Question

Removal of finer materials down from upper to lower part of soil profile leads to the formation of ------

• A. Saline soils
• B. Regur
• C. Karsi soils
• D. Kankar

Hint:

Link the soil formation process (like illuviation) with specific soil types for accurate identification.

Answer 1

The Correct Option is C

Karsi soils are formed due to the process of illuviation, where fine particles like clay and silt are leached down from the upper layers and accumulate in the lower horizon.

Answer 2

Process-based explanation:
As percolating rainwater moves through a soil profile, it first strips (eluviates) the finest particles, mainly clay and silt, from the upper horizons, carrying them downward in suspension. Once this water reaches a horizon where flow slows, those fine particles are redeposited (illuviated), coarsening the horizon left behind at the top and enriching the horizon below. A soil profile shaped by this repeated eluviation-illuviation cycle, leaving a coarse, fine-particle-depleted zone above a clay-enriched zone, is termed a Karsi soil. None of saline soils, Regur or Kankar are defined by this specific particle-transport mechanism, so option 3 is correct.