SSC CGL 2025 Tier-I · 17 September 2025, Shift 2 · English Comprehension · Question 24 of 99

We transcribed this text from the pictures on a candidate's response sheet for this shift; the answer is the key SSC colour-marked on that sheet. Solution last reviewed 13 September 2026.

Where this paper and its answers come from

SSC does not publish CGL question papers or a public answer key. From 2025 the candidate response sheet prints every question and option as a picture, so the text here is transcribed from those pictures for this shift and checked against them independently; where the layout carries meaning, the picture is shown as well. Each answer is the key SSC colour-marked on that sheet. SSC released a tentative key for challenge and later its final one, both only to candidates behind a login, and the sheet does not say which of the two it carries. The solutions are written by UnlockIAS.

Rearrange the following sentences to form a coherent paragraph: 1. The most prevalent of these is the peer review process, where a manuscript is evaluated by other experts in the same field. 2. The integrity of scientific publications is upheld by a series of rigorous checks and balances. 3. The goal of this process is to validate the methodology, findings, and conclusions of the research before it is made public. 4. This external scrutiny helps to ensure that only high-quality, credible research is disseminated to the scientific community.

(a)2, 1, 3, 4
(b)1, 2, 3, 4
(c)3, 4, 1, 2
(d)4, 3, 2, 1

Answer

Why

Correct — A. Sentence 2 points back to nothing and states the topic: integrity is upheld by 'a series of rigorous checks and balances'. It opens.

1, 'The most prevalent of these', needs a plural noun before it: the checks and balances. It names peer review.
3, 'The goal of this process', points back to peer review.
4, 'This external scrutiny', sums up and closes.

2, 1, 3, 4 → option (a).

Why the others are wrong

(b)
1, 2, 3, 4 — Opens with 'The most prevalent of these', but these has nothing to point back to until sentence 2 names the checks and balances.
(c)
3, 4, 1, 2 — Opens with 'The goal of this process' before any process is named, and leaves the topic sentence, 2, for last.
(d)
4, 3, 2, 1 — Opens with 'This external scrutiny' and then 'this process', both before peer review is introduced. Sentence 1, which names it, comes last.

Concept

With no connector such as however or first to go on, the reference words decide the order. Here of these, this process and this external scrutiny all point back, so none of their sentences can open, and each must follow the sentence holding its noun.

The chain: checks and balances (2) → of these, peer review (1) → this process (3) → this external scrutiny (4).

The opener is the sentence that points back to nothing.

Sentences 3 and 4 both point back to peer review, so the reference words alone do not fix which comes first. The options settle it: each opens with a different sentence, and (a) is the one that opens with 2.

Key facts

A sentence that opens with a back-reference (of these, this process, this external scrutiny) cannot begin the paragraph.
These is plural, so it needs a plural noun before it: here, checks and balances.
In peer review a manuscript is evaluated by other experts in the same field before publication.

Study next

Pronoun and demonstrative chains in para-jumbles: this, these, it, suchTopic-sentence openers: a general claim with no back-referenceSummarising nouns such as this scrutiny or this process

Common traps

Opening with sentence 1 because it names the key idea, peer review — its 'these' needs sentence 2 first.
Opening with 'This external scrutiny' because it sounds like a heading — here this points back to peer review.

Plural these picking up a noun from the opener also decides 14 Sep 2025, 09:00, English Q.25, where 'These methods' follows 'Food processing is a series of methods'.

Related PYQs

No directly related past PYQ was found.

Topic: Para jumbles — all 121 SSC CGL questions on it, every solved shift.

Rearrange the following sentences to form a coherent paragraph: 1. The most prevalent of these is the peer review process, where a manuscript is evaluated by other experts in the same field. 2. The integrity of scientific publications is upheld by a series of rigorous checks and balances. 3. The goal of this process is to validate the methodology, findings, and conclusions of the research before it is made public. 4. This external scrutiny helps to ensure that only high-quality, credible research is disseminated to the scientific community.

(a)2, 1, 3, 4
(b)1, 2, 3, 4
(c)3, 4, 1, 2
(d)4, 3, 2, 1