Previous Year Question
Which of the following States of India has the largest area (2010) under tobacco cultivation?
Uttar Pradesh
Karnataka
Andhra Pradesh
Gujarat
Correct Answer: C
Detailed Solution
The question asks about the area under tobacco cultivation, rather than tobacco production, and explicitly refers to the year 2010. In the context of the question period, Andhra Pradesh had the largest area under tobacco cultivation among the given options.
Tobacco is an important commercial crop of India. Andhra Pradesh has been particularly important for the cultivation of Flue-Cured Virginia (FCV) tobacco. An organised system of cultivation, curing and auctioning of tobacco has developed in the coastal and southern parts of the State.
Here, area and production must be distinguished. A state having a larger cultivated area does not necessarily have proportionately higher production because production is also influenced by yield.
The present position should not be applied retrospectively to this old question. For example, official 2019-20 data recorded about 162.26 thousand hectares under tobacco in Gujarat, 90 thousand hectares in Karnataka and 85 thousand hectares in Andhra Pradesh. This shows that state rankings can change over time.