In the following passage based question, choose the correct word to fill the blank: "The second strategy proposed ______ the committee was institutional reform of police processes..."

Introduction / Context:
This question is part of a cloze test, where you choose the most suitable preposition for a blank in a passage. The sentence fragment is: "The second strategy proposed ______ the committee was institutional reform of police processes, including investigation of crimes..." The phrase describes who proposed the strategy. Correct prepositional usage is essential for accurate and natural sounding English, especially in formal writing about reports and committees.

Given Data / Assumptions:

• Partial sentence: "The second strategy proposed ______ the committee was institutional reform of police processes."
• We need a preposition that links "strategy" with "the committee".
• Options: "of", "by", "for", "from", "to".
• We assume that the committee is the body that suggested or recommended the strategy.

Concept / Approach:
In English, when we say that something such as a proposal, plan, or strategy comes from a particular person or body as its author, we usually use the preposition "by". For example, "a report prepared by the committee" or "a plan proposed by the government". The structure in the question, "strategy proposed ______ the committee", fits exactly into this pattern. Other prepositions like "of", "for", "from", and "to" either change the meaning or fail to show authorship.

Step-by-Step Solution:
Step 1: Understand the meaning. The sentence is talking about a strategy that the committee proposed, so the committee is the proposer or author. Step 2: Recall common patterns: "proposed by the committee", "suggested by experts", "recommended by the panel". The consistent preposition in such phrases is "by". Step 3: Test "of": "strategy proposed of the committee" sounds unnatural and does not clearly indicate that the committee is the author. It may even suggest belonging rather than action. Step 4: Test "for": "strategy proposed for the committee" would mean that the strategy was proposed for the benefit of the committee, not by the committee. Step 5: Test "from": "strategy proposed from the committee" is unidiomatic; we usually say "proposal from the committee", not "proposed from". Step 6: Test "to": "strategy proposed to the committee" would mean someone else proposed it and the committee received the proposal. Step 7: Only "by" gives the intended meaning, that the committee itself proposed the strategy. Hence, the correct choice is "by".

Verification / Alternative check:
Read the complete sentence with "by": "The second strategy proposed by the committee was institutional reform of police processes, including investigation of crimes, professionalisation and rationalisation of court systems..." This is consistent with standard formal English. Additionally, you can compare with other sentences: "The policy proposed by the commission", "The measures recommended by the panel". Each time, "by" correctly introduces the agent responsible for the action.

Why Other Options Are Wrong:
"Of" is often used for possession or description, such as "the report of the committee", but not as a replacement for "proposed by the committee". "For" indicates benefit or purpose, not authorship, so "proposed for the committee" means the committee is the beneficiary, not the proposer. "From" can sometimes indicate source, as in "advice from the committee", but combining "proposed from" is not standard. "To" would indicate direction, as in "proposed to the committee", which changes who is making the proposal. Therefore, these prepositions do not fit the intended grammatical and logical relationship.

Common Pitfalls:
Students sometimes confuse "of the committee" with "by the committee" because in many contexts both can appear near each other. For example, "the report of the committee" and "the report prepared by the committee" are both correct but have different structures. To avoid confusion, focus on the verb. When you see a passive construction like "proposed", "prepared", or "recommended", the agent is usually introduced with "by".

Final Answer:
The correct preposition is "by", giving the complete fragment "The second strategy proposed by the committee was institutional reform of police processes."