Prelims 2011 · archive
MediumA state in India has the following characteristics:
- 1.Its northern part is arid and semi-arid.
- 2.Its central part produces cotton.
- 3.Cultivation of cash crops is predominant over food crops.
Which one of the following states has all of the above characteristics?
Answer & explanation
Answer: (b) Gujarat
Gujarat fits all three clues. North Gujarat and Kutch are arid and semi-arid. Cotton is a leading crop of its central plains. The state's cropping pattern has shifted from food grains to high-value cash crops.
- ✓ 1. The Gujarat government describes an arid and semi-arid climate in north Gujarat and Kutch.
- ✓ 2. Gujarat is India's largest cotton producer. Cotton is a leading kharif crop on the black soils of central Gujarat and Saurashtra.
- ✓ 3. Gujarat's agriculture has moved from traditional to high-value commercial crops. Its cropping pattern has shifted from food grains to cash crops such as cotton, groundnut and castor.
- ✗ (a) Andhra Pradesh is predominantly a rice-growing state, so food crops dominate its cropping. Its north is not an arid zone.
- ✗ (c) Karnataka's north is dry, but the state grows large areas of food crops such as rice, jowar and ragi. Cash crops do not predominate over food crops.
- ✗ (d) Tamil Nadu's agriculture is based on food crops, chiefly rice, so cash crops do not predominate.
Remember · Gujarat: arid and semi-arid north and Kutch, India's largest cotton producer, and a cropping pattern tilted towards cash crops over food grains.
Sources
- Climate Change Department, Government of Gujarat – About Gujarat ↗ “dry climate in regions of central Gujarat (north of Ahmedabad and part of central Saurashtra) and arid and semi-arid climate in north Gujarat and Kutch.”
- Agro-Economic Research Centre report (Dept. of Agriculture, GoI) – Castor Crop Cultivation in Gujarat ↗ “Agriculture in Gujarat has been transforming over time from traditional to high value-added commercial crops which can be seen from a shift in its cropping pattern from food grains crops to high value cash crops.”
Question: UPSC Civil Services (Preliminary) 2011, General Studies paper. Explanation: Minimalist IAS, checked 25 Oct 2026 (how we verify). ·