Given below are two statements, one is labelled asAssertion (A) :and the other as Reason (R).Assertion (A):The 73rd Amendment of the Constitution is considered to be a watershed in the history of local self government in India.Reason (R):The 73rd Constitution Amendment conferred the much coveted Constitutional status on Panchayats.Select the correct answer from the code given below:

1. A

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

   Option (a) claims that Assertion (A) is false while Reason (R) is true. This claim is incorrect because both statements presented regarding the 73rd Constitutional Amendment are factually correct.

2. B

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

   Option (b) asserts that Assertion (A) is true and Reason (R) is false. This is incorrect since the conferred constitutional status is indeed the exact reason why the amendment is viewed as a historic watershed.

3. C

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

   Option (c) states that both are true but Reason (R) does not correctly explain Assertion (A). This option is wrong because granting constitutional status is the primary and direct reason why local self-government reached this watershed moment.

4. D

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

   Option (d) states that both Assertion (A) and Reason (R) are true, and Reason (R) is the correct explanation of Assertion (A). The 73rd Constitutional Amendment Act is rightly considered a watershed in India's local self-government history precisely because it successfully conferred long-awaited constitutional status and protection upon the Panchayats.

Summary. Official key is (d) because both statements are entirely correct and logically linked. The 73rd Constitutional Amendment Act of 1992 transformed rural local bodies by giving them constitutional backing. This elevation ensured regular elections, reservation of seats, and devolution of financial powers. Without this conferred constitutional status, the profound institutional shift in grassroots democracy would not have materialized. Therefore, Reason correctly explains the Assertion.