Question

Comprehension: India is home to an estimated 10% of the global Snow Leopard population spread across five Himalayan states of Jammu and Kashmir, Himachal Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Sikkim and Arunachal Pradesh which is only 5% of the available global habitat for the animal.
Project Snow Leopard was introduced in India by the Project Snow Leopard Committee instituted by the Ministry of Environment and Forests, Government of India, in the year 2009 to safeguard and conserve India’s unique natural heritage of high-altitude wildlife populations and their habitats by promoting conservation through participatory policies and actions.
Project Tiger and Project Elephant are prevalent in India with the former introduced in 1973 garnering worldwide attention. The Snow Leopard usually occurs at an altitude of \( >2700\, \text{m} \) above sea level and is the apex predator in the Himalayan Region along with the Tibetan Wolf. The project is not only to protect the Snow Leopard, but as with Project Tiger, it is considered an umbrella species and with its protection comes the protection of other species and the habitat which they are all a part of.
Top 3 National Parks in India where the Snow Leopard can likely be seen:
- Kibber Wildlife Sanctuary — Himachal Pradesh
- Ulley Valley — Ladakh
- Hemis National Park — Himachal Pradesh
The reasons for introduction of Project Snow Leopard are as follows:

• A. High altitudes of India \( >3000\, \text{m} \) including the Himalayan & Trans-Himalayan biogeographic zones support a unique wildlife assemblage of global conservation.
• B. India has ratified international agreements promoting the conservation of high-altitude wildlife species such as the snow leopard.
• C. Wildlife
• D. Population

Hint:

In comprehension-based questions, look for exact phrases or paraphrased ideas from the passage. Keywords like "food security" help locate the relevant sentence quickly.

Answer 1

The Correct Option is D

Step 1: Identify the relevant line in the passage.
The passage clearly states:
\textit{"The region provides essential ecosystem services and harbours river systems vital for the nation’s food security."} Step 2: Interpret the statement.
The phrase implies that river systems originating in the high-altitude Himalayan region play a crucial role in supporting agriculture and food production in India, hence making them integral to the nation's food security. Step 3: Eliminate incorrect options.
% Option (1) Wildlife: Important, but not directly linked to food security in the passage.
% Option (2) Population: Not relevant to food security here.
% Option (3) Fresh air: Beneficial for health, not specifically tied to food security.
% Option (4) River systems: Correct, as stated explicitly in the passage.