Question

Given below are two statements, one is labelled as Assertion (A) and other one labelled as Reason (R).
Assertion (A) : Marketed surplus $>$ Marketable surplus
Reason (R) : Farmer curtails consumption to sell more in the market causing distress sale
In light of the above statements, choose the correct answer from the options given below:

• A. Both (A) and (R) are true and (R) is the correct explanation of (A).
• B. Both (A) and (R) are true and (R) is not the correct explanation of (A).
• C. (A) is true but (R) is false.
• D. (A) is false but (R) is true.

Hint:

Remember the definition of a distress sale:
- Small/marginal farmers sell beyond their means to get quick cash.
- This leads to: $\text{Marketed Surplus} > \text{Marketable Surplus}$.

Answer 1

The Correct Option is A

Step 1: Understanding the Concept:
In agricultural economics, we distinguish between:
- Marketable Surplus: The theoretical surplus available with the farmer after meeting family consumption, seed, feed, and payment requirements.
\[ \text{Marketable Surplus} = \text{Total Production} - \text{Total Requirements} \]
- Marketed Surplus: The actual quantity of produce that the farmer sells in the market.

Step 2: Detailed Explanation:
Generally, for medium and large farmers, marketed surplus is less than or equal to marketable surplus, as they can afford to store grains for future use.
However, for small and marginal farmers, the situation can be reversed.
Assertion (A) states that Marketed surplus $>$ Marketable surplus.
This is highly true under certain conditions.
Small and marginal farmers often face urgent cash needs immediately after harvest to repay debts, pay land rent, or buy basic household necessities.
To raise this cash, they are forced to sell a larger portion of their crop than they can theoretically spare.
Reason (R) explains that the farmer curtails their family consumption to sell more in the market, causing a distress sale.
This is the exact reason why marketed surplus exceeds marketable surplus.
The farmer sells grain that was actually needed for family consumption (creating a forced or "distress" surplus), and they often have to buy back food grains later in the season at much higher prices.
Therefore, Assertion (A) is true, Reason (R) is true, and (R) is the correct and logical explanation of (A).

Step 3: Final Answer:
The correct option is (A).