During their rule, the British persuaded or forced many cultivators in Punjab to grow which crop in order to link the region with imperial food and commodity demands?

Introduction / Context:
This question is another example of how British rule reshaped agriculture in different Indian regions. Punjab, with its fertile plains and later canal irrigation, became a major supplier of certain crops to imperial markets. Knowing which crop the British particularly promoted in Punjab helps you connect colonial economic policy with changes in land use, irrigation and the rise of commercial agriculture in North India.

Given Data / Assumptions:

• The region mentioned is Punjab under British colonial rule.
• The British persuaded or forced cultivators to grow a particular crop.
• Options offered are jute, tea, sugarcane, wheat and cotton.
• We assume knowledge of typical crop region associations under colonial rule.

Concept / Approach:
Textbook summaries commonly associate jute with Bengal, tea with Assam, cotton with parts of Bombay and Madras Presidencies, and wheat with Punjab, especially after canal irrigation expanded under British engineering projects. Punjab was turned into a major wheat producing region to feed both Indian markets and, at times, imperial needs. Sugarcane was grown in various areas but is not the standard example used for Punjab's British era cropping changes. Therefore, the correct conceptual mapping is Punjab with wheat, not with jute, tea, sugarcane or cotton in this particular question pattern.

Step-by-Step Solution:
Step 1: Recall the typical exam mapping: Bengal with jute, Assam with tea, Madras and Deccan with cotton, and Punjab with wheat. Step 2: Confirm that the question asks about Punjab, not Bengal or Assam. Step 3: Eliminate jute and tea as they belong primarily to Bengal and Assam, respectively. Step 4: Recognise that while sugarcane and cotton were grown in many places, wheat is the crop most strongly associated with colonial Punjab's agricultural expansion. Step 5: Select wheat as the correct answer.

Verification / Alternative check:
You can verify by thinking of how the British invested in irrigation canals in the Punjab region, which transformed large tracts of land into highly productive fields. Historical accounts often indicate that these canal colonies were intended to boost wheat and other grain production. Meanwhile, the jute mills of Calcutta depended on Bengal's jute, and the tea plantations of Assam were a distinct category. Thus, when pairing regions and crops in basic colonial economic history, Punjab aligns with wheat most clearly. This supports the choice of wheat as the answer.

Why Other Options Are Wrong:
Jute: Strongly associated with Bengal and the Calcutta centred jute industry, not with Punjab.

Tea: Linked with Assam and parts of North East India, where British established large tea plantations.
Sugarcane: Grown in various parts of India, but not the core textbook example of a British promoted colonial crop in Punjab.
Cotton: More famously associated with western India, especially the Deccan and parts of the Bombay and Madras Presidencies, though it did grow elsewhere too.

Common Pitfalls:
Candidates sometimes confuse the crop region mapping because many of these cash crops are mentioned together in chapters on colonial agriculture. Another error is to think only of cash crops like jute and tea and forget that wheat, though a food grain, also gained importance as an export or inter regional trade commodity. To avoid confusion, keep a basic mental list: Bengal equals jute, Assam equals tea, Madras equals cotton, and Punjab equals wheat in the typical exam framing of British era agricultural changes.

Final Answer:
In Punjab, the British encouraged cultivators to grow wheat.