RAS question
India's largest import item by value is:
Correct answer: (A) Crude petroleum and petroleum products.
India's largest import item by value is crude petroleum and petroleum products.
Explanation
Crude petroleum and petroleum products form India's largest import item by value because India's economy depends heavily on imported energy. Petroleum accounts for about 25-30% of the total import bill, and India imports about 85% of its crude oil requirement. The DGFT Monthly Bulletin for August 2024 supports this ranking: for April-July 2024-25, petroleum crude alone is listed as the highest import item with the largest share of India's total imports, and petroleum products are listed next among principal import commodities. Gold, coal and electronics are important import heads, but their shares are much smaller than the combined petroleum import basket.
Why the other options are wrong
- (B) Gold is a major import, but the DGFT ranking places it below petroleum crude and petroleum products by value.
- (C) Coal, coke and briquettes are significant imports, but their import share is lower than petroleum crude and petroleum products.
- (D) Electronic goods are an important and growing import category, but the DGFT import ranking still places petroleum ahead of electronics by value.
Concept
India's foreign trade composition gives petroleum imports a central role in the import bill and energy dependence. Petroleum imports recur in RAS preparation because they link the economy syllabus with current account pressure, inflation sensitivity and external-sector policy.