RBI Office Attendant Reasoning 2026: The Reasoning section is a crucial part of the RBI Office Attendant exam, testing a candidate’s logical thinking, analytical skills, and problem-solving speed. For the 2026 exam, mastering this section is essential, as questions often include topics like Inequality, Blood Relations, Direction & Distance, Coding-Decoding, and various puzzles. Practicing previous year papers helps candidates understand the exam pattern, identify frequently asked question types, and develop strategies to solve problems quickly and accurately. A strong foundation in reasoning not only boosts confidence but also increases the chances of clearing high cut-offs in this highly competitive exam.

RBI Office Attendant Reasoning Section

Solving previous year's question papers is a crucial first step for RBI Office Attendant exam preparation. It helps candidates understand question types, difficulty levels, and expected patterns. This analysis focuses on the Reasoning section of the 2026 exam, which provides valuable insights into the skills required for success.

RBI Office Attendant Reasoning 2026 Exam Pattern

The Reasoning section in the RBI Office Attendant 2026 exam featured generally simple questions, but required significant speed and accuracy due to high cut-offs. The exam had a composite time of 90 minutes for 120 questions.

Topics covered and their approximate question distribution:

• Inequality: 2 questions

• Alpha-Numeric Series: 5 questions

• Blood Relation: 2 questions

• Direction & Distance: 4 questions

• Chinese Coding-Decoding: 2 questions

• Month-Based Puzzle: 1 puzzle

• Circular Arrangement: 1 puzzle

• Box Puzzle: 1 puzzle

Topic: Inequality

Problem 1: Basic Inequality

To determine the relationship between elements, identify a direct path and ensure all signs point in the same direction.

• Example Analysis: If a direct path from O to Q exists with all 'greater than' (>) signs, the conclusion O > Q is correct. If a path from X to M contains opposite signs (e.g., < and >), no definitive relationship can be established, making the conclusion incorrect.

Problem 2: 'Either/Or' Case in Inequality

The 'Either/Or' case applies when individual conclusions are false due to an undetermined relationship between elements, but their combination covers all possibilities.

Conditions for 'Either/Or':

1. Same Elements: Both conclusions must involve the same two elements (e.g., R and F).

2. Both Conclusions False: Both individual conclusions must be false due to Cannot Be Determined (C&D), meaning no direct relation (>, <, =) can be found from the statement.

3. All Possibilities Covered: The combined relationships expressed by the conclusions must cover all three possibilities: greater than (>), less than (<), and equal to (=). For example, if one conclusion states 'R ≥ F' (R > F or R = F) and another states 'R < F', together they cover all relationships between R and F.

When all three conditions are met, the answer is an 'Either/Or' relationship.

Topic: Alpha-Numeric Series

Problem 1: Finding a Specific Pattern

Question: How many alphabets are immediately preceded by a symbol AND immediately followed by a letter?

Required Pattern: Symbol - Letter - Letter.

Analysis: Scan the series to identify instances matching this sequence.

Problem 2: Interpreting the "Either/Or" Condition

Question: How many symbols are EITHER immediately preceded by a letter OR immediately followed by a letter?

Required Patterns:

1. Letter - Symbol

2. Symbol - Letter
   Pedagogical Emphasis: The word "EITHER/OR" is crucial here. It implies counting symbols that satisfy one of the conditions but not both simultaneously. A symbol like Letter - Symbol - Letter would not be counted under this specific interpretation. If "either/or" was absent, then symbols with letters on at least one side (including both) would be counted.

Problem 3: Multi-Step Positional Question

This involves a sequence of steps to locate an element. For instance, finding an element exactly in the middle of two specific characters, then determining another element based on its position relative to the middle element (e.g., 15th to the left). Careful counting and directionality are key.

Problem 4: Counting Specific Element Types

Question: How many letters are between two specified symbols (e.g., '!' and '&')?

Analysis: Locate the boundary symbols and count only the alphabets within that range, ignoring numbers or other symbols.

Problem 5: Finding the Odd One Out

This involves identifying a pair or group that doesn't follow the common pattern established by others. The pattern might be based on the gap between elements, their type, or their relative positions in the series.

Topic: Blood Relation

Setup: 6 family members, 3 generations, 2 married couples.

Key Constraint: There are no single parents. This means if a person has a child, they must have a spouse present in the family structure.

Solution Steps Overview:

1. Establish primary relationships (e.g., B is mother of D).

2. Use the "no single parents" rule to infer spouses (e.g., B has a husband).

3. Identify generations (e.g., C is grandson of B places C in third generation).

4. Connect family lines through marriage and parent-child relationships, building a family tree.

5. If gender is not explicitly stated for an individual, their exact relationship cannot be determined.

Result Example: If D's gender is unknown, the relationship "D to E" might be Cannot Be Determined (C&D).

Topic: Direction & Distance

Setup: A series of movements defining the positions of several points relative to each other.

Diagram Construction: Visualize and draw each movement step-by-step, marking directions (North, South, East, West) and distances.

• P is 10m East of B.

• B is 5m South of A.

• Q is 5m North of P.

• C is 5m West of Q.

• D is 10m South of C.

• R is 4m West of D.

Question: What is the direction of R with respect to Q?

Analysis: To find the direction of a target point (R) from a reference point (Q), draw a line from Q to R. Observe if this line goes South-West, North-East, etc. In the example, R would be South-West of Q.

Topic: Chinese Coding-Decoding

This involves decoding words based on common codes across multiple sentences. The method of elimination is fundamental.

Problem 1: Finding the Code for 'Legal'

1. Identify sentences containing the word 'legal'.

2. Compare these sentences with others to find common words and their corresponding common codes.

3. Eliminate codes that belong to other words present in the same sentence as 'legal'.

4. The remaining unique code for that sentence is the code for 'legal'. (e.g., 'LI')

Problem 2: Finding the Code for 'Change Matter'

1. Find the code for 'change' using the elimination method as above.

2. Find the code for 'matter' using the same elimination method.

3. Combine these two individual codes to get the code for 'change matter' (e.g., 'TV LM').

Topic: Box Puzzle

Setup: Arranging 8 boxes (O, P, Q, R, S, T, M, N) one above the other based on given conditions.

Solution Steps Overview:

1. Start with definitive conditions (e.g., "Four boxes between P and R"). This often creates multiple cases.

2. Integrate relative positions (e.g., "Two boxes between P and M," "O is kept four boxes above M").

3. Look for blocks of boxes (e.g., "Q is kept just above S" forms a QS block).

4. Apply negative constraints (e.g., "N is not kept near M").

5. Eliminate conflicting cases until a single, consistent arrangement is found.

Final Arrangement Example (Top to Bottom): O, T, Q, S, M, N, P, R.

Question: Which box is at the topmost position? O.

Topic: Date-Based Puzzle

Setup: 8 people (A, B, E, Q, R, S, T, V) visiting a zoo on two dates (11th, 24th) across four months (April, May, June, July).

Structure:

• April (30 days): 11th, 24th

• May (31 days): 11th, 24th

• June (30 days): 11th, 24th

• July (31 days): 11th, 24th

Solution Logic:

1. Map out all possible date slots.

2. Apply conditions that restrict placement, especially those related to month days (e.g., "vowel names not in 30-day months" implies A, E only in May or July).

3. Place individuals based on "number of people between" conditions (e.g., "Two people between E and T"). This often leads to creating multiple cases.

4. Combine conditions (e.g., "R went immediately after E" creates an ER block).

5. Use negative constraints (e.g., "V does not go in April") to eliminate cases.

6. Systematically fill slots until a unique arrangement is derived.

Final Arrangement Example:

• April 11: B

• April 24: V

• May 11: R

• May 24: E

• June 11: S

• June 24: Q

• July 11: A

• July 24: T

Topic: Circular Arrangement

Setup: 8 people (F, G, H, N, P, T, U, X) around a circular table, all facing outside.

Solution Steps Overview:

1. Start with a direct placement (e.g., "G is second to the left of P"). Remember for outside facing, 'left' is clockwise, and 'right' is counter-clockwise.

2. Place individuals based on numerical gaps (e.g., "Two people sit between G and N"). This may create multiple cases.

3. Utilize special relationships: In an 8-person circular arrangement, if three people sit between two individuals, they are directly opposite each other (Memory Tip: Three in between, means opposite on an 8-seater circle).

4. Integrate negative constraints (e.g., "F is not an immediate neighbor of U or P").

5. Systematically eliminate conflicting placements until the unique arrangement is formed.

6. The last person fills the remaining seat.

Final Arrangement Example (Clockwise from P): P, H, G, X, N, U, T, F.

Question: Who sits to the immediate right of N?

Analysis: Since all face outside, immediate right is counter-clockwise. X sits immediately right of N.