Daily Olympiad: Social Science - Manufacturing Industries [20260512]

Solution

Correct: B

Manufacturing industries are crucial for development because they provide jobs, reduce unemployment, and alleviate poverty. They also modernize agriculture by supplying machinery and tools, process raw materials into valuable goods, and promote international trade, bringing in foreign exchange. This holistic contribution makes them the backbone of economic progress.

Solution

Correct: B

For the last decade, the share of the manufacturing sector, along with mining, quarrying, electricity, and gas, has consistently been around 17% of India's GDP. This figure highlights its substantial contribution to the national economy.

Solution

Correct: C

The iron and steel industry uses bulky and weight-losing raw materials (iron ore, coking coal, limestone). To minimize transportation costs, it is most economical to locate these industries close to the sources of these primary raw materials.

Solution

Correct: B

Agro-based industries use agricultural products as their raw materials. The sugar industry uses sugarcane, which is an agricultural crop, making it an agro-based industry. Cement, aluminium, and petroleum refining are mineral or fossil fuel-based industries.

Solution

Correct: C

Public sector industries are those owned and operated by the government or its various agencies. Examples include Steel Authority of India Ltd. (SAIL) and Bharat Heavy Electricals Ltd. (BHEL).

Solution

Correct: C

The states of Maharashtra and Gujarat offered ideal conditions for the initial growth of the cotton textile industry, including the presence of black soil suitable for raw cotton cultivation, a humid climate conducive to spinning and weaving, and a well-established market. Port facilities were also a secondary advantage.

Solution

Correct: C

Bauxite is the ore from which aluminium is extracted. It is a very bulky and reddish-brown rock, making it the primary raw material for the aluminium smelting industry.

Solution

Correct: B

Mini steel plants are smaller units that utilize electric furnaces. Their primary raw materials are steel scrap and sponge iron. They are less capital-intensive and have a more flexible production capacity compared to large integrated steel plants.

Solution

Correct: C

Bengaluru (formerly Bangalore) is widely recognized as the 'Electronic Capital of India' or 'Silicon Valley of India' due to its high concentration of IT companies, numerous startups, and a large pool of skilled professionals in the information technology sector.

Solution

Correct: B

The discharge of untreated industrial effluents, which often contain toxic chemicals, heavy metals, dyes, and organic pollutants, directly into rivers, lakes, and other water bodies, is a primary cause of water pollution from manufacturing industries.

Solution

Correct: B

Sugarcane is a weight-losing crop in terms of sucrose content; its sugar levels diminish over time after harvesting. Therefore, locating sugar mills close to the fields minimizes transportation time and helps in maximizing sugar extraction, making proximity a crucial factor.

Solution

Correct: C

Limestone is the primary and most bulky raw material used in the manufacturing of cement. Other materials like silica, alumina, and gypsum are also used, but limestone constitutes the largest proportion.

Solution

Correct: C

An integrated steel plant is a large-scale facility that performs all stages of steel production under one roof, starting from processing bulky raw materials (iron ore, coking coal, limestone) in blast furnaces to casting and shaping the final steel products. Mini steel plants are typically smaller and use electric furnaces with scrap and sponge iron.

Solution

Correct: C

India is the largest producer of raw jute and jute goods globally, so the lack of raw material availability is generally not a challenge. The main challenges for the Indian jute industry include competition from cheaper synthetic substitutes, high production costs, and a decline in demand.

Solution

Correct: B

The liberalization of the Indian economy in the early 1990s allowed for increased Foreign Direct Investment (FDI), bringing in new technologies and global players. This, combined with the rising purchasing power of the middle class, significantly boosted demand for automobiles, leading to rapid growth in the industry.

Solution

Correct: C

The most effective and sustainable method to control water pollution from industries is to treat the industrial effluents through various physical, chemical, and biological processes to remove pollutants and reduce their toxicity to acceptable levels before releasing them into water bodies.

Solution

Correct: D

Cooperative sector industries are owned and operated by the producers or suppliers of raw materials, workers, or both. Amul is an excellent example of a cooperative, where milk producers collectively own and manage the dairy processing and marketing operations.

Solution

Correct: C

Basic or key industries are those that provide raw materials or support other industries. The iron and steel industry produces steel, which is a fundamental material used in the manufacturing of machinery, tools, automobiles, construction materials, and many other goods, making it a basic industry.

Solution

Correct: C

The petrochemical industry uses petroleum and natural gas as its raw materials to produce a vast range of synthetic products, including synthetic fibres (polyester, nylon, acrylic), synthetic rubber, plastics, dyes, drugs, and pharmaceuticals.

Solution

Correct: C

Electrostatic precipitators, fabric filters, scrubbers, and inertial separators are advanced technologies designed to filter out particulate matter and gaseous pollutants from industrial smoke and emissions before they are released into the atmosphere, thereby effectively controlling air pollution.