Social Science (087) — AI-generated practice question

WTO, started at the initiative of developed countries, claims to promote free trade equally. However, in practice, developed countries like the US give massive subsidies to their farmers for production and export. This allows US farmers to sell farm products at abnormally low prices in global markets.

As a result, surplus farm products from developed countries flood markets in developing countries at very low prices. Farmers in developing countries like India cannot compete with these artificially cheap prices and face heavy losses. Meanwhile, WTO rules have forced India to remove trade barriers and stop supporting its own farmers. This makes the trade system unfair and unequal.

Source: World Trade Organisation, Chapter 4

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• The question has two parts: (1) why free trade is unequal, and (2) consequences for Indian farmers — address both.
• The key argument is the contradiction: WTO asks developing countries to remove barriers, but developed countries continue subsidising farmers — examiners want this hypocrisy highlighted.
• Mention US agricultural subsidies → abnormally low prices → Indian farmers face losses as the cause-effect chain.
• Avoid generic statements; use specific evidence from the passage (US agriculture = 0.5% employment but gets massive subsidies).