Match the following pairs and identify the correct code: Biosphere Reserve Area — State 1. Nokrek — a. Odisha 2. Manas — b. Meghalaya 3. Similipal — c. Andhra Pradesh 4. Seshachalam — d. Assam Code:
- (a)b d a c
- (b)b a d c
- (c)b d c a
- (d)d b a c
Correct — A, b d a c (1-b, 2-d, 3-a, 4-c). Nokrek Biosphere Reserve lies in Meghalaya (Garo Hills); Manas Biosphere Reserve lies in Assam; Similipal Biosphere Reserve lies in Odisha; and Seshachalam Biosphere Reserve lies in Andhra Pradesh (the Tirupati/Chittoor hill forests, notified in 2010). Matching each reserve to its actual host state gives the code b-d-a-c.
- (b)b a d c — Correctly places Nokrek (b, Meghalaya) and Seshachalam (c, Andhra Pradesh), but swaps Manas and Similipal — assigning Manas to Odisha and Similipal to Assam, when it is the reverse (Manas is in Assam, Similipal in Odisha).
- (c)b d c a — Correctly places Nokrek (b, Meghalaya) and Manas (d, Assam), but swaps Similipal and Seshachalam — assigning Similipal to Andhra Pradesh and Seshachalam to Odisha, when it is the reverse (Similipal is in Odisha, Seshachalam in Andhra Pradesh).
- (d)d b a c — Correctly places Similipal (a, Odisha) and Seshachalam (c, Andhra Pradesh), but swaps Nokrek and Manas — assigning Nokrek to Assam and Manas to Meghalaya, when it is the reverse (Nokrek is in Meghalaya, Manas in Assam).
India's biosphere reserves are large, multi-zone conservation landscapes (core-buffer-transition) declared under the Man and Biosphere programme, each tied to a specific state. Four frequently tested ones are Nokrek (Meghalaya, Garo Hills), Manas (Assam), Similipal (Odisha) and Seshachalam (Andhra Pradesh, notified in 2010, covering the Tirupati hill forests).
'Match the reserve to its state' questions plant one or two swapped pairs among otherwise-correct pairs. The fastest way through is to anchor on the pair you are most certain of (Nokrek–Meghalaya is a very commonly tested fact) and use elimination on the remaining codes.
- Nokrek Biosphere Reserve — Garo Hills, Meghalaya
- Manas Biosphere Reserve — Assam
- Similipal Biosphere Reserve — Odisha
- Seshachalam Biosphere Reserve — Andhra Pradesh (notified 2010, Tirupati/Chittoor hill forests)
All four pairs are correctly matched as listed — the code preserving this exact order is (a) b-d-a-c.
- Swapping two reserve-state pairs while leaving the other two correct, so only careful pair-by-pair checking catches the error
- Confusing 'Biosphere Reserve' status with 'National Park' or 'Wildlife Sanctuary' status for the same protected area
A recurring MPPSC/UPPSC format: list several Biosphere Reserve–state pairs and ask for the code that matches them correctly, usually with two pairs deliberately swapped in the wrong options.
Match List I (Biosphere Reserve) with List II (States) and select the correct answer using the codes given below: List I (A) Simlipal (B) Dehong Deband (C) Nokrek (D) Kanchenjunga List II 1. Sikkim 2. Uttaranchal 3. Arunachal Pradesh 4. Orissa 5. Meghalaya Codes:
- (a) A 1 B 3 C 5 D 4
- (b) A 4 B 5 C 2 D 1
- (c) A 1 B 5 C 2 D 4
- (d) A 4 B 3 C 5 D 1
Answer(d) A-4, B-3, C-5, D-1 — Simlipal-Orissa, Dehang-Debang-Arunachal Pradesh, Nokrek-Meghalaya, Kanchenjunga-Sikkim.
Same underlying skill (match each Biosphere Reserve to its state) and shares two identical facts with this question — Similipal/Simlipal is in Odisha and Nokrek is in Meghalaya.
- practice — not a real PYQ
Nokrek Biosphere Reserve is located in which Indian state?
- (a)Assam
- (b)Meghalaya
- (c)Nagaland
- (d)Manipur
Answer(b) Meghalaya — Nokrek lies in the Garo Hills of Meghalaya.
- practice — not a real PYQ
Seshachalam Biosphere Reserve, notified in 2010, is located in which state?
- (a)Odisha
- (b)Karnataka
- (c)Andhra Pradesh
- (d)Tamil Nadu
Answer(c) Andhra Pradesh — it covers the Tirupati/Chittoor hill forests.