Explanation
- A
1 only
Statement 1 only. The Chief Secretary is not a Governor’s independent appointee in the sense the statement suggests; the Chief Minister chooses the officer, and there is no constitutional fixed tenure. 1 is not a safe standalone key.
- B
2 only
Statement 2 only. There is no constitutionally fixed tenure for a State Chief Secretary (experimental two-year tenure orders have not made a rigid all-India legal fixture). 2 is false.
- C
Both 1 and 2
Both. Both statements fail the standard UPSC reading: CS is picked by the CM/state government, not ‘appointed by the Governor’ as a personal power, and tenure is not fixed. Both cannot be the key.
- D
Neither 1 nor 2
Neither 1 nor 2. Appointment of the Chief Secretary is a Chief Minister–led executive choice among IAS officers; the Governor does not independently appoint. Tenure is not fixed by the Constitution. That stored letter is the official key.
Summary. Official key is (d) neither 1 nor 2. A State Chief Secretary is selected by the Chief Minister (state government), not independently by the Governor, and does not hold a constitutionally fixed term. Honour the stored letter (d).
Same topic · past papers
UPSC has asked this before
These previous-year questions sit on the same topic. Open one to practise the earlier ask.
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2021 · Q78 · General Studies · 2 marks
With reference to the Union Government, consider the following statements: 1. N. Gopalaswamy Iyenger Committee suggested that a minister and a secretary be designated solely for pursing the subject of administrative reform and promoting it. 2. In 1970, the Department of Personnel was constituted on the recommendation of the Administrative Reforms Commission, 1966, and this was placed under the Prime Minister's charge. Which of the statements given above is/are correct? -
2026 · Q69 · General Studies · 2 marks
Consider the following statements about platforms for multilateral co-operation: 1. The 'Colombo Process' is a regional consultative process in which member states take binding decisions by consensus. 2. The 'Abu Dhabi Dialogue' is a voluntary non-binding consultative process among Asian countries of labour origin and destination to facilitate regional cooperation on contractual labour mobility. 3. The 'Global Forum for Migration and Development', created upon the proposal of a former UN Secretary General, is a voluntary forum whose decisions are non-binding in nature. Which of the statements given above is/are correct?