India is the largest producer of which agricultural products ?

Question

UnlockIAS · Accepted Answer

Correct — B, Milk, Pulses and Spices. India is the world's largest producer of all three. It has been the largest milk producer since 1998 and accounts for roughly a quarter of global milk output. It is the largest producer of pulses — chana, tur/arhar, urad, moong, masur — and, remarkably, also their largest consumer and importer. And it is the largest producer, consumer and exporter of spices: the ISO recognises 109 spices, of which India grows about 75. No other option has India in first place on all three items.

Why the other options are wrong — (a) India is the world's second-largest producer of both rice and wheat — China is first in each. India is among the top two in cotton, but the option already fails on two of its three items.  (c) India is the largest producer of jute, but China is the largest tea producer (India is second) and Brazil dominates coffee, where India is a mid-table producer. Two items out of three are wrong.  (d) Brazil is the world's largest sugarcane producer and the United States the largest maize producer. India is a major oilseed producer but not the largest — indeed it is the world's biggest importer of vegetable oils.

Concept: India's 'who is number one' list splits into two groups. India leads the world in milk, pulses, spices, jute, mango and banana — commodities where huge domestic demand and diverse agro-climatic zones favour it. It comes second, behind China, in the big cereal staples rice and wheat, and behind Brazil and the USA in sugarcane and maize. Being the largest producer also does not mean being the largest exporter: India is the largest producer AND the largest importer of pulses, and the largest importer of edible oils.

State PCS 2025 Q34 — Economy PYQ with Answer

State PCS 2025 Q34 — Economy PYQ with Answer