Consider the following statements in respect of BIMSTEC : I. It is a regional organization consisting of seven member States till January 2025. II. It came into existence with the signing of the Dhaka Declaration, 1999. III. Bangladesh, India, Sri Lanka, Thailand and Nepal are founding member States of BIMSTEC. IV. In BIMSTEC, the subsector of 'tourism' is being led by India. Which of the statements given above is/are correct?

Shows BIMSTEC existed by 2019 and that leaders of BIMSTEC attend Indian state events, indicating BIMSTEC is an established regional grouping.

A student could use this to infer BIMSTEC was formed before 2019 and then check historical records (e.g., 1997–2000 regional summits) to locate its founding declaration date/location.

Provides a timeline of South Asian multilateral events (SAARC charter 1985; later regional agreements and accessions), establishing a pattern that regional organisations and agreements are often dated and tied to specific summits/declarations.

A student could apply this pattern to expect BIMSTEC's founding to be tied to a summit/declaration in a particular year (like 1999) and then search summit records for a 'Dhaka Declaration' that might have created such a body.

Gives an example ('Lahore Declaration' of 1999) of naming a bilateral/regional declaration after the host city, suggesting that a 'Dhaka Declaration' as a founding instrument would follow a common naming practice.

A student could use this naming pattern to judge plausibility that a founding instrument could be called the 'Dhaka Declaration' and then look for a 1999 Dhaka summit declaration referring to BIMSTEC.

Describes high‑level visits to Dhaka and use of declarations/protocols to form or implement cross‑border agreements, illustrating that Dhaka has hosted diplomatic instruments that create inter‑state arrangements.

A student might combine this with knowledge of regional diplomacy to consider Dhaka a plausible venue for a 1999 declaration founding a regional grouping and then seek the specific document.

GATT snippet shows the concept of an organisation being 'signed' with a specific number of founding members (23) — model of how regional/multilateral bodies have an explicit list of founders.

A student could look for the original founding document or announcement of BIMSTEC to find the explicit list of founding states, or compare the set of countries around the Bay of Bengal that could plausibly be signatories.

IMF example states India is a founding member of a major international organisation, illustrating that Indian involvement is common in postwar/institutional foundations.

Since BIMSTEC is a regional grouping in South/Southeast Asia, a student might reasonably check whether India is among its founders by combining this pattern with a regional map.

Asian Development Bank was 'initially' established with a specific number of member countries (including India), showing that Asian multilateral institutions typically list initial/founding members and often include regional major states.

Use the pattern that Asian regional banks/organisations list founding states to search for BIMSTEC's founding members among neighbouring Bay of Bengal countries (e.g., countries bordering the Bay of Bengal).

Council of Europe example (ten countries met and signed to form it) demonstrates a common founding process: a small set of neighbouring or like-minded states meeting and signing a founding instrument.

Apply this rule to BIMSTEC: identify the small group of geographically proximate Bay of Bengal states that would have met to sign a founding agreement and verify against primary founding documents.

Timeline of European integration lists the six specific founding countries for ECSC/EEC — an example of how regional integration origins are tied to a core set of neighbouring states.

A student could use a world/regional map to list Bay of Bengal littoral and adjacent states, then check which of those appear in BIMSTEC's founding list.

Shows tourism is a major economic sector in India (GDP and employment shares), indicating India places high priority on tourism.

A student could compare this domestic priority with BIMSTEC sectoral assignments to see which members with strong tourism sectors might be designated lead.

Notes India's rising position in regional inbound tourism and its large domestic tourism market, implying India is a central tourism actor in the region.

Use basic external data (tourist arrivals by country, regional maps) to assess which BIMSTEC member has comparable regional tourism prominence and so could be lead.

Lists Indian states/UTs that attract most foreign tourists and describes national tourism schemes, showing institutional capacity and initiatives by India in tourism development.

Compare institutional capacity and active tourism programmes among BIMSTEC members (via official BIMSTEC documents or member profiles) to evaluate likely leads.

Provides data on origin regions of foreign tourists to India and tourism's contribution to India's economy, underscoring India's regional tourism linkages.

A student could map tourist-source flows and regional connectivity to infer which BIMSTEC country has strategic tourism linkages warranting sectoral leadership.

Mentions BIMSTEC leaders attending an Indian PM's oath ceremony, indicating India's diplomatic engagement with BIMSTEC.

Combine this diplomatic centrality with India's tourism prominence to hypothesize India may be assigned leadership roles within BIMSTEC, then verify against BIMSTEC records.