UPSC Civil Services (IAS) Exam 2016 Notification is just released by Union Public Service Commission and the candidates are required to understand the requirement of Civil Services Prelims Examination on order to qualify the IAS Prelim Exam. It requires a special focus on the IAS Exam Preparation and endless practice of the Subject Questions and Model Test Papers.
Geography is one of the important components of the IAS Syllabus which covers the major share of the IAS Prelims Questions. The General Studies Paper I of Civil Services IAS Prelims Exam consist of Geography Questions ranges from 15 to 25 every year. So, the Civil Services aspirants have to do Preparation of GS Geography in a manner so, that they can score better in IAS Prelims Exam.
Here, we have provided such practice questions of Physical Geography which will help aspirants to check their level of Preparation of IAS Prelims Exam 2016.
1. Consider the following statements regarding the Net Sown Area (NSA) of any region:
I. The total land area on which crops are grown in a region is called net sown area.
II. The net sown area and the area sown more than once together are called gross cultivated area.
III. In India, about 47 per cent of total reporting area is under the net sown area.
Which of the following statement(s) is/are correct?
a. Only I
b. I and II
c. II and III
d. All of the above
Answer: d
Explanation:
The total land area on which crops are grown in a region is called net sown area. The net sown area and the area sown more than once together are called gross cultivated area. In India, about 47 per cent of total reporting area is under the net sown area.
States namely Punjab, Haryana, West Bengal, Uttar Pradesh, have the high proportional share of NSA than the national average. Against this, the share of NSA is less than one half of the national average in states of Himachal Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Meghalaya, Manipur, Nagaland, Mizoram, Sikkim and Arunachal Pradesh.
2. Consider the following statements regarding the forest cover in India:
I. The area under forest cover is about 68 million hectares or 22 per cent of the total area in the country.
II. This area has under forest cover has increased from 40 million hectares in 1951 to 68 million hectares in 2000.
III. For the ecological balance the forest cover should be at least 33 per cent of the total geographical area of a country.
Which of the following statement(s) is/are correct?
a. Only I
b. I and II
c. II and III
d. All of the above
Answer: d
Explanation:
The area under forest cover is about 68 million hectares or 22 per cent of the total area in the country. This area has increased from 40 million hectares in 1951 to 68 million hectares in 2000.
For the ecological balance the forest cover should be at least 33 per cent of the total geographical area of a country. The states of Arunachal Pradesh, Mizoram, Jammu & Kashmir and Tripura have relatively larger proportion of area under forest cover.
3. Which of the following states has highest area of land available for cultivation India?
a. Odisha
b. Assam
c. Manipur
d. Nagaland
Answer: a
Explanation:
The land under the settlements, roads, mines and quarries along with barren lands are included in this category. The sandy waste land of Rajasthan, marshy land of Kutchh (Gujarat) and rugged and eroded areas of northeast and northern mountains are few examples of barren lands.
About 13 per cent of the total reported area is recorded under this category. Nagaland, Manipur and Assam registered a very high percentage of area not available for cultivations.
4. With reference to the Fallow Lands which of the following statements is incorrect?
a. When lands are left unused to erode away their fertility in a natural way is called fallow land.
b. On the basis of usability criteria follow lands can be divided into two groups current and old.
c. Current fallow is the land in which no crop is raised during the current year.
d. Old fallow land remains unused for a period of one or more years but not exceeding 5 years.
Answer: a
Explanation:
When lands are left unused to regain their lost fertility in a natural way is called fallow land. On the basis of usability criteria follow lands can be divided into two groups current and old. Current fallow is the land in which no crop is raised during the current year.
Old fallow land remains unused for a period of one or more years but not exceeding 5 years. This is due to low investment capacity of numerous small and marginal farmers in advanced technology, lack of awareness, loss of fertility of soil, inadequacy of rainfall, lacking in irrigational facility etc. The fallow land occupies about 7.5 per cent of the total reported area.
5. Which of the following states has higher percentage of fallow land?
a. Assam
b. Bihar
c. Tamil Nadu
d. Punjab
Answer: b
Explanation:
The states of Mizoram, Tamil Nadu, Meghalaya, Bihar, Andhra Pradesh and Rajasthan have a high percentage of area under fallow land. It is to be noted here that old fallow land may not be economically important but from ecological point of view fallow land is important category of land.
6. Which of the following types of land locally known as reh?
a. The land under the settlements, roads, mines and quarries along with barren lands are included in this category.
b. The total land area on which crops are grown in a region.
c. It is the land in which crops were raised for some period of time but has not been cultivated for the last five years due to certain deficiencies such as alkalinity and salinity in the soils.
d. When lands are left unused to regain their lost fertility in a natural way.
Answer: c
Explanation:
Cultivable Waste is the land in which crops were raised for some period of time but has not been cultivated for the last five years due to certain deficiencies such as alkalinity and salinity in the soils.
Such cultivable wastes are locally known as reh, bhur, usar, and khola in the some part of North India. Meghalaya, Himachal Pradesh and Rajasthan have a very high share of cultivable waste land in total land use in respective states.
7. Consider the following statements regarding the Agricultural Land Use in India:
I. The net sown area, current fallows and land under tree crops and groves are included in agricultural land use.
II. The agricultural land in India is little more than 50 per cent of the total geographical area in the country.
III. The per capita agricultural land in some select countries is lesser than India.
Which of the following statement(s) is/are correct?
a. Only I
b. I and II
c. II and III
d. All of the above
Answer: b
Explanation:
The net sown area, current fallows and land under tree crops and groves are included in agricultural land use. The agricultural land in India is little more than 50 per cent of the total geographical area in the country.
This is the highest share of land in any country in the world. But due to large size of population in India, per capita arable land is available only 0.17 hectares, which is lower than the world average (0.24 hec). The per capita agricultural land in some select countries is much higher than India.
8. With reference to various types of farming, which of the following is correctly matched?
|
|
Types of farming |
Description |
| a |
Dry Farming |
This type of farming is practised in the areas of alluvial soils where annual average rainfall is more than 200cm. |
| b |
Wet Farming |
This type of farming is practised in the areas where the amount of annual rainfall is generally less than 80 cms. |
| c |
Irrigated Farming |
This type of farming is practiced in the areas where average rainfall is between 80 to 200 cms which is insufficient for certain crops. |
| d |
Subsistence Farming |
In this type of cultivation, land is cleared by cutting and burning of forests for raising crops. |
Answer: c
Explanation:
The bases for the classification of different types of agriculture in India are rainfall, irrigational facilities, purpose of production, ownership and size of holding and technology used. On the basis of these factors a number of farming can be identified. Some of the main types of farming in India are:
Dry Farming: This type of farming is practised in the areas where the amount of annual rainfall is generally less than 80 cms. In such regions, the farmers are generally dependent upon rainfall. Here, moisture content in the soil is less. Hence, only one crop can be grown in a year.
Wet Farming: This type of farming is practised in the areas of alluvial soils where annual average rainfall is more than 200cm. Here, more than one crop is grown in a year because enough amount of moisture in the soil is available. Rice and jute are the main crops of this types of farming. West Bengal, Assam, Nagaland, Meghalaya, Tripura, Manipur, Mizoram and Malabar Coast fall under this category of farming.
Irrigated Farming: This type of farming is practiced in the areas where average rainfall is between 80 to 200 cms which is insufficient for certain crops. This system of farming can be practised only in those areas where availability of water from underground or surface water bodies like rivers, tanks, and lakes is sufficient throughout the year.
Subsistence Farming: These types of farming are practised primarily to fulfil self requirements of the people of the area. The main objective of this farming is to provide subsistence to the largest number of people of a given area. Size of holdings is small, use of manual labour and simple farm implements are common features of this type of farming.
Shifting Cultivation: In this type of cultivation land is cleared by cutting and burning of forests for raising crops. The crops are grown for a few years (2-3 years). As fertility of land declines, farmers move to new areas, clear the forests and grow crops there for next few years.
9. Which of the following types of farming is more suitable for the production of crops like sugarcane, wheat and rice?
a. Shifting farming
b. Irrigated farming
c. Subsistence farming
d. Terrace farming
Answer: b
Explanation:
Irrigated farming: This type of farming is practiced in the areas where average rainfall is between 80 to 200 cms which is insufficient for certain crops. This system of farming can be practised only in those areas where availability of water from underground or surface water bodies like rivers, tanks, and lakes is sufficient throughout the year.
The other condition for this farming is the availability of levelled agricultural land. The main areas were much farming is practised are in Punjab, Haryana, Uttar Pradesh, north western Tamil Nadu and the deltas of peninsular rivers. The other important pockets of irrigated farming are found in the Deccan Plateau region particularly in Maharashtra, Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh. Wheat, Rice and Sugarcane are important crops of this farming.
10. Which of the following types of farming also known as “Jhuming”?
a. Shifting farming
b. Subsistence farming
c. Terrace farming
d. Irrigated farming
Answer: a
Explanation:
Shifting farming: In this type of cultivation land is cleared by cutting and burning of forests for raising crops. The crops are grown for a few years (2-3 years). As fertility of land declines, farmers move to new areas, clear the forests and grow crops there for next few years.
This farming is practised in some pockets of the hilly areas of Northeast and in some tribal belts of Orissa, Chhattisgarh and Andhra Pradesh. In northeast, such type of cultivation is known as “Jhuming”.
