With reference to the sectors of the Indian economy, consider the following pairs:
| Economic activity | Sector | |
|---|---|---|
| 1. | Storage of agricultural produce | Secondary |
| 2. | Dairy farm | Primary |
| 3. | Mineral exploration | Tertiary |
| 4. | Weaving cloth | Secondary |
How many of the pairs given above are correctly matched?
Answer & explanation
Answer: (b) Only two
Only pairs 2 and 4 are right. Dairy farming works on natural products, so it is primary, and weaving turns yarn into cloth, so it is secondary. Storage is a support service, so it is tertiary, and mineral work belongs with mining, a primary activity.
- ✗ 1. Storing farm produce in godowns supports production and trade without making a good. NCERT lists storage among tertiary (service) activities, not secondary.
- ✓ 2. Milk is a natural product from animals. NCERT places agriculture, dairy, fishing and forestry in the primary sector.
- ✗ 3. Minerals and ores are natural products, and mining is a primary activity. Mineral exploration is part of that work, not a support service like banking or trade.
- ✓ 4. Weaving makes cloth from yarn through manufacturing, which is the mark of the secondary sector.
Remember · Primary means taking from nature (farming, dairy, mining). Secondary means manufacturing (weaving). Tertiary means supporting services (transport, storage, banking, trade).
📘 Read it in NCERT: Class 10 Understanding Economic Development, Ch 2 (practise this chapter) · Class 10 Understanding Economic Development, Ch 2 (practise this chapter) · Class 10 Understanding Economic Development, Ch 2 (practise this chapter) · Class 12 Fundamentals of Human Geography, Ch 4 (practise this chapter)
Sources
- NCERT Class 10 · Understanding Economic Development, Chapter 2 “Since most of the natural products we get are from agriculture, dairy, fishing, forestry, this sector is also called agriculture and related sector.”
- NCERT Class 10 · Understanding Economic Development, Chapter 2 “This could be in a factory, a workshop or at home. For example, using cotton fibre from the plant, we spin yarn and weave cloth.”
- NCERT Class 10 · Understanding Economic Development, Chapter 2 “Transport, storage, communication, banking, trade are some examples of tertiary activities.”
- NCERT Class 12 · Fundamentals of Human Geography, Chapter 4 “It, thus includes, hunting and gathering, pastoral activities, fishing, forestry, agriculture, and mining and quarrying.”
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). ·