RRB NTPC General Intelligence and Reasoning Syllabus

In Direction Sense, name the four cardinal and four ordinal (inter-cardinal) directions.

Cardinal: North, South, East, West. Ordinal: North-East, North-West, South-East, South-West.

If you face North and turn right (clockwise 90°), which direction do you face? And turning left?

Turning right (clockwise) → East. Turning left (anticlockwise) → West.

When facing South, where are your right hand and left hand pointing?

Facing South: right hand points West, left hand points East.

Which formula gives the shortest distance between start and end points in direction problems?

The Pythagoras theorem: shortest (straight-line) distance = √(a² + b²), where a and b are the net horizontal and vertical displacements.

At what time/position is the sun in the East and in the West, and how is this used in direction sense?

Sun rises in the East (morning) and sets in the West (evening). Shadows fall opposite to the sun—so a morning shadow points West and an evening shadow points East—used to determine direction.

What is a Syllogism in reasoning?

A logical argument with given premises (statements) from which you must determine which conclusion(s) definitely or possibly follow, typically solved using Venn diagrams.

In syllogisms, what do the standard statement types 'All', 'No', 'Some', and 'Some...not' represent?

All = universal affirmative (A), No = universal negative (E), Some = particular affirmative (I), Some...not = particular negative (O).

Syllogism rule: From 'All A are B' what immediate (converted) conclusion can be drawn?

'Some B are A' (and 'Some A are B'). 'All A are B' does NOT mean 'All B are A'.

Syllogism: 'All cats are dogs. All dogs are animals.' What definitely follows?

All cats are animals (and by conversion, some animals are cats, some dogs are cats). The chain of 'All' gives a definite conclusion.

Syllogism rule for two negative or two particular premises — what conclusion follows?

From two negative premises or two particular ('Some') premises, no definite conclusion can be drawn.

What is the 'Either–Or' (complementary pair) case in syllogisms?

When two conclusions individually do not follow but together they cover all possibilities (one being 'Some A are B' and the other 'Some A are not B' / 'No A is B' on the same terms), then 'Either I or II follows'.

In Seating Arrangement, what are the two main types?

Linear arrangement (people in a row/line) and circular arrangement (people around a table). Circular can have people facing the centre or facing outward.

In a circular arrangement with all persons facing the CENTRE, where is a person's right and left?

When facing the centre, a person's left hand is toward the clockwise direction and right hand is toward the anticlockwise direction (i.e., right = anticlockwise neighbour).

In a circular arrangement with persons facing OUTWARD, how do left/right reverse?

When facing outward, directions reverse: right hand points clockwise and left hand points anticlockwise — opposite to the facing-centre case.

In a linear row where all face the SAME direction (e.g., North), how do positions from left and right relate to total persons?

Position from left + position from right = total number of persons + 1. (e.g., 5th from left in a row of 10 is 6th from right.)

What is the first step recommended for solving Puzzle (arrangement) questions?

Read all clues, identify definite/fixed information first, draw a table or diagram, fill in certain clues, then use conditional clues to eliminate possibilities.

Name common types of arrangement Puzzles in competitive reasoning.

Floor-based puzzles, box/stacking puzzles, day/month scheduling puzzles, age-based puzzles, and category/comparison-based puzzles.

What is 'Order and Ranking' reasoning?

Determining the position/rank of a person in a row or group based on given relative positions from the top/bottom or left/right, and finding the total number of people.

Order and Ranking formula: if a person is Rth from the top and the total is N, what is his rank from the bottom?

Rank from bottom = N − R + 1.

Order and Ranking: if a person's positions from both ends are given, how do you find the total number of people in the line?

Total = (position from left) + (position from right) − 1 (subtract 1 because the person is counted twice).

Order and Ranking: 'In a class A is 7th from top and 18th from bottom.' How many students?

Total = 7 + 18 − 1 = 24 students.

What is a 'Statement and Conclusions' question and how is it solved?

A statement is given and you must decide which conclusion(s) logically and definitely follow from it — based ONLY on the information in the statement, not on outside/general knowledge.

What is a 'Statement and Arguments' question?

A statement (usually a proposal/policy) is followed by arguments; you must decide which arguments are 'strong' (relevant, logical, directly related) and which are 'weak' (vague, irrelevant, ambiguous, or based on personal opinion).

What distinguishes a STRONG argument from a WEAK argument?

Strong: directly related to the statement, logical, important, and addresses real consequences. Weak: superficial, irrelevant, ambiguous, of minor importance, or merely an opinion/restatement.

In Statement and Assumptions, what is an 'assumption'?

Something taken for granted or presupposed — an unstated belief that must be true for the statement to make sense. It is hidden/implied, not directly stated.

What is a Mirror Image?

The reflection of an object/figure in a vertical mirror placed on its side, where left and right are interchanged (laterally inverted) while top and bottom remain unchanged.

What is a Water Image?

The reflection of an object/figure in water (a horizontal mirror below it), where top and bottom are interchanged (vertically inverted) while left and right remain unchanged.

Which English capital letters look the SAME in their mirror image (lateral inversion)?

Letters symmetric about a vertical axis: A, H, I, M, O, T, U, V, W, X, Y.

Which English capital letters look the SAME in their water image (vertical inversion)?

Letters symmetric about a horizontal axis: B, C, D, E, H, I, K, O, X (these read the same when flipped top-to-bottom).

Key difference to remember between mirror image and water image?

Mirror image = left–right (lateral) inversion (vertical mirror on the side). Water image = top–bottom (vertical) inversion (horizontal mirror below). Mirror flips horizontally; water flips vertically.