Assertion (A):The Tamil Nadu coast remains dry during the South-West monsoon season.Reason (R):The Tamil Nadu coast is situated parallel to the Bay of Bengal branch of the South-West monsoon and lies in the rain-shadow area of the Arabian Sea branch of the South-West monsoon during the monsoon season.Select the correct answer using the code below.

1. A

   (A) is true but (R) is false

   (a) claims that both the assertion and reason are present, but incorrectly labels the reason as false. However, geographical analysis confirms that the reason accurately describes the meteorological situation of the Tamil Nadu coast.

2. B

   (A) is false but (R) is true

   (b) asserts that the assertion is false while the reason is true. This contradicts established climatological facts regarding the dry conditions experienced by the Tamil Nadu coast during the South-West monsoon.

3. C

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

   (c) accepts that both the assertion and reason are true statements, but incorrectly denies the causal link. It fails to recognize that being parallel to the Bay of Bengal branch and situated in the rain-shadow of the Arabian Sea branch directly explains why the coast remains dry.

4. D

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

   (d) correctly establishes that both the assertion and reason are true, and further validates that the given reason is the precise causal explanation for why the Tamil Nadu coast remains dry during the South-West monsoon season due to its orientation parallel to the Bay of Bengal branch and its location in the rain-shadow area of the Arabian Sea branch.

Summary. Official key is (d) because both the assertion regarding the dry Tamil Nadu coast during the South-West monsoon and the reason explaining its parallel alignment to the Bay of Bengal branch and rain-shadow location under the Arabian Sea branch are entirely correct. The statement correctly identifies the dual meteorological factors responsible for this unique regional precipitation pattern. Candidates often confuse winter rainfall patterns with summer monsoon conditions in this region. Option (d) accurately captures the complete causal relationship between these geographical features and the resulting climatic dryness.