QUIZ – 2020: INSIGHTS STATIC , 26 March 2021 – Economy

Solution: c)

India is the largest producer and consumer of pulses in the world, contributing nearly 24 per cent to the global output.

The country’s pulses production has grown to 24 million tonne (240 lakh tonne) from 14 million tonne (140 lakh tonne) in the last five-six years.

In 2019-20, India produced 23.15 million tonne of pulses, which is 23.62 per cent of the world output.

Gram is the most dominant pulse having a share of around 40 per cent in the total production followed by Tur/Arhar at 15 to 20 per cent and Urad/Black Matpe and Moong at around 8-10 per cent each. Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh and Karnataka are the top five pulses producing States.

Though pulses are grown in both Kharif and Rabi seasons, Rabi pulses contribute more than 60 per cent of the total production.

Solution: c)

Zero budget natural farming (ZBNF) is a method of chemical-free agriculture drawing from traditional Indian practices.

• It was originally promoted by Maharashtrian agriculturist and Padma Shri recipient Subhash

Palekar, who developed it in the mid-1990s as an alternative to the Green Revolution’s methods driven by chemical fertilizers and pesticides and intensive irrigation.

• The ZBNF method also promotes soil aeration, minimal watering, intercropping, bunds and topsoil mulching and discourages intensive irrigation and deep ploughing.

Solution: b)

Conservation Agriculture (CA) is a farming system that can prevent losses of arable land while regenerating degraded lands. It promotes maintenance of a permanent soil cover, minimum soil disturbance, and diversification of plant species. It enhances biodiversity and natural biological processes above and below the ground surface, which contribute to increased water and nutrient use efficiency and to improved and sustained crop production.

CA principles are universally applicable to all agricultural landscapes and land uses with locally adapted practices. Soil interventions such as mechanical soil disturbance are reduced to an absolute minimum or avoided, and external inputs such as agrochemicals and plant nutrients of mineral or organic origin are applied optimally and in ways and quantities that do not interfere with, or disrupt, the biological processes.

Complemented by other known good practices, including the use of quality seeds, and integrated pest, nutrient, weed and water management, etc., CA is a base for sustainable agricultural production intensification. It opens increased options for integration of production sectors, such as crop-livestock integration and the integration of trees and pastures into agricultural landscapes.

Solution: d)

The nuclear agriculture programme of Bhabha Atomic Research Centre (BARC) covers development of high yielding crop seeds using nuclear techniques, fertilizer and pesticide related studies, radiation processing of food items and other areas.

Solution: a)

Wheat is the main cereal crop in India.

Wheat crop has wide adaptability. It can be grown not only in the tropical and sub-tropical zones, but also in the temperate zone and the cold tracts of the far north, beyond even the 60-degree north altitude. Wheat can tolerate severe cold and snow and resume growth with the setting in of warm weather in spring. It can be cultivated from sea level to as high as 3300 meters.

The best wheat are produced in areas favoured with cool, moist weather during the major portion of the growing period followed by dry, warm weather to enable the grain to ripen properly.

Wheat is grown in a variety of soils of India. Soils with a clay loam or loam texture, good structure and moderate water holding capacity are ideal for wheat cultivation. 

Uttar Pradesh is the largest Wheat producing state of India, followed by Punjab, Haryana and Madhya Pradesh.