INDIAN BANKING RADAR (IBR) - IBPS AFO MAINS — AGRICULTURE INTELLIGENCE MOCK

🔥 PLATINUM SERIES 2.0 | VOL. 210

📅 SUNDAY, 25 OCTOBER 2026

🎯 TARGET: IBPS AFO • Agricultural Officer • Agriculture & Rural Development Examinations

🧠 20 MCQs | 20 Marks | 15 Minutes

📊 Difficulty: Moderate to Advanced

🌱 Coverage: Agronomy • Soil Science • Seed Technology • Plant Protection • Animal Husbandry • Agricultural Economics • Fisheries • Extension

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📝 SECTION 1: AGRICULTURE INTELLIGENCE TEST

Instructions

Total questions: 20

Maximum marks: 20

Suggested time: 15 minutes

Correct answer: +1 mark

Incorrect answer: −0.25 mark

Unattempted question: 0 marks

Q1. A soil test indicates high exchangeable sodium, poor soil structure and reduced infiltration in a farmer's field. Which intervention is generally appropriate for reclaiming the sodic soil, subject to the soil's gypsum requirement:

A. Apply additional urea to displace exchangeable sodium

B. Apply lime to increase the soil pH further

C. Apply the recommended quantity of gypsum and provide suitable leaching and drainage

D. Apply only muriate of potash to improve soil aggregation

E. Stop all irrigation permanently

Q2. A farmer grows a pulse crop whose root nodules contain bacteria that convert atmospheric nitrogen into a form usable by the plant. Which organism is most directly associated with this symbiotic process:

A. Rhizobium

B. Nitrosomonas

C. Nitrobacter

D. Pseudomonas fluorescens

E. Saccharomyces

Q3. During a period of high temperature and intense sunlight, an agricultural officer explains why maize can photosynthesise efficiently under conditions that may reduce the efficiency of many C3 crops. Which feature is primarily responsible:

A. Absence of chlorophyll in the leaves

B. Exclusive dependence on photorespiration

C. Complete absence of stomatal regulation

D. Inability to fix atmospheric carbon dioxide

E. The C4 pathway, which concentrates carbon dioxide around Rubisco and reduces photorespiration

Q4. A rice farmer wishes to reduce irrigation-water use without exposing the crop to damaging water stress. Which field-management practice best represents Alternate Wetting and Drying (AWD):

A. Maintain deep standing water throughout the entire crop cycle

B. Allow controlled drying and re-irrigate according to suitable field-water thresholds, while protecting sensitive growth stages

C. Withhold irrigation until severe leaf rolling occurs

D. Irrigate only once, immediately after transplanting

E. Replace all soil irrigation with foliar nutrient sprays

Q5. A soil analysis shows that a field is acidic and requires correction before cultivation of a lime-sensitive crop. Which recommendation is most appropriate:

A. Apply gypsum in every acidic soil without further assessment

B. Increase nitrogen application to neutralise the acidity

C. Apply common salt to increase soil pH

D. Select a suitable liming material and calculate its rate using the soil-test-based lime requirement

E. Apply additional sulphur to neutralise the acidity

Q6. Seeds of a particular temperate species exhibit physiological dormancy that can be overcome by moist chilling. Which seed treatment is appropriate:

A. Expose the seeds to prolonged dry heat

B. Subject the seeds to suitable moist, low-temperature conditions for the required period

C. Store the seeds in waterlogged, oxygen-free conditions

D. Apply a high dose of nitrogen fertiliser before sowing

E. Keep the seeds under intense sunlight until the seed coat cracks

Q7. A farmer observes poor early growth in a phosphorus-deficient field. Because phosphorus is relatively immobile in soil, which fertiliser-placement strategy can improve early root access under suitable conditions:

A. Apply phosphorus only after the crop reaches maturity

B. Broadcast phosphorus on the soil surface and leave it unincorporated in every situation

C. Replace phosphorus fertiliser with additional nitrogen

D. Place the recommended phosphorus fertiliser in a suitable band near the developing root zone, avoiding seed injury

E. Apply the entire phosphorus requirement as an indiscriminate foliar spray

Q8. An extension officer installs species-specific sex pheromone traps in a crop to monitor a particular insect pest. Trap catches increase over several observations. What is the most appropriate interpretation:

A. The catches provide information about pest activity and trends that can support field scouting and management decisions

B. The increase proves that every insect pest in the field has crossed its economic threshold

C. The traps eliminate the need for all other pest-management measures

D. The traps directly measure soil nutrient availability

E. The traps guarantee complete pest eradication without further intervention

Q9. A farmer cultivates a sandy field. Water infiltrates rapidly, but crops experience moisture stress sooner than those grown in a nearby loam soil under similar weather conditions. Which soil property best explains this:

A. Sandy soil invariably has the highest clay content

B. Sandy soil has no pore spaces through which water can move

C. Sandy soil generally has relatively low water-holding capacity and rapid drainage compared with loam

D. Sandy soil is always waterlogged after irrigation

E. Sandy soil invariably has more plant-available water than clay loam

Q10. Laboratory testing identifies a susceptible fungal pathogen associated with a seed lot. Which statement best describes the role of an appropriate fungicidal seed treatment:

A. It guarantees protection against all fungal, bacterial and viral diseases throughout the crop cycle

B. It corrects soil salinity before the crop is planted

C. It eliminates the need for disease surveillance

D. It replaces the need for suitable seed quality and crop management

E. It can reduce the risk from susceptible seed-borne or soil-borne fungal pathogens, depending on the product and treatment

Q11. Several cattle in a village develop fever, excessive salivation and characteristic lesions in the mouth and around the feet. The disease is spreading rapidly among susceptible cloven-hoofed animals. Which disease should be suspected:

A. Mastitis

B. Milk fever

C. Bovine ketosis

D. Foot-and-mouth disease

E. Theileriosis

Q12. A dairy farmer reports reduced milk yield, abnormal milk and inflammation of the udder. Which condition most closely matches these signs:

A. Milk fever, primarily associated with low blood calcium

B. Bloat, associated with excessive gas accumulation in the rumen

C. Mastitis, an inflammation of the mammary gland commonly associated with infection

D. Foot-and-mouth disease, which is defined by inflammation of the mammary gland

E. Ketosis, a metabolic disorder characterised by udder inflammation

Q13. Individual farmers receive low prices because they sell small quantities separately and have limited bargaining power. Which intervention through a Farmer Producer Organisation (FPO) most directly addresses this problem:

A. Aggregate members' produce and organise collective marketing to improve bargaining power and market access

B. Guarantee every member a fixed profit regardless of market prices

C. Eliminate the need for quality standards and grading

D. Replace commercial banks as the sole source of rural credit

E. Provide unlimited credit without repayment obligations

Q14. A farmer wants to access an electronic agricultural trading platform intended to connect participating agricultural markets and support transparent price discovery. Which platform fulfils this purpose:

A. Pradhan Mantri Fasal Bima Yojana

B. Soil Health Card Scheme

C. Kisan Credit Card

D. PM-KISAN

E. National Agriculture Market (e-NAM)

Q15. The market price of a commodity increases by 10%, while its quantity demanded decreases by 20%. Using the conventional percentage-change formula, what is the absolute value of price elasticity of demand:

A. 0.5

B. 2.0

C. 1.0

D. 10.0

E. 20.0

Q16. Following heavy rainfall, a field remains waterlogged and crop roots show signs of oxygen deficiency. The problem persists even after rainfall stops. Which intervention most directly addresses the underlying field condition:

A. Increase irrigation frequency without assessing the water balance

B. Apply nitrogen fertiliser as the only corrective measure

C. Compact the soil further to restrict water movement

D. Maintain standing water throughout the crop cycle

E. Establish suitable surface or subsurface drainage based on soil, topography and water-table conditions

Q17. A farmer wants to convert suitable biodegradable organic waste into a stabilised organic amendment using earthworms and associated microorganisms. Which process should be adopted:

A. Soil solarisation

B. Vermicomposting

C. Chemical fumigation

D. Deep ploughing alone

E. Controlled burning of crop residues

Q18. A soil-borne pathogen repeatedly damages a crop that is cultivated in the same field every season. Which strategy can help reduce disease pressure when the pathogen has a limited host range and a suitable non-host crop is available:

A. Grow the susceptible crop more frequently

B. Retain infected residues and plant the same host crop continuously

C. Increase the area under the susceptible crop without changing management

D. Introduce a suitable non-host crop into the rotation to interrupt the pathogen's life cycle

E. Increase irrigation irrespective of soil moisture and pathogen requirements

Q19. In a biofloc aquaculture system, microbial communities help manage nitrogenous waste and form aggregates that may be consumed by cultured aquatic animals. Which management principle remains essential for the system to function properly:

A. Aeration can be stopped because microbes supply all required oxygen

B. Water-quality testing is unnecessary once biofloc develops

C. Maintain adequate aeration and monitor water quality, solids and feeding while managing microbial nutrient recycling

D. Biofloc eliminates all infectious diseases

E. Feed quantity no longer affects water quality

Q20. A Krishi Vigyan Kendra (KVK) finds that a recommended crop-production technology performs differently across local farming situations. Which activity best reflects the KVK's extension mandate:

A. Conduct location-specific technology assessment, field demonstrations and capacity development for farmers

B. Guarantee minimum support prices for all agricultural commodities

C. Replace all state agricultural departments

D. Issue commercial banking licences to rural institutions

E. Regulate agricultural exports and imports

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🔐 SECTION 2: ANSWER KEY

Q1. C

Q2. A

Q3. E

Q4. B

Q5. D

Q6. B

Q7. D

Q8. A

Q9. C

Q10. E

Q11. D

Q12. C

Q13. A

Q14. E

Q15. B

Q16. E

Q17. B

Q18. D

Q19. C

Q20. A

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⚡ SECTION 4: RAPID REVISION CAPSULE

🌱 Sodic soil: Gypsum can supply calcium for sodium replacement; appropriate leaching and drainage are important.

🫘 Rhizobium: Symbiotic nitrogen fixation in legumes.

🌽 Maize: C4 crop.

💧 AWD: Controlled wetting and drying in rice cultivation.

🧪 Acidic soil: Select liming material and rate based on soil testing.

🌰 Cold stratification: Moist chilling for seeds with the relevant dormancy requirement.

🌾 Phosphorus: Relatively immobile; suitable placement can improve root access.

🪲 Pheromone traps: Pest monitoring and population-trend assessment.

🐄 FMD: Contagious viral disease of susceptible cloven-hoofed animals.

🥛 Mastitis: Inflammation of the mammary gland.

👨‍🌾 FPO: Collective marketing, aggregation and improved bargaining opportunities.

📈 e-NAM: Electronic agricultural trading and market integration.

📊 Price elasticity: Percentage change in quantity demanded divided by percentage change in price.

🌊 Waterlogging: Excess water reduces root-zone aeration; suitable drainage is important.

♻️ Vermicomposting: Earthworms and microorganisms process suitable organic waste.

🔄 Crop rotation: A suitable non-host crop can interrupt certain pathogen cycles.

🐟 Biofloc: Microbial nutrient recycling with essential aeration and water-quality control.

🏫 KVK: Technology assessment, demonstrations and capacity development.

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🏆 SECTION 5: SCORE YOUR PERFORMANCE

Scoring formula

Score = Correct answers − (0.25 × Incorrect answers)

Score     IBR practice interpretation

18–20    Excellent conceptual command

15–17.75              Very good; revise missed concepts

12–14.75              Satisfactory; strengthen application

8–11.75                More topic-wise revision required

Below 8                Revisit fundamentals before the next mock

These are IBR practice benchmarks, not official IBPS cut-offs.

🎯 YOUR ACTION PLAN

After attempting the mock:

Identify the three concepts you found most difficult.

Review every incorrect and guessed answer.

Revise the related concept rather than memorising only the correct option.

Record recurring errors for targeted revision.

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DISCLAIMER: This is an independently prepared educational practice mock by Indian Banking Radar. It is not an official IBPS publication, and the format and difficulty are intended for practice rather than to reproduce the official examination pattern. Agricultural recommendations vary by crop, soil, climate and region. Consult relevant ICAR institutions, State Agricultural Universities and qualified specialists for field-level recommendations.

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