Strategies for Enhancement in Food Production — Practice Questions with Answers

Q1.

Which Indian cattle breed is primarily known as a dairy breed?

• A Ongole
• B Sahiwal
• C Gir
• D Kankrej

Q2.

What is the scientific name of the mulberry silkworm used in sericulture?

• A Antheraea assamensis
• B Apis cerana indica
• C Bombyx mori
• D Apis mellifera

Q3.

Which fish occupies the surface zone in composite fish culture?

• A Rohu
• B Mrigal
• C Common carp
• D Catla

Q4.

Emasculation in plant breeding refers to the removal of:

• A Petals from a flower, leaving reproductive parts intact
• B Stigma from a flower, removing the pollen receptor
• C Ovules from a flower, removing the female gametes
• D Anthers from a bisexual flower

Q5.

Golden Rice is biofortified with which nutrient?

• A Iron, to combat anemia in rice-dependent populations
• B Vitamin C, to improve immune function and wound healing
• C Zinc, to support enzymatic and immune system functions
• D Beta-carotene (Vitamin A precursor)

Q6.

Which microorganism is used as Single Cell Protein and can be grown on waste water?

• A Methylophilus methylotrophus
• B Rhizobium leguminosarum
• C Spirulina
• D Saccharomyces cerevisiae

Q7.

F.C. Steward demonstrated totipotency using cells from which plant?

• A Tobacco
• B Carrot
• C Tomato
• D Potato

Q8.

Which European honey bee species is commonly used in commercial beekeeping?

• A Apis dorsata
• B Apis florea
• C Apis cerana indica
• D Apis mellifera

Q9.

In a honey bee colony, which members are responsible for fertilizing the queen?

• A Worker bees
• B Drones
• C Soldier bees
• D Nurse bees

Q10.

What is an explant in tissue culture?

• A A synthetic nutrient medium containing sucrose and agar
• B A part of a plant used to initiate tissue culture
• C An undifferentiated mass of cells growing on culture medium
• D A plant growth hormone such as auxin or cytokinin

Q11.

Broiler poultry is raised primarily for:

• A Feather production
• B Egg production
• C Meat production
• D Dung as fertilizer

Q12.

Which plant enzyme is used to digest the cell wall of plant cells to obtain protoplasts?

• A Amylase and lipase
• B Protease and nuclease
• C Cellulase and pectinase
• D Ribonuclease and DNase

Q13.

What is callus in the context of plant tissue culture?

• A A specialized root tissue that absorbs water and minerals
• B A virus-free shoot tip excised from the apical meristem
• C A mature seed embryo isolated for embryo rescue
• D An undifferentiated mass of cells growing on culture medium

Q14.

Ranikhet disease affects which type of livestock?

• A Cattle
• B Sheep
• C Poultry
• D Fish

Q15.

The semi-dwarf varieties of wheat Sonalika and Kalyan Sona were developed during:

• A White Revolution
• B Blue Revolution
• C Green Revolution
• D Gene Revolution

Q16.

Which fish occupies the bottom zone in composite fish culture?

• A Catla
• B Silver carp
• C Rohu
• D Mrigal

Q17.

The term micropropagation refers to:

• A Propagation of bacterial colonies on nutrient agar plates
• B Large-scale clonal propagation of plants using tissue culture
• C Propagation of viruses within susceptible host cell lines
• D Propagation of microbes such as Spirulina for SCP production

Q18.

Which Indian scientist played a key role in bringing the Green Revolution to India?

• A C.V. Raman
• B Homi Bhabha
• C M.S. Swaminathan
• D Jagdish Chandra Bose

Q19.

Apis cerana indica is the scientific name for:

• A European honey bee
• B Rock bee
• C Indian honey bee
• D Little bee

Q20.

Aquaculture that specifically involves the farming of fish is known as:

• A Sericulture
• B Silviculture
• C Pisciculture
• D Apiculture

Q21.

Which of the following correctly pairs a fish species with its feeding zone in composite fish culture?

• A Rohu - surface; Catla - middle
• B Catla - surface; Rohu - middle; Mrigal - bottom
• C Mrigal - surface; Catla - bottom; Rohu - middle
• D Silver carp - bottom; Grass carp - surface

Q22.

What is the purpose of bagging in plant hybridization?

• A To physically shield the flower from damage by insect pests
• B To prevent unwanted cross-pollination after emasculation
• C To increase the overall rate of fertilization within the flower
• D To induce chromosome doubling (polyploidy) within the flower

Q23.

Somaclonal variation refers to:

• A Variation due to gamma ray mutation
• B Variation produced in tissue culture-derived plants
• C Variation due to polyploidy induction
• D Variation between different species of somatic cells

Q24.

The Opaque-2 gene is associated with which biofortification achievement?

• A Iron-enriched beans developed through biofortification breeding
• B Vitamin C-enriched bitter gourd developed through selective breeding
• C Beta-carotene in Golden Rice developed through genetic engineering
• D High lysine and tryptophan content in maize

Q25.

Methylophilus methylotrophus is used in SCP production because it grows on:

• A Carbon dioxide and sunlight
• B Crude petroleum
• C Methanol
• D Agricultural waste straw

Q26.

What is a somatic hybrid in plant biotechnology?

• A A hybrid produced by the sexual fusion of gametes from two distinct species
• B A plant produced by fusion of protoplasts from two different plant species
• C A plant that has undergone a deliberate doubling of its chromosome number
• D A hybrid produced through repeated backcrossing to a single parental line

Q27.

Norman Borlaug, who developed semi-dwarf wheat varieties, was awarded the Nobel Prize for:

• A Chemistry
• B Physiology or Medicine
• C Peace
• D Literature

Q28.

Muga silk is produced by which silkworm species?

• A Bombyx mori
• B Antheraea mylitta
• C Samia cynthia
• D Antheraea assamensis

Q29.

Which of the following is NOT a step in the conventional plant breeding process?

• A Collection of germplasm
• B Protoplast fusion
• C Hybridization of selected parents
• D Testing and release of new varieties

Q30.

Colchicine is used in plant breeding to:

• A Induce broad-spectrum disease resistance in treated seedlings
• B Cause random point mutations throughout the plant genome
• C Prevent pollen grains from germinating on the stigma surface
• D Induce polyploidy by inhibiting spindle formation

Q31.

Pomato, the somatic hybrid produced by fusing protoplasts of potato and tomato, is notable because:

• A It has achieved widespread commercial success across global agricultural markets
• B It produces both potatoes and tomatoes on the same plant but is not commercially viable
• C It produces a significantly higher yield than either of its two parent species
• D It shows resistance to essentially every known plant pathogen and pest

Q32.

Meristem culture or shoot tip culture is specifically used to obtain:

• A Polyploid plants with artificially doubled chromosome sets
• B Callus tissue used specifically for SCP production
• C Virus-free plants through micropropagation
• D Plants carrying deliberately induced genetic mutations

Q33.

The CIFA organization in India is associated with:

• A Poultry disease control
• B Freshwater fish farming and research
• C Silk production certification
• D Plant variety protection

Q34.

In mutation breeding, which agent is commonly used to induce mutations in crop plants?

• A Colchicine
• B Cytokinin
• C Gamma rays
• D Gibberellin

Q35.

Which high-yielding rice varieties were developed in India during the Green Revolution?

• A IR-8 and IR-36
• B Ratna and Jaya
• C Pusa Basmati and Taraori
• D Sonalika and Kalyan Sona

Q36.

Which poultry disease is also known as fowl plague and caused by a paramyxovirus?

• A Fowl pox
• B Fowl cholera
• C Marek disease
• D Ranikhet disease

Q37.

Germplasm collection in plant breeding refers to:

• A Collection limited mainly to seeds harvested from hybrid plants only
• B Collection of all diverse alleles and genotypes of crop plants and wild relatives
• C Collection of pollen grains specifically reserved for hybridization work later
• D Collection of plant hormones used to supplement tissue culture media regularly

Q38.

A cybrid differs from a somatic hybrid in that:

• A A cybrid has only combined cytoplasm from two parents while the nucleus is from one parent only
• B A cybrid is sometimes mistakenly thought to result from gamete fusion while a somatic hybrid results from protoplast fusion instead
• C A cybrid is sometimes mistakenly thought to be formed by crossing two different species together sexually
• D A cybrid is sometimes mistakenly thought to lack any nuclear DNA from either combined parent organism

Q39.

Which organization promotes the export of marine products in India?

• A CIFA
• B NABARD
• C MPEDA
• D ICAR

Q40.

Spirulina, used as SCP, is best classified as:

• A A eukaryotic green alga
• B A fungus
• C A prokaryotic cyanobacterium
• D A heterotrophic bacterium

Q41.

Mutation in mung bean using gamma rays was used to develop resistance against:

• A Leaf curl virus
• B Yellow mosaic virus
• C Bean blight
• D Root rot disease

Q42.

In composite fish culture, exactly how many species are typically stocked together, and what is the primary ecological rationale?

• A Three species; specifically chosen to maximize overall genetic diversity within the pond
• B Five to six species; to utilize all food resources in different water zones simultaneously
• C Two species; deliberately chosen to allow competitive exclusion of the weaker species over time
• D Eight species; stocked mainly to increase species richness for general ecosystem stability

Q43.

Why is pituitary hormone injection used in composite fish culture systems?

• A To increase overall disease resistance in farmed fish stocks over time
• B To induce spawning in fish that do not breed in pond conditions
• C To accelerate the feed conversion ratio in broiler fish specifically
• D To stimulate immune response against common fish pathogens generally

Q44.

Protoplast fusion in somatic hybridization can be achieved by which of the following methods?

• A Chemical treatment with polyethylene glycol or electrical stimulation
• B Mainly by using direct microinjection techniques on isolated protoplasts
• C Mainly through treatment with restriction enzymes that nick the cell membrane
• D By exposing the protoplasts to UV radiation to induce membrane fusion

Q45.

CIMMYT, where protein-enriched Opaque-2 maize was developed, stands for:

• A Central Institute for Maize and Millet Yield Technologies
• B International Maize and Wheat Improvement Center
• C Consortium for International Maize Mutation and Yield Testing
• D Center for Integrated Maize and Molecular Yield Techniques

Q46.

Which of the following statements about totipotency is most scientifically precise?

• A Mainly specialized meristematic cells located at the shoot apex are capable of exhibiting genuine totipotency in plants under usual circumstances
• B Every living plant cell has the genetic information to develop into a whole organism, as demonstrated by F.C. Steward with carrot phloem cells
• C Totipotency is restricted mainly to undifferentiated embryonic cells and is rarely artificially induced in mature tissue according to most researchers
• D Totipotency generally requires both auxin and cytokinin to be present in roughly balanced concentrations over time in the majority of cases studied

Q47.

In the context of plant breeding, what is meant by a superior recombinant?

• A A plant produced mainly through modern genetic engineering techniques in typical laboratory settings under usual circumstances
• B A plant produced by inducing polyploidy that happens to show superior traits according to most researchers
• C A progeny plant from hybridization that combines desirable traits from both parents better than either parent
• D A plant that acquired disease resistance through a spontaneous mutation event in the majority of cases studied

Q48.

What distinguishes capture fishery from culture fishery in terms of resource management?

• A Capture fishery is mainly restricted to freshwater resources while culture fishery is mainly restricted to marine resources as widely reported
• B Capture fishery involves harvesting fish from natural water bodies while culture fishery involves controlled rearing of fish in managed environments
• C Capture fishery generally yields more total production per unit area than culture fishery in most observed cases in standard practice under most conditions encountered
• D Capture fishery mainly relies on polyculture methods while culture fishery generally uses monoculture techniques instead as frequently observed in practice

Q49.

Why does polyploidy often result in larger plant organs and potential seedlessness in some crops?

• A Polyploid plant cells generally contain a greater overall number of mitochondria, generating somewhat more growth energy overall in many documented cases
• B Having multiple chromosome sets often increases cell size and metabolic activity; odd-ploidy plants cannot form viable gametes, resulting in seedlessness
• C Polyploidy specifically activates otherwise largely dormant genes that subsequently produce additional plant growth hormones according to conventional understanding
• D Polyploid plants characteristically develop noticeably thicker cell walls that retain somewhat more water, enlarging organs gradually in routine practice

Q50.

What is the significance of using shoot apical meristems rather than leaf or root explants for producing virus-free plants?

• A Shoot meristem tissue generally grows measurably faster when placed in culture medium than other available tissues overall in most cases under typical conditions
• B Shoot apical meristems are typically free of viruses as viruses spread through vascular tissue which has not yet differentiated in the meristem
• C Meristem cells alone are sometimes understood to possess totipotency, a property that ordinary leaf cells largely lack overall according to standard textbooks
• D Shoot meristems are known to generate a considerably greater amount of callus tissue than other types of explant material in general practice

Q51.

Biofortification of iron-rich beans has achieved approximately how much more iron than conventional varieties?

• A 1.5 times more iron
• B 2 times more iron
• C 3 times more iron
• D 5 times more iron

Q52.

What is the key difference between an interspecific hybrid and a somatic hybrid in plant breeding?

• A Interspecific hybrids generally come from crossing two different varieties of the exact same species, unlike true somatic hybrid plants as frequently described in most textbook accounts
• B Interspecific hybrids result from sexual crossing between two different species while somatic hybrids are produced by protoplast fusion bypassing sexual incompatibility barriers
• C Interspecific hybrids can mainly be produced under sterile in vitro laboratory conditions, whereas somatic hybrids often form outdoors during normal conditions as generally observed
• D There is sometimes thought to be no real meaningful difference, since both processes yield the exact same type of hybrid plant in typical laboratory settings under usual circumstances

Q53.

In apiculture, the queen bee differs from worker bees primarily in that:

• A The queen bee alone is sometimes thought to possess largely functional wings while worker bees remain largely wingless during normal conditions
• B The queen develops from a fertilized egg fed exclusively on royal jelly throughout its larval period, making it reproductively complete
• C The queen bee herself is sometimes thought to be diploid while all the worker bees in the colony are instead largely haploid in most cases
• D The queen is sometimes thought to develop via parthenogenesis while worker bees instead develop from separately fertilized eggs under typical conditions

Q54.

How does SCP from Spirulina help address global food security challenges more sustainably than conventional protein sources?

• A It generally requires large areas of fertile agricultural land, placing it in noticeable competition with conventional food crops according to most researchers in the majority of cases studied
• B It can be grown on waste water using non-agricultural substrates, has a very short generation time, and yields protein per unit area far exceeding conventional crops or livestock
• C It mainly supplies a genuinely complete dietary protein profile when combined with several other separate food sources as widely reported in standard practice under most conditions encountered
• D It fundamentally depends on fairly expensive technology that consequently remains largely inaccessible to many developing nations as frequently observed in practice in many documented cases

Q55.

Which of the following best explains why crossbreeding exotic and indigenous cattle breeds is preferred in tropical dairy farming?

• A Purebred exotic cattle breeds alone consistently provide the absolute maximum milk yield under every possible climatic condition as widely reported
• B Crossbreeding combines the high milk yield traits of exotic breeds with the disease resistance, heat tolerance, and adaptability of indigenous breeds
• C Purebred indigenous cattle breeds actually produce considerably more milk than exotic breeds do under typical tropical farming conditions in standard practice
• D Crossbreeding programs are undertaken mainly and primarily to produce drought-resistant draft animals suited for heavy farm labor under most conditions encountered

Q56.

What is the significance of floriculture in the context of beekeeping?

• A Floriculture plants are used by beekeepers mainly as a direct food source specifically intended for developing bee larvae alone as commonly observed in practice in many documented cases
• B The proximity of bee colonies to flowering crops in floriculture ensures pollination of plants and simultaneously increases honey production from abundant nectar sources
• C Floriculture operations supply medicinal herbs that beekeepers subsequently add directly into honey during its later processing according to conventional understanding
• D Floriculture crops are routinely harvested specifically to supply structural building material used in constructing wooden beehives in routine practice overall in most cases

Q57.

In the context of Green Revolution semi-dwarf varieties, why does a shorter plant stature (dwarfism) confer an agronomic advantage?

• A Dwarf crop plants generally consume considerably less water overall and consequently survive drought conditions noticeably better
• B Dwarf varieties can tolerate higher doses of fertilizers without lodging (falling over), allowing greater biomass and grain production
• C Dwarf plant varieties are considerably easier for farmers to harvest, both manually by hand and also using mechanical equipment
• D Dwarf crop varieties characteristically develop noticeably deeper root systems that absorb considerably more nutrients from the soil

Q58.

What distinguishes a mutualistic crop-pest resistance breeding approach from chemical pest control in terms of long-term sustainability?

• A Pest-resistant crop varieties actually require progressively greater chemical input over successive growing seasons as resistance breaks down under typical conditions according to standard textbooks
• B Breeding pest-resistant varieties provides durable, heritable resistance that reduces chemical input dependency, though it requires longer development time compared to pesticide application
• C Chemical pest control methods are generally preferred by farmers since resistant crop varieties tend to reduce overall field biodiversity in general practice as commonly described in most textbook accounts
• D Pest-resistant crop varieties are invariably and consistently far more expensive for breeders to develop than equivalent pesticide programs during normal conditions as generally observed

Q59.

The hormone-based sexing of bees and production of drones via parthenogenesis relates to which chromosomal mechanism?

• A Drone bees develop specifically from fertilized eggs that subsequently and selectively lose exactly one entire chromosome set afterward
• B Drones develop from unfertilized eggs through arrhenotoky (haploid parthenogenesis), making them haploid with only one set of chromosomes
• C Drone bees remain fully diploid in chromosome number, just like queen bees, but are instead differentiated purely through hormone signaling
• D Drone bees are actually produced from ordinary female larvae that subsequently undergo a later hormonally triggered sex reversal process

Q60.

Why is regeneration from callus considered an indirect organogenesis pathway compared to direct organogenesis from an explant?

• A Callus-mediated regeneration usually and invariably produces polyploid plants while direct organogenesis instead produces mainly diploid plants in typical laboratory settings under usual circumstances
• B Callus regeneration involves an intermediate dedifferentiated (unorganized) phase before redifferentiation, allowing somaclonal variation; direct organogenesis maintains tissue organization throughout
• C Callus tissue culture generally proceeds considerably faster and resists microbial contamination noticeably better than direct organogenesis does according to most researchers in the majority of cases studied
• D Direct organogenesis methods require a considerably more chemically complex growth medium formulation than callus-mediated regeneration needs as widely reported in standard practice under most conditions encountered

Q61.

Which combination of auxin-to-cytokinin ratio in plant tissue culture medium promotes root formation versus shoot formation?

• A High auxin and low cytokinin promotes shoot formation; high cytokinin and low auxin promotes root formation
• B High auxin and low cytokinin promotes root formation; high cytokinin and low auxin promotes shoot formation
• C Equal concentrations of both hormones always promote callus only
• D Cytokinin alone is sufficient for both root and shoot formation depending on concentration