Introduction / Context:
FCI (Food Corporation of India) holds buffer stocks to stabilize availability and prices. Releasing grain pre-harvest aims to bridge a supply gap until new crops arrive. We must identify the underpinning beliefs behind this timing.
Given Data / Assumptions:
- I: A seasonal shortage is likely before the kharif harvest reaches markets.
- II: After harvest, stocks can be replenished by new procurement.
- III: Farmers may demand immediate procurement after harvest (a separate issue related to MSP and logistics).
Concept / Approach:
- The release is a bridge strategy: cover a temporary gap now (I) and later rebuild the buffer from fresh arrivals (II).
- III concerns post-harvest procurement behavior/demands; while common in policy discourse, it is not necessary to justify a pre-harvest release.
Step-by-Step Solution:
Keep I: The release would be unnecessary without a perceived pre-harvest shortfall.Keep II: Buffer sustainability requires future replenishment; otherwise, releasing “vast quantity” would be risky.Drop III: The action does not depend on projected farmer demands about timing of procurement.
Verification / Alternative check:
If I or II is false, the measure becomes either needless or unsustainable. If III is false, the present decision remains justified.
Why Other Options Are Wrong:
“All” brings in an irrelevant condition; “Only II and III” omits the core shortage premise; “None” ignores the clear bridging-logic; “None of these” does not match the valid pair.
Common Pitfalls:
Conflating stock-release logic with MSP procurement politics; they are related but not logically necessary to each other.
Final Answer:
Only I and II are implicit
Discussion & Comments