Q&A: practice questions with answers

Concept: Apply the rule digit by digit, write the new number, then read positions.

1. 9368547 → 9 (odd) $-2=7$, 3 $\to 1$, 6 (even) $+1=7$, 8 $\to 9$, 5 $\to 3$, 4 $\to 5$, 7 $\to 5$.
2. New number: 7179355.
3. Third from left $=7$; third from right $=3$.
4. Sum $=7+3=10$.

Trick: Only the needed positions matter: 3rd from left is 6 → 7, 3rd from right is 5 → 3.

Answer: (B) 10

Concept: A letter common to both words gets the digit common to both codes.

1. FIGS → 3648 and ICED → 1285.
2. The only common letter is I; the only common digit is 8.
3. Hence I = 8.

Trick: Common letter ↔ common digit – no need to decode the other letters.

Answer: (B) 8

Concept: Track the net east–west and north–south displacement.

1. From A: 21 km south, left → 7 km east, left → 26 km north, left → 11 km west, left → 5 km south.
2. North–south: $-21+26-5=0$, so P is on the same level as A.
3. East–west: $7-11=-4$, so P is 4 km west of A.
4. To return to A he must drive 4 km towards the east.

Trick: Add all east–west moves and all north–south moves separately; the sign tells the direction.

Answer: (A) 4 km to the east

Concept: Build a family tree from the clues and read the relation.

1. B is the father of C; Q is the sister of C, and T is Q's only sister – so C, Q, T are siblings and B is their father.
2. T is the child of S, so S is also a parent of C, Q and T.
3. M is the son of S's only son – S's only son is C, so S is a parent; S is the mother (female) and B is the father.
4. Hence S is B's wife.

Trick: Two different parents of the same children (one is "father") → the other is the mother, i.e. the wife.

Answer: (B) Wife

Concept: Track the net east–west and north–south displacement.

1. From M: 1 km south, right → 3 km west, left → 3 km south, left → 4 km east, left → 4 km north.
2. North–south: $-1-3+4=0$, so N is level with M.
3. East–west: $-3+4=1$, so N is 1 km east of M.
4. To reach M he must drive 1 km towards the west.

Trick: Facing south, a right turn means west; facing west, a left turn means south.

Answer: (A) 1 km towards the west

Concept: Number positions 1 (top) to 7 (bottom) and place the definite boxes first.

1. Only F is above E → F = 1, E = 2. Four boxes between E and D → D = 7.
2. Positions 3–6 remain for G, S, T, U. T and U have two boxes between them → T, U take 3 and 6; G, S take 4 and 5 (G immediately above S).
3. U is not immediately above G, so U ≠ 3 → U = 6, T = 3.
4. Order: F, E, T, G, S, U, D → fourth from top = G.

Trick: A "gap of 2" pair inside a block of 4 must sit at the two ends of that block.

Answer: (B) G

Concept: Total $=$ rank from top $+$ rank from bottom $-1$.

1. Total $=36+18-1$.
2. $=53$ students.

Trick: Subtract 1 because Vinod is counted in both ranks.

Answer: (B) 53

Concept: Place the people whose positions are fixed first (all face north, so left = left of the line).

1. Only M sits to the left of N → M = 1, N = 2.
2. Four people between M and L → L = 6.
3. D, E, F, G go to 3, 4, 5, 7. F is between G and D (G _F_ D), and G is not next to L, so G ≠ 5, 7 → G = 3, F = 4, D = 5.
4. E = 7, the extreme right.

Trick: When a block of three (G F D) must fit, check which free slots are consecutive.

Answer: (C) E

Concept: Track each letter position of the clusters separately.

1. First letters: E, F, G, ?, I → +1 each → H.
2. Second letters: N, L, J, ?, F → −2 each → H.
3. Third letters: U, S, Q, ?, M → −2 each → O.
4. Missing cluster = HHO.

Trick: Split the clusters into columns and the pattern is visible at once.

Answer: (A) HHO

Concept: Use alphabet positions (A = 1 … Z = 26) and find the gaps between consecutive letters (wrap Z → A).

1. KEBW: K(11) −6 → E(5) −3 → B(2) −5 → W (wrap).
2. QKHC: Q(17) −6 → K(11) −3 → H(8) −5 → C(3). FZWR: F(6) −6 → Z (wrap) −3 → W(23) −5 → R(18).
3. WQNJ: W(23) −6 → Q(17) −3 → N(14) −4 → J(10) – last gap is −4, not −5.

Trick: Learn EJOTY (5, 10, 15, 20, 25) to get letter positions fast.

Answer: (A) WQNJ

Concept: All face north; fix M first, then R, L and finally the I–J–K block.

1. No one to the right of M → M = 7. Three between M and R → R = 3. Two between R and L → L = 6.
2. Free seats: 1, 2, 4, 5. J is immediately right of I, so I–J = 1–2 or 4–5; K is third to the left of I, so I = 4, J = 5, K = 1.
3. N = 2. Row: K, N, R, I, J, L, M.
4. Between N (2) and L (6): R, I, J → three people.

Trick: People between seats $p$ and $q$ $=|p-q|-1=6-2-1=3$.

Answer: (D) Three

Concept: Write the direct codes, then check each condition in order on the first, second, third and last elements.

1. 5#64%: direct codes 5 → A, # → N, 6 → P, 4 → K, % → G, i.e. A N P K G.
2. Condition (i): first element 5 is a number, last element % is a symbol → interchange their codes → G N P K A.
3. Condition (ii) fails (last is not an odd number); condition (iii) fails (# is not a number).
4. Code = GNPKA.

Trick: Test the conditions on the given string before writing codes – only the matching one changes the result.

Answer: (C) GNPKA

Concept: Apply the rule to each digit and read the required position.

1. 1865374: 1 (odd) $+1=2$, 8 (even) $-1=7$, 6 $\to 5$, 5 $\to 6$, 3 $\to 4$, 7 $\to 8$, 4 $\to 3$.
2. New number: 2756483.
3. Third digit from the left $=5$.

Trick: Only the third digit matters: 6 is even → $6-1=5$.

Answer: (C) 5

Concept: Find the rule from the complete pair (or the internal pattern) and test options.

1. Inside DZT: D −4 → Z, Z −6 → T; inside QMG: Q −4 → M, M −6 → G. Both clusters use the gaps −4, −6.
2. Option B: YUO → Y −4 → U, U −6 → O ✓ and VRL → V −4 → R, R −6 → L ✓.
3. Also the pairs match: YUO +5 each → DZT, and QMG +5 each → VRL.

Trick: Pair rule "+5 to each letter" works both sides: Y→D, U→Z, O→T and Q→V, M→R, G→L.

Answer: (B) # = YUO, % = VRL

Concept: Apply the rule to each digit, then find the highest and lowest digits.

1. 1862547: 1 $\to 2$, 8 $\to 6$, 6 $\to 4$, 2 $\to 0$, 5 $\to 6$, 4 $\to 2$, 7 $\to 8$.
2. New number: 2640628.
3. Highest $=8$, lowest $=0$; difference $=8-0=8$.

Trick: Watch for 2 → 0: a zero often becomes the lowest digit.

Answer: (B) 8

Concept: The theme of the Republic Day parade is announced each year by the Ministry of Defence.

1. India celebrated its 76th Republic Day on 26 January 2025.
2. The theme was "Swarnim Bharat: Virasat aur Vikas" (Golden India: Heritage and Development).
3. Indonesian President Prabowo Subianto was the chief guest.
4. "India@75" relates to the Azadi Ka Amrit Mahotsav period, not 2025.

Yaad rakhein: 76th Republic Day 2025 = Swarnim Bharat – Virasat aur Vikas.

Answer: (A) Swarnim Bharat: Virasat Aur Vikas

Concept: The World Bank measures extreme poverty with the international poverty line of $2.15 per person per day (2017 PPP).

1. As per World Bank estimates for 2021, about 12.92% of India's population lived below $2.15 a day.
2. This share had fallen sharply from earlier years (above 20% in 2011).
3. PPP = Purchasing Power Parity, which adjusts for price differences between countries.

Yaad rakhein: World Bank extreme poverty line: $2.15/day (2017 PPP); India 2021 ≈ 12.9%.

Answer: (A) 12.92%

Concept: Madam Bhikaji Rustom Cama was a revolutionary who worked for India's freedom from Europe.

1. On 22 August 1907 she unfurled an early version of the Indian national flag at the International Socialist Congress in Stuttgart, Germany.
2. Hence she is called the "Mother of Indian Revolution".
3. Annie Besant led the Home Rule League; Sarojini Naidu was the "Nightingale of India".

Yaad rakhein: Stuttgart 1907 flag = Bhikaji Cama.

Answer: (C) Madam Bhikaji Cama

Concept: Wind-made (aeolian) landforms are common in hot deserts like the Thar.

1. Barchans are crescent (moon)-shaped sand dunes whose horns point downwind; they form where wind blows from one direction.
2. Inselbergs are isolated rocky hills; Ergs are vast sand seas; Yardangs are wind-carved rock ridges.

Trick: Barchan = crescent dune (C for Crescent).

Answer: (C) Barchans

Concept: The Satavahanas ruled the Deccan after the Mauryas.

1. Gautamiputra Satakarni was the greatest Satavahana ruler; the Nasik inscription of his mother Gautami Balashri praises his victories over Shakas, Yavanas and Pahlavas.
2. Kanishka belonged to the Kushana dynasty; Bhagabhadra was a Shunga king.

Yaad rakhein: Satavahana greatest = Gautamiputra Satakarni (Nasik prashasti).

Answer: (A) Gautamiputra Satakarni