Explanation
- A
6
(a) 6. Kohima to Kottayam on a realistic road path cannot be squeezed into six States including origin and destination. Too few.
- B
7
(b) 7. A minimal road route is Nagaland – Assam – West Bengal – Odisha – Andhra Pradesh – Tamil Nadu – Kerala (Kohima to Kottayam). That is seven States including origin and destination, the official key.
- C
8
(c) 8. An extra State can be inserted, but the minimum asked is not eight.
- D
9
(d) 9. Still farther from the minimum. Not the key.
Summary. Official key is (b) 7. Start in Nagaland (Kohima) and end in Kerala (Kottayam). The shortest State-count road corridor runs Nagaland–Assam–West Bengal–Odisha–Andhra Pradesh–Tamil Nadu–Kerala. Skipping West Bengal is not a practical through-road from Assam to Odisha; going via Karnataka adds a State. Origin and destination are both counted. Seven is the minimum.
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