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

🔥 PLATINUM SERIES 2.0 | VOL. 170

📅 16 SEPTEMBER 2026 | WEDNESDAY

🎯 TARGET: IBPS AFO • AGRICULTURE OFFICER • NABARD • RRB

🧠 20-MCQ AFO-MAINS INTELLIGENCE TEST

⏱️ 20 MINUTES | 📝 20 MARKS

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🔥 BEFORE YOU START

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🎯 FOCUS:

Current Agriculture Affairs • Agronomy • Soil Science • Seed Science • Plant Protection • Fisheries • Animal Husbandry • Farm Management • Agricultural Finance

⚠️ AFO-MAINS APPROACH:

Do not choose an option merely because it sounds technically attractive.

Select the option that best combines:

🌱 Scientific validity

💧 Resource efficiency

🌾 Field feasibility

💰 Economic viability

♻️ Sustainability

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SECTION A — 20-MCQ AFO-MAINS INTELLIGENCE TEST

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Q1. The recent ICAR scientist–farmer interaction at ICAR-ATARI Ludhiana focused on which combination of priorities for the upcoming Rabi season:

A. Rabi preparedness, sustainable agriculture and crop-residue management

B. Only expansion of cotton cultivation

C. Only fisheries infrastructure

D. Only export-oriented horticulture

E. Only livestock vaccination

Q2. In the recent participatory approach to Rabi 2026–27 preparedness, the emphasis is on ensuring timely availability of:

A. Only subsidised farm machinery

B. Appropriate technologies, quality inputs and scientific advisories

C. Only minimum support prices

D. Only crop insurance policies

E. Only agricultural export incentives

Q3. The Global Dryland Congress 2026 covered six major themes. Which combination correctly represents these themes:

A. Irrigation, mechanisation, dairy, fisheries, exports and taxation

B. Seed subsidy, credit, insurance, procurement, storage and logistics

C. Breeding, climate resilience, nutrition and markets, farming systems, seed systems, and gender and youth inclusion

D. Fertiliser pricing, MSP, food processing, dairy, poultry and fisheries

E. Land records, crop loans, warehousing, exports, taxation and rural roads

Q4. The Delhi Declaration on Drylands adopted at the conclusion of Dryland Congress 2026 primarily calls for transforming dryland agriculture through:

A. Expansion of water-intensive crops

B. Greater dependence on imported technologies

C. Reduction of agricultural research cooperation

D. Collaboration, knowledge exchange, innovation and collective action

E. Replacement of dryland farming by irrigated agriculture

Q5. The financial allocation for PMFBY for 2026–27 is:

A. ₹8,500 crore

B. ₹10,000 crore

C. ₹11,440 crore

D. ₹15,000 crore

E. ₹12,200 crore

Q6. Under PMFBY, YES-TECH is primarily associated with:

A. Technology-based crop-yield estimation and loss assessment

B. Weather forecasting for fishermen

C. Livestock breed identification

D. Soil-health-card generation

E. Fertiliser subsidy calculation

Q7. WINDS under the agricultural insurance framework primarily aims to create:

A. A national livestock vaccination network

B. A network for hyperlocal weather data generation and utilisation

C. A national seed-testing laboratory network

D. A fisheries disease surveillance system

E. A national farm-machinery database

Q8. As of July 2026, more than how many Farmer IDs had been created under the Government's Farmer ID initiative:

A. 5.10 crore

B. 7.50 crore

C. 10.18 crore

D. 15.00 crore

E. 20.00 crore

Q9. The Dryland Congress 2026 marked which milestone in the ICAR–ICRISAT partnership:

A. 25 years

B. 30 years

C. 40 years

D. 50 years

E. 75 years

Q10. During Kharif 2026, CAZRI's recently released moth bean varieties demonstrated resilience particularly against:

A. Waterlogging for 35 days

B. Salinity for 35 days

C. Frost for 35 days

D. Heat stress for 35 days

E. A prolonged dry spell of about 35 days

Q11. The recent successful birth of a Badri cattle calf through OPU-IVF technology is significant mainly because it supports:

A. Conservation, multiplication and genetic improvement of an indigenous cattle breed

B. Development of a new buffalo breed

C. Commercial poultry breeding

D. Fish genetic conservation

E. Artificial insemination in goats

Q12. In fisheries development, strengthening cold-chain and marketing infrastructure primarily helps to:

A. Increase soil organic carbon

B. Reduce post-harvest losses and improve market connectivity

C. Increase seed germination percentage

D. Reduce livestock disease incidence

E. Improve groundwater recharge

Q13. A farmer in a groundwater-stressed region wants to diversify from a water-intensive crop. Which approach is most scientifically appropriate:

A. Select the crop with the highest market price irrespective of water availability

B. Increase irrigation to maintain the existing crop

C. Evaluate agro-climatic suitability, water availability, resource constraints and market opportunities together

D. Replace the crop automatically with horticulture

E. Stop cultivation until groundwater levels fully recover

Q14. A soil has high exchangeable sodium, poor infiltration and surface crusting. Which reclamation strategy is most appropriate:

A. Apply sodium chloride and reduce irrigation

B. Apply only nitrogenous fertiliser

C. Apply lime followed by surface compaction

D. Apply gypsum followed by adequate leaching and drainage

E. Apply potassium chloride without improving drainage

Q15. A crop grown on calcareous soil develops interveinal chlorosis predominantly on young leaves. The most likely nutrient deficiency is:

A. Nitrogen

B. Magnesium

C. Potassium

D. Sulphur

E. Iron

Q16. Trichogramma is widely used in biological control because it functions primarily as:

A. An egg parasitoid

B. A fungal pathogen

C. A predatory beetle

D. A bacterial antagonist

E. A nematode antagonist

Q17. In composite fish culture, which combination correctly matches species with their principal feeding zones:

A. Catla—bottom, Rohu—surface, Mrigal—column

B. Catla—surface, Rohu—column, Mrigal—bottom

C. Catla—column, Rohu—bottom, Mrigal—surface

D. Catla—bottom, Rohu—column, Mrigal—surface

E. Catla—column, Rohu—surface, Mrigal—bottom

Q18. During agricultural credit appraisal, a farmer has valuable collateral but weak projected cash flows. Which factor should receive primary attention in assessing repayment risk:

A. Market value of land alone

B. Borrower's age alone

C. Repayment capacity and projected cash flows

D. Number of agricultural implements

E. Size of the borrower's family

Q19. Farm A produces 6,000 kg using 5,000 m³ of irrigation water, while Farm B produces 7,200 kg using 6,000 m³. Which statement is correct:

A. Farm A has 1.00 kg/m³ and Farm B has 1.10 kg/m³

B. Farm A has 1.25 kg/m³ and Farm B has 1.20 kg/m³

C. Farm A has 1.20 kg/m³ and Farm B has 1.00 kg/m³

D. Both farms have equal water productivity of 1.20 kg/m³

E. Farm A has 1.50 kg/m³ and Farm B has 1.25 kg/m³

Q20. Which approach best reflects the current emphasis on converting agricultural research into practical farmer outcomes:

A. Focus exclusively on laboratory research

B. Concentrate only on increasing fertiliser application

C. Focus only on increasing cultivated area

D. Develop technologies without considering farmer constraints

E. Link demand-driven research with technology transfer, farmer participation, markets and field adoption

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🗝️ ANSWER KEY

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Q1.A

Q2.B

Q3.C

Q4.D

Q5.E

Q6.A

Q7.B

Q8.C

Q9.D

Q10.E

Q11.A

Q12.B

Q13.C

Q14.D

Q15.E

Q16.A

Q17.B

Q18.C

Q19.D

Q20.E

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🧮 QUICK CALCULATION

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Q19 — WATER PRODUCTIVITY

Farm A:

6,000 ÷ 5,000

= 1.20 kg/m³

Farm B:

7,200 ÷ 6,000

= 1.20 kg/m³

🎯 ANSWER: Both farms have equal water productivity

📌 FORMULA:

Water Productivity = Crop Output ÷ Water Used

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🧠 IBR AFO-MAINS INTELLIGENCE

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🔹 RABI 2026–27 PREPAREDNESS

Recent ICAR interactions emphasise:

🌾 Timely technologies

🌱 Quality inputs

🧠 Scientific advisories

♻️ Sustainable agriculture

🌾 Crop-residue management

AFO LINK:

Input availability + technology + advisory + sustainability

🔹 DRYLAND AGRICULTURE

Dryland Congress 2026 focused on transforming dryland agriculture through:

🌱 Climate resilience

🌾 Farming systems

🧬 Breeding

🌱 Seed systems

🥗 Nutrition & markets

👩‍🌾 Gender & youth inclusion

The Congress concluded with the Delhi Declaration on Drylands (3D).

🔹 CAZRI MOTH BEAN — CURRENT AFFAIRS

Four recently released varieties:

🌱 CAZRI Moth-4

🌱 CAZRI Moth-5

🌱 CAZRI Moth-6

🌱 CAZRI Moth-7

During Kharif 2026, they demonstrated resilience during an approximately 35-day dry spell.

🎯 AFO LINK:

Developmental plasticity + stress resilience + moisture conservation

🔹 PMFBY TECHNOLOGY

📌 YES-TECH → technology-based yield estimation

📌 WINDS → hyperlocal weather data

Together, these technologies support more objective and transparent crop-insurance processes.

🔹 FARMER ID

More than 10.18 crore Farmer IDs had been created as of 20 July 2026.

Farmer ID can facilitate integration with:

🌾 PM-KISAN

🌱 PMFBY

💳 Agricultural credit

📦 Input distribution

🧾 MSP procurement

🌧️ Disaster relief

🔹 INDIGENOUS CATTLE + ADVANCED REPRODUCTION

A healthy Badri female calf was born through OPU-IVF technology on 11 September 2026.

The achievement is relevant to:

🐄 Conservation

🧬 Genetic improvement

🌱 Multiplication of elite germplasm

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⚠️ EXAM TRAPS

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❌ YES-TECH → weather-data network

✅ YES-TECH → technology-based yield estimation

❌ WINDS → crop-yield estimation alone

✅ WINDS → weather-information and data system

❌ Dryland agriculture → only rainfed farming

✅ Dryland resilience → climate + soil + water + seed + farming systems

❌ Crop diversification → choose only by market price

✅ Diversification → water + climate + resources + markets

❌ Gypsum alone completes sodic-soil reclamation

✅ Gypsum + leaching + drainage

❌ Trichogramma → larval parasitoid

✅ Trichogramma → egg parasitoid

❌ Higher production automatically means higher water productivity

✅ Water productivity = output per unit of water

❌ Collateral alone establishes agricultural creditworthiness

✅ Repayment capacity is central to credit appraisal

❌ OPU-IVF → ordinary artificial insemination

✅ OPU-IVF → advanced embryo/reproductive technology

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🏆 SCORE GUIDE

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18–20 → 🔥 AFO MAINS ELITE

16–17 → 🟢 EXAM READY

13–15 → 🟡 GOOD — REVISE

10–12 → 🟠 CONCEPTS NEED REINFORCEMENT

<10 → 🔴 REBUILD THE BASICS

🎯 IBR TARGET: 18+

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🎥 IBR YOUTUBE — YOUR DAILY EXAM EDGE

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🔥 FINAL MANTRA

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🌾 AFO Mains is not about knowing more facts.

🧠 Convert every important development into:

FACT → CONCEPT → APPLICATION → EXAM TRAP

🎯 READ SMART. THINK SCIENTIFICALLY. ELIMINATE INTELLIGENTLY. SCORE HIGH.

— INDIAN BANKING RADAR (IBR)