Consider the following statements:

Answer: (a) Only one

The Jhelum flows through Wular. Kolleru is fed by streams between the deltas, and Kanwar is a Burhi Gandak oxbow.

Statement by statement

1. ✓ CORRECT Wular (Bandipora, J&K), one of Asia’s largest freshwater lakes, is fed and drained by the Jhelum. It is a Ramsar site.

2. ✗ WRONG — fed by seasonal streams Kolleru lies between the Krishna and Godavari deltas and is fed by the Budameru and Tammileru streams and delta channels — not directly by the Krishna.

3. ✗ WRONG — it was the Burhi Gandak Kanwar (Kabar) Taal in Begusarai — Bihar’s first Ramsar site — is an oxbow of the Burhi Gandak, a different river from the Gandak.

The idea

A lake may lie on a river, receive local streams, or occupy an abandoned river bend. These are different links. Being near a large delta does not mean that its main river directly feeds the lake, and similar river names must be checked separately.

River develops a bend → Outer bank erodes → Inner bank gains sediment → Bend neck becomes narrower → River cuts a shorter route → Old bend is isolated as an oxbow lake

Why the others are wrong

(b) Kolleru is not fed directly by the Krishna, and Kanwar is a Burhi Gandak oxbow.

(c) Accepts “Krishna feeds Kolleru” (it lies near the Krishna) and “Gandak formed Kanwar” (a Bihar river). Both use a neighbouring river.

(d) Rejects the Jhelum–Wular link — the one standard fact here.

The trap

Each wrong statement uses the right region and a river that is nearby. UPSC checks whether you know the EXACT river.

Elimination technique

The secure Jhelum–Wular link excludes “None”. Distinguishing Gandak from Burhi Gandak excludes “All three”; the direct-feeding claim for Kolleru decides between the remaining codes.

Also know

Dal is another Kashmir lake, but it should not replace Wular in a Jhelum match. Loktak has floating vegetation mats called phumdis. Chilika and Pulicat are coastal lagoons with sea connections; Kolleru is a freshwater lake. Gandak and Burhi Gandak are separate rivers, not two spellings of one name.