Question map
Among the following cities, which one lies on a longitude closest to that of Delhi ?
Explanation
The correct answer is option A - Bengaluru.
Delhi's and Bengaluru's latitudes are 29°N and 13°N; their longitudes are almost the same, 77°E.[1] This directly establishes that Bengaluru's longitude is very close to Delhi's longitude of 77°E. The document explicitly states that their longitudes are "almost the same," making Bengaluru the city with the closest longitude match to Delhi among all the given options.
While the other cities (Hyderabad, Nagpur, and Pune) are also located in central or peninsular India, their longitudes deviate more from Delhi's 77°E. Hyderabad lies at approximately 78°E, Nagpur at around 79°E, and Pune at approximately 74°E. Among these options, Bengaluru's longitude of 77°E makes it virtually identical to Delhi's longitude, despite the significant difference in their latitudes (Delhi at 29°N and Bengaluru at 13°N). The question specifically asks about longitude proximity, not overall geographical distance, making Bengaluru the clear correct answer.
Sources- [1] Exploring Society:India and Beyond. Social Science-Class VI . NCERT(Revised ed 2025) > Chapter 1: Locating Places on the Earth > Questions, activities and projects > p. 24
PROVENANCE & STUDY PATTERN
Full viewThis question is a classic 'Hidden Gem' from basic NCERTs. It wasn't a random map question; it was lifted verbatim from a 'Questions & Activities' box in the Class VI Geography textbook. The lesson: Do not skip the exercises at the end of NCERT chapters—UPSC setters use them to frame 'logical' questions.
This question can be broken into the following sub-statements. Tap a statement sentence to jump into its detailed analysis.
- Statement 1: Is Bengaluru's longitude the closest to Delhi's longitude among the cities Bengaluru, Hyderabad, Nagpur, and Pune?
- Statement 2: Is Hyderabad's longitude the closest to Delhi's longitude among the cities Bengaluru, Hyderabad, Nagpur, and Pune?
- Statement 3: Is Nagpur's longitude the closest to Delhi's longitude among the cities Bengaluru, Hyderabad, Nagpur, and Pune?
- Statement 4: Is Pune's longitude the closest to Delhi's longitude among the cities Bengaluru, Hyderabad, Nagpur, and Pune?
- Explicitly states Delhi's and Bengaluru's longitudes are 'almost the same, 77°E'.
- Directly compares the two cities' longitudes, implying minimal or zero longitudinal difference.
- Confirms Delhi's longitude as 77°E, providing the reference meridian for comparison.
- Reinforces the numeric longitude value used in the direct Delhi–Bengaluru comparison.
- Affirms New Delhi is situated near 28°N latitude and 77°E longitude, supporting the Delhi longitude value.
- Provides additional authoritative sourcing for Delhi's longitude used in the comparison.
Gives Delhi's longitude (77°E) and explicitly states Delhi's and Bengaluru's longitudes are 'almost the same, 77°E'.
A student can use Delhi's 77°E as a reference and compare known longitudes of the other cities (from an atlas or map) to see which is nearest.
Explains that latitude and longitude are the coordinates used to locate places and gives Delhi's longitude as an example (77°E).
Use this coordinate system guidance with a map or globe to measure/compare longitudes of Hyderabad, Nagpur and Pune relative to Delhi's 77°E.
Reiterates New Delhi's approximate coordinates near 28°N and 77°E, reinforcing the exact longitude to be used for comparison.
Treat Delhi's ~77°E as the central meridian and check other cities' meridians on a standard map to judge closeness.
Gives the national range of longitudes for India (approximately 68°E to 97°E), constraining possible longitudes for Hyderabad, Nagpur and Pune.
A student can narrow likely longitudes to this national band on a map and then visually/ numerically compare distances from 77°E.
Lists the four cities (Hyderabad, Bangalore, Nagpur, Pune appear as state-related entries), confirming these are recognised Indian cities to compare.
Use the list to ensure the correct city identities and then consult a map/atlas to obtain their longitudes for direct comparison with Delhi's 77°E.
States that Delhi's and Bengaluru's longitudes are 'almost the same, 77°E', giving a direct example of two cities with nearly identical longitudes.
A student could look up numeric longitudes for Delhi, Bengaluru, Nagpur, Hyderabad and Pune on a map and compare absolute differences to test which is closest.
Explains that latitude and longitude are coordinates and explicitly gives Delhi's rounded coordinates (29°N, 77°E).
Use Delhi's 77°E longitude as the reference value and compare it to the other cities' longitudes from a map or atlas to judge closeness.
Reiterates New Delhi's approximate position near 28°N and 77°E, confirming the longitude reference for Delhi used in comparisons.
Treat 77°E as Delhi's longitude and compute degree differences with the other cities' longitudes found externally.
Gives the approximate longitudinal extent of India (about 68°E to 97°E), so all candidate cities lie within a known longitudinal range—useful for context when comparing longitudes.
Use a standard map (whose longitudes fall in this range) to read off each city's longitude and compare to Delhi's 77°E.
Shows the principle that longitude differences correspond to positional/time differences, illustrating why numeric comparison of longitudes is the correct method to judge 'closeness'.
Apply the same numeric comparison of longitudes (absolute degree difference) to determine which city is nearest in longitude to Delhi.
Gives Delhi's and Bengaluru's longitudes as 'almost the same, 77°E', directly showing Bengaluru is very near Delhi in longitude.
A student could compare known longitudes of other cities to 77°E; since Bengaluru is ~77°E, it is a strong candidate for being closest to Delhi rather than Pune.
States New Delhi is near the intersection of 28°N latitude and 77°E longitude, reinforcing Delhi ≈ 77°E as the reference longitude.
Use 77°E as the reference and look up/recall longitudes of Pune, Hyderabad, Nagpur to see which is numerically nearest.
Explains how latitude/longitude are used to locate places and gives an example phrasing 'Delhi lies at 29°N latitude and 77°E longitude' (rounded).
Reminds the student to compare rounded longitudes of the listed cities to Delhi's rounded 77°E to judge proximity.
Gives the approximate longitudinal extent of India (68°E to 97°E), placing Delhi's 77°E well within the national range and implying other major cities will have varied longitudes within this span.
A student can use a map of India (or standard city longitudes within 68–97°E) to estimate which city longitude is nearest to 77°E.
States IST is based on 82.5°E (standard meridian), giving another named longitude in India to help orient relative east–west positions.
Knowing IST at 82.5°E, a student can reason that cities east of ~82.5°E are further east of Delhi (77°E) and thus likely less close in longitude than a city near 77°E.
- [THE VERDICT]: Sitter (if you did NCERT exercises) / Trap (if you relied on Atlas memory). Source: NCERT Class VI, Chapter 1, Activity Q.6 explicitly compares Delhi and Bengaluru longitudes.
- [THE CONCEPTUAL TRIGGER]: Indian Geography > Location & Extent > Mental Mapping of Major Cities (The 'Grid' Approach).
- [THE HORIZONTAL EXPANSION]: Memorize these specific alignments: (1) Longitude: Delhi (77°E) ≈ Bengaluru (77.5°E). (2) Latitude: Sikkim (27°N) ≈ Rajasthan (Alwar). (3) Tropic of Cancer: Closest capital is Ranchi. (4) IST (82.5°E): Passes through Mirzapur, Kakinada. (5) Zero Mile Center: Nagpur (79°E).
- [THE STRATEGIC METACOGNITION]: Stop memorizing coordinates. Start drawing 'Cross-hairs' on your map. Pick a major city (Delhi) and draw a vertical line down. Pick a state (Sikkim) and draw a horizontal line across. Note which major cities/states intersect these lines. This 'Alignment Logic' is a recurring UPSC theme.
The statement compares city longitudes; understanding lat/long allows precise location comparisons.
High-yield for UPSC geography: many questions require reading or comparing coordinates. Mastering this helps answer queries about relative positions, climatic zones, and time calculations. Practice converting statements about coordinates into spatial comparisons.
- Exploring Society:India and Beyond. Social Science-Class VI . NCERT(Revised ed 2025) > Chapter 1: Locating Places on the Earth > DON'T MISS OUT > p. 16
- Exploring Society:India and Beyond. Social Science-Class VI . NCERT(Revised ed 2025) > Chapter 1: Locating Places on the Earth > Questions, activities and projects > p. 24
References link meridians/longitudes to local time, showing practical relevance of longitudinal differences between cities.
Important for questions on time zones, sunrise/sunset timing, and administrative time calculations. Connects physical geography with human geography topics like standard time and transport scheduling.
- Certificate Physical and Human Geography , GC Leong (Oxford University press 3rd ed.) > Chapter 2: The Earth's Crust > Longitude and Time > p. 11
- Physical Geography by PMF IAS, Manjunath Thamminidi, PMF IAS (1st ed.) > Chapter 18: Latitudes and Longitudes > 18.2. Longitude or Meridian > p. 243
Provides the national context for comparing city longitudes within India and understanding relative east–west positions.
Useful for UPSC questions on regional sunrise times, administrative implications of longitudinal spread, and mapping. Helps eliminate options in multiple-choice items by bounding possible longitudes.
- Exploring Society:India and Beyond. Social Science-Class VI . NCERT(Revised ed 2025) > Chapter 1: Locating Places on the Earth > DON'T MISS OUT > p. 19
- Physical Geography by PMF IAS, Manjunath Thamminidi, PMF IAS (1st ed.) > Chapter 18: Latitudes and Longitudes > Explanation: > p. 247
Determining which city is 'closest' in longitude requires direct comparison of their longitudes; the references state Delhi and Bengaluru share almost the same longitude.
High-yield for UPSC geography: many questions ask to compare locations by latitude/longitude or to identify closest/easternmost/westernmost places. Mastery lets you eliminate options quickly when one city's coordinate is stated. Practice extracting and comparing longitudes from sources and maps.
- Exploring Society:India and Beyond. Social Science-Class VI . NCERT(Revised ed 2025) > Chapter 1: Locating Places on the Earth > Questions, activities and projects > p. 24
- Exploring Society:India and Beyond. Social Science-Class VI . NCERT(Revised ed 2025) > Chapter 1: Locating Places on the Earth > DON'T MISS OUT > p. 16
The evidence links longitude differences to local time differences (example question about Delhi and Bengaluru), showing practical use of longitude.
Important for questions on time zones, local time calculations and implications for transport/communication topics. Understand the formulaic relation (degrees of longitude → time difference) and apply it in problem-solving rather than rote memorization.
- Exploring Society:India and Beyond. Social Science-Class VI . NCERT(Revised ed 2025) > Chapter 1: Locating Places on the Earth > Questions, activities and projects > p. 24
- Certificate Physical and Human Geography , GC Leong (Oxford University press 3rd ed.) > Chapter 2: The Earth's Crust > Longitude and Time > p. 11
Contextualizing any city's longitude within India's overall range (approx. 68°E–97°E and easternmost ~97°25'E) helps judge relative positions without exact coordinates for every city.
Useful for elimination-based questions and for framing answers about regional sunrise/sunset patterns, climatic zones, and administrative geography. Learn national extremes and typical meridians to quickly assess relative east–west positions of Indian cities.
- Exploring Society:India and Beyond. Social Science-Class VI . NCERT(Revised ed 2025) > Chapter 1: Locating Places on the Earth > DON'T MISS OUT > p. 19
- Physical Geography by PMF IAS, Manjunath Thamminidi, PMF IAS (1st ed.) > Chapter 18: Latitudes and Longitudes > Explanation: > p. 247
Longitude values (E/W) locate places east or west and are used to compare how far two places are longitudinally.
High-yield for UPSC geography: knowing that longitude is the E–W coordinate helps answer questions comparing relative positions of cities and underpins time zone questions. It connects to map-reading, regional location, and spatial comparison tasks.
- Exploring Society:India and Beyond. Social Science-Class VI . NCERT(Revised ed 2025) > Chapter 1: Locating Places on the Earth > DON'T MISS OUT > p. 16
- Physical Geography by PMF IAS, Manjunath Thamminidi, PMF IAS (1st ed.) > Chapter 18: Latitudes and Longitudes > 18. Latitudes and Longitudes > p. 240
Since they asked for the Delhi-Bengaluru longitude match (N-S), the logical sibling is the Latitude match (E-W). Expect a question like: 'Which city lies on the same latitude as Gangtok?' (Answer: Cities in Rajasthan like Alwar or Jaisalmer).
Use the '5-Degree Rule' for mental estimation. Mumbai/Pune are ~73°E (West Coast). Delhi is ~77°E (North-Central). IST is 82.5°E (East-Central). Pune (73°) is too far west. Nagpur (79°) and Hyderabad (78.5°) are shifting east towards the IST line. Bengaluru (77.5°) sits almost perfectly on the Delhi vertical axis.
Connect this to Infrastructure (Mains GS3): The Delhi-Bengaluru longitudinal alignment roughly corresponds to the 'North-South Corridor' (NH 44). Understanding this axis is crucial for analyzing logistics, freight corridor efficiency, and rapid troop deployment from Northern commands to Southern bases.