Double-Row Seating Reasoning Puzzle for IBPS PO — Rahul, Lata, Geeta, Sneha, Nikhil, Manish
The puzzle
Rahul, Lata, Geeta, Sneha, Nikhil, Manish — sit in two rows facing each other — Row 1 faces south, Row 2 faces north, with 3 seats per row. Using the clues below, work out the arrangement.
- Geeta sits immediately to the left of Sneha (both facing north).
- Sneha sits directly opposite Manish (they face each other).
- Exactly 1 person sits between Lata and Geeta in the same row.
- Rahul sits directly opposite Lata (they face each other).
- Lata faces north.
- Nikhil sits at an extreme end of their row.
Question: Determine the arrangement.
Reveal the answer
Answer: Row 1 (facing south): Geeta, Sneha, Lata. Row 2 (facing north): Nikhil, Manish, Rahul.
- Start: 720 ways to seat 6 people in two facing rows of 3.
- Clue 1 — "Geeta sits immediately to the left of Sneha (both facing north)." leaves 96 possibilities.
- Clue 2 — "Sneha sits directly opposite Manish (they face each other)." leaves 24 possibilities.
- Clue 3 — "Exactly 1 person sits between Lata and Geeta in the same row." leaves 4 possibilities.
- Clue 4 — "Rahul sits directly opposite Lata (they face each other)." leaves 2 possibilities.
- Clue 5 — "Lata faces north." leaves 1 possibility. The surviving seating is north row: Geeta, Sneha, Lata; south row: Nikhil, Manish, Rahul.
- Clue 6 — "Nikhil sits at an extreme end of their row." leaves 1 possibility. The surviving seating is north row: Geeta, Sneha, Lata; south row: Nikhil, Manish, Rahul.
- Exactly one seating survives every clue — north row: Geeta, Sneha, Lata; south row: Nikhil, Manish, Rahul.
How to crack double-row seating puzzles faster
- Treat each row as an independent linear arrangement, then apply the cross-row clues last.
- "Faces" means the person opposite — use these clues as cross-row constraints to lock both rows at once.
- Draw two parallel rows on paper, fill each row independently, then check which cross-row pairs satisfy the remaining clues.
- "Immediately to the left/right of" applies within the same row only — cross-row facing is a different relationship.
FAQ
Who sits in the first seat of each row?
Geeta, Sneha, Lata sit in Row 1, and Nikhil, Manish, Rahul sit in Row 2. Cross-reference with the facing clues to validate.
How do you solve double-row seating arrangement puzzles?
Solve each row independently first using linear-seating techniques, then apply cross-row constraints (facing, diagonally opposite) to find valid pairs. Draw two parallel rows and eliminate combinations that violate any clue.
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This post is one worked example. The topic page for double-row seating carries the full method, the clue-wording table, the mistakes that cost marks and more practice questions.
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