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UPSC Prelims 2018 · World Geography · Countries, Rivers and Resources
Which of the following has/have shrunk immensely/dried up in the recent past due to human activities? 1. Aral Sea 2. Black Sea 3. Lake Baikal
- (a) 1 only
- (b) 2 and 3
- (c) 2 only
- (d) 1 and 3
Show the answer and explanation
Answer: (a) 1 only
The Aral Sea shrank by about 90% after the Soviet Union diverted its rivers (Amu Darya, Syr Darya) for cotton from the 1960s.
Why the others are wrong
(b) The Black Sea is connected to the ocean and has not shrunk; Baikal is polluted but not drying.
(c) Picks the Black Sea, maybe confusing it with the Aral or the Caspian. It is joined to the Mediterranean through the Bosporus and has not shrunk.
(d) Lake Baikal is still the world’s deepest lake, holding ~20% of its unfrozen fresh water.
The trap
Baikal is often in the news for pollution, so it tempts. Polluted is not the same as dried up.
🔒 Aral Sea (Kazakhstan–Uzbekistan) = the textbook human-made shrinking. Lake Chad in Africa has also shrunk sharply.
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