Out of the following during which census decade, sex ratio in India recorded sharpest decline ?

Question

UnlockIAS · Accepted Answer

Correct — B, 1961-71. India's sex ratio fell from 941 females per 1,000 males in 1961 to 930 in 1971 — a drop of 11 points, the steepest single-decade decline in the census series. It was sharper than the falls of the 1931-41 or 1981-91 decades, and in 2001-2011 the ratio actually rose (933 to 943), so that decade recorded no decline at all.

Why the other options are wrong — (a) The ratio slipped only modestly this decade (about 950 to 945, roughly 5 points) — a much smaller decline than 1961-71.  (c) The ratio fell from 934 to 927 (about 7 points) — a real decline, but gentler than the 11-point fall of 1961-71.  (d) The sex ratio actually improved this decade (933 to 943, a gain of 10 points), so it was not a decline at all.

Concept: Sex ratio in the Indian census is the number of females per 1,000 males. Across the twentieth century the national figure stayed below 950 and generally drifted downward from 1901 to 1991, before recovering in 2001 and 2011. The sharpest single-decade fall came in 1961-71.

State PCS 2019 Q49 — Geography PYQ with Answer

State PCS 2019 Q49 — Geography PYQ with Answer