sheva
d.Kolkata

Answer 1

Hint: A natural harbour is a landform where a portion of a water body is maintained and deep enough to enable anchorage. Many such harbours are rias. Hint:erland is a German word which implies the land behind.It can be defined as the land that is directly behind the port.

Complete answer: Natural harbours have enormous strategic naval and economic significance. Many big cities in the world are located on them. Having a secured harbour reduces the need for breakwaters as it will raise calmer waves inside the harbour. For example, Visakhapatnam Harbour and Mumbai Harbour in India.
In the shipping method, a port's Hint:erland is the region that serves, both for imports and exports.

Looking at the options above:
Option a: Tuticorin is a port in Tamil Nadu located on the east coast of India. This port has a natural harbour and rich Hint:erland. Thus, it has a prosperous trade conducting large variation of shipments to even our neighbouring countries like Sri Lanka, Maldives, etc. This answer is correct.

Option b: Kandla is a port on the Gulf of Kachchh of the Arabian Sea, near Gujarat. This port was constructed in the 1930s to serve as a Hint:erland that is extensively larger than Gujarat state. Hence, it is not a natural one. This answer is incorrect.

Option c: Jawaharlal Nehru Port in Mumbai is also known as Nhava Sheva port. It is the biggest container port in India on the Arabian Sea. This answer is incorrect.

Option d: Kolkata is a freshwater port with no difference in salinity. The port has two different dock systems — Kolkata Docks at Kolkata and a deep water dock at Haldia Dock Complex, Haldia. This answer is incorrect.

Option 'a' is correct.

Note: While answering this question, don't get confused with the Mumbai port. Though the Mumbai port is a natural port, it does not have a natural Hint:erland. Kolkata Port Trust is the oldest port of India which has an area as big as London Docklands. Mumbai is known as the port city of India.