Question: In each of the following sentences, parts of the sentence are left blank. Beneath each sentence, different ways of completing the sentence are indicated. Choose the best alternative among them.
The law prohibits a person from felling a sandalwood tree, even if it grows on one’s own land, without prior permission from the government. As poor people cannot deal with the government, this legal provision leads to a rip-roaring business for __________, who care neither for the __________, nor for the trees.
The second blank is only appropriate for ‘poor’ to retain the logical sense of the statement. This eliminates options 1 and 3.
The roaring business is clearly for ‘middlemen’ or ‘touts’. ‘Middlemen’ is not available with ‘poor’ while ‘touts’ is in option 4.
Hence, the correct answer is option 4.