Geography question from JKAS Prelims, 2023 by JKPSC
Consider the following pairs:
Mountains Period of origin
1. Andes, South America Tertiary
2. Great dividing range, Europe Caledonian
3. Kjolen, Europe Hercynian
4. Aravallis, Asia Pre Cambrian
How many pairs given above are correctly matched?
Last updated Jun 24, 2026
Correct Answer:
Option B —
Only two pairs
To solve this, we must examine both the geographical location (continent) and the geological period of origin for each mountain range.Analysis of the PairsNo.Mountain RangeLocationPeriod of Origin
Status1.AndesSouth AmericaTertiaryCorrect2.Great Dividing Range Europe Caledonian
Incorrect3.KjolenEuropeHercynianIncorrect4.AravallisAsiaPre-CambrianCorrectWhy the others are incorrect:
Pair 2 (Great Dividing Range): The Great Dividing Range is located in Australia, not Europe. While it consists of very old rocks, its primary formation is associated with the Hercynian (Carboniferous) period, though some newer uplift occurred in the Cenozoic
.Pair 3 (Kjolen Mountains): Also known as the Scandinavian Mountains, they are located in Europe (Norway/Sweden), but their period of origin is the Caledonian orogeny (approx. 400-500 million years ago), not the Hercynian.Subject: Geography (World Geography / Geomorphology)This topic covers Orogeny (mountain building) and the classification of mountains based on their age:Pre-Cambrian: Oldest (e.g., Aravallis).Caledonian: Formed ~400 Ma (e.g., Kjolen, Appalachians).Hercynian/Variscan: Formed ~300 Ma (e.g., Ural, Great Dividing Range).Alpine/Tertiary: Youngest "Fold Mountains" (e.g., Andes, Himalayas, Alps).
Answer verified by Quintessence Classes faculty — Karan Nagar, Srinagar.
