Which one of the following statements about plantation agriculture is not correct ?
- A.Plantation farm estates are scientifically managed.
- B.Plantation farming requires heavy capital outlay.
- C.Plantation farm lands have mainly foreign ownership and local labour.
- D.Plantation farmers rear the animals for sale.
Correct answer
Explanation
The correct answer is D, Plantation farmers rear the animals for sale. Plantation agriculture is the large-scale growing of a single cash crop such as tea, coffee, rubber, sugarcane, cocoa or bananas, mainly for export. It does not combine crops with livestock; rearing animals for sale belongs to mixed farming and commercial livestock ranching. The system was introduced by Europeans in their tropical colonies, which is why the classic description says that capital and management were foreign while labour was local, as on the British tea gardens of Assam and the rubber estates of Malaysia. Plantations need heavy investment in land, machinery, processing units and transport, and they are run on scientific lines with careful use of fertilisers, pest control and grading. Option A is correct about plantations because the estates are scientifically managed. Option B is correct because heavy capital outlay is a defining feature. Option C is correct as the standard textbook feature of plantation ownership and labour. Exam tip: plantation = one cash crop, big capital, scientific management, foreign capital and local labour, made for export.
Practice Questions
View allIn which one of the following countries is intensive subsistence agriculture not predominantly practised?
- A.India
- B.Japan
- C.Canada
- D.Indonesia
Show answer
Canada has vast land and a small farming population, so it practises large-scale, mechanised commercial grain farming, not intensive subsistence farming.
Read the full explanation →A person had visited a region in India and found trees, such as Khair, Neem, Khejri and Palas. Which one of the following regions is she/he expected to have visited?
- A.Malabar Coast
- B.Garo Hills
- C.Sunderban Delta
- D.Desert Region
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Khair, neem, khejri and palas are typical trees of the tropical thorn forests and scrub of dry areas such as Rajasthan and the edges of the Thar.
Read the full explanation →The Indian Railways have gone in for qualitative improvements since independence. Which of the following have taken place in recent years ?
1. Gauge conversion
2. Track electrification
3. Automatic signals
Select the correct answer using the codes given below :
- A.1 and 2 only
- B.2 and 3 only
- C.1 and 3 only
- D.1, 2 and 3
Show answer
Gauge conversion, electrification of tracks and automatic signalling have all been part of the modernisation of Indian Railways. Gauge conversion: under Project Unigauge, started in 1992, metre-gauge and narrow-gauge lines have been steadily converted to broad gauge (1,676 mm) so that trains can run through without transhipment.
Read the full explanation →Which one of the following clouds is a rain-bearing cloud?
- A.Cumulus cloud
- B.Stratus cloud
- C.Nimbus cloud
- D.Cirrus cloud
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The word nimbus means rain cloud: these dark, thick clouds bring steady rain or snow. Nimbus clouds form at low to middle heights and are so dense that sunlight hardly passes through them, which is why they look dark grey or black.
Read the full explanation →In India, rigid and stable elevated lands, denuded rocks and series of scarps are the features of which of the following?
- A.Northern mountains
- B.Peninsular plateau
- C.Northern plains
- D.Coastal plains
Show answer
The plateau is part of the ancient Gondwana landmass, so it is a rigid, stable block worn down by long erosion.
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