UPSC Prelims 2001 Q84: Geography – Population & Demography
The high density of population in Nile Valley and Island of Java is primarily due to
- (a) intensive agriculture
- (b) industrialisation
- (c) urbanisation
- (d) topographic constraints
Answer: (a) intensive agriculture
Explanation
Why the Nile Valley and Java have a high density of population
| Region | Reason for dense population |
|---|---|
| Nile Valley | Fertile alluvium and irrigation; intensive agriculture in a narrow strip in a desert |
| Java | Fertile volcanic soils, heavy rain; intensive wet-rice farming |
| Industrialisation | Not the main cause in either region |
| Topographic constraints | Would limit, not increase, population |
Both regions have very fertile soil — Nile silt and Java's volcanic soil — that supports intensive agriculture, especially of rice and other food crops. This feeds very large rural populations in a small area.
Answer: (a) intensive agriculture.
Why each option is right or wrong
- (a) CORRECT. Fertile soils support intensive agriculture and dense rural populations.
- (b) Incorrect. Neither region's density comes mainly from industry.
- (c) Incorrect. Most people in both regions lived in villages, not cities.
- (d) Incorrect. Topographic constraints would lower, not raise, density.
Key point
Java holds over half of Indonesia's people on about 7% of its land.
Remember
Nile Valley and Java: dense population from intensive agriculture.
Common mistakes
- Choosing urbanisation because Cairo and Jakarta are large cities.
- Thinking 'topographic constraints' squeeze people together.
- Forgetting the role of fertile volcanic soil in Java.
Exam tip
Dense rural populations in the tropics point to fertile soils and intensive farming.
Sources
- NCERT Class XII — Fundamentals of Human Geography, chapter 'The World Population'
- G. C. Leong — Human and Economic Geography, chapter on population distribution