SAARC, the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation, declared which year as the official Poverty Eradication Year?

Introduction / Context:
Regional organisations sometimes dedicate special years to highlight important goals and mobilise political will. SAARC, the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation, has declared specific years for themes such as the girl child, literacy, and poverty eradication. This question asks you to identify the year that SAARC observed as Poverty Eradication Year, a fact that frequently appears in general awareness and current affairs sections of competitive examinations.

Given Data / Assumptions:

• The organisation concerned is SAARC. • The theme is Poverty Eradication Year. • The options are four calendar years: 1995, 1999, 2005, and 2011.

Concept / Approach:
To tackle such questions, remember a small set of theme years linked with SAARC and the United Nations. SAARC chose different mid 1990s years for social themes, and among them, 1995 is marked as Poverty Eradication Year. Confusing this with later years like 1999 or 2005 is common, so it helps to associate 1995 specifically with poverty and place the other years with different global or regional events. The approach is therefore to recall or derive a short mental timeline of SAARC theme years and match the correct one to the theme in the question.

Step-by-Step Solution:
Step 1: Identify that the question refers to a designated year by SAARC, not by the United Nations or another body. Step 2: Recall that SAARC in the 1990s declared different years for major social issues such as the girl child, environment, and poverty. Step 3: Remember that 1995 was declared as Poverty Eradication Year by SAARC, a detail repeated in many exam preparatory books. Step 4: Compare this with 1999, 2005, and 2011, which are associated with other events and do not match the specific SAARC theme. Step 5: Use elimination to reject the later years once 1995 is recalled as the correct association. Step 6: Confirm that no other SAARC poverty theme year is listed in the options, making 1995 the only logically valid choice.

Verification / Alternative check:
You can verify by linking SAARC milestones with a broader world context. The mid 1990s saw strong global emphasis on human development, including the United Nations World Summit for Social Development in 1995. SAARC aligned itself by declaring 1995 as Poverty Eradication Year for the region. Rechecking standard general knowledge compilations and objective question banks will show that whenever this question is asked, 1995 is consistently marked as the answer, confirming your selection.

Why Other Options Are Wrong:
1999: Not recognised as SAARC Poverty Eradication Year in standard references, though it may be significant for other events. 2005: Associated with different global initiatives and well beyond the mid 1990s SAARC social theme series. 2011: Much later and not linked with the original SAARC Poverty Eradication Year theme.

Common Pitfalls:
Because there are many international theme years declared by various organisations, students often mix up which body declared which year and for what purpose. Another pitfall is to assume that a later year like 2005 or 2011 must be correct simply because it seems more recent. To avoid such confusion, maintain a small, clearly labelled list in your notes that separates SAARC theme years from United Nations observances and revise it regularly before exams.

Final Answer:
SAARC declared the year 1995 as the official Poverty Eradication Year.