13.4 — India: Geography, States and Firsts

Rivers, ranges, borders and the long list of firsts. The geography half is the more useful, because almost everything else in Indian general knowledge hangs off where things are.

The shape of the country

Where does the Tropic of Cancer cross India? Through eight states — Gujarat, Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Jharkhand, West Bengal, Tripura and Mizoram. North of it the sun is never overhead; south of it, twice a year.

Which meridian is India's standard time based on? 82°30′E, passing through Mirzapur near Allahabad, giving UTC+5:30. One time zone for a country wide enough to justify two.

How many countries share a land border with India? Seven: Pakistan, China, Nepal, Bhutan, Bangladesh, Myanmar and Afghanistan. Sri Lanka and Maldives are maritime neighbours.

Which country shares India's longest border? Bangladesh, at over 4,000 km. China is next, then Pakistan.

What are the three border lines to know? The Radcliffe Line with Pakistan and Bangladesh, the McMahon Line with China in the north-east, and the Durand Line — which is between Pakistan and Afghanistan, not India.

Which is the southernmost point of mainland India, and of India? Kanyakumari on the mainland; Indira Point in the Nicobar Islands is the southernmost point of Indian territory.

What is the Siliguri Corridor? The narrow strip, about 22 km at its thinnest, connecting the north-east to the rest of India. It is called the Chicken's Neck.

Which Indian state has the longest coastline? Gujarat. India's total coastline including islands is over 7,500 km.

Which strait separates India from Sri Lanka? The Palk Strait, with the Gulf of Mannar to its south and the chain of shoals called Adam's Bridge or Rama Setu between them.

Mountains and rivers

Which is India's highest peak? Kangchenjunga, on the Sikkim-Nepal border, 8,586 m — the world's third highest. K2 is higher but is in territory administered by Pakistan.

What are the three parallel Himalayan ranges? The Himadri or Greater Himalaya, the Himachal or Lesser Himalaya, and the Shivaliks, from north to south.

Which is the oldest mountain range in India? The Aravallis, in Rajasthan, among the oldest fold mountains in the world and heavily eroded.

Which range separates north and south India? The Vindhyas, with the Satpuras just south of them and the Narmada valley between.

Where do the Western and Eastern Ghats meet? The Nilgiri Hills. The Western Ghats are older, higher and far wetter, and are a global biodiversity hotspot.

What is the highest peak in peninsular India? Anamudi, in Kerala, 2,695 m.

Which is India's longest river? The Ganga, about 2,525 km within India. The Brahmaputra is longer overall but most of its length is outside India.

Where does the Ganga rise, and what is it called there? At the Gangotri glacier, as the Bhagirathi; it becomes the Ganga at Devprayag where it meets the Alaknanda.

Which is the longest river entirely within India? The Godavari, about 1,465 km, called the Dakshin Ganga.

Which peninsular rivers flow west, not east? The Narmada and the Tapi, which flow into the Arabian Sea through rift valleys and therefore form no deltas.

Which is India's largest river island? Majuli, in the Brahmaputra in Assam.

What is the Sundarbans? The world's largest mangrove forest, shared with Bangladesh, formed by the Ganga-Brahmaputra-Meghna delta — and the only place where tigers routinely swim between islands.

Which is India's largest freshwater lake, and largest saltwater lake? Wular in Jammu and Kashmir is the largest freshwater lake; Chilika in Odisha is the largest brackish lagoon, and Sambhar in Rajasthan the largest inland salt lake.

Which is the highest waterfall in India? Kunchikal Falls in Karnataka. Jog Falls, also in Karnataka, is the best known.

Which two rivers does the Indus Waters Treaty divide, and between whom? India and Pakistan, 1960, brokered by the World Bank: the eastern rivers Ravi, Beas and Sutlej to India; the western Indus, Jhelum and Chenab largely to Pakistan.

Climate and land

What are India's seasons, meteorologically? Winter, summer, south-west monsoon and post-monsoon or retreating monsoon.

When does the monsoon reach India, and where first? Around 1 June, at the Kerala coast, and it withdraws from the north-west by about September.

Which are the wettest places in India? Mawsynram and Cherrapunji in Meghalaya, which trade the world record and still have a dry-season water shortage.

Which is India's driest region? Western Rajasthan, in the Thar desert. Jaisalmer records among the lowest rainfall.

Which soil covers the Deccan, and what is it good for? Black soil, also called regur, formed from volcanic basalt and excellent for cotton.

What is the Deccan Trap? One of the largest volcanic features on Earth, formed around 66 million years ago — the same window as the asteroid that ended the dinosaurs.

Which state has the most forest cover by area, and which by percentage? Madhya Pradesh by area; Mizoram by proportion of its own land.

Where is India's only active volcano? Barren Island, in the Andamans.

States: the ones that get asked

Which is India's largest state by area, and smallest? Rajasthan and Goa. Lakshadweep is the smallest union territory.

Which is the most and least populous state? Uttar Pradesh and Sikkim.

Which is the most densely populated state, and which union territory? Bihar among states; Delhi among union territories.

Which state has the highest literacy? Kerala, consistently. Lakshadweep leads among union territories.

Which state was the first to become fully organic? Sikkim, in 2016, after phasing out chemical inputs over about thirteen years.

Which state has the most neighbouring states? Uttar Pradesh, bordering eight.

Which state is called the Land of Five Rivers? Punjab — panj five, ab water. The five are the Jhelum, Chenab, Ravi, Beas and Sutlej.

Which is called the Spice Garden of India, and which the Sugar Bowl? Kerala and Uttar Pradesh.

Which state is the Land of the Rising Sun? Arunachal Pradesh, where India's sunrise comes first.

Which state produces the most tea, and which the most coffee? Assam for tea, Karnataka for coffee.

Which state has the most one-horned rhinos? Assam, at Kaziranga, which holds the great majority of the world's population.

Which is the only Indian state with a Portuguese-derived civil code? Goa, which is therefore the only state with a uniform civil code.

Which state has the Sun Temple at Konark, and which the Kailasa temple at Ellora? Odisha and Maharashtra.

Which state is home to Hampi, and which to Khajuraho? Karnataka and Madhya Pradesh.

Which is India's largest port, and which is the largest natural harbour? Jawaharlal Nehru Port near Mumbai handles the most container traffic; Visakhapatnam is often cited as the largest natural harbour on the east coast, and Mumbai on the west.

Firsts

First Indian to win an Olympic individual gold? Abhinav Bindra, 10 m air rifle, 2008. Norman Pritchard's 1900 silvers are disputed in their attribution.

First Indian in space, and first Indian-origin woman in space? Rakesh Sharma, 1984, on a Soviet mission; Kalpana Chawla, 1997.

First Indian woman to climb Everest, and first Indian? Bachendri Pal, 1984; Avtar Singh Cheema, 1965.

First Indian film, and first Indian talkie? Raja Harishchandra, 1913, by Dadasaheb Phalke; Alam Ara, 1931.

First Indian to win an Oscar? Bhanu Athaiya, for costume design on Gandhi, 1983. Satyajit Ray received an honorary award in 1992.

First woman Chief Minister of an Indian state? Sucheta Kripalani, Uttar Pradesh, 1963.

First woman judge of the Supreme Court, and first woman IPS officer? Justice Fathima Beevi, 1989; Kiran Bedi, 1972.

First Indian woman doctor? Anandi Gopal Joshi, who qualified in the United States in 1886. Kadambini Ganguly qualified in India the same year.

First Indian to win the Nobel Prize in a science? C. V. Raman, Physics, 1930 — the first Asian to win in any science.

First Indian to win the Bharat Ratna? Three in the first year, 1954: C. Rajagopalachari, S. Radhakrishnan and C. V. Raman.

First Indian satellite, and first launched from Indian soil? Aryabhata, 1975, launched by the Soviet Union; Rohini, 1980, on India's own SLV-3.

First Indian mission to the Moon and to Mars? Chandrayaan-1 in 2008, which confirmed water on the Moon; Mangalyaan in 2013, which reached Mars orbit on the first attempt.

Which country was first to land near the lunar south pole? India, with Chandrayaan-3 in August 2023.

First Indian newspaper? Hicky's Bengal Gazette, 1780. The first Indian-owned English paper was The Bengal Gazette of Gangadhar Bhattacharya.

First train in India? Bori Bunder to Thane, 34 km, on 16 April 1853.

First Indian to be Miss World, and Miss Universe? Reita Faria, 1966; Sushmita Sen, 1994.

First Indian to win an individual Olympic medal after independence? K. D. Jadhav, wrestling bronze, 1952.

First Indian to win a Grand Slam title? Ramanathan Krishnan reached major semi-finals; the first Indian to win a Grand Slam event was Mahesh Bhupathi, in mixed doubles at the 1997 French Open.

First Indian to win the Booker Prize? Arundhati Roy, 1997, for The God of Small Things. Salman Rushdie won in 1981 but was a British citizen.

First Chief Election Commissioner, and first Chief Justice of India? Sukumar Sen and H. J. Kania.

First Indian to swim the English Channel? Mihir Sen, 1958.

First Indian woman to fly solo across the Atlantic? Aarohi Pandit, in a light sport aircraft, 2019.

Superlatives worth carrying

Longest railway platform in India? Hubballi in Karnataka, at over 1,500 m, which took the record from Gorakhpur.

Longest railway route in India? The Vivek Express, Dibrugarh to Kanyakumari, over 4,200 km and about 80 hours.

Longest road bridge in India? The Dhola-Sadiya bridge in Assam, over 9 km. The Atal Setu in Mumbai is the longest sea bridge.

Highest railway bridge in India? The Chenab bridge in Jammu and Kashmir, whose arch stands higher above the river than the Eiffel Tower is tall.

Longest road tunnel in India? The Atal Tunnel at Rohtang, over 9 km, at about 3,000 m altitude.

Highest motorable roads? The passes of Ladakh — Umling La is generally given as the highest.

Largest dam and largest reservoir? The Tehri dam is the tallest; the Hirakud in Odisha is among the longest; Indira Sagar holds the largest reservoir capacity.

Which is India's largest zoo, and largest museum? The Arignar Anna Zoological Park in Chennai; the Indian Museum in Kolkata, founded 1814, the oldest and largest in the country.

Largest cave temple complex? Ellora, with 34 caves of three religions cut into one hillside.

Largest and oldest church-related site? The oldest church in India is generally given as St Thomas Syro-Malabar in Kerala, on a tradition dating to the first century.

Largest gurdwara, mosque and temple? Harmandir Sahib at Amritsar; Jama Masjid at Delhi is the largest mosque; Angkor Wat is not in India, and the largest Hindu temple complex in India is generally given as Srirangam in Tamil Nadu.

Which Indian city is called the Pink City, the Blue City, the Golden City and the White City? Jaipur, Jodhpur, Jaisalmer and Udaipur — all four in Rajasthan.

Which cities are the Manchester, Detroit and Silicon Valley of India? Ahmedabad for textiles, Chennai for cars, Bengaluru for software.

Which is the City of Joy, the City of Nawabs and the City of Lakes? Kolkata, Lucknow and Udaipur or Bhopal.

Which Indian city has the most UNESCO World Heritage sites? Delhi has three — Qutb Minar, Humayun's Tomb and the Red Fort. Mumbai's Victorian and Art Deco ensemble is also inscribed.

Where things are

Where are these institutions? The Indian Institute of Science is at Bengaluru; ISRO headquarters at Bengaluru with the launch site at Sriharikota; BARC at Trombay, Mumbai; the National Defence Academy at Khadakwasla, Pune; the Indian Military Academy at Dehradun; the Forest Research Institute at Dehradun; the Central Drug Research Institute at Lucknow; the National Institute of Oceanography at Goa.

Where are the Reserve Bank, the Bombay Stock Exchange and the National Stock Exchange? All in Mumbai. The BSE, founded 1875, is Asia's oldest stock exchange.

Where is the Indian Railways' oldest working locomotive, and the world's oldest working steam engine? The Fairy Queen, built 1855, based near Delhi.

Which are India's four cardinal pilgrimage sites, the Char Dham? Badrinath, Dwarka, Puri and Rameswaram. The smaller Uttarakhand Char Dham are Yamunotri, Gangotri, Kedarnath and Badrinath.

Where is the Kumbh Mela held? Rotating between Prayagraj, Haridwar, Ujjain and Nashik. It is the largest gathering of people anywhere on Earth.

What comes next

The next page leaves India for world history — the dates, dynasties, wars and treaties that quizzes draw from most.