In this verbal analogy question on places and people in charge, select the related word pair from the given alternatives: Railway Station : Station Master :: School : ?

Introduction / Context:
This is a verbal analogy based on relationships between places and the people who are officially in charge of those places. Recognising such functional relationships is very important for exams like SSC, Bank PO, and other competitive tests. Here, a railway station is managed by a station master, and we need to find which person is similarly responsible for a school.

Given Data / Assumptions:

• First pair: Railway Station : Station Master.
• Second pair: School : ?.
• The relationship is “place of work or institution : person who is in charge”.
• We assume common real-world roles and not imaginary or unusual meanings.

Concept / Approach:
In analogy questions involving professions and places, the key is to identify the nature of responsibility. A station master is the official who administers and manages operations at a railway station. For a school, the equivalent role is the chief administrator or head of the school. We therefore look for an option that names the person who officially leads and manages a school as an institution, rather than any person who may simply be present there.

Step-by-Step Solution:
Step 1: Understand the first relation: a station master is in charge of a railway station.Step 2: Recognise that the pattern is “place : head of that place”.Step 3: For a school, the person who is in overall charge is the principal.Step 4: Check the options and identify “Principal” as the only role that clearly denotes the head of a school.Step 5: Confirm that this mirrors the structure “Railway Station : Station Master”.

Verification / Alternative check:
We can verify by briefly testing each option. A chef is associated with a kitchen or restaurant, a doctor with a hospital or clinic, and a lieutenant with the armed forces, usually under an officer of higher rank. None of these roles is the head of a school. Only the principal fulfills the position of administrative head in most standard school systems, thereby maintaining the same type of relationship as “Station Master” does with “Railway Station”.

Why Other Options Are Wrong:
Option A (Chef): A chef manages the kitchen in a restaurant or hotel, not a school, so the relationship is incorrect.
Option B (Doctor): A doctor works in hospitals or clinics and is not specifically the person in charge of a school.
Option C (Lieutenant): This is a military rank and does not refer to the head of a school.

Common Pitfalls:
Candidates may confuse any professional person associated with education, like a teacher, with the head of the institution. However, the analogy uses “Station Master” which is not just a worker but the official in charge. Therefore, we must match this level of responsibility and choose the person who leads the school as an institution. Being clear about the type of relationship, not just the general domain, helps avoid such mistakes.

Final Answer:
The correct completion of the analogy is “School : Principal”, so the answer is Principal.