Given below are two statements. One is labelled Assertion (A) and the other is labelled Reason (R).

Assertion (A): Excess use of herbicides, pesticides, etc., has resulted in selection of resistant varieties in a much lesser time scale.

Reason (R): Evolution is a directed process in the sense of determinism. It is not a stochastic process.

In the light of the above statements, choose the most appropriate answer from the options given below.

Evolution is not a directed process. It is a stochastic process based on chance events in nature and chance mutation in the organisms. While natural selection and other mechanisms can influence the direction of evolution, the outcome is not predetermined.
The changes that occur during evolution are influenced by random events such as genetic mutations, environmental changes, and chance events such as natural disasters or disease outbreaks. These random events can cause certain traits to become more prevalent or less prevalent in a population, leading to changes in the population over time.
For example, a genetic mutation may occur that gives an individual an advantage in surviving in its environment. If this advantage leads to increased reproductive success for that individual, the mutation may become more prevalent in the population over time.