A compact, tabular revision of India's major freshwater, saline and lagoon lakes by State, with type and key facts, for CAPF Paper I geography
Cover the right column and recall the State and lake type. CAPF Paper I tests lake-to-State matching and the freshwater versus saline distinction. For drainage context see indian rivers and tributaries and indian drainage system and rivers.
| Lake | State / UT | Type and note |
|---|---|---|
| Wular | Jammu and Kashmir | Largest freshwater lake in India; tectonic origin |
| Dal | Jammu and Kashmir | Famous for houseboats and shikaras |
| Pangong Tso | Ladakh | High-altitude saline lake; partly in China |
| Tso Moriri | Ladakh | High-altitude brackish lake; Ramsar site |
| Chilika | Odisha | Largest coastal lagoon (brackish); winter migratory birds; Irrawaddy dolphins |
| Pulicat | Andhra Pradesh / Tamil Nadu | Second largest brackish lagoon; Sriharikota barrier island |
| Kolleru | Andhra Pradesh | Freshwater lake between Krishna and Godavari deltas |
| Vembanad | Kerala | Longest lake in India; backwaters; Nehru Trophy boat race |
| Sasthamkotta | Kerala | Largest freshwater lake in Kerala |
| Loktak | Manipur | Largest freshwater lake in the north-east; floating phumdis; Keibul Lamjao park |
| Sambhar | Rajasthan | Largest inland saltwater lake; major salt source |
| Lonar | Maharashtra | Crater lake formed by a meteorite impact; saline and alkaline |
| Hussain Sagar | Telangana | Man-made; links Hyderabad and Secunderabad |
| Sukhna | Chandigarh | Man-made reservoir at the foothills of the Shivaliks |
| Nainital, Bhimtal | Uttarakhand | Kumaon lakes of glacial / tectonic origin |
| Hokersar | Jammu and Kashmir | Wetland and Ramsar site near Srinagar |
| Fact | Answer |
|---|---|
| Largest freshwater lake in India | Wular |
| Largest saltwater (inland) lake | Sambhar |
| Largest lagoon | Chilika |
| Longest lake | Vembanad |
| Crater (meteorite) lake | Lonar |
| Lake with floating islands (phumdis) | Loktak |
| Lake partly in India and China | Pangong Tso |