Neighbors — Set 6

Correct Answer: D. Afghanistan

• **Afghanistan** = shares the shortest land border with India at approximately 106 km, located in the Wakhan Corridor region. • **106 km** — the length of the India-Afghanistan border; this area currently lies within Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK), which India claims as its own territory. • 💡 Wrong-option analysis: Nepal: shares ~1,751 km with India; Myanmar: shares ~1,643 km with India; Bhutan: shares ~699 km with India.

Correct Answer: D. Thimphu

• **Thimphu** = is the capital and largest city of Bhutan, located in the western central part of the country. • **No traffic lights** — Thimphu is famously one of the few capital cities in the world without traffic lights, a fact that features in many GK questions. • 💡 Wrong-option analysis: Naypyidaw: capital of Myanmar; Kathmandu: capital of Nepal; Dhaka: capital of Bangladesh.

Correct Answer: D. Taka

• **Taka (BDT)** = the official currency of Bangladesh, replacing the Pakistani Rupee after Bangladesh gained independence in 1971. • **1972** — the year the Taka was introduced as Bangladesh's currency; its ISO code is BDT (Bangladeshi Taka). • 💡 Wrong-option analysis: Rupee: currency of India, Nepal, Pakistan, and Sri Lanka; Ngultrum: currency of Bhutan (pegged to the Indian Rupee); Kyat: currency of Myanmar.

Correct Answer: A. 5

• **Five states** = Uttarakhand, Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, West Bengal, and Sikkim share a land border with Nepal. • **1,751 km** — the total length of the India-Nepal border; it is an open border allowing free movement of citizens of both countries. • 💡 Wrong-option analysis: 3: too few — Himachal Pradesh or Jharkhand are sometimes mistakenly included, reducing the correct count; 6: too many — no sixth Indian state borders Nepal; 4: one state is missed, usually Sikkim or West Bengal.

Correct Answer: C. Sri Lanka

• **Sri Lanka** = is separated from the Indian mainland by the Palk Strait and the Gulf of Mannar, lying just ~30 km from Tamil Nadu at the closest point. • **~30 km** — the minimum distance between India and Sri Lanka across the Palk Strait, with the submerged Adam's Bridge (Ram Setu) further linking the two. • 💡 Wrong-option analysis: Myanmar: separated from NE India by the Patkai Hills, not a strait; Maldives: separated from India's Lakshadweep by the Eight Degree Channel; Indonesia: separated from India's Nicobar Islands by the Great Channel.

Correct Answer: D. Rajasthan

• **Rajasthan** = shares the longest Pakistan border among Indian states at approximately 1,170 km. • **1,170 km** — Rajasthan's border with Pakistan; J&K and Ladakh together have a longer combined stretch, but Rajasthan is the single state with the longest border. • 💡 Wrong-option analysis: Jammu and Kashmir (UT): shares ~1,225 km including LoC, but is now a UT, not a state; Gujarat: shares ~512 km with Pakistan; Punjab: shares ~553 km with Pakistan.

Correct Answer: C. Nepal

• **Nepal** = is historically referred to as the 'Himalayan Kingdom', home to Mount Everest and eight of the world's ten tallest peaks. • **8 of the top 10** — the number of world's highest peaks (8,000 m+) located in Nepal, including Everest (8,849 m), Kangchenjunga, Lhotse, and others. • 💡 Wrong-option analysis: Myanmar: known as the 'Golden Land' due to its Buddhist pagodas; Pakistan: known for the Karakoram and some Himalayan peaks, not called the Himalayan Kingdom; China: contains the Tibetan Plateau and northern Himalayas but is not called the Himalayan Kingdom.

Correct Answer: B. 15,106 km

• **15,106.7 km** = India's total land frontier, shared across seven neighbouring countries: Pakistan, China, Nepal, Bhutan, Bangladesh, Myanmar, and Afghanistan. • **7,516 km** — India's total coastline length (including islands), which is often confused with the land frontier in GK questions. • 💡 Wrong-option analysis: 7,516 km: this is the coastline length, not the land border; 12,000 km: an incorrect figure not matching any official data; 20,000 km: significantly more than the actual land frontier.

Correct Answer: A. Pakistan

• **Wagah Border** = the road border crossing between India (Attari, Punjab) and Pakistan (near Lahore, Punjab), famous for the daily 'Beating Retreat' ceremony. • **Beating Retreat ceremony** — the daily flag-lowering military ceremony held at Wagah Border, a major tourist attraction on both sides of the border. • 💡 Wrong-option analysis: China: land crossings with India include Nathu La and Lipulekh, not Wagah; Bangladesh: border crossings include Petrapole-Benapole and others, not Wagah; Nepal: border crossings include Raxaul-Birganj and Sunauli-Bhairahawa, not Wagah.

Correct Answer: B. Myanmar

• **Myanmar** = lies to the east of India, sharing borders with four northeastern states: Arunachal Pradesh, Nagaland, Manipur, and Mizoram. • **1,643 km** — the total India-Myanmar border length; Bangladesh also lies to the northeast, largely enclosed by Indian territory. • 💡 Wrong-option analysis: Afghanistan: lies to the northwest of India; Maldives: lies to the south of India in the Indian Ocean; Pakistan: lies to the northwest of India.