Directions for the following 2 (two) items: Read the following statements S1 and S2 and answer the two items that follow:
- S1.Twice the weight of Sohan is less than the weight of Mohan or that of Rohan.
- S2.Twice the weight of Rohan is greater than the weight of Mohan or that of Sohan.
Which one of the following statements is correct?
Answer & explanation
Answer: (d) ‘Whose weight is greatest’ cannot be determined
S1 makes Sohan lighter than both Mohan and Rohan. S2 only says Mohan weighs less than twice Rohan, which allows Mohan to be heavier or lighter than Rohan. So the heaviest person cannot be fixed.
- S1 (twice Sohan is below each of the others): 2S < M and 2S < R, so Sohan is the lightest.
- S2: 2R > M and 2R > S — Mohan may be anything below twice Rohan.
- Example 1: S = 10, R = 30, M = 50 → 20 < 50, 20 < 30, 60 > 50, 60 > 10; Mohan is heaviest.
- Example 2: S = 10, R = 30, M = 25 → all conditions still hold; Rohan is heaviest.
- The greatest weight cannot be determined.
Remember · Test inequality puzzles with two sets of numbers; if both fit the conditions but give different answers, it cannot be determined.
Question and answer: UPSC's official GS Paper II (2019, Series A) — paper ↗ · answer key ↗. Explanation: Minimalist IAS, checked 30 Sept 2026 (how we verify). ·