Question

Which of the following is NOT a characteristic of Intensive Subsistence Farming?

• A. It is practiced with or without paddy.
• B. Land holdings are small.
• C. It is characterized by heavy use of farm machinery.
• D. Farm yard manure is used to maintain the fertility of soil.

Hint:

Intensive Subsistence Farming: High yield per unit area, low yield per labourer, small fragmented plots, manual/animal labour, high population density.
Commercial Extensive Grain Farming: Low yield per unit area, high yield per labourer, massive mechanized farms, sparse population.

Answer 1

The Correct Option is C

Concept:
Intensive subsistence agriculture is an agricultural system practiced predominantly in densely populated regions of Monsoon Asia.
Because land is limited relative to the massive human population, agricultural practices are designed to maximize crop output from every unit of arable land.

Step 1: Core Characteristics of Intensive Subsistence Farming:
This agrarian regime is subdivided into two primary types: intensive subsistence dominated by wet paddy, and intensive subsistence dominated by crops other than paddy (e.g., wheat, soybeans, barley, sorghum).
Land holdings are exceptionally small and fragmented due to generational inheritance laws.
Farmers utilize extensive manual human labour and draft animals, with minimal or negligible application of heavy farm machinery.
Due to the tiny size of field plots, the use of large mechanised equipment like combine harvesters and heavy tractors is impractical and uneconomical.
Soil fertility is maintained through intensive application of organic inputs, particularly farmyard manure and compost.

Step 2: Identifying the Incorrect Statement:
The claim that it is characterized by "heavy use of farm machinery" is false.
Heavy use of modern farm machinery is the defining hallmark of Commercial Grain Farming (such as in the prairies, pampas, and steppes), not Intensive Subsistence Farming.
Final Answer:
Hence, being characterized by heavy use of farm machinery is NOT a characteristic of Intensive Subsistence Farming.