Step 1: Understanding the Question:
The question asks us to identify the correct genetics and plant/animal breeding statements from the four options provided.
Step 2: Key Concepts and Approach:
We evaluate definitions of alleles, historical animal breeding examples, the mechanism of test crosses, and the origin of the Punnett square.
Step 3: Detailed Explanation:
• Statement A: Genes that code for a pair of contrasting traits are called alleles, not homozygous (which refers to having identical alleles for a gene). This statement is incorrect.
• Statement B: Sahiwal is a famous breed of dairy cattle.
It was developed through artificial selection and selective breeding of ancestral wild cattle in the Punjab region. This statement is correct.
• Statement C: To determine whether an individual showing a dominant phenotype is homozygous (TT) or heterozygous (Tt), it is crossed with a homozygous recessive parent (tt). This is called a test cross. This statement is correct.
• Statement D: The graphical representation used to calculate the probability of all possible genotypes of offspring in a genetic cross was developed by the British geneticist Reginald C. Punnett, not Gregor Mendel. This statement is incorrect.
Step 4: Final Answer:
Statements B and C are correct, making option (B) the correct choice.