Between India and East Asia, the navigation-time and distance can be greatly reduced by which of the following? 1. Deepening the Malacca straits between Malaysia and Indonesia. 2. Opening a new canal across the Kra isthmus between the Gulf of Siam and Andaman Sea. Which of the statements given above is/are correct?
- A1 only
- B2 onlyCorrect
- CBoth 1 and 2
- DNeither 1 nor 2
Explanation
The correct answer is B because opening a new canal across the Kra Isthmus would create a direct shortcut between the Andaman Sea and the Gulf of Siam. This would allow ships to bypass the entire Malay Peninsula, significantly reducing the navigation distance and time between India and East Asia.
Regarding the first statement, the Malacca Strait is already the shortest existing sea route. While deepening it might allow larger vessels with deeper drafts to pass through, it does not physically shorten the distance or the time taken to navigate the stretch. Therefore, only statement 2 provides a solution for reducing distance and time.
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