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Land use, types of farming, cropping seasons and agro-climatic zones

తెలుగులో వివరణ

Agriculture of India · Part 1 / 4 · Fact-checked on 8 November 2026 · how we check

Written with AI from the sources listed at the bottom of this page, then fact-checked by a separate AI.

What decides what is grown where; the nine-fold land-use classification; net sown area and cropping intensity; shifting, subsistence, commercial, plantation, mixed, dryland and wetland farming; the kharif, rabi and zaid seasons and regional rice seasons; cropping patterns; the size of farm holdings; and the agro-climatic and agro-ecological zones used in planning.

Each idea is explained first in Telugu (తెలుగు), ending with the English and Hindi exam terms, followed by the same point in exam English. UPSC Prelims is in English or Hindi, so understand it in Telugu and revise it in English.

కొండలు, వాతావరణం, నేలలు, నదులు: ఇవన్నీ రైతు పొలంలో కలుస్తాయి. మన కార్మికుల్లో దాదాపు సగం మంది వ్యవసాయంలోనే (2023–24). ఏ పంట వేయాలో వాన, నేల, నీరు, మార్కెట్, పొలం పరిమాణం నిర్ణయిస్తాయి. ఈ భాగంలో పనిముట్లు: భూమి వినియోగ వర్గాలు, పంటల సాంద్రత, వ్యవసాయ రకాలు, మూడు పంట కాలాలు, పంటల తీరు, కమతాల పరిమాణం, మండలాలు. ఇల్లు కట్టే ముందు కొలతల టేపు, తాపీ సిద్ధం చేసినట్టు. (→ English: agriculture of India · हिन्दी: भारत की कृषि)

In exam EnglishAgriculture is where the earlier chapters on relief, climate, soils and rivers meet the daily life of most Indians. Close to half of India's workers were engaged in agriculture in 2023–24 (Periodic Labour Force Survey), and what they grow is decided by the monsoon, the soil and the water at hand, and also by markets, technology and the size of their farms. This chapter has four parts. This first part sets out the basic tools: how land is classified by use, how cropping intensity is measured, the main types of farming, the three cropping seasons, common cropping patterns, farm size and the agro-climatic zones used in planning.

రైతు ఏ పంట వేస్తాడో రెండు రకాల కారణాలు నిర్ణయిస్తాయి. ప్రకృతి హద్దులు గీస్తుంది: వేడి, వాన, నేల, వాలు. అందుకే తడి తూర్పు తీరంలో వరి, పొడి పీఠభూమిలో జొన్న, కందులు. మనిషి ఆ హద్దుల లోపల ఆడతాడు: కాలువ, ధర, అప్పు, రోడ్డు, ప్రభుత్వ కొనుగోలు. ఒకే నేల, ఒకే వాన ఉన్న రెండు ఊళ్లలో కాలువ ఉన్న ఊరు ఏడాదికి రెండు మూడు పంటలు తీస్తే, లేని ఊరు ఒక్కటే. (→ English: physical factors; human factors · हिन्दी: भौतिक कारक; मानवीय कारक)

In exam EnglishTwo sets of factors decide what a farmer grows. Physical factors set the limits. Temperature and the length of the growing season fix which crops can survive, rainfall and its timing decide whether a crop can be raised without irrigation, soil decides fertility and drainage, and slope decides whether land can be ploughed at all. That is why rice dominates the wet eastern and coastal plains while millets and pulses suit the drier interior plateaus. Human factors then work inside those limits: irrigation can free a farmer from the monsoon, as in Punjab, while prices, credit, roads to markets, research and government purchase can tilt the choice between crops. Suppose two villages share the same soil and rain but only one has a canal; the canal village may take two or three crops a year where the other takes one.

ఊరి భూమిని తొమ్మిది అరల బీరువాలో సర్దినట్టు తొమ్మిది వర్గాలుగా రాస్తారు: అడవి, ఇళ్లు-రోడ్లు, బంజరు, పచ్చిక బయళ్లు, తోటలు, సాగుకు పనికొచ్చే బీడు (ఐదేళ్లకు పైగా వదిలేసింది), ప్రస్తుత పడావు (ఏడాది లోపు), ఇతర పడావు (ఒకటి నుంచి ఐదేళ్లు), నికర సాగు విస్తీర్ణం (ఈ ఏడాది నిజంగా పంట వేసింది). పడావు, బీడు మళ్లీ దున్నవచ్చు; రాతి బంజరు కాదు. (→ English: land-use classification; fallow; net sown area · हिन्दी: भूमि उपयोग वर्गीकरण; परती; निवल बोया गया क्षेत्र)

In exam EnglishLand records sort the reporting area of each village into nine classes, the scheme behind India's official land-use statistics. They are: forests; land put to non-agricultural uses such as buildings, roads and water bodies; barren and unculturable land such as rocky hills and deserts; permanent pastures and grazing land; land under miscellaneous tree crops and groves that is not counted as sown; culturable waste land, which could be farmed but has lain unused for more than five years; current fallow, left uncropped for up to one year; other fallow, left uncropped for one to five years; and the net sown area, the land actually cropped in the year. The reporting area is somewhat smaller than India's geographical area, because land-use records do not cover some territory, including tracts that have never been surveyed. The classes also show where farming could grow: fallow and culturable waste can return to the plough, barren land cannot.

మన నికర సాగు విస్తీర్ణం దశాబ్దాలుగా దాదాపు 14 కోట్ల హెక్టార్ల దగ్గరే; మంచి భూమి అంతా 1960ల నాటికే సాగులో ఉంది. ఆ తర్వాత పెరుగుదల ఒకే భూమిలో ఎక్కువసార్లు పంట వేయడం వల్ల. పంటల సాంద్రత = స్థూల పంట విస్తీర్ణం ÷ నికర సాగు × 100. ఒక ఎకరంలో ఖరీఫ్‌లో వరి, రబీలో శనగ వేస్తే ఆ ఎకరం రెండుసార్లు లెక్కకు వస్తుంది: 200 శాతం. ఒకే వంటగదిలో రోజుకు రెండు పూటలు వండినట్టు. నీరు ఉన్న పంజాబ్, హర్యానాలో ఎక్కువ. (→ English: net sown area; gross cropped area; cropping intensity · हिन्दी: निवल बोया गया क्षेत्र; सकल फ़सल क्षेत्र; शस्य गहनता)

In exam EnglishIndia's net sown area has stayed close to 140 million hectares for decades, a little over two-fifths of the reporting area, because nearly all the good land was already being farmed by the 1960s. Growth since then has come from cropping the same land more often. The gross cropped area counts a field once for every crop it carries in a year. cropping intensity is the gross cropped area divided by the net sown area, expressed as a percentage: if a farmer with one hectare grows paddy in the kharif and wheat in the rabi, the cropping intensity of that hectare is 200 per cent. India's figure was a little above 150 per cent in the early 2020s (Land Use Statistics, Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare). It is high where irrigation allows a second crop, as in Punjab and Haryana, and low in dry, rain-fed areas where one season is all the land can bear.

పోడు వ్యవసాయం: అడవిలో ఒక ముక్క నరికి కాల్చి, ఆ బూడిద నేలలో కొన్నేళ్లు వరి, మొక్కజొన్న, సజ్జలు, కూరగాయలు పండిస్తారు; సారం తగ్గగానే కొత్త చోటుకి వెళ్లి పాతది మళ్లీ అడవి కానిస్తారు. ఈశాన్యంలో ఝుమ్, మన దగ్గర పోడు, మధ్యప్రదేశ్‌లో బేవర్. పొలానికి విశ్రాంతి ఇవ్వడం లాంటిది; విశ్రాంతి ఏళ్లు తగ్గిపోతే అడవి కోలుకోదు, నేల కొట్టుకుపోతుంది. మిగతా చోట్ల చిన్న పొలాల్లో కుటుంబం తిండి కోసం కష్టపడి పండించే జీవనాధార వ్యవసాయం. (→ English: shifting cultivation; jhum; subsistence farming · हिन्दी: स्थानांतरी कृषि; झूम; निर्वाह कृषि)

In exam EnglishThe oldest farming system still practised in India is shifting cultivation. A patch of forest is cut and burnt, crops such as upland rice, maize, millets and vegetables are grown in the ash-enriched soil for a few years, and when fertility falls the cultivators move to a fresh patch and let the old one grow back. It has many local names: jhum in the north-eastern hills, podu in Andhra Pradesh and Odisha, and bewar or dahiya in Madhya Pradesh. The difficulty is the length of the cycle. When land was rested for many years the forest recovered before the next clearing; as population grew the rest period shrank, and soil erosion and loss of forest followed. Across most of the rest of India, small farms practise intensive subsistence farming, raising food mainly for the household on little plots with much labour, simple tools and whatever water and manure they can find.

వాణిజ్య వ్యవసాయం అమ్మకం కోసం: మేలు రకం విత్తనాలు, ఎరువులు, యంత్రాలు, నీరు; పంజాబ్ గోధుమ, వరి కూడా ఇలాగే. తోటల వ్యవసాయం దాని ప్రత్యేక రూపం: పెద్ద ఎస్టేట్‌లో ఒకే పంట (టీ, కాఫీ, రబ్బరు, అరటి), కూలీలు, అక్కడే ప్రాసెసింగ్; బ్రిటిష్ కాలంలో రేవులకు అనుసంధానంగా పెరిగింది. మిశ్రమ వ్యవసాయం: పంట + పశువులు, పేడ ఎరువుగా, గడ్డి మేతగా. నీటిని బట్టి: 75 సెం.మీ. లోపు వాన ఉన్నచోట మెట్ట వ్యవసాయం (జొన్న, కంది), ఎక్కువ వాన ఉన్నచోట తరి వ్యవసాయం (వరి, జనుము, చెరకు). (→ English: commercial farming; plantation farming; dryland farming · हिन्दी: वाणिज्यिक कृषि; बागानी कृषि; शुष्क भूमि कृषि)

In exam EnglishCommercial farming raises crops mainly for sale, with high-yielding seed, fertilisers, machines and irrigation; the wheat and rice of Punjab and Haryana are grown this way even though they are food grains. Plantation farming is a special kind of commercial farming in which a single crop such as tea, coffee, rubber or banana is grown on a large estate with hired workers, and the produce is processed on or near the estate. Plantations spread in India under British rule, which is why the tea gardens of Assam and the Nilgiris were tied from the start to ports and export markets. Mixed farming joins crops with livestock: animals provide manure and draught power and eat the crop residue. Farming can also be divided by water. Dryland farming is carried on where rainfall is below about 75 cm, with hardy crops such as millets, pulses and guar and methods that save soil moisture; wetland farming is carried on where rain exceeds what crops need, and rice, jute and sugarcane dominate it.

మన వ్యవసాయ సంవత్సరంలో రుతుపవనాలు నిర్ణయించే రెండు కాలాలు. ఖరీఫ్: జూన్-జూలైలో వానలతో విత్తి సెప్టెంబర్-అక్టోబర్‌లో కోత; వేడి, నీరు కావాలి: వరి, మొక్కజొన్న, జొన్న, సజ్జ, కంది, పెసర, మినుము, వేరుశనగ, సోయా, పత్తి, జనుము. రబీ: అక్టోబర్-డిసెంబర్‌లో విత్తి మార్చి-మేలో కోత; పెరిగేటప్పుడు చలి, పండేటప్పుడు పొడి వేడి: గోధుమ, బార్లీ, శనగ, బఠాణీ, ఆవాలు. వాయవ్యంలో పశ్చిమ అలజడుల చలికాలపు జల్లులు గోధుమకు మేలు; మార్చిలో ముందస్తు ఎండ గింజను ముడుచుకుపోయేలా చేస్తుంది. (→ English: kharif; rabi; western disturbances · हिन्दी: खरीफ; रबी; पश्चिमी विक्षोभ)

In exam EnglishIndia's farming year has two main seasons set by the monsoon. kharif crops are sown when the south-west monsoon arrives in June and July and are harvested in September and October. They need warmth and plenty of water: rice, maize, jowar, bajra, tur (arhar), moong and urad, groundnut, soybean, cotton and jute. rabi crops are sown after the monsoon withdraws, from October to December, and harvested from March to May. They need cool weather while growing and a warmer, dry spell to ripen: wheat, barley, gram, peas, and rapeseed and mustard. In north-western India the light winter rain brought by western disturbances helps rabi crops, especially wheat. An early spell of heat in March can shrivel the ripening wheat grain, which is why early heat waves worry farmers in Punjab and Haryana.

రబీ కోత, ఖరీఫ్ విత్తనాల మధ్య మార్చి నుంచి జూన్ వరకు చిన్న వేసవి కాలం: జాయిద్. నీరు ఉంటే పుచ్చ, ఖర్బూజ, దోస, కూరగాయలు, పశుగ్రాసం, వేసవి పెసర. పరీక్షల మధ్య సెలవుల్లో చిన్న కోర్సు చేసినట్టు. దక్షిణాన చలి తక్కువ కాబట్టి ఒకే పొలంలో ఏడాదికి రెండుసార్లు వరి; తమిళనాడు కావేరి డెల్టాలో కురువై, సాంబ, తాళడి; బెంగాల్‌లో ఆస్, అమన్ (పెద్దది), బోరో. చెరకు ఏడాది పైగా పొలంలో ఉంటుంది, ఏ ఒక్క కాలానికీ చెందదు. (→ English: zaid; aus, aman and boro · हिन्दी: जायद; औस, अमन और बोरो)

In exam EnglishBetween the rabi harvest and the kharif sowing lies a short summer season, zaid, from about March to June. Where irrigation is available it is used for quick-growing crops such as watermelon, muskmelon, cucumber, vegetables and fodder, and for summer moong. The tidy three-season pattern fits the north best. In the south, where winters are warm, the same field may carry rice more than once a year, and local seasons have names of their own: in the Kaveri delta of Tamil Nadu, kuruvai, samba and thaladi are three rice seasons. West Bengal grows three rice crops, aus, aman and boro, harvested in autumn, winter and summer; aman, the main monsoon crop, covers the largest area. Sugarcane fits no single season, because it stays in the field for about a year or longer.

India's three cropping seasons
Season	Sown	Harvested	Typical crops
Kharif	June–July, with the south-west monsoon	September–October	Rice, maize, jowar, bajra, tur, moong, urad, groundnut, soybean, cotton, jute
Rabi	October–December	March–May	Wheat, barley, gram, peas, rapeseed and mustard
Zaid	March (after the rabi harvest)	June (before the kharif sowing)	Watermelon, muskmelon, cucumber, vegetables, fodder, summer moong

పంటల తీరు అంటే ఏ భూమిలో ఏ పంట, ఏ వరుసలో. ఏటా ఒకే పంట (ఏకపంట); ఒకే పొలంలో ఏడాదికి వరుసగా రెండు మూడు పంటలు (బహుళ పంటలు, ఉదా. వరి తర్వాత గోధుమ); విత్తనాలు కలిపి చల్లడం (మిశ్రమ పంట, ఒకటి పోయినా మరొకటి మిగులుతుంది); వేరు వేరు వరుసల్లో (అంతర పంట, జొన్న మధ్యలో కంది). పంట మార్పిడి: ధాన్యం తర్వాత శనగ, పెసర లాంటి పప్పుధాన్యం; వాటి వేరు బుడిపెల్లోని బ్యాక్టీరియా నత్రజని ఇస్తుంది, ఖర్చు చేసిన డబ్బు మళ్లీ జమ చేసినట్టు. (→ English: cropping pattern; intercropping; crop rotation · हिन्दी: शस्य प्रतिरूप; अंतर-फ़सली कृषि; फ़सल चक्र)

In exam EnglishA cropping pattern is the share of land under different crops in an area at a given time, together with the order in which crops follow one another. Monocropping, the same crop year after year, is common in rain-fed areas and in specialised regions. Multiple cropping means raising two or more crops on the same field in a year, one after another, as in the rice–wheat sequence of the Indo-Gangetic plains. Mixed cropping sows the seeds of two or more crops together, an old insurance against the failure of one; intercropping grows them in separate rows, for example tur between rows of jowar or cotton. Crop rotation changes the crop on a field from season to season, so that a legume such as gram or moong, which fixes nitrogen with the help of bacteria in its root nodules, restores fertility after a cereal that drains it.

పొలం పరిమాణం కూడా ముఖ్యం. వ్యవసాయ గణన 2015–16 ప్రకారం సగటు కమతం 1.08 హెక్టార్లు మాత్రమే; ఒక హెక్టారు లోపు ఉన్న సన్నకారు కమతాలు దాదాపు 68 శాతం, చిన్న కమతాలతో కలిపి 86 శాతం. తాత పొలం నలుగురు కొడుకులకు, వాళ్ల నుంచి మనవళ్లకు ముక్కలవుతూ పోతుంది; ఒక్కో ముక్క ఊరి చుట్టూ వేర్వేరు చోట్ల. చిన్న ముక్కల్లో ట్రాక్టర్, బోరు ఖరీదు, అమ్మడానికి మిగిలేది తక్కువ. అందుకే సహకార సంఘాలు, యంత్రాల అద్దె, రైతు ఉత్పత్తిదారుల సంస్థలు. (→ English: operational holding; marginal holding; fragmentation · हिन्दी: क्रियाशील जोत; सीमांत जोत; विखंडन)

In exam EnglishThe size of farms shapes much of this. The Agriculture Census 2015–16 found that the average operational holding was just 1.08 hectares and that marginal holdings of under one hectare made up about 68 per cent of all holdings; together with small holdings of one to two hectares, they formed about 86 per cent. Holdings have shrunk census after census as land is divided among heirs, and a single farm is often split into scattered plots. Small, fragmented farms make tractors, tube wells and storage costly per hectare, push families towards subsistence crops and leave little surplus to sell. They also explain why cooperatives, custom hiring of machines and farmer producer organisations are promoted. Like soil and rain, farm size helps decide what is grown.

వ్యవసాయ-వాతావరణ మండలం అంటే దాదాపు ఒకే వాతావరణం, నేల, పంటలు ఉన్న ప్రాంతం; అక్కడ ఒకే రకమైన సలహా పనిచేస్తుంది. డాక్టర్ రోగి వయసు, శరీరం చూసి మందు ఇచ్చినట్టే. 1980ల చివర ప్రణాళికా సంఘం దేశాన్ని 15 ప్రాంతాలుగా విభజించింది; పరిశోధన కోసం ICAR 127 చిన్న మండలాలు; NBSS&LUP 20 వ్యవసాయ-పర్యావరణ ప్రాంతాలు. పొడి పశ్చిమ ప్రాంతం కోసం తయారైన కరువును తట్టుకునే సజ్జను తడి బెంగాల్‌లో వేయమనడం అర్థం లేదు. (→ English: agro-climatic zone; agro-ecological region · हिन्दी: कृषि-जलवायु क्षेत्र; कृषि-पारिस्थितिक प्रदेश)

In exam EnglishBecause farming conditions differ so widely, planners use the idea of the agro-climatic zone: an area with broadly similar climate, soil and crops, for which the same advice and schemes make sense. In the late 1980s the Planning Commission divided India into 15 agro-climatic regions. For research, ICAR's National Agricultural Research Project split the country into 127 smaller zones within states, and ICAR's National Bureau of Soil Survey and Land Use Planning has mapped 20 agro-ecological regions using climate, soil and the length of the growing period. The purpose of all three is to match seeds, methods and schemes to local conditions. Suppose a drought-tolerant millet is bred for the western dry region; pushing it in the wet lower Gangetic plains would make little sense.

Three ways of zoning India for agriculture
Scheme	Prepared by	Number	Basis and use
Agro-climatic regions	Planning Commission (late 1980s)	15	Physiography, climate, soils and cropping; for regional planning
Agro-climatic zones	ICAR, National Agricultural Research Project	127	Rainfall, temperature, soil and cropping within states; for research stations
Agro-ecological regions	ICAR, National Bureau of Soil Survey and Land Use Planning	20	Climate, soils, physiography and length of growing period

ఈ భాగంలోని పనిముట్లు ఒకదానికొకటి అతుకుతాయి: భూమి వర్గాలు ఎంత భూమి ఉందో, పంటల సాంద్రత ఎంత కష్టపడి వాడుతున్నారో, వ్యవసాయ రకం ఎవరి కోసమో, కాలాలు ఏ పంట ఎప్పుడో చెబుతాయి. అన్నీ వానపైనే ఆధారం: ఖరీఫ్ వాన మీద, రబీ మిగిలిన తేమ, నీటి మీద, జాయిద్ వేసవిలో మిగిలిన నీటి మీద. కమతం పరిమాణం కుటుంబం ఎంత ఖర్చు పెట్టగలదో చెబుతుంది; మండలాలు అన్నింటినీ ఒక పటంలో కలుపుతాయి. గొలుసులో ప్రతి లింకూ అవసరమే. (→ English: agriculture of India · हिन्दी: भारत की कृषि)

In exam EnglishThe tools in this part fit together. Land-use classes show how much land is available, cropping intensity shows how hard it is worked, the type of farming shows why and for whom it is worked, and the seasons and patterns show what grows on it and when. All of them lean on the monsoon: kharif crops ride on its rain, rabi crops on the moisture and irrigation water it leaves behind, and zaid crops on whatever water remains in summer. Farm size sets how much of this a family can afford, and agro-climatic zones gather the threads into maps that planners and scientists can use.

Exam traps

Gram, mustard, wheat, barley and peas are RABI crops; groundnut, soybean, cotton, jute and tur are KHARIF crops.
Zaid is the short SUMMER season between rabi and kharif (melons, cucumber, fodder); sugarcane is a long-duration crop, not a zaid crop.
Cropping intensity = gross cropped area ÷ net sown area × 100. A field cropped twice counts twice in the gross cropped area but once in the net sown area.
Current fallow = up to ONE year; other fallow = ONE to FIVE years; culturable waste = MORE than five years unused but still cultivable. Barren land cannot be cultivated.
Jhum (north-east), podu (Andhra Pradesh, Odisha) and bewar or dahiya (Madhya Pradesh) are all local names for SHIFTING cultivation.
Aus, aman and boro are West Bengal's rice crops (autumn, winter and summer harvest); aman is the main monsoon crop. Kuruvai, samba and thaladi are rice seasons of the Kaveri delta (Tamil Nadu).
Planning Commission: 15 agro-climatic REGIONS; ICAR's National Agricultural Research Project: 127 agro-climatic ZONES; NBSS&LUP: 20 agro-ecological regions.
Agriculture Census 2015–16: average operational holding 1.08 ha; marginal holdings (under 1 ha) about 68 per cent, small and marginal together about 86 per cent.

Recap

Physical factors (temperature, rain, soil, slope) set the limits; human factors (irrigation, prices, markets, policy) choose within them.
Nine-fold land use: forests, non-agricultural uses, barren, pastures, tree crops, culturable waste (>5 years), current fallow (≤1 year), other fallow (1–5 years), net sown area.
Net sown area about 140 million ha for decades; cropping intensity = gross cropped ÷ net sown × 100, a little above 150% in the early 2020s; high in irrigated Punjab and Haryana.
Shifting cultivation: jhum, podu, bewar; intensive subsistence on small farms; commercial and plantation farming; mixed farming; dryland (<75 cm rain) and wetland farming.
Kharif: sown June–July, harvested September–October (rice, maize, millets, cotton, soybean); rabi: sown October–December, harvested March–May (wheat, gram, mustard); western disturbances help wheat.
Zaid: March–June (melons, vegetables, fodder); aus, aman, boro (West Bengal); kuruvai, samba, thaladi (Kaveri delta); sugarcane is a long-duration crop.
Patterns: monocropping, multiple cropping, mixed cropping, intercropping, crop rotation with legumes that fix nitrogen.
Holdings: average 1.08 ha, marginal about 68% (Agriculture Census 2015–16). Zoning: 15 agro-climatic regions (Planning Commission), 127 zones (ICAR NARP), 20 agro-ecological regions (NBSS&LUP).

Practice questions

Q1. Which one of the following is a rabi crop?

Groundnut
Soybean
Mustard
Jute

Show answer

Answer: C. Mustard

Mustard is sown after the monsoon and harvested in spring, so it is a rabi crop. Groundnut, soybean and jute are all sown with the south-west monsoon and are kharif crops.

Q2. Consider the following statements about India's land-use classification:
1. Culturable waste land is land that could be cultivated but has not been cultivated for more than five years.
2. Current fallow is land left uncultivated for more than five years.
Which of the statements given above is/are correct?

1 only
2 only
Both 1 and 2
Neither 1 nor 2

Show answer

Answer: A. 1 only

Statement 1 is correct. Statement 2 is wrong: current fallow is land left uncropped for up to one year; land fallow for one to five years is 'other fallow'. So '2 only' and 'both' accept a wrong statement, and 'neither' rejects a correct one.

Q3. A village has a net sown area of 100 hectares. Of this, 60 hectares carry a second crop in the same year. What is the cropping intensity of the village?

60 per cent
140 per cent
160 per cent
260 per cent

Show answer

Answer: C. 160 per cent

Gross cropped area = 100 + 60 = 160 hectares; 160 ÷ 100 × 100 = 160 per cent. 60 per cent counts only the second crop, 140 per cent subtracts instead of adding, and 260 per cent adds the second crop twice.

Q4. Match List I (local name of shifting cultivation) with List II (region):
List I: A. Jhum B. Podu C. Bewar
List II: 1. Madhya Pradesh 2. North-eastern hills 3. Andhra Pradesh and Odisha
Select the correct answer using the code given below:

A-2, B-3, C-1
A-3, B-2, C-1
A-1, B-3, C-2
A-2, B-1, C-3

Show answer

Answer: A. A-2, B-3, C-1

Jhum is the name used in the north-eastern hills, podu in Andhra Pradesh and Odisha, and bewar in Madhya Pradesh. The second code swaps jhum and podu, the third puts jhum in Madhya Pradesh, and the fourth puts podu in Madhya Pradesh and bewar in Andhra Pradesh.

Q5. Consider the following statements about the rice crops of West Bengal:
1. Aman is the main monsoon crop and is harvested in winter.
2. Boro is sown with the onset of the south-west monsoon.
Which of the statements given above is/are correct?

1 only
2 only
Both 1 and 2
Neither 1 nor 2

Show answer

Answer: A. 1 only

Statement 1 is correct. Statement 2 is wrong: boro is the crop harvested in summer, raised through the dry months with irrigation, not sown with the monsoon. So '2 only' and 'both' accept a wrong statement, and 'neither' rejects a correct one.

Q6. Into how many agro-climatic regions did the Planning Commission divide India for regional planning?

Show answer

Answer: B. 15

The Planning Commission marked out 15 agro-climatic regions. Twenty is the number of agro-ecological regions mapped by ICAR's National Bureau of Soil Survey and Land Use Planning, 127 is the number of zones of ICAR's National Agricultural Research Project, and 10 matches none of these schemes.

Q7. Growing gram or moong on a field after a cereal crop helps restore its fertility mainly because these crops

need no water at all
fix atmospheric nitrogen with the help of bacteria in their root nodules
add phosphorus to the soil from the air
make the soil more saline

Show answer

Answer: B. fix atmospheric nitrogen with the help of bacteria in their root nodules

Legumes such as gram and moong host bacteria in their root nodules that fix nitrogen, replacing what cereals take out. They do need some water; phosphorus does not come from the air; and salinity harms soil rather than restoring it.

Q8. Consider the following statements:
1. Dryland farming is practised in areas receiving less than about 75 cm of rainfall.
2. Winter rain from western disturbances benefits the rabi wheat crop of north-western India.
Which of the statements given above is/are correct?

1 only
2 only
Both 1 and 2
Neither 1 nor 2

Show answer

Answer: C. Both 1 and 2

Both statements are correct: dryland farming is defined by low rainfall, below about 75 cm, and the light winter rain of western disturbances helps wheat in the north-west. So '1 only' and '2 only' each reject a correct statement, and 'neither' rejects both.

All parts Next: Part 2 →

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Sources

Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare: Land Use Statistics at a Glance (nine-fold classification, net sown area, gross cropped area, cropping intensity); crop calendars — https://desagri.gov.in
Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare: Agriculture Census 2015–16, number and area of operational holdings — https://agcensus.gov.in
Planning Commission: Agro-climatic Regional Planning (15 agro-climatic regions) — https://www.niti.gov.in
Indian Council of Agricultural Research: agro-climatic zones of the National Agricultural Research Project; NBSS&LUP agro-ecological regions; shifting cultivation and dryland farming in India — https://icar.org.in
Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation: Periodic Labour Force Survey, annual report 2023–24 (share of workers in agriculture) — https://mospi.gov.in