Question

Given below are two statements :

Statement-I : Mikhail Gorbachev, who had become General Secretary of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union in 1985, sought to reform the Soviet System.

Statement-II : Gorbachev's decision to normalise relations with the West and democratise and reform the Soviet Union had some other effects that neither he nor anyone else intended or anticipated.

Option :

• A. Both Statement-I and Statement-II are true.
• B. Both Statement-I and Statement-II are false.
• C. Statement-I is true, but Statement-II is false.
• D. Statement-I is false, but Statement-II is true.

Hint:

Both statements agree with the NCERT account of the Gorbachev reforms and their unplanned results.

Answer 1

The Correct Option is A

Step 1: Understand the question:
We test two statements on Mikhail Gorbachev and the break-up of the Soviet Union.

Step 2: Check Statement-I:
Gorbachev became General Secretary of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union in March 1985.
He started reforms known as perestroika (restructuring) and glasnost (openness). So Statement-I is TRUE.

Step 3: Check Statement-II:
He made peace with the West and opened up the Soviet system. These steps had effects that nobody planned, such as the rise of national movements and the end of the Soviet Union in 1991.
So Statement-II is TRUE.

Step 4: Check each option:
(A) Both true. This is CORRECT.
(B) Both false. Wrong.
(C) I true, II false. Wrong, because II is true.
(D) I false, II true. Wrong, because I is true.

Final Answer:
Both statements are true, so the answer is option (A). \[ \boxed{\text{Option (A)}} \]