Indira Point, the southernmost point of Indian territory, is situated in
- A.Great Nicobar
- B.Little Andaman
- C.Minicoy
- D.Kanyakumari
Correct answer
Explanation
The correct answer is A, Great Nicobar. Indira Point at the southern tip of Great Nicobar is the southernmost point of the territory of India and lies close to the equator; it was earlier called Pygmalion Point and Parsons Point, and its lighthouse subsided during the earthquake and tsunami of December 2004. Option B, Little Andaman, lies north of the Ten Degree Channel. Option C, Minicoy, is the southernmost island of Lakshadweep but lies well north of Indira Point. Option D, Kanyakumari, is the southernmost point of the Indian mainland, not of Indian territory, and this is exactly the distinction examiners test: mainland means Kanyakumari, territory means Indira Point. Indira Point lies at roughly six degrees and forty-five minutes north latitude, and the Great Channel separates it from Sumatra in Indonesia, the nearest foreign land to it.
Read the full article: India's Coastline and Maritime Zones: Facts and PYQs
Practice Questions
View allWhat is the total length of India's coastline, counting the island groups?
- A.About 5,422 kilometres
- B.About 6,100 kilometres
- C.About 7,516 kilometres
- D.About 15,200 kilometres
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The figure usually quoted is 7,516.6 kilometres, which counts the coast of the mainland together with that of the Andaman and Nicobar Islands and Lakshadweep.
Read the full explanation →Which Indian State has the longest coastline?
- A.Gujarat
- B.Andhra Pradesh
- C.Tamil Nadu
- D.Maharashtra
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Its coast runs along the Gulf of Kachchh and the Gulf of Khambhat and around the Kathiawar peninsula, which gives it a far longer shoreline than any other State, and it is followed by Andhra Pradesh and Tamil Nadu.
Read the full explanation →The territorial waters of India extend up to how many nautical miles from the baseline?
- A.12 nautical miles
- B.24 nautical miles
- C.200 nautical miles
- D.350 nautical miles
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Under the Maritime Zones Act of 1976 the territorial waters extend to twelve nautical miles from the baseline, and within them India has sovereignty over the water, the seabed, the subsoil and the air space, subject only to the right of innocent passage of foreign ships.
Read the full explanation →The exclusive economic zone of a coastal State extends up to
- A.12 nautical miles
- B.24 nautical miles
- C.100 nautical miles
- D.200 nautical miles
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Within this zone the coastal State has sovereign rights for exploring, exploiting, conserving and managing the living and non-living resources of the water, the seabed and the subsoil, and exclusive jurisdiction over artificial islands, marine scientific research and the protection of the marine environment.
Read the full explanation →The Ten Degree Channel separates which two groups of islands?
- A.Andaman and Nicobar groups
- B.Lakshadweep and Minicoy
- C.Minicoy and the Maldives
- D.Great Nicobar and Sumatra
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The Ten Degree Channel runs roughly along the parallel of ten degrees north and separates Little Andaman in the south of the Andaman group from Car Nicobar in the north of the Nicobar group.
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