Explanation:

Pair-wise check:
1) Northern Railway — New Delhi: Correct. The headquarters is at Baroda House, New Delhi.
2) North Eastern Railway — Gorakhpur: Correct. NER is headquartered at Gorakhpur (not to be confused with Northeast Frontier Railway, which is at Maligaon, Guwahati).
3) South Eastern Railway — Cuttack: Incorrect. South Eastern Railway’s headquarters is at Garden Reach, Kolkata; Cuttack is not a zonal HQ (East Coast Railway HQ is Bhubaneswar).

Hence, only pairs 1 and 2 are correct.

Explanation:

Correct chronological order of their Peshwaship:
– Balaji Vishwanath (1713–1720)
– Baji Rao I (1720–1740)
– Balaji Baji Rao/Nanasaheb (1740–1761)
– Madhavrao I (1761–1772)
This is a direct hereditary sequence: Balaji Vishwanath → his son Baji Rao I → his son Balaji Baji Rao → his son Madhavrao I. Hence the order is 3, 1, 2, 4.

Explanation:

Statement 1 is correct: The 58th Jnanpith Award (for 2023, announced in 2024) was awarded jointly to Urdu poet Gulzar and Sanskrit scholar Jagadguru Rambhadracharya. Hence it is true to say the 58th award was conferred upon Jagadguru Rambhadracharya (even though it was a joint award).

Statement 2 is correct: The first Jnanpith Award was given in 1965, to Malayalam poet G. Sankara Kurup.

Therefore, both statements are correct.

Explanation:

Amartya Sen introduced the entitlement approach to famine and food security, most notably in his 1981 work ‘Poverty and Famines: An Essay on Entitlement and Deprivation’. He showed that famines often occur due to failures in people’s entitlements (their ability to command food) rather than aggregate food shortages. M. S. Swaminathan is associated with the Green Revolution and agricultural policy in India, not with originating the entitlement concept. ‘Atul Pranay’ and ‘Samali Srikant’ are not recognized in the literature as contributors to the entitlement approach. Therefore, the correct code is ‘Only 4’.

Explanation:

Both statements are true, but the Reason does not fully explain the Assertion.

Why (A) is true:
– DPSPs guide the State across economic (Arts. 38, 39, 41–43A), social (Arts. 45, 46, 47), and even political-institutional functions (Art. 40 on Panchayats, Art. 50 on separation of judiciary, Art. 51 on international peace, Art. 44 on UCC). They are thus important for economic, social, and political governance in a modern democratic state.

Why (R) is true:
– The core objective of DPSPs is to realize a welfare state by establishing social and economic democracy. This is a settled constitutional understanding (e.g., Minerva Mills), where DPSPs are aimed at social and economic justice.

Why (R) is not the correct explanation of (A):
– (R) addresses only the social and economic dimensions, while (A) includes political functions too. Traditionally, Fundamental Rights are said to secure political democracy, and DPSPs primarily pursue social and economic democracy; hence (R) does not fully explain the political aspect asserted in (A).

Explanation:

Statement 1 is correct: The Global Environment Facility (GEF) was launched in 1991 as a pilot initiative by the World Bank with UNDP and UNEP, and was restructured in 1994 into its current form.

Statement 2 is incorrect: GEF replenishments are financed by a broad set of donor countries, not exclusively by developed countries. In various replenishment cycles, some emerging/developing economies and economies in transition have also made voluntary contributions. Hence, it is not limited to developed-country donors.

Therefore, only Statement 1 is correct.

Explanation:

Evaluate each pair:
– Nokrek – Manipur: Incorrect. Nokrek Biosphere Reserve is in Meghalaya (Garo Hills), not Manipur.
– Manas – Assam: Correct. Manas Biosphere Reserve (core: Manas National Park) lies in Assam.
– Agasthyamalai – Kerala: Correct. Agasthyamalai (Agasthyamala) Biosphere Reserve spans Kerala and Tamil Nadu; Kerala is one of the constituent states.

Hence, the only NOT correctly matched pair is 1. Therefore, Option 4 (Only 1) is correct.

Explanation:

Statement 1 is correct: Operation Olivia is an annual Indian Coast Guard initiative to protect Olive Ridley sea turtles along Odisha’s nesting beaches (notably Gahirmatha, Devi River mouth, and Rushikulya). The ICG undertakes sea and air patrols to prevent illegal trawling and ensure safe nesting and migratory passages.

Statement 2 is incorrect: The operation is conducted during the turtles’ breeding and nesting season, typically from November to May, with mass nesting (arribada) generally occurring between January and March—not in August.

Explanation:

Correct matches of SDG numbers to areas are:
– Goal 1 (No Poverty) → To end poverty in all forms (3)
– Goal 3 (Good Health and Well-being) → Good health and well-being (4)
– Goal 4 (Quality Education) → Quality education (2)
– Goal 6 (Clean Water and Sanitation) → Clean water and sanitation (1)
Thus A-3, B-4, C-2, D-1 → Option 2.

Explanation:

Statement 1 is incorrect: The provision for a Joint Sitting of Parliament is in Article 108, not Article 109. Article 109 deals with Money Bills.

Statement 2 is incorrect: A Joint Sitting cannot be used for a Constitution (Amendment) Bill. Such bills are governed by Article 368 and must be passed by each House separately by the prescribed special majority; no joint sitting is permitted. (Similarly, joint sitting is not applicable to Money Bills.)

Therefore, neither statement 1 nor 2 is correct.