Among the following, which one is the least water-efficient crop?
- Sugarcane
- Sunflower
- Pearl millet
- Red gram
Explanation
Option (a) is correct
- Sugarcane requires the most water among the listed crops, making it the least water-efficient. It is a high-water-requiring crop that requires 1400-2300 mm in subtropics and 2000-3500 mm in tropics.
Option (b) is incorrect
- Sunflower is a prime oilseed crop grown in temperate countries, and the crop is one of the most important sources of vegetable oil in the world. It is a photo-insensitive crop, meaning it can be cultivated in various seasons such as Kharif, Rabi, and spring across India. It thrives in a cool climate during germination and the seedling stages. Warm weather is ideal from the seedling stage through flowering, with sunny days preferred during flowering and maturation. High temperatures at maturity reduce the linoleic acid content in the seeds. Sunflowers have a moderate water requirement, making them less demanding than some other crops.
Option (c) is incorrect
- Bajra (Pearl Millet) is the second most important millet. Just like jowar, it is also used as food and fodder in drier parts of the country. It is a rainfed Kharif crop of the dry and warm north-western and western parts of the country. It is a hardy crop which resists frequent dry spells and drought in this region. Bajra can be grown on poor light sandy soils, black and red soils. It requires 40-50 cm of annual rainfall. The upper limit is 100 cm. It is sown either as a pure or mixed crop with cotton, jowar and ragi.
Option (d) is incorrect
- Toor dal or Arhar dal is considered to be a drought-tolerant legume. It requires 600-650mm of annual rainfall along with moist conditions for the initial eight weeks and dry conditions during its flowering and pod development phase.
