A student has to get 40% marks to pass in an examination. Suppose he gets 30 marks and fails by 30 marks, then what are the maximum marks in the examination?
- (a) 100
- (b) 120
- (c) 150 ✓ UPSC's answer
- (d) 300
Why the answer is (c)
• The student scored 30 and failed by 30, so the pass mark is 30 + 30 = 60.
• The pass mark is 40% of the maximum, so maximum = 60 ÷ 0·4 = 150, option (c).
Why the other options are wrong
- (a) 100
- 40% of 100 is 40, not 60.
- (b) 120
- 40% of 120 is 48, not 60.
- (d) 300
- 40% of 300 is 120, not 60.
Asked in the CSAT Paper II of the UPSC Civil Services Preliminary Examination 2018, held on 3 June 2018. Question and answer key: Union Public Service Commission. Explanation: UPSC Answer Check.