UPSC Prelims Practice Questions — Kabini project has cut off routes of elephants
Q1. The Nilgiri Biosphere Reserve, which encompasses the Bandipur–Nagarahole–Mudumalai–Wayanad forest complex, extends over an area of approximately how many square kilometres?
- A. About 3,300 sq km
- B. About 5,520 sq km
- C. About 7,730 sq km
- D. About 10,500 sq km
Q2. Consider the following statements regarding the Nilgiri Biosphere Reserve:
1. It was the first biosphere reserve to be designated in India.
2. It extends over parts of Karnataka, Kerala and Tamil Nadu.
3. It was added to UNESCO's World Network of Biosphere Reserves in the year 2000.
4. Its constituent protected areas — Bandipur, Nagarahole, Mudumalai and Wayanad — lie entirely and exclusively within the State of Karnataka.
Which of the above is/are NOT correct?
- It was the first biosphere reserve to be designated in India.
- It extends over parts of Karnataka, Kerala and Tamil Nadu.
- It was added to UNESCO's World Network of Biosphere Reserves in the year 2000.
- Its constituent protected areas — Bandipur, Nagarahole, Mudumalai and Wayanad — lie entirely and exclusively within the State of Karnataka.
- A. 1 and 3
- B. 2 and 4
- C. 4 only
- D. 1, 2 and 4
Q3. With reference to the Cauvery basin, which one of the following correctly describes the Kabini?
- A. A tributary that rises in the Wayanad region of Kerala and joins the Cauvery in Karnataka, upstream of the Stanley Reservoir
- B. A headstream of the Cauvery that rises in the Western Ghats of Kodagu district in Karnataka and flows south-east into Kerala
- C. A distributary that leaves the Cauvery below the Sivasamudram falls and rejoins the main stem near Mettur in Tamil Nadu
- D. A tributary that rises in the Nilgiri hills of Tamil Nadu and joins the Cauvery downstream of the Stanley Reservoir
Q4. Consider the following statements comparing the Kabini with other features of the Cauvery–Nilgiri landscape:
1. The Kabini rises in Kerala, whereas the main stem of the Cauvery rises in Karnataka.
2. The confluence of the Kabini with the Cauvery lies upstream of the Stanley Reservoir at Mettur, which is in Tamil Nadu.
3. The Kabini reservoir submerged valley forest that had linked the Nagarahole and Bandipur elephant ranges, both of which lie outside the boundary of the Nilgiri Biosphere Reserve.
Which of the statements given above is/are correct?
- The Kabini rises in Kerala, whereas the main stem of the Cauvery rises in Karnataka.
- The confluence of the Kabini with the Cauvery lies upstream of the Stanley Reservoir at Mettur, which is in Tamil Nadu.
- The Kabini reservoir submerged valley forest that had linked the Nagarahole and Bandipur elephant ranges, both of which lie outside the boundary of the Nilgiri Biosphere Reserve.
- A. 1 only
- B. 1 and 2 only
- C. 2 and 3 only
- D. 1, 2 and 3
Q5. Consider the following statements regarding the ground-validation of elephant corridors in India reported in 2023:
1. A total of 150 elephant corridors were ground-validated.
2. These corridors are distributed across 15 elephant range states.
3. The exercise was carried out with technical support from the Wildlife Institute of India, in coordination with the State Forest Departments.
4. The earlier Gajah report of 2010 had identified 33 elephant corridors in the country.
Which of the above is/are correctly identified?
- A total of 150 elephant corridors were ground-validated.
- These corridors are distributed across 15 elephant range states.
- The exercise was carried out with technical support from the Wildlife Institute of India, in coordination with the State Forest Departments.
- The earlier Gajah report of 2010 had identified 33 elephant corridors in the country.
- A. 1 and 4
- B. 2, 3 and 4
- C. 1, 2 and 3
- D. 1, 3 and 4
Q6. Which one of the following is the principal corridor, roughly 22 km long and 1.5 km wide, that sustains connectivity for elephant and tiger populations between the Western Ghats and the Eastern Ghats?
- A. The Chilla–Motichur corridor, which links the two halves of Rajaji National Park
- B. The Sigur plateau corridor, which lies in the Nilgiris district of Tamil Nadu
- C. The Siju–Rewak corridor, which lies in the Garo Hills landscape of Meghalaya
- D. The Thirunelli–Kudrakote corridor, which lies in the Wayanad landscape of Kerala
Q7. Project Elephant, which provides financial and technical assistance to major elephant-bearing States, is operationalised by which one of the following?
- A. The Central Zoo Authority, working through the zoo directorates of the States
- B. The Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change, as a Centrally Sponsored Scheme
- C. The National Tiger Conservation Authority, a statutory body under the Wild Life (Protection) Act
- D. The Ministry of Fisheries, Animal Husbandry and Dairying, through its Department of Animal Husbandry
Q8. Consider the following statements about Project Elephant and the network it administers:
1. It was launched two decades after the enactment of the Wild Life (Protection) Act.
2. The number of Elephant Reserves has risen from 26 in 2014 to 33 at present, and the number of validated corridors from 88 in 2010 to 150 in 2023.
3. The Mysore Elephant Reserve in Karnataka is larger in area than the Singhbhum Elephant Reserve in Jharkhand.
Which of the statements given above is/are correct?
- It was launched two decades after the enactment of the Wild Life (Protection) Act.
- The number of Elephant Reserves has risen from 26 in 2014 to 33 at present, and the number of validated corridors from 88 in 2010 to 150 in 2023.
- The Mysore Elephant Reserve in Karnataka is larger in area than the Singhbhum Elephant Reserve in Jharkhand.
- A. 1 and 2 only
- B. 2 only
- C. 1 and 3 only
- D. 1, 2 and 3
Q9. Consider the following:
1. National Park
2. Conservation Reserve
3. Community Reserve, which may be declared over private or community land not comprised within a national park, sanctuary or conservation reserve
4. Biosphere Reserve, every one of which must necessarily be declared exclusively over government-owned forest land
Which of the above is/are correctly identified as categories of Protected Areas provided for under the Wild Life (Protection) Act, 1972?
- National Park
- Conservation Reserve
- Community Reserve, which may be declared over private or community land not comprised within a national park, sanctuary or conservation reserve
- Biosphere Reserve, every one of which must necessarily be declared exclusively over government-owned forest land
- A. 1 and 4 only
- B. 1, 2 and 3 only
- C. 2, 3 and 4 only
- D. 1, 2, 3 and 4
Q10. As per the findings of the all-India synchronised elephant estimation released in October 2025, which one of the following States holds the largest wild elephant population?
- A. Assam
- B. Karnataka
- C. Kerala
- D. Tamil Nadu
Q11. The Project Elephant Steering Committee has decided to take up 'Management Effectiveness Evaluation' of all Elephant Reserves using CAMPA funds. In the context of protected area governance, this exercise refers to:
- A. An appraisal of the field staff of each reserve, the results of which determine their promotions, postings and transfers
- B. An audit of financial utilisation and staff strength in each reserve, ranking reserves by expenditure incurred per square kilometre
- C. A periodic assessment of how far a reserve's management systems, processes and outputs are achieving its stated conservation objectives, scored against agreed criteria
- D. A rating of each reserve computed solely from the change in its elephant numbers between two successive population estimations
Q12. According to the expert committee report on elephant mortality in Kerala placed before the National Green Tribunal, which recorded 744 elephant deaths over 2019–2025, how many elephant deaths occurred in the peak year 2024-25?