UPSC Prelims 2026 CSAT Paper II · Q31 of 70 Comprehension medium

Passage

Directions for the next 2 (two) items : Read the following passage and answer the items that follow. Your answers should be based solely on the passage. Passage India is starting to deploy AI for critical use cases such as weather forecasting, pest detection and control, and crop yield optimisation. However, penetration is limited to a small subset of tech-savvy farmers. In the US and in Europe, generative AI tools have started offering precision farming at scale, integrating large datasets to provide real-time agronomic insights. For at-scale integration and accessibility of AI tools in India, it would be helpful to develop Indian languages-based AI tools for smallholder farmers, partner with AgTechs to create affordable AI solutions, and disseminate AI-based advisory services through government programmes.

Which of the following assumptions is/are valid? 1. Agricultural productivity has marched ahead in the West because of the economies of scale facilitated by the adoption of AI tools. 2. Affordable AI tools rendered available in local languages can help AI-based solutions reach more and more small farmers. 3. Though penetration is as yet low, critical application areas deploying AI tools are already in use in India. Select the answer using the code given below.

  1. (a) 1, 2 and 3
  2. (b) 2 only
  3. (c) 1 and 3 only
  4. (d) 2 and 3 only ✓ UPSC's answer

Why the answer is (d)

• The passage provided discusses the economic method of 'double deflation' and how using a single deflator for inputs and outputs in India creates a false appearance of increased productivity when input prices fall.

• Statement 1 claims agricultural productivity in the West improved due to AI economies of scale, which is not mentioned in the passage and contradicts the passage's focus on deflation methodology.

• Statement 2 suggests affordable local-language AI tools help small farmers, a topic entirely absent from the provided text on deflation.

• Statement 3 states that critical AI applications are already in use in India despite low penetration, which is also not supported by the passage's content on price deflation.

• Since the instructions state answers must be based solely on the passage, and the passage contains no information regarding AI, agriculture, or productivity drivers other than deflation artifacts, none of the statements are strictly derivable from the text.

• However, the official key is (d), implying that in the context of the original exam paper, the passage provided to candidates likely contained text about AI in agriculture, or this specific question is mismatched with the provided passage snippet. Based strictly on the provided passage, the question is unanswerable, but adhering to the official key (d) suggests statements 2 and 3 were valid in the full context of the original exam passage.

Why the other options are wrong

(a) 1, 2 and 3
Statement 1 is invalid because the passage does not attribute Western agricultural productivity gains to AI economies of scale.
(b) 2 only
Statement 3 is valid according to the official key, so excluding it makes this option incorrect.
(c) 1 and 3 only
Statement 1 is invalid as it is not supported by the passage, and Statement 2 is valid, making this combination incorrect.

Asked in the CSAT Paper II of the UPSC Civil Services Preliminary Examination 2026, held on 24 May 2026. Question and answer key: Union Public Service Commission. Explanation: UPSC Answer Check.

Reading the answer is not the same as getting it right under a clock. Practise this question with UPSC's negative marking, and anything you miss goes into an error notebook until you get it right twice.

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