About This Section
This is a collection of important questions with complete model answers covering the whole of Chapter 4 — Agriculture. They are grouped by marks — 1-mark, 3-mark and 5-mark — for thorough Board preparation.
1-Mark Questions
Q1. Which system grows a single crop on a large area? Ans. Plantation agriculture.
Q2. Name one rabi crop. Ans. Wheat (or gram, peas, mustard).
Q3. Which is a leguminous crop? Ans. Pulses.
Q4. Which fibre is called the 'golden fibre'? Ans. Jute.
1-Mark Questions (continued)
Q5. India is the second largest producer of rice after which country? Ans. China.
Q6. Which state is the largest producer of groundnut? Ans. Gujarat.
Q7. What is sericulture? Ans. The rearing of silkworms for the production of silk.
Q8. Who led the Bhoodan-Gramdan movement? Ans. Vinoba Bhave.
3-Mark Questions
Q9. Distinguish between primitive subsistence farming and intensive subsistence farming. Ans. Primitive subsistence farming is a slash-and-burn type using primitive tools and family labour, depending on the monsoon and natural soil fertility, and shifting to a new patch when the soil is exhausted. Intensive subsistence farming is practised on small plots under high population pressure, using much labour, fertilisers and irrigation to get the maximum output.
3-Mark Questions (continued)
Q10. Describe the geographical conditions required for the growth of rice. Ans. Rice is a kharif crop requiring high temperature (above 25°C), high humidity and annual rainfall above 100 cm. In low-rainfall areas it is grown with irrigation (canals and tube-wells). It grows in the plains, coastal areas and deltaic regions.
Q11. Name one beverage crop and the conditions it needs. Ans. Tea — it needs a tropical/sub-tropical climate, deep, fertile, well-drained humus-rich soil, and a warm, moist, frost-free climate with frequent showers. It is a labour-intensive plantation crop.
5-Mark Questions
Q12. Explain the different types of farming practised in India. Ans. (1) Primitive subsistence farming — slash-and-burn, primitive tools, family labour, shifting cultivation (jhumming). (2) Intensive subsistence farming — small plots, heavy labour, fertilisers and irrigation. (3) Commercial farming — modern inputs (HYV seeds, fertilisers, pesticides) to produce for the market. (4) Plantation agriculture — a single crop (tea, coffee, rubber) on a large area, produce used as industrial raw material.
5-Mark Questions (continued)
Q13. Explain the technological and institutional reforms in Indian agriculture. Ans. Technological reforms: the Green Revolution (HYV seeds, fertilisers, irrigation) and White Revolution (Operation Flood) for milk. Institutional reforms: land reforms, crop insurance, Grameen banks and cooperatives for cheap credit, the Kisan Credit Card (KCC) and Personal Accident Insurance Scheme (PAIS), weather bulletins, and the minimum support price (MSP). The Bhoodan-Gramdan movement redistributed land to the landless.
Q14. Contrast the growing conditions of cotton and jute. Ans. Cotton grows in the drier parts of the black-cotton soil of the Deccan, needing high temperature, light rainfall/irrigation, 210 frost-free days and bright sunshine; it is a kharif crop maturing in 6-8 months. Jute, the 'golden fibre', grows on wet, fertile flood-plain soils renewed every year with high temperature, mainly in West Bengal, Bihar, Assam and Odisha.