Question

Study the following graph carefully and answer the questions no. 15 to 17 :

Which one of the following is the best reason for the increase in net area sown from 1950 – 51 to 2014 – 15 ?

• A. Decrease in barren and unculturable wasteland
• B. Decrease in culturable wasteland
• C. Increase in area under non-agricultural use
• D. Increase in area under forest cover

Hint:

Net area sown rose by 3.8 points. Pick the shrinking category that can be farmed. That is culturable wasteland.

Answer 1

The Correct Option is B

Step 1: Read the graph:
Net area sown rises from 41.7 per cent in 1950-51 to 45.5 per cent in 2014-15, a gain of 3.8 percentage points.
Land has to come from some other category that shrinks.
Fall in other categories: barren and unculturable wasteland 13.4 to 5.5; culturable wasteland 8 to 4; fallow other than current fallow 6.1 to 3.6; misc tree crops 6.9 to 1.0.

Step 2: Reason it out:
Culturable wasteland is land that can be made fit for farming with effort. It fell by 4 points, almost the same as the 3.8 point gain in sown area.
So farmers brought culturable wasteland under the plough. This is the best reason.

Step 3: Why the other options are wrong:
(A) Barren and unculturable wasteland cannot be used for farming under ordinary means (rocky, desert, steep). Its fall is not the direct reason.
(C) Non-agricultural use rises from 3.2 to 8.7. This takes land away from farming, so it cannot raise the sown area.
(D) Forest area rises from 17 to 23.3. This also takes land that could be sown, so it cannot raise the sown area.

Final Answer:
The best reason is the decrease in culturable wasteland, option (B).