Given below are two statements: one is labelled as Assertion (A) and the other is labelled as Reason (R).
Assertion (A): Pollen grains of Parthenium or carrot grass cause pollen allergy.
Reason (R): Parthenium came into India as a contaminant with imported wheat.
In the light of the above statements, choose the most appropriate answer from the options given below:
Answer & explanation
Correct answer: option 2
The correct answer is Option (2) → Both (A) and (R) are true but (R) is not the correct explanation of (A).
Pollen grains of many species cause allergies and bronchial afflictions in some people. Parthenium (carrot grass) is one such plant in India.
Assertion (A): Pollen grains of Parthenium or carrot grass cause pollen allergy. — True. A is about what Parthenium pollen does to people: it causes pollen allergy.
Reason (R): Parthenium came into India as a contaminant with imported wheat. — True. R is about how the plant reached India: its seeds came in as a contaminant with imported wheat, and the plant has now become ubiquitous.
Why R does not explain A? R tells us how Parthenium arrived in India, which explains why it is now found everywhere. It says nothing about why its pollen sets off an allergy. The allergy is a property of the pollen itself and would be the same wherever the plant grew. So both statements are true, but R is not the correct explanation of A.
NCERT Extract:
Stamen, Microsporangium and Pollen Grain – “Pollen grains of many species cause severe allergies and bronchial afflictions in some people often leading to chronic respiratory disorders – asthma, bronchitis, etc. It may be mentioned that Parthenium or carrot grass that came into India as a contaminant with imported wheat, has become ubiquitous in occurrence and causes pollen allergy.”