RAS question
Which soil is ideal for rice cultivation?
Correct answer: (D) Alluvial soil with clay content.
Alluvial soil with clay content is ideal for rice cultivation because it retains water needed for paddy conditions.
Explanation
Rice needs fields that can stay wet during the growing season, so the best soil is not just fertile but water-retentive. TNAU Agritech paddy guide says soils with good water retention, a high amount of clay and organic matter are ideal for rice cultivation, and that clay or clay loams are most suited. Such soils can hold water for long and sustain the crop, while rice grows best under submerged conditions. Alluvial soil with clay content fits this requirement: alluvium is among the soil groups where rice is grown, and the clay fraction gives the field the water-holding quality required for paddy cultivation.
Why the other options are wrong
- (A) Desert soil is not ideal because the required condition is good water retention with high clay content, whereas rice needs waterlogged or submerged paddy conditions.
- (B) Sandy soil is unsuitable because ideal rice soil must hold water for long, and clay-rich, water-retentive soils provide that paddy condition.
- (C) Laterite is listed as one soil group where rice may be grown with varying productivity, but TNAU Agritech identifies water-retentive clay or clay loam soils as the ideal condition, not laterite as such.
Concept
This tests the Indian Geography link between soil texture, water retention and crop suitability. It recurs in RAS because agriculture questions often ask why a crop fits a particular physical environment, not just where it is grown.