Read the passage and answer the question:

For over a century and a half, the Fifth Report has shaped our conception of what happened in rural Bengal in the late eighteenth century. The evidence contained in the Fifth Report is invaluable. But official reports like this have to be read carefully. We need to know who wrote the reports and why they were written. In fact, recent researches show that the arguments and evidence offered by the Fifth Report cannot be accepted uncritically.

Which of the following statements is correct?

Statement A- Recent researches show that the arguments and evidence offered by the Fifth Report can be accepted uncritically.
Statement B- The Fifth Report exaggerated the collapse of traditional Zamindari power.
Statement C- The Fifth Report underestimated the scale on which zamindars were losing their land.
Statement D- For over a century and a half, the Fifth Report has shaped our conception of what happened in rural Bengal in the late eighteenth century.

Choose the correct answer from the given options:

B and D

The correct answer is Option 2 - B and D

The correct statements are:

Statement B- The Fifth Report exaggerated the collapse of traditional Zamindari power.
Statement D- For over a century and a half, the Fifth Report has shaped our conception of what happened in rural Bengal in the late eighteenth century.

For over a century and a half, the Fifth Report has shaped our conception of what happened in rural Bengal in the late eighteenth century. The evidence contained in the Fifth Report is invaluable. But official reports like this have to be read carefully. We need to know who wrote the reports and why they were written. In fact, recent researches show that the arguments and evidence offered by the Fifth Report cannot be accepted uncritically.

We need to know who wrote the reports and why they were written. In fact, recent researches show that the arguments and evidence offered by the Fifth Report CANNOT be accepted uncritically. Researchers have carefully examined the archives of various Bengal zamindars and the local records of the districts to write about the history of colonial rule in rural Bengal. They indicate that, the intent on criticizing the maladministration of the company, the fifth Report exaggerated the collapse of traditional zamindari power, as also OVERESTIMATED the scale on which zamindars were losing their land.