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CSAT 2016 paper

UPSC CSE CSAT 2016 · Question 48 · Reading comprehension

Which among the following is the most logical and rational inference that can be made from the…

Passage—8

About 15 per cent of global greenhouse gas emissions come from agricultural practices. This includes nitrous oxide from fertilizers; methane from livestock, rice production, and manure storage; and carbon dioxide (CO₂) from burning biomass, but this excludes CO₂ emissions from soil management practices, savannah burning and deforestation. Forestry, land use, and land-use change account for another 17 per cent of greenhouse gas emissions each year, three quarters of which come from tropical deforestation. The remainder is largely from draining and burning tropical peatland. About the same amount of carbon is stored in the world's peatlands as is stored in the Amazon rainforest.

CSAT 2016 · Q48

Reading comprehension Easy

Which among the following is the most logical and rational inference that can be made from the above passage?

Answer & explanation

Answer: (b) It is imperative for us to modify our land use practices in order to mitigate climate change

Agriculture gives about 15 per cent of greenhouse gas emissions, and forestry, land use and land-use change another 17 per cent, mostly from tropical deforestation and peatland. With nearly a third of emissions tied to how we use land, changing land use is essential to fighting climate change.

  • ✗ (a) 'Immediately replace ... all over the world' is extreme, and organic farming is never mentioned.
  • ✓ (b) About 15 per cent from agriculture plus another 17 per cent from 'forestry, land use, and land-use change'.
  • ✗ (c) Technology is not discussed at all.
  • ✗ (d) Tropical deforestation appears as a source of emissions; the tropics are not called the chief carbon sinks.

Remember · Add up the shares the passage gives; a large combined share points to the policy lever the author has in mind.

Question and answer: UPSC's official GS Paper II (2016, Series A) — paper ↗ · answer key ↗. Explanation: Minimalist IAS, checked 30 Sept 2026 (how we verify). ·

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