OPSC OAS Agriculture Syllabus – Paper-II (Optional Subject)

Exam: Odisha Public Service Commission (OPSC) – OAS / OCS
Paper: Optional Subject – Agriculture (Paper-II)
Sections: Section-A (Genetics, Breeding, Physiology) & Section-B (Horticulture, Protection)

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Section-A: Genetics, Plant Breeding & Physiology

• Cell theory, structure, organelles and their function; Cell division
• Nucleic acids – structure and function, gene structure and function
• Laws of heredity, their significance in plant breeding
• Chromosome structure, chromosomal aberrations, linkage and cross-over, and their significance in recombination breeding
• Polyploidy – euploid and aneuploids
• Induction of mutation – micro- and macro-mutation and their role in crop improvement
• Variation, components of variation, heritability, sterility and incompatibility and their application in crop improvement
• Cytoplasmic inheritance, sex-linked, sex-influenced and sex-limited characters
• History of plant breeding; Modes of reproduction, selfing and crossing techniques
• Origin and evolution of crop plants, centre of origin, law of homologous series
• Plant biodiversity – crop genetic resources conservation and utilization
• Application of principles of plant breeding to the improvement of major field crops
• Pureline, pedigree, mass and recurrent selections
• Combining ability, its significance in plant breeding; Hybrid vigour and its exploitation
• Backcross method of breeding; Breeding for disease and pest resistance
• Role of interspecific and intergeneric hybridization
• Role of biotechnology in plant breeding – tissue culture and molecular approach
• Improved varieties, hybrids, composites of various crop plants
• Seed technology, its importance; Different kinds of seeds; Seed production and processing techniques
• Role of public and private sectors in seed production, processing and marketing in India
• Plant physiology and its significance in agriculture
• Imbibition, surface tension, diffusion and osmosis
• Absorption and translocation of water, transpiration and water economy
• Enzymes and plant pigments; Photosynthesis – modern concepts and factors affecting the process
• Aerobic and anaerobic respiration; C3, C4 and CAM mechanisms
• Carbohydrate, protein and fat metabolism
• Growth and development; Photoperiodism and vernalization
• Auxins, hormones, and other plant regulators and their mode of action and importance in agriculture
• Physiology of seed development and germination; Dormancy

Section-B: Horticulture, Plant Protection & Food Production

• Climatic requirement and cultivation of major fruits, vegetable crops and flower and ornamental plants
• Dryland and Hightech horticulture
• Handling and marketing problems of fruit and vegetables
• Methods of preservation of important fruits and vegetable products, processing techniques and equipment
• Role of fruits and vegetables in human nutrition
• Landscaping – design and layout of lawns and gardens
• Diseases and pests of field crops, vegetables, orchard and plantation crops of India
• Causes and classification of plant pests and diseases; Principles of control of plant pests and diseases
• Biological control of pests and diseases; Integrated pest and disease management
• Epidemiology and forecasting of diseases and pest
• Pesticides, their formulations and mode of action; Compatibility with rhizobial inoculants; Microbial toxins
• Storage pests and diseases of cereals, oilseeds and pulses and their control
• Commercial cultivation of mushroom and bee keeping
• Food production and consumption trends in India; National and international food policies
• Production, procurement, distribution and processing constraints
• Relation of food production to national dietary pattern; Protein-calorie malnutrition