Consider the following trees : 1. Jackfruit (Artocarpus heterophyllus) 2. Mahua (Madhuca indica) 3. Teak (Tectona grandis) How many of the above are deciduous trees?
- (a) Only one
- (b) Only two ✓ UPSC's answer
- (c) All three
- (d) None
Why the answer is (b)
• Deciduous trees shed all their leaves in the dry season; evergreens keep foliage year-round.
• Mahua (Madhuca indica), a tree of the central Indian dry deciduous forests valued for its flowers and oil, is deciduous.
• Teak (Tectona grandis), the characteristic species of India's tropical deciduous (monsoon) forests, sheds its leaves in the dry season.
• Jackfruit (Artocarpus heterophyllus), native to the Western Ghats, is an evergreen tree of humid regions.
• Hence two of the three are deciduous, option (b).
Why the other options are wrong
- (a) Only one
- Both mahua and teak are deciduous, so the count is two.
- (c) All three
- Jackfruit is evergreen, not deciduous.
- (d) None
- Mahua and teak are deciduous.
Asked in the GS Paper I of the UPSC Civil Services Preliminary Examination 2023, held on 28 May 2023. Question and answer key: Union Public Service Commission. Explanation: UPSC Answer Check.