With reference to the water on the planet Earth, consider the following statements : 1. The amount of water in the rivers and lakes is more than the amount of groundwater. 2. The amount of water in polar ice caps and glaciers is more than the amount of groundwater. Which of the statements given above is/are correct?
- (a) 1 only
- (b) 2 only ✓ UPSC's answer
- (c) Both 1 and 2
- (d) Neither 1 nor 2
Why the answer is (b)
• Of Earth's freshwater, roughly 68–69% is locked in polar ice caps and glaciers, about 30% is groundwater, and only about 0.3% lies in rivers and lakes.
• Statement 2 is correct: ice caps and glaciers hold more than twice as much water as all groundwater.
• Statement 1 is wrong: rivers and lakes hold a tiny fraction compared with groundwater (about 1:100).
• This is why groundwater is the main freshwater source for India's irrigation and drinking needs.
• Hence 2 only, option (b).
Why the other options are wrong
- (a) 1 only
- Statement 1 is wrong: groundwater far exceeds river and lake water.
- (c) Both 1 and 2
- Statement 1 is wrong.
- (d) Neither 1 nor 2
- Statement 2 is correct: ice caps and glaciers exceed groundwater.
Asked in the GS Paper I of the UPSC Civil Services Preliminary Examination 2021, held on 10 October 2021. Question and answer key: Union Public Service Commission. Explanation: UPSC Answer Check.