Given below are two statements, one is labelled asAssertion (a) :and the other as Reason (R).Assertion (A):There is a positive relation between Human Development Index (HDI) and Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) ranking of Indian States.Reason (R):The underlying dimensions of SDG targets are closely related to education and health aspects.Select the correct answer from the codes given below:

1. A

   Both (A) and (R) are true and (R) is the correct explanation of (A)

   Both assertion and reason are treated as true, and the reason explains the assertion. State HDI and SDG rankings move together because SDG targets lean heavily on education and health — the same dimensions that dominate HDI (income, schooling, life expectancy). That linkage is why (a) is the official key.

2. B

   Both (A) and (R) are true but (R) is not the correct explanation of (A)

   This would apply if both were true but education/health did not explain the HDI–SDG correlation. The paper treats (R) as the explanation of (A), so (b) is not the key.

3. C

   (A) is true, but (R) is false

   (A) is not taken as true with a false (R); both are true.

4. D

   (A) is false, but (R) is true

   (A) is not false; a positive relation is the assertion the key accepts.

Summary. Official key is (a). HDI and SDG state ranks correlate because SDG health and education targets overlap HDI’s core dimensions. (R) explains (A).