UPSC Prelims Practice Questions — Coexisting with the water: learning to live with the floods
Q1. Since 1950, riverbank erosion in Assam is estimated to have eaten away approximately how much land?
- A. 2.27 lakh hectares
- B. 4.27 lakh hectares
- C. 6.31 lakh hectares
- D. 9.31 lakh hectares
Q2. Consider the following statements comparing the 2026 Upper Assam floods with the State's usual flood pattern:
1. Nearly 40 per cent of Assam's land area is flood-prone, and the Brahmaputra's heavy sediment load progressively weakens embankments.
2. In 2026, the flooding was driven mainly by tributaries such as the Dikhow and the Dhansiri surging ahead of the Brahmaputra's own peak, creating a bottleneck that pushed water into areas that rarely flood.
3. The 2026 event followed a season of uniformly above-normal rainfall across Assam, and in every recent flood year the mainstem Brahmaputra has been the sole driver of inundation.
Which of the statements given above is/are correct?
- Nearly 40 per cent of Assam's land area is flood-prone, and the Brahmaputra's heavy sediment load progressively weakens embankments.
- In 2026, the flooding was driven mainly by tributaries such as the Dikhow and the Dhansiri surging ahead of the Brahmaputra's own peak, creating a bottleneck that pushed water into areas that rarely flood.
- The 2026 event followed a season of uniformly above-normal rainfall across Assam, and in every recent flood year the mainstem Brahmaputra has been the sole driver of inundation.
- A. 1 and 2 only
- B. 1 and 3 only
- C. 2 and 3 only
- D. 1, 2 and 3
Q3. In the 2026 Upper Assam floods, which single district accounted for the largest share of the State's flood deaths?
- A. Sivasagar
- B. Charaideo
- C. Golaghat
- D. Jorhat
Q4. Under the Disaster Management Act, 2005, which one of the following is the apex disaster-management authority at the State level, and who heads it?
- A. The District Disaster Management Authority, headed by the District Collector, which is the highest tier of the framework operating within a State
- B. The State Disaster Management Authority, headed by the Chief Minister of the State concerned
- C. The State Executive Committee, headed by the Chief Secretary, which is the apex State authority under the Act
- D. The Office of the State Relief Commissioner, headed by the Revenue and Disaster Management Minister of the State
Q5. The $200 million loan signed between the Government of India and the Asian Development Bank for flood and riverbank erosion risk management covers approximately how many kilometres of the Brahmaputra in Assam?
- A. About 100 km
- B. About 350 km
- C. About 650 km
- D. About 900 km
Q6. Consider the following statements regarding structural flood-protection works in Assam:
1. Most flood-protection embankments along the Brahmaputra and its tributaries were constructed in the 1960s and 1970s and are now 50-60 years old.
2. Under the Majuli island protection works, about 96 km of embankment was raised and strengthened, with breach closure carried out at 24 locations.
3. The spurs constructed for the protection of Majuli island were built using boulders and geo-bags.
4. The construction and maintenance of flood-protection embankments in Assam is a statutory responsibility of the National Disaster Management Authority under the Disaster Management Act, 2005.
Which of the statements given above is/are NOT correct?
- Most flood-protection embankments along the Brahmaputra and its tributaries were constructed in the 1960s and 1970s and are now 50-60 years old.
- Under the Majuli island protection works, about 96 km of embankment was raised and strengthened, with breach closure carried out at 24 locations.
- The spurs constructed for the protection of Majuli island were built using boulders and geo-bags.
- The construction and maintenance of flood-protection embankments in Assam is a statutory responsibility of the National Disaster Management Authority under the Disaster Management Act, 2005.
- A. 1 and 3
- B. 2 and 4
- C. 1, 2 and 4
- D. 4 only
Q7. Among the Mising community of Assam's riverine tracts, a 'Chang Ghar' is best described as which one of the following?
- A. A dwelling raised on stilts over an elevated platform, with space beneath for sheltering livestock and a separate granary on the platform
- B. A bamboo-framed raft house tethered to trees, which rises and falls freely with the level of the floodwater during the monsoon
- C. A raised communal earthen mound built at the edge of a village, to which the whole settlement shifts for the duration of the flood season
- D. A temporary bamboo shelter erected on the crown of an embankment by households displaced when their homes are inundated