Cambridge O Level Pakistan Studies: Agricultural Development — Practice Questions

These are original practice questions written in the style of Cambridge O Level Pakistan Studies (2059) assessment objectives. They are not taken from any past paper and are not endorsed by Cambridge International.

Related: Agricultural Development study guide and revision notes

Here are two Paper 2 style questions on Section 4 Agricultural development, each worth 25 marks and set out in parts (a) to (d) as in the 2059 exam. Question 1 concentrates on crops, seasons and farm systems; Question 2 on irrigation, waterlogging and government action. The figures in the resources are illustrative only.

Question 1: Crops and farming systems

Fig. 1.1 (illustrative): a farming calendar for a farm in southern Punjab.

Month	Activity
April–May	Cotton sown
June–September	Cotton irrigated and sprayed
October–December	Cotton picked
November–December	Wheat sown after cotton
April	Wheat harvested

(a) (i) Using Fig. 1.1, name the kharif crop grown on this farm. [1]

(ii) Name one district in Punjab where this farming pattern is common. [1]

(iii) Using Fig. 1.1, explain why the farmer may be short of labour in November. [2]

(b) Draw and label a systems diagram for a cash crop farm like the one in Fig. 1.1, showing two inputs, two processes and two outputs. [4]

(c) (i) For each of the following, name an area where it is grown and give one use: apricots; tobacco; millet. [3]

(ii) Explain how natural and human factors limit the yield of rice grown by traditional methods on small, fragmented holdings. [5]

(d) “Small subsistence farmers in Pakistan should switch to growing cash crops.” Do you agree? Give reasons for your answer, referring to examples in Pakistan. [9]

Question 2: Water for farming

Fig. 2.1 (described): a cross-section of irrigated land beside an unlined distribution canal. Arrows show water seeping down from the canal. The water table is shown about one metre below the surface. A white crust is marked on the soil surface away from the canal.

(a) (i) Using Fig. 2.1, state what the white crust on the soil is. [1]

(ii) Explain how the conditions shown in Fig. 2.1 have caused this. [3]

(iii) Describe two ways land like that in Fig. 2.1 can be restored. [2]

(b) Compare karez irrigation with tubewell irrigation for farmers in a Balochistan oasis. [4]

(c) (i) Explain the role of a barrage and a link canal in Pakistan’s irrigation system. [2]

(ii) Explain how herders use transhumance to keep sheep and goats in the mountains of northern Pakistan. [3]

(d) Evaluate how successful government action has been in increasing agricultural production in Pakistan. [10]

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Mark scheme: Question 1

(a) (i) Cotton [1].

(ii) Any cotton-belt district, for example Vehari, Bahawalnagar, Khanewal, Rahim Yar Khan, Multan [1].

(iii) Cotton picking is still going on [1] at the same time as wheat must be sown, so two labour-intensive jobs overlap [1].

(b) Diagram as a flow from inputs to processes to outputs, 1 mark for correct structure with arrows, up to 3 for content. Inputs: certified seed, fertiliser, tubewell or canal water, tractor, hired labour, capital. Processes: ploughing, sowing, spraying, irrigating, picking. Outputs: seed cotton and wheat for sale, cotton sticks for fuel, profit. Credit a feedback arrow from profit to next year’s inputs.

(c) (i) One mark per crop for area and use together. Apricots: Hunza, Skardu or another Gilgit-Baltistan valley; dried fruit or fresh food. Tobacco: Mardan or Swabi; cigarettes. Millet: Thal, Thar margins or other sandy rain-fed areas; grain for food or fodder.

(ii) Natural (up to 3): unreliable monsoon or canal supply [1]; pests and diseases such as stem borers [1]; floods damaging nursery beds [1]; soils exhausted without fertiliser [1]. Human (up to 3): plots too small and scattered for machinery [1]; lack of capital for fertiliser, pesticide or good seed [1]; slow hand transplanting and threshing [1]; little advice from extension workers [1]. Maximum 5.

(d) Levels marking: Level 3 (7–9) a balanced, developed answer with Pakistani examples and a judgement; Level 2 (4–6) developed on one side or simple on both; Level 1 (1–3) basic points.

For switching: cash crops such as cotton or sugar cane can earn more per acre; income buys food, schooling and better inputs; supplies mills and exports. Against: cash crops need costly inputs and loans, so a failed season (pest outbreak, flood such as 2022) leaves debt; prices fluctuate; less food grown for the family; tiny fragmented plots may be too small to profit. Judgement: a strong answer may conclude “partly”, for example growing a mix such as wheat for food plus a high-value vegetable or fruit for sale.

Mark scheme: Question 2

(a) (i) Salt / salinity [1].

(ii) Water seeps from the unlined canal [1], raising the water table close to the surface [1]; in hot weather water rises by capillary action and evaporates, leaving salt behind [1].

(iii) Any two: tubewells pump the water table down [1]; surface or tile drains carry saline water away [1]; flushing with fresh water [1]; adding gypsum [1]; planting salt-tolerant crops [1].

(b) Comparison needed, not two separate descriptions. Up to 4 from: karez uses gravity so has no fuel cost, while a tubewell needs diesel, electricity or solar panels [1]; karez loses little water to evaporation because it is underground [1]; a tubewell gives water on demand and in larger amounts [1]; karez needs constant community labour to clean, a tubewell needs capital to drill and run [1]; tubewells lower the water table, which can dry up nearby karez [1].

(c) (i) A barrage raises the level of the river so water can be diverted into canals [1]; a link canal carries water from one river to another, for example from the western rivers to areas once fed by eastern rivers [1].

(ii) In summer herders take flocks up to high mountain pastures where grass grows after snowmelt [1]; in autumn they bring them down to valleys or plains before snow covers the pastures [1]; this gives year-round grazing without buying fodder and lets lower pastures recover [1].

(d) Levels marking: Level 3 (8–10); Level 2 (4–7); Level 1 (1–3).

Successes: Green Revolution high-yielding wheat raised output from the 1960s; land reforms in 1959, 1972 and 1977 set ceilings and gave some tenants land; credit through the Zarai Taraqiati Bank and subsidised fertiliser increased input use; research at institutes such as Faisalabad’s Ayub Agricultural Research Institute produced new varieties; SCARP tubewells and drains reclaimed land.

Limitations: reforms were evaded and large estates remained; benefits went mainly to larger farmers with capital; small tenants cannot meet loan collateral; overuse of fertiliser and pesticide pollutes water; yields per acre still lag behind many countries; groundwater is falling. A Level 3 answer reaches a judgement, for example that action has raised total output but has been less successful at helping small farmers or making farming sustainable.

Frequently asked questions

What does “compare” require in Paper 2? The syllabus glossary says you must explain what is similar and different about two things; two separate descriptions do not make a comparison. Use linking words such as “whereas”.

How do I pick up marks on a photograph question? Name the crop or animal, then point to the evidence in the photograph, such as cotton bolls or flooded fields in rows.

How much should I write for a 9 or 10 mark part (d)? Enough to develop two or three points on each side with Pakistani examples, then a clear judgement. Quality of reasoning matters more than length.