A historian is reading seventeenth-century revenue records from two districts of the Mughal empire. One district sends in mostly rice, while the other sends in mostly wheat and millets. In the records of the second district she also finds entries for the cost of wells, ropes and bullocks used for lifting water. She wants to explain both the crop pattern and the farming methods she sees in the records, using what is known about agriculture in that period.
Which factor best explains why the first district produced mainly rice?
Answer & explanation
Correct answer: option 1
The correct answer is Option (1) → It received 40 inches or more of rainfall a year
Option (1) It received 40 inches or more of rainfall a year — Correct. Rice zones were areas that got 40 inches or more of rain a year. Wheat and millets followed as rainfall went down, which fits the second district.
Option (2) It had more wells with water-lifting devices — Incorrect. Wells added water for some crops only. The choice of staple followed how much rain an area got.
Option (3) Its peasants were mostly pahi-kashta cultivators — Incorrect. Pahi-kashta were non-resident peasants who farmed land in another village on contract. Who farmed the land did not decide the crop.
Option (4) It had more land and labour than the second district — Incorrect. Plenty of land and labour explain why farming kept expanding. The staple an area grew was decided by its rainfall.
NCERT (2026-27): “1.3 Irrigation and technology |