NCERT Solutions For Class 10 Geography Chapter 4 Agriculture

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NCERT Solutions For Class 10 Geography Chapter 4 Agriculture Long Questions And Answers

Question 1. Distinguish between Rabi and Kharif season.

Answer:

Difference between Rabi and Kharif season:

Rabi Crops:

  1. Rabi crops are sown in winter from October to December and harvested in summer from April to June.
  2. Some of the important Rabi crops are wheat, barley, peas, gram, and mustard.
  3. States from north and north-western parts such as Punjab, Haryana, Himachal Pradesh, Jammu and Kashmir, Uttarakhand and Uttar Pradesh are important for the production of wheat and other Rabi crops.

Read and Learn More Class 10 Social Science Solutions

Kharif Crops:

  1. Kharif crops are grown with the onset of monsoon in the different parts of the country and these are harvested in September-October.
  2. Important crops grown during this season are paddy, maize, jowar, bajra, tur (arhar), moong, urad, cotton, jute, groundnut and soya bean.
  3. Some of the most important rice-growing regions are Assam, West Bengal, coastal regions of Odisha, Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, Kerala and Maharashtra, particularly the Konkan coast along with Uttar Pradesh and Bihar. Recently, paddy has also become an important crop of Punjab and Haryana.

Question 2. What is Horticulture? Name the fruits grown in India. Mention the name of the states also.

Answer:

India produces about 13% of the world vegetables. It is an important producer of pea, cauliflower, onion, cabbage, tomato, brinjal and potato.

Horticulture is an art of cultivating fruit and vegetables. India is the largest producer of fruits and vegetables in the world. India is the producer of tropical as well as temperate fruits.” India is known for:

  1. Mangoes: Maharashtra, Andhra Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh and West Bengal
  2. Oranges: Nagpur and Cherrapunjee (Meghalaya)
  3. Bananas: Kerala, Mizoram, Maharashtra and Tamil Nadu
  4. Lichi and guava: Uttar Pradesh and Bihar
  5. Pineapples: Meghalaya
  6. Grapes: Andhra Pradesh and Maharashtra
  7. Apples, pears, apricots, and walnuts: Jammu and Kashmir and Himachal Pradesh. These are in great demand all over the world.

Question 3. Distinguish between subsistence and commercial agriculture.
Or
What is the difference between commercial and subsistence crops.

Answer:

Subsistence agriculture:

  1. Subsistence agriculture is practised on the small patches of land with the help of primitive tools like hoe, dao and digging sticks, and family or community labour.
  2. Farmers and their family produce cereals for themselves and for the local market.
  3. It is practised in thickly populated areas.

Commercial agriculture:

  1. Cereals like wheat, rice, millets are mainly raised. Farmers use higher doses of modern inputs, For example., high yielding variety (HYV) seeds, chemical fertilisers, insecticides and pesticides in order to obtain higher productivity.
  2. Crops are grown on a large scale with a view to export them to other countries.
  3. It is practised in sparsely populated areas. Wheat, cotton, sugarcane, etc., are mainly raised.

Question 4. What are the four important fibre crops of India? Describe any two of them.

Answer:

Four important fibre crops of India are: Cotton, Jute, Hemp and Natural silk.

Cotton:

  1. India is known as the original home of the cotton plant.
  2. India is the third largest producer of cotton in the world.
  3. Cotton grows well in the drier parts of the black cotton soil of the Deccan plateau.
  4. It requires high temperature, light rainfall or irrigation, 210 frost-free days and bright sunshine for its growth.
  5. It is a Kharif crop and requires 6 to 8 months to mature.
  6. Major cotton producing states are Maharashtra, Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh, Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, Punjab, Haryana and Uttar Pradesh.

Jute:

  1. Jute is known as golden fibre.
  2. It grows well on well-drained fertile soil in the flood plains where soils are renewed every year.
  3. High temperature is required during the time of growth.
  4. Major jute-producing states are West Bengal, Bihar, Assam, Odisha, and Meghalaya.
  5. It is used in making gunny bags, mats, ropes, yarn, carpets, and other artifacts.

Question 5. Describe the conditions which lead to technological and institutional reforms in India.

Answer:

  1. Agriculture has been in practice in India for thousands of years.
  2. Continued uses of land without well-matched techno-institutional reforms lead to a slowdown in the pace of agricultural development.
  3. In spite of the development in irrigation, most of the farmers in large parts of the country still depend upon monsoons and the natural fertility of the soil.
  4. Our population grew at a faster rate than agriculture production.
  5. More than 60% of India’s population depends on agriculture.

Question 6. Mention important technological and institutional reforms introduced in India after independence in the 1960s and 1970s.

Answer:

After independence following technological and institutional reforms were introduced but all these failed to strengthen our agriculture. These led to the concentration of development in a few selected areas.

  1. Collective farming was introduced.
  2. Land holdings were consolidated.
  3. The cooperative movement was started in Indian agriculture.
  4. The Zamindari system was abolished.
  5. ‘Land reform’ was introduced in the First Five Year Plan.
  6. The Green Revolution and related technologies were introduced such as the use of HYV of seed, fertilizers, modern machinery, and inputs.
  7. White Revolution (Operation Flood) was introduced to increase milk production.

Question 7. Write any five features of the comprehensive land development program initiated during the 1980s and 1990s.

Answer:

The comprehensive land development program included both institutional and technical reforms. The following reforms were introduced:

  1. Provision for crop insurance against drought, flood, cyclone, fire and disease.
  2. The establishment of Grameen banks, cooperative societies, and banks for providing loan facilities to the farmers at lower rates of interest were some important steps in this direction.
  3. Kissan Credit Card (KCC) was introduced for easy availability of inputs.
  4. Personal Accident Insurance Schemes (PAIS) and some other schemes were
    introduced by the Government of India for the benefit of the farmers.
  5. Special weather bulletins and agricultural programs for farmers were
    introduced on radio and television.
  6. The government also announced minimum support prices and remunerative and procurement prices for important crops to check the exploitation of farmers by speculators and middlemen.

Question 8. What are the Bhoodan-Gramdan movement and the Bloodless Revolution in the field of agriculture?

Answer:

Vinobha Bhave introduced voluntary redistribution of farmlands to the poor landless farmers for their economic well-being. This act was known as ‘Bhoodan’.

Some zamindars, owners of many villages offered to distribute some villages among the landless. It was known as Gramdan.

This Bhoodan-Gramdan movement initiated by Vinobha Bhave is also known as Bloodless Revolution.

Question 9. Describe the contribution of agriculture to the national economy.

Answer:

Agriculture has been the backbone of the Indian economy.

  1. Its share in providing employment and livelihood to the population continues to be as high as 63% in 2001.
  2. India is an agriculturally important country.
  3. Two-thirds of its population is engaged in agricultural activities.
  4. Agriculture is a primary activity, which produces most of the food that we consume.
  5. Besides foodgrains, it also produces raw materials for various industries.
  6. Moreover, some agricultural products like tea, coffee, spices, etc., are also exported.
  7. All other sectors of the Indian economy heavily depend on agriculture for their growth.

Question 10. State any five efforts made by the Government of India to modernize our agriculture.

Answer:

Considering the importance of agriculture in India, the Government of India made concerted efforts to modernize agriculture.

  1. Establishment of the Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR).
  2. Establishment of agricultural universities.
  3. Establishment of veterinary services and animal breeding centers.
  4. Initiating horticulture development.
  5. Initiating research and development in the field of meteorology and weather forecast.
  6. Improving the rural infrastructure.

Question 11. Explain the challenges faced by Indian agriculture.

Answer:

Indian farmers are facing big challenges.

  1. Our farmers cannot face stiff international competition.
  2. Our government has reduced investment in agriculture sector particularly in irrigation, power, rural roads, market and mechanisation.
  3. Subsidy on fertilizers is decreased leading to an increase in the cost of production.
  4. Import duty has been reduced on agricultural products which leads to large inflow of foreign agro products in the country.
  5. Farmers are withdrawing their investment from agriculture causing a downfall in the employment in agriculture.
  6. Many farmers are committing suicide in several states of the country.
  7. Land under agriculture is decreasing.
  8. There are no alternative sources of livelihood for the farmers.

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