Read the following passage and answer the question: Protection and…
2023
Read the following passage and answer the question:
Protection and conservation of forests and wildlife are essential to maintain the earth's health and environment. Forests play a key role in the maintenance of climate, rain-patterns, water and soil conservation. India has 16 percent of the world's population with only 2.4 percent of its land area. There is much pressure on our natural resources including forests. Due to increasing consumerism and nature-hostile activities, the forest cover is finishing very fast. Thousands of snails, frogs, rats, earthworms, cockroaches and other animals are killed for dissection in schools, colleges and laboratories for experiments. This disturbs the ecological balance. There is mindless destruction of forests for timber, firewood and fuel. Every year there is a loss of about 1.3 lakh hectares of forest area in India because of indiscriminate clearing of forests for cultivation, quarrying and large dams and irrigation projects. Over-grazing has also taken its toll. The result is serious ecological imbalance and environmental degradation. Conservation of forests and wildlife is also important as they make life beautiful and colourful. Their proper protection and conservation also means a continuous and adequate supply of food, fodder, medicines, timber, etc.
Our natural resources are under pressure because
Answer: C. India has 16 percent of the world's population and only 2.4 percent of its land area. — ConceptIn reading comprehension, a causal question is answered by locating the cause explicitly linked to the stated effect in the passage. A relevant detail…
- A.
Other nations are using our natural resources.
- B.
Animals are killed for dissection.
- C.
India has 16 percent of the world's population and only 2.4 percent of its land area.
- D.
The government does not care.
Show answer & explanation
Correct answer: C
Concept
In reading comprehension, a causal question is answered by locating the cause explicitly linked to the stated effect in the passage.
A relevant detail must explain the broad effect named in the question, not merely describe another consequence or introduce an unstated cause.
Application
The passage directly links pressure on natural resources to a demographic imbalance: India has 16 percent of the world’s population but only 2.4 percent of its land area. A large population supported by a comparatively small land base places greater demand on each unit of available resources.
Contrast
Other nations using India’s resources is not stated in the passage.
Killing animals for dissection is presented as an activity that disturbs ecological balance, not as the broad demographic reason for pressure on natural resources.
The population-to-land comparison supplies the passage’s direct cause of resource pressure.
Government indifference is not asserted in the passage.
Cross-check
Substituting the population and land figures into the sentence gives a coherent cause-and-effect statement: high population demand is concentrated on a small share of land and resources.
Therefore, the answer is: India has 16 percent of the world’s population and only 2.4 percent of its land area.