With respect to Arabian Sea Branch and Bay of Bengal branch of the monsoon entering the Indian landmass, consider the following statements: 1. Arabian Sea Branch is much more powerful than the Bay of Bengal branch. 2. Arabian Sea Branch is divided into three distinct streams while Bay of Bengal branch is divided into two distinct streams. Which of the statements given above is/are correct ?

With respect to Arabian Sea Branch and Bay of Bengal branch of the monsoon entering the Indian landmass, consider the following statements: 1. Arabian Sea Branch is much more powerful than the Bay of Bengal branch. 2. Arabian Sea Branch is divided into three distinct streams while Bay of Bengal branch is divided into two distinct streams. Which of the statements given above is/are correct ? Correct Answer Both 1 and 2

The correct answer is Both 1 and 2.

Key Points

• The monsoon approaches the Indian landmass in two branches - Arabian Sea branch and Bay of Bengal branch.
  • The Arabian Sea Branch is much more powerful than the Bay of Bengal branch. This is because of two reasons:
    • Arabian Sea is larger than the Bay of Bengal
    • Entire Arabian Sea current advances towards India while only a part of Bay of Bengal current enters India, the remainder proceeding to Myanmar, Thailand and Malaysia. Hence, Statement 1 is correct.
• On arriving in the mainland of India, Arabian Sea Branch is divided into three distinct streams (one branch obstructed by Western Ghats, the other striking the coast north of Mumbai and the third striking the Saurashtra Peninsula and Kachchh). Hence, Statement 2 is correct.
• Bay of Bengal branch, on the other hand, is divided into two streams( one branch moves along the Ganga plains reaching as far as Punjab Plains and the other branch moves up the Brahmaputra valley in the north and the northeast).