Which of the following statements about the India Post Payments Bank (IPPB) is or are correct? 1. It has been incorporated as a public limited company. 2. It started operations by establishing two pilot branches at Hyderabad and Varanasi.

Introduction / Context:
This question tests banking awareness and knowledge of India Post Payments Bank (IPPB), a key initiative to extend digital and financial services through the postal network. The question presents two statements about the legal status of IPPB and the locations of its initial pilot branches. Candidates must determine which statements are factually correct.

Given Data / Assumptions:

• Statement 1: IPPB has been incorporated as a public limited company.
• Statement 2: IPPB started operations by establishing pilot branches at Hyderabad and Varanasi.
• Options range from 1 only, 2 only, both, neither, or one being partially correct.
• We assume standard information from official releases on IPPB formation.

Concept / Approach:
IPPB is a payments bank set up under the Department of Posts. It was incorporated under the Companies Act 2013 as a public limited company with government shareholding. The initial pilot branches, however, were not in Hyderabad and Varanasi; widely reported pilot locations were in other cities. Therefore, statement 1 is correct and statement 2 is not correct, leading us to choose the option that reflects this combination.

Step-by-Step Solution:
Step 1: Evaluate statement 1. Official information confirms that IPPB is incorporated as a public limited company under the Companies Act, so statement 1 is correct. Step 2: Evaluate statement 2. The statement claims that pilot branches were started at Hyderabad and Varanasi. Step 3: Cross check with known facts about IPPB pilot operations. The first pilot branches were opened in other selected cities, not in this exact combination. Step 4: Therefore, statement 2 is not correct as given. Step 5: The correct combination is that only statement 1 is true, which corresponds to option A.

Verification / Alternative check:
Banking awareness guides and government communication about IPPB emphasise that it is a public sector company with 100 percent government ownership and a public limited structure. They also specify the exact locations of the initial pilot branches, which do not match the Hyderabad and Varanasi pairing mentioned in the question. This mismatch clearly invalidates statement 2 while supporting statement 1.

Why Other Options Are Wrong:
Option B (2 only) is wrong because statement 2 about Hyderabad and Varanasi as pilot branch locations is not correct.
Option C (Both 1 and 2) is incorrect because it treats the false statement 2 as correct.
Option D (Neither 1 nor 2) is also wrong since statement 1 is in fact correct about the legal structure of IPPB.
Option E (Only 1 is partially correct) is misleading; statement 1 is fully correct rather than partially correct, so this option does not accurately represent the situation.

Common Pitfalls:
Candidates may focus only on the idea that IPPB had pilot branches and assume the cities named are right, without verifying the specifics. Another mistake is to think that public limited company status applies only to private sector firms, whereas government owned companies can also be incorporated as public limited companies. It is important to read each statement carefully and to remember that factual precision about branch locations and legal status matters in such questions.

Final Answer:
Only the first statement is correct, so the right choice is 1 only.