Consider the following statements : 1. Asiatic lion is naturally found in India only. 2. Double-humped camel is naturally found in India only. 3. One-horned rhinoceros is naturally found in India only. Which of the statements given above is/are correct?
- (a) 1 only ✓ UPSC's answer
- (b) 2 only
- (c) 1 and 3 only
- (d) 1, 2 and 3
Why the answer is (a)
• Statement 1 is correct: the Asiatic lion survives in the wild only in Gujarat's Gir landscape.
• Statement 2 is wrong: the wild double-humped (Bactrian) camel lives in Mongolia and China's Gobi; India's small population in Ladakh's Nubra Valley is domesticated, not the only natural range.
• Statement 3 is wrong: the greater one-horned rhinoceros is also found naturally in Nepal (Chitwan) and formerly Bhutan.
• Hence 1 only, option (a).
Why the other options are wrong
- (b) 2 only
- Statement 2 is wrong: Bactrian camels live in Mongolia and China.
- (c) 1 and 3 only
- Statement 3 is wrong: rhinos also occur in Nepal.
- (d) 1, 2 and 3
- Statements 2 and 3 are wrong.
Asked in the GS Paper I of the UPSC Civil Services Preliminary Examination 2019, held on 2 June 2019. Question and answer key: Union Public Service Commission. Explanation: UPSC Answer Check.