Chapter 4
Economic Base of Assam
Exercises
1. (a) What is Kharif crop?
Answer: Kharif crops are paddy, left paddy, cotton, and maize.
(b) What is a Rabi crop?
Answer: Rabi crops are oilseeds, and Boro paddy, soybean, sesame, pulses, maize, tobacco, wheat, fruits and various vegetables.
(c) What is a medicinal plant?
Answer: Medicinal plants are basil and neem leaves.
(d) What percentage of the people of Assam is dependent on agriculture?
Answer: 80 per cent of the people of Assam depend on agriculture.
2. (a) Where and how is Jhumkheti practiced in Assam?'
Answer: Jhum cultivation is done on the slopes of the hills in Assam. The mountain people cut down the forests on the slopes and set fire to them for cultivation.
(b) What is meant by a crop pot?
Answer: Crop rotation means cultivating the same crop on the same plot of land for many years.
(c) What is meant by cropping intensity?
Answer: Crop intensification means increasing production by increasing agricultural land.
(d) What are the spice crops grown in Assam?
Answer: The spice crops grown in Assam are ginger, garlic and garlic powder.
3. (a) Write about the shortcomings of the agricultural system of Assam?
Answer: The disadvantages of the agricultural system of Assam are-
(1) The size of the farms is small, which makes it difficult to till the land with tractors.
(2) The amount of agricultural land per capita is very low, which prevents many farmers from meeting their own needs.
(3) The yield per hectare was much lower than expected due to the old agricultural practices .
(4) Due to limited irrigation system, water shortage causes severe damage to crops in many areas.
(e) Every year, floods cause extensive damage to agricultural crops.
(b) Explain the seasons in which paddy is cultivated in Assam.
Answer: Paddy is the main agricultural crop in Assam. Rice is the staple food of the Assamese people. Paddy alone is cultivated in 64.52 per cent of the total agricultural land and 91.43 per cent of the total food crop producing area in the State. Four types of paddy are grown in Assam, and they were Shali, Ahu, Boro and Bao.
(c) Write about the environment required for tea cultivation.
Answer: The environment required for tea cultivation is discussed below:
The tea industry in Assam is based on the leaves of tea trees produced by plantation agriculture . The tea industry is the largest foreign exchange earner in Assam. Assam produces 54 per cent of India's tea. The tea industry employs more than 6 lakh people in Assam, of whom 2.7 lakh were women.
The tea industry in Assam has been producing black tea since ancient times but green tea has been produced since the 1980s. This has earned more foreign exchange.
(d) Give a brief overview of the economic situation in Assam.
Answer: Economic Situation of Assam- The overall economy of Assam is mainly dependent on the human resources of the State. Assam, the only plain state in North East India, is surrounded by mountainous states. Karbi Anglong, West Karbi Anglong and Dimapur districts are also hilly. Agriculture, trade and industry in Assam all depend on these economic activities.
Most of the people living in Assam were mainly agriculturalists. The people of Assam have been earning their living by agriculture for centuries. The area used for agriculture is more than the land used in all sectors of the State. The land area used for agriculture is about 54.11 per cent. 80 per cent of the people of the state depend on agriculture.
4. The (a) Where was the first crude oil mined in Assam?
Answer: The first crude oil was mined in Assam at Digboi.
(b) What percentage of the total production of tea in India is produced in Assam?
Answer: Assam produces 54 per cent of the total tea production in India.
(c) In which year was the Industrial Development Corporation of Assam formed?
Answer: The Industrial Development Corporation of Assam was constituted in
(d) Where was the first fertilizer factory established in Assam?
The first fertilizer factory in Assam was established in Dibrugarh .
5. (a) Classify the industries of Assam on the basis of raw materials?
Answer: The industries of Assam depending on raw materials are-
1) Agro based industries
2. Mineral based industries
3. Forest based industries
(b) Write a brief summary of the agro-based industry of Assam?
Answer: Agricultural industry of Assam, about 58.11 per cent of the land in the State is used for agricultural purposes. 80 per cent of the people of the state depend on agriculture. The main factors of agricultural production in Assam are flat land, fertile soil and adequate rainfall as well as favorable climate for agricultural crops.
Forest Products Based Industries- Paper and plywood industries are the main medium scale industries based on forest products in Assam. Two major paper industries have been established in Assam using bamboo. And those two industries are the Nagaon Paper Mill which is now in Morigaon district and the other is the Panchgram Paper Mill in Hailakandi district. Both of these are public sector enterprises. Both those paper mills are currently shut down.
The plywood factory uses forest wood from Assam. Plywood from Assam is used in making tea boxes. In 1984, there were 52 plywood industries in Assam. Of these, 13 are large and the rest are medium enterprises. Some of these industries were closed down to reduce logging, bringing the number of industries to 46 in
(c) Briefly write down the characteristics of the tea industry in Assam.
Tea is the main income generating agriculture in Assam . Suitable environment for tea cultivation is available. There are more than 850 large tea plantations and thousands of small tea plantations in the state. Acidic sloping soils with annual rainfall of 150-200 cm and temperatures above 30°C are found in most districts. Therefore, it is one of the most significant tea producing regions in the world.
The total area under tea cultivation in Assam is 304,133 hectares. The state produces about 642 million kg of tea annually . Assam tea has more color than tea produced elsewhere in the world. Assam tea leaves are harvested twice a year. The first time is taken in March and April and the second time in June-July.
(d) What are the names of the foreign states surrounding Assam?
The foreign countries surrounding Assam are China, Bangladesh, Bhutan and Myanmar .
6. (a) Explain the reasons for the backwardness of Assam in the industrial industry.
Answer: The reasons for the backwardness of Assam in the industrial industry are:
(1) Assam and the entire North East of India is quite far from other parts of the country. The steep land area of only 21-40 km in the Siliguri region has made it difficult to connect with the rest of the country by land and rail. Therefore, the entire North East is lagging behind in terms of industry due to high cost of transportation of raw materials and produce.
(2) Assam and the North East are surrounded by foreign countries like Myanmar, China, Bhutan and Bangladesh. India's relations with all these countries are not very convenient.
(3) Due to distance, it is more expensive to bring some raw materials to Assam and sell the products produced in Assam in major cities of India. Therefore, it is difficult to get fair prices from the products produced in Assam.
(4) The people of Assam are mainly dependent on agriculture. The state is also lagging behind in industry due to lack of qualifications required for industry and courage and mindset to set up industries.
(b) Write about the major industries developed in Assam.
Answer: The major industries developed in Assam are-
(1) Agro-based industries
(2) Mining-based industries and
(3) Forest products based industries
(1) Agro-Based Industries - Agro-based industries are divided into two categories.
(a) Small and large scale industries based on food commodities like tea, maize, oilseeds, paddy, wheat, dairy products, and fruits and vegetables
(b) Industries based on fibrous agricultural products like cotton, cotton, and jute-velvet-erie.
(2) Mining Industries - Oil refineries and petrochemical industries are the major mining industries. Crude oil refining in the petrochemical industry as well as other by-product industries have also been established.
The oil refinery was established in 1901 which is the oldest refinery in India.
(3) Forest product based industries - Paper and plywood industries are the main ones. One of the two major paper industries using bamboo in Assam is the Nagaon Paper Mill. which is now in Morigaon district and the other is Hailakandi district Panchgram paper.
(c) Write about the mining based industries of Assam.
Answer: The mining based industries of Assam are discussed below:
Oil refineries and petrochemical industries are the main mining industries. Apart from crude oil refining in the petrochemical industry, other by-product industries have been established, mainly the plastics (polymer) industry. The Assam Industrial Development Corporation (AIDC) was established in 1971 to prevent wastage of natural gas. It also established the first gas-based petrochemical manufacturing plant in the country.
Bangalore Refinery and Petrochemicals Limited was established by the Government of India on 20 February In 2001, the industry was brought under the Oil Corporation of India. The oil refinery was established in 1901 at Digboi. It is the oldest refinery in India.
Among the other mining industries, the three major industries located in Namrup are Brahmaputra Valley Fertilizer Corporation, Assam Petrochemicals Corporation and Namrup Thermal Power Plant. A total of 64 industrial zones and 50 industrial farms were established for small scale industrial establishments in Assam.
7. Choose the correct answer from the following options
(i) Which sector has seen an increase in income in Assam in 2015-16 compared to 2011-12?
(a) Agriculture (b) Industry
(c) Mineral manufacturing sector (d) Service sector
Answer: (d) Service sector.
(ii) Kharif crop is grown in which month.
(a) April-May to November-December (b) March to June
(c) October to April (d) January to May
Answer: (b) From March to June.
(iii) Which of the following is a zide agricultural crop?
(a) Soybeans (b) Rice
(c) red cabbage (d) wheat
Answer: (c) Red cabbage.
(iv) Which district of Assam has the lowest number of registered industries?
(a) Goalpara (b) Odalguri
(c) Morigaon (d) Dhemaji
Answer: (d) Dhemaji.
(v) What percentage of the total production of tea in India is produced in Assam?
(a) 30% (b) 45%
(c) 54% (d) 67%
Answer: (c) 54%
(vi) In which year was the oldest oil refinery in India, Digboi, established?
(a) 1898. (b)
(c) 1951. (d)
Answer: (b)
(vii) Which of the following types of industries can be established anywhere?
(a) Tea industry (b) Forest products based industry
(c) Mining-based industries (d) Mobile industries
Answer:
