Data Interpretation - Introduction

Is DI very different from QA, and if so, how do they differ?

DI essentially differs from the Quantitative Ability (QA) questions because of the volume of data (and
consequently the complexities of calculations) involved. To put this simply, the data associated with
any QA question is usually of an easily manageable size and is specific to that particular question
only. However, in DI, the data is rather voluminous and there are typically five to six questions
associated with it. As we shall see later, these questions could be independent of each other, or might
require the use of the data (or the outcome) given (or obtained) in one question to solve another.

Before we go on to the suggested tactics for approaching DI, let us take a quick look at the commonly
encountered data types:

Most of the data in the DI section usually appears in the form of the following conventional graphs:

1.Tabular Data – This is the safest type of data, as all the numerical values are given directly and any
errors that could crop up because of discrepancies in interpretation of the graphical data are
eliminated. Here, it should be borne in mind that students are not allowed to use scales or rulers in
the examination, and hence it is likely that after visually interpreting graphical values, a student might
arrive at a value different from what the examiner had in mind.

For example:

Directions for Questions 161 to 166: These questions are based on the following table, which gives
the number of students passing out from some of the colleges in an Indian city.

Sr. No. Name of College 1981 1986 1991 1996

1. Hansee Cronjee College 219 224 207 235
2. K. J. Somaliya College 95 101 124 128
3. Saffaya College 57 52 63 71
4. Suddenham College 152 159 137 148
5. Sweetipie College 145 159 182 174

Here it can be seen that any numerical value can be obtained precisely from the above table. All
students, and the examiners as well, will have to adhere to the same values while calculating.

2.Line Graphs – This is one of the simplest type of

250
data, as all students are supposed to have dealt with
Hansee Cronjee
line graphs during the school days. There could be 200
one or more lines depicting different sets of data K. J. Somaliya
[e.g. the x-axis (usually the category axis) could 150
Saffaya
denote the years, while along the y-axis (usually the 100 Suddenham
value axis) one line could be used for the population
of India, another for the population of Sri Lanka and 50 Sweetipie
so on]. If the data given in the table above is
converted into a Line Graph, it would look like the 0
line-graph shown above. 1981 1986 1991 1996

It will be evident from the graph that interpreting values accurately upto all the significant digits is
rather difficult in such graphs, where the data values corresponding to a particular ordinate are not
explicitly given.

3 Pankaj Gandhi’s Academy/Data Interpretation

3. Band Diagram – This is a special case of the line graph. Its appearance is exactly similar to that of
a Line graph, but values from a Band Diagram have to
be interpreted in a different fashion. In a Band 600
Diagram, the ordinate (i.e. the value along the y-axis) 452
480
at any point is taken as the difference between that 500 421 435 Hansee
point and the immediately preceding ordinate. Thus 400 Cronjee
Saffaya
the Band Diagram is a sort of cumulative Line Graph,
300 245 245
but every Line Graph that looks like a cumulative Line 202 211 Sw eetipie
Graph should not be treated as a Band Diagram 200
unless the data specifically gives instructions to that 100
effect. Thus, from the table given above in type-1, if 63 71
we plot a Band Diagram only for college numbers 1, 3 0 57 52

and 5, we will get a diagram as shown here. 1981 1986 1991 1996

The given figure being a Band Diagram, the number of students who passed out from Hansee
Cronjee in 1981 is given by [421 (i.e. its own ordinate) – 202 (i.e. the value of the immediately
preceding ordinate)] = 219.

Similarly, the number of students passing out from Saffaya in 1996 is (71 – 0) = 71. Note that here,
the y-axis did start with a value of zero, which need not be the case always. For the lowest line on the
graph, the difference should be taken with respect to the starting value on the x-axis.

4. Bar Graphs – This is also a simple type of

graph in which the values are represented in the 250
form of stacks or bars. These bars or stacks
could correspond to just one ordinate, or they 200
could further be cumulative bar graphs, where Hansee
Cronjee
one ordinate is stacked on top of the other. This K. J. Somaliya
becomes similar to a Band Diagram, except that 150
Saffaya
here we have stacks instead of lines.
100 Suddenham
Note that in the legend to the bar graph, all the Sweetipie
categories do not have a separate colour or
50
pattern of shading, yet the students are
expected to make use of the sequence in which
the categories are mentioned in the legend and 0
in the actual Bar Graph, in order to interpret the 1981 1986 1991 1996
data correctly. This assumption holds good for
any type of data.

5. Pie-Charts – As the name suggests, they are graphs given in the shape of a “pie” [i.e. they are
circular in shape]. It is difficult to combine more than one category in a single Pie-chart, so if the
above tabular data were to be converted into a Pie-chart, we would get four different Pie-charts – one
for each of the four years 1981, 1986, 1991, 1996.

Within a Pie-chart, the apportionment of the various “slices” of the “pie” is usually represented in one
of the two forms, which are:
(a) Actual numerical values
152 219
(b)Percentage values.
Hansee Cronjee
As an example, for the above data, let us draw the Pie- K. J. Somaliya
chart only for the year 1981, in the two forms mentioned
above. In the Pie-chart1,(on page no. 4) the actual number Saffaya
of students who passed out from the given five colleges can
easily be found out. In the Pie-chart2, (on page no. 5) the Suddenham
values have been given in terms of the percentage only. 137
Sweetipie
Here again, there could be many variations.
95
57

Pie-chart1
Pankaj Gandhi’s Academy/Data Interpretation 4
 Sweetipie Hansee The percentages could be relative only to the five
23% Cronjee colleges mentioned or they could reflect the fraction
33% of all the students appearing. In other words, the
total number of students appearing might be made
up of students from these five colleges only, or they
might include students from other colleges as well.
The mention of another category like “Others” in
addition to the five colleges would take care of these
remaining students. But unless definite data to this
Suddenham effect is available, one cannot assume that the
K. J. percentages given are to be computed with respect
21%
Saffaya Somaliya to the total that has been mentioned.
9% 14%
Total students appearing in 1981 are 7500

Pie-chart2
There is a category of questions which is specific to the Pie-charts only – the Central Angle related
questions. Whether the data is given in actual numbers or in terms of percentage, the total Pie-chart
subtends an angle of 360o about its centre. These 360o cater to 100% of the quantity mentioned.
Thus, we can find a readymade conversion between percentages and degrees as:

100% = 360o, therefore 1% = 3.6o.

Note : Choose Clockwise direction for all Pie Chart data in this Book.

Caselets – These contain questions based on data usually given in the form of a paragraph. This
data could be quite cryptic in nature; however, obtaining the value of the unknown or decoding the
given data is the most important part of solving a caselet. Once the value of this variable is obtained,
all the other questions are easy to solve, as they usually hinge on the value of that particular variable.
For example, a typical caselet could be like…

Mr. Dhanwaan won a lottery which awarded him a heavy sum of money. He invested one-third of the
amount he had received in gold and put the remaining into shares. The shares appreciated by 15%
while the investment in gold lost its value by 10%. Mr. Dhanwaan then collected all this money and
put half of it in a bank at 18% per annum, while the remaining half was loaned to a friend… etc.
[The data goes on in this fashion…]
Finally, at the end of a year, he had gained a sum one and a half times the one he started off with.

We can now have a series of questions based on this data. The most likely question is to find out the
sum of the lottery he had won. Once this is found, other questions like “Find the amount he invested
in shares” or “How much did he lose because of the investment in gold?” etc. can be answered very
easily, as they all hinge around the value of the variable “total sum of the lottery” only.

There are a couple of subtle points about caselets that should be kept in mind. Caselets can be very
rewarding once we crack their code, but in case we get stuck, or get an answer which is incorrect, we
will have lost time and effort – that too, possibly, just for getting the further questions wrong! This is
something one has to be very careful of.

Also, it might be a good idea to avoid solving caselets towards the very end of the paper. This is
because though we might crack the caselet correctly in time, we might be left just one or two minutes
short of the section-time, thus being forced to leave the other simple questions of the caselet
unattempted.

Expected Knowledge of Technical Terms

The data given in DI may involve many technical terms in economics, finance etc. As the students
taking the examination come from diverse streams, the examiners certainly do not expect all the
students to have a very sound knowledge of such terms. In order to make the data comprehendible to
all, the explanation / elaboration / definition of certain terms is provided with the data. However, very
commonly used terms and relations like “Income = Expenditure + Savings” or “Surplus (or Deficit) =
difference between the Income and Expenditure” are indeed taken for granted.

5 Pankaj Gandhi’s Academy/Data Interpretation

Data dealing with “Current Prices, Constant Prices, Indices etc.” is commonly encountered in DI and
in the following section, we shall try to get an idea about it. In order to stress the importance of the
concept and not of the calculations, simple figures have been given.
Directions: The following table gives the data about the Consumer Index in core sectors in the city of
Pune, at 1975 prices. The index in all sectors in 1975 was 100. The last column gives the value of the
goods/services (in Rs. crore) from the three sectors in the year 1980.

1980 1985 1990 Value in 1980

Agriculture 110 125 120 165
Industry 120 130 150 180
Services 100 110 125 150

An Index is a convenient way of representing changes or deviations in a quantity. Since it shows the
change in pattern, this change has to be with respect to some benchmark or standard reference. This
reference is usually mentioned in terms of a certain point in time (the year 1975, in this case) and a
certain Base Value, usually 100 (as in this case too), since it becomes easy to calculate the
percentage changes with respect to 100. That is, if the index changes from 100 to 94, it reflects a
percentage change of (–6)%.

Consider the various types of Indices on the stock markets. An index of 2500 in 1998 could imply that
starting with a Base Value of 100 in a particular year, say, 1970, the index has reached 2500 in 1998.
This implies that an investment worth Rs. 100 in the year 1970 has now become worth Rs. 2500.

There exists a direct variation between an Index value and the actual quantity it stands for. For
example, the index for Agriculture in 1980 is 110 and this corresponds to a value of Rs. 165 crore, as
shown in the last column. Since the Base Value of the index in 1975 is 100, the change in the index
has been +10%, from 100 in 1975 to 110 in 1980. Thus the value in Rs. crore in 1980 (= 165 crore) is
after a 10% increase over that in 1975. So in the year 1975, the value must have been [(100/110) x
165] = Rs. 150 crore.

When data over a number of years is given in monetary terms (with or without reference to an index),
the values could be at “Constant” or at “Current” prices. The constant prices express the various
values in terms of the worth of the currency of the reference year only, while the Current Prices
express values in terms of the worth of the currency of that particular year, i.e. the current year itself.
In the above table, the values in the rightmost column are in terms of Constant Prices, i.e. at 1980
prices. Note that the values of 1985 and 1990 have been entered into the table after converting them
to 1980 prices. Thus, we might be asked,

“Assuming that from 1980 to 1990, the rupee has depreciated from 100 paise to 80 paise, what was
the value of the Services in 1990 at Current Prices?”

Let the value of the Services in 1990 be Rs. X crore. This X represents the value at Current Prices,
i.e. 1990 prices.

We can see that the Index values of 1980 are connected to the actual values (rightmost column) by a
factor of 1.5, i.e. (Index for 1980) x 1.5 = (Actual value for 1980). Further, at Constant Prices, for the
“Services” category, the Index value of 1980 (100) is connected to that in 1990 (125) by a constant =
1.25. Thus, the actual value of Services in 1990 will be [(100) x 1.5 x 1.25] = 187.5. This value is at
Constant, i.e. 1980 prices.

Now we know that in 1990, the value of the rupee has become [80/100] i.e. [4/5] times its value in
1980. When X (at Current Prices) was multiplied by [4/5], we got a value which was at Constant
Prices, and which we have found out to be as 187.5. Thus, [4/5]X = 187.5, so X = 187.5 x 5/4  235.
Thus the value of Services in 1990 at Current Prices is about 235.

Importance of percentage calculations

Many of the questions in DI involve percentage calculations, especially calculation of percentage
change. To understand the subtleties in this, let us consider the following example:

Pankaj Gandhi’s Academy/Data Interpretation 6

The production of wheat in Gehugaon was 90 tonnes in 1980, and that it increased to 120 tonnes in
1990.
Regarding this percentage change in production, we could be asked questions in two ways:
By what percent was the wheat production of 1990 more than that of 1980?
By what percent was the wheat production of 1980 less than that of 1990?

The general formula for percentage change calculations is (Change in value/ original value)x 100
In both the above questions, the “change in value”, i.e. difference in wheat production over the
decade is the same. But in spite of this, the answers in the two cases are different, because the
denominator in the two cases is different.

In the first case, the emphasis is on “… than that of 1980?”. This means that the change in production
is being compared to the production of 1980 as the reference or original value. The answer here
would thus be {[120-90] x 100}/90 = 33.33%.

In the second case, the emphasis is on “… than that of 1990?”. Thus, here the same change in
production is being compared to the production of 1990 as the reference or the original value. The
answer in this case would thus be {[120-90] x 100}/120 = 25%.

It will be clear that it is important to have the correct approach towards solving percentage change
problems. Words like “as compared to, with respect to, less than, greater than etc.” are valuable hints
for selecting the correct “Original value”. However, in some cases, we might just be asked, “What was
the percentage change in the wheat production?”. In such cases, the general formula to be adopted is
[(Final Value – Initial Value)/ initial value] x 100

Approximations
As mentioned earlier, the amount of calculations required to be done in DI are considerably more than
those usually required in Quantitative Ability. However, the ultimate aim is to arrive at the correct
answer, and techniques like approximations, elimination of choices (explained later on) are very
important tools for tackling long calculations.

Let us say that we have to find the value of (724/592.7). Here, 592.7 can easily be approximated to
600, while 724 can be approximated to 720. We have taken 720 and not 730 because both, 600 and
720 are both multiples of 120. The value would get after approximations would be (720/ 600) = (6/5) =
1.2. It is quite easy to arrive at this answer. But this might not be all. We could hereafter be confronted
with answer choices like 1.18 and 1.22, both of which are equidistant from the answer we have
arrived at.

Keeping track of the approximations helps a lot in such cases. We know that we have decreased the
numerator from 724 to 720. So whatever be the value we get, it will be less than the actual value of
the fraction. Further, we have also increased the denominator from 592.7 to 600. This change will
further reduce the value we get as compared to the actual value. At the end of our approximations, if
we are getting a value of 1.20, then the actual value must be greater than the one we have got. Thus
1.22 is the correct answer, and 1.18 can logically be eliminated.

This was still a relatively easy problem where both the approximations led to a decrease in the
obtained value. But there could certainly be cases where both, the numerator (N) and the
denominator (D) will either be increased or decreased, making it difficult to find the actual value. In
such cases, we should try to make judgements by finding the percent to which we are approximating
N and D. For example, consider the fraction 59/39. This can be approximated to 60/40, i.e. 1.5. We
now wish to know whether the exact value is greater than or less than 1.5.

In this case, both N & D have been augmented by one. But the relative increase in N is just (1/59)
which is less than the relative increase in D, which is (1/39). Thus the percentage increase in D is
greater than that in N, and the value that we get after approximating will be less than that of the actual
value. Just to confirm this, check the value on a calculator; (59/39) = 1.512 which is > 1.5, the value
we have got.

Adequate practice in such calculations, well supplemented by the students‟ own desire to “get a feel
of numbers” could well be the key to dramatic time-saving in calculations. In addition to this, the two
rules given below could frequently be of help:

7 Pankaj Gandhi’s Academy/Data Interpretation

Let a, b and c be positive real numbers.

1. If (a/b) < 1 then [(a+c)/(b+c)] > (a/b)

This means that the addition of the same positive constant to N and D of a fraction, which is less than
one, gives a fraction greater in value than the original fraction.

2. If (a/b) > 1 then [(a+c)/(b+c)] < (a/b)

This means that addition of the same positive constant to N and D of a fraction, which is greater than
one, gives a fraction lesser in value than the original fraction.

In the example considered above, we can apply this rule by taking a = 59, b = 39 and c = 1.

Other practical tips

While solving DI problems, it is often helpful to glance at the answer choices and observe the
closeness / variation in values.

For example, if we are finding out the value of (881/253) and the answer choices are 2.5, 3.5, 4.5 and
5.5, then we know that the answer has to be greater than 3 (251 x 3 is close to 750) and less than 4
(251 x 4 is close to 1000). There is only one choice “3.5” which satisfies this condition, without
indulging in actual calculations, we can mark it as the answer, having logically eliminated other
choices.

Students must be careful of choices like “None of these”. If the actual answer is 3.1, which is far from
2.5 as well as 3.5 and “None of these” is given as one of the choices, then that itself is the best
choice. Also, after reading a problem, try to determine what exactly is the data that is required for the
problem, and whether the directions and information given make all that data available or not. If the
data is not sufficient, it would be a waste of precious time to indulge in calculations which have no
bearing later on. The answer here could be of the form “Indeterminable” or “Insufficient data”.

In order to minimise the time required for obligatory calculations, it is essential to be well-versed with
tables up to 20, while familiarity with tables up to 30 is desirable. Apart from this, one must be able to
multiply, say, 47 with 17 as (40+7)(17) = 680+119 = 799.

The data given (or the conditions mentioned) in one of the earlier questions should not be made use
of while solving the subsequent questions, unless the instructions allow us to do so. For example, if
question 1 is of the type “If the population of Asangaon is 1 lakh, what is the…” and question 2
requires the population of Asangaon, then we cannot directly use the value of 1 lakh, unless question
2 mentions something like “Referring to the earlier question, what was…”, or the directions mention
“Data obtained in one question may be used in subsequent questions”.

Students are advised to keep the above points in mind and try to implement them. These may not be
the best techniques – a student could certainly come out with techniques more efficient than these –
but they can serve as good guidelines to initiate the thinking process in the right direction. The
students are encouraged to interact with the faculty for any doubts and difficulties that they may have.

Pankaj Gandhi’s Academy/Data Interpretation 8

 Exercise - 1(A)
Directions : Questions 1 to 8 are to be answered on the basis of the information available in the
following graphs.

National Advertising Expenditure

Expenditure Categories (1997) 1100

(as % of total)
Local Radio 1000
5.2

In rupees crore
16 Cable T.V.
900
1.2 Local T.V.
2.7 32.8
Magazines 800

20.6 Billboards
700
Sponsored
Events 600
21.5 Newspapers

500
87 88 89 90 91 92 93 94 95 96 97

1. In 1997, the expenditure on which of the following advertising categories was approximately
equal to a quarter of that on magazines?
a. Local radio b. Newspapers c. Network radio d. Local T.V.

2. For the years in which national advertising expenditures were less than that in 1989, what was
the average of these in rupees crore?
a. 521.5 b. 536.3 c. 545.5 d. 552.0

3. For how many of the seven advertising categories was the amount spent in that category in
1997 more than one-third of the total national advertising expenditure in 1992?
a. 1 b. 2 c. 3 d. 4

4. In how many years from 1988 to 1997 did national advertising expenditures increase by more
than 10% from the previous year?
a. 1 b. 2 c. 3 d. 4

5. What was the amount spent on local radio advertising in 1997 (in Rs. million)?
a. 610 b. 575 c. 769 d. None of these.

6. By what percentage has the national advertising expenditure increase from 1990 to 1997?
a. 65% b. 74% c. 88% d. 108%

7. By what percentage has the national advertising expenditure on network radio increased from
1987 to 1997?
a. 65% b. 74% c. 85% d. Indeterminable

8. If in 1997, 37.5% of the advertisements in magazines were in film magazines and Filumfair was
the largest selling film magazine with a 33.3% share of the market, what was the revenue (in
Rs. crore) that Filumfair managed to generate because of advertisements?
a. 26.3 b. 28.9 c. 31.4 d. None of these.

9 Pankaj Gandhi’s Academy/Data Interpretation

Directions : Questions 9 to 12 are to be answered on the basis of the following information.

Narayan works X hours a day and rests Y hours a day. This pattern continues for a week, with an
exactly opposite pattern the following week, and so on for four weeks. Every fifth week, he has a
different pattern. When he works longer than he rests, his wage per hour is twice what he earns per
hour when he rests longer than he works. The following table gives Narayan‟s daily working hours for
weeks 1 – 13. A week consists of six days and a month consists of four weeks.

1st week 5th week 9th week 13th week

Rest 2 3 4 ---
Work 5 7 6 8

9. Narayan is paid Rs. 20 per working hour in the first week. What is his salary for the first month?
a. 1440 b. 2040 c. 1320 d. 1680

10. Referring to the previous question, what will be Narayan‟s average salary at the end of the first
four months?
a. 1760 b. 2040 c. 1830 d. 1680

11. The new manager, Kushaldas, stipulated that Rs. 5 be deducted for every hour of rest and Rs.
25 be paid per hour starting from the ninth week. What will be the change in Narayan‟s salary
for the third month? (Hourly deductions and salaries are constant for all weeks starting from the
ninth week).
a. 540 b. 120 c. 240 d. 0

12. Using the data in the previous questions, what will be the total earning of Narayan at the end of
sixteen weeks?
a. 7320 b. 7200 c. 8400 d. 7680

Directions: For questions 13 to 20, refer to the following bar graph and the table following it.

98927
Gross Energy Generated
100000
90000
80000 Hydel
61301

Thermal
70000
(Million kWh)

53971

Nuclear
46542

60000
Non-utilities
50000
28162
25248

40000
30000
12210
7837
9100

8416

20000
2998

5384

4075
3186

3001
2860

2417
1656

10000
0

0
1950-51 (7514) 1960-61 (20123) 1970-71 (61211) 1980-81 (119260) 1984-85 (169183)

The figures in brackets show the Total Energy production in the respective years. Assume that all the
generated power was consumed.

Per Capita Consumption of Energy (kWh)

1950-51 1960-61 1970-71 1980-81 1984-85
17.9 38.2 89.8 132.3 156.0

Pankaj Gandhi’s Academy/Data Interpretation 10

13. Thermal power constituted what percent of the total power generated in 1984-85?
a. 50% b. 53% c. 56% d. 59%

14. By what percent has hydel power grown from 1970-71 to 1984-85?
a. 106% b. 114% c. 123% d. None of these.

15. The per capita consumption of power in 1960-61 was less than that in 1980-81 by how much
percent (approx.)?
a. 71% b. 64% c. 79% d. 85%

16. What is the approximate ratio of the hydel power generated in 1950-51 to that of the non-
utilities a decade later?
a. 7:9 b. 5:7 c. 3:4 d. 9:10

17. The non-utilities in 1984-85 formed what percent of the sum of the other three sources in 1980-
81?
a. 11.0% b. 13.1% c. 15.7% d. None of these.

18. At what simple rate has nuclear energy grown annually during the given period from the
inception of nuclear production?
a. 4.8% b. 5.9% c. 7.3% d. None of these.

19. In the per capita consumption of power in 1970-71, approximately how many units were
contributed by thermal power?
a. 31 b. 36 c. 41 d. 45

20. Approximately in what proportion has the per capita consumption of power recorded an
increase over the given period?
a. 1 : 8.7 b. 1 : 6.3 c. 1 : 5.8 d. None of these.

11 Pankaj Gandhi’s Academy/Data Interpretation

 Exercise - 1(B)
Directions : Questions 1 to 6 are to be answered on the basis of information given below.

A company produces five types of jewellery – necklaces, pendants, rings, bracelets and earrings –
using three qualities of gold – 22 carat, 20 carat and 18 carat and using three types of precious
stones – diamonds, rubies and emeralds. The following tables give, respectively :

1. The number of necklaces, pendants, rings, bracelets and earrings produced, in thousands.
2. The percentage distribution of the quality of gold in each type of jewellery, and
3. The percentage distribution of types of precious stones in each type of jewellery.

Note: Each type of jewellery requires 200 gram of gold and 420 precious stones.

Jewellery Number Jewellery Distribution of Jewellery Distribution of precious

Type (000) Type gold(%) Type stones (%)
22 20 18 Diamonds Rubies Emeralds
carat carat carat
Necklaces 20 Necklaces 80 20 --- Necklaces 70 15 15
Pendants 30 Pendants 30 40 30 Pendants 20 50 30
Rings 30 Rings --- 70 30 Rings --- 60 40
Bracelets 10 Bracelets --- 60 40 Bracelets --- 40 60
Earrings 10 Earrings --- 10 90 Earrings --- 20 80

1. Which of the following is a correct representation of the amount of gold used?

Distribution of Gold (kg)

22 carat 20 carat 18 carat
a. 11000 40000 6200
b. 11000 8800 6200
c. 5000 8800 6200
d. 5000 40000 38000

2. How many grams of 22 carat gold is consumed by Necklaces?

a. 4000 kg b. 3200 kg c. 5000 kg d. None of these.

3. What is the ratio of Emeralds used for Rings to that for Bracelets?
a. 0.66 b. 1.5 c. 0.83 d. None of these.

4. How many kg of 18 carat gold is consumed?

a. 8800 b. 5000 c. 4800 d. 6200

5. What is the ratio of the total number of Diamonds, Rubies and Emeralds used in jewellery
which contains 22 carat gold?
a. 10 : 9 : 6 b. 18 : 13 : 9 c. 13 : 9 : 18 d. Can‟t be determined

6. If all the bracelets and earrings made are moulded, then how many pendants can be formed?
a. 20 b. 18 c. 12 d. Indeterminable

Pankaj Gandhi’s Academy/Data Interpretation 12

Directions : Questions 7 to 14 are to be answered with the help of the following band-graph.

Band Diagram of per capita availability of certain items

81.4
80

70.2 Milk
70
66.1
Fish
Kg. per year

64.7

Banana
60
56.9
54.4
Potato &
52.7
Tapioca
48.3 48.9 49.1
50
47.3

46.8 43.3
45.4 45.7
40.2
40
1950-51 1960-61 1970-71 1980-81
(360) (440) (550) (686)

The figures in brackets show the total population in millions.

7. What was the total production of milk (in billion kg) in the year 1960-61?
a. 17.2 b. 18.6 c. 19.1 d. 20.0

8. What is the increase in the production of fish (in million kg) from 1960-61 to 1970-71?
a. 630 b. 820 c. 530 d. 870

9. What is the percentage increase in the production of potato and tapioca from 1950-51 to 1980-
81?
a. 250% b. 300% c. 320% d. 350%

10. If the year 1974-75 experienced a 20% drop in the total production of banana compared to
1970-71, what was the actual total production of banana (in million kg) for 1974-75?
a. 3696 b. 2210 c. 3080 d. 2464

11. If the year 1971-72 witnessed a doubling in the amount of fish produced compared to the fish
production of 1960-61, what was the per capita availability of fish in 1971-72?
a. 14.6 kg b. 3.8 kg c. 12 kg d. Indeterminable

12. If the year 1990-91 had an 80% increase in the per capita availability of potato and tapioca as
compared to the per capita availability in 1980-81, what was the simple annual increase in
production (in million kg per year), if the population then was 820 million?
a. 1650 b. 1725 c. 1850 d. 1925

13. If each category registered a 20% increase in per capita availability from 1980-81 to 1990-91,
then what was the total availability (in billion kg) in 1990-91, given that the population was the
same as that mentioned in the previous question?
a. 68.6 b. 72.2 c. 77.8 d. 80.3

14. If milk has 1800 calories per kg, what approximately is the average kilocalorie intake due to milk
consumption per person per month?
a. 5.54 b. 6.03 c. 7.16 d. Insufficient data

13 Pankaj Gandhi’s Academy/Data Interpretation

Directions : Answer questions 15 to 22 with the help of the following bar graph.

Percentage Distribution of Domestic Produce at Factor Cost

and at Constant Prices with base year 1970-71
100%
90% Tertiary
80% Secondary
70% Primary
60%
50%
40%
30%
20%
10%
0%
1950- 1960- 1970- 1975- 1980- 1985-
51(16798) 61(24360) 71(34519) 76(40365) 81(47419) 86(57286)
Years (N.D.P. in crores)
15. What was the contribution (in rupees billion) of the primary sector to the NDP in 1980-81?
a. 210.2 b. 173.6 c. 189.7 d. 200.5

16. By what % has the NDP increased between 1960-61 and 1985-86?
a. 132% b. 143% c. 160% d. 178%

17. In which year did the contribution of the tertiary sector register the maximum percentage
increase with respect to previous data given?
a. 1970-71 b. 1980-81 c. 1985-86 d. 1960-61

18. By approximately how much (in rupees crore) has the contribution of the secondary sector to
the NDP increased from 1970-71 to 1980-81?
a. 4000 b. 4300 c. 4550 d. 4800

19. What was the total contribution (in rupees crore) of the primary and tertiary sectors to the NDP
in 1975-76?
a. 27800 b. 39600 c. 35100 d. 32300

20. If the value of the rupee in 1985-86 was 30 paise as compared to its 1970-71 value, what was
the contribution (in rupees crore) of the tertiary sector in 1985-86 at constant prices?
a. 6784 b. 13748 c. 22915 d. None of these.

21. What was the contribution (in rupees crore) of the Primary Sector to the NDP in 1985-86 at
current prices? (Refer to data in the previous question).
a. 68521 b. 74472 c. 78692 d. 85184

22. What was the contribution (in rupees crore) of the Secondary Sector to the NDP in the last 2
periods mentioned in the table, at 1970-71 prices?
a. 25000 b. 18800 c. 29200 d. 22900

Pankaj Gandhi’s Academy/Data Interpretation 14

Directions : Questions 23 to 30 are to be answered on the basis of information available in the
following table.

SEVENTH PLAN : EXPORT PROJECTIONS (Rs crore at 1984-85 prices)

Product 1984-85 1989-90 Seventh Plan Total

1985-90
Engineering Goods 870 1862 7011
Gems 1367 1163 7700
Handicrafts 415 494 2307
Tea 718 770 3724
Coffee 221 232 1136
Processed food 328 424 1918
Spices 217 270 1243
Marine products 338 446 2113
Jute products 207 222 1078
Iron ore 438 608 2676
Leather 533 577 2796
Cotton textiles 380 440 2077
Garments 875 1336 5683
Others 3005 4487 19191
Total 9962 13831 60653

23. The projected export in 1989-90 exceeds the average annual export during the Seventh Plan
period by how many crores?
a. 950 b. 1220 c. 1350 d. 1700

24. What is the average of the ratios of exports of cotton textiles and garments to the total exports
in 1984-85 and 1989-90?
a. 0.110 b. 0.126 c. 0.141 d. 0.164

25. Consider that the values given in the table are at current prices. What percent change in the
value of the rupee from 1984-85 to 1989-90 would make the 1989-90 export projections equal
in value to those of 1984-85?
a. 23.2% increase b. 28.5% decrease c. 33.6% increase d. Insufficient data.

26. Had the rupee appreciated by 30% from 1984-85 to 1989-90, what would have been the actual
increase in the exports (in Rs. crore) for these two years at current prices?
a. 680 b. 1150 c. 820 d. Indeterminable

27. The export of gems in 1984-85 was less than the projected annual average export of gems
during the Seventh Plan Period by (in Rs crore)…
a. 168 b. 173 c. 180 d. None of these.

28. What was the overall percentage increase in the exports of all categories except “Others”, from
1984-85 to 1989-90?
a. 32% b. 27% c. 35% d. None of these.

29. What was the difference between the exports of Leather and Jute products of 1984-85 and the
average annual value of the same during the Seventh Plan Period? ( in Rs. Crores )
a. 35 b. 47 c. 68 d. 90

30. The exports of tea, coffee and processed food formed what percent of the total exports for the
years 1984-85 and 1989-90?
a. 8.2% b. 14.4% c. 19.6% d. None of these.

15 Pankaj Gandhi’s Academy/Data Interpretation

 Exercise - 2(A)
Directions: Questions 1 to 7 are to be answered on the basis of information available in the following
bar graph.

170 Power Supply in India (Billion kWh)

160

150

140

130

120
Requirement
110
Supply
100

90

80

70

60
74-75 75-76 76-77 77-78 78-79 79-80 80-81 81-82 82-83 83-84 84-85

1. What was the percentage increase in the supply of power from the start to the end of the given
period?
a. 144% b. 112% c. 128% d. None of these.

2. The cumulative difference between the requirement and supply of power (in billion kWh) within
a decade of 1974-75 was…
a. 119 b. 129 c. 149 d. 139

3. What is the ratio of the availability of supply in 1976-77 to the requirement in 1983-84?
a. 0.57 b. 0.63 c. 0.51 d. None of these.

4. The difference between the percentage increase of supply from 1976-77 to 1980-81 and the
percentage increase in requirement from 1980-81 to 1984-85 is…
a. 12 b. 19 c. 16 d. None of these.

5. How many years have registered a minimum of 10% increase in the requirement of power
compared to the previous year?
a. 1 b. 2 c. 3 d. None of these.

6. If electricity was supplied at 80 paise per kilowatt-hour, what was the income (in Rs. billion) in
1982-83?
a. 116 b. 99 c. 86 d. Insufficient data.

7. If the supply figures do not take into account illegal connections which form 10% of the total
actual supply, what is the percentage loss in revenue for 1984-85 with respect to the acquired
revenue? [The cost of electricity in 1984-85 is Rs. 1.10 per kWh].
a. 20% b. 15% c. 9.99% d. 11.11%

Pankaj Gandhi’s Academy/Data Interpretation 16

Directions : Questions 8 to 14 are based on the following graphs.
STATE GOVERNMENT BUDGET

Revenue (Rs.1350 crores)

0% 10% 20% 30% 40% 50% 60% 70% 80% 90% 100%
Sales Tax Central Grants Land Revenue Stamp Duty Excise Agro. Income Tax Miscellaneous

Expenditure (Rs.1480 crores)

0% 10% 20% 30% 40% 50% 60% 70% 80% 90% 100%
Education Health Police Administration Roads Miscellaneous

8. What is the status of the state budget for the year?

a. a deficit of Rs. 130 crore b. a deficit of Rs. 80 crore
c. an excess of Rs. 130 crore d. an excess of Rs. 80 crore

9. What was the amount contributed to the state revenue by the single largest contributor?
a. Rs. 529 crore b. Rs. 567 crore c. Rs. 594 crore d. None of these

10. What is the additional revenue that can be generated if an additional surcharge of 15% is levied
on Excise?
a. Rs 8.1 crore b. Rs 14.2 crore c. Rs 10.8 crore d. Indeterminable.

11. The government decides to abolish Agro Income Tax but wants to compensate the loss by
levying a surcharge on Land revenue. What must the rate of the surcharge be?
a. 25% b. 40% c. 50% d. None of these.

12. If children between the ages of 5 and 15 years account for 30% of the Educational expenses
and 25% of the Health expenditure, what approximately is the cumulative amount spent on
them (i.e. on Health + Education)?
a. Rs 128 crore b. Rs 200 crore c. Rs 224 crore d. None of these.

13. If the expenditure on education is reduced by 20% and the savings are distributed equally
between roads and health, how many crore rupees will now be spent on roads?
a. 165 b. 190 c. 205 d. 225

14. Twenty percent of central grants was spent on the maintenance of highways, of which 10% was
spent on the maintenance of the Bombay – Pune highway, which accounted for 60% of the
total amount spent on the maintenance of highways. What was this total amount spent on the
maintenance of highways?
a. Rs 9.0 crore b. Rs 6.2 crore c. Rs 7.7 crore d. Rs 4.5 crore

17 Pankaj Gandhi’s Academy/Data Interpretation

Directions : Questions 15 to 20 are to be answered on the basis of information available in the
following table.
World-wide Production of 4-Wheelers :

Item / Make 1950-51 1965-66 1971-72 1976-77 1979-80

Total Passenger cars 155.24 195.99 203.34 210.14 212.50
American 40.83 53.88 57.43 62.03 61.30
German 36.83 42.02 39.99 40.91 41.30
Japanese 45.15 64.59 67.72 69.69 71.65
British 1.51 1.15 0.94 0.91 0.76
Korean 0.06 0.07 0.07 0.09 0.13
French 1.25 1.07 0.99 0.98 1.00
Italian 0.64 1.03 1.11 1.07 1.15
Total Non-Passenger vehicles 74.40 115.45 138.54 141.00 146.00
Total 4-Wheelers 229.64 311.44 341.88 351.14 358.5
All figures in millions

15. The combined production of British, French, Korean and Italian cars registered what
percentage change between 1950-51 and 1976-77?
a. 14% b. 18% c. 9% d. None of these.

16. The non-passenger vehicles formed what proportion of the total four wheelers in 1971-72?
a. 0.33 b. 0.37 c. 0.41 d. None of these.

17. American vehicles constituted 60% of the non-passenger vehicles in 1950-51. This share
reduced by one percentage point in every two years. So by the year 1979-80, what
approximately was the difference in production of American non-passenger vehicles?
a. 17.3 million b. 14.7 million c. 20.1 million d. Indeterminable.

18. The American, German and Japanese passenger cars of 1965-66 formed what percent of the
total number of four-wheelers of the next decade?
a. 23% b. 19% c. 26% d. Indeterminable.

19. In 1971-72, Indian passenger cars form 15% of the other countries (i.e. countries not
mentioned under Passenger Cars). What was the actual number of Indian passenger cars
produced in 1971-72?
a. 4.35 million b. 5.25 million c. 6.40 million d. Insufficient data.

20. It is given that passenger cars comprise of cars and jeeps. In 1979-80, jeeps accounted for
40% of the German passenger cars. What was the number of German cars produced then?
a. 21.24 million b. 19.60 million c. 24.78 million d. Indeterminable.

Pankaj Gandhi’s Academy/Data Interpretation 18

 Exercise - 2(B)
Directions: Questions 1 to 4 are based on the following table.

Market Shares of Some Products in Four Metropolitan Cities

Period / Mumbai Calcutta Delhi Madras

Products 1993 - 94 1993 - 94 1993 - 94 1993 - 94
Soap 20 – 15 35 – 30 20 – 15 20 – 30
Deodorant 20 – 25 30 – 15 15 – 10 20 – 15
Perfume 45 – 40 25 – 35 35 – 35 10 – 10
Talc 15 – 20 10 – 20 10 – 10 50 – 45

1. The percentage market share of which product did not decrease between 1993 and 1994 in
any city?
a. Soap b. Deodorant c. Perfume d. None of these.

2. How many products doubled their market share in one or more cities?
a. 0 b. 1 c. 2 d. 3

3. What is the largest percentage drop in market shares for any product in any city?
a. 60% b. 50% c. 53.3% d. 20%

4. What is the number of products which had 100% market share in the four metropolitan cities?
a. 0 b. 1 c. 2 d. 3

Directions: Questions 5 to 9 are based on the following data.

Maruti Automobiles is going to launch two new models, the Maruti Compact and the Maruti Comfort.
The following band diagram gives the results of several test drives conducted on both the models at
different speeds.

500

400
Time(in secs)

300 Compact
200 Comfort

100

0
0 1 2 3 4 5 6
Distance(in km)

5. During the 5 km test drive, the ratio of average speeds of Maruti Compact to Maruti Comfort is
a. 1 : 2 b. 2 : 1 c. 1 : 1 d. 4 : 1

6. If Maruti Comfort is driven over a 6 km distance at a uniform speed which is equal to the sum of
the average speeds of both the cars over the 3 km test drive, then the time taken by Maruti
Comfort to cover the distance is
a. 100 seconds b. 200 seconds c. 150 seconds d. 300 seconds

7. Maruti Compact, after covering 4 km during the 6 km test drive developed some engine trouble
and its speed was reduced to half its original speed. What was its original speed ?
a. 72 kmph b. 108 kmph c. 144 kmph d. Indeterminable.

19 Pankaj Gandhi’s Academy/Data Interpretation

8. Which alternative correctly represents the following in descending order?
[p] Average speed of Maruti Compact over 5 km test drive.
[q] Average speed of Maruti Comfort over 6 km test drive.
[r] Average speed of Maruti Comfort over 3 km test drive.
a. [p], [r], [q] b. [r], [q], [p] c. [p], [q], [r] d. [q], [p], [r]

9. The average speed of Maruti Compact over the 6 km test drive is how many percent more than
the average speed of Maruti Comfort over the 2 km test drive?
a. 33.33% b. 50% c. 100% d. None of these.

Directions: Answer questions 10 to 12 with the help of the following information.

Theekthaakbhai undertakes overhauling of two-wheelers, three-wheelers and trucks at his garage.

The overhauling process includes activities like scrubbing, denting, painting, repairs, assembly, etc.
The network given below gives the sequence of activities to be followed and the time required (in
hours) for each activity in overhauling a two-wheeler. The overhauling of a vehicle starts at the node P
and the overhauled vehicle is delivered at U. All activities must be completed before a vehicle is
delivered. The time required for all activities for two-wheelers, three-wheelers and trucks are in the
ratio 1 : 2 : 3.
Q
16
8 10

10 17 9 U
P R T

8 18 14

10. What is the minimum time required for overhauling a truck (in hours)?
a. 44 b. 132 c. 110 d. 330

11. Theekthaakbhai‟s charges (in rupees) for each activity are 100 times the time required to
complete each activity. If a customer wants his vehicle delivered earlier, Theekthaakbhai
reduces the time required for each activity by an hour. At the same time, he charges the
customer extra according to the following rates: Activities starting from P : 10% extra, activities
starting from Q : 12% extra and activities starting from S : 15% extra. What is the extra amount
that a customer will have to pay in order to obtain his three-wheeler earlier?
a. Rs 2020 b. Rs 1610 c. Rs 1120 d. None of these.

12. If the time required for activities (P – R) and (S – T) is reduced by 3 hours each and that of
activities (P – S) and (Q – U) is increased by 2 hours each, what will be Theekthaakbhai‟s
change in revenue (in rupees) from overhauling a two-wheeler, knowing that for each activity,
he still charges (in rupees) 100 times the time required for each activity?
a. Rs 200 b. Rs 95 c. Rs 411 d. Insufficient data

Directions: Questions 13 to 15 are based on the following data.

A factory uses two machines, M1 and M2 to manufacture three products, A, B and C. The two
machines operate 9 hours a day each. The efficiency of the two machines with respect to the three
products is given in the table below. The numbers indicate the time taken (in minutes) by the two
machines to manufacture one unit of the three products.

M1 M2
A 15 18
B 14 12
C 16 18

Pankaj Gandhi’s Academy/Data Interpretation 20

13. What is the maximum number of units manufactured if M1 is used to manufacture units of A
only and M2 is used to manufacture units of B only?
a. 64 b. 81 c. 89 d. None of these.
14. On a particular day, the factory obtains an order to manufacture 35 units of B and 25 units of C.
What is the maximum number of units of A that can be manufactured on that day?
a. 15 b. 18 c. 22 d. None of these.
15. A unit of B can be manufactured only after three units of A and two units of C are
manufactured. What is the minimum extra time required to manufacture 12 units of B on a
particular day?
a. 1/6 hours b. 45 minutes c. 2/5 hours d. None of these.
Directions : Questions 16 to 22 are to be answered with the help of the following bar graph.

The following graphs give the cumulative distance covered by two trains at hourly intervals, beginning
with the first hour.

11 a.m.
Goods Train 250

7 p.m. 250 200 12 noon

150

100

6 p.m. 50 25 60 1 p.m.
220
0 100

100
200
5 p.m. 120 2 p.m.
160

4 p.m. 3 p.m.

1 p.m.
Express Train 300

9 p.m. 290 250 2 p.m.

200
150
100
50 80
8 p.m. 50 3 p.m.
240 80
0
140

230

7 p.m. 4 p.m.
175
190

6 p.m. 5 p.m.

21 Pankaj Gandhi’s Academy/Data Interpretation

NOTE: Use the data given in the question if required.

16. If the two trains coming from two different stations and moving towards the other station
crossed each other at 6:00 P.M., then what is the distance between the two stations?
a. 440 km b. 380 km c. 410 km d. Indeterminable.

17. For how long did the goods train stop at a station?
a. 15 minutes b. 45 minutes c. 60 minutes d. Indeterminable.

18. What is the average speed of the express train for the journey shown in the graph?
a. 29 kmph b. 32 kmph c. 35 kmph d. Insufficient data.

19. What is the average speed of the goods train after crossing the express train for the journey
shown in the graph?
a. 25 kmph b. 30 kmph c. 35 kmph d. Indeterminable.

20. If the express train continues at the average speed during its final hour mentioned above, at
what time will it reach the station from which the goods train started?
a. 10:32 P.M. b. 11:05 P.M. c. 11:24 P.M. d. None of these.

21. If the goods train covers the remaining distance just before the end of the day, what will be its
average speed for the entire journey?
a. 24 kmph b. 29 kmph c. 37 kmph d. None of these.

22. If between 12 noon and 3 p.m., the goods train, whenever it travelled, had done so at a speed
of 40 kmph, for how long had it stopped?
a. 2 hours b. 105 minutes c. 90 minutes d. None of these.

Directions : For questions 23 to 30, refer to the following graphs.

250
240
230 1961
220 1966
210 1971
200
190
180
170
160
150
140
130
120
110
100
General Index Basic Index Capital Goods Intermediate Consumer Goods
Industries Industries Industries Industries Industries

Index of Industrial Production on the 1960 base = 100

Pankaj Gandhi’s Academy/Data Interpretation 22

 1990

Consumer Goods
Industries
1985 Intermediate
Industries
Capital Goods
Industries
1981
Basic Index
Industries
General Index
1971 Industries

100 110 120 130 140 150 160 170 180 190 200 210 220 230 240

Index of Industrial Production on the 1970 base = 100

23. What would have been the index in 1966 for intermediate industries on the 1970 base?
a. 72 b. 81 c. 90 d. 99

24. What would have been the basic index in 1981 on the 1960 base?
a. 360 b. 330 c. 300 d. 270

25. By what percent has the production of consumer goods industries increased from 1961 to
1990?
a. 172.5% b. 151.1% c. 135.5% d. 111.8%
26. If the given data is at constant prices, say at 1971 prices; and between 1971 and 1981 the
rupee witnessed a 15% depreciation in it‟s value; what was the index corresponding to
intermediate industries in 1981 on the 1970 base at current prices?
a. 112.6 b. 142.5 c. 73.9 d. 90.8

27. If the general index of 1995 had to show a 3.8 times increase over 1961, what must it‟s index
value correspond to on the 1970-base?
a. 212 b. 295 c. 347 d. Indeterminable.

28. If the number of radios and stereos produced in 1966 was 21000 and they come under
consumer durables, what was their number in the year 1990?
a. 33100 b. 35300 c. 36900 d. Indeterminable.

29. Suppose the given table is at current prices and on an average, the rupee depreciates at 10%
every 5 years, what would be the index for capital goods industries for 1985 on the 1970-base
at constant prices?
a. 132 b. 174 c. 86 d. 71

30. During which of the following years did the basic index industries show maximum percent
increase over the previous year?
a. 1971 b. 1981 c. 1985 d. 1990

23 Pankaj Gandhi’s Academy/Data Interpretation

 Exercise - 3(A)
Directions: Answer questions 1 to 7 with the help of the following graph.

Sales of Leather Items

Apparels Accessories Footw ear Exports

50
Figures in Rs. crores

40

30

20

10

0
1993 1994 1996

1. The percentage increase in the sales of accessories between 1993 and 1994 was
a. 25% b. 14.75% c. 16.66% d. 20%

2. The percentage of sales of apparels to total sales between 1993 and 1994
a. increased by 1.7 b. increased by 2.5 c. decreased by 3 d. decreased by 3.5

3. In 1994, if 20% of the footwear sold within the country had been additionally exported at the
local price, the percentage increase in export income from 1993 to 1994 would have been …..
a. 50% b. 31.5% c. 25% d. 26.6%

4. The sales of footwear touched Rs.80 crore in 1995, the average annual percentage growth of
footwear in 1993-94 and 1994-95 will be
a. 110% b. 78.85% c. 85% d. 95%

5. If the sale of apparels is to register the same percentage increase between 1994 and 1995 as it
had registered between 1993 and 1994, the sale figure in 1995 of apparels must be
a. Rs. 45 crore b. Rs. 49 crore c. Rs. 51 crore d. Rs. 55 crore

6. What is the annual simple growth rate of footwear from 1993 to 1996?
a. 25 % b. 33.33% c. 50 % d. None of these.

7. The total sales of 1993 is how many times the increase of 1996 total sales over 1994 total
sales?
a. 1.6 b. 2.7 c. 3.5 d. Indeterminable.

Pankaj Gandhi’s Academy/Data Interpretation 24

Directions : Questions 8 to 14 are to be answered with the help of the following graph.

Power Supply Position (Million kWh)

190000 169835
170000
136849
145273
150000
120118 129245 151220
130000
108535 118370
110000 102180 129553
124225
88489 115274
90000 77600 83508 104932
97349 99302 Requirem ent
70000 83465 86343
Supply
66467 74909
50000
1974- 1975- 1976- 1977- 1978- 1979- 1980- 1981- 1982- 1983- 1984-
75 76 77 78 79 80 81 82 83 84 85

8. What percentage of the power requirement was met during the year 1980-81?
a. 80% b. 83.5% c. 87% d. 92%

9. By what percentage did the supply of power grow between 1981-82 and 1984-85?
a. 24% b. 31% c. 38% d. 45%

10. In which of the following years was the percentage of shortfall to the requirement the least?
a. 1979-80 b. 1980-81 c. 1982-83 d. 1984-85

11. What approximately is the percentage increase in the requirement of power from 1974-75 to
1984-85?
a. 120% b. 150% c. 180% d. 220%

12. Which was the period during which the growth of requirement of power was the least?
a. 1975-77 b. 1979-81 c. 1982-84 d. 1983-85

13. Which was the period during which there was the greatest addition to the availability of power
supply?
a. 1974-76 b. 1977-79 c. 1980-82 d. 1983-85

14. The increase in the requirement of power during 1980-85 was what percent of the increase in
the requirement of power during 1975-80?
a. 25% b. 85% c. 100% d. 140%

25 Pankaj Gandhi’s Academy/Data Interpretation

 Directions: For questions 15 to 20, refer to the following table.

Monthly Per Capita Consumer Expenditure on different items

(Percentage Distribution)

Item/year Rural Urban

1983 1978 1973 1983 1978 1973
Cereals 36.3 37.4 46.0 22.9 24.4 27.2
Milk 7.5 7.7 7.3 9.2 9.5 9.3
Oils 4.0 3.6 3.5 4.8 4.6 4.8
Meat 3.0 2.7 2.5 3.6 3.5 3.3
Vegetables 4.7 3.8 3.6 5.0 4.4 4.4
Fruits 1.4 1.1 1.1 2.1 2.0 2.0
Sugar 2.8 2.6 3.8 2.5 2.6 3.6
Other Foods 5.8 5.5 5.2 9.0 9.0 9.9
Food Total 65.6 64.3 72.9 59.1 60.0 64.5
Intoxicants 3.0 2.9 3.1 2.4 2.4 2.8
Fuel 7.0 6.0 5.6 6.9 6.4 5.6
Clothing 8.6 8.7 7.0 7.6 7.0 5.3
Footwear 1.0 0.7 0.5 1.1 0.6 0.4
Durables 2.3 7.0 2.2 2.3 8.9 2.2
Miscellaneous 12.5 10.3 8.7 20.5 14.6 19.2
Non-food Total 34.4 35.7 27.1 40.9 40.0 35.5

15. The percentage per capita expenditure on food registered what percentage decrease between
1973 and 1983 (for urban consumers)?
a. 8.4% b. 9.2% c. 10.5% d. Insufficient data.

16. If the total per capita expenditure in an urban household in 1973 was Rs. 531, approximately
how much of it was spent on sugar?
a. Rs 16.80 b. Rs 18.30 c. Rs 19.1 d. None of these.

17. If the total per capita expenditure in 1978 in the rural areas was Rs. 580, how much of it was
spent on clothing?
a. Rs 46.20 b. Rs 48.20 c. Rs 50.60 d. Rs 51.70

18. In 1983, if the rural and urban per capita expenditures were Rs. 665 and Rs. 765 respectively,
what was the difference between their per capita expenditures on food items?
a. Rs 15 b. Rs 19 c. Rs 21 d. None of these.

19. In 1973, in the rural areas, the per capita expenditure on oil formed what percent of the per
capita expenditure on vegetables?
a. 97.2% b. 99.4% c. 102.5% d. None of these.

20. In 1978, the per capita expenditure on non-food items formed what percent of the per capita
expenditure on food items, in the urban area?
a. 55.5% b. 66.6% c. 60% d. None of these.

Pankaj Gandhi’s Academy/Data Interpretation 26

 Exercise - 3(B)
Directions : Questions 1 to 5 are to be answered with the help of the information given below.

The Oolta – Seedha Trading Corporation and the Tedha – Medha Trading Corporation are rivals
operating in the same market segment. These organisations adopt various strategies, P, Q or R, in
order to outdo each other. The following table gives the respective payoffs and the respective
expenses involved on account of following a particular strategy. For example, if the Tedha – Medha
Trading Corporation adopts strategy Q and the Oolta – Seedha Trading Corporation adopts strategy
P, then the Tedha – Medha Trading Corporation gains Rs. 12000 while the Oolta – Seedha Trading
Corporation loses Rs. 12000. In addition to this, the Oolta – Seedha Trading Corporation and the
Tedha – Medha Trading Corporation also have to incur the expenses for the strategy adopted.

Payoffs for Tedha – Medha Trading Corporation

Oolta – Seedha Trading Corporation
Strategy P Q R
Tedha – Medha Trading Corporation P 15000 21000 15000
Q 12000 -4000 0
R 15000 24000 9000
Expenses
Strategy P Q R
Oolta – Seedha Trading Corporation 13500 12000 17500
Tedha – Medha Trading Corporation 15000 6000 17500

1. If the Oolta – Seedha Trading Corporation adopts strategy P, which strategy should the Tedha
– Medha Trading Corporation adopt for maximum gains?
a. P b. Q c. R d. Indeterminable.

2. If the Oolta – Seedha Trading Corporation adopts strategy Q, what is the Tedha – Medha
Trading Corporation‟s maximum gain?
a. 2400 b. 2100 c. 6500 d. 6000

3. If the Tedha – Medha Trading Corporation adopts strategy Q, what strategy should the Oolta –
Seedha Trading Corporation adopt in order to minimise the Tedha – Medha Trading
Corporation‟s gain, regardless of what its own gain will be?
a. P b. Q c. R d. Indeterminable.

4. Which of the following options suggest the most favourable strategy to be adopted by the Oolta
– Seedha Trading Corporation?
a. If the Tedha – Medha Trading Corporation adopts strategy P, adopt strategy P.
b. If the Tedha – Medha Trading Corporation adopts strategy Q, adopt strategy R.
c. If the Tedha – Medha Trading Corporation adopts strategy Q, adopt strategy Q.
d. If the Tedha – Medha Trading Corporation adopts strategy R, adopt strategy R.

5. If both organisations adopt strategy R, then which of the following is true?

I. The Tedha – Medha Trading Corporation‟s net gain is 9000.
II. The Tedha – Medha Trading Corporation‟s net loss is 8500.
III. The Oolta – Seedha Trading Corporation‟s net loss is 26500.
a. I & II b. II & III c. I & III d. None of these.

27 Pankaj Gandhi’s Academy/Data Interpretation

Directions: Questions 6 to 10 are based on the following graph.

Three friends - Abhik, Vaibhav and Pravesh - decided to travel from Pune to Mumbai on their two-
wheelers. The following graph shows the speed (in kmph, on the y-axis) with which each of them
moved during different phases of distances (in km).

90
80
70
60 Abhik
50
Vaibhav
40
30 Pravesh
20
10
0
0 10 20 30 40 50 60

6. The time taken by Vaibhav to cover the distance from 40 km to 50 km is

a. 15 minutes b. 30 minutes c. 45 minutes d. 50 minutes

7. What part of the total distance covered by all three was travelled with zero acceleration?
a. 1/2 b. 11/18 c. 5/9 d. None of these.

8. The time in which Vaibhav has covered the first 16 km, Pravesh has covered approximately (in
km)
a. 20 b. 23 c. 25 d. 30

9. The ratio of time taken by Abhik to cover the distance between 10 and 20 km to that taken by
Vaibhav to cover between 50 and 60 km is
a. 10 : 7 b. 1 : 1 c. 5 : 3 d. None of these.

10. What part of the total distance travelled by Pravesh was covered with uniform acceleration?
a. 1/2 b. 1/3 c. 1/6 d. Insufficient data.

Directions: Questions 11 to 18 are to be answered on the basis of information available in the

following bar graph.
Per Capita Consumer Expenditure (percentage)

1983 Urban

1983 Rural Food

Clothes
1967 Urban Others

1967 Rural

0 - 50% 60% 70% 80% 90% 100%

11. If the average per capita expenditure per month in the rural area was Rs 85 in 1967, and Rs
175 in 1983, what was the increase in the average amount spent in a month on food between
these two years?
a. Rs 23 b. Rs 49 c. Rs 60 d. Rs 76
12. If the total per capita expenditure in the urban areas in 1983 was 1.1 times the total per capita
expenditure in the rural areas, then the per capita expenditure on food was
a. more in rural areas b. more in urban areas
c. both are exactly equal d. cannot be determined

Pankaj Gandhi’s Academy/Data Interpretation 28

13. If the per capita expenditure per month in the urban area was Rs.135 in 1967 and Rs.340 in
1983, what was the increase in the average amount spent on clothing in the urban area in a
year?
a. Rs 210 b. Rs 360 c. Rs 762 d. Rs 890

14. In the previous problem, if the value of the rupee would have declined from Re 1 in 1967 to 58
paise in 1983, the average urban per capita expenditure on food in 1983 at 1967 prices would
have…
a. increased by 10% b. decreased by 10% c. increased by 30% d. increased by 15%

15. Between 1967 and 1983, in the urban household, the percentage of per capita expenditure on
food and clothing together to the total expenditure ….
a. decreased by 3.5 b. decreased by 2.6 c. increased by 3.5 d. Indeterminable

16. If in the urban area in 1983, 30% of the money spent on clothes were utilised for office wear,
what was the money spent on casual wear? (Use required data from Q.13)
a. Rs 75 b. Rs 38 c. Rs 56 d. Indeterminable

17. In the rural area in 1989, the per capita expenditure pattern was the same as that of the 1983
urban area. The annual per capita income was Rs.30000. If the expenditure on education
formed 40% of the Others, what was the monthly expenditure on education in rural areas in
1989?
a. Rs 66 b. Rs 76 c. Rs 84 d. None of these.

18. If in the urban areas, contribution towards religious purposes constituted 10% of the „Others‟ in
1967, what was the total amount spent on religious purposes in 1967? (Use data from Q.13 if
required)
a. 62.5 paise b. 67.5 paise c. 75 paise d. Insufficient data.

Directions : Questions 19 to 26 are based on the following bar graph.

Pattern Of Power Utilisation (Per cent)

1984-85

1980-81

1970-71

1960-61

1951

50% 55% 60% 65% 70% 75% 80% 85% 90% 95% 100%

Industrial Domestic Commercial Railways Agriculture Others

19. In 1980-81, the power utilised by the agriculture sector was what fraction of the power utilised
by the industrial and commercial sectors together?
a. 25% b. 29% c. 32% d. 35%

20. If the total power utilised was 170000 million kWh in 1984-85, how much was consumed by the
domestic sector in that year? (in million kWh)
a. 19500 b. 23000 c. 24500 d. 32500

21. If the total consumption in 1980-81 was 120000 million kWh, and in 1984-85 it was 170000
million kWh, by how much did the consumption of the industrial sector increase during this
period?
a. 18 billion kWh b. 24 billion kWh c. 28 billion kWh d. 32 billion kWh

29 Pankaj Gandhi’s Academy/Data Interpretation

22. Using data from the previous question, what was the percentage increase in the consumption
of power in the domestic sector between 1980-81 and 1984-85?
a. 50% b. 59% c. 66% d. 72%

23. If the total power consumption in 1970-71 was 61200 million kWh, and in 1984-85 it was
170000 million kWh; by how many times did the consumption in the agricultural sector increase
from 1970-71 to 1984-85?
a. 4.2 times b. 5.3 times c. 6 times d. 7 times

24. Using data from the previous question, what was the increase in the consumption for railway
traction between 1970-71 and 1984-85 in million kWh?
a. 1800 b. 2300 c. 4500 d. 23000

25. What was the percentage increase in power consumption in the commercial sector between
1970-71 and 1980-81? (Use data from previous questions if necessary.)
a. 63% b. 75% c. 80% d. 97%

26. If power supply to charitable institutions and other social service units, at concessional rates,
constitute 30% of the supply to others, and they pay at Rs 1.25 per kWh, what was the revenue
generated (in Rs crore) because of these units and institutes in 1984-85? (Use data from
previous questions, if required)
a. 2.5 b. 25 c. 250 d. None of these.

Directions: Answer questions 27 to 30 with the help of the following information.

A factory uses two machines, M1 and M2 to manufacture three products, X, Y and Z. The two
machines operate 12 hours a day each from 8 a.m to 8 p.m. The efficiency of the two machines with
respect to the three products is given in the table below. The numbers indicate the time taken (in
minutes) by the two machines to manufacture one unit of the three products.

M1 M2
X 15 28
Y 20 18
Z 35 24

27. What is the maximum number of units that can be produced in a day?
a. 144 b. 88 c. 164 d. 62

28. On a particular day, the factory obtains an order to manufacture 35 units of X and 30 units of Z.
What is the maximum number of units of Y that can be manufactured on that day?
a. 9 b. 12 c. 6 d. 18

29. A unit of Z has to be produced only after one unit each of X and Y is ready. The next units of X
and Y can be produced only after the previous set of all the three has been produced. What are
the minimum extra machine-minutes required for manufacturing 20 units of Z on a day?
a. 840 b. 240 c. 185 d. None of these.

30. What is the maximum number of units manufactured if the machine M 1 is used to manufacture
units of X only and the machine M2 is used to manufacture units of Z only?
a. 62 b. 78 c. 88 d. 94

Pankaj Gandhi’s Academy/Data Interpretation 30

 Exercise - 4(A)
Directions: Questions 1 to 7 are to be answered on the basis of information available in the following
bar graph.
Families X and Y have monthly incomes of Rs. 2400 and Rs. 1800 respectively.

MONTHLY BUDGET OF TWO FAMILIES

Family Y

Family X

0% 10% 20% 30% 40% 50% 60% 70% 80% 90% 100%

Savings Entertainment Food Clothing Education Travel Rent Miscellaneous Loan Repayment

1. What is the difference between the percentages of savings of the two families?
a. 0 b. 1 c. 2 d. 3

2. What is the difference between the monthly savings of the two families? (in Rupees)
a. 32 b. 42 c. 72 d. 100

3. What is the annual repayment of loans of Family X?

a. Rs 2400 b. Rs 2800 c. Rs 2160 d. Rs 2880

4. Compared to family Y, family X's expenditure on travel is more by what percent?

a. 1% b. 50% c. 75% d. 25%

5. What is the combined expenditure of both the families on entertainment?

a. Rs 72 b. Rs 144 c. Rs 186 d. Rs 216

6. If the above bar graphs are converted to pie charts, what will be the angle at the centre of the
sector for clothing for Family X?
a. 22.5  b. 42.3 c. 43.2 d. 45

7. On which item does family Y spend twice the amount that family X spends on?
a. Food b. Entertainment c. Miscellaneous d. Rent

31 Pankaj Gandhi’s Academy/Data Interpretation

Directions: Answer questions 8 to 14 with the help of the following graph.

Growth in Number of Bank Branches

10000 9532
Cities
9000
Towns
Semi-urban 7687
8000
Rural 6806 7211
7000
6165
6000 5561 6387
5569
5000
5089
4723 3739 4263
4000 3688 3796
3322 2899
3000 2573
3407
1832 2783 2667
2000 2505
1661
1000 1447

0
1969 1973 1974 1975 1976 1977

8. The growth in the number of rural bank branches from 1969 to 1977 was
a. 11589 b. 7400 c. 7700 d. 5855

9. The category of branches that has shown the maximum growth in number is
a. Rural b. Semi-urban c. Towns d. Cities

10. The period during which there has been the least growth in the number of rural branches is
a. 1969-73 b. 1973-74 c. 1974-75 d. 1975-76

11. The year in which the rural branches formed the least proportion of the total number of
branches is
a. 1969 b. 1973 c. 1975 d. 1977

12. The number of branches in the cities increased by what number from 1974 to 1977?
a. 1013 b. 708 c. 7866 d. 9752

13. The growth in the number of semi-urban branches formed what percentage of the total growth
of all branches between 1969 and 1973?
a. 20 % b. 29 % c. 33 % d. 85 %

14. The category that has shown the least growth in number over the given period is
a. Rural b. Semi-urban c. Towns d. Cities

Pankaj Gandhi’s Academy/Data Interpretation 32

 Directions: For questions 15 to 20, refer to the following bar graph.
Population by Age & Sex : 1981

100
90 Total (in millions)
80 Males (343.93)
70
Millions 60 Females (321.36)

50
40
30
20
10
0
0-9 10-14 15-19 20- 25-29 30-34 35-39 40-44 45-49 50-54 55-59 60-64 65 +
24 Age

15. What is the total number of females per 1000 of the population in 1981?
a. 510 b. 504 c. 499 d. 483

16. Those aged 50 or above formed what percentage of the total population in 1981?
a. 24% b. 20% c. 18% d. 13%

17. Among the number of people of 1981, those who had been born in British India formed what
percentage?
a. 45% b. 35% c. 28% d. 17%

18. What percent of the population aged less than 30, are females?
a. 40% b. 43% c. 48% d. 52%

19. Teenaged males formed what percent of females in their twenties in 1981?
a. 65% b. 90% c. 125% d. Insufficient data

20. If the population of 1991 was 843 million, what was India‟s percentage growth for that decade?
a. 18% b. 22% c. 26% d. 32%

33 Pankaj Gandhi’s Academy/Data Interpretation

 Exercise - 4(B)
Directions: Questions 1 to 4 are based on the following table.

Harpreet conducted a survey on a particular company and obtained the following data. Income tax is
paid from Profit Before Tax and the remaining amount is apportioned to Dividend and Retained
Earnings. The Retained Earnings are accumulated into Reserves. The Reserves at the beginning of
1991 were Rs 80 lakh.

(Fig. In Rs. lakh) 1994 1993 1992 1991

Share Capital 0310 0205 0098 0098
Sales 6435 4725 2620 3270
Profit Before Tax 0790 0525 0170 0315
Dividends 0110 0060 0030 0030
Retained Earnings 0400 0245 0070 0140

1. In which year was the sales per rupee of share capital the highest?
a. 1991 b. 1992 c. 1993 d. 1994

2. In which year was the percentage addition to reserves over the previous year‟s reserves the
highest?
a. 1991 b. 1992 c. 1993 d. 1994

3. In which year was the tax per rupee of profit before tax the lowest?
a. 1991 b. 1992 c. 1993 d. 1994

4. In which year was the profit before tax per rupee of sales the highest?
a. 1991 b. 1992 c. 1993 d. 1994

Directions: Answer questions 5 to 7 with the help of the following information.

A factory uses two machines, M1 and M2 to manufacture three products, X, Y and Z. The two
machines operate 10 hours a day each. The efficiency of the two machines with respect to the three
products is given in the table below. The numbers indicate the time taken (in minutes) by the two
machines to manufacture one unit of the three products.

M1 M2
X 14 18
Y 12 9
Z 15 15

5. What is the maximum number of units that can be produced in a day?

a. 108 b. 80 c. 116 d. 92

6. What is the maximum number of units that can be manufactured on a particular day if the
factory decides to manufacture units of X and Z only? (Assume that only one type of product
can be produced on a machine.)
a. 73 b. 82 c. 80 d. 75

7. The organisation decides that an equal number of units of the three types should be
manufactured each day. The organisation calculates the efficiency of a machine as thrice the
reciprocal of half the maximum number of units of the three types. What is the ratio of the
efficiency of the second machine to that of the first?
a. 1:1 b. 0.97:1 c. 1.08:1 d. 0.92:1

Pankaj Gandhi’s Academy/Data Interpretation 34

Directions: Questions 8 to 10 are based on the following data.

The Zatka Electricity Corporation has undertaken to set up a 5786 MW power plant at Bijleepur. The
following network gives details about the time required (in days) for various activities to be undertaken
to complete the project. The regular cost of each activity is 50 times the time required to complete it
and the regular cost of the project is calculated as 50 times the sum of durations of all activities.
B
2
3

7
5 8 F
A C E

4 6

8. What is the minimum duration of the project?

a. 20 days b. 35 days c. 10 days d. 5 days

9. The Zatka Electricity Corporation has the option to complete the project by reducing the time
required for various activities. However, by reducing the time required to complete a particular
activity, in addition to the regular cost of the project, the Corporation has to incur an expense
that amounts to 150 times the new duration of the activities whose normal time period has been
changed. The Corporation decides to reduce the duration of the project by 2 days. In order to
achieve this, the Corporation decides to reduce the time required to complete the activities with
the maximum duration by 1 day each. What is the percent change in the cost to the
Corporation?
a. 205% b. 105% c. 112% d. None of these.

10. The duration of activities (A – C) and (E – F) is reduced by 2 and 5 days respectively. Referring
to the previous question, what percent of the cost of the project is formed by the additional
expenses?
a. 53.5% b. 42.8% c. 34.8% d. None of these.

Directions : Questions 11 to 15 are to be answered on the basis of the following information.

There were three participants R1,R2 and R3 in a cross-country car race. All three started the race at
9.00 a.m. The following table gives the timings of the three riders at various stages. Everybody has to
stop for ten minutes after every 60 km for refuelling.

Distance R1 R2 R3 Distance R1 R2 R3
30 9.35 9.40 km
9.37 210 km 12.30 12.30 12.30
60 10.00 10.05 km
10.02 240 km 12.55 13.00 12.57
90 10.35 10.45 km
10.40 270 km 13.30 13.40 13.40
120 11.00 11.10 km
11.05 300 km 14.00 14.05 14.05
150 11.30 11.45 km
11.40 330 km 14.30 14.30 14.45
180 12.00 12.05 km
12.00 360 km 14.45 14.47 14.59

11. The actual running time of R1 to cover the first 150 km is how many minutes more than the
actual running time of R3 to cover the last 90 km?
a. 51 minutes b. 61 minutes c. 130 minutes d. 55 minutes

12. If R1 and R2 moved with constant speed from 210 km to 300 km, than the ratio of speeds of R1
and R2 during 210 km and 300 km is…
a. 16 : 15 b. 17 : 16 c. 16 : 17 d. None of these

35 Pankaj Gandhi’s Academy/Data Interpretation

13. The running time taken by R1 to cover the distance between 300 and 360 km is what part of
the running time taken by R2 to cover the distance between 240 and 330 km?
a. 1 : 2 b. 1 : 3 c. 1 : 4 d. 3 : 1

14. The ratio of speeds of R1, R2 and R3 between 60 and 90 km is (assuming they move at
constant speeds)…
a. 84 : 75 : 70 b. 70 : 75 : 84 c. 84 : 70 : 75 d. 35 : 42 : 38

15. If they did not stop for refuelling at any stage of the race, then the person who comes last would
be…
a. R1 b. R2 c. R3 d. Indeterminable

Directions: Questions 16 to 22 are based on the following pie-charts.

Cardholders (%) Card spends (%)

18
25 27

38
4

6 10
9

7
9 5
8 14 3 12

Citibank Stanchart Canara Bank Bank of Baroda

Bank of India ANZ Grindlays American Express Others

The number of cardholders in 1996 was 8.5 million, while card spendings amounted to Rs. 64
crore.

16. What is the difference between the number of people who own Citibank cards and Bank of
Baroda cards?
a. 25.85 lakh b. 26.35 lakh c. 26.95 lakh d. 27.4 lakhs

17. What is the difference between the amounts spent through Citibank and ANZ Grindlays cards?
Answer in Rs. crore.
a. 11.52 b. 12.08 c. 12.72 d. Indeterminable

18. If the owners of Cancard (Canara Bank‟s) do not own any other card, what is their actual
number?
a. 6.3 lakh b. 6.55 lakh c. 6.8 lakh d. Indeterminable

19. If 30% of the spendings by the others category is by Mahacard, what is the amount accounted
for by the remaining cards of others category? (in Rs. crore)
a. 4.8 b. 11.2 c. 16.2 d. Indeterminable

20. If card efficacy is defined as that percentage of the total purchase which is made through cards
by card holders and if the Bank of Baroda card has a 30% efficacy in 1996, what is the
approximate amount of purchase (in Rs crore) made by Bank of Baroda card holders during the
year 1996? (Assume that Bank of Baroda card holders do not own any other credit cards)
a. 20.25 b. 25.6 c. 30.66 d. 36.33

Pankaj Gandhi’s Academy/Data Interpretation 36

21. If every second American Express card holder also owns only a Citibank card, and if on an
average the amount spent by every card holder is the same and the amounts are equally
distributed between the two cards, by those who own two cards, what was the total amount that
an AE card holder spent (in Rs crore) by using their cards in 1996?
a. 8.533 b. 8.866 c. 9.116 d. Indeterminable

22. If Stanchart offers one free card to a family member of a cardholder and they spend 40% of the
amount spent by the original cardholder, what was the approximate amount (in Rs crore) spent
in 1996 only by the family members?
a. 1.2 b. 1.4 c. 1.65 d. Indeterminable

Directions: Questions 23 to 30 are to be answered on the basis of information available in the

following table.
EIGHTH PLAN
National Highways Targets Achievements
Widening to 2 lanes (km) 1076 852
Widening to 4 lanes (km) 604 323
Strengthening of weak 2-lane roads (km) 3331 3717
Repairs on Bypasses (km) 14 11
Repairs on Major bridges 3 54
Repairs on Minor bridges including railway over-bridges 326 303

23. With respect to the widening of the lanes of national highways, what percent of the targets were
achieved during the eighth plan?
a. 65.2% b. 70% c. 74.8% d. None of these

24. With respect to the work done on the bridges, what was the ratio of major bridges to minor
bridges during the eighth plan?
a. 1 : 5.5 b. 2 : 9 c. 3 : 14 d. Indeterminable

25. Strengthening of weak 2 lane roads formed what percent of the widening to 2 lane roads with
respect to the length over which the work is done during the eighth plan?
a. 336 % b. 436 % c. 363 % d. Indeterminable

26. The difference between the target and achievement for minor bridges was due to the transfer of
all the railway over-bridges to a different project, because of which it was possible to complete
the entire targeted work on all the other minor bridges. What was the initial ratio of the number
of railway over-bridges to the other minor bridges?
a. 1 : 15 b. 2 : 23 c. 1 : 12 d. 3 : 40

27. What percent of the total targets was achieved during the eighth plan?
a. 95% b. 98% c. 101% d. can‟t be determined

28. The widening to 4 lanes costs Rs. 35 lakh per km. If 24% of the widening is to be done on the
Bombay – Poona highway, then what is the cost (in Rs Crore) of widening of the Bombay –
Poona highway to 4 lanes during the eighth plan?
a. 4750 b. 5075 c. 5625 d. Indeterminable

29. The percentage of the length of bypasses (in km) to be repaired to that of the number of major
bridges to be repaired forms what percent of the percentage of the number of major bridges
repaired to the length of bypasses (in km) repaired during the eighth plan?
a. 95% b. 105% c. 115% d. Indeterminable

30. For the strengthening of weak 2 lane roads, 35% of the money was invested by the central
government, 15% by the state government and the remaining was funded by international loans
during the eighth plan. If the loans are paid in dollars, what is the ratio of the state
government‟s contribution (in rupees) to that of the international loans (in dollars, where 1 dollar
= 36 rupees).
a. 9.6 : 1 b. 10.8 : 1 c. 12.5 : 1 d. None of these

37 Pankaj Gandhi’s Academy/Data Interpretation

 Exercise - 5(A)
Directions: Answer questions 1 to 6 with the help of the following table.

Number of Cities in Highly Urbanised States of India:

States No. of cities States No. of cities

Andhra Pradesh 32 Maharashtra 27
Bihar 17 Punjab 10
Gujarat 19 Rajasthan 14
Haryana 12 Tamil Nadu 25
Karnataka 21 Uttar Pradesh 42
Kerala 14 West Bengal 24
Madhya Pradesh 23

The total urban population as of 1991 was reported to be 217 million, residing in 4689 cities and
towns all over the country. The urban population accounted for 25.7% of the total population of the
country.

1. What was India‟s population in 1991?

a. 836 million b. 845 million c. 860 million d. Indeterminable

2. What is the difference in the urban and rural population of the country?
a. 377 million b. 394 million c. 411 million d. None of these

3. What is the ratio of Kerala‟s cities urban population to that of Uttar Pradesh‟s cities urban
population?
a. 3 : 1 b. 1 : 3 c. 3 : 10 d. Indeterminable

4. What is the approximate ratio of the number of cities in Rajasthan to that in Bihar to that in
Madhya Pradesh?
a. 4 : 5 : 6 b. 8 : 10 : 15 c. 1 : 1.2 : 1.6 d. Indeterminable

5. If 22% of India‟s cities and towns are in Uttar Pradesh and Maharashtra, what percent of the
number of cities and towns in these two states do the cities in these two states form?
a. 4.27% b. 6.7% c. 8.95% d. None of these

6. What is the average number of cities in those states where the number of cities is greater than
20?
a. 26.6 b. 27.7 c. 28.8 d. None of these

Pankaj Gandhi’s Academy/Data Interpretation 38

Directions: Questions 7 to 13 are based on the following Band Diagram. Use any additional data
given in a particular question while solving the questions that follow it.

Per Capita Consumption of Selected Consumer Goods

47.0

37.4 Cloth (metres)

33.3 31.9 Oils (kg)

Vanaspati (kg)
Sugar (kg)
27.1 26.9
26.3 Electricity (kwh)
22.3
23.7 21.2
20.7 20.1 19.7
19.0
17.7 19.1 20.0
18.2 18.5
17.2 15.0 15.6
14.6 14.7
14.5
1950-51 1960-61 1970-71 1980-81 1984-85

7. If the population in 1980-81 was 685 million, what was the total consumption (in tonnes) of
sugar in the country in that year?
a. 5.2 million b. 4.7 million c. 4.9 million d. 5.5 million

8. Among concrete items, which commodity registered the maximum percentage increase in the
per capita consumption between 1950-51 and 1984-85?
a. Cloth b. Vanaspati c. Sugar d. Oils

9. If the population in 1970-71 was 550 million, what was the increase (in million tonnes) in the
consumption of oils from 1970-71 to 1980-81?
a. 0.57 b. 0.62 c. 0.68 d. 0.75

10. What was the increase (in million metres) in the consumption of cloth between 1970-71 and
1980-81?
a. 2050 b. 1490 c. 1760 d. 1610

11. What was the total consumption of electricity (in million kWh) in the year 1960-61, if the
population then was 80% of that in 1970-71?
a. 1496 b. 2080 c. 1340 d. 1410

12. What was the percentage increase in the consumption of cloth between 1960-61 and 1970-71?
a. 35% b. 4% c. 3% d. 30%

13. If the population in 1950-51 was 360 million, by how many million tonnes did the consumption
of Vanaspati increase between 1950-51 and 1980-81?
a. 0.56 b. 0.64 c. 0.72 d. 0.81

39 Pankaj Gandhi’s Academy/Data Interpretation

Directions: Questions 14 to 20 are to be answered on the basis of information available in the
following table.

Urban Centres with more than One Lakh Population

Population No. of urban Population No. of urban

centres centres
Between 1 and 2 lakh 166 Between 9 and 10 lakh 1
Between 2 and 3 lakh 39 Between 10 and 11 lakh 6
Between 3 and 4 lakh 20 Between 11 and 15 lakh 4
Between 4 and 5 lakh 20 Between 15 and 16 lakh 2
Between 5 and 6 lakh 7 Between 16 and 20 lakh 2
Between 6 and 7 lakh 9 Between 20 and 100 lakh 7
Between 7 and 8 lakh 5 Above 100 lakh 2
Between 8 and 9 lakh 8

According to the 1991 census, there are 298 urban centres with a population of more than one
lakh. These centres account for 65% of India’s total urban population which is 25.7% of India’s
population of 84.5 crore.

14. What is the India‟s total urban population?

a. 141 million b. 209 million c. 217 million d. 222 million

15. How many people, who are a part of India‟s urban population, do not live in the above
mentioned urban centres?
a. 62 million b. 67 million c. 70 million d. None of these

16. If the 2 urban centres, where the population is more than 100 lakh, does not exceed 110 lakh,
what percent of the urban population of the 298 centres mentioned in the data, do they
approximately form?
a. 5 – 7 % b. 9 – 11% c. 14 – 16% d. 18 – 20%

17. The population of centres with more than 1 lakh population forms what percent of the
population of those centres with a population above 20 lakh?
a. 140 b. 115 c. 71 d. Indeterminable

18. The number of urban centres having a population greater than 10 lakh but less than 20 lakh
forms what percent of the number of centres having a population above 2 lakh?
a. 10.5% b. 15% c. 12.5% d. Indeterminable

19. If the 1991 census had a 30% increase over the 1981 census, what percent of the Indian
population lived in urban centres in 1981?
a. 65% b. 50% c. 35% d. Indeterminable

20. What is the ratio of the number of urban centres with population above odd number categories
to that of the number of urban centres with population above even number categories?
a. 11 : 6 b.5 : 3 c.11 : 5 d. Indeterminable

Pankaj Gandhi’s Academy/Data Interpretation 40

 Exercise - 5(B)
Directions: Questions 1 to 5 are based on the following data.
Three trains namely Deccan Express, Indrayani Express and Singhgarh Express moving on parallel
tracks start from Pune at the same time to reach Mumbai. Deccan Express follows the equation S (in
km) = 30t + 12t2 ; Indrayani Express S km = 36t + 16t2 ; Singhgarh Express S

km = 19t + t2.

1. If the distance between Pune and Mumbai is 185 km, then the train to reach Mumbai first
without any stoppages is…
a. Deccan Exp. b. Indrayani Exp. c. Singhgarh Exp. d. Indeterminable

2. The ratio between distance travelled by Deccan Express in the third hour and distance travelled
by Singhgarh Express during the first hour is approximately
a. 2 : 7 b. 9 : 2 c. 5 : 2 d. 5 : 3

3. If all three leave from Pune at 9.40 a.m., then the time at which Indrayani Express will reach
karjat, which is 70 km from Pune without any stoppages is
a. 10:40 a.m. b. 10:55 a.m. c. 11:05 a.m. d. 10:52 a.m.

4. If Indrayani Express follows the equation S = 9t 2 + 17t, then the answer to the previous
question will be
a. 10:55 a.m. b. 11:24 a.m. c. 11:40 a.m. d. None of these

5. The time taken by Singhgarh Express to cover the distance travelled by Deccan Express during
the first hour is
a. 1 hour b.1 hour 30 minutes c. 2 hours d. None of these

Directions: Questions 6 to 13 are to be answered on the basis of information available in the

following bar graphs.
RESERVE BANK ASSETS (in Rs Crore)

1950-51 1970-71

3714
800 687 4000

600 478 3000

400 2000

200 54 1000 273

40 183 52
0 0
A B C D A B C D

1980-81 1985-86

11110
12000 25000 21328
10000 20000
8000
15000
6000
10000
4000 2364
2000 226 5000 1564 246
56 12
0 0
A B C D A B C D

A. Foreign Securities B. Rupee Securities C. Gold coins & Bullion D. Rupee coins

41 Pankaj Gandhi’s Academy/Data Interpretation

6. The total assets of the RBI in the years 1980-81 and 1985-86 combined were …….
a. Rs 35906 crore b. Rs 36906 crore c. Rs 35806 crore d. Rs 36806 crore

7. If the value of gold coins with the RBI exceeded that of the other bullion by 25% in 1980-81,
what was the value of other bullion?
a. Rs 100.25 crore b. Rs 111.5 crore c. Rs 95.5 crore d. Rs 87.75 crore

8. The proportion of rupee securities to foreign securities in 1950-51 was

a. 0.72 : 0.5 b. 1 : 1.44 c. 1.5 : 1 d. 0.5 : 0.8

9. If the 1970-71 graph is represented as a pie chart, what will be the angle at the centre of the
sector relating to rupee securities?
a. 274 b. 317 c. 36 d. None of these

10. If circles are to be drawn to scale, so that their areas are proportionate to the total assets of
each year, and the radius of the first circle (1950-51) is 1cm, then the radius of the last circle
(1985-86) would be
a. between 2 cm & 3 cm b. between 3 cm & 4 cm
c. between 4 cm & 5 cm d. between 5 cm & 6 cm

11. The percentage of gold coins and bullion in the total assets came down by what percent from
1950-51 to 1985-86?
a. 60% b. 67 % c. 75% d. None of these

12. If the assets and liabilities of the RBI are always equal, and if the notes in circulation formed
92% of the liabilities of the RBI, then the value of the notes in circulation in 1970-71 was
a. 3664 b. 3998 c. 4010 d. None of these

13. If in 1980-81 a U.S. dollar was worth seventeen Indian rupees, what was India‟s foreign
securities in that year in terms of U.S. dollars?
a. 1.39 billion b. 13.5 crore c. 1.45 billion d. None of these

Directions: For questions 14 to 21, refer to the following graphs.

What Consumers want from Liquid Soaps (%).

60

50

40

30

20

10

0
Skin Care/Treatement Fragrance Freshness Cleansing Action

Reasons for Trial Reasons for Use

Price Smaller size Advertising

Used it
31% 8% 9%
Freebies abroad
12% 9%
Word of
New to mouth
Recommendation Advertising
market 14%
19% Sachets 15%
68%
15%

Pankaj Gandhi’s Academy/Data Interpretation 42

14. If 248 users were questioned for the survey, how many wanted the soaps only for medicinal
purposes?
a. 42 b. 166 c. 124 d. Indeterminable

15. If 420 people were covered under the survey, how many wanted the soaps to combat body
odour?
a. 150 b. 181 c. 169 d. Indeterminable

16. If 851 people were questioned for the above survey, how many wanted the soap for cleansing
action?
a. 102 b. 112 c. 122 d. None of these

17. What percent of the people, who tried the soap because of recommendations, continued using
it for a mentioned similar purpose?
a. 88.14% b. 84.35% c. 79.86% d. None of these

18. If 302 people were questioned regarding the reason for use, how many of them were foreign
returned?
a. 24 b. 21 c. 27 d. Insufficient data

19. Using the data from the above question, how many are first time users?
a. 205 b. 214 c. 223 d. Indeterminable

20. From the 550 people who were questioned about their reasons for trial, how many were
stingy/miserly/not ready to spend?
a. 159 b. 181 c. 260 d. Indeterminable

21. Using data from the above question, how people tried it because of some packaging attribute
i.e., size and sachets?
a. 126 b. 135 c. 82 d. Indeterminable

Directions : Questions 22 to 26 are to be answered on the basis of information available in the

following graph.

There are 3 contestants A, B and C in a 100 km car race. The following graph gives the time which
each of them took to cover different phases of the race.

120

100

80 A
Time(in min.)

B
60 C

40

20

0 Distance
0 10 20 30 40 50 60 70 80 90 100 (in km)

22. If during the first 30 km, B had travelled at a uniform speed of 40 kmph, then the winner would
be
a. A b. B c. C d. Indeterminable

43 Pankaj Gandhi’s Academy/Data Interpretation

23. If it is assumed that C travelled the entire course with constant acceleration, then the final
velocity of C is
a. 60 kmph b. 110 kmph c. 145 kmph d. Indeterminable

24. For the race to end in a dead heat, B can give A and C respectively, a start of (in minutes)
a. 10 and 22 b. 22 and 18 c. 18 and 18 d. None of these

25. The average velocity of A over the entire course is

a. 99 kmph b. 65 kmph c. 55 kmph d. 50 kmph

26. Assuming that all of the three moved with uniform speed in the phases of distance given below,
which alternative correctly represents them in ascending order?
[p] - Speed of A in between 20 and 40 km.
[q] - Speed of B in between 40 and 70 km.
[r] - Speed of C in between 70 and 90 km.
a. [p], [q], [r] b. [q], [p], [r] c. [r], [p], [q] d. [p], [r], [q]

Directions: Answer questions 27 to 30 with the help of the following information.

Sucharita is a famous floriculturist, who has recently taken over four farms, Aster Gardens (AG),
Buttercup Fields (BF), Chrysanthemum Grounds (CG) and Daffodils Acres (DA). When she was going
through the Balance Sheets of the four companies, she came across a number of interesting things
about them. The profits made by CG and DA were the same, but the sales of CG were the same as
those of BF. The profits of AG were 10% of its sales, where as the profits of BF were 20% of its sales.
The total expenses of CG were 5 times its profits and the sales of DA were 3 times its profits. The
total expenses of CG were Rs. 10 lakh and the total expenses of AG were 10% less than that of CG.
Profit is defined as the difference between sales and total expenses.

27. Which farm had the lowest sales?

a. AG b. BF c. CG d. DA

28. Which farm showed the highest profits?

a. AG b. BF c. CG d. DA

29. Which farm incurred the highest total expenses?

a. AG b. BF c. CG d. DA

30. Which farm earned the lowest profit?

a. AG b. BF c. CG d. DA

Pankaj Gandhi’s Academy/Data Interpretation 44

 Exercise - 6(A)
Directions: Answer questions 1 to 8 with the help of the following table.

TELCO’s Production Figures in recent years:

Models 1991-92 1992-93 1993-94 1994-95 1995-96 1996-97

1210 20,576 34,574 42,225 53,631 60,100 58,640
LCV‟s 6,462 10,997 23,832 36,313 45,480 44,230
MCV‟s 5,495 9,814 8,105 10,431 11,920 11,250
1313 2,595 3,283 8,029 5,343 7,720 6,160
2416 1,729 4,080 7,486 6,957 7,920 8,360
Other trucks 5,557 6,566 6,927 6,287 6,340 5,380
Total trucks 42,414 69,314 96,604 1,18,962 1,39,480 1,34,020
Total cars 8,411 12,704 11,818 10,627 12,890 12,200
of which…..
(i) T‟Mobiles 3,651 6,250 5,199 4,328 4,750 4,550
(II) Estate 1,719 2,066 1,883 1,958 2,580 2,670
Total production 50,825 82,018 1,08,422 1,29,589 1,52,370 1,46,220

1. The production of 1210s in 1996-97 was how many times more than their production in 1991-
92?
a. 3.1 b. 2.8 c. 1.8 d. 2.4

2. What is the percentage of increase in the production of cars between 1991-92 and 1996-97?
a. 28% b. 33% c. 45% d. 56%

3. The increase in TELCO‟s total production during 1993-94 to 1996-97 formed what percentage
of the increase during 1991-92 to 93-94?
a. 50% b. 80% c. 66% d. 75%

4. The increase in production of LCV‟s from 1991 to 1997 bears what ratio to the increase in
production of 1210‟s during the same period?
a. 2.5 : 1.5 b. 1 : 1 c. 1.5 : 1 d. 0.75 : 1

5. What is the total increase in the production of 1313s, 2416s and MCVs from 1992-93 to 1996-
97?
a. 8600 b. 8200 c. 9000 d. 9500

6. The increase in production of Estates from 1991 to 1997 formed what percentage of the
increase in the production of cars during this period?
a. 25% b. 45% c. 50% d. 65%

7. The increase in the total production from 1993-94 to 1994-95 formed what percentage of similar
increase from 1991-92 to 1992-93?
a. 44% b. 50% c. 66% d. 75%

45 Pankaj Gandhi’s Academy/Data Interpretation

Directions: Answer questions 8 to 15 with the help of the following table.

PUNE MUNICIPAL TRANSPORT (PMT) : REVENUE & EXPENDITURE

Year Revenue Expenditure

Cash Depreciation Total
1984-85 401.58 368.14 31.11 399.25
1985-86 483.61 452.66 35.36 488.02
1986-87 619.27 478.62 41.02 519.64
1987-88 668.19 493.68 47.48 541.16
1988-89 762.83 562.41 54.54 616.95
1989-90 835.05 619.31 61.89 701.10
1990-91 910.01 788.14 69.45 857.59
1991-92 1,070.60 926.28 76.85 1,002.13
1992-93 1,290.26 1,030.28 91.10 1,121.38
1993-94 1,462.66 1,176.14 109.97 1,286.11
1994-95 1,660.00 1,408.21 130.00 1,538.21
1995-96 1,880.00 1,610.47 148.40 1,758.87
(Values in Rs. crore)

8. In how many years was there an overall deficit in the functioning of PMT?
a. 1 b. 3 c. 4 d. 0

9. In which year was the surplus generated largest?

a. 1992-93 b. 1993-94 c. 1994-95 d. 1995-96

10. The depreciation formed what percent of the revenue in 1991-92?

a. 70% b. 7.4% c. 8.2% d. 6.5%

11. Between 1990-91 and 1995-96, the revenue increase by what percent?
a. 200% b. 70% c. 106% d. 90%

12. The maximum increase in revenue was registered between

a. 1985-86 & 1986-87 b. 1988-89 & 1989-90 c. 1991-92 & 1992-93 d. 1994-95 & 1995-96

13. By how many percent did the surplus increase between 1986-87 and 1995-96?
a. 120 b. 117.6 c. 116.7 d. 22

14. Ignoring depreciation, what was the cash surplus (in Rs. crore) in the year 1992-93?
a. 169 b. 260 c. 286 d. 144

15. In which of the following years was the total expenditure almost equal to the revenue of the
previous year?
a. 1984-85 b. 1985-86 c. 1993-94 d. 1982-83

Pankaj Gandhi’s Academy/Data Interpretation 46

Directions: Questions 16 to 20 are based on the following data:

INFOSYS TECHNOLOGIES LTD.

(All values in Rs Crores)

Year-ending 1998 1999 2000 2001

March 31
Sales (Rs Crores) 327.8 640.12 1170.56 1725.62
Salaries 172.22 258.5 542.4 746.13
Depriciation 21.73 36.57 32.5 18.57
Other Expenses 42.58 64.72 89.54 104.5
Net Profit 101.27 - - -
Share capital 16.52 16.52 33.04 41.3
Dividend 4.96 9.08 16.52 22.70
Employees 1650 3726 5624 6478
Reserves 389.7

Net Profit = Sales - (Depreciation + Salaries + Other Expenses)

16. What was the percentage increase in net profit in the year 2001 over the year 2000?
a. 65% b. 60% c. 80% d. 70%

17. If in the year 2000, the company had 30% attrition rate, and of the new employees joining in
the year 2000- 01, 50% are engineers, how many new engineers joined the company during
the period 2000-01? (Attrition rate is the ratio of the number of employees leaving the company
in the given year to the total number of employees at the start of the year).
a. 1270 b. 1370 c. 1070 d. 1570

18. If face value of infosys share is Rs 5 in yr 2001 what is the net profit per share?
a. Rs 100 b. Rs 50 c. Rs 40 d. Rs 90

19. If after distributing dividend from net profit the remaining amount is transferred to reserves what
is the approximate reserves amount at the end of the year 2000?
a. 1130 Cr b. 1140 Cr c. 1150 Cr d. 1160 Cr

20. In which year, the percent net profit was maximum?

a. 1998 b. 1999 c. 2000 d. Indeterminable

47 Pankaj Gandhi’s Academy/Data Interpretation

 Exercise - 6(B)
Directions: Questions 1 to 3 are based on the following network.

The following network gives details about the various activities carried out in a bottling firm for their
latest project and the time required for each activity. The average cost incurred in each activity is 5
times the square of the duration of the activity. If the organisation wants to reduce the duration of any
particular activity, in addition to the average cost, it will have to incur an amount equal to 15 times the
cube of the new duration of the activity.
W
4
3

3 5 3 Z
U V X

4 3

1. The completion of one cycle of the network results in one bottle ready to be sold in the market.
The project involves a total of 800 bottles. What is the average cost of the entire project?
a. Rs 74400 b. Rs 372000 c. Rs 150000 d. Indeterminable

2. If profit is defined as the difference between the selling price and the average cost, and each
bottle is sold for Rs. 510, what is the approximate percent profit earned by the firm?
a. 5% b. 10% c. 15% d. Can‟t be determined

3. The firm decides to reduce the duration of activities (U – V), (X – Z) and (Y – Z) by one each
and that of activities (V – X) and (W – X) by two each. Referring to the above questions, what
will be the firm‟s percent profit?
a. +122% b. -122% c. +55% d. -55%

Directions: Questions 4 to 6 are based on the following data.

Radhika has a certain amount of property consisting of cash, gold coins and silver bars. The cost of a
gold coin is Rs 4000 and that of a silver bar is Rs 1000. Radhika distributed her property among her
sons equally. To her eldest son, she gave gold coins worth 20% of the total property and Rs 60000 in
cash. To her second son, she gave silver bars worth 20% of the remaining property and Rs 120000
in cash. She gave each of the third and fourth sons an equal number of gold coins and silver bars,
each together accounting for 20% of the property remaining after the previous distribution to the first
and second sons and the requisite amount in cash.

4. What was Radhika‟s total property worth (in Rs lakh)?

a. 7.5 b. 10 c. 12 d. 12.5

5. What is the ratio of the property that Radhika held in gold coins and silver bars?
a. 9 : 19 b. 19 : 9 c. 19 : 36 d. 36 : 19

6. If property in the form of gold coins or silver bars is considered as “Wealth”, what is the ratio of
the “Wealth” that Radhika distributed among her four sons?
a. 5 : 4 : 3 : 2 b. 3 : 3 : 4 : 2 c. 3 : 4 : 3 : 2 d. 4 : 3 : 2 : 2

Pankaj Gandhi’s Academy/Data Interpretation 48

Directions: Questions 7 to 14 are to be answered on the basis of information available in the
following graph.

Annual Cost of Flood Damage

3950
4000

3548
3500
Rs. crore
3000
2851
2504 2655
2500 2752
2299
2100 1990
2000
1901
1702 1795
1500
'84 '85 '86 '87 '88 '89 '90 '91 '92 '93 '94 '95

7. From the given choices, which of the set of the two given years have the largest combined cost
of flood damage?
a. ‟91 + „93 b. ‟86 + ‟95 c. ‟84 + „90 d. ‟87 + „89

8. If Andhra Pradesh and West Bengal account for 40% and 30% of the total cost, in how many
years has their combined contribution been greater than the total cost of the previous year on
the basis of the given graph? (Use above data for other questions if required.)
a. 0 b. 1 c. 2 d. None of these

9. For how many years has the share of Andhra Pradesh been lesser than that of West Bengal for
the next year?
a. 0 b. 1 c. 2 d. None of these

10. If in the year, when the cost towards flood damage was the least, Karnataka and Kerala
accounted for 45% and 20% of the remaining cost (after A.P. and W.B.) respectively, what was
the difference in the costs towards flood control of Karnataka and Kerala? (in Rs crore)
a. 108 b. 115 c. 120 d. None of these

11. In the year when the cost of flood control was the highest, 32% of the cost was because of a
cyclone that hit the south-eastern coast of the country. The cyclone relief was equally divided
among Tamil Nadu and Andhra Pradesh. How much did Andhra Pradesh get as cyclone relief?
(in Rs crore)
a. 608 b.632 c. 651 d. 676

12. In ‟88 if 5 states were given the entire cost in the ratio 3 : 21/2 : 2 : 11/2 :1, with Tamil Nadu
getting the second lowest contribution in that year; how much did Tamil Nadu actually get in
‟88? (in Rs crore)
a. 300.8 b. 312.4 c. 340.6 d. None of these

13. What is the average amount spent on flood damage during the mentioned years in the
nineties? (in Rs crore)
a. 2125 b. 2250 c. 2350 d. 2450

14. In ‟91, 18% of India‟s population of 840 million were provided with relief material by utilising the
entire cost for flood damages that year. What was the approximate value of the relief material
given to each affected person in ‟91? (Assume uniform distribution)
a. Rs 16.5 b. Rs 20.5 c. Rs 23.5 d. None of these

49 Pankaj Gandhi’s Academy/Data Interpretation

Directions for Questions 15 to 23: The following bar graph shows the percentage contribution of
various items to the profits of a cosmetics company in 1996 and 1997; the profits have been
mentioned in brackets next to the corresponding year.
40
35 1996(Rs.84 lakh) 1997(Rs.112 Lakhs)
30
25
20
15
10
5
0
Hair Oil Toothpaste Face Powder Detergents Soaps Shampoos

15. What was the total contribution of soaps to the profits of the company in the two-year period?
a. Rs 30 lakh b. Rs 34 lakh c. Rs 38 lakh d. Rs 41 lakh

16. What was the additional contribution (in Rs. lakh) by hair oil in 1997 to the profits of the
company, compared to its contribution in the previous year?
a. 0 b. 3.4 c. 33 d. 2.9

17. In the year 1996, how much more (in Rs lakh) did detergents contribute to the profits of the
company than hair oil and face powder together?
a. 1.68 b. 2.52 c. 11.2 d. 4.25

18. What was the percentage decline in the sales (in Rs lakh) of the company‟s toothpaste
between 1996 and 1997?
a. 13 b. 21 c. 40 d. Indeterminable.

19. The number of items which contributed higher amounts to the profit of the company in 1997
than in 1996 was…
a. 3 b. 4 c. 5 d. 6

20. The ratio between the percentage increase of the profits of soaps and the percentage increase
of the total profits of the company from 1996 to 1997 was approximately…
a. 2.25 : 1 b. 3.1 : 1 c. 1.8 : 1 d. 1.4 : 1

21. If the expenditure on advertisement on hair oil and face powder in 1997 formed 4% and 5% of
the profit earned by them respectively, what was the amount (in Rs lakh) spent on these
advertisements?
a. 1.15 b. 2.64 c. 11.5 d. 26.4

22. If the profit margin on the sale of detergent was 18% in 1997, what was the sales turnover of
detergents (in Rs lakh) in that year?
a. 148 b. 168 c. 198 d. 220

23. If the tax on profits was 42% in 1996 and 48% in 1997, how much additional tax (in Rs lakh)
was payable in 1997 than in 1996?
a. 6.6 b. 14.7 c. 18.5 d. 21.5

Pankaj Gandhi’s Academy/Data Interpretation 50

Directions: Questions 24 to 30 are based on the following graph.

Import of Foodgrains
('000 tonnes)
2500

2142
2000
1814
1500
Rice
1328
1301 Wheat
1000

500 296 328 449

240 65 11 188
18
0
1971-72 1980-81 1981-82 1982-83 1983-84 1984-85

The total values of imports during these years are given below:
1971-72: Rs.123 crore 1980-81: Rs. 80 crore
1981-82: Rs.314 crore 1982-83: Rs.295 crore
1983-84: Rs.587 crore 1984-85: Rs.158 crore

24. Wheat formed what percent of total imports of foodgrains from 1980-85 (in terms of tonnes)?
a. 75% b. 66% c. 90% d. 95%

25. What was the excess of import of wheat over that of rice during 1982-85? (in million tonnes)
a. 34 b. 3.4 c. 0.34 d. 340

26. The foodgrains imported during 1984-85 formed what percentage of the import during 1971-
72?
a. 3% b. 31% c. 41% d. 4.1%

27. If the import price of wheat was Rs.2400 per tonne in 1983-84, what was the import price of rice
per tonne during that year?
a. 3200 b. 2225 c. 2850 d. Indeterminable

28. What was the total cost of import of foodgrains from 1980-85 (in Rs crore)?
a. 1635 b. 1354 c. 1434 d. 1558

29. The import of rice in 1983-85 formed what percentage of the import of wheat during this period
(in terms of weight)?
a. 20% b. 25% c. 18% d. 35%

30. If wheat had cost Rs.2000 per tonne in 1980-81, what was the amount of money spent on
import of rice during that year?
a. Rs 2 crore b. Rs 21 crore c. Rs 14 crore d. Rs 30 crore

51 Pankaj Gandhi’s Academy/Data Interpretation

 Exercise - 7(A)
Directions: Questions 1 to 8 are to be answered on the basis of information available in the following
bar graph.

Sales and Net Profits of a Company (in Rs lakhs)

70
64
61.5 61.5
60
52
50 47.6

40 37.4

29.1 Sales
30
Net Profit
20 15.4
14.3 15.6
10
5.2
2.1 3.5 0
-3.2 -4.2
0
1973 1974 1975 1976 1977 1978 1979 1980
-10

1. Which was the year in which the sales revenue registered the highest percentage growth
compared to that of the previous year?
a. 1974 b. 1976 c. 1978 d. 1980

2. What was the cumulative net profit of the first five years for which particulars are shown?
a. 2.2 lakh b. -1.2 lakh c. -1.8 lakh d. 3.2 lakh

3. Which was the year in which the expenses of the company was the highest?
a. 1980 b. 1979 c. 1978 d. 1976

4. The trends of growth of sales revenue and net profit were the same for which of the two years?
a. 1974-75 b. 1975-76 c. 1976-77 d. 1978-79

5. If a tax of 55% was paid on gross profit before the net profit was arrived at, what was the
combined gross profit (in Rs. lakh) for the years 1979 and 1980?
a. 67 b. 62 c. 46 d. 38

6. If the net profit in 1981 was 18% more than in 1980, and this was 20% of the sales turnover in
that year, the sales turnover in 1981 was
a. 78 lakh b. 84 lakh c. 102 lakh d. 91 lakh

7. If, in the year 1980, the expenditure on advertisement was 2.5% of the sales turnover, what
was its percentage on the net profit for that year?
a. 11.8% b. 10.2% c. 13.5% d. 9.4%

Pankaj Gandhi’s Academy/Data Interpretation 52

Directions : For questions 8 to 15, refer to the following graphs.

IMPORTS OF MAJOR COMMODITY GROUPS

(All the values shown are angular measurements in degrees)
Rs. 1795 crore (1960-61)
Rs. 1634 crore (1970-71)
36
60 24
18 54

90

192

246

Rs. 12549 crore (1980-81)

14.4 10.8
54 Consum er Goods
Raw Materials
Capital Goods
Others
280.8

8. The import of consumer goods in 1960-61 cost how many crore?

a. 245 b. 435 c. 298 d. 570

9. What is the difference in the percentage of import of raw materials to the total from 1970-71 to
1980-81?
a. 10 b. 15 c. 20 d. None of these

10. By how many crore did the import of raw materials in 1970-71 exceed import of consumer
goods in 1960-61?
a. 510 b. 570 c. 630 d. 680

11. The value of import of capital goods during 1980-81 exceeded the value of the total imports in
1960-61 by how many crore?
a. 85 b. 100 c. 115 d. 140

12. The value of import of consumer goods in 1980-81 showed what variation from the value of the
import of consumer goods in 1960-61?
a. decreased by Rs 95 crore b.decreased by Rs 60 crore
c. increased by Rs 95 crore d. increased by Rs 75 crore

13. From the 100000 tonnes of raw materials imported in 1970-71, nickel accounted for 200
tonnes. What was the price of Nickel in terms of Rs per ton?
a. 850 b. 8500 c. 85000 d. Indeterminable

14. If textile machinery accounted for 14% of the capital goods in 1970-71 in which 210 textile units
of the same kind were purchased, what is the price of each unit of textile machinery? (in Rs
million)
a. 1.2 b. 1.8 c. 2.7 d. None of these

15. If India‟s balance of trade was -1800 crore in 1980-81 and iron ore accounts for 30% of the
exports, what is the revenue generated by the export of iron ore in 1980-81? (in Rs crore)
a. 3225 b. 3325 c. 3425 d. 3525

53 Pankaj Gandhi’s Academy/Data Interpretation

Directions: Questions 16 to 20 are based on the following data:

BENETT COLEMAN & CO

(Circulation in lacs)

Year 1990 1995 1999 2000 2001

Economic Times (daily) 2.42 3.75 6.23 7.12 8.85
Times Of India (daily) 11.72 16.43 25.22 29.63 33.19
Maharashtra Times (daily) 2.54 2.44 1.87 1.66 1.54
Sunday Times (weekly) 14.25 21.43 31.2 35.62 41.23
Navbharat (daily) 4.65 6.79 5.45 5.21 4.21

16. If the company charges 0.05 Rs per sq cm of advertisement per reader for Sunday Times,
and in 2001, on Sundays, average advertisement space booked was 200 sq cm, what is the
total advertisement revenue from Sunday times for the year 2001 (in Rs Crore)?
a. 150 b. 200 c. 22 d. 210

17. What is the simple annual growth rate in the number of circulation of all newspapers for the
period 1990-2001?
a. 13.5% b. 15% c. 10% d. 20%

18. If all the newspapers except Sunday times are priced at Rs 2 and Sunday Times is priced at Rs
5, what is the total sales revenue for the year 2001?
a. 600 cr b. 500 cr c. 450 cr d. 1000 cr

19. In 2001, Economic Times commanded 73% market share in the category of business
newspapers, but its market share came down to 60% in 2002. Assuming that the total market
size increased by 15% in this period, what is the circulation of Economic Times in 2002?
a. 9.4 lacs b. 10 lacs c. 8.45 lacs d. 8.85 lacs

20. Which newspaper from the company has shown the highest growth rate in the given period?
a. Economic Times b. Times Of India c. Sunday Times d. Navbharat

Pankaj Gandhi’s Academy/Data Interpretation 54

 Exercise - 7(B)
Directions: Questions 1 to 8 are to be answered on the basis of information available in the following
bar graphs.

KARNATAKA AND INDIA : 1977-78

538
324
n
to
ot
C

1651
167
e
an

Production (Karnataka)
rc

('000 Tonnes)
ga

410
Su

291
i
ag

Area (Karnataka) ('000

R

Hectares)
374
437
ze
ai
M

719
750
m
la
ho
C

5704
2782
e
ic
R

0 1000 2000 3000 4000 5000 6000

7103
7815
on
tt
Co

18778
3220
ne
rca
ga

2904
Su

Production (India)
2652
gi

('000 Tonnes)
Ra

4711 Area (India) ('000

11035 Hectares)
ize
Ma

11818
16273
m
ola
Ch

52676
40000
e
Ric

0 10000 20000 30000 40000 50000 60000

1. What is the difference (in kg) between the yield per hectare in India and Karnataka for maize?
a. 384 b. 427 c. 463 d. None of these

2. The yield per hectare of cotton in Karnataka forms what percent of that in India?
a. 157% b. 182% c. 204% d. None of these

3. The production of which crop in Karnataka forms the maximum percent of the national yield?
a. Cotton b. Ragi c. Rice d. Sugarcane

55 Pankaj Gandhi’s Academy/Data Interpretation

4. The number of crops yielding more than 1.5 tonnes per hectare both in India and Karnataka
is…….
a. 0 b. 1 c. 2 d. 3

5. Of the area in India where Cholam was grown, 11 million hectares were irrigated and the
production in this irrigated area was 90 lakh tonnes. What is the production of Cholam per
hectare of unirrigated area in India?
a. 485 kg b. 535 kg c. 575 kg d. None of these

6. With the production of 1970-71 as index 100, the corresponding index of production of Ragi in
1977-78 in Karnataka is 132, and that of India is 155. The production of Ragi in Karnataka in
1970-71 formed what percent of India‟s production of Ragi then?
a. 14.8% b. 16.6% c. 18.2% d. Insufficient data

7. Due to a drought in Karnataka, 10% of the land becomes unavailable for the next year, but the
production of all the crops remains the same. What is the new yield per hectare of sugarcane?
a. 11.0 tonnes b. 12.2 tonnes c. 10.1 tonnes d. Indeterminable

8. If the selling price of sugarcane is Rs 400 per quintal while the entire average expenditure of
the land and farming of sugarcane comes to around Rs 30000 per hectare, what is the profit
made by the Karnataka farmers, if the entire produce is sold?
a. 143.5 crore b. 159.4 crore c. 173.2 crore d. Indeterminable

Directions: Answer questions 9 to 15 with the help of the following pie - chart.

Market-share of Petroleum Products

(Rs.12000 crore)

Others
HPCL 5%
19.5%

IOC
55.2%
BPCL
20.3%

9. The market shares of BPCL and HPCL form what percent of the market share of IOC?
a. 65 b. 72 c. 81 d. None of these

10. If IOC‟s revenue in the North is the same as HPCL‟s revenue in India, what is IOC‟s revenue
from the remaining parts of India? (in Rs crore)
a. 4280 b. 4470 c. 5250 d. 4870

11. If HPCL‟s revenue from diesel and petrol is exactly the same from all the four regions in India,
what is the revenue obtained by sales of petrol in South India? (in Rs crore)
a. 150 b. 225 c. 300 d. Indeterminable

12. If petrol forms 60% of BPCL‟s revenue, and if both the total revenue and the revenue from the
sale of petrol are equally divided among the four regions in India, what is the revenue obtained
from the Eastern region from the sale of petroleum items other than petrol? (in Rs crore)
a. 224 b. 234 c. 244 d. None of these

IOC‟s break-up of the revenue is :- 50% Petrol, 30% Diesel, 15% Engine Oil and the remaining is
Grease. This break-up is the same for all the four regions of India.

Pankaj Gandhi’s Academy/Data Interpretation 56

13. What is the difference in the quantities of the sale of petrol and diesel in the entire country for
IOC?
a. 660 b. 1320 c. 2000 d. Indeterminable
14. What percent of the market share of „Others‟ does the revenue by sale of IOC‟s grease form?
a. 180% b. 100% c. 80% d. 55%

15. The revenue obtained by IOC‟s diesel forms what percent of the total revenue of BPCL?
a. 61% b. 71% c. 81% d. 91%

Directions: Questions 16 to 23 are based on the following bar graph and the adjoining table.

Maj or Exports to the EU from India

(million ECU)
64
Jute 29
270 1995 (4666)
Carpets
204 1990 (2866)
Agri Products 682
486
Leather 1065
713
Textiles 2585
1434

0 500 1000 1500 2000 2500 3000

India’s Market Share in the EU (%)

Product 1990 1995
Textiles 4.37 5.94
Leather 11.01 13.03
Agri. Products 1.30 1.45
Carpets 19.90 23.26
Jute 17.16 40.76
Total 0.98 1.43

16. What was the annual percentage increase in India‟s total exports to the EU from 1990 to 1995?
a. 10% b. 12.5% c. 30.5% d. 62%

17. What was the percentage increase in the combined exports of carpets and leather from India in
1995 over 1990?
a. 35% b. 40% c. 45% d. 50%

18. What is the difference in the percentage share of the exports of textiles to the total exports to
the EU from 1990 to 1995?
a. increase of 5 b. decrease of 5 c. increase of 5% d. decrease of 5%

19. What was the approximate size of the EU market (in billion ECU) in 1995?
a. 3.25 b. 32.5 c. 325 d. None of these

20. What was the size of the leather market in the EU (in billion ECU) in 1990?
a. 5.5 b. 6.5 c. 55 d. 65

21. What was the percentage increase in the size of the EU market from 1990 to 1995?
a. 12 b. 22 c. 32 d. None of these

22. Which of the following products showed the maximum percentage increase in export during the
given period?
a. Jute b. Agricultural products c. Leather d. Textiles

57 Pankaj Gandhi’s Academy/Data Interpretation

23. If India must increase its EU market share to 3%, while the EU market size must increase by
10%, what must be India‟s export (With respect to 1995, in billion ECU) to the EU?
a. 10.75 b. 107.5 c. 1075 d. None of these

Directions : Questions 24 to 30 are to be answered on the basis of information available in the

following tables.

SIZE DISTRIBUTION OF OPERATIONAL HOLDINGS

(Total Area remains the same at 160 million hectares)
1979 - 80
Size < 0.5 0.5 - 2 2 - 3 3 - 5 5 - 10 10 - 20 20 - 50 > 50 Total
(1000 hectares)
No. of 23696 25936 6722 6643 5248 2135 566 65 71011
Holdings
% of Area 3.3 17.5 10 15.8 22.4 17.6 9.7 3.7 100

1984 - 85
Size < 0.5 0.5 - 2 2 - 3 3 - 5 5 - 10 10 - 20 20 - 50 > 50 Total
(1000 hectares)
No. of 30050 29201 7497 7000 5381 1943 450 47 81569
Holdings
% of Area 4.3 19.2 11.1 16.5 22.7 15.9 6.5 2.8 100

1989 – 90
The total number of holdings is 90000.

Size < 0.5 0.5 - 2 2-3 3-5 5 - 10 10 - 20 20 - 50 > 50 Total

(1000 hectares)
% of Holdings 40 33 9 8 7 2 0.9 0.1 100
Area 7800 32700 16150 25400 34050 26700 13200 4000 160000
(1000 hectares)

24. The increase in the number of holdings of size 500 to 3000 hectares formed what percent of
the increase in the total number of holdings between 79-80 and 84-85?
a. 33.2% b. 38.3% c. 44.1% d. None of these

25. Between 79-80 and 84-85, what is the change in area under the “>20000 hectares” category (in
hectares)?
a. 6.56 million b. 8.38 million c. 36.77 lakh d. 48.61 lakh

26. In 84-85 what was the average area of holdings (in hectares) of those which held not more than
2000 hectare area?
a. 65 b. 123.1 c. 635 d. Indeterminable

27. In 89-90, what was the average size of holdings (in thousand hectares) of those between 3000
and 10000 hectare category?
a. 4.4 b. 8.8 c. 6.2 d. 3.1

28. The total area of land held by those with more than 2000 hectares has changed by how many
thousand hectares between 79-80 and 89-90?
a. 4.24 b. 4240 c. 6.12 d. 6120

29. The number of holdings of less than or equal to 2000 hectares has increased by how many
times between 79-80 and 89-90?
a. 3.2 b. 0.32 c. 0.46 d. 0.64

30. The percentage change in the number of holdings in 3000 to 5000 hectares category from 79-
80 to 84-85 forms what percent of the percent change in the number of holdings of the same
category from 79-80 to 89-90?
a. 43 b. 53 c. 63 d. 73
Pankaj Gandhi’s Academy/Data Interpretation 58
 Exercise - 8(A)
Directions: Questions 1 to 7 are to be answered on the basis of information available in the following
Pie chart.
Percentage share of major cargo carriers in India in 1996

International (Rs. 40 crores)

Domestic (Rs. 70 crores)
21%
25%
Blue Dart
Blue Dart
35% 36%
Air Freight
Air Freight
Elbee
Elbee 13%
Others
Others
41%
12% 17%

1. What was Airfreight‟s turnover (in Rs crore) in 1996?

a. 20.8 b. 24.6 c. 28.3 d. 32.1

2. What was the difference (in Rs crore) in Blue Dart‟s domestic turnover and the international
turnover of others?
a. 15.2 b. 20.2 c. 25.2 d. 35.2

3. If 35% of Blue Dart‟s international cargo revenue comes from documents, what percent of Blue
Dart‟s total revenue is contributed by these documents?
a. 2.25 b. 3.75 c. 5.5 d. None of these

4. If Skypak accounts for 8% of the domestic cargo, what percent of the Others category does it
account for (in the domestic cargo sectors)?
a. 18% b. 20.5% c. 23% d. 25.5%

5. In the next year, if Elbee and Airfreight decide to merge and have the same percentage share
as Blue Dart, what will be their combined share of the Rs 80 crore domestic market, if the share
in Rs Crores of Others remains the same as the previous year? (in Rs crore)
a. 25.8 b. 27.75 c. 28.5 d. 30.5

6. In the next year, for the international market, if Blue Dart ties up with Skypak to gain a 1%
market share over Airfreight, who maintain the same percentage share as the previous year. If
Blue Dart and Skypak‟s shares are in the ratio 2 : 1, what is Skypak‟s international revenue? (in
Rs crore)
a. 5.6 b. 11.2 c. 16.8 d. Indeterminable

7. If in 1999, DHL enters the local market and is able to capture 30% of the Rs 150 crore market
and the other 4 manage equal shares of the remaining market, what is Elbee‟s revenue in
1999? (in Rs crore)
a. 24.25 b. 25.25 c. 26.25 d. 27.25

59 Pankaj Gandhi’s Academy/Data Interpretation

Directions: Questions 8 to 15 are based on the following bar graph.

Monthly Imports & Exports - 1985-86

392.5
395

390

387.5

387.5
390

382.5

382.5
385

380
377.5

377.5

380
380
372.5
Rs. Millions

375 Imports

370
370 Exports

365

360
372.5

372.5

382.5
377.5

355

375

370
365
380

380

385

385
375
350
APR MAY JUN JUL AUG SEP OCT NOV DEC JAN FEB MAR

APR - DEC 1985 JAN - MAR 1986

8. What was the total value of exports (in Rs million) during the period April-Sept., 1985?
a. Rs 1885 b. Rs 2632 c. Rs 2257.5 d. Rs 2325

9. The gap between monthly import and export was greatest in

a. Aug & Sept b. Sept & Dec c. Dec & Jan d. Aug & Nov

10. In the first three months of 1986, imports exceeded exports by

a. Rs 27.5 m b. Rs 20 m c. Rs 17.5 m d. Rs 32.5 m

11. During the financial year 1985-86,

a. Imports exceeded exports by Rs. 100 million.
b. Imports exceeded exports by Rs. 60 million.
c. Exports exceeded imports by Rs. 250 million.
d. Exports and imports were of equal value.

12. In how many months did the import exceed export?

a. 8 b. 3 c. 7 d. 5

13. For the month when exports and imports were of equal value, the import bill was ……
a. Rs 760 million b. Rs 377.5 million c. Rs 380 million d. Rs 387.5 million

14. The three-month period during which import was greatest was
a. Jan-Mar b. Aug-Oct c. Jul-Sept d. May-Jul

15. In which quarter of the financial year was the difference between import and export values the
least?
a. First b. Second c. Third d. Fourth

Pankaj Gandhi’s Academy/Data Interpretation 60

Directions: Questions 16 to 20 are based on the following data.

>25
Wine female 16-25
10% 11% male
24%
Rum
17%
Beer
45%
16 - 25
female
Vodka 35%
13%
>25 male
Gin Brandy 30%
5% 10%

Year – 2000: Total Market = 2672 crores; Total consumers = 200 millions

16. If in the year 2001, category 16-25 (females) grows by 20% and the category >25 (males) grow
by 30% and the remaining categories grow by 15%, what would be the total number of
consumers in the year 2001?
a. 263.5 mn b. 235 mn c. 242.5 mn d.250 mn

17. In beer category, Kingfisher is the market leader with a market share of 30%, and in Rum,
Bacardi enjoys the leadership with a market share of 24%. What is the difference in the sales of
these two brands?
a. 400 cr b. 200 cr c. 300 cr d. 250 cr

18. In the year 2001, the Government lifts the ban on drinking for those aged less than 16 years,
resulting in an increase of 20% in the total consumers, what is the number of people (in
millions) less than 16 years of age consuming any of the drinks?
a. 5 b. 50 c. 10 d. Indeterminable

19. If the sales industry grows at a rate of 10% annually for the first 4 years, and in the year 2005 it
grows by 20%, what would be the total sales in the year 2005?
a. 4200 cr b. 4500 cr c. 4700 cr d.500 cr

20. Volume of sales generated by Brandy, Gin and Vodka was what percent of the volume of sales
generated by beer?
a. 45% b. 62% c. 40% d. 35%

61 Pankaj Gandhi’s Academy/Data Interpretation

 Exercise - 8(B)
Directions: Questions 1 to 5 are based on the following data.

Eedhar – Ka – Maal – Oodhar Enterprises and Oodhar – Ka – Maal – Eedhar Enterprises are rivals
operating in the same market segment. These organisations adopt various strategies, X, Y or Z, in
order to outdo each other. The following table gives the respective payoffs and the respective
expenses involved on account of following a particular strategy. For example, if Oodhar – Ka – Maal –
Eedhar Enterprises adopts strategy X and Eedhar – Ka – Maal – Oodhar Enterprises adopts strategy
Y, then Oodhar – Ka – Maal – Eedhar Enterprises gains Rs. 16000 while Eedhar – Ka – Maal –
Oodhar Enterprises loses Rs. 16000. In addition to this, Eedhar – Ka – Maal – Oodhar Enterprises
and Oodhar – Ka – Maal – Eedhar Enterprises also have to incur the expenses for the strategy
adopted.

Payoffs for Oodhar – Ka – Maal – Eedhar Enterprises

Eedhar – Ka – Maal – Oodhar
Enterprises
Oodhar – Ka – Maal – Eedhar Enterprises Strategy X Y Z
X -4000 16000 12500
Y 10000 -6000 9000
Z 16000 15000 -4000
Expenses
Strategy X Y Z
Eedhar – Ka – Maal – Oodhar Enterprises 8500 6000 5500
Oodhar – Ka – Maal – Eedhar Enterprises 7000 9000 6500

1. If Eedhar – Ka – Maal – Oodhar Enterprises adopts strategy X, which strategy should Oodhar –
Ka – Maal – Eedhar Enterprises adopt for maximum gains?
a. X b. Y c. Z d. Indeterminable

2. If Eedhar – Ka – Maal – Oodhar Enterprises adopts strategy Y, what is the maximum gain of
Oodhar – Ka – Maal – Eedhar Enterprises‟?
a. 8500 b. 9000 c. 15000 d. 16000

3. If Oodhar – Ka – Maal – Eedhar Enterprises adopts strategy Z, what strategy should Eedhar –
Ka – Maal – Oodhar Enterprises adopt in order to minimise Oodhar – Ka – Maal – Eedhar
Enterprises‟ gain, regardless of what its own gain will be?
a. X b. Y c. Z d. Indeterminable

4. If Eedhar – Ka – Maal – Oodhar Enterprises adopts strategy Y, which strategy should Oodhar –
Ka – Maal – Eedhar Enterprises adopt for maximum gains?
a. X b. Y c. Z d. Indeterminable

5. If Oodhar – Ka – Maal – Eedhar Enterprises adopts strategy Z, which strategy should Eedhar –
Ka – Maal – Oodhar Enterprises adopt in order to minimise its losses?
a. X b. Y c. Z d. Indeterminable

Pankaj Gandhi’s Academy/Data Interpretation 62

Directions: Answer questions 6 to 13 with the help of the following table.

SHARE OF INKJET PRINTERS

Company Volume of sales

HP 60404
Epson 07223
Wipro 06954
Canon 03715
Modi Xerox 02653
Lexmark 01087
Apple 00277
Tektronix 00021
Others 02067
Total 84401

6. What is Wipro‟s percentage share of the inkjet printers market?

a. 7.6% b. 7.9% c. 8.2% d. 8.5%

7. What percentage of the market is the difference in the shares of Modi Xerox and Lexmark
combined and the combined shares of Canon and Apple?
a. 3.2 b. 2.2 c. 1.2 d. None of these

8. The ratio of the percentage share of Epson to that of Others is

a. 4.5 b. 4.0 c. 3.6 d. 3.25

9. If TVS has a 30% share of the Others share, what is the difference in the number of pieces sold
by TVS and Apple?
a. 333 b. 343 c. 353 d. 363

10. If 40% of HP‟s printers are made at their UP plants and the remaining are made at their AP
plants, what is the number of HP printers not made at Lucknow?
a. 40320 b. 36240 c. 24040 d. Indeterminable

11. If in the next year, Canon and Epson decide to join hands and increase their market share from
their combined existing share by 20%, what will be their combined production if the market size
remains the same?
a. 13125 b. 14260 c. 15890 d. Indeterminable

12. If the production of HP inkjet printers for the year 1990 is assigned an index of 100, then the
index of production of HP in the above mentioned data is 252. If their market share then was
75%, what was the total volume of sales of the printer market in 1990?
a. 30156 b. 31960 c. 32896 d. 33764

13. What is the difference in the percentages of HP‟s share of the total printers and of Epson‟s
share of the remaining printers?
a. 36.5 b. 41.5 c. 46.5 d. 51.5

14. If the ratio of share of Tektronix to Lexmark remains the same in 1990, what will be the
combined index for their share?
a. 55 b. 42 c. 65 d. Insufficient data

63 Pankaj Gandhi’s Academy/Data Interpretation

Directions: Questions 15 to 22 are to be answered on the basis of information available in the
following graph.

Life Expectancy of a Motor Car Engine

250

200
Engine Life (%)
150

100

50

0
20 30 40 50 60 70 80
Speed - Miles per hour

15. At what speed (in mph) is the engine considered to have its normal length of life?
a. 20 b. 30 c. 40 d. 50

16. The life of an engine driven at 20 miles per hour is how many times more than the life of an
engine driven at 40 miles per hour?
a. 1 b. 1.5 c. 2 d. 1.75

17. At what speed (in mph) is the life of an engine only half its normal life?
a. 20 b. 30 c. 50 d. 60

18. If an engine, usually driven at a speed of 60 mph, had a lifespan of 30,000 miles, what will be
the lifespan of an engine which is usually driven at a speed of 30 mph?
a. 15,000 miles b. 60,000 miles c. 84,000 miles d. 120,000 miles

19. Given that the normal lifespan of an engine is 60,000 miles, what was the lifespan of an engine
which was driven for 20,000 miles at a speed of 60 miles per hour and later at a speed of 30
miles per hour?
a. 40,000 miles b. 28,000 miles c. 48,000 miles d. 50,000 miles

20. If the engine is bored when it has completed 75% of is life span, its lifespan is extended by 50%
of its normal lifespan. If the normal lifespan of a engine is 60,000 miles and it is being run at a
usual speed of 50 miles/hour and bored in time, how many more miles can it be run at the
same speed after boring?
a. 63,000 miles b. 23,000 miles c. 31,500 miles d. 20,000 miles

21. Between running an engine at 50 miles per hour and 30 miles per hour, the life span increases
by what percent?
a. 70% b. 100% c. 60% d. 200%

22. It noticed that driving on the highway increases the life expectancy of the engine, during that
period by 10%. If on an average, every third mile that a car covers is on a highway, what is the
expected life of the engine, if it is driven throughout at 30 mph?
a. 144.66 % b. 149.5 % c. 154 % d. Indeterminable

Pankaj Gandhi’s Academy/Data Interpretation 64

Directions: For questions 23 to 30, refer to the following table.

City Price of office property (Rs.)

Amsterdam 10296
Bangalore 16452
Bangkok 8352
Beijing 27540
Chicago 14328
Frankfurt 17172
Hong Kong 47664
London 42012
Mumbai 60876
New Delhi 35496
New York 23796
Paris 24372
Singapore 31968
Tokyo 44532

The property price is the total occupational cost per square metre in Rupees. The exchange
rate of the Rupee is 1 U.S. $ = Rs 36.

23. The cost of office property in Mumbai is how many times the average cost of the two other
Indian cities mentioned (New Delhi and Bangalore)?
a. 0.8 b. 1.4 c. 1.8 d. 2.4

24. What is the percentage difference in the price of office property in Hong Kong than that of
Chicago?
a. 154% b. 178% c. 202% d. 233%

25. If Rustumjee bought 150 sq m of office property at Paris to sell perfumes, how much did he
have to pay? (in thousand US $)
a. 101500 b. 123500 c. 131600 d. None of these

26. If Honda wants to buy office space measuring 8000 sq m in Tokyo, and is given a 10% discount
on the price because of nepotism, how much did Honda pay for the property? (in thousand
rupees)
a. 320630 b. 356240 c. 375760 d. None of these

27. SMP International sold their Singapore office, measuring 2000 sq m and bought office property
with the same amount at Amsterdam. What was the area in sq m, of the Amsterdam office?
(Assume the cost price and selling price rates to be the same)
a. 645 b. 6200 c. 9300 d. Indeterminable

28. Wagh Builders and Developers set up an office at Beijing by paying US $ 1.5 million. What was
the approximate area of the office, in sq m?
a. 195 b. 240 c. 280 d. None of these.

29. If Dharma & Daughters suffer a major loss and have to sell their New Delhi office to wipe out
their US$ 234570 loss, what was the approximate area of their office, in sq m, in New Delhi?
(Assume the cost price and selling price rates to be the same)
a. 160 b. 240 c. 320 d. 400

30. If Mercedes decides to buy 4000 sq m of office space at Frankfurt, how much should they pay
(in thousand Deutsche Mark) for the space? (4DM = 3US$).
a. 1544 b. 1844 c. 2244 d. 2544

65 Pankaj Gandhi’s Academy/Data Interpretation

 Exercise - 9(A)
Directions: For questions 1 to 8, refer to the following bar graph.

AIR's Commercial Earnings

(in Rs crore)
50 43.7
40 37.3

30 25.25
17.55 Vividh Bharati
20 12.51 14.05 Primary Channel
10 6.26
2.64
0
1975-76 1980-81 1985-86 1990-91 1995-96

1. By how many times has AIR‟s commercial earnings increased over the given period?
a. 10.9 b. 11.9 c. 12.9 d. 13.9

2. What was the annual percentage increase of AIR‟s commercial earnings from 1985-86 to 1995-
96?
a. 25% b. 27.5% c. 30% d. 32.5%

3. What is the deviation in Vividh Bharati‟s percentage increase in revenue from 1985-86 to 1995-
96 to its percentage increase in revenue from 1975-76 to 1985-86?
a. 60 b. 67 c. -69 d. None of these

4. What was the annual percentage increase in the increase in the revenue of the primary channel
since its inception?
a. 20.5% b. 205% c. 2050% d. Indeterminable

5. If the FM channel contributed Rs 10 crore in 1995-96, what is the percentage of the remaining
earnings to that of the earnings of 1980-81?
a. 460 b. 510 c. 610 d. None of these

6. The percentage increase in the revenue of Vividh Bharati from 1990-91 to 1995-96 formed
what percent of a similar increase in the revenue of the primary channel?
a. 24% b. 34% c. 240% d. 340%

7. If AIR‟s commercial earnings for the next year 1996-97 is projected as Rs.100 crore, what will
be the annual percentage increase over 1990-91?
a. 6% b. 26% c. 60% d. None of these

8. If private broadcasters earn 18% of AIR‟s commercial earnings and Times FM accounts for
60% of the earnings of private broadcasters, what was the earnings of the other private
broadcasters (other than Times FM) in 1995-96? (in Rs crore)
a. 4.6 b. 5.2 c. 5.8 d. None of these

Pankaj Gandhi’s Academy/Data Interpretation 66

Directions: Questions 9 to 13 are based on the following data:

2000-01 Imports into India:

2000-01 Exports from India:
52045 million $
42687 million $
Others
Japan 5% Others
15% 17%
USA USA
35% Japan 30%
5%
Russia
13%
Russia
UK 17%
Europe
7% Europe
Asia 13%
15% UK Asia
10%
10% 8%

Trade surplus = Exports - Imports

Trade Deficit = Imports - Exports

9. What was the trade deficit with Japan for the year 2000-01?
a. $ 7 bn b. $ 10 bn c. $ 12 bn d. $ 5 bn

10. If 70% of exports to USA are from software. What is the revenue from software exports to
USA in the year 2000-01?
a. $ 8.9 bn b. $ 10.9 bn c. $ 6.9 bn d. $ 12.9 bn

11. Exports to Europe was what percent of imports from Europe?

a. 100% b. 50% c. 70% d. 85%

12. If Rouble falls by 50% in the year 2001-02, what should be the exports to Russia in $ so that
the exports figure remains same?
a. $ 6.5 bn b. $ 13 bn c. $ 3.25 bn d. Indeterminable

13. If in the year 2001-02, imports from USA increase by 20%, by what percent should the exports
increase so that there is no trade deficit with USA?
a. 100% b. 50% c. 70% d. 85%

14. If the imports from Germany form 35% of that from Europe, what percent of the total exports to
Europe, should the exports to Germany be, so that the imports from Germany equal exports to
Germany?
a. 69% b. 59% c. 49% d. Indeterminable

Directions: Questions 15 to 20 are based on the following data:

The chart given below shows the sales of three brands of colas in million cases.

6
Thums Up
4
Pepsi
2 CocaCola
0
95-96 96-97 97-98 98-99 99-00 00-01

67 Pankaj Gandhi’s Academy/Data Interpretation

15. Considering each case contains 24 bottles ,and avg selling price per bottle is Rs 9 and these
three brands together command a market share of 80% , what is the total industry size in the
year 2000-01?
a. Rs 300 cr b. Rs 400 cr c. Rs 450 cr d. Rs 500 cr

16. Which brand had the highest sales figure in the given period of 1995 to 2001?
a. Coca Cola b. Thums Up c. Pepsi d. Both a & c

17. In the given period, which brand and for which year did that brand show the highest percenatge
growth?
a. Thums Up, 96-97 b. Pepsi, 98-99 c. Thums Up, 99-00 d. CocaCola, 97-98

18. The central government till 1998 used to impose excise duty of Rs 30 per case, which was
increased to Rs 60 per case in the beginning of 1999. What is the total excise duty collected by
the government in the year 2000-01 from the sales of these three companies?
a. Rs 80 cr b. Rs 90 cr c. Rs 100 cr d. Rs 70 cr

19. In the year 2001-02, Thums Up recorded a growth of 40%, while Pepsi grew by 25% over the
previous year. What is the difference in the sales of these two brands?
a. 1.8 mn cases b. 2.1 mn cases c. 1.6 mn cases d. 2.4 mn cases

20. In the year 2001-02, the ratio of the sales of the three brands remain the same as that in 1995-
96. Then, what should be the total sales of colas if the sale of Coca Cola increased by 10%
over the previous year?
a. 15.7 millions b. 8.8 millions c. 10.2 millions d. None of these

Pankaj Gandhi’s Academy/Data Interpretation 68

 Exercise - 9(B)
Directions : Questions 1 to 5 are based on the following data.

The first graph shows the demand for and supply of Rice (in tons) for the years 1990 to 1996 and the
second graph shows the demand for and supply of Wheat (in tons) for the years 1990 to 1996.
(Time lag is defined as the time taken for the demand of a particular year to be met).

245
220 218
182 197 200
195
164
185 Rice
170
145 Demand
145 160
121 Rice
148 Supply
120 118
98
95 100
82
70
1990 1991 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996

245
232
220
199 205
213
195
178 182
170 Wheat
165 168 Demand
145
142 140 Wheat
120
Supply
115 112
95
98
70
86
1990 1991 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996

1. What is the approximate time lag between the demand for and the supply of Rice and Wheat?
a. 2 years, 1year b. 1 year, 2 years c. 1 year, 1½ years d. 1½ years, 1 year

2. The total demand for Wheat from 1990 to 1996 forms what percent of the total supply of Rice
from 1990 to 1996?
a. 110% b. 113% c. 125% d. 132%

3. The difference between the total demand and supply of wheat for the given data forms what
percent of the difference between the total demand and supply of Rice for the given data?
a. 55% b. 70% c. 180% d. 190%

4. What is the approximate lag between the demand for Rice and Wheat together and the
corresponding supply?
a. 1 year b. 1½ years c. 2 years d. 2½ years

5. If the lag between the demand and supply of Rice and wheat are interchanged, what percent of
the difference between the demand and supply of Wheat for the years 1993 to 1995 is formed
by the difference between the demand and supply of Rice for the years 1993 to 1995?
a. 255% b. 285% c. 315% d. 335%

6. In which year was the maximum percent of demand of wheat fulfilled?

a. 1990 b. 1993 c. 1994 d. 1996

69 Pankaj Gandhi’s Academy/Data Interpretation

Directions : Questions 7 to 14 are to be answered on the basis of the information available in the
following bar graph.
PLAN OUTLAY ON SOCIAL SERVICES (Rs. Crore)

12063
6616
6292

4261
3404

3355
2930
2919

2212

1902
1712

1451

1202
1151
906

758
663

490

456
339

276

279
222

129

27

Health Education Housing Family Planning Other Soc. Services

Plan I (67-72) [3002] Annual Plans (72-75) [1497] Plan II (75-80) [6013]
Plan III (80-85) [16128] Plan IV (85-90) [29375]

The figures next to the Plans within the oval brackets indicate the period and those within the
rectangular brackets indicate the total outlay on social services for that year. All the above figures for
outlays are in Rs Crore.

Using the figures of Plan III as Base = 100, the figures for Plans V and VI have been given in the table
below.

Plan V (90-95) 350 300 250 400 250

Plan VI (95-2000) projected 500 450 350 550 400

7. What has been the expenditure (in Rs crore) on Other Social Services from 1967 to 1995?
a. 65243 b. 36128 c. 38779 d. 35712

8. The outlay on Health in Plan V is what percent of the outlay on Education in Plan VI?
a. 102.63% b. 97.67% c. 153.96% d. 56.2%

9. The average annual expenditure on Health in the Annual Plans period differed from the
average annual expenditure on Health during the Plan II period by how many crore?
a. 121.4 b. 1049 c. 209.8 d. 349.6

10. The total outlay of Plan III forms what percent of the outlay on education of Plan V?
a. 341.14% b. 140.6% c. 243.04% d. 182.4%

Pankaj Gandhi’s Academy/Data Interpretation 70

11. From Plan III to Plan IV, the outlay on which of the following showed the maximum percent
increase?
a. Health b. Education c. Family Planning d. Housing

12. If the outlay is mentioned at constant (i.e. 1980) prices, then what is the actual outlay (in Rs
crore) for Family Planning in Plan IV, if in this period the value of the 1980 rupee is 70 paise?
a. 5704 b. 4863 c. 2348.5 d. 1973.5

13. If the given data is at current prices with a 20% drop in the value of the rupee during each plan
after Plan II; what will be the outlay (in Rs. crore) on Education in Plan IV at constant prices?
a. 5318.75 b. 2178.56 c. 2042.4 d. 5673.33

14. During Plan IV, 40% of the outlay on Housing was meant for eradication of certain slums and
providing the same people with flats. But 25% of those flats were illegally allotted to the
relatives of ministers and corporators. What was the actual amount spent on eradication of
slums?
a. 1278.3 b. 426.1 c. 1704.4 d. Insufficient data

Directions : Questions 15 to 22 are to be answered with the help of the following bar graph.

Number of Industrial Licence Holders

1800
1600
1400
1200
1000
800
600
400
200
0
Metallurgical Electrical Chemical Textile

1992 1993 1994 1995

15. What is the difference between the total number of licences issued to all the mentioned
industries in 93 and 92?
a. 120 b. 15 c. 155 d. 60

16. The number of newly issued licences to the Electrical Industry between ‟92 and ‟94 forms
approximately what percent of a similar increase in the Metallurgical industry during the same
period?
a. 95% b. 125.25% c. 143.4% d. Insufficient data

17. Which of the following industries has had the smallest percentage increase in the number of
licences issued over the 4-year period mentioned in the graph?
a. Metallurgical b. Electrical c. Chemical d. Textile

18. If the average cost of setting up a new textile unit is Rs. 20 lakh while maintaining an existing
unit is Rs. 1 lakh, what was the average expenditure for a textile unit in the year 1993?
a. Rs. 1.94 lakh b. Rs. 23 lakh c. Rs. 11.45 crore d. Rs. 1.71 lakh

71 Pankaj Gandhi’s Academy/Data Interpretation

19. Due to a new government regulation in 1994, 40% of the new licences issued to chemical
industries in 1994 and 20% of the existing industries in the chemical sector were forced to shut
down because of non-conformance to the new environmental laws. What percent of the
chemical industries remained unaffected?
a. 66.6% b. 24.1% c. 61.3% d. 78.5%

20. The year 1996 witnessed a major industrial recession because of which a few of the
metallurgical industries had to shut down and now their number became equal to twice that of
the chemical industries in 1995. What was the percentage decrease in the number of
metallurgical industries?
a. 54.3 b. 35.2 c. 46.8 d. Indeterminable

21. If in 1993 licences were issued to 22 polyester units increasing their number by 10%, polyester
units constituted what percentage of it‟s parent industry?
a. 54% b. 32% c. None of these d. Indeterminable

22. In 1995, to apply for a licence, which would be issued only after 12 months, the application fee
was Rs.1500, the NOC cost Rs.3500 and stamp duty was Rs.200. How much money did the
government earn on account of these new applications in the chemical industry?
a. Rs 2.6 lakh b. Rs 1.3 lakh c. Rs 1.56 lakh d. Indeterminable

Pankaj Gandhi’s Academy/Data Interpretation 72

Directions : Questions 23 to 30 are based on the following graphs.

GROWTH IN EMPLOYMENT

7511
6756
5781

4678
4111
3968
2754
2449
2247

1590

1461
1269
1212

1101

1036
1002
899
795

86 2
81 5

80 4

82 1
75 2

45 0
35 9

36 1

36 1
28 0

29 8

28 1
161
25 0

24 6

27 7
17 4

16 3

14 5
98

83

75

61
71
1975 (10611) 1980 (12706) 1985 (14467) 1975 (6726) 1980 (6799) 1985 (7559)

PUBLIC SECTOR PRIVATE SECTOR

Agricultural & Allied Industries Mining and Quarrying

Manufacturing Construction
Wholesale Trading Transport
Services

Figures within brackets indicate the total for the corresponding year. All figures in thousands.

PRIVATE SECTOR (8000) PUBLIC SECTOR (18000)

4%
12% 6%
18%
Agricultural & Allied Industries
4% 12%
Mining & Quarrying
2%
Manufacturing
6% 8%
Construction 52%
4% Wholesom e 3%
Transport
Services 15%
54%

The pie -charts are for 1990.

23. The increase in employment opportunity in the manufacturing industry within the public sector
form 1975 to ‟85 formed what percent of the private sector growth over the same period for the
same industry?
a. 91% b. 560% c. 17.85% d. 112%

24. What is the difference in the country‟s net growth in employment within the public sector in the
field of agriculture and construction combined from 1980 to 1990? (in thousands)
a. 827 b. 627 c. 727 d. 797

73 Pankaj Gandhi’s Academy/Data Interpretation

25. The growth in employment in the industry with the largest employment share in the public
sector formed what percent of the growth in employment in the industry with the largest
employment share in the private sector in 1990?
a. 46.25% b. 54.5% c. 183.33% d. 216.67%

26. If 2 out of every 5 of those who were recruited in the public sector in 1990 were graduates, how
many non-graduates (in thousands) did the public sector‟s transport industry recruit in that
year? (Assume uniform distribution)
a. 1380 b. 1180 c. 1620 d. 1560

27. What is the annual growth rate in employment opportunities in the mining and quarrying
industry from „75 - ‟90 in the public sector?
a. 12% b. 17% c. 22% d. 332%

If the values of 1990 are taken as Base = 100, then the values of Public Sector in 1995 are given
below, with the private sector values mentioned within the brackets.

Agriculture = 115 (110) Mining & Quarrying = 110 (110)

Manufacturing = 120 (110) Construction = 120 (90)
Wholesale = 80 (105) Transport = 105 (80)
Services = 110 (120)

28. The construction industry in the private sector has witnessed what percent growth in growth of
employment from 1980 to ‟95?
a. 203% b. 247% c. 279% d. 169%

29. The growth in employment within the services industry in the private sector in 1995 has
witnessed what percent deviation from the growth within the manufacturing industry in the
public sector in 1995?
a. -33.3% b. -16.66% c. +16.66% d. +33.3%

30. In the year 1995 what is the actual growth in the employment figure (in hundreds) for the
private sector industry showing the greatest percentage fall in growth in employment over
1990?
a. 1280 b. 12800 c. 128000 d. 1280000

Pankaj Gandhi’s Academy/Data Interpretation 74

 Exercise - 10(A)
Directions : Questions 1 to 8 are to be answered on the basis of the information available in the
following bar graph.

Food-grains Production

140

120

100
Others
Maize
Million Tonnes

80
Pulses
Wheat
60 Rice

40

20

0
1977-78 78-79 79-80 80-81 81-82 82-83 83-84

1. The commodity which registered the maximum increase in production between 1977 and 1984
showed what percentage increase in the production?
a. 62.5% b. 70% c. 56% d. 160%

2. The average annual production of wheat (in million tonnes) during the given period was…
a. 33 b. 20 c. 25 d. 46

3. What is the ratio of the cumulative production of maize from 1978-83 to that of pulses from
1979-83?
a. 1.36 b. 0.82 c. 1.00 d. 0.68

4. For how many years was the production of wheat less than or equal to the production of the
other foodgrains but more than or equal to the production of maize?
a. 0 b. 1 c. 2 d. None of these

5. What has been the greatest percentage increase within a single year in the production of
wheat?
a. 85.5% b. 98.1% c. 93.3% d. None of these

The following figures indicate the production of the given categories for the year 1984-85 in terms of
the number of times the production in the year 1982-83.

Rice = 1.25 Wheat = 1.2 Pulses = 1.5

Maize = 1.6 Others = 1.4

6. The production of wheat in 1984-85 is how many times more than the lowest production of
wheat within the given period?
a. 0.5 b. 1.16 c. 2 d. None of these

7. What is the total production of foodgrains in the year 1984-85 (in million tonnes)?
a. 172.5 b. 178.5 c. 183.0 d. None of these

75 Pankaj Gandhi’s Academy/Data Interpretation

Directions: Answer questions 8 to 15 with the help of the following table.

STATES Narrow Metre Broad

Gauge (KM) Gauge(KM) Gauge(KM)
Andhra Pradesh 440 180 580
Assam 40 120 72
Bihar 190 248 216
Gujarat 150 290 415
Haryana - 60 110
Jammu and Kashmir 175 35 244
Karnataka 65 122 365
Kerala 18 45 190
Madhya Pradesh 220 185 536
Orissa 154 136 190
Punjab 62 - 238
Rajasthan 125 181 276
Tamil Nadu 110 293 390
Uttar Pradesh 390 243 429
West Bengal 165 110 380
Union Territories 25 45 65

8. What percentage of Karnataka‟s railway network has broad gauge tracks?

a. 66.4% b. 69.16% c. 71.2% d. None of these

9. What percent of Madhya Pradesh‟s railway network does not have broad gauge tracks?
a. 43% b. 49% c. 57% d. 62%

10. What percent of Orissa‟s railway network has metre gauge tracks?
a. 18.5% b. 21.25% c. 24.75% d. None of these

11. What percent of Rajasthan‟s railway network is the narrow gauge and the broad gauge
combined?
a. 31% b. 46% c. 59% d. None of these

12. If Delhi accounts for 35% of the total length of railway tracks within Union Territories, what is
the length of railway tracks within the capital?
a. 47.25 km b. 51.25 km c. 54.75 km d. 44.25 km

If the conversion rates (in Rs per km) for railway tracks of various gauges are as given below:
NG to MG = 2500 NG to BG = 3500 MG to BG = 1500

13. If West Bengal wants to convert all the existing narrow gauge tracks to metre gauge and all the
existing metre gauge tracks to broad gauge, what will be the cost that they will have to incur?
a. Rs.577500 b. Rs.645500 c. Rs. 682500 d. None of these

14. Bihar decides to do away with the narrow gauge tracks by converting them to metre gauge and
broad gauge tracks in equal ratios. What is the expenditure that they will have to incur?
a. Rs.512500 b. Rs.547500 c. Rs.585000 d. None of these

15. Tamil Nadu decides to convert all it‟s narrow gauge tracks to metre gauge. After this work got
over, they decide to convert all the metre gauge tracks to broad gauge. What was the total
expenditure that they had to incur?
a. Rs 879500 b. Rs 907500 c. Rs 962500 d. None of these

Pankaj Gandhi’s Academy/Data Interpretation 76

Directions: Questions 16 to 20 are based on the following data:
The graph represents viewers in millions for the 4 movies .

250

200
South
150 North
100 West
East
50

0
DDLJ SHOLAY MPK GADAR

16. The Government declared GADAR tax-free after 2 months of its release. But the first 2 montths
contributed to 60% of the total viewers of the movie. SHOLAY, because of excessive violence
could not be declared tax-free. If the entertainment tax is Rs 8.60 per viewer, what is the
difference in the tax collected from GADAR and SHOLAY?
a. Rs 100 cr b. Rs 85 cr c. Rs 120 cr d. Rs 110 cr

17. Considering average ticket price in the Northern region to be Rs 20, and the same in the
Southern region to be Rs 25, by what percent was the total collection from the Northern region
more than the collection from the Southern region for the 4 movies?
a. 100% b. 125% c. 160% d. 200%

18. Which of the following is true?

a. People of Northern region are crazy for action movies
b. People of Southern region don‟t like Hindi movies
c. Northern region is the biggest contributor to the total revenue of the film industry
d. Indeterminable

19. If due to extreme violence in MPK, the movie was declared for above 16 years of age
only, 30% of the total viewership would not be allowed to see MPK..Of them, 80% would watch
the movie next year, and another 10 million more would watch the movie next year, while
SHOLAY adds up another 10% in the number of viewers. By the end of the next year, which
movie would be the biggest hit, in terms of the number of viewers?
a. SHOLAY b. MPK c. Both d. Indeterminable

20. If 30% viewers of SHOLAY watch all the movies of Deol family, Deol loyalist viewers
are what percent of total viewers of GADAR?
a. 33% b. 40% c. 25% d. Indeterminable

77 Pankaj Gandhi’s Academy/Data Interpretation

 Exercise - 10(B)
Directions: Questions 1 to 3 are based on the following network.

The process of manufacturing of a unit of a certain product is shown in the network. The
manufacturing process starts at the node A and the finished product is obtained at the node H. The
network gives details about the activities involved in the process and the time required (in minutes) for
each activity. All activities in the network must be completed to obtain the finished product.
9
B D 9
6
5 G 6
8 4
A
8 E H
7
C

5 10
F

1. How long does the process take to manufacture 25 units of the product?
a. 77 hrs b. 32 hrs, 5 min c. 14 hrs, 10 min d. 34 hrs

2. The above process is applied to a machine which can be used for 10 hours a day with 10
minute breaks after every 10 products. The machine is operated everyday. What is the
maximum number of units that can be produced in a week, if a partly processed unit is
scrapped?( provided 1 week = 7 days.)
a. 54 b. 119 c. 123 d. Insufficient data

3. If the duration of activity (B - D) is reduced by 3 minutes and that of activities (G - H) and (F - H)

are increased by 2 and 4 minutes respectively, what will be the approximate percent change in
the time taken to manufacture one unit of the product?
a. 5.88% increase b. 5.88% decrease c. 5.2% increase d. 5.2% decrease

Directions: Questions 4 to 6 are based on the following data.

A factory uses two machines, M1 and M2 to manufacture three types of soap, P, Q and R. The two
machines operate 8 hours a day each. The efficiency of the two machines with respect to the three
types of soap is given in the table below. The numbers indicate the time taken (in minutes) by the two
machines to manufacture one unit each of the three types of soap.

M1 M2
P 8 12
Q 12 9
R 10 12

4. What is the maximum number of soaps that can be produced in a day?

a. 113 b. 65 c. 85 d. 127

5. A soap of type R can be manufactured only after three soaps each of types P and Q have been
manufactured. If fifteen soaps of type R are needed on a particular day, what is the extra time
that the machines will have to operate?
a. 25 min b. 15 min c. 40 min d. None of these

6. If the efficiency of a machine is defined as the total maximum number of sets of soaps P, Q and
R manufactured in a day, what is the ratio of the efficiency of the first machine to that of the
second?
a. 1.142 b. 0.875 c. 0.857 d. 1.166

Pankaj Gandhi’s Academy/Data Interpretation 78

Directions : Questions 7 to 14 are to be answered with the help of the following graphs.

Life Expectancy of Males (in further years)

50
45
40
35
Years

30 1941 - 50
25
1951 - 60
20
15 1961 - 70
10
0 10 20 Age 30 40 50 60

7. On 15th of August 1947, Mrs. Kiran Kapur celebrated her 20 th birthday. What was the year she
was expected to live upto at that time?
a. 1980 b. 1981 c. 1969 d. 1970

8. By approximately what percent did the overall life of a 40 year male in 1961 increase over that
of a 40 year old male in 1941?
a. 16% b. 19.5% c. 6.6% d. None of these

9. By how many years did the life expectancy of a female, who was 50 years old in 1961, increase
from 1941 to 1961?
a. 15 years b. 8 years c. 13 years d. 10 years

10. In how many age categories was the life expectancy of females greater than or equal to that of
males for the entire period 1941-61?
a. 1 b. 2 c. 3 d. 4

For the remaining questions, refer to the following data:

A new drug “Buddhon-di-Jawaani” introduced in the market guarantees an increase in the life

Life Expectancy of Females (in further years)

50
45
40
35
Years

30 1941 - 50
25
1951 - 60
20
15 1961 - 70
10
0 10 20 30 40 50 60
Age

expectancy. This increase is equal to 150 times the reciprocal of the age in the age category in 1971-
80, irrespective of the gender. The Age Category of a person is that multiple of 10 which his age
would be in any of the years between 1971 and 1980. This increase so obtained must be added to the

79 Pankaj Gandhi’s Academy/Data Interpretation

life expectancy (in further years) of the Age Category previously calculated in 1961-70. As this is not
applicable to new-borns, their life expectancy for 1971-80 is 53 years for males and 52 years for
females.

11. What is the life expectancy (in further years) of a 20 year old male in 1971-80?
a. 75.5 b. 47.5 c. 55.5 d. 67.5

12. What is the expected age that a female born in 1931 can live to according to the 1971-80
expectations, if she takes the above-mentioned drug?
a. 65.5 years b. 68.75 years c. 71.5 years d. 73.75 years

13. If Rabri Devi gave birth to her first daughter in 1941 when she was 20, and to her ninth son
when she was 40, what is the difference between the life expectancies of these two children in
1971, if they have been administered the drug?
a. 4 years b. 5 years c. 6 years d. 7 years

14. A person born in 1925 can expect what percent increase in his life from the start to the end of
the period given in the graph?
a. 43.4% b. 14.1% c. 22.6% d. Insufficient data

Directions: Questions 15 to 22 are based on the following graphs.

Population Below Poverty Line (%)

55
50
Poverty Ratio
45
40
Rural
35
30
Urban
25
20 Total
15
1977-78 1979-80 1984-85 1989-90

Area-wise Distribution of Poor People

19% 20%
18% 19%

82% 81% 81% 80%

1977-78 (310) 1979-80 (350) 1984-85 (270) 1989-90 (210)

Rural Urban

The figures in brackets show the Total Poor Population (in millions).

Poverty Ratio is the number of poor people (i.e. those below the Poverty Line) in every hundred of population of that area.

Pankaj Gandhi’s Academy/Data Interpretation 80

15. From the given data, we can say that the population of the country in 1989-90 is about…
a. 820 million b. 850 million c. 880 million d. Insufficient data

16. What was the urban population above the Poverty Line in 1979-80?
a. 89 million b. 96 million c. 81 million d. Insufficient data

17. What is the number of people who lived in rural areas in 1977-78?
a. 500 million b. 515 million c. 525 million d. None of these

18. What is the population above the poverty line in the rural areas in 1989-90?
a. 432 million b. 449 million c. 463 million d. None of these

19. What was the total urban population in 1984-85?

a. 183.2 million b. 196.7 million c. 207.4 million d. None of these

20. What is the increase in the population living above the Poverty Line over the given period?
a. 260 million b. 275 million c. 295 million d. None of these

21. If in 1989-90, 10% of the poor from the rural area come to the urban area and half of them still
remain below the Poverty Line, what percent of the total poor are from the urban areas?
a. 25% b. 33.3% c. 40% d. Insufficient data
22. If in 1989-90, due to a massive earthquake, 20% of the population above the Poverty Line falls
below the Poverty Line, what approximately is the ratio of those above the Poverty Line to
those below it?
a. 3 : 2 b. 7 : 3 c. 9 : 5 d. None of these

Directions: Questions 23 to 30 are to be answered on the basis of information available in the

following table and the data immediately following it.

Company Model Expected Project Cost Annual S.P. of Vehicle

Launch (Rs. Crore) Capacity (Rs. Lakh)
TELCO Safari Jan „98 400 5000 7.5
TELCO Mint Oct „98 1700 25000 2.5
Hyundai D‟Santro Sep‟ 98 750 20000 3.0
Fiat Palio Mar „99 640 16000 3.2
Honda City Apr „98 800 8000 6.5
Mitsubishi Lancer Jun „98 900 6000 7.0
Kinetic Small Car Sep „98 540 12000 1.2

Additional Data:
Assume that all the vehicles produced are sold.
Assume that production rates are uniform.
The Raw Material cost of a vehicle is 30%, the taxes are 10% and the production cost is 10% of the
Selling Price. The remaining is the Profit made by the manufacturer.

23. How many Mints must TELCO sell to break even?

a. 108000 b. 136000 c. 170000 d. None of these

24. If Fiat‟s Palio is launched at its scheduled time, by when should they be able to break even?
a. Sept 2000 b. Mar 2001 c. Sept 2002 d. Sept 2001

25. Kinetic‟s small car will be able to cover what percent of the cost of project after a complete
year?
a. 8.33% b. 13.33% c. 17.5% d. 20.33%

26. What part of the cost of project remains unobtained for Mitsubishi after 15 months of sales of
the Lancer?
a. 28% b. 36% c. 45% d. None of these

81 Pankaj Gandhi’s Academy/Data Interpretation

27. The Hyundai D‟Santro project gets delayed by two years. If interest is calculated at 41%
annually, how many vehicles must be sold to break even, if the selling price is increased by
20%?
a. 66666 b. 83333 c. 91666 d. 99999

28. Immediately after breaking even, Honda installs ASB kits on its City model. This requires an
additional Rs.40 crore towards the project cost. At the same time the selling price of the car is
increased by Rs 50000. At the end of an entire year from then, what is the profit that Honda‟s
City makes?
a. Rs. 180 crore b. Rs. 210 crore c. Rs. 240 crore d. Rs. 270 crore

29. To meet the excessive initial demand for Tata Safari, TELCO decides to increase the
production capacity by 40% by investing Rs.60 crore more. If this done before the production of
Safari started, approximately how many Safaris must TELCO sell to break even?
a. 12250 b. 12965 c. 13425 d.13995

30. A year after the launch of Lancer, Mitsubishi decides to launch a new model using the same
assembly line. The line is capable of providing twice the production capacity as that of the
Lancer, while the new car will be sold at half the price of the Lancer. What will be the ratio of
annual profits of the Lancer to those of the new model, if the initial cost incurred for the new
model is ignored?
a. 4 : 1 b. 1 : 2 c. 1 : 4 d. 1 : 1

Pankaj Gandhi’s Academy/Data Interpretation 82

 Answers To Data Interpretation

Exercise - 1(A)
1-a 2-c 3-c 4-c 5-d 6-c 7-d 8-a 9-a 10-c
11-b 12-b 13-d 14-b 15-a 16-d 17-a 18-a 19-c 20-a

Exercise - 1(B)
1-c 2-b 3-d 4-d 5-a 6-d 7-d 8-d 9-d 10-d
11-d 12-d 13-d 14-d 15-c 16-a 17-a 18-a 19-d 20-c
21-b 22-d 23-d 24-b 25-b 26-a 27-b 28-c 29-a 30-d

Exercise - 2(A)
1-c 2-b 3-a 4-c 5-b 6-b 7-d 8-a 9-b 10-b
11-d 12-b 13-d 14-c 15-d 16-c 17-c 18-d 19-b 20-c

Exercise - 2(B)
1-d 2-b 3-b 4-a 5-c 6-b 7-c 8-d 9-b 10-b
11-c 12-a 13-b 14-a 15-c 16-c 17-d 18-b 19-b 20-c
21-b 22-c 23-c 24-b 25-c 26-b 27-b 28-d 29-a 30-b

Exercise - 3(A)
1-c 2-a 3-d 4-b 5-b 6-b 7-b 8-c 9-b 10-c
11-a 12-b 13-d 14-d 15-a 16-c 17-c 18-a 19-a 20-b

Exercise - 3(B)
1-b 2-c 3-b 4-c 5-b 6-a 7-c 8-c 9-a 10-d
11-b 12-a 13-d 14-c 15-b 16-d 17-b 18-d 19-b 20-b
21-b 22-d 23-a 24-b 25-d 26-c 27-b 28-a 29- c 30-b

Exercise - 4(A)
1-c 2-b 3-d 4-b 5-d 6-c 7-b 8-c 9-a 10-b
11-a 12-a 13-a 14-d 15-d 16-d 17-c 18-c 19-d 20-c

Exercise - 4(B)
1-a 2-a 3-d 4-d 5-c 6-b 7-a 8-a 9-b 10-d
11-b 12-b 13-a 14-c 15-c 16-b 17-a 18-c 19-b 20-b
21-a 22-c 23-b 24-d 25-d 26-d 27-d 28-d 29-a 30-b

Exercise - 5(A)
1-b 2-c 3-d 4-c 5-b 6-b 7-c 8-c 9-c 10-b
11-a 12-d 13-b 14-c 15-d 16-c 17-d 18-a 19-d 20-c

Exercise - 5(B)
1-b 2-b 3-b 4-c 5-c 6-b 7-a 8-b 9-b 10-c
11-b 12-d 13-a 14-d 15-d 16 - d 17-d 18-d 19-d 20-d
21-a 22-b 23-b 24-d 25-c 26-d 27-d 28-b 29-c 30-a

Exercise - 6(A)
1-c 2-c 3-c 4-b 5-a 6-a 7-c 8-a 9-b 10-b
11-c 12-d 13-d 14-b 15-c 16-d 17- a 18 - a 19 - c 20 - d

Exercise - 6(B)
1-b 2-b 3-d 4-c 5-d 6-d 7-d 8-c 9-c 10-d
11-b 12-d 13-a 14-d 15-c 16-b 17-a 18-d 19-b 20-a
21-a 22-d 23-c 24-c 25-b 26-b 27-b 28-c 29-a 30-b

83 Pankaj Gandhi’s Academy/Data Interpretation

 Exercise - 7(A)
1-a 2-c 3-c 4-b 5-a 6-d 7-b 8-c 9-d 10-b
11-a 12-d 13-d 14-c 15-a 16-d 17-a 18 - c 19 - c 20 - a

Exercise - 7(B)
1-b 2-b 3-b 4-b 5-b 6-b 7-d 8-b 9-b 10-a
11-d 12-c 13-d 14-d 15-c 16-b 17-c 18-a 19-c 20-b
21-a 22-a 23-a 24-b 25-a 26-c 27-a 28-b 29-b 30-c

Exercise - 8(A)
1-c 2-a 3-d 4-c 5-b 6-d 7-c 8-c 9-d 10-c
11-b 12-a 13-c 14-c 15-a 16-c 17-d 18-d 19-c 20-b

Exercise - 8(B)
1-c 2-b 3-c 4-a 5-c 6-c 7-d 8-c 9-b 10-d
11-a 12-b 13-b 14-d 15-c 16-a 17-d 18-c 19-c 20-c
21-b 22-a 23-d 24-d 25-d 26-a 27-b 28-d 29-b 30-d

Exercise 9(A)
1-c 2-c 3-c 4-d 5-d 6-a 7-b 8-c 9-a 10-a
11-c 12-d 13-c 14-c 15-b 16-b 17-c 18-b 19-a 20-a

Exercise - 9(B)
1-b 2-c 3-d 4-b 5-d 6-d 7-c 8-a 9-a 10-c
11-c 12-b 13-b 14-d 15-b 16-a 17-c 18-d 19-d 20-b
21-d 22-d 23-d 24-d 25-d 26-c 27-c 28-b 29-a 30-a

Exercise - 10(A)
1-a 2-c 3-a 4-b 5-c 6-d 7-a 8-a 9-a 10-d
11-d 12-a 13-a 14-d 15-a 16-b 17-c 18-d 19-a 20-a

Exercise - 10(B)
1-c 2-b 3-a 4-a 5-d 6-a 7-a 8-c 9-c 10-c
11-b 12-b 13-d 14-c 15-a 16-a 17-a 18-a 19-a 20-a
21-b 22-a 23-b 24-d 25-b 26-d 27-b 28-c 29-a 30-d

Pankaj Gandhi’s Academy/Data Interpretation 84

 Solutions to Data Interpretation
Note:

In the solutions, if a quantity has been denoted as, let us say, 155 (+)%, it means that the actual
answer is slightly higher than 155%. Similarly, 155 (-)% would imply that the actual answer is slightly
less than 155%. If (++) or (--) signs are used, it means that the actual answer is much greater (or
lesser, respectively) than the obtained answer. The reason for mentioning the answer in such a format
is that the obtained answer, 155, in this case, has been arrived at after certain approximations.
However, the (+) and (-) signs give the range of the correct answer.

In some cases, the details of all the steps of approximations in the calculations have not been
mentioned in order to make the solutions more concise. Students are however urged to do the
calculations mentally, using the approximation methods and short-cuts which they have been told.

Exercise - 1(A)
Solutions to Questions 1 to 8.

1. The expenditure on magazines is approximately 20%. A quarter of that  5%, which

corresponds to local radio. Hence answer option is a.

2. The national advertising expenditures of four years was less than that of 1989. Their average is
approximately [(5+5.4+5.7+5.7)/4]  Rs. 545 crore. Hence answer option is c.

3. One-third of the expenditure of 1992  211, which corresponds to 20% of that of 1997. So the
number of categories having an expenditure more than 20% in 1997 is 3 (local TV, Cable TV
and magazines). Hence answer option is c.

4. Thrice, in the years 1992, 1996 and 1997. Hence answer option is c.

5. Radio advertising constitutes in all 5.2% of the 1050 crore. This corresponds to Rs. 54.6 crore,
which is Rs. 546 million. So the answer is (d) None of these.

6. The required percentage increase  [(1050-560)/560] x 100  88%. Hence answer option is c.

7. Since the allocation of network radio expenditure in 1987 is not known, the answer is
indeterminable. Hence answer option is d.

8. Filumfair has a share of 33.33% (i.e one-third) of 37.5% [i.e. (3/8)th] of the expenditure on
magazines (which itself is 20.6%). Thus, the revenue generated by Filumfair  [(1/3) x (3/8) x
20% of 1050]  Rs. 26.2 crore. Hence answer option is a.

Solutions to Questions 9 to 12

9. During the week when Narayan works more than he rests, he earns Rs. 20 per hour. During the
next week, when he rests more than he works, he earns Rs. 10 per hour. This pattern is
constant over the next two weeks. The salary in the first week is (20 x 5 x 6) = Rs. 600, which is
also the same for the third week. The salary in the second week is (10 x 2 x 6) = 120, which is
also the salary for the fourth week. Therefore, Narayan‟s total salary for the first month is Rs.
1440. Hence answer option is a.

10. Narayan works 7 hours a day and rests 3 hours a day during the fifth and the seventh week.
His salary in the fifth week is (20 x 7 x 6) = Rs. 840, which is also the same for the seventh
week. The salary in the sixth week is (10 x 3 x 6) = 180, which is also the salary for the eighth
week. So, Narayan‟s total salary for the second month is Rs. 2040.
Narayan works 6 hours a day and rests 4 hours a day during the ninth and the eleventh week.
His salary in the ninth week is (20 x 6 x 6) = Rs. 720, which is also the same for the eleventh
week. The salary in the tenth week is (10 x 4 x 6) = 240, which is also the salary for the twelfth
week. So, Narayan‟s total salary for the third month is Rs. 1920.

85 Pankaj Gandhi’s Academy/Data Interpretation

 Narayan works 8 hours a day and does not rest during the thirteenth and the fifteenth week. His
salary in the thirteenth week is (20 x 8 x 6) = Rs. 960, which is also the same for the fifteenth
week. The salary in the fourteenth week is (10 x 0 x 6) = 0, which is also the salary for the
sixteenth week. So, Narayan‟s total salary for the fourth month is Rs. 1920.
We have already calculated Narayan‟s salary for the first month as Rs. 1440. So, Narayan‟s
total salary for the first four months is Rs. 7320. Therefore, his average salary at the end of the
first four months is Rs. 1830. Hence answer option is c.

11. Narayan‟s salary for the third month has been calculated as Rs. 1920. After the new policy is
implemented, we will have to calculate the income per week and also the deduction for hours of
rest. Narayan works 6 hours and rests 4 hours in the ninth week. His income in the ninth week
is (25 x 6 x 6) = Rs. 900. At the same time, the deduction amounts to (5 x 4 x 6) = Rs. 120. So,
Narayan‟s net income for the ninth week is Rs. 780, which is also the income for the eleventh
week.
His income in the tenth week is (25 x 4 x 6) = Rs. 600. At the same time, the deduction
amounts to (5 x 6 x 6) = Rs. 180. So, Narayan‟s net income for the ninth week is Rs. 420, which
is also the income for the twelfth week. So, Narayan‟s total income for the third month, under
the new policy, is Rs. 2400.
Therefore, the change in Narayan‟s income for the third month is =2400 – 1920 = Rs. 480.
Hence answer option is b.

12. We have already calculated the income for the first, second and third month as Rs. 1440, Rs.
2040 and Rs. 2400 respectively. During the thirteenth week, Narayan works 8 hours with no
rest. His income for the thirteenth week is (25 x 8 x 6) Rs. 1200, which is also the salary for the
fifteenth week. As he does not rest during these two weeks, there are no deductions. During
the fourteenth week, Narayan does not work and rests for 8 hours a day. So, the deduction in
the fourteenth week is (5 x 8 x 6) = Rs. 240, which is also the deduction in the sixteenth week.
So, Narayan‟s net salary for the fourth month is = 2400 – 480 = Rs. 1920. Therefore, Narayan‟s
total income at the end of sixteen weeks will be Rs. 7800. Hence answer option is b.

Solutions to Questions 13 to 20.

13. Thermal power in 1984-85 = 98927, while total generation in 1984-85 = 169183.  The
percentage = [(98927/169183) x 100]  59%. Hence answer option is d.

14. Hydel power in 1970-71 = 25248, while in 1984-85 it is 53971.  The percentage increase =
[(53971-25248)/25248] x 100  [(28/25) x 100]  114%. Hence answer option is b.

15. In 1960-61, the per capita consumption of power = 38.2 (from the table), while in 1980-81, the
consumption = 132.3.  The percentage decrease = [(132.3-38.2)/132.3] x 100  71%. Hence
answer option is a.

16. Hydel power in 1950-51 = 2860; non-utilities in 1960-61 = 3186.  The ratio = 2860:3186 =
0.897 which is nearly 9:10. Hence answer option is d.

17. In 1984-85, the non-utilities were 12210; generation by the other three = [Total – non-utilities] =
119260-8416 = 110844.  The required percentage = [(12210/110844) x 100]  121/11  11%.
Hence answer option is a.

18. Generation of nuclear energy began in 1970-71, and the generation in that year was 2417. In
1984-85, the generation was 4075.  The percent growth = [(4075-2417)/2417] x 100  67%.
 The simple rate of growth = 67/14  4.8%. Hence answer option is a.

19. We have been given that all the generated power has been consumed. The total generation in
1970-71 = 61211, of which thermal power = 28162.  If the total per capita consumption is
89.8, the contribution of thermal power will be [(28162/61211) x 89.8]  [(28/60) x 90]  42
units. Hence answer option is c.

Pankaj Gandhi’s Academy/Data Interpretation 86

20. The per capita consumption in 1950-51 = 17.9, while in 1984-85 it is 156.6.  The ratio in
which it has increased is [(156/17.9)  8.7, so it has increased in the ratio 1 : 8.7. Hence
answer option is a.

Exercise - 1(B)
Solutions to Questions 1 to 6.

1. From the given data we can calculate the amount of gold used in the different types of jewellery
as follows.

Jewellery No. Amount of gold per unit Total amount of gold

Type (000) 22 carat 20 carat 18 carat 22 carat 20 carat 18 carat
Necklaces 20 160 40 -- 3200 800 ---
Pendants 30 60 80 60 1800 2400 1800
Rings 30 --- 140 60 --- 4200 1800
Bracelets 10 --- 120 80 --- 1200 800
Earrings 10 --- 20 180 --- 200 1800
5000 8800 6200

For question number one answer option is c.

2. Referring to the above table, the Necklaces used 3200 kg of 22 carat gold. Hence answer
option is b.

3. The total number of emeralds used in Rings is [(40% of 420) x 30,000 rings], while the total
number of emeralds used for Bracelets is [(60% of 420) x 10,000 bracelets]. Thus the required
ratio is 2:1, and so the answer is (d) “None of these”.

4. Referring to the above table, a total of 6200 kg of 18 carat gold was used. Hence answer option
is d.

5. Only necklaces and pendants contain 22 carat gold. The total number of diamonds used will be
[(70% of 420) x 20,000 necklaces] + [20% of 420) x 30,000 pendants]. Ignoring 420 and the
thousands, this number can be denoted as 1400 + 600 = 2000. Similarly, the total number of
Rubies is [(15 x 20) + (50 x 30)] = 1800, while the total number of emeralds is [(15 x 20) + (30 x
30)] = 1200. So the ratio is 2000:1800:1200 which is 10:9:6. Hence answer option is a.

6. Since bracelets and earrings are formed from 20 Carat and 18-Carat gold, and neither do they
contain diamonds, no pendant can be formed. Hence answer option is d.

Solutions to Questions 7 to 14.

7. The per capita availability of milk in 1960-61 is 45.4 kg, i.e. for each person, 45.4 kg of milk was
available in 1960-61. So the total production is 45.4 x population = 45.4 x 440 million  19980
million kg. i.e.  20 billion kg. Hence answer option is d.

8. In 1960-61, the production of fish was (47.3-45.4) x 440  836 million kg. In 1970-71, the
production was (43.3-40.2) x 550  1705 million kg.; thus the increase = 870 million kg. Hence
answer option is d.

9. The production of potato and tapioca in 1950-51 = (64.7-54.4) x 360  3700 million kg, while in
1980-81, its production is (81.4-56.9) x 686 = 24.5 x 686  25 x 670  16750 million kg. Thus
the percentage increase = [(16750-3700)/3700] x 100  350%. Hence answer option is d.

10. The total production of banana in 1970-71 = (48.9-43.3) = 5.6 x 550 = 56 x 55 = 55(55+1) =
3025 + 55 = 3080 million kg. In 1974-75 the production was 80% of 3080 = (4/5) x 3080 =
2464 million kg. Hence answer option is d.

87 Pankaj Gandhi’s Academy/Data Interpretation

11. Although the production of fish in 1971-72 can be calculated, the per capita availability is
indeterminable because the population at that year is not known. Hence answer option is d.

12. In 1980-81, the per capita availability of potato and tapioca = (81.4-56.9) = 24.5 kg. In 1990-91,
this became 1.8 x 24.5 = 44.1 kg. The production of potato and tapioca in 1980-81 24.5 x 686 =
16800(approx.) million kg, while its production in 1990-91 = 44.1 x 820 = 441 x 82  36000
million kg.  the increase  36000 -16800  19200 million kg. This took place over a span of 10
years, so the simple annual rate = 1920 million kg per year. Hence answer option is d.

13. It is easier to calculate the total per capita availability of 1990-91 by increasing the total per
capita availability of 1980-81 by 20%, rather than increasing the per capita availability of each
component by 20% and then adding all these. The total per capita availability in 1980-81 = 81.4
kg (the topmost ordinate in the band diagram), so the per capita availability in 1990-91 = (6/5) x
81.4  98 kg. Thus the total availibilty will be 98 x 820  80300 million kg  80.3 billion kg.
Hence answer option is d.

14. The data gives us the per capita “availability” and not “consumption”, so the answer is “
Insufficient data.” Hence answer option is d.

Solutions to Questions 15 to 22.

15. Contribution of the Primary sector  40% of NDP  40% of 47419  19000 crore, i.e. 190 billion.
Hence answer option is c.

16. % increase in NDP = [(57286-24360)/24360] x 100  132%. Hence answer option is a.

17. This can‟t be solved by visual inspection as along with % contribution of each sector, NDP
values are also changing. In 1950 – 51, contribution of tertiary sector = 0.23 x 16800 = 3864. In
1960 – 61, contribution of tertiary sector = 0.27 x 24360 = 6577. So percentage increase in
1960 – 61 = 70%(approx). In 1970 – 71, contribution of tertiary sector = 0.3 x 34500 = 10350.
So percentage increase in 1970 – 71 = 57%(approx.) Hence answer option is a.

18. In 1970-71, the contribution of the secondary sector = [20% of 34519] = Rs. 6900 crore, while
in 1980-81, it is [23% of 47419] = Rs. 10900 crore.  The difference is Rs. 4000 crore. Hence
answer option is a.

19. The contribution of the Primary and Tertiary = 48% + 32% = 80% of 40365  Rs. 32300 crore.
Hence answer option is d.

20. The given table is already at constant prices (i.e. 1970-71) prices, so use the values as given
from the graph. The contribution of the Tertiary Sector in 1985-86 = 40% of 57286 = Rs. 22915
crore. Hence answer option is c.

21. The Primary Sector is  39% of the NDP = 39% of 57286 = Rs. 22340 crore in spite of a
devaluation (of 70%) upto 30 paise. So at current prices, it is 22340/0.30 = Rs. 74472 crore.
Hence answer option is b.

22. The contribution of the Secondary Sector in 1980-81 and 1984-85 is  [23% of 47419] + [21%
of 57286]. This can be approximated as [(23+21)/2]% of [47000 + 57000]  Rs. 22,900 crore.
Hence answer option is d.

Solutions to Questions 23 to 30.

23. The average annual expenditure during the Seventh Plan = 60653/5  12131. The projected
exports of 1989-90 are 13831. Thus the required difference is 13831-12131 = Rs. 1700 crore.
Hence answer option is d.

Pankaj Gandhi’s Academy/Data Interpretation 88

24. In 1984-85, the ratio was [(380+875)/9962]  1250/10,000  1/8. In 1989-90, this ratio was
[(440+1336)/13831]  1800/14000 (+)  1/8 (+). Thus the average will be slightly greater than
1/8 (= 0.125). Hence answer option is b.

25. The total exports projection for 1984-85 would now be Rs. 13831 crore, at 1989-90 prices. We
have to find that change, or more specifically, that reduction in the value of the rupee, which
would make Rs. 13831 crore of 1989-90 equivalent to Rs. 9962 crore of 1984-85. Thus,
1Rupee of 1989 – 90  Rs. [9962/13831] of 1984 – 85  [10,000/14000]  0.714. Thus, the
value of one rupee of 1989 –90 should be equal to value of Rs. 0.714 of 1984 – 85. Value of 1
Re. = 100 paise in 1984 – 85 and in 1989 – 90 1 Re. = 71.4 paise, so a reduction of 28.6%.
Hence answer option is b.

26. There has been an appreciation of 30% in the value of the rupee. This means that 1 rupee,
which could get 100 paise in 1984-85, can get 130 paise in 1989-90. Let the export projection
in 1989-90 at current prices be y. The exports have now become worth [y x 130] crore paise,
which is the same as Rs. 13831, i.e. [13831 x 100] crore paise, according to constant prices. 
y = [13831 x 100/130]  Rs. 10,640 crore.  The increase in exports is 10640-9962 = Rs. 678
crore. Hence answer option is a.

27. In 1984-85, the expenses were 1367. In the Seventh Plan Period, the average annual exports
were worth 7700/5 = Rs. 1540 crore. Thus the difference = 1540-1367 = Rs. 173 crore. Hence
answer option is b.

28. In 1984-85, the expenses of all categories except “Others” amounted to [9962- 3005] = 6957,
while in 1989, they were [13831- 4487] = 9344. So the percentage increase = [(9344-
6957)/6957] x 100  35%. Hence answer option is c.

29. In 1984-85, the Leather and Jute Products were 533 + 207 = 740. The average annual value
during the Seventh Plan = (1/5)[2796 + 1078]  775. So the difference = 775 – 740 = 35 Cr.
Hence answer option is a.

30. In 1984-85, tea, Coffee and Processed Food constituted [718+221+328] = 1267, out of the total
9962. In 1989-90, they constituted [770+232+424] = 1426, out of the total 13831.  The
required percentage = [(1267+1426) / (9962+13831)] x 100 = (2693/23793) x 100 
(2700/23800) x 100  11.5%. Hence answer option is d.

Exercise - 2(A)
Solutions to Questions 1 to 7.

1. The supply in 1974-75 and 1984-85 was 66 and 151 respectively.  The percentage increase
= [(151-66)/66] x 100 = (85/66) x 100  (4/3) x 100  130%. Hence answer option is c.

2. The decade starting from 1974-75 will end in the year 1983-84. The cumulative difference over
these ten years is 12+9+5+16+12+19+15+14+13+15 = 130. Hence answer option is b.

3. The supply in 1976-77 = 83; Requirement in 1983-84 = 145.  The ratio = 83:145  8:14 
0.57. Hence answer option is a.

4. The percentage increase from 1976-77 to 1980-81 = [(105-83)/83] x 100  26%. The
percentage increase in requirement from 1980-81 to 1984-85 = [(170-120)/120] x 100  42%.
Thus the difference is 42-26 = 16. Hence answer option is c.

5. Only two years, 1977-78 and 1984-85 have registered a minimum 10% increase in the
requirement. Hence answer option is b.

6. In 1982-83, the supply was 124 billion kWh.  The income = 124 x 0.8  Rs. 100 billion. Hence
answer option is b.

89 Pankaj Gandhi’s Academy/Data Interpretation

7. Here, the data about the cost of electricity is redundant. Illegal supply is 10% of the actual total.
Thus, 90% of the supply is legal, which gives the actual revenue. % loss = [(10/90) x 100] =
11.11%. Hence answer option is d.

Solutions to Questions 8 to 14.

(Monetary values are in Rs. crore unless otherwise mentioned).

8. The Revenue (Income) = Rs. 1350 crore; Expenditure = Rs. 1480 crore. The difference is Rs.
130 crore and as the Expenditure exceeds the Revenue, it is a deficit of Rs. 130 crore. Hence
answer option is a.

9. It is very clear that the Sales Tax is the single largest contributor with a 42% share. So the
actual contribution = [(42/100) x 1350] = Rs. 567 crore. Hence answer option is b.

10. A surcharge of 15% will amount to [(15/100) x (7/100) x 1350]  Rs. 14.2 crore. Hence answer
option is b.

11. The rate of surcharge in this case will be in the same ratio as the percentage of Agro. Tax to
the percentage of Land Revenue. So we get (8/12) = (Surcharge/100). So the rate will be
66.66%. Thus the answer is option is d.

12. The expense of 30% of Education = [(30/100) x 30%] = 9% of the total and the expense of 25%
of the Health Expenditure = [(25/100) x 18%] = 4.5% of the total.  Together they account for
9+4.5 = 13.5% of the total of Rs. 1480 crore. This is equal to [(13.5/100) x 1480]  Rs. 200
crore. Hence answer option is a.

13. A saving of 20% of the Expenditure on education = [(20/100) x 30%] of the total = 6% of 1480 
Rs. 90 crore. After equal distribution between roads and health, the addition will be of Rs. 45
crore to each. So roads will now have [(12% of 1480) + 45]  Rs. 223 crore. Hence answer
option is d.

14. Central grants = 17% of 1350 = 230. Maintenance of highways = 20% of 230 = 46. The
expenditure on the Bombay - Pune Highway = 10% of 46 = 4.6. This amount is 60% of the total
amount spent on maintenance. So the total maintenance amount = [4.6 x (100/60)] = Rs. 7.7
crore. Hence answer option is c.
Alternate method:
1350x(17/100)x(20/100)x(10/100) = X (60/100),
where X = Amount spent on the maintenance of highways.
So, X = 7.65

Solutions to Questions 15 to 20.

15. The combined production of these four countries in 1950 – 51 = 1.51+0.06+1.25+0.64 = 3.46;
in 1976-77 it is 0.91+0.09+0.98+1.07 = 3.05.  The percentage change = [(3.05-3.46)/3.46] x
100  -12%, which is not there in any of the first three options. Hence answer option is c.

16. In 1971-72, non-passenger vehicles = 138.54 and total two-wheelers = 341.88.  The
proportion  140:340  7:17  0.41. Hence answer option is c.

17. From 1950-51 to 1979-80, we have a 30-year period, so the total decrease will be 30/2 = 15
percentage points [note that the decrease is not 15% of 60%]. So the American vehicles will
constitute 45% of the total non-passenger vehicles in 1979-80. In 1950-51, American non-
passenger vehicles = [(60/100) x 74.4]  45; in 1979-80 it is [(45/100) x 146]  65.  the
difference  65-45  20 million (increase). Hence answer option is c.

Pankaj Gandhi’s Academy/Data Interpretation 90

18. The question concerns the production over the next decade, while the table gives the
production of only two of the next eleven years (1971-72 and 1976-77), so the answer
Indeterminable. Hence answer option is d.

19. In 1971-71, the production of the countries mentioned = 57.43 + 39.99 + 67.72 + 0.94 + 0.07 +
0.99 + 1.11  168.  The production of the other countries  203.34 – 168  35. India‟s
production = 15% of the others = [(15/100) x 35] = 5.25 million. Hence answer option is b.

20. Since 40% of the total German passenger cars in 1979-80 were jeeps, the remaining 60% were
cars. Thus cars were 60% of the total German passenger cars in 1979-80, i.e. [(60/100)] x 41.3
= 24.78 million. Hence answer option is c.

Exercise - 2(B)
Solutions to Questions 1 to 4.

1. The table gives the market shares of the four products in 1993 and 1994. From the given data,
we can see that the market shares of Soap, Deodorant, Perfume and Talc dropped in Mumbai,
Calcutta, Mumbai and Madras respectively. It can be seen that the market share of each
product has reduced in at least one city. Hence answer option is d.

2. From the given table, it can be seen that the market share of Talc in Calcutta doubled itself
from 10 to 20 between 1993 and 1994. As no other product has doubled its market share, only
one product has doubled its market share in one or more cities. Hence answer option is b.

3. The market share of Deodorant in Calcutta reduced from 30 to 15 between 1993 and 1994.
Therefore, Deodorant showed the maximum decrease of 50% in market shares. Hence answer
option is b.

4. No product had a 100% market share in any of the four metros. Hence answer option is a.

Solutions to Questions 5 to 9.

Please note that the graph is a cumulative one. So, to get the values for Maruti Comfort, we have to
subtract the values with corresponding values of Maruti Compact. The graph is represented below in
a tabular form. Since the values in the graph give the speed in terms of km per 100n seconds, it
would be convenient to convert this to conventional units like km/hr or m/s.

0 km 1 km 2 km 3 km 4 km 5 km 6 km
Compact 0s 100s 200s 300s 200s 200s 200s
Comfort 0s 100s 100s 150s 160s 200s 150s

5. During the 5 km test drive, time taken by Maruti Compact = 200s and time taken by Maruti
Comfort = (400 - 200)s = 200s. Since, time taken is same  average speeds are also same or
their ratio is 1:1. Hence answer option is c.

6. During the 3 km test drive, average speed of Maruti Compact = 3 x 1000/300 = 10 m/s and that
of Maruti Comfort = 3 x 1000/150 = 20 m/s.  required speed = (10 + 20) = 30 m/s.  Time
taken = 6 x 1000/30 = 200s. Hence answer option is b.

7. Let original speed = v kmph. The total time taken = 200s.  4/v + 2/(v/2) = 200/3600 hr or v =
144 kmph. Hence answer option is c.

8. Average speed of Maruti Compact over 5 km test drive = 5 x 1000/200 =25 m/s. Average speed
of Maruti Comfort over 6 km test drive = 6 x 1000/150 = 40 m/s. Average speed of Maruti
Comfort over 3 km test drive = 3 x 1000/150 =20 m/s.  The correct sequence is [q], [p], [r].
Hence answer option is d.

91 Pankaj Gandhi’s Academy/Data Interpretation

9. Average speed of Maruti Compact over 6 km test drive = 6 x 1000/200 =30 m/s. Average speed
of Maruti Comfort over 2 km test drive = 2 x 1000/100 =20 m/s.  The required % = (30 -
20)(100)/(20) = 50%. Hence answer option is b.

Solutions to Questions 10 to 12.

10. If we follow a particular route to go from P to U, the activities other than on the route will take
place simultaneously, e.g. when activity (P - R) takes place, activities (P - Q) and (P - S) will
occur simultaneously and will be completed before (P - R) as their duration is less. So, if we
consider the longest route from P to U, all other activities will be completed before the activities
on the route are completed. As (P - Q - R - T - U) is the longest route for two wheelers with a
total duration of 44 hours, as the time required for two wheelers and the truck are in the ratio
1:3 . So the time taken to overhaul a truck is 132 hours. Hence answer option is b.

11. The sum of the duration of all activities for a two wheeler is 110 hours. So, the sum of the
duration of all activities for a three wheeler is 220. The normal cost of overhauling a three
wheeler is Rs. 22000. As the time required for each activity is reduced by an hour, the sum of
the duration of all activities will be 211 hours and the normal cost associated with this duration
will be Rs. 21100. The extra cost involved, depending upon whether the activity starts from P, Q
or S, can be calculated as follows:

Activity Duration Normal Cost Extra Cost

P-Q 15 1500 150
P-R 19 1900 190
P-S 15 1500 150
Q-R 19 1900 228
Q-U 31 3100 372
S-T 35 3500 525
S-U 27 2700 405
The total extra cost is Rs. 2020. The total cost of overhauling a three wheeler is now Rs.
23120. So, the extra charge incurred in order to obtain the overhauled three wheeler earlier is
Rs. 1120. Hence answer option is c.

12. This question is independent of the previous one. There is a reduction of 3 hours for two of the
activities, and there is an increase of two hours for two other activities. Thus, the total time
reduces by 2 hours. Thus there will be a [2 x 100] = Rs. 200 decrease in revenue. Hence
answer option is a.

Solutions to Questions 13 to 15.

13. The time taken to produce 1 unit of A on M1 is 15 minutes, while the time required to produce 1
unit of B on M2 is 12 minutes. Thus, we can manufacture 36 units of A on M1 and 45 units of B
on M2. Therefore, the total number of units being manufactured is 81. Hence answer option is b

14. 35 units of B on M2 require 420 minutes and 25 units of C on M1 require 400 minutes. After
manufacturing these units, we still have 120 minutes available on M 2 and 140 minutes on M1.
We can manufacture 9 units of A on M1 and 6 units of A on M2. Therefore, the total number of
units of A is 15. Hence answer option is a.

15. To manufacture 12 units of B, we need to manufacture 36 units of A and 24 units of C. To

manufacture 36 units of A on M1 we require 540 minutes and to manufacture 24 units of C on
M2 we require 432 minutes. We are now left with 108 minutes on M 2. In 108 minutes, we can
manufacture 9 units of B on M2. We still need to manufacture 3 more units of B. Already, the
machines normal time of work has been utilised. Since we are looking for minimum extra
machine time, we will produce 1 unit of B in M1 (which requires a further of 14 minutes) and 2
units of B in M2 (which require a further of 24 minutes). So, the extra time will be 24 minutes
which is 2/5 th of an hour. Hence, option (c).

Pankaj Gandhi’s Academy/Data Interpretation 92

Solutions for Questions 16 to 22.

1200 Noon 190 km 220 km 1000 Am

A B
Express Train 6 p.m. Goods Train

As the distances have been given at hourly intervals, we see that the Express Train (ET)
started at 1200 Noon and the Goods Train (GT) started at 1000 AM.

16. By 6 p.m., when the two trains met each other, the GT and the ET had respectively travelled
220 km and 190 km. thus the total distance is 220 + 190 = 410 km. Hence answer option is (c).

17. The data does not mention a uniform rate of travel. Thus the train could cover the distance of
25 km (of the first hour) in just 20 minutes, say, and halt for the remaining 40 minutes. We just
know the total km covered at the end of an hour. So, though we know that from 1 p.m. to 2 p.m.
the GT had definitely stopped, we cannot be sure that the exact amount of time for which it
stopped is one hour only. It could also have stopped earlier for some time between 1200 and 1
p.m. and started anytime between 2 p.m. and 3 p.m., subsequently covering the distance of 20
km upto 3 p.m. Hence answer option is (d).

18. Average speed = 290 km / 9 hours  32.2 kmph. Hence answer option is (b).

19. From the first question above, we know that the trains crossed each other at 6 p.m. The
distance covered by the GT in its journey thereafter = (250 – 220) = 30 km in 1 hour.  Speed
= 30/1 = 30 kmph. Hence answer option is (b).

20. We have already obtained the distance between the stations as 410 km, of which 290 km have
been covered by the ET. Thus the remaining distance is 120 km. The average speed during the
final hour = (290-240)/1 = 50 kmph. So the time taken = (120/50) = 2.4 hours = 2 hours 24
minutes after 9 p.m. Thus the time will be 11:24 p.m. Hence answer option is (c).

21. The time taken upto the end of the day [10 a.m. to 12 midnight] = 14 hours, and the distance
covered = 410 km.  the average speed = 410/14  29 kmph. Hence answer option is (b).

22. The total time period = 3 hours, and the distance during this = 120-60 = 60 km. At an average
speed of 40 kmph, the travel time is 60/40 = 1½ hours, so the time of stoppage = 3 - 1½ = 1½
hours. Hence answer option is (c).

Solutions to Questions 23 to 30.

The values for the year 1971 only have been given with both, 1960 as well as 1970, as base years.
These values can be used for conversion from one base year to the other.

23. Intermediate industries:

„71(1960-base) = 160 „71 (1970-base) = 104
‟66 (1960-base) = 137 ‟66 (1970-base) = X
160 / 137 = 104 / X X = 104 x 137 / 160  90.
Hence answer option is c.

24. Basic index:

„71(1960-base) = 234 „71 (1970-base) = 105
‟81 (1960-base) = X ‟81 (1970-base) = 148
X = 234 x 148 / 105  330.
Hence answer option is b.

25. To calculate the required percentage increase, the consumer goods indices for ‟61 and ‟90
must be obtained on the same scale (either ‟69 or ‟70 base).
„71(1960-base)  160 „71 (1970-base)  103.5
‟61 (1960-base)  107 ‟61 (1970-base)  X

93 Pankaj Gandhi’s Academy/Data Interpretation

 X = 107 x 103.5 / 160  70 (-). So the consumer goods index for ‟61 (1970-base) = 70. The
consumer goods index for ‟90 (1970-base) = 163.  The percent increase = (163 – 70) x 100 /
70  135 (+)%.Hence answer option is c.

26. Since the value of the rupee depreciated by 15%, the value of the rupee in ‟81 was 85% of it‟s
value in ‟71. So the new index will be = Old index / (85/100). Thus the new index = 121 x 100 /
85  142(+).Hence answer option is b.

27. For the general index,

„71(1960-base)  186 „71 (1970-base)  104
‟61 (1960-base)  109 ‟61 (1970-base)  X
X = 109 x 104 / 186  61(+)
The increased value = (1+3.8) x 61.5  5(-) x 60  300 (-)  295. Hence answer option is b.

28. Radios and stereos are just a part of the total consumer durables. The percentage of the total
consumer goods that they constitute is not known. Hence the answer id (d) Indeterminable.
3 3
29. 1970 to 1985 has three 5-year periods. So the rupee will depreciate to (1-10/100) , i.e. (0.9) =
0.729 i.e. 72.9 paise. Capital goods in ‟85 at Current prices = 181.  Capital goods in ‟85 at
Constant prices = 181.1 x 0.729  132 (-).Hence answer option is a.

30. Basic index industries on 1960-base:

‟66 = 173 ‟71 = 234;  % increase = (234 – 173) x 100 / 173  61 / 173  35%.
‟71 = 105 ‟81 = 148;  % increase = (148 – 105) x 100 / 105  43 / 105  41%.
‟81 = 148 ‟85 = 189,  % increase = (189 – 148) x 100 / 148  41 / 148  28%.
‟85 = 189 ‟90 = 238,  % increase = (238 – 189) x 100 / 189  49 / 189  26%.
Thus the maximum % increase is = 41%, i.e. for 1981 period. The answer can also be obtained
by comparing the different values from the numerator / denominator form. Hence answer option
is b.

Exercise - 3(A)
Solutions to Questions 1 to 7.

1. The percentage increase in the sales of accessories = (35 – 30) x 100 / 30 = 100/6 = 16.66%.
Hence answer option is c.

2. The percentage of sales of apparels to total sales in 93 = 25 x 100 / 95  26.3%. The

percentage of sales of apparels to total sales in 1994 = 35 x 100 / 125 = 28%. So the difference
in percentages is an increase of approximately 1.7. Hence answer option is a.

3. In 1994, footwear = 45 crore. So 20% of 45 is 9. This 9 crore gets added to the export of 10
crore. So the total export for 1994 is 19 crore.  The percentage increase over 1993 = (19 –
15) x 100 / 15  26.6%. Hence answer option is d.

4. Percentage increase in the sales of footwear from 1993-94 = (45 – 25) x 100 / 25 = 80%. Since
1995 sales of footwear must touch Rs. 80 crore; percentage increase from 1994 to 1995 = (80
– 45) x 100 / 45  77.77%. So the average is (77.77 + 80) / 2  78.9 %. Hence answer is b.

5. Percentage increase in the sales of apparels from 1993 to 1994 = (35 – 25) x 100 / 25 = 40%. If
the same percentage increase has to be maintained, 95‟s sales = 1.4 x 35 = 49 crore. Hence
answer option is b.

6. The percentage increase in the sales of footwear from 1993 to 1996 = (50 – 25) x 100 / 25 =
100%. This 100% growth has been achieved in 3 years. So the simple annual growth rate will
be calculated by dividing this rate by the number of years (3) i.e. 100 / 3 = 33.33%. Hence
answer option is b.

Pankaj Gandhi’s Academy/Data Interpretation 94

7. 1994 total sales = Rs. 125 crore; 1996 total sales = Rs. 160 crore; Increase = 35 crore; 1993
total sales = Rs. 95 crore. So 95/35  2.7 times.Hence answer option is b.

Solutions to Questions 8 to 14.

8. The supply was approximately 105 billion kWh, while the requirement was 120 billion kWh. So
the approximate percentage is 105 x 100 / 120  700/8  87.5%. Hence answer option is c.

9. In 1981-82, supply = 115 billion kWh while in 1984-85 supply = 151 billion kWh. So the
percentage increase (151 – 115) x 100 / 115  31%. Hence answer option is b.

10. Mental calculations will show that the difference between the supply and requirement is the
least in 1982-83. So the percentage is also the least for that year because the denominator has
a much lesser percentage increase. Hence answer option is c.

11. Requirement of power in 1974-75 = 77.6 billion kWh while in 1984-85 it was 170 billion kWh. So
the percentage increase is  (170 – 78) x 100 / 78  120 (-)%.Hence answer option is a.

12. Since the increase in the requirement of power (numerator) is the least for the period 1979-81,
from the given options, with the increase in the denominator remaining very less, the growth
during that period (1979-81) must definitely be the least. Hence answer option is b.

13. By visual inspection it is very clear that the greatest addition to power supply was in the period
1983-85. Because slope of the line is steep. Hence answer option is d.

14. The increase in power requirement during 1975-80 was 118 – 83.5 = 35 billion kWh. The
increase in requirement during 1980-85 was 170 – 120 = 50 billion kWh. So the percentage
was 50 x 100 / 35  143%. Now we can go for answer option (d) as it is the most appropriate
answer.

Solutions to Questions 15 to 20.

15. For urban consumers, the per capita expenditure in 1973 and 1983 were, respectively, 64.5%
and 59.1%. Thus the percentage decrease = [(64.5-59.1)/64.5] x 100 = (5.4/64.5) x 100
 8.4(-)%.Hence answer option is a.

16. In 1973, in an urban household, 3.6% of the total expenses was spent on sugar. This is equal
to [(3.6/100) x 531] = Rs. 19.12. Hence answer option is c.

17. In 1978, in rural areas, the amount spent on clothing was 8.7% of 580  Rs. 50. Hence answer
option is c.

18. In 1983, the total expenses on food in rural areas were [(65.6/100) x 665]  [(2/3) x 665]  Rs.
444 (-), while in the urban areas, they were [(59.1/100) x 765]  [(3/5) x 765]  Rs. 459 (-). Thus
the difference is approximately (459-444)  Rs. 15. Hence answer option is a.

19. In 1973, in rural areas, Oils formed 3.5%, while vegetables formed 3.6%.  The required
percentage = [(3.5/3.6) x 100]  97%. Hence answer option is a.

20. In 1978, in the urban areas, the expenditure on non-food items was 40%, while that on food
items was 60%. So the required percentage = [(40/60) x 100] = 66 2/3%. Hence answer is b.

Exercise - 3(B)
Solutions to Questions 1 to 5.

1. The Tedha – Medha Trading Corporation can adopt one of the strategies P, Q or R. Along with
the payoffs, the Corporation will also have to incur a certain amount of expenses. So, we can
calculate the net payoff for the three strategies as follows.

95 Pankaj Gandhi’s Academy/Data Interpretation

 Strategy Payoff Expenses Net Payoff
P 15000 15000 0
Q 12000 6000 6000
R 15000 17500 -2500

From the table, we can see that Tedha – Medha Trading Corporation should adopt strategy Q
for the maximum payoff. Hence answer option is b.

2. We can calculate the net payoff for the different strategies that the Tedha – Medha Trading
Corporation can adopt as follows.

Strategy Payoff Expenses Net Payoff

P 21000 15000 6000
Q -4000 6000 -10000
R 24000 17500 6500

From the table, we can see that Tedha – Medha Trading Corporation‟s maximum payoff is
6500. Hence answer option is c.

3. From the given table, it can be seen that the Tedha – Medha Trading Corporation‟s minimum
payoff is (–)4000 if the Oolta – Seedha Trading Corporation adopts strategy Q. Hence answer
option is b.

4. We have already calculated that if the Oolta – Seedha Trading Corporation adopts strategy Q
when the Tedha – Medha Trading Corporation has adopted strategy Q, it will result in the least
payoff for the Tedha – Medha Trading Corporation. Hence answer option is c.

5. If both organisations adopt strategy R, The Tedha – Medha Trading Corporation gains 9000,
but has to incur an expense of 17500. So, the Tedha – Medha Trading Corporation‟s net loss is
8500. At the same time, the Oolta – Seedha Trading Corporation loses 9000 and also has to
incur an expense of 17500. So, the Oolta – Seedha Trading Corporation‟s net loss is 26500.
Hence answer option is b.

Solutions to Questions 6 to 10.

The graph is represented below in a tabular form;

0 km 10 km 20 km 30 km 40 km 50 km 60 km
Abhik 20 20 50 50 50 66.7 80
Vaibhav 40 40 40 40 30 50 50
Pravesh 60 60 60 70 58.4 40 40

Use the formulae s = ut + ½ at2 and v = u + at.

6. Using the formula v2 = u2 + 2as, we get a = (502 – 302)/(2 x 10) = 80 km/hr 2 .  the time
required, t = (v – u)/a = (50 – 30)/80 = 1/4 hr or 15 minutes. Hence answer option is a.

7. Zero acceleration simply means at constant speed. From the graph, it is clear that Abhik
travelled at constant speed from 0 to 10 km and from 20 to 40 km, Vaibhav from 0 to 30 km and
from 50 to 60 km and Pravesh from 0 to 20 km and from 50 to 60 km i.e. a total of (30 + 40 +
30) = 100 km. Total distance travelled by all three = (60 + 60 + 60) = 180 km.  required ratio =
100/180 = 5/9. Hence answer option is c.

8. Time taken by Vaibhav to cover 1st 16 km = distance/speed = 16/40 = 2/5 hr or 24 min. Now,
Pravesh took 20 min to cover 1st 20 km. In the next 4 min, he travelled, S = [60 x 1/15] + [½(70
– 60) x 1/15] = 4.33 km. We have, 20 + 4.33 = 24.33. So the nearest answer is 25 km. Hence
answer option is c.

Pankaj Gandhi’s Academy/Data Interpretation 96

9. Using the formula, v = u + at  a = (v – u)/t. Now, s = ut + ½at2, time taken by Abhik to cover
the distance between 10 km and 20 km = 2/7 hours. Time taken by Vaibhav to cover the
distance between 50 km and 60 km = 10/50 = 1/5 hr.  the required ratio = (2/7)/(1/5) = 10:7.
Hence answer option is a.

10. Constant acceleration does not mean zero acceleration. We just know the average speed over
a particular distance. Whether the speed over this distance changes or not, and if yes, then
how it changes, is not mentioned in the data. Hence answer option is d.

Solutions to Questions 11 to 18.

11. In 1967, the expenditure on food in rural areas was 77% of Rs. 85, which is Rs. 65. In 1983,
this expenditure became 66% of 175, which is  Rs. 115. Thus the increase is  Rs. 50. Hence
answer option is b.

12. In 1983, let per capita expenditure in rural areas be 100. Then per capita expenditure in urban
areas = 110. Thus the per capita expenditure on food in urban areas is 59% of 110 = 64.9
Whereas in rural areas, per capita expenditure on food = 65.5% of 100 = 65.5. So the
expenditure is more in rural than in the urban areas. Hence answer option is a.

13. In 1967, the amount spent on clothing in urban areas was 28.4% of 135 = Rs. 40(-), while in
1983, it was 33.3% of 340, which is  Rs. 113. Thus the increase per month is  Rs. 73(+). So
the annual increase  12 x 73(+)  Rs. 890. Hence answer option is d.

14. In 1967, the per capita expenditure on food was 66.66% of 135, which is = Rs. 90, while in
1983 it was 59.1% of 340, which is  Rs. 200(+) according to 1983 prices. So at constant (i.e.
1967) prices, it would have been [(58/100) x 200]  Rs. 116(+). So the percentage increase is
approximately 30%. Hence answer option is c.

15. In 1967, in the urban areas, the percentage of per capita expenditure on food and clothing
together was 95%, while the same in 1983 was 92.4%. So the percentage has decreased by
2.6. Hence answer option is b.

16. It has not been mentioned that office-wear and casual wear are the only types of clothing. We
could have other types like children‟s clothing, sports-wear etc. Thus, all the non-office-wear
need not be casual wear, and thus the answer is indeterminable. Hence answer option is d.

17. The monthly expenditure in 1989 would be 30000/12 = 2500. According to the 1983 pattern for
urban areas, Others would form 7.6% of 2500, while education would form 40% of this result,
i.e. [(40/100) x (7.6/100) x 2500] = Rs. 76. Hence answer option is b.

18. The total expenses for religious purposes have been asked, for which we will have to know the
population in urban areas. Since this is not known, the data is insufficient. Hence answer option
is d.

Solutions to Questions 19 to 26.

19. Power utilised by the agricultural sector  18% while power utilised by the industrial and
commercial sectors together  64%. So the percentage is 18 / 64  30 (-)% or 28 (+)%. Hence
answer is b.

20. Domestic sector accounted for 13(+)% of the total of 170 billion kW, which is approximately
equal to 22 billion kW. And answer has to be greater than this value. Hence answer is b.

21. In 1980-81, the industrial sector accounted for  59% of 120 billion kW while in 1984-85 it
accounted for 55 (+)% of 170 billion kW. So the increase is 93.5 – 71  22.5 billion kWh. Hence
answer is b.

97 Pankaj Gandhi’s Academy/Data Interpretation

22. In 80-81, domestic consumption was 11% of 120 billion kW while in 1984-85 it was 23 billion
kW (from solution of Q 20). So the percentage increase is (23 – 13.2) x 100 / 13.2  980/13.2 
70%. Hence answer is d.

23. Agricultural sector in 1970-71 was 10 (+)% of 61.2 billion kWh, while in 1984-85 it was 19 (-)%
of 170 billion kWh. So the increase in consumption is approximately 33 – 6.2  26.8 billion kWh.
So the increase is about 26.8/6.2  4.2 times. Hence answer is a.

24. Railway sector in 1970-71 was 3(+)% of 61.2 billion kWh while in 1984-85 it was  2.5% of 170
billion kWh. So the increase in consumption was 4.25 – 1.9  2.35 billion kWh which is 2350
million kWh. Hence answer is b.

25. Commercial sector in 1970-71 was 6% of 61.2 billion kWh, while in 1980-81 it was 6% of 120
billion kWh. So the percentage increase is {[(6% of 120) - (6% of 61.2)]/ (6% of 61.2)}x 100 
100%. Hence answer is d.

26. These units constitute 30% of the 4 (-)% contributed by others from a total of 170 billion kWh,
which is approximately 1.2 % of 170 = 2.04 billion kWh. Paying @ Rs. 1.25/kWh, the revenue
generated is (2 x 1.25) = Rs. 2.55 billion = Rs. 255 crore. Hence answer is c.

Solutions to Questions 27 to 30.

27. To find the maximum number of units, we will have to consider the minimum time required to
manufacture X, Y and Z. The lesser the time, the more will be the number of units
manufactured. As there is no condition on the type of units to be manufactured, we can
consider only those units which require the least time on the two machines. X requires
minimum time on M1 and Y requires minimum time on M2. We have a total of 720 minutes
available on each machine. As X requires 15 minutes on M 1, we can manufacture 48 units of X
on M1 with no idle time. As Y requires 18 minutes on M2, we can manufacture 40 units of Y on
M2 with no idle time. Therefore, the maximum total number of units that can be manufactured in
a day is 88. Hence answer is b.

28. 35 units of X on M1 require 525 minutes and 30 units of Z on M2 require 720 minutes. After
manufacturing these units, we still have 195 minutes available on M 1. Y requires 20 minutes on
M1. Therefore, the maximum number of units of Y that can be manufactured is 9. Hence answer
is a.

29. X is produced on M1 and (Y and Z) are produced on M2. So after every 42 minutes, a set of 1
unit each of X, Y and Z are ready. In same way we can produce 17 units each of X, Y and Z.
Total time required is 714 min.
Now 18th unit of X can be produced on M1 taking 9 extra minutes and 18th unit of Y and Z can
be produced on M2 using 36 extra minutes. After this M1 can be switched off and remaining 2
units each of X,Y and Z can be produced on M2 taking 140 extra minutes.
Total extra machine hour = 140 + 36 + 9 = 185 min. Hence answer is c.

30. We can manufacture 48 units of X on M1 and 30 units of Z on M2. Therefore, the maximum
number of units that can be manufactured is 78. Hence answer is b.

Exercise - 4(A)
Solutions to Questions 1 to 7.

1. Family X has savings of 13%, while Family Y has a savings of 15%. So the difference in the
percentage of savings is 2. Hence answer option is c.

2. Family X has savings of 13% of its income of Rs. 2400 which is Rs. 312. Family Y has savings
of 15% of its income of Rs. 1800 which is Rs. 270. So the difference in their savings is Rs. 42.
Hence answer option is b.

Pankaj Gandhi’s Academy/Data Interpretation 98

3. Family X spends 10% on repayment of loans in a month. So the annual amount will be 12 x
(10% of 2400) which is Rs. 2880. Hence answer option is d.

4. Family X‟s travel expenditure is 9% of 2400 while family Y‟s travel expenditure is 8% of 1800,
which are 216 and 144 respectively. So the percentage difference is = 72 x 100 / 144 = 50%
Hence answer option is b.

5. The combined expenditure on entertainment was 3% of 2400 and 8% of 1800 which totals up
to 72 + 144 = Rs. 216. Hence answer option is d.

6. Since clothing constitutes 12%, the angle will correspond to 12 x 3.6 = 43.2. Hence answer
option is c.

7. By checking out the options and looking at the bar graphs, Family Y has just slightly greater
values than Family X for food , misc and rest. For the spending to be double, Family Y‟s
percentage share must be more than double that of Family X, which is satisfied only by
“entertainment”. Refer to solution of Q5. Hence answer option is b.

Solutions to Questions 8 to 14.

8. In 1969, number of rural bank branches = 1832. In 1977, number of rural bank branches =
9532. So the increase is exactly 7700. Hence answer option is c.

9. It is evident looking at the line graph that rural branches have shown the maximum growth in
number. Hence answer option is a.

10. The increase of 504 from 1973 to 1974 is the least for rural branches from the given options.
Hence answer option is b.

11. Since the number of rural branches is the least in 1969, and it has had the maximum growth
after that, it forms the least proportion of the total in 1969. Hence answer option is a.

12. The difference in the number of branches in cities from 1974 to 1977 is 3796 – 2783 = 1013.
Hence answer option is a.

13. The growth in number of semi-urban branches from 1969 to 1973 was 4723 – 3322 = 1401.
The growth in total number of branches from 1969 to 1973 was 15362 – 8262  7100. So the
percentage increase is 1400 x 100 / 7100  20 (-)%.Hence answer option is a.

14. By visual inspection it is evident that the growth in number is least for cities. Hence answer
option is d.

Solutions to Questions 15 to 20.

Calculate the total population in 1981 as 343.93 + 321.36 = 665.29.

15. The approximate ratio of males to females is 345 : 325. So from a total population of 670, 325
are females. So the number of females in every 1000 of the population is obtained by 325 x
1000 / 670  325 x 3 / 2  480 (+).Hence answer option is d

16. Those aged 50 or above total to 14 + 11.5 + 8.5 + 8 + 9.5 + 8.75 + 12.75 + 12.5  85.5. So the
percentage of the total that they form is 85.5 x 100 / 665.3  1 / 8(-)  13%. Hence answer
option is d

17. Those born in British India would mean those born before 1947. Hence they would be aged 34+
in 1981. So the total of those below 34 years is approximately equal to the sum 91+ 87 + 45 +
40.5 + 34 + 30 + 29 + 28 + 26 + 25 + 21.5 + 21  478. So the remaining is approximately 665.3
– 478  185+ So the percentage will be 185 x 100 / 670  30 (-)%.Hence answer option is c.

99 Pankaj Gandhi’s Academy/Data Interpretation

18. Using data from the above solution, the population below the age of 30 will be  478 – 43 
435. The female population is approximately 87+40.5+30+28.5+25  211. So the approximate
percentage will be 211 x 100 / 435  50(-)%  48%. Hence answer option is c.

19. Its not possible to determine what age consititues teenagers. So the answer is “Insufficient
data”. Hence answer option is d.

20. From 665 million the population increased to 843 million. So the percentage increase was (843
– 665) x 100 / 665  25 (+)%.Hence answer option is c.

Exercise - 4(B)
Solutions to Questions 1 to 4.

1. The sales per rupee of share capital for the years 1991, 1992, 1993 and 1994 can be
calculated as 3270/98 = 33.36, 2620/98 = 26.73, 4725/205 = 23.04 and 6435/310 = 20.75
respectively. Therefore, the sales per rupee of share capital was the highest in 1991. Hence
answer option is a.

2. As each year‟s Retained Earnings are added to the Reserves, the Reserves at the end of 1990,
1991, 1992, 1993 and 1994 are 80, 220, 290, 535 and 935 respectively. The percent addition to
reserves over the previous years reserves for the years 1991, 1992, 1993 and 1994 can be
calculated as 140/80, 70/220, 245/290 and 400/535 respectively. Comparing the values
involved in the calculations, we see that except in 1991, all other calculations have Numerator <
Denominator. Therefore, 1991 showed the highest percentage addition to reserves over the
previous year‟s reserves. Hence answer option is a.

3. The tax is calculated as PBT – (dividend + RE). The amount of tax for the years 1991, 1992,
1993 and 1994 are 145, 70, 220 and 280 respectively. So, the tax per rupee of profit before tax
can be calculated as 145/315 = 0.46, 70/170 = 0.411, 220/525 = 0.419 and 280/790 = 0.354
respectively. Therefore, the tax per rupee of profit before tax was the lowest in 1994. Hence
answer option is d.

4. The profit before tax per rupee of sales for the years 1991, 1992, 1993 and 1994 can be
calculated as 315/3270 = 0.096, 170/2620 = 0.064, 525/4725 = 0.111 and 790/6435 = 0.122
respectively. Therefore, the profit before tax per rupee of sales was the highest in 1994. Hence
answer option is d.

Solutions to Questions 5 to 7.

5. To find the maximum number of units, we have to consider the minimum time required to
manufacture X, Y and Z. The lesser the time, the more will be the number of units
manufactured. As there is no condition on the type of units to be manufactured, we can
consider only those units which require the least time on the two machines. Units of Y require
the least time on both machines. So, manufacturing only units of Y will result in the maximum
number of units being manufactured in a day. A unit of Y requires 12 minutes and 9 minutes on
the machines M1 and M2 respectively. So, we can manufacture 600/12=50 units of Y on M1 and
600/9 = 66 units of Y on M2. Therefore, the maximum number of units being manufactured in a
day is 116. Hence answer option is c.

6. As we are interested in manufacturing units of X and Z only, we will have to consider the
minimum time it takes to manufacture these units. Units of X require minimum time on M 1 while
units of Z require the same time on M1 as well as M2. So, we will have to manufacture units of X
on M1 and units of Z on M2. As a unit of X requires 14 minutes on M1, we can manufacture
600/14 =42 units. As a unit of Z requires 15 minutes on M 2, we can manufacture 600/15 =40
units. Therefore, the maximum number of units that can be manufactured is 82. Hence answer
option is b.

Pankaj Gandhi’s Academy/Data Interpretation 100

7. To manufacture one unit each of X, Y and Z, we require 41 minutes on M 1 and 42 minutes on
M2. So, in 10x60 mins, on each machine, we can prepare 14 units of each X, Y and Z.
So, efficiency of each of the machines is equal. The fractional part is to be discarded, hence
1:1. Answer option is (a)

Solutions to Questions 8 to 10.

8. The minimum duration of the project is the duration of the longest route from A to F. As (A - C -
E - F) is the longest route, the duration of the project is 5 + 7 + 8 =20 days. Hence answer
option is a.

9. The sum of the duration of all activities is 35 days. So, the regular cost of the project is Rs.
1750. Now, the duration of activities (C - E) and (E - F) has been reduced to 6 and 7 days
respectively. The sum of the duration of all activities is now 33 days and the regular cost
associated with this duration is Rs. 1650. The additional cost is (150 x 6) + (150 x 7) = Rs.
1950. The total cost of the project is now Rs. 3600. So, the cost of the project has gone up by
Rs. 1850. Therefore, the percent change in the cost to the Corporation is 1850/1750 = 105%.
Hence answer option is b.

10. Since the total duration has reduced by 7 days, the sum of the duration of all activities is [35-7]
= 28 days. So, the regular cost of the project is Rs. 1400. The additional cost is (150 x 3) + (150
x 3) = Rs. 900. So, the total cost of the project is now Rs. 2300 and the additional cost forms
(900/2300) x 100 = 39% of the total cost of the project. Hence answer option is d.

Solutions to Questions 11 to15.

The table gives the timings at various stages of the race. Please note that after every 60 km,
they stop for 10 minutes for refuelling.

11. Actual running time taken by R1 to cover the 1st 150 km = (11.30 - 9.00) - 20 min(for two
stoppages) = 2 hrs 10 min = 130 min. Actual running time for R3 to cover the last 90 km =
(14.59 - 13.40) - 10 min(for one stoppage) = 1 hr 9 min = 69 min.  the required time difference
= (130 - 69) = 61 min. Hence answer option is b.

12. We know that distance remaining constant, speed is inversely proportional to time. Time taken
by R1 to cover between 210 and 300 km = 90-10 = 80 minutes. Time taken by R2 to cover
distance between 210 and 300 km = 95 – 10 = 85 minutes. the required ratio = 85:80 = 17:16.
Hence answer option is b.

13. R1 covered the distance between 300 and 360 km in (14.45 - 14.00) = 45 min. Running time =
45 – 10 = 35 min. R2 covered the distance between 240 and 330 km in (14.30 - 13.00) = 90
min. Running time = 90 – 20 = 70 min.required ratio = 35/70 = 1:2. Hence answer option is a.

14. Again distance remaining constant, speed is inversely proportional to time. Time taken by R1,
R2 and R3 respectively to cover the last 60 km are 25, 30 and 28 min.  required ratio is
1/25:1/30:1/28 or 84:70:75. Hence answer option is c.

15. As the overall running time remains the same, the loser will still be R3. Hence answer option is
c.

Solutions to Questions 16 to 22.

16. The difference will be (38 – 7)% of 8.5 million = 2.635 million = 26.35 lakhs. Hence answer
option is b.

17. The difference in the percentage shares of the spendings is 27 – 9 = 18% of 64 crore.
0.18 x 64 = Rs. 11.52 crore Hence answer option is a.

18. Canara bank has an 8% share = 0.08 x 8.5 = 6.8 lakh. Hence answer option is c.

101 Pankaj Gandhi’s Academy/Data Interpretation

19. Since Mahacard accounts for 30%, the remaining cards account for 70% of the others, which
accounts for 25% of the Rs. 64 crore spendings. So 0.7 x 0.25 x 64 = 11.2 crore. Hence answer
option is b.

20. Bank of Baroda accounts for 12% of the total spendings of Rs. 64 crore, which is 0.12 x 64.
Card efficacy = 30% i.e. for every Rs. 100 spent Rs. 30 is spent by using the card. So the total
purchase = 0.12 x 64 x 100 / 30 = Rs. 25.6 crores. Hence answer option is b.

21. Let every American Express cardholder spend Rs. 2. Every second American Express
cardholder also owns a Citibank card and spends equally with both cards. So from every Rs. 2
spent; Re.1 is spent by each card.
So for every two cardholders a total of Rs. 4 spent means that Rs. 3 is spent by using the
American Express card and Re.1 is spent by using the Citibank card. So the spendings are in
the ratio 3:1 from a total of 4.
The American Express cardholders accounted for 10% of the total spendings of Rs. 64 crore
i.e. Rs. 6.4 crore. But this is the 3 parts spent using the American Express card. The remaining
1 part is spent using the Citibank card. So the total of 4 parts corresponds to an actual of 6.4 x
4 / 3 = 8.533 crore. Hence answer option is a.

22. Family members will spend Rs.4 if Rs.10 is spent by the original cardholder. So the family
members effectively account for 4 out of a total of 14 parts. So the money spent by the family
members is (9% of Rs. 64 crore) x 4 / 14  1.65 crore. Hence answer option is c.

Solutions to Questions 23 to 30.

23. The achieved widening was 852 + 323 km, while the target was 1076 + 604. So the percentage
of work achieved was 1178 x 100 / 1680  70%. Hence answer option is b.

24. The length of work on bridges means in km, but that isn‟t the mentioned unit. So the answer
Indeterminable. Hence answer option is d.

25. Strengthening of weak 2 lanes was done for 3717 km, while widening of the 2 lane roads is not
known. (Widening of 2 lane roads is different from widening to 2 lanes, which is given). Hence
data insufficient. Hence answer option is d.

26. The difference 326 – 303 = 23 means that there were 23 railway overbridges. The rest 303
were minor bridges. So the ratio of overbridges to the other minor bridges is 23 : 303  3 : 40.
Hence answer option is d.

27. Since some of the targets are in km while the others are in “number of bridges”, we cannot
convert all of them into any single unit, and so the answer Indeterminable. Hence answer
option is d.

28. The answer is indeterminable because how much part of the Bombay Pune highway has been
widened to 4 lanes is not known and hence cost can‟t be calculated. Hence answer option is d.

29. Length of bypasses to be repaired / Number of major Bridges to be repaired x 100

No. of major bridges repaired / Length of bypasses repaired
= {(14 / 3) x (11 / 54)} x 100 = (154 / 162) x 100  95%. Hence answer option is a.

30. Let the total investment be Rs. 100. State government‟s share = Rs.15; International loans =
Rs.50. But 1$ = Rs. 36.So the international loans (in $) = 50/36, hence the ratio becomes 15 x
36 / 50 = 10.8. Hence answer option is b.

Pankaj Gandhi’s Academy/Data Interpretation 102

 Exercise - 5(A)
Solutions to Questions 1 to 6.

1. Since the urban population accounts for 25.7% of the total population and the urban population
is 217 million, the total population will be 217 x 100 / 25.7  845 million. Hence answer option is
b.

2. The total population is 845 million and the urban population is 217. So the remaining will be the
rural population; 845 – 217  628 million. So the answer is 628-217 = 411. Hence answer
option is c.

3. Though we know the number of cities, we do not know the population of each city nor do we
know the distribution of population. So the answer is „indeterminable‟. Hence answer option is
d.

4. The nearest answer to the ratio of 14:17:23 is 1: 1.2 : 1.6. Hence answer option is c.

5. 22% of 4689 towns and cities are in U.P and Maharashtra  22 x 47 = 1034. The number of
cities in these two states is 27 + 42 = 69. So 69 x 100 / 1034  6.7%. Hence answer option is b.

6. The total number of cities in those 7 states having more than 20 cities are 194. So 194 / 7 27.7
Hence answer option is b.

Solutions to Questions 7 to 13.

Please keep in mind that the given graph is a Band Diagram. Since data labels have been provided in
the graph, we have directly used the actual values (i.e. after taking the difference) in the solutions.
The population is in millions and weights of goods are in kgs.(1 tonne = 1000 kg).

7. The total consumption is given by the product of the per capita consumption and the
population. In 1980-81, for sugar we get 7.2 x 685 = 4932 million kg = 4.932 million tonnes.
Hence answer option is c.

8. From the given list of items, all items except electricity are “concrete” items. Since the item with
the largest percentage increase has been asked, compare the 1984-85 figures of a commodity
with its 1950-51 figures. For sugar, we see that the 1984-85 value is about 3.5 times its 1950-
51 value, which is the highest percentage increase. Hence answer option is c.

9. In 1970-71, the edible oil consumption = 550 x 3.5 = 1925, while in 1980-81 it is 685 x 3.8 =
2603. So the increase = 2603-1925 = 678 million kg = 0.678 million tonnes. Hence answer
option is c.

10. In 1970-71, the cloth consumption was 550 x 15.6 = 8580, while in 1980-81 it was 685 x 14.7 =
10070. So the increase = 10070-8580 = 1490 million metres. Hence answer option is b.

11. In 1960-61, the total population was 0.8 x 550 = 440.  The total consumption in kWh = 440 x
(27.1-23.7) = 440 x 3.4 = 1496 million kWh. Hence answer option is a.

12. The consumption of cloth in 1960-61 was 440 x 15 = 6600 while in 1970-71 it was 550 x 15.6 =
8580. So the percentage increase = [(8580-6600)/6600] x 100 = 1980/66 = 30%. Hence answer
option is d.

13. The Vanaspati consumption in 1950-51 was 360 x 0.5 = 180, while in 1980-81 it was 685 x 1.2
= 822. So the increase = 822-180 = 642 million kg = 0.642 million tonnes. Hence answer option
is b.

103 Pankaj Gandhi’s Academy/Data Interpretation

Solutions to Questions 14 to 20.

14. Since the urban population forms 25.7% of the total population of 84.5 crore, the urban
population is 84.5 x 25.7 / 100  21.7 crore = 217 million. Hence answer option is c.

15. Since 65% of the urban population live in the given cities, 35% do not live there. So 35% of the
total urban population of 217 million = 0.35 x 217  76 million. Hence answer option is d.

16. The urban population in the 298 mentioned centres is 65% of the total urban population of 217
million. So this is  217 x 0.65  141 million. The 2 cities have a population greater than 100
lakh but less than 110 lakh each. So taking an average of 105 lakh per city; the total for the 2
cities is 210 lakh = 21 million. So on an average, 21 x 100 / 141  15 (-)%. The answer is 14%
– 16%. Hence answer option is c.

17. The population of these cities/centres is not known. So obviously we cannot determine the
answer. Hence answer option is d.

18. The number of cities between the 10 and 20 lakh population is 14. The number of cities having
a population of 2 lakh is 298 – 166 = 132. So 14 x 100 / 132  10.5%. Hence answer option is
a.

19. The answer is indeterminable because the distribution of the rural and urban population for the
year 1981 is not known. Hence answer option is d.

20. The number of cities in the even number category is 93(above 2 lakhs, 4 lakhs, 6 lakhs, 8
lakhs, 10lakhs, 20 lakhs, 100 lakhs and so on). The remaining 205 are in the odd number
category. So the ratio of odd number to even number cities is 205 : 93. This is slightly greater
than 2. So the nearest ratio is 11 : 5. Hence answer option is c.

Exercise - 5(B)
Solutions to Questions 1 to 5.

The information in the question gives the relationship between distance and time for the three trains.

1. By visual inspection, we find that the coefficients of t as well as t2 for Indrayani Express are the
greatest.  For a constant distance, the Indrayani Express will take the least time. Hence
answer option is b.

2. Distance travelled by Deccan Exp. in the 3rd hour = (distance travelled by it in three hours) -
(distance travelled by it in two hours) = (30 x 3 + 12 x 3 2) - (30 x 2 + 12 x 22) = 90 km. Distance
travelled by Singhgarh Express during 1st hour = (19 x 1 + 12) = 20 km.  the required ratio =
90:20 = 9:2. Hence answer option is b.

3. Indrayani Express follows the equation S km = 36t + 16t2 or 36t + 16t2 = 70 which gives t = 5/4
hr or 1hr 15 min. So, it will reach Karjat by (9.40 + 1.15) = 10.55 a.m.
Alteratively: Try eliminating the answer options. For example option (a), 10:40 – 9:40 = 1Hrs.
If we substitute t = 1 in the expression, 36t + 16t2 = 70; it is not satisfying the condition, similarly
can be checked for the remaining answer options. Hence answer option is b.

4. In this question, Indrayani Express follows the equation S km = 17t + 9t 2 or 17t + 9t2 = 70 which
gives t = 2 hours. So, it will reach Karjat at (9.40 + 2) = 11.40 a.m. Hence answer option is c.

5. Distance travelled by Deccan Express during 1 st hour = (30 x 1 + 12 x 12) = 42 km.  time
taken by Singhgarh Express to cover 42 km is calculated by solving the equation 42 = 19t + t 2
which gives t = 2 hours. Hence answer option is c.

Pankaj Gandhi’s Academy/Data Interpretation 104

Solutions to Questions 6 to 13.

6. The total assets in 1980-81 were (2364 + 11110 + 226 + 56) = 13756, and in 1985-86, they
were (1564 + 21328 + 246 + 12) = 23150.  The combined total = 13756 + 23150 = Rs. 36906
crore. Hence answer option is b.

7. Let the value of the other bullion be y.  The gold coins are valued at 1.25y.  In 1980-81, we
have, 1.25y + y = 226.  y = 226/2.25  Rs. 100(+) crore. Hence answer option is a.

8. In 1950-51, the ratio was 478/687  480/690  16/23  1/1.50 (-). So the closest answer is
1:1.44.( Here in this question we can also go by eliminating answer options. We need to find
ratio 478 : 687. It‟s obvious that ratio is smaller than 1, we can eliminate answer options a and
c, and need to check for b and d only. ). Hence answer option is b.
9. In 1970-71, the total assets were (273 + 3714 + 183 + 52) = 4222, of which Rupee Securities
constituted 3714. If 4222  360o, then 3714  [(3714/4222) x 360]o  [(3700/4200) x 360]o
 37 X 60 /7 = 5.3 X 60 = 318o. So the best answer is 317o. i.e., option (b).

10. The area of any such circle (A) will be proportional to the square of its radius (r). We thus get,
[A1/A2] = [r1/r2] . From the given data, for 1950-51, A1 = 1259 and r1 = 1 cm.  For 1985-86,
2

when A2 = 23150, (r2)2 = (1)2[23150/1259]  23200/1260  580/32  18. Thus, r2 = (18)1/2, i.e. r2
lies between 4 cm and 5 cm. Hence answer option is c.

11. In 1950-51, the percentage was [(40/1259) x 100]  3.17%. By 1985-86, it came down to
[(246/23150) x 100]  1.06%.  The percentage reduction = [(3.17-1.06)/3.17] x 100  (2/3) x
100  67%. Hence answer option is b.

12. Since the assets are equal to the liabilities, 92% of the liabilities = 92% of the assets (in 1970-
71) = [(92/100) x 4222] = 3884. No option is equal or even close to this value, so the answer is
(d)“None of these”.

13. In 1980-81, the Foreign Securities were worth Rs. 2364 crore. Since 1 rupee = 17 USD, the
worth of Foreign Securities in USD terms = 2364/17 USD 139 crore = USD 1.39 billion. Hence
answer option is a.

Solutions to Questions 14 to 21.

14. In the question, the phrase „ medical purposes ‟ is nowhere defined. So getting an answer is not
possible. Hence answer option is d.

15. Since fragrance cannot be directly associated to body odour, the answer is Indeterminable.
Hence answer option is d.

16. Cleansing action was cited as a purpose by around 17% of the 851 people; which is around
851 x 0.17  145. So the answer is (d) none of these.

17. Since word of mouth is similar to recommendation, the percentage for trial is 19 and the
percentage that used it because of word of mouth is 14. So the required percentage is (14/19) x
100  73.7 %. So the answer is (d)“None of these”.

18. We cannot determine how many people were foreign returned. It is possible that even those
who are not in the category “ uesd it abroad” are foreign returned. So answer is (d).

19. We definitely cannot determine how many people are first time users of the liquid soap. Uesrs
under the category “ New to market “ and “ word of mouth “ are definitely first time users. But
nothing can be said about those under “ advertising ” caategory. Hence answer option is d.

20. We cannot determine how many people were stingy, miserly and not ready to spend. Hence
answer option is d.

105 Pankaj Gandhi’s Academy/Data Interpretation

21. Since smaller size and sachets are packaging attributes, and these form (8+15)% of the total of
550, the answer is 0.23 x 550  126. Hence answer option is a

Solutions to Questions 22 to 26.

The graph gives data for time and distance for the three contestants. We know that (speed x time) =
distance. Also, remember the formula s = ut + ½ at 2 where a is acceleration, t is time and u is initial
velocity. The graph is represented in a tabular form below :

0-10 10-20 20-30 30-40 40-50 50-60 60-70 70-80 80-90 90-100
A 15 15 12 12 10 8 10 8 8 8
B 12 12 12 12 12 10 8 6.6 6.6 6.8
C 8 8 8 12 18 12 12 12 10 10

22. Time taken by A to complete the race = 110 min. Time taken by B to complete the race = 97
min. Time taken by C to complete the race = 110 min. Earlier, time taken by B to cover 1 st 30
km = 36 minutes. Now, time taken by B to cover 1 st 30 km = 30/40 hr = 45 minutes.  B will
require (45 - 36) = 9 minutes more to finish the race. So, B will complete the race in (97 + 9) =
106 minutes.  B will still win the race. Hence answer option is b.

23. We know that s = ut + ½at2. Acceleration = 2 x (100)(60) 2/(110)2 km/hr2 = 60 km/hr2.  final
velocity = u + at = 0 + (60)(110)/(60) = 110 kmph. Hence answer option is b.

24. B completed the race in 97 minutes whereas A & C completed in 110 minutes.  B can give
both a start of (110 - 97) = 13 minutes for the race to end in dead heat. Hence answer option is
d.

25. Average velocity = Total distance covered / Total time taken = (100)(60)/(110) = 55 kmph.
Hence answer option is c.

26. Speed of A between 20 km and 40 km = distance/time = 20/24 = 5/6 km/min. Speed of B in

between 40 to 70 km = distance/time = 30/30 = 1km/min. Speed of C in between 70 to 90 km =
distance/time = 20/22 = 5/5.5 km/min.  the correct order is p, r, q. Hence answer option is d.

Solutions to Questions 27 to 30.

Analysing the given data, we can obtain the values (in Rs. lakh) for the sales, expenses and profits of
the four farms as follows.
AG BF CG DA
Sales 10 12 12 6
Expenses 9 9.6 10 4
Profit 1 2.4 2 2

The questions 27 – 30 can be answered with the help of the above table.

27. Hence answer option is d.

28. Hence answer option is b.

29. Hence answer option is c.

30. Hence answer option is a.

Pankaj Gandhi’s Academy/Data Interpretation 106

 Exercise - 6(A)
Solutions to Questions 1 to 7.

1. 1991-92 production of 1210‟s = 20576 1996-97 production of 1210‟s = 58640. Increase =

58640 – 20576 / 20576  38000 / 20500  1.8 (+) times. Hence answer option is c.

2. Cars in 1991-92 = 8411 Cars in 1996-97 = 12200. Percentage increase = (12200 – 8411) x 100
/ 8411  3800 x 100 / 8400  45%. Hence answer option is c.

3. Total production increase from 1991-92 to 1993-94 = 108422 – 50825  57600. Total
production increase from 1993-94 to 1996-97 = 146220 – 108422  37800. Percentage = 378 x
100 / 576  200 / 3  66%. Hence answer option is c.

4. Increase in production of LCV‟s from 1991-97 = 44230 – 6462  37800. Increase in production
of 1210‟s = 58640 – 20576  38000. So the approximate ratio is 1:1. Hence answer option is b.

5. The total production of 1313‟s, 2416‟s and MCV‟s in 1992-93  9800 + 3300 + 4100  17200.
The total production of 1313‟s, 2416‟s and MCV‟s in 1996-97  11250 + 6200 + 8350  25800.
Total increase in production = 25800 – 17200  8600. Hence answer option is a.

6. The increase in production of Estates from 1991 to 1997 = 2670 – 1719  950. The increase in
production of cars from 1991 to 1997 = 12200 – 8411  3800. Percentage = 950 x 100 / 3800 
100 / 4 = 25%. Hence answer option is a.

7. The increase in total production from 1993-94 to 1994-95 = 129589 – 108422  21150. The
increase in total production from 1991-92 to 1992-93 = 82018 – 50852  31150. Percentage of
increases = 21150 x 100 / 31150  2/3  66%. Hence answer option is c.

Solutions to Questions 8 to 15.

8. An overall deficit (when total expenditure was greater than revenue) was only in the year 1985-
86. Hence answer option is a.

9. Surplus is the difference between revenue and total expenditure, when revenue is greater than
expenditure. From the given options the difference is greatest for the year 1993-94. Hence
answer option is b.

10. In 1991-92, depreciation = 76.85 while the revenue was 1070.6. So the percentage that
depreciation forms is 76.85 x 100 / 1070.6  7.5(-)%.Hence answer option is b.

11. 1990-91 revenue = 910; 1995-96 revenue = 1880. So the percentage increase in the revenue =
(1880 – 910) x 100 / 910  105(+)%.Hence answer option is c.

12. By checking out the options, we can get the answer as 1994-95 to 1995-96, which is just
greater than the previous option. Hence answer option is d.

13. The surplus in 86-87  100; the surplus in 95-96  122. So the approximate percentage
increase is 22%. Hence answer option is d.

14. If we ignore depreciation, surplus is the difference between revenue and cash expenditure
which, for 1992-93 is, 1290 – 1030  260 crore. Hence answer option is b.

15. The total expenditure of 1993-94 was 1286 crore which was approximately equal to the
revenue of the previous year - 1290 crore.
Net profits for yrs 1999, 2000 and 2001 are Rs 280.3 cr, Rs 506.12 cr and Rs 856.42 cr
Hence answer option is c.

107 Pankaj Gandhi’s Academy/Data Interpretation

Solutions to Questions 16 to 20.

16. Net profit in the year 2000 = 1170.56 – ( 32.5 + 542.4 + 89.54) = 506.12 crores.
Similarly for the year 2001, net profit = 856.42 crores.
% increase in profits = [ (856.42 – 506.12 ) /506.12 ] X 100 = 69%. Hence answer option is d.

17. Attrition Rate is nothing but the ratio of number of employees leaving the company in the given
year to total no of employees at the start of the year .
No. of employees leaving the company = ( 5624 X 30)/100 = 1686
No. of new employees joining in 2001 = (6478 – 5624) + 1686 = 2540
Engineers = 2540/2 = 1270. Hence answer option is a.

18. No. of shares = Share Capital = 41.3 = 8.26 crores

face value 5

Net profit per share = Net profit in 2001(from Q.No 16) / No. of shares
= 856.42/8.26= Rs.103.68 crores. Hence answer option is a.

19. 389 + ( 280.3 – 9.08) + ( 506.12 – 16.52) = Rs. 1150.52 cr Hence answer option is c.

20. Profit % is always on calculated on total expenses. Total expenses are not known, hence can‟t
be determined. Hence answer option is d.

Exercise - 6(B)
Solutions to Questions 1 to 3.

1. The cost of one bottle can be calculated as 5(3 2 + 32 + 52 + 42 + 32 + 32 + 42) = Rs. 465. As the
project involves a total of 800 bottles, the cost of the project is [800 x 465] = Rs. 372000. Hence
answer option is b.

2. The percent profit is 45/465  10%.Hence answer option is b.

3. After the duration of activities is reduced, the average cost of a bottle is 5(2 2 + 32 + 22 + 32 + 22
+ 42 + 22) = Rs. 250. The extra cost involved can be calculated as follows:

Activity New duration Extra cost

U-V 2 120
X-Z 2 120
Y-Z 2 120
V-X 3 405
W-X 2 120
Total 885

The total extra cost is Rs. 885 and the total cost per bottle is Rs. 1135. So, the firm sells each
bottle at Rs. 625 less than its cost, thus making a loss of 625/1135 = 55%. Thus the profit will
be (-)55%. Hence answer option is d.

Solutions to Questions 4 to 6.

Suppose Radhika had a total property of X. As each son gets an equal share in the property, each
gets 0.25X. The first son gets 20% of the total property and Rs. 60000 in cash. This should together
comprise 25% of the total property. Equating these values, 0.2X + 60000 = 0.25X, we can obtain
Radhika‟s total property as X = Rs. 12 lakh. Using this value of the total property, we can refer to the
given data and obtain the distribution of property among the four sons as follows.

Pankaj Gandhi’s Academy/Data Interpretation 108

 Son 1 Son 2 Son 3 Son 4
Gold Number 60 --- 24 24
Coins Value 240000 --- 96000 96000
Silver Number --- 180 24 24
Bars Value --- 180000 24000 24000
Cash 60000 120000 180000 180000
Total 300000 300000 300000 300000

4. Radhika‟s total property is worth Rs. 12 lakh. Hence answer option is c.

5. Radhika had a total of 108 Gold Coins worth Rs. 432000 and a total of 228 Silver Bars worth
Rs. 228000. Therefore, the ratio of the amount of property that she held in Gold Coins and
Silver Bars is 36:19. Hence answer option is d.

6. Radhika‟s sons held “Wealth” equal to Rs. 240000, Rs. 180000, Rs. 120000 and Rs. 120000.
Therefore, the ratio of the “Wealth” held by them is 4:3:2:2. Hence answer option is d.
Alternate method:
Also looking at the answer options, last two sons will have equal wealth, which is there in
answer option d only.

Solutions to Questions 7 to 14.

7. By adding up the cost for the given years it is evident that ‟87 + ‟89 together have the maximum
(6399) for the given years. Hence answer option is d.
8. Since they account for a combined 70%, we have to check out for the years where 70% of that
year‟s contribution is greater than the previous years contribution. Only two years,‟86 and ‟93
satisfy the required condition. Hence answer option is c.

9. Since Andhra Pradesh‟s 40% for a given year must be less than West Bengal‟s 30% for the
next year, the two successive year‟s costs must be in the ratio 3:4 or lesser. Only 2 years, 85 –
86 and 92 – 93 satisfy the given condition. Hence answer option is c.

10. Of the remaining 30%, Karnataka and Kerala account for 45% and 20%. So the difference is
25% of 30% which is 7.5% of the total. The lowest total is 1702. So 7.5% of 1702 is  127(+).
So the answer is (d) none of these.

11. Since 32% gets equally divided among the 2 states, each of them get 16% of the total of Rs.
3950 crore  Rs. 632 crore. Hence answer option is b.

12. Of the total 22 parts (by adding the ratio terms), Tamil Nadu gets the second lowest, i.e. 2
parts, i.e. [(2/22) x 100]% of the total of 2752 which is [(1/11) x 2752]  250%. So the answer is
(d) none of these.

13. The total for the 90‟s is  Rs. 12750 crore. So the average is  Rs. 2125 crore. Hence answer
option is a.

14. 18%of a population of 84 crore  15(+) crore. So of a total of Rs. 2504 crore, the average
distribution will be 2504 / 15  Rs. 165. So the answer must be (d) none of these.

Solutions to Questions 15 to 23.

15. Soaps contributed 16% of 84 lakh in 96 and 22% of 112 lakh in 97. So the approximate
contribution is 13 (+) + 25 (-)  Rs. 38 lakh. Hence answer option is c.

16. Additional contribution is the same as the difference in the actual amounts. Since the
percentage contribution of hair oil remained the same during both the years, the difference in
contribution is 12% of (112 – 84) = 0.12 x 28  Rs. 3.40 lakh. Hence answer option is b.

109 Pankaj Gandhi’s Academy/Data Interpretation

17. In 1996, detergents contributed 23% while hair oil and face powder contributed 12+9 = 21%. So
the difference in contribution was 2% of 84 which is Rs. 1.68 lakh. Hence answer option is a.

18. The answer Indeterminable because we do not know whether the price of toothpaste has
remained the same, over the two-year period, or not. Hence answer option is d.

19. Since the total profits for the two years are in the ratio 84 : 112, which can be reduced to 3 : 4,
the actual contribution of an item will be the greater for the next year only if the percentages are
in the ratio 4 : 3 or greater. So only two items do not fit the criteria, toothpaste and shampoos.
So the answer is 4 items. Hence answer option is b.

20. Since the total profits are in the ratio 3 : 4 (from the above solution), the percentage increase in
profits is 4 – 3 x 100 / 3 = 33.33% (1/3), the increase in the profits of soaps has been 0.16 x 3
to 0.21 x 4, which in percentage terms is (0.84 - 0.48) x 100 / 0.48 = 75% = ¾ . So the ratio is
(3/4) / (1/3) = 2.25 : 1. Hence answer option is a.

21. Hair oil had a 12% share of 112, while face powder had a 11% share of the same profit. Since
the advertising expenditure on hair oil was 4% while that on face powder was 5%, the total
expenditure on advertising becomes 112 x (0.04 x 0.12 + 0.05 x 0.11) = 112 x (0.0048 +
0.0055)  112 x 0.0103  Rs. 1.15 lakh. Hence answer option is a.

22. The profit on detergents was 30% of 112, which is Rs. 33.6 lakh. This profit forms 18% of the
cost price. So the sales (selling price) to the profits ratio will be 118:18. So the actual selling
price will be 33.6 x 118 / 18  220 (+).Hence answer option is d.

23. The tax in 96 was 42% of 84  35 (+) The tax in 97 was 48% of 112  54 (-) So the difference in
the tax paid  Rs. 18 (+) lakh. Hence answer option is c.

Solutions to Questions 24 to 30.

24. Adding up the approximate quantity of wheat and dividing it by the total quantity of wheat rice
in the given period will give us  5500 / 6100  90%. Hence answer option is c.

25. The difference (in „000 tonnes) from ‟82 to ‟85 is 1290 + 1815 + 360  3400 „000 tonnes = 3.4
million tonnes. Hence answer option is b.

26. The foodgrains quantity imported in 84-85 was 640, while in 71-72 it was 2055. So the
approximate percentage is 640 x 100 / 2055  30 (+)%. Hence answer option is b.

27. In ‟83 – ‟84, 2142000 tonnes of wheat @ Rs. 2400 / tonne will mean an expenditure of Rs. 514
crore. So the remaining is 587-514 = 73 crore which was spent on importing 328000 tonnes of
rice. So the price of rice = 730000 / 328  Rs. 2225 / tonne. Hence answer option is b.

28. Adding up the required corresponding values we will get an approximate value of 1434. Hence
answer option is c.

29. Rice = 516 and wheat = 2591. The required percentage = [(516/2591) x 100]  20 (-)%.Hence
answer option is a.

30. In ‟80 – ‟81 296000 tonnes of wheat @ 2000 / tonne is Rs. 59.2 crore. So the remaining Rs.
20.8 crore was spent on 18000 tonnes of rice. Hence answer option is b.

Pankaj Gandhi’s Academy/Data Interpretation 110

 Exercise - 7(A)
Solutions to Questions 1 to 7.

1. Checking the options for Sales, the sales for ‟74 is almost double that of the previous year and
no other option comes this close. So the answer is ‟74. Hence answer option is a.

2. The addition of the net profit for the first five years will come to (-1.8) lakh. Hence answer option
is c.

3. Expenses = Sales – Net Profit. The difference of sales and net profit is maximum for the year
‟78. Hence answer option is c.

4. From the given options, only in 1975-76 you have the Sales and Net Profit showing the same
trend; of either an increase or a decrease. Hence answer option is b.

5. The combined Net Profit for 79 and 80 was 29.9  30 lakh. This net profit is obtained after
having paid 55% tax on the gross profit. So the remaining will be 45% of the gross and this
corresponds to 30 lakh. So 100%, i.e. the combined gross profit must correspond to 30 x 100 /
45 = 66.66  67 lakh. Hence answer option is a.

6. Since 1981 had an 18% increase in the Net Profit over 1980, the Net Profit for 1981 was 1.18 x
15.6  18.4 and this is 20% of the Sales of 81. So the sales of 81 was 18.4 x 100/20  Rs. 92
lakh. Hence answer option is d.

7. The advertisement expenditure was 2.5% of Sales = 2.5 x 64 / 100 = 1.6. So the percentage of
Net Profit = 1.6 X 100 / 15.6  10(+)%.Hence answer option is b.

Solutions to Questions 8 to 15.

8. Consumer goods in 1960-61 has a 60 share which corresponds to 60 / 3.6 = 16.67% share of
the total of Rs. 1795 crore. So the actual amount is approximately 1800 x 16.67%  1800 / 6 
300( -). Hence answer option is c.

9. The central angle made by raw materials to the total in 1970-71 was 192 which is 192/3.6 
53.3%, while in 1980-81 it was 280.8 which was a 78% share. So the difference in their
percentage shares was an increase of approximately 25. Thus the answer is (d) .

10. Consumer goods in 60-61 corresponds to 60 which is  16.67% of the total of Rs. 1795 crore
which is approximately Rs. 300 crore. In 1970-71 raw materials corresponds to 192 which is
approximately 53.3% of Rs. 1634 crore and this is approximately Rs. 870 (+) crore. So the
difference is of around Rs. 570 crore. Hence answer option is b.

11. Capital goods in 1980-81 corresponded to 54 which is 15% of a total of Rs. 12550 crore which
is approximately Rs. 1880 crore. This value exceeded the total imports of 1960-61 (value =
1795) by around 85 crore. Hence answer option is a.

12. Consumer goods in 1980-81 have a 10.8 share which is 3% of the total of Rs. 12549 and this
corresponds to an actual of Rs. 376. In 1960-61, consumer goods had a Rs. 300(-) crore share
(from the 1st solution) and so there was an increase of approximately Rs. 75 crore. Hence
answer option is d.

13. Since the price of nickel need not be the same as that of other raw materials, the answer
Indeterminable. Hence answer option is d.

14. Capital goods in 1970-71 accounted for 90 which is 25% of 1634 crore, which is approximately
408 crore. 14% of this amount was utilised to purchase 210 textile units. So the price of each
unit will be (408 x 14) / (100 x 210)  Rs. 0.27 crore = Rs. 2.7 million. Hence answer option is c.

15. Since the balance of trade was –1800 crore, the exports figure was 12549 – 1800  Rs. 10750
crore. 30% of this amount is approximately Rs. 3225 crore. Hence answer option is a.

111 Pankaj Gandhi’s Academy/Data Interpretation

Solutions to Questions 16 to 20.

16. Total revenue = 52 X 41.23 X 0.05 X 200 lacs = 214.9 Cr Hence answer option is d.

17. In yr 1990 total circulation was 35.58 lacs which increased to 89.03 lacs in 2001
Let say growth rate was R%
(89 – 35.58)= (35.58 x R x 11)/100
R = 13.6% Hence answer option is a.

18. Total sales = 365X2(8.85+33.19+1.54+4.21) + 52X5X41.23 = Rs 456 cr. Hence answer option
is c.

19. Total market in 2001 = 8.85 X100/73 = 12.12 lacs

Market size in 2002 would be , 12.12X1.15 = 13.94 lacs
Economic times sales in 2002 would be , 13.94X60/100 = 8.45 lacs Hence answer option is c.

20. Just by looking at the sales we can say Economic times has shown the highest growth of
around 250% while Sunday Times and Times Of India both have shown growth of around
200%. Note that Navbharat times has reduced in the circulation. Hence answer option is a.

Exercise - 7(B)
Solutions to Questions 1 to 8.

Note :Areas given are in „000 hectares while Production values are in „000 tonnes. One tonne
=1000kg

1. For India, maize production = 4711 and area = 11035. The yield per hectare = 4711 x
1000/11035  428 kg per hectare. For Karnataka, the production = 374 and area = 437, so
yield per hectare = 374 x 1000/437  855 kg per hectare. So the difference = 855-428  425 kg
per hectare. Hence answer option is b.

2. In Karnataka, the production = 538, area = 324.  The yield per hectare = 538 x 1000/324 
1660 kg. For India, the production = 7103 and area = 7815, so yield per hectare = 7103 x
1000/7815  910 kg.  The required percentage = [(1660/910) x 100]  182%. Hence answer
option is b.

3. We have to find the maximum value for [(Karnataka production) / (India Production)] x 100.
Check only for the answer choices given, and simplify the calculations by considering only the
most significant digits and approximating. The answer is Ragi, which forms [(410/2904) x 100] 
14%. This is the only value significantly greater than 10%. Hence answer option is b.

4. By visual inspection, see that the length of the upper portion (i.e. production) is greater than 1.5
times the length of the corresponding lower portion. Only sugarcane satisfies this condition.
Hence answer option is b.

5. Convert areas to million hectares by dividing the given values by 1000. Irrigated area = 11
hectares, so the unirrigated area = 16.273-11 = 5.273 million hectares. Production in the
irrigated area = 90 lakh tonnes, so that in the unirrigated area = [118.18-90] = 28.18 lakh
tonnes.  The yield per hectare in the unirrigated area = 28.18 lakh tonnes / 5.273 million
hectares = [2818 x 1000 x 1000 kg] / [5.273 x 1000 x 1000 hectares]  535 kg per hectare.
Hence answer option is b.

6. The index of production is directly proportional to the actual production. For India, the
production index went up from 100 to 155, while for Karnataka, it went up from 100 to 132.
Note that here, the multiplying constant which connects the index value to the actual production
is (logically) different for India and for Karnataka.
In 1970-71, production of Ragi in Karnataka = 410 x 100/132  310, while the production in
India = 2900 x 100/155 = 1870.  The required percentage = [(310/1870) x 100]  16.6%.
Hence answer option is b.

Pankaj Gandhi’s Academy/Data Interpretation 112

7. Though 10% of the land became unavailable, it is not known which crop was grown in that
region, or whether there was an even distribution of this 10% land over all the crops. So the
answer for a specific crop like sugarcane can‟t be determined. Hence answer option is d.

8. Rs. 400 per quintal (i.e. 100 kg) = Rs. 4000 per tonne.  Revenue = 4000 x 1651 x 1000 = Rs.
6604 x 106. Expenditure = Rs. 30,000 x 167 = Rs. 5010 x 10 6.  Profit = (6604-5010) x 106 =
Rs. 1594 x 106 = Rs. 159.4 crore. Hence answer option is b.

Solutions to Questions 9 to 15.

9. IOC‟s market share = 55.2% HPCL and BPCL‟s combined share = 20.3 + 19.5 = 39.8% So the
percentage that the latter forms of the former is 39.8 x 100 / 55.2  4000 / 55  72(+)%.Hence
answer option is b.

10. Since HPCL has a 19.5% share, which is IOC‟s northern region‟s share from the 55.2
nationally, the share of the other regions is 55.2 – 19.5 = 35.7% of 12000  4300(-) crore.
Hence answer option is a.

11. The answer is indeterminable because diesel and petrol may not be the only petroleum
products sold. Hence answer option is d.

12. Since BPCL‟s revenue is equally divided among the four regions, each region contributes 20.3 /
4 = 5.075 % of the total. Of this 60% was because of petrol. So the remaining 40% was
contributed by the other petroleum products. So the actual revenue was 40% of 5.075% of
12000  2.03% of 12000  Rs. 240(+) crore. Hence answer option is c.

13. We cannot determine the quantities sold because only the revenue breakup is known. The
rates of the items are not known. Hence answer option is d.

14. IOC‟s grease forms 5% of its revenue which is the same percentage that Others forms of the
total. So grease‟s percentage of Others will be the same percentage that Others forms of the
total which is 55.2%. Hence answer option is d.

15. IOC‟s diesel‟s revenue forms 30% of the 55.2% share that IOC has; i.e. 30 x 55.2 / 100 16.5%
of the total. BPCL‟s revenue is 20.3% of the total. So the percentage of IOC‟s diesel to that of
BPCL‟s total is 16.5 x 100 / 20.3  80 (+)%.Hence answer option is c.

Solutions to Questions 16 to 23.

16. 1990 exports = 2866; 1995 exports = 4666.  Annual percentage increase = (4666 – 2866) x
100 / [2866 x 5] (because it is in 5 years) = 1800 x 100 / (2866 x 5)  12.5%. Hence answer
option is b.

17. Carpets + Leather in 1990 = 713 + 204 = 917; Carpets + Leather in 1995 = 1065 + 270 = 1335.
 Percentage increase = (1335 – 917) x 100 / 917  420 x 100 / 920  45%. Hence answer
option is c.

18. Textiles to total in 90 = 1434/2866  50%. Textiles to total in 95 = 2585 / 4666  55%. So the
difference in percentages is an increase of 5. Hence answer option is a.

19. India, with an export of 4666 million ECU, had a 1.43% share of the EU market. So the total
size (100%) of the EU market in 1995 was 4666 x 100 / 1.43  325000 million ECU = 325 billion
ECU. Hence answer option is c.

20. With an export worth 713 million ECU, leather had a 11% share of the EU market in 90. So the
size of the market was 713 x 100 / 11  6500 million ECU = 6.5 billion ECU. Hence answer
option is b.

113 Pankaj Gandhi’s Academy/Data Interpretation

21. India‟s 90 exports = 2866 million ECU and percentage share was 0.98%. So the EU market
size in 90 was 2866 x 100 / 0.98  292 billion ECU. From the 4th question, we know that the
1995 EU market size was 325 billion ECU. So the percentage increase = (325 – 292) x 100 /
292 = 3300 / 292  3400/300  11(+)%.Hence answer option is a.

22. Jute is the obvious answer because its share went up more than twice. Hence answer option is
a.

23. The EU market size was 325 billion ECU in 1995. A 10% increase will mean that the market
size now is 325 + 32.5 = 357.5 billion ECU. India‟s 3% share of this market is 0.03 x 357 
10.75 billion ECU. Hence answer option is a.

Solutions to Questions 24 to 30.

24. The number of holdings of size 500 to 3000 hectares in 79-80 = 25936 + 6722 = 32658, while
the number of holdings of size 500 to 3000 hectares in 84-85 = 29201 + 7497 = 36698. So the
increase = 36698 – 32658 = 4040. The increase in total number of holdings = 81569 – 71011 =
10558.  The required percentage = 4040 x 100 / 10558  40 (+)% but < 45%  38.3%. Hence
answer option is b.

25. Since total area remains the same (160 million hectares), percent change in share is 13.4 % –
9.3 % = 4.1 % of 160 million hectares = 4.1 x 160 / 100 = 6.56 million hectares. Hence answer
option is a.

26. Average size of holdings (in hectares) = Area / number of holdings. The number of holdings of
size less than 2000 hectares in 84 - 85 = 30050 + 29201 = 59251. So the Area = (4.3 + 19.2)%
= 23.5% of 160 million hectares = (25 – 1.5)% of 160 = 40 – 2.4 = 37.6 million hectares. So the
average size of holdings = 37.6 x 10 6 / 59251  38000 / 60  635 hectares. Hence answer
option is c.

27. Number of holdings of size 3000 to10000 hectares in 89-90 = (8 + 7)% = 15% of 90000 =
13500. Area of these holdings = 25400 + 34050 = 59450 thousand hectares. Average holdings
= 59450 / 13500 < 4.5  4.4 thousand hectares. Hence answer option is a.

28. The actual area of size more than 2000 hectares in 1979-80 = 9.7+ 3.7 = 13.4% = 13.4 x 160 /
100 = 21.44 million hectares. Area in 89 – 90 = 13200 + 4000 = 17.2 million hectares. Change
= 21.44 – 17.2 = 4.24 million hectares = 4240 thousand hectares. Hence answer option is b.

29. The number of holdings of size less than 2000 hectares in 79-80 = 23696 + 25936 = 49632,
while number of holdings of size less than 2000 hectares in 89-90 =(40 + 33)% of total = 73%
of 90000 = 65700. So the increase = 65700 – 49632 / 49632  66 – 50 / 50 = 16 / 50  0.32.
Hence answer option is b.

30. The number of holdings of size 3000 to 5000 hectares in 1979-80 = 6643, while the number of
holdings of size 3000 to 5000 hectares in 1984-85 = 7000.  The % change = (7000 – 6643) /
6643  5.4 %. The number of holdings of sizes 3000 to 5000 hectares in 1989-90 = 8% of
90000 = 7200.  The % change = 7200 – 6643 / 6643  8.4%. So the percent of % changes =
5.4 x 100 / 8.4  64%. Hence answer option is c.

Exercise - 8(A)
Solutions to Questions 1 to 7.

1. Airfreight‟s turnover was 17% of the Rs. 70 crore domestic sector and 41% of the Rs. 40 crore
international sector. So the total was 0.17 x 70 + 0.41 x 40 = 11.9 + 16.4 = Rs. 28.3 crore.
Hence answer option is c.

2. Blue Dart‟s domestic turnover = 36 x 70 / 100  25.2 crore. The international turnover of the
Others = 25% of 40 = 10 crore. So the difference in their shares is 15.2 crore. Hence answer
option is a.

Pankaj Gandhi’s Academy/Data Interpretation 114

3. 35% of Blue Darts international cargo revenue = 0.35 x 0.21 x 40  2.94 crore. Blue Dart‟s total
revenue is 0.21 x 40 + 0.36 x 70 = 8.4 + 25.2 = Rs. 33.6 crore. So the percentage = 2.94 x 100
/ 33.6  9(-)%. So the answer is (d) “None of these”.

4. Skypak‟s share of Others for the domestic sector will be 8 x 100 / 35  23%. Hence answer
option is c.

5. Since the share of Others will remain the same, it will 35% of 70 = 24.5 Cr. The remaining 80 –
24.5 = 55.5 Cr. Since combined share of Elbee and Airfreight is same as that of Blue Dart, its
share = 55.5/2 = 27.75 Cr. Hence answer option is b.

6. The answer is indeterminable because we do not know the size of the international cargo
market.Hence answer option is d.

7. Since 30% has been taken over by DHL, and the remaining 70% gets distributed equally,
everybody gets a 70/4 = 17.5% share of the Rs. 150 crore market. So Elbee‟s share will be
0.175 x 150 = Rs. 26.25 crore. Hence answer option is c.

Solutions to Questions 8 to 15:

8. By adding up the approximate values of the exports for the given months the answer is
obtained as approximately 2255. Hence answer option is c.

9. By checking out the options it becomes clear that the answer is August + November. Hence
answer option is d.

10. The difference between the imports and exports for the three months are +12.5, -5 and +10. So
the total difference is Rs. 17.5 million. Hence answer option is c.

11. Adding up imports and exports separately and then taking the difference gives a difference of
+60. So the imports exceeded the exports by Rs. 60 million. Hence answer option is b.

12. Counting it gives us the answer as 8. Hence answer option is a.

13. It is evident that the month is June and imports bill is 380 million. Hence answer option is c.

14. By looking at the graph it is evident that imports were maximum between July and September.
Hence answer option is c.

15. At the start of the graph it is seen that in the first quarter (i.e. the first three months), the sum of
imports is equal to the sum of exports. So the difference will be the least for the first quarter.
Hence answer option is a.

Solutions to Questions 16 to 20.

16. In 2001, number of

16-25 females = 1.2X0.35X200 = 84 million
25 above males = 1.3X0.30X200 = 78 million
others = 1.15X0.35X200 = 80.5million
total consumers in 2001 = 242.5 million. Hence answer option is c.

17. Kingfisher sales = 0.30 X 0.45 X 2672 = Rs 360 cr

Bacardi sales = 0.24 X 0.17 X 2672 = Rs 110 cr
Diff in the sales = Rs 250 cr. Hence answer option is d.

18. In the question, its not mentioned as to what part of the growth is contrbuted by people below
16 years age, hence can‟t be determined. Hence answer option is d.

19. Sales in 2005 = 1.2[2672(1.1)4] = Rs 4694 cr. Hence answer option is c.

115 Pankaj Gandhi’s Academy/Data Interpretation

20. Total Sales of brandy, gin and vodka to that of beer = (10 + 5 + 13)x100/45 = 62%. Hence
answer option is b.

Exercise - 8(B)
Solutions to Questions 1 to 5.

1. Eedhar – Ka – Maal – Oodhar Enterprises can adopt one of the strategies X, Y or Z. Along with
the payoffs, it will also have to incur a certain amount of expenses. So, we can calculate the net
payoff for the three strategies as follows.

Strategy Payoff Expenses Net Payoff

X -4000 7000 -11000
Y 10000 9000 1000
Z 16000 6500 9500
From the table, we can see that Eedhar – Ka – Maal – Oodhar Enterprises should adopt
strategy Z for the maximum payoff. Hence answer option is c.

2. We can calculate the net payoff for the different strategies that the Oodhar – Ka – Maal –
Eedhar Enterprises can adopt as follows.

Strategy Payoff Expenses Net Payoff

X 16000 7000 9000
Y -6000 9000 -15000
Z 15000 6500 8500
From the table, we can see that Eedhar – Ka – Maal – Oodhar Enterprises‟ maximum payoff is
9000. Hence answer option is b.

3. From the given table, it can be seen that if Oodhar – Ka – Maal – Eedhar Enterprises adopts
strategy Z, then Eedhar – Ka – Maal – Oodhar Enterprises should adopt strategy Z to minimise
Oodhar – Ka – Maal – Eedhar Enterprises‟ gain. Hence answer option is c.

4. We have already calculated that if Eedhar – Ka – Maal – Oodhar Enterprises adopts strategy Y,
then Oodhar – Ka – Maal – Eedhar Enterprises should adopt strategy X for maximum gains.
Hence answer option is a.

5. If Oodhar – Ka – Maal – Eedhar Enterprises adopts strategy Z, we can calculate Eedhar – Ka –

Maal – Oodhar Enterprises‟ losses for the different strategies that it can adopt as follows.

Strategy Payoff Expenses Net Payoff

X -16000 8500 -24500
Y -15000 6000 -21000
Z 4000 5500 -1500

From the table it can be seen that Eedhar – Ka – Maal – Oodhar Enterprises should adopt
strategy Z in order to minimise its losses. Hence answer option is c.

Solutions to Questions 6 to 14.

6. Wipro‟s share of the total is approximately 7000 x 100 / 85000  8.2%. Hence answer option is
c.

7. Modi and Lexmark combined have a total of 3740. Canon and Apple have a combined total of
3992. The difference in their shares is approximately 250 of a total of 84401 which will be a
very small percentage, certainly much less than 0.5%. So the answer is (d) none of these.

8. The percentage share ratio will be the same as the ratio of the number of pieces. So the ratio of
Epson to Others is 7223 : 2067 which is approximately 3.5(+) : 1. Hence answer option is c.

Pankaj Gandhi’s Academy/Data Interpretation 116

9. TVS‟ share 30% of Others‟ 2067  620. Apple sells 277. So the difference is = 343. Hence
answer option is b.

10. The answer Indeterminable because we do not know if their UP plants are only at Lucknow.
Hence answer option is d.

11. Canon and Epson at present have a combined production of 3715 + 7223  10940. A 20%
increase will mean 10940 x 6 / 5  13125. Hence answer option is a.

12. If the present 60404 pieces corresponds to an index of 252, an index of 100 will correspond to
60404 x 100 / 252  60000 x 0.4  24000 (-). This production figure corresponds to a 75%
share of the total. So the total was approximately 24000 x 100 / 75  24000 x 4 / 3  32000 (-
).Hence answer option is b.
13. Percentage of HP‟s share of the total printers = 60404 x 100/84401  71(+)%. Remaining
printers  84400 – 60400  24000. Epson‟s share of this is 7223 x 100 / 24000  30%. So the
approximate difference is 41(+).Hence answer option is b.

14. Ratio of Tetronix to Lexmark share remains same but we don‟t have any information as to what
are their actual shares in 1990, hence answer is (d) can‟t be determined.

Solutions to Questions 15 to 22.

15. Normal length of life is 100% engine life, which is achieved at a speed of 40 mph. Hence
answer option is c.

16. Let normal life be X, at 20 mph, engine life is 200% so it becomes while at 40 mph it is 100%,
which is X. 2X is one time more than X. Hence answer option is a.

17. Half the normal life, i.e. 50% engine life corresponds to a speed of 60 mph. Hence answer
option is d.

18. At 60 mph, engine life is 50%, which corresponds to 30000 miles. So, normal life = 60000miles.
At 30 mph, the engine life is 140%. So corresponding distance will be 60000 x 140 / 100 =
84000 miles. Hence answer option is c.

19. The normal life of the engine was 60000 miles. At 60 mph, the engine life is 50%. So the life of
the engine is 30000 miles, of which 20000 miles have already been covered; i.e. 2/3 rd of the
engine life is over and so only 1/3 rd remains. 1/3rd of the normal life, i.e. 60000 miles is 20000
miles. Now at 30 mph, the engine life is 140%. So 140% of the remaining 20000 miles is 28000
miles. So the total engine life will be 20000 + 28000 = 48000 miles. Hence answer option is c.

20. At 50 mph, the engine life is 70% of the mentioned 60000 miles. So the engine life now is
42000 miles. It is rebored after 75% of 42000 i.e. 31500 miles. So the remaining life before the
reboring was 42000 – 31500 = 10500 miles. After reboring the engine life is increased by 50%
(of 42000). So reboring increases the engine life by 21000. This gets added to the remaining
10500 miles. Effectively 31500 miles is the remaining engine life. Hence answer option is c.

21. At 50 mph, engine life is 70% and at 30 mph it is 140%. So from 70 to 140, the engine life has
improved by [(140 – 70) x 100 / 70] = 100%. Hence answer option is b.

22. At 30 mph, the engine life is 140%. Since every third mile covered increases the life by 10%,
the increase is 14% distributed over every three miles. So every mile has a 14 / 3 = 4.66%
increase. So the effective increase is 140 + 4.66 = 144.66%. Hence answer option is a.

Solutions to Questions 23 to 30.

23. The other two Indian cities are Bangalore and New Delhi. Their average of their costs are
(16452 + 35496) / 2  25975. The cost of office property at Mumbai is 60876. So Mumbai is
60876 / 25975  2.4 times the average of the other two cities. Hence answer option is d.

117 Pankaj Gandhi’s Academy/Data Interpretation

24. The price of unit property at Hong Kong is 47664, while that Chicago is 14328. So the
percentage difference is (47664 – 14328) x 100 / 14328  33330 / 143  7/3  233%. Hence
answer option is d.

25. The price of property in Paris is Rs. 24372 for each sq. m. So the price to be paid for 150 sq. m.
is 24372 x 150  Rs. 3655800 But 1 US$ = Rs. 36.
So in terms of thousand $= 3655800 /( 36 x 1000)s  101.5. So the answer must be (d) none of
these.

26. The price of office space at Tokyo was Rs. 44532 per sq. m. So the price of 8000 sq. m. of
office space, in thousand rupees, must be 44532 x 8. But a discount will mean that the price to
be paid is only 90% of the original price. So the actual amount was 44532 x 8 x 0.9  Rs.
320500 (+).Hence answer option is a.

27. Since the amounts were the same, the ratio of office areas will be inversely proportional to the
ratio of their rates. Since the rates of the Singapore and Amsterdam office are in the ratio
31968 : 10296, which is slightly greater than 3; the area of the Amsterdam office to that of the
Singapore office, will be in the ratio 3 (+) : 1. So the area of the Amsterdam office must be
slightly greater than 3 times 2000. So the nearest answer must be 6200. Hence answer option
is b.

28. US$ 1.5 million will mean Rs. 54 million. So the area will be 54 million / 27540  less than 2000
sq. m. So the answer is none of these. Hence answer option is d.

29. US$ 234570 = Rs. 234570 x 36, so area ofrequired office 234570 x 36 / 35496  240 sq. m.
Hence answer option is b.

30. 4000 sq. m. of office space at Frankfurt will be rated at cost Rs. 17172 x 4000. Since 4DM = 3
US$, 1 DM = 36 x ¾ = Rs. 27. So the cost of the office space (in thousand Deutsche Mark) =
17172 x 4000 / 27 x 1000  2500 (++). So the nearest correct option is 2544. Hence answer
option is d.

Exercise - 9(A)
Solutions to Questions 1 to 8.

1. Over the given period, AIR‟s revenue has increased from 6.26 to 81 crore. So the increase is =
81 / 6.26  13 (-).Hence answer option is c

2. AIR‟s commercial earnings in 1985-86 = 20.19. AIR‟s commercial earnings in 1995-96 = 81. So
the annual percentage increase = (81 – 20.19) x 100 / (20.19 x 10)  60/2  30%. Hence
answer option is c

3. Percentage increase in Vividh Bharati‟s revenue from 1985-86 to 95-96 = (37.3 - 17.55) x 100 /
17.55  110 (+)%. Percentage increase in Vividh Bharati‟s revenue from 1975-76 to 1985-86 =
(17.55 – 6.26) x 100 / 6.26  180 (+)%.  Change in percentage  -70. Answer option should
not have percentage sign. Hence answer option is c

4. The answer Indeterminable because we cannot assume 1985-86 as the year of inception.
Hence answer option is d

5. The remaining earnings of 1995-96 were 81 – 10 = Rs. 71 crore. The earnings of 1980-81 were
Rs. 12.5 crore. The percentage is 70 x 100 / 12.5 = 70 x 8 = 560 %. So the answer is none of
these. Hence answer option is d

6. The percentage increase in the revenue of Vividh Bharati from 1990-91 to 1995-96 is (37.3 -
25.25) x 100 / 25.25 = 12.05 x 100 / 25.25  48 (-)%. The percentage increase in the revenue
of the Primary Channel from 90-91 to 95-96 is (43.7 – 14.05) x 100 / 14.05 = 29.65 x 100 /
14.05  210 (+)%. So the percentage = 48 x 100 / 210  25 (-)%.Hence answer option is a
Pankaj Gandhi’s Academy/Data Interpretation 118
7. In 1990-91, the total commercial earnings was 39.3 crore. In 96-97 it was expected to touch
100 crore. So the annual percentage increase in the given period was (100 – 39.3) x 100 /
(39.3 x 6)  6000 / (40 x 6)  25 (+)%.Hence answer option is b

8. The other private broadcasters earn 40% of 18% of that earned by private broadcasters
including Times FM. So the actual amount will be 0.4 x 0.18 x 81  6 (-) crore. Hence answer
option is c

Solutions to Questions 9 to 14.

9. Deficit with Japan = 0.15X52045 – 0.05X42687 = $5.6 bn. Hence answer option is a.

10. Software exports to USA = 0.7X0.30X42.687 = $ 8.96 bn Hence answer option is a.

11. Import from Europe = 0.15X52.04 = $7.8 bn

Exports to Europe = 0.13X42.687 = $5.5 bn
Required percentage = 5.5X100/7.8 = 70.51%. Hence answer option is c.

12. Nothing is mentioned between Rouble – Dollar convertibility it can‟t be determined. Hence
answer option is d.

13. Imports from USA in 2001-02 = 1.2X0.35X52.04 = $ 21.85 bn

Exports to USA in 2000-01 = 30X42.687 = $ 12.8 bn
So exports should increase by 9.05X100/12.8 = 70.70% Hence answer option is c.

14. Imports from Germany = 0.35 x 0.15 x 52045 = 2732. Exports to Europe = 0.13 x 42687 =
5549. Since, exports to Germany = imports from Germany, required % = 2732 x 100/5549 =
49%. Hence answer option is c.

Solutions to Questions 15 to 20.

15. Industry size = 100/80[24X9(6.2+5.5+3.1)] = Rs 399.6 cr Hence answer option is b.

16. Total sales of ThumsUp = 2.1+3.2+2.3+2.8+4.3+6.2 = 20.9 mn cases

Total sales of Pepsi = 1.5+1.8+2.9+4.2+5+5.3 = 20.7 mn cases
So answer is ThumsUP. Hence answer option is b.

17. ThumsUp in 96-97 = 1.1X100/2.1 = 52%

Pepsi 98-99 = 1.2X100/3 = 40%
ThumsUp 99-00 = 1.5X100/2.8 = 53.57%
Coke in 97-98 = 0.6X100/1.5 = 40% Hence answer option is c.

18. Excise collection in 2000-01 = 60(6.2+5.5+3.1) = Rs 88.2 cr. Hence answer option is b.

19. Sales of ThumsUp in 2001-02 = 1.4X6.2 = 8.68 mn cases

Sales of Pepsi in 2001-02 = 1.25X5.5 = 6.875 mn cases
So, difference between the sales of these 2 brands = 1.8 mn cases. Hence answer option is a.

20. Ratio of ThumpsUp, Pepsi and CocaCola sale in 1995-96 is 2.1 : 1.5 : 1
Sales of CocaCola in 01-02 = 1.1*3.1 = 3.41 million cases
So the total sales of cola in 2001 – 02 will be 3.41*(2.1 + 1.5 + 1)  15.69 million cases. Hence
answer option is a.

119 Pankaj Gandhi’s Academy/Data Interpretation

 Exercise - 9(B)
Solutions to Questions 1 to 6.

1. From the first graph, we can see that the value for the demand for Rice in a particular year is
almost the same as the supply of Rice the next year. So, we can say that there is a time lag of
one year between the demand for and the supply of Rice.
From the second graph, we can see that the value for the demand for Wheat in a particular
year is almost the same as the supply of Wheat after two years. So, we can say that there is a
lag of two years between the demand for and the supply of Wheat. Hence answer option is b.

2. The total demand for Wheat from 1990 to 1996 is 1244 tons and the total supply of Rice from
1990 to 1996 is 933 tons. Therefore, the total demand for Wheat forms 1244/933 = 125% of the
total supply of Rice. Hence answer option is c.

3. The values for the total demand for and supply of Rice from 1990 to 1996 are 1125 tons and
993 tons respectively. The values for the total demand for and supply of Wheat from 1990 to
1996 are 1244 tons and 991 tons respectively. The difference between the total demand for
and supply of Rice for the given period is 132 and that between the total demand for and supply
of Wheat is 253. Therefore, the difference between the demand for and the supply of Wheat
forms [253/132] x 100 = 190% of the difference between the demand for and the supply of
Rice. Hence answer option is d.

4. If we add the values for the demand for and the supply of Rice and Wheat for the given years,
we can obtain the values as follows.

1990 1991 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996

Demand 213 263 310 342 381 410 450
Supply 168 198 230 288 328 367 405

From the table, we can see that the value for the demand of 213 in 1990 is more or less equal
to the value of the supply somewhere midway between 1991 and 1992 similarly for the rest. So,
we can say that there is a lag of one and half year between the demand for and the supply of
Rice and Wheat together. Hence answer option is b.

5. If the lags for Rice and Wheat are interchanged, the demand for Rice will be met after two
years and the demand for Wheat will be met after one year. The corresponding values for the
demand and supply from 1993 to 1995 can be obtained as follows.

Year Rice Wheat

Demand Supply Demand Supply
1993 164 118 178 168
1994 182 148 199 182
1995 197 160 213 205
Total 543 426 590 555

From the above table, we can see that the difference between the demand for and supply of
Rice is 117 and that between the demand for and supply of Wheat is 35. Therefore, the
difference between the demand for and supply of Rice forms 117/35 = 335% of the difference
between the demand for and supply of Wheat. Hence answer option is d.

6. Compare the values in the graph for the option years. In the year 1996 the gap between
demand and supply is the least. Hence answer option is d.

Solutions to Questions 7 to 14.

7. Since the question requires the cumulative outlay on Other Social Services for the given period,
i.e. from 67 to 95; one must add up the respective outlays for Other Social Services. For Plan V
the actual value is obtained by multiplying Plan III‟s 6616 with 250/100 to get the actual as

Pankaj Gandhi’s Academy/Data Interpretation 120

 16540. So the complete sum will be 1202 + 456 + 1902 + 6616 + 12063 + 16540 = Rs. 38779
crore. Hence answer option is c.

8. Outlay on Health in Plan V = 2919 x 350/100  2900 x 3.5 = 10150 (+). Education outlay on
Plan VI = 2212 x 450/100  2200 x 9/2  10000 (-).  The required % = [Health/Education] x
100  [10150/10000] x 100 = 101.5%. Look out for the option just greater than 100%. Hence
answer option is a.

9. Since the average annual expenditure is required, one must divide the outlay by the number of
years. Since the Annual Plans is a 3 year period, annual outlay on Health = 663/3 = 221.
During Plan II, annual outlay on Health = 1712 / 5 = 342.4. So the difference is 342.4 – 221 =
Rs. 121.4 crore. Hence answer option is a.

10. The total outlay of Plan III = Rs. 16128 crore. The outlay on Education in Plan V = 2212 x
300/100 = 6636.  The required % = [16128/6636] x 100  240(+)%. So the nearest answer is
243.04%. Hence answer option is c.

11. Since percentage increase has been asked, it is obviously with respect to the previous year. By
looking at the figures for the mentioned areas, it is obvious that Education or Housing cannot
be the answer because the Plan IV figures are less than twice those of the Plan III figures (this
means that the % increase is less than 100% and can be done mentally). Health = 6292 - 2919
/ 2919  34/29  1.15. Family Planning = [3355 – 1451] / 1451  1900 / 1450  38 / 29  1.3 (+).
So the correct answer is Family Planning. Hence answer option is c.

12. The current 70 paise value of the 1980 rupee means that 70 paise of 1980 have the same
buying power as that of the current rupee. So, 70p of 1980 = 100p of 1985 – 90. So, 1p of 1980
= 100/70 p of 1985 – 90. So, Rs. 3355 of 1980 = 3355 x 10 / 7 = Rs. 4793. Hence answer
option is b.

13. A 20% drop in the value of the rupee during each plan will mean a rupee during Plan II will only
be worth 64 paise during Plan IV. We have, 100 x (1 – 20 / 100)2 = 64. So in terms of Plan II
prices, the current outlay of Rs. 3404 crore of Plan IV is equivalent to Rs. 3404 x 0.64 = Rs.
2178.56 crore. Hence answer option is b.

14. In order to calculate the amount actually spent on eradication of slums only, we should know
the ratio in which the outlay was distributed between “eradication” and “provision of flats”. Since
this data is not available, the answer is „insufficient data‟. Hence answer option is d.

Solutions to Questions 15 to 22.

15. The new licences issued in ‟93 were…

Metallurgical: 1400-1280 = 120 Electrical: 850 – 720 = 130
Chemical : 445 – 425 = 20 Textile : 670 - 645 = 25
Total = 120 + 130 + 20 + 25 = 295.

The new licences issued in ‟95 were…

Metallurgical: 1620-1480 = 140 Electrical: 980 – 910 = 70
Chemical : 525 – 480 = 45 Textile : 840 - 785 = 55
Total = 140 + 70 + 45 + 55 = 310.
 The difference = 310 – 295 = 15. Hence answer option is b.

16. The difference between the figures of the two years for a given category will give the number of
licences newly issued within that period.
Electrical = 910 – 720 = 190; Metallurgical = 1480 – 1280 = 200.
 The required percentage = 190 / 200 x 100 = 19 x 5 = 95%. Hence answer option is a.

17. Using the formula for percentage deviation and the figures for 1992 and 1995 as the initial and
final values, calculate the industry with the smallest such value.
Metallurgical = 1620 – 1280 x 100 / 1280 = 34 x 100 / 128  26 (+)%.
Electrical = 980 – 720 x 100 / 720 = 26 x 100 / 72  35 (+)%.

121 Pankaj Gandhi’s Academy/Data Interpretation

 Chemical = 525 – 425 x 100 / 425 = 100 x 100 / 425  24 (-)%.
Textile = 840 – 645 x 100 / 645  200 x 100 / 650  30 (+)%.
So the industry with the smallest percentage increase is Chemical. Hence answer option is c.

18. New textile units in ‟93 = 670 –645 = 25; Existing units = 645. Total expenditure = (20 x 25 ) +
(1 x 645) = Rs. 1145 lakh.  The expenditure per unit = 1145 / 670  1.7 (+) i.e.  Rs. 1.7 lakh.
Hence answer option is d.

19. New licences to chemical units in ‟94 = 480 – 445 = 35. 40% of these new units = 0.4 x 35 = 14
units. 20% of the existing units = (20/100) x 445 = 89 units. Thus the total number of units
which had to be closed down were 14 + 89 = 103. From the total of 480, 103 were closed
down. So 480 – 103 = 377 remained unaffected. Thus the % of unaffected = 377 x 100/ 480 
78%. Hence answer option is d.

20. Number of chemical units in ‟95 = 525. So the number of metallurgical units in ‟96 = 2 x 525 =
1050. Thus the % decrease = (1620 – 1050 )x 100 / 1620 = 57 / 162  35%. Hence answer
option is b.

21. The answer Indeterminable because one cannot assign a particular parent industry to
polyester. Hence answer option is d.

22. Since it will take 12 months to issue a licence, the new unit will be considered only from ‟96 for
which we do not have the required data. So the answer definitely Indeterminable. Hence
answer option is d.

Solutions to Questions 23 to 30.

23. In the Manufacturing industry (public sector), increase in employment opportunities from „75-‟85
is = 1590 – 795 = 795. In the Manufacturing industry (private sector), a similar increase = 4678
– 3968 = 710. Thus the percentage that public sector forms of private sector = 795 x 100 / 710
 110(+)%. Hence answer option is d.

24. Public sector : Agriculture and Construction in ‟80 = 361 + 1002 = 1363. Agriculture and
Construction in ‟90 = 18000 x (4 + 8) / 100 = 180 x 12 = 2160.  The difference = 2160 – 1363
= 797. Hence answer option is d.

25. Services has the public sector‟s largest share with 52% of 18000, i.e. 52 x 18000 / 100 = 9360.
Manufacturing has the private sector‟s largest share with 54% of 8000, i.e. 54 x 8000 / 100 =
4320. So the required percentage = 9360 x 100 / 4320  200 (++)%  216%. Hence answer
option is d.

26. If 2 out of every 5 are graduates, 3 out of 5 are non – graduates. Transport in the public sector
= 15% of 18000 = 2700. So non-graduates = 2700 x 3 / 5 = 1620. Hence answer option is c.

27. Mining and Quarrying in ‟90 in public sector = 18000 x 6 / 100 = 1080. From ‟75 (value = 250)
to ‟90 (value = 1080), the percent increase = 1080 – 250 x 100 / 250 = 830 x 0.4  332%. But
this increase of 332% has occurred in 15 years. So the annual growth rate is 332 / 15  22%.
Hence answer option is c.

28. Private sector‟s construction industry figures are…

‟90 = 8000 x 4 / 100 = 320 ,
‟95 = 320 x 9 / 10 = 288 ,
‟80 = 83.
 The percentage increase = (288 – 83) x 100 / 83 = 205 x 100 / 83  250 (-)%  247%.
Hence answer option is b.

29. Since the 1995 values of the index for the private sector‟s service industry and the public
sector‟s manufacturing industry are the same (120), the 1995 percentage deviation will be the

Pankaj Gandhi’s Academy/Data Interpretation 122

 same as the deviation for the ‟90 figures. Since 1440 and 2160 are in the ratio 2:3, percentage
deviation = (2-3) x 100/3 = -33.33%. Hence answer option is a.

30. In the private sector in ‟95 transport has the maximum % fall; i.e. the lowest index value (80).
Transport in the private sector in „90 = 2 x 8000 / 100 = 160. In ‟95, transport = 160 x 80 / 100 =
128. So the actual figure is 128000. So in hundreds the answer is 1280. Hence answer option
is a.

Exercise - 10(A)
Solutions to Questions 1 to 7.

1. By visual inspection, it is clear that rice has the maximum increase in production [i.e. from 40 to
65] during the given period.  % increase = [(65-40)/40]x100 = 62.5%. Hence answer option is
a.

2. The production of wheat from 1977 to 1984 = 25 + 15 + 29 + 20 + 32 + 25 + 30 = 176 million

tonnes. the average production = 176/7  25 million tonnes per year. Hence answer option is
c.

3. The maize production from 1978 to 1983 = 20 + 15 + 18 + 22 + 15 = 90 million tonnes. Pulses

from 1979 to 1983 = 16 + 20 + 15 + 15 = 66.  the required ratio = 90:66  1.36:1. Hence
answer option is a.

4. Check by visual inspection that the production of wheat is less than the production of other
foodgrains for two years, viz. 1978-79 and 1980-81. Of these two years, the wheat production
is more than maize only in 1980-81, so the answer is 1. Hence answer option is b.

5. The best way to identify the greatest increase is to see which band representing wheat has the
greatest length compared to the previous. It can be seen here that the wheat production for
1979-80, which is 29 million tonnes, is almost double the production (15 million tonnes) of the
previous year.  the % increase = [(29-15)/15]x100 = 93.3%. Hence answer option is c.

6. The production of wheat in 1982-83 = 25 million tonnes.  the actual wheat production in 1984-
85 = 1.2 x 25 = 30 million tonnes. The lowest production of wheat in the given period was 15
million tonnes in the year 1978-79.  the increase = 30 – 15 = 15 million tonnes, which is (1 x
15), i.e. exactly equal to the lowest, which means the production in 1984-85 is one time more.
So the answer option is (d) None of these.

7. The production of the various foodgrains in 1984-85 is as follows:

Rice=1.25 x 60 = 75 million tonnes Wheat=1.2 x 25 = 30 million tonnes
Pulses=1.5 x 15 = 22.5 million tonnes Maize=1.6 x 15 = 24 million tonnes
Others=1.4 x 15 = 21 million tonnes.
 Total = 75 + 30 + 22.5 + 24 + 21 = 172.5 million tonnes. Hence answer option is a.

Solutions to Questions 8 to 15.

8. Karnataka‟s total railway length is 65 + 122 + 365 = 552 km of which broad gauge is 365. So
the percentage is 365 x 100 / 552  200/3  66%. Hence answer option is a.

9. Madhya Pradesh‟s total railway length is 220 + 185 + 536 = 941 of which broad gauge is  540
/ 950  60 (-)%. So the other part will have a 40 (+)% share which is approximately 43%. Hence
answer option is a.

10. Orissa‟s total railway length is 154 + 136 + 190 = 480 km. The percentage of metre gauge is
136 x 100 / 480  28(+)%. So the answer option is (d) none of these.

11. Rajasthan‟s railway network has a length 125 + 181 + 276 = 582 km. So narrow gauge and
broad gauge combined = (125 + 276) x 100 / 562 = 401/562  71 (+)%. So the answer is none
of these. Hence answer option is d.

123 Pankaj Gandhi’s Academy/Data Interpretation

12. Delhi has 35% of the UT total of 135 km., which is approximately 47 km. Hence answer option
is a.

13. In West Bengal, conversion of narrow gauge to metre gauge will cost 165 x 2500 = 412500.
Conversion of metre gauge to broad gauge will cost 110 x 1500 = 165000. So the total cost will
come to Rs. 577500. Hence answer option is a.

14. Bihar will convert half of the 190 km of narrow gauge to metre gauge and the remaining to
broad gauge. Converting 95 km of narrow gauge to broad gauge will cost 95 x 3500 and the
remaining 95 km to metre gauge will cost 95 x 2500. So the total cost will be 6000 x 95 =
570000. So the answer will be none of these. Hence answer option is d.

15. Tamil Nadu converted the entire 110 km. of narrow gauge to metre gauge @ 2500/km. So they
had to pay Rs. 275000. Now the total length of metre gauge is 293+110 = 403 km. This is then
converted to broad gauge @ 1500/km. This cost is Rs. 604500. So the total expenditure came
to Rs. 879500. Hence answer option is a.

Solutions to Questions 16 to 20.

16. Difference in Tax = 8.6[21.5 - 0.6 X 19.5] = Rs 84.28 cr. Hence answer option is b.

17. Total collection in North = 20(4+9+5+11) = Rs 580 cr

Total collection from South = 25(2.5+4+1.5+1) = Rs 225 cr
Reqd % = 355X100/225 = 157.8% Hence answer option is c.

18. In this problem, there is no mention about types of the movies. So, answer is (d).

19. Total viewers of MPK at the end of next yr = 180+10+(0.3X0.8X180) = 235 mn

Total viewers of Sholay = 1.1X215 = 236.5 mn
So still SHOLAY would have maximum number of viewers. Hence answer option is a.

20. Deol loyalist viewers = 30 % of SHOLAY viewers. So, required percentage = 0.3 x 215/ 195 =
33%. Hence answer option is a.

Exercise - 10(B)
Solutions to Questions 1 to 3.

1. If we follow a particular route to go from A to H, the activities other than on the route will take
place simultaneously. E.g. when activity (A - C) takes place, activity (A - B) will occur
simultaneously and will be completed before (A - C) as the duration is only 6 minutes. So, if we
consider the longest route from A to H, all other activities will be completed before the activities
on the route are completed. As (A - B - C - D – G - H) is the longest route with a total duration
of 34 minutes, the time taken to manufacture one unit will be 34 minutes. Therefore, the time
required to manufacture 25 units will be 850 minutes or 14 hours 10 minutes. Hence answer
option is c.

2. The total available time is 600 minutes. The time required to manufacture 10 units is 340
minutes. This time along with the 10 minute break leaves 250 minutes, during which another 7
units an be manufactured with a wastage of 12 minutes. The next day, three units will be
manufactured to complete a set of 10 and there will be a 10 minute break. If we consider that
17 units are manufactured every day, the time required will be 578 minutes. If we add two
breaks to this time, we arrive at a total time of 598 minutes with a wastage of 2 minutes per
day. Therefore, the total number of units manufactured in a week is 119. Hence answer option
is b.

3. If we change the durations in the given network, we will still have to consider the duration of the
longest route from A to H as the time required to manufacture one unit. Even after the change
in duration of the activities, the longest route is (A - B - C - D - G - H) with a total duration of 36
minutes. As the original time required to manufacture one unit was 34 minutes, the percent

Pankaj Gandhi’s Academy/Data Interpretation 124

 increase in the time required to manufacture one unit is 2/34 = 5.88%  6%. Hence answer
option is a.

Solutions to Questions 4 to 6.

4. To find the maximum number of soaps, we will have to consider the minimum time required to
manufacture P, Q and R. The lesser the time, the more will be the number of soaps
manufactured. As there is no condition on the type of soap to be manufactured, we can
consider only those types of soap which require the least time on the two machines. P requires
minimum time on M1 and Q requires minimum time on M2. We have a total of 480 minutes
available on each machine. As P requires 8 minutes on M 1, we can manufacture 60 soaps of P
on M1 with no idle time. As Q requires 9 minutes on M2, we can manufacture 53 soaps of Y on
M2. Therefore, the maximum total number of soaps that can be manufactured in a day is 113.
Hence answer option is a.

5. To manufacture 15 soaps of type R, we will first have to manufacture 45 soaps each of types P
and Q. As we are considering the least time required for manufacturing, we will have to
manufacture soaps of types P and Q on machines M1 and M2 respectively. 45 soaps of type P
require 360 minutes on M1 and 45 soaps of type R will require 405 minutes on M2. We are left
with a balance of 120 minutes and 75 minutes on the two machines respectively. As each soap
of type R requires 10 minutes to be manufactured on M1, we can manufacture 12 soaps with no
idle time. At the same time, we can manufacture three soaps on M2 with a balance of 39
minutes. Therefore, we do not need any extra time to manufacture 15 soaps of type R. Hence
answer option is d.

6. The total time required to manufacture one soap each of types P, Q and R on M 1 and M2 30
minutes and 33 minutes respectively. So, the maximum number of soaps of the three types that
can be manufactured on M1 and M2 is 16 each and 14 each respectively. Therefore, the ratio of
efficiencies is 14:16 or 0.875. Hence answer option is a.

Solutions to Questions 7 to 14.

7. The expected number of further years for a 20-year female in 1947 was 33 years (refer to the
1941-50 line).  Mrs. Kapoor is expected to live upto 33+1947 = 1980. Hence answer option is
a.

8. The question requires us to find the increase in the entire life-span and not just the life
expectancy in further years. According to the 1941 estimates, a 40 year old male would have
lived for 40+20.5 = 60.5 years. According to the 1961 estimates, a 40 year old male would have
lived for 40+24.5 = 64.5 years.  The percentage increase = [(64.5-60.5)/60.5] x 100 = 6.6%.
Hence answer option is c.

9. A female who was 50 years old in 1961 must have been 30 years of age in 1941. For a 30 year
old female in 1941, the expected life-span = 30+26 = 56 years. For a 50 year female in 1961,
the expected life-span = 50+19 = 69 years.  the increase in life expectancy = 69-56 = 13
years. Hence answer option is c.

10. Check whether the expectancy value for the females is greater than that of males for the lines
of all the three years mentioned, for a particular age category. The age categories which satisfy
this condition are 40 years, 50 years and 60 years. Hence answer option is c.

11. The required increase because of the new drug = 150 x 1/20 = 7.5 years. This increase has to
be added to the life expectancy of in 1961-70.  The life expectancy (in further years) = 7.5+40
= 47.5 years. Hence answer option is b.

12. The new - born in 1931 will be 40 years old in 1971. The increase because of the drug = 150 x
1/40 = 3.75 years. This will be added to the life expectancy of a 40 year old female in 1961-70,
which is 25 years.  The total life expectancy = 40+25+3.75 = 68.75 years. Hence answer
option is b.

125 Pankaj Gandhi’s Academy/Data Interpretation

13. Her first daughter will be 30 years of age in 1971. So the increase will be 150 x 1/30 = 5 years.
 On lines similar to those in the previous problems, the total life expectancy = 30+32+5 = 67
years. Her ninth son will be 10 years of age in 1971, so the increase will be 150 x 1/10 = 15
years.  The total life expectancy will be 10+49+15 = 74 years. The difference in the life
expectancies = 74-67 = 7 years. Hence answer option is d.

14. Note that we have to find the percentage increase for a “male”, as is evident from the word “his”
in the question. In the decade 1941-50, he would complete 20 years and so his total life-span
would be 20+33 = 53 years. In 1961-70, his age would be 40 years and his life-span would be
40+25 = 65 years.  The percentage increase = [(65-53)/53] x 100  22%. Hence answer
option is c.

Solutions to Questions 15 to 22.

15. In 1989-90, 25.8% of the total people are poor, and these are 210 million in number (throughout
the country). Since 25.8% corresponds to 210 million, 100 will correspond to approximately 815
million. Hence answer option is a.

16. The urban population forms 19% of the total 350 million poor people. So the number of urban
poor people = [(19/100) x 350] = 66.5 million. These form 43% of the urban population.  the
urban population = 66.5 x 100/43  155 million.  Those above the Poverty Line 155 – 66.5 =
88.5 million. Hence answer option is a.

17. 82% of the total poor people (310million) within the country were from the rural area. [(82/100) x
310]  255 million. These 255 million form approx. 51% of the rural population, so the total
number of rural people will be 100%, which is slightly less than twice of 255,  500 million.
Hence answer option is a.

18. In the rural areas, the poor form 80% of the total 210 million, i.e. 0.8 x 210 = 168 million. These
constitute 28% of the rural population, the total rural population = [168 x (100/28)] = 600
million. So the number of rural people above the Poverty Line = 600-168 = 432 million. Hence
answer option is a.

19. In 1984-85, 19% of the total of 270 million poor were from the urban areas, which is = [(19/100)
x 270)] = 51.3 million. These form 28% of the urban population.  the urban population in
1984-85 = [51.3 x (100/28)]  185 million. Hence answer option is a.

20. In 1977-78, 48% of the total are poor (i.e. below the Poverty Line), so 52% are not poor.  the
number of people above the Poverty Line = [310 x (52/48)]  336 million. In 1989-90, 26% of
the total are poor, so 74% are above the Poverty Line.  The number of “not poor” people in
1989-90 is [210 x (74/26)]  600 million. Thus the increase over the given period  600-336 
264 million. Hence answer option is a.

21. In 1989-90, the initial area-wise distribution of rural and urban poor people is 80% and 20%
respectively. Assume that there are in all 100 poor people. So 80 will be from the rural areas,
while 20 will be from the urban. 10% of the rural, i.e. 8 people leave, so now there are (80-8) =
72 rural poor people. Of the 8 who have left, half, i.e. 4 still remain poor, while the other four are
added to the urban poor, whose number now becomes (20+4) = 24. Thus, the rural poor are
72, while urban poor are 24, and the total no. of poor people is 72+24 = 96. Thus the urban
poor form [(24/96) x 100] = 25% of the total poor. Hence answer option is b.

22. In 1989-90, approximately 25% of the population lives below the Poverty Line, i.e., of a total of
100 people, 25 are poor while 75 are not poor. Of these 75, 20%, i.e. 15 now become poor. So
(75-15) = 60 remain above the Poverty Line, while (25+15) = 40 are below it. So the ratio of
those above to those below becomes 60:40 = 3:2. Hence answer option is a.

Pankaj Gandhi’s Academy/Data Interpretation 126

Solutions to Questions 23 to 30.

23. The term “break-even” means the point where the income equals the expenditure. The cost of
the project is Rs. 1700 crore. Since the selling price of each Mint is Rs. 2.5 lakh, the production
cost is 1.25 lakh and the profit is 1.25 lakh. So the number of Mints that have to be sold to
recover the cost of the project = [(Rs. 1700 crore)/(Rs. 1.25 lakh per vehicle)] = 1,36,000
vehicles. Hence answer option is b.

24. The Palio makes a profit of ½(3.2) = Rs. 1.6 lakh per vehicle. To recover a project cost of Rs.
640 crore, it must sell [(640 crore)/(1.6 lakh)] = 40,000 vehicles. Since the annual capacity is
16,000 vehicles, the production of 40,000 vehicles will take 40,000/16,000 = 2½ years. March
1999 + 2½ years = September 2001. Hence answer option is d.

25. A profit of Rs. 60,000 per car will mean that at the end of a year, after having sold 12000
vehicles, the total profit will be Rs. Rs. 72 crore. The cost of the project is Rs. 540 crore. So the
% of the cost that is recovered is [(72/540) x 100] = 13.33%. Hence answer option is b.

26. After 12 months, 6000 Lancers are sold. So in 15 months, [6000 x 15/12] = 7500 vehicles will
be sold. The profit per vehicle is ½(7) = Rs. 3.5 lakh. So the profit after 15 months will be 3.5 x
105 x 7500 = Rs. 262.5 crore. The percentage of the amount not obtained is [(900-262.5)/900]
x 100  71%, so the answer is “None of these”.i.e., (d)

27. 41% interest compounded annually for 2 years will mean almost doubling the cost, as [1.41] 2 
1.99  2.00. After a 20% increase in the selling price, the new selling price will be 3 x 6/5 = Rs.
3.6 lakh. So the profit per vehicle will be Rs. 1.8 lakh. The new cost liability of the project is  2
x 750  Rs. 1500 crore.  The number of vehicles required to be sold in order to break even =
[(1500 x 107)/(1.8 x 105) = 83,333 vehicles. Hence answer option is b.

28. The new price of the car will be 6.5+0.5 = Rs. 7.0 lakh, and so the profit will be Rs. 3.5 lakh.
The number of vehicles sold remains at 8,000. So the total profit becomes 3.5 x 8,000 = Rs.
280 crore. Of this, Rs. 40 crore is a part of the cost of the project.  The profit remaining = Rs.
280-40 = Rs. 240 crore. Hence answer option is c.

29. The initial data about the 40% increase in capacity is redundant. The new cost of the project is
400+60 = Rs. 460 crore. The profit per vehicle = Rs. ½(7.5) = Rs. 3.75 lakh. So the number of
vehicles required to be sold = (460 x 107)/(3.75 x 105) which is slightly greater than 1,80,000/15,
i.e. greater than 12,000. Hence answer option is a.

30. Since we have the production of new model is twice the production of the Lancer, while sold at
half the price of the Lancer, ratio of annual profits of the Lancer to those of the new model will
be 1:1. Hence answer option is d.

127 Pankaj Gandhi’s Academy/Data Interpretation