In this section each item consists of six sentences of a passage. The first and sixth sentences are given in the beginning as S1 and S6. The middle four sentences in each have been jumbled up and labelled as P, Q, R and S. You are required to find the proper sequence of the four sentences and mark your response accordingly on the Answer Sheet.
S1: The ecosystem of water is complex and many environmental factors are intricately linked.
S6: The trees slowly transfer rainwater into the sub-soil and this is critical for sustaining water for months after the rains.
P: Thick forests make for excellent catchments.
Q: The problems we see are because we have undermined these links over decades.
R: First, rain and snowfall are the only sources of water - about 99%.
S: In the four months of monsoon, there are about 30-35 downpours and the challenge is to hold this water in systems that can last us over 365 days.
The correct sequence should be
- AQRSP
- BPSRQ
- CSRQP
- DRQSP
Explanation
S1 speaks of the ecosystem's intricate links, so Q ('we have undermined these links' — 'these' = S1's links) must follow directly. R then states the basic fact (rain and snowfall are the only water sources), S poses the challenge (holding 30–35 monsoon downpours for 365 days), and P offers the solution (forests as catchments). S6 ('The trees slowly transfer rainwater into the sub-soil') elaborates P's catchment idea, closing the paragraph. Hence (A) QRSP is correct.