Which one of the following is the best explanation of the above passage?
Answer & explanation
Answer: (a) Political development is not a unilinear process for it involves both growth and decay.
As traditional institutions and loyalties break down, some people cling afresh to traditional groups while others join new ones, and political development itself sharpens identities of class, tribe, region and religion. Change moves in more than one direction at once, so political development is not a straight, one-way process.
- ✓ (a) Old loyalties decay while new groups grow, and some old ties are even renewed — outcomes pull in different directions, so the process is not unilinear.
- ✗ (b) The passage does not say traditional societies succeed in resisting development; some people move to new groups.
- ✗ (c) 'Impossible' is contradicted by 'others align themselves with new groups'.
- ✗ (d) The passage does not call traditional loyalties helpful to development; it only records that some people renew them.
Remember · 'Best explanation' = the general principle behind the passage's examples. Mixed, opposite outcomes point to a 'not one-way' conclusion.
Question and answer: UPSC's official GS Paper II (2017, Series A) — paper ↗ · answer key ↗. Explanation: Minimalist IAS, checked 30 Sept 2026 (how we verify). ·