CFTRI M.Sc. (Food Technology) Agriculture and Dairy Technology Syllabus

Agriculture and Dairy Technology syllabus — full chapter and topic list

Expand any chapter to see its topics and sub-topics. This is the whole examinable outline for Agriculture and Dairy Technology in CFTRI M.Sc. (Food Technology), not a summary of it.

1. 1

   Agriculture

   6 topics

   • Weather and Crops
   • Soil and Water Resources
   • Soil and Water Conservation
   • Soil Fertility and Fertilizer Use
   • Cropping Patterns and Weed Control
   • Diseases, Insect Pests and Nematodes of Crops
2. 2

   Agricultural Engineering

   overview

   Examined as a single unit within Agriculture and Dairy Technology — no further topic split in the official outline.

3. 3

   Agriculture Marketing and Storage

   overview

   Examined as a single unit within Agriculture and Dairy Technology — no further topic split in the official outline.

4. 4

   Farm Management

   overview

   Examined as a single unit within Agriculture and Dairy Technology — no further topic split in the official outline.

5. 5

   Field Crops

   overview

   Examined as a single unit within Agriculture and Dairy Technology — no further topic split in the official outline.

6. 6

   Plantation Crops

   overview

   Examined as a single unit within Agriculture and Dairy Technology — no further topic split in the official outline.

7. 7

   Commercial Crops

   overview

   Examined as a single unit within Agriculture and Dairy Technology — no further topic split in the official outline.

8. 8

   Horticultural Crops

   overview

   Examined as a single unit within Agriculture and Dairy Technology — no further topic split in the official outline.

9. 9

   Condiments, Spices, Medicinal and Aromatic Plants

   overview

   Examined as a single unit within Agriculture and Dairy Technology — no further topic split in the official outline.

10. 10

    Plant Breeding

    overview

    Examined as a single unit within Agriculture and Dairy Technology — no further topic split in the official outline.

11. 11

    Animal Husbandry

    overview

    Examined as a single unit within Agriculture and Dairy Technology — no further topic split in the official outline.

Agriculture and Dairy Technology flashcards for CFTRI M.Sc. (Food Technology)

23 of 52 cards from the Agriculture and Dairy Technology deck — real questions with worked answers.

1. Define agronomy.

   Agronomy is the branch of agricultural science that deals with the principles and practices of crop production and field management of soil, including managing soil, water and crops for sustainable yields.

2. What is 'weather' as distinguished from 'climate'?

   Weather is the short-term, day-to-day state of the atmosphere (temperature, rainfall, humidity, wind) at a place, while climate is the long-term average of weather conditions over about 30+ years.

3. What are the cardinal temperatures for plant growth?

   The three cardinal temperatures are the minimum (below which growth stops), optimum (most rapid growth) and maximum (above which growth stops) temperatures for a given physiological process.

4. Define photoperiodism and name the three plant response groups.

   Photoperiodism is the response of plants to the relative length of day and night. The three groups are short-day plants, long-day plants and day-neutral plants.

5. What is vernalization?

   Vernalization is the induction or promotion of flowering by exposing plants (or germinating seeds) to a period of low temperature.

6. What is the difference between Kharif and Rabi crops in India?

   Kharif (monsoon) crops are sown June–July and harvested Sept–Oct (e.g. rice, maize, cotton); Rabi (winter) crops are sown Oct–Nov and harvested March–April (e.g. wheat, gram, mustard).

7. What are Zaid crops?

   Zaid crops are short-duration summer crops grown between the Rabi and Kharif seasons (March–June), such as watermelon, muskmelon, cucumber and moong.

8. What is growing degree days (GDD) and its formula?

   GDD measures accumulated heat units for crop development. GDD = [(Tmax + Tmin)/2] − Tbase, where Tbase is the threshold temperature below which growth does not occur.

9. What is evapotranspiration (ET)?

   Evapotranspiration is the combined loss of water to the atmosphere from soil evaporation and plant transpiration.

10. Define soil as a natural body.

    Soil is the unconsolidated, weathered upper layer of the earth's crust formed from parent rock by physical, chemical and biological processes, capable of supporting plant growth.

11. Name the four major components of soil and their approximate ideal proportions.

    Mineral matter (~45%), organic matter (~5%), water (~25%) and air (~25%) by volume in an ideal surface soil.

12. What are the three main soil textural separates and their size ranges (USDA)?

    Sand (2.0–0.05 mm), silt (0.05–0.002 mm) and clay (less than 0.002 mm).

13. What is soil texture versus soil structure?

    Texture is the relative proportion of sand, silt and clay particles; structure is the arrangement of these particles into aggregates or peds.

14. Define field capacity.

    Field capacity is the amount of water held in soil after gravitational (excess) water has drained, usually 2–3 days after irrigation, at about −0.33 bar (−33 kPa) tension.

15. Define permanent wilting point (PWP).

    The permanent wilting point is the soil moisture content at which plants wilt and cannot recover even when placed in a saturated atmosphere, at about −15 bar tension.

16. What is available water-holding capacity of soil?

    It is the water held between field capacity and permanent wilting point that is available for plant uptake; AWC = Field capacity − Permanent wilting point.

17. What is soil bulk density and its formula?

    Bulk density is the mass of dry soil per unit total volume (including pore space): BD = mass of dry soil / total soil volume, typically 1.1–1.6 g/cm³ for agricultural soils.

18. What is soil porosity and how is it related to bulk and particle density?

    Porosity is the fraction of soil volume occupied by pores: Porosity (%) = [1 − (bulk density / particle density)] × 100; particle density is about 2.65 g/cm³.

19. What are the four main types of soil water?

    Gravitational water (drains freely), capillary water (held in pores, mostly available to plants), hygroscopic water (tightly held, unavailable) and water vapour.

20. What is infiltration as opposed to percolation?

    Infiltration is the entry of water into the soil surface, while percolation is the downward movement of water through the soil profile.

21. What is soil erosion and its two principal natural agents?

    Soil erosion is the detachment and transport of soil particles from one place to another; the two principal agents are water and wind.

22. Name the sequential forms of water erosion from least to most severe.

    Splash (raindrop) erosion → sheet erosion → rill erosion → gully erosion → ravine/stream-bank erosion.

23. What is contour farming?

    Contour farming is carrying out tillage, sowing and other operations across the slope along contour lines to reduce runoff velocity and check soil erosion.

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