Question

The prominent beverage crops of India are ___________.
A.Cocoa and Coffee
B.Coffee and chicory
C.Coffee and tea
D.Cocoa and tea

Answer 1

Hint: The potable drink other than water provided by some crop is termed as beverage crops. The raw material for such beverages is obtained from the plants and hence the term beverage crops.

Complete Step by Step Answer: The prominent beverage crops of India are coffee and tea.
Tea is an important beverage crop introduced by the British and is also an example of plantation agriculture in India. It grows well in tropical and sub-tropical climates having deep and fertile well-drained soil which is rich in humus and organic matter. The climate required for tea plantation is a warm and moist frost-free climate with frequent showers around 150-200 centimetres, evenly distributed over the year. It also requires cheap and skilled labour as it is a labour-intensive industry. The major tea producing states in India are West Bengal, Assam, Tamil Nadu and Kerala. Himachal Pradesh, Meghalaya, Andhra Pradesh, Uttaranchal and Tripura are the other tea producing states in the country. India is considered to be the leading producer as well as exporter of tea in the world.
India comprises about four per cent of the world’s coffee production after Vietnam, Colombia, Brazil, Indonesia and Ethiopia. Coffee cultivated in India is done in about 4.54 lakh hectares by 3.66 lakhs coffee farmers. The hot and humid climate is required for coffee cultivation with temperatures ranging from 15˚C and 28˚C. The major coffee producing states are Kerala, Tamil Nadu and Karnataka. The top three buyers of Indian coffee are Russia, Italy and Germany.

Thus, option (C) is correct.

Note: Two coffee varieties are grown on a large scale in India which are Robusta or Coffea canephora and Coffea arabica, out of which arabica is in great demand all over the world. Also, try to keep in mind the beverage crops grown and cultivated in India along with their climatic conditions.