In which of the following years, share of the tube wells and other wells in…

Concept: The share of one irrigation source in the total net irrigated area is a part-to-whole ratio expressed as a percentage — share (%) = (net area irrigated by that source in a year ÷ total net irrigated area of that same year) × 100. The numerator and the denominator move independently from one year to the next, so a larger absolute area under a source does not by itself mean a larger share. The ratio must therefore be worked out separately for every year before the years can be compared.

Application: Reading the “Tube wells & other wells” column against the “Total” column of the table, the share is computed for each of the four years offered (all figures in thousand hectares).

1. 1998-99: 33988 ÷ 57411 = 0.5920, i.e. 59.20% of that year’s total net irrigated area.

2. 2000-01: 33796 ÷ 55076 = 0.6136, i.e. 61.36% of that year’s total net irrigated area.

3. 2002-03: 34250 ÷ 53778 = 0.6369, i.e. 63.69% of that year’s total net irrigated area.

4. 2004-05: 34785 ÷ 58867 = 0.5909, i.e. 59.09% of that year’s total net irrigated area.

Cross-check: Ranking the four computed percentages gives 63.69% > 61.36% > 59.20% > 59.09%, so the largest share among the years offered belongs to 2002-03.

Contrast: 2002-03 is not the year carrying the largest absolute figure in that column — 2003-04 records 35779 thousand hectares against 34250 in 2002-03 — yet the 2003-04 share is smaller (35779 ÷ 56618 = 63.19%), because 2002-03 has the smallest total net irrigated area in the whole table (53778 thousand hectares). This is precisely why the ratio, and not the raw column figure, settles the comparison.

Hence the share of tube wells and other wells in the total net irrigated area was the highest in 2002-03, at about 63.69%.