CAT 2023 Slot 3 VARC Q18 Sentence Placement

Question 18 of the Verbal Ability & Reading Comprehension (VARC) section, CAT 2023 Slot 3, with CAT's official answer and a worked solution.

There is a sentence that is missing in the paragraph below. Look at the paragraph and decide where (option 1, 2, 3, or 4) the following sentence would best fit.

Sentence: Beyond undermining the monopoly of the State on the use of force, armed conflict also creates an environment that can enable organized crime to prosper.

Paragraph: ___(1)___. Linkages between illicit arms, organized crime, and armed conflict can reinforce one another while also escalating and prolonging violence and eroding governance.___(2)___. Financial gains from crime can lengthen or intensify armed conflicts by creating revenue streams for non-State armed groups (NSAGs).___(3)___. In this context, when hostilities cease and parties to a conflict move towards a peaceful resolution, the widespread availability of surplus arms and ammunition can contribute to a situation of 'criminalized peace' that obstructs sustainable peacebuilding efforts.___(4)___.
  1. A
    Option 2
  2. B
    Option 4
  3. C
    Option 1
  4. D
    Option 3

Answer: (D) Option 3 Sentence Placement MCQ

Solution

  1. The paragraph builds a two-way link: sentence 2 says crime fuels conflict ('Financial gains from crime can lengthen or intensify armed conflicts').
  2. The missing sentence gives the reverse direction, conflict fuelling crime ('armed conflict also creates an environment that can enable organized crime to prosper'), and 'also' signals it adds to a preceding link.
  3. The next sentence opens 'In this context', meaning that crime-friendly environment, which then carries into a 'criminalized peace' after hostilities end.
  4. So it fits at 3. At 2 it would come before the crime-to-conflict point it is meant to complement, and 'In this context' would lose its referent.

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