The statements are given below, labelled as Assertion (A) and Reason (R). In the context of these two statements, select the correct answer from the codes given below. Assertion (A): Punjab, Haryana, Uttar Pradesh are major wheat producing states of India. Reason (R): The well drained fertile soil, 10° – 15°C temperature during winter and about 75 cm annual average rainfall are necessary for wheat production.
- (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)Both (A) and (R) are false
Correct — A, both statements are true and (R) explains (A). Punjab, Haryana and Uttar Pradesh are indeed India's leading wheat producers — the Green Revolution heartland, with UP the largest producer by volume and Punjab-Haryana the highest in yield. Reason (R) states the very conditions wheat needs: well-drained fertile soil, a cool growing season (about 10-15°C in winter) and moderate rainfall (around 75 cm). The north-western plains supply exactly these — fertile Indo-Gangetic alluvium, cool winters and moderate-to-assured (irrigated) moisture — so (R) is the correct explanation of why these States lead in wheat (A).
- (b)Both (A) and (R) are true but (R) is not the correct explanation of (A) — The favourable conditions in (R) are precisely why the north-western States dominate wheat — so (R) does explain (A), not merely accompany it.
- (c)(A) is true but (R) is false — (R) is true — it correctly describes wheat's agro-climatic needs (well-drained fertile soil, cool winters, moderate rainfall).
- (d)Both (A) and (R) are false — Both are true — Punjab, Haryana and UP are major wheat States, and the stated soil-temperature-rainfall requirements are accurate.
Wheat is India's main Rabi (winter) cereal. It needs a cool, moist growing season (roughly 10-15°C when growing) and warm, dry weather at ripening, well-drained fertile loam or alluvial soil, and moderate rainfall of about 50-100 cm — or irrigation to make up for it. The Indo-Gangetic plains of Punjab, Haryana and western Uttar Pradesh match these needs, which is why they lead national production.
This is an assertion-reason item, so both statements must be judged true/false and then whether the reason actually explains the assertion. Here the causal link is genuine: the north-western plains lead in wheat because they meet wheat's soil, temperature and rainfall/irrigation requirements — hence option (a).
- Wheat is a Rabi crop — cool growing season, warm dry ripening.
- Needs well-drained fertile (alluvial/loamy) soil and ~50-100 cm rainfall or irrigation.
- Leading producers: Uttar Pradesh (largest), Madhya Pradesh, Punjab, Haryana.
- Punjab-Haryana are the Green Revolution wheat belt with the highest yields.
- Treating wheat like rice — wheat needs a cool, drier season, not heavy rainfall
- In assertion-reason items, marking 'both true' but missing that (R) really does explain (A)
Asked as assertion-reason, as 'conditions necessary for wheat cultivation', or as 'the leading wheat-producing State'. Fix wheat as a cool-season Rabi crop of the fertile north-western plains.
Which one of the following sets of conditions is necessary for a good cultivation of wheat?
- (a) Moderate temperature and moderate rainfall
- (b) High temperature and heavy rainfall
- (c) High temperature and moderate rainfall
- (d) Low temperature and low rainfall
Answer(a) Moderate temperature and moderate rainfall
Same concept as Reason (R) — wheat needs moderate temperature and moderate rainfall, the agro-climatic basis for the north-western wheat belt.
According to 2021–22, the area and production of wheat occupies which place among cereals in Madhya Pradesh?
- (a) Third
- (b) Fourth
- (c) Second
- (d) First
Answer(d) First
Same crop — wheat's dominance as a Rabi cereal, the flip side of knowing which States/regions lead in wheat and why.
- practice — not a real PYQ
Which is the largest wheat-producing State in India?
- (a)Punjab
- (b)Uttar Pradesh
- (c)Haryana
- (d)Madhya Pradesh
Answer(b) Uttar Pradesh — India's largest wheat producer by volume.
- practice — not a real PYQ
Wheat in India is best described as a:
- (a)Kharif crop sown with the monsoon
- (b)Rabi crop needing a cool growing and warm ripening season
- (c)Zaid crop of the summer months
- (d)Plantation crop
Answer(b) A Rabi (winter) crop — cool growing season, warm dry ripening.