RAS question
Rajasthan is the leading producer of which animal fiber in India?
Correct answer: (D) Wool.
Rajasthan is India's leading producer of wool, contributing 47.98 per cent of the nation's wool production in 2022-23.
Explanation
The animal fibre is wool. Rajasthan is India's largest wool producer, with roughly 40-45 per cent of national output. The Rajasthan Economic Review 2025-26 gives an even more specific figure in its livestock section: Rajasthan had 10.64 per cent of India's sheep and contributed 47.98 per cent of the nation's wool production in 2022-23. Wool, not a crop fibre or another animal fibre, is therefore the relevant answer for Rajasthan's economy. Rajasthan's livestock base, especially sheep, translates into a disproportionately large share of India's wool output, making this a standard RAS economy fact.
Why the other options are wrong
- (A) Silk is not Rajasthan's leading animal fibre; silk production is associated with Karnataka and West Bengal instead.
- (B) Cotton fibre is a crop fibre, not an animal fibre, and cotton fibre leadership is linked with Gujarat and Maharashtra.
- (C) Jute is also a plant fibre rather than an animal fibre, and its production strength is placed in West Bengal and Bihar.
Concept
Rajasthan economy under livestock and animal husbandry includes the link between sheep rearing and wool output. State-specific production leadership recurs in RAS because it is a high-yield area for factual economy questions.