RAS question
Green Revolution in India was primarily associated with:
Correct answer: (C) High Yielding Variety seeds of wheat and rice.
The Green Revolution in India was primarily associated with high-yielding variety seeds of wheat and rice.
Explanation
The Green Revolution was not a single irrigation scheme or a return to traditional farming; it was a technology package centred on high-yielding variety seeds, especially in wheat and rice. The cited eGyanKosh unit describes the Green Revolution as beginning in the mid-1960s and being based on biochemical innovations: HYV seeds, chemical fertilisers, pesticides and irrigation. It also states that the new wheat seeds introduced in India came from Mexican varieties, while HYV rice seeds drew on Taiwanese-origin material and IRRI varieties. This matches the standard RAS framing: Dr. M.S. Swaminathan and Dr. Norman Borlaug are associated with the spread of HYV-led agriculture, with Punjab and Haryana among the major beneficiary regions.
Why the other options are wrong
- (A) Drip irrigation cannot be the primary association because irrigation was only one supporting input in the HYV package, not the central technological change.
- (B) Genetically modified crops are wrong because the 1960s-70s Green Revolution referred to HYV seeds and associated inputs, while GMO crops came much later.
- (D) Organic farming is wrong because the Green Revolution package depended on chemical fertilisers, pesticides, assured irrigation and mechanisation rather than organic methods.
Concept
This tests the Indian economy syllabus theme of agricultural transformation after Independence. RAS repeats it because Green Revolution questions connect technology, regional development, food security and policy support in one compact concept.