Foot Pedal Irrigation Reading Answers

Foot Pedal Irrigation Reading Answers is an important passage for IELTS Cambridge test and this passage is about the new style of irrigation introduced at the time of the Green Revolution. IELTS reading test comes with a variety of topics and Foot Pedal Irrigation is a very important topic for IELTS reading. This Foot Pedal Irrigation Reading Answers passage has 13 questions and the question types are

  • true/false
  • Complete the diagram
  • Answer the questions in 2-3 words

To understand how to answer these questions, checking the IELTS reading sample papers is mandatory. This Foot Pedal Irrigation Reading Answers passage is taken from Treadle Pumps Treadle Pumps.

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Section 1

Read the Passage to Answer the Following Questions

Foot Pedal Irrigation Reading Answers

  1. Until now, governments and development agencies have tried to tackle the problem through large-scale projects: gigantic dams, sprawling, irrigation canals and vast new fields of high-yield crops introduced during the Green Revolution, the famous campaign to increase grain harvests in developing nations. Traditional irrigation, however, has degraded the soil in many areas, and the reservoirs behind dams can quickly fill up with silt, reducing their storage capacity and depriving downstream farmers of fertile sediments. Furthermore, although the Green Revolution has greatly expanded worldwide farm production since 1950, poverty stubbornly persists in Africa, Asia and Latin America. Continued improvements in the productivity of large farms may play the main role in boosting food supply, but local efforts to provide cheap, individual irrigation systems to small farms may offer a better way to lift people out of poverty.
  2. The Green Revolution was designed to increase the overall food supply, not to raise the incomes of the rural poor, so it should be no surprise that it did not eradicate poverty or hunger. India, for example, has been self-sufficient in food for 15 years, and its granaries are full, but more than 200 million Indians – one-fifth of the country’s population – are malnourished because they cannot afford the food they need and because the country’s safety nets are deficient. In 2000, 189 nations committed to the Millennium Development Goals, which called for cutting world poverty in half by 2015. With business as usual, however, we have little hope of achieving most of the Millennium goals, no matter how much money rich countries contribute to poor ones.
  3. The supply-driven strategies of the Green Revolution, however, may not help subsistence farmers, who must play to their strengths to compete in the global marketplace. The average size of a family farm is less than four acres in India, 1.8 acres in Bangladesh and about half an acre in China. Combines and other modern farming tools are too expensive to be used in such small areas. An Indian farmer selling surplus wheat grown on his one-acre plot could not possibly compete with the highly efficient and subsidized Canadian wheat farms that typically stretch over thousands of acres. Instead, subsistence farmers should exploit the fact that their labour costs are the lowest in the world, giving them a comparative advantage in growing and selling high-value, intensely farmed crops.
  4. Paul Polak saw firsthand the need for a small-scale strategy in 1981 when he met Abdul Rahman, a farmer in the Noakhali district of Bangladesh. From his three-quarter-acre plots of rain-fed rice fields, Abdul could grow only 700 kilograms of rice each year – 300 kilograms less than what he needed to feed his family. During the three months before the October rice harvest came in, Abdul and his wife had to watch silently while their three children survived on one meal a day or less. As Polak walked with him through the scattered fields he had inherited from his father, Polak asked what he needed to move out of poverty. “Control of water for my crops,” he said, “at a price, I can afford.”
  5. Soon Polak learned about a simple device that could help Abdul achieve his goal: the treadle pump. Developed in the late 1970s by Norwegian engineer Gunnar Barnes, the pump is operated by a person walking in place on a pair of treadles and two handle arms made of bamboo. Properly adjusted and maintained, it can be operated several hours a day without tiring the users. Each treadle pump has two cylinders which are made of engineering plastic. The diameter of a cylinder is 100.5mm and the height is 280mm. The pump is capable of working up to a maximum depth of 7 meters. Operation beyond 7 meters is not recommended to preserve the integrity of the rubber components. The pump mechanism has piston and foot valve assemblies. The treadle action creates alternate strokes in the two pistons that lift the water in pulses.
  6. The human-powered pump can irrigate half an acre of vegetables and costs only $25 (including the expense of drilling a tube well down to the groundwater). Abdul heard about the treadle pump from a cousin and was one of the first farmers in Bangladesh to buy one. He borrowed the $25 from an uncle and easily repaid the loan four months later. During the five-month dry season, when Bangladeshis typically farm very little, Abdul used the treadle pump to grow a quarter-acre of chilli peppers, tomatoes, cabbage and eggplants. He also improved the yield of one of his rice plots by irrigating it. His family ate some of the vegetables and sold the rest at the village market, earning a net profit of $100. With his new income, Abdul was able to buy rice for his family to eat, keep his two sons in school until they were 16 and set aside a little money for his daughter’s dowry. When Polak visited him again in 1984, he had doubled the size of his vegetable plot and replaced the thatched roof on his house with corrugated tin. His family was raising a calf and some chickens. He told me that the treadle pump was a gift from God.
  7. Bangladesh is particularly well suited for the treadle pump because a huge reservoir of groundwater lies just a few meters below the farmers’ feet. In the early 1980s, IDE initiated a campaign to market the pump, encouraging 75 small private-sector companies to manufacture the devices and several thousand village dealers and tube-well drillers to sell and install them. Over the next 12 years, one and a half million farm families purchased treadle pumps, which increased the farmers’ net income by a total of $150 million a year. The cost of IDE’s market-creation activities was only $12 million, leveraged by the investment of $37.5 million from the farmers themselves. In contrast, the expense of building a conventional dam and canal system to irrigate an equivalent area of farmland would be in the range of $2,000 per acre, or $1.5 billion.

Section 2

Solution and Explanation
Questions 1 – 6

Do the following statements agree with the information given in the reading passage?
In boxes 1 – 6 on your answer sheet, write

TRUE if the statement agrees with the view of the writer
FALSE if the statement contradicts the view of the writer
NOT GIVEN if it is impossible to say what the writer thinks about this
  1. It is more effective to resolve poverty or food problem in large scale rather than in small scale.

Answer: False

Explanation: It is local efforts that helped in providing affordable irrigation facilities rather than large farms. So the given statement that it is more effective to resolve poverty or food problem on a large scale rather than on a small scale is incorrect. Towards the end of paragraph A, it is mentioned that Green Revolution greatly expanded worldwide since 1950 that too on a very large scale.

Supporting sentences: Furthermore, although the Green Revolution has greatly expanded worldwide farm production since 1950, poverty stubbornly persists in Africa, Asia and Latin America. Continued improvements in the productivity of large farms may play the main role in boosting food supply, but local efforts to provide cheap, individual irrigation systems to small farms may offer a better way to lift people out of poverty.

Keywords: Green Revolution, greatly expanded

Location in the passage: Paragraph A

  1. Construction of gigantic dams costs more time in developing countries.

Answer: Not Given

Read More IELTS Reading Related Samples

  1. Green revolution foiled to increase global crop production from the mid of 20th century.

Answer: False

Explanation: It is not that the Green revolution foiled to increase global crop production from the mid of 20th century. Rather, Green Revolution boosted crop production from 1950. The first paragraph of the reading passage ends with the phrase “continued improvements”. This indicates that crop production was greatly paced up during the green revolution and it continued to grow throughout the time.

Supporting sentences: Continued improvements in the productivity of large farms may play the main role in boosting food supply, but local efforts to provide cheap, individual irrigation systems to small farms may offer a better way to lift people out of poverty.

Keywords: Continued improvements in the productivity of large farms

Location in the passage: Pararaph A

  1. Agricultural production in Bangladesh declined in the last decade.

Answer: Not Given

  1. Farmer Abdul Rahman knew how to increase production himself.

Answer: True

Explanation: It is true because Farmer Abdul Rahman knew how to increase production himself. In paragraph D, it is mentioned that he and Polak walked together through the scattered fields. He had inherited these fields from his father. When Polak asked the required elements to move out of poverty, he got the answer that controls of water for my crops at an affordable price. Therefore, Adbul knew the solution himself.

Supporting sentences: “Control of water for my crops,” he said, “at a price, I can afford.”

Keywords: “Control of water for my crops,” he said, “at a price, I can afford.”

Location in the passage: Paragraph D

  1. Small pump spread into a big project in Bangladesh in the past decade.

Answer: True

Explanation: The last paragraph of this reading passage, begins with the description of the spread of this project in Bangladesh. Bangladesh is suited for the small reservoirs and IDE launched a campaign that encouraged the farmers to buy the foot pedal and that resulted in an increase in those farmer’s net income by $150 million a year.

Supporting sentences: Bangladesh is particularly well suited for the treadle pump because a huge reservoir of groundwater lies just a few meters below the farmers’ feet. In the early 1980s, IDE initiated a campaign to market the pump, encouraging 75 small private-sector companies to manufacture the devices and several thousand village dealers and tube-well drillers to sell and install them.

Keywords: treadle pump, reservoir of groundwater, IDE initiated a campaign

Location in the passage: Paragraph G

Questions 7 – 10

Filling the blanks in the diagram of treadle pump’s each part.

Choose NO MORE THAN THREE WORDS AND/OR A NUMBER from the passage for each answer.

Diagram of treadle pump’s
  1. Answer: Bamboo

Explanation: As described in the image, it matches with bamboo. In paragraph E, the design of the pump is clearly given and the position of gap number 7 is clearly the bamboo made. It is the two handle arms of the pump and the material of the arm is bamboo. Therefore, this is the correct answer to this question. The design of the pump mentioned in the passage and this diagram is exactly the same.

Supporting sentences: Developed in the late 1970s by Norwegian engineer Gunnar Barnes, the pump is operated by a person walking in place on a pair of treadles and two handle arms made of bamboo.

Keywords: pump is operated by a person, walking in place on a pair of treadles

Location in the passage: Paragraph E

  1. Answer: Cylinders

Explanation: Paragraph E of the reading passage mentions that the pump was designed in 1970s by Gunnar Barnes, a Norwegian engineer. The pump can be operated by a person while walking in place. A pair of treadles and two bamboo-made handle arms will be adjusted there. The user can operate it for several hours and each treadle pump has two cylinders (diameter 100.5mm and the height is 280mm) of engineering plastic.

Supporting sentences: Developed in the late 1970s by Norwegian engineer Gunnar Barnes, the pump is operated by a person walking in place on a pair of treadles and two handle arms made of bamboo. Properly adjusted and maintained, it can be operated several hours a day without tiring the users. Each treadle pump has two cylinders which are made of engineering plastic. The diameter of a cylinder is 100.5mm and the height is 280mm.

Keywords: two cylinders, engineering plastic, diameter, 100.5mm, height, 280mm

Location in the passage: Paragraph E

  1. Answer: Piston

Explanation: Paragraph E closes with the description of the pump. The piston and the foot valve assemblies are mentioned here. After this, the way of functioning of the pump is also mentioned. At the time of working, the treadle action will create alternate strokes in these two pistons. As a result, it will lift the water in pulses. The design is indeed very smart and accurate.

Supporting sentences: The pump mechanism has piston and foot valve assemblies. The treadle action creates alternate strokes in the two pistons that lift the water in pulses.

Keywords: piston and foot valve assemblies, alternate strokes

Location in the passage: Paragraph E

  1. Answer: 7

Explanation: This question is about the depth of the cylinder. It is clearly mentioned in the fifth paragraph that any operation where depth is beyond 7 meters is not recommended for this pump. Therefore, this happens to be the correct answer. It also needs mention that 7 meters is the maximum depth offered in this pump,. So the users need to be very careful about this.

Supporting sentences: The diameter of a cylinder is 100.5mm and the height is 280mm. The pump is capable of working up to a maximum depth of 7 meters. Operation beyond 7 meters is not recommended to preserve the integrity of the rubber components.

Keywords: maximum depth of 7 meters

Location in the passage: Paragraph E

Questions 11 – 13

Answer the questions below.
Choose NO MORE THAN THREE WORDS AND/OR A NUMBER from the passage for each answer.

  1. How large area can a treadle pump irrigate the field at a low level of expense?

Answer: Half an acre

Explanation: A treadle pump can irrigate up to half an acre of land and the total cost is around $25. The area of half an acre a treadle pump can irrigate in a field at a low level of expense. At that time as well as now, this is an excellent technology for the people who have a low budget for irrigation. A number of needy farmers will not need to invest a huge amount of money with this pump.

Supporting sentences: The human-powered pump can irrigate half an acre of vegetables and costs only $25 (including the expense of drilling a tube well down to the groundwater).

Keywords: human-powered pump, irrigate half an acre, costs only $25

Location in the passage: Paragraph F

  1. What is Abdul’s new roof made of?

Answer: Corrugated tin

Explanation: After profiting from the treadle pump massively, Abdul replaced the thatched roof with corrugated tin. The condition of the farmers was really poor and farmer Abdul had a vegetable plot and a house with a thatched roof. He did not have enough money to repair or renovate this at that time. The use of pumps gave him good profit and later he repaired the roof with corrugated tin.

Supporting sentences: When Polak visited him again in 1984, he had doubled the size of his vegetable plot and replaced the thatched roof on his house with corrugated tin.

Keywords: thatched roof, corrugated tin

Location in the passage: Paragraph F

  1. How much did Bangladesh farmers invest by IDE’s stimulation?

Answer: $37.5 million/37.5 million dollars

Explanation: This is a correct answer as IDE helped the farmers earn this much. Bangladesh farmers invested a huge amount in IDE’s stimulation. As the passage says, the amount was around 37.5 million dollars. Previously, the investment was around 12 million dollars. It was the investment of the farmers themselves that leveraged the investment and made this project a success.

Supporting sentences: The cost of IDE’s market-creation activities was only $12 million, leveraged by the investment of $37.5 million from the farmers themselves.

Keywords: investment of $37.5 million from the farmers

Location in the passage: Paragraph G

*The article might have information for the previous academic years, please refer the official website of the exam.

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