Which of the following is a secondary activity?
Answer & explanation
Correct answer: option 4
The correct answer is Option (4) → Processing of sugarcane to make sugar
Primary activities take things directly from nature. Secondary activities add value to these natural resources by turning raw materials into useful products. Tertiary activities provide services.
Option (1) Subsistence farming — Incorrect. Growing crops for one’s own family is agriculture, a primary activity.
Option (2) Gathering of fruits and nuts — Incorrect. Gathering takes food straight from the forest, so it is a primary activity.
Option (3) Providing banking facilities — Incorrect. Banking is a service, so it is a tertiary activity.
Option (4) Processing of sugarcane to make sugar — Correct. Sugarcane is a farm raw material. Turning it into sugar adds value, and sugar making is an agro-processing industry.
NCERT (2026-27): “Secondary Activities … All economic activities namely primary, secondary, tertiary and quaternary, revolve around obtaining and utilising resources necessary for survival. Secondary activities add value to natural resources by transforming raw materials into valuable products.” “(a) Agro based Industries … Agro processing involves the processing of raw materials from the field and the farm into finished products for rural and urban markets. Major agro-processing industries are food processing, sugar, pickles, fruits juices, beverages (tea, coffee and cocoa), spices and oils fats and textiles (cotton, jute, silk), rubber, etc.” |