A river whose course is determined by the original slope of the land surface is called a:

A consequent river (or consequent stream) is one that flows in the direction of the original slope of a newly formed or uplifted land surface. Its course is a direct "consequence" of the initial slope. Such rivers are usually the first rivers to develop in an area.

Examples in India:

Most of the major rivers of the Peninsular Plateau are consequent rivers. The plateau tilts gently from west to east, because the Western Ghats form its raised western edge.

So the Godavari, Krishna, Kaveri and Mahanadi rise in the Western Ghats or central highlands and flow east, following the general slope, into the Bay of Bengal.

The rivers flowing down the steep western slope of the Western Ghats to the Arabian Sea, such as the short, swift west-coast rivers, are also consequent, following the slope of that side.

Other examples:

• Rivers flowing down the sides of a newly formed volcanic cone or dome flow outwards in all directions, forming a radial pattern of consequent streams.
• Rivers flowing across a newly exposed coastal plain towards the sea also tend to be consequent.

How they relate to other streams:

• Once consequent rivers are established, tributaries (subsequent streams) develop along weak rock zones and usually join them at right angles.
• Streams flowing opposite to the original slope are obsequent; those flowing in the same direction as the original slope but developed later, at a lower level, are resequent.

Importance of the classification:

This genetic classification, developed by the American geographer William Morris Davis and others, helps explain how drainage evolves over time as landscapes are uplifted and eroded.

Comparison of the main types:

• Consequent: follows the original slope.
• Subsequent: follows zones of weak rock.
• Antecedent: older than the uplift and cuts across it.
• Superimposed: inherited from a younger rock cover.

Why not the other options?

• ✗An antecedent river existed before the land was uplifted and cuts across mountains (such as the Indus).
• ✗A subsequent river follows weak rock zones.
• ✗An obsequent river flows opposite to the original slope.