Which one of the following is the main method by which potholes are created in bedrocks by the flowing stream?

Potholes are cylindrical depressions formed in the rocky beds of river valleys through the process of pothole-drilling [2]. This mechanism is a specific form of abrasion (also known as corrasion), where rock fragments and pebbles are caught in turbulent water eddies [2]. These fragments act as grinding tools, swirling in a circular motion to mechanically wear down, drill, and enlarge depressions in the bedrock [3]. While attrition involves the collision of river load particles against each other [1], and corrosion refers to chemical dissolution [1], abrasion is the primary mechanical process responsible for the physical scouring and deepening of these holes in the stream bed [3]. Solifluction is a mass wasting process unrelated to fluvial pothole formation [4]. Therefore, abrasion is the main method by which these features are created [3].

Sources

1. [2] Physical Geography by PMF IAS, Manjunath Thamminidi, PMF IAS (1st ed.) > Chapter 16: Fluvial Landforms and Cycle of Erosion > Potholes > p. 201
2. [1] Physical Geography by PMF IAS, Manjunath Thamminidi, PMF IAS (1st ed.) > Chapter 16: Fluvial Landforms and Cycle of Erosion > 16.1. Fluvial Erosional Landforms > p. 197
3. [3] FUNDAMENTALS OF PHYSICAL GEOGRAPHY, Geography Class XI (NCERT 2025 ed.) > Chapter 6: Landforms and their Evolution > Potholes and Plunge Pools > p. 48
4. [4] https://ia801405.us.archive.org/4/items/in.ernet.dli.2015.120105/2015.120105.Process-In-Geomorphology_text.pdf