← General Intelligence & Reasoning · NTPC NGEL Engineer Civil

Chapter 11 of 12

Statement, Conclusions & Assumptions

In the NTPC NGEL Engineer Civil syllabus under General Intelligence & Reasoning · 2 parts

Statement & Conclusions / Courses of Action · Statement, Assumptions & Arguments

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📑 Contents (10 sections)

Part 1 of 2

Statement & Conclusions / Courses of Action

Last reviewed 22 Sept 2026 · 5 min read

The only question being asked

"Does this conclusion follow from the statement?" means: reading only the statement, and nothing you happen to know about the world, is the conclusion necessarily true?

Three tests dispose of most options:

Is it stated or forced? If the statement leaves it open, it does not follow.
Is it too strong? Words such as all, never, only, always, must usually go beyond a statement that was modest.
Is it too wide? A statement about one city does not support a conclusion about the country.

Exam TipThe restatement trap

An option that merely repeats the statement in other words is not a conclusion — it adds nothing. Exam keys treat such options as not following, unless the paper's own instructions say otherwise.

Conclusion, inference, assumption

Term	Where it sits	Test
Conclusion	after the statement	must be true if the statement is true
Inference	after the statement	probably true, drawn from it
Assumption	before the statement	taken for granted by the writer

An assumption is what the speaker must already believe for their sentence to make sense; a conclusion is what a reader may take away from it. Confusing the two is the commonest error in the whole topic.

Courses of action

A course of action is a step suggested to deal with a problem in the statement. It follows only if it passes all three tests:

Relevance — it addresses the problem actually stated.
Practicality — it can be done by the body that would have to do it.
Proportion — it is not an extreme step where a mild one would do, and not a mild one where the statement describes an emergency.

Actions that are punitive for their own sake, or that ban an activity wholesale, are usually rejected; actions that inform, regulate, repair or investigate are usually accepted.

Worked examples

Worked ExampleExample 1 — too strong

Statement: Most of the students in the class passed the examination. Conclusion: All the students studied hard.

Solution. "Most" does not give "all", and studying hard is nowhere in the statement → does not follow.

Worked ExampleExample 2 — forced

Statement: All the trains from this station run to the east. Conclusion: No train from this station runs to the west.

Solution. Forced by the statement → follows.

Worked ExampleExample 3 — too wide

Statement: The sale of electric scooters in Delhi rose 40% last year. Conclusion: Electric scooters are becoming popular across India.

Solution. One city does not settle a country → does not follow.

Worked ExampleExample 4 — two conclusions

Statement: The company has decided to raise the salaries of its workers from next month. Conclusions: I. The workers were dissatisfied with their salaries. II. The company can afford the rise.

Solution. I is a guess about the reason → does not follow. II is implied by the decision to make it → only II follows.

Worked ExampleExample 5 — an assumption, not a conclusion

Statement: "Use our detergent for whiter clothes" — an advertisement. Which is an assumption? (a) People want whiter clothes. (b) The detergent is cheap.

Solution. (a) — the advertisement makes no sense unless whiteness is wanted. Price is not taken for granted anywhere.

Worked ExampleExample 6 — a course of action

Statement: A large number of road accidents on the highway occur at night at one particular curve. Courses: I. The curve should be re-designed and lit. II. The highway should be closed at night.

Solution. I is relevant, practical and proportionate → follows. II is disproportionate → only I follows.

Worked ExampleExample 7 — both follow

Statement: A sudden outbreak of a water-borne disease has been reported in a locality. Courses: I. The water supply of the locality should be tested at once. II. Residents should be advised to boil drinking water until further notice.

Solution. Both are relevant, practical and immediate → both follow.

Worked ExampleExample 8 — neither follows

Statement: Many students of the school scored poorly in mathematics this year. Courses: I. The mathematics teacher should be dismissed. II. Mathematics should be removed from the syllabus.

Solution. I is punitive before any enquiry; II is absurd → neither follows. (A remedial class would have followed.)

Part 2 of 2

Statement, Assumptions & Arguments

Last reviewed 22 Sept 2026 · 5 min read

Implicit assumptions

An assumption is something the speaker takes for granted — not said, but necessary for the statement to make sense.

FormulaThe negation test

Negate the proposed assumption. If the statement now falls apart or becomes pointless, the assumption is implicit. If the statement still stands, it is not.

Examples of the test in use:

Statement: "Please switch off mobile phones during the film." Proposed assumption: people carry mobile phones. Negated: nobody carries a phone → the notice is pointless → implicit.
Same statement, proposed assumption: mobile phones are expensive. Negated: phones are cheap → the notice still makes sense → not implicit.

What is usually NOT an assumption

Anything the statement says outright — that is given, not assumed.
A conclusion drawn from it.
Something merely likely in the real world.
A comparison the statement never makes ("this is the best method").

Strong and weak arguments

An argument is strong when it is both relevant to the question asked and weighty — it addresses the real issue and would move a reasonable person.

Five things make an argument weak:

Irrelevance — it answers a different question.
Triviality — true but of small consequence.
Ambiguity — vague, or a mere assertion with nothing behind it.
Circularity — it assumes what it is meant to prove ("yes, because it should be done").
Extremity — it rests on a far-fetched or emotional appeal.

An argument may be strong even if you disagree with its conclusion — strength is about relevance and weight, not about which side you favour.

Exam TipSimple examples are not weak

"Yes, because it will save lives" is short and simple, but on a road-safety question it is strong. Length is not weight.

The same sentence, two roles

Given "The state should make helmets compulsory":

As an assumption question, the point is what the speaker takes for granted — that helmets reduce injury, and that the state can enforce such a rule.
As an argument question, the point is whether a given reason for or against the proposal is relevant and weighty.

Read which of the two the paper is asking before evaluating anything.

Worked examples

Worked ExampleExample 1 — the negation test

Statement: "Buy our insurance policy and secure your family's future." Assumption: I. People are concerned about their family's future. II. Insurance is the only way to secure it.

Solution. Negate I: nobody cares about their family's future → the appeal collapses → implicit. Negate II: there are other ways → the appeal still works → not implicit. Only I is implicit.

Worked ExampleExample 2 — a notice

Statement: "Candidates should reach the centre by 9 a.m." — an examination notice. Assumption: I. Candidates can read the notice. II. Candidates will be refused entry after 9 a.m.

Solution. I is necessary for the notice to function → implicit. II is a guess about consequences → not implicit. Only I.

Worked ExampleExample 3 — stated, not assumed

Statement: "The new bridge has reduced travel time between the two towns by an hour." Assumption: Travel time between the towns has fallen.

Solution. That is stated, not assumed → not an implicit assumption.

Worked ExampleExample 4 — a strong argument

Question: Should helmets be made compulsory for two-wheeler riders? Argument: Yes — head injuries are the leading cause of death in two-wheeler accidents, and helmets reduce them substantially.

Solution. Relevant and weighty → strong.

Worked ExampleExample 5 — a weak argument

Same question. Argument: No — helmets spoil the rider's hairstyle.

Solution. Relevant to the rider's comfort but trivial next to the issue → weak.

Worked ExampleExample 6 — circular

Question: Should examinations be held online? Argument: Yes — because that is the modern way and everything should be modern.

Solution. An assertion with nothing behind it, assuming what it should prove → weak.

Worked ExampleExample 7 — both strong

Question: Should public transport fares be subsidised? Arguments: I. Yes — it puts travel within reach of low-income workers who have no alternative. II. No — subsidies strain the state budget and squeeze spending on health and schools.

Solution. Both are relevant and consequential → both are strong, though they point opposite ways.

Worked ExampleExample 8 — neither strong

Question: Should the school day start an hour later? Arguments: I. Yes — students like sleeping longer. II. No — schools have always started at the same time.

Solution. I is an appeal to preference; II is an appeal to tradition → neither is strong.

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