Question

Which river flows behind the Taj Mahal?
a) Ganga
b) Yamuna
c) Saraswati
d) Brahmaputra

Answer 1

Hint: Taj Mahal is a 17th century mausoleum built by Mughal Emperor Shah Jahan. It is located in the city of Agra in Uttar Pradesh.

Complete answer: The mausoleum houses the tomb of Mumtaz Mahal. Let us look at the options given to us.
Option A- Ganga rises in the Gangotri glacier and forms through the confluence of river Alaknanda and Bhagirathi. Ganga basin covers 11 states like Uttarakhand, U.P., M.P., Rajasthan, Haryana, Himachal Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Jharkhand, Bihar, West Bengal and Delhi. In Uttar Pradesh it flows through the cities of Kanpur, Kannauj, Farrukhabad but not Agra.
Option B- Yamuna is the correct answer as it flows through the city of Agra and the Taj Mahal is built on the banks of the same. The river rises in Bandarpunch glacier and passes through the states of Haryana, Uttar Pradesh and Delhi. Yamuna is a tributary of Ganga and joins Ganga at Allahabad. It is said that the charbagh of Taj Mahal was built in a way to incorporate the river Yamuna and it was to be seen as one of the rivers of Paradise.
Option C- Saraswati is a river mentioned in the Rig Veda and associated with present day Ghaggar Hakra river .
Option D- Brahmaputra river rises in Tibetan plateau and flows through the north eastern states of Arunachal Pradesh and Assam before entering Bangladesh and emptying itself in Bay of Bengal.

Therefore the correct answer is option (B) Yamuna.

Note: The pollution of river Yamuna is now presenting a threat to Taj Mahal’s beauty. Pollution of the river has caused acid rains in the region which has been turning the white Marble yellow brown. Narrowing of the river has also posed a threat to the tomb’s structural integrity as the base of the mausoleum if formed of wood.