Question

Given below are two statements, one labelled as Assertion (A) and the other labelled as Reason (R).

Assertion (A): Parboiled rice develops less rancidity than raw rice during storage.

Reason (R): The process of parboiling destroys some of the natural antioxidants present in rice.

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 but (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:

Think about what actually causes rancidity in rice, an enzyme reaction or an antioxidant reaction, and what heat treatment during parboiling really does to each.

Answer 1

The Correct Option is C

Step 1: Check the assertion first. Raw milled rice still has active lipase and lipoxygenase enzymes in its bran layer. During storage, these enzymes keep breaking down the oil in the grain into free fatty acids, and those free fatty acids oxidise further to give the stale, rancid smell and taste.

Step 2: Parboiling involves soaking, steaming and then drying paddy before milling. The heat of steaming denatures the protein structure of lipase and lipoxygenase, so the enzymes are largely inactivated. With the enzymes knocked out, far less free fatty acid builds up during storage, so parboiled rice indeed goes rancid much more slowly than raw rice. Assertion (A) is true.

Step 3: Now check the reason. The reason claims parboiling destroys the rice's natural antioxidants, and that this is why rancidity is lower. But the actual chemistry works the other way for the key protective compounds. Steaming drives lipophilic antioxidants such as oryzanol and tocopherols from the bran into the endosperm, so these compounds are largely retained, not destroyed, in parboiled rice.

Step 4: The real reason parboiled rice resists rancidity is enzyme inactivation (Step 2), not antioxidant loss. So the reason statement, as worded, is factually false.

Since (A) is true and (R) is false, the correct answer is option 3.