(a) Describe the scientific cultivation of mango with reference to regular bearer varieties, propagation, transplanting time…

(a) Scientific cultivation of mango (20 marks)

Mango (Mangifera indica) grows best in a tropical to subtropical climate with a dry spell at flowering, on deep, well-drained loamy soil of pH about 5.5 to 7.5. It is frost-sensitive.

Regular bearing varieties: Neelum, Banganapalli and Totapuri are dependable annual bearers, and the hybrids Mallika, Amrapali, Ratna and Arka Puneet bear regularly, with Amrapali suited to close planting. Many popular varieties, such as Alphonso, Langra and Chausa, tend to alternate bearing.

Propagation: mango is propagated vegetatively, so that the variety comes true. The common methods are veneer (side) grafting and softwood grafting on seedling rootstocks raised from stones, done in the monsoon (July to September), with inarching as an older method. Rootstocks such as Olour, Vellaikolamban and Kurukkan are used in different regions.

Planting time: grafts are planted at the onset of the monsoon, in July to August, in rain-fed areas, and in February to March where irrigation is available. Pits of 1 m³ are dug and left to weather, then filled with topsoil, farmyard manure and single superphosphate. Conventional spacing is about 10 × 10 m, and close spacing (for example 2.5 × 2.5 m for Amrapali) is used in high-density orchards. Young plants are staked, watered and protected from the sun.

General management: training to a good framework, split manuring each year, withholding irrigation for two to three months before flowering, and paclobutrazol or pruning to induce regular bearing.

Mealy bug (Drosicha mangiferae): the nymphs hatch from eggs in the soil in December to January and climb the trunk to suck the sap of panicles and shoots. Control is by ploughing and raking around the tree in November to December to expose and destroy eggs, a soil application of a recommended insecticide dust around the trunk, a 25 to 30 cm band of slippery polythene (with grease) tied round the trunk at about 1 m in December to stop the nymphs climbing, weed removal, and, when they reach the panicles, a spray of imidacloprid or dimethoate. Natural enemies such as the beetle Cryptolaemus montrouzieri also help.

Powdery mildew (Oidium mangiferae): a white, powdery fungal growth on the panicles, flowers and young fruits in cool, cloudy weather in January to March, which causes flower and fruit drop. Control is by spraying wettable sulphur (0.2%) or a systemic fungicide (such as tridemorph, hexaconazole or carbendazim, 0.1%) at panicle emergence, then at 15-day intervals, three sprays in all; sulphur should not be sprayed in hot weather.

(b) Causes of poverty in India; role of agriculture in poverty alleviation and employment (20 marks)

Poverty is the lack of the income or the capabilities to meet basic needs. India has made much progress: NITI Aayog's multidimensional poverty estimate fell from about 29% in 2013–14 to about 11% in 2022–23. But it persists, especially in rural areas, and among Scheduled Castes, Scheduled Tribes and marginal farmers and landless labour.

Major causes:

• Low agricultural productivity and dependence: much of the workforce depends on farming, with small, fragmented holdings and dependence on the monsoon.
• Unemployment, underemployment and disguised unemployment, and low wages in the informal sector.
• Population pressure, and low literacy, skills and health status.
• Inequality in land and assets, and caste, gender and regional disparities.
• Inadequate credit, infrastructure and market access, and vulnerability to drought, floods and price shocks.
• Inflation, slow growth of labour-intensive manufacturing, and leakages and gaps in the delivery of schemes.
• Historical causes, including the colonial period's stagnation of agriculture and de-industrialisation.

Role of agriculture:

1. Employment: farming and allied activities employ about 46% of India's workforce (PLFS 2023–24) although they contribute about 18% of gross value added, so raising farm incomes lifts the largest number of people.
2. Income and productivity: higher productivity through irrigation, improved seed, technology, MSP and market reforms raises farm incomes; crop insurance, credit (Kisan Credit Card) and direct support (PM-KISAN) reduce risk.
3. Food security and prices: higher food-grain output supports the public distribution system and keeps food affordable for the poor.
4. Diversification and non-farm links: horticulture, dairy, poultry, fisheries, agro-processing, farmer producer organisations and agri-enterprises give extra income and rural jobs, particularly for women and small farmers.
5. Rural wage employment through public works (MGNREGA, now succeeded by the VB-G RAM G Act, 2025) that build irrigation and soil-conservation assets.
6. Growth linkages: agriculture supplies raw materials and demand for industry and services, so growth in agriculture reduces poverty more than growth in other sectors.

(c) Types of seed dormancy and the factors responsible (10 marks)

Dormancy is the failure of a viable seed to germinate under conditions that are otherwise favourable.

Types:

• Primary dormancy, present when the seed leaves the plant.
• Secondary dormancy, induced in a non-dormant seed by unfavourable conditions such as high temperature, darkness or lack of oxygen.
• By cause: physical dormancy, from an impermeable seed coat (legumes, cotton, okra); physiological dormancy, from a metabolic block within the embryo, which needs after-ripening or chilling; morphological dormancy, from an underdeveloped embryo (carrot, celery); morphophysiological, a combination of the two; and combinational dormancy, physical plus physiological.

Factors responsible:

• A hard, impermeable seed coat that prevents entry of water and oxygen, or mechanically restrains the embryo.
• Immature or underdeveloped embryos.
• The need for after-ripening or chilling (stratification).
• Germination inhibitors such as abscisic acid, phenolics, coumarin and ammonia in the coat, endosperm or fruit, and lack of promoters such as gibberellins.
• Light (phytochrome control) and temperature requirements.

Dormancy is broken by scarification, stratification, leaching, growth regulators (GA₃), potassium nitrate, and light.