RAS question
Opium (afeem) cultivation in Rajasthan is primarily done in which districts?
Correct answer: (C) Chittorgarh and Pratapgarh.
Rajasthan's licensed opium cultivation is best identified with Chittorgarh and Pratapgarh, both named in the official list of licit opium poppy districts.
Explanation
Licensed opium cultivation in Rajasthan is not a general crop pattern across the state; it is a notified, regulated activity. The Narcotics Control Bureau's Annual Report 2019 says licit opium poppy cultivation is undertaken only in notified tracts, with licences issued by the Central Bureau of Narcotics to cultivators who meet government conditions. For Rajasthan, the report names districts such as Kota, Jhalawar, Chittorgarh and Pratapgarh among the notified opium-poppy districts. Chittorgarh and Pratapgarh both belong to the official licit-cultivation geography, while western districts, the Jaipur-Alwar belt, and combinations with partly non-listed districts fall outside that geography.
Why the other options are wrong
- (A) Jodhpur and Barmer are not named in the official Rajasthan list of licit opium poppy districts cited by the NCB report.
- (B) Kota is named in the notified Rajasthan list, but Bundi is not; the combination is only partly within the official licit-cultivation districts.
- (D) Jaipur and Alwar are not named in the NCB report's Rajasthan districts for licit opium poppy cultivation.
Concept
Rajasthan's specialised agricultural geography includes opium as a regulated narcotic crop, not an ordinary cash crop. District-crop associations connect physical geography, regional economy and state-specific administration.