Consider the following:
- 1.Cashew
- 2.Papaya
- 3.Red sanders
How many of the above trees are actually native to India?
Answer & explanation
Answer: (a) Only one
Only red sanders is Indian by origin: it grows wild in a small tract of the southern Eastern Ghats. Cashew and papaya are both American plants brought to India in the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries, even though India is now a leading grower of both.
- ✗ 1. Cashew (Anacardium occidentale) is a native of eastern Brazil. The Portuguese introduced it to India in the 16th century, first in Goa, from where it spread along the coasts.
- ✗ 2. Papaya came from the New World (the Americas) along with the pineapple, tomato, potato and chilli during the Mughal period, as NCERT's history text notes.
- ✓ 3. Red sanders (Pterocarpus santalinus, 'rakta chandan') is native to southern India, found on dry, rocky hills of the south-eastern peninsula; it is prized and heavily smuggled for its red heartwood.
Remember · Red sanders = native, endemic to the southern Eastern Ghats (mainly Andhra Pradesh). Cashew (Brazil) and papaya (tropical America) were introduced by the Portuguese.
📘 Read it in NCERT: Class 12 Themes in Indian History, Part II, Ch 4 (practise this chapter)
Sources
- FAO Ecocrop: Pterocarpus santalinus (red sanders) ↗ “Red sandalwood is native of southern India. In southeastern India, it is found at elevations from 150-1000 m. It usually occur on dry hilly and often rocky ground.”
- NCERT Class 12 · Themes in Indian History, Part II, Chapter 4 “Vegetables like tomatoes, potatoes and chillies were introduced from the New World at this time, as were fruits like the pineapple and the papaya.”
- Directorate of Cashewnut and Cocoa Development (Ministry of Agriculture, Government of India), Crop history: Cashew ↗ “a native of Eastern Brazil introduced to India just as other commercial crops like Rubber, Coffee, Tea etc. by the Portuguese nearly five centuries back. The first introduction of cashew in India was made in Goa”
- APEDA (Ministry of Commerce and Industry, Government of India), Cashew ↗ “one of the most important cash crops introduced to India in 16th century by Portuguese. In India, Cashew was initially introduced in Goa and further expanded to other states.”
Question and answer: UPSC's official GS Paper I (2024, Series A) — paper ↗ · answer key ↗. Explanation: Minimalist IAS, checked 30 Sept 2026 (how we verify). ·