Change the given sentence into indirect speech. Radha said, “I am well.”

The correct answer is C, 'Radha said that she was well.' The original is a plain statement, so it becomes a 'that' clause. Because the reporting verb 'said' is in the past tense, backshift applies: the present simple 'am' moves back to the past simple 'was'. The first person 'I' changes to 'she' because the speaker is now Radha and we are reporting a third person.

• Option A is wrong because it keeps 'I', which must shift to match the new speaker's point of view.
• Option B is wrong because it keeps the present tense 'is' after a past reporting verb. Backshift is compulsory here, since 'I am well' is not a universal truth.
• Option D is wrong because 'should be' adds a modal that was never in the original. Reported speech must keep the meaning, not invent a new one.

Core concept: tense backshift and pronoun shift in direct to indirect conversion. For Mains, the same discipline matters in precis writing, where tense and person must stay consistent when you restate someone else's words.

Trap: Many aspirants pick B because it looks smooth, forgetting that a past reporting verb forces the tense back. Pronoun change is the second trap: 'I' must become 'she' along with the verb.