Agriculture

Both statements are correct, as smut and wilt are both recognised diseases affecting sugarcane, alongside red rot, requiring appropriate resistant varieties and management practices. Option A is incorrect as it wrongly excludes the correct second statement. Option B is incorrect as it wrongly excludes the correct first statement. Option D is incorrect since both statements accurately describe recognised sugarcane diseases.

Inter-cropping typically involves growing two or more crops simultaneously in a defined, organised row arrangement, distinguishing it from mixed cropping, where crop seeds may be sown together without such a structured pattern. Option B is incorrect as agricultural practice does draw this distinction between the two terms. Option C is incorrect since inter-cropping specifically involves more than one crop, not a single crop alone. Option D is incorrect because inter-cropping refers to a land-based cropping arrangement, not underwater cultivation.

All are correctly matched. ICARDA won the Mega Award for heat-tolerant wheat, Odisha for women-led sustainability, and CIMMYT for its digital platform.

Agricultural Synthesis: The resilience of rural drylands provides the demographic stability needed as India transitions toward cleaner, modern energy infrastructures.

Rice, along with maize, cotton, soybean, and sugarcane, is a major Kharif crop, sown with the monsoon and requiring hot, humid, well-watered conditions. Option A is incorrect as wheat is a classic Rabi crop, sown after the monsoon in cooler conditions. Option B is incorrect since gram is also a Rabi season crop. Option C is incorrect because peas are similarly grown during the Rabi season, not Kharif.

Kharif crops are sown with the onset of the southwest monsoon, typically around June–July, and harvested at the end of the monsoon around September–October, requiring hot, humid conditions and substantial rainfall. Option A is incorrect as winter is associated with the Rabi season, not Kharif. Option C is incorrect since Kharif specifically depends on monsoon rainfall, not a dry summer period. Option D is incorrect because Kharif sowing coincides with the monsoon's onset, not spring.

Both statements are correct, as sugarcane can be raised on diverse soil types ranging from sandy soils to clay loams, though a well-drained, deep, loamy soil is considered ideal for best results. Option A is incorrect as it wrongly excludes the correct second statement. Option B is incorrect as it wrongly excludes the correct first statement. Option D is incorrect since both statements accurately describe suitable sugarcane soils

Both statements are correct, as Rabi crops are sown after the monsoon around October–November and harvested during spring around March–April, thriving in cooler temperatures. Option A is incorrect as it wrongly excludes the correct second statement. Option B is incorrect as it wrongly excludes the correct first statement. Option D is incorrect since both statements accurately describe the Rabi season.

All statements are correct as per the PIB Bengaluru release. The CSB is leveraging technology and the “Karmayogi” framework to modernize the industry.

Crop rotation helps maintain soil fertility, break the life cycles of pests and diseases specific to a particular crop, and manage weed populations more effectively than continuous mono-cropping. Option A is incorrect as crop rotation specifically involves changing crops, not repeating the same one continuously. Option C is incorrect since crop rotation supports, but does not eliminate, the broader need for fertilizer management. Option D is incorrect because crop rotation is intended to sustain and improve land productivity, not render it unusable.

All statements are correct. The Congress emphasized robust data systems and "living laboratories" to connect research with policy.