Indigo cultivation in India declined by the beginning of the 20th century because of
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Answer: B. By the end of the 19th century, Germany had made synthetic (chemical) indigo dye cheaply. Natural indigo became unprofitable in the world market, so cultivation in India declined.
Watch for: Students remember the Indigo Revolt and Champaran and assume resistance killed the crop.
Why the other options are wrong
- A. Wrong because peasant resistance, like the 1859-60 revolt, hurt Bengal indigo but was not the main cause of the overall decline.
- C. Wrong because nationalist opposition was not the main reason.
- D. Wrong because government control did not cause the decline.
Source to check: NCERT Class 8 Our Pasts III, Chapter 3 (Ruling the Countryside); Bipan Chandra, History of Modern India, chapter on peasant movements
Answer from the official UPSC key. Written and fact-checked by AI against the official key. Spotted a mistake? Report it.