What is the profession of D ?
- (a) Judge
- (b) Stenographer ✓ UPSC's answer
- (c) Doctor
- (d) Cannot be determined
Why the answer is (b)
• F is the draughtsman and the son of B, making B a parent; since D is the grandmother of F, D is the mother of B or E's parent, but E is unmarried, so D is the mother of B.
• C is the lawyer and the daughter-in-law of D, which implies C is married to D's son.
• Since B is the parent of F and D is B's mother, B must be the son of D (as C is the daughter-in-law, implying the son is married to C).
• The judge is married to the lawyer (C), so B, being C's husband, is the judge.
• A is the engineer and is married to the lady stenographer.
• The two married couples are (A, Stenographer) and (B, C). Since B is the judge and C is the lawyer, the other couple is A (engineer) and the lady stenographer.
• D is the grandmother of F and the mother of B (the judge). The remaining professions are stenographer and doctor. E is the unmarried doctor. Therefore, D must be the stenographer.
Why the other options are wrong
- (a) Judge
- B is the judge because B is married to C, the lawyer, and the judge is married to the lawyer.
- (c) Doctor
- E is explicitly stated to be the unmarried doctor, so D cannot be the doctor.
- (d) Cannot be determined
- The profession of D can be definitively determined as the stenographer by eliminating the other roles and identifying the married couples.
Asked in the CSAT Paper II of the UPSC Civil Services Preliminary Examination 2014, held on 24 August 2014. Question and answer key: Union Public Service Commission. Explanation: UPSC Answer Check.