Context:
Foxnuts (Makhana) have become a popular ‘super snack’, with prices rising sharply in both domestic and international markets since 2019.
Foxnuts (Makhana):
- An aquatic crop traditionally grown in India.
- Commonly known as prickly waterlily, makhana, or Gorgon plant
- A labour-intensive crop.
- Climate – Requires a warm, humid climate (20°C to 35°C)
- Soil – Thrives in loamy and clayey soils with good water retention capacity. (pH of the soil – 5.5 to 7.5)
- An obligate self-pollinated, seed-propagated plant.
- Cultivation, collection, and puffing are hereditary traditional practices of the Mallah community in Bihar.
- Approved under the Union government’s One District One Product scheme
- Awarded the Geographical Indication (GI) Tag in 2022.
- Production –
- Found in southern and eastern Asia.
- India contributes to 80% of the world’s demand.
- Bihar produces about 90% of the country’s total production.
- Commercial cultivation in India is mainly limited to the north-eastern part, particularly in the northeast of Bihar.
- Benefits –
- Low glycemic index compared to other carbohydrate foods like rice, bread, etc.
- Leaves contain an alkaloid ‘drummine’ responsible for anti-rheumatism activity.
Source: The Hindu
Previous Year Question
With reference to pulse production in India, consider the following statements:
1. Black gram can be cultivated as both kharif and rabi crop.
2. Green-gram alone accounts for nearly half of pulse production.
3. In the last three decades, while the production of kharif pulses has increased, the production of Rabi pulses has decreased.
Which of the statements given above is/are correct?
[UPSC Civil Services Exam – 2020 Prelims]
(a) 1 only
(b) 2 and 3 only
(c) 2 only
(d) 1, 2 and 3
Answer: (a)
Explanation:
Statement 2 is not correct: Gram is the most dominant pulse but only with a share of around 40 percent in the total production followed by Tur/Arhar at 15 to 20 percent and Urad/Black Matpe and Moong at around 8-10 percent each.
Statement 3 is not correct: The production of pulses for both Rabi and Kharif seasons has increased in the last three decades.
