Match List-I with List-II for labour employed with a fixed amount of capital:
| List-I | List-II | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| (A) | Marginal product (MP) rises | (I) | Equal to the average product |
| (B) | MP starts falling | (II) | The production process becomes crowded with the variable input |
| (C) | Sum of the MPs of all units up to a level | (III) | Total product |
| (D) | MP of the first unit of labour | (IV) | Factor proportions become more suitable for production |
Choose the correct answer from the options given below:
Answer & explanation
Correct answer: option 2
The correct answer is Option (2) → (A)-(IV), (B)-(II), (C)-(III), (D)-(I)
With capital fixed, adding labour changes the factor proportions. This decides how MP behaves.
| List-I | List-II | Reason |
|---|---|---|
| (A) Marginal product (MP) rises | (IV) Factor proportions become more suitable for production | At first, more labour makes the mix of land or capital and labour more suitable. |
| (B) MP starts falling | (II) The production process becomes crowded with the variable input | After a point, the process gets too crowded with labour. |
| (C) Sum of the MPs of all units up to a level | (III) Total product | TP is the sum of marginal products of every unit. |
| (D) MP of the first unit of labour | (I) Equal to the average product | For the first unit, MP and AP are the same. |
NCERT (2026-27): “3.4 The Law of Diminishing Marginal Product and the Law of Variable Proportions … Why does this happen? In order to understand this, we first define the concept of factor proportions. Factor proportions represent the ratio in which the two inputs are combined to produce output. As we hold one factor fixed and keep increasing the other, the factor proportions change. Initially, as we increase the amount of the variable input, the factor proportions become more and more suitable for the production and marginal product increases. But after a certain level of employment, the production process becomes too crowded with the variable input.” “3.3.3 Marginal Product … Since inputs cannot take negative values, marginal product is undefined at zero level of input employment. For any level of an input, the sum of marginal products of every preceeding unit of that input gives the total product. So total product is the sum of marginal products.” “3.5 Shapes of Total Product, Marginal Product and Average Product Curves … For the first unit of the variable input, one can easily check that the MP and the AP are same. …” |