Ans: D

Exp:

Inland Water Transport (IWT) mode is widely recognized as environment friendly and cost effective mode of transport.  As per RITES Report of 2014 on Integrated National Waterways Transportation Grid, some of the important benefits of  IWT mode compared to rail and road transportation are fuel efficiency and cost savings. Ex: 1 Litre of fuel moves 24 tonne – km on road, 95 tonne-km on rail and 215 tonne-km on IWT. Following are some of the important National Waterways in the country :

• National Waterway 1 – Allahabad- Haldia
• National Waterway 2 – Sadiya-Dhubri
• National Waterway 3 -Kottapuram-Kollam
• National Waterway 5- Along Brahmani and Matai Rivers

Ans: B

Exp:

Statement 1 is incorrect: Inland Waterway was the chief mode of transport before the advent of railways. India has 14,500 km of navigable waterways, contributing about 1% to the country’s transportation. It comprises rivers, canals, backwaters, creeks, etc. At present, 5,685 km of major rivers are navigable by mechanised flat-bottom vessels.

Statement 2 is correct: The main roads which are constructed and maintained by the Central Government are known as the National Highways. The length of the National Highways has increased from 19,700 km in 1951 to 100475 km in 2015-16. The National Highways constitute only about 2 per cent of the total road length but carry 40 per cent of the road traffic.

Statement 3 is correct: Oceanic routes play an important role in the transport sector of India’s economy. Approximately 95 per cent of India’s foreign trade by volume and 70 per cent by value moves through ocean routes.

Ans: D

Exp:

Indian Railways, with more than 160 years of rich history presents a wide spectrum of both tangible and intangible heritage. It occupies a special place within the national heritage spectrum of India. Indian Railways is the proud owner of four UNESCO-accorded World Heritage Sites, namely:

• Darjeeling Himalayan Railway (1999)

• Chhatrapati Shivaji Terminus, Mumbai (2004)

• Nilgiri Mountain Railway (2005)

• Kalka Shimla Railway (2008)

There are two more sites in waiting or in the tentative list namely Matheran Light Railway and Kangra Valley Railway.

Ans: B

Exp:

Statement 1 is incorrect: The government has decided to run Bullet trains on the 508.09 km long Mumbai-Ahmedabad high speed rail corridor, connecting the two financial hubs located in Maharashtra and Guajarat respectively.

Statement 2 is correct: The entire journey is likely to be completed in 2 hours 7 minutes. During the journey, the train will halt at 10 cities namely – Thane, Virar, Boisar, Vapi, Bilimora, Surat, Bharuch, Vadodara, Anand, Ahmedabad and Sabarmati.

Ans: C

Exp:

Statement 1 is correct: Atal Tunnel has officially been certified by World Book of Records, as the ‘World’s Longest Highway Tunnel above 10,000 Feet.

Statements 2 is incorrect and 3 is correct: It has been built by Border Road Organisation. This tunnel runs under the ‘Rohtang Pass’ and connects Manali to the Lahaul-Spiti Valley throughout the year. Earlier, the valley was cut off for about 6 months each year owing to heavy snowfall. The Tunnel is built with ultra-modern specifications in the Pir Panjal range of the Himalayas at an altitude of 3000 metres from the Mean Sea Level (MSL).

Statement 4 is correct: This is also the first tunnel to deploy the Rowa flyer technology, which allows engineers to work at inverted levels.