1995 General Studies, all questions

UPSC Prelims 1995 · General Studies

Question 37: Geography

Coffee cultivation in Sri Lanka was abandoned because of the disease

aleaf blight
bleaf spot
cleaf rust
drot

AnswerThe answer is (c).

Coffee growing in Ceylon (Sri Lanka) was ruined from the 1870s by coffee leaf rust, a fungal disease (Hemileia vastatrix). Planters replaced coffee with tea, which is why Sri Lanka became a tea exporter. Leaf rust is still a major threat to coffee worldwide. Remember: leaf rust ended Ceylon's coffee, and tea took its place.

Why each option is right or wrong
  • (a) Leaf blight is a different disease, not the one that ended Ceylon's coffee.
  • (b) Leaf spot is a different disease, not the one behind the collapse.
  • (c) Right: coffee leaf rust, caused by a fungus.
  • (d) Rot affects roots and fruits and was not the cause.

Explanation: written by UPSC Grade, not by UPSC.

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Source: UPSC, Civil Services (Preliminary) Examination 1995, General Studies. UPSC's own paper isn't online; the words are from a published compilation. The paper on upsc.gov.in.