Read the data given below and answer the question that follows: Six girls —…
2024
Read the data given below and answer the question that follows:
Six girls — Pooja, Qimat, Reeti, Shweta, Tejaswini and Vineeta — are sitting around a circular table, all facing the centre.
Tejaswini is not the one sitting between Qimat and Shweta; someone else from the group is.
Pooja sits to the left of Vineeta.
Reeti is fourth to the right of Pooja.
Who sits exactly between Shweta and Qimat?
- A.
Tejaswini
- B.
Vineeta
- C.
Pooja
- D.
Reeti
Show answer & explanation
Correct answer: D
Concept: When everyone at a circular table faces the centre, each person's left hand points in the clockwise direction and their right hand points in the counter-clockwise direction — the reverse of what happens when facing outward. So "X sits to the left of Y" means X is Y's clockwise neighbour, and "nth to the right of Y" means counting n seats counter-clockwise from Y. A person sits "exactly between" two others only when that one seat is adjacent to both of their seats.
Application: Number the six seats 1 to 6 clockwise, starting from Vineeta.
Pooja sits to Vineeta's left, i.e. Vineeta's clockwise neighbour, so Pooja takes seat 2.
Reeti is fourth to the right of Pooja. Right means counter-clockwise, so counting 4 seats counter-clockwise from seat 2 (seat 1, seat 6, seat 5, seat 4 in order) places Reeti at seat 4.
The three remaining seats — 3, 5 and 6 — are shared by Qimat, Shweta and Tejaswini. Seat 4 (Reeti) is adjacent to both seat 3 and seat 5, so seats 3 and 5 are the only pair among the three with a single shared neighbour; seat 6 is adjacent only to seats 5 and 1.
The given clue rules out Tejaswini as the one seated between Qimat and Shweta, so Qimat and Shweta must occupy seats 3 and 5 — the only pair with a single shared neighbour — leaving Tejaswini at seat 6.
Seat 4 is that shared neighbour, so Reeti is the one sitting exactly between Shweta and Qimat.
Cross-check: Vineeta(1)–Pooja(2)–{Qimat/Shweta}(3)–Reeti(4)–{Shweta/Qimat}(5)–Tejaswini(6) satisfies every clue: Pooja is Vineeta's clockwise (left) neighbour, Reeti is four counter-clockwise (right) seats from Pooja, and Tejaswini — adjacent only to seats 5 and 1 — is not flanked by both Qimat and Shweta, while Reeti is.